Because the peace prize is perceived as political (I don't really care if it is or not), all other Nobel Prizes have been tainted by their association. I don't know if it feels the same in other cities, but at least in Charlotte it feels like you can't even discuss the other prizes. The Charlotte Observer really didn't cover any of the prizes except for the peace prize.

I'm just saying it's a shame when you can't even discuss the Nobel Prize in Physics without getting into a Republican/Democratic argument. It's a sad feeling.

As for why the Nobel prizes should matter to the typical person - they generally do a good job in describing the research in layman's terms. It frequently involves new ways to look at a specific technology. And there's always the chance that similar concepts relate to your field/interest in some way.
 
Many organizations in this economy could benefit from new perspectives.