Stephen Hawking Died in His Home , Aged 76

An award-winning physicist, book author, and outspoken genius Stephen Hawking died aged 76 in his home in Cambridge. A family spokesman announced the sad news to ABC on early Wednesday.

Some of his most influential works include books such as “A Brief History of Time” and “The Universe in a Nutshell.” Back in 1963 he was diagnosed with motor neuron disease, also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and was given only two years to live. 

According to ALStreatment.com, an individual diagnosed with this deadly disease will usually only live for between 3 and 5 years following their diagnosis, so Professor Hawking’s initial prognosis was fairly typical. But this extraordinary man defied all the odds and lived through to old age.

In moments of his passing, he was surrounded by family. We didn’t get any details about the cause of his death, and the family only commented that he “died peacefully.”

An official statement that Stephen Hawking’s family released goes as following: “We are deeply saddened that our beloved father passed away today. He was a great scientist and an extraordinary man whose work and legacy will live on for many years. His courage and persistence with his brilliance and humor inspired people across the world. He once said, ‘It would not be much of a universe if it wasn’t home to the people you love.’ We will miss him forever.”

His family includes two sons, Robert and Tim, and daughter Lucy. They also took their time to thank the fans of professor Hawking who were by his side and giving him unconditional support through his entire life.

Hawking’s work included extensive research of understanding entire universe. In this field, he was one of the leading minds from early 70’ to the moment of his death. During his life, he made numerous important discoveries. The one that he considered the most important was that black holes aren’t entirely black. His scientific achievements look even greater when you see that he achieved everything despite being diagnosed with ALS.

His life expectancy was two years after he turned 21, but he went a bit further. Last year during an interview with BBC he said: “I never expected to reach 75, so I feel very fortunate to be able to reflect on my legacy.”

Hawking, a father of three also left a couple of valuable advice to his children: “Here are the most important pieces of advice that I’ve passed on to my children. One, remember to look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Two, never give up work. Work gives you meaning, and purpose and life is empty without it. Three, if you are lucky enough to find love, remember is it rare and don’t throw it away.”

Farewell to Stephen Hawking, an extraordinary man who will be missed by his family, friends, entire scientific world and world in whole.