Before the QET test, I was thinking to myself, “its just an English test, I can easily pull it off”. As a person who converses in English most of the time, I was obviously over-confident and thought that I could never fail the test even how badly I wanted to. I was wrong. After a semester being in an EG1471 class, I realized how much I’ve been lacking, in terms of the English language.
EG1471 has taught me a lot about one of my major weakness, academic writing. I have always had difficulties writing reports or essays during my polytechnic days, and especially in semester 1 in NUS. One of the difficulties I encounter during writing is that I don’t have a clear organization of points in my head. Most of the time, I will have fragments of information scattered about in my thoughts, and to pen it down in an organized manner, it takes a long time. From the lessons in EG1471, I learned more about pre-writing techniques such as idea generations, essay outlines and drafts. These techniques helped me a lot in cutting down my writing time.
Apart from that, through years of chatting on the internet as well as speaking “singlish”, I tend to use incorrect grammar. This affects my academic writings, and also makes me more dependants on Microsoft Word’s “spell check”, to see if my sentences are correct. One thing that I learned is that by reading and practicing proper English in a day to day basis, I can get rid of the bad habits and have a greater command of proper English. So, I have been reading magazines and newspapers whenever I have the time to.
Even though the EG1471 module has come to an end, that doesn’t stop me to further improve my English. Speaking proper English, as well as reading articles on a day to day basis seems to be a fail-safe way to improve my English. Probably I would also continue blogging, as blogging gives me a chance to practice my writing skills. During the vacation, I’m also thinking of picking up an interesting novel to read, say “Tuesdays with Morrie” by Mitch Albom.
Monday, April 20, 2009
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
It's fine to make mistakes, as long as we learn from them
Three of my most common grammatical mistakes are in the areas of the subject-verb agreement, parallelism and pronoun reference.
Subject-verb agreement (SVA)
As the name implies, when constructing a sentence, the subject and its verb must agree with each other in order for the sentence to make sense. I personally find this section of grammar particularly difficult as sometimes, the subject can be separated from the verb. Other than that, the SVA can also change due to the nature of the subject, such as if the subject is singular or plural, or if it is countable or uncountable.
Examples:
1) My mother said that living in big cities are not good for health. (wrong)
My mother said that living in big cities is not good for health. (correct)
2) There is some mistakes in your sentence. (wrong)
There are some mistakes in your sentence. (correct)
Parallelism
The basic definition of parallelism is to make two or more words or clauses parallel, or have the same idea or level of importance. Parallel structures are mainly broken down into two parts, which are logical parallelism and grammatical parallelism. The parallel structure of the sentence can easily disappear just by mistyping a few words in a sentence. This will be shown in the examples below.
Examples:
1) The three main races in Malaysia are the Malays, Chinese, and the Indians. (wrong)
The three main races in Malaysia are the Malays, the Chinese and the Indians. (correct)
2) Jack loves swimming, canoeing and to ride a bicycle. (wrong)
Jack loves swimming, canoeing and cycling. (correct)
Pronoun reference
A pronoun reference is used when the writer wants to refer to the subject again without rewriting the whole subject of the sentence again. Normally, a sentence will carry an ambiguous meaning if the pronoun reference is not used properly.
Examples:
1) Take the shoes out of the box and throw it away. (faulty)
Here, “it” can refer to the shoes or the box.
Take the shoes out of the box and throw the box away. (clear)
2) The teachers told their students that they would be having a day off tomorrow. (faulty)
‘it’ may refer to the teachers or the students.
The teachers told their students that the students would be having a day off tomorrow.(clear)
Subject-verb agreement (SVA)
As the name implies, when constructing a sentence, the subject and its verb must agree with each other in order for the sentence to make sense. I personally find this section of grammar particularly difficult as sometimes, the subject can be separated from the verb. Other than that, the SVA can also change due to the nature of the subject, such as if the subject is singular or plural, or if it is countable or uncountable.
