Hawking was born on January 8, 1942, exactly 300 years after the death of Galileo. In October 1962, Stephen arrived at the University of Cambridge to do research in cosmology. No one else was doing work in that field at the time. During his career, he went on to gain many prestigious titles, such as: Lucasian Professor of Mathematics (1979-2009) and Fellow of the Royal Society (1974).
Due to his very apparent disability, Hawking became a figurehead for disability awareness and was living proof that those with a disability were still capable of doing extraordinary things. Hawking played an essential role in taking away the apathetic personality of science and bringing its beauty to the masses, paving the road for celebrities like Neil DeGrasse Tyson and Bill Nye and increasing the interest in science of young people everywhere.
He passed away on March 14, 2018, exactly 139 years after the birth of Einstein. March 14 is also considered “Pi Day,” as the first three decimals of π are 3.14. It appears that the universe aligned perfectly so that Hawking’s life was certainly intertwined with the wonder of mathematics and the cosmos.