Novelist Han Kang and Five Others Receive the '2024 Samsung Ho-Am Prize'

This Year’s Four Female Awardees Mark an All-Time High

A total of six individuals, including novelist Han Kang, will receive the ‘2024 Samsung Ho-Am Prize.’ Each will be awarded a prize of 300 million KRW.

From the left, Hyeran Darwin, Professor at New York University, USA; Nam Se-woo, Researcher at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, USA; Lee Su-in, Professor at the University of Washington, USA; Peter Park, Professor at Harvard Medical School, USA; Han Kang, Novelist; and Sister Geraldine Ryan.
[Photo by Hoam Foundation]

The Ho-Am Foundation announced on the 3rd that the ‘2024 Samsung Ho-Am Prize winners’ include Hye-Ran Darwin, professor at New York University, USA (Science Award in Chemistry and Life Sciences), Nam Se-woo, researcher at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, USA (Science Award in Physics and Mathematics), Lee Soo-in, professor at the University of Washington, USA (Engineering Award), Peter Park, professor at Harvard Medical School, USA (Medicine Award), Han Kang, novelist (Arts Award), and Sister Geraldine Ryan (Social Service Award), totaling six recipients. The award ceremony will be held on the 31st of this month.

Professor Darwin, selected for the Science Award in Chemistry and Life Sciences, is a child of Korean immigrants born in the United States. She is a world-renowned microbiologist who has uncovered the mechanisms of tuberculosis infection in the human body, a disease that causes over one million deaths annually worldwide.

Professor Lee, awarded the Engineering Award, is a leading scholar in the field of Explainable AI (XAI). He developed the ‘SHAP’ methodology, which enhances AI reliability.

Professor Park, the Medicine Award recipient, developed computational analysis methods for DNA genetic information in the field of bioinformatics.

Novelist Han Kang, who received the Arts Award, was the first Korean to win the UK Booker Prize with her work The Vegetarian. She also received the French M?dicis Prize for Human Acts. Sister Ryan, awarded the Social Service Award, has devoted over 50 years to caring for people with disabilities and their families in the Mokpo region, working to create a more inclusive society.

The Ho-Am Prize winners were selected through a rigorous four-month evaluation process by a judging committee consisting of 46 prominent domestic and international scholars and experts, as well as an advisory committee of 65 foreign scholars. This year, four of the six recipients were women, marking the highest number of female awardees in the prize’s history.

Since 1991, the Ho-Am Foundation has honored Korean individuals who have made outstanding achievements in academia, arts, social development, and the promotion of human welfare through the Samsung Ho-Am Prize. Up to the 34th award ceremony this year, 176 recipients have been awarded a total of 34.3 billion KRW in prize money. The foundation plans to hold the nationwide youth lecture series ‘Fun & Learn, Summer Cool Talk Festival’ both online and offline in August, inviting Samsung Ho-Am Prize winners and other distinguished scholars.