Worth it for Mankind?

There is a desire in myself to commit to the very best of what the human endeavour is: application of knowledge to advance our race. You know this as engineering.

However, it has come to my attention that there is a lack of spirit, not of motivation, but of innovation. Of intelect, knowledge, and prime. The fabric of every engineer.

The very details that I should tell you would be inumerable. I will, however, tell you of shortfalls.

This post should be for general questioning and discussion, not a personal thesis titled, "My Pttiful Life."

Here are some things, food for thought, that could be up for discussion:

1. If enginers are needed, then why are all modern technology fully developed in university labs? ex: Graphene transistors, fusion reactors, mass energy storage capacitors ( the so-called 'supercaps'), mag-lev technology, ect. There is no room for any more eingineers to develop new tech, especailly a lack of a need for an uninnovative person such as myself. Every time I have an idea, someone else has alreads thought it up. What is the point in pursuing innovation, if it has bee developed?

2. The achademic community places little emphasis on advaning intellectual endeavours. The S.T.E.M programs are neglected and research is given mostly to politically charged programs. Also, such waste given to athletics and administrative bonuses/raises are illogical and juvenile for such a developed nation. We as a scociety value sports and marketing/business strategist of collegiate envoirnments more than the free thinkers who attend any pay for such endeavour.

3. There is more value placed on men like Zuckerberg, who provide us with an intangble tool that has a negative economic impact on our society. We value the billions man makes rather than the technology it is run on. I assume you may disagree with me, but wealth does not equate success. To me, wealth equated well managed finances. You may also argue Zuckerberg had bee innovative just a Jobs. However, both men stole ideas form others and captialized them. They were business men more than engineers.

In conclusion, I personally see little value in an engineeering career as I: 1. Have no thoughts on any new engineering exploration/ideas/plans/innovations, 2. The current political/social/economic climate in the US and around the world is sour, and finally 3. There is no value for anyone to pursue any career in which benefits man becasue man will surely disregard its grand merits.

End.

P.S: Here is a complimetnary song, courtesy of dogman_1234

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IrBz158RzDM
 

riser

Illustrious
My chemistry teacher long ago said.. and he was a very smart guy: There is no such thing as an original thought.

While it is new to you, someone else has already thought it up. You should look to the next step, or three steps ahead. Innovation is always needed.

Why Universities? Multiple reasons. In no particular order: They're tax free, meaning if you put $1 million in, you get $1 million out, no taxes on that. It can be a safe haven for people who work on projects for years without requiring the need to create revenue. Others are paying for their work and the school reaps the reward.

Athletics on the other hand generate a ton of money for a school and it is worthwhile to pay the coaches and staff very well to maintain that program. Ohio State for example makes tens of millions of dollars a year in profit on their Football program alone.
University of Tennessee's football program, while in shambles, generates enough money to pay for 100% of all other athletics programs, tuitions, and multiple other programs that benefit UT. Long story short; Sports are money magnet.

Overall Dog, I see a single thing under all your comments. You want recognition for your efforts. Guess what? Someone else will almost always take that from you. Charles Branson. What's he do? Some really cool stuff.. oh wait, no he doesn't. He pays other people to do it for him and takes the hype. Zuckerberg? Same thing.

Did you see that movie about the guy who invented the intermitten windshield wiper? All he wanted was recognition. He didn't get it. His pride got in the way.. and years later he has a movie about him.

The question is, are your contributions that significant that you must be recognized and praised for what you have contributed? Ah, how many kings have fallen because of that foolish thought.
 
I believe our government has become too powerful and convincing. Its influence shouldnt rattle the walls at engineer uni, and proves only government has the monies to do this so send more is a failure.
It wasnt government that got us here, and wont be government getting us out of a slump.

Im sure there are bright people who know this as well, and privately seek endeavours of learning.
I know most engineers amid other fields of course, where procuring that next funding source from the government is not only essential, but something to place upon ones mantle.
Its ironic people such as Bill Gates has little to do in these regards, and saddles up to big government, when we all know what happened in that garage many years ago
 

Look three steps ahead...something not only I lack, but many a my peers as well.
I guess I understand you explanation on collegiate sports.
You know what, you may be right. It may be pride. It may be the feeling of insignificance. The desire to be known in the world. Wantng to be someone. I could also be jealousy.

