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?
10.06.2025 01:08
^† They rationalise their decision thusly:
"Good point, I'm sure we can swing it. And let's tack on Hopfield while we're about it."
There you go.^†
Little-known cells might be key to human brain’s massive memory - The Washington Post
You can have your cake and eat it too
"Where can we shoehorn it in? Chemistry is easy 'cos AlphaFold; but what about physics? A bit more challenging, right?"
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.
Uh-Oh! Switch 2's New GameChat Feature Is Transcribing Bad Words - Nintendo Life
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:
Fortunately, we are privy to the discussion that led up to this:
They then move on to selectively provide their own version of history. But hey, it’s OK. They wanted controversy, didn’t they? Whatever.
When he's standing, in front of you
(Bob Dylan, Nobel Prize for Literature, 2016)
Why wait any longer for the one you love?
'Orthorexia' Is More And More Common. Here's What You Should Know About It. - HuffPost
A fly on the wall at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences
… then anything is possible. There’s no rule that a Nobel Prize has to make sense.^*
[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.
Why is my ex mad I moved on when he dumped me?
Whatever.
"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?"
Why do I feel so tired all the time even after a good night’s sleep?
Why wait any longer for the world to begin?
"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?"
"Naah, Linnainmaa is a Finn. Can't give it to a bloody Finnish mathematician. Let's go for drinks. Brännvin anyone?"
Which bands became massively popular for covering songs rather than recording originals?
My 11 million SEK, Dr Jo.
^* Fibiger got the 1926 Medicine prize for the discovery of Spiroptera carcinoma (Don’t ask).
[Older voice] "Mmm. What about Hinton, he's widely regarded? Nobody got fired for buying IBM"
How do we greet in German, French, Spanish, and Italian?
[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)
Whatever.