A Disease with a Curious Name

Usually diseases are named after the scientists who discover them. The nerve and muscle disease known as Lou Gehrig's disease, however, is named after a famous American baseball player, Lou Gehrig, who died of it in 1941.
Henry Louis Gehrig (born June 19, 1903 — June 2, 1941) was an American baseball player. He played with the Yankees for most of his playing time which started in 1923 and ended in 1939. When he stopped playing, he went to a doctor who found out Gehrig had amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS — which is now sometimes called Lou Gehrig's disease). The doctor told Gehrig he had only a short time to live since amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, sometimes called Lou Gehrig’s disease or motor neurone disease) is a chronic, progressive, almost always fatal neurological disease.
On July 4, 1939, there was a special observation of Gehrig by the other Yankees, and Gehrig gave a public talk that became well-known. When he spoke that day he said he was "the luckiest man on the face of the earth". The mayor of New York City congratulated him for his teamwork. He died less than two years later.
ALS does not show many symptoms, making it very hard to diagnose. It usually affects people ages 40-60. The earliest symptoms may include twitching, cramping, or stiffness of muscles; muscle weakness affecting an arm or a leg; slurred and strange-sounding nasal speech; or having a difficult time chewing or swallowing. These general symptoms then develop into clear weakness or atrophy that may cause a doctor to believe that a person has ALS.
Among the people who suffered from this disease is Professor Stephen Hawkins, the famous English theoretical physicist and mathematician. Because of ALS, he can not move or talk very well. The illness has gotten worse over the years and he is now almost completely paralyzed. He uses a wheelchair to move and an Intel computer to talk for him. He is one of the most clever living people.