Nobel Prize / en From AI to Atari: What it's like to work with Nobel Prize-winner Geoffrey Hinton /news/ai-atari-what-it-was-work-nobel-prize-winner-geoffrey-hinton <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">From AI to Atari: What it's like to work with Nobel Prize-winner Geoffrey Hinton</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2024-10/2024-10-08-Hinton-Nobel-Celebration-%2810%29-crop2.jpg?h=81d682ee&amp;itok=0iRY_Amm 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/2024-10/2024-10-08-Hinton-Nobel-Celebration-%2810%29-crop2.jpg?h=81d682ee&amp;itok=ke-zpDaw 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/2024-10/2024-10-08-Hinton-Nobel-Celebration-%2810%29-crop2.jpg?h=81d682ee&amp;itok=S8-2j70q 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2024-10/2024-10-08-Hinton-Nobel-Celebration-%2810%29-crop2.jpg?h=81d682ee&amp;itok=0iRY_Amm" alt="&quot;&quot;"> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>mattimar</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2024-10-25T10:13:56-04:00" title="Friday, October 25, 2024 - 10:13" class="datetime">Fri, 10/25/2024 - 10:13</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item"><p><em>From left: Chris Maddison, Nick Frosst and Kevin Swersky at a recent event celebrating ֱ University Professor Emeritus Geoffrey Hinton's 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics (photo by Johnny Guatto)</em></p> </div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/mariam-matti" hreflang="en">Mariam Matti</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/our-community" hreflang="en">Our Community</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/alumni" hreflang="en">ֱ</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/artificial-intelligence" hreflang="en">Artificial Intelligence</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/computer-science" hreflang="en">Computer Science</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/faculty-arts-science" hreflang="en">Faculty of Arts &amp; Science</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/geoffrey-hinton" hreflang="en">Geoffrey Hinton</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nobel-prize" hreflang="en">Nobel Prize</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/statistical-sciences" hreflang="en">Statistical Sciences</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-subheadline field--type-string-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Subheadline</div> <div class="field__item">Three former students who worked with the "godfather of AI" recall his passionate and playful approach to research</div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>In the wake of <a href="/news/geoffrey-hinton-wins-nobel-prize" target="_blank"><strong>Geoffrey Hinton</strong>’s 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics</a>, former students and colleagues from the University of Toronto are sharing their favourite anecdotes about the “godfather of AI” – including one involving the classic Atari video game Asteroids.</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-right"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/2024-10/2018-10-10-Nick_Frosst-crop.jpg" width="300" height="300" alt="&quot;&quot;"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>Nick Frosst (photo by Nina Haikara)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p><strong>Nick Frosst</strong>, a ֱ alumnus and co-founder of generative AI startup Cohere, said Hinton, University Professor Emeritus of computer science, once spoke of an intense, button-mashing session that left him with nerve damage.</p> <p>“This kind of explains, perhaps, the way in which he types, which is still two fingers at a time,” said Frosst, who began working with Hinton as a ֱ undergraduate student and was his first employee at Google Brain.</p> <p>He shared the story at a recent event hosted by the department of computer science in the Faculty of Arts &amp; Science, saying it offered a telling glimpse into Hinton’s character.</p> <p>“It’s that fever-pitched intensity, passion and playfulness that he brings to everything … He found something that was fun and engaging and he played it until it damaged a finger and then he continued to push for it.”</p> <p>Frosst said he also appreciates Hinton’s thoughtful consideration about <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-9cW4Gcn5WY" target="_blank">the potential negative consequences of the revolutionary technology</a> he helped create and praised him for looking past formal qualifications to spot potential and creativity.</p> <p>“I don't have a master's degree or a PhD, but he was willing to work with me and I saw that in the types of people he brought into Google Brain to work with him,” Frosst said.</p> <p>“He took lots of chances on people and gave them the time of day once they were there. And for that, I'll always be thankful and deeply privileged, and honoured, to have him in my life.”</p> <p>Other former students at ֱ tell similar stories.</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-left"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/2024-10/HEADSHOT_Chris-Maddison-crop.jpg" width="300" height="300" alt="&quot;&quot;"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>Chris Maddison (supplied image)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p><strong>Chris Maddison</strong>,&nbsp;now an assistant professor in ֱ’s departments of computer science and statistical sciences in the Faculty of Arts &amp; Science, was also an undergraduate student when he started working with Hinton in 2011. &nbsp;</p> <p>He also painted a picture of Hinton’s vibrant office – where everyone knew when he had a new idea.&nbsp;</p> <p>“The excitement, the joy radiated out of his office down the hall. The air was buzzing with possibility,” said Maddison. “He was famous for bursting into a room and pronouncing that, he now finally, after all these years, understood how the brain worked.”</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-right"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/2024-10/UofT15470_2017-06-08-Kevin-Swersky-crop.jpg" width="300" height="300" alt="&quot;&quot;"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>Kevin Swersky (photo by Johnny Guatto)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p><strong>Kevin Swersky</strong>, a research scientist at Google DeepMind, worked with Hinton as a graduate student at ֱ and similarly described visiting Hinton as a memorable academic experience.</p> <p>“Normally when you go to a supervisor's office, you give them a progress update. You go through what your latest results are, you talk about a couple of your ideas and you get some feedback,” he said.</p> <p>“Going to Geoff’s office was a completely different story. He would be telling you what his latest idea was. He would show you his latest results. And his whole thing was just that he was really excited about it, and his hope was to inspire you enough to start running with it.”</p> <p>He added that he was particularly inspired by Hinton’s focus on small, solvable puzzles that would ultimately lead to significant breakthroughs over time.</p> <p>“Geoff would think completely intuitively – like the universe was a puzzle and he was just kind of figuring out where all the pieces went, and the math would always follow whatever he was talking about,” he said.</p> <p>He also remarked on Hinton’s kindness.</p> <p>“He offered to put me up for a few weeks,” he said of a time when he found himself looking for a place to stay in Toronto. “He offered to go and get dishes. I was thinking to myself, ‘Wow, Geoff Hinton wants to go out shopping for dishes for me so that I can be comfortable for a few weeks.’”</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-10/2024-10-10-UofT-Celebrates-Geoffrey-Hinton-Nobel-b-%2813%29-crop.jpg?itok=p_-or-3O" width="750" height="500" alt="Hinton speaks to someone during his Nobel celebration event" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>Geoffrey Hinton shakes hand at a recent ֱ event celebrating his Nobel Prize (photo by Mac&nbsp;Pattanasuttinont)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>Frosst, too, has a Hinton home-making story: the AI luminary built him a desk from scratch.</p> <p>“He's a carpenter,” Frosst said. “It’s a small wooden desk that fits in the corner of my room at home.</p> <p>“That's where I keep my computer and work from.”</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Fri, 25 Oct 2024 14:13:56 +0000 mattimar 309950 at ‘One of the great minds of the 21st century’: ֱ celebrates Geoffrey Hinton’s Nobel Prize  /news/one-great-minds-21st-century-u-t-celebrates-geoffrey-hinton-s-nobel-prize <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">‘One of the great minds of the 21st century’: ֱ celebrates Geoffrey Hinton’s Nobel Prize&nbsp;</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2024-10/2024-10-10-UofT-Celebrates-Geoffrey-Hinton-Nobel-b-%2810%29-crop.jpg?h=81d682ee&amp;itok=rOj6za4X 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/2024-10/2024-10-10-UofT-Celebrates-Geoffrey-Hinton-Nobel-b-%2810%29-crop.jpg?h=81d682ee&amp;itok=MDlROSRE 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/2024-10/2024-10-10-UofT-Celebrates-Geoffrey-Hinton-Nobel-b-%2810%29-crop.jpg?h=81d682ee&amp;itok=1S_vB6hs 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2024-10/2024-10-10-UofT-Celebrates-Geoffrey-Hinton-Nobel-b-%2810%29-crop.jpg?h=81d682ee&amp;itok=rOj6za4X" alt="Hinton speaking at the podium during the event"> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>rahul.kalvapalle</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2024-10-17T13:24:21-04:00" title="Thursday, October 17, 2024 - 13:24" class="datetime">Thu, 10/17/2024 - 13:24</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item"><p><em>University Professor Emeritus Geoffrey Hinton, who won the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics, attends a celebration event held at the Schwartz Reisman Innovation Campus (photo by Mac Pattanasuttinont)</em></p> </div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/rahul-kalvapalle" hreflang="en">Rahul Kalvapalle</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/our-community" hreflang="en">Our Community</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/leah-cowen" hreflang="en">Leah Cowen</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/schwartz-reisman-innovation-campus" hreflang="en">Schwartz Reisman Innovation Campus</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/wesley-hall" hreflang="en">Wesley Hall</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/schwartz-reisman-institute-technology-and-society" hreflang="en">Schwartz Reisman Institute for Technology and Society</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/artificial-intelligence" hreflang="en">Artificial Intelligence</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/cifar" hreflang="en">CIFAR</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/department-computer-science" hreflang="en">Department of Computer Science</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/faculty-applied-science-engineering" hreflang="en">Faculty of Applied Science &amp; Engineering</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/faculty-arts-science" hreflang="en">Faculty of Arts &amp; Science</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/geoffrey-hinton" hreflang="en">Geoffrey Hinton</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/john-polanyi" hreflang="en">John Polanyi</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/meric-gertler" hreflang="en">Meric Gertler</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nobel-prize" hreflang="en">Nobel Prize</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/statistical-sciences" hreflang="en">Statistical Sciences</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/vector-institute" hreflang="en">Vector Institute</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-subheadline field--type-string-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Subheadline</div> <div class="field__item">The 2024 co-winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics - known to many as the "godfather of AI" - was honoured at an event attended by a who's who of the Toronto research community</div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>There were standing ovations, peals of laughter and even a few tears as the University of Toronto welcomed&nbsp;<a href="https://discover.research.utoronto.ca/search?by=text&amp;type=user&amp;v=hinton"><strong>Geoffrey Hinton</strong></a>&nbsp;back to campus after he <a href="/news/geoffrey-hinton-wins-nobel-prize">won the&nbsp;2024 Nobel Prize in Physics</a>.</p> <p>A&nbsp;<a href="https://www.provost.utoronto.ca/awards-funding/university-professors/">University Professor</a>&nbsp;Emeritus of computer science, Hinton traded the “cheap hotel room in California,” where he received the life-changing news, for an emotional reception in the Schwartz Reisman Innovation Campus’s airy event hall.