Abstract
Political, economic, military, and religious elites have occupied sociological attention almost since the discipline's beginnings. This has not been so for the scientific elite despite its increasing social importance. The scientific enterprise is highly stratified with its elite's high standing determined principally by their contributions to scientific knowledge having been judged important by knowledgeable peers. Entry is determined by achievement, not ascription, and it is generally not passed on from generation to generation. The scientific elite exercises its influence on the access others have to resources for research, for the recognition others receive, and, in important ways, on what is construed as reliable knowledge. Nobel Prizes, the “gold standard” of scientific prizes, are taken by the public and by some scientists as the prime attribute of elite standing but they are imperfect indicators of high standing in science. Limits, for example, on contributions eligible for prizes and the number of prizes available annually have the effect of creating a cadre of “uncrowned laureates” whose scientific work has been as influential as the laureates' and who their peers recognize as Nobelists' equals. This is the case despite the selectors for the prize having made few outright errors.