He aintn't dead yet

Well, that truly sucks.

That is terrible, terrible news.

That's very unfortunate. I hope his health holds up for a long time to come.

OT: warning adjust your irony meter before reading this story.

I wish him well. I'm sure he'll get excellent medical care.

Pratchett's optimism is very admirable.
so's Pratchett himself, i guess.

Why does it have to happen to the good ones. :(

Best. Author. Ever.

Sad to hear this, but I'm glad he's optimistic about it.

Sodding bollocks! Pterry's fine mind is being reduced to rubble while the unaffected "mind" of Ratzo is blowing irony meters all over the world with his:

[action] must be based on firm evidence and not on dubious ideology.

Well that's the worst news I've heard for months (I'd say all year, but this has been a very bad year for me). Let's hope for rapid medical advances in the near future.

Aww, nuts. :-(

First DNA and now Pterry. If I thought praying would help I'd do it, but I'm going to donate to Alzheimer's research instead.

Loving his optimism and his ability to stay rational through this:

"I know it's a very human thing to say "Is there anything I can do", but in this case I would only entertain offers from very high-end experts in brain chemistry."

As long as he is still staying lucid I know his mind is a-ok. But why -oh- why does this have to happen to the good ones? The worst news I've heard all year (I've had a fairly good year).

:-(

the unaffected "mind" of Ratzo

I don't think you could really call his mind unaffected! It's just that the medical / psychobabble profession is very reluctant to give that particular kind of mental aberration an official name.

Yet NPod continues ranting.

Then again, who could tell if NPod were suffering cognitive decline?

Damnit! Stupid lack of stem cell research...

Truly depressing news. Donation to Alzheimer's research on its way. I'll barbecue some sausages to Offler as well.

I personally am going to abstain from chocolate and garlic just as our good god Nuggen has decreed.

That's very sad.
Here's wishing him and his family as much happy time together as possible.

Just ... Darn.

Pratchett, you're one of My People, and you always will be, no matter what.

Oh, shit.

Actually, if it's stroke-related it's probably vascular dementia, not alzheimers. The ultimate effect is similar, but (IIRC) in vascular dementia it isn't a gradual decline, but more of a steplike decline corresponding to incidents of vascular blockage.

My father has vascular dementia. While it has involved memory loss (new memories and large chunks of the last 50 years) and increasing cognitive decline, it has in some ways been beneficial in that he's a lot more active than he was during the first years of his retirement, has forgotten some things that he was somewhat obsessive and depressed about before, and has in some ways become almost childlike (in a good way). He's always working on some project around the house now, remains pretty mechanically proficient, and has an ongoing battle to find ways to keep the squirrels out of the birdfeeders. At one point, he wired up a doorbell buzzer out on the feeder controlled by a switch inside the house, so he could hide in the basement and scare the squirrels when they tried to eat the birdfood.

My father has been reluctant to change his diet much, though he did lose some weight. If Terry is more amenable to diet and exercise changes, he might have more luck forestalling decline as long as possible.

I second the comments above - why always the good ones?

And reassurance that I would rather be a godless atheist donating what I can to research to prevent/cure this horrible disease than a fundie praying until the cows come home... It's touching to see how quickly we've all stepped up in that respect.

My money on its way too.

Aw, fuck, fuck, FUCK!

Admittedly, even with Alzheimer's going strong he would still better the vast majority of modern writers, but still...

PZ, you ruined my day!

PZ: A slight correction, from one of your too-anal readers:

I believe it's "aten't."

I heard Terry give a speech in Washington DC a few years ago in which he said that he wanted to continue writing until the day he died and hoped his body would be found slumped over his keyboard so that the last half of his final book would simply be an endless repetition of the letter "r."

It's truly depressing to think that Alzheimer's will one day deprive him of the ability to do something that he cherishes so much.

Let's hope he remains he remains in good health for as long as possible and that his mind (and wit) will remain sharp for years to come.

FUCK!

Oh, also...

