British geneticist receives half million pound prize
The 2012 Balzan Prize
The names of the 2012 Balzan Prizewinners were proclaimed in a public announcement:
David Baulcombe (UK), University of Cambridge, for Epigenetics
Ronald Dworkin (USA), New York University, for Jurisprudence
Reinhard Strohm (Germany), University of Oxford (UK), for Musicology
Kurt Lambeck (Australia), Australian National University, for Solid Earth Sciences, with emphasis on interdisciplinary research
The Balzan Prizewinners 2012 were announced in Milan by the Chairman of the Balzan General Prize Committee, Salvatore Veca, together with the President of the Balzan Foundation "Prize", Ambassador Bruno Bottai, at the Corriere della Sera Foundation.
Marc Van Montagu (Professor Emeritus of Molecular Genetics at Ghent University; Chairman of the Institute of Plant Biotechnology for Developing Countries) read the citation for the assignment of the Prize for Epigenetics to David Baulcombe:
"For his fundamental contribution to the understanding of epigenetics and its role in cell and tissue development under normal and stressful conditions."
The amount of each of the four 2012 Balzan Prizes will be 750.000 Swiss Francs (approx. EUR 620.000, USD 790.000, GBP 500.000).
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