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Stephen William Hawking (8 January 1942, Oxford, UK — 14 March 2018, Cambridge, UK) was an English theoretical physicist, cosmologist, writer, and Director of research At the centre for theoretical cosmology at the University of Cambridge. Author of a number of scientific papers, including joint work with Roger Penrose on the theorems of the gravitational singularity in the framework of General relativity and the theoretical prediction that black holes emit radiation, often referred to as Hawking radiation. Hawking was the first to present a cosmological theory that combined the concepts of General relativity and quantum mechanics. He actively supported the multi-world interpretation of quantum mechanics.

Hawking was an honorary member of the Royal society of arts, a life member of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, and was awarded the Presidential medal of Freedom, the highest award for civilians in the United States. In 2002, in A BBC poll to determine the one hundred greatest Britons of all time, Hawking was ranked 25th. The scientist was a Lukasian Professor of mathematics at the University of Cambridge from 1979-2009, and achieved commercial success thanks to popular science works in which he discusses his own theories and cosmology in General. Hawking's book "a brief history of time" was on the bestseller list of the British edition of the Sunday Times for a record 237 weeks.

Hawking had a rare slow-developing form of motor neuron disease (also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or Lou Gehrig's disease) that gradually paralyzed him over decades. After losing his speech, Hawking was able to communicate using a speech synthesizer, initially using a manual switch, later using a cheek muscle. On March 14, 2018, Stephen Hawking died at the age of 76.

Childhood, family

Stephen Hawking was born on January 8, 1942 in Oxford, where his parents moved from London, fearing the bombing of German aircraft.

Father-Frank Hawking, who worked as a researcher at the medical center in Hampstead. Her mother, Isabel Hawking, was also a Secretary. In addition to Stephen, the family had two younger sisters (Philippa and Mary) and an adopted brother, Edward.

Education

In 1962, Stephen graduated from the University of Oxford (B. A.), and in 1966, he received a Ph. D. from Trinity hall College, Cambridge University.D., having defended his dissertation "Properties of expanding universes".

Since 1965, Hawking at Cambridge University, he worked as a researcher in the College Gonvil and Keyes, in 1968-1972 — the Institute of theoretical astronomy, in 1972-1973 at the Institute of astronomy, 1973-1975 Department of applied mathematics and theoretical physics, in 1975-1977 he taught the theory of gravity, in 1977-1979 — Professor of gravitational physics, 1979 Professor mathematics.

In 1974-1975, he was a fellow at the California Institute of technology.

Hawking himself said that as a Professor of mathematics, he had never received any mathematical education since high school. In his first year of teaching at Oxford, Hawking read a textbook two weeks ahead of his own students.

Confession

In 1974, Hawking became a fellow of the Royal society of London, and in 1979 he became a Lucasian Professor at the University of Cambridge. He held this position until 2009.

In 1973, he visited the USSR, and during his stay in Moscow, he discussed the problems of black holes with Soviet scientists Yakov Zeldovich and Alexey Starobinsky. In 1981, Hawking participated in an international seminar on the quantum theory of gravity, held in Moscow.

Disability

Already in the early 1960s, Hawking began to show signs of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, which later led to paralysis. After the diagnosis of the disease in 1963, doctors believed that he had only two and a half years left to live, but the disease did not progress so quickly, and he began using a wheelchair only in the late 1960s.

In 1985, Stephen Hawking became seriously ill with pneumonia. After a series of operations, he underwent a tracheostomy, and Hawking lost the ability to speak. Friends gave him a speech synthesizer that was mounted on his wheelchair. Only the index finger on Hawking's right hand remained mobile. Subsequently, the mobility remained only in the facial muscle of the cheek, opposite which the sensor is fixed. With it, the physicist controlled a computer that allowed him to communicate with others.

Despite a serious illness, he led an active life. In 2007, he flew in weightlessness on a special plane, and in 2009, a flight into space was planned, which did not take place.

Personal life

In 1965, he married Jane Wilde, and later they had a son, Robert (b. 1967), a daughter, Lucy (b.1970), and a son, Timothy (b. 1979). Stephen's relationship with Jane gradually deteriorated, and in 1990 they began to live separately. After divorcing Jane in 1995, Hawking married his carer, Elaine Mason, with whom he lived for 11 years. They also divorced in October 2006.

Death

Hawking died at the age of 76 at his home in Cambridge on the night of March 14, 2018. His family issued a statement of their grief. The cause of his death has not yet been disclosed, only that he died peacefully.

Conviction

Stephen Hawking was an atheist. He held left-wing views and was a labour supporter in British politics. In March 1968, he participated in a March against the Vietnam war. He called the war in Iraq in 2003 a "war crime" and participated in anti-war events, as well as boycotted a conference in Israel because of disagreement with the policy of the authorities of this country towards the Palestinians. He supported nuclear disarmament, the fight against climate change, and universal health care. In the last years of his life, he participated in campaigns in support of the UK's National health service, against its funding cuts and creeping privatisation; he was one of the applicants in a lawsuit against the health Secretary, Jeremy hunt, who initiated the further commercialization of medicine.

Scientific activity

One of the most influential and well-known theoretical physicists of our time, one of the founders of quantum cosmology.

Hawking's main research area is cosmology and quantum gravity. Its main achievements:

• application of thermodynamics to the description of black holes;

* development in 1975 of the theory that black holes "evaporate" due to a phenomenon called Hawking radiation;

In addition, in 1971, as part of the Big Bang theory, Hawking proposed the concept of microscopic black holes, whose mass could be billions of tons and still occupy the volume of a proton. These objects are at the intersection of relativity (because of their huge mass and gravity) and quantum mechanics (because of their size).

