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Dying Professor Gives his Last Lesson on Life

post-gazette.com — Randy Pausch set the tone early on yesterday at his farewell lecture at Carnegie Mellon University. "If I don't seem as depressed or morose as I should be, sorry to disappoint you," said Dr. Pausch, a 46-year-old computer science professor who has incurable pancreatic cancer.

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  • surgewse, on 10/10/2007, -1/+248A short WSJ clip of the lecture can be found here: http://www.breitbart.tv/?p=5788
    You can stream the whole thing here: mms://wms.andrew.cmu.edu/001/pausch.wmv

    The speech is very inspirational and definitely work a look. We would all be lucky to go with such grace.
    • EntropyMan, on 11/10/2007, -3/+48Agreed. I worked with Randy at Disney and he is as great as person as he seems.
      • bencefeher, on 11/10/2007, -0/+28I had Prof. Pausch for a lecture on Virtual Worlds, and together with Don Marinelli, I had an internship with him. He is truly a great man and genius -- this brings too many tears to my eyes.

        Here is a link to the full lecture:

        http://wms.andrew.cmu.edu/001/pausch.wmv
      • Toupee, on 10/10/2007, -0/+9Incredible. I watched the entire thing and I even have a little tear in my eye.
    • GenoG, on 10/28/2007, -0/+14Wow! What an inspirational human being.
    • Vouksh, on 10/10/2007, -10/+4if you like inspirational stories like that, i'd recommend Tuesdays with Morrie. ( http://www.amazon.com/Tuesdays-Morrie-Young-Greate ... ). It's a little sad, but the guy (Morrie) was very inspirational. Actually, I'd recommend anybody read it, and i'm usually pretty critical of books.
    • uremomsnitemare, on 10/28/2007, -31/+2buried.. CMU = Central Michigan University

      ...comment buried due to comment abuse

      but i don't care :-)
      • Prodigy921, on 10/10/2007, -0/+12Yeah...cuz everyone knows the world renowned Central Michigan University...

        ...not Carnegie Mellon...
      • whataboutdave, on 10/10/2007, -1/+5When did schools start claiming letters? Don't abbreviate your school's name unless you are speaking to an alumnus or are on campus. Really - nobody has any idea what you mean.
    • Ricky8765, on 10/10/2007, -1/+5Yes, everyone should watch the entire lecture, learn to appreciate life more and have grandiose dreams to aim for.

      It was absolutely amazing. I definitely shed a few tears during that lecture. I can only hope when I go to graduate school my mentor is anything like him.
    • Malakin, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3For those who watch the whole speech, he starts about nine minutes in.
    • wushu18t, on 10/10/2007, -0/+8i just watched/listened to the entire thing (while doing HW), and it was a happy occasion with inspiration and lots of emotion below the surface. i teared up a few times. life should be celebrated while we have it.
    • Drumrboy, on 10/10/2007, -7/+1Excuse me... Pancreatic Cancer it is anything but "graceful"
    • ophello, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4People: watch this one. its worth it. Worth it. Worth it.
    • magicmarc, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Does anyone have a full download of the lecture? The stream keeps playing up for me in VLC and I really want to watch the whole thing.
  • puto, on 10/28/2007, -195/+19I would freeze myself
    • DubyaFan, on 10/28/2007, -68/+4Go kill yourself then and we will make sure it happens.
      • VanillaStarfish, on 10/10/2007, -37/+5I'm going to bury you cause that was uncalled for. : )
      • alexray0, on 10/10/2007, -30/+1This is now the "down digg thread"
    • chyya, on 10/28/2007, -28/+2good thinking ese!
  • bgtees, on 10/10/2007, -0/+41More information here:
    http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~pausch/news/index.html

    The video is well worth watching.
  • tehpwnerofn00bs, on 10/28/2007, -1/+315I hope I go out with such honor and dignity.
    • SomaSynth, on 10/10/2007, -14/+48I have no chance of that. I'll be crawling on my knees sobbing, tugging at the doctor's pants insinuating he can do it with my hot sister if he gives me the cure. It's going to be very messy and degrading, best not to think about it.
      • UtopiaInTheSky, on 10/10/2007, -1/+47You have a hot sister?
      • ArmyOfFun, on 10/10/2007, -1/+13Your comment reminded me of the Onion article "Loved Ones Recall Local Man's Cowardly Battle With Cancer":
        http://www.theonion.com/content/node/29585
        • jeff303, on 10/10/2007, -7/+1OK is it just me or does the Onion like to rip on Missouri disproportionately to its population? I mean, come on...
      • sophiaperennis, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1Wow. Amazing dude. Great beacon of positivity for all those around him.
    • fnaqzna, on 10/10/2007, -4/+32I generally hate this type of sentimental, "heart-felt," human interest story.

