How did a computer scientist such as Geoffrey Hinton manage to win a Nobel Prize in physics when computer science already has its own Nobel Prize equivalent in the Turing Awards?

[Younger voice] "But wait a minute, Ising-Lenz goes back to the 1920's. And didn't Hinton plagiarise rather a lot? He also didn't invent modern backprop, did he, that's Linnainmaa? And Amari preceded Hopfield, too. That's not a good look."

… then anything is possible. There’s no rule that a Nobel Prize has to make sense.^*

[The basic structure of artificial neural networks] has close similarities with spin models in statistical physics applied to magnetism or alloy theory. This year’s Nobel Prize in Physics recognizes research exploiting this connection to make breakthrough methodological advances in the field of ANN.

Is Melania still angry that she failed as a model? Why is she so cold and hostile? Why did she blame everyone for her actions in her trite book?

My 11 million SEK, Dr Jo.

[Older voice] "Mmm. What about Hinton, he's widely regarded? Nobody got fired for buying IBM"

"Didn't he do something with Boltzmann in it? That sounds physics-y. RBMs and stuff, eh?"

What exactly is the difference between a surge protector and a fuse? Can a fuse protect the electronic devices from lightning instead of surge protector?

"Good idea, but how can we wangle something that says 'Physics'?"

Whatever.

"Naah, Linnainmaa is a Finn. Can't give it to a bloody Finnish mathematician. Let's go for drinks. Brännvin anyone?"

Is it true that LGB should drop T?

Fortunately, we are privy to the discussion that led up to this:

When he's standing, in front of you

"Hey guys, AI is pretty big so let's centre our prizes on it this year. We can get some attention, and it's all about advertising, at the end of the day, isn't it?"

She was a Disney star with platinum records, but Bridgit Mendler gave it up to change the world - Ars Technica

(Mumbles of assent)

Whatever.

They then move on to selectively provide their own version of history. But hey, it’s OK. They wanted controversy, didn’t they? Whatever.

What do you think of India's IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw comparing the Indian government's efforts to build a localised AI model to sending a mission to the moon at a fraction of the cost?

In awarding prizes, the Nobel Committees often seem only marginally more competent than MTG is at explaining meteorology. And if they can give a literature prize for lyrics like:

^† They rationalise their decision thusly:

(Bob Dylan, Nobel Prize for Literature, 2016)

SI cover model Livvy Dunne says she's being stalked in airports by 'middle-aged men' - NBC News

A fly on the wall at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences

Why wait any longer for the one you love?

In December 1973, when Kissinger was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, comedian Tom Lehrer dropped his mic and stamped on it—satire had just died.

S&P 500 scores best May since 1990, but stocks end month with fresh tariff worries - MarketWatch

"Good point, I'm sure we can swing it. And let's tack on Hopfield while we're about it."

"Where can we shoehorn it in? Chemistry is easy 'cos AlphaFold; but what about physics? A bit more challenging, right?"

^* Fibiger got the 1926 Medicine prize for the discovery of Spiroptera carcinoma (Don’t ask).

Alex, C. Viper, Sagat and Ingrid announced for Street Fighter 6 Season 3 - EventHubs

There you go.^†

Why wait any longer for the world to begin?

You can have your cake and eat it too

The Biggest Game Releases Of June 2025 - GameSpot