Yesterday, the 25th of July 2008, Dr. Randy Pausch, the noted Computer Science professor at Carnegie Mellon University finally caved in at the prime age of 47, after a long battle with pancreatic cancer.

Dr. Pausch was a founder of the famous Entertainment Technology Center at Carnegie Mellon University and worked on the “Alice” program, an animated educational system for high school and college students. He is survived by his wife and children Dylan, Logan, and Chloe.

I personally think Randy’s greatest gift he’s leaving behind (especially for those of us who only came to know him during his last days) is his “Last Lecture” talk (video embed below). Might be a perfect time to take to heart Randy’s admonition to relentlessly pursue your childhood dreams.

And while you’re at it, remember another advice from Randy: that those “brick walls” we encounter along the way are there for a reason, for us to prove that we really want that which we’re striving for.

Farewell, Randy, we’ll always miss you.