Nobel Prize in Physics for machines that learn

The second prize this Nobel week will be awarded to fundamental AI researcher John J. Hopfield and Jeffrey E. Hinton.

There are two Nobel Prize winners in physics this year: John J. Hopfield from the USA, and British-born Geoffrey Hinton, who conducts research in Canada. They were honored for their research that enables machines to learn using artificial neural networks – which in turn enables people to work faster and more reliably, including in the medical field.

Therefore, Hinton saw enhancing productivity as a great opportunity for the future. Although he also cited concerns that “systems smarter than us” could control too much.

Last year, the Nobel Prize in Physics went to Austro-Hungarian physicist Ferenc Krauss, awarded jointly with Frenchman Pierre Agostini and Frenchman Anne Lhuillier for generating extremely short pulses of light. The previous year, Austrian quantum physicist Anton Zeilinger received the award.

The Nobel Prize in Medicine or Physiology was awarded on Monday to American researchers Victor Ambros and Gary Rovkun for their discovery of microRNA (miRNA). According to the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, this is “the discovery of a fundamental principle for regulating gene activity,” whose potential in treatment development is also being explored. (editor)