&nbsp;</p> <p>The Oct. 10 event drew ֱ leaders, supporters, dignitaries and other luminaries. They included Deputy Prime Minister&nbsp;<strong>Chrystia Freeland</strong>, University Professor Emeritus&nbsp;<a href="https://discover.research.utoronto.ca/11818-john-polanyi"><strong>John Polanyi</strong></a>, who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1986, and Massey College Principal&nbsp;<strong>James Orbinski</strong>, who accepted the Nobel Peace Prize on behalf of Doctors Without Borders in 1999.</p> <p>Several of Hinton’s many collaborators and proteges also attended the event – not to mention students who were simply eager to catch a glimpse of the “godfather of AI.”</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-10/2024-10-10-UofT-Celebrates-Geoffrey-Hinton-Nobel-%2823%29-crop.jpg?itok=b4Smc-Ix" width="750" height="500" alt="&quot;&quot;" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>Hinton chats with ֱ Scarborough Professor David Fleet and Google Research Scientists Sara Sabour and Daniel Watson (photo by Johnny Guatto)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>Though sleep deprived, Hinton regaled the audience with fond recollections of his early years as an AI researcher, snapshots of his trademark dry humour and warm expressions of gratitude for mentors, collaborators and, of course, his many students.</p> <p>&nbsp;“I’ve been blessed to have brilliant graduate students and post-docs,” Hinton said.&nbsp;</p> <p>“I had a principle when selecting graduate students: ‘If they’re not smarter than me, what’s the point?’ And I’ve had quite a number of graduate students who were smarter than me.&nbsp;</p> <p>“They did things I wouldn’t have been able to do, so I’d like to thank them.”</p> <p>He said two figures in particular played a huge role in the work that led to his Nobel Prize, which he shared with&nbsp;<a href="https://www.princeton.edu/news/2024/10/08/princetons-john-hopfield-receives-nobel-prize-physics" target="_blank">Princeton University’s&nbsp;John J. Hopfield</a>. The first was&nbsp;<strong>Terry Sejnowsky</strong>, a computational neuroscientist and former student of Hopfield’s, who worked with Hinton on Boltzmann machines – a period Hinton described as “the most happy research time of my life.”</p> <p>He also praised the contributions of the late&nbsp;<strong>David Rumelhart</strong>, a psychologist at Stanford University, who worked with him to develop backpropagation algorithms, a key breakthrough.&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;“[He] should have won the Nobel Prize,” Hinton said. “But unfortunately, Dave got a horrible brain disease and he died quite young.” (The Nobel organization doesn’t award the honour posthumously).</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-10/2024-10-10-UofT-Celebrates-Geoffrey-Hinton-Nobel-b-%283%29-crop.jpg?itok=dSJHWt-g" width="750" height="500" alt="&quot;&quot;" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>Hinton poses for a picture with Assistant Professor&nbsp;Chris Maddison, who was one of the last graduate students Hinton supervised&nbsp;(photo by Mac Pattanasuttinont)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p><strong>Chris Maddison</strong>&nbsp;joined Hinton’s research group as an undergraduate and was one of the last students he supervised. Now an assistant professor&nbsp;in ֱ’s departments of computer science and statistical sciences in the Faculty of Arts &amp; Science, Maddison lauded Hinton as “a steadfast mentor and supporter who saw strength in me that I didn’t see” and said one of his greatest attributes was his sheer enthusiasm.&nbsp;</p> <p>“No matter what’s going on, you can find him in the lab on Sundays at 8 p.m. playing with his MATLAB scripts like a child playing with Legos,” Maddison said. “He never lost that child-like sense of wonder that buoyed him and the group.”</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-10/2024-10-10-UofT-Celebrates-Geoffrey-Hinton-Nobel-%2848%29-crop.jpg?itok=1MquVq1s" width="750" height="500" alt="&quot;&quot;" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>ֱ President Meric Gertler said, via video message from Indonesia, where he was on university business, that Hinton is “one of the great minds of the 21st century” (photo by&nbsp;Johnny Guatto)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>ֱ President&nbsp;<strong>Meric Gertler</strong>, who was in Indonesia on university business when the prize was announced,&nbsp;hailed Hinton in a video message as “one of the great minds of the 21st century” and someone who “literally created new ways of thinking about thinking and learning.”</p> <p>He noted that Hinton’s AI leadership extends to the pressing question of responsible and safe development of the technology.</p> <p>“With his Nobel win, he’s now perfectly positioned to amplify this concern on a world stage.” President Gertler said.</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-10/2024-10-10-UofT-Celebrates-Geoffrey-Hinton-Nobel-%2821%29-crop.jpg?itok=qq1DkhUu" width="750" height="500" alt="&quot;&quot;" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>Hinton shares a laugh with University Professor Molly Shoichet of the Faculty of Applied Science &amp; Engineering (photo by Johnny Guatto)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>The event’s guest list served as a reminder of Hinton’s outsized influence on the research community in Toronto and beyond, drawing key figures from: the <a href="https://vectorinstitute.ai" target="_blank">Vector Institute</a>, where Hinton is co-founder and chief scientific adviser; the <a href="https://srinstitute.utoronto.ca">Schwartz Reisman Institute of Technology and Society</a>, where he sits on the advisory board; and <a href="https://cifar.ca" target="_blank">CIFAR</a> (Canadian Institute for Advanced Research), where Hinton is an adviser and longtime fellow.</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-10/2024-10-10-UofT-Celebrates-Geoffrey-Hinton-Nobel-%2838%29-crop.jpg?itok=x2CdZ7fm" width="750" height="500" alt="&quot;&quot;" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>Hinton poses for a photo with Leah Cowen, ֱ’s vice-president, research and innovation, and strategic initiatives (photo by Johnny Guatto)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p><strong>Leah Cowen</strong>, ֱ’s vice-president, research and innovation, and strategic initiatives, reminded the accomplished audience that Hinton’s historic achievement – both the Nobel Prize and the AI revolution he helped spark – was the result of years toiling in an “unpromising backwater” of AI research.</p> <p>“It is tempting to think that it happened almost overnight, but it didn’t,” Cowen said.</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-10/2024-10-10-UofT-Celebrates-Geoffrey-Hinton-Nobel-%2842%29-crop.jpg?itok=crJbpCRO" width="750" height="500" alt="&quot;&quot;" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>University Professors Emeriti – and fellow Nobel Prize-winners&nbsp;–&nbsp;Geoffrey Hinton and John Polanyi have their photo taken together (photo by Johnny Guatto)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>Hinton took time to reflect on periods of personal struggle and tragedy – and thank those who helped him in his hour of need.</p> <p>When his wife had an incurable form of cancer, he recalled how ֱ President Emeritus&nbsp;<strong>David Naylor</strong>, a physician, medical researcher and former dean of the Temerty Faculty of Medicine, carried out research on a possible alternative treatment that was being explored – incorporating input from top medical experts – and presented him with a report of his findings.&nbsp;</p> <p>“He’s a tremendous human being,” Hinton said of Naylor, who was in the audience.</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-10/2024-10-10-UofT-Celebrates-Geoffrey-Hinton-Nobel-%2810%29-crop.jpg?itok=nQrZtWHK" width="750" height="500" alt="&quot;&quot;" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>Hinton shares a moment with ֱ President Emeritus&nbsp;David Naylor&nbsp;(photo by Johnny Guatto)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>Hinton also recalled how, when his first wife became ill in 1993 – also with cancer – his post-doctoral trainee&nbsp;<strong>Peter Dayan</strong>, now a director at the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, stepped in to advise Hinton’s graduate students, giving him time to care for his ailing spouse.</p> <p>“At times like this, you remember the people who helped you most when things were very difficult,” Hinton said.</p> <p>He later pointed out that Dayan went on to supervise&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/czrm0p2mxvyo" target="_blank">one of this year’s winners of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry</a>,&nbsp;<strong>Demis Hassabis</strong>, joking that this made Dayan “the meat in a Nobel sandwich.”</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-10/2024-10-10-UofT-Celebrates-Geoffrey-Hinton-Nobel-%289%29-crop.jpg?itok=FidziTsr" width="750" height="500" alt="&quot;&quot;" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>Deputy Prime Minister&nbsp;Chrystia Freeland said Canada was lucky to have Hinton, who was born in the U.K., and thanked his daughter for sharing her father with the country, with science and the world<strong>&nbsp;</strong>(photo by Johnny Guatto)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>For Minister Freeland, Hinton’s award showcased the value of ideas and of fundamental research. She said Hinton’s Nobel Prize sent waves of pride across Canada, which she said was “lucky as a country” that Hinton arrived on its shores back in 1987.</p> <p>“Geoff shows that you can be a really brilliant intellectual and also a really great human being who cares about his community and his country,” Freeland said. “I am constantly struck by how Geoff thinks about the bigger implications of his ideas and how Geoff thinks about really wanting to make Canada and the world a better place.”</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-10/2024-10-10-UofT-Celebrates-Geoffrey-Hinton-Nobel-%2862%29-crop.jpg?itok=EM2tc4oh" width="750" height="500" alt="&quot;&quot;" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>Hinton chats with Melanie Woodin, dean of the Faculty of Arts &amp; Science, who thanked him for his friendship and mentorship – and his dedication to science and scholarship&nbsp;(photo by Johnny Guatto)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>Following the program – which also featured remarks by ֱ Chancellor&nbsp;<strong>Wes Hall</strong>, Faculty of Arts &amp; Science Dean&nbsp;<strong>Melanie Woodin</strong>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<strong>Christine Szustaczek</strong>, ֱ’s vice-president, communications – Hinton mingled with members of the audience, shook hands with students and caught up with former colleagues and trainees.</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-10/2024-10-10-UofT-Celebrates-Geoffrey-Hinton-Nobel-%2845%29-crop.jpg?itok=j8tveEpD" width="750" height="500" alt="&quot;&quot;" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>Clockwise from top left: Christine Szustaczek, Wes Hall, Chris Maddison, Leah Cowen, Geoffrey Hinton and Melanie Woodin&nbsp;(photo by Johnny Guatto)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p><strong>Brendan Frey</strong>, professor in the Faculty of Applied Science &amp; Engineering and CEO of AI-powered therapeutics startup Deep Genomics, said he was one of many who earned his PhD under Hinton’s supervision.&nbsp;</p> <p>“I think of Geoff as the father of a community that includes myself, other graduate students and all the people who didn’t believe but then came to believe – and he inspired all of us,” said Frey, who shared a hug with his former supervisor following the event.&nbsp;</p> <p>“I’m really happy for him.”