I woke up this morning to the news that Stephen Hawking had died and I thought – I really must talk about this. He was a British scientist who must be considered one of the most significant people of recent years – a brilliant mind who contributed so much to our understanding of the nature of reality itself while also struggling against some extreme personal difficulties and for those reasons he’s a great inspiration to many people around the world.

In this episode I’m just going to talk about him, his life, his achievements and how he will continue to be an inspiration to people for many years to come. Let’s learn some English along the way. Vocabulary list & links available below.

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BBC Obituary

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-15555565

Adversity, challenge or difficulty can somehow focus you and force you to concentrate your energy in one direction. It must have been tough, but it’s almost like he thrived on the adversity.

Hawking’s popularity in China

Hawking was popular and inspirational all over the world, but according to a BBC News report he was particularly loved and respected in China.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-43395650

Hawking talks about depression

As well as contributing so much to our understanding of the universe, he also was an inspiration to people struggling against difficulty of various kinds – both physical and mental.

Stephen Hawking Has a Beautiful Message for Anyone Suffering From Depression

A scene from The Theory of Everything

Hawking interviewed by John Oliver (Hawking obviously had a sense of humour)

Monty Python – The Galaxy Song

This is a song written by Eric Idle, for Monty Python’s film “The Meaning of Life”.
Hawking agreed to record a version of this song for Monty Python’s recent live shows.
It’s all about how we should remember that in the context of everything, our problems are actually rather small and insignificant, and by extension we should realise that there are no frontiers in our minds and we should realise that many limitations that we feel inside ourselves are actually imposed on us by ourselves.

Lyrics & ukulele chords: http://stewartgreenhill.com/ukulele/TheGalaxySong.html

Vocabulary which came up in this episode

• motor neurone disease
• he was left almost completely paralysed
• a tracheotomy
• a layman’s guide to cosmology
• He was reportedly offered a knighthood in the 1990s but later revealed he had turned it down over issues with the government’s funding for science.
• He was renowned for his extraordinary capacity to visualise scientific solutions without calculation or experiment.
• Undeterred by his condition, he continued his work
• his condition inevitably made him dependent on others
• Police questioned several people about allegations that he had been subjected to verbal and physical abuse
• He was known to be an erratic, almost reckless driver of his electric wheelchair
• the first quadriplegic to experience weightlessness on board the so-called “vomit comet“
• “I believe that life on Earth is at an ever-increasing risk of being wiped out by a disaster”
• aliens might just raid earth of its resources and then move on
• Stephen Hawking: China’s love for the late physicist
• the world mourns Prof Stephen Hawking, who has died aged 76
• His 2006 visit to China was covered with breathless excitement
• the adulation and respect he has always commanded in China is perhaps in another universe altogether
• a role model ideal for the Chinese state to champion emerged.
• the Chinese government preaches that scientific prowess is crucial to the country’s future power
• he didn’t let it deter him from doing his best to live fully and passionately
• If you are disabled, it is probably not your fault, but it is no good blaming the world or expecting it to take pity on you
• My disabilities have not been a significant handicap in my field