Randy Pausch, the Carnegie Mellon Computer Science professor who became a world-wide sensation last year with his “Last Lecture”, has died of pancreatic cancer aged 47.
Last September, Randy Pausch addressed a crowd of around 400 Carnegie Mellon faculty and students as part of the university’s “last Lecture” series. In these lectures, professors typically talk about issues that matter to them. Randy Pausch brought a whole new meaning to the Last Lectures when he opened his talk with the news that he had terminal pancreatic cancer. He then proceeded to give a funny, moving, heart-warming talk about the lessons he had learned in life that he wanted to pass on to his children.
Carnegie Mellon alumnus Jeff Zaslow, a columnist with The Wall Street Journal, was sitting in the audience and wrote about the lecture, which went on to become a worldwride phenomenon. Media outlets and bloggers linked to the story, and more than 10 million people have since watched an Internet video of the talk. The lecture was translated into seven languages, and Hyperion published a book version that became a New York Times bestseller.
He is survived by his wife Kai and children Dylan, Logan, and Chloe. Donations can be made to the Carnegie Mellon’s Randy Pausch Memorial Fund.
