90 famous phrases of Stephen Hawking
You have surely heard about this famous character. Stephen Harwking (1942 - 2018) was an eminence in the study areas of physics and astrophysics, becoming an innovative scientific genius who he postulated theories such as black holes and their radiation (Hawking radiation) and space-time singularities referring to the relativity.
But it is in itself his life, his efforts and his passion for his work that we most admire about this man, since he did it despite his degenerative disease: Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (THE A). He showed us that there really are no obstacles that we can't break down if we really want to do something of value with our lives.
- We recommend you read: "The 85 best phrases of Isaac Newton"
Famous and important quotes by Stephen Hawking
To honor his life and his work, we have brought a compilation of the most significant phrases of this astrophysicist.
1. I am not afraid of death, but I am not in a hurry to die. I have so many things that I want to do before.
Not being afraid of death does not imply that you want it to come soon, but rather that it is accepted as part of life.
2. Today we are still struggling to find out why we are here and where we really come from.
We all have that eternal question of what is our purpose in the world.
3. Life would be tragic if it were not funny.
You always have to find the good times so as not to drown in misfortunes.
4. Although there was a cloud over my future, I found, to my surprise, that I enjoyed life in the present more than I ever had.
If this physique teaches us anything, it is that we can make our own destiny despite the circumstances.
5. We are just a race of advanced monkeys on a planet smaller than your average star. But we can understand the universe. That makes us very special.
What makes us unique is our ability to think and create.
6. Aliens visit us, the result will be like when Columbus arrived in America, which did not turn out so well for Native Americans.
A somewhat fatalistic view of the arrival of aliens on Earth.
7. I've spent my life traveling the universe, inside my mind.
The things we imagine can become real if we work for it.
8. The next time someone complains that they made a mistake, tell them that it may be a good thing. Because without imperfection, neither you nor I would exist.
Errors, sometimes, are the key or the necessary step to achieve a goal.
9. I have come to realize that even people who say that everything is predestined and that we cannot do anything to change our destiny, keep looking both ways before crossing the street.
We all fight against what is imposed on us. Including the destination.
10. The development of full artificial intelligence could spell the end of the human race.
The physicist predicted that humans would one day be replaced by machines.
11. My expectations were reduced to 0 when he was 21 years old. Everything that has happened since then has been bonds.
Despite having a major health problem, he decided that since it did not affect his mind, he would live through it.
12. Obviously, due to my disability, I need help.
Of course, he never denied his difficulties and accepted all the help that he could.
13. The voice he used is that of an old synthesizer made in 1986. I still keep it because I still don't hear a voice that I like the most and because at this point, I already identify with it.
Speaking of an assist that became a unique feature of him.
14. I think computer viruses shouldn't count as life. I think it says something about human nature: that the only life form we have created is purely destructive.
Human beings have the potential to create extremely harmful things.
15. I am an expert on time, but in another much more personal sense. I am uncomfortably, acutely aware of the passage of time.
The reason this man lived so intensely is because he knew how short his life could be.
16. Science is not only a discipline of reason, it is also a discipline of romance and passion
Science is everywhere as long as something can be explained and demonstrated.
17. Intelligence is the ability to adapt to changes.
Accepting changes is of great benefit to everyone, because that is where the opportunities to grow are.
18. The victim should have the right to end her life, if he wants to. But I think it would be a big mistake. As bad as life may seem, there is always something you can do, and be successful at it.
A very interesting reflection on life and death by decision.
19. The universe did not need God's help to begin to exist.
Firm belief about divine non-intervention in the creation of the universe.
20. I have always tried to overcome the limitations of my condition and lead a life as complete as possible. I have traveled all over the world, from Antarctica to zero gravity.
Proving that a condition should not limit us, but that we must find a way to include it.
21. One cannot argue with a mathematical theorem.
The math is always exact.
22. Einstein was wrong when he said that "God does not play dice with the Universe." Considering the black hole hypotheses, God doesn't just play dice with the Universe: he sometimes throws them where we can't see them.
Referring to the fact that we cannot understand God's reasons for acting.
23. I have lived much of my life with the feeling that the time allotted to me is, as they say, a loan.
A reference to the almost unheard of that despite all negative prognoses, he was still alive.
24. Humanity has a thousand years to go before self-destructing at the hands of its scientific and technological advances.
A terrible prophecy that may be the truest of all.
25. The universe has not only a history, but any possible history.
What is the true origin of the universe?
26. The human race needs an intellectual challenge. It must be boring to be God and have nothing to discover.
An irreverent way of saying that we need more things to learn.
