I learned last night that Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple and inventor of everything
i (Pod/Phone/Pad/Tunes/Cloud etc) has passed away at the age of 56. I confess that I have never used a piece of hardware or software made by Apple but no one can disagree that his vision of elegant design and beautiful convenient gadgets has had a significant effect on most modern societies.
Normally I don't spare too much time at the passing of corporate billionaires, much less occasionally megalomaniac ones. But he was surely beloved and respected by many.
I think it's the age 56 part that gets me ... just a year younger than I am. Here is a speech he gave at Stanford University commencement in 2005, shortly after he defeated an initial bout with pancreatic cancer. His point about the galvanizing effect of acknowledging one's own immanent demise, the eternal replacement of age by youth, and to seize the day while you still breathe - is galvanizing.
Ted