is a Japanese

chemist A chemist (from Greek ''chēm(ía)'' alchemy; replacing ''chymist'' from Medieval Latin ''alchemist'') is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties. Chemists carefully describe th ...

and professor of

Kyushu University , abbreviated to , is a Japanese national university located in Fukuoka, on the island of Kyushu. It was the 4th Imperial University in Japan, ranked as 4th in 2020 Times Higher Education Japan University Rankings, one of the top 10 Design ...

, and emeritus professor.

Early life

Shinkai was born in

Fukuoka prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Fukuoka Prefecture has a population of 5,109,323 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,986 Square kilometre, km2 (1,925 sq mi). Fukuoka Prefecture borders S ...

, Japan, in 1944. He completed his B.S. in 1967 and Ph.D. in 1972 from

Career and research

He is known for his pioneering research in

molecular self-assembly In chemistry and materials science, molecular self-assembly is the process by which molecules adopt a defined arrangement without guidance or management from an outside source. There are two types of self-assembly: intramolecular and intermole ...

. Molecular self-assembly is the assembly of molecules without guidance or management from an outside source. His main field of expertise and research interests are Host Guest Chemistry,

Molecular Recognition The term molecular recognition refers to the specific interaction between two or more molecules through noncovalent bonding such as hydrogen bonding, metal coordination, hydrophobic forces, van der Waals forces, π-π interactions, halogen b ...

Liquid Crystals Liquid crystal (LC) is a state of matter whose properties are between those of conventional liquids and those of solid crystals. For example, a liquid crystal may flow like a liquid, but its molecules may be oriented in a crystal-like way. Th ...

/Organic Gelators, Sugar Sensing/Sugar-Based

Combinatorial Chemistry Combinatorial chemistry comprises chemical synthetic methods that make it possible to prepare a large number (tens to thousands or even millions) of compounds in a single process. These compound libraries can be made as mixtures, sets of individua ...

, Boronic-acids, Polysaccharide-Polynucleotide Interactions, Sol-Gel Transcription and Inorganic Combinatorial Chemistry. His most recent research is related to chiral discrimination using AIE. In 1979 he published the first light driven

molecular machine A molecular machine, nanite, or nanomachine is a molecular component that produces quasi-mechanical movements (output) in response to specific stimuli (input). In cellular biology, macromolecular machines frequently perform tasks essential for l ...

in Tetrahedron Letters. To date (July 2019) he has published over 1024 original paper and 219 reviews and books.

Recognition

* The Chemical Society of Japan Progress Award (1978) * Izatt-Christensen International Award in (1998) * Becker Lecture Award (1999) * Vielberth Lectureship Award (2002) * The Chemical Society of Japan Award (2003) * Western Japan Culture Prize (2004) *

Toray is a multinational corporation headquartered in Japan that specializes in industrial products centered on technologies in organic synthetic chemistry, polymer chemistry, and biochemistry. Its founding business areas were fibers and textiles, ...

Science and Technology Prize (2006) *

Daiwa Adrian Prize This Daiwa Adrian Prize is an award given by The Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation, a UK charity, to scientists who have made significant achievements in science through Anglo-Japanese collaborative research. Prizes are awarded every third year and ...

(2013) *

Clarivate Citation Laureates Clarivate Citation Laureates formerly Thomson Reuters Citation Laureates is a list of candidates considered likely to win the Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to ...

(2013)
Molecular Sensors & Molecular Logic Gates
(MSMLG) Award (2014) * Received the

Order of the Sacred Treasure The is a Japanese order, established on 4 January 1888 by Emperor Meiji as the Order of Meiji. Originally awarded in eight classes (from 8th to 1st, in ascending order of importance), since 2003 it has been awarded in six classes, the lowest ...

from the Emperor of Japan in 2017. * Received the

Person of Cultural Merit is an official Japanese recognition and honor which is awarded annually to select people who have made outstanding cultural contributions. This distinction is intended to play a role as a part of a system of support measures for the promotion of ...

from the Japanese Government in 2018.

References

External links

In celebration of Seiji Shinkai's 70th Birthday
from the

Royal Society of Chemistry The Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) is a learned society (professional association) in the United Kingdom with the goal of "advancing the chemistry, chemical sciences". It was formed in 1980 from the amalgamation of the Chemical Society, the Ro ...

Interview with Seiji Shinkai
in Chemical Communications {{DEFAULTSORT:Shinkai, Seiji 1944 births Japanese chemists Living people Kyushu University alumni Kyushu University faculty Persons of Cultural Merit