Stephen Hawking's final book 'Brief Answers' will be published in October

Jocelyn McClurg | USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption A brief history of Stephen Hawking in pop culture Stephen Hawking was almost as good at comedy as he was at physics. After he made his first cameo on ‘Star Trek: The Next Generation,’ he became a popular guest star on ‘The Simpsons’ and ‘The Big Bang Theory’ before getting the biopic treatment.

Stephen Hawking once explained his mission this way: "My goal is simple. It is a complete understanding of the universe, why it is as it is and why it exists at all."

The famed British theoretical physicist may not have answered all the questions before he died on March 14 at age 76. But he is leaving a final book.

His American publisher, Bantam, announced Wednesday that Brief Answers to the Big Questions, a selection of reflections from his personal archive, will be released in October.

It will be divided into four parts: "Why Are We Here?"; "Will We Survive?"; "Will Technology Save Us or Destroy Us?" and "How Can We Thrive?"

Bantam said the book will “cover his discoveries and perspectives on everything from the creation of the universe, black holes, alien intelligence, and the existence of God to the importance of space colonization, and the perils and promise of artificial intelligence.”

The book was in discussion at the time of Hawking’s death, and his estate decided to go forward with it.

Hawking’s best-known book was 1988's A Brief History of Time, which has sold more than 13 million copies worldwide, according to Bantam.

During his lifetime, Hawking became a pop culture phenomenon, making appearances on such shows as The Big Bang Theory and The Simpsons.

As a young man, he was diagnosed with the progressive neurodegenerative disease ALS, better known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease. He was confined to a wheelchair and eventually forced to speak through a voice synthesizer. The story of his illness was told in the 2014 film The Theory of Everything starring Eddie Redmayne, who won an Oscar for his portrayal of Hawking.