Here is a thought: Even in the greatest of our acheivments, all the easy stuff has been done.
Forgot who told me that, but he was also right.
He also told me that you make what is possible for you. Make the future, not those who don't deserve it. Those who neglect their fellow man, they will harm us all. this was directed at my whole class.
It seems boderline narcissitic. The way I talk about myself, and the anner in whcih I do. I don't talk about others, I talk about myself excessivly.
Riser, is there anythign wrong with wanting to acheive something great in the world, even if I am not capable?

I may have to agreee with you on this. There is a lack of support for our great minds, for what the government is suppose to do, and what it does, is not of a reality.

 

riser

Illustrious
The problem with wanting to achieve something great is that you are always blinded by that desire.

Someone once said, "A man with nothing to lose is no longer blind," or another similiar saying of, "A man with nothing to lose should be feared." The latter is probably not worthwhile to this discussion.

If you're always trying to achieve something great, you will undoubtedly miss all the little steps that get you there.

The guy who got us to the moon said something like, "every big problem is a bunch of smaller problems."

http://readingforkicks.org/documents/study_tips/article_studytips_einsteins_10_problem_solving_tips.pdf
 

so, I should have nothing and value little of myself?
What can I do then, not for myself, but for my fellow man? How can I help make the world a better place?
 
Its clear you won't make a decent engineer ... your brain's to clogged with all of that humanitarian cr@p doggy.

I work all day with engineers ... If I showed one of them this post they would die laughing.

Grow a couple bud !!!

Can you tell I have been hanging around them a bit much?

I was a kind considerate pychologist once ...

:)
 

riser

Illustrious


The shamwow and slap chop were innovations. Everyone has to have dreams in order to go higher. Today, you should be looking at what could be better or innovating for man. Maybe at some point in your lifetime you'll acquire the experience and knowledge to achieve those things? You're going down the engineering route, a structure, heavily critical thinking route.. which engineers are sought after not because of their title or degree, but the way we think about problem solving.

You're thinking big.. but you know? Velcro was pretty small but a major innovation.

In the end, you're uninspired right now. That's fine, in the mean time learn engineering and at some point inspiration will come.

As you mentioned Zuckerberg. Not an engineer, but he was inspired to do something and went about and did it. Didn't need to be an engineer because he was creating what he wanted. Digital world can be different that 'engineering' though.

Once you are inspired by an idea, it will be on you to create that idea through whatever capabilities you have, can acquire, or use from someone or something else.
 

amdfangirl

Expert
Ambassador
I once met a girl who, using I2C made an external temperature sensor for my laptop that communicated to my laptop via my VGA port. Then she wrote a Python script to log the data collected. (which connects to LibreOffice Calc and graphs it)

This was done in a matter of minutes while I pointed out things that looked shiny.

Now when I go overseas I can collect a wide variety of data... using my VGA port. (Yes, even radio)

All sorts of weird little contraptions built for me to play with.

I <3 engineers :3
 

musical marv

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What value do you see at all in biochemistry at all today if any?
 
Tho, often thru reaching for one goal, engineers often create other solutions.
Ball point pen for weightlessness for example, and there are many many such examples.
Like needing a glue for a certain type of manufacturing, and coming up with super glue, the glue on tape, microwave ovens (one of my favorites)
The Microwave Oven Was Invented by Accident by a Man Who was Orphaned and Never Finished Grammar School

One day, while Spencer was working on building magnetrons for radar sets, he was standing in front of an active radar set when he noticed the candy bar he had in his pocket melted.
Read more at http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2011/08/the-microwave-oven-was-invented-by-accident-by-a-man-who-was-orphaned-and-never-finished-grammar-school/#ma7tPBg7JgIOIC5L.99

So, greatness comes or falls on whom is in the right place at the right time more often than when its aimed at, and good reason to not give up, nor seek it, but simply to achieve and be in the game
 


Well a fried (Aiden) recently finished his chemical engineering degree and has an excellent job making weird and wonderful rare earth materials for superconductors ... he explains his job is kind of like a high tech baker ... and he really enjoys it.

He also makes awesome beer.

er ... What was your question again?
 

wanamingo

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I hate to be that guy...

http://www.snopes.com/business/genius/spacepen.asp

Both U.S. astronauts and Soviet cosmonauts initially used pencils on space flights, but those writing instruments were not ideal: pencil tips can flake and break off, and having such objects floating around space capsules in near-zero gravity posed a potential harm to astronauts and equipment. (As well, after the fatal Apollo 1 fire in 1967, NASA was anxious to avoid having astronauts carry flammable objects such as pencils onboard with them.)

