List of years in science (Table)
… 1971 • 1972 • 1973 • 1974 • 1975 • 1976 • 1977 •    1978 • 1979 • 1980 – 1981 – 1982 • 1983 • 1984 •    1985 • 1986 • 1987 • 1988 • 1989 • 1990 • 1991 …
Related time period or subjects
… 1978 • 1979 • 1980 – 1981 – 1982 • 1983 • 1984 … … 1950s • 1960s • 1970s – 1980s – 1990s • 2000s • 2010s … … 19th century – 20th century – 21st century …
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The year 1981 in science and technology involved many significant events, listed below.

Computer science

• August 12 - The IBM PC is released.

Space exploration

• April 12 - The first launch of a Space Shuttle: Columbia launches on the STS-1 mission.

Awards

• Nobel Prizes
  • Physics - Nicolaas Bloembergen, Arthur Leonard Schawlow, Kai M. Siegbahn
  • Chemistry - Kenichi Fukui, Roald Hoffmann
  • Medicine - Roger W. Sperry, David H. Hubel, Torsten N. Wiesel
• Turing Award - Edgar F. Codd

Births

Deaths

• March 9 - Max Delbrück (b. 1906), German biologist
• November 22 - Hans Adolf Krebs (b. 1900), German medical doctor and biochemist. Discoverer of the citric acid cycle