Professor Stephen Hawking, 76, an award-winning physicist and influential author who was also a cosmologist, astronomer, a mathematician also considered to be the world’s greatest living scientist who died peacefully at his home in Cambridge in the early hours of Wednesday.
Remembering his achievements, let’s have a look at the life of the world-renowned theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking. Here are the 14 interesting facts about Stephen Hawking.
1. Hawking Was Born On Jan. 8, 1942 Which Just Happened To Be The 300th Anniversary Of Galileo’s Death
2. He Had a Nice TV Career Which No Scientist Can Have
Hawking made an appearance on Star Trek: The Next Generation in 1994. The scientist appeared in several TV shows including The Simpsons, Red Dwarf and The Big Bang Theory.
3. Hawking was Given Only A Few Years To Live After Being Diagnosed With A Rare Form Of Motor Neurone Disease
He suffered from ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), a neurodegenerative disease commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease that left him wheelchair-bound and paralyzed. When he was 21, he was diagnosed in 1963, and doctors initially only gave him a few years to live.
He was completely dependent on others or on technology for everything that includes dressing, bathing, eating, even speech. Hawking used a speech synthesizer that allowed him to speak in a computerized voice with an American accent.
4. Hawking’s Equation
This formula involves the speed of light (c), Newton’s constant (G) and other symbols that measure emissions from black holes that today is known as Hawking radiation.
5. A Successful Author
Hawking wanted to write a book about the mysteries of the universe that would connect with the public. But that seemed impossible after he lost the abilities to write and speak. However, he received valuable assistance from students and ultimately published “A Brief History of Time: From the Big Bang to Black Holes”.
6. He Lent His Voice To The Animated Shows
Despite his extraordinary physical challenges, Hawking lent his voice to the animated shows The Simpsons, Futurama, and The Big Bang Theory.
7. Hawking’s Original Synthesizer Was Created By A California-based Company Called Words Plus
