Stephen Hawking has helped make sense
out of some of the most puzzling parts
of the universe and he's done it in a
way that helps us ordinary people understand.
What makes him so special as
a scientist? I believe that more than
anything else it's the clarity of his
scientific vision. He also has the
courage the great courage to discard the
old cherished ideas that are the
obstacle to progress and the results of
his new theories are often simple
elegant and surprising and Stephen loves
to surprise.
And now the man himself Stephen Hawking.
I am very honored by this wonderful
evening in celebration of science.
As scientists we stand on the shoulders of giants
building on the work that has gone
before us aiming to inspire a new
generation of young scientists to
continue once we are gone. I am very
grateful to have been wrong and pro-life
in the has been that life working in physics.
 
 
