Toshihide Masukawa, winner of the 2008 Nobel Prize in Physics, delivered a speech in Japanese at the Nobel Lectures 2008 held in Stockholm on Monday, but later admitted the importance of English speaking ability.
Apparently frustrated at being unable to communicate with other Nobel Prize-winners, Masukawa, 68, said ruefully: “As a scientist, I want to communicate with people around the world. I could have done that [in my lecture] if I was able to speak English.”