Status Updates From On the Origin of Time: Step...

“His parting message… encapsulates it all: "When we see the earth from space we see ourselves as a whole; we see the unity and not the divisions. It is such a simple image, with a compelling message: one planet, one human race. Our only boundaries are the way we see ourselves. We must become global citizens. Let us work together to make that future a place we want to visit."”

“By revoking the view from nowhere, Stephen's final theory offers a powerful kernel of hope.”

“When the later Hawking outlined our post-Platonic cosmology at the Vatican, in November 2016, there were no more battles with God or the pope to be fought. Quite on the contrary, Stephen found a strong and moving resonance with Pope Francis in their shared goal of protecting our common home in the cosmos for the benefit of humanity today and tomorrow.”

“Freed from any claims on absolute truth, top-down cosmology provides space for a multitude of spheres of thoughts, from art to science, each serving different purposes and spurring complementary insights. If our top-down thinking does contain the seeds of a new worldview, then it is a thoroughly pluralistic one.”

“This is where Hannah meets Stephen. That is, the later, top-down Stephen. Hawking's final theory frees cosmology from its Platonic strait-jacket. It brings the physical laws in a sense back home. Adopting an inside-out perspective on the universe, the theory is rooted in what Arendt would call our earthly conditions.”

“At the core of Arendt's argument lay the idea that science and technology could only truly add to the stature of man in as much as we desire to be at home in the universe. "Earth is the very quintessence of the human condition," she held. Whatever we find out about or do to the world are human discoveries and endeavors.”