https://www.scmp.com/rss/58158/feed A set of annual international awards established by Swedish dynamite inventor Alfred Nobel in 1895. The Nobel Prize recognises achievements in physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature, and peace. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Associated Press Associated Press Nobel Peace laureate and activist Narges Mohammadi has been transferred to a Tehran hospital more than a week after collapsing in prison, her foundation said on Sunday. Her transfer comes after days of pleading by her family and others who described her condition as critical. Her foundation said she has been granted a prison sentence suspension on bail. It was not clear for how long her sentence is suspended, the foundation said. Mohammadi had been imprisoned since December in Zanjan prison. She... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353072/jailed-iran-nobel-laureate-narges-mohammadi-transferred-hospital-after-medical-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353072/jailed-iran-nobel-laureate-narges-mohammadi-transferred-hospital-after-medical-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 10 May 2026 23:54:18 +0000 Reuters Reuters Myanmar’s detained former leader Aung San Suu Kyi has been moved to house arrest, state media reported on Thursday, over five years after the country’s military ousted a civilian government led by the Nobel laureate and imprisoned her. Suu Kyi, 80, has been detained by ‌the junta since and her whereabouts have been unclear amid a deadly civil war that was triggered by the February 2021 coup that has engulfed much of the impoverished Southeast Asian nation. “… the remaining portion of Daw Aung... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3352081/myanmars-aung-san-suu-kyi-moved-prison-house-arrest?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3352081/myanmars-aung-san-suu-kyi-moved-prison-house-arrest?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 30 Apr 2026 16:33:07 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Venezuela’s opposition leader Maria Corina Machado said on Saturday she had “no regrets” about symbolically handing over her Nobel Peace Prize to US President Donald Trump in January. “There is a leader in the world, a head of state in the world who risked the lives of his country’s citizens for Venezuela’s freedom,” she told a news conference in Madrid. Machado presented her Nobel Prize to Trump when she met him in the White House just two weeks after he ordered US forces to attack Caracas and... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3350601/venezuelas-machado-says-no-regrets-about-giving-her-nobel-prize-trump?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3350601/venezuelas-machado-says-no-regrets-about-giving-her-nobel-prize-trump?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 18 Apr 2026 20:10:19 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse The health of jailed Iranian Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi is critical after she suffered a heart attack last month, supporters warned on Wednesday. Her Iran-based family and legal team were on Saturday allowed a second in-person visit with Mohammadi in her prison in northern Iran where “clear signs of a deterioration in her general condition were observed, and her physical state was described as critical”, her foundation said in a statement. The latest meeting came after an earlier... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3350240/jailed-iranian-nobel-winner-mohammadi-critical-after-heart-attack?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3350240/jailed-iranian-nobel-winner-mohammadi-critical-after-heart-attack?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 16 Apr 2026 02:46:45 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Venezuelan opposition leader and winner of the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize Maria Corina Machado said on Sunday that she will return to Venezuela in the coming weeks and that elections will be held in the South American country. Machado did not set a date for her return but said one of the objectives will be to prepare “for a new and gigantic electoral victory”. In a message shared on social media, the politician called on her supporters to “strengthen the unity of Venezuelans that began with the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3345059/venezuelas-opposition-leader-machado-will-return-country-coming-weeks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3345059/venezuelas-opposition-leader-machado-will-return-country-coming-weeks?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 01 Mar 2026 22:44:21 +0000 Kyodo Kyodo Japan’s health ministry panel on Thursday approved the commercialisation of two regenerative medicine products prepared from iPS cells, the first of their kind in the world. The two drugs, ReHeart developed by Cuorips, a start-up originating from the University of Osaka, and Amchepry by Sumitomo Pharma and Racthera, will be used for patients with severe heart failure stemming from ischemic cardiomyopathy and Parkinson’s disease, respectively. “I am very happy to see the first big step towards... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3344036/japan-approves-worlds-first-regenerative-medicines-using-ips-cells?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3344036/japan-approves-worlds-first-regenerative-medicines-using-ips-cells?