HONG KONG, Sept. 24-- A presentation ceremony of the annual Shaw Prize was held Thursday in Hong Kong, with five U.S. and German scientists commended for their prominent work in astronomy, life science and medicine, and mathematical science.

Hong Kong Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying presented the awards to the five laureates at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center. Each prize bears a monetary award of 1 million U.S. dollars.

The Shaw Prize in Astronomy was awarded to William J Borucki, principal investigator for the Kepler mission, Ames Research Center, NASA. The prize recognizes Borucki's contributions in conceiving and leading the Kepler mission, which greatly advanced the knowledge of both extrasolar planetary systems and stellar interiors.

The Shaw Prize in Life Science and Medicine was awarded in equal shares to two scientists this year: Professor Bonnie L. Bassler, Squibb professor and chair, Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University and Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Professor Everett Peter Greenberg, professor of Microbiology, University of Washington.

Bassler and Greenberg have been recognized for their discovery of quorum sensing, a process whereby bacteria communicate with each other and which offers innovative ways to interfere with bacterial pathogens or to modulate the microbiome for health applications.

The Shaw Prize in Mathematical Sciences was awarded in equal shares to Professor Gerd Faltings, managing director, Max Planck Institute for Mathematics and to Professor Henryk Iwaniec, New Jersey professor of Mathematics, Rutgers University. Both are recognized for their introduction and development of fundamental tools in number theory, allowing them as well as others to resolve some longstanding classical problems.

Established under the auspices of Mr. Run Run Shaw in November 2002, the Prize honors individuals, regardless of race, nationality, gender and religious belief, who have recently achieved significant breakthrough in academic and scientific research or applications and whose work has resulted in a positive and profound impact on mankind.