Celebrating Stephen Hawking. Physicist Stephen Hawking was not well enough to attend his 70th birthday celebration today. Hawking has Lou Gehrig’s or motor neuron disease, diagnosed when he was 21. Known for his work on black holes and his best selling books ( Brief History of Time , The Universe in a Nutshell ), Hawking has also made some remarkable statements through the years.
Huffington Post’s new Science section lists a few of his memorable quotes:
• People who boast about their IQ are losers.
• My goal is simple. It is a complete understanding of the universe, why it is as it is and why it exists at all.
• I don’t think the human race will survive the next thousand years, unless we spread into space. There are too many accidents that can befall life on a single planet. But I’m an optimist. We will reach out to the stars.
• I think computer viruses should count as life … I think it says something about human nature that the only form of life we have created so far is purely destructive. We’ve created life in our own image.
• We are so insignificant that I can’t believe the whole universe exists for our benefit. That would be like saying that you would disappear if I closed my eyes.
• We are just an advanced breed of monkeys on a minor planet of a very average star. But we can understand the Universe. That makes us something very special.
• What I have done is to show that it is possible for the way the universe began to be determined by the laws of science. In that case, it would not be necessary to appeal to God to decide how the universe began. This doesn’t prove that there is no God, only that God is not necessary.
Images and Quotes via: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/08/stephen-hawking-birthday_n_1192286.html?ref=science#s592662
For #ScienceSunday curated by Allison Sekuler and Robby Bowles .
madame scientist's not-so-mad musings 
Incredible!
He’s such a tough old bastard! We are very lucky to still have him around and that he never gave up on life. Doctors predicted that he wouldn’t make it past the age of 25 yet he made many revolutionary discoveries in cosmology and quantum gravity long after that predicted date! I’ve got gigatons of respect for that man! 🙂
Although he is unable to attend himself, his symposium lecture is being played live right now: http://intelstudios.edgesuite.net/Hawking70/Hawking.html
Thank you, Tommi Himberg ! Listening in right now. He said he may lose a $100 bet over Higgs Bosun being found 🙂
awesome
“So remember to look up at the stars and not at your feet”, Stephen Hawking, recording played at his 70th birthday celebration right now.
We can play the Chuck Norris game with Stephen Hawking too: “Hawking radiation is the energy sucked out when a black hole passes too close to Stephen Hawking’s intellect.”
My IQ is so small, I forget about it all the time.
LOL, Nathan Fong , keep ’em coming! 😉
Of course, Stephen Hawking’s black hole sucked in Chuck Norris a long time ago.
Thanks for thought Rajini Rao !! 🙂
The pictures of God are always incredible BELLISSIME
God? Space?
superbbbbbbbbbbbbbb
wow ya……….
super yar…….
nice
very nice rajini
Xenocide Wiggin absolutely NO if you want It is just a poetic interpretation
lucky…or I was going to have to fly into a nerd rage and….play Skyrim? derive some stuff but..angrily? :p
Life is beautiful!
Im deeply concerned about how amazed you all are with these things. If you go outside with a 12″ Dob you can see some incredible things with your own eyes including the sombrero galaxy (honestly the most beautiful thing ive looked at in my life) Im a really big supporter of people using their brains for more than getting their nails done particularly women. I see hardly any other women in physics and its really sad. Seriously, go outside and look up. The universe is an incredible place and humanity has a lot to learn and we all need to pitch in!
My take is Ender is out there on a long loop orbit… he’ll be back soon(tm). Sadly, won’t he be surprised?
IM BACK!! those buggers were really kicking my arse but I have returned highly successful 😉