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"Last Lecture" CMU Professor Randy Pausch Dies
Posted by
kdawson
on Fri Jul 25, 2008 10:28 AM
from the imagineering-on-the-other-side dept.
from the imagineering-on-the-other-side dept.
Many readers are sending in word that Randy Pausch has died at 47. The charismatic young college professor celebrated life despite a death sentence from pancreatic cancer in a remarkable speech widely known as the "Last Lecture." The video went viral and has been downloaded by over 10 million people.
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Submission: 'Last Lecture' CMU professor Randy Pausch dies by Anonymous Coward
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Worth the time (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Worth the time (Score:5, Informative)
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Video much better than book... (Score:4, Insightful)
It duplicates most of the video, with little else besides some things that Mr. Pausch wanted to include for his family.
Besides, the video has the laugh track...
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Re:Video much better than book... (Score:4, Insightful)
Imagine how much better books could be if they listed the emotion you were supposed to be feeling at the end of every line...
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Re:Video much better than book... (Score:5, Funny)
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Re:Video much better than book... (Score:5, Funny)
Snape Kills Dumbledore {Sadness, but triumphant relief}
Way to ruin it for me, you insensitive clod!
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Re:Still not sure... (Score:5, Interesting)
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Interesting lecture (Score:5, Insightful)
Respect (Score:5, Funny)
Godspeed (Score:5, Insightful)
That was an amazing speech, Professor Pausch. Your family will be in my prayers. You had a great way of looking at life, and I sincerely believe that your children will benefit very much from that.
I know many people who already have...
Re:Godspeed (Score:5, Interesting)
He was a remarkable man. I live just north of Pittsburgh and had the honor of meeting him briefly early last year. He will be remembered well by all, not just those around the CMU area.
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Prosper. (Score:5, Interesting)
Everyone hug your kids or your parents or whomever is next to you (if that's allowed by your HR policy). You never know when your time is up.
Re:Prosper. (Score:5, Interesting)
On the contrary, I think that some people naturally avoid insincere affection as a defensive mechanism, to avoid being manipulated or otherwise taken advantage of. Hugs invoke a degree of physical intimacy that isn't always appropriate (especially in professional, as opposed to recreational or religious, contexts).
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Transcription of "Last Lecture" (Score:5, Informative)
Follow the link for the transcription of Randy Pausch's Last Lecture [go.com].
May his children come to fully understand (Score:5, Interesting)
How much he loved them and what a truly remarkable and inspirational person he was.
Requiem in Pacet.
Re:May his children come to fully understand (Score:5, Funny)
Romanus eunt domus!
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Get the full story, sans ads and crap (Score:5, Informative)
http://abcnews.go.com/print?id=4614281 [go.com]
A sad day for everyone that watched his speech (Score:5, Informative)
Off all the viral videos I've seen over the years, I think his "Last Lecture" was the most moving and worthwhile I have ever seen.
It's pretty hard to talk about something as scary as terminal cancer, yet while he kept reminding the listeners of his condition, his energy and charisma kept making you forget that the man was sick.
It's too bad the article that Yahoo! had failed to mention that he got to spend a day with the Pittsburgh Steelers and their wide receiver, Hines Ward. While he didn't actually play in the NFL, I imagine he came as close as he was going to get. I think he managed to nail all of his "bucket list".
People with such great vision are hard to come by. Having that vision while still having such a willingness to share it with others, with great entusiasm, is even more rare.
May his family keep their memories of him always in their minds. R.I.P.
Re:A sad day for everyone that watched his speech (Score:5, Insightful)
No kidding -- I shed a few tears for this guy. If there was one thing I got from that lecture, it was a different perspective on brick walls. On the bright side, he beat the odds by a nontrivial amount, and he savored every last moment he could.
Parent
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
It's too bad the article that Yahoo! had failed to mention that he got to spend a day with the Pittsburgh Steelers and their wide receiver, Hines Ward. While he didn't actually play in the NFL, I imagine he came as close as he was going to get.
