Shaw Prize turns 20: what it took to establish the ‘Nobel Prize of the East’
- Hong Kong philanthropist Run Run Shaw inspired in 2002 to launch annual award presented in fields of astronomy, life science and medicine, and mathematical sciences
- This year’s in-person ceremony – after three years of virtual presentations during Covid-19 pandemic – celebrated key moments in history of the award over past two decades
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How the ‘Nobel Prize of the East’ was established and became what it is today
How did one of Hong Kong’s biggest media tycoons come to found a science award that has recognised and honoured individuals who have made more than 60 notable discoveries and significant contributions that changed the course of history?
Hong Kong businessman and philanthropist Run Run Shaw – impressed by what the Nobel Prize had accomplished – set up the prestigious Shaw Prize in 2002.
Today, the Shaw Prize, first presented in 2004, is awarded in three categories, astronomy, life science and medicine, and mathematical sciences – each bearing a monetary prize of US$1.2 million – and is widely respected throughout the scientific community.
The prize’s reputation did not happen overnight; instead it took years of consistent hard work by various industry players. On November 12, their collective efforts culminated in an in-person Award Presentation Ceremony to mark its 20th anniversary, which followed three years of virtual ceremonies introduced during the Covid-19 pandemic.
This year’s Shaw Prize in Astronomy was jointly awarded to Matthew Bailes, Duncan Lorimer and Maura McLaughlin for their discovery of fast radio bursts. Patrick Cramer and Eva Nogales shared the Shaw Prize in Life Science and Medicine for proving how proper gene transcription promotes health and how dysregulation causes disease, while the Shaw Prize in Mathematical Sciences was awarded equally to Vladimir Drinfeld and Shing-Tung Yau for their contributions to mathematical physics, arithmetic geometry, differential geometry and Kahler geometry.
Watch the video to learn more about the Shaw Prize’s evolution through the years.