Examples:
1) My mother said that living in big cities are not good for health. (wrong)
My mother said that living in big cities is not good for health. (correct)
2) There is some mistakes in your sentence. (wrong)
There are some mistakes in your sentence. (correct)
Parallelism
The basic definition of parallelism is to make two or more words or clauses parallel, or have the same idea or level of importance. Parallel structures are mainly broken down into two parts, which are logical parallelism and grammatical parallelism. The parallel structure of the sentence can easily disappear just by mistyping a few words in a sentence. This will be shown in the examples below.
Examples:
1) The three main races in Malaysia are the Malays, Chinese, and the Indians. (wrong)
The three main races in Malaysia are the Malays, the Chinese and the Indians. (correct)
2) Jack loves swimming, canoeing and to ride a bicycle. (wrong)
Jack loves swimming, canoeing and cycling. (correct)
Pronoun reference
A pronoun reference is used when the writer wants to refer to the subject again without rewriting the whole subject of the sentence again. Normally, a sentence will carry an ambiguous meaning if the pronoun reference is not used properly.
Examples:
1) Take the shoes out of the box and throw it away. (faulty)
Here, “it” can refer to the shoes or the box.
Take the shoes out of the box and throw the box away. (clear)
2) The teachers told their students that they would be having a day off tomorrow. (faulty)
‘it’ may refer to the teachers or the students.
The teachers told their students that the students would be having a day off tomorrow.(clear)
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Summary on the Roundtable Discussions
On the 9th of March 2009, a roundtable discussion session comprising of four main topics were discussed. The topics discussed were biofuel, green chemistry, RFID chip implants in human beings and lastly the carbon capture and storage technology.
The first topic that was discussed was about biofuel as an alternative to fossil fuels. The affirmative mentioned that by using biofuel, the amount of greenhouse gas emission by factories and vehicles can be significantly reduced. Another point discussed was on how the usage of biofuels can slow down the depletion of fossil fuels. On the other hand, the negative rebutted these statements by bringing forth their opposing views. One of them was that the use of biofuel can affect the availability of food resources, as biofuel is processed from crops such as corn. The next point mentioned was that the need for a large area to grow crops to produce biofuel will induce mass deforestation. Lastly, the negative believed that a more sensible use of these crops could be to solve global poverty issues.
For the discussion on green chemistry, the main ideas that were discussed were on how this technology can be used to convert waste material into useful items. The affirmative touched on the ability of the technology to convert spent plastic bottles into carbon microspheres which are claimed to be harder than natural diamonds. However, the negative opposed by pointing out the high cost of facilitating the research of green chemistry. They also stated why Singapore should not adopt this technology at this point of time, reasons being that Singapore is affected by the global economic downturn.
The last discussion was on the carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology. The affirmative outlined the positive impacts of this technology which were the reduction of carbon emission from large factories. The negative, however, opposed by pointing out the high cost but low efficiency of this technology. Another point discussed was concerning the long-term feasibility of this technology, which was illustrated by questioning the affirmative on where and how the carbon dioxide is going to be stored, if this technology is implemented on a large scale.
In conclusion, both the affirmative and negative brought forth very substantial points that supported their argument well. Although this is the probably the first roundtable discussion, it was a successful one which coherently highlighted the points of each discussion.
The first topic that was discussed was about biofuel as an alternative to fossil fuels. The affirmative mentioned that by using biofuel, the amount of greenhouse gas emission by factories and vehicles can be significantly reduced. Another point discussed was on how the usage of biofuels can slow down the depletion of fossil fuels. On the other hand, the negative rebutted these statements by bringing forth their opposing views. One of them was that the use of biofuel can affect the availability of food resources, as biofuel is processed from crops such as corn. The next point mentioned was that the need for a large area to grow crops to produce biofuel will induce mass deforestation. Lastly, the negative believed that a more sensible use of these crops could be to solve global poverty issues.
For the discussion on green chemistry, the main ideas that were discussed were on how this technology can be used to convert waste material into useful items. The affirmative touched on the ability of the technology to convert spent plastic bottles into carbon microspheres which are claimed to be harder than natural diamonds. However, the negative opposed by pointing out the high cost of facilitating the research of green chemistry. They also stated why Singapore should not adopt this technology at this point of time, reasons being that Singapore is affected by the global economic downturn.
