Scientist and Advocate for Peace Dies
Well known scientist Stephen Hawking passed away on Wednesday in the United Kingdom at the age of 76.
Hawking, a citizen of the UK, was a famous cosmologist, theoretical physicist, and author. He was also regarded as one of the most brilliant minds in the world.
The scientist spent most of his life as a disabled man. At the age of 22 Hawking was given a few years to live after being diagnosed with a rare form of motor neurone disease. The illness left him in a wheelchair and he was unable to speak except through a voice synthesizer. The scientific community gave credit to Hawking.
“His passing has left an intellectual vacuum in his wake,” TV scientist Neil DeGrasse Tyson said. “But it’s not empty. Think of it as a kind of vacuum energy permeating the fabric of space time that defies measure.”
Hawking compiled a long list of accomplishments in his lifetime. He was the director of research at the Centre for Theoretical Cosmology at Cambridge University, an honorary fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, and the recipient of the US Presidential Medal of Freedom and countless other prestigious awards. He was the author or co-author of twelve popular science books and wrote over a dozen scientific films or documentary series, in addition to academic papers.
Less talked about at the time of his death was Hawking’s advocacy of peace and justice related issues. He spoke out against numerous wars and in favor of nuclear disarmament, called for action against climate catastrophe, and defended social programs that help society progress.
When the US and UK invaded Iraq in 2003, Hawking condemned the war. At a peace demonstration in London in 2004, he blasted the Iraq War as a war crime that was based on lies. Earlier, Hawking had spoken out against the Vietnam War. On the issue of climate change, Hawking condemned President Donald Trump for his denial of global warming and for opposing action on climate change.
Hawking was in the tradition of other great scientists like Albert Einstein and Carl Sagan who were also interested in peace and justice issues.
