0314英国《卫报》科学苍穹中最闪亮的星—史蒂芬霍金（含文稿）

Stephen Hawking, modern cosmology's brighteststar, dies aged 76

The physicist and author of A Brief History of Time has diedat his home in Cambridge. His children said: ‘We will miss him for ever’

Stephen Hawking, the brightest star in the firmament of science, whose insights shaped modern cosmology andinspired global audiences in the millions, has died aged 76.

Hisfamily released a statement in the early hours of Wednesday morning confirminghis death at his home in Cambridge.

Hawking’s children, Lucy,Robert and Tim said in a statement: “We are deeply saddened that our belovedfather passed away today. 

“He was a great scientistand an extraordinary man whose work and l egacy will live on for many years. Hiscourage and persistence with his brilliance and humour inspired people acrossthe world.

“Heonce said: ‘It would not be much of a universe if it wasn’t home to the peopleyou love.’ We will miss him for ever.”

Forfellow scientists and loved ones, it was Hawking’s intuition and wicked senseof humour that marked him out as much as the broken body and synthetic voicethat came to symbolise the unbounded possibilities of the human mind.

 Thosewho live in the shadow of death are often those who live most.

ForHawking, the early diagnosis of his terminal disease, and witnessing the deathfrom leukaemia of a boy he knew in hospital, ignited a fresh sense of purpose.

 “Although there was a cloud hanging over myfuture, I found, to my surprise, that I was enjoying life in the present morethan before. I began to make progress with my research,” he once said.

Embarkingon his career in earnest, he declared: “My goal is simple. It is a complete understandingof the universe, why it is as it is and why it exists at all.”

Hawkingwas not, perhaps, the greatest physicist of his time, but in cosmology he was atowering figure.

霍金的代表作有《时间简史》（A Brief History of Time）、《果壳里的宇宙》（The Universe in a Nutshell）和《大设计》（The Grand Design）