Stephen William Hawking was one of the most influential scientists in modern physics. Diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in his youth, he lived with the disease for more than half a century while making key contributions to cosmology and the understanding of the universe.
Stephen William Hawking was born on January 8, 1942 in Oxford, England, and died on March 14, 2018 in Cambridge, United Kingdom.
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Theoretical physicist and cosmologist, he is considered a central figure in science at the end of the 20th century. and beginning of the 21st century for his contributions to fundamental physics.
He completed his undergraduate studies at University College, Oxford, where he obtained a degree in physics, and continued his academic training at Trinity Hall, Cambridge, specializing in general relativity and cosmology, according to the newspaper ‘As’.
At this university he developed most of his career, and between 1979 and 2009 he held the Lucasian chair of mathematicsone of the most prestigious in the scientific field.
He was diagnosed with ALS, a progressive neurodegenerative disease. Photo:EFE.
The illness did not stop his curiosity
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At the age of 21, he was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a progressive neurodegenerative disease that over time caused almost total paralysis and the need to communicate using a voice synthesizer.
Despite this, he continued his research and academic work for decades, living 55 years longer than initial medical prognoses anticipated.
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In addition to his scientific work, Hawking reflected on the mind, creativity and introspection.
The phrase “Calm and quiet people have the strongest and loudest minds.” has been interpreted as a synthesis of his personal experience, marked by the contrast between his physical limitations and his intense intellectual activity.
His most relevant contributions
In 1974, Hawking theorized that black holes are not completely black.but rather they emit thermal radiation due to quantum effects, a phenomenon known as Hawking radiation.
According to what was mentioned by the media, this proposal integrated concepts from quantum mechanics and general relativity, modifying the scientific understanding of these cosmic objects.
He theorized that black holes are not black, but rather emit thermal radiation. Photo:iStock
He was also a prominent scientific communicator. your book ‘A brief history of time: from the Big Bang to black holes’, Published in 1988, it became an international publishing success and brought complex concepts of cosmology to a wide audience.
Throughout his career he received multiple awards, including membership in the Royal Society, the Copley Medal and the Presidential Medal of Freedom of the United States in 2009.
In addition, He had a presence in popular culture through appearances in television series and cinematographic representations of his life.
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Stephen Hawking’s legacy remains valid both in scientific research and dissemination, consolidating him as a key figure in the contemporary history of science.
Hawking and the final warning: why humanity cannot afford to live on one planet
In one of his most forceful warnings, the scientist stated that he did not believe that the human species could survive the next thousand years if it failed to spread beyond Earth.
His approach was based on a central idea: a civilization confined to a single planet is extremely vulnerable.
On the scale of the universe, a thousand years represent just an instant, but a period sufficient for a catastrophic event to occur capable of putting an end to the entire species.
Hawking was not talking about an immediate threat or an inevitable short-term destiny. Their concern was based on the probability accumulated over time.
Among those risks, he mentioned nuclear wars, created or mismanaged pandemics, climate collapse and an asteroid impact. All, to a greater or lesser extent, with the capacity to cause global extinction.
Among these risks, he mentioned nuclear wars, created or poorly managed pandemics. Photo:Weather Archive
Unlike the great disappearances of the past, the astrophysicist stressed that the main current dangers do not come from the cosmos, but from humanity itself.
In this imbalance I saw a clear sign: The human species is highly intelligent, but still immature. Destructive power is growing rapidly, while global cooperation and the wisdom to manage that power advance more slowly.
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For Hawking, the real problem was not the Earth itself, but the absolute dependence on a single home. If all humanity lives on one planet, one disaster is enough to end everything.
*This content was written with the assistance of artificial intelligence, based on publicly known information disclosed to the media. In addition, it was reviewed by the journalist and an editor.
JOS GUERRERO
DIGITAL SCOPE EDITORIAL
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