History
The history of prizes for contributions to progress in condensed matter nuclear science goes back to 1993, pre-dating the formation of the ISCMNS.
In 1993, the Italian automotive group Fiat instituted the Truffle Prize, which they awarded at a private meeting they organized near Asti, Italy, referred to as the Asti Workshop on Anomalies in Hydrogen/Deuterium Loaded Metals (later renamed the International Workshop on Anomalies in Hydrogen Loaded Metals). The Truffle Prize was a large white truffle presented in an ornate box. Fiat awarded one Truffle Prize in 1993 and two in 1995 (see list below). The third International Workshop on Anomalies in Hydrogen Loaded Metals (IWAHLM) in 1997 and those thereafter were organized by Bill Collis. Collis awarded the Truffle Prize at IWAHLM-3 and IWAHLM-4. Prof. Martin Fleischmann was involved in selecting the recipients of the Truffle Prize. No prizes were awarded from 2000 to 2004. The ISCMNS was formed in 2004 by Bill Collis and others, and the ISCMNS Executive Committee officially took over awarding prizes in the field.
Bill Collis worked diligently to create a new award to replace the Truffle Prize. The silver Giuliano Preparata Medal was minted in 2003 in honor of the late Italian physicist Giuliano Preparata. The Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Asti (the foundation of an Italian bank) funded the creation of this series of medals. The Preparata Medal is given to a scientist who has made significant contributions to the investigation and understanding of CMNS. The prize has been awarded at either the International Workshop on Anomalies in Hydrogen Loaded Metals (IWAHLM) or the International Conference on Condensed Matter Nuclear Science (ICCF) in most years since 2004 (see list below).
The Minoru Toyoda Gold Medal (in honor of the late Minoru Toyoda of the Toyota Motor Company, who supported cold fusion, especially the early work of Pons and Fleischmann) was minted in 2009. It is made of 94 grams of 18 carat gold, and is awarded to individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to the promotion and progress of CMNS. The Toyoda Medal was first awarded in 2009 to Martin Fleischmann. In 2022, a second medal was awarded to Edmund Storms.
Minoru Toyoda Medal Recipients
| October 2009 | Martin Fleischmann (England) | ICCF-15 |
| July 2022 | Edmund Storms (USA) | ICCF-24 |
Giuliano Preparata Medal Recipients
| March 2004 | Yasuhiro Iwamura (Japan) Tadahiko Mizuno (Japan) Antonella DeNinno (Italy) | IWAHLM-5 |
| November 2004 | Peter Hagelstein (USA) | ICCF-11 |
| November 2005 | Michael McKubre (USA) Edmund Storms (USA) Xing-Zhong Li (China) Yoshiaki Arata (Japan) | ICCF-12 |
| September 2006 | Akira Kitamura (Japan) | IWAHLM-7 |
| June 2007 | Alexander Karabut (Russia) Andrei Lipson (Russia) | ICCF-13 |
| October 2007 | George Miley (USA) | IWAHLM-8 |
| August 2008 | Irving Dardik (USA) | ICCF-14 |
| August 2012 | John O’M. Bockris (USA) | ICCF-17 |
| July 2014 | Pamela Boss (USA) | ICCF-18 |
| April 2015 | Jean-Paul Biberian (France) | ICCF-19 |
| October 2016 | Jirohta Kasagi (Japan) | ICCF-20 |
| June 2017 | Thomas Claytor (USA) | IWAHLM-12 |
| June 2018 | Mitchell Swartz (USA) | ICCF-21 |
| September 2019 | Vladimir Vysotskii (Ukraine) | ICCF-22 |
| September 2022 | Alberto Carpinteri (Italy) | IWAHLM-15 |
| August 2023 | Bill Collis (Italy) (posthumously) Dave Nagel (USA) | ICCF-25 |
| May 2025 | Jed Rothwell (USA) | ICCF-26 |
Truffle Prize Recipients
| October 1993 | Jan Kucherov (Russia) | IWAHLM-1 |
| October 1995 | Akito Takahashi (Japan) Francesco Piantelli (Italy) | IWAHLM-2 |
| November 1997 | Francesco Celani (Italy) | IWAHLM-3 |
| October 1999 | Melvin Miles (USA) | IWAHLM-4 |
Bronze Medal Recipients
| September 2006 | Andrei Lipson (Russia) | IWAHLM-7 |
| October 2007 | Alessandro Marmigi | IWAHLM-8 |
| September 2010 | Olga Dmitreyeva | IWAHLM-9 |
| April 2012 | Dmitry Baranov (Russia) | IWAHLM-10 |
| June 2017 | Fabrice David (France) | IWAHLM-12 |
| September, 2024 | David Fojt (France) | IWAHLM-16 |
Photo Gallery
