14 March 2018, one of the brightest stars humanity has ever had, left us behind. It’s almost fitting that Stephen Hawking, who dedicated his life to unravelling the secrets of the universe took his final breath on the 03.14; international pi day (not the cake).
The more we find out about the laws which govern us, the more integral the role of mathematics seems to become. Many frustrated by the angles of Pythagoras and the indecipherable laws of integrals, however, Hawking saw it as the language of the universe.
Stephen Hawking: early life
Hawking was born into a family of what many have called “eccentrics”. By his own recounts we know they used to swap out conversation at dinner times with reading books, and in their spare time made fireworks in the garage.
Hawking’s mother, Isobel, went to Oxford University in the early 1930s, which at the time allowed very few women into its esteemed halls. His father, Frank, was responsible for pioneering research into tropical diseases, and remained a prominent name in the medical community until his passing in 1986.
Although his background might have made him pre-destined for greatness, Hawking himself admits in his early days at St. Albans school, and later Oxford University (at the age of 17), he dedicated little more than an hour a day to his studies. However, it seems even that hour a day earned him a PhD position at Cambridge University in cosmology.
Stephen Hawking: living with ALS
His turning point came during his first year at Cambridge, when several incidents led him to get a medical diagnosis. At the age of 21 he left the hospital with diagnosis of Amytrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and a prognosis of 2.5 years left to live.
ALS is a debilitating disease which consists of the slow (and often painful) death of motor neurons. Starting off with general muscle soreness, and involuntary muscle movement, it quickly degenerates into a total loss of movement, coordination, and ultimately leads to difficulties in swallowing, speaking, and eventually breathing. There is no known cure for ALS, and the most promising drug on the market, riluzole, is only effective in prolonging life for about 3 months.
While many of us might have called it quits at this point, decide to enjoy the last few months of life gallivanting around the world – Hawking was finally inspired.
Stephen Hawking: his work
I won’t go into all of his vast contributions to science, for that would take a book to get through, but I will attempt to explain one of his most significant findings.
Essentially, one of the biggest questions surrounding physics today is the merging of the classical and quantum world. For years this has puzzled scientists, as it seems the two were not compatible; one provided the laws for the macroscopic and the other for the subatomic. What Hawking managed to achieve is to do just that; merge the two fields when it came to the topic of black holes.
He went one step further and described a process called Hawking Radiation, which describes the dissipation of black holes with time. A phenomena that previously puzzled researchers, due to the nature of a black hole sucking in everything it comes into contact with. Antiparticles, when collided will self-annihilate, however, he postulated if one of these antiparticles were sucked up by the black hole before collision this would result in, essentially, a negative energy. And according to Einstein’s laws, a loss in energy means a loss in mass.
Stephen Hawking: what can we learn?
Hawking is a testament to not letting life get you down. He accepted there was nothing he could do about his condition, but he also accepted he would not let it define him. He would not let it define what he could achieve, who he was, how others perceived him. Although many will highlight his vast contribution to science, I would argue perhaps his most admirable trait was not his intelligence but his perseverance. He was given 2.5 years left to live and survived for 55; even medicine could not keep this man’s brilliance contained.
“My goal is simple. It is a complete understanding of the universe, why it is and why it exists at all.”
Written by Sophie Z.