The occasion was the British physicist’s annual month sabbatical at California Institute of Technology, and an open-to-the-public lecture titled: “The Origin of the Universe.” People lined up for the free tickets 12 hours in advance, and at least one patron turned down $1,000 for his space. To see and hear Stephen Hawking speak on the Big Bang – or any other topic – is something special.
Time is a singularity, Hawking says. The Big Bang happened only once, and physical forces drove it forward. Since that time, more than 13 billion years ago, the universe has moved forward under its own steam, and all the puzzle pieces fit. “What was God doing before the divine creation? Was he preparing hell for people who asked such questions?” Good question.
Stephen Hawking has suffered from Lou Gehrig’s disease, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, for 50 years, which is most of his life. He has been in a special wheelchair, almost all of that time, unable to control any of his limbs. His amazing brain, however, is in full working order.
He closed by referring to his own “M-theory,” which is constructed at least partially from ideas suggested years ago by Caltech’s own Richard Feynman – a physicist whose stature was as great as Hawking’s.
M-theory says multiple universes are created out of nothing, with many possible histories and many possible states of existence, Hawking explained. In only a few of these states would life be possible, and in fewer still could something like humanity exist.
It’s a kind of thinking that makes most people very uncomfortable. But the crowd who came to hear him speak were with him all the way.