Barry Marshall - How to Win a Nobel Prize

Published by Piccolo Nero,

an imprint of Schwartz Publishing Pty Ltd

Level 1, 221 Drummond Street

Carlton VIC 3053, Australia

www.blackincbooks.com

Copyright 2018 Barry Marshall and Lorna Hendry

Barry Marshall and Lorna Hendry assert their rights to be known as the authors of this work.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior consent of the publishers.

9781760640064 (paperback)

9781743820360 (ebook)

Cover design by Tristan Main

Text design and typesetting by Marilyn de Castro

Author photographs by Sharon Smith (pp. 53, 82, 178, 179);
Tania Jovanovic (p. 180) and Tiffany Garviev (p. 181)

THE SECRET SOCIETY

Mary was bored. Her mother had let her come to this meeting to meet a famous scientist, but he wasnt even here yet. Everyone was just sitting around a big table, drinking coffee and eating biscuits and fiddling with their phones.

Im so sorry, said a blonde woman called Josephine, who seemed to be in charge. Professor Marshall does sometimes lose track of time.

Mary nudged her mother. Is that the man who won the Nobel Prize?

Marys mother nodded and frowned at the same time, which Mary knew meant that she was supposed to be quiet.

Ever since Mary was very young, she had wanted to win a Nobel Prize. She loved doing science experiments at home. Once she had built a boat for her bath that was powered by a balloon. Another time she had made a cloud appear in a glass jar. When Mary overheard her mother say that she would be visiting an important research centre and meeting a scientist who had won a Nobel Prize, she had nagged for days to be allowed to come. But now nothing was happening and the scientist wasnt even here.

Can I go for a walk? she whispered.

Her mother nodded again.

Mary slipped out of the nearest door, grabbing a biscuit on the way. She wandered along a long corridor, stopping sometimes to stand on her tiptoes and peer through windows into brightly lit laboratories where people wearing long white coats were doing things with test tubes and impressive machines with lots of dials and lights and numbers.

At the very end of a winding corridor, just as she was getting bored again, she noticed a door with a handwritten sign stuck to it. It read:

Mary knew that one thing all scientists had in common was curiosity. So, very carefully, she turned the door handle and pushed the door open, just a crack.

Albert! You know the rules! We may only discuss science. Not our personal lives or world affairs, no matter how interesting they are. It was a womans voice, and she sounded annoyed.

But rules are made to be broken! Thats why most of us are here. If wed obeyed the rules, we never would have made the breakthroughs we did.

Mary ducked down and peeked around the door, being careful to stay out of sight. More than anything else, she loved listening to grown-ups arguing. She found out a lot of very interesting things that way.

Unlike the laboratories, this room was dark and windowless. It looked more like a storage room than a place where important meetings were held. The only light came from a bare lightbulb that hung from the centre of the ceiling. About twenty people, many of them dressed quite strangely, were sitting on wooden boxes or milk crates or upturned buckets. An old whiteboard was propped up against the back wall and, luckily for Mary, everyone was looking at it. A man in a crumpled lab coat was busy drawing on the board with a green marker.

Mary crept in through the doorway and hid behind a box of cleaning cloths.

So, heres our idea. Robin and I think that we might be able to use the bacteria that we discovered to vaccinate everyone in the world against malaria.

Still no cure for cancer, though, said a tired looking man in a hospital gown.

No, Ralph. Sorry.

A woman with a very stern face snorted. Thatd be right.

Rosalind, dont complain. By rights you shouldnt even be here anyway, said a man with wild white hair that stuck out from his head as if hed had an electric shock. Not that I care about the rules, mind you!

Mary stared at him. He looked very familiar. She had a poster on her bedroom wall of someone who looked just like that. The same smiling eyes above the same bushy moustache. But her poster was of Albert Einstein and he had been dead for years. It couldnt be him. Could it?

Mary crawled around the side of the box she was hiding behind, trying to get closer so she could see better in the dim light. Her foot knocked a broom that was leaning against the wall and it came crashing down on top of her.

Oww! she cried, rubbing her head where the broom had whacked her. That hurt!

She stood up crossly, to see all twenty people staring at her in shock.

Is one of you Professor Marshall? asked Mary. Because I came here to meet you but youre late. Everyones waiting for you in the boardroom.

The man standing at the whiteboard checked his watch. Yes, thats me. I always forget about the time when we get talking. Well have to wrap this up. I think our next meeting is at Flemings place. He pulled out a small gold orb from his pocket and peered at it. Now, Mary, just remind me. How do I send everyone back to their own time?

Im Mary, said Mary. But I dont know what youre talking about.

Professor Marshall looked up at her. No, you cant be. At least not yet

A woman holding a scarf across her face whispered urgently into the mans ear.

I suppose youre right, said Barry. This is awkward. But shes seen us now. We cant undo that.

Well have to swear her to secrecy, said an elderly woman with glasses.

Or pay her off, said a tall, well-dressed man with a long face and short slicked-back hair.

Who are you people? asked Mary. There was an awkward silence. Because you look just like Albert Einstein. She pointed at the man with the crazy white hair. He grinned at her.

Correct!

But youre Mary hesitated.

Dead? he offered. Yes, in your time. Its the wonder of time travel. In fact in your time most of us here are dead. Not our host, Barry, of course. He gestured at Professor Marshall, who nodded his head in agreement. Or Tu here. Einstein pointed to the woman with glasses. Shes quite new. She only joined our secret society of Nobel Prize winners a couple of years ago. And these three gentlemen are at their first meeting. We were just explaining the rules to them. No discussions about anything but science and no telling people things about their own future. Rules, rules, rules. Its so boring.

Albert! Stop talking! A woman in an old black dress looked despairingly at Einstein.

Mary wasnt sure what to think time travel? But she knew that scientists had to keep an open mind

So why did you want to meet me? Professor Marshall asked Mary.

Because I want you to tell me how I can win a Nobel Prize, said Mary. She looked around the room. All of you! I want to know how you did it. And She hesitated, not sure if the idea that had just popped into her head was very good or very, very bad. And if you dont, Ill tell everyone about your secret society!