International Prize for Biology

International Prize for Biology
Awarded for	Outstanding contribution to the advancement of research in fundamental biology
Country	Japan
Presented by	Japan Society for the Promotion of Science
First awarded	1985
Official website	http://www.jsps.go.jp/english/e-biol/index.html

The International Prize for Biology (国際生物学賞, Kokusai Seibutsugaku-shō^?) is an annual award for outstanding contribution to the advancement of research in fundamental biology. The prize, although it is not always awarded to a biologist, is one of the most prestigious honours a natural scientist can receive. There are no restrictions on the nationality of the recipient. Past laureates include John B. Gurdon, Motoo Kimura, Edward O. Wilson, Ernst Mayr, Thomas Cavalier-Smith and many other great biologists.

The International Prize of Biology was created in 1985 to commemorate the 60-year reign of Emperor Shōwa of Japan and his longtime interest in and support of biology.

The selection and award of the prize is managed by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science. The chair of the committee on the International Prize for Biology is Takashi Sugimura who is President of the Japan Academy. The laureate is awarded a beautiful medal, 10 million yen, and an international symposium on the scientist's area of research is held in Tokyo. The prize ceremony is held in the presence of His Majesty Emperor Akihito of Japan.

The Emperors of Japan have been famous for their special interest in biology. His Majesty Emperor Akihito has strived over many years to advance the study taxonomy of gobioid fishes.

It was a particularly charming moment when Emperor Akihito of Japan, who has studied the taxonomy and evolution of gobioid fishes, mentioned in his congratulatory address during the award ceremony that he has used the neighbor-joining method to construct phylogenetic trees during his studies of these fishes.

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