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Welcome to the press conference of the 2014 (30th) Japan Prize laureates.
The Japan Prize was awarded for the first time in 1985.
It is astonishing how time flies,
as this year marks the 30th anniversary of the Japan Prize.
Looking back at all the laureates and their achievements,
serves to reaffirm the key role the Japan Prize has played in the history of
peace and prosperity brought to mankind
through the advancement in science and technology.
The 2014 Japan Prize in the field of "Electronics, Information and Communication" goes to
Dr. Yasuharu Suematsu,
Honorary Professor at the Tokyo Institute of Technology,
for his pioneering research on semiconductor lasers for
high-capacity long-distance optical fiber communication.
In the field of "Life Science", the award goes to Dr. David Allis,
Professor at Rockefeller University, New York,
for the discovery of histone modifications as
fundamental regulators of gene expression.
The Prize will be awarded to these two Laureates.
Two years ago in November, the Foundation chose
"Life Science" and "Electronics, Information and Communication"
as the two fields for this year's prize.
The Foundation then called for nominations from
13,000 prominent scientists and researchers from around the globe
who were especially invited by the foundation.
As a result, we received back
189 nominations in the "Electronics, Information and Communication" field
and 354 nominations in the field of "Life Science".
In total, we received 543 nominations.
For those 543 nominations, a Selection Subcommittee was
set up for each prize field to evaluate the
scholarly novelty and uniqueness of each nomination.
At the same time,
the discovery or invention's contribution to the
peace and prosperity of mankind was thoroughly discussed,
as this is the core concept behind the Japan Prize.
During the process, we also received objective feedback from
89 prominent intellectuals from home and abroad.
It was through these rigorous evaluations that this year's laureates were chosen.
This year's laureate, Dr. Yasuharu Suematsu,
Dr. Suematsu, Honorary Professor, Tokyo Institute of Technology,
began his research on optical communication in the early 1960s
during the predawn of optical electronics.
Through his research, he successfully developed
"Dynamic single mode lasers", a semiconductor laser technology
that is crucial to optical fiber communication.
Later, dynamic single mode lasers turned out to be
an indispensable technology for optical fiber communication.
During the mid-1980s,
technology for long-distance optical fiber communication was established
and served as an international communication hub infrastructure.
Today, optical fiber communication networks are globally connected
with intercontinental submarine cables.
The Internet, which is now widely adopted in our society,
would not have been possible without this technology.
Variable wavelength laser,
which are actually a type of dynamic single mode laser,
only started being used since 2005,
and by 2010, it has become widely adopted.
This is only three years ago.
When I found out, I was overwhelmed by joy.
For innovative technology to penetrate the society,
it takes many years.
In our case, even half a century.
I've learnt this first hand through my research career.
As Prof. Miyahara mentioned before me,
dynamic single-mode lasers will continue to evolve into the future,
and contribute to the development of next-generation
optical fiber communication.
As the Human Genome Project progressed, it becomes clear that
in addition to the genetic information of the DNA,
there exists a mechanism in which a part of the genetic information is
selectively expressed at each cell level.
During the 1990s, when based at the University of Virginia Health System,
Dr. Allis set out to research histones, proteins that constitute the chromosomes
in tetrahymena, an organism that was known for its epigenetic trait.
Dr. Allis' research team continued to undertake the challenge of clarifying
the difference between chemical modifications in the macronucleus
and the suspended action in the micronucleus
when tetrahymena is active.
Finally, in 1996,
it was clarified that with histones in the region where genetic information
could be read, histone acetyltransferase which
binds itself to the acetyl group is active.
The research into histone chemical modifications pioneered by Dr. Allis,
will continue to be a vital field in the future development of life science.
Thank you very much.
Congratulations.
By many measures, my career in science has been a "fairy tale".
One that's enriched not only by the scientific achievements that we've made,
but equally by the many collaborators and colleagues that I've had the privilege
to work with in making some of these discoveries.
I've told my Lab folks many times that one of the best parts of
doing science is the "people".
Importantly,
the Japan Prize, I believe, strives to teach us to build a better world.
In my own university in New York city, The Rockefeller University,
our motto is "Science for the benefit of humanity".
In my own way, I have tried to do this, with much help,
through my science.
The fact that through some of our work, some people are living healthier lives
is a very fulfilling aspect of what we've done over the years
and I'm deeply grateful to have participated in some of these studies.