</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Thu, 17 Oct 2024 17:24:21 +0000 rahul.kalvapalle 309872 at In his words: Geoffrey Hinton reflects on his Nobel Prize win /news/his-words-geoffrey-hinton-reflects-his-nobel-prize-win <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">In his words: Geoffrey Hinton reflects on his Nobel Prize win</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2024-10/vlcsnap-2024-10-10-11h03m36s162-crop.jpg?h=81d682ee&amp;itok=7yWgcJNn 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/2024-10/vlcsnap-2024-10-10-11h03m36s162-crop.jpg?h=81d682ee&amp;itok=q4Ek7kjf 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/2024-10/vlcsnap-2024-10-10-11h03m36s162-crop.jpg?h=81d682ee&amp;itok=_VZ0jpfT 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2024-10/vlcsnap-2024-10-10-11h03m36s162-crop.jpg?h=81d682ee&amp;itok=7yWgcJNn" alt="&quot;&quot;"> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>rahul.kalvapalle</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2024-10-10T12:26:59-04:00" title="Thursday, October 10, 2024 - 12:26" class="datetime">Thu, 10/10/2024 - 12:26</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item"><p><em>Geoffrey Hinton,&nbsp;University Professor Emeritus of computer science at the University of Toronto and winner of the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics, takes questions during a virtual press conference hosted by ֱ (image via YouTube)</em></p> </div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/rahul-kalvapalle" hreflang="en">Rahul Kalvapalle</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/global-lens" hreflang="en">Global Lens</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/artificial-intelligence" hreflang="en">Artificial Intelligence</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/department-computer-science" hreflang="en">Department of Computer Science</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/faculty-arts-science" hreflang="en">Faculty of Arts &amp; Science</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/geoffrey-hinton" hreflang="en">Geoffrey Hinton</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/global" hreflang="en">Global</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nobel-prize" hreflang="en">Nobel Prize</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/president-meric-gertler" hreflang="en">President Meric Gertler</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-subheadline field--type-string-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Subheadline</div> <div class="field__item">"If you believe in something, don’t give up on it until you understand why that belief is wrong" </div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Empower curiosity-driven research. Follow your convictions. Think not just about how to advance technology, but how to direct its use for good.</p> <p>These were among the key messages delivered by <a href="https://discover.research.utoronto.ca/26059-geoffrey-e-hinton"><strong>Geoffrey Hinton</strong></a>, <a href="https://www.provost.utoronto.ca/awards-funding/university-professors/">University Professor</a> Emeritus of computer science at the University of Toronto and <a href="/news/geoffrey-hinton-wins-nobel-prize">winner of the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics</a>, during an Oct. 8 press conference held by the university to mark his historic award.</p> <p>Widely regarded as “the godfather of AI,” Hinton was named a co-winner of the prize – alongside <strong>John J. Hopfield</strong> of Princeton University – for his work on Boltzmann machines and artificial neural networks, which laid the groundwork for advancements in AI and stimulated new research directions in physics.</p> <p>ֱ President <strong>Meric Gertler</strong> hailed Hinton for having “a profound impact on multiple fields and disciplines,” crediting “his leadership and exemplary mentorship of young scholars” with helping ֱ become a global leader in AI and machine learning.</p> <p>“I think one cannot overstate the impact of a win like this on the ability of Canada, Toronto and the University of Toronto to be able to welcome talented newcomers, great students and wonderful faculty from across the country and around the world because of the recognition that arises with Geoff’s win,” President Gertler said.</p> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-oembed-video field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item"><iframe src="/media/oembed?url=https%3A//youtube.com/live/H7DgMFqrON0%3Ffeature%3Dshare&amp;max_width=0&amp;max_height=0&amp;hash=jEkuGn1fAmwdL9483RQO8-ErYMD2R6trzlSk57q3bJM" width="200" height="113" class="media-oembed-content" loading="eager" title="University of Toronto Press Conference - Professor Geoffrey Hinton, Nobel Prize in Physics 2024"></iframe> </div> </div> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>For his part, Hinton echoed his remarks from earlier in the day that he was “flabbergasted” to receive the prize and pleased that the Nobel committee recognized the advancements in artificial neural networks.</p> <p>He also answered questions about his influences, legacy and how it feels to go from being an obscure researcher who toiled in a largely forsaken field to a Nobel Laureate&nbsp;– and his advice for researchers who hope to one day follow in his footsteps.</p> <p>Here are five key themes that emerged from Hinton's news conference:</p> <hr> <h4>His legacy</h4> <p>“I’m hoping AI will lead to tremendous benefits, to tremendous increases in productivity and to a better life for everybody. I’m convinced that it will do that in health care.</p> <p>“My worry is that it may also lead to bad things, and in particular, when we get things more intelligent than ourselves, no one really knows whether we’re going to be able to control them.</p> <p>“We don’t know how to avoid [catastrophic AI scenarios] at present. That’s why we urgently need more research. So I’m advocating that our best young researchers, or many of them, should work on AI safety and governments should force large companies to provide the computational facilities they need to do that.”</p> <h4>A collaborative effort</h4> <p>“I think of the prize as a recognition of a large community of people who worked on artificial neural networks for many years.</p> <p>“I’d particularly like to acknowledge my two main mentors:&nbsp;<strong>David Rumelhart</strong>, with whom I worked on the backpropagation algorithm … and my colleague <strong>Terry Sejnowsky</strong>, who I worked with a lot in the 1980s on Boltzmann machines and who taught me a lot about the brain.</p> <p>“I’d also like to acknowledge my students. I was particularly fortunate to have many clever students, much cleverer than me, who actually made things work. They’ve gone on to do great things.</p> <p>“I should also acknowledge <strong>Yoshua Bengio</strong> and <strong>Yann LeCun</strong> <a href="/news/am-turing-award-nobel-prize-computing-given-hinton-and-two-other-ai-pioneers">who were close colleagues</a> and very instrumental in developing this whole field.”</p> <h4>Canada’s research strengths</h4> <p>“I think the main thing about Canada as a place to do research is there isn’t as much money as there is in the U.S., but it uses its money quite wisely.</p> <p>“In particular, the main funding council for this type of research, called NSERC, uses money for basic curiosity-driven research, and all of these advances in neural networks came out of basic curiosity-driven research – not out of throwing money at applied problems, but out of letting scientists follow their curiosity to try and understand things. And Canada’s quite good at that.”</p> <h4>Many thought he was wasting his time</h4> <p>“It was a lot of fun doing the research, but it was slightly annoying that many people – in fact, most people in the field of AI – said that neural networks would never work.</p> <p>"They were very confident these things were a waste of time and we would never be able to learn complicated things – for example, understanding natural language – using neural networks. And they were wrong."</p> <h4>Believe in your ideas&nbsp;</h4> <p>"My message is this: if you believe in something, don’t give up on it until you understand why that belief is wrong.</p> <p>"Often, you believe in things and you eventually figure out why that’s a wrong thing to believe in. But so long as you believe in something and you can’t see why that’s wrong – like, ‘the brain has to work somehow so we have to figure out how it learns the connection strengths to make it work’ – keep working on it and don’t let people tell you it’s nonsense if you can’t see why it’s nonsense."</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Thu, 10 Oct 2024 16:26:59 +0000 rahul.kalvapalle 309828 at ‘Godfather of AI' Geoffrey Hinton’s Nobel Prize makes headlines around the world  /news/godfather-ai-geoffrey-hinton-s-nobel-prize-draws-headlines-around-world <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">‘Godfather of AI' Geoffrey Hinton’s Nobel Prize makes headlines around the world&nbsp;</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2024-10/UofT93635_2023-10-04-Geoffrey-Hinton-and-Fei-Fei-Li_Photo-Polina-Teif-20-crop.jpg?h=782ba1fc&amp;itok=ERiCbIUy 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/2024-10/UofT93635_2023-10-04-Geoffrey-Hinton-and-Fei-Fei-Li_Photo-Polina-Teif-20-crop.jpg?h=782ba1fc&amp;itok=ReF4AHaT 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/2024-10/UofT93635_2023-10-04-Geoffrey-Hinton-and-Fei-Fei-Li_Photo-Polina-Teif-20-crop.jpg?h=782ba1fc&amp;itok=N7SF83Ou 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2024-10/UofT93635_2023-10-04-Geoffrey-Hinton-and-Fei-Fei-Li_Photo-Polina-Teif-20-crop.jpg?h=782ba1fc&amp;itok=ERiCbIUy" alt="&quot;&quot;"> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>Christopher.Sorensen</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2024-10-09T15:24:35-04:00" title="Wednesday, October 9, 2024 - 15:24" class="datetime">Wed, 10/09/2024 - 15:24</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item"><p><em>(photo by Polina Teif)</em></p> </div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/global-lens" hreflang="en">Global Lens</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/artificial-intelligence" hreflang="en">Artificial Intelligence</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/computer-science" hreflang="en">Computer Science</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/faculty-arts-science" hreflang="en">Faculty of Arts &amp; Science</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/geoffrey-hinton" hreflang="en">Geoffrey Hinton</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nobel-prize" hreflang="en">Nobel Prize</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/research-innovation" hreflang="en">Research &amp; Innovation</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>News of&nbsp;<a href="https://discover.research.utoronto.ca/26059-geoffrey-e-hinton"><strong>Geoffrey Hinton’s</strong></a> <a href="/news/geoffrey-hinton-wins-nobel-prize">Nobel Prize in Physics</a>&nbsp;travelled around the globe, making international headlines for the British-Canadian scientist known as the “godfather of AI.”</p> <p>A&nbsp;<a href="https://www.provost.utoronto.ca/awards-funding/university-professors/">University Professor</a>&nbsp;Emeritus of computer science at the University of Toronto, Hinton won the prize jointly with <a href="https://www.princeton.edu/news/2024/10/08/princetons-john-hopfield-receives-nobel-prize-physics" target="_blank">Princeton’s&nbsp;<strong>John J. Hopfield</strong></a>&nbsp;for early discoveries and inventions in the realm of physics that laid the groundwork for today’s artificial intelligence boom.</p> <p>Hinton told&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/08/technology/nobel-prize-geoffrey-hinton-ai.html?searchResultPosition=1" target="_blank"><em>The New York Times</em></a>&nbsp;he was, “shocked and amazed and flabbergasted. I never expected it.”</p> <p>After receiving the call from Stockholm in the wee hours, Hinton, who was in California, spent much of the day <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7DgMFqrON0">attending press conferences</a> and speaking with reporters from a “cheap hotel room with no internet,” even oscillating mid-interview between the&nbsp;Times&nbsp;and the BBC.</p> <p>Nevertheless, he seized the moment to emphasize both the promise and pitfalls of AI-based technologies.</p> <p>“It’s going to be like the Industrial Revolution – but instead of our physical capabilities, it’s going to exceed our intellectual capabilities," <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c62r02z75jyo">he told the&nbsp;BBC</a>. “… but I worry that the overall consequences of this might be systems that are more intelligent than us that might eventually take control.”</p> <p><a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/nobel-prize-university-of-toronto-british-nobel-prize-in-physics-google-b2626208.html">Independent UK</a>&nbsp;acknowledged the unusual nature of Hinton’s win in the physics category.</p> <p>“I’m not a physicist, I have very high respect for physics,” Hinton said. “I dropped out of physics after my first year at university because I couldn’t do the complicated math. So, getting an award in physics was very surprising to me. I’m very pleased that the Nobel committee recognised that there’s been huge progress in the area of artificial neural networks.”</p> <p>Closer to home, Hinton’s award was lauded in the national media, from&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/video/9.6530994">CBC: The National</a>&nbsp;– which highlighted his emphasis on the importance of supporting curiosity-driven research and his role in training many of today’s AI leaders – to the front pages of<a href="https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/these-things-could-get-smarter-than-us-toronto-nobel-laureate-warned-of-risks-of-ai/article_18105990-8577-11ef-b10e-fb6fe9f34164.html">&nbsp;<em>The Toronto Star</em>&nbsp;</a>and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/world/article-canadas-geoffrey-hinton-ai-pioneer-co-wins-nobel-prize-in-physics-with/"><em>The Globe and Mail</em></a>.