Stephen Hawking 1942-2018 Physicist Stephen Hawking – the world-famous author of A Brief History of Time – dies at the age of 76. For most of his life he was almost completely paralyzed by motor neurone disease Jan 8, 1942: Born Oxford, England 1963: First diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis 1966: Completes doctorate, awarded fellowship at Cambridge 1968: Publishes highly-technical Large Scale Structure of Space Time 1970: By integrating cornerstones of modern physics – Newtonian Theory of Relativity and quantum theory – Hawking proposes that black holes leak energy and fade to nothing, phenomenon known as Hawking radiation 1976: Hawking argues that when black hole disappears all information about everything ever inside hole disappears too. This leads to Black Hole paradox: If information is lost forever then science can never know the past or predict the future 1985: After catching pneumonia he undergoes tracheotomy. Unable to speak naturally – communicates with head-controlled speech synthesizer 1988: A Brief History of Time published, goes on to sell more than 10 million copies 1993-2002: Writes books, essays and scientific articles explaining ways in which universe may be governed. Hawking’s celebrity status is acknowledged by The Simpsons – he is depicted drinking with Homer, suggesting he might steal Homer’s idea that universe is doughnut- shaped. Rock group Pink Floyd uses his synthesised voice for introduction to Keep Talking, on their 1994 album The Division Bell 2007: Becames first quadriplegic to experience weightlessness on board so-called “vomit comet”, modified plane specially designed to simulate zero gravity 2014: Life story portrayed in film The Theory of Everything, charting his rise to fame and relationship with first wife, Jane Accepted theory: Black holes are regions of space where gravity is so strong that not even light can escape Event horizon Point at which nothing can escape – black hole becomes invisible Singularity Theoretical region of infinite density and pressure Accretion disk Pictures: Hubble Space Telescope, Getty Images