Brief Answers to the Big Questions - Book Review

This is a book I wish I’d read much sooner.

To read the cover and the blurb, you may think it’s a list of definitive answers to the questions posed to Stephen Hawking. It is not that.

You might think, after hitting the first intellectually challenging topic he touches on, that the book takes a long winded and inaccessible turn from there for the average reader. It absolutely isn’t that.

You might think some of the questions and topics discussed are designed to be provocative of a two sided debate. It couldn’t be further from that.

This book is deeply humbling, inclusive, and uniting of humanity as a whole. While Stephen was undoubtedly one of the greatest thinkers of our time, he is as transparently human as the rest of us, and he bares that in this book.

His ever-present wit is like a guide rope to follow which keeps us connected with his humanity as he navigates us briefly through some challenging topics of physics, but ultimately telling a life story we can all relate to in some way. The eloquence and depth of his carefully chosen words, although narrated in his robotic voice in my mind, reflect a voice more human than my own. This is a precious and rare skill in science communication.

Far from intending to dazzle us with confusing scientific speak, he effortlessly puts his points first, in a deeply moving way to the reader, to bring together the tangible human experience with the urgent importance of modern science, science communication and literacy, and sound thought.

Hawking, even after his death, can make more of us realise that science isn’t only for the elite; it is for the curious, and speaks to the inherent traits we all carry as humans. We’re all inextricably linked to science and advancements in knowledge, and that makes us all a part of it in one way or another.

As such, living in a scientific age which has yielded so many fruits already, we’re in ever-greater danger from anti-science cultures, politics, superstition, and existential threats. He acknowledges this and underlines the importance of caution in how we move forward as a species; yet does so with a sober optimism, and a pragmatic outlook. In doing this he demonstrates that it’s possible to tackle doom-and-gloom subjects with a positive approach.

Marrying what many people view as ‘inaccessible’ science with his own life struggles, Stephen sparks a much needed respect and enthusiasm for knowledge, our world, and the universe beyond us, from a human perspective – and with a sense of gratitude. Most importantly, he stresses that we should always try.

He does this by showing the often overlooked necessity of fields such as space exploration, as ways to unite humanity across nations, and remain dedicated to curiosity and drive for change. This, for the ultimate betterment of our species and our home on Earth. Importantly, he ignites wonder – something crucial in encouraging generations for the future. He is able to connect the dots for us on why science matters to us all, whether we like it or not.

Although Stephen offers some very good insight on the big questions, the bigger value lies in the ways we think about those things – and the related importance of aspects such as critical thinking, that we use to apply real-world solutions to our ongoing progress as a species.

Inspirational, thought evoking, and existentially important, I cannot recommend this book enough – to any age or level of interest in science. In fact, especially to those with little interest.

If you willingly absorb this book and don’t gain something from it, I question if you are even human at all.