</p> <p>“I want to emphasize that AI is going to do tremendous good,” Hinton told the&nbsp;Globe&nbsp;after receiving the news about the win. “In areas like health care, it’s going to be amazing. That’s why its development is never going to be stopped. The real question is can we keep it safe?”</p> <h3><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/08/technology/nobel-prize-geoffrey-hinton-ai.html?searchResultPosition=1">Read Hinton’s interview in&nbsp;the&nbsp;New York Times&nbsp;(paywall)</a></h3> <h3><a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c62r02z75jyo">Read the BBC story</a></h3> <h3><a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/world/article-canadas-geoffrey-hinton-ai-pioneer-co-wins-nobel-prize-in-physics-with/">Read&nbsp;the&nbsp;Globe and Mail&nbsp;story (paywall)</a></h3> <h3><a href="http://www.cbc.ca/player/play/video/9.6530994">Watch CBC: The National’s report</a></h3> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Wed, 09 Oct 2024 19:24:35 +0000 Christopher.Sorensen 309829 at Congratulations pour in for Geoffrey Hinton after Nobel win /news/congratulations-pour-geoffrey-hinton-after-nobel-win <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Congratulations pour in for Geoffrey Hinton after Nobel win</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2024-10/2024-10-08-Hinton-Nobel-Celebration-%283%29-crop.jpg?h=81d682ee&amp;itok=006T1tnK 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/2024-10/2024-10-08-Hinton-Nobel-Celebration-%283%29-crop.jpg?h=81d682ee&amp;itok=SiTXIeog 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/2024-10/2024-10-08-Hinton-Nobel-Celebration-%283%29-crop.jpg?h=81d682ee&amp;itok=982sYJXx 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2024-10/2024-10-08-Hinton-Nobel-Celebration-%283%29-crop.jpg?h=81d682ee&amp;itok=006T1tnK" alt="&quot;&quot;"> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>mattimar</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2024-10-08T15:43:16-04:00" title="Tuesday, October 8, 2024 - 15:43" class="datetime">Tue, 10/08/2024 - 15:43</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item"><p><em>(Photo by Johnny Guatto/University of Toronto)</em></p> </div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/mariam-matti" hreflang="en">Mariam Matti</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/our-community" hreflang="en">Our Community</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/alumni" hreflang="en">ֱ</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/artificial-intelligence" hreflang="en">Artificial Intelligence</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/computer-science" hreflang="en">Computer Science</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/faculty-arts-science" hreflang="en">Faculty of Arts &amp; Science</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/geoffrey-hinton" hreflang="en">Geoffrey Hinton</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/global" hreflang="en">Global</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/graduate-students" hreflang="en">Graduate Students</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nobel-prize" hreflang="en">Nobel Prize</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/statistical-sciences" hreflang="en">Statistical Sciences</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/university-health-network" hreflang="en">University Health Network</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/vector-institute" hreflang="en">Vector Institute</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-subheadline field--type-string-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Subheadline</div> <div class="field__item">“You always knew when Geoff had a new idea. The excitement, the joy radiated out of his office down the hall. The air was buzzing with possibility"</div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Reactions to <a href="https://discover.research.utoronto.ca/26059-geoffrey-e-hinton"><strong>Geoffrey Hinton’s</strong></a>&nbsp;<a href="/news/geoffrey-hinton-wins-nobel-prize">Nobel Prize win</a> began almost immediately after it was announced Tuesday morning. &nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>Known as the “godfather of AI,” the <a href="https://www.provost.utoronto.ca/awards-funding/university-professors/">University Professor</a> Emeritus of computer science at the University of Toronto&nbsp;shared the Nobel Prize in Physics with<strong> John J. Hopfield</strong> of Princeton University for groundbreaking work that laid the foundation for machine learning using artificial neural networks.</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-10/GettyImages-2176644097.jpg?itok=FKNW9Os1" width="750" height="481" alt="&quot;&quot;" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>ֱ’s Geoffrey Hinton and Princeton’s John J. Hopfield are pictured during the announcement for the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics (photo by Jonathan Nackstrand/AFP via Getty Images)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>At ֱ, students, faculty and staff&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSCDoHsqV3E">gathered at an event</a> hosted by the department of computer science in the Faculty of Arts &amp; Science, which Hinton joined as a professor in 1987.</p> <p>Those in attendance described a revered and beloved figure, citing Hinton’s determination, playful approach to research and excitement for new ideas.</p> <p>"I really don’t think there’s anyone more deserving of this recognition," said&nbsp;<strong>Chris Maddison</strong>,&nbsp;assistant professor in ֱ’s departments of computer science and statistical sciences, and one of Hinton’s former students.</p> <p>"Geoff was a fantastic adviser. He worked really, really hard to remove the barriers for his students and he was laser focused on ideas and building his own understanding."</p> <p>Hinton also received congratulations from universities and other research organizations around the world, including the <a href="https://x.com/royalsociety/status/1843606333490143741">Royal Society</a>, the <a href="https://x.com/turinginst/status/1843690135717892219" target="_blank">Alan Turing Institute</a>&nbsp;and <a href="https://x.com/Cambridge_Uni/status/1843614886946861491">Cambridge University</a>, Hinton’s alma mater.</p> <p>Meanwhile, friends, colleagues and leaders in politics and business took to social media to express their congratulations for Hinton’s remarkable achievement.</p> <p>Here’s a snapshot of what some of them said:</p> <hr> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-10/2024-10-08-Hinton-Nobel-Celebration-%2810%29-crop.jpg?itok=QI98R3aZ" width="750" height="500" alt="&quot;&quot;" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>From left: Melanie Woodin, Chris Maddison, Nick Frosst, Kevin Swersky and Eyal de Lara (photo by Johnny Guatto)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>“Congratulations to Geoffrey Hinton on this fantastic recognition which is a testament to the importance of supporting basic research and the long journey that can lead to profound discoveries like deep learning that forever change our world. Hinton's phenomenal work has seeded new and innovative research by his former students and many around the world who are using AI to solve global challenges in areas like medicine and climate change.“</p> <p>–&nbsp;<em><strong>Leah Cowen</strong>, vice-president, research and innovation, and strategic initiatives&nbsp;at ֱ</em></p> <p>“I would say his approach to science has stuck with me. Everything I know about how to do science, I mostly learned from him. It's his curiosity and playfulness ... that has been most impactful. I would also say his thoughtfulness, thinking about the consequence of the technology and how it affects society is something that we have taken seriously at Cohere as well.”</p> <p>–&nbsp;<em><strong>Nick Frosst</strong>, ֱ alumnus and&nbsp;co-founder of Cohere</em></p> <p>“You always knew when Geoff had a new idea. The excitement, the joy radiated out of his office down the hall. The air was buzzing with possibility. He was famous for bursting into a room and pronouncing that, he now finally, after all these years, understood how the brain worked.&nbsp;Above all, he understood that research was a human endeavor. Research is really hard. It becomes personal. It's intertwined with tragedies and compromises. I saw him go through some of his own when I was a student in the group, and I went through my own. I remember when I was going through some health challenges, I went to him and I said, 'Geoff, sometimes it's really hard to go on.’ And he looked at me and he said, ’But we're not going to let that slow us down, will we?’"</p> <p>– <em><strong>Chris Maddison</strong>,&nbsp;assistant professor in ֱ’s departments of computer science and statistical sciences, Faculty of Arts &amp; Science</em></p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-10/2024-10-08-Hinton-Nobel-Celebration_2-crop.jpg?itok=fzaxySC5" width="750" height="500" alt="&quot;&quot;" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>ֱ is the only computer science department with a Nobel Prize winner, says Professor Michael Brudno&nbsp;(photo by Johnny Guatto)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>“It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to celebrate an award for somebody who has made huge contributions –&nbsp;obviously in AI broadly, [and] to this department. No other computer science department can say that they have a Nobel Laureate. But I think beyond that, it really goes back to show how the birthplace of modern AI is Toronto, how this is the place where it all started and how it's upon us as the AI faculty in this department to continue this legacy.”&nbsp;</p> <p>–&nbsp;<em><strong>Michael Brudno</strong>, professor in ֱ’s department of computer science, acting vice-dean, graduate education in Faculty of Arts &amp; Science, a chief data scientist at University Health Network and a faculty member at the Vector Institute</em></p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-10/UofT16991_0J5A1449.jpg?itok=fCQSglO2" width="750" height="500" alt="&quot;&quot;" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>Geoffrey Hinton shares a laugh with fellow AI researcher Raquel&nbsp;Urtasun, left, at the Vector Institute’s opening in 2017 (photo by Lisa Lightbourn)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>"Geoff is the most influential person in AI, and our field would certainly not be the same without his immense contributions. He is also a tremendous educator, and has mentored many students and postdocs who have gone on to become very influential in the field of AI. Geoff cares deeply about the Toronto and Canadian ecosystem and was the driving force in the formation of the Vector Institute, which we co-founded together. Through our time as colleagues at the University of Toronto, I've deeply admired his commitment to the advancement of AI for good. This recognition is well-deserved and acknowledges his decades of work leading AI innovation and building the foundation for the AI revolution that is happening today.”</p> <p>–&nbsp;<em><strong>Raquel Urtasun</strong>, professor in ֱ’s department of computer science, faculty member and co-founder at the Vector Institute, founder and CEO of Waabi</em></p> <p>“I was the first to call Geoff Hinton “Godfather of Deep Learning,” which later became “Godfather of AI.” Thrilled to see him win the Nobel prize together with John Hopfield for AI. Congrats @geoffreyhinton.”</p> <p>– <em><strong>Andrew Ng</strong>, co-founder of Coursera, founder GoogleBrain, former chief scientist at Baidu</em></p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-10/UofT16745_0207BoardofTrade003.jpg?itok=1_YeHbqx" width="750" height="501" alt="&quot;&quot;" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks with Geoffrey Hinton at a 2019 event (photo by Nick Iwanyshyn)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>“Dr.&nbsp;Hinton is a stalwart in his field. Celebrated as one of the ‘Godfathers of AI’, he brings decades of leading expertise in AI research as a Professor Emeritus at the University of Toronto’s Department of Computer Science, and the current Chief Scientific Advisor at the Vector Institute in Toronto – one of our three national AI institutes. Dr.&nbsp;Hinton is also an outspoken advocate for the responsible development and adoption of AI, educating the world about the benefits and challenges this technology poses.</p> <p>“Canada is at the forefront of AI technology thanks to trailblazers like Dr.&nbsp;Hinton. His curiosity for discovery and contributions to innovation will inspire generations to come. On behalf of all Canadians, I congratulate him on his remarkable achievement.”