1. Why does Narayan read the obituaries every morning? One of the reasons that Narayan reads the obituaries every morning is that they not only mention the deaths of famous people but also cover the deaths of people who are not as well-known in society yet have done such amazing things. Narayan believes that our world would be a much better place if people lived their lives trying to be famous when they die, and obituaries are how he finds the people who deserve this. 2. List out the common occupations of most of the people featured in the 2,000 obituaries studied. Some of the most common occupations of the people featured in the mentioned obituaries include lawyer, writer, singer, chef, artist, and reporter. 3. What is the significance of most accomplishments having occurred, on average, at the age of 37? I believe that Narayan was trying to point out that it is somewhat ridiculous that we wait 37 years, on average, to complete our first significant achievement that people will remember after we’ve passed. And 37 years is about half the average lifespan of a person. His point being, that it takes the average person about half of their life to achieve something that will earn us the privilege to be remembered after we die. 4. What extraordinary thing did the majority of famous and non-famous people do that earned their mention in the obituaries? The majority of famous and non-famous people did something to benefit others, and impact their lives in a positive way; this is what prompted people to remember them. When comparing the two, what sticks out is that the famous people were remembered for more tangible things. Such as being part of a successful film,or producing a song that’s loved by many. While the non-famous people were remembered for symbolic and other intangible things. Such as helping the fight for human rights or achieving a racial breakthrough that will benefit society for years to come. 5. Narayan asks his audience to consider this question: “How am I using my talents to help society?” What is your answer? I have always believed myself to be good with people and hardworking, and when the pandemic hit, I had a lot of free time. I decided to use my talents and take advantage of my free time by volunteering at a food bank that serves my community. Especially at the start of the pandemic, many people had lost their jobs, and some of the previous volunteers did not feel comfortable volunteering, so they were incredibly strained on every resource, with more and more people needing the food bank’s assistance every day. I believe that my continuous volunteering at a food bank is benefiting society by making food assistance more accessible and reducing the workload on everyone else there.