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Makoto Kobayashi

physical science Maturity 9-11 Next article →

Makoto Kobayashi is a famous Japanese physicist.

Cabibbo Kobayashi 2
Cabibbo Kobayashi 2

He studies the tiny bits that make up our world. These tiny bits are called quarks. His work helps us understand how the universe works. He discovered why certain tiny particles behave in special ways. This discovery is very important for science. It helps us see how nature is put together.

His work explains a thing called CP-violation. This describes how tiny particles do not act the same way. To explain this, he used a math tool called a matrix. This matrix is known as the Cabibbo–Kobayashi–Maskawa matrix. It shows how different quarks mix together. His theory said there must be at least three families of quarks. This was a big prediction for the world of physics.

Krugman-Tsien-Chalfie-Shimomura-Kobayashi-Masukawa-press conference Dec 07th, 2008-1
Krugman-Tsien-Chalfie-Shimomura-Kobayashi-Masukawa-press conference Dec 07th, 2008-1

Makoto was born in Nagoya, Japan, in 1944. He was a very quiet and lovely boy. As a child, he loved reading difficult books. He studied at Nagoya University for many years. He finished his doctoral research there in 1972. After that, he worked at Kyoto University. He worked closely with his colleague, Toshihide Maskawa. They worked together to solve big mysteries about particles.

In 1973, they published a very famous science paper. This paper is the fourth most cited paper in high energy physics. Four years after their paper, scientists found the bottom quark. This discovery proved that their theory was right. Because of this, Makoto won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2008.

JPN Bunka-kunsho BAR
JPN Bunka-kunsho BAR

He shared this prize with Toshihide Maskawa. This was a huge honor for his work.

Makoto has had many important jobs in science. He was a professor at the National Laboratory of High Energy Physics, also called KEK. He also served as a director at KEK. Today, he leads a special institute at Nagoya University. This institute is named the Kobayashi-Maskawa Institute. In 2015, bronze statues were set up in Tsukuba City. These statues honor him and other great scientists.

Krugman-Tsien-Chalfie-Shimomura-Kobayashi-Masukawa-press conference Dec 07th, 2008-1
Krugman-Tsien-Chalfie-Shimomura-Kobayashi-Masukawa-press conference Dec 07th, 2008-1
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File:Cabibbo Kobayashi 2.jpg
Cabibbo Kobayashi 2.jpg
File:Krugman-Tsien-Chalfie-Shimomura-Kobayashi-Masukawa-press conference Dec 07th, 2008-1.jpg
Krugman-Tsien-Chalfie-Shimomura-Kobayashi-...
File:JPN Bunka-kunsho BAR.svg
JPN Bunka-kunsho BAR.svg
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