</p> <p>–&nbsp;<em><strong>Justin Trudeau</strong>, Prime Minister of Canada</em></p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-10/38021064796_59e963a64e_o-crop.jpg?itok=uMLTY34E" width="750" height="500" alt="&quot;&quot;" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>A.M. Turing Award winners Yann LeCun, left, Yoshua Bengio, middle, and Geoffrey Hinton at an AI summit in Montreal (photo courtesy of&nbsp;RE•WORK)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>"@HopfieldJohn and @geoffreyhinton, along with collaborators, have created a beautiful and insightful bridge between physics and AI. They invented neural networks that were not only inspired by the brain, but also by central notions in physics such as energy, temperature, system dynamics, energy barriers, the role of randomness and noise, connecting the local properties, e.g., of atoms or neurons, to global ones like entropy and attractors. And they went beyond the physics to show how these ideas could give rise to memory, learning and generative models; concepts which are still at the forefront of modern AI research. Their ideas inspired me so profoundly that I decided to choose learning in neural networks for my own research as a graduate student. They motivated me to look for abstract principles that could be as simple as the laws of physics, but could explain biological as well as artificial intelligence. I'm truly delighted for them and for our field."</p> <p><em>–&nbsp;<strong>Yoshua Bengio</strong>, professor at Université de Montréal and co-winner of the A.M Turing Award with Geoffrey Hinton and Yann LeCun</em></p> <p>“It was the first thing I saw in the morning. I opened my phone, and it was the headline of <em>The</em> <em>New York Times&nbsp;</em>and I was like, ‘Yes!’ I was very excited.&nbsp;I saw his perseverance –&nbsp;he always goes with what he believes, not what the flow is – and it's quite inspirational for me. That’s what I look for, especially in the health care area. I want to do something meaningful, something big.”</p> <p>–<em><strong>Tina Behrouzi</strong>, second year PhD student in ֱ’s department of computer science</em></p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-10/UofT2995_20130312_GeoffreyHinton_A.JPG?itok=-VlB64xm" width="750" height="500" alt="&quot;&quot;" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>Geoffrey Hinton poses with graduate students Ilya Sutskever, left, and Alex Krizhevsky, right, in 2013 (photo by Johnny Guatto)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>“Congratulations to @geoffreyhinton for winning the Nobel Prize in physics!!”</p> <p><em>–&nbsp;<strong>Ilya Sutskever</strong>, ֱ alumnus, co-founder of OpenAI and&nbsp;co-founder and chief scientist at Safe Superintelligence</em></p> <p>“Going to Geoff’s office was always fun. Normally when you go to a supervisor's office, you give them a progress update. You go through what your latest results are, you talk about a couple of your ideas and you get some feedback.&nbsp;Going to Geoff’s office was a completely different story. He would be telling you what his latest idea was. He would show you his latest results. And his whole thing was just that he was really excited about it, and his hope was to inspire you enough to start running with it.”</p> <p>–<em>&nbsp;<strong>Kevin Swersky</strong>, ֱ alumnus and research scientist at Google DeepMind</em></p> <p>“[Hinton's] pioneering research at the University of Toronto not only revolutionized the field of AI but has also been instrumental in establishing Canada as a global powerhouse in AI research and innovation."</p> <p><em>– <strong>Tony Gaffney</strong>,&nbsp;president and CEO of the Vector Institute</em></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-10/UofT93629_2023-10-04-Geoffrey-Hinton-and-Fei-Fei-Li_Photo-Polina-Teif-14-crop.jpg?itok=BApNudhs" width="750" height="500" alt="&quot;&quot;" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>Fei-Fei Li and Geoffrey Hinton speak at a 2023 event in Toronto (photo by Polina Teif)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>“This is beyond exciting! #AI’s far reaching impact is just beginning.”</p> <p>–&nbsp;<em><strong>Fei-Fei Li</strong>,&nbsp;professor of computer science at Stanford University and co-director of Stanford’s Human-Centered AI Institute</em></p> <p>“Congratulations to @geoffreyhinton, University Professor Emeritus at@UofT, on winning the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics! Widely regarded as the “godfather of AI,” Hinton’s pioneering work in artificial neural networks has transformed the global AI landscape. Dr. Hinton’s achievement highlights the best of #Ontario’s world-class talent and thriving AI ecosystem, driving innovation and shaping the future of critical #technology!</p> <p>– <em><strong>Victor Fedeli</strong>,&nbsp;Ontario’s minister of economic development, job creation and trade</em></p> <p>"On behalf of the Department and the University, we are very&nbsp;proud to acknowledge Geoff's global achievements and this international recognition. His contributions to machine learning and artificial intelligence have benefited virtually every discipline in science, engineering, social sciences and medicine.&nbsp;&nbsp;As we celebrate the department’s 60th anniversary, this award embodies six decades of impact and innovation in computer science and technology.”</p> <p><em>– <strong>Eyal de Lara</strong>, professor and chair of ֱ’s department of computer science, Faculty of Arts &amp; Science</em></p> <p>“Heartfelt congratulations to Geoff Hinton @geoffreyhinton on winning the Nobel Prize! What an incredible honor! I feel deeply privileged to have had the opportunity to be your PhD student, work with you, and learn from you.”</p> <p><em style="font-size: 1rem;">–&nbsp;<strong>Russ Salakhutdinov</strong>, professor of computer science at&nbsp;Carnegie Mellon University</em></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-10/2024-10-08-Hinton-Nobel-Celebration_1-crop.jpg?itok=tX-OUnuz" width="750" height="500" alt="&quot;&quot;" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>Hinton approached his research with an “almost childlike playfulness,” says Graduate student Ujan Sen&nbsp;​​(photo by Johnny Guatto)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>“Waking up today, seeing that news, just motivates me even more and reaffirms the decision that coming to ֱ was the absolutely the best decision I could have taken. I think one of the people who had previously worked with him mentioned something along the lines of: Geoff didn't really care too much about pedigree. He cared about ideas, regardless if you have a master's or PhD. And the way he approached his research and the almost childlike playfulness and innocence he had with sort of getting to the answer is something that I really resonate with.”</p> <p><em>– <strong>Ujan Sen</strong>, master’s&nbsp;student in ֱ’s department of computer science, Faculty of Arts &amp; Science</em></p> <p>"I want to extend my heartfelt congratulations to Dr. Geoffrey Hinton on winning the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics. His groundbreaking work in machine learning has made Canada world-renowned in the field of AI. He is a true inspiration for the next generation of Canadian researchers!"</p> <p><em>–&nbsp;<strong>François-Philippe Champagne</strong>, Canada’s minister of innovation, science and industry</em></p> <p>“I’m originally a chemist. It was a surprising thing for me that a Nobel Prize is being awarded to a computer scientist. This is a big moment for computer science. I think it will bring recognition to physics-based approaches and core thinking.</p> <p>“I think it’s great that some universities like ֱ are willing to believe in crazy ideas. People need to encourage outside-the-box thinking.”</p> <p>–<strong> </strong><em><strong>Ella Rajaonson</strong>, PhD student in the Matter Lab with ֱ professor <strong>Alán Aspuru-Guzik</strong>&nbsp;</em></p> <p>“Congratulations!”</p> <p><em>–&nbsp;<strong>Olivia Chow</strong>, mayor of Toronto</em></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Tue, 08 Oct 2024 19:43:16 +0000 mattimar 309813 at Geoffrey Hinton wins Nobel Prize in Physics /news/geoffrey-hinton-wins-nobel-prize <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Geoffrey Hinton wins Nobel Prize in Physics</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2024-10/UofT93090_2023-06-28-Hinton%40Collision%20web%20lead%20cropped_0.jpg?h=2bef6ab7&amp;itok=HllwAjzP 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/2024-10/UofT93090_2023-06-28-Hinton%40Collision%20web%20lead%20cropped_0.jpg?h=2bef6ab7&amp;itok=QV_4ldu5 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/2024-10/UofT93090_2023-06-28-Hinton%40Collision%20web%20lead%20cropped_0.jpg?h=2bef6ab7&amp;itok=vKBcyJpD 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2024-10/UofT93090_2023-06-28-Hinton%40Collision%20web%20lead%20cropped_0.jpg?h=2bef6ab7&amp;itok=HllwAjzP" alt="Geoffrey Hinton speaks at a tech conference"> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>davidlee1</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2024-10-08T15:35:09-04:00" title="Tuesday, October 8, 2024 - 15:35" class="datetime">Tue, 10/08/2024 - 15:35</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item"><p><em>(Photo by Johnny Guatto/University of Toronto)</em></p> </div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/rahul-kalvapalle" hreflang="en">Rahul Kalvapalle</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/global-lens" hreflang="en">Global Lens</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/artificial-intelligence" hreflang="en">Artificial Intelligence</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/computer-science" hreflang="en">Computer Science</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/faculty-arts-science" hreflang="en">Faculty of Arts &amp; Science</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/geoffrey-hinton" hreflang="en">Geoffrey Hinton</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nobel-prize" hreflang="en">Nobel Prize</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/physics" hreflang="en">Physics</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/research-innovation" hreflang="en">Research &amp; Innovation</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-subheadline field--type-string-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Subheadline</div> <div class="field__item">A ֱ University Professor Emeritus, Hinton shared the honour with Princeton University's John J. Hopfield&nbsp;for discoveries and inventions that enable machine learning with artificial neural networks</div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p><a href="https://discover.research.utoronto.ca/26059-geoffrey-e-hinton"><strong>Geoffrey Hinton</strong></a>, a&nbsp;<a href="http://www.provost.utoronto.ca/awards-funding/university-professors/">University Professor</a>&nbsp;Emeritus of computer science at the University of Toronto, has <a href="https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/physics/2024/press-release/">won the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics</a>.</p> <p>Widely regarded as the “godfather of AI,” Hinton&nbsp;shared the prize with&nbsp;<a href="https://www.princeton.edu/news/2024/10/08/princetons-john-hopfield-receives-nobel-prize-physics" target="_blank"><strong>John J. Hopfield</strong>&nbsp;of Princeton University</a> for foundational discoveries and inventions that enable machine learning with artificial neural networks.</p> <p>Hinton said he was “flabbergasted” at the honour <a href="/news/congratulations-pour-geoffrey-hinton-after-nobel-win">as messages poured in from around the world</a>.&nbsp;</p> <p>“I had no expectations of this,” he told <em>ֱ News</em> shortly after the win was announced in Stockholm Tuesday morning. “I am extremely surprised and I'm honoured to be included.”&nbsp;</p> <p>He later told reporters at a press conference he was “in a cheap hotel in California” with no Internet and a poor phone connection when he was notified about his Nobel Prize.&nbsp;</p> <p>“I was going to get an MRI scan today, but I think I’m going to have to cancel that.”</p> <p><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen frameborder="0" height="422" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/H7DgMFqrON0?si=mlYtLrSwAPrzW5EZ" title="YouTube video player" width="750"></iframe></p> <p>Hinton and Hopfield are credited with wielding tools from physics to advance basic research in the field. Specifically, Hopfield created an associative memory that can store and reconstruct images in data, while Hinton invented a way to find properties in data and perform tasks such as identifying specific elements in pictures.</p> <p>“On behalf of the University of Toronto, I am absolutely delighted to congratulate University Professor Emeritus Geoffrey Hinton on receiving the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics,” said ֱ President&nbsp;<strong>Meric Gertler</strong>. “The ֱ community is immensely proud of his historic accomplishment.”&nbsp;</p> <p>Hinton was selected for the high-profile award for his use of the Hopfield network – invented by his co-laureate – as the foundation for a new network called the Boltzmann machine that can learn to recognize elements within a given type of data.</p> <p>The Boltzmann machine can classify images and generate new examples of the pattern on which it was trained, with Hinton and his graduate students later building on this work to help usher in today’s rapid development of machine learning – a technology that now underpins a host of applications ranging from large language models such as ChatGPT to self-driving cars.