Just last night I finished reading "The Last Lecture", so my thoughts this morning have been on the man who gave the famous "last lecture" speech we've probably all seen floating around the internet. I felt a little sad this morning to turn on the computer and see that he just passed away. I really hoped he could beat the cancer! I highly recommend the book, even just to read about a man who truly loved his family and lived to bless the lives of others.
'Last Lecture' Professor, Randy Pausch, Dies
Randy Pausch, a Carnegie Mellon computer science professor who became a national celebrity last year after a lecture he gave became a viral video sensation, died today of complications from pancreatic cancer, CMU reported. He was 47.
Last September, when Pausch delivered the talk, he believed he had less than six months to live, a fact which added gravitas to the spirited, pithy address about the merits of perseverance.
Pausch turned the address into a book, which became a runaway bestseller when it was released in April and remains in the top 20 books on Amazon.com.
Back then, Pausch told Wired.com, "We're clawing for every extra month we can get. Realistically, I hope to get two to four more months."
Pausch was recognized within computer science for his on the way that humans interacted with computer, working with CMU's Human-Computer Interaction Institute and creating ALICE, a 3D programming environment for children. But a brilliant career as a teacher and researcher was overshadowed by the simple, no-nonsense wisdom of the talk, entitled, "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams." Pausch described the talk in words as touching as they were sad.
"I'm attempting to put myself in a bottle that will one day wash up on the beach for my children," he said.
Despite the fame and attention that Pausch received in the last few months of his life, he seemed eager to step out of the limelight as he neared his death.
"I've said my piece," he said in our last interview. "My time now is entirely focused on family."
Randy Pausch, a Carnegie Mellon computer science professor who became a national celebrity last year after a lecture he gave became a viral video sensation, died today of complications from pancreatic cancer, CMU reported. He was 47.
Last September, when Pausch delivered the talk, he believed he had less than six months to live, a fact which added gravitas to the spirited, pithy address about the merits of perseverance.
Pausch turned the address into a book, which became a runaway bestseller when it was released in April and remains in the top 20 books on Amazon.com.
Back then, Pausch told Wired.com, "We're clawing for every extra month we can get. Realistically, I hope to get two to four more months."
Pausch was recognized within computer science for his on the way that humans interacted with computer, working with CMU's Human-Computer Interaction Institute and creating ALICE, a 3D programming environment for children. But a brilliant career as a teacher and researcher was overshadowed by the simple, no-nonsense wisdom of the talk, entitled, "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams." Pausch described the talk in words as touching as they were sad.
"I'm attempting to put myself in a bottle that will one day wash up on the beach for my children," he said.
Despite the fame and attention that Pausch received in the last few months of his life, he seemed eager to step out of the limelight as he neared his death.
"I've said my piece," he said in our last interview. "My time now is entirely focused on family."
2 comments:
I really liked his "lecture" also. He was so upfront about dying but I couldn't help hoping for a miracle.
Oh I am sooo glad he made it past fathers day. That's what he told a news reporter, that he just wanted to make it to fathers day for his kids. My heart breaks for his beautiful family but aren't we so blessed to know where he is and that life goes on. Rachel
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