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 19 Feb 2026 13:31:09 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Venezuela’s Nobel peace laureate Maria Corina Machado said on Monday that armed men “kidnapped” a close ally shortly after his release by authorities, following ex-leader Nicolas Maduro’s capture. The country’s Public Prosecutor’s Office confirmed later that same day that former National Assembly vice-president Juan Pablo Guanipa, 61, was again taken into custody and put under house arrest, arguing that he violated the conditions of his release. Guanipa would be placed under house arrest “in... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3342858/venezuela-frees-several-opposition-members-after-lengthy-politically-motivated-detentions?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3342858/venezuela-frees-several-opposition-members-after-lengthy-politically-motivated-detentions?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 08 Feb 2026 22:39:52 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Iran sentenced Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi to over seven more years in prison after she began a hunger strike, supporters said on Sunday, as Tehran cracks down on all dissent following nationwide protests and the deaths of thousands at the hands of security forces. The new convictions against Mohammadi come as Iran tries to negotiate with the United States over its nuclear programme to avert a threatened military strike by US President Donald Trump. Iran’s top diplomat insisted... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3342852/iran-sentences-nobel-laureate-narges-mohammadi-over-7-more-years-prison?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3342852/iran-sentences-nobel-laureate-narges-mohammadi-over-7-more-years-prison?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 08 Feb 2026 17:40:53 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg US President Donald Trump could still lead his proposed Board of Peace after he leaves the White House, a US official has said. The chairmanship would be Trump’s to hold until he resigns it, the official said on Tuesday on the condition of anonymity. A future US president could choose to appoint or designate the official US representative to the board, the official added. The possibility of a chair-for-life status for Trump was the latest wrinkle in the creation of the signature diplomatic... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3340634/trump-could-lead-his-board-peace-life-after-leaving-white-house-us-official-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3340634/trump-could-lead-his-board-peace-life-after-leaving-white-house-us-official-says?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 21 Jan 2026 03:45:36 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Donald Trump no longer needs to think “purely of peace” after being snubbed for a Nobel prize, the US president said in comments published on Monday, adding the world will not be safe until Washington controls Greenland. Trump has put the transatlantic alliance to the test with threats to take over Greenland “one way or the other”, with European countries closing ranks against Washington’s designs on the vast Danish territory. German and French leaders denounced as “blackmail” weekend threats by... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3340445/trump-abandons-peace-focus-after-nobel-snub-message-norway-pm-world-not-secure?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3340445/trump-abandons-peace-focus-after-nobel-snub-message-norway-pm-world-not-secure?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 19 Jan 2026 10:15:41 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado said on Friday her country was starting a “true transition” to democracy and would become free with support from the US and President Donald Trump. Trump, however, has sidelined Nobel laureate Machado and backed former vice-president Delcy Rodriguez as interim leader of the oil-rich country following the January 3 US military operation that seized Nicolas Maduro. “We are definitely now into the first steps of a true transition to democracy,”... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3340230/machado-says-venezuela-will-be-free-support-trump?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3340230/machado-says-venezuela-will-be-free-support-trump?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 16 Jan 2026 19:58:14 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado said she presented her Nobel Peace Prize medal to US President Donald Trump at the White House on Thursday even as he has questioned her credibility to take over her country after the US ousted leader Nicolas Maduro. The Nobel Institute has said Machado could not give her prize to Trump, an honour that he has coveted. Even if it the gesture proves to be purely symbolic, it was extraordinary given that Trump has effectively sidelined Machado, who... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3340073/venezuelas-machado-says-she-presented-trump-her-nobel-peace-prize-medal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3340073/venezuelas-machado-says-she-presented-trump-her-nobel-peace-prize-medal?