Here, numerous winners of the Wolf prize from all chemical disciplines provide an overview of the new ideas and approaches that will shape this dynamic science over the forthcoming decades and so will have a decisive influence on our living conditions. This glimpse of the future is naturally based on the findings granted us by the rapid increase in chemical research during the 20th century. It may be said that a silent "revolution" took place, the positive results of which are still not fully predicted.

For example, chemists in research laboratories nowadays are able to develop drugs in increasingly short times to treat diseases once thought incurable. They can design new materials that withstand extreme conditions, and predict the properties of compounds that no one has even seen yet. In this exceptional book those breakthroughs of modern chemistry are illustrated and explained by leading scientists.

It stems from the high-quality papers given at the prestigious ceremony to accompany the presentation of the 20th Wolf Prize. It is an extraordinary source for every chemist in industry and academia to get an overview of the highlights of modern chemistry.