How Would You Live if You Had A Month Left?

In November, Richard Newton, one of my professors from UC Berkeley (who became Dean of the Engineering School) came to Hong Kong to give a talk that my wife and I attended. I had always enjoyed his lectures and talks and he had helped me through some personal difficulties while I was a student. It was good seeing him again and catching up as we had also briefly reconnected at a Berkeley Leadership Conference in Singapore a few years ago. Richard was also the advisor of a very good friend of mine, Bill Lin, who was one of the best men at my wedding. Richard’s talk was about advancements in medical engineering and how the School was moving towards a unified graduate program as research was becoming increasingly interdisciplinary. Richard also established the Citrus Center the Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society which is also an inspiring and worthy initiative.

I was stunned to hear that Richard had passed away from Pancreatic Cancer on Jan 2nd, a month after his Hong Kong trip. The news hit me just as I was finishing the book How We Die by Sherwin Nuland (I had also read his books How We Live and the Mysteries Within) which covers the physiology of dying. The book wasn’t the easiest read, especially for a hypochondriac like me. The most common forms of death were described in detail such as cancer, AIDs, Alzheimers, heart problems, stroke, and old age as well as the aging process (we lose 2% of our brain mass every 10 years past 50). Each chapter would begin with a patient that Dr. Nuland had seen. In addition to the "live every moment as if it were your last" perspective, the book also introduces the perspective "life every moment as if you would live forever" which brings a perspective that addresses sustainability and the environment.

My friend Bill was also stunned by the news as he hadn’t seen Richard in quite some time and was planning on visiting early this year. Last year, I had dropped in on PhD my advisor, Alvin Despain, who had just returned home from open heart surgery. In discussions with Bill and other friends, a video project emerged that we are currently developing and explores our perceptions of life and how these perceptions affect how we live our life. Drop me an e-mail if you would like to be interviewed for the piece!