RIP Stephen Hawking

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Physicist Stephen Hawking dead at age 76

Renowned British physicist Stephen Hawking has died at age 76, a family spokesperson said on Wednesday.

"We are deeply saddened that our beloved father passed away today," professor Hawking's children, Lucy, Robert, and Tim said in a statement carried by Britain's Press Association news agency.

"He was a great scientist and an extraordinary man whose work and legacy will live on for many years."

Born on January 8, 1942 - 300 years to the day after the death of the father of modern science, Galileo Galilei - he believed science was his destiny.

But fate also dealt Hawking a cruel hand.

Most of his life was spent in a wheelchair crippled by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a form of motor neurone disease that attacks the nerves controlling voluntary movement.

Remarkably, Hawking defied predictions he would only live for a few years, overcoming its debilitating effects on his mobility and speech that left him paralysed and able to communicate only via a computer speech synthesiser.

"I am quite often asked: how do you feel about having ALS?" he once wrote. "The answer is, not a lot.

"I try to lead as normal a life as possible, and not think about my condition, or regret the things it prevents me from doing, which are not that many."

Stephen William Hawking, though, was far from normal.

Inside the shell of his increasingly useless body was a razor-sharp mind, fascinated by the nature of the Universe, how it was formed and how it might end.

"My goal is simple," he once said. "It is complete understanding of the universe, why it is as it is and why it exists at all."

Much of that work centred on bringing together relativity - the nature of space and time - and quantum theory - how the smallest particles in the Universe behave - to explain the creation of the Universe and how it is governed.

Life on Earth at risk

In 1974, he became one of the youngest fellows of Britain's most prestigious scientific body, the Royal Society, at the age of 32.

In 1979 he was appointed Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at Cambridge University, where he had moved from Oxford University to study theoretical astronomy and cosmology.

A previous holder of the prestigious post was the 17th-century British scientist Isaac Newton.

Hawking eventually put Newton's gravitational theories to the test in 2007 when, aged 65, he went on a weightless flight in the United States as a prelude to a hoped-for sub-orbital spaceflight.

Characteristically, he did not see the trip as a mere birthday present.

Instead, he said he wanted to show that disability was no bar to achievement and to encourage interest in space, where he believed humankind's destiny lay.

"I think the human race has no future if it doesn't go into space," he said.

"I believe life on Earth is at an ever-increasing risk of being wiped out by a disaster such as sudden global warming, nuclear war, a genetically engineered virus or other dangers."

More recently he said artificial intelligence (AI) could contribute to the eradication of disease and poverty, while warning of its potential dangers.

"In short, success in creating AI could be the biggest event in the history of our civilisation.

"Alongside the benefits, AI will also bring dangers, like powerful autonomous weapons, or new ways for the few to oppress the many," Hawking said in 2016, at the opening of a new AI research centre at Cambridge University.

Pop culture and politics

Hawking's genius brought him global fame and he became known as a witty communicator dedicated to bringing science to a wider audience.

His 1988 book A Brief History of Time sought to explain to non-scientists the fundamental theories of the universe and it became an international bestseller, bringing him global acclaim.

It was followed in 2001 by The Universe in a Nutshell.

In 2007, Hawking published a children's book, George's Secret Key to the Universe, with his daughter, Lucy, seeking to explain the workings of the solar system, asteroids, his pet subject of black holes and other celestial bodies.

Hawking also moved into popular culture, with cameos in Star Trek: The Next Generation and The Simpsons, while his voice appeared in Pink Floyd songs.

Beyond scientific debate Hawking also weighed into politics, describing Donald Trump as "a demagogue who seems to appeal to the lowest common denominator" ahead of his election as US president.

Hawking also warned Britain ahead of the Brexit referendum in 2016 against leaving the European Union: "Gone are the days when we could stand on our own against the world."

Making the most of 'every minute'

Hawking first married Jane Wilde in 1965 and had three children. The couple split after 25 years and he married his former nurse, Elaine Mason, but the union broke down amid allegations, denied by him, of abuse.

The love story between Hawking and Wilde was retold in the 2014 film The Theory of Everything, which won Britain's Eddie Redmayne the best actor Oscar for his portrayal of the scientist.

The Oscar triumph was celebrated by Hawking, who has reportedly said there were moments watching the film when he thought he was watching himself.

He was also the subject of a 2013 documentary, Hawking, in which he reflected on his life: "Because every day could be my last, I have the desire to make the most of each and every minute."

--A

[Wosbald]

+JMJ+

Requiem aeternam dona ei, Domine, et lux perpetua luceat ei.