If someone reading this can pass it along to Pterry: my father's biggest cognitive declines appeared to happen in conjunction with focal seizures, which only started around the same time as the vascular dementia. He'd have these 'blips' as we call them, after which he'd have new memory gaps and other cognitive issues.

The seizures would be subtle, appearing only as a twitching of the left hand fingers, some involuntary mouth movements, and things would taste wrong for no apparent reason. Hospital examination never revealed evidence of stroke, suggesting that any associated stroke was too tiny to register.

Anti-seizure medication has stopped them with no apparent side effects, but there is still a very gradual decline, probably from the existing vascular damage.

My guts chilled when I read those awful news.

I guess that means I'm human. Damn, who'da thunkit!

On the subject of Emperor Ratzinger, he sounds exactly like a politician pampering to the fears of his voters.

'No, of course you don't have to give up your Hummer. Its all hogwash'

It's sad. If he had told peaple to think about taking the bike to work he could really have had an effect.

Here's hoping that recent research outstrips this disease, whether it's vascular dementia or Alzheimer's. Some Alzheimer's damage is being reversed now, in mice. You know, they say if you have heart disease/cancer/etc., it's best to be a mouse--we can cure so many things in mice now.

Please also someone pass on to Terry that there are four things that delay the progress of ordinary Alzheimer's. I do not know if they relevant but I'd try everything simple and preventative. They are playing cards, dancing (not the Shug but something with a pattern), playing cards, board games, or musical instruments (I'd bet that part-singing would count, too). Anyway, here's a link to some preventatives. And I hope someone did the checking to make sure that the cause didn't run the other way (more compos mentis = can still play cards).

I was doing some reading on memory consolidation for a paper and found an interesting note on Alzheimer's: it might actually be caused by a breakdown of the blood-brain barrier allowing the immune system to target memory-containing cells. this was part of a hypothesis that lifelong memories may be stored by genetic modification rather than synaptic. If memories are genetically stored then maybe the immune system is targeting membrane proteins that appear foreign but are actually involved in stored memory, hence selective loss of memory in Alzheimer's.

Damn. I did notice, however, that he titled his message about his condition "An Embuggerance." He hasn't lost it yet and we can hope that modern medical science (real science, not crap new-age stuff) will prolong his clarity.

Goddamn (pardon my Klatchian). #6, it happens to anybody. Terry will certainly be getting better care, and more comfort from his fellows, than most preachers would in the same situation. And I'll say from experience that a rationalist understanding of how the brain works, makes it much easier to cope with glitches in aforesaid brain.

From his site: in this case I would only entertain offers from very high-end experts in brain chemistry.

Hmmm...Have we got any of those around here?

I tried to submit a comment on that Pope article, but I got held up at a series of "type the characters in the box" pages. After about seven of them, I gave up. WTF?

When he does go (may it be long from now) it'll be the worst literary loss I've felt since Douglas Adams. Nuff said.

I am so sad now.
I guess the one bright spot is that he has the world at his fingertips; he will probably be getting a huge amount of good advice and possible treatment option information.
But really, shit.

Damn! I unaccountably failed to discover Discworld until a couple of years back. I've been deliberately rationing the books 'cos they are such pleasures.

I'm very sad at this news, but also imagining Death coming for Terry in a Terry-type way:

The writer is at his desk.

AHEM.

The writer scribbles more quickly. "Just a minute, I'm at a particullarly brillant passage..."

AHEM. I HAVEN'T GOT ALL NIGHT YOU KNOW.

This wasn't, strictly speaking true. Death did have all night. And all the next day. And all the days and nights after that. But there was a protocol to these things.

AHEM. TIME TO COME FOR A WALK. AND YOU AND I MUST TALK ABOUT SOME OF YOUR PORTRYALS OF ME. THAT BILL DOOR THING, FOR EXAMPLE...

And two figures, one in a cowl, the other in a rather flamboyant hat, strolled out through the office wall...

Mind you, it's probably all relative. Mr Pratchett with Alzheimer's or dementia will probably lower his cognitive abilities to just above everyone else.

shit. fuck. damn. crap. I wish there was a heaven so he could go there for writing the Bromeliad Trilogy. He's right, he isn't dead yet and he will have the best of the best. But still . . . HE was supposed to live forever, dammit!

