Latest news with #Nobel-winning
Malaysian Reserve
5 days ago
- Science
- Malaysian Reserve
Chen Institute and AAAS Announce Winner of 2024 AI Prize for AI Accelerated Research
Global research award celebrates transformative AI solutions in the fields of neuroscience, biochemistry, and climatology. REDWOOD CITY, Calif., July 17, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — The Tianqiao and Chrissy Chen Institute and the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) today announced the winners of the inaugural Chen Institute and Science Prize for AI Accelerated Research, a major annual award celebrating innovative uses of AI to accelerate scientific discovery. The three winners share cash prizes totaling $50,000, and will see their prizewinning research essays published by Science Magazine. Dr. Zhuoran Qiao, a Founding Scientist of San Francisco-based startup Chai Discovery, received the Grand Prize for his work using AI in the field of molecular biology. Also honored as Finalists were Dr. Aditya Nair, a Postdoctoral Fellow and NIH NeuroAI Early Career Scholar at Caltech and Stanford University, whose work merges AI and neuroscience; and Dr. Alizée Roobaert, a researcher at Vlaams Instituut voor de Zee (Flanders Marine Institute) in Ostend, Belgium, who developed an innovative AI solution to monitor oceanic climate dynamics. de Zee (Flanders Marine Institute) in Ostend, Belgium, who developed an innovative AI solution to monitor oceanic climate dynamics. 'We were excited to receive such an impressive range of applications from around the world, spanning many different scientific disciplines,' said Chrissy Luo, Chen Institute cofounder. 'At a time when AI is radically accelerating global scientific discovery, we're delighted to work with AAAS and showcase three incredible young researchers who are using these powerful new technologies to expand the frontiers of human knowledge.' 'Science, as always, was excited to see the variety of high-quality, imaginative entries for the 2024 AI Prize,' said Yury V. Suleymanov, senior editor at Science. 'This trio of early-career scientists demonstrated that they are at the cutting edge of their craft with innovative AI solutions to address substantial challenges and opportunities faced by scientists in a number of areas.' Each applicant submitted a 1000-word essay describing their work, which were judged by an independent committee of Science editors. The winning entries were: Grand Prize: Putting proteins under a computational microscopeBuilding on Nobel-winning research that uses generative AI technologies to predict how proteins fold, Dr. Qiao uses sophisticated machine learning techniques to create dynamic models, showing how folded proteins change over time—and, importantly, how they interact with smaller molecules. The result: a 'computational microscope' that can predict with remarkable speed and accuracy how proteins will behave, enabling powerful new tools for drug discovery. 'We're unlocking a huge opportunity to map out these molecular interactions at an unprecedented scale—and to leverage that to rapidly develop new drugs and treatments,' Dr. Qiao says. Finalist: Listening in on the brain's hidden chorusBreakthroughs in neural imaging now allow researchers to monitor the activity of individual neurons—but Dr. Nair is using AI to reveal the hidden choruses and harmonies that emerge as neurons interact with one another. His work shows that these interactions form durable, self-perpetuating patterns that can encode and modulate long-lasting mental or emotional states—such as arousal, anger and anger—independently of any individual neuron's activity. His models also revealed that these long-lasting network effects are mediated by slow-acting neuropeptides, making them more robust over time. Finalist: Understanding how coastal waters absorb CO2The world's oceans absorb about one-quarter of all human-made carbon dioxide emissions, but little is known about the role of coastal oceans in powering the global oceanic carbon sink. Dr. Roobaert used neural networks to fuse global satellite data and 18 million datapoints from coastal CO2 measurements, creating the first high-resolution model of CO2 absorption in coastal waters. By joining the dots between patchy datasets, her methodology offers a truly global overview of both the health and the climatological role of the world's oceans. Dr. Qiao, the Grand Prize winner, receives a cash award of $30,000 and his essay appears in today's issue of Science (in print and online). Dr. Nair and Dr. Roobaert, the two Finalists, each receive a cash award of $10,000, and will have their essays published in Science online. All three also receive a five-year subscription to Science online and become honorary Chen Scholars. Presenting Their Work Alongside Powerhouse Researchers