Internet wunderkind, programmer, hacktivist, and Reddit co-founder Aaron Swartz has taken his own life at the tender age of just 26. A certain section of the Web is currently mourning the loss.
This news video does a good job of telling the story behind Swartz’ death, detailing some of his greatest achievements and the path which led him to committing suicide.
Swartz is likely to have had a hand in something you’ve used, whether it be Reddit or RSS (Really Simple Syndication). The latter was co-developed by Swartz when he was 14.
The reasons Swartz took his life will likely never be fully known. He’s thought to have suffered from depression for several years, but he was also facing prosecution over the downloading of documents from JSTOR.
