How did a computer scientist such as Geoffrey Hinton manage to win a Nobel Prize in physics when computer science already has its own Nobel Prize equivalent in the Turing Awards?

When he's standing, in front of you

^† They rationalise their decision thusly:

Why wait any longer for the world to begin?

What makes you think that former U.S. President Donald Trump's legal team has already been laying the groundwork for an appeal in the hush money trial?

"Didn't he do something with Boltzmann in it? That sounds physics-y. RBMs and stuff, eh?"

"Good idea, but how can we wangle something that says 'Physics'?"

^* Fibiger got the 1926 Medicine prize for the discovery of Spiroptera carcinoma (Don’t ask).

Is Billie Piper Playing the Doctor or Rose? 5 Theories About ‘Doctor Who’ Twist - TV Insider

My 11 million SEK, Dr Jo.

A fly on the wall at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences

"Naah, Linnainmaa is a Finn. Can't give it to a bloody Finnish mathematician. Let's go for drinks. Brännvin anyone?"

Genetic and biological clues point to inflammation’s role in mental health - PsyPost

There you go.^†

Whatever.

(Mumbles of assent)

AI Is Upending the Job Market, Even at AI Companies Like Anthropic - Business Insider

Fortunately, we are privy to the discussion that led up to this:

"Good point, I'm sure we can swing it. And let's tack on Hopfield while we're about it."

[The basic structure of artificial neural networks] has close similarities with spin models in statistical physics applied to magnetism or alloy theory. This year’s Nobel Prize in Physics recognizes research exploiting this connection to make breakthrough methodological advances in the field of ANN.

‘We tried and it didn’t work out’: CDPR co-founder says it shouldn’t stray from AAA open-world RPGs - Video Games Chronicle

[Younger voice] "But wait a minute, Ising-Lenz goes back to the 1920's. And didn't Hinton plagiarise rather a lot? He also didn't invent modern backprop, did he, that's Linnainmaa? And Amari preceded Hopfield, too. That's not a good look."

Why wait any longer for the one you love?

[Older voice] "Mmm. What about Hinton, he's widely regarded? Nobody got fired for buying IBM"

Humans have evolved and become hairless and odor free. How do other races learn about evolution since evolution does not apply to them?

"Hey guys, AI is pretty big so let's centre our prizes on it this year. We can get some attention, and it's all about advertising, at the end of the day, isn't it?"

… then anything is possible. There’s no rule that a Nobel Prize has to make sense.^*

In awarding prizes, the Nobel Committees often seem only marginally more competent than MTG is at explaining meteorology. And if they can give a literature prize for lyrics like:

Rare Red Sprites Captured Lighting up the Tibetan Night Sky Like Jellyfish-Shaped Firework - My Modern Met

(Bob Dylan, Nobel Prize for Literature, 2016)

They then move on to selectively provide their own version of history. But hey, it’s OK. They wanted controversy, didn’t they? Whatever.

Whatever.

Forget running — NASA says ‘rebounding’ is more effective than a 30-minute run, here’s how to do it - Tom's Guide

In December 1973, when Kissinger was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, comedian Tom Lehrer dropped his mic and stamped on it—satire had just died.

"Where can we shoehorn it in? Chemistry is easy 'cos AlphaFold; but what about physics? A bit more challenging, right?"

You can have your cake and eat it too

All international travelers should get measles vaccine, CDC says - OregonLive.com