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The brilliant scientist turned our idea of the structure and origin of the universe upside down. But we are also interested in his biography. By his example, the theoretical physicist showed the whole world how important it is to love life and never stop dreaming. Being confined to a wheelchair, he flew in zero gravity, wrote a dozen books, studied science and taught. Having lost the ability to speak, he communicated with others using a computer. These are the parting words left by the genius to the younger generation.
Even if you have never heard of what quantum cosmology is, have not been interested in the theory of black holes, and have not held the book A Brief History of Time in your hands, you most likely still know who Stephen Hawking is. We all had and still have something to learn from him. And it’s not only and not so much about physics.
Never give up
In 1963, 20-year-old Hawking was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a rare, incurable disease in which motor neurons are damaged, leading to paralysis and muscle atrophy. The disease progressed: at first the scientist moved using a cane, in 1967 he moved on crutches, and soon moved to a wheelchair. In 1985, after pneumonia and several operations, Hawking completely lost the ability to speak.
However, the scientist did not become a hostage to the disease and even found advantages in it:
“I can’t say that my physical condition helps in my work, but it allows me to concentrate on research, avoiding lectures and boring conferences.”
ALS did not prevent Hawking from marrying (twice, the second time to his nurse), becoming a father (three times), running popular science programs, and even flying in zero gravity on a Boeing 727.
Don’t look for the threat outside
Hawking did not believe that we are alone in the universe – from a mathematical point of view, this is unlikely. Another question is what kind of alien life forms they are, and how they would treat earthlings if we had a chance to meet. However, the scientist saw a threat not in space, but in the people themselves:
“The most difficult problem that humanity has ever faced is our aggressive instincts … These instincts were necessary for survival and were imprinted in our heads at the level of the genetic code. Now, with all the nuclear weapons we have, we can’t wait for evolution to rid us of our instincts.”
In this, many psychologists, researchers, religious figures, writers and artists are in solidarity with the physicist. But what can be opposed to aggression? Hawking was sure that empathy, perhaps because it was the sympathy, attention and care of those around him that helped him survive.
Think outside the box
A collision with an asteroid, a flash of gamma rays from a supernova, a radical change in climate … A catastrophe that threatens life on Earth is inevitable, Hawking believed, and already in the next couple of hundred years. But this is not a reason to put an end to civilization.
“The human race should not have all its eggs in one basket on one planet. Our only chance for long-term survival is to explore space. Colonizing other planets is no longer science fiction, it can become science fact.”
He sincerely believed in such an opportunity and saw our salvation in it. After all, “we are just advanced apes on a small planet with an unremarkable star. But we have a chance to comprehend the Universe. That’s what makes us special.”
10 facts about Stephen Hawking
- As a child, Hawking’s favorite books were Journey to the Center of the Earth and Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne.
- Of the school subjects, the future scientist most of all disliked the French language.
- Like his parents, he graduated from Oxford.
- The scientist studied the theory of the emergence of the world as a result of the Big Bang and the theory of black holes. He suggested that low-mass black holes “evaporate” due to a phenomenon called “Hawking radiation”.
- Stephen Hawking has three children: sons Robert and Timothy and daughter Lucy.
- A Brief History of Time, first published in 1988, has been translated into dozens of languages and has a total circulation of over 10 million copies.
- The scientist visited Moscow twice: in 1973 and 1981.
- Hawking has voiced himself on The Simpsons and Futurama, has appeared on The Big Bang Theory and in an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation.
- In the movie, his role was played by Benedict Cumberbatch (Hawking, directed by Philip Martin, 2004) and Eddie Redmayne (Stephen Hawking’s Universe, directed by James Marsh, 2014).
- By the end of the scientist’s life, only the mimic muscle of the cheek retained mobility. A sensor was fixed opposite it, with the help of which the physicist controlled the computer and communicated with others.