Dr. Qiao, Dr. Nair, and Dr. Roobaert will present their research at the first annual Chen Institute Symposium for AI Accelerated Science, held in San Francisco on October 27-28, 2025. They will be joined by Nobel Laureates Dr. Jennifer Doudna and Dr. David Baker, plus an impressive line-up of other leading global academics, industry leaders, and researchers. The Symposium is open to the public, and registration is required. For more information, please visit You can join the AIAS Talent Community and become an AIAS Fellow by emailing AITalents@ Sign up to be reminded when the Prize portal opens on the Science website. About the Tianqiao and Chrissy Chen Institute The Tianqiao and Chrissy Chen Institute, established in 2016 by philanthropists Tianqiao Chen and Chrissy Luo, seeks to improve the human experience by understanding how our brains perceive, learn, and interact with the world. Based in the Bay Area, the Chen Institute advances scientific research, particularly in neuroscience, aging, and artificial intelligence by working with top academic and research institutions globally. It also supports initiatives in AI development, emphasizing its potential to enhance human well-being. About AAASThe American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is one of the world's largest general scientific societies and publisher of the journal Science, as well as Science Translational Medicine; Science Signaling; a digital, open-access journal, Science Advances; Science Immunology; and Science Robotics. AAAS was founded in 1848 and includes more than 250 affiliated societies and academies of science, serving 10 million individuals. The nonprofit AAAS is open to all and fulfills its mission to 'advance science and serve society' through initiatives in science policy, international programs, science education, public engagement, and more. For additional information about AAAS, visit
Daily Mirror
15-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Danny Dyer shares real reason he'd turn down knighthood
EastEnders legend Danny Dyer has revealed he's planning on following in his 'hero" Harold Pinter's footsteps by turning down a knighthood if he's ever offered the accolade Former EastEnders star Danny Dyer has shared why he'd turn down a knighthood. The 47-year-old actor says that he was too "anti-establishment" for the title which are given to individuals by the monarch for a significant contribution to society. He told Radio Times that he'd follow in the footsteps of his "hero" Harold Pinter, who turned down a knighthood back in 1996. Nobel-winning playwright Pinter declined the honour of a knighthood offered to him on behalf of the late Queen Elizabeth II by former prime minister John Major, but later accepted the award of Companion of Honour in 2002. When asked if he'd ever been approached about appearing on the New Year 's Honours list, Danny explained: " Have I f! Harold was my hero and turned down a knighthood. "He was anti-establishment as well, so I don't think it's for me." Danny became a household name acting in EastEnders from 2013 to 2022 as fan favourite Mick Carter and has since gone on to star in Disney's hit series Rivals, Sky comedy show Mr. Bigstuff, and an upcoming Irish film Three Quick Breaths. It comes after Danny left his daughter Dani Dyer horrified with his honeymoon confession. During a recent episode of their podcast Live And Let Dyers, the Love Island winner opened up about her romantic getaway with new husband and West Ham star Jarrod Bowen, while proud dad Danny managed to overshare in true Dyer fashion. Back from her sun-soaked trip to Lake Como, Dani revealed the newlyweds were hit with gloomy weather but still made the most of their honeymoon bubble. 'The weather was terrible, it rained for three days but we were very lucky, because it always stopped raining when we went for lunch and for dinners and stuff," Dani told her dad on the pod. While the couple had hoped for some sunbathing time, Dani admitted they swapped tanning for telly, champagne and baths. She added: "We just could never sunbathe, and there's not really much to do there so, we just binged the whole series of MobLand. We ate and I'd just drink champagne and have loads of baths." However, it wasn't long before Danny spun the convo onto his honeymoon and things got very a little too honest. He said: "To be fair, you shouldn't really be getting out of bed a lot in your honeymoon because me and your mother ended up in Florence, and you know, we was appalling! "I mean, honestly, I look back on it and I think, 'f****** hell! How on Earth did I manage to get in those sorts of positions!." A shocked Dani responded saying: "Oh, you're disgusting!" before he hit back with: "What do you mean disgusting? There was two people sharing their love. Them days are long gone now!"