The last discussion was on the carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology. The affirmative outlined the positive impacts of this technology which were the reduction of carbon emission from large factories. The negative, however, opposed by pointing out the high cost but low efficiency of this technology. Another point discussed was concerning the long-term feasibility of this technology, which was illustrated by questioning the affirmative on where and how the carbon dioxide is going to be stored, if this technology is implemented on a large scale.
In conclusion, both the affirmative and negative brought forth very substantial points that supported their argument well. Although this is the probably the first roundtable discussion, it was a successful one which coherently highlighted the points of each discussion.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Summary on Køien, G.M., 2007, “RFID and Privacy” and Michael, K. & Masters, A., 2005, “Applications of Human Transponder Implants in Mobile Commerce"
In Geir M. Køien’s article, “RFID and Privacy”, he explained that RFID is an acronym for Radio Frequency Identification, which is a tiny chip, sometimes thinner than paper and have two main types, which are Passive RFID tags and Active RFID devices. He went on to explain the differences between these types, with the largest difference being its operation method; The Active RFID Devices have their own internal power supply, while the Passive RFID tags don’t. He then presented a number of examples where RFID chips were already in use today. He explained the two main development areas, which were in cost and functionality. The RFID device has always come with its string of controversies, with the main one being privacy. Here, Køien explains how this can be an issue, especially with Active FRID Devices which are more prone to illicit eavesdropping. He also listed various privacy threats associated to the RFID device, such as location and identity threats and breadcrumb threats. He stresses the risk of mistaken identification with extensive use of these devices. To end, he used a fairly specific example of the implementation of these devices in the Department of Homeland Security in the US, which is a highly controversial matter.
This next article which provides a more in-depth look into RFID devices is by Katina Michael and Amelia Masters, entitled “Applications of Human Transponder Implants in Mobile Commerce”. This article focuses on how RFID devices could be used as transponder implants in humans. They explain the various medical benefits that could be reaped as well as the prevention of fraud by merely injecting this transponder in a specific part of the body. In this article, they focused on three main usability context analysis themes, the three C’s, which were control, convenience and care. First, they discussed the issue of control, which consisted of three main sub-contexts, mainly security, management and social controls. This is when an implantee could control a subject implanted with the RFID transponder in various ways. One interesting example they pointed out was how these devices can be used to monitor the movements of certain parolees, which allowed them to serve their sentence from home, and in turn saving a significant amount of money spent on jail time. In certain cases, the use of these RFID transponders could also increase convenience in everyday life, and “is divided into three main sub-contexts- assistance, financial services and interactivity” (Michael and Masters, 2005). And lastly, they highlighted how these devices contributed to the improvement of the subject’s well-being, namely care, and can be classified into three main sub-contexts, which are medical, biomedical and therapeutic.
In my opinion, these two articles show a good balance of the benefits as well as the drawbacks of implanting a RFID microchip into a human being. The content of the two articles has a high level of relevance to the roundtable discussion, as the two articles noticeably contrast the good and the bad of RFID implantation on humans. Each pro and con of the RFID implantation is also elaborated in detail, which can be used in the roundtable discussion to further convince the audience.
Mobile Commerce – the ability to conduct commerce using a mobile device
RFID transponder – a special kind of radio transmitter and receiver. The abbreviation “RFID” stands for ‘Radio Frequency Identification’
Infer - to derive by reasoning; conclude or judge from premises or evidence.
