
Yuri Milner's Fundamental Physics Prize - tlb
http://www.economist.com/node/21559827/email
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gojomo
The NYTimes coverage mentioned that the entire $3 million prize was
immediately wired to the bank account of a surprised winner
([http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/31/science/9-scientists-
win-y...](http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/31/science/9-scientists-win-yuri-
milners-fundamental-physics-prize.html)). Just imagine the email leading up to
that:

 _I represent Russian billionaire holding $3 million in unclaimed physics
prizes for you. Please provide your bank and identity details to receive
funds._

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eps
On one hand - Yay!

150k for struggling startups - Horay!

On the other hand he is a close business associate of Alisher Usmanov, who's
commonly considered to be, basically, _the_ mafia boss of modern Russia.

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alisher_Usmanov>

~~~
meric
Usmanov owns 32% of Digital Sky Technologies which in turn has investments in
Zynga, Groupon, Facebook, Airbnb and has strong ties to Goldman Sachs.
(<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Sky_Technologies>,
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alisher_Usmanov>)

If your allegations are true... I'm sorry, I can't finish this sentence.

~~~
Tichy
Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they are not out to get you...

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skeesicks
It'd be really nice if articles like this actually linked to the website for
what they're talking about.

It's <http://www.fundamentalphysicsprize.org> for the record.

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neurotech1
For context, this is the same Yuri Milner that invests $150k in every start-up
who completes the YC program.

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yuri_Milner>

~~~
dfriedmn
And the same Yuri Milner that owns significant stakes in Facebook, Twitter,
Zynga, Spotify, and Groupon...

~~~
neurotech1
I felt that the article glossed over his accomplishments in the tech
community. It reads like theoretical physics PhD somehow got rich, and is now
awarding a fundamental physics prize.

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isalmon
You can criticize this guy, but what he does with his money is actually moving
us forward. I have a huge respect for him and his innovative ideas.

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spullara
I like the unofficial contest to see which internet billionaire can invest the
most in basic research.

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lacker
This is quite interesting. Since it's more money than the Nobel, it seems like
it has a shot at becoming more prestigious.

~~~
tikhonj
Prizes like that are prestigious because of history and because everybody
knows about them. I don't think the money attached to the prize has as big of
an effect as the history.

For a concrete example, the Fields Medal is better known than the Abel Prize
despite the fact that it only comes with $15,000 to the Abel Prize's ~$1m.

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mathattack
I've always wondered why someone didn't do this. It can be cheaper to endow a
gift that trumps the Nobel than to endow a top business school.

University of Chicago sold the name Booth for a $300 million stake in a fund
company. The Nobel pays $1.2 million per year. Milner just gave $27 million,
which discounted to perpetuity at 5% is $540 million, but he could have had a
similar impact for half the cost.

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marcamillion
I love this guy. First he shakes up Silicon Valley investing, now he is moving
to high-quality research.

The most beautiful thing about his approaches to both, is that they are high-
impact, high-leverage. In the investing case, he outsources all the filtering
work to YC.

In this case, he will outsource the selection work to past laureates.

Brilliant!

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wslh
Juan Martín Maldacena, an Argentinian between the winners
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juan_Mart%C3%ADn_Maldacena>

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ak0s
Pardon me for my bad English, why are they call him a dullard? Isn't it
synonym for the “moron”?

~~~
troymc
The quote is, "On July 31 Mr Milner, by no means a dullard, announced..."

That is, they're saying he's _not_ a dullard. I can understand how the phrase
"by no means a" could be confusing for someone new to English.

~~~
ak0s
Thank you

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ktizo
It's a bit like the worlds best lottery. To enter you devise a method that can
generate lots of numbers. And then whoever has the numbers that match reality
the best, wins $3 million dollars, a big desk and a really comfy chair.

~~~
D_Alex
Except the numbers got to be useful in making predictions about how the world
will behave in the future. So, only a little bit like a lottery... a very
small, tiny little bit.

~~~
SwellJoe
But, if you figure out how to predict random numbers, you can win the actual
lottery! Who needs this prize, when there's real money to be made?

~~~
spullara
Like these MIT students: [http://www.digitaltrends.com/cool-tech/computer-
scientists-g...](http://www.digitaltrends.com/cool-tech/computer-scientists-
gamed-massachusetts-cash-winfall-lottery-to-win-millions/)

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staunch
Awesome!

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JabavuAdams
Bravo! _cracks open physics text_

