Makoto Kobayashi, who won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2008, gave a lecture in Tokyo and addressed young people, saying, ``It is important to face the changes that are happening in front of you head-on and decide the direction to move forward with your own judgment. I sent a message with expectations for success.
At the age of 28, Mr. Kobayashi published a paper called "Kobayashi-Maskawa Theory", which predicts that there are more than six types of "quarks", a type of elementary particles that form matter.
After that, the correctness of the prediction was confirmed, and together with Toshihide Maskawa and others, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2008.
The lecture was held in Tokyo to commemorate the half-century since February 1973, when this paper was published. And I was desperately struggling in the midst of change," he recalled.
On top of that, he said to young people, "When you are in the midst of change, it is difficult to grasp its meaning objectively, but you must tackle the changes that are happening in front of you head-on and decide on your own judgment what direction you should take." It is up to the individual to decide which direction to take, but that diversity is the driving force behind the development of science.
After the lecture, Mr. Kobayashi said, "It is important to recognize differences in order to broaden the scope of research. I want young people to believe in their own ideas and do their best."
University student who listened to the lecture "I want to pursue what I want to do"
Two third-year physics students who listened to the lecture said, "I thought it was important to take the initiative in accumulating experience. I want to have various experiences while I'm young." And I thought it was amazing to have achieved such results. I want to learn a lot, think for myself, and pursue what I want to do.