2009 FEATURE: JSPS Prize
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Japan Society for the Promotion of Science FEATURE: JSPS Prize T O P I C S ● JSPS Prize ....................................................................................................................................... 2 ● New Director Appointed for Research Center for Science Systems ......................... 6 ● Message from New Director, JSPS Nairobi Research Station ...................................... 7 ● Japan-UK Higher Education Symposium Held in London ........................................... 7 No.28 ● JSPS Briefing Held for Science & Technology Diplomatic Circle ................................ 8 ● ESF-JSPS Frontier Science Conference Held for Young Researchers ....................... 8 2009 ● First General Meeting Held of Bangladesh-JSPS Alumni Association ..................... 9 Summer ● Symposium on Advanced Nanoscale Materials Held in the US ................................. 9 ● Joint Effort for Combining Space Science with Archaeology ..................................... 10 ● JSPS-NRCT Summer School Held on Biomass Energy in Asia ..................................... 11 ● Todai Forum Held in the UK .................................................................................................... 11 ● China-Japan Science Forum Held on 2008 Wenchuan Earthquake ......................... 12 ● Colloquium on Sun & Earth Connections Held in Stockholm .................................... 12 ● Japan-Germany Colloquium Held on Evolutionary Genomics .................................. 13 ● Science Dialogue ........................................................................................................................ 14 ● Recent Visitors to JSPS .............................................................................................................. 15 FEATURE Fifth Award of JSPS Prize On 9 March, a ceremony was held to award the fifth JSPS Prize. Selected were 24 talented young researchers with excellent records of scientific in- quiry and exceptional promise to be trailblazers of scientific research in Japan. The ceremony for the FY2008 Prize was held at the Japan Academy in the presence of Their Imperial High- nesses Prince and Princess Akishino. Selection of JSPS Prize Awardees JSPS sent out requests for Prize nomi- nations to 3,079 Japanese research in- awarding of the Japan Academy Medal. Prince Akishino offered remarks, fol- stitutions and academic societies, from At the ceremony on 9 March, JSPS lowed by Mr. Masami Zeniya, Vice Min- which it received 214 in May. Adding president Prof. Motoyuki Ono offered ister of Education, Culture, Sports, Sci- the carryovers from the prior year, 374 an opening message, followed by a re- ence and Technology, who read a con- nominees were screened by the re- port on the selection process from Dr. gratulatory message from the minister. searchers of JSPS’s Research Center for Esaki. Prof. Ono presented the 24 re- To conclude the meeting, a message of Science Systems. Based on the results, cipients with a certificate of merit, a appreciation on behalf of the Prize re- the JSPS Prize Selection Committee, medal and a purse of ¥1.1 million. cipients was delivered by Dr. Schuichi chaired by Dr. Leo Esaki (chairman of Koizumi, professor, Interdisciplinary the Science and Technology Promotion A ceremony was, then, held to confer Graduate School of Medicine and En- Foundation of Ibaraki and president of the Japan Academy Medal on six of the gineering, University of Yamanashi. Yokohama College of Pharmacy) and JSPS Prize recipients. First, Japan comprising 13 members, made the final Academy president Prof. Masaaki Kubo After the ceremony, a celebration party decision on the 24 awardees. delivered welcoming remarks, after was held. Attended by Prince and which Dr. Sogo Okamura, chairman of Princess Akishino, the Prize recipients, Award Ceremony the Academy’s selection committee, ex- their guests, and the ceremony attendees, plained the vetting process. Then, Prof. an atmosphere conducive to pleasant The ceremony for awarding the JSPS Kubo presented the medal and a com- conversation was enjoyed by all. Prize was held in conjunction with the memorative gift to each of the awardees. JSPS Prize The Prize is awarded to Japanese researchers and to overseas researchers who have conducted research at a Japanese research The JSPS Prize was established in FY 2004 with an objective institution for five years or longer. They must have published pa- of advancing scientific research in Japan at the world’s highest pers or articles in scientific journals and other publications in standard. It does this by recognizing at an early stage in their Japan and/or abroad, and obtained excellent scientific research careers young researchers