Daily Digest

“One, remember to look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Two, never give up work. Work gives you meaning and purpose and life is empty without it. Three, if you are lucky enough to find love, remember it is there and don't throw it away.”

“We are just an advanced breed of monkeys on a minor planet of a very average star. But we can understand the Universe. That makes us something very special.”

“Life would be tragic if it weren't funny.”

“I think computer viruses should count as life ... I think it says something about human nature that the only form of life we have created so far is purely destructive. We've created life in our own image.”

“God is the name people give to the reason we are here. But I think that reason is the laws of physics rather than someone with whom one can have a personal relationship. An impersonal God.”

“I don't think the human race will survive the next thousand years, unless we spread into space.”

“God not only plays dice, but also sometimes throws them where they cannot be seen.”

“Many badly needed goals, like fusion and cancer cure, would be achieved much sooner if we invested more.”

“I am in touch with a company that hopes to replicate my voice. However, they are not replicating my original voice - if they did that, I would sound like a man in his 20s, which would be very strange! They are actually trying to replicate the synthesizer that sits on my wheelchair.”

“I don't want to write an autobiography because I would become public property with no privacy left.”

“My goal is simple. It is a complete understanding of the universe, why it is as it is and why it exists at all.”

“It is generally recognised that women are better than men at languages, personal relations and multi-tasking, but less good at map-reading and spatial awareness. It is therefore not unreasonable to suppose that women might be less good at mathematics and physics.”

“Cambridge is one of the best universities in the world, especially in my field.”

“Science is increasingly answering questions that used to be the province of religion.”

“I think it quite likely that we are the only civilization within several hundred light years; otherwise we would have heard radio waves.”

“There is a real danger that computers will develop intelligence and take over. We urgently need to develop direct connections to the brain so that computers can add to human intelligence rather than be in opposition.”

“'The Simpsons' appearances were great fun. But I don't take them too seriously. I think 'The Simpsons' have treated my disability responsibly.”

“It is not clear that intelligence has any long-term survival value.”

“It was Einstein's dream to discover the grand design of the universe, a single theory that explains everything. However, physicists in Einstein's day hadn't made enough progress in understanding the forces of nature for that to be a realistic goal.”

“No one undertakes research in physics with the intention of winning a prize. It is the joy of discovering something no one knew before.”

“The Paralympic Games is about transforming our perception of the world.”

“I think the brain is essentially a computer and consciousness is like a computer program. It will cease to run when the computer is turned off. Theoretically, it could be re-created on a neural network, but that would be very difficult, as it would require all one's memories.”

“I enjoy all forms of music - pop, classical and opera.”

“Perhaps one day I will go into space.”

“It is no good getting furious if you get stuck. What I do is keep thinking about the problem but work on something else. Sometimes it is years before I see the way forward. In the case of information loss and black holes, it was 29 years.”

“There could be shadow galaxies, shadow stars, and even shadow people.”

“I believe everyone should have a broad picture of how the universe operates and our place in it. It is a basic human desire. And it also puts our worries in perspective.”

“Using e-mail, I can communicate with scientists all over the world.”

“Look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see, and wonder about what makes the universe exist. Be curious.”

“If time travel is possible, where are the tourists from the future?”

“In the past, there was active discrimination against women in science. That has now gone, and although there are residual effects, these are not enough to account for the small numbers of women, particularly in mathematics and physics.”

“I can't say that my disability has helped my work, but it has allowed me to concentrate on research without having to lecture or sit on boring committees.”

“When we understand string theory, we will know how the universe began. It won't have much effect on how we live, but it is important to understand where we come from and what we can expect to find as we explore.”

“I can't disguise myself with a wig and dark glasses - the wheelchair gives me away.”

“People won't have time for you if you are always angry or complaining.”

“Time travel was once considered scientific heresy, and I used to avoid talking about it for fear of being labelled a 'crank.'”

“There are plenty of dead scientists I admire, but I can't think of any living ones. This is probably because it is only in retrospect that one can see who made the important contributions.”

“I want my books sold on airport bookstalls.”

“A zero-gravity flight is a first step toward space travel.”

“There are no black holes in the sense of regimes from which light can't escape to infinity.”

“If we want to travel into the future, we just need to go fast. Really fast. And I think the only way we're ever likely to do that is by going into space.”

“The usual approach of science of constructing a mathematical model cannot answer the questions of why there should be a universe for the model to describe. Why does the universe go to all the bother of existing?”

“Observations indicate that the universe is expanding at an ever increasing rate. It will expand forever, getting emptier and darker.”

“I was born on January 8, 1942, exactly three hundred years after the death of Galileo. I estimate, however, that about two hundred thousand other babies were also born that day. I don't know whether any of them was later interested in astronomy.”

“I have wanted to fly into space for many years, but never imagined it would really be feasible.”

“Sometimes I wonder if I'm as famous for my wheelchair and disabilities as I am for my discoveries.”

“One can't predict the weather more than a few days in advance.”

“Remember to look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see and wonder about what makes the universe exist. 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.”