27. Since there is a law like gravity, the Universe could and was created out of nothing. Spontaneous creation is the reason that there is something rather than nothing, it is the reason that the Universe exists, that we exist. It is not necessary to invoke God as the one who lit the fuse and created the Universe.
A blunt statement that the universe does not have a divine origin.
28. Every time I hear about that cat, I start to pull out my gun.
The sample of his desperation before the paradox of Schrödinger.
29. People who brag about their IQ are losers.
Egocentric people only gloat over sadistic pleasure.
30. On Earth, I have experienced ups and downs, turbulence and peace, success and suffering, I have been rich and poor, capable and disabled. I have been praised and criticized, but never ignored.
Everything in this life is good and bad, so you have to learn to cope with failures and not fear success.
31. Eternity is a long time, especially towards the end.
Eternity is infinite.
32. To survive, humans have to consume food, which is an orderly form of energy, and convert it into heat, which is a disordered form of energy.
To survive we even need order and chaos.
33. The danger is that our power to harm or destroy the environment or our peers increases much faster than our wisdom in using that power.
Unfortunately, every day it seems that respect for nature and our home is being lost a little more.
34. The radiation that remains from the Big Bang is the same as that from your microwave but much less strong.
A fun way to explain this event.
35. Quiet and silent people have the strongest and loudest minds.
You don't need to show off your abilities to let others know what you can do.
36. Science predicts that many different types of Universe would spontaneously be created out of nothing. It is a matter of chance in which we are.
Despite knowing that the Universe started from nowhere, different scenarios are still being raised as to why it was created.
37. To my colleagues, I am just another physicist, but to the general public I became arguably the best-known scientist in the world.
Everyone sees us in different ways, depending on what quality they focus on.
38. We just have to look at ourselves to see how life could turn into something smart that we don't want to carry out.
A peculiar way of motivating ourselves to stop creating things that resemble humans.
39. We are so insignificant that I cannot believe that the entire universe exists for our benefit. That would be like saying you would disappear if I closed my eyes.
Referring to the fact that it is impossible to be the only ones in the vast Universe.
40. If we discover a complete theory, it will eventually be, in its main lines, understandable to everyone and not just to a few scientists.
In order for everyone to understand a theory, it must be expressed as simply as possible.
41. Our only chance for long-term survival is to expand into space.
Predicting that it is necessary to explore the Universe to make it our possible future home.
42. Go the extra mile. Make your boss look like an incompetent bum.
Never stop showing how competent you can be.
43. We have made great progress in the last hundred years, but if we want to continue beyond the next hundred years, the future is in space. That is why I am in favor of space flight.
Again she reminds us that it is necessary and even vital to explore space.
44. Women. They are a complete mystery.
It is well said that it is never possible to fully understand a woman. Is it true?
45. I wish it would last forever.
Speaking of his flight in zero gravity.
46. Simplicity is a matter of taste.
There are those who enjoy the simple and there are those who bore him.
47. The next time you talk to someone who denies the existence of climate change, tell them to take a trip to Venus. I will take care of the expenses.
Human ignorance is ridiculously unbelievable at times.
48. I am not saying that God does not exist. God is the name that people give to the reason we are here. But I think this reason is the laws of physics and not someone with whom we can have a personal relationship.
Hawking had his own vision of God.
49. To limit our attention to earthly matters would be to limit the human spirit.
A reference to that it is necessary to project them beyond the banal questions.
50. By memorizing something we increase the disorder of the universe.
For everything that we know, there is one that we do not know.
51. There is no greater challenge than studying the Universe.
Especially considering how vast, complex and mysterious it is.
52. Through theoretical physics, I have tried to answer some of the big questions.
The only way Stephen made sense of the mysteries of life.
53. People will not have time for you if you are always angry or complain.
No one will want to be with you if you have an attitude that invites them to walk away.
54. The worst enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge.
If you don't know something then do your research and seek advice from those who are experts in it.
55. The human error that I would most like to correct is aggression. It may have had a survival advantage in caveman days, to get more food, territory, or mate to breed with, but now it threatens to destroy us all.
Aggression no longer has importance in the current one, instead of being a beneficial trait it is a destructive tool.
56. We live in a universe governed by rational laws that we can discover and understand. Let's look up at the stars and not down at our feet.
Each thing has its explanation, it just needs to be found.
57. Time travel used to be considered just science fiction, but Einstein's general theory of relativity allows consider the possibility that we could warp spacetime enough for you to go off in a rocket and come back before leave.