rich in both talent and creativity. The achievements. As of 1 April of the Prize year, they must be (1) Prize is meant to encourage the young recipients in advancing under 45 years of age and (2) have obtained a doctorate degree their work. (or possess an equivalent level of scientific research expertise). Report and Remarks by Dr. Leo Esaki at JSPS Prize Award Ceremony As chair of the JSPS Prize Selection members, would choose the recipients for As you all know, US President Barack Committee, I wish to describe the selec- the fifth JSPS Prize. Obama gave his first policy speech on tion process for the fifth annual JSPS 24 February, in which he stressed the Prize and to offer some words of encour- On 18 November 2008, the Committee need to develop clean energy and the agement to the young recipients. met to select this year’s 24 awardees. As importance of basic research. He had just there were many excellent candidates, the given his inaugural address on 20 Janu- In April 2008, a request for referrals was vetting process was at times impassioned, ary, in which he said, “We will restore sent out to universities, research insti- but ultimately the recipients were selected science to its rightful place.” I took this to tutes and related academic societies. based on a strict and careful appraisal of mean that he would value the views of Altogether 374 individuals were nomi- their respective research achievements. scientists while according science greater nated to the Selection Committee. For a respect than had the previous admin- period of approximately five months from I am pleased to take this opportunity to istration—that, for example, under the June 2008, the Research Center for Sci- extend a hearty congratulations to each Obama administration, America would ence Systems, established within the of you awarded the JSPS Prize via this strengthen its measures to mitigate Japan Society for the Promotion of Sci- highly competitive process. I also con- global warming. As his Assistant for ence, carried out the preliminary gratulate the colleagues who have sup- Science and Technology, President Obama screening, based on the results of which ported your work to date. selected Harvard professor Dr. John the Selection Committee, comprising 13 Holdren, who is well versed in environ- 2 SUMMER 2009 No. 28 JSPS Quarterly http://www.jsps.go.jp/english/ mental science, and as Secretary of En- I would like to paraphrase Dr. Chu’s If we were to predict the scientific ad- S ergy, he appointed Dr. Steven Chu, 1997 answer as I recall it. He said, “There’s vances of the 21st century, we’d have to do Nobel laureate in Physics. Dr. Chu nothing special I can say about what so based on what we currently know. belongs to a distinguished family of might occur in the 21st century. I think it However, nothing new can spring from D Chinese-American academics. may be more useful to step back instead of knowledge already possessed. Looking ahead in time; there is much that history back, new discoveries and inventions have Ten years ago in 1999, I invited Dr. Chu can tell us. What could we have known or been unpredictable surprises—products to participate on the panel of an interna- predicted about today when I was born of sudden knowledge leaps. They oc- tional conference held in Tsukuba, Ja- some 50 years ago. Who at that time curred in ways totally unexpected by us. pan. As its theme two questions were could have predicted today’s use of ‘stan- Isn’t this precisely what is so marvelous posed: “What sort of advances will sci- dard theory,’ for example, or that within about science?” ence make in the 21st century?” “What 50 years we would have discovered so advances can be anticipated in each of much about subatomic particles. The These thoughts are I believe consum- your fields?” These are questions that I’d double helix structure of DNA was dis- mately befitting a top-notch physicist. also like to ask you. At that conference, covered in 1953. Back then, it wouldn’t the answers given by the panelists, who have been possible to foresee the re- How about each of your futures? What were engaged in various projects, evoked search being advanced these days in such surprises do they hold in store? Not having a discussion on how science can contrib- fields as molecular biology or genomics. the slightest idea is indeed what is so very ute to creating a bright future. wonderful about being a young researcher. FY2008 JSPS Prize Awardees Humanities and Social Sciences Shin Arita Associate Professor, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University “Educational Structure and Social Stratification in Korea and Japan” of Tokyo Asako Nakai Associate Professor, Graduate School of Language and Society, “English-Language Literatures and Postcolonial Criticism” Hitotsubashi University Taiji