Steven Hawkins

Steven Hawkins.

Oxford. England Stevens birth
with Hitler trying to rule the earth.
Nineteen forty two the year
The first American troops appear.

His mother left their London place
an easier target for the master race.
A family of thinkers Steven born
neither academically time worn.

They both made Oxford University
showing wisdom, abtrusity.
Steven showing academic aptitude
a great deal of fortitude.

A dreadful illness aged twenty one
all ambitions thought undone.
Persistence ,work, a brilliant brain
black holes became his domain.

“There are no black holes he claimed”
at classical theory he aimed.
The event horizon does not exist
things do escape from its midst.

Atoms and smaller particles
quantum theory articles.
Under pressure change form
there is no sharp line drawn.

The event horizon disappears
radiation escapes, appears.
No one yet proved him wrong
Mathematically leads the throng.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zU6kFJL0eIc

Einstein

Einstein Relativity. E = mc^2 The same time period seems different let me be more referent. Half an hour in a queue may cause a little rue. The last half hour of a good play won't cause such dismay. Queue time seems so slow play time no such woe. The equation E = m x c squared Einstein universally declared. Energy and mass are the same thing much derision this would bring. Mass x the speed of light squared Einstein again confidently aired. A huge amount of energy is released when a small amount of mass is breached. Thus huge bombs are made plutonium, uranium best mass grade. Hiroshima felt uranium two three five Nagasaki, plutonium, many thousands died. The speed of light is constant to our genius declared this true. The greatest physicist of his age a giant on the historical stage. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfF0vxKZRhc

Carl Sagan

Carl Sagan

Hitler came to power a year before

Carl born nineteen thirty four.

Brooklyn. New York place of birth

reform Jews for what its worth.

His mother known great poverty

put down , ignored, inequality.

Father escaped the Ukraine Pogrom

mild mannered with great aplomb.

Carl an inquisitive child

five years old stirred beguiled.

Dinosaurs, stars, space

Universe a mysterious place.

Read H.G.Wells, E.R.Burroughs,

astrobiology his mind transposed.

Amino acids affected by radiation

astrophysics and so on.

Television he set the pace.

Cosmos a new view on space

Five hundred million viewed

star struck, awed, subdued.

Made science popular world wide

twenty books to enthral, guide.

Nature not to kind at death

cancer caused his last breath.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKQQAv5svkk

Bernard Hopkins

Bernard Hopkins

At birth a Philadelphia man

Raymond Rosen estate life began.

Nineteen sixty five the year

January his première.

Not a very auspicious start

the law he tried to outsmart.

By age thirteen stabbed three times

mugging people amongst his crimes.

Five years in a correction facility

learning some boxing ability.

Watched a murder over cigarettes

when he left had no regrets.

As he left given some flack

the Warden said “you'll be back”

Bernard said”you wont see me

I'm barking up a different tree”.

Boxing then his chosen career

didn't take long to domineer.

Lost his first at light heavyweight

a drop to middle, wins twenty one straight.

In nineteen ninety five the IBF crown

a middleweight champ and great renown.

Twenty time he defends the title

then lost it to a much younger rival.

Nearly fifty now, strong and fit

still confident he can do it.

A long way from that “you'll be back”

proved he sure could take the flack.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3NA40EEEv_k

Burt Bacharach

Burt Bacharach.

Jewish family for what it's worth

nineteen twenty eight his birth.

Kansas City, Missouri the place

New York his knowledge base.

Graduating from Forest Hills High

at eighteen he waves goodbye.

Disliked his classical piano lessons

preferred going to jazz sessions.

Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, two

he liked to go and view.

More studies at California West

thought Darius Milhaud the best.

Then service in the Korean war

in entertainment on this tour.

On demob a working pianist

Vic Damone on his list.

Meets Hal David a lyricist

becomes a friend and accompanist.

This relationship brought world fame.

they set the music world aflame.

Writing for film and stage

brought music into the modern age.

Bacharach had other talents too

knew the business through and through.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2O_uGOAJVBw