I just hope they don't try giving him any of those analgesics.
.

Dahan writes: "When he does go (may it be long from now)"

I hope that's only true if his cognitive abilities expire at the same time as the rest of him.

I hope he doesn't spend years as a barely-sentient dependent full-grown infant.

an endless repetition of the letter "r."

How very piratical. ;-)

Why does it always happen to the very best of them? He's done more to cheer me up then any religion could ever do. He's a much loved friend and I welcome every visit, even if I hear the same stories over and over again (metaphorically speaking that is).

Let's just hope he has the slowest onset possible.

Well, that sucks.

http://www.nia.nih.gov/Alzheimers/AlzheimersInformation/Treatment

Good luck, Pterry!

Damn. The mother of a friend has multi-infarct dementia (which apparently produces effects much like Alzheimers), and I wouldn't wish that on anyone, much less as wonderful an author as PTerry. Selfishly, I hope he has years and years left to write, and goes forehead down on the keyboard while typing 'The End'.

Man, that is really sad, I enjoy his writing quite a bit, and the thought of it ending sucks. Especially if we compare it to some of the other sci-fi authors out there, like the Ender's Game guy, who does write well, but is a hopeless bigot.

I suggest sapient pearwood stemcell implants.

Why am I picturing a disembobied brain floating around wearing a hood and cowl ... The Death of Minds.

Best of luck to Pratchett. He's got me through a lot of rough times.

Why does it have to happen to the good ones. :(

This is the opposite of Pratchett's own rational sentiments. As he says, everyone dies. It happens to bad ones as well as good ones, both generally, and specifically in regard to this rare form of this disease.

I'm very sad at this news, but also imagining Death coming for Terry in a Terry-type way:

Best comment.

At least Terry Pratchett had a well-functioning mind (and used it) while it lasted. Many fundamentalists never have that much at all.

Please also someone pass on to Terry that there are four things that delay the progress of ordinary Alzheimer's. I do not know if they relevant but I'd try everything simple and preventative. They are playing cards, dancing (not the Shug but something with a pattern), playing cards, board games, or musical instruments (I'd bet that part-singing would count, too).

Um, writing Terry Pratchett novels is far more likely than playing cards to provide the brain with the sort of challenge considered to slow the progress of Alzheimer's. Playing cards and dancing is the sort of change in behavior that one suggests to people who normally sit around all day watching Fox Television.

If someone reading this can pass it along to Pterry:

Please also someone pass on to Terry

What is with you people? Even if he hadn't explicitly written "I know it's a very human thing to say 'Is there anything I can do', but in this case I would only entertain offers from very high-end experts in brain chemistry", it would still be moronic to suppose that the second most read UK author could do no better than get advice about his condition by having it passed along from blog comments.

Actually, if it's stroke-related it's probably vascular dementia, not alzheimers. <\i>

From the Bill Frist school of diagnosis. Here's a clue: if Terry Pratchett says he has a rare form of Alzheimer's, it's probably Alzheimer's, not vascular dementia.

The ultimate effect is similar, but (IIRC) in vascular dementia it isn't a gradual decline, but more of a steplike decline corresponding to incidents of vascular blockage.

What effect? What decline? What possible reason do you have to think that Pratchett has exhibited any signs of dementia? Clue two: you inferred it from his diagnosis, nothing else.

As a longterm reader, I was somewhat dismayed at this news. I don't think anything I can say about it is worth saying. I do think "the truth machine" is being needlessly harsh on the commentators, a lot of them are simply reacting to a bad piece of news as average people do.

truth machine wrote: "What effect? What decline? What possible reason do you have to think that Pratchett has exhibited any signs of dementia?"

Er, he's been diagnosed with alzheimers, which is itself a form of dementia, and which can look a lot like vascular dementia and sometimes they occur together?

