while, it's sad to lose someone like him, but at the same time, we should be glad to know he's no longer suffering and in pain from the ALS that left him in that wheelchair and took his real voice and left him to speak via computer.
Hawkins did leave behind a lasting legacy in the world and he did had a sense of humor to appear on Big Bang Theory, Futurama and The Simpsons and other shows too.
i hope on this Sunday's new episode of The Simpsons, they find a way to pay tribute to him, by either a chalkboard gag or a end of the show "In Memory of" graphic or both.
and i'm sure the first Big Bang Theory episode to air after his death, will be in his memory too.
god speed Stephen Hawkins, you will be missed dearly.