stephen hawking

Stephen Hawking, Theoretical Physicist, Cosmologist, Author, educator and social leader leads a life of intellectual adventure that has marked his place in history. While his theories and scientific contributions are well documented, there is much to learn and emulate from the personal context of his life. These personal attributes and adventures are an integrated part of his contribution as a leader among his peers. In his brash way he has challenged friend and adversary alike to go beyond their scientific positions and his own as well. His leadership qualities were demonstrated early in his life at college where he was a coaxer for his sculling team, during his life as a challenging coach of sorts betting his peers to challenge his opinions, and currently as an opportunity advocate for people with disabilities and for exploration and development beyond Planet Earth. So consumed in understanding the universe he sees his great value in the scientists of the past and present, understanding the magnitude of the intellectual task and the need for the best minds of humanity to engage together. He is quick to concede arguments when evidence is clear and quick to challenge unsubstantiated claims. While he counsels with the greatest minds of our time, he had contributed to the uplifting of the general population by painstakingly explaining theories of general relativity, singularity and time-space continuum in a way that engages and stimulates the thoughts of anyone who cares to take interest in the origins and destiny of the human species and the space we live in. Like the early Doctor of the Christian Church and academician, Augustine in a way, he seeks to understand the concept of creation and the riddle behind the concept of ...

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...a prerequisite for scientific accomplishment. He remained at Caius where he was researching and teaching and in 1969 got a tailored ‘Fellowship for Distinction in Science’.

In 1970, Hawking discovered that the event horizon of a black hole can never get smaller; the second law of black hole dynamics. He proposed the four laws of black hole mechanics with and drew an analogy with thermodynamics. This was an example of his ability to explain complex theories to a general audience. He got the Gravity Research Foundation Award in 1971 for his essay, "Black Holes". During this time period his daughter Lucy was born demonstrating what Hawking’s said of himself, that he was a normal person with drives and desires. Like accomplished professional in many fields, he wrote his first book with George Ellis, The Large Scale Structure of Space and Time, published in 1973.