On the Origin of Time: Stephen Hawking's Final Theory

by Thomas Hertog

Communication slowed, from a few words per minute to minutes per word, before basically grinding to a halt, even as demand for his voice skyrocketed.[3] Here was the world’s most celebrated apostle of science, unable to talk. But Stephen wouldn’t give up. With our intellectual connection deepened through years of close collaboration we moved increasingly beyond verbal communication. Bypassing Equalizer, sensors, and clickers, I would position myself in front of him, clearly in his field of vision, and probe his mind by firing questions. Stephen’s eyes would light up brightly when my arguments resonated with his intuition. We would then build on this connection, navigating and exploiting the common language and mutual understanding we had forged over the years. It is out of these “conversations” that, slowly but steadily, Stephen’s final theory of the universe was born.