Dan Lee Mr.

Syverson Writing 10 B3 2 March 2014 Stephen Hawking

There has been a significant number of scientists who have contributed to the advancements of the humanity. However, Stephen Hawking could be one of the greatest leaders among them. He may not be a leader in ordinary definition of what leader means. He definitely is not a leader who attempted to control others by giving orders as in the case of Napoleon. I believe the definition of leadership is not confined to military or political leaders. I consider that being a true motivator by overcoming ones difficulty while providing us to reconsider our assumptions and perspectives is a leader as well. Stephen Hawking is a leader in the latter kind.

Overcoming physical and mental challenges is not easy for anyone especially when it is a disease which cripples you gradually. One of the most significant challenges Stephen Hawking went through was the diagnosis he received when he just turned 21. He was almost done with his graduate school years, however tragic news hit him: the doctor told him that he had only few years to live due to motor neuron disease. Until this day, Hawking is facing the challenge every moment. One professional web cite noted Despite this tremendous obstacle so early in Hawkings professional career, Hawking has managed to overcome his illness in many ingenious ways, all while creating a persona for himself as one of the most inspiring scientific theorists on Earth. ("The Accomplishments and Insights of StephenHawking")

We can now see that he has not given up a bit and managed to overcome difficulties coming from physical as well as mental. However, he was not a natural born optimist. Dr. Hawking describes that the first year in college was very boring and lonely. He also confesses that he was antisocial in his college years. Even after the diagnosis, he had to struggle with is own anti-social personality. However, a bigger challenge is that he was from time to time discriminated and ignored because of his disability. And when it comes to his specialty, in other words astronomy, the impact of discrimination could have been more significant. However, even when people did not listen, his hope did not fade away.

Stephen Hawkings success and achievements came with cost which involved competitions and tough times. Some of the significant achievements he made were discovering radiation which constantly emit from black holes. In 1974, the discovery was known as the Hawking Radiation. According to BBC they informed their audience by telling them. He is best known for Hawking radiation- the discovery that black holes are not really black but emit energy... He was also venerated among scientists for receiving the Fundamental Physics Prize, which is considered as the greatest prize in all science. He also lectured in famous colleges such as Cambridge and Oxford. However, the prizes and achievements themselves are not as important as the significant challenges he had to go through as a disabled person facing discrimination. What is incredible is that despite the challenges, he could achieve those goals, and the emphasis should be on the despite. According Superscholar.org, Stephen Hawking was named the smartest living person on Earth.

Not only did he achieve goals, he had lasting impact on society and contributed vastly in science. Dr. Hawking was not only a hero in the field of science, but also a role model for people with motor neuron disease. He encouraged them by saying, Nowadays, muscle power is obsolete. Machines can provide that. What we need is mind power, and disabled people are as good at that as anyone else." This is more than a mere encouragement. His life is the manifestation of what he says. He is arguing that ideas matter more and he is the example of his idea. Of course, Stephen Hawking also contributed greatly to science. He discovered singularities in gravitational collapse, black hole mechanics, and the Hawking radiation. Not only he had contributed greatly to science, he also was a supporter for Israels boycott on science. According to jpost.com Stephen Hawking stated, They are unanimous that I should respect the boycott. In view of this I must withdraw from the conference. He is giving up the fifth Presidents Conference in Israel to support the boycott. This proves that Professor Hawking cares for freedom of education and is willing to fight for it when it gets in a countrys way. Stephen Hawking is a true leader in this world by the re-defined definition of what true leader means. The traits he has are perfect examples of what a person needs to be a leader. The traits he has include the ability to overcome challenges and challenging our ideas and perspectives by being someone who is genuinely different. Despite the difficulties and the disadvantages he had in his life, he was still able to become the one of the greatest scientists in history. And the emphasis is, again, on the despite.

Works cited

"Stephen Hawking Reaffirms Support of Israel Boycott." Www.JPost.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Feb. 2014. "Stephen Hawking Biography." Stephen Hawking Biography. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Jan. 2014. "Wide Open Education." BachelorsDegreeOnlinecom. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Jan. 2014. "A Brief History of Stephen Hawking." BBC News. BBC, n.d. Web. 23 Jan. 2014. "The 10 Smartest People Alive Today." SuperScholar. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Feb. 2014.