</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-10/boltzmann-figure.jpg?itok=bYrKWaaQ" width="750" height="494" alt="Visual representation of how a Hopfield network, Hinton's Boltzmann machine and a restricted Boltzmann machine differ" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>Johan Jarnestad/The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>“The laureates’ work has already been of the greatest benefit. In physics we use artificial neural networks in a vast range of areas, such as developing new materials with specific properties,” said&nbsp;<strong>Ellen Moons</strong>, chair of the Nobel Committee for Physics.</p> <p>The win by Hinton and Hopfield was covered by media and other organizations around the&nbsp;globe, with&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/08/science/nobel-prize-physics.html" target="_blank"><em>The New York Times</em>&nbsp;describing the Nobel committee’s decision</a> as “an acknowledgement of AI’s growing significance in the way people live and work,” and the prestigious journal&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-03213-8" target="_blank"><em>Nature</em>&nbsp;noting Hinton’s innovations</a> now “form the basis of many state-of-the-art AI tools.”</p> <p>Hinton joined ֱ as a professor of computer science in 1987 after working in various universities in the U.K., where he was born, and in the United States.&nbsp;He went on to be named a University Professor – ֱ’s highest academic appointment – in 2006.</p> <p>Driven by a desire to understand the human brain, Hinton and his graduate students built on his early efforts with an array of developments that paved the way for an explosion in deep learning. One of the first cohort of researchers supported by the <a href="https://cifar.ca" target="_blank">Canadian Institute for Advanced Research</a> (CIFAR), Hinton’s work helped catapult Canada to its current status as a global leader in AI development.</p> <p>The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, which awards the Nobel Prize in Physics,&nbsp;noted&nbsp;Hinton persisted with his research even as the scientific community lost interest in artificial neural networks during the 1990s, and ultimately “helped start the new explosion of exciting results” in the 2000s.</p> <p>Hinton, for his part, said during a ֱ press conference Tuesday evening that his achievements wouldn’t have been possible without support for curiosity-based research – something he said Canada was good at.&nbsp;</p> <p>He added that his shock at winning the Nobel stemmed from the fact that, while his work has drawn on statistical physics, he isn’t a physicist himself – and even “dropped out of physics after my first year in university because I couldn’t do the complicated math.”</p> <p>He also said that he plans to donate the money associated with the prize to various charities, including one that provides jobs for neurodiverse young adults.</p> <p>Hinton likened the influence of AI to that of the Industrial Revolution during a virtual press conference with the academy earlier in the day&nbsp;– “But instead of exceeding people in physical strength, it’s going to exceed people in intellectual ability.”</p> <p>He added that the rise of AI “is going to be wonderful in many respects,” citing health care and workplace productivity as two areas poised to benefit hugely from the technology. “But we also have to worry about a number of possible bad consequences, particularly the threat of these things getting out of control,” Hinton said.</p> <p>In early 2023, Hinton quit his job at Google and focused on sounding the alarm about the risks of rapid and unfettered AI development. He outlined his reasoning in <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-9cW4Gcn5WY">a 46-minute ֱ video last year</a>, urging young researchers to focus their efforts on the emerging field of AI safety – a message <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/nobel-prize-physics-2024-1.7344607">he repeated in media interviews</a> following his Nobel win.&nbsp;</p> <p>He has continued to tackle the issue at lectures and public appearances around the world, including <a href="/news/geoffrey-hinton-fields-questions-scholars-students-during-academic-talk-responsible-ai">at ֱ</a> and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGgGOccMEiY" target="_blank">at Cambridge University</a>, his alma mater.</p> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-oembed-video field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item"><iframe src="/media/oembed?url=https%3A//youtu.be/-9cW4Gcn5WY%3Fsi%3D-MusxhsntCVkz3nL&amp;max_width=0&amp;max_height=0&amp;hash=DveP_eUPieePRqKkQIrQgZG3ua2hAvOgwiV0YuQm4qI" width="200" height="113" class="media-oembed-content" loading="eager" title="The Godfather in Conversation: Why Geoffrey Hinton is worried about the future of AI"></iframe> </div> </div> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>“I am thrilled Geoffrey Hinton, an esteemed colleague and dear friend has been awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics,” said <strong>Melanie Woodin</strong>, dean of ֱ’s Faculty of Arts &amp; Science.&nbsp;</p> <p>“Geoff is an historic visionary whose groundbreaking work in deep learning and neural networks has made ֱ and the Toronto region a leading global centre for AI. And it speaks volumes about his integrity that while he helped lay the foundation for the artificial intelligence revolution, he is also one of the leading voices urging that we develop this technology responsibly and ethically.”&nbsp;</p> <p>Similarly,&nbsp;Prime Minister<strong>&nbsp;Justin Trudeau</strong>&nbsp;lauded Hinton for his efforts to realize responsible AI development, <a href="https://www.pm.gc.ca/en/news/statements/2024/10/08/statement-prime-minister-dr-geoffrey-e-hinton-being-awarded-2024" target="_blank">releasing a statement</a> and <a href="https://x.com/JustinTrudeau/status/1843712000528134194" target="_blank">writing on X</a>: “Geoffrey, we’re glad to have a mind like yours developing safe and responsible AI for the world.”&nbsp;</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-10/UofT93895_2023-10-30-Geoff-Hinton-Con-Hall-%2816%29-crop.jpg?itok=zWEOLm1h" width="750" height="500" alt="Hinton at the podium inside convocation hall at the university of toronto" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>Geoffrey Hinton delivers a lecture about responsible AI to ֱ students and faculty (photo by Johnny Guatto)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>Hinton, who is co-founder and chief scientific adviser at the <a href="https://vectorinstitute.ai">Vector Institute</a> in Toronto,&nbsp;joins&nbsp;an illustrious list of past&nbsp;Nobel Prize in Physics winners that includes&nbsp;<strong>Albert Einstein</strong>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<strong>Marie Curie </strong>(who also won a Nobel in chemistry). The prestigious award is the latest in a long list of accolades for Hinton. They include the Association for Computing Machinery’s&nbsp;<a href="/news/am-turing-award-nobel-prize-computing-given-hinton-and-two-other-ai-pioneers">A.M. Turing Award</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;– widely considered “the Nobel Prize of computing” – in 2019 alongside collaborators&nbsp;<strong>Yann LeCun</strong>&nbsp;and <strong>Yoshua Bengio</strong>.</p> <p>Hinton is the fourth<strong> </strong>ֱ faculty member<strong>&nbsp;</strong>to win a Nobel Prize over the years.&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Sir Frederick Banting </strong>and <strong>J.J.R Macleod&nbsp;</strong>won a Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their work with <strong>Charles Best</strong> in 1923 to isolate insulin. In 1986,&nbsp;<strong>John Polanyi&nbsp;</strong>was one of three winners of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry&nbsp;for the development of the new field of reaction dynamics.&nbsp;</p> <p>Other members of the ֱ community, including several&nbsp;alumni, have received or been associated with the international honour.</p> <p><strong>Oliver Smithies</strong>, a past professor at ֱ,&nbsp;was a joint winner of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2007 for discovering the “principles for introducing specific gene modifications in mice by the use of embryonic stem cells.”</p> <p>Also in 2007, Professor<strong>&nbsp;Robert Jefferies&nbsp;</strong>shared in the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), in which he was a key Canadian representative as an international leader in Arctic science and global change biology.</p> <p>In 1999,&nbsp;ֱ Professor <strong>James Orbinski </strong>accepted the Nobel Peace Prize on behalf of Doctors Without Borders, which was recognized for its humanitarian work.</p> <p>Anti-nuclear activist and ֱ alumna&nbsp;<strong>Setsuko Thurlow </strong>accepted the Nobel Peace Prize in Norway in 2017 on behalf the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN).</p> <p>In 2001, <strong>Michael Spence</strong>, an alumnus of University of Toronto Schools,<strong>&nbsp;</strong>was one of three joint winners of the Bank of Sweden Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel for his contributions to analyses of markets with asymmetrical information.&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Bertram Brockhouse</strong>, who completed two degrees at ֱ, was a co-winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1994 for the development of neutron scattering techniques for studies of condensed matter.&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Arthur Schawlow</strong>, an alumnus, was one of three winners of the same prize in 1981 for his contribution to the development of laser spectroscopy.&nbsp;</p> <p>In 1998, ֱ alumnus <strong>Walter Kohn </strong>was a co-winner of the&nbsp;Nobel Prize in Chemistry for development of the density-functional theory.</p> <p>Former Prime Minister <strong>Lester B. Pearson</strong>, who received a bachelor’s degree from ֱ, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1957.</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">On</div> </div> Tue, 08 Oct 2024 19:35:09 +0000 davidlee1 159416 at Work of Nobel Prize-winner John Polanyi celebrated in ֱ exhibit /news/work-nobel-prize-winner-john-polanyi-celebrated-u-t-exhibit <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Work of Nobel Prize-winner John Polanyi celebrated in ֱ exhibit</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2024-05/DSC_0795-crop.jpg?h=81d682ee&amp;itok=l8g5v9rA 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/2024-05/DSC_0795-crop.jpg?h=81d682ee&amp;itok=ebMh1Spx 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/2024-05/DSC_0795-crop.jpg?h=81d682ee&amp;itok=-UVA2_Gs 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2024-05/DSC_0795-crop.jpg?h=81d682ee&amp;itok=l8g5v9rA" alt="&quot;&quot;"> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>Christopher.Sorensen</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2024-05-28T14:48:11-04:00" title="Tuesday, May 28, 2024 - 14:48" class="datetime">Tue, 05/28/2024 - 14:48</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item"><p><em>University Professor Emeritus and Nobel laureate John Polanyi said he is "deeply humbled and grateful” for the new permanent exhibit, which honours his seminal research and his advocacy for responsible science</em><em>&nbsp;(photo by Diana Tyszko)</em></p> </div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/faculty-arts-science-staff" hreflang="en">Faculty of Arts &amp; Science Staff</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/our-community" hreflang="en">Our Community</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/department-chemistry" hreflang="en">Department of Chemistry</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/faculty-arts-science" hreflang="en">Faculty of Arts &amp; Science</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/john-polanyi" hreflang="en">John Polanyi</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nobel-prize" hreflang="en">Nobel Prize</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-subheadline field--type-string-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Subheadline</div> <div class="field__item">The department of chemistry also recently renamed the research wing of the Lash Miller building in Polanyi's honour</div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>The groundbreaking work of <a href="https://www.provost.utoronto.ca/awards-funding/university-professors/complete-list-university-professors/">University Professor</a> Emeritus <strong>John Polanyi</strong>, celebrated&nbsp;chemist and winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1986, is the focus of a new permanent exhibit at the Lash Miller building, home of the department of chemistry in the Faculty of Arts &amp; Science.