Science vs.

philosophy
At Google's Zeitgeist Conference in 2011, Hawking said that "philosophy is dead". He
believes that philosophers "have not kept up with modern developments in science" and that
scientists "have become the bearers of the torch of discovery in our quest for knowledge".
He said that philosophical problems can be answered by science, particularly new scientific
theories which "lead us to a new and very different picture of the universe and our place in
it".[298]
Religion
Hawking has stated that he is "not religious in the normal sense" and he believes that "the
universe is governed by the laws of science". Hawking stated:
There is a fundamental difference between religion, which is based on authority, [and]
science, which is based on observation and reason. Science will win because it works.[299]

"The laws may have been decreed by God, but God does not intervene to break the
laws".[300] In an interview published in The Guardian, Hawking regarded the concept
of heaven as a myth, believing that there is "no heaven or afterlife" and that such a notion
was a "fairy story for people afraid of the dark".[131] In 2011, when narrating the first episode
of the American television series Curiosity on the Discovery Channel, Hawking declared:
We are each free to believe what we want and it is my view that the simplest explanation is
there is no God. No one created the universe and no one directs our fate. This leads me to a
profound realization. There is probably no heaven, and no afterlife either. We have this one
life to appreciate the grand design of the universe, and for that, I am extremely grateful. [301][302]

In September 2014 he joined Starmus Festival as keynote speaker and declared himself
an atheist.[303] In an interview with El Mundo, he commented:
Before we understand science, it is natural to believe that God created the universe. But now
science offers a more convincing explanation. What I meant by 'we would know the mind of
God' is, we would know everything that God would know, if there were a God, which there
isn't. I'm an atheist.[304]

Politics
In March 1968, Hawking marched alongside Tariq Ali and Vanessa Redgrave to protest
against the Vietnam War.[305] He is a longstanding Labour Party supporter.[306][307] He recorded
a tribute for the 2000 Democratic presidential candidate Al Gore,[308] called the 2003 invasion
of Iraq a "war crime",[307][309] was part of an academic boycott of a conference in Israel
because of concerns about Israel's policies towards Palestinians,[310][311][312] campaigned
for nuclear disarmament,[306][313][307] and has supported stem cell research,[307][314] universal
health care,[315] and action to prevent climate change.[313] In August 2014, Hawking was one
of 200 signatories to a letter opposing Scottish independence in the run-up to
September's referendum on that issue.[316] Hawking believes a United Kingdom withdrawal
from the European Union (Brexit) will damage the UK's contribution to science as modern
research needs international collaboration, and that free movement of people in Europe
encourages the spread of ideas.[317] Hawking is greatly concerned over health care, he
stated:
I have received excellent medical attention in Britain, and I felt it was important to set the
record straight. I believe in universal health care. And I am not afraid to say so.[299]

Appearances in popular media

Further information: Stephen Hawking in popular culture
At the release party for the home video version of the A Brief History of Time, Leonard
Nimoy, who had played Spock on Star Trek, learned that Hawking was interested in
appearing on the show. Nimoy made the necessary contact, and Hawking played a
holographic simulation of himself in an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation in
1993.[318][319][320] The same year, his synthesiser voice was recorded for the Pink Floyd song
"Keep Talking",[321][165] and in 1999 for an appearance on The Simpsons.[322]Hawking
appeared in documentaries entitled The Real Stephen Hawking (2001),[280] Stephen
Hawking: Profile (2002) [323] and Hawking (2013), and the documentary series Stephen
Hawking, Master of the Universe (2008).[324] Hawking has also guest-starred
in Futurama[171] and The Big Bang Theory.[325]
Hawking allowed the use of his copyrighted voice[326][327] in the biographical 2014 film The
Theory of Everything, in which he was portrayed by Eddie Redmayne in an Academy Award-
winning role.[328] Hawking was featured at the Monty Python Live (Mostly) in 2014. He was
shown to sing an extended version of the Galaxy Song, after running down Brian Cox with
his wheelchair, in a pre-recorded video.[329][330]
Hawking has used his fame to advertise products, including a wheelchair,[280] National
Savings,[331] British Telecom, Specsavers, Egg Banking,[332] and Go Compare.[333] He has
applied to trademark his name.[334]

Awards and honours