In a move that surprised the oddsmakers, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to the Organisation for the Prevention of Chemical Weapons — the folks who are currently busy trying to get rid of deadly weapons in the middle of Syria’s war zone. The Daily Beast’s Christopher Dickey says the choice makes perfect sense. “Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite and developer of munitions, brought the technology of slaughter into the industrial age. When he died in 1896, he endowed the prizes in physics, chemistry, medicine, literature, and especially ‘peace,’ not least, to make amends for what he’d wrought on the battlefield.”

+ While the OPCW is currently at work in Syria, its biggest job to date has been working to destroy the largest chemical weapons stockpiles in the world. In the United States and Russia.

+ Most people were expecting the award to go to Malala Yousafzai — the 16 year-old girl who survived a Taliban assassination attempt. Here’s a video of her recent appearance on The Daily Show. Something tells me she’ll get plenty of awards.