KYOTO: Nobel laureates who have links with Kyoto University delivered speeches in an event held in the western Japan city of Kyoto Saturday to mark the 125th anniversary of the establishment of the school.

Among them, Akira Yoshino, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2019, noted that a lithium-ion battery he developed was utilized in electric vehicles. “We need to show a path to a solution to children who are increasingly feeling uneasy about the deteriorating environment,” he said.

In a prerecorded video message, Shinya Yamanaka, who won the 2012 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for developing induced pluripotent stem cells, said, “I hope to be able to provide iPS cells at a reasonable price.”

Ryoji Noyori, the winner of the 2001 chemistry prize, Makoto Kobayashi, who was given the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2008, and Tasuku Honjo, who won the physiology or medicine prize in 2018, appeared at the event in person and made speeches. Susumu Tonegawa, the winner of the 1987 physiology or medicine prize, sent a video message.

At a symposium held after the speech event, Kobayashi said, “To make a breakthrough, you need courage to have diverse ideas that go against the mainstream.”

Honjo said, “I want you to stick to your own ideas without being influenced by information around you.”