The winners of this year's Nobel Prize in Physics were announced today, and while the award hasn't gone to my first choice, Vera Rubin (or any astrophysicist for that matter), it has gone to a trio of very worthy winners. The winners are Isamu Akasaki, Hiroshi Amano, and Shuji Nakamura for their work in the development of blue LEDs (light emitting diodes).
Why is this so important? Well, it is thought that about 20-30% of the electricity in the world is consumed in electrical lighting, and since LEDs are about 10 times more energy efficient and last about 100 times longer than traditional incandescent light bulbs, the worldwide adoption of LEDs will significantly reduce the world's energy consumption (and therefore its carbon dioxide emission).
So while this wasn't my first choice for the Nobel Prize, it is surely a deserved award!
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