Nobel Prize winners testament to Japan's high-level of research
(From The Japan Times October 9 issue)

日本の化学の力が認められた受賞

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced Oct. 6 that the 2010 Nobel Prize in chemistry will go to three researchers — Mr. Richard Heck of the United States, and Mr. Ei-ichi Negishi and Mr. Akira Suzuki of Japan — for their work in developing the palladium-catalyzed cross-coupling reaction, which has become an efficient tool for producing large and complex organic molecules.

The news indicates the knowledge level and experience of Japan's chemical research. Hopefully, it will inspire Japanese chemists and other scientists, encourage more young people to choose scientific research as a profession and prompt the government to improve the research environment for scientists.

The skeleton of an organic compound is a chain of carbon atoms. Since carbon atoms are stable, it is difficult to make them react with each other when one attempts to create a new organic compound. In the reaction cited by the Swedish academy, palladium serves as a catalyst and induces carbon atoms to couple with each other. Thus researchers can produce new organic compounds in large amounts with precision and without having to put up with unwanted byproducts.

With Mr. Negishi and Mr. Suzuki added, 15 Japanese scientists (one of them having become a U.S. citizen) have won the Nobel Prize; six are chemists who have been honored since 2000. Many of them received the prize for their achievements made from the 1960s to the '80s.

The science budget was not large in those years. But researchers were able to freely develop their scientific breakthroughs. The government should increase the science budget to strengthen basic science. It also should free researchers from bureaucratic desk work that hampers their research work. A free atmosphere in laboratories is crucial for developing new ideas in science.

複雑な有機分子の合成に役に立つパラジウム触媒クロス･カップリング反応の研究で、米国のリチャード・ヘック博士、日本の根岸英一博士、鈴木章博士がノーベル化学賞を受賞した。この朗報が、日本の科学者の励みとなり、より多くの若者を研究者の道にいざない、政府に研究環境の整備を促すことを願う。

有機化合物の骨組みは鎖状の炭素原子の集まりだ。炭素原子は安定しており、合成のために反応させるのは難しいが、パラジウムを触媒にカップリングさせると、不純物を作らずに有機化合物を効率よく正確に作ることができる。

政府は科学予算を増やして基礎科学研究の分野を強化し、お役所的な事務から研究者を解放すべきだ。自由な雰囲気は新しいアイディアを生み出すために重要だ。