Stephen Hawking ’s Legacy Spans the Universe — Both Within and Beyond Us

For years, the best way to establish my place in the physics world with people outside of physics was to tell about the time Stephen Hawking saved me a seat. I was at a conference in the early 2000s and had done some work that he was following. When I showed up late to a dinner, a physicist pulled me aside to be seated next to Stephen’s place. On this fortunate evening, I got to know him a bit better — hearing his thoughts on science, his jokes and his observations. But to tell the truth, probably the most fascinating part for me was simply understanding how he functioned and communicated despite all the obstacles. He would painstakingly work through his letters and words (happily I could see my name among them) to construct sentences and when they were complete everyone paused to engage. The man had a good time — and clearly it was a decision on his part to do so. In our incredible, challenging-to-explain universe, it seems almost inevitable that it was an incredible, challenging-to-explain person who made it more comprehensible — both to the scientific community and to the public. Whether people agreed or disagreed with his latest pronouncements on physics, on AI or the fate of the Earth, one thing that everyone agrees on is how impressive were Stephen Hawking and his accomplishments, never mind his very survival. The story is well known. A promising physicist who in his early years gets a diagnosis that many interpret as an imminent death sentence ...
Source: TIME: Science - Category: Science Authors: Tags: Uncategorized onetime remembrance Source Type: news