Stephen Hawking

Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at the University of Cambridge. One of the world's experts on GeneralRelativity. Discovered a mechanism (HawkingRadiation) by which BlackHoles can shrink and eventually evaporate. His book "A BriefHistoryOfTime?" was a best-seller.

Hawking also has the disease variously known as Motor Neuron Disease, Motor Neurone Disease, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig's Disease ("Lou Gehrig died of Lou Gehrig's Disease... how the hell didn't he see that one coming?" --Dennis Leary). It's a degenerative brain disorder whose only good feature is that it doesn't damage the mind. Hawking is confined to a wheelchair, uses a computer to speak (very slowly!), and certainly can't do such things as scribbling an equation or drawing a diagram. That he manages to do first-rate Theoretical Physics in spite of this gives some indication of the quality of his mind.

As a much less known side career, Stephen Hawking performs gangsta rap. See http://www.mchawking.com/ for details.

When he guest-starred on TheSimpsons?, was that really him or did they just rent a narration device like his? -- PCP

He was credited, so I guess we can assume it was him. But I really have no idea. -- CorwinLightWilliams

I'm pretty sure it was really him. -- GarethMcCaughan

"For Shame." -- StephenHawking on TheSimpsons?

It was him. He is a great fan of the Simpsons. I watched a documentary, where he had Homer running away from a BlackHole, in a demonstration of what might happen when a BlackHole bends space. Most amusing (and interesting).

That's from TheSimpsons? Treehouse Of Horror VII, when Homer discovers a hole leading into the ThirdDimension?. An excellent episode. Of course, StephenHawking also featured in an episode of StarTrek The Next Generation, something which I'm surprised hasn't been mentioned here yet!

And, of course, he was also on Futurama, as part of Vice President Gore's team of super-nerds charged by the Constitution to protect the space-time continuum. Al Gore was also credited in that episode. Suffice it to say, this guy is on TV a lot. He's the Dr. Joyce Brothers of physics, except he's also good at physics.

See also GeneralRelativity, SpecialRelativity, QuantumPhysics, QuantumMechanics, AlbertEinstein, NielsBohr, ErwinSchroedinger, RogerPenrose

CategoryScientist CategoryPhysics