Which article are you talking about? The linked article on abcnews.go.com does mention this on the last page. From TFA:
But even though he had enabled the dreams of so many others, we couldn't help but notice that there was one dream Pausch had never been able to fulfill -- playing in the NFL.
So ABC News made a couple of phone calls, and in October, Pausch took the field with the Pittsburgh Steelers. He was wearing the jersey of his favorite player: wide receiver Heinz Ward.
Moments later he was catching balls thrown by Ward.
He caught every pass -- and even kicked a field goal, on his first attempt.
If only... (Score:5, Interesting)
If only our politicians were a 1/10th of the man that he was.
Re:If only... (Score:5, Funny)
Or, failing that, if only they could die as quickly as he did.
(Apologies for the inappropriate humour, I was deeply moved by his lecture and even more so by his passing away. On behalf of ACs all over the internet, I wish him much success in the great lecture hall in the sky.)
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Re:If only... (Score:5, Insightful)
If only our politicians were a 1/10th of the man that he was.
No! Don't waste good men on politics!
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Re:If only... (Score:5, Insightful)
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More than The Last Lecture (Score:5, Informative)
Download Alice... (Score:5, Informative)
Dr. Randy Pausch was part of the team that created Alice [alice.org], a tool to teach programming masquerading as a game. Salute Dr. Pausch's memory by downloading Alice and playing with it. And if you can, help the effort to finish Alice v. 3!
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Tearful (Score:5, Insightful)
I'm all tears as I write this. I've been following Prof Pausch on web since the time that video was posted. If you see his video, blog and other web commentary, you would realize how he was the embodiment of positive energy.
Hell, I even checked on him last week - and his blog posted that he was off chemo. I was happy to know that he was doing well. :(
Prof Pausch, we will miss you.
Re:Tearful (Score:5, Interesting)
Quote: "I mean, the metaphor I've used is ... somebody's going to push my family off a cliff pretty soon, and I won't be there to catch them. And that breaks my heart. But I have some time to sew some nets to cushion the fall. So, I can curl up in a ball and cry, or I can get to work on the nets."
Wow.
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Re:Tearful (Score:5, Insightful)
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Official CMU release (Score:5, Informative)
http://www.cmu.edu/homepage/beyond/2008/summer/an-enduring-legacy.shtml [cmu.edu]
Re:Official CMU release (Score:5, Informative)
Hrm, better links:
News release [cmu.edu]
Homepage story [cmu.edu]
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Wow (Score:5, Insightful)
You have to be brave to be able to face what he did the way he did it. I think I would rather be run over by a train without a moment's notice.
Re:Wow (Score:5, Insightful)
Each morning it's brave to get up and go into that cruel, cruel world.
Each breath you take is one less to your last.
Each step or action you take is one less to your last.
The only difference with him and the rest of us was that he was revealed the sand left in the top of his hourglass.
If I were faced with this as he was, I could only hope to forge forward as he did.
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NY Times on how people die (Score:5, Interesting)
Cancer 20%
Heart Disease 25%
Old Age decline - demntia, pneumonia, etc. 40%
Other - accidents, etc. 15%
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My Condolances (Score:3, Interesting)
My dad too (Score:4, Interesting)
My father is also a professor (of civil engineering) and is dying of the same. He linked me this video - I'm afraid to watch it, afraid I'll break down.
I thank him anyway, to know that I am not alone.
Re:My dad too (Score:5, Insightful)
You owe it to your dad and Pausch's memory to watch it.
He knew how hard the future was going to be to him and his family. Instead of resigning himself to his fate, he poured his heart and soul into achieving the dreams he has held and preparing his children for the future. A noble effort and one that inspires, even in such sad times.
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Re:My dad too (Score:5, Insightful)
My father is also a professor (of civil engineering) and is dying of the same. He linked me this video - I'm afraid to watch it, afraid I'll break down.
Don't be afraid to break down. The classic Northern European stoicism isn't really all that healthy. The whole "real men don't cry" notion is ridiculous--- real men don't adhere to silly macho notions. Sad people cry. I friend of mine died last week from a bad reaction to a prescription drug. She left behind 3 young kids. The funeral was yesterday, and you better believe I was crying.
