This past weekend, without much fanfare, Stephen Hawking stepped down as Lucasian Professor of Mathematik at Cambridge. This is probably the most famous "chair" in all academe, and Hawking has sat in it for the past three decades. The position is 346 years old, and has been occupied by such luminaries as Dirac, Stokes, and most impressively, Sir Isaac Newton himself.
The primary reason for Hawking’s resignation is apparently not his recent health travails. Rather, it is customary for the Lucasian Professor to retire at the age of 67. And not even Hawking messes with centuries of tradition.
The big question now: who will follow in Hawking’s footsteps?