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 15 Jan 2026 22:07:32 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Washington announced on Monday that Venezuelan opposition figure Maria Corina Machado will meet US President Donald Trump this week as pressure grew on the interim leadership in Caracas to speed up the release of political prisoners. Machado has been sidelined by Washington since US forces seized long-term authoritarian leader Nicolas Maduro on January 3 and the Trump administration announced it would be “running” Venezuela. Disregarding Machado and her understudy Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, Trump... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3339651/trump-meet-venezuela-opposition-leader-machado-white-house-thursday?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3339651/trump-meet-venezuela-opposition-leader-machado-white-house-thursday?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 12 Jan 2026 20:11:21 +0000 Reuters Reuters The Norwegian Nobel Institute said the Nobel Peace Prize cannot be transferred, ‌shared, or revoked, following remarks by Venezuelan opposition leader Maria ‍Corina Machado suggesting she might give her 2025 award to US President Donald Trump. In a statement, the institute said the decision to award a Nobel Prize is final and ⁠permanent, citing the statutes of the Nobel Foundation, which do not allow appeals. The organisation also noted that committees awarding the prizes do not comment on the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3339469/nobel-panel-rejects-machados-idea-give-her-peace-prize-trump?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3339469/nobel-panel-rejects-machados-idea-give-her-peace-prize-trump?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 11 Jan 2026 01:02:38 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Donald Trump returned to office vowing to be the peace president. Nearly a year later, he is embracing war on multiple fronts. Trump on Saturday ordered large-scale military strikes in Venezuela and announced that leftist leader Nicolas Maduro had been captured and flown out of the country. The raid to kick off the new year comes after the US military on Christmas Day hit Nigeria, in what Trump said was an operation targeting jihadists who had attacked Christians. And hours before the attack in... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3338630/self-proclaimed-peace-president-trump-bombs-venezuela-strikes-nigeria-warns-iran?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3338630/self-proclaimed-peace-president-trump-bombs-venezuela-strikes-nigeria-warns-iran?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 03 Jan 2026 14:05:09 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse There has been no contact with Iranian Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi since her arrest in Iran at the end of last week, her supporters said on Sunday, urging the Islamic republic to release the campaigner and dozens of others arrested alongside her. Mohammadi, who won the 2023 Nobel Prize, was detained on Friday after addressing a memorial ceremony in the eastern city of Mashhad for lawyer Khosrow Alikordi, who was found dead earlier this month. According to Mashhad prosecutor... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3336414/no-contact-iran-nobel-winner-arrest-supporters-say?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3336414/no-contact-iran-nobel-winner-arrest-supporters-say?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 14 Dec 2025 22:28:09 +0000 Ken Chu Ken Chu The Nobel Prize may not seem very relevant to many, but we can certainly draw lessons from its winners. Earlier this year, Peter Howitt – an honorary professor and fellow alumnus of Canada’s Western University – was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences with two other professors for work on innovation-driven economic growth. Howitt’s work helped formalise the concept of creative destruction, which explains how economies evolve through cycles of renewal, where new companies and... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3335769/how-hong-kong-can-capitalise-chinese-creative-destruction?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3335769/how-hong-kong-can-capitalise-chinese-creative-destruction?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 13 Dec 2025 21:30:08 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Iranian security forces on Friday detained the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi along with at least eight other activists in an arrest condemned as “brutal” by the Norwegian Nobel Committee. Mohammadi, who was granted temporary leave from prison in December 2024, was detained along with eight other activists at the ceremony for lawyer Khosrow Alikordi, who was found dead in his office last week, her foundation wrote on social media. Those arrested at the ceremony in the eastern... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3336298/iran-detains-nobel-prize-winner-narges-mohammadi-brutal-arrest?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3336298/iran-detains-nobel-prize-winner-narges-mohammadi-brutal-arrest?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 12 Dec 2025 20:08:41 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Cambodia suspended all of its border crossings with Thailand on Saturday, as the two countries remained locked in a deadly military conflict. “The Royal Government of Cambodia has decided to fully suspend all entry and exit movements at all Cambodia-Thailand border crossings, effective immediately and until further notice,” Cambodia’s interior ministry said in a statement. A spokesman justified the move with the protection of the country. Fighting between the two nations along their shared... