Stephen Hawking Research Paper

In society we call many people heroes, but what is a hero? According to Merriam Webster, a hero is “an object of extreme admiration and devotion”. This definition fits physicist, Stephen Hawking, very well. Stephen Hawking is admired in the science community due to his work and theories on black holes, and the origin of the universe. Stephen Hawking is also considered a hero for disabled people, this is shown by his use of his fame to bring attention to the problems that disabled folks have to deal with. In Stephanie Sammartino’s book, she quotes Stephen when asked about being the ‘smartest person in the world’, Stephen said “‘It’s very embarrassing… It’s rubbish, just media hype. They want a hero, and I fit the role model of a disabled genius.

His known for his work on black holes and for his theories of the fundamental workings of the universe. He worked with many scientists including Roger Penrose, Jim Hartle, George F.R. Ellis, and Kip Thorne, just to name a few. He also won many awards. In 1966 he won the Adams Prize. In 1974 he became a Fellow of the Royal Society. He won the Eddington medal in 1975. In 1976 he won three awards, the Maxwell Medal/Prize, the Heineman Prize and The Hughes Medal. In 1978 he received the of the Albert Einstein Award. He received the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire in 1982. In 1987 he won The Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society. In 1988 he won the Wolf Prize. He received two awards in 1989, the Order of the Companions of Honour and the Prince of Asturias Award. In 1998 he received the Gemant Award. He won Naylor Prize and Lectureship, The Lilienfeld Prize, and the Alber Medal from the Royal Society of Arts, all in 1999. He wouldn’t earn any medals until 2006, when he won the Copley Medal. He won the ‘highest civilian award of the United States’, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, in 2009 (“Presidential Medal of Freedom” Wikipedia). The next award he won was the Fundamental Physics Prize in 2012. His most recent award was the Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award in 2015. Many of his medals aren’t even listed, and his list of medals isn’t surprising because of it’s length, it’s

Stephen was adamant about getting ramps in public buildings, and lowered curbs on busy streets, for easier access for disabled people. When voter turnout ended badly, Stephen claimed that it was because it was hard for disabled individuals to get into the building where polling was held. When asked about the issue Hawking said “It’s no use complaining about the public’s attitude about the disabled. It’s up to the disabled people’s awareness in the same way blacks and women have changed public perceptions”. Eventually the local press reported on the issue, and Hawking got the requested improvements (Sammartino 62). He also used his fame to get rights for disabled students. He raised money for handicapped accessible living quarters for disabled students at Cambridge and Bristol universities (Sammartino