The Future Science Prize, one of the most important Chinese science awards, has announced this year’s four winners will be crowned during a ceremony to be held in China.
The prize was first introduced back in 2016 and is the first such award, which is entirely private, without any ties to governmental institutions.
Shao Feng was awarded a prize in the life sciences category, for discoveries related to inflammatory responses to pathogenic bacteria.
Wang Yifang and Kam-Biu Luk have both been awarded the prize in the physical sciences category, for their work on discovering a third pattern of neutrino oscillations.
Wang Xiaoyun is the awardee in the mathematics and computer science category. According to the award committee, Ms. Xiaoyun has revealed a critical glitch in the way modern cryptography hashes are structured and operated. What is even more impressive is that Ms. Xiaoyun is the first-ever female awardee of the Future Science Prize.
The winners in each of the categories will be awarded one million United States dollars (USD 1 m), which are funded by the corporate sponsors of the Future Science Prize. All awardees were chosen out of a pool of impressive scientists, who have presented original research and discoveries in any of the three categories.
Future science and education
Science-based disciplines are becoming increasingly popular among students. There is an increase in the number of Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) students globally.
This increase is not surprising considering the fast-paced development of technology. Future science discoveries and developments are eagerly awaiting to be found, and our whole existence might depend on such innovation.
Despite the increase in interest, STEM subjects remain some of the hardest graduate disciplines. There has been an increased number of drop-outs from such disciplines, especially in courses related to biomedicine.
Considering the complexity of these subjects, the winners of the Future Science Prize are justly recognized. Their expertise in their respective fields of science is undeniable and should be rightfully noted.
