====== Aaron Swartz ======

Aaron Hillel Swartz (November 8, 1986 – January 11, 2013), was a remarkable American individual whose talents spanned the realms of computer programming, entrepreneurship, literature, political activism, and online hacktivism. As a gifted programmer, Swartz made significant contributions to the development of several pivotal projects, including RSS web feeds, the technical underpinnings of Creative Commons, the web.py website framework, and the lightweight markup language Markdown.

Swartz's legacy extends beyond his technical achievements. He was an instrumental figure in the early stages of Reddit, a prominent social news aggregation platform, although he later chose to step away from the company in 2007. Beyond his programming prowess, he is often revered as both a prodigy and a martyr. His life's work was fundamentally centered on promoting civic awareness and inspiring activism.

Following Reddit's acquisition by Condé Nast Publications in 2006, Swartz transitioned his focus towards activism. He played a crucial role in launching the Progressive Change Campaign Committee in 2009. In 2010, he took on a research fellowship at Harvard University's Safra Research Lab on Institutional Corruption, under the guidance of Lawrence Lessig. Additionally, he founded Demand Progress, an online advocacy group that gained recognition for its campaign against the Stop Online Piracy Act.

However, Swartz's life took a tragic turn on January 6, 2011, when he was arrested by MIT police on charges related to unauthorized access. The incident involved Swartz connecting a computer to MIT's network in an unmarked and unlocked closet, using a guest user account issued by MIT to systematically download academic journal articles from JSTOR. Federal prosecutors, led by Carmen Ortiz, subsequently charged him with two counts of wire fraud and eleven violations of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. If convicted, Swartz faced the possibility of substantial fines, a lengthy prison sentence of up to 35 years, asset forfeiture, restitution, and supervised release. Remarkably, Swartz declined a plea bargain that would have resulted in a six-month federal prison term.

Tragically, just two days after the prosecution rejected his counter-offer, Swartz was found lifeless in his Brooklyn apartment. His untimely passing sent shockwaves through the tech and activist communities. In 2013, he was honored posthumously with induction into the Internet Hall of Fame, forever remembered as a visionary whose life's work was dedicated to the noble causes of civic engagement and activism.