Stephen Hawking: Professor, Patient, & Total Badass

STEPHEN HAWKING Professor, Patient & Total Badass He's made some of the most notable scientific contributions of our time and dedicated his life to discovering how the universe works, and he's been confined to a wheelchair for over 40 years. But before Stephen Hawking made himself into a legend, he came from humble beginnings. +1942 Born on January 8. 1942 in Oxford, England. +1958 Attended St. Albans School until graduating in 1958, where he was a good student-but not great Hawking then attended college at Oxford. His passion was math, his degree was in natural sciences. a In(a) 1-a At Oxford, Hawking coxed a rowing team. Why? His words: To relieve inmmense boredom." 1962 Hawking graduated from Oxford and went to Cambridge for his PhD. When he started, symptoms of Lou Gehrig's disease began. Hawking was diagnosed with the deteriorating disease and given two to three years to live. He set about making the most of it. +1965 Using a cane to get down the aisle, Hawking married his wife, Jane. He received his PhD at the age of 23. And he embarked upon lifelong research and teaching at Cambridge. +1968 At age 26, Hawking was in a wheelchair full-time. And he had two children with his wife by the time he was 27. ¥1970 His illness worsened, his research intensified. +1974ran HORIZON He proved that black holes aren't vacuums, coining the term Hawking Radiation. He used his remaining speech capabilities to accept the first of what would be many honors: 1975 1976 1978 The Hughes Medal for outstanding original ideas. The Pius XI Gold Albert Einstein Award for extended studies on Einstein's work Medal for Science for black hole discoveries. And that was just the beginning. 1985 Lost ability to speak. Began using a machine to talk for him, at first with a working finger, and later with a muscle in his cheek. 1988 Published A Brief History of Time. Since then: 25 million copies sold, translated in 40 different languages. An ever-expanding career contin- ued to outshine an ever-worsening physical state. Winner of the Wolf Prize for assisting mankind. +1989 Prince of Asturias Award for notable discoveries. +1994 Discusses his personal life alongside lectures on ther- modynamics of black holes and more in 1994's Black Holes and Baby Universes and Other Essays. +2006 Copley Medal of the Royal Society for outstanding scientific research. Divorced 2nd wife and grew close to his family in 2006. Co-published a science book for children with his daughter, Lucy. +2007 Age 65: Hawking ex- perienced space simulation at Kennedy Space Center. His reaction? "The zero-G part was wonderful and the higher-G part was no problem. I could have gone on and on. Space, here I come!" ¥2009 Hawking given highest civilian honor in the U.S.: Presidential Medal of Freedom. Since then: Published The Grand Design, a discussion of the universe's origin: + Starred in his own Discovery channel mini-series + Celebrated his 70th birthday Before Hawking, the oldest ALS patients made it to 32 and 39 years of age. He's considered one of the most influential minds of our time. And he was supposed to die 40 years ago. In sum? 14 Books Written 16 Films & Series Awards Produced Received 1 Debilitating Medical Condition Badass Brain OnlinePhD.org Sources: http://www.brighthub.com/science/space/articles/42591.aspx http://www.biography.com/people/stephen-hawking-9331710?page%3D4 http://www.csupomona.edu/-nova/scientists/articles/hawk.html http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2004/jul/21/spaceexploration.sciencel This Work is Licensed Under a Creative Commons License BY NO ND От