I had heard about Prof. Stephen Hawking, knew he was a great “scientist”. I had also seen his appearances in American sitcom The Big Bang Theory.
During one of my conversations with Prof Shaleel, we started discussing about Prof.Stephen Hawking.
Intrigued by this, I started learning more about him. I caught up with a few videos of his life including his famous Ted Talk, it only left me inspired.
This great Therotical Physisist was diagnosed with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrigs Disease) and was told he had 2 years to live at the age of 21. This was a progressive neurological disorder that would eventually paralyse his movement, basic functions like swallowing and even breathing. So much so that he now communicates through a speech synthesiser.
This person, now 75 has braved these adversities and not just survived but has made remarkable strides in fields of General Relativity, Quantum Gravity and Cosmology.
What a great lesson it is. All of us face adversities in our lives everyday. While the magnitude of it is only for our individual minds to perceive, what we can borrow from Prof. Hawking is that, if we decide brave it, nothing can stop. It’s just that we have to decide.
I leave you with this quote of his which sums up his perspective towards his life and disability-
“All my life I have sought to understand the universe and find answers to these questions, I have been very lucky that my disability has not been a serious handicap. Indeed it has given me more time than most people to pursue the quest for knowledge.”
-Prof. Stephen Hawking
Hats off sir! Hats Off.
Feature Image Courtesy
Lwp Kommunikáció/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/lwpkommunikacio/16203367706