5 ms·

Randy Pausch, noted CMU prof, succumbs to cancer

187 points by demandred 18y ago

jlouis 18y ago
This guy gave some of the best lectures I've ever watched. It is a sad day when someone like this dies.
oqtol 18y ago
It’s a sad day when anyone passes, but his inspirational "Last Lecture" if anything has taught me to celebrate life.
Sam_Odio 18y ago
Having been lucky enough to hear Randy speak in person, I can earnestly say he was an inspirational and fearless person. When forced to confront his own mortality, he took the extraordinary and selfless step of teaching the rest of us what it means to live. I hope that he continues to change us in the way he seemed to have wanted, and that our decisions in life will continue to benefit from the perspective he's provided.
- rbanffy 18y ago
  I just wanted to point out there is a difference between being brave and being fearless. While one has no fear, the other faces it and does not succumb. For all I read from and about him and his struggle against cancer, he was a very brave man. When my time comes, I hope I die with at least a fraction of his dignity.
jedc 18y ago
Very sad news, indeed.
rms 18y ago
Time Management: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5784740380335567758 http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5784740380335567758 Last Lecture: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5700431505846055184 http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5700431505846055184
jcl 18y ago
:( I'd been following Randy's story for a while now. He was constantly upbeat, still going strong two years after his doctor's initial "matter of months" prognosis. As Randy's web page seems to be inundated, here's a page with links to various Pausch-related media, including his Last Lecture and Time Management talks, as well as various interviews: http://www.cs.virginia.edu/~robins/Randy/ http://www.cs.virginia.edu/~robins/Randy/
- deleted 18y ago
  [deleted]
whiskeyjack 18y ago
Ah bugger. Really gutted to hear this. Loved the Last Lecture (book too). A real inspirational guy. Gotta feel for his family.
wallflower 18y ago
"Brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to show how badly we want something. Because the brick walls are there to stop the people who don’t want something badly enough. They are there to keep out the other people." What a metaphor for challenges in life that we pursue
- jmtame 18y ago
  I also liked this one: "Don't complain; just work harder."
- SethFinkelstein 18y ago
  I listened to the lecture and mean no disrespect to the man's spirit. But that vapid aphorism sets my teeth on edge. I couldn't help thinking: Gee, all those people who hit a brick wall because of racism, of sexism, of poverty, because they didn't have all the advantages of a well-off handsome personable white guy - well, they just must not have wanted it badly enough. They're those OTHER PEOPLE who are kept out. It's a damn nasty metaphor when you think about it.
  - dehowell 18y ago
    There are two ways you can look at an aphorism such as this "brick wall" business. Either: 1. These words of wisdom are a useful way to motivate myself when things are rough. 2. These words of wisdom should be used as a criteria for judging other people. I think it's a damn nasty metaphor only when you apply it to someone other than yourself. Let me put it this way... we should celebrate those people who have pushed past whatever tremendous barriers they found in their way, but we should never look down on those who tried and failed. Probability of success in many areas of life is at least partially dependent on attitude... and as cheesy and vapid as they may sometimes sound, I will take whatever comfort and confidence I can from these sorts of inspirational messages when I come across them.
    - SethFinkelstein 18y ago
      Given that that phrase is a snippet I've heard over and over in news coverage, it's inevitable that it will be repeatedly applied as other than yourself. It plays into a widespead mythology that success is purely a matter of virtute/good-attitude (anti-straw-man: I didn't say attitude has no effect at all), and a concommitant view that for those who did not succeed it's due to their unvirtuousness/bad-attitude. How could it not be used to "look down on those who tried and failed", given the part about "... stop the people who don't want something badly enough. They are there to keep out the other people." - that wording invites anyone who succeeds to think that the "other people" are lesser, the ones the wall is there to keep out. And critically, this doesn't all exist in a vacuum. His intent might have been entirely benign, but that doesn't mean the overall effect will be entirely benign.
jonnytran 18y ago
CMU's official page (of his lectures): http://www.cmu.edu/randyslecture/ http://www.cmu.edu/randyslecture/
siculars 18y ago
a real mensch.
huherto 18y ago
"But we don't beat the Reaper by living longer. We beat the Reaper by living well," said Dr. Pausch. Something to keep in mind.
raju 18y ago
RIP Randy. I know I will miss his fearless spirit.
charlesju 18y ago
RIP
eznet 18y ago
A loss for not only the realm of science, but the world as a whole - very inspirational man. Mr. Pausch will be missed.
24pfilms 18y ago
His development on alice is an amazing tool to teach kids programming. http://www.alice.org/ http://www.alice.org/ Randy you rock, and always will.
froo 18y ago
My heart truly goes out to his family. I have to admit that even on the other side of the world, I was inspired by him. The only time I saw one of his lectures was on youtube, I happened across it in the middle of the night one time, and I just had to finish it - I stayed up until 5am just to see what he had to say. It was one of those moments that really makes you think about what we can really achieve when we put our minds to it.
