Honours for Dirac Medallist

Edward Witten (Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, US), one of the first recipients of ICTP's Dirac Medal (Yakov Zeldovich and Witten were the Dirac medallists in 1985), has been awarded the 2014 Kyoto Prize in Basic Sciences. The Kyoto Prize, established by the Inamori Foundation, is an international award that honours individuals who have contributed significantly to the scientific, cultural, and spiritual betterment of mankind. The Prize is presented annually in three categories: Advanced Technology, Basic Sciences, and Arts and Philosophy.

The Prize recognizes Witten's "outstanding contributions to the development of mathematical sciences through the exploration of superstring theory." The awardees will be presented with a diploma, a 20K gold Kyoto Prize medal, and prize money of 50 million yen at a presentation ceremony that will be held in Kyoto, Japan, in November 2014.

The complete award citation is available on the Kyoto Prize webpage.