Stephen Hawking is a scientist.
Cosmology . Physical cosmology is the scholarly and scientific study of the origin , large-scale structures and dynamics , and ultimate fate of the universe , as well as the scientific laws that govern these realities . The Pontifical Academy of Sciences ( Pontificia accademia delle scienze , Pontificia Academia Scientiarum ) is a scientific academy of the Vatican City , established in 1936 by Pope Pius XI , and thriving with the blessing of the Papacy ever since . Stephen William Hawking , ( born 8 January 1942 ) is an English theoretical physicist , cosmologist , author and Director of Research at the Centre for Theoretical Cosmology within the University of Cambridge .