Famous disputes

In 1974, a joke bet was made between Stephen Hawking and Kip Thorne (a one-year subscription to Penthouse magazine if Thorne won, against a four-year subscription to Private Eye magazine if Hawking won) about the nature of the Cygnus X-1 object and the nature of its radiation. Hawking, in contrast to his theory based on the existence of black holes, bet that Cygnus X-1 is not a black hole (as he said: "even if I'm wrong, at least I'll win a subscription to the magazine"). He conceded defeat in 1990, when observational data reinforced the belief that there was a gravitational singularity in the system.

In 1997, Hawking and Kip Thorne made a bet on a complete edition of the encyclopedia Britannica with John Preskill, a Professor at the California Institute of technology and Director of the Institute for quantum information, on the question of preserving information about matter previously captured by a black hole and subsequently radiated by it. Professor Preskill believed that the radiation from a black hole carries information, but we can't decipher it. Professor Hawking believed, according to his own theory from 1975, that this information is basically impossible to detect, because it branches off into a parallel Universe, absolutely inaccessible to us and absolutely unknowable.

In August 2004, at the international conference on General relativity and cosmology in Dublin, Professor Hawking presented a revolutionary theory of black holes and simultaneously stated that Professor Preskill was right, and he and Thorne were wrong. It follows from the report that the black hole distorts the swallowed information, but still does not destroy it completely. In the end, in the process of evaporation of the black hole information still comes out of her embrace. As usual, in an attempt to intrigue listeners who are not ready to accept quantum wisdom, Hawking advised science fiction fans to give up the dream that a dive into a black hole can be a throw to another Universe. However, Professor Preskill noted that he did not fully understand Hawking's arguments, but he is happy with his victory and will accept the encyclopedia. A third participant in the dispute, Professor Thorne, said that he did not agree with Hawking. In 2016, Hawking published a research paper on this issue.

Popularization of science

Hawking was active in popularizing science. In April 1988, the book "a brief history of time" was published, which became a bestseller.

Then came the books "Black holes and young universes "(1993) and" The world in a nutshell " (2001). In 2005, a new edition of "Brief history..." was published — "the Shortest history of time", co-authored with Leonard Mlodinov.In 2006, together with his daughter Lucy, Hawking wrote a book for children "George and the secrets of the Universe".

Hawking stated that space flight is crucial for the future of humanity, because life on Earth is in ever-increasing danger of being destroyed by global problems such as nuclear war, genetically modified viruses, or other dangers that we have not yet thought about.

Hawking was one of the signatories of The "project Steve" Declaration in support of the theory of evolution and for preventing the teaching of creationism in public schools in the United States.

On television, popular science films with Hawking's participation were released: the six-part "the universe of Stephen Hawking" (eng. Stephen Hawking's Universe) (1997) and the three-part "Into the Universe with Stephen Hawking" (eng. Into the Universe with Stephen Hawking) (2010).In 2012, the film "the Great plan for Stephen Hawking" was released on the Discovery channel, and in 2014, the TV series "the Science of the future of Stephen Hawking" was launched on the National Geographic channel.

At the end of 2015, the Royal society of London presented the "Stephen Hawking Medal for scientific communication", which will be awarded annually to scientists and artists for the dissemination of scientific knowledge and awarded during the international festival of science and arts "Starmus", held in the Canary Islands.

In 2015, Hawking supported Yuri Milner's "Breakthrough Listen" project to search for radio and light signals from extraterrestrial life. In April 2016, he co-authored the project "Breakthrough Starshot" to send mini-vehicles to the alpha Centauri star system.

In 2016, he called microscopic black holes a source of almost unlimited energy.

Stephen Hawking is widely mentioned in literary, musical, and cinematic works of art. Steven himself has also been involved in media projects.

Rewards

• Eddington Medal (1975)

• Pius XI gold medal (1975)

• Hughes Medal (1976)

• Danny Heineman prize in mathematical physics (1976)

• Medal of Maxwell (eng. Maxwell Medal and Prize) (1976)

* Doctor Honoris causa of the University of Oxford (1978)

* Einstein Prize (1978)

• Albert Einstein Medal (1979)

• The Franklin Medal (1981)

* Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE, 1982)

• Gold medal of the Royal astronomical society (1985)

* Dirac Medal (1987)

* Wolf prize in physics (1988)

• Order Of The Knights Of Honor (1989)

• Prince of Asturias award (1989)

* Gold medal of the Supreme Council for scientific research (1989)

* Schrodinger lecture (Imperial College London) (1989)

* Honoris causa of Harvard University (1990)

* Marcel Grossman Award (1991)

• Andrew Gemant Award (1998)

* The Naylor award Naylor Prize and Lectureship) (1999)

• Albert medal (Royal society of arts) (1999)

• Julius Edgar Lilienfeld Award (1999)

• Award of the Michelson — Morley (eng. Michelson-Morley Award) (2003)

* Oscar Klein Medal (2003)

• Medal in honor of the bicentennial of James Smithson (eng. The James Smithson Bicentennial Medal) (2005)

* Copley Medal (2006)

• Award Fonseca (eng. Fonseca Prize) (2008)

* Presidential medal of Freedom (2009)

* Robert Heinlein medal (FR. Robert A. Heinlein Memorial Award) (2012)

* Fundamental physics award (2013)

• The Bodley Medal (2015)

• BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Awards (2015)

Hawking was a member of the Royal society of London (1974, became one of the youngest members of the society), the Pontifical Academy of Sciences (1986), and the US National Academy of Sciences (1992).

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