      To my surprise, I am not unmoved.
    • Bartboy919, on 10/10/2007, -2/+7With a name like tehpwnerofn00bs, I highly doubt you will.
  • bitterg, on 10/10/2007, -3/+67Great find, thanks for the digg.
    • Bamont, on 10/10/2007, -0/+9Whew, I'm definitely not a crying, emotional guy.. but having a wife and a newborn son.. it had me tearing up just reading it.
      • EvilGeniusTodd, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Ditto. Rough stuff to make it thru. I should have known better than to read this at work.
      • michaelb1, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Read The Road ~ Cormac McCarthy. It will knock you down.
  • gn0stik, on 10/28/2007, -6/+205No, actually, it's not fair, dammit
    Making videos for his kids is where I lost it.
    • gn0stik, on 10/10/2007, -31/+4I read the article a while back. If anyone has any way to get this information out, please do. Perhaps this could help him. I know it's off topic, and bad digg form, but etiquett has to take a back seat. This man should raise his kids.
      http://digg.com/health/Scientists_Find_Cancer_Cure ...
      http://www.thedcasite.com/
      http://www.thedcasite.com/dca_how_it_works.html
      http://www.buydca.com/
      • itsthebrod, on 10/10/2007, -6/+2This man is dying and all you can do is spread scams and ***** wack medicine?
        • gn0stik, on 10/10/2007, -3/+1You're an idiot. Not a scam, not wack, it works and has helped a lot of people with stage 4 cancer, if you cared to take a closer look at it. I suppose that's too much to ask though
        • ophello, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1pull the stick out of your ass and do some research
      • 1of42, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0DCA has shown a lot of promise, but it's not something that's going to save Professor Pausch. His cancer has widely metastasized, extremely aggressively, after a very, very cytotoxic, aggressive chemo/radiation treatment. A yet-to-be-proven potential cancer treatment option (that in reality isn't necessarily showing any more promise than other chemotherapy drugs) isn't going to cure him.
    • MOJIRA, on 05/17/2008, -1/+22It's like that US solder who died in Iraq, but up to his death kept a journal with things he wanted to tell his son who was too young at the time.
    • aduzik, on 10/10/2007, -3/+25I'm convinced if you make it through the entire article without tearing up at least once, you're just not human.
      • geminitojanus, on 10/10/2007, -10/+29..then what am I?

        Seriously, it's written to be a moving human interests piece, but this kind of thing goes on every day. The fact that this guy was a college professor and could afford to take all of those different kinds of chemo and treatments while there are people dying just weeks or months after learning they've got the same thing just underscores the problem to me. No person should be barred from access to fighting at least as hard for his life as this guy or as any cancer patient should, just because they can't afford the medicine.

        So no, I won't tear up for this one man who fought the good fight and will lose. I'll cry for the thousands of others who will never get the chance to, and will never have the chance to leave their legacy.
        • Nidy1, on 10/10/2007, -0/+6When i first saw your comment I expected it to be insensitive, but the way you stated that I have to agree.
        • deepinside, on 10/10/2007, -6/+2So you are just too calloused to feel anything? Why do you sound resentful because someone tried to live life to the fullest?
      • ryborg, on 10/10/2007, -3/+3we are borg.
      • Leo21k, on 10/10/2007, -4/+6I didn't tear up because as I read it all I could think about was "Crap, what if I have cancer? Haven't been to the doctor in forever."

    • ophello, on 10/28/2007, -2/+2not sure why gn0stik is getting dug down for having a valid concern.

      you jackasses should wisen up and research DCA.
      • 1of42, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0It's not something that we need to "research". It's just another potential chemotherapeutic agent, like so many others. The only difference is that it's not truly patentable, and so all the wackjobs on Digg are shooting off about how the pharmaceutical companies are "smothering research" about it so that it doesn't "threaten" them.