I may be, and likely am, wrong, but diagnosing alzheimer's in the living is still pretty hard, especially early on. Right now it sounds like he has a history of vascular trouble and blood pressure, and heart surgery is notorious for causing ischemic problems in the brain (ie 'pump head').

Vascular dementia strikes me as a more likely diagnosis than a rare form of early-onset alzheimer's.

It looks to me like you're reacting emotionally to the word 'dementia' without actually having any idea what that word actually means in context. Don't blame me if you don't like the scientific term for a particular condition that causes cognitive impairment. Do yourself a favor and hit the google.

I could be wrong. It's also possible that Terry was diagnosed with vascular dementia, but is using the word 'alzheimers' because it's familiar, similar, and sounds better than 'dementia', which sounds scary.

"I could be wrong. It's also possible that Terry was diagnosed with vascular dementia, but is using the word 'alzheimers' because it's familiar, similar, and sounds better than 'dementia', which sounds scary."

Jon, you haven't read much Pratchett have you...

"Jon, you haven't read much Pratchett have you."

I've read and own most, possibly all, of his Discworld novels, and Good Omens.

You don't think Terry would use a little of the old headology on his fanbase to keep them from getting the mistaken idea that he had become 'demented'?

It'd only be a slight stretch. Vascular dementia is the second-most common form of dementia, after Alzheimer's. And they are similar in effect, but different in mechanism and onset.

Oh, holy fucking shit. When people find out someone has a problem, they try to relate to it in any way possible, ok? Human nature and all. When it's disease-based, they usually relate it to someone they know with something similar, and often offer possible suggestions that had been helpful to the other person they know, regardless of whether it's a stretch or not. It's a fairly common script of social interaction. The response is to acknowledge it yet stay on target of offering condolences regarding the situation, not to nitpick every detail of whatever the person said. Could people please not snipe at each other on a thread that was designed to convey bad news about a great author and elicit nice statements about said author? Thank you. Don't make me throw the jell-o salad at you.

Jon H - I think you missed the bit about it being a phantom stroke - i.e. they initially thought it was a stroke but it wasn't. So it most likely is Alzheimer's not vascular dementia.

The truth machine needs an oil change and lubrication. It is making an annoying noise. What are the truth machine's beefs with people reacting with dismay to the news of their favourite author's illness?

I was going to write something very caustic about internet diagnoses...

...but I understand what's going on. I did the same when my half-sister was diagnosed with cancer, and again when it happened to a friend of mine. "No, it must be something else, something more amenable to treatment." But, no, it was cancer in both cases, and it killed both of them.

Don't deceive yourselves. PTerry has seen the consultants, had the tests, probably examined the evidence himself and read up about the subject, because that's what very smart people do. If he says he has a rare form of Alzheimer's dementia, chances are he has that, and not vascular or anything else.

I'm sorry, but he isn't going to wish it away, and neither should we try.

tonyk wrote: "Jon H - I think you missed the bit about it being a phantom stroke - i.e. they initially thought it was a stroke but it wasn't. So it most likely is Alzheimer's not vascular dementia."

I think by 'phantom stroke' they mean a stroke that happened without giving any overt symptoms, so he didn't really notice until long after the fact. I believe that's what Terry's earlier announcement about the stroke was saying.

From the Guardian.co.uk report: " An MRI scan showed some areas of dead tissue and the suggestion was that he had suffered a "mini-stroke" some time in the past few years, and that he was now living with its legacy."

This is interesting, from a story in the Daily Mail about his earlier stroke: "Since my stroke I have noticed I have full recall of the lyrics of advertising jingles from 40 years ago. Is a stroke a gateway to a world of ancient ads?"

My father with vascular dementia also has experienced this sort of thing. Old memories bubbling to the surface like new. One time he had a sudden desire for a cigarette, despite having quit in the 50s.

NelC wrote: "If he says he has a rare form of Alzheimer's dementia, chances are he has that, and not vascular or anything else."

Vascular dementia wouldn't be much of an improvement. It's also a progressive disease with a poor prognosis. I read someplace that the 5 year survival rate is around 39%.

