Stephen Hawking grew up in a well-educated family, and although he described himself as a late developer, he was extremely curious about how things worked. At the age of 21, while studying for his PhD, tests revealed that he had an incurable condition that weakens muscles and causes paralysis. Eventually, he was diagnosed with motor neurone disease and given only two years to live!

However, Stephen did not let that stop him from finishing his studies, becoming a professor, and going on to do ground-breaking work in physics and cosmology. He also wrote several best-selling books and earned numerous awards and honours. Although he faced many challenges due to his deteriorating condition, he was determined to share his passion and excitement about how our universe works with everyone. Stephen co-authored an adventure series about science with his daughter, Lucy Hawking, to engage young people. He remained curious until he died in March 2018, and his legacy lives on with the many questions and theories he left for colleagues to research and answer. He said, “Be curious. And however difficult life may seem, there is always something you can do and succeed at. It matters that you don’t just give up.”