</p> <p>Through still images, video and equipment, the dynamic exhibit tells the story of Polanyi's career including his seminal work in the field of reaction dynamics – a branch of chemistry that investigates what happens during chemical reactions.</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-left"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_550_width_/public/2024-05/DSC_0844-crop.jpg?itok=pq_V-7Ga" width="550" height="825" alt="&quot;&quot;" class="image-style-scale-image-550-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>The centrepiece of the exhibit is a replica of the 1986 Nobel Prize in Chemistry medal awarded to Polanyi (photo by Diana Tyszko)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>The display includes original equipment used in Polanyi’s early research, a reproduction of the lab notebook used by his graduate student to document their experiments and a video chronicling the process of discovery – along with a replica of his Nobel Prize medal.</p> <p>"It’s been my good fortune to be surrounded by brilliant colleagues and other supporters throughout my life and career," Polanyi said. "I'm deeply humbled and grateful for this marvelous display and ongoing recognition of my life’s work.”</p> <p>“John Polanyi holds a revered place in the history of the University of Toronto and his legacy is an inspiration for all of us,” said ֱ President <strong>Meric Gertler</strong>. “This installation is a compelling expression of his achievements. All those responsible deserve our thanks and congratulations.”</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-05/438A9277-crop.jpg?itok=XILoRNux" width="750" height="500" alt="&quot;&quot;" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>The exhibit includes a reproduction of the notebook in which Polanyi’s graduate student Ken Cashion documented the results of the experiment that delivered the groundbreaking discovery&nbsp;(photo by Diana Tyszko)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>Polanyi came to ֱ from Princeton University in 1956, and not long after, made his seminal discovery: his detection of infrared radiation released upon the collision of hydrogen and chloride molecules was the first observation of energy produced from the vibration of new molecules immediately after their formation.</p> <p>His work went on to influence the development of advanced instrumentation in domains like pharmaceutical research, medicine and chemical manufacturing – including the development of the first chemical lasers.</p> <p>“The university made a significant investment in me, a young scholar,” said Polanyi. “The environment and the resources I received enabled me to pursue a new and unknown direction in chemical physics.”</p> <p>In 1974, he was named a University Professor – the highest academic honour bestowed by the university on its faculty members – and in 1994, the John C. Polanyi Chair in Chemistry was established.</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-05/IMG_7405-crop.jpg?itok=uyw5jq_j" width="750" height="500" alt="&quot;&quot;" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>The exhibit tells the story of the Nobel Prize-winning discovery in the field of reaction dynamics, and University Professor Emeritus John Polanyi’s advocacy for nuclear disarmament and the responsible use of science (photo by Diana Tyszko)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>In tandem with the new exhibit, the department of chemistry also recently renamed the research wing of the Lash Miller building in his honour.</p> <p>“The John Polanyi research wing and this new display will serve to permanently highlight John's legacy for current and future young scholars,” said Professor <strong>Mark Lautens</strong>, chair of the department of chemistry. “John has brought great visibility and prestige to the University of Toronto through his groundbreaking studies and his contributions that go well beyond scientific discovery. We are equally grateful [for] and proud of his advocacy for science, for peace and for a better world.”</p> <p>Inspiration for the exhibit came after Polanyi donated some of his equipment to the&nbsp;department of chemistry&nbsp;upon his retirement in 2020.&nbsp;A special celebration was held in his honour&nbsp;at Massey College in the fall of 2022, after which Professor <strong>Robert Batey</strong>, then department chair, with support from the Faculty of Arts &amp; Science dean <strong>Melanie Woodin</strong> and the Offices of the President and the Vice-President, Research &amp; Innovation, led the development of the exhibit to celebrate Polanyi’s impact and legacy.</p> <p>“John has made tremendous contributions to the world of science as well as society at large through his advocacy for nuclear disarmament," said Batey. "We are proud to be able to celebrate his work this way in the place that has been his professional home for so many years.”</p> <p>“This display is a fantastic tribute to Professor Polanyi's remarkable career as a scientist, a teacher and a global citizen,” said Woodin. “It is a fitting acknowledgement for someone who has engendered a network of excellence that stretches across countries and continents.”</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-center"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/scale_image_750_width_/public/2024-05/DSC_0755-crop.jpg?itok=gQA5bc0O" width="750" height="500" alt="&quot;&quot;" class="image-style-scale-image-750-width-"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>University Professor Emeritus John Polanyi (pictured second from the right) was joined in viewing the exhibit by (l to r) department of chemistry chair Mark Lautens, portrait painter Brenda Bury and former department chair Robert Batey&nbsp;(photo by Diana Tyszko)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>The department of chemistry and Toronto-based communications and design firm Snack worked closely with Polanyi on the development of the display, drawing from his extensive archive of memorabilia and donated equipment.</p> <p>The exhibit also captures Polanyi’s advocacy for the responsible use of science and a keen social conscience that compelled him to campaign for the elimination of nuclear weapons throughout his career. “A great university that invests in science must also strain to warn of the accompanying risks to humanity," he said.</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Tue, 28 May 2024 18:48:11 +0000 Christopher.Sorensen 307947 at Prohibition of nuclear weapons the only rational way forward: John Polanyi in the Globe and Mail /news/prohibition-nuclear-weapons-only-rational-way-forward-john-polanyi-globe-and-mail <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Prohibition of nuclear weapons the only rational way forward: John Polanyi in the Globe and Mail</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2023-04/UofT88196_085A0974-crop_0.jpeg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=Fi3OU6wG 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/2023-04/UofT88196_085A0974-crop_0.jpeg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=9UL59gaR 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/2023-04/UofT88196_085A0974-crop_0.jpeg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=vSGi2_r- 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2023-04/UofT88196_085A0974-crop_0.jpeg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=Fi3OU6wG" alt="John Polanyi"> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>rahul.kalvapalle</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2021-12-01T13:13:53-05:00" title="Wednesday, December 1, 2021 - 13:13" class="datetime">Wed, 12/01/2021 - 13:13</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item"><p>(Photo by Johnny Guatto)</p> </div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/global-lens" hreflang="en">Global Lens</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nuclear-weapons" hreflang="en">Nuclear Weapons</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/global" hreflang="en">Global</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/john-polanyi" hreflang="en">John Polanyi</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nobel-prize" hreflang="en">Nobel Prize</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Nuclear weapons continue to pose a threat to humanity and should be banned if reason is to prevail over might, says the University of Toronto’s <strong>John Polanyi</strong>.&nbsp;</p> <p><a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-the-reason-of-prohibition-must-triumph-over-the-might-of-nuclear/">In a <em>Globe and Mail</em> op-ed</a> based on a recent speech to the Conference on the Treaty on Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Ottawa, the <a href="http://www.provost.utoronto.ca/awards-funding/university-professors/">University Professor</a> Emeritus and&nbsp;Nobel laureate says that the lingering threat of nuclear war is “bereft of reason.”</p> <p>“Reason gave us science; laws of nature and some laws of man. From this came courts where laws are argued. There is a profound difference between that and drawing a gun,” writes Polanyi, who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1986 and has long argued for abolishing&nbsp;nuclear weapons.</p> <p>“To set aside the gun will, however, require an act of will, opposing the continual call for armaments. The rationale for arming is that others do it. This defies logic, since it is a race to no destination except war.”</p> <p>Polanyi notes that while 122 countries have provided their backing for the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, the world’s nuclear-armed states – as well as Canada – continue to hold out.</p> <p>He writes that the goal of prohibition will require these countries to set aside the pursuit of armed power and make a “break with history” for the greater good.</p> <h3><a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-the-reason-of-prohibition-must-triumph-over-the-might-of-nuclear/">Read the op-ed in the <em>Globe and Mail</em></a></h3> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Wed, 01 Dec 2021 18:13:53 +0000 rahul.kalvapalle 301182 at ‘Science is a contact sport’: What one ֱ researcher learned in the lab of Nobel laureate William Kaelin /news/science-contact-sport-what-one-u-t-researcher-learned-lab-nobel-laureate-william-kaelin <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">‘Science is a contact sport’: What one ֱ researcher learned in the lab of Nobel laureate William Kaelin</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/Irwin%2C%20Kaelin%2C%20Ohh_Kaelin%2060th%20birthday%20at%20Harvard%20Faculty%20Club.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=5YU-e-YJ 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/Irwin%2C%20Kaelin%2C%20Ohh_Kaelin%2060th%20birthday%20at%20Harvard%20Faculty%20Club.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=yyqPOauG 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/Irwin%2C%20Kaelin%2C%20Ohh_Kaelin%2060th%20birthday%20at%20Harvard%20Faculty%20Club.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=CC5KCs3Z 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/Irwin%2C%20Kaelin%2C%20Ohh_Kaelin%2060th%20birthday%20at%20Harvard%20Faculty%20Club.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=5YU-e-YJ" alt=" ֱ's Meredith Irwin, Nobel laureate William Kaelin Jr. and ֱ's Micahel Ohh"> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>noreen.rasbach</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2019-11-15T00:00:00-05:00" title="Friday, November 15, 2019 - 00:00" class="datetime">Fri, 11/15/2019 - 00:00</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">From left, ֱ's Meredith Irwin, Nobel laureate William Kaelin Jr. and ֱ's Micahel Ohh, celebrating Kaelin's 60th birthday at the Harvard Faculty Club (photo courtesy of Michael Ohh)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/jim-oldfield" hreflang="en">Jim Oldfield</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/our-community" hreflang="en">Our Community</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/biochemistry" hreflang="en">Biochemistry</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/cancer" hreflang="en">Cancer</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/faculty-medicine" hreflang="en">Faculty of Medicine</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/global" hreflang="en">Global</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/laboratory-medicine-and-pathobiology" hreflang="en">Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nobel-prize" hreflang="en">Nobel Prize</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/research-innovation" hreflang="en">Research &amp; Innovation</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>When University of Toronto Professor <strong>Michael Ohh</strong> was scouting postdoctoral positions at Harvard Medical School in the mid-1990s, a group of Canadians that often gathered to talk science told him to check out the molecular oncology floor at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, run by legendary virologist <strong>David Livingston</strong>.</p> <p>It turned out to be good advice.