The perfect couple makes history together

On the afternoon of October 8, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in Stockholm announced the winner of the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics.

Two American and Canadian scientists were awarded the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics. (Source: Nobel Prize)

Two scientists John Joseph Hopfield (American, working at Princeton University, New Jersey, USA) and Geoffrey Everest Hinton (British-Canadian, working at the University of Toronto, Canada) became co-owners of the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics for their fundamental discoveries and inventions that enable machine learning using artificial neural networks.

The two scientists, who began collaborating in 1980, used the tools of physics to find patterns in information, building a method that laid the foundation for today’s powerful machine learning. Machine learning based on artificial neural networks is revolutionizing science, engineering, and everyday life.

Machine learning has long played an important role in research, including classifying and analyzing large volumes of data, according to the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in Stockholm.

The founders...

American scientist Joseph Hopfield, 91 years old, is widely known for his research on connectionist artificial neural networks in 1982. (Source: Princeton University)

Joseph Hopfield, 91, is widely known for his research on the connectionist artificial neural network in 1982, which later became known as the Hopfield network. On October 8, after returning home from getting vaccinated with his wife, Hopfield was surprised to receive "a pile of letters" and felt "warmed" by the news of the Nobel Prize.

Scientist Geoffrey Everest Hinton (77 years old) is famous for his research on artificial neural networks and the development of the Boltzmann machine - a powerful tool that allows identifying features in data, thanks to which he is known as the "Godfather (artificial intelligence) AI" or "AI godfather".

Gemini, an AI chatbot developed by Google, describes Mr. Hinton as: "He is considered one of the most important figures in the history of AI - a visionary leader who has helped shape the future of AI."

The 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics is truly deserved because the contributions of this work "have fundamentally changed the world".

Notably, Mr. Hinton was born and raised in the "cradle" of science when his family members including his grandfather, father and cousins ​​were all respected scholars and scientists. His mother even reminded him: "Become a scholar or be a failure!"

Mr Hinton received the news of the award in a phone call from “people with thick Swedish accents” while he was in a hotel in California with his wife, where there was no internet connection, the phone connection was “unstable” and he was about to undergo an MRI scan to assess his health.

He even wondered if this was a scam call.

...fundamentally change the world

Scientists highly appreciate this year's Nobel Prize in Physics. Chair of the Nobel Committee for Physics Ellen Moons said: "The work of the two scientists has opened up new applications in physics, especially in the development of new materials with desired properties thanks to artificial neural networks."

“John Hopfield’s distinguished scientific career transcended the boundaries of conventional disciplines, allowing him to make lasting contributions to physics, chemistry, neuroscience, and molecular biology,” said Princeton University President Christopher L. Eisgrube, where Hopfield worked.

Mr. L. Eisgrube assessed that the groundbreaking research that was just honored "beautifully illustrates the power of curiosity to drive research to expand the boundaries of knowledge and create new tools to solve some of the world's most profound challenges".

Meanwhile, Ms. Mala Murthy, Director of the Princeton Neuroscience Institute at Princeton University, said: "John Hopfield was a founding figure in the creation of neuroscience at Princeton. Hopfield networks are inspired by the brain and allow machines to store memories and recall them with only partial information."

According to her, Mr. Hopfield's work " paved the way for the deep learning revolution, which has now impacted almost every aspect of society."

Princeton University's Department of Molecular Biology Chair Bonnie Bassler said the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics was well-deserved because the work "has fundamentally changed the world," with widespread applications in everyday life, such as smartphones and self-driving cars.

Worried about the rise of AI

Canadian scientist Geoffrey Everest Hinton, also known as the 'godfather of AI'. (Source: The New York Times)

When asked about the potential of the technology he helped develop, Canadian scientist Geoffrey Everest Hinton said, “AI is going to have a huge impact.”

“It’s comparable to the industrial revolution,” he said. “But instead of surpassing humans physically, it will surpass them intellectually. We have no experience of what happens when things are smarter than humans.”

Predicting that AI could revolutionize areas like healthcare, leading to significant productivity gains, he also warned that “we should be concerned about the potential negative consequences, especially the risk that they will spiral out of control,” and that they will eventually “take control.”

According to the “godfather of AI”, the world is now at a crossroads in history and in the next few years, “we need to figure out how to deal with that threat”, about how to control AI.

Since 1901, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has awarded 117 Nobel Prizes in Physics. The youngest person to receive this prestigious award was Australian scientist William Lawrence Bragg (1915), at the age of 25. The oldest person to be honored was American scientist Arthur Ashkin (2018), at the age of 96.

The Nobel Prize in Physics is the second prize to be announced in the 2024 season.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/bo-gia-ai-va-ong-trum-mang-hopfield-vua-tro-thanh-chu-nhan-gia-nobel-physics-2024-couple-perfect-happy-dua-nhau-vao-lich-su-289366.html