How did a computer scientist such as Geoffrey Hinton manage to win a Nobel Prize in physics when computer science already has its own Nobel Prize equivalent in the Turing Awards?
Last Updated: 28.06.2025 12:16
Why wait any longer for the world to begin?
^* Fibiger got the 1926 Medicine prize for the discovery of Spiroptera carcinoma (Don’t ask).
(Mumbles of assent)
The High Stakes of Kevin Durant’s Closing Act - The Ringer
Whatever.
"Where can we shoehorn it in? Chemistry is easy 'cos AlphaFold; but what about physics? A bit more challenging, right?"
Whatever.
[The basic structure of artificial neural networks] has close similarities with spin models in statistical physics applied to magnetism or alloy theory. This year’s Nobel Prize in Physics recognizes research exploiting this connection to make breakthrough methodological advances in the field of ANN.
My 11 million SEK, Dr Jo.
You can have your cake and eat it too
At 53, Jennie Garth Poses in Her First-Ever Underwear Campaign - instyle.com
"Good idea, but how can we wangle something that says 'Physics'?"
"Didn't he do something with Boltzmann in it? That sounds physics-y. RBMs and stuff, eh?"
When he's standing, in front of you
Trump gets back behind raids in immigration whiplash - Axios
"Good point, I'm sure we can swing it. And let's tack on Hopfield while we're about it."
(Bob Dylan, Nobel Prize for Literature, 2016)
In awarding prizes, the Nobel Committees often seem only marginally more competent than MTG is at explaining meteorology. And if they can give a literature prize for lyrics like:
Yankees will have to find ninth-inning serenity in Luke Weaver’s absence - New York Post
"Naah, Linnainmaa is a Finn. Can't give it to a bloody Finnish mathematician. Let's go for drinks. Brännvin anyone?"
They then move on to selectively provide their own version of history. But hey, it’s OK. They wanted controversy, didn’t they? Whatever.
Fortunately, we are privy to the discussion that led up to this:
^† They rationalise their decision thusly:
[Younger voice] "But wait a minute, Ising-Lenz goes back to the 1920's. And didn't Hinton plagiarise rather a lot? He also didn't invent modern backprop, did he, that's Linnainmaa? And Amari preceded Hopfield, too. That's not a good look."
A fly on the wall at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences
Volcanic Eruptions Can Create Ice in The Sky, And We Finally Know How - ScienceAlert
[Older voice] "Mmm. What about Hinton, he's widely regarded? Nobody got fired for buying IBM"
"Hey guys, AI is pretty big so let's centre our prizes on it this year. We can get some attention, and it's all about advertising, at the end of the day, isn't it?"
… then anything is possible. There’s no rule that a Nobel Prize has to make sense.^*
Dakota Johnson Uses Tissue to Cover Cleavage Amid Wardrobe Malfunction - Yahoo
There you go.^†
In December 1973, when Kissinger was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, comedian Tom Lehrer dropped his mic and stamped on it—satire had just died.
Why wait any longer for the one you love?
Qualifying results: Shore Lunch 250 presented by Dutch Boy at Elko Speedway - arcaracing.com