The Nobel Prize in Physics has been awarded to John Hopfield and Geoffrey Hinton, known as the "godfather of artificial intelligence", for "foundational advances in machine learning with artificial neural networks".
Hans Ellegren, secretary general of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, announced the winners on Tuesday in Stockholm.
American Hopfield, an emeritus professor at Princeton University, created an associative memory that can store and reconstruct images and other types of patterns in data, the academy said.
Hinton, a British-Canadian professor at the University of Toronto, in the 1980s helped to develop a technique that has been instrumental in training machines how to “learn”, and has previously raised concerns about AI's risks.
Speaking at the ceremony in Sweden, Prof Hinton said he was “flabbergasted”, adding: “I had no idea this would happen. I’m very surprised.”
"I think it will have a huge influence. It will be comparable with the industrial revolution. But instead of exceeding people in physical strength, it's going to exceed people in intellectual ability."
He also said the advancement in AI would result in "huge improvements in productivity" but humanity had to worry about possible "bad consequences, particularly the threat of these things getting out of control."
Prof Hinton, born in London in 1947, spent a decade at Google but quit in 2023 to speak freely about the risks of AI.
In 2018, he was awarded the Turing Award in recognition of his research breakthroughs.
When asked whether he had any regrets about his work on AI, Prof Hinton said: “There are two kinds of regret – there is regret where you feel guilty because you did something you knew you should not have done, and then then there is regret where you did something that you would do again in the same circumstances.”
He said that he “would do the same again” but was “worried that the overall consequence of this might be systems more intelligent than us that eventually take control”.
Machine learning is a key component of AI – a technology that allow machines to perform tasks that mimic human intelligence, such as learning, reasoning and problem-solving.
"This year’s physics laureates’ breakthroughs stand on the foundations of physical science", the academy said. "They have showed a completely new way for us to use computers to aid and to guide us to tackle many of the challenges our society face.
"Thanks to their work humanity now has a new item in its toolbox, which we can choose to use for good purposes. Machine learning based on artificial neural networks is currently revolutionising science, engineering and daily life."
Ellen Moons, chairwoman of the Nobel Committee for Physics, said: “The laureates’ work has already been of the greatest benefit. In physics we use artificial neural networks in a vast range of areas, such as developing new materials with specific properties.”
Previous physics prize winners include Marie Curie in 1903 for her work on the discovery of radiation, and Albert Einstein who won in 1921 for his advances in the understanding of theoretical physics.
On Monday, Nobel Prize week kicked off when US citizens Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun were awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine for their discovery of microRNA.
Their research was based around studying the make-up of a 1mm-long roundworm, known as C.elegans, which despite being tiny possesses cell types such as nerves and muscles found in larger, more complex animals.
Last year, the physics prize was jointly awarded to three scientists - Pierre Agostini, Ferenc Krausz and Anne L'Huillier - from USA, Germany and Sweden respectively, who study electrons in atoms during the tiniest of split seconds.
The prize carries a cash award of 11 million Swedish kronor ($1 million) from a bequest left by its creator, the Swedish inventor Alfred Nobel.
Nobel announcements continue with the chemistry prize on Wednesday and literature on Thursday. The Nobel Peace Prize will be announced on Friday and the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences on October 14. The laureates are invited to receive their awards at ceremonies on December 10th, the anniversary of Alfred Nobel’s death.
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Six large-scale objects on show
- Concrete wall and windows from the now demolished Robin Hood Gardens housing estate in Poplar
- The 17th Century Agra Colonnade, from the bathhouse of the fort of Agra in India
- A stagecloth for The Ballet Russes that is 10m high – the largest Picasso in the world
- Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1930s Kaufmann Office
- A full-scale Frankfurt Kitchen designed by Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, which transformed kitchen design in the 20th century
- Torrijos Palace dome
Pox that threatens the Middle East's native species
Camelpox
Caused by a virus related to the one that causes human smallpox, camelpox typically causes fever, swelling of lymph nodes and skin lesions in camels aged over three, but the animal usually recovers after a month or so. Younger animals may develop a more acute form that causes internal lesions and diarrhoea, and is often fatal, especially when secondary infections result. It is found across the Middle East as well as in parts of Asia, Africa, Russia and India.