The only upside is that the patient may have slightly more influence on their fate compared to the negligible amount in Alzheimers'.

The reason I'm posting the comments is that the Alzheimers' diagnosis just seems odd given his history.

What do you expect from someone who so modestly calls himself the 'Truth Machine'? Bring back Caledonian- he used to make me laugh when he called us all morons.

(Both of the above could be female- but I somehow doubt it.)

What do you expect from someone who so modestly calls himself the 'Truth Machine'? Bring back dungeon entrant D19- he used to make me laugh when he called us all morons.

(Both of the above could be female- but I somehow doubt it.)

Sorry to hear this. Some more bad news to end a very bad year. I'll be so glad to ring this one OUT!I know what charity I'll be donating to next.

That's just... not okay. It's not. I'll keep up hope that we get a few more books out of him before it gets him, but I'm in mourning. There is no author I enjoy more than Terry Pratchett, and nobody whose books make me go "Damn, I wish I could write a sentence like that" more consistently.

I just hope I'll have a chance to meet him and thank him for all the joy he's brought to my life over the years.

Damn it, damn it, damn it.

First Carl Sagan, then Douglas Adams, and now this? Yes, everyone dies, but so many wonderful writers have left us before their time, before completing the full, rich lifespans they deserved and passing away only at the very limit of the extended lifespans most people in our civilization can expect to enjoy.

It's not fair. Of course, we shouldn't expect it to be fair. As the master himself put it so well:

THERE'S NO JUSTICE. THERE'S JUST ME.

Then again, maybe I'm being premature. Terry hasn't left us yet, neither in body nor in mind, and hopefully won't for many years to come. For entirely selfish reasons, I hope he writes many more books. For entirely unselfish reasons, I hope he spends all the time he has left in as much happiness as his work has brought to all his readers around the world.

this was part of a hypothesis that lifelong memories may be stored by genetic modification rather than synaptic.

WTF?

BTW, what has happened with the announcement that curcuma (the yellow color of curry) can apparently stop the plaques from forming and even dissolve existing ones? I suppose there's got to be a reason why I haven't read about this ever again...

It happens to bad ones as well as good ones

Case in point: The Gipper.

"I suppose there's got to be a reason why I haven't read about this ever again..."

It pops up now and then. I expect they're still doing the research. I recall seeing something about it being effective in some way against cystic fibrosis.

Truth machine: please leave people alone. Everyone grieves in their own way - and yes, this is all grieving, even if the great man is going to be with us for years yet.

He has asked not to be offerred help unless you're a high-end brain chemist. That's great. People aren't bugging him with stuff. What they *are* doing, is putting their intention to help out in public, to help themselves grieve. By putting the "please pass this on to Terry...." messages out there, they're allowing themselves to feel they've done everything they can, without actually bugging the poor man.

Can't you see that? Do you care so little that you can't even understand how other people might care, and how other people might express themselves to feel a little less futile?

Myself, I'm going to join the crowds donating what we can afford to Alzheimer's research. I can't afford much, but if I and all my friends put $20 in, and everyone else here also gets their friends to put $20 in, it'll add up.

Probably still won't achieve anything in time for Mr Pratchett. But we'll have done what we can.

*sigh* I got given Men at Arms for my 10th birthday (yes, that'll tell people my age if anyone cares - doubt anyone does lol) by my big brother, who thought I'd never be old enough to find it funny, and he'd be able to steal it from me. I was too young for the innuendo - but that's one of the things I love about the Discworld: you can read it while young, and the stuff you're not old enough for will just go over your head. You read it again a couple of years later, and all of a sudden you get more of the jokes. You read it again as an adult, and you get even more.

I'm sure I'm still missing some of the jokes. Every time I re-read a discworld book, I get more out of it.

I hope Terry manages to keep the disease at bay for a long, long time yet. The only thing keeping me hopeful right now is knoing that other great men with nasty diseases have held on far longer than you'd expect - Stephen Hawking, anyone?

I hope that when Death comes for Terry, that he finds a very old and cunning man waiting for him - or, more likely, still running.

