Randy Pausch

Updated: 12/30/2019 by Computer Hope
Randy Pausch

Name: Randy Pausch

Born: October 23, 1960, in Baltimore, Maryland, USA

Death: July 25, 2008 (Age: 47)

Computer-related contributions

  • American professor of computer science and human-computer interaction and design at CMU (Carnegie Mellon University).
  • After being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and given three to six months to live, he gave an upbeat lecture at Carnegie Mellon entitled "The Last Lecture: Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams." The speech, given on September 18, 2007, quickly became a popular YouTube video.
  • Started the Building Virtual Worlds course at CMU and taught it for 10 years.
  • Founder of the Alice software project.

Significant publications

  • The Last Lecture (2008).
  • Time Management (2008).
  • Learning to Program with Alice (2005).

Honors and awards

  • Received a letter from then President George W. Bush thanking him for his commitment to the Nation's youth (2008).
  • Listed by Time as one of the World's Top-100 Most Influential People (2008).
  • Named Pittsburgher of the Year (2008).
  • The Pittsburgh City Council declared November 19, 2007 to be "Dr. Randy Pausch Day."

Quotes

"Be good at something; It makes you valuable. Have something to bring to the table, because that will make you more welcome."

Websites