The three scientific fields covered by the Shaw Prizes, Astronomy, Life Science and Medicine, and Mathematical Sciences, are all making spectacular progress in recent years: As we shall hear from Professor Frank Hsia-san Shu, astronomers are enjoying their golden age of new developments; in life science and medicine, the clarification of structures and functions of important receptors in cells heralds the days when powerful new drugs will lead to new medication for many diseases; and in mathematics, its oldest and basic branch, number theory, is infused with new life through the introduction of new insight related to the concept of symmetry. The Shaw Prize Foundation is proud to recognize the trail-blazing achievements in these three fields.