Japan Prize Foundation unveils 2023 Japan Prize Laureates

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 25 (Bernama) -- The Japan Prize Foundation has announced the winners of the 2023 Japan Prize with Prof Masataka Nakazawa and Kazuo Hagimoto named co-winners of the Japan Prize in the fields of Electronics, Information, and Communication.

“Prof Gero Miesenboeck of Austria and Prof Karl Deisseroth of the United States are co-winners of the Japan Prize in the field of Life Science,” it said in a statement.

For this year's Japan Prize, Nakazawa and Hagimoto are being recognised for their distinguished contributions to global long-distance, high-capacity optical fibre network through the development of semiconductor laser pumped optical amplifier.

Meanwhile, Miesenboeck and Deisseroth are being recognised for their development of methods that use genetically addressable light-sensitive membrane proteins to unravel neural circuit functions.

For the 2023 Japan Prize, the Foundation asked approximately 15,500 prominent scientists and engineers from around the world to nominate researchers working in this year'sfi elds.

It received 123 nominations in the fields of Electronics, Information, and Communication, and 204 nominations for the field of Life Science. This year's winners were selected from the total of 327 candidates.

The establishment of the Japan Prize in 1981 was motivated by the Japanese government's desire to create an internationally recognised award that would contribute to scientific and technological development worldwide.

The Japan Prize is awarded to global scientists and engineers who have made creative and dramatic achievements that help progress their fields and contribute significantly to realising peace and prosperity for all humanity.

-- BERNAMA