donw 18y ago
His "last lecture" helped to bootstrap me out of nearly a year of depression. It is a sad day when a man who has helped, inspired, and driven so many to excellence passes from the world, for few men are capable of stepping up to shoulder the burden that Randy carried, and fewer still could do so with such cheerfulness, tenacity, and care. He was a great man, and he will be missed by many.
- mattmaroon 18y ago
  Kinda interesting, when you consider that the fact that this day was imminent was why he was able to help and inspire so many total strangers.
jfornear 18y ago
Pray for his family and children especially.
mrtron 18y ago
An inspirational man. If he can deal with dying that well - we can all deal with living a little better.
ispy 18y ago
It's unfortunate that he died but to be honest, I don't quite understand the appeal of Dr. Pausch. All of the quotes attributed to him seem specious reasoning at best. "Beat the Reaper by living well?" I think "death" wins, always. "Brick walls" are just there. They don't have a purpose. Pontifications about the meaning of life? It looks like it doesn't really have one. Sort of like 'god', you can just make up what ever you want. What's his proof for any of what he's telling me? Do we listen to this man because we feel sorry for him? because we're afraid of dying as well? The whole concept just seems like so much saccherine from a dying man. In 20 years no one will remember this book or him. I remember seeing him on the Oprah show and starts spouting about how he's in oh-so-great shape. Then he starts doing push-ups to demonstrate. The whole display was pathetic and delusional. I'm thinking, "Dude, your dying! You're not in good health!" The whole lecture just seems like a bunch of jibbersh from, unfortunately, a walking-dead man.
- ibsulon 18y ago
  This would be news without "The last lecture." He was a prominent, well-respected computer science whose research in computing education and virtual worlds will be missed. He was also, by all accounts, a great teacher at CMU.
- pg 18y ago
  Boy, reading this, I don't feel so bad about the things trolls say about my essays. That was very harsh. Which is not in itself bad. If someone were going to call an emperor on his new clothes, I'd hope this would be a safe place to do it. The problem is, this is both harsh and vague. It's ok to be vague if you're saying something nice (harmless pleasantries are a useful social lubricant) but the harsher you are, the more precise you ought to be.
  - ispy 18y ago
    I don't know what else to say. I have no reason to listen to what this guy is saying or give it more value than any of the other feel-good books from terminals. ie, "Tuesdays with Morrie". Remember that? Yeah, me neither. The value of these books seems specious, too. Probably because all humans are afraid of dying unless they can delude themselves to go to church. He gives off this whole vibe of some crazy new-agey street preacher. THe way people lap it up and buy his books is disturbing.
thomasswift 18y ago
I never really new about him until his last lecture was posted on google video. His speech is truly inspiring and it is very sad to hear of passing. If you haven't seen that video you need to watch it. links are above.
beaudeal 18y ago
professor pausch was a great man and i was deeply moved by watching his lectures and he will be missed. granted, i only knew anything about him because of his last lecture, but my life has been made richer because of the things that he has done. thank you, randy.
bkrausz 18y ago
I think the email from CMU's president sums it up very well: Dear Colleagues: It is with great sadness that I inform you that our dear friend and colleague Randy Pausch passed away today, July 25, after a brave struggle against pancreatic cancer. Randy captured the minds and hearts of millions worldwide with his Carnegie Mellon lecture, "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams," and his book, "The Last Lecture." Randy, who earned his doctorate from Carnegie Mellon in 1988, returned to the university in 1997 as an associate professor of human-computer interaction and computer science. Along with Carnegie Mellon Professor Don Marinelli, Randy was the co-founder of the Entertainment Technology Center, a leading interactive multimedia education and entertainment center. At Carnegie Mellon, Randy was also the director of the Alice software project, a revolutionary way to teach computer programming. The interactive Alice program teaches computer programming by having kids make animated movies and games. A fitting legacy to Randy's life and work, Alice may in the future help to reverse the dramatic drop in the number of students majoring in computer science at colleges and universities. Randy was also known as a pioneer in the development of virtual reality, and he created the popular Building Virtual Worlds class. An award-winning teacher and researcher, Randy was also a National Science Foundation Presidential Young Investigator and a Lilly Foundation Teaching Fellow. He used sabbatical leaves to work at Walt Disney Imagineering and Electronic Arts (EA), and he consulted with Google Inc. on user interface design. He is the author or co-author of five books and more than 70 articles. Perhaps the greatest lesson, however, Randy taught us all was how to live, even in the face of great challenges, and how to follow our passion. While Randy's greatest passion was clearly his family, he did not shy from sharing his passion for his work as a professor, for his students, and for Carnegie Mellon. We will miss Randy, but we will carry the memory of him and all that he did to make Carnegie Mellon a better university and each of us who knew him a better person. A memorial service for Randy will be scheduled at a later date. Sincerely, Jared L. Cohon