Hindustan Times
14-07-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
The possibilities and limits of the Tamil Nadu model
Drawing attention to the sharp differences in incomes across developing countries, the Nobel-winning economist Robert Lucas had suggested that we should see these differences as possibilities. 'Is there some action a government of India could take that would lead the Indian economy to grow like Indonesia's or Egypt's?' Lucas wrote in an oft-cited 1988 paper (the Indian economy was considered a global developmental laggard then). 'If so, what, exactly? If not, what is it about the 'nature of India' that makes it so? The consequences for human welfare involved in questions like these are simply staggering: Once one starts to think about them, it is hard to think about anything else.' Looking at the stark differences in incomes and human development indicators across Indian states, similar questions come to mind: Is there something that Uttar Pradesh could do to grow like Tamil Nadu or Maharashtra? If so, what exactly? If not, why not? Such questions have gained greater salience as inter-state disparities have widened in recent years. Some economists and policy wonks seem to have found an ideal growth 'model' in the state of Tamil Nadu. With manufacturing accounting for a quarter of the state's economic output, Tamil Nadu is seen as a desi version of Vietnam. Former chief economic advisor Arvind Subramanian has argued that the Tamil Nadu model could be adopted by other states to improve their industrial performance. Venture capitalist-turned-philanthropist Ashish Dhawan has also made similar arguments, praising the role of the state government in hand-holding new investors. Compared to other industrialised states such as Haryana or Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu has more impressive attainments in health and educational outcomes. That makes it more attractive as a developmental model compared to either Kerala (which lacks a modern industrial base) or Gujarat (which has relatively poorer human development outcomes), economist Pranab Bardhan has argued. What lies behind Tamil Nadu's developmental success? A part of the answer lies in the unique political economy of the state. The two major Dravidian parties share a common heritage and have adopted similar policy positions on key socio-economic issues. Both parties were born out of an anti-Brahminical movement going back to the British Raj, and have sought to empower the intermediate castes (OBCs). As some of these communities transitioned from traditional farm-based activities to modern businesses, they received bipartisan support from the state's politicians. Entrepreneurs were never seen as 'class enemies' to begin with, and continue to enjoy greater social legitimacy than in many other parts of the country. Dravidian ideologues advocated industrialisation and modernisation of the economy so that Tamil society could break free from the shackles of caste-based occupations and hierarchical traditions, economists Kalaiyarasan A and Vijayabaskar M wrote in their 2021 book, The Dravidian Model. The Dravidian ideologues envisioned a democratisation of capitalist activities, and promoted the interests of local businessmen, the duo argue. The pro-business tilt in the state's policy stance has endured despite a series of corruption scandals over the past three decades. Any state-level policymaker who wishes to emulate the Tamil Nadu model must also note its limits. Over the past decade, Tamil Nadu's share in manufacturing employment has declined even as those of other states have increased. While the organised manufacturing sector has grown rapidly, the unorganised sector seems to have languished. Since the unorganised sector employs more people, the gains in employment have been much less impressive than the gains in manufacturing output. Second, despite the state government's significant investments in health and education, a growing section of the state's population has been turning to private educational and health care providers in search of better quality, as Kalaiyarasan and Vijayabaskar note. Third, the state government's OBC-friendly tilt in social policies seem to have benefited some sub-castes (or jatis) much more than others. For instance, in 2007, Tamil Nadu abolished the common entrance test (CET) for admissions to professional courses since it was deemed to favour socially privileged communities (who could afford private coaching). While the move helped widen access to technical education, it is the better-off communities within OBCs that gained most, a 2019 analysis by R Srinivasan and N Raghunath showed. Despite these limitations, Tamil Nadu's track record in delivering inclusive growth remains better than most other states. The southern state offers useful lessons for other regions. However, it may not be easy to replicate the Dravidian model in toto, since that model rests on an unique demographic endowment. Most Tamils belong to lower caste groups and hence it has been relatively easy to build a consensus in favour of egalitarian policies in the state. Upper castes account for only 2% of Tamil Nadu's population according to the last National Family Health Survey. In states such as Uttar Pradesh — where upper castes account for nearly a fourth of the population — the Dravidian model may not be easy to implement. Yet, if Uttar Pradesh were to achieve a (Tamil Nadu-style) political consensus on socio-economic reforms, it will find it easier to generate inclusive growth. Pramit Bhattacharya is a Chennai-based journalist. The views expressed are personal.
