Professor Stephen Hawking

Today I had the honor of meeting British theoretical physicist Professor Stephen Hawking. Professor Hawking's book A Brief History of Time is what made him most famous to the general public. He has also done a cameo appearance on The Simpsons! Professor Hawking was getting a tour of the NASA Mission Control by Flight Director, Dr. Bob Dempsey. I arrived after they had completed their tour of the ISS Flight Control Room (FCR-1), but I went downstairs to see him off. I missed out on the photo op, but was fortunate enough to get to see him. I have to say, and a couple other people that were here feel the same way, it was pretty darn inspiring to be in the same room as someone with such an awesome intellect. Working in Mission Control we get random celebrities and professional athletes come through quite often. Unlike the times I have been here for them, this is the first time I felt a little, well, intimidated. I mean, this guy's been compared to Einstein! He has also done so much to further humanity in spite of his fight with Lou Gehrig's Disease.