<p>Renowned physicist Stephen Hawking, who died in March, returned from the grave on Tuesday in the form of a posthumously published book to warn humanity of the imminent cyborg apocalypse. Hawking <a href="https://amzn.to/2J3ihZs">explains</a> in his latest and final work, <em>Brief Answers to the Big Questions:</em></p>
<blockquote>
<p>While primitive forms of artificial intelligence developed so far have proved very useful, I fear the consequences of creating something that can match or surpass humans. Humans, who are limited by slow biological evolution, couldn&#8217;t compete and would be superceded.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The famously atheistic professor also discourages the temptation of humans to play God. Gene-editing technology would ultimately create a race of superhumans, posing an ethical and political hell for society. &#8220;Once such superhumans appear,&#8221; Hawking predicts, &#8220;there are going to be significant problems with the unimproved humans, who won&#8217;t be able to compete. Presumably, they will die out, or become unimportant. Instead, there will be a race of self-designing beings who are improving themselves at an ever-increasing rate.&#8221;</p>
<p>Hawking&#8217;s doomsday scenario isn&#8217;t far-fetched. Current gene-editing tools such as <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-is-crispr-gene-editing-and-how-does-it-work-84591">CRISPR</a> already offer scientists the ability to correct disease-causing segments of our DNA code. As such technology advances, why should humans refrain from using the tool to enhance the genetic code rather than merely to correct deformations?</p>
<p>As traditional religious belief continues to plummet in the United States and Europe, our impoverished moral vocabulary seems ill-equipped to grapple with such serious bioethical concerns. Meanwhile, techno-utopians <a href="https://www.dailystar.co.uk/news/weird-news/736767/human-being-immortal-artificial-intelligence-humai">predict</a> humans will have the ability to &#8220;not die&#8221; as early as 2050. But if the future looks anything like the dystopic wasteland Stephen Hawking foresees, who on earth would want to live forever?</p>


Stephen Hawking Warns Of Killer Cyborgs From Beyond The Grave

Artificial Intelligence

Science

Stephen Hawking

<p>On Wednesday, former president Barack Obama issued a tweet to mark the death of world-renowned physicist Stephen Hawking that was hilariously inappropriate for two reasons. One is patently obvious, the other a trifle more subtle.</p>
<p>Here&#8217;s the tweet:</p>
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<p>Have fun out there among the stars. <a href="https://t.co/S285MTwGtp">pic.twitter.com/S285MTwGtp</a></p>
<p>&#8212; Barack Obama (@BarackObama) <a href="https://twitter.com/BarackObama/status/973936533320413184?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 14, 2018</a></p></blockquote>
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<p>Of course, the first thing plenty of people noticed was that the narcissistic Obama was at it again, finding a way to get himself into the story despite the fact that he was supposed to be celebrating Hawking&#8217;s life:</p>
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<p>Even in his post-presidency years, Obama marks every occasion with a picture of himself. <a href="https://t.co/Ak800N6EuB">https://t.co/Ak800N6EuB</a></p>
<p>&#8212; neontaster(@neontaster) <a href="https://twitter.com/neontaster/status/973983552378417153?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 14, 2018</a></p></blockquote>
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<p>It&#8217;s not an Obama condolence if he&#8217;s not in the picture. <a href="https://t.co/8FowaQtxLq">https://t.co/8FowaQtxLq</a></p>
<p>&#8212; Bryan Suits, Los Angeles&#8217; Anti Dude (@darksecretplace) <a href="https://twitter.com/darksecretplace/status/973953803836780544?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 14, 2018</a></p></blockquote>
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<p>Obama does have a habit of doing things like that, as when he offered this picture on the 57th anniversary of Rosa Parks refusing to give up her seat:</p>
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<p>Props. MT <a href="https://twitter.com/WhiteHouse?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@whitehouse</a> Yesterday, 57th Anniversary of Rosa Parks refusing to give up her seat. POTUS on Rosa Parks bus <a href="http://t.co/ZWbcjFmF">pic.twitter.com/ZWbcjFmF</a></p>
<p>&#8212; Kristi Assange. &#937; (@AltAnalyst) <a href="https://twitter.com/AltAnalyst/status/275217322162151424?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 2, 2012</a></p></blockquote>
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<p>But the other, more subtly inappropriate message from Obama&#8217;s Hawking tweet was that he just pooped on Hawking&#8217;s life work. Hawking was an acknowledged atheist, so the idea of him &#8220;having fun with the stars,&#8221; as though Hawking would think there was anything out there for him after his death, would have been contrary to everything Hawking believed.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/2011/may/15/stephen-hawking-interview-there-is-no-heaven">Hawking said</a> in 2011, &#8220;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.&#8221;</p></p>


