The 2007 Kyoto Prize Laureates

08 June 2007

Advanced Technology

Prize Field: Materials Science and Engineering
Dr. Hiroo Inokuchi (Japan, February 3, 1927)

Chemist

Professor Emeritus, The University of Tokyo and Institute for Molecular Science, National Institutes of Natural Sciences

Pioneering and Fundamental Contributions to Organic Molecular Electronics
Dr. Hiroo Inokuchi initiated pioneering research on electrical conduction between molecules with benzene rings and established the scientific foundation for studying the electrical conductivity of organic materials. Further, he systematically elucidated an electronic structure of a wide variety of organic materials by photoelectron spectroscopy. Through a series of such studies, he established the academic base essential for studying the electronic properties, making fundamental contributions to the subsequent development of organic molecular electronics.

Basic Sciences

Prize Field: Earth and Planetary Sciences, Astronomy and Astrophysics
Dr. Hiroo Kanamori (Japan, October 17, 1936)

Geophysicist

Professor Emeritus, California Institute of Technology

Elucidation of Physical Processes of Earthquakes and Its Application to Hazard Mitigation
Dr. Hiroo Kanamori has made an epoch-making progress on the study of great earthquakes through the establishment of analytical method to understand quantitatively all over the rupture process of a great earthquake making full use of seismogram. This study has ushered in a new era in seismology and had a significant impact on the development of geophysics. He has made practical proposals on how to mitigate earthquake hazards based on the knowledge gained through basic studies and contributed to building up and conducting earthquake hazard mitigation systems.

Arts and Philosophy

Prize Field:  Theater, Cinema
Ms. Pina Bausch (Germany, July 27, 1940)

Choreographer and Artistic Director

A choreographer who has broken down the boundaries between dance and theater and pioneered a new direction for theatrical art
Applying an original choreographical approach that delves into the fundamental motives of human action, Ms. Pina Bausch has established a creative idiom that taps deeply into the sensitivity of both performers and their audiences. At the same time, she has broken down the boundaries between dance and theater, and opened up a new direction in theatrical art.
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