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Part 4: Nikkei "Hoshi Shinichi Award" Ceremony 13 works across 3 categories receive awards
The award ceremony for the 4th Nikkei "Shinichi Hoshi Award" (Sponsored by The Nikkei, Inc. / Co-sponsored by JBCC Holdings, Tokyo Electron, Amada Holdings, NSK Ltd.) was held on March 12 at the The National Art Center, Tokyo in Minato Ward, Tokyo. Established in 2013, this literary award honors works brimming with scientific creativity and ideas, named in tribute to the late Shinichi Hoshi, who produced over 1,000 works in his lifetime and served as the first president of the Japan Science Fiction Writers' Club.
Submissions were accepted in three categories: General, Student, and Junior. Entries were invited to address the themes: "Write a story that fully utilizes your scientific creativity to stimulate the reader's imagination," "Imagine the future 30 years from now...," and "Imagine the future 100 years from now...". A total of 2,572 works were submitted.
The Grand Prize winner in the General Division was "OV Year One" by Notoh Jogo, depicting the development of a body surface sensation enhancement device for the visually and hearing impaired and the evolutionary path it brought to humanity. The Student Division Grand Prize went to "After Babel" by Sakuma Shinsaku, which explores a physical "language barrier" emerging in the near future when the management server of a global translation service malfunctions. The Junior Division Grand Prize was awarded to "My Introduction." by Uenishi Nachi, which gradually reveals the true identity of a mysterious "I" who suddenly appears and begins introducing himself.
One of the judges, author Riku Onda, concluded the awards ceremony with his overall comments for the General Division: "I write science fiction myself, and I believe it is our responsibility to constantly imagine how we will engage with science and technology going forward as we write."
At the venue, animations created by Tokyo Zokei University students based on previous award-winning works, "Isshin Tokei" and "The Flower with a Heart," were also screened, allowing attendees to enjoy the appeal of the Shinichi Hoshi Award with both their eyes and ears.
■ Award-Winning Works (Titles Only)
<General Division>
Grand Prize (Hoshi Shin'ichi Award) Hito Yōgo "OV Year One"
Excellence Award (JBCC Holdings Award) Kazuyoshi Yoshino "Reaching for Natural Talent"
Excellence Award (Tokyo Electron Award) Hideaki Sawa "Perfect Care"
Excellence Award (AMADA Holdings Award) Shoji Kiyama "Narcissus"
Excellence Award (Nippon Seiko Award) Kaori Honma "Red Shoes"
<Student Division>
Grand Prize (Shinichi Hoshi Award) Shinsaku Sakuma "After Babel"
Runner-up Prize: Yuta Tsukui "Angels and Gravity"
Excellence Award: Kentaro Fujita "Frameout"
＜Junior Division＞
Grand Prize (Shinichi Hoshi Award) Natsuki Uenishi "My Introduction."
Runner-up Grand Prize: Nagashio Kodai "Tardigrade Humans"
Excellence Award: Kana Kanemoto "A 120-Kilogram Life"
Excellence Award: Jae-Woo Lee "Pens and Life Genres"
Excellence Award: Seihō Yamamoto "Immortality Certification"
"Hoshi Shinichi Award" Official Website: http://hoshiaward.nikkei.co.jp/
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