Inexplicable

Even Stephen Hawking Can’t Explain Donald Trump

He's explained the formation of the universe and the nature of black holes, but one phenomenon still baffles the greatest of scientific minds: the rise of Donald Trump.

He has written the history of time, wrestled with the infinities of space and unlocked the mysteries of black holes.

However, even Stephen Hawking can’t explain Donald Trump.

Asked during an interview on British TV why Trump was meeting with such success in the American Presidential race, Hawking replied, “I can’t. He’s a demagogue who seems to appeal to the lowest common denominator.”

Hawking, 74, who was diagnosed with motor neurone disease in 1963 and given two years to live, is unable to speak without assistance and uses a computerized voice box. Each word he uses is spelt out a letter at a time.

Hawking has a history of being unafraid to voice his opinion on political issues, and in the interview he also waded into the debate on whether the U.K. should leave the European Union in the forthcoming referendum on the issue.

The 74-year old scientist told Good Morning Britain: “Gone are the days when we could stand on our own, against the world. We need to be part of a larger group of nations, both for our security and our trade. The possibility of our leaving the EU has already led to a sharp fall in the pound, because the markets judge that it will damage our economy.”

“There are two obvious reasons why we should stay in. The first is that it promotes the mobility of people. Students can come here from EU countries to study, and our students can go to other EU universities. More importantly, at the level of research, the exchange of people enables skills to transfer more quickly, and brings new people with different ideas, derived from their different backgrounds,” he said.

Hawking’s remarks about Donald Trump are likely to be remembered alongside his remarks about Zayn Malik of One Direction.

“My advice to any heartbroken young girl is to pay close attention to the study of theoretical physics, because one day there may well be proof of multiple universes,” he said in response to a question about Zayn leaving the band at the Sydney Opera House last year.

“It would not be beyond the realms of possibility that somewhere outside of our own universe lies another different universe – and in that universe, Zayn is still in One Direction.”

He was also asked in the interview if Eddie Redmayne's portrayal of him in the film had boosted his female fan base.

He replied: "I had many fans before Eddie Redmayne played me."

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Tom SykesEuropean Editor at Large

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