(HT)
British physicist and cosmologist Stephen Hawking died, aged 76, at his residence in Cambridge on Wednesday, a family spokesperson said. He died “peacefully” in the early hours of Wednesday.“We are deeply saddened that our beloved father passed away today,” professor Hawking’s children, Lucy, Robert, and Tim said in a statement carried by Britain’s Press Association news agency.“He was a great scientist and an extraordinary man whose work and legacy will live on for many years.”
The best-known theoretical physicist of his time, Hawking wrote lucidly of the mysteries of space, time and black holes. His 1962 book “A Brief History of Time” became an international bestseller, making him one of science’s biggest celebrities since Albert Einstein.Hawking defied predictions he would only live for two years after developing a form of motor neurone disease in 1963 that left him confined to a wheelchair.“His courage and persistence with his brilliance and humour inspired people across the world,” the family said.
