Nine scientists spread evenly between the fields of astrophysics, nanoscience and neuroscience were awarded 2014 Kavli Prizes.
The nine winners of the Kavli Prize were selected because of their contribution towards the theory of cosmic inflation, nano-optics or for their work on memory and cognition brain networks, according to the Kavli website.
MIT's Alan H. Guth, Stanford's Andrei D. Linde and the Landau Institute for Theoretical Physics were awarded the Kavli Prize in Astrophysics. They pioneered "the theory of cosmic inflation," which helped transform thoughts on the universe.
The theory of cosmic inflation states that shortly after our universe was created, it went into a period of exponentional expansion.
According to The Associated Press, University of Strasbourb's Thomas Ebbesen, the Max Planck Institute of Biophysical Chemistry's Stefan Hell and Imperial College of London's Sir John Plendry will share the Prize for Nanoscience.
The trio were awarded the prize "for transformative contributions to the field of nano-optics that have broken long-held beliefs about the limitations of the resolution limits of optical microscopy and imaging."
And finally the Price for Neuroscience will go to Montreal Neurological Institute's Brenda Milner, University College London's John O'Keey and Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine's Marcus E. Raichle for "the discovery of specialized brain networks for memory and cognition."
Each of the three fields receive a $1 million cash prize split amongst the three winners, along with their own scroll and gold medal. The nine scientists will receive their prizes in September in Oslo, Norway.
The Kavli Prizes are awarded through a partnership between the Norwegian Academy of Sciences, The Kavli Institute and The Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research,