Monday, 14 May 2018.  At today’s press conference in Hong Kong, The Shaw Prize Foundation announced the Shaw Laureates for 2018. Information was posted on the website www.shawprize.org at Hong Kong time 15:30 (GMT 07:30).

The Shaw Prize consists of three annual prizes: Astronomy, Life Science and Medicine, and Mathematical Sciences, each bearing a monetary award of US$1.2 million. This will be the fifteenth year that the Prize has been awarded and the presentation ceremony is scheduled for Wednesday, 26 September 2018 in Hong Kong.

The Shaw Laureates

The Shaw Prize in Astronomy is awarded to

Jean-Loup Puget
Researcher, Institut d’Astrophysique Spatiale (IAS) of CNRS and the University of Paris-Sud 11, France, and Principal Investigator, High Frequency Instrument of the Planck Mission, European Space Agency

for his contributions to astronomy in the infrared to submillimetre spectral range. He detected the cosmic far-infrared background from past star-forming galaxies, and proposed aromatic hydrocarbon molecules as a constituent of interstellar matter. With the Planck space mission, he has dramatically advanced our knowledge of cosmology in the presence of interstellar matter foregrounds.

The Shaw Prize in Life Science and Medicine is awarded to

Mary-Claire King
American Cancer Society Professor, Department of Medicine and Genome Sciences, University of Washington, USA

for her mapping of the first breast cancer gene. Using mathematical modeling, King predicted and then demonstrated that breast cancer can be caused by a single gene. She mapped the gene which facilitated its cloning and has saved thousands of lives.

The Shaw Prize in Mathematical Sciences is awarded to

Luis A Caffarelli
Professor of Mathematics, University of Texas at Austin, USA

for his groundbreaking work on partial differential equations, including creating a theory of regularity for nonlinear equations such as the Monge–Ampère equation, and free-boundary problems such as the obstacle problem, work that has influenced a whole generation of researchers in the field.

Background

Established in November 2002 under the auspices of Mr Run Run Shaw, the Prize honours individuals, regardless of race, nationality, gender and religious belief, who have achieved significant breakthrough in academic and scientific research or applications and whose work has resulted in a positive and profound impact on mankind.

The Shaw Prize is an international award managed and administered by The Shaw Prize Foundation based in Hong Kong. Mr Shaw has also founded two charities, The Shaw Foundation Hong Kong and The Sir Run Run Shaw Charitable Trust, both dedicated to the promotion of education, scientific and technological research, medical and welfare services, and culture and the arts.