Hawking 'an inspiration to everyone' at centre bearing his name

Stephen Hawking's deep love for people, personal warmth and sense of humour are being remembered by those who knew and worked with him at Perimeter Institute, in Waterloo, Ont.

Hawking, 76, died early Wednesday morning in Cambridge, England.

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The theoretical physicist was well known for his lectures on cosmology and for his books, including A Brief History of Time and Black Holes and Baby Universes and Other Essays. 

Perimeter director Neil Turok, who was a close collaborator and friend of Hawking after working with him at the University of Cambridge as well as in Waterloo, said Hawking will also be remembered for inspiring many scientists.

"Stephen's passing is a very sad day for physics and for humankind. His spirit will live on in all of us who knew him, as we aspire, with all our hearts, to perpetuate the many wonderful human qualities he embodied," Turok said in a release Wednesday morning.

"Uncompromising in his scientific honesty and his search for the truth, always willing to listen and to explore new ideas. He combined this with extraordinary personal warmth, an acute sense of humour, a deep love for people and for sharing good times together," Turok added.

"His incredible power and determination to overcome the constraints of his condition was the ultimate example of mind over matter."

The universe according to Stephen Hawking in 1998

27 years ago

Duration 13:46

World-renowned physicist Stephen Hawking shares some insights on life and the universe in an interview with CBC-TV. Aired April 27, 1998 on CBC's The National.

Time spent in Canada

Hawking was a distinguished visiting research chair at the Perimeter Institute. He started visiting the Waterloo centre in 2009.

At that time, Hawking said he was "honoured to accept the first distinguished research chair at the Perimeter Institute."

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"The institute's twin focus on quantum theory and gravity is very close to my heart and central to explaining the origin of the universe," Hawking said.

"I look forward to building a growing partnership between PI and our Centre for Theoretical Cosmology, at Cambridge. Our research endeavour is global, and by combining forces I believe we will reap rich rewards."

2018 Paralympic Winter Games opening montage

7 years ago

Duration 2:04

Stephen Hawking narrates the opening montage for the 2018 Pyeongchang Paralympic Winter Games, set to Alessia Cara's 'Scars to your Beautiful.'

In 2011, Perimeter named a centre after Hawking — the only building in the world to which Hawking ever lent his name.

At the opening of the centre, Hawking said, "the importance of special places and special times, where magical progress can happen, cannot be overstated. I am hoping, and expecting, great things will happen here."

Late last year, Hawking also endorsed Perimeter's new Centre for the Universe and lent his name to a new fellowship for a young theoretical cosmologist.

'An inspiration to everyone around him'

Others at Perimeter noted the world has lost an irreplaceable scientist and human being.

Luis Lehner, faculty chair at Perimeter Institute, said Hawking's influence in science "has been tremendous."

"His continuing to push the boundaries of knowledge despite all odds served as an inspiration to everyone around him and this was very palpable at all levels — from students to faculty and staff — every time he visited Perimeter," Lehner said.

Archives4:05The evolution of knowledge

The volume of knowledge is exploding, Stephen Hawking tells a group of Vancouver children in 1993. Can human nature keep up?

Raymond Laflamme, Perimeter associate faculty member and the former director of the Institute for Quantum Computing at the University of Waterloo, did his PhD under Hawking at Cambridge. He called Hawking an "incredible scientist" who changed the way people think about the universe.

"Despite his disability, he had a great sense of humour and was able to do incredible things to inspire a lot of people," Laflamme said. "He was an inspiration for overcoming our challenges, to keep going, to always be kind to the people around us."