187 points by demandred 18y ago

jlouis 18y ago

This guy gave some of the best lectures I've ever watched. It is a sad day when someone like this dies.

oqtol 18y ago

It’s a sad day when anyone passes, but his inspirational "Last Lecture" if anything has taught me to celebrate life.

Sam_Odio 18y ago

Having been lucky enough to hear Randy speak in person, I can earnestly say he was an inspirational and fearless person. When forced to confront his own mortality, he took the extraordinary and selfless step of teaching the rest of us what it means to live. I hope that he continues to change us in the way he seemed to have wanted, and that our decisions in life will continue to benefit from the perspective he's provided.

rbanffy 18y ago
I just wanted to point out there is a difference between being brave and being fearless. While one has no fear, the other faces it and does not succumb. For all I read from and about him and his struggle against cancer, he was a very brave man. When my time comes, I hope I die with at least a fraction of his dignity.

jedc 18y ago

Very sad news, indeed.

rms 18y ago

Time Management: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5784740380335567758 http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5784740380335567758 Last Lecture: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5700431505846055184 http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5700431505846055184

jcl 18y ago

:( I'd been following Randy's story for a while now. He was constantly upbeat, still going strong two years after his doctor's initial "matter of months" prognosis. As Randy's web page seems to be inundated, here's a page with links to various Pausch-related media, including his Last Lecture and Time Management talks, as well as various interviews: http://www.cs.virginia.edu/~robins/Randy/ http://www.cs.virginia.edu/~robins/Randy/

deleted 18y ago
[deleted]

whiskeyjack 18y ago

Ah bugger. Really gutted to hear this. Loved the Last Lecture (book too). A real inspirational guy. Gotta feel for his family.

