Haw ‧ king, Ste ‧ phen /ˈhɔːkɪŋ, ˈstiːv ə n/ BrE AmE
(1942–) a British scientist who has developed important new ideas about ↑ relativity and ↑ black hole s . He has continued working even though he suffers from a serious disease of the ↑ nervous system , and he uses a special computer system in order to talk. He wrote a book called A Brief History of Time (1988), in which he explains his ideas about how the universe and time began, and how they have developed.