Falconpox
Falconpox can cause a variety of types of lesions, which can affect, for example, the eyelids, feet and the areas above and below the beak. It is a problem among captive falcons and is one of many types of avian pox or avipox diseases that together affect dozens of bird species across the world. Among the other forms are pigeonpox, turkeypox, starlingpox and canarypox. Avipox viruses are spread by mosquitoes and direct bird-to-bird contact.
Houbarapox
Houbarapox is, like falconpox, one of the many forms of avipox diseases. It exists in various forms, with a type that causes skin lesions being least likely to result in death. Other forms cause more severe lesions, including internal lesions, and are more likely to kill the bird, often because secondary infections develop. This summer the CVRL reported an outbreak of pox in houbaras after rains in spring led to an increase in mosquito numbers.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Why does a queen bee feast only on royal jelly?
Some facts about bees:
The queen bee eats only royal jelly, an extraordinary food created by worker bees so she lives much longer
The life cycle of a worker bee is from 40-60 days
A queen bee lives for 3-5 years
This allows her to lay millions of eggs and allows the continuity of the bee colony
About 20,000 honey bees and one queen populate each hive
Honey is packed with vital vitamins, minerals, enzymes, water and anti-oxidants.
Apart from honey, five other products are royal jelly, the special food bees feed their queen
Pollen is their protein source, a super food that is nutritious, rich in amino acids
Beewax is used to construct the combs. Due to its anti-fungal, anti-bacterial elements, it is used in skin treatments
Propolis, a resin-like material produced by bees is used to make hives. It has natural antibiotic qualities so works to sterilize hive, protects from disease, keeps their home free from germs. Also used to treat sores, infection, warts
Bee venom is used by bees to protect themselves. Has anti-inflammatory properties, sometimes used to relieve conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, nerve and muscle pain
Honey, royal jelly, pollen have health enhancing qualities
The other three products are used for therapeutic purposes
Is beekeeping dangerous?
As long as you deal with bees gently, you will be safe, says Mohammed Al Najeh, who has worked with bees since he was a boy.
“The biggest mistake people make is they panic when they see a bee. They are small but smart creatures. If you move your hand quickly to hit the bees, this is an aggressive action and bees will defend themselves. They can sense the adrenalin in our body. But if we are calm, they are move away.”
Defence review at a glance
• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”
• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems
• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.
• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%
• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade
• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels
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Scoreline
Abu Dhabi Harlequins 17
Jebel Ali Dragons 20
Harlequins Tries: Kinivilliame, Stevenson; Cons: Stevenson 2; Pen: Stevenson
Dragons Tries: Naisau, Fourie; Cons: Love 2; Pens: Love 2
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
Results
United States beat UAE by three wickets
United States beat Scotland by 35 runs
UAE v Scotland – no result
United States beat UAE by 98 runs
Scotland beat United States by four wickets
Fixtures
Sunday, 10am, ICC Academy, Dubai - UAE v Scotland
Admission is free
Five healthy carbs and how to eat them
Brown rice: consume an amount that fits in the palm of your hand
Non-starchy vegetables, such as broccoli: consume raw or at low temperatures, and don’t reheat
Oatmeal: look out for pure whole oat grains or kernels, which are locally grown and packaged; avoid those that have travelled from afar
Fruit: a medium bowl a day and no more, and never fruit juices
Lentils and lentil pasta: soak these well and cook them at a low temperature; refrain from eating highly processed pasta variants
Courtesy Roma Megchiani, functional nutritionist at Dubai’s 77 Veggie Boutique
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Zayed Sustainability Prize
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Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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