wallflower 18y ago

"Brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to show how badly we want something. Because the brick walls are there to stop the people who don’t want something badly enough. They are there to keep out the other people." What a metaphor for challenges in life that we pursue

jmtame 18y ago
I also liked this one: "Don't complain; just work harder."
SethFinkelstein 18y ago
I listened to the lecture and mean no disrespect to the man's spirit. But that vapid aphorism sets my teeth on edge. I couldn't help thinking: Gee, all those people who hit a brick wall because of racism, of sexism, of poverty, because they didn't have all the advantages of a well-off handsome personable white guy - well, they just must not have wanted it badly enough. They're those OTHER PEOPLE who are kept out. It's a damn nasty metaphor when you think about it.
- dehowell 18y ago
  There are two ways you can look at an aphorism such as this "brick wall" business. Either: 1. These words of wisdom are a useful way to motivate myself when things are rough. 2. These words of wisdom should be used as a criteria for judging other people. I think it's a damn nasty metaphor only when you apply it to someone other than yourself. Let me put it this way... we should celebrate those people who have pushed past whatever tremendous barriers they found in their way, but we should never look down on those who tried and failed. Probability of success in many areas of life is at least partially dependent on attitude... and as cheesy and vapid as they may sometimes sound, I will take whatever comfort and confidence I can from these sorts of inspirational messages when I come across them.
  - SethFinkelstein 18y ago
    Given that that phrase is a snippet I've heard over and over in news coverage, it's inevitable that it will be repeatedly applied as other than yourself. It plays into a widespead mythology that success is purely a matter of virtute/good-attitude (anti-straw-man: I didn't say attitude has no effect at all), and a concommitant view that for those who did not succeed it's due to their unvirtuousness/bad-attitude. How could it not be used to "look down on those who tried and failed", given the part about "... stop the people who don't want something badly enough. They are there to keep out the other people." - that wording invites anyone who succeeds to think that the "other people" are lesser, the ones the wall is there to keep out. And critically, this doesn't all exist in a vacuum. His intent might have been entirely benign, but that doesn't mean the overall effect will be entirely benign.

jonnytran 18y ago

CMU's official page (of his lectures): http://www.cmu.edu/randyslecture/ http://www.cmu.edu/randyslecture/

siculars 18y ago

a real mensch.

huherto 18y ago

"But we don't beat the Reaper by living longer. We beat the Reaper by living well," said Dr. Pausch. Something to keep in mind.

raju 18y ago

RIP Randy. I know I will miss his fearless spirit.

charlesju 18y ago

RIP

eznet 18y ago

A loss for not only the realm of science, but the world as a whole - very inspirational man. Mr. Pausch will be missed.

24pfilms 18y ago

His development on alice is an amazing tool to teach kids programming. http://www.alice.org/ http://www.alice.org/ Randy you rock, and always will.

froo 18y ago

My heart truly goes out to his family. I have to admit that even on the other side of the world, I was inspired by him. The only time I saw one of his lectures was on youtube, I happened across it in the middle of the night one time, and I just had to finish it - I stayed up until 5am just to see what he had to say. It was one of those moments that really makes you think about what we can really achieve when we put our minds to it.

donw 18y ago

His "last lecture" helped to bootstrap me out of nearly a year of depression. It is a sad day when a man who has helped, inspired, and driven so many to excellence passes from the world, for few men are capable of stepping up to shoulder the burden that Randy carried, and fewer still could do so with such cheerfulness, tenacity, and care. He was a great man, and he will be missed by many.

mattmaroon 18y ago
Kinda interesting, when you consider that the fact that this day was imminent was why he was able to help and inspire so many total strangers.

jfornear 18y ago

Pray for his family and children especially.

mrtron 18y ago

An inspirational man. If he can deal with dying that well - we can all deal with living a little better.

