Peter Woit writes: Stephen Hawking has a new book out this week, called "The Grand Design" and written with Leonard Mlodinow, in which he effectively announces that he has given up on the traditional goals of fundamental physics in favor of anthropic arguments invoking a multiverse.

Instead, tired old M-theory is getting the nod.   But there is also the issue of the potential damage caused by this to the cause of science funding in Britain ...