Science's Brightest Star STEPHEN HAWKING 1942-2018
THE WEEK|March 25, 2018

His brashness, sense of humour and ability to explain complex ideas simpler made Stephen Hawking a cultural phenomenon

Navin J. Antony
Science's Brightest Star STEPHEN HAWKING 1942-2018

The genius of Stephen Hawking was that he won even when he lost bets. In 1975, five years after he became a visiting professor at the California Institute of Technology (CalTech), he made a wager with friend and fellow physicist Kip Thorne. Hawking said a recently discovered dark star called Cygnus X-1 wasn’t a black hole. Thorne said it was. The wager was a lifelong subscription of Penthouse.

Hawking had by then established himself as an authority on black holes—giant celestial spaces whose gravitational fields are so powerful that they suck up all matter and radiation near them. Thorne knew that the crafty Englishman would win both ways. Losing the bet would prove Hawking’s theories on black holes right. Winning it would give him, through Penthouse, an opportunity to unravel what he described the other great mystery of the universe: women. Hawking called the bet his insurance policy.

He conceded defeat in 1990, after scientists reached a consensus that Cygnus X-1 was indeed a black hole, proving several of his theories right.

Seven years later, Hawking and Thorne challenged their CalTech colleague John Preskill. The duo argued that it was impossible to retrieve ‘information’ (radiation or matter) once it entered a black hole. The wager was an encyclopaedia, “from which information can be retrieved at will”, said the signed document of the bet.

Hawking lost that one, too—but, it was his own later research that proved him wrong. In the past two decades, he lost more wagers than a compulsive gambler could afford to lose. But, more often than not, he came out the real winner, because of his penchant to bet against himself and question his own research and intellect.

This story is from the March 25, 2018 edition of THE WEEK.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the March 25, 2018 edition of THE WEEK.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM THE WEEKView All
AI & I
THE WEEK India

AI & I

Through her book Code Dependent—shortlisted for the Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction—Madhumita Murgia gives voice to the voiceless multitudes impacted by artificial intelligence

time-read
4 mins  |
May 19, 2024
Hair force
THE WEEK India

Hair force

Sheetal Mallar, in her photobook Braided, uses hair as a metaphor to tell a story that is personal yet universal

time-read
2 mins  |
May 19, 2024
The art of political protest
THE WEEK India

The art of political protest

The past doesn’t always remain in the past. Sometimes, it emerges in the present, reminding us about the universality and repetitiveness of the human experience. Berlin’s George Grosz Museum, a tiny gem, is a startling reminder that modern political and social ills are not modern. Grosz lived through World Wars I and II, shining a torch into the heart of darkness in high-ranking men and women—who were complicit in the collapse of the world as they knew it.

time-read
2 mins  |
May 19, 2024
DIVERSITY IN UNITY
THE WEEK India

DIVERSITY IN UNITY

THE SOUTH ASIAN COMMUNITY IN THE US HAS SEVERAL THINGS IN COMMON, BUT WHEN IT COMES TO THE UPCOMING ELECTIONS, THERE ARE WIDELY DIFFERING OPINIONS AND FEELINGS

time-read
5 mins  |
May 19, 2024
RED SHOOTS RISING
THE WEEK India

RED SHOOTS RISING

CPI(M) hopes its fiery young candidates will usher in a left renaissance in West Bengal

time-read
4 mins  |
May 19, 2024
BATTLE OF THE BRAINS
THE WEEK India

BATTLE OF THE BRAINS

Top poll strategists are engaged in a proxy war in Andhra Pradesh

time-read
3 mins  |
May 19, 2024
Anupamaa's whisper to Rupali Ganguly
THE WEEK India

Anupamaa's whisper to Rupali Ganguly

I have been a fan of the television drama series, Anupamaa, right from the very start. The number one Hindi TV serial in the country for almost four years now, it tells the story of simple Ahmedabad housewife, Anupamaa, who loved her husband, children, and in-laws, and found her happiness exclusively in theirs.

time-read
2 mins  |
May 19, 2024
ROYAL CHALLENGE
THE WEEK India

ROYAL CHALLENGE

Two descendants of Chhatrapati Shivaji are in the fray

time-read
2 mins  |
May 19, 2024
AJIT PAWAR'S NCP WILL BE WIPED OUT
THE WEEK India

AJIT PAWAR'S NCP WILL BE WIPED OUT

INTERVIEW - PRITHVIRAJ CHAVAN, CONGRESS LEADER AND FORMER CHIEF MINISTER

time-read
2 mins  |
May 19, 2024
HEIR-BORNE BATTLE
THE WEEK India

HEIR-BORNE BATTLE

Modi’s acceptability remains high even where voters find the BJP’s quest for power at any cost offensive, but the Maha Vikas Aghadi clearly has its tail up. The mood and moves on the ground...

time-read
10+ mins  |
May 19, 2024