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“The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge.” Stephen Hawking
Content I don't want to be a doctor! I love physics and maths!
Love saving from disease
Acquiring electronic voice
Divorce, Marriage, Divorce
Flying Hawking
Science and Religion
Black Holes Theory
Hawking the Mathematician
Popularizing Science
Awards
Hawking in Popular Culture
I don't want to be a doctor! I love physics and maths!
Stephen William Hawking was born on
January 8, 1942, in Oxford, England.
Stephen's father, a biologist and a medical
researcher, wanted his son to become a
doctor, but the gifted boy was only
interested in physics and maths. In
1959 Hawking was accepted to
University College in Oxford, where he
studied theoretical physics. After
receiving his B.A. degree in 1962, he left
for graduate work at Trinity Hall,
Cambridge to study cosmology.
Love saving from disease
Hawking started developing symptoms of a
serious illness, a motor neurone disease,
shortly after his 21st birthday. Doctors did
not expect him to survive for long, their
verdict being complete paralysis and
death within two years. But surprisingly
enough, his illness stopped progressing
rapidly after he had met Jane Wilde at a
student New Year party. Jane became his
first wife and the couple had a daughter
and two sons.
Acquiring electronic voice
After a throat operation in 1985, Hawking
lost his ability to speak. Friends gave
him a speech generating device,
which was attached to his wheel-chair.
At first Hawking used the index finger
of his right arm to operate the device,
but later some sensitivity was left only
in the cheek muscle. The sensor
attached to his glasses enables
Hawking to operate the computer and
communicate with the world.
Divorce, Marriage, Divorce
Meanwhile, Stephen's
relationship with his wife got
worse. In 1991 they separated
and later divorced. Hawking
married his personal care
assistant, Elaine Mason, in
1995; the couple lived
together for 11 years and
finally divorced in 2006.
Flying Hawking
Despite his illness, Hawking leads an
active life. In 2007 he took a zero-
gravity flight on a special plane. He
was even planning a space flight in
2009.
Science and Religion
Professor Hawking doesn't speak directly
about his religious beliefs. In his
books he often uses the word "God",
but just to make some of his ideas
clearer to the reader. His ex-wife, Jane,
has described him as an atheist. When
asked to compare religion and science,
Hawking said, "There is a fundamental
difference between religion, which is
based on authority, and science, which
is based on observation and reason.
Science will win because it works."
Black Holes Theory
Stephen Hawking has contributed notably to our understanding
of black holes. He believes that black holes were formed
right after the Big Bang as particles as small as a proton but
weighing more than a billion tons. Because of their tiny size
and enormous weight, black holes create gravity and absorb
matter.
Black Holes Theory
In 1974, he calculated
that black holes should
emit radiation, known
today as Hawking
radiation, until they
exhaust their energy
and evaporate.
Hawking the Mathematician
Though many people consider
Hawking a mathematician, the
scientist himself often said that the
last time he studied maths was in
secondary school. And even when
he taught mathematics at
university in 1970s, he admitted
that he was only two weeks ahead
of his students.
Popularizing Science
Stephen Hawking has achieved great success with
works of popular science. The best-selling
books he published include "A Brief History of
Time", "Black Holes and Baby Universes", "The
Universe in a Nutshell", and "The Grand
Design". He also wrote a children's book
"George's Secret Key to the Universe" together
with his daughter.
In "A Brief History of Time", published in 1988,
there is only one equation. As Hawking himself
explained, every equation could cut the sales
of the book by half.
Awards
Despite all his work, Hawking hasn't
yet been awarded the Nobel
Prize. But his other numerous
awards include the post of
Lucasian Professor of
Mathematics at the University of
Cambridge, Wolf Prize in Physics,
Copley Medal of the Royal
Society, the Presidential Medal of
Freedom, and many others.
Hawking in Popular Culture
As a person of great interest to the
public, Hawking has appeared in
many works of popular culture.
Hawking's early life and the
beginning of his career was the
subject of the 2004 BBC TV film
"Hawking" starring Benedict
Cumberbatch. The physicist has
appeared as himself on episodes of
The Simpsons, Futurama, and The
Big Bang Theory.
Hawking in Popular Culture
Hawking also hosted the
series "Masters of Science
Fiction". His synthesiser
voice was used in the Pink
Floyd song "Keep Talking"
and in the Discovery
Channel music video «I
love the planet».