What’s the difference between a discovery and a theory? Imagine a pirate searching long and hard on the hot sandy beach of a deserted isle, the tropic sweat oozing from his pores. He fiercely digs beneath the sand until he unearths a rusty treasure chest. He opens the ancient strongbox. If it contains gold doubloons, he has a major discovery in his hands. If it contains a parchment filled with differential calculus, all he has is a theory. So, while the Theories category honors the mathematicians, in the Discoveries category we pay homage to the lab rats.
Here’s a complete list of the original Discoveries nominees.
