Edmund Phelps (L) of the U.S., winner of the 2006 Nobel Prize in Economics, speaks with audiecnce after a news conference in Stockholm, Dec. 8, 2006. (Xinhua Photo) 

Six American scientists and a Turkish writer received their Nobel Prizes on Sunday at a ceremony in the capital of Sweden.

Turkish writer Orhan Pamuk won the literature prize for a body of work that illustrates the struggle to find a balance between East and West.

U.S. researchers have long dominated the science awards, and swept them all this year for the first time since 1983.

The Nobel Prize in medicine went to Andrew Z. Fire and Craig C. Mello for discovering a powerful way to turn off the effect of specific genes.

John C. Mather and George F. Smoot won the physics prize for work that helped cement the big-bang theory of how the universe was created.

Roger D. Kornberg won the prize in chemistry for his studies of how cells take information from genes to produce proteins, a process that could provide insight into defeating cancer and advancing stem cell research.

Economics winner Edmund S. Phelps was cited for research into the relationship between inflation and unemployment, giving governments better tools to formulate economic policy.

 
John C. Mather (L-1) and George F. Smoot (L-2), winners of the 2006 Nobel prize in physics, Roger D. Kornberg, winner of the 2006 Nobel prize in chemistry, and Edmund Phelps (R), winner of the 2006 Nobel Prize in Economics, attend a news conference in Stockholm, Dec. 7, 2006. (Xinhua Photo)

About 2,000 guests, including Sweden's royal family, were invited to the award ceremony at Stockholm's concert hall, followed by a lavish banquet a few blocks away at City Hall.

Bangladeshi Muhammad Yunus and the Grameen Bank that he founded received the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize earlier Sunday at a ceremony in Norwegian capital Oslo for creating microcredit system that has helped millions of poor people in his homeland.

The Nobel Prizes are usually announced in October and are handed out every year on Dec. 10, the anniversary of the 1896 death of Alfred Nobel, a Swedish industrialist and the inventor of dynamite.

This year's prize carries a cash award of 10 million Swedish kronor (about 1.4 million U.S. dollars), a gold medal and a diploma.

The Nobels, widely regarded as the world's most prestigious accolades in science and literature, have been awarded since 1901.

Bangladeshi Grameen bank, founder receive Nobel Peace Prize

Nobel Peace laureate Muhammad Yunus poses for a picture with the Nobel medal and diploma at Oslo Town Hall. Yunus, founder of Grameen Bank, unveiled a bold vision for ending global poverty as he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. (Xinhua Photo)
 
Bangladeshi Muhammad Yunus and the Grameen Bank that he founded received the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize on Sunday in Norwegian capital Oslo for creating microcredit system that has helped millions of poor people in his homeland, according to news reports reaching here.

While receiving the award, Yunus urged world leaders to get on with the fight against poverty and put resources into improving the lives of the poor people.

"Poverty is a threat to peace, "and "I believe that putting resources into improving the lives of the poor people is a better strategy than spending it on guns," Yunus was quoted as saying in his acceptance speech.

The 66-year-old Bangladeshi economist also expressed thanks to the Norwegian Nobel Committee for recognizing the poor, especially the capability and rights of poor women to live in a decent life.

Yunus and Gremeen Bank's representative Mosammat Taslima Begum received the prize, consisting of Nobel diplomas, gold medals and 10 million Swedish kronor (1.47 million US dollars) to be split between them, from the Norwegian Nobel Committee Chairman Ole Danbolt Mjos at a formal ceremony in Oslo's City Hall.

Yunus set up the Grameen Bank in 1976 to give credit to the very poorest in his country, particularly women, in order to let them set up tiny businesses without collateral.

The microcredit system is the extension of small loans to entrepreneurs too poor to qualify for traditional bank loans.

Nobel Peace Prize winners Muhammad Yunus (R) and Grameen Bank representative Mosammat Taslima Begum display their medals and diplomas at City Hall in Oslo, Norway, Dec. 10, 2006. (Xinhua Photo)

Nobel Peace laureate Muhammad Yunus gives a speech during an award ceremony in Oslo, Norway, Dec. 10, 2006. (Xinhua Photo)

Editor: Yan