Hawking's passing comes as Chinese science set to expand

Of all the articles I've written during this year's two sessions, the obituary for Stephen Hawking was the most difficult.

The globally admired British physicist, 76, passed away on March 14 after decades of battling with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a neurodegenerative disease that left him paralyzed and speechless but for a robotic voice.

I typed the article with tears in my eyes. There are no words to describe the sadness of writing about the death of your childhood hero without ever having met him.