Blog This

So, I've been thinking about what blog is. Is it meant to simply comment on something? Is it meant to be a form of self expression? Indeed, what is the meaning of blog? Webster's defines blog to mean:
to author an online diary or chronology of thoughts; short for weblog
So I think I can type pretty much whatever I feel in this here blog. Some blogs are dedicated to commenting on specific areas of interest, say politics, or perhaps more specifically Republicans or Democrats. My blog appears to be more of a stream of consciousness. I write about whatever I feel like writing about on a given day.
Today I feel like writing about engineering. This profession is very useful to society. However, I think that a good deal of engineering students are being dealt a poor set of cards. I can only write specifically about my experiences with electrical engineering, but I imagine that some of what I have to say applies to other disiplines. Firstly, I think that the scope of electrical engineering has become too large. There is simply too much math to be learned to cover all the different areas that there is little time to learn anything practical. I guess the idea is that one should be prepared to handle a diverse set of circumstances when one graduates, however when one arrives on the work place the skill set needed is very different than the one taught in schools. I will say that I now (rather belatedly) realize that especially in electrical a MASc is very useful to get into a topic in depth. The topics covered in undergrad are covered in such a manner than one never gets into the nitty gritty enough. I personally find myself in over my head at work, but somehow surviving. Also, electronics engineering is a pretty solitary type of work, and it also keeps you indoors most days. These are not small considerations, especially if you work in high tech where more than 9-5 is expected. I think that if there is any useful advice for the graduating high school student it is this: look at what you like outside of school and figure out what you would like to study based on that. You're likely to be happier and therefore better and more productive at what you do. There is nothing worse than dragging yourself to work everyday and hating it. Also, try lots of different things in every area of your life as early as possible in your life. Disregard if you have been dealt a raw set of circumstances as you are likely dealing with other issues. Finally, do not reach beyond your stress tolerance level. I swear I have PTSD from my undergrad degree. Trying to learn how to do fourier transforms like back flips will hurt. Enough ranting.

The good now. There are some engineering professions which make a legit contribution to the world. These include things like civil, enviro, mechanical even. These areas are very broad and the math is not nearly as nasty as in some electrical courses. Electrical related to power is very useful, but very few people pursue power engineering anymore. Interestingly because of that fact there are many job openings in power engineering as the boomers retire. Got news, we still need power even if it isn't super exciting. I'll tell you what isn't exicting: working in high tech so much that you no longer have an outside life. Consider it. Exciting or useful. Make a call.

Finally, I have a quibble concerning the professionalism in electrical engineering. In a lot of cases I just don't see it. The products are supposed to meet a need in society. Quite often we're creating throw away crap. That is a huge misallocation of time and money IMO.

And finally, finally, while in undergrad engineering skip on the LTG (long term girlfriend). The two don't mix well. Date frequently. Find female friends. You will need them after you graduate as you are unlikely to see any real females at work for the next 25 years. Some exceptions apply, most notably chemical and environmental engineers. Computer engineers are out of luck.

Empathy

It's been a while. I just saw Kong, and it is quite boring, even predictable. I guess the story is known and really you are just there to enjoy the special effects. The story brings to mind a subject that has occupied me lately; at least for the last year. Empathy. Such a simple word, yet it might be the key to any lasting relationship and indeed the survival of the species. The heroine of the movie comes to see Kong as a real creature of intelligence; of love even. She is able to understand the he is not really just a beast, but a lonely creature. I also saw a show on "roots of empathy" where a professor has been bringing babies into classrooms to see the affect on children. The results are remarkable. She reports that children become more aware of each others needs and start to stick up for bullied children. Anyway, this whole empathy thing is a bit new to me. I realize that I didn't get a whole lot of real empathy from my parents as a child. Not really their fault I realize, because their childhoods were not exactly ideal. My supposition is that this kind of thing comes down through the generations. I mean, if your parents are empathetic and loving, you cannot help but be. That is your world for the first 10 years of your life and as you grow older you'll just assume that it is normal to be empathetic. Conversely, in a less supportive environment it is difficult to learn that empathy is found in the world. A child has little chance if it cannot spend at least some time with someone who can understand its emotions and support the emotional growth of the child. We talk a lot in our society (Western society I mean) about accomplishments and seem to associate growth with ever increasing accomplishments. I know from my own observations and experience that growth or life's journey is really about growing emotional capacity. The most developed people I know are the ones with the greatest empathy. I think that they also have a quiet confidence in themselves that comes from knowing that they are okay. I guess you would say that they knew they were loved from their first moments in life. Society is so social, that empathy is perhaps the most useful personal characteristic. I wonder at times whether you can have a meaningful relationship without empathy? It would seem the answer is no, at least that has been my experience. I know that I have poor ability to understand the emotions of others; I barely understand my own. Eventually in any relationship that is meaningful the emotions of one another need to be validated. The other needs to know that they are heard. I intellectually understand empathy; I even wrote about it in papers when I was younger. But it can be hard in practice, especially if you've been roughed up by life. I shouldn't be too self pitying though, there are definitely people around who can't even begin to contemplate empathy because of their circumstances. I mean, how is a child born into a war torn country, who gets little nuturing ever going to learn empathy, or for that matter ABCs? If the world is ever to become a better place, then I think we need more empathy. If we all realize that every other person is a soul who matters, it becomes a lot harder to kill one another. If you can say "If I kill that man, then I kill myself" well it would at least make you think twice. It would sure make you stop and think before invading another country. Of course, nothing is that simple. There are too many people, too much history and too few resources to go around. But on balance, more empathetic people ought to make for a better populace no? In the West we tend to put down some of the more "primitive cultures", I guess because they do not have designer jeans or whatever. But often those cultures raise better people who care about one another. The saying "It takes a village to raise a child" makes some sense, but it seems that the Western world has thrown that away and replaced with "every man for himself, and damn the rest". If you grow up with a group of people around you who care about you, then you are likely going to care about other people. Most of us struggle just to get through each day, but somewhere amongst the blur of life, you've got to at least think about the whole thing and wonder if we can move towards a better planet?