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15 Stephen Hawking quotes that reveal how a genius thinks

The great physicist, in his own words.

Stephen Hawking has died peacefully at home at the age of 76.

The world-renowned physicist was told he would only have two years to live when diagnosed motor neuron disease, a rare form of ALS, aged 21.

Some 55 years later, it is safe to say he defied the odds and helped transform the way scientists view black holes and the universe.

As well his contribution to science, Hawking was a philosopher of sorts, a powerful political voice, and had a good line in acerbic wit.

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These 15 quotes show Hawking's approach to science and to life in general — and take you inside the mind of a genius.

On disability

On priorities

"My goal is simple. It is a complete understanding of the universe, why it is as it is and why it exists at all."

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On free will

On humor

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On black holes

"If you jump into a black hole, your mass energy will be returned to our universe but in a mangled form which contains the information about what you were like but in a state where it can not be easily recognized. It is like burning an encyclopedia. Information is not lost, if one keeps the smoke and the ashes. But it is difficult to read.

On the value of string theory

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On his IQ

On what he thinks about all day

On why he writes for a popular audience

"I put a lot of effort into writing 'A Briefer History' at a time when I was critically ill with pneumonia because I think that it's important for scientists to explain their work, particularly in cosmology. This now answers many questions once asked of religion."

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On the Eureka moment of a new discovery

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His advice to his three children

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On aliens

"If aliens visit us, the outcome would be much as when Columbus landed in America, which didn't turn out well for the Native Americans. We only have to look at ourselves to see how intelligent life might develop into something we wouldn't want to meet."

On his health

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On God

On hitting roadblocks

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