Randy Pausch
Pausch delivered his "Last Lecture", titled "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams", at CMU on September 18, 2007. He gave an abridged version of his speech on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" in October 2007. The talk was modeled after an ongoing series of lectures where top academics are asked to think deeply about what matters to them, and then give a hypothetical "final talk", with a topic such as "what wisdom would you try to impart to the world if you knew it was your last chance?" Before speaking, Pausch received a long standing ovation from a large crowd of over 400 colleagues and students. When he motioned them to sit down, saying, "Make me earn it", someone in the audience shouted back, "You did!"
Pikes Peak Writers Conference
The 2007 Pikes Peak Writers Conference was held April 20–22, 2007 at the Marriott Colorado Springs on Tech Center Drive. (Formerly known as the Wyndham Hotel.) Featured speakers included Jim Butcher, author of the Dresden Files series, Robert Crais, author of the Elvis Cole books, Mary Jo Putney, USAToday bestselling author of romance and fantasy and Dr. Eric Maisel, renown creativity coach. The conference celebrated its 15th year with several special events including a Thursday night booksigning, an additional track of workshops on Friday, a Saturday night Awards Banquet and 15th Anniversary Celebration and a never-before Sunday-only option for readers and fans of Robert Crais.