The Herald Scotland
04-07-2025
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
Glasgow tech M Squared Lasers' chief 'inspired by teacher'
Name Dr Graeme Malcolm Job title CEO and co-founder What is your business called? M Squared Lasers Where is it based? Glasgow What does it produce/do? We develop advanced photonics and quantum technologies, creating laser platforms that enable applications in quantum computing, chemical sensing, and biophotonics. Our lasers produce the purest light, powering healthcare imaging, climate monitoring, and next-gen computing. We work with Nobel-winning scientists, top universities, and industry leaders to solve pressing global challenges through precision light-based technologies. To whom does the business sell? Our tech is used where precision light can drive transformative impact. These include quantum computing, advanced imaging for healthcare, and environmental sensing technologies. What is its turnover? Up to £20m a year. Our turnover varies depending on project timing, as our big space projects are often multi-year endeavours. How many employees? 50 people, predominantly based in Glasgow. Tell us how the company's technology was developed, commercialised and scaled up? Are there lessons for others in that? I co-founded M Squared in 2006 with Dr Gareth Maker. Our name reflects the date we launched (May 2), our surnames, and the formula for the multiplication factor in a laser beam's propagation. My journey began with a fascination for lasers, inspired by a great physics teacher and a summer job at Barr & Stroud. I went on to study laser physics and quantum technologies, earning a PhD. Our technology is built on decades of expertise in photonics and optoelectronics, producing the world's purest light. This has enabled advances from quantum computing to medical imaging. We achieved commercial success by aligning technical innovation with global research demand and scaling through strategic partnerships with universities, space agencies, and global tech firms. To what extent is Scotland's deep tech sector, especially in quantum and photonics, underpinning UK ambitions in key sectors such as defence, artificial intelligence, and advanced manufacturing? Scotland's expertise in photonics and quantum technologies is a significant contributor to the UK's ambitions in sectors like defence, artificial intelligence, and advanced manufacturing. The region has a rich history in optical technologies, a strong foundation for current advancements. Scotland has become a world leader in photonics, with over 60 companies employing more than 4,000 highly skilled staff and contributing over £1 billion to the economy. We collaborate with universities like Strathclyde, Glasgow, and Edinburgh to convert cutting-edge research into real-world technology. Glasgow celebrates its 850th birthday this year. What are your views on the city's legacy of scientific discovery, industrial problem-solving and global outlook? How does all of this position Glasgow to shape the next generation of breakthrough technologies? Glasgow has a remarkable history rooted in industry and innovation. The city is home to world-leading science and technology expertise, which positions it well to shape the next generation of breakthrough technologies. Our quantum computing system, Maxwell, is named in honour of Scottish physicist James Clerk Maxwell, whose theories underpin our light sources and quantum processes. What attracted you to your current role? During my schooldays, laser technology felt like the future, and I wanted to be involved in something that was future-looking. This passion led me to study laser physics and quantum technologies, ultimately co-founding M Squared. Read more What were you doing before? After studying laser physics and quantum technologies at Strathclyde, I co-founded my first company in 1992. That company, Microlase, became part of Coherent Inc. in 2000 before I went on to found M Squared in 2006. What do you least enjoy? The time spent dealing with the friction of unproductive bureaucracy – a growing global burden on small and medium-sized companies. What do you consider to be the main successes of the business? I'm proud that we've developed some of the world's purest light sources, powering breakthroughs in science and industry. We launched some of the UK's first commercial quantum systems and helped advance the national quantum ecosystem. Our lasers support ESA (European Space Agency) missions like Sentinel-5P and CO₂M, enabling better climate monitoring, and are used in healthcare imaging for early diagnosis of conditions like Parkinson's and dementia. We've also innovated in quantum sensing, navigation, and chemical detection. Over 90 per cent of our products are exported, and we've been recognised with multiple Queen's Awards, [and] a MacRobert Award shortlist. What are your ambitions for the firm? To harness the power of light