Stephen William Hawking, CH, CBE, FRS, FRSA (born 8 January 1942) is a British theoretical physicist and author. His significant scientific works to date have been a collaboration with Roger Penrose on theorems on gravitational singularities in the framework of general relativity, and the theoretical prediction that black holes should emit radiation, often called Hawking radiation.
He is an
Honorary Fellow of the
Royal Society of Arts, a lifetime member of the
Pontifical Academy of Sciences, and a recipient of the
Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award in the United States. Hawking was the
Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at the University of Cambridge between 1979 and 2009. Subsequently, he became research director at the university's Centre for Theoretical Cosmology.
Stephen Hawking was born on 8 January 1942 to Frank Hawking, a research
biologist, and Isobel Hawking. He has two younger sisters, Philippa and Mary, and an adopted brother, Edward.Hawking's parents were living in
North London, but moved to
Oxford shortly before his birth, while London was
under attack during the Second World War.
In 1950, when his father became head of the division of
parasitology at the
National Institute for Medical Research, Hawking and his family moved to
St Albans, Hertfordshire. Hawking attended
St Albans High School for Girls from 1950 to 1953; at that time, boys could attend the girls' school until the age of 10. From the age of 11, he attended
St Albans School, where he was an average, but not exceptional student.He maintains his connection with the school, giving his name to one of the four
houses and to an extracurricular science lecture series.
Hawking has named his secondary school mathematics teacher
Dikran Tahta as an inspiration,
and originally wanted to study the subject at university. However, Hawking's father wanted him to apply to
University College, Oxford, which his father had attended. As University College did not have a mathematics fellow at that time, they did not accept applications from students who wished to study that discipline. Therefore, Hawking applied to study natural sciences with an emphasis in physics. University College accepted Hawking, and he gained a scholarship. While at Oxford, he
coxed a rowing team, which helped ease his immense boredom at the university. His physics tutor, Robert Berman, later said "It was only necessary for him to know that something could be done, and he could do it without looking to see how other people did it. ... his mind was completely different from all of his contemporaries".
Hawking's unimpressive study habits resulted in a final examination score on the borderline between first and second class honours, making an oral examination necessary. Berman commented: "the examiners then were intelligent enough to realize they were talking to someone far more clever than most of themselves". After receiving his B.A. degree at Oxford in 1962, he left for graduate work at Trinity Hall, Cambridge.
Young S.W.Hawking was no proudigy some reports claim he was just another ordinary English school Boy Slow learning to read his handwriting the despire of his teacher He ranked no more than half way up in his school class thought he now say inhis defence It was a very bright class maybe some one might have pridicted a career in science or engineering from the fact that stephen was intensely intrested in learning the secrets of how things such as a clock and radio works . He took them apart to find out but he could seledom put them back together stephen was never well coordinatet physically and he was not keen on sports or other physical activityis He was always almost always the last to be chosen for any sports team .
