May 28, 2008, 16:54 GMT
Oslo - Seven scientists on Wednesday were announced winners of the newly created Kavli prizes for discoveries in astrophysics, nanoscience and neuroscience, the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters said.
Each prize category was worth 1 million dollars.
The astrophysics prize was shared by Maarten Schmidt of the California Institute of Technology, in the United States, and Donald Lynden-Bell of Cambridge University, Britain for work on quasars.
The nanoscience prize was shared by Louis E Brus of Columbia University, US, and Sumio Iijima of Meijo University in Japan whose work was important for fields as diverse as 'electronics, the environment, energy and bio-medicine,' the academy citation said.
The duo had made 'discoveries of colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals, also known as quantum dots and carbon nanotubes,' the jury said.
Pasko Rakic of the Yale University School of Medicine, US, Thomas Jessell of Columbia University, US, and Sten Grillner of the Karolinska Institute in Sweden shared the neuroscience prize for work on 'the development and functioning of the networks of cells in the brain and spinal cord.'
Crown Prince Haakon was due to present the awards at a ceremony in Oslo Concert Hall on September 9.
The Kavli Foundatation set up by Norwegian Fred Kavli, who lives in the US, partnered with the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters, and the Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research.
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