Stephen Hawking Has Died

Incredible mind and a real fighter. RIP
 
RIP, not sure the world can afford to lose that much IQ just now :(
 
Amazing how he kept alive so long with his condition, but then everyone said he was stubborn. He was down to a cheek muscle twitch to work his speech machine etc.
Clever chap, but even more so in that he could communicate his ideas.
 
Awe inspiring how someone with such profund physical disabilities could summon the strength to make such a vast intellectual scientific contribution over such a long time.

I have read some of his writings and found them to be beyond my understanding which is very frustrating.
 
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Some brilliant accolades spoken, indeed such a loss.
His power of understanding did indeed leave me at the starting post.
Too many good people taken to the big universe so far this year alone.
 
IIRC, he was given 2 years to live when I was 1 year old - 54 years ago.

You never know, he might now be privy to all the secrets of the universe (or are there several omniverses?)
 
The world is a poorer place without him. I doubt, we'll ever see the like, again.
Hopefully, he's in a better place now, with answers to all his questions.
RIP Stephen.
 
johnnypanic said:
The world is a poorer place without him. I doubt, we'll ever see the like, again.
Hopefully, he's in a better place now, with answers to all his questions.
RIP Stephen.
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To quote the man himself:

“I regard the brain as a computer which will stop working when its components fail,” he told the Guardian. “There is no heaven or afterlife for broken down computers; that is a fairy story for people afraid of the dark.”
 
A real genius in the face of such adversity!

But as the man himself said...
Intelligence is the ability to adapt to change.

RIP
 
There were some fascinating accolades on Radio 5’s “Up All Night” programme in the wee small hours, including one of the directors who made one of his 5 episodes of ‘The Simpsons’. He was very popular with the whole crew and despite all, was part of the team.

There was also a reference to his voice wherein, even though it became possible to provide a less ‘robotic’ voice, he chose to keep the one he had as it was part of the ‘brand’.

By no means a perfect person but certainly very special.
 
An amazing man and one who many, even those with no interest in science, felt very warmly towards.

Heard this on Radio 4 yesterday. He was being interviewed by a BBC reporter.

Reporter: "Professor Hawking, you believe in an infinite number of universes"
Hawking: "Yes"
Reporter: "So in one of these universes will there be a me who is cleverer than you?"
Hawking: "Yes, and there will be one where you are funny"

Dave
 
Tringa said:
An amazing man and one who many, even those with no interest in science, felt very warmly towards.

Heard this on Radio 4 yesterday. He was being interviewed by a BBC reporter.

Reporter: "Professor Hawking, you believe in an infinite number of universes"
Hawking: "Yes"
Reporter: "So in one of these universes will there be a me who is cleverer than you?"
Hawking: "Yes, and there will be one where you are funny"

Dave
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That was his interview with John Oliver
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8y5EXFMD4s
 
Thought this was brilliant

90
 
I wonder if it's time to a change in the way posthumous knighthoods are awarded, afaik only awarded for great acts of valour, so not likely to be awarded to Hawking as it stands but surely one could argue his life-long battle with MND and constant good humour mark him as someone who showed extreme valour in adversity?
 
MatBin said:
I wonder if it's time to a change in the way posthumous knighthoods are awarded, afaik only awarded for great acts of valour, so not likely to be awarded to Hawking as it stands but surely one could argue his life-long battle with MND and constant good humour mark him as someone who showed extreme valour in adversity?
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It was mentioned on LBC yesterday that Professor Hawking was sounded out about a knighthood in the late 1990s, but refused as a protest over the (then) Government's funding of Science.

I would like to see the man honoured and remembered in an appropriately respectfull way.
That would exclude a knighthood etc. since such "awards" are now commonly given to all sorts of undesirable parasites.
 
arclight said:
It was mentioned on LBC yesterday that Professor Hawking was sounded out about a knighthood in the late 1990s, but refused as a protest over the (then) Government's funding of Science.

I would like to see the man honoured and remembered in an appropriately respectfull way.
That would exclude a knighthood etc. since such "awards" are now commonly given to all sorts of undesirable parasites.
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Could Elon Musk attach his wheelchair to his next rocket, send it after the testla, with a suitable plaque attached?
 
arclight said:
It was mentioned on LBC yesterday that Professor Hawking was sounded out about a knighthood in the late 1990s, but refused as a protest over the (then) Government's funding of Science.

I would like to see the man honoured and remembered in an appropriately respectfull way.
That would exclude a knighthood etc. since such "awards" are now commonly given to all sorts of undesirable parasites.
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I wasnt aware of that, makes sense as to why he never received one. Be two faced and wrong now to award one as he obviously didnt want it then.
 
MatBin said:
I wasnt aware of that, makes sense as to why he never received one. Be two faced and wrong now to award one as he obviously didnt want it then.
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I am not au fait with all the awards that could be appropriate, but perhaps something along the lines of naming some form of educational pursuit aimed advancing science after him could be suitable.

A mere title does not come close to being recognition for his contribution.
 
arclight said:
I am not au fait with all the awards that could be appropriate, but perhaps something along the lines of naming some form of educational pursuit aimed advancing science after him could be suitable.

A mere title does not come close to being recognition for his contribution.
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Agreed.
Just read he was awarded some sort of title of which there are only 65 in total which put him above a Knight in terms of hierachy, Companion of something or other.
 
MatBin said:
Agreed.
Just read he was awarded some sort of title of which there are only 65 in total which put him above a Knight in terms of hierachy, Companion of something or other.
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He was a Companion of Honour. From Wikipedia:
The Order of the Companions of Honour is an order of the Commonwealth realms. It was founded in June 1917 by King George V as a reward for outstanding achievements and is "conferred upon a limited number of persons for whom this special distinction seems to be the most appropriate form of recognition, constituting an honour disassociated either from the acceptance of title or the classification of merit."
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The list of members of the Order really is a glittering who's who of high achievers in Britain and the Commonwealth. It was very appropriate for Hawking, and was acceptable to him at least partly because it does not confer a title. When Hawking was made a CH in 1989, he was only 47 years old and was the youngest person to receive this honour since 1953 (barring a couple of blokes who got it semi-automatically because they were Prime Ministers of Commonwealth countries).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Members_of_the_Order_of_the_Companions_of_Honour
 
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