How did a computer scientist such as Geoffrey Hinton manage to win a Nobel Prize in physics when computer science already has its own Nobel Prize equivalent in the Turing Awards?

You can have your cake and eat it too

My 11 million SEK, Dr Jo.

"Where can we shoehorn it in? Chemistry is easy 'cos AlphaFold; but what about physics? A bit more challenging, right?"

There Are (Allegedly) Two Words That Describe How Ryan Reynolds And Blake Lively Are Feeling After Bombshell Update In Baldoni Defamation Suit - Cinemablend

"Good idea, but how can we wangle something that says 'Physics'?"

Fortunately, we are privy to the discussion that led up to this:

(Mumbles of assent)

Can you explain the difference between “mi piace” and “mi piacciono” in Italian?

In awarding prizes, the Nobel Committees often seem only marginally more competent than MTG is at explaining meteorology. And if they can give a literature prize for lyrics like:

^* Fibiger got the 1926 Medicine prize for the discovery of Spiroptera carcinoma (Don’t ask).

(Bob Dylan, Nobel Prize for Literature, 2016)

Only 1,280 Survived: The Near-Extinction Event That Nearly Wiped Out Humanity 1 Million Years Ago - The Daily Galaxy

"Didn't he do something with Boltzmann in it? That sounds physics-y. RBMs and stuff, eh?"

"Naah, Linnainmaa is a Finn. Can't give it to a bloody Finnish mathematician. Let's go for drinks. Brännvin anyone?"

"Good point, I'm sure we can swing it. And let's tack on Hopfield while we're about it."

Since NATO is badly losing in Ukraine to the Russian forces, should NATO soldiers and commanders find a new job given their incompetence? Do they expect pushing different versions of the same disinformation every few months to help them win?

… then anything is possible. There’s no rule that a Nobel Prize has to make sense.^*

Why wait any longer for the world to begin?

"Hey guys, AI is pretty big so let's centre our prizes on it this year. We can get some attention, and it's all about advertising, at the end of the day, isn't it?"

The Architect Behind Drake’s C$100 Million Toronto Mansion Designed This Muskoka ‘Castle’ - Mansion Global

[The basic structure of artificial neural networks] has close similarities with spin models in statistical physics applied to magnetism or alloy theory. This year’s Nobel Prize in Physics recognizes research exploiting this connection to make breakthrough methodological advances in the field of ANN.

Whatever.

There you go.^†

First Day of Roots Picnic Was an "Absolute Disaster," Fans Say - Philadelphia Magazine

Whatever.

[Younger voice] "But wait a minute, Ising-Lenz goes back to the 1920's. And didn't Hinton plagiarise rather a lot? He also didn't invent modern backprop, did he, that's Linnainmaa? And Amari preceded Hopfield, too. That's not a good look."

[Older voice] "Mmm. What about Hinton, he's widely regarded? Nobody got fired for buying IBM"

Top Cardiovascular Researcher Sounds Alarm Over Current Heart Health Guidelines - SciTechDaily

They then move on to selectively provide their own version of history. But hey, it’s OK. They wanted controversy, didn’t they? Whatever.

In December 1973, when Kissinger was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, comedian Tom Lehrer dropped his mic and stamped on it—satire had just died.

^† They rationalise their decision thusly:

Liberals, why don't you like Conservatives?

When he's standing, in front of you

A fly on the wall at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences

Why wait any longer for the one you love?

Dark matter 'lampshades' dimming stars could solve one of the greatest scientific mysteries - Space