Mission critical - any factor which is crucial to the successful completion of an entire project
Ubiquitous – present, appearing, or found everywhere
References:
Køien, G.M. (2007, February). RFID and Privacy. Telektronikk, 77-83. Retrieved February 28 from http://www.telenor.com/telektronikk/volumes/index.php?page=ing&id1=72&id2=196&id3=968&select=05-09
Michael, K., Masters, A. (2005). Applications of Human Transponder Implants in Mobile Commerce. Retrieved March 1 from http://ro.uow.edu.au/infopapers/384/
This next article which provides a more in-depth look into RFID devices is by Katina Michael and Amelia Masters, entitled “Applications of Human Transponder Implants in Mobile Commerce”. This article focuses on how RFID devices could be used as transponder implants in humans. They explain the various medical benefits that could be reaped as well as the prevention of fraud by merely injecting this transponder in a specific part of the body. In this article, they focused on three main usability context analysis themes, the three C’s, which were control, convenience and care. First, they discussed the issue of control, which consisted of three main sub-contexts, mainly security, management and social controls. This is when an implantee could control a subject implanted with the RFID transponder in various ways. One interesting example they pointed out was how these devices can be used to monitor the movements of certain parolees, which allowed them to serve their sentence from home, and in turn saving a significant amount of money spent on jail time. In certain cases, the use of these RFID transponders could also increase convenience in everyday life, and “is divided into three main sub-contexts- assistance, financial services and interactivity” (Michael and Masters, 2005). And lastly, they highlighted how these devices contributed to the improvement of the subject’s well-being, namely care, and can be classified into three main sub-contexts, which are medical, biomedical and therapeutic.
In my opinion, these two articles show a good balance of the benefits as well as the drawbacks of implanting a RFID microchip into a human being. The content of the two articles has a high level of relevance to the roundtable discussion, as the two articles noticeably contrast the good and the bad of RFID implantation on humans. Each pro and con of the RFID implantation is also elaborated in detail, which can be used in the roundtable discussion to further convince the audience.
Mobile Commerce – the ability to conduct commerce using a mobile device
RFID transponder – a special kind of radio transmitter and receiver. The abbreviation “RFID” stands for ‘Radio Frequency Identification’
Infer - to derive by reasoning; conclude or judge from premises or evidence.
Mission critical - any factor which is crucial to the successful completion of an entire project
Ubiquitous – present, appearing, or found everywhere
References:
Køien, G.M. (2007, February). RFID and Privacy. Telektronikk, 77-83. Retrieved February 28 from http://www.telenor.com/telektronikk/volumes/index.php?page=ing&id1=72&id2=196&id3=968&select=05-09
Michael, K., Masters, A. (2005). Applications of Human Transponder Implants in Mobile Commerce. Retrieved March 1 from http://ro.uow.edu.au/infopapers/384/
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Is It Me Or Is It Getting Hot In Here?
Global warming has been a persistent threat to planet earth as well as its inhabitants. Since we, humans, are the cause of this problem, it is our responsibility to rectify it. On the 30th of January 2009, a two-hour long lecture was presented by three different lecturers on the issue. Each lecturer brought forth different perspectives of the problem. The following is a brief summary of the ideas of each lecturer.
The main idea for the first segment is regarding the technology of carbon capture and storage. The lecturer first acknowledged that global warming is more of a global problem, whereby each and every country of the world has to unite to solve it, rather than a local problem confined within a country itself. He then mentioned that carbon capture is technologically achievable. Unfortunately, the decision to implement this technology lies in the hands of politicians, who are currently more interested in short term goals, as well as solving larger global problems, such as famine and pandemic diseases.
The second segment of the lecture focuses on how the social factor determines the failure or triumph of new technologies, regardless of the benefits or drawbacks of that technology. One example is how citizens of the United States protested against the operation of the first nuclear power plant reactor, and gives favor to coal power plants instead. A nuclear power plant is more technologically advanced and does not produce as much harmful substances towards the environment as compared to coal power plants. Another example shows that how electric cars, being the pioneers in the automobile industry, were being taken over by gasoline cars even though gasoline cars pose a greater impact on the atmosphere.
The third and final segment of the lecture highlights the cause and effects of greenhouse gasses, as well as preventative measures government agencies and normal citizens can execute to reduce these gasses. There are four natural greenhouse gasses, namely water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide. Excessive greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere are the cause of global warming. The worse predicted effects of global warming are the melting of ice caps and rising sea levels. Some preventative measures pointed out were the incurrence of higher tax on petroleum sales by governments, or the reduction of greenhouse gasses in households by increasing energy efficiency.
