Stephen Hawking, the late physicist, was unanimously hailed as the brightest mind of our century. Some decades from now, people will refer to him with the same respect that Einstein, Newton and Aristotle get.
Born on 8 January 1942, in Oxford, Hawking soon exhibited a natural talent for science. University life was easy and boring for our genius, until the day he was diagnosed with motor neurone disease. Judging by his inability to walk unsupported and his unintelligible speech capabilities, doctors gave him two years of pain and agony. Luckily, he proved everyone wrong.
No further details are needed; the internet is already flooded in that. What we’re going to mention however, is how Stephen Hawking impacted the world in various subjects. And yes, we’re also going to mention a few spicy facts that you probably were not aware of – just as the title promises.
Being one of the leading theoretical scientists, it goes without saying that Hawking had the first and the last word on researches, theories and questions when it came down to the existence of alien civilizations. But it’s not just that he knew stuff. He was also providing the world with new information on that matter, making it easier for newer generations of scientists to follow his guidelines.
One of those major contributions that we’re talking about is the ‘The Breakthrough Listen project’ that will ‘scan the nearest million stars for signs of life’. The people in charge of this project seem optimistic that they’ll receive results within the next decades.
While writing his Ph.D thesis on the Steady State model of the universe, Hawking realized that is seemed like a dead end. And what do you do when you find yourself on a dead end? You give up. Right?...wrong! At least not if you’re one of the greatest scientists alive, on your respective field.
So what the hero of our story did, is he proved the math behind the alternative theory that described the universe known as singularity. If that doesn’t ring any bells, then you may be more aware with the results of that model that we know today as the Bing Bang Theory.
All in all, he managed to save his thesis and radically change the way we see and explain the universe once and for all. Two birds with one stone!
Stephen Hawking was born exactly 300 years after Galileo's death. He even used to joke about that.
Back in 1985 his then wife Jane, refused to take Hawking off life support thus forcing the doctors to perform a tracheotomy. And that’s how she saved him from pneumonia. Sadly though, this is also how he lost his ability to speak.
The TV series ‘Bing Bang Theory’ would practically not be the same without him. Not only did he make an appearance or two, but he was also the person that the writers sought advice from on how to make all the science jokes funnier.
Since this entire article is a tribute to Stephen Hawking, it only feels natural that we should close that with one of his most deep and meaningful quotes:
“Look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see, and wonder about what makes the universe exist. Be curious.”
Sources:
https://www.brainyquote.com/authors/stephen_hawking
http://www.businessinsider.com/best-articles-on-stephen-hawking-2018-3
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Hawking
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/stephen-hawking-for-dummies-why-he-is-so-important-2018-03-14
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2018/mar/14/stephen-hawking-professor-dies-aged-76
