Remarks by the President in Meeting with the 2016 American Nobel Prize Winners

Oval Office

4:46 P.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT: Well, as we near the end of the year, as many of you know, I've spent a lot of time promoting science and trying to encourage young people to get involved in those disciplines that have driven American innovation and American progress, as well as driven human progress. And one of the best ways for us to be able to do that is to recognize the achievements of some Americans who have received an extraordinary honor. These are our American Nobel Prize winners for this year.

They have done amazing work that for laypersons are sometimes hard to explain. But they are delving into the deepest aspects of matter. They are exploring our ability to manipulate molecules. We also have an economist who is helping to make sure that our market system, our contracts are operating in ways that are fair and just and help us organize our economic system in ways that are more efficient but also produce good results for everybody.

So we are incredibly proud of them. And I think it's just a reminder that one of the things that makes America unique is our ability to attract talent from all around the world, to study at some of our greatest universities, and for us to have very practical, reasoned, fact-based empirical ways to figure out how we can make the world a slightly better place. And the work that's being done here is going to result in progress, some of which we can't anticipate yet, but will lead to new products, new materials, new technologies. And, most importantly, the work that these gentlemen have done are going to inspire whole a new generation of scholars and scientists and researchers so that we know that this will continue into future generations.

And I'm very, very proud of them. And I'm hopeful that they have a wonderful time at the ceremony. I want to thank the Nobel Committee and the Ambassador of Sweden and all that they do to help recognize outstanding human achievement, not just in our country, but around the world.

All right? Thank you, everybody.

I will see you guys at the Christmas Party, all right? So get ready. (Laughter.) Start jogging now. Thank you, guys.

END
4:49 P.M. EST