Dr Michael Muthukrishna and Dr Pavithra Suryanarayan (left to right)
Dr Michael Muthukrishna from the Department of Psychological and Behavioural Science and Dr Pavithra Suryanarayan from the Department of Government have been awarded prestigious Philip Leverhulme Prizes 2024 by the Leverhulme Trust.
The prizes are awarded annually to recognise the achievement of outstanding researchers whose work has attracted international recognition and whose future career is exceptionally promising.
Each of the prize winners receives £100,000 which can be used to advance their research.
Chosen from over 350 nominations, the Trust offered five prizes in each of the following subject areas: Classics; Earth Sciences; Physics; Politics and International Relations; Psychology; and Visual and Performing Arts.
Dr Muthukrishna has been recognised for his work in the Psychology category and Dr Pavithra Suryanarayan has been recognised for her work in the field of Politics and International Relations.
Commenting on the award, Dr Muthukrishna said: “I'm grateful and honoured to receive this prize from the Leverhulme Trust. It's both humbling and exciting to be recognized for the work we’re doing on cultural evolution and psychology.
“Leverhulme's support will help drive a new direction of research on how AI is participating in the cultural evolutionary process, shaping our culture and cognition. As AI systems become increasingly sophisticated and ubiquitous, it is crucial that we understand how they interact with and shape our cultural, cognitive, and evolutionary processes. My hope is that this research will contribute to the responsible development and deployment of AI for the benefit of society.”
Commenting, Dr Suryanarayan said: "I’m very honoured to be awarded this prize. I’m grateful to the Leverhulme Trust and to the LSE for their recognition and support of my future research.
My research explores the role of social status in shaping preferences for redistribution in historically ranked societies like India and the United States. I plan to use the award to begin a new project on how culture and ideology determined the evolution of state capacity historically. The award will help me conduct archival research and surveys in India, Japan and South Africa."
More information about the 2024 prize winners is available from the Leverhulme Trust.