researcher in the Japanese . Osaka University had the third most patents accepted (150) among Japanese universities during 2017. Osaka University also has a high research reputation in Economics. Repec ranked Osaka's economics department second in Japan in 2011. Osaka University graduates has served as presidents of the Japanese Economic Association five times in its history. According to the 's 2010 rankings, graduates from Osaka University have the seventh highest employment rate among the 400 major companies in Japan. Popularity and selectivity Osaka University is one of the most selective universities in Japan. Its entrance difficulty is usually considered one of the highest in Japan. Nikkei BP's "Brand rankings of Japanese universities" ranks Osaka University's brand the second strongest in the Kansai region after Kyoto University. Evaluation from Business World Athletics Osaka University and Nagoya University hold regular Athletics Competition every year (名古屋大学・大阪大学対抗競技大会). Recent years Osaka also has a regular windsurfing competition relationship with Kyoto University, Kobe University (京阪神戦), and Taiwan's National Sun Yat-sen University (大阪大学・台湾中山大学ヨット定期戦). Notable people Physics, Chemistry, and Technologies Shoichi Sakata (坂田 昌一), a physicist, known for Sakata model, Nobel Prize in Physics nominee. Takeo Matsubara (松原 武生), a Japanese physicist at Kyoto University, 1961 Nishina Memorial Prize winner. Oda Minoru (小田 稔), Japanese astronomer and astrophysicist, Emeritus Professor at the University of Tokyo. Yoshiaki Arata (荒田 吉明), pioneering researchers into nuclear fusion. Shigeo Satomura (里村 茂夫), a Japanese physicist. Akira Hasegawa (長谷川 晃), a theoretical physicist and engineer. Takashi Hibiki (日引 俊詞), a Japanese scientist who is a professor emeritus of nuclear engineering at Purdue University. Yasuo Tanaka (田中 靖郎), a Japanese astrophysicist and a member of the Japan Academy. Sonia Contera, a Spanish physicist, serves st the University of Oxford. Satoshi Kawata (河田 聡), a scientist in nanotechnology, photonics. Satoshi Hiyamizu (冷水 佐壽), a Japanese professor of electrical engineering. Tadao Kasami (嵩 忠雄), Japanese information theorist, IEEE Fellow, 1999 IEEE Claude E. Shannon Award winner. Tetsuo Asano (浅野 哲夫), computer scientist, the president of the Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (JAIST). Wahid Shams Kolahi, an Iranian scientist and electrical engineer. Kilnam Chon, a South Korean computer scientist. Nguyễn Ngọc Bình, a Vietnamese computer scientist. Sciences Li Siguang (李四光), a Chinese geologist and politician. Hidesaburo Hanafusa (花房 秀三郎), a Japanese virologist, 1982 Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research winner. Osamu Hayaishi (早石 修), 1986 Wolf Prize laureate in Medicine winner. Shizuo Akira (審良