Mar 18th 2018, 19:31:13
The goal of every astrophysicist is to try and find a unified theory of gravity... one that encapsulates both quantum theory and the general theory of relativity. Hawkings discovery that blackholes emit radiation is a groundbreaking equation in astrophysics and is brings scientists closer to a unified theory of the universe and the laws of entropy.
If you had to look any of that up to confirm its truth, then your opinion of the man's brilliance or lack thereof has, up until that point, is irrelevant.
Science's most important endeavor is to fill in the gaps so as to make divine intervention unnecessary.