ispy 18y ago

It's unfortunate that he died but to be honest, I don't quite understand the appeal of Dr. Pausch. All of the quotes attributed to him seem specious reasoning at best. "Beat the Reaper by living well?" I think "death" wins, always. "Brick walls" are just there. They don't have a purpose. Pontifications about the meaning of life? It looks like it doesn't really have one. Sort of like 'god', you can just make up what ever you want. What's his proof for any of what he's telling me? Do we listen to this man because we feel sorry for him? because we're afraid of dying as well? The whole concept just seems like so much saccherine from a dying man. In 20 years no one will remember this book or him. I remember seeing him on the Oprah show and starts spouting about how he's in oh-so-great shape. Then he starts doing push-ups to demonstrate. The whole display was pathetic and delusional. I'm thinking, "Dude, your dying! You're not in good health!" The whole lecture just seems like a bunch of jibbersh from, unfortunately, a walking-dead man.

ibsulon 18y ago
This would be news without "The last lecture." He was a prominent, well-respected computer science whose research in computing education and virtual worlds will be missed. He was also, by all accounts, a great teacher at CMU.
pg 18y ago
Boy, reading this, I don't feel so bad about the things trolls say about my essays. That was very harsh. Which is not in itself bad. If someone were going to call an emperor on his new clothes, I'd hope this would be a safe place to do it. The problem is, this is both harsh and vague. It's ok to be vague if you're saying something nice (harmless pleasantries are a useful social lubricant) but the harsher you are, the more precise you ought to be.
- ispy 18y ago
  I don't know what else to say. I have no reason to listen to what this guy is saying or give it more value than any of the other feel-good books from terminals. ie, "Tuesdays with Morrie". Remember that? Yeah, me neither. The value of these books seems specious, too. Probably because all humans are afraid of dying unless they can delude themselves to go to church. He gives off this whole vibe of some crazy new-agey street preacher. THe way people lap it up and buy his books is disturbing.

thomasswift 18y ago

I never really new about him until his last lecture was posted on google video. His speech is truly inspiring and it is very sad to hear of passing. If you haven't seen that video you need to watch it. links are above.

beaudeal 18y ago

professor pausch was a great man and i was deeply moved by watching his lectures and he will be missed. granted, i only knew anything about him because of his last lecture, but my life has been made richer because of the things that he has done. thank you, randy.

bkrausz 18y ago

I think the email from CMU's president sums it up very well: Dear Colleagues: It is with great sadness that I inform you that our dear friend and colleague Randy Pausch passed away today, July 25, after a brave struggle against pancreatic cancer. Randy captured the minds and hearts of millions worldwide with his Carnegie Mellon lecture, "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams," and his book, "The Last Lecture." Randy, who earned his doctorate from Carnegie Mellon in 1988, returned to the university in 1997 as an associate professor of human-computer interaction and computer science. Along with Carnegie Mellon Professor Don Marinelli, Randy was the co-founder of the Entertainment Technology Center, a leading interactive multimedia education and entertainment center. At Carnegie Mellon, Randy was also the director of the Alice software project, a revolutionary way to teach computer programming. The interactive Alice program teaches computer programming by having kids make animated movies and games. A fitting legacy to Randy's life and work, Alice may in the future help to reverse the dramatic drop in the number of students majoring in computer science at colleges and universities. Randy was also known as a pioneer in the development of virtual reality, and he created the popular Building Virtual Worlds class. An award-winning teacher and researcher, Randy was also a National Science Foundation Presidential Young Investigator and a Lilly Foundation Teaching Fellow. He used sabbatical leaves to work at Walt Disney Imagineering and Electronic Arts (EA), and he consulted with Google Inc. on user interface design. He is the author or co-author of five books and more than 70 articles. Perhaps the greatest lesson, however, Randy taught us all was how to live, even in the face of great challenges, and how to follow our passion. While Randy's greatest passion was clearly his family, he did not shy from sharing his passion for his work as a professor, for his students, and for Carnegie Mellon. We will miss Randy, but we will carry the memory of him and all that he did to make Carnegie Mellon a better university and each of us who knew him a better person. A memorial service for Randy will be scheduled at a later date. Sincerely, Jared L. Cohon