Simplicity Is A Matter Of Taste

A Model Is A Good Model If First It Interprets A Wide Range Of Observations In Terms Of A Simple And Elegant Model, And Second If The Model Makes Definite Predictions That Can Be Tested, And Possibly Falsified, By Observation.

I Think My Dad [ Stephen Hawking] Would Have Been Pleased If I Had Turned Out A Scientist Because He Truly Believes That Is The Most Interesting Career Open To Anyone. But He Also Believes That You Have To Follow Your Own Path In Life And So He Certainly Wasn't Going To Push Me Toward Theoretical Physics When It Didn't Look Like I Was Going In That Direction Naturally.

Keeping An Active Mind Has Been Vital To My Survival, As Has Been Maintaining A Sense Of Humor.

One Might Think This Means That Imaginary Numbers Are Just A Mathematical Game Having Nothing To Do With The Real World. From The Viewpoint Of Positivist Philosophy, However, One Cannot Determine What Is Real. All One Can Do Is Find Which Mathematical Models Describe The Universe We Live In. It Turns Out That A Mathematical Model Involving Imaginary Time Predicts Not Only Effects We Have Already Observed But Also Effects We Have Not Been Able To Measure Yet Nevertheless Believe In For Other Reasons. So What Is Real And What Is Imaginary? Is The Distinction Just In Our Minds?

I Believe That The Long-term Future Of The Human Race Must Be Space And That It Represents An Important Life Insurance For Our Future Survival, As It Could Prevent The Disappearance Of Humanity By Colonizing Other Planets.