A particular statement in the first lecture caught my attention. The professor’s speculation is that politicians will only look into the problem of global warming approximately 25 years down the road, when our environment is already in a critical state. As the old saying goes, “prevention is better than cure”, which makes me wonder why the world leaders are still taking this issue so lightly when various studies have already shown the catastrophic effect of global warming if no effective measures are taken.
The main idea for the first segment is regarding the technology of carbon capture and storage. The lecturer first acknowledged that global warming is more of a global problem, whereby each and every country of the world has to unite to solve it, rather than a local problem confined within a country itself. He then mentioned that carbon capture is technologically achievable. Unfortunately, the decision to implement this technology lies in the hands of politicians, who are currently more interested in short term goals, as well as solving larger global problems, such as famine and pandemic diseases.
The second segment of the lecture focuses on how the social factor determines the failure or triumph of new technologies, regardless of the benefits or drawbacks of that technology. One example is how citizens of the United States protested against the operation of the first nuclear power plant reactor, and gives favor to coal power plants instead. A nuclear power plant is more technologically advanced and does not produce as much harmful substances towards the environment as compared to coal power plants. Another example shows that how electric cars, being the pioneers in the automobile industry, were being taken over by gasoline cars even though gasoline cars pose a greater impact on the atmosphere.
The third and final segment of the lecture highlights the cause and effects of greenhouse gasses, as well as preventative measures government agencies and normal citizens can execute to reduce these gasses. There are four natural greenhouse gasses, namely water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide. Excessive greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere are the cause of global warming. The worse predicted effects of global warming are the melting of ice caps and rising sea levels. Some preventative measures pointed out were the incurrence of higher tax on petroleum sales by governments, or the reduction of greenhouse gasses in households by increasing energy efficiency.
A particular statement in the first lecture caught my attention. The professor’s speculation is that politicians will only look into the problem of global warming approximately 25 years down the road, when our environment is already in a critical state. As the old saying goes, “prevention is better than cure”, which makes me wonder why the world leaders are still taking this issue so lightly when various studies have already shown the catastrophic effect of global warming if no effective measures are taken.
An Inconvenient Truth
Are you ready to change?
The word about global warming has been around for decades, but looking at the newspapers everyday, there is only a minimal amount of awareness being spread about. Global warming, in short, is a phenomenon where the compositions of the earth’s atmosphere are changed and thickened due to green house gasses. As a result, the heat from the sun, carried by light rays, which usually bounce off the earth’s surface and exits into outer space are now trapped in the earth’s atmosphere.
One of the many possible reasons that is being spotted by Al Gore, and as presented by him in his speech titled “An Inconvenient Truth” , is that world leaders, or politicians, are just not interested in handling this matter. In his speech, he distinguished the traditional as well as the current way of explaining the threat about global warming. While the traditional method of explaining global warming tends to be more scientific and informative, the current method, expressed in a short cartoon film, shows the ignorance of politicians towards this ever-growing problem..
A global initiative by the United Nations, called the Kyoto Protocol, is “an international agreement for the control of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions binding industrialized countries to specific reduction targets” (Embassy of Denmark, 2008). I am proud to say that Malaysia has been part of this protocol since September 2002.
Being part of the Kyoto Protocol, the Malaysian government has opened up new revenues for projects in the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) in the energy sector. The challenge for the CDM energy developers is to produce energy, or electricity with reduced amount of carbon emission within a given limit.
The Malaysian government could introduce heavier penalties to mitigate the emissions of greenhouse gasses within the country. These encompass fines and imprisonment for actions such as deforestation as well as forest burning.
Last but not least, following Al Gore’s example, speeches by experts in global warming can be carried out to create a greater awareness among people. The effects might not be as big as government movements, but nevertheless it still poses an impact to those who care to listen.
A quote from Al Gore’s speech reads “the era of procrastination, of half measures, of soothing and baffling expedients, of delays is coming to a close. In its place we are entering a period of consequences” (Sir Winston Churchill, Nov 12, 1936). Global organizations such as the United Nations are already taking initiative to curb the greenhouse gas emissions. We, as civilians, can reduce our carbon emission too.
