Just like a computer, we must remember things in the order in which entropy increases. This makes the second law of thermodynamics almost trivial. Disorder increases with time because we measure time in the direction in which disorder increases. You can't have a safer bet than that!
Stephen HawkingDisorder increases with time because we measure time in the direction in which disorder increases.
Stephen HawkingIt is generally recognised that women are better than men at languages, personal relations and multi-tasking, but less good at map-reading and spatial awareness. It is therefore not unreasonable to suppose that women might be less good at mathematics and physics.
Stephen HawkingI think computer viruses should count as life ... I think it says something about human nature that the only form of life we have created so far is purely destructive. We've created life in our own image.
Stephen HawkingIf aliens visit us, the outcome would be much as when Columbus landed in America, which didn't turn out well for the Native Americans.
Stephen HawkingIn his eyes shone the reflection of the most beautiful planet in the Universe---a planet that is not too hot and not too cold; that has liquid water on the surface and where the gravity is just right for human beings and the atmosphere is perfect for them to breathe; where there are mountains and deserts and oceans and islands and forests and trees and birds and plants and animals and insects and people---lots and lots of people. Where there is life. Some of it, possibly, intelligent.
Stephen HawkingIt's the gravity that shapes the large scale structure of the universe, even though it is the weakest of four categories of forces
Stephen HawkingIt is all right to make mistakes; nothing is perfect because with perfection, we would not exist.
Stephen HawkingI am discounting the reports of UFOs. Why would they appear only to cranks and weirdos?
Stephen HawkingIt is said that there's no such thing as a free lunch. But the universe is the ultimate free lunch.
Stephen HawkingWe could call order by the name of God, but it would be an impersonal God. There's not much personal about the laws of physics.
Stephen HawkingIn the last 200 years the population of our planet has grown exponentially, at a rate of 1.9% per year. If it continued at this rate, with the population doubling every 40 years, by 2600 we would all be standing literally shoulder to shoulder.
Stephen HawkingThe human race shouldn't have all its eggs in one basket, or on one planet. Let's hope we can avoid dropping the basket until we have spread the load.
Stephen HawkingSpeech has allowed the communication of ideas, enabling human beings to work together to build the impossible. Mankind's greatest achievements have come about by talking, and its greatest failures by not talking. It doesn't have to be like this. Our greatest hopes could become reality in the future. With the technology at our disposal, the possibilities are unbounded. All we need to do is make sure we keep talking.
Stephen HawkingThe question is: is the way the universe began chosen by God for reasons we can't understand, or was it determined by a law of science? I believe the second. If you like, you can call the laws of science 'God', but it wouldn't be a personal God that you could meet, and ask questions.
Stephen HawkingOr in other words, why does disorder increase in the same direction of time as that in which the universe expands?
Stephen Hawking"Sooner or later disasters such as an asteroid collision or a nuclear war could wipe us all out, But once we spread out into space and establish independent colonies, our future should be safe."
Stephen HawkingIf I had to choose a superhero to be, I would pick Superman. He's everything that I'm not.
Stephen HawkingIf we can avoid disaster for the next two centuries, our species should be safe as we spread into space. If we are the only intellegent beings in the galaxy we should make sure we survive and continue. . . . Our only chance of long-term survival is not to remain inward looking on planet Earth but to spread out into space. We have made remarkable progress in the last hundred years. But if we want to continue beyond the next hundred years, our future is in space.
Stephen HawkingWhat could define God, [is thinking of God] as the embodiment of the laws of nature. However, this is not what most people would think of that God. They made a human-like being with whom one can have a personal relationship. When you look at the vast size of the universe and how insignificant an accidental human life is in it, that seems most impossible.
Stephen HawkingIn real time, the universe has a beginning and an end at singularities that form a boundary to space-time and at which the laws of science break down.
Stephen HawkingBefore we understand science, it is natural to believe that God created the universe. But now science offers a more convincing explanation.
Stephen HawkingWe each exist for but a short time, and in that time explore but a small part of the whole universe
Stephen HawkingOne can see from space how the human race has changed the Earth. Nearly all of the available land has been cleared of forest and is now used for agriculture or urban development. The polar icecaps are shrinking and the desert areas are increasing. At night, the Earth is no longer dark, but large areas are lit up. All of this is evidence that human exploitation of the planet is reaching a critical limit. But human demands and expectations are ever-increasing. We cannot continue to pollute the atmosphere, poison the ocean and exhaust the land. There isn't any more available.
Stephen HawkingLife on Earth is at the ever-increasing risk of being wiped out by a disaster, such as sudden global warming, nuclear war, a genetically engineered virus or other dangers. I think the human race has no future if it doesn't go into space. I therefore want to encourage public interest in space.
Stephen HawkingMany people do not like the idea that time has a beginning, probably because it smacks of divine intervention. (The Catholic Church, on the other hand, seized on the big bang model and in 1951 officially pronounced it to be in accordance with the Bible.
Stephen HawkingOne can't prove that God doesn't exist. But science makes God unnecessary. The laws of physics can explain the universe without the need for a creator.
Stephen HawkingWe are just an advanced breed of monkeys on a minor planet of a very average star. But we can understand the Universe. That makes us something very special.
Stephen HawkingPlease join me in applauding the ESA - European Space Agency’s historic efforts with the Rosetta Mission and landing a spacecraft on rotating comet. It may seem like a work of fiction, but it is very real, very impressive, and will help us to further uncover the mysteries surrounding the formation of the solar system. They made a beautiful short film using an imaginary landscape to illustrate today’s historic feat.
Stephen Hawking