Stephen Hawking's Biography
Stephen Hawking was born in England on January 8, 1942, to parents Frank and Isobel Hawking. He was the oldest of his two younger sisters and an adopted brother. His father was a biologist and his mother was a secretary at a medical institute. (Stephen 1) He went on to go to Oxford University, the same college both his parents went to, and got his first. A first is class honors where you get a 70 or above. He then went to Cambridge to get a PhD at the age of 20. (Stephen 2)
Just a little shy of his 21st birthday, he was diagnosed with motor neuron disease more commonly known as Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). He was not expected to live longer than two years. Finishing his doctorate seemed unlikely. However, he chose to stay in college, completing his doctorate, and marrying Jane Wilde in 1965. (Stephen pg. 2) In 1966 miraculously, Hawking trained his mind to think in a new way, even though his disability. As he began losing the use of his limbs, he began visualizing the problems in his head and would reach a solution so he would not have to write. (Hawking 3)
He began his greatest discovery, black holes, which is a region of space having a gravitational field so intense that no matter or radiation can escape. Hawking´s theory was that once a star dies, its entire mass collapses into infinite density at a single point, leading to the black hole formation. (Hawkings 5) His work helped prove the big bang theory, which is the explosion of an extremely small and dense body of matter, that according to some cosmological theories, gave rise to the universe between 12-20 billion years ago. (Hawking 4) It did not take long for Hawking’s career to take off. In 1974, he quickly realized that black holes could be a way to explore physics. One of his theories was the ¨Holy Grail which is an unidentified theory that combines general relativity with quantum mechanics. This theory described the universe at the cosmic scale and subatomic scale respectively. Hawking’s attempts produced a surprising result that black holes should shine; this effect is now known as Hawking Radiation. The work cemented his reputation as a key thinker of his generation. (Hawking 5)
In 1979, at age 35, Hawking became a Lucasian professor of mathematics at Cambridge, a position held by some of Britain's most important physicists including Isaac Newton. He had reached the peak of intellectual achievements despite his motor neurone disease, which had ravaged his body. He could no longer walk or feed himself. He now used an electric wheelchair to get around and he slurred his speech so much that it was hard to understand him yet he had outlived his doctor's prediction by more than 10 years. (Aged 6) Then in 1985, while Hawking was still in Geneva, he was admitted to the hospital with a life-threatening case of pneumonia. Doctors could only save his life by performing a surgery called a tracheotomy. The operation helped him breathe but permanently took away his ability to speak. Hawking was distraught but his friends helped him use a speech synthesizer.
His first request was that someone help him write a new book he was working on. (While 7) The book is called Introduction to Cosmology. It is one of the best-selling books of all time. He wanted to explain his work to the public, and he wanted to make some money to provide for his family while his health declined. (Hawking 8) Then after 25 years of marriage and three children, Stephen and Jane got divorced. Hawking said the pressure of fame and his illness destroyed his first marriage. That same year, he married his nurse, Elaine Mason. His second marriage only lasted eleven years. Hawking cited the pressure of his illness for its breakdown. By 1999, Hawking was an iconic figure and at this time had his first guest appearance in The Simpsons. He was as famous for his public writings and cameos as for his scientific papers. He also lent his distinctive voice to Pink Floyd's album The Division Bell.
In 2004, Hawking continued his work on black holes. He quickly came up with a bold idea. Hawkins was questioning whether or not black holes broke the laws of physics. One of the ideas underpinning quantum theory is that the physical properties of subatomic particles cannot be destroyed. For years Hawking said black holes do not destroy information but he could never show proof. At a press conference, people were expecting a definite argument on his idea, but instead he made a startling u-turn. His controversial new theory was that the information is transmitted into other universes, showing he was still rethinking his image of the universe. In 2009, as required by Cambridge University regulations, Hawking stepped down from the post of Lucasian professor of mathematics when he turned 67. By now, he could no longer move his hand to move his wheelchair and could only communicate by moving his cheek, controlling his speech synthesizer. But he announced he would continue to work even though he was unable to take on the administrative responsibilities of most senior scientists.
In 2010, he wrote another book called The Grand Design where he made more bold claims for the hunt for a theory of everything. Hawking believed in the M-theory which predicts that there are many universes and that there is no theory of everything to describe our particular universe. Instead, the laws of physics are different in other universes. M-theories conclusions were unpalatable to many who had spent their lives seingarch for a theory of everything and many physicists dismissed M-theory as just speculation.
On March 14, 2018, Stephen Hawking died at the age of 76 from his disease. He defied the odds and lived fifty-five years with the disease that should have killed him in five. He advanced the theories of previous thinkers like Albert Einstein and Werner Heisenberg. His theories helped push him into being one of the most well known physicists. He will always be known for his work on black holes as well as his humor.