Even the most impossible or fanciful things can come true if someone dares to inquire about it.
58. When we look at the Universe, we see it as it was in the past.
The brilliance of many stars is the remnant of what they once were.
59. At a certain point, I believed that I would see the end of physics as we know it, but now I believe that the wonder of discovery will continue long after I am gone.
Talking about the continuous evolution of physics.
60. Nothing can exist forever.
Everything has its beginning and its end.
61. Try to make sense of what you see and ask yourself what you do to the universe.
This phrase encourages us to seek an explanation for what surrounds us.
62. If there were events before this time, then it could not affect what happens today. Its existence can be ignored, as it would have no observational consequences.
The past should not have any influence on the past, other than being a story to learn.
63. We are running out of space and the only spaces we can go to are other worlds.
A logical alternative, but will we be able to carry it out?
64. Life is a wonderful thing
Despite all his setbacks, Hawking was able to fully enjoy his time in the world.
65. Be curious. As tough as life may seem, there is always something you can do to be successful. the important thing is that you never give up.
A valuable phrase that we must take into account.
66. Each of us existed for a short space of time, and in that time we can explore only a small part of the entire Universe.
To fully study the Universe, it may take the intervention of every person on the planet.
67. When faced with the possibility of an early death, you realize that there are many things you want to do before your life is over.
We cling tightly to life when it is threatened.
68. The universe does not allow perfection.
We humans are holding onto this vision.
69. There is no single image of reality.
Everyone has their own truth.
70. I think that extraterrestrial life is quite common in the Universe, although intelligent life is not so common. Some say it has yet to appear on planet Earth.
Referring to whether we are really smart.
71. In more than three dimensions the sun would not be able to exist in a stable state with the balance of its internal pressure due to the force of gravity. It would crumble or collapse to form a black hole, either of which could ruin your day.
On the existence of various dimensions.
72. Now we are all connected by the Internet, like neurons in a giant brain.
The Internet has been, is and will be a very effective communication tool.
73. I like physics, but I love cartoons.
Our work does not define us completely. We are more than that.
74. I can't dress up in a wig and dark glasses: the wheelchair gives me away. But people seem really pleased to see me.
The man who managed to make his disability his greatest pride.
75. The more you learn, the more you know. The more you know, the more you will forget. The more you forget, the less you know. So why bother learning?
You have to learn the things that we are really passionate about knowing.
76. If you understand the Universe, you somehow control it.
To master something it is necessary to understand it in its entirety.
77. The universe does not behave according to our preconceptions. She continues to surprise us.
Could the Universe have a life of its own?
78. It is not clear that intelligence has long-term survival value.
Intelligence is a necessary trait for life, but it is not everything.
79. The popular image of science in the future is shown on television every night in science fiction series like 'Star Trek'. They even persuaded me to participate in it, although it was not very difficult for them.
We all have this idea of the future, created from science fiction stories.
80. I view the brain as a computer that will stop working when its components fail. There is no sky or anything else, it is a fairy tale for people to be afraid of the dark.
Referring to that there is nothing after death.
81. No one can resist the idea of a crippled genius.
A distinctive image that he was able to capitalize on.
82. One million million million million million (1 with twenty-four zeros behind it) miles, is the size of the observable universe.
The distance we can see from the universe.
83. You cannot predict the future.
It is impossible to know what will happen, but you can have a suspicion depending on the decisions we make today.
84. Why are we here? Where we come from? Science today provides better and more consistent answers, but people always cling to religion, because it provides comfort, and because they do not trust or understand the science.
Again he makes the reference that it is counterproductive to cling to religion when science has explained many things about it.
85. We live in the most probable of all possible worlds.
It is no accident that we are on this planet.
86. The past, like the future, is undefined and exists only as a spectrum of possibilities.
What could be yesterday and what will be tomorrow are just conjectures.
87. For millions of years, humanity lived like animals. Then something happened that unleashed the power of our imagination. We learned to speak and we learned to listen.
The way the human really evolved.
88. The human capacity for blame is such that people can always find a way to blame ourselves.
Guilt is one of the most common and difficult feelings to overcome.
89. I use the word God in an impersonal sense, as Einstein did, to designate the laws of nature.
Speaking of your perception of God.
90. Black holes are not the eternal prisons they were thought to be. Things can come out of a black hole, outward and possibly into another universe. So if you feel like you are in a black hole, don't give up; there is a way out ...
An interesting metaphor about never giving up despite having everything against you, because there is always some possible solution.