to change the world, developing quantum-enabled technologies that support net-zero goals. We're developing laser-based solutions with real-world impact, from medical breakthroughs to climate science and space exploration. These technologies are already saving lives and tackling complex challenges in some of the most demanding environments. What are the challenges facing the sector and market, and what could be done to overcome or address these? One of the biggest challenges facing the sector is scale. To compete globally, we need to accelerate growth with better access to patient capital, stronger support for manufacturing scale-up, and greater visibility for deep tech innovations from Strathclyde, Glasgow, and Edinburgh universities. These institutions produce top UK talent and research, and with targeted government support and regional investment, we can build a stronger national advantage. Additionally, better integration between disciplines is crucial. Quantum, AI, and advanced manufacturing will thrive where technologies intersect to solve complex problems. What single thing would most help? Access to capital for the riskier but more rewarding deep tech plays, such as quantum. This could revolutionise our economy, but the appetite for long-term innovative deep tech is still limited here compared to that in the United States. What is the most valuable lesson you have learned? The most valuable lesson I've learned is on developing a long-term strategy in deep-tech, and that, with a dedicated team learning together in a collaborative effort, Scottish companies can be truly world-class. What was your best moment? When our technology successfully calibrated ESA's Sentinel-5P satellite. That mission was successfully launched to become the key state-of-the-art Earth observation mission in the world, critically important for climate change and global air quality. Watching the rocket launch, and later knowing the sensors were detecting tiny trace gas molecules that marked the human impact on the atmosphere, was the climax of lots of hard work by a large team of people. Read more What has been your most challenging moment in life or business? The challenges, as is the case for many tech startups, have ranged from creating and growing our product lines to building a business that sells globally. One of the most challenging times for me was the fallout from the global telecoms bubble in 2003, as it had a major impact on the laser industry. How do you relax? Spending time with my family, playing golf, and being in the hills of Perthshire. What phrase or quotation has inspired you the most? A quote I come back to often is by Henry Ford: 'Whether you think you can, or you think you can't – you're right.' Believing is most of the battle. What is the best book (fiction or non-fiction) you have ever read? Why is it the best? Novacene by James Lovelock, who founded Gaia theory and wrote this book near 100 years old, is the most profound and wise yet concise book I've read. His views of humanity's future and the age of superintelligence expose the amazing era we are entering. Where do you find yourself most at ease? When I'm deep in learning, that's when I know I'm in my flow state of mind. If you weren't in your current role, what job would you most fancy? I've always been fascinated by history and archaeology. I hope our Quantum Gravimeter, which is like a camera for mass and lets us see objects and densities beneath the earth, might one day give me the chance to explore that interest sometime soon. What countries have you most enjoyed travelling to, for business or leisure, and why? For business, I've especially enjoyed spending time in Japan. The way of life and how they do business is fascinating to me. I've also valued time on the road in the US, visiting labs and customers across the country. For leisure, South Africa stands out for the beauty of its nature and wildlife. It's a very special place
The Hindu
11-06-2025
- Science
- The Hindu
Sensitive German experiment sets new limit on maximum neutrino mass
The city Deggendorf in Germany is about 350 km by road from Karlsruhe. Yet when the spectrometer of the Karlsruhe Tritium Neutrino Experiment (KATRIN) was constructed in Deggendorf in 2006, it took an 8,600-km detour to Karlsruhe. Of this, only 7 km was by land, transported on a truck with great care and police protection. For the rest of its journey, it floated on the Danube, the Black Sea, the Mediterranean Sea, the Atlantic Ocean, and the Rhine. Such elaborate measures had to be taken because the spectrometer — the core instrument of the experiment — was a 200-tonne affair, making land transport dangerous. Why make such a massive detector? For that is what it takes to attempt to determine the mass of the hardest-to-detect subatomic particle in the universe: the neutrino. Recently, the KATRIN collaboration published an upper limit on the sum of the masses of the three known neutrino types using 259 days of measurements recorded across five data-taking runs between March 2019 and June 2021. The collaboration said that this sum couldn't exceed 8.8 x 10-7 times the heft of the electron — a 2x improvement on the previous best constraint. This is a significant feat. One puzzle after another Physicists are so keen to study neutrinos because since their discovery in 1938, these particles have confronted them with one puzzle after another about nature. Here are some central questions pertaining to neutrinos' masses that drive research today. 