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Q: How do you make a man into a god? (Score:4, Insightful)
A: You kill him.
Re:Q: How do you make a man into a god? (Score:5, Funny)
Well that would probably kill him.
Parent
If he had cancer... (Score:3, Funny)
...then I think his video must have metastatized, instead of going viral.
an amazing article from the Brown Alumni Magazine (Score:5, Interesting)
I actually read the article first and then googled more references.
This article is amazing. [brownalumnimagazine.com]
My wife's father died from metastatic colin cancer that went to his lungs. She still has bouts of depression, and I have often wondered what I should be doing to help her and my kids should I check out early. This is the best that I have ever come across.
Fortunate to have him as a professor (Score:5, Interesting)
You can do something for this great man. (Score:4, Informative)
I am sure that he'd appreciate a donation to the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, 2141 Rosecrans Ave., Suite 7000, El Segundo, CA 90245 [pancan.org]
The Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Mourns the Loss of Friend and Supporter, Dr. Randy Pausch
Dear Friends,
It is with great sadness that the staff and I mourn the passing of Dr. Randy Pausch.
Dr. Pausch, the Carnegie-Mellon professor who delivered the now famous The Last Lecture speech about the importance of achieving your childhood dreams, became a friend and supporter of the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network. He was also a loving husband, a devoted father, and a mentor who not only influenced and inspired his students and colleagues, but went on to inspire thousands, if not millions of people to follow their hearts and their dreams. We will be forever grateful for his support and commitment.
It is critically important to keep Dr. Pausch's message, "to make every day matter in the fight against pancreatic cancer," moving forward. He knew the importance and urgency of getting the message out to help drive the research funding needed to fight this disease. His philosophy of "every day matters" was a testament to his determination and strength despite the odds.
The Pancreatic Cancer Action Network honors Dr. Randy Pausch for his humanity and bravery during his fight against this terrible disease. His commitment to our organization will never be forgotten. We will miss him.
Sincerely,
Julie Fleshman
I will miss this man, even though I have never met him in person (I so wish I did), his lecture, like himself, is unforgettable. It was the most important lecture I have ever had the honour of participating - even though from a distance.
I wish... (Score:4, Interesting)
I wish my schools had figures like this guy...
I went to school in eastern Europe, where we got a STRONG education=good education with a hard exam system.
Still sometimes it is not quantity of knowledge but positive spirit what people should be getting.
I read some negative comments, and I feel sorry for the people posting them.,,,,
Well, just my opinion.... and while I read a lot of interesting TECH stuff on /. (and thank for it), this is really a piece (the video) I am thankful for.
Cheers
Re:RIP (Score:5, Interesting)
Two years ago, I'd had all the symptoms of pancreatic cancer and my doctor had ordered up an MRI to check it out. For 4 days, between getting told to get the test and when the results came in, I just wandered around like I'd been drugged. Thankfully, the result was negative, but to this day, I can't imagine how that guy managed to refocus his mind and life. Pancreatic cancer usually means "6 months" (or less) and for a lot of that the living is a technicality.
You done good, guy.
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RIP = "Requiescat In Pace" (Score:5, Informative)
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Re:RIP (Score:5, Informative)
Rest into peace?
Requiescat in pace. Learn your Latin.
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Re:RIP (Score:4, Funny)
Estray inway eacepay.
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Re:You missed the point (Score:5, Insightful)
As for the "time to show your weakness," I completely disagree. Dr. Pausch has a wife and three children. Did his terminal cancer suddenly absolve him of his responsibilities to them? This isn't about him satisfying some egotistical urge, it's about him providing future support for his family. His stories are entertaining, yes, but the entertainment aspect is the "head fake" to get his audience to listen to and comprehend the deeper philosophical message. He could have just blurted out "work hard, don't give up," but it wouldn't have had the same impact.
He has set the bar pretty high. I should hope to be as much a man as he.
Parent