Not everyone gets a million dollar wake up call, but at 5 a.m. October 6th Willard S. Boyle received word that he’d won the Nobel prize in physics for developing the charge-coupled device (CCD). He shares honour and US$1.4 million with his colleague George Smith and Charles Kao, who won for his work on developing fibre optic technology.

^{Willard S. Boyle}

The CCD, invented in 1969 by the now 85 year old Mr. Boyle and Mr. Smith at Bell Laboratories in New Jersey, is a technology taken for granted by the millions of people who use it in their digital devices. In laymen’s terms the CCD is a light sensitive chip that was the first to transmit images into pixels thus being able to store images electronically and is most commonly used in digital cameras and CD players.

Mr. Boyle moved to Quebec from Nova Scotia with his family at the age of 3 where he was home schooled by his mother. After serving as a Spitfire pilot in WWII, he returned to Quebec to earn a PHD in Physics from McGill University.

Arguably a victim of the ‘brain drain’ he was then hired to work for Bell Laboratories where his efforts with Mr. Smith produced the Nobel prize winning device.

Much has changed in the way of science since then and in an interview last week with the Chronicle Herald reveals his criticisms of big business and politicians becoming too focused on commercialization rather than real breakthroughs. He says those in charge need to harness "an appreciation for the free will, free spirit of scientists. Give them a chance to do the things they want to do."

Although technology is currently changing exponentially, the flow of talent to the west and to the south of the Atlantic Provinces remains as much of an issue now as it did in the 1960’s.

"There are many bright minds born and raised in this province," he said. "Unfortunately, a lot of them leave Nova Scotia. It just seems to be the way it is and that’s partly the attitude of industry. They (scientists) don’t believe they’re going to support the research properly. You’d be surprised how many genius people come from Wallace [NS]," he said. "There’s something in the air."

Mr. Boyle will speak at the Nobel Lectures in Physics will be held on Tuesday, 8 December 2009, at the Aula Magna, Stockholm University.

Read more about Nobel Laureate Willard Boyle at chronicleherald.ca and at nobelprize.org.