Stephen Hawking : The Greatest Mind | by Shikha Gunwal

The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge!

Stephen Hawking, the well-known English theorist, physicist, cosmologist was born on 8 Jan 1942 to Frank and Isobel Hawking. Hawking suffered from slow progressing form of motor neurone disease which gradually paralysed him over the years.

“In 1942, this great physicist was born, When diagnosed with a disease, his aspirations were torn. When early death becomes a concern so prime, You learn to value the precious time. But a disability can’t take away your name, If you have the will power, you can still achieve fame. He was fascinated to study all about black hole, As if cosmology flowed through his body and soul. Hawking radiation will always shine bright, All his theories will still shed light. A person with determination so strong, will reside in our hearts lifelong. If To your disabilities, you do not pay any heed, You will always find the way to succeed. And at this moment, It will be very right to say, Where there is a will, There is a way.”

In 1968, Hawking became a member of the Institute of Astronomy in Cambridge. Hawking discovered the ‘Second Law of Black Hole Dynamics’. Hawking proposed the four laws of ‘Black Hole Mechanics’ along with James M. Bardeen and Brandon Carter. Later Hawking visited Moscow in 1973 and his discussions with Yakov Borisovich Zel'dovich and Alexei Starobinsky helped him to come up with ‘Hawking Radiation.' It is the theory that black holes emit radiation and thus the name Hawking Radiation. The following year, he became a 'Fellow of the Royal ‘. Hawking went on to receive the Eddington Medal and the Pius XI Gold Medal, followed by the Dannie Heineman Prize and the Maxwell Prize in 1975. This turned out to be just a start as much bigger awards awaited him. He then received the 'Albert Einstein Medal' and an honorary doctorate from the University of Oxford.

He gradually started losing control over his speech, but this did not stop him from getting appointed as the Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at the Cambridge University in 1979.

The ‘Hartle-Hawking state’ which he published with Jim Hartle stated that before the Big Bang, time did not exist and thus the concept of the beginning of the universe was meaningless. As a result of tracheotomy, he lost his voice and thus required 24-hours care. His condition caught attention of a Californian computer programmer, who invented a speaking program that could be directed by head or eye movement.

Though he continued to work as a director of research at the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics, he retired as Lucasian Professor of Mathematics owing to University rules and regulations.

Along with research, Hawking also published his work to increase awareness among the masses. His publication ‘A Brief History of Time’ which was a simplified version of cosmology, became an instant best seller. Unfortunately, this great physicist died on 14th March 2018.

“I have lived most of my life in expectation of early death, so time has always been precious to me” -Stephen Hawking