        DCA shows a lot of promise, and it will eventually get its chance to prove itself in clinical trial, but it's not relevant here in any way. As I said above, a potential chemotherapeutic agent isn't going to save Professor Pausch, who has already gone through extremely powerful cytotoxic treatment, and despite this has aggressively metastasizing cancer. We all wish it would help, but it won't.
    • michaelb1, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1flawed logic. Let me get this straight- You don't feel sympathy for the suffering of the individual because there are many people that suffer?

      how's that working out for you?
    • d3vmax, on 03/03/2008, -0/+1ME too.. for the entire lecture I was holding up but the part where he said he made the lecture for his kids.. my eyes swelled up and I couldn't see the screen anymore due to tears.. so heart breaking but this lecture maks me realise how good I have it in life and why I should be more grateful for it and not complain. He lived his life the way he wanted and for that he is blessed and lived it fully, I just hope he would have had the time to live for his kids.. :(
      God bless him.. (he is brave)
  • Etchii, on 10/28/2007, -2/+159What a beautiful person.
    • jcastle, on 10/10/2007, -0/+5My dad died of the same form of pancreatic cancer (metastasizing to the liver) 7 months ago yesterday. Do what you can and donate to PanCan, the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (www.pancan.org). It is one of the fastest, hardest, most painful forms of cancer out there. This guy is very lucky to have lived as long after he was diagnosed. My dad was diagnosed the last week of October, 2006 and passed away February 20th 2007.
  • oiooioio, on 10/10/2007, -4/+92Awesome story, great post! saddening that you have to know you are going to greet death. What a strong man, way stronger than I would be in his place! My prayers go out to him and his family for some sort of miracle!
  • smokeyphikap420, on 10/10/2007, -3/+36I go to grad school down the street at Pitt and know a few people who attended this, extremely touching...
    • haloddr, on 10/28/2007, -0/+11I'm an undergrad at CMU and my professor told us that if we stayed in our seats we could see someone's last lecture. I left when class ended...bad decision now that I look back.
  • flannelback, on 10/10/2007, -2/+80That's the real meaning of nobility.
  • Chainheart, on 10/10/2007, -3/+62I've yet to see a man who looked like he loved his kids and life more than this guy does.
  • mymacsmokespot, on 10/10/2007, -2/+145Thanks for making me cry at work. Now I look like a wussy!
    • asurroca, on 10/10/2007, -0/+10Just e-mail links to the vid and your whole workplace will "get it" then you won't look like a wuss anymore...
    • Nateon, on 10/10/2007, -1/+7I'm sitting in a classroom with 90 students trying to hold the tears off.
    • mizuhri, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Yea it hit me too. Luckily no one is around me right now. The tears never dropped but my eyes were watering.
  • davidrools, on 10/28/2007, -35/+6he looks familiar. i dont think i went to carnagie mellon, but my college years are just a blur ;)
    • davidrools, on 10/10/2007, -1/+13sorry that was before i read the article. all the other comments are taking a different tone.
      but after reading the article...damn how do I go back to work? That left me all weird inside. I guess it's a good reminder for all of us to step back and take life into perspective sometimes.
  • carnage, on 10/10/2007, -2/+51this is one of the saddest and happiest things ive ever seen
  • kilraaj, on 10/28/2007, -1/+145That guy is incredible. I loved the part where he said he has hope of his wife remarrying--it shows just how much trust he has in her to still remember and love him after she moves on in her life.
    • soot, on 10/28/2007, -0/+33I was going to say the same thing. That's pretty incredible.
    • MOJIRA, on 05/17/2008, -12/+3I think by him being so great, she'll have a harder time moving on. If he really loved her he'd be a dick in his final days. Just kidding; but kinda true?
      • kilraaj, on 10/10/2007, -1/+5I think him being a dick would be worse--more emotionally painful for her, especially if she thinks it's her fault he's acting that way. But I guess it'd just vary from person to person.
    • VanillaStarfish, on 10/10/2007, -0/+5It's selfishness otherwise. I'd want my wife to remarry.
  • SpykerSpeed, on 10/28/2007, -70/+10"To honor his life and career, Electronic Arts announced it was setting up a scholarship fund for deserving female computer science majors at Carnegie Mellon."

