HUMAN GREATNESS

This is the story of the famous theoretical scientist Stephen Hawking (1942–2018). After completing his master’s degree, while pursuing Ph.D. research, he was struck by a serious illness. He described his condition in these words:

“I was a research student desperately looking for a problem with which to complete my Ph.D thesis. Two years before I had been diagnosed as suffering from ALS, commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, or motor neuron disease, and found out that I had only one or two more years to live. In these circumstances there had not seemed much point in working on my Ph.D. I did not expect to survive that long. Yet two years had gone by and I was not that much worse. In fact, things were going rather well for me.” (Stephen W. Hawking, A Brief History of  Time, p. 53)

Contrary to the doctors’ predictions, Stephen Hawking lived on. He completed his education and, through hard work, developed such brilliance that many consider him the greatest theoretical physicist after Einstein. He became a professor of mathematics at Cambridge University, a chair given only to the most distinguished scientists. When his book A Brief History of Time was published in 1988, it became so popular that fourteen editions were printed in the very first year.

A person’s mental abilities compensate for all his weaknesses. His determination helps him overcome every obstacle. After each failure, he finds for himself a new path to success.