Stephen Hawking, the retired Lucasian Professor at Cambridge is without doubt the most well known scientist in the world. Much like the image of the white haired Einstein with the mischievous smile came to signify the Atomic Age for most people, Hawking is the public face of high brow science in our times. There have been scientists who have possibly made more significant contributions. There have been scientists who have written better and more popular books. And there have been scientists who grapple with harder problems in science than him. But the celebrity status achieved by Hawking is unmatched. He has become an icon, not only of great intellectual achievement but also of the unconquerable human spirit in the face of adversity.
August 2012, volume 36, No 8