British theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking, arguably one of the most famous scientists of his generation, passed away in Cambridge, UK on 14 March 2018 at the age of 76. Known for his formidable intellect and vast contribution to science, Hawking was famous for his achievements while living with early-onset, slow-progressing form of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) or Lou Gehrig's disease that gradually paralysed him over the decades. At the time of his death he could still communicate via a speech generating device using a single cheek muscle.
He was known to have among the highest ever recorded IQs, and to have made huge contributions to the fields of cosmology and theoretical physics, in spite of his progressive crippling condition. Over time he gained the admiration and respect not only of his peers but also of the general public and became a symbol of the power of the human mind.
Though he won many other hugely prestigious prizes for his work, the most prestigious prize of all, the Nobel, eluded him. According to some commentators, Hawking's contribution to physics was at least as significant as that of Albert Einstein and many feel that it is a travesty he was never awarded the Nobel.
Stephen Hawking had visited India in 2001 for the Albert Einstein Memorial Lecture when he spoke about 'Predicting the Future: from Astrology to Black Holes' and visitrd some of the capital’s historical landmarks.
He was not an outstanding student to begin with; according to some sources, Hawking did not learn to read properly until age 8. However, by the time he was a teenager, he was building a computer and at age 17 he won a physics scholarship at Oxford.
When he was diagnosed with a rare motor neuron disease at age 21, doctors gave him 2 years’ life expectancy. He lived to an age of 76 along with progressive, severe disability.
In 1985, Hawking contracted pneumonia and his voice box had to be removed. His condition was critical and he was on life support for a time. He lost the ability to speak and communicated using a spelling card and then a hand clicker to indicate words. Later his hands became too weak to use a clicker. He then used a speech-generating device to communicate audibly.
Some of his most celebrated works include the theoretical prediction that black holes emit radiation. He was a strong proponent of the 'many-worlds interpretation', an interpretaion of quantum mechanics and leaves behind a significant body of important work.
His book A Brief History of Time has been a record breaking bestseller. He has had numerous books written about him and the film The Theory of Everything was a story of his life. He guest starred in various films and TV shows such as The Big Bang Theory.
He believed that intelligence is the ability to adapt to change; that the greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance but the illusion of knowledge – thoughts particularly apposite in this era of fake news.
He may have specialised in scientific theories about the universe that you or I don’t quite understand, but he was wise enough to recognise this: it would not be much of a universe if it wasn’t home to the people you love.
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