St. Paul, Minn. — Next week gifted and prominent scientists will be awarded a Nobel Prize.

The announcements start Monday with the “Nobel Prize in Medicine or Physiology.” The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences will then award prizes in Physics and Chemistry on Tuesday and Wednesday. The Nobel Peace Prize comes Thursday, followed by the Nobel Prize in Economics on Friday.

But what do these awards mean 106 years after their creation? And what do they say about the direction of science and society?

We put these questions to futurist Cecily Sommers. She is president of the Minneapolis-based Push institute and she says, if nothing else, the Nobel Prizes remind the world about science.