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?
12.06.2025 12:25
(Bob Dylan, Nobel Prize for Literature, 2016)
"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?"
You can have your cake and eat it too
Can Djokovic climb the mountain? - Roland Garros
"Where can we shoehorn it in? Chemistry is easy 'cos AlphaFold; but what about physics? A bit more challenging, right?"
"Naah, Linnainmaa is a Finn. Can't give it to a bloody Finnish mathematician. Let's go for drinks. Brännvin anyone?"
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:
Exclusive | EchoStar Prepares Potential Bankruptcy Filing Amid FCC Review - WSJ
Why wait any longer for the one you love?
Whatever.
[Older voice] "Mmm. What about Hinton, he's widely regarded? Nobody got fired for buying IBM"
The U.S. hasn’t seen a new confirmed human bird flu case in nearly 4 months — why? - Yahoo
They then move on to selectively provide their own version of history. But hey, it’s OK. They wanted controversy, didn’t they? Whatever.
[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."
(Mumbles of assent)
What are some ways to drive women crazy while many men don't know?
Whatever.
^* Fibiger got the 1926 Medicine prize for the discovery of Spiroptera carcinoma (Don’t ask).
Why wait any longer for the world to begin?
Uber announces a life-changing new feature - TheStreet
"Good point, I'm sure we can swing it. And let's tack on Hopfield while we're about it."
… then anything is possible. There’s no rule that a Nobel Prize has to make sense.^*
A fly on the wall at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences
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.
^† They rationalise their decision thusly:
There you go.^†
Can you share any "backstage pass" experiences you have had at concerts?
When he's standing, in front of you
[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.
"Good idea, but how can we wangle something that says 'Physics'?"
How the Menstrual Cycle Affects ADHD - The Cut
Fortunately, we are privy to the discussion that led up to this:
My 11 million SEK, Dr Jo.
"Didn't he do something with Boltzmann in it? That sounds physics-y. RBMs and stuff, eh?"
5 Things to Know Before the Stock Market Opens - Investopedia