Obama Pays Homage To Stephen Hawking In The Worst Possible Way

Barack Obama

<p>Name some theoretical physicists. Albert Einstein? Correct. Stephen Hawking? Check.</p>
<p>Annnnnd, done.</p>
<p>Hawkings, who died on Wednesday &#8212; coincidentally Einstein&#8217;s birthday (and also International Pi Day, when scientists and mathematicians celebrate the ratio of a circle&#8217;s circumference to its diameter) &#8212; was different from all other physicists for one reason: He was funny.</p>
<p>Wickedly funny.</p>
<p>How funny? When Hawking appeared on John Oliver&#8217;s show, the comedian asked him, &#8220;Is there a universe where I&#8217;m smarter than you?&#8221; In his supercool computer voice &#8212; which he activated by pressing a switch to select phrases, words or letters from a bank of about 2,500&#8211;3,000 &#8212; Hawking replied: &#8220;Yes. And also a universe where you&#8217;re funny.&#8221;</p>
<p>Sure, Hawking could muse at length about what &#8220;time&#8221; is, as he did in &#8220;A Brief History of Time&#8221; (example: &#8220;The increase of disorder or entropy is what distinguishes the past from the future, giving a direction to time.&#8221;), but he also chose to appear on such shows as &#8220;The Simpsons,&#8221; &#8220;Star Trek&#8221; and &#8220;The Big Bang Theory.&#8221;</p>
<p>One great &#8220;Simpsons&#8221; appearance:</p>
<p>Hawking: Your theory of a doughnut-shaped universe in intriguing. I may have to steal it.</p>
<p>Homer: Wow. I can&#8217;t believe someone I never heard of is hanging out with a guy like me.</p>
<p>Moe: All right, it&#8217;s closing time. Who&#8217;s paying the bill.</p>
<p>Homer (mimicking Hawking&#8217;s voice: I. Am.</p>
<p>Hawking: I didn&#8217;t say that.</p>
<p>Homer: Yes. I. Did.</p>
<p>Hawking then activates a button that shoots out a boxing glove, punching Homer in the mouth.</p>
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<p>Hawking explained why he joined up with the show.</p>
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<p>In this clip, he has a wonderful exchange with Lisa Simpson.</p>
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<p>Said Hawking of his appearances, &#8220;Almost as many people know me from through the Simpsons as through my science.&#8221;</p>
<p>In one &#8220;Star Trek&#8221; episode, Hawking starred in a scene with Sir Isaac Newton and Einstein, playing poker. The scene starts with the Hawking already talking: &#8220;&#8230;but then I said, in that frame of reference, the perihelion of Mercury would have precessed in the opposite direction.&#8221; Einstein laughs heartily and says, &#8220;That is a great story.&#8221; Hawking beams with a broad smile.</p>
</p>
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<p>In &#8220;The Big Bang Throay,&#8221; uber-nerd Sheldon gets to meet his hero, Hawking.</p>
<p>Sheldon: It&#8217;s a honor and a privilege to meet you, sir.</p>
<p>Hawking: I know.</p>
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<p>While his body was spindled and rendered almost completely useless through the ravages of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), he always kept his sense of humor.</p>
<p>Hawking, a vital young man with a bright future, was diagnosed with the motor neurone disease in 1963 when he was 21 and his doctors said he&#8217;d likely be dead in two years. Instead, he lived another 64 years.</p>
<p>And he&#8217;ll live forever with his theories &#8212; and in &#8220;Simpsons&#8221; reruns.</p></p>


