If Stephen Hawking didn't have the disease that he had....

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around speculative reflections on how Stephen Hawking's life and career might have differed if he had not experienced the physical limitations imposed by his disease. Participants explore various hypothetical scenarios regarding his personal and professional life, touching on themes of potential relationships, career paths, and insights gained through his unique experiences.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Meta-discussion

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants speculate that without his disease, Hawking might have focused on personal relationships rather than his scientific work.
  • Others suggest that life is unpredictable, and Hawking could have faced different challenges that might have limited his accomplishments.
  • A participant recalls a quote from Hawking expressing gratitude for his career in physics, implying that his condition may have shaped his contributions positively.
  • There are reflections on how Hawking's physical limitations influenced his working methods, such as visualizing complex concepts and collaborating with research students.
  • Several posts mention the film "The Theory of Everything," indicating that it has sparked emotional responses and reflections on Hawking's life.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express a range of speculative views about Hawking's potential life without his disease, with no consensus on any particular outcome or scenario. The discussion remains open-ended and exploratory.

Contextual Notes

Participants' claims are based on personal reflections and speculative reasoning, with no definitive conclusions drawn regarding the impact of Hawking's disease on his life and work.

Who May Find This Useful

Readers interested in speculative discussions about influential figures in science, the interplay between personal circumstances and professional achievements, or those who have seen "The Theory of Everything" may find this discussion engaging.

Jupiter60
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How do you think Stephen Hawking would have been if he didn't have the disease that he had and wasn't physically handicapped?
 
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I think he would have spent his life chasing girls. I figure that speculation is just as good as any other.
 
Life is impossible to predict. Maybe he would have died in a bike accident 50 years ago and not had accomplished as much as he had.
 
I once heard him say: "Good, I haven't become a surgeon. I would be needless today, but I can still do physics."
 
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He would be out on the streets hawking his theories.

EDIT, a serious sidenote: I liked the movie, The Theory of Everything, which is about his life.
 
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I have tied to get a grip on some of the stuff he did this week and I stumbled on this BBC Horizon prog from 2005 called the Hawking paradox, you can get it on you tube.
Besides the paradox itself the programme describes how he worked by visualizing shapes patterns space time in 4 dimensions then dictating the ideas and putting the maths together with the help of research students. I am not sure from period he did this, perhaps from the late 70s?

If he had been able bodied he would not have had to do all this in head but then again, he may not have had some of the insights he had.

Besides the physics (which is a bit out there) its a great little feature on him, Krauss Kip Thorne and Susskind are all on there too. Worth a go.
 
Jupiter60 said:
if he didn't have the disease that he had and wasn't physically handicapped?

The above is for you
 
DennisN said:
He would be out on the streets hawking his theories.

EDIT, a serious sidenote: I liked the movie, The Theory of Everything, which is about his life.

Greg Bernhardt said:
I still need to see this!

It was on TV last nite, here in Australia ... good movie
then on another channel was a doco about his life as told mainly by himself

Dave
 
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Just finished watching it and woah! Was not expecting it to be so emotionaly intense but also incredibly inspiring. I was on the verge of tears the entire movie!
 
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Greg Bernhardt said:
Just finished watching it and woah! Was not expecting it to be so emotionaly intense but also incredibly inspiring. I was on the verge of tears the entire movie!
I was also surprised by this, it was a very emotional movie. And very good acting too, in my opinion.
 
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