Stephen Hawking

Arguably one of the most important scientific figures in history, Stephen Hawking was a physicist and author who translated his groundbreaking theories on the nature of the universe into several best-selling books, including A Brief History of Time (1988). Though physically debilitated by the effects of a motor neuron disease, Hawking expanded not only the boundaries of science and physics through his work on black holes and the theory of relativity, but also introduced a mass audience to concepts that were previously the sole domain of the scientific community. Hawking's work helped to expand the scope of human understanding in terms that could be understood by all, and contributed to his status as one of the best-known and most widely recognized scientific figures of the 20th and 21st centuries. Alongside Carl Sagan and Neil deGrasse Tyson, Hawking became a popular culture figure as well as a well-known scientist, and his death on March 14, 2018 at the age of 76 was mourned in both academic and pop culture settings.