Stephen Hawking Birthday Celebrated With Cosmology Talk

CAMBRIDGE, England -- Renowned physicist Stephen Hawking is not well enough to attend a conference held to celebrate his 70th birthday, a University of Cambridge official said Sunday.

Hawking's remarkable career is being honored as part of a daylong conference on cosmology being hosted at the university.

But the celebrity scientist, who suffers from Lou Gehrig's disease, will not be in attendance, according to Vice chancellor Leszek Borysiewicz.

Borysiewicz told conference attendees that Hawking was released from hospital on Friday and that "unfortunately his recovery has not been fast enough for him to be able to be here."

He didn't specify the nature of Hawking's condition, although he said he believed Hawking would be well enough to meet some of the attendees over the next week.

Hawking is wheelchair bound and dependent on a computerized voice system for communication.

Borysiewicz said he hoped that Hawking would follow the proceedings via videolink.

"If you're listening Stephen, happy birthday from all of us here today," Borysiewicz said to a round of applause.

Hawking was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's disease - known as motor neurone disease in the U.K. - when he was 21. Most people die within a few years of the diagnosis, but Hawking has defied the odds and gone on to revolutionize the field of theoretical astrophysics and become one of the best-known scientists since Albert Einstein.

An expert on black holes, Hawking also gained wide acclaim for popularizing astronomy in best-selling books such as "A Brief History of Time" and "The Universe in a Nutshell."

Other speakers scheduled for Sunday include Astronomer Royal Martin Rees, Nobel Prize-winning physicist Saul Perlmutter, and Hawking's longtime collaborator Kip Thorne. Among the topics due to be discussed are supernovae, black holes, and dark matter.

View a slideshow of some of Hawking's most memorable lines below.

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Online:

http://www.ctc.cam.ac.uk/hawking70/

Comments

[Kate Henson]

03:39 PM on 01/12/2012

Happy Birthday, Dr. Hawking!! Thank you for all the wonderful work you've done and for making it understandable to the rest of us.

[jeyseptember]

11:33 PM on 01/11/2012

Happy 70th birthday Dr. Hawking!
A true genius.

[alpha54]

04:33 PM on 01/11/2012

the 70th birthday Stephen Hawking,my best wish for him, he is best all the time.

[Rude Monk]

01:27 AM on 01/10/2012

They will retire the current model this year and there are no more designs for the next.
Do not despair yet.The overpriced children stories books that pass as science should keep you warm till they roll the next "idol" on the scene.

[dbrmn1]

06:14 PM on 01/09/2012

Truly inspiring man!

[blackdragon471]

04:52 PM on 01/09/2012

Stephen. A amazing man! God's way of telling him to shut up!

[FrogLips]

11:52 AM on 01/09/2012

One of the greatest minds in human history would likely have been lost to humanity years ago if he lived in a country with an American style health care system.

[Sad But True]

01:33 PM on 01/09/2012

Not necessrily. If you can afford it, the health care in the United States is top-notch. The issue isn't poor quality as much as it is lack of coverage for millions and massive cost.

[MexiChick67]

03:00 AM on 01/09/2012

I read somewhere that he's quite the ladies man. Serious. He was cheating on his wife and had a couple of kids with assistants. What a 'play-ah'. Happy Birthday.

[Colin Carlisle]

02:57 AM on 01/09/2012

Truly amazing man with incredible life. Defied odds and outlived disease that normally obliterates people while also managing to revolutionize the way we look at the biggest questions in the universe. And he did all of this without being able to take notes with a pen and paper.

Stephen Hawking, thank you for your contribution to mankind, a contribution that is unmatched by all but a very select few. Your intellect will forever amaze us, your achievements will be admired for eternity, and your story will continue to inspire everyone that hears it.

Happy Birthday and feel better so that Earth can enjoy your brilliance for years to come.

[wandering girl]

02:53 AM on 01/09/2012

Huff Post proofreader (if there is such a creature):

His name is Stephen, which you got correct in the body of the article, not Steven as is in the headline.

Seriously, IS there someone on HuffPo staff whose job is proofreading? If not, I'm applying for the job. I have a resume and references.

[zenju2]

02:48 AM on 01/09/2012

Happy Birthday, Dr. Hawking!!!

[ProudToBeVeryLiberal]

02:37 AM on 01/09/2012

I'm, not happy to know Dr. Hawking is not well. I'm a really really huge fan. He's not only one of the sharpest minds on this planet, he's also a very compassionate and wonderful man. He's a treasure to the entire humanity.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY EINSTEIN (yep that was his college nickname, and a well deserved one!)

[ProudToBeVeryLiberal]

02:32 AM on 01/09/2012

"People who boast about their IQ are losers."

That's what I keep telling right-wing troIIs on the HP all the time (they all do that...) Next time, I will credit it to Dr. Hawking... ;)

Not too pleased to know he's having health problems. I'm a really really huge fan, that man is a treasure to the entire humanity.

[dailyfiber]

12:51 AM on 01/09/2012

If extra-terrestrial life exists and has the capability of communicating with earth Stephen Hawking is their 'go to guy.'

[ProudToBeVeryLiberal]

02:40 AM on 01/09/2012

Or maybe he's one of them. That would certainly explain a lot... (speaking as an almost worshiper of him, not trying to make a crack...)

[Sabrina1]

11:46 PM on 01/08/2012

What an incredible man.
Happy Birthday!