Contributed by Joe Montero
The death of Stephen Hawkin is significant loss to the world. His contribution to understanding physics and how the how the universe works is outstanding. No one has equalled his stature since Albert Einstein.
His work led to a turning point in modern physics, playing itself out in the closing months of 1973, when Dr. Hawking set out to apply quantum theory, the weird laws that govern subatomic reality, to black holes.
In a long and daunting calculation, Dr. Hawking discovered to his befuddlement that black holes — those mythological avatars of cosmic doom — were not black at all. In fact, he found, they would eventually fizzle, leaking radiation and particles, and finally explode and disappear over the eons.
Not quite so well known known, is that Stephen Hawkin fought through his life as a defender of science, against the ignorance peddled by those forces, wanting to discredit science for other purposes. Science, he believed, should be regarded as a resource to be used to lift humanity, and its opponents as agents of backwardness.
He took issue with organised religion when it acts to promote ignorance and deny the existing evidence. And he had little tolerance for those who like to cherry pick and claim this proves their argument. True science depends not on picking what suits at the moment, but on consideration of the whole weight of evidence.
For instance, he railed against those who insist that human activity is not warming the planet, pointing out that the scientific evidence is overwhelming. Deniers were accused of trying to discredit science, to push an agenda. He attacked US President Donald Trump over the withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement.
From the BBC News
To Hawkin, science lifts the understanding of the world we live in. It is neither good or bad. It is how human beings use it that determines its effect. The effect is determined by human beings.
Unlike the science caused apocalypse often portrayed by Hollywood, or the claims that technology destroys jobs and causes poverty, the great physicist argued that science can be applied to have positive effects.
He said, the problem is not in the knowledge, but in the greed that has become the driving force of society. This is why only last week he told a Reddit session, that economic inequality will skyrocket as more jobs become automated, because the rich owners of the technology will refuse to share the wealth that is created.
It is therefore a case of who is in control. If the knowledge is owned by the whole of society and not concentrated on being used for the personal enrichment of a few, it can be applied to the real needs of humanity.
This is what prompted Hawkin to say that “we should be scared of capitalism, not robots.”
Video from Top Facts
Hawkin defended the National Health Service in the United Kingdom from attack by neoliberalism.
Video from The Great NHS Heist
Perhaps Stephan Hawkin is best summerised in his own words
From the World Economic Forum