</p> <p>Ohh met with three young investigators Livingston had trained and hired, including the clinician-scientist William Kaelin Jr. “The floor was full of bright and driven people, and the electricity in the air was palpable,” recalls Ohh, now a professor of laboratory medicine and pathobiology&nbsp;and of biochemistry at ֱ.</p> <p>Ohh spent the next five years in Kaelin’s lab and co-authored several papers on how cells respond to changes in oxygen levels – research that contributed to Kaelin being awarded the 2019 <a href="https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/medicine/">Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine</a>.&nbsp;</p> <p>The work also set the stage for Ohh’s career as an independent scientist in Toronto, and it continues to bear fruit and hold promise for treatments of cancer and other diseases.</p> <p>“One of the most significant things I learned in Bill’s lab was a rigorous approach to science,” says Ohh. “He really wanted you to nail the mechanism with a series of elegant experiments and he understood that process is highly competitive with other labs. He often said, ‘Science is a contact sport.’”</p> <p>Ohh calls his time in Kaelin’s lab a “tour of duty” – unbearably stressful at times, but balanced by the excitement of doing fascinating science with talented people.</p> <p>Kaelin’s lab was focused on three tumour suppressor genes. Two were well known, but the third was a newly discovered gene called VHL that had been shown to cause von Hippel-Lindau syndrome, a rare hereditary disorder in which patients develop multiple benign and cancerous tumours.</p> <p>Only a handful of labs in the world studied VHL at the time and virtually nothing was known about its function. “We tried a guilt-by-association approach, looking for proteins with which VHL interacted in the hope that these might shed clues to VHL function,” says Ohh.</p> <p>By the late 1990s, they had found several and determined that those proteins are part of a larger complex that likely targets other proteins for destruction.</p> <p>They showed that without a functional VHL protein, these complexes are unable to degrade another protein called hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF), which in turn spurs tumour cell survival and growth even in low-oxygen microenvironments.</p> <p>The mechanism at play in von Hippel-Lindau syndrome, in other words, also impacts how all cells sense and adapt to oxygen deprivation. “The worlds of hypoxia and VHL collided in that discovery,” says Ohh.</p> <p>Researchers have since developed ways to control how cells sense and adapt to changes in oxygen, and are applying those findings for various conditions. A drug based on this approach is in clinical trial for various cancer types, and the findings also look promising in pre-clinical research for cardiovascular disease and anemia.</p> <p>Ohh’s lab in Toronto has just figured out why certain people with mutations in another HIF gene get cancer and/or polycythemia (an excess of red blood cells). Recent clinical reports have detailed the plight of people with this mutation, and clinicians are now asking Ohh’s lab if they can help predict what disease their patients will eventually develop, so they can better monitor their patients for these conditions.</p> <p>“Early detection is critical for outcomes in cancer treatment, so this is useful, highly personalized medicine,” says Ohh. “And it’s an extension of the work we did 20 years ago, which is gratifying.”</p> <p>Ohh and his lab are also looking at evolutionary aspects of this molecular pathway. They are studying evolutionary diversions of the pathway among different animals over millions of years to see which genetic sequences and motifs are conserved.</p> <p>Insights into these diversions could offer ways to understand the precise mechanisms and critical regions of HIF and VHL by which cells better respond to oxygen fluctuations.</p> <p>Great science isn’t the only product of the Kaelin lab. Ohh met his wife <strong>Meredith Irwin</strong> there when she was a research trainee, and they have been together for two decades. Irwin is a professor of pediatrics, medical biophysics and laboratory medicine and pathobiology at ֱ, as well as a clinician-scientist at The Hospital for Sick Children.</p> <p>Irwin was born and raised in New York, studied at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard, and trained at Boston Children’s Hospital and Dana-Farber for more than a decade.</p> <p>The couple travelled to Boston for Kaelin’s 60<sup>th</sup> birthday two years ago. “They asked us to give talks, and afterward Bill made a comment about me stealing an American to Canada,” says Ohh. “We really are very happy here in Toronto.”</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Fri, 15 Nov 2019 05:00:00 +0000 noreen.rasbach 160622 at Nobel Laureate John Polanyi: 'What can we do to prevent nuclear war?' /news/nobel-laureate-john-polanyi-what-can-we-do-prevent-nuclear-war <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Nobel Laureate John Polanyi: 'What can we do to prevent nuclear war?'</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2019-10-03-John-Polyani-%281%29.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=zyvdaPsC 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/2019-10-03-John-Polyani-%281%29.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=JIVATIW- 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/2019-10-03-John-Polyani-%281%29.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=JOBkhCrz 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2019-10-03-John-Polyani-%281%29.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=zyvdaPsC" alt="John Polanyi at the podium during the science for peace event"> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>Christopher.Sorensen</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2019-11-14T00:00:00-05:00" title="Thursday, November 14, 2019 - 00:00" class="datetime">Thu, 11/14/2019 - 00:00</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">ֱ's John Polanyi remains committed to raising the public’s awareness of the threat of the arms race: “Our task is to keep that process of education going" (photo by Johnny Guatto)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/chris-sasaki" hreflang="en">Chris Sasaki</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/global-lens" hreflang="en">Global Lens</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/alumni" hreflang="en">ֱ</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/barbara-sherwood-lollar" hreflang="en">Barbara Sherwood Lollar</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/chemistry" hreflang="en">Chemistry</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/earth-sciences" hreflang="en">Earth Sciences</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/faculty-arts-science" hreflang="en">Faculty of Arts &amp; Science</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/global" hreflang="en">Global</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/john-polanyi" hreflang="en">John Polanyi</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nobel-prize" hreflang="en">Nobel Prize</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>This past&nbsp;August, six months after the contentious breakdown of talks between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korea’s Kim Jong Un and mere days after joint U.S.- South Korea military exercises ended, North Korea launched two short-range ballistic missiles into the Sea of Japan.</p> <p>The missiles prompted an international response, including a call from South Korea for the restart of talks between the U.S. and its neighbour to the north.</p> <p>The incident was yet another tense confrontation between nuclear powers – a litany that began in the mid-20<sup>th</sup>&nbsp;century with the atomic bomb, the building of the Berlin Wall, the Cuban missile crisis, the Korean War and other global events.</p> <p>The chilling history of the Cold War, the arms race and nuclear proliferation was recently recounted by&nbsp;<strong>John Polanyi</strong>, Nobel laureate and a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.provost.utoronto.ca/awards-funding/university-professors/#section_2">University Professor</a>&nbsp;at the University of Toronto’s department of chemistry in the Faculty of Arts &amp; Science, in a talk titled “What can we do to prevent nuclear war?”&nbsp;</p> <p>Polanyi, a Fellow of the Royal Society – the United Kingdom’s national academy of sciences – as well as a Companion of the Order of Canada, was speaking at an event organized by the ֱ&nbsp;chapter of Science for Peace. It took place on&nbsp;Oct.&nbsp;2 at the George Ignatieff Theatre and was&nbsp;livestreamed.</p> <p>In his opening remarks,&nbsp;<strong>Adnan Zuberi</strong>, a ֱ alumnus and a member of the chapter’s board of directors, explained that&nbsp;Science for Peace&nbsp;“seeks to understand and act on matters of militarism, social injustice and environmental destruction.”</p> <p>He added that Science for Peace was founded in 1981 when “many notable academic scientists at ֱ saw the Cold War and the number of nuclear weapons getting out of control and realized they had to step in and bring scientific reasoning and sensibility to de-escalate matters.”</p> <p><strong>Barbara Sherwood Lollar</strong>, a University Professor in the&nbsp;department of Earth sciences, introduced Polanyi, pointing out that the winner of&nbsp;the Nobel Prize in Chemistry&nbsp;could rightly claim a share in the 1995 Nobel Peace Prize as well. It was awarded to the Pugwash Conferences – a global movement of scholars dedicated to reducing the threat of armed conflict – and Polanyi was the founding chair of the Canadian Pugwash.</p> <p>Sherwood Lollar described Polanyi as “a conscience for the idea of how scientists and engineers can act with and in support of society to move us forward on the kinds of goals and enormous challenges that are facing us.”</p> <p>Polanyi began by paying his respects to Greta Thunberg, the 16-year-old climate change activist who was in Canada at the time of the talk.&nbsp;</p> <p>“What she said to the UN General Assembly could just as well be said about the arms race and nuclear weapons. She said, ‘You pretend that this can be solved by business as usual. Change is coming whether you like it or not.’ I see this as being true of the grievous danger we face in a nuclear war.”</p> <p>As Polanyi continued, it became clear that his life and the history of the arms race have been woven together since the Cold War began.</p> <p>In 1950, U.S. President Harry Truman was still deciding whether to greenlight the development of the hydrogen bomb – a device that would dwarf the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki – when Polanyi’s friend, German-American theoretical physicist Hans Bethe, had an article published in&nbsp;<em>Scientific American</em>&nbsp;magazine that made a passionate case against the new weapon.</p> <p>Polanyi quoted Bethe’s article, saying, “‘Can we [the U.S.], who insist on morality and humanity, introduce this weapon of total annihilation into the world? Shall we convince the Russians of the value of the individual by killing millions?’&nbsp;</p> <p>“We’re still trying to absorb the truth of what Bethe said. That we shouldn’t have anything to do with such a weapon.”</p> <p>The H-bomb was developed by both the U.S. and the Soviet Union and it was in the shadow of this growing threat that Polanyi attended the Pugwash Conference in Moscow in 1960.</p> <p>In Moscow, Polanyi’s “hero,” Hungarian-American physicist Leo Szilard, addressed the problem of nuclear proliferation by suggesting that the U.S. and Soviets should be limited to one weapon each – “one buried under Moscow and one under Washington.”</p> <p>Despite attempts to limit global nuclear arsenals, Polanyi explained, the number of weapons grew into the tens of thousands and eventually abated, not because of the effectiveness of mutual deterrence, but through a thawing of the Cold War under Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev.</p> <p>Polanyi observed that the threat of nuclear conflict is as real today as when U.S. President John F. Kennedy and Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev inched the world to the brink of nuclear war when the Soviets deployed ballistic missiles in Cuba.</p> <p>He reminded the audience that the latest chapter is being written by&nbsp;Trump and Kim, “one of whom is becoming unhinged”&nbsp;– without specifying which of the two leaders he was referring to.</p> <p>Despite the gravity of the subject and the dramas being played out on today’s geopolitical stage, Polanyi remains inspiring, optimistic and – as his talks and public appearances attest – committed to the importance of raising the public’s awareness of the threat of the arms race.</p> <p>“Our task is to keep that process of education going,” he said, answering the question in the talk’s title. “We should rejoice that we were born at this time and have that noble task ahead of us.”</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Thu, 14 Nov 2019 05:00:00 +0000 Christopher.Sorensen 160569 at