When the solution of providing astronauts with a ballpoint pen that would work under weightless conditions and extreme temperatures came about, though, it wasn't because NASA had thrown hundreds of thousands of dollars (inflated to $12 billion in the latest iterations of this tale) in research and development money at the problem — the "space pen" that has since become famous through its use by astronauts was developed independently by Paul C. Fisher of the Fisher Pen Co., who spent his own money on the project, and after perfecting the product he offered his AG-7 "Anti-Gravity" Space Pen to NASA. After that agency tested and approved the pen's suitability for use in space flights, they purchased a number of the
 
How do I go about getting inspiration, or is this too early to talk about?

What about something simple. Like, taking microprocessors from radio shack and making an in house counter...for, ya now...blackjack...?

Ideas?
 

wanamingo

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Dogman Its my opinion that you are over thinking things. Do what you enjoy doing and nurture that. If you like Black Jack immerse yourself in it and build a counting machine (Warning Mingo is not a lawyer and does not condone cheating at cards games)

I still have no idea what I want to do and Im 24, I think im leaving my job in November or December if you want an assistant network admin job... in bumf*ck NH. :)

The worst thing you can do in your life is become good at something you dont like or doesnt satisfy you. Ive seen some brilliant engineers that are just miserable and cant wait for the work day to be over, they are very sad well off people.

 


The counting machine thing was just an idea. It would be a counting@home machine really.

I was always told that you do what you like to do. I would love to do something lese besides washing dishes at night 6 nights a week and only making a few hundred every month, but I have what I have and really should not complain.

I'll see where the wind takes me. I don't like it, but that is fact.

BTW, we have alot of jobs over here in Seattle, Washington. You wanna move over to the beautiful Pacific Northwest?
 

wanamingo

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Thats too funny the girlfriend and I took a trip to Seattle the other year, we were thinking about moving there. You are in the capital of tech and engineering, there must be some hobbyists over there you could get involved in.

I have a friend that started going to a lockpicking enthusiast group, people showed him the ropes and he made a few friends. He even tried competitive lockpicking a few times.

 

Well if you guys want to move over, i would be ever happy to meet you guys!

Here are the requirements to live in Seattle:

-Put up with Traffic on the I-5 all day
-City living
-Husky and Sehawks fans...yeah
-Former Californians all over town...real shitty attitudes
-Rain, so...much...rain...though, less than Portland Oregon!
-Clouds
-The occasional Cougar fan who does a drive by Couging

Other than that, you would like it here. Washingtonians and Seattlites are more friendly than New England people. I guarantee it! :)

Back to the whole tech haven thing. Yes, we are definitely capitalized on engineering and technology: Microsoft, Amazon, Boeing, ect...
I know nothing about tech hobbyist clubs in the Greater Seattle area though.
Problem is, no conetion, not talent, so...yeah... :(
 

riser

Illustrious


I almost enlisted to fly. 5'11" 170lbs. Only 1500 pilots, 7 year waiting list, they said I'd be handing out basketballs while I waited. Then only the best of the best get in. I scored 79 on my ASVAB, skipping the entire math section for a nap.

My recruiting sgt would have received a $15,000 bonus for signing me up. I walked away. Now, if you join the army you had to score at least a 33 on the test and you could be flying an Apache in a few months.
 

riser

Illustrious


I spent some time working in Everett next to the base. I spent some time in Vancouver and Portland, OR too. I liked Portland better.. too many hippies in Seattle.

I used to frequent the oh what's the place.. Firewood Brick Oven place up on the Docks in Everett.
 

I am not familiar with Everett. Portland is nice. Never encountered hippies in Seattle. Possilbe, you may have met Hipsters? Avoid the U district if you don't want a liberal assault. And this is coming form a libertal himself!
 

riser

Illustrious
Hippes, long hair, need to shower, lots of colored beads and wanna be native american looking crap. Not hipsters... Where I live, there has been a growing hipster community and no one is liking them except themselves.

Everett has a naval base up there. I worked right next door to it. They have a old wooden ship dry docked from like 1870 sitting up there too. Pretty cool stuff. Used to make the bullet resistant glass for naval vessels and fighter jets.
 

Hipsters loved themselves before it was cool...

May have to chech out Everett when I'm up at Seattle. May do it when I check out U-Dub.