The Universe In A Nutshell

If It [the Universe] Was Expanding Fairly Slowly, The Force Of Gravity Would Cause It Eventually To Stop Expanding And Then To Start Contracting. However, If It Was Expanding At More Than A Certain Critical Rate, Gravity Would Never Be Strong Enough To Stop It, And The Universe Would Continue To Expand Forever.

When I Was Young, Stephen Hawking Wasn't The World's Most Famous Physicist. The Fame Didn't Arrive Until The Publication Of "a Brief History Of Time," By Which Time I Was In My Late Teens. When I Was A Child, He Was Well Known Among Physicists, But They Are A Fairly Select, Serious Bunch, Not Much Given To Celebrity Idolizing.

The Universe Does Not Behave According To Our Pre-conceived Ideas. It Continues To Surprise Us.

Don't Be Disabled In Spirit As Well As Physically.

Our Population And Our Use Of The Finite Resources Of Planet Earth Are Growing Exponentially, Along With Our Technical Ability To Change The Environment For Good Or Ill. But Our Genetic Code Still Carries The Selfish And Aggressive Instincts That Were Of Survival Advantage In The Past. It Will Be Difficult Enough To Avoid Disaster In The Next Hundred Years, Let Alone The Next Thousand Or Million. Our Only Chance Of Long Term Survival, Is Not To Remain Inward Looking On Planet Earth, But To Spread Out Into Space.