Quite a number of years ago when I was choosing graduate schools, I had the opportunity to sit in on one of Dr. Pausch's lectures.
To say I was blown away by his obvious great intellectual capacity, his natural ability to connect with students, and the genteel manner in which he carried himself was an extreme understatement. To this day I can remember saying to myself after that single lecture, that if I ever became a professor, he is exactly the kind of professor I would want to be like.
In the end, I chose to stay in pure mathematics and hence did pursue CMU and their excellent computer engineering department. Given everything I have read and seen about Dr. Pausch since that time, it is a decision I often question and sometimes regret. And now I can say that, even outside of his work, he lived his life in a way that I wish I could strive to, and he died with a dignity and a presence that I know I probably could never acheive.
RIP, Dr. Pausch. Your legacy will continue on-- in your family, in your loved ones, in your colleauges, and even in the minds of strangers-- people you barely knew or never met, yet found inspiration in your words and in your life. I am one of them, and I know I will never be the same for it.
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