The word about global warming has been around for decades, but looking at the newspapers everyday, there is only a minimal amount of awareness being spread about. Global warming, in short, is a phenomenon where the compositions of the earth’s atmosphere are changed and thickened due to green house gasses. As a result, the heat from the sun, carried by light rays, which usually bounce off the earth’s surface and exits into outer space are now trapped in the earth’s atmosphere.
One of the many possible reasons that is being spotted by Al Gore, and as presented by him in his speech titled “An Inconvenient Truth” , is that world leaders, or politicians, are just not interested in handling this matter. In his speech, he distinguished the traditional as well as the current way of explaining the threat about global warming. While the traditional method of explaining global warming tends to be more scientific and informative, the current method, expressed in a short cartoon film, shows the ignorance of politicians towards this ever-growing problem..
A global initiative by the United Nations, called the Kyoto Protocol, is “an international agreement for the control of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions binding industrialized countries to specific reduction targets” (Embassy of Denmark, 2008). I am proud to say that Malaysia has been part of this protocol since September 2002.
Being part of the Kyoto Protocol, the Malaysian government has opened up new revenues for projects in the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) in the energy sector. The challenge for the CDM energy developers is to produce energy, or electricity with reduced amount of carbon emission within a given limit.
The Malaysian government could introduce heavier penalties to mitigate the emissions of greenhouse gasses within the country. These encompass fines and imprisonment for actions such as deforestation as well as forest burning.
Last but not least, following Al Gore’s example, speeches by experts in global warming can be carried out to create a greater awareness among people. The effects might not be as big as government movements, but nevertheless it still poses an impact to those who care to listen.
A quote from Al Gore’s speech reads “the era of procrastination, of half measures, of soothing and baffling expedients, of delays is coming to a close. In its place we are entering a period of consequences” (Sir Winston Churchill, Nov 12, 1936). Global organizations such as the United Nations are already taking initiative to curb the greenhouse gas emissions. We, as civilians, can reduce our carbon emission too.
So, the question is:
Are you ready to change?
Monday, January 19, 2009
The Expanding World of Engineers
For the past decade or so, engineers have been creating new inventions and building taller structures to keep up with the rapidly advancing technological breakthroughs and discoveries. These are the people who hold the important role of making the world a more comfortable place for mankind to live in.
The definition of an engineer, as stated by www.dictionary.com, is “a person trained and skilled in the design, construction, and use of engines or machines, or in any of various branches of engineering”. This has somewhat become the stereotypical image that pops up in one’s head when the word ‘engineer’ is mentioned, as pointed out by Professor Seeram Ramakrishna. Without a doubt, the definition is not wrong at all. Engineers are the people who construct the various machines and structures that surround us, and the majority of people who were trained in this field are still very much carrying out their duties till this day.
However, since recent times, engineers are being sought after by a diverse range of other disciplines, such as the service and finance sector, just to name a few. One of the reasons engineers are in demand is because engineers have an edge over other graduates, in a sense where engineers are technologically inclined. In an era of ubiquitous computing, where computers and machines are everywhere, being knowledgeable in new technologies or understanding existing ones proves to incur a positive impact in the solutions that engineers provide.
From the article, Professor Seeram states that “an engineer’s training helps to systematically analyze complex information and apply a holistic (systematic) approach in designing solutions”. A huge part that contributes to this ability of an engineer is through the training in tertiary institutes. These days, the course structure for an engineering diploma or degree in these institutes is designed to challenge aspiring engineers in decision-making as well as systematic thinking.
As an example, polytechnic engineering students are given a year-long final year project which requires intensive planning and wise decision-making. Through extensive hands-on practice and exposure, these skills are subconsciously fused into the minds of an engineer.
A more illustrative way to look at it is by looking at a car for example. As an engineer, the first step to building a complete car is to fix the first nut and bolt. By identifying this first step, the engineer is then able to build different parts of the car, such as the engine, the brakes, the doors and the gearbox. The next stage is to assemble all these parts together, where the end product is a complete car. Through practical exercises like these, indirectly, an engineer