    So he talks for an hour about his boyhood dreams and his boyhood hero... and concludes by offering a scholarship only for females? Mmkay.
    • screwzluse, on 10/28/2007, -1/+10To be fair, when you think about it, the ratio of females to males in the industry is relatively low. With a scholarship like this, maybe it'll push more females into the industry and help the industry with hopefully some different ideas. I'm sure that's something he'd definitely likes.
    • kilraaj, on 10/10/2007, -1/+5Well, it's EA offering the scholarship fund, not him...
    • MadOtaku, on 10/10/2007, -1/+5Maybe what we didn't hear, was that he was a big supporter of scholarships for women. He may have worked to bring more women into the field. Who knows?
    • Drull, on 10/10/2007, -1/+2Heh yeah, that was a little bit strange.. still cool though.
  • cantspellmyname, on 10/28/2007, -2/+116dugg, coz he was the teacher to the best class i've ever taken: building virtual worlds
    • FunkyMo, on 10/28/2007, -0/+11It makes me sad that I got here late enough to not be able to take any of his classes.
    • Prodigy921, on 10/28/2007, -0/+7Amen! Building Virtual Worlds is the best class I've taken!
    • jimi1337, on 10/10/2007, -2/+1Dammit, at least respect the man enough to show that you learned something in college by using decent grammar. Oh wait, you can't even spell your own name... xD
      • cantspellmyname, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1it never occured to you that my mothertongue may not be english? Wir können uns gerne auf Deutsch unterhalten, oder sogar auf Französisch. Je pourrai t'en faire des phrases grammaticalement correctes et bien structurées.
        ...i'm sorry Mr. Pausch if my bad grammar showed you disrespect, it wasn't my intention at all
  • duncancarroll, on 10/10/2007, -3/+79Randy has had a definite impact on my life when I was a student. I can't say that about too many people. He is a genuinely inspirational person. I really hope he is urgently needed in a higher sphere of existence, because we're certainly going to miss him down here. You da man, Randy!
  • glucoseboy, on 10/10/2007, -6/+11Wow, just wow.
    • sadicarnot, on 10/10/2007, -1/+2That is what I thought, most thought provoking thing on the internet in a long time.
    • rebrane, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Thanks for taking the time to share that.
  • metalgod79, on 10/10/2007, -0/+19Wow, what an amazing man, we shoudl all strive to live like him even in our hour of death.
  • mstanisl, on 10/10/2007, -0/+44One of the best articles ever posted on Digg. Seems like an overwhelmingly fine and decent man.
  • banq59, on 10/10/2007, -2/+28I'm crying in my office right now. That was one of the most touching articles I have ever read.
  • dimebonics, on 10/10/2007, -64/+8It's weird how the good guys get diagnosed with cancer at such an early age, when you have the neo-cons in office destroying lives and countries and they don't as much get a headache. The article is very touching, but I don't agree with the it isn't fair part. I believe in a cosmic balance, and to me, the longer I live and see all these unfortunate events of such beautiful people dying in such awful ways, I can only assume it's due to the awful atrocities committed by people with no soul.
    Good always conquers over evil, unfortunately the good guy never wins.
    • not5150, on 10/10/2007, -2/+24This story transcends politics... bite your tongue and hold your mudslinging for another thread.
    • damnmonkey, on 10/10/2007, -0/+13pathetic how you find politics in EVERYTHING......
    • BlacklabelSAR, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1we are all on our own path to enlightenment
    • 1of42, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0..and until I saw this comment, I honestly thought that maybe, just maybe, random shots at "neocons" or secret conspiracies wouldn't make their way in here.

      How naive of me.
  • highplains66, on 10/10/2007, -2/+2what a great story
  • Bkaufman, on 10/10/2007, -0/+28This is the first Digg article I have ever read that made me come close to crying.
  • Rustiga, on 10/10/2007, -0/+11Not too many people can proudly say they've had the experience of attaining their childhood dreams, it's sad to see such a remarkable person get a blow this harsh.
    • winglord01, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3I agree. Life is harsh. But I can see why he's so positive. When you've lived life to the fullest, death no longer scares you.
  • elig, on 10/10/2007, -1/+31Holy sh*t no!! I received e-mail notifications about this lecture for days, but I tuned it out because Carnegie Mellon has had a long standing "Last Lecture" tradition (given by faculty who are usually in perfectly fine health.)

    It's unreal that Dr. Pausch is going to die in his 40s. He came after I graduated, but I've seen the man speak at alumni events, and, like wow. I even used one of his handouts in teaching my own class years later.
    • lol24, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4i cannot believe it. He will be missed
  • Shandooga, on 10/10/2007, -1/+17That was heavy. Dugg for depth.
  • jeremyfohferemy, on 10/10/2007, -34/+4man, if he makes a miracle recovery...it's gonna be kinda awkward...
    • kilraaj, on 10/10/2007, -0/+14If he makes a miracle recovery, I think there will be too much relief for people to really care about any awkwardness.
  • rigg419, on 10/10/2007, -0/+13any comments and words we have are really hollow and contrite. I don't think you can understand how strong this guy really is until you're facing death yourself. I can only hope I have even half of this guy's strength when my time comes
  • MalumProhibitum, on 10/10/2007, -1/+15Great, now Ive cried while reading Digg...
  • UtopiaInTheSky, on 10/10/2007, -0/+10I liked the part about the brick walls. Never thought of it that way, really... This guy should have been a motivational speaker.
    • leckert, on 10/10/2007, -0/+7Sounds like he was and still is motivating people
    • Ravatar, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1..just another "head fake"
  • evilpettingzoo, on 10/10/2007, -0/+18Really great find, best story posted to digg in a while.
  • pinkgorilla989, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4That's very touching.
  • jmgoody311, on 10/10/2007, -0/+58(on his wife and children) "I hope my wife is able to remarry down the line. And I hope they will remember me as a man who loved them, and did everything he could for them."

