[Shiro]

I went away for the weekend to the mother-in-law's place with the wife and kid. I got back kind of late, midnight, and I have to get up for work early in the morning. So I'm thinking that I'd just chill out for a few minutes and then go to bed.

I opened firefox, up pops google.com, my home page, and on the bottom of the page, this:

In Memoriam: Randy Pausch (1960-2008)

Now google doesn't usually have...well, anything... on their top page. That's why I use it. It loads quick and fast. So I was wondering who this guy was and why he made google, when no one else does. And so, I clicked the link.

I just ended up watching the whole presentation, and it's now 1:30 am. The guy hooked me at the start, kept me going through the whole thing, And BAM, he hit with a final line that I doubt I will ever forget. It was his last presentation ever, and apparently he died the other day. But what an impressive speech to go out on.

[wheedwacker]

Very sad that he died. Excellent lecture.

[Hunch]

He wrote a book in case you're not aware. It's a much longer version of his speech, and is also called "The Last Lecture".

He's a particularly fitting hero for our line of work. During his lifetime he was apparently very active in building links between arts and sciences (particularly tech) so that people from both disciplines, who often don't really understand each other's work could come together.

In his memory, Carnegie Mellon (his university) are going to build a footbridge between the computer faculty and the arts faculty on campus. I thought it was a really nice idea. In life he bridged the divide between the two disciplines, and now there will be a physical reminder of exactly that.

[cam]

Originally Posted by Hunch

In his memory, Carnegie Mellon (his university) are going to build a footbridge between the computer faculty and the arts faculty on campus. I thought it was a really nice idea. In life he bridged the divide between the two disciplines, and now there will be a physical reminder of exactly that.

That's a really neat way to show their respects, like it.

Been hearing a lot about this - it was even on the BBC News site. Will have to watch it!

[funkyprem]

Got half way through it before the family tore me away. Will definately make time to watch the other half. Inspiring stuff, and like you say Hunch, quite relevant to our lives.

Cheers for the linky Haku.

[d*d]

Excellent talk, recommend anyone taking an hour out of their life to watch that