1. How much does a neutrino weigh? Neutrinos come in three types. It has been established, through a phenomenon called particle oscillations, that at least two types of neutrinos have more than zero mass. It was an experimental triumph so intricate with profound theoretical implications that the physicists who led the discovery teams won the 2015 Nobel Prize for physics for making such a seemingly diminutive observation. Unfortunately, particle oscillations can only measure the differences in the squares of the neutrino masses, not the masses themselves. Measuring the actual masses is more challenging. This is what sophisticated devices like KATRIN are designed to attempt. 2. A neutrino's mass is so small that in almost every situation it travels nearly at the speed of light (a particle that does travel at the speed of light, the photon, is massless). It is this unbearable lightness that makes their weight difficult to pinpoint in an experiment. Also, physicists don't understand why neutrinos are so light. 3. In the Standard Model — the current best framework scientists have to explain the ways particles interact with each other — there is no way to theoretically confer masses to neutrinos. Said differently, neutrinos are predicted as massless, in conflict with the Nobel-winning oscillation data. This implies the presence of new, hitherto unseen forces and particle species in new Nature – the clearest index yet that something lurks beyond the Standard Model. What is that something? 4. Are neutrinos their own antiparticles? They certainly fit the bill. The antiparticle of a particle type carries opposite charge, so the first criterion for a self-conjugate particle is that it must be electrically neutral — which neutrinos are. As far as physicists can tell, it's also an elementary particle. This is unlike, say, a neutron, which is electrically neutral but composed of charged quarks. As antiquarks are distinct from quarks, an antineutron is distinct from a neutron. To seal the deal, physicists need to confirm a third requirement: whether the neutrino has a Majorana mass or a Dirac mass. These terms refer to the mechanism by which a neutrino gets its mass: if it follows the Majorana process, then a neutrino would be confirmed to be its own antiparticle. To settle this, physicists are looking for a very delicate natural process called neutrinoless double beta decay: one way that it can occur requires two neutrinos to mutually annihilate themselves. However, a neutrino is dreadfully hard to catch. Any material used as a detector would be nearly transparent to it. It takes, for instance, a light year's length of metal to stop a single neutrino emitted by the sun. Such elusiveness is why the neutrino took so long to be discovered. A significant achievement KATRIN itself closely observes the disintegration of molecular tritium to estimate the neutrino mass. In particular, it focuses on the maximum energies of electrons emitted when tritium decays; these energies carry information on the mass of the neutrino. To set the latest constraint, KATRIN collected data from no fewer than 36 million electrons. The experiment's feat is also the latest in a long history of similar attempts — beginning in 1991 in Los Alamos in the US and Tokyo, which set a cap on the neutrino mass that was about 20-times weaker than the new KATRIN result. KATRIN is also not the sole player in the game. For example, observational cosmologists use the fact that neutrinos are key actors in shaping the structure of galaxies to set a tighter upper limit on the sum of the neutrino masses at 1.4 x 10-7 times the electron mass. This limit, however, relies on assumptions about the evolution of the early universe that are hard to test, weakening the validity of the conclusions drawn. Another kind of experiment that can make a statement on neutrino masses makes use of the neutrinoless double beta decay — but this experiment also assumes neutrinos are self-conjugate at the outset. The KATRIN result, on the other hand, is robust because it rides on no such assumptions. That is a significant achievement to savour in the face of an opponent as formidable as the neutrino. Nirmal Raj is an assistant professor of theoretical physics at the Centre for High Energy Physics in the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru.