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3336294/thailands-pm-says-no-ceasefire-cambodia-yet-after-trump-call?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3336294/thailands-pm-says-no-ceasefire-cambodia-yet-after-trump-call?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 12 Dec 2025 17:10:47 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Nobel Peace laureate Maria Corina Machado said on Thursday that the United States helped her get to Norway from hiding in Venezuela, expressing support for US military action against her country and vowing to return home. Machado, who vanished in January after challenging the rule of President Nicolas Maduro, emerged on a hotel balcony in Oslo to cheering supporters early Thursday after several days of confusion over her whereabouts. “We did get support from the United States government to get... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3335989/after-months-hiding-venezuelas-nobel-peace-prize-winner-machado-emerges-norway?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3335989/after-months-hiding-venezuelas-nobel-peace-prize-winner-machado-emerges-norway?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 11 Dec 2025 03:03:26 +0000 Reuters Reuters Democracies must be prepared to fight for freedom to survive, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Corina Machado said on Wednesday, in a speech delivered by her daughter during a ceremony Machado could not attend. The Venezuelan opposition leader said that the prize held profound significance, not only for her country but for the world. “It reminds the world that democracy is essential to peace,” she said, via her daughter Ana Corina Sosa Machado. “And the most important lesson Venezuelans can... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3335940/venezuelas-machado-urges-global-fight-democracy-after-nobel-peace-prize-win?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3335940/venezuelas-machado-urges-global-fight-democracy-after-nobel-peace-prize-win?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 10 Dec 2025 13:14:03 +0000 Reuters Reuters Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado will not receive the Nobel Peace Prize in person at Wednesday’s award ceremony in Oslo, the director of the Norwegian Nobel Institute said on Wednesday, with her current whereabouts unknown. Machado, 58, was due to receive the award at a ceremony at Oslo City Hall in the presence of King Harald, Queen Sonja and Latin American leaders including Argentine President Javier Milei and Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa. The ceremony starts at 1pm (8pm... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3335810/machados-nobel-press-conference-called-peace-prize-winners-whereabouts-unknown?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3335810/machados-nobel-press-conference-called-peace-prize-winners-whereabouts-unknown?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 09 Dec 2025 16:37:19 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado has vowed to go to Norway to pick up her Nobel Peace Prize, defying a warning from Caracas that she would be a fugitive if she did so. The head of the Nobel Institute, Kristian Berg Harpviken, on Saturday said that Machado – who lives in hiding in her country – promised him she would make the ceremony, set to take place in Oslo on Wednesday. “I was in contact with Machado last night [Friday] and she confirms that she will be in Oslo for the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3335478/venezuelas-machado-defies-warning-vows-attend-nobel-peace-prize-ceremony?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3335478/venezuelas-machado-defies-warning-vows-attend-nobel-peace-prize-ceremony?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 06 Dec 2025 15:40:22 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press US President Donald Trump was awarded the new Fifa peace prize on Friday at the 2026 World Cup draw – giving the soccer spectacle to set matchups for the quadrennial tournament even more of a Trumpian flair. Trump, who has openly campaigned for the Nobel Peace Prize, had been heavily favoured to win the newly created Fifa prize. He and Fifa president Gianni Infantino are close allies, and Infantino had made it clear that he thought Trump should have won the Nobel for his efforts to broker a... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3335424/fifa-gives-trump-its-new-peace-prize-world-cup-draw?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3335424/fifa-gives-trump-its-new-peace-prize-world-cup-draw?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 05 Dec 2025 17:48:32 +0000 Park Chan-kyong Park Chan-kyong South Korean President Lee Jae-myung on Wednesday praised the citizens who confronted martial law troops a year ago, saying their collective defence of democracy made them worthy of the Nobel Peace Prize. Speaking at a ceremony marking the first anniversary of the attempt by impeached president Yoon Suk-yeol to impose military rule, Lee described the incident as an unprecedented test of South Korea’s democracy that the public overcame peacefully. “I am convinced that we, the people of the... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3335000/south-koreans-deserve-nobel-peace-prize-stopping-martial-law-president-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3335000/south-koreans-deserve-nobel-peace-prize-stopping-martial-law-president-says?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 03 Dec 2025 04:44:33 +0000 Frank Wilczek Frank Wilczek In the eighth instalment of his exclusive series for the South China Morning Post, American theoretical physicist and Nobel laureate Frank Wilczek explores the big world manifestation of small world quantum mechanics. Read his previous articles here. The Nobel Prize in Physics for 2025 was awarded to John Clarke, Michel Devoret and John Martinis “for the discovery of macroscopic quantum tunnelling and energy quantisation in an electric circuit”. The trio collaborated on a series of... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3334305/nobel-prize-physics-proves-big-things-can-be-quantum-too?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3334305/nobel-prize-physics-proves-big-things-can-be-quantum-too?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 27 Nov 2025 10:00:14 +0000 Dannie Peng Dannie Peng When Nobel laureate James Watson died at 97 in November, obituaries around the world painted a divided portrait: a scientific visionary who co-discovered the double helix of DNA – and a controversial figure long condemned for making racially charged statements about intelligence and genetics. In the West, the American molecular biologist’s legacy was increasingly overshadowed by the fallout from those remarks, culminating in New York’s Cold Spring Harbour Laboratory (CSHL) severing ties with him... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3332771/why-racist-biologist-james-watson-remembered-china-respect?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3332771/why-racist-biologist-james-watson-remembered-china-respect?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 17 Nov 2025 15:00:12 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse US President Donald Trump called Thailand and Cambodia on Friday to bolster the peace deal he brokered after fresh clashes erupted between the Southeast Asian neighbours, the White House said. Trump co-signed a truce between the two countries on October 26 during a tour of Asia, touting it as one of several peace deals around the world that he believes should win him the Nobel Prize. But Thailand suspended the deal on Monday after a landmine blast, and the two sides traded accusations of new... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3332897/trump-calls-thailand-and-cambodia-after-new-clashes-upend-his-ceasefire-deal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3332897/trump-calls-thailand-and-cambodia-after-new-clashes-upend-his-ceasefire-deal?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 14 Nov 2025 20:50:36 +0000 Sylvia Ma Sylvia Ma Restoring confidence and stabilising the property market are “significantly more important” for China than the ramifications of tariffs, a Nobel laureate in economics said while warning of financial risks to Chinese households. Michael Spence, who won the Nobel Prize in 2001, made the remarks at the Hongqiao International Economic Forum in Shanghai on Thursday, during a panel discussion on China’s pathway to revitalise consumption. While acknowledging that Beijing needs to “seriously” address... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3331956/nobel-laureate-spence-china-fix-property-restore-confidence-tariffs-are-secondary?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3331956/nobel-laureate-spence-china-fix-property-restore-confidence-tariffs-are-secondary?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 08 Nov 2025 01:00:25 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press James D. Watson, whose co-discovery of the twisted-ladder structure of DNA in 1953 helped light the long fuse on a revolution in medicine, crime-fighting, genealogy and ethics, has died. He was 97. The breakthrough – made when the brash, Chicago-born Watson was just 24 – turned him into a hallowed figure in the world of science for decades. But near the end of his life, he faced condemnation and professional censure for offensive remarks, including saying black people are less intelligent than... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3332011/james-watson-co-discoverer-dnas-double-helix-shape-dead-97?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3332011/james-watson-co-discoverer-dnas-double-helix-shape-dead-97?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 07 Nov 2025 20:37:45 +0000 Danielle Popov Danielle Popov The second edition of the Hong Kong Laureate Forum began on Wednesday, bringing together Shaw Prize winners and 200 young researchers as part of a major push to establish the city as a global hub for scientific and technology talent. Officiating the opening, Chief Secretary Eric Chan Kwok-ki highlighted the government’s strategy: “We are establishing an advanced [innovation and technology] system under the principle of promoting technology with talent, leading industries with technology and... https://www.scmp.com/tech/tech-trends/article/3331609/hong-kong-laureate-forum-kicks-city-woos-global-science-talent?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/tech-trends/article/3331609/hong-kong-laureate-forum-kicks-city-woos-global-science-talent?