    That is the saddest but most inspiring thing I have ever read.
  • bunkka, on 10/10/2007, -0/+6simply amazing, very touching
  • generalzod1, on 10/10/2007, -91/+5A poorly written article, on a has-been professor.
    • Omnianimosity, on 10/10/2007, -2/+28You are a piece of *****.
    • banq59, on 10/10/2007, -3/+10This is the worst troll in the history of the internet. You fail.
    • zadadka, on 10/10/2007, -2/+12As we say in Britain.......You Wanker.
    • damnmonkey, on 10/10/2007, -1/+9A pathetic and shallow comment from a useless little troll.
  • btgoss, on 10/10/2007, -0/+42As someone who is in remission from an aggressive form of cancer I hate reading things like this. I hope I never have to face what this man has to face, it just isn't fair. But then again cancer, like everything else in life, isn't fair.
  • Twoplus2, on 10/10/2007, -7/+1Agreed: The lesson was very inspirtational and nice laugh.
  • KingOfPwnage, on 10/10/2007, -0/+15kind of like the book Tuesday's with Morrie
    • hamstu, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2My thoughts exactly. That was a beautiful book.
      Stuff like this just grabs my heart ...
  • KevenM, on 10/10/2007, -1/+9This story needs to get out to everyone, particularly the younger generations. Just puts everything in perspective and speaks out above every other messages we see every day.
    • zadadka, on 10/10/2007, -0/+5Never mind the young 'uns....I'm 48, and I still found myself repeatedly nodding sagely....
      "....Experience is something you get instead of what you wanted..."
  • spiritflare1, on 10/10/2007, -12/+4article got me to Wiki his type of cancer..doesn't look good, then again, statistics are just #s, and if anyone has the will, looks like this guy does

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pancreatic_cancer
    • crestfall, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1And maybe you'll live to be 10,000 years old. Just numbers and all...
  • tunapez, on 10/10/2007, -0/+14Respect, Mr. Pausch.
  • AutomaticPixel, on 10/10/2007, -0/+16What a touching story. It is remarkable how strong willed he is, I really really really hope that he can "freakishly" turn around and beat his cancer. It would be a shame to lose such a wonderful person.
  • mithi, on 10/10/2007, -0/+20That brought tears to my eyes, and I am not one who finds many things upsetting. What a fantastic professor.
  • KevenM, on 10/10/2007, -1/+17sent to 3 news outlets here in Toronto. Spread the word !
    • banq59, on 10/10/2007, -0/+8Sent to the Boston Globe and local Boston news channels!
      • GeckoSlayer, on 10/10/2007, -4/+1Sent to The Australian and national TV news.
      • GeckoSlayer, on 10/10/2007, -0/+7Sent to The Australian and national TV news.
  • TheKidd, on 10/10/2007, -1/+16God Bless him. Breaks my heart just thinking about the kids.
    • insomniac8400, on 10/10/2007, -16/+2Yea, a rich guy leaving his kids money is a terrible situation.
      • chalkboy, on 10/10/2007, -1/+7There are more things to life then money. I can think of one right now. The block button what a nice thing. Pretty soon I will have all the ass holes blocked and digg will be nice again. You are an ass.
      • Prodigy921, on 10/10/2007, -0/+5Yeah...we know how much money college professors make...

        And experimental chemo and treatments sure are cheap...

        ass-hat...think before you type!
  • jct821, on 10/10/2007, -1/+33As the father of a one year old, I am brokenhearted for this guy and his family. Now I'm sitting here at work, all weepy.
    • insomniac8400, on 10/10/2007, -17/+2You know people are dying in very painful ways without even having a chance to do anything in life every day. Why aren't you crying for them?
      • Prodigyman, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Because this amazing person has accomplished something big in life, changed a world a bit and it is very sad to see such a brilliant mind go in such way. I am not saying other people are not important but this is a tribute to him and we are not talking about problems of others here.
      • AlexDenne, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2What an arrogant comment. buried majorly. This man is a man to aspire to be!
  • DiggzDE, on 10/10/2007, -0/+6It has been a while since I have seen an actual moving and emotional article like this on Digg. I wish him and his family all the best and respect him immensely for the strength and courage he has.
  • wastelander, on 10/10/2007, -9/+3Man that really sucks..

    I just hope he doesn't have his students build him a coffin..
    • Nidy1, on 10/10/2007, -3/+2Oh come on guys. It was a little funny.
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