Current Affairs - Awards and Honours

The 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to Susumu Kitagawa, Richard Robson, and Omar M Yaghi for pioneering the design of molecular structures that create large, porous spaces allowing gases and chemicals to flow efficiently. Their groundbreaking work has practical applications in harvesting water, capturing carbon dioxide, storing toxic gases, and catalyzing chemical reactions. The three scientists will share the prize money of 11 million Swedish crowns (around Rs 10 crore). This recognition highlights their transformative contribution to chemistry, particularly in materials science and sustainable technologies with significant global impact.

Khaled el-Enany, Egypt’s former minister of antiquities and tourism, has been appointed as the next Director-General of UNESCO. With a background in archaeology and heritage preservation, El-Enany brings extensive experience in managing cultural and historical assets to the role. UNESCO, founded in 1945 and headquartered in Paris, focuses on fostering global peace and security through cooperation in education, science, culture, and communication. India, a founding member since 1948, continues to collaborate actively with UNESCO and hosts two of its offices. El-Enany’s appointment signifies a renewed emphasis on global cultural preservation and cooperation.

Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, the first Indian to reach the International Space Station (ISS), has been appointed as the brand ambassador for the Viksit Bharat Buildathon 2025. This Buildathon is India’s largest school-level hackathon, designed to involve over one crore students from 1.5 lakh schools across the country. It encourages young innovators to develop prototypes and creative solutions to real-world challenges. By choosing Shubhanshu Shukla, an inspirational space pioneer, as its ambassador, the initiative aims to motivate students to pursue innovation, scientific thinking, and contribute to building a technologically advanced and self-reliant India.

The Nobel Prize in Physics 2025 was awarded to John Clarke, Michel H. Devoret, and John M. Martinis for their groundbreaking contributions to the discovery of macroscopic quantum mechanical tunnelling and energy quantisation in electric circuits. Their research has played a crucial role in advancing the understanding of quantum mechanics at a macroscopic scale, leading to major innovations in superconducting circuits and quantum computing technologies. This achievement highlights the profound connection between theoretical physics and practical applications in next-generation computing systems.

The 2025 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded to Mary E. Brunkow, Fred Ramsdell, and Shimon Sakaguchi for their pioneering research on peripheral immune tolerance. Their work identified regulatory T cells (Tregs) and the Foxp3 gene, which are critical in preventing the immune system from attacking the body’s own tissues. These discoveries have transformed immunology and provided new strategies for treating autoimmune diseases, cancer, and transplant rejection. Sakaguchi discovered Tregs, while Brunkow and Ramsdell identified the Foxp3 gene, linking their findings to a deeper understanding of immune system regulation.