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 05 Nov 2025 09:00:11 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Nearly 300 people have been killed in political violence in Bangladesh in the year since student-led protests toppled autocratic former leader Sheikh Hasina, the country’s main human rights group said on Sunday. A report by Odhikar, a Dhaka-based rights organisation, said at least 281 people had been killed in violence involving political parties from August 2024 – when Hasina’s rule ended and she fled to India – to September 2025. On top of those, there were another 40 victims of extrajudicial... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3331237/bangladesh-political-violence-kills-281-hasinas-fall?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3331237/bangladesh-political-violence-kills-281-hasinas-fall?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 02 Nov 2025 11:20:29 +0000 Julian Ryall Julian Ryall Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has been accused of “taking flattery to the extreme” after she informed US President Donald Trump on Tuesday about her plan to nominate him for next year’s Nobel Peace Prize. According to White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt, Takaichi told Trump that she would recommend him for the Nobel Peace Prize. Trump has been complaining about the Nobel Committee for not picking him to win the accolade despite what he says are his efforts to end multiple conflicts... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3330597/japans-pm-criticised-curry-favour-trump-over-nobel-peace-prize-plan?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3330597/japans-pm-criticised-curry-favour-trump-over-nobel-peace-prize-plan?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 Oct 2025 07:22:43 +0000 Connor Mycroft Connor Mycroft A pair of Nobel Prize winners have warned against overhyping the capabilities of artificial intelligence (AI) at a speaking event in Hong Kong, with one urging young people not to be a “slave” to the emerging technology. Professors David Gross, winner of the Nobel Prize for physics in 2004, and Arieh Warshel, winner of the chemistry prize in 2013, also commended Hong Kong’s education system and the city’s focus on scientific research and innovation. Gross and Warshel were speaking at a talk... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3330365/dont-be-slave-ai-nobel-prize-winners-warn-against-technology-overhype?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3330365/dont-be-slave-ai-nobel-prize-winners-warn-against-technology-overhype?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 26 Oct 2025 09:09:52 +0000 Andrew Sheng Andrew Sheng Last week, two economists and one economic historian were awarded the Nobel Prize in economics for explaining innovation-driven economic growth. Northwestern University professor Joel Mokyr was commended “for having identified the prerequisites for sustained growth through technological progress” and French economist Philippe Aghion and Brown University’s Peter Howitt were jointly honoured “for the theory of sustained growth through creative destruction”. It was noble (no pun intended) of the... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3330102/amid-us-china-rivalry-nobel-prize-winners-oeuvre-offers-food-thought?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3330102/amid-us-china-rivalry-nobel-prize-winners-oeuvre-offers-food-thought?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 Oct 2025 08:30:08 +0000 Alex Lo Alex Lo China and the United States are locked in a contest for technological supremacy. While it’s impossible to predict the ultimate winner and loser, this year’s Nobel Prize winners in economics may serve as a useful guide to where the two rivals are heading. The US is currently still ahead when it comes to science and technology. But when it comes to STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) education, China has a clear edge, which is likely to grow even larger in the coming... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3329729/nobel-laureates-show-us-cant-take-tech-lead-over-china-granted?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3329729/nobel-laureates-show-us-cant-take-tech-lead-over-china-granted?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 22 Oct 2025 01:30:09 +0000 Harvey Kong Harvey Kong Hong Kong’s leader has said late entertainment mogul Run Run Shaw’s vision of celebrating education and the pursuit of knowledge with his prestigious science prize is central to the city government’s own aspirations. Speaking at the award ceremony for the prestigious Shaw Prize on Tuesday, Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu also paid his respects to late Nobel Prize-winning theoretical physicist Chen-ning Yang, who was one of the local award’s founding council members. The award, dubbed the “Nobel... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3329845/hong-kongs-john-lee-champions-shaw-prize-vision-pays-tribute-late-physicist?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3329845/hong-kongs-john-lee-champions-shaw-prize-vision-pays-tribute-late-physicist?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 21 Oct 2025 14:29:34 +0000 Alex Lo Alex Lo Donald Trump is reportedly furious that he didn’t get the Nobel Peace Prize. Instead, it went to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado. But if the US president could see beyond his megalomania for a moment, he would realise that the Norwegian Nobel Committee has bent over backwards to placate his administration. The far-right Machado, after all, was nominated by Trump’s own Secretary of State Marco Rubio when he was still a senator, and former national security adviser and now US... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3328789/nobel-peace-prize-should-now-be-called-nobel-war-prize?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3328789/nobel-peace-prize-should-now-be-called-nobel-war-prize?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 15 Oct 2025 01:30:09 +0000 Xiaofei Xu Xiaofei Xu French economist Philippe Aghion issued a stark warning to Europe shortly after winning this year’s Nobel Prize, saying the continent was losing the technology race to China and the United States. “Europe needs to wake up. We’re falling behind technologically compared to the United States and now China,” the newly minted laureate said during public broadcaster France 2’s evening news programme on Monday. “Since the 1990s, they’ve been developing breakthroughs, hi-tech innovations, while we’ve... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3328920/europe-losing-tech-race-china-and-us-nobel-prize-winner-warns?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3328920/europe-losing-tech-race-china-and-us-nobel-prize-winner-warns?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 14 Oct 2025 06:01:47 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Nicolas Maduro’s time is up but he can still leave power peacefully, Venezuelan Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Corina Machado said in an interview from hiding on Monday. Offering a barbed olive branch to Venezuela’s long-lasting leader, 58-year-old Machado said President Maduro could get personal guarantees if he were to cede power. “Maduro currently has the opportunity to move toward a peaceful transition,” the opposition figurehead told Agence France-Presse as a flotilla of US warships... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3328919/venezuelas-nobel-laureate-machado-urges-president-maduro-cede-power-peacefully?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3328919/venezuelas-nobel-laureate-machado-urges-president-maduro-cede-power-peacefully?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 14 Oct 2025 06:01:38 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Venezuela said on Monday it had closed its embassy in Oslo, days after opposition leader Maria Corina Machado was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. In a statement, the Venezuelan government, which has not commented on Machado’s prize, said that the closure was part of a restructuring of its foreign service. Caracas also closed its embassy in Australia while opening diplomatic outposts in Zimbabwe and Burkina Faso, countries it considers “strategic partners in the fight” against “hegemonic... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3328877/venezuela-closes-norway-embassy-after-opposition-leader-machado-awarded-nobel-peace-prize?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3328877/venezuela-closes-norway-embassy-after-opposition-leader-machado-awarded-nobel-peace-prize?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 13 Oct 2025 23:24:50 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Joel Mokyr, Philippe Aghion and Peter Howitt won the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics on Monday for “having explained innovation-driven economic growth” including the key principle of creative destruction. The winners represent contrasting but complementary approaches to economics. Mokyr is an economic historian who delved into long-term trends using historical sources, while Howitt and Aghion relied on mathematics to explain how creative destruction works. Dutch-born Mokyr, 79, is from... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3328823/mokyr-aghion-howitt-win-2025-nobel-economics-prize?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3328823/mokyr-aghion-howitt-win-2025-nobel-economics-prize?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 13 Oct 2025 09:54:38 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado dedicated her Nobel Peace Prize on Friday to the people of Venezuela – and US President Donald Trump, for his “decisive support” for her country’s pro-democracy movement. “I dedicate this prize to the suffering people of Venezuela and to President Trump for his decisive support of our cause!” she wrote on social media. “We are on the threshold of victory and today, more than ever, we count on President Trump, the people of the United States, the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3328606/nobel-peace-prize-winner-machado-dedicates-award-trump?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3328606/nobel-peace-prize-winner-machado-dedicates-award-trump?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Oct 2025 16:31:23 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press US President Donald Trump was passed over for the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday despite jockeying from his fellow Republicans, various world leaders and - most vocally - himself. Opposition activist Maria Corina Machado of Venezuela was awarded the prize. The Norwegian Nobel Committee said it was honouring her “for her tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy”. Trump, who has... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3328551/trumps-quest-nobel-peace-prize-falls-short-least-time?