Bad news indeed. A mind like his, facing something like that.
At least he's keeping a positive mental outlook.
(although, it wouldn't bother me if he wanted to be a complete crab about the entire business.)
I won't pray for him. I no longer have the tongue for it.

Side note: was that PZ Myers I saw in the documentary
"Godless in America" ?

awww maaaaan......That bites. Terry Prachett is one of the paramount writers of humourous fiction of the day.

Here's hoping he stays lucid for years yet.

I am not saying that everyone should not be free to say Oh Fuck, and how awful this diagnosis is and the loss they may feel but...

I cannot help but notice that everyone seems to be so upset over the loss of a mind. I hate to point it out, but is it not the ultimate teachings of this author to perhaps say shut the fuck up and stop whining and get to the task at hand?

I mean, don't just talk about it but actually do something! Whilst I appreciate the info, cognitive decline that is Alzheimer's or vascular based is still dementia. All forms of dementia have the same outcome. Yes, you can attempt to treat, delay, alleviate symptoms, but ultimately dementia is dementia as diabetes is diabetes, MS is still MS, schizophrenia is still schizophrenia, etc.; they may not share the exact treatment programs or disease course between similar entities, but the ultimate outcome is quite similar.

I hold the understanding that the author does not wish anyone to waste energies on what "could have been" or "not fair." Instead I feel this author may wish us to take our energies and do something, i.e., what have you said to your son, your daughter, your niece, your nephew to encourage them in the scientific field?

What have you done to encourage the advances of science in your neighborhood school, your local library, your community at large?

Have you donated maybe $5 or more to an entity which promotes scientific education?

Have you, yourself, gone to a college class lately? Have you attended a lecture? Have you read (and I mean read and not perused) a book lately? Have you written a review?

Have you volunteered to tutor a student? Have you volunteered to do anything lately?

Don't lament this author's future losses. Instead relish the knowledge you may gain and allow yourself to continue.

After all, we could all be humanity at its best. We allow ourselves a bit of grief, we analyze the situation, and then we give the best we can to the rest of humanity, not for our personal selves, but for future generations. This is evolution, this is science, this is humanity, not?

Don't lament what will be lost. But instead, celebrate what has been given and continue to give.

It's also possible that Terry was diagnosed with vascular dementia, but is using the word 'alzheimers' because it's familiar, similar, and sounds better than 'dementia', which sounds scary.

You're an idiot.

Truth machine: please leave people alone.

Fuck off.

Don't deceive yourselves. PTerry has seen the consultants, had the tests, probably examined the evidence himself and read up about the subject, because that's what very smart people do. If he says he has a rare form of Alzheimer's dementia, chances are he has that, and not vascular or anything else.

I'm sorry, but he isn't going to wish it away, and neither should we try.

Quite. Those who say that they know better than Pratchett what he has, or ask that their precious advice be passed along to him, are arrogant asses.

truth machine wrote: "You're an idiot."

Hey, you were scared by the word 'dementia', and apparently annoyed that'd I'd have the temerity to suggest Pratchett has dementia, out of your ignorance that Alzheimers itself is a form of dementia.

Hey, you were scared by the word 'dementia', and apparently annoyed that'd I'd have the temerity to suggest Pratchett has dementia, out of your ignorance that Alzheimers itself is a form of dementia.

You confirm my diagnosis: idiocy. I wasn't scared of any word, wasn't annoyed by any suggestion that Pratchett has dementia, and am not ignorant that Alzheimer's is a form of dementia. Since Pratchett has -- by his own report -- Alzheimer's, it follows that he has a form of dementia; duh. What I was "annoyed" by was your stupidity in denying that he has Alzheimer's, when you have no evidence of dementia other than his report of having Alzheimer's, and thus no basis for your Fristian long-distance diagnosis. Vascular dementia is not "a rare form of Alzheimer's", Pratchett is not likely to be confused about the two, and he most certainly isn't the sort of dishonest person who would misrepresent what disease he has to avoid "scaring" his fans.

