QuoteProject
I have experimental evidence that time travel is not possible.
Stephen Hawking
ShareWTF𝕏

Interpretation

What this quote means

Stephen Hawking asserts that time travel cannot occur based on scientific experiments.

In this quote, Stephen Hawking emphasizes the importance of empirical evidence in scientific inquiry, specifically stating that his research indicates the impossibility of time travel. This stark assertion challenges popular notions often depicted in science fiction, reinforcing that despite the allure of time travel, our current understanding of physics does not support its feasibility.

Themes

Time TravelScienceEmpirical EvidencePhysicsStephen Hawking

In practice

Example use cases

In a lecture on theoretical physics, you might reference Hawking's quote to emphasize the importance of evidence in scientific claims.

More from Stephen Hawking

We only have to look at ourselves to see how intelligent life might develop into something we wouldn't want to meet.
Stephen HawkingRead
I regard the brain as a computer which will stop working when its components fail. There is no heaven or afterlife for broken down computers; that is a fairy story for people afraid of the dark.
Stephen HawkingRead
It surprises me how disinterested we are today about things like physics, space, the universe and philosophy of our existence, our purpose, our final destination. Its a crazy world out there. Be curious.
Stephen HawkingRead
I was not a good student. I did not spend much time at college; I was too busy enjoying myself.
Stephen HawkingRead
The world has changed far more in the past 100 years than in any other century in history. The reason is not political or economic but technological-technologies that flowed directly from advances in basic science. Clearly, no scientist better represents those advances than Albert Einstein: TIME's Person of the Century.
Stephen HawkingRead
In my opinion, there is no aspect of reality beyond the reach of the human mind.
Stephen HawkingRead

Similar quotes

Without any doubt, the regularity which astronomy shows us in the movements of the comets takes place in all phenomena. The trajectory of a simple molecule of air or vapour is regulated in a manner as certain as that of the planetary orbits; the only difference between them is that which is contributed by our ignorance. Probability is relative in part to this ignorance, and in part to our knowledge.
Pierre-Simon LaplaceRead
Every usage, no matter how bizarre or nonstandard, fascinates me, as it tells me something about the way language is evolving.
David CrystalRead
If the experience of science teaches anything, it's that the world is very strange and surprising. The many revolutions in science have certainly shown that.
John PolkinghorneRead
Faced with the evidence, many deniers have started to admit that global warming is real, but argue that humans have little or nothing to do with it.
David SuzukiRead
As long as scientists are free to pursue the truth wherever it may lead, there will be a flow of new scientific knowledge to those who can apply it to practical problems.
Vannevar BushRead
I think that the future of the human race is to spread through the universe, and now is the time that we should be laying the foundations for that.
Kip ThorneRead

A little wisdom, now and then

Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.

Quote by Stephen Hawking | QuoteProject