We only have to look at ourselves to see how intelligent life might develop into something we wouldn't want to meet.
Stephen HawkingRead
If the total energy of the universe must always remain zero, and it costs energy to create a body, how can a whole universe be created from nothing?
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote questions the creation of the universe from nothing, emphasizing the conservation of energy principle.
Stephen Hawking pondered the complexities of the universe's existence, suggesting that if energy cannot be created or destroyed and the total energy is zero, the emergence of the universe from absolute nothingness presents a paradox. This raises profound questions about the nature of reality and the origins of everything we perceive.
Themes
UniverseEnergyCreationNothingPhilosophy
In practice
Example use cases
In a lecture on cosmology, one might use this quote to illustrate the challenges of understanding the universe's origins.
More from Stephen Hawking
All quotes →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.
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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.
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I was not a good student. I did not spend much time at college; I was too busy enjoying myself.
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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.
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In my opinion, there is no aspect of reality beyond the reach of the human mind.
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Spires whose "silent finger points to heaven."
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