Fuck. I cried for about fifteen minutes solid when I heard the news, and I'm still periodically teary-eyed.

It seems selfish to mourn the stories he won't get to tell because of this, but I'd feel presumptuous beyond that. My prayers are with him, for whatever they're worth, and whatever cash I can spare is going to Alzheimer's research, because you get a lot farther doing something that sitting around hoping.

#79, Thanks for clearing that up, Truth Machine, I was perilously close to not understanding your thorough debunking of what was almost certainly the most important comment ever posted to a blog.

I watched someone very dear to me die of early onset Alzheimer's and this will be very hard on the Pratchett family. My heart goes out to them.

LeeLeeOne, I could have done without the lecture and for your information to peruse something means to study it carefully; the dictionary is your friend.

Let people mourn in the way that works for them

What have you done to encourage the advances of science in your neighborhood school, your local library, your community at large?
ANS: Volunteered at local Middle School teaching science to the ungrateful little kiddies.

Have you donated maybe $5 or more to an entity which promotes scientific education?
ANS: YES

Have you, yourself, gone to a college class lately?
ANS: YES, currently teaching biology to science majors

Have you attended a lecture?
ANS: YES

Have you read (and I mean read and not perused) a book lately?
ANS: YES

Have you written a review?
ANS: Yes, am currently writing two

Have you volunteered to tutor a student?
ANS: YES, I regularly tutor students

Have you volunteered to do anything lately?
ANS: Yes, yes, yes

Look at this novel treatment for Azheimer's:

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/08/070817145228.htm

SG

PZ, Truth Machine is trolling, trying to make this thread about his personal issues with the rest of humanity, oblivious to (or perhaps pleased at) how upset people are. Can you send him to the dungeon, please?

Re #36: I like it ;-).
If I'm ever diagnosed with something terminal (and I will be, some day), one way I think I may deal with it is to personify my approaching demise and Pratchett's Death. He's not evil, he's just kind of a Law Of Nature, and indeed often comes across as a kindly old man. And in my books, anyone who thinks CATS ARE NICE can't be too scarey.

Terry Pratchett is the only author whose books I regularly buy in hardback. They live on the top shelf ('Best books ever') of the bookshelves in my study (micro branch of the Unseen University library).

I wish Terry well, and hope he gets the most out of his future years.

I think there are a few people here who are a bit premature... why is anyone mourning? he's neither dead nor demented yet. It seems a bit antithetical to his nature...

When everything goes south, then mourn. Until then, live happy in the knowledge that there are still some great books to come. (And even some films from his books from a director who appears to 'get it')

FYI, barnes and noble have a video of pratchett giving a talk earlier this year, and describing the 'phantom stroke' and resulting symptoms. (I hope the link works, I had some trouble when posting it.)

Truly upsetting, but as others have noted he is still very much with us. Perhaps he needs a card to hang around his neck like Granny Wetherwax during her out of body trips-"I anintent dead"

I would speculate that PZ's favorite diskworld book is "Small Gods"

I have been re-reading the Discworld novels, this time around by order of publication. I'll start reading them more slowly now, to make them last.
I'm being selfish in thinking about my enjoyment of his books.
I am also very, very sad. I don´t know how many years Terry Pratchett has left to live, but I hope that in spite of his illness he will get as much peace, joy and happiness as he has given to countless people around the world.

this was part of a hypothesis that lifelong memories may be stored by genetic modification rather than synaptic.

WTF?

BTW, what has happened with the announcement that curcuma (the yellow color of curry) can apparently stop the plaques from forming and even dissolve existing ones? I suppose there's got to be a reason why I haven't read about this ever again...

It happens to bad ones as well as good ones

Case in point: The Gipper.

I have been re-reading the Discworld novels, this time around by order of publication. I'll start reading them more slowly now, to make them last.
I'm being selfish in thinking about my enjoyment of his books.
I am also very, very sad. I don´t know how many years Terry Pratchett has left to live, but I hope that in spite of his illness he will get as much peace, joy and happiness as he has given to countless people around the world.