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3328551/trumps-quest-nobel-peace-prize-falls-short-least-time?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Oct 2025 09:43:29 +0000 Reuters Reuters Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, who currently lives in hiding, won the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for fighting dictatorship in the country, in a move the White House criticised as a snub to US President Donald Trump. “President Trump will continue making peace deals, ending wars, and saving lives. He has the heart of a humanitarian, and there will never be anyone like him who can move mountains with the sheer force of his will,” White House spokesperson Steven Cheung... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3328534/venezuelas-machado-wins-2025-nobel-peace-prize?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3328534/venezuelas-machado-wins-2025-nobel-peace-prize?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Oct 2025 09:05:30 +0000 Julian Ryall Julian Ryall Japan’s scientific community is celebrating two Nobel wins this week, but the accolades have also reignited concern over the country’s ability to retain its top researchers amid growing competition from overseas. The wins have renewed scrutiny of the country’s research system, with observers citing poor funding, job insecurity and rigid institutions as factors driving talent abroad – particularly to China. On Monday, the Nobel Assembly announced that Shimon Sakaguchi and two American colleagues... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3328351/japans-nobel-wins-shine-light-worrying-brain-drain-especially-generous-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3328351/japans-nobel-wins-shine-light-worrying-brain-drain-especially-generous-china?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Oct 2025 00:00:13 +0000 Reuters Reuters Hungarian writer Laszlo Krasznahorkai won the 2025 Nobel Prize in Literature, the award-giving body said on Thursday, “for his compelling and visionary oeuvre that, in the midst of apocalyptic terror, reaffirms the power of art”. “Laszlo Krasznahorkai is a great epic writer in the Central European tradition that extends through Kafka to Thomas Bernhard, and is characterised by absurdism and grotesque excess,” the Academy said in a statement. “But there are more strings to his bow, and he also... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3328401/laszlo-krasznahorkai-wins-2025-nobel-prize-literature?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3328401/laszlo-krasznahorkai-wins-2025-nobel-prize-literature?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 09 Oct 2025 11:11:24 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Scientists Susumu Kitagawa, Richard Robson and Omar M Yaghi won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry on Wednesday for their work in the development of metal-organic frameworks that dates back to 1989. The Nobel Committee said that the three laureates “developed a new form of molecular architecture.” “They have created molecular constructions with large spaces through which gases and other chemicals can flow,” the committee said. Hans Ellegren, secretary general of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences,... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3328245/nobel-chemistry-prize-awarded-trio-breakthrough-metal-organic-frameworks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3328245/nobel-chemistry-prize-awarded-trio-breakthrough-metal-organic-frameworks?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 08 Oct 2025 09:58:51 +0000 Joseph Sipalan Joseph Sipalan US President Donald Trump has asked to preside over the signing of a peace deal between Cambodia and Thailand when he attends the Asean Summit in Kuala Lumpur later this month, according to four government and diplomatic sources. Southeast Asia is hoping to negotiate concessions to punishing tariffs imposed by Washington when they meet in the Malaysian capital from October 26 to 28, adding significance to Trump’s request for a peace signing ceremony. At least 43 people were killed over five days... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3328148/trump-wants-thai-cambodian-peace-deal-photo-op-asean-summit-boost-nobel-ambitions?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3328148/trump-wants-thai-cambodian-peace-deal-photo-op-asean-summit-boost-nobel-ambitions?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 07 Oct 2025 12:07:55 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Briton John Clarke, Frenchman Michel Devoret and American John Martinis won the Nobel Prize in Physics on Tuesday for work on quantum physics in action, the Nobel jury said. The trio was honoured “for the discovery of macroscopic quantum mechanical tunnelling and energy quantisation in an electric circuit”, the jury said. Quantum mechanics describes how differently things work on incredibly small scales. For example, when a normal ball hits a wall, it bounces back. But on the quantum scale, a... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3328132/nobel-prize-physics-awarded-clarke-devoret-martins-quantum-mechanics-discoveries?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3328132/nobel-prize-physics-awarded-clarke-devoret-martins-quantum-mechanics-discoveries?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 07 Oct 2025 10:00:48 +0000