Questions About the Nobel Committee: Controversies for the 2024 Awards

The Nobel Committee’s selection process has long been confidential to the world, and doubts about the fairness of the process have followed along the Nobel Prize’s long history. The 2024 Award was not an exception. Korean novelist Han Kang and AI researcher Geoffrey Hinton’s win in literature and physics have raised questions about the Committee’s selection process.  Han’s depiction of the 5.18 Gwangju Uprising was criticized by critics as distorting a critical chapter in Korean modern history. Meanwhile, Hinton’s groundbreaking work on artificial intelligence was questioned if it truly represented the field of physics. Are the concerns raised about the Nobel Prize decisions valid? Why are the wins significant in the fields of literature and science?

Han Kang's books which were awarded Nobel prizes explore themes of trauma and resistance, focusing on Korea's 5.18 Gwangju Uprising. Gwangju Uprising. In modern Korean history, this violently suppressed pro-democracy movement in the 1980s was tabooed, sensitive, but pivotal. Although her pieces are highly regarded internationally for their emotional depth and political significance, South Korean critics argue that her plots distort the historical facts and serve as an instrument for politicizing Korea's past. The Nobel Prize's value was even considered a fall from grace by a critic who believed it legitimized historical distortions. This negative reaction highlights the crucial role of literary awards, such as the Nobel Prize, in promoting particular cultural narratives on a global level. As they could mistakenly highlight areas of history that may not be explicitly acknowledged for their recognition, such awards are prone to elicit debates on historical accuracy and cultural appropriation.

Meanwhile, a former Google researcher Geoffrey Hinton won the 2024 Nobel Prize for physics. He is a British-Canadian computer scientist, known as the godfather of artificial intelligence (AI). He and his colleagues developed artificial neural networks, a core machine learning technology, by borrowing methods from physics. While some critics agree that the work was monumental, they argue that his win was questionable mainly because it was interdisciplinary as a combination of physics and computer science, apart from the traditional forms of science. Noah Giansiracusa, an associate math professor at Bentley University argued: “What he did was phenomenal, but was it physics? I don't think so. Even if there's inspiration from physics, they're not developing a new theory in physics or solving a longstanding problem in physics.” Hinton’s work stood on the shoulders of Werbos and Amari’s earlier research. Werbos and Amari’s contributions to the AI development of neural networks sparked innovations such as AlphaGo and OpenAi’s GPT. AI research experts emphasize that technological advancements are “nearly always a collaborative, multi-layered process.” The controversy over Hinton’s win reevaluates how the Nobel Committee recognizes innovation. The Nobel Committee’s selection underscores that the most significant AI advancements would likely come from “those who can refine and adapt existing ideas to [confront] new challenges,” not those who invent entirely new concepts.

The Nobel Prize and its significance can relate to individual ability as it rewards only one winner per party for the year. However, the influence of the Prize itself exceeds the appreciation for just an individual but ensures the global relationship between the nations or cultural exchange. Consequently, the Nobel Prize winners can influence the primary image of the content they are delivering, creating the possibility of distortion and controversy in culture and history. The effect of the Nobel Prize is unlimited, also continuing to grow within the political aspect of the award, creating a new place for political discussion based on how the nominee solves the issue.