*** SPOILER ALERT ***

Space is gigantic. Terrifying. Unforgiving.

I continue to be fascinated by space, and Stephen Hawking’s #1 New York Times bestseller, A Brief History of Time, helps to put the pieces together. The cosmos become explainable through his lens.

From the big bang to black holes, Stephen Hawking shares how the universe started, where we’re heading, and discusses theories like general relativity and quantum mechanics.

Stephen Hawking Brings Hard Reality

With a soaring mind, Stephen Hawking helps us to see the actual realities of the universe. Although all theories remain unproven entirely, Hawking strikes sense on the side of his propositions.

  1. Hawking Radiation — Contrasted from original thought, Hawking shows us how molecules rip apart from one another at the boundaries of black holes, causing mass to evaporate. Black holes shrink and have an ending. This explanation of black holes makes more sense to me than a block hole living on and growing larger eternally.
  2. Black Holes — Although Stephen Hawking once famously bet against the existence of black holes, he defines them further in A Brief History of Time. Nothing, including light, can escape the grasp of a black hole — thus, their darkness.
  3. Origin and Fate of the Universe — Hawking argues that our universe is only one of an infinite number of universes.
  4. Time Travel — Agreeing with most physicists, Hawking shares how traveling backward in time and moving faster than light is probably entirely impossible.

Hearing how the universe works in plain language is comforting — a gift I enjoy in both Stephen Hawking and Neil deGrasse Tyson.

Question Your Place in Time

Time will continue to plod along long after you pass, so thinking on the eternities of time and space wrapped up in the universe helps us to realize our place — and potential.

Although we exist for only a blink in the timeline of universal existence, we can have a tremendous impact. After reading A Brief History of Time, I am reminded to realize and worship time’s importance.

Every moment is truly precious.