All articles tagged with #breakthrough prize
While the Nobel prizes remain the most prestigious in science, newer awards like the Breakthrough and Turing Prizes are gaining significance, offering larger monetary rewards and filling gaps in recognition for fields like mathematics and climate science, but none yet match the global prestige of the Nobels, which are also criticized for biases and limited scope.
Hollywood stars including Robert Downey Jr., Kim Kardashian, Katy Perry, and more attended the 10th annual Breakthrough Prize gala, which celebrates research achievements and top scientists, awarding over $15 million in prizes annually. The event also saw the presence of tech giants like Elon Musk and Bill Gates, with musical performances by Adam Levine, Charlie Puth, and David Foster. The Breakthrough Prize presents significant prize money in the fields of Life Sciences, Fundamental Physics, and Mathematics, as well as awards for early-career researchers and female mathematicians.
The 10th annual Breakthrough Prize ceremony, known as the "Oscars of Science," brought together Hollywood stars and scientists at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles. Celebrities like Kim Kardashian, Elon Musk, Robert Downey Jr., Jessica Chastain, Brie Larson, and others graced the red carpet, with Kim Kardashian arriving in a skin-tight white gown and Elon Musk offering some playful poses and predictions. The event honored scientists for their major discoveries and featured a star-studded guest list.
Stony Brook University physicist Alexander Zamolodchikov has been awarded the prestigious Breakthrough Prize for fundamental physics, sharing the honor and $3 million prize money with University of Oxford physicist John Cardy. Zamolodchikov's groundbreaking work in theoretical physics, particularly in the field of Quantum Field Theory, has had a significant impact on our understanding of fundamental matter and forces. He is the third physicist from Stony Brook University to receive the Breakthrough Prize, which recognizes achievements in physics, mathematics, and life sciences.
Physicists John Cardy and Alexander Zamolodchikov, who contributed to the theory of statistical physics and quantum field theory, and immunologists Carl June and Michel Sadelain, who pioneered genetically engineered immune cells for cancer treatment, are among the winners of the 2023 Breakthrough prize. The prize also recognizes a team studying Parkinson's disease genetics and a trio of scientists who identified drugs to repair defective proteins in cystic fibrosis patients. The mathematics prize went to Simon Brendle for his contributions to differential geometry.
The chemists behind the development of Trikafta, a triple-drug combination that has significantly improved the lives of people with cystic fibrosis, have been awarded the prestigious Breakthrough Prize. Sabine Hadida, Paul Negulescu, and Fredrick Van Goor at Vertex Pharmaceuticals developed the treatment by combining different drugs that help a faulty protein to function. Trikafta has been hailed as one of the most remarkable achievements in biomedical research in the last 30 years. The Breakthrough Prize, which awards achievements in life sciences, physics, and mathematics, also recognized breakthroughs in Parkinson's disease research, CAR-T-cell immunotherapy for leukemia, and the study of conformal field theories in physics.
The Breakthrough Prize Foundation has announced the winners of the 2024 Breakthrough Prizes in Life Sciences, Fundamental Physics, and Mathematics. The laureates include scientists recognized for their contributions to the understanding and treatment of major diseases such as cancer, cystic fibrosis, and Parkinson's disease, as well as advancements in quantum field theory and differential geometry. The winners will be honored at a gala award ceremony in Los Angeles in April 2024.