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?

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

Whatever.

(Mumbles of assent)

Why is squid ink safe to eat, while skunk spray is not? What makes the two liquids different from each other?

"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?"

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

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.

What are your thoughts on the dating app "scam"?

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

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

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

Is a man who enjoys anal sex considered a sissy? For those who think so, why can't they be thought of as someone who enjoys a variety of sexual pleasure?

My 11 million SEK, Dr Jo.

[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.

^† They rationalise their decision thusly:

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Why wait any longer for the world to begin?

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

[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."

When do you start "growing old"?

There you go.^†

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

You can have your cake and eat it too

Have you ever been instructed/forced to crossdress for the benefit of others?

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

When he's standing, in front of you

Whatever.

Is a monthly salary of 47,000 SEK before tax considered adequate for a C# .Net developer with over 7 years of experience in Sweden?

Why wait any longer for the one you love?

(Bob Dylan, Nobel Prize for Literature, 2016)

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

U.S. budget deficit hit $316 billion in May, with annual shortfall up 14% from a year ago - CNBC

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

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

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:

Inflation report suggests damage from Trump's tariffs isn't guaranteed - Axios