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 09:36
"Good idea, but how can we wangle something that says 'Physics'?"
"Naah, Linnainmaa is a Finn. Can't give it to a bloody Finnish mathematician. Let's go for drinks. Brännvin anyone?"
When he's standing, in front of you
Why do wives cheat with black guys?
^† They rationalise their decision thusly:
(Mumbles of assent)
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:
Knicks get Jay Wright clarity in their head coach search - New York Post
[Older voice] "Mmm. What about Hinton, he's widely regarded? Nobody got fired for buying IBM"
There you go.^†
"Good point, I'm sure we can swing it. And let's tack on Hopfield while we're about it."
According to Scientists, This Is the Most Important Thing To Restore Your Gut Health - SciTechDaily
[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.
(Bob Dylan, Nobel Prize for Literature, 2016)
"Where can we shoehorn it in? Chemistry is easy 'cos AlphaFold; but what about physics? A bit more challenging, right?"
Solar Storms Are Secretly Taking Down Elon Musk’s Satellites - The Daily Galaxy
Why wait any longer for the world to begin?
You can have your cake and eat it too
… then anything is possible. There’s no rule that a Nobel Prize has to make sense.^*
963 RSP Revealed: Meet Porsche's Street-Legal Le Mans Hypercar - Motor1.com
[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."
They then move on to selectively provide their own version of history. But hey, it’s OK. They wanted controversy, didn’t they? Whatever.
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.
Fortunately, we are privy to the discussion that led up to this:
^* Fibiger got the 1926 Medicine prize for the discovery of Spiroptera carcinoma (Don’t ask).
A fly on the wall at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences
My 11 million SEK, Dr Jo.
Whatever.
Whatever.
What legal actions can be taken if a neighbor's unleashed dog causes harm or injury?
Why wait any longer for the one you love?
"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?"
"Didn't he do something with Boltzmann in it? That sounds physics-y. RBMs and stuff, eh?"