One thing that has garnered a lot of attention for Stephen Hawking is, not just the physics he did, but the books bringing that information to the non-physicist masses. That is something--most physicists could not write a best seller (well, most people of most professions couldn't either)--and it is an important function in society.

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Todd (Bowie, MD, US, North America, Earth, Sol System, Vega region, Local Bubble, Orion arm, Milky Way Galaxy, Local Group, Virgo A Cluster, Virgo supercluster, the universe in which spock is clean shaven)

Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum sonatur.

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