Monday, April 20, 2009

BREAKING: Stephen Hawking hospitalized

Monday, April 20, 2009

London, England (TNR) - Renowned professor and physicist Stephen Hawking has been rushed to Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge after fighting a chest infection for several weeks, The Nerd Report has learned. The 67 year old scientist is known mainly for his work on theoretical astronomy, including research into black holes and quantum gravity, which seeks to bridge the theories of general relativity and quantum physics in a thus far elusive unified theory.

Professor Hawking was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's Disease, properly known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, at age 21, which has caused his motor functions to atrophy. He now communicates through a voice synthesizer activated by his fingertips, since he is almost entirely paralyzed and can no longer speak. Dr. Hawking is one of the few patients of ALS to live more than a decade after his diagnosis. Whether this condition is exacerbating his infection is unknown to TNR as of this writing.

Dr. Hawking is the author of A Brief History of Time and The Universe in a Nutshell, the Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at Cambridge University (a post he has already announced his retirement from, effective September, 2009), and is best known for describing singularities in the context of general relativity and theorizing that black holes should emit radiation, now known as Hawking radiation in his honor.

Editorial note: We here at TNR wish Dr. Hawking the best of luck. Science can scarce afford to lose him now.

Update: Professor Hawking is now expected to make a full recovery.

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