The British theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking was born in January 1942 in Oxford, England. He earned a place at Oxford University to read natural science in 1959 b studying for his PhD (博士学位) at Cambridge. By 1963, he was diagnosed with motor neurone disease (运动神经元病) and g two years to live. He was known for his groundbreaking (开创性的) work with black holes. He was also the author of several pscience books including A Brief History of Time (《时间简史》). It was published in 1988, w  has sold more than 10 million copies. The scientist gained popularity outside the academic world and appeared in several TV s such as The Simpsons, Red Dwarf and The Big Bang Theory. Stephen Hawking died at the age of 76. He was a r great scientist and an extraordinary man whose work and legacies will live on for many years. His c, persistence and humour inspired people across the world.