[wayfriend]

I know he didn't believe in an afterlife. But I kinda hope he gets to see the answers now.

[Hashi Lebwohl]

On scientific topics he was almost always accurate and correct. On political topics....not so much. In my opinion, his celebrity status in later years took away from his scientific work, which is shame.

[wayfriend]

Hawking quotes (reposted from CNN).

On the universe:

"It would not be much of a universe if it wasn't home to the people you love."

On scientific discoveries:

"I wouldn't compare it to sex, but it lasts longer." -- at a science festival in 2011.

On persistence:

"However difficult life may seem, there is always something you can do and succeed at. It matters that you don't just give up." -- at an Oxford University Union speech in 2016.

On curiosity:

"So remember, look at the stars and not at your feet." -- at the Sydney Opera House in 2015.

On intelligence:

"I would never claim this. People who boast about their IQ are losers."-- in response to a 2017 question if he believed he was the most intelligent person in the world.

On space:

"May you keep flying like superman in microgravity." -- to NASA astronauts in 2014.

"I have always tried to overcome the limitations of my condition and lead as full a life as possible. I have traveled the world, from the Antarctic to zero gravity. Perhaps one day I will go into space." -- to the New York Times in 2011.

"I have already completed a zero gravity flight which allowed me to float weightless, but my ultimate ambition is to fly into space." -- to ITV in 2017.

On God:

"God may exist, but science can explain the universe without the need for a creator." -- in a 2010 CNN interview.

"The scientific account is complete. Theology is unnecessary." -- in a 2010 CNN interview.

On women:

"My [physician assistant] reminds me that although I have a PhD in physics, women should remain a mystery." -- in his first Reddit AMA. (His PA is a woman, by the way.)

On his appearance:

"Unfortunately, Eddie [Redmayne] did not inherit my good looks." -- of the Oscar-winning actor who portrayed him in "The Theory of Everything."

[Cord Hurn]

RIP. Dr. Hawking's dedication to bringing scientific interest to a wider audience is my biggest reason for appreciating him. The world is better for his having lived, IMO.

[Skyweir]

Amen Cordy

I think his involvement in the non scientific world played a large part in broadening scientific appeal imo. And more importantly showed he possessed a great sense of humour, and laugh at himself

He has made the world, the scientific community richer through his contribution. He lived greatly.

[Avatar]

--A

[wayfriend]

[Skyweir]

[Skyweir]

Stephen Hawkings co-authored his last paper submitted two weeks before his death

https://www.google.com.au/amp/s/amp.bus ... rse-2018-3

the paper sets out the mathematics necessary for a deep-space probe to collect evidence which might prove that other universes exist.

His science continues. What an amazing human, he was relentless in his pursuit of science fact.

[Revan]

Personally I think he was a dunce. He spent too much time worrying about the universe and not enough asking the really important questions... like why do wires tangle themselves up? Where is Bigfoot? And most importantly, if ((k+2)(1−[wz+h+j−q]2−[(gk+2g+k+1)(h+j)+h−z]2 is true... does that mean gingers have no souls?

[Skyweir]

Hahaha

Gingers have no souls

Shame on you lol

[Gaius Octavius]

Well, it is sooth.

[Skyweir]

Hah I think not

[Vraith]

Stephen Hawkings co-authored his last paper submitted two weeks before his death

https://www.google.com.au/amp/s/amp.bus ... rse-2018-3

the paper sets out the mathematics necessary for a deep-space probe to collect evidence which might prove that other universes exist.

His science continues. What an amazing human, he was relentless in his pursuit of science fact.

That's cool. I've been noting in various spots around here for a couple years now that there were people beginning to come up with ways to test multiverse and string/brane and other "untestable" theories...but the general science media was still full of stories and quotes stating as fact that these things were untestable.
But with HIS name attached, people will start paying attention.
Plus it lights a fuse under a deep space probe.
I'm a fan.
ALL space mission ideas should be approved and worked on.
[[well....maybe not the guy who built his own steam-powered rocket to try and prove earth is flat...yea, maybe not the real odd-balls.]]

[Skyweir]

Totally with you on this V .. it is exciting .. and hopefully youre right about Hawkings paper .. that hopefully it will shine a light on all things theoretical physics, cosmology .. and test his multiverse theory. He did have a coauthor .. have you heard of him

[Vraith]

He did have a coauthor .. have you heard of him

No. His name didn't look familiar, so I searched him---I've seen other people mention one of the things he co-wrote. "Brane New World." But just cuz the title was fun/funny, as far as I recall.

[Skyweir]

We ... lay folk .. not scientists .. need someone clever enough to read and understand his paper .. then explain it patiently to the lay folk