Stephen Hawking: 'We're all doomed'

When it’s a deranged cult leader or some deluded attention-seeker holding a sign shouting, “The End is Nigh”, people usually just shake their heads in disgust and walk away. If it’s a scientifically half-baked, media-sensationalized conspiracy theory like the recent Mayan calendar fiasco, the most rational among us raise an eyebrow or at the very least feign interest for the sake of the more gullible.

 

But what if it’s a respected scientist, like world-renowned British physicist Stephen Hawking, who warns about the end of mankind?

 

On Thursday, April 11, Professor Hawking, who lived his career studying the cosmos, called for the continuation of space exploration for the sake of humanity, according to The Independent.

 

He did not think our species would last another 1,000 years “without escaping beyond our fragile planet”.

 

It was at Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre in Los Angeles, during a tour of a stem cell laboratory dedicated to finding new methods to impede the advancement of Lou Gehrig’s disease, that Professor Hawking made the remarks.

 

Life with Lou Gehrig’s disease

 

Lou Gehrig’s disease, also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, is a neurological disorder that attacks the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord responsible for muscle control. As muscles deteriorate, moving and even breathing become progressively more difficult. The disease is incurable and irreversible, and usually leads to death within a decade of contracting it.

 

Incredibly, 71-year-old Professor Hawking has survived much longer than anyone with the disease. Director of Cedars-Sinai's ALS program, Dr Robert Baloh, is unable to explain his longevity. “50 years is unusual, to say the least," he said.

 

Professor Hawking was diagnosed with the disease 50 years ago, while he was still a student at Cambridge University. He was initially so depressed he even briefly considered not finishing his doctorate.

 

Now he requires constant care. He can only communicate by twitching his cheek, and by using the computer attached to his wheelchair to speak in his distinctive robotic monotone.

 

Despite his ailments, Professor Hawking has remained a prolific scientist. “However difficult life may seem, there is always something you can do and succeed at,” he said.

 

Stephen Hawking is well known for his work on black holes and the origins of the universe, and for simplifying the more mind-bending concepts of physics in a way that can be understood by human beings who don’t possess IQs over 130. His books, including A Brief History Of Time and The Grand Design, have sold millions of copies worldwide. — TJD, GMA News