How Did A Theoretical Physicist Become World Famous? Because He Was Super Cool — And Funny

The Simpsons

<p>The genius physicist Stephen Hawking may have postulated many tantalizing theories on the mysteries of our universe while being completely unable to stop himself from saying the most asinine of things.</p>
<p>On top of his beliefs in man-made climate change, his vehement opposition to Israel, and the silly assertion that our universe is a bubble surrounded by infinite bubbles, Hawking now claims that robots will become a form of &#8220;new life&#8221; and replace humans completely.</p>
<p>According to <a href="http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/this-new-form-life-stephen-11453107"><em>Mirror</em></a>, Prof. Hawking fears that artificial intelligence (AI) will become a self-replicating life form that may &#8220;replace humans altogether.&#8221;</p>
<p>&#8220;If people design computer viruses, someone will design AI that improves and replicates itself,&#8221; he said. &#8220;This will be a new form of life that outperforms humans.&#8221;</p>
<p>While Hawking&#8217;s fears may certainly seem plausible, his regard for humanity in this is beyond contemptible. Speaking at Cambridge University last year, the 75-year-old showed the depths of his anti-human philosophy when he asserted that an artificial intelligence could be made to replicate a human brain, which therefore would make it life. &#8220;It therefore follows that computers can, in theory, emulate human intelligence &#8212; and exceed it,&#8221; he said.</p>
<p>Hawking asserted this theory on top of another &#8220;chicken little&#8221; doomsday scenario of his regarding the sustainability of Earth, calling for a new generation of young people to take up space exploration in the hope of colonizing other planets.</p>
<p>&#8220;I believe we have reached the point of no return,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Our earth is becoming too small for us, global population is increasing at an alarming rate and we are in danger of self-destructing.&#8221;</p>
<p>Hawking does hope that the promulgation of artificial intelligence will help to bring about a technological revolution that will &#8220;undo some of the damage done to the natural world by the last one &#8212; industrialisation.&#8221;</p>
<p>Earlier this year, Hawking lamented his fear that he would not be <a href="http://www.dailywire.com/news/14587/stephen-hawking-very-smart-man-he-just-said-very-hank-berrien">welcome in Trump&#8217;s America</a> as a scientist, which is about as stupid as it gets.</p>
<p>Hawking also supports the ideological construct called &#8220;<a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/news/education/philosophers-must-oppose-arrogance-of-scientism-1.1656080">Scientism</a>&#8221; &#8212; the belief that science has surpassed religion and philosophy in providing people with all the answers to life&#8217;s questions.</p>


Stephen Hawking Is A Genius Who Just Keeps Saying Stupid Things

<p>&#8220;You have until 2120, human species. If you do not leave the Planet Earth, you will become extinct.&#8221;</p>
<p>The voice of a 1950&#8217;s sci-fi film?</p>
<p>Michael Moore, because he knows with his appetite there will be no food left for the human race?</p>
<p>Nope. That dire prediction comes from <a href="http://www.newsweek.com/stephen-hawking-warns-100-years-earth-extinction-593609">renowned physicist Stephen Hawking</a> in a new documentary called <em>Expedition New Earth,</em> which is scheduled for release this summer.</p>
<p>Hawking warns that the threats that will wipe out the human race include climate change, overpopulation, epidemics and asteroid strikes. Last year, he <a href="http://www.newsweek.com/stephen-hawking-humanity-needs-new-place-live-522521">gloomily predicted</a> the chance of a species-ending event on Earth was a &#8220;near certainty.&#8221; He stated, &#8220;Although the chance of disaster to planet Earth in a given year may be quite low, it adds up over time, and becomes a near certainty in the next 1,000 or 10,000 years. By that time, we should have spread out into space and to other stars, so a disaster on Earth would not mean the end of the human race.&#8221;</p>
<p>So why 100 years? Is he in a rush or something?</p>
<p>He has support; billionaire Elon Musk wants to establish a settlement on another planet in the next few decades. He said last year, &#8220;I don&#8217;t have a doomsday prophecy, but history suggests some doomsday event will happen. By that time, we should have spread out into space and to other stars, so a disaster on Earth would not mean the end of the human race.&#8221;</p>
<p>Yet Hawking also stated that the current era is a &#8220;glorious time to be alive and doing research into theoretical physics. Our picture of the universe has changed a great deal in the last 50 years and I am happy if I have made a small contribution. The fact that we humans, who are ourselves mere fundamental particles of nature, have been able to come this close to understanding the laws that govern us and the universe is certainly a triumph.&#8221;</p>
<p>Notice Hawking&#8217;s language: the lack of any reference to the human soul as he says &#8220;mere fundamental particles of nature.&#8221; As Hawking has said, &#8220;Before we understand science, it is natural to believe that God created the universe. But now science offers a more convincing explanation.&#8221; Asked about his statement that a unifying theory of science would help mankind &#8220;know the mind of God,&#8221; Hawking <a href="https://www.cnet.com/news/stephen-hawking-makes-it-clear-there-is-no-god/">replied</a>, &#8220;What I meant by &#8216;we would know the mind of God&#8217; is, we would know everything that God would know, if there were a God. Which there isn&#8217;t. I&#8217;m an atheist.&#8221;</p>
<p>With his disavowal of the spiritual aspect of man and the concomitant faith in God, it&#8217;s no wonder Hawking is so gloomy.</p>


Guess Who Said We’ve Got 100 Years To Leave The Planet?

Climate Change

<p>On Monday, British scientist Stephen Hawking, widely regarded as a highly intelligent man, made a rather ignorant statement when speaking with Piers Morgan ITV&#8217;s Good Morning Britain, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_FDFY-SJ-4">saying</a> he feared he &#8220;would not be welcome&#8221; in the United States now that Donald Trump is President.</p>
<p>Hawking started by stating:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Trump was elected by people who felt disenfranchised by a governing elite in a revolt against globalization.His priority will be to satisfy an electorate who are neither liberal nor well-informed. We have already seen this in the promise to build a wall along the Mexican border and the sanctioning of two oil pipelines and the appointment of the Environment Protection Agency of Scott Pruitt. A man who does not believe carbon dioxide causes climate change.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Asked by Morgan if the worldwide reaction to Trump&#8217;s election was a bit hysterical, Hawking replied:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>The reaction to the election of Donald Trump may have been overdone, but it represents a definite swing to a more right-wing authoritarian approach. There was reported to be a memo that government scientists must get White House approval for any announcements; a similar ruling in Canada had a chilling effect on scientists there. Everyday life in the United States continues much the same. I have many friends and colleagues there, and it is still a place I like and admire in many ways, but I fear that I may not be welcome.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Hawking was referring to a <a href="https://www.buzzfeed.com/dinograndoni/trump-usda?utm_term=.ys7gg2lVxl#.gyovvrY1lY">memo</a> sent only days after Trump&#8217;s inauguration by Sharon Drumm, chief of staff for the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) that stated, &#8220;Starting immediately and until further notice, ARS will not release any public-facing documents. This includes, but is not limited to, news releases, photos, fact sheets, news feeds, and social media content.&#8221;</p>
<p>That order was <a href="https://www.buzzfeed.com/dinograndoni/trump-agriculture-department?utm_term=.glYYY316v1#.io811VP5zP">rescinded</a> the next day.</p>
<p>Last May, Hawking <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2016/05/31/politics/stephen-hawking-donald-trump-demagogue/">referred</a> to Trump as &#8220;a demagogue, who seems to appeal to the lowest common denominator.&#8221;</p>
<p>Video of Hawking and Morgan below:</p>
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