Although most of his life he's been known as the world's biggest brain, lately this guy has been taking on alien life in a direct and poignant way. No, it's not any of the characters Jeff Goldblum has ever played or his buddy, giant headed Will Smith, it's Mr. Black Hole himself, Stephen Hawking.
So what prompts me to talk about Dr. Stephen "Let's turn off the lights so the paper boy doesn't know we're home" Hawking, other than his TV special which includes some controversial views on how to treat our neighbours in space? It might be that at this moment, the king of the Nerds is hanging at his newly crafted palace in Canada.
Dr. Stephen Hawking, world renowned astrophysicist, is visiting Waterloo, Ontario as part of a research post, at the Perimeter Institute for theoretical Physics, which he accepted in 2008.
It's no surprise that man who has developed many of the key ideas used in describing the known and unknown universe would be offered such a position. He's been awarded the Congressional Medal of Freedom by the US, spent 30 years teaching at Cambridge University, and has been the first quadrapelegic to experience weightlessness. As well he can be considered one of the world's best Science Communicators as his book, A brief History of Time, which attepts to expalin the concepts behind astrophysics to the everyman, has sold 9 milliopn copies.
As well as getting to hang out in one of the coolest buildings I've ever been in(with chalkboards littering the walls, pool tables and espresso machine in each lunch room and a theatre which hosts weekly concerts). Hawking also will have the newest wing of the institute named after him and will meet with the Premier of Ontario. Kind of a lucky guy I'd say.
For more info on the visit, roll on over to CBC right here.
For more info on Dr. Hawking and his ideas, visit wikipedia
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