Stephen Hawking passed away on the 14th of March in Cambridge where he lived. He was aged 76 at the time of his death. Here are some stories about his life and time.
In spite of being a sufferer of a nerve collapsing disorder that confined him to a wheelchair all his life, the genius physicist uncovered the untold truth about the controversial ‘Big Bang’ and ‘black holes’ topics. He also wrote notable books which facilitated his stardom status. Stephen overpowered a life-threatening sickness and became an expert in cosmology.
Late Hawking can be described as a unique celebrity who was more famous than his fellow scientists, due to his renowned book which was based on theories about the strange end of the black holes and the genesis of the universe. The book was published around the 70s, and the world embraced it because of its well-detailed explanations on the two subjects.
Hawking became widely accepted worldwide in 1988 when a book that earned him a spot on the bestselling space was released, and it was titled ‘A Brief History of Time.’ Attention was drawn to his fame more because of his peculiar condition as a wheelchair-bound man who only spoke through a robot-like voice computer. People wondered how he managed to research the most daunting crux of cosmology.
Disability was never his barrier but a blessing in disguise
Stephen suffered a movement neuron paralysis at the start of the 1960 decade, resulting in his confinement to the wheelchair. Notwithstanding his physical quagmire, he still forged ahead and quickly rose to the Lucasian Chair of Mathematics, a title bestowed on him by the Cambridge University due to his excellent performance. Historically, that title had been proudly worn by late Sir Isaac Newton.
In a 1984 article, Hawking wrote that his physical challenges were not hindering his progress in his profession of physics that was more theoretically driven than practical. As a matter of fact, wrote the late physicist, he had used his sickness to his advantage. He had the luxury of time to brood and ponder on problems surrounding physics, which he preferred to doing demanding work like being an administrator or lecturing.
The combination of Hawking and a popular physicist, Roger Penrose, made the subject of the relationship between the universe and a violent Big Bang to be further solidified.
In his theoretical formulation, Hawking revealed that black holes are specks of crashed stars which are very solid and light energy found it impossible to avoid their attractive movement. These black holes are not actually black in color. Hawking had a famous title in use today, and that is called ‘Hawkings radiation’, which states that energy glows from a distance to black holes in smaller quantities. Quantum mechanics is a better clarification.
Through this theory, Hawking was able to help solve a mystery for his fellow physicists who had been looking for how to harmonize the laws of gravity and laws of atomic elements, although the project is still in progress till date.
Cambridge and the entire world mourns the legend
On Wednesday the 14th, Cambridge University announced the passing on of Hawking in a release, as well as paying tribute to the former Chair of Mathematics at the University.
Subsequent on his released historical work ‘A Brief History’, and other numerous notable works which he did, he became more popular afterward, and he was featured on several TV programs like The Next Generation, Star Trek, and The Simpsons.
In 2014, his life was depicted in a movie called ‘The Theory of Everything,’ which fetched Eddie Redmayne a plaque at the Oscar award for his leading role as ‘Stephen Hawking’. The adopted film uncovered the truth about the disastrous end of his first marriage to Jane Wilde Hawking.
The movie was widely promoted in Hollywood and in the academic speeches delivered by Hawking himself, with the use of his customized robot-programmed voice. People were used to his usual impish way of talking, which was humorous in sound. When he celebrated his 70th birthday in 2012 in the company of family and friends, he pointed out that women amazed him most on Earth, because they are mysterious and extremely difficult to unravel.
Apart from researching and exploring the physics subject, Hawking also found pleasure in recreational time, using his field as bait. He once bet publicly against some cosmologists but lost once to John Preskill, a physicist from Caltech fourteen years ago. He betted that black holes clean up every detail about the specks they devoured from the Earth. However, this assertion is prohibited in quantum physics’ laws.
He divorced his second wife, Elaine Mason, twelve years ago. Late Prof. Hawkings left behind three children who were products of his union with Wilde. They are Lucy, Robert, and Timothy.
His children recalled that he once told them that the universe wouldn’t have lived up to its full potentials if loved ones are missing from the picture. They expressed their sadness and how much he would be missed.
At the occasion of Hawking’s 70th birthday, a renowned physicist from Cambridge University, Sir Leszek Borysiewicz, eulogized the professor by saying that he had campaigned more for the cosmology field than other human beings will ever do, showcasing its intricacies to the world.
Hawking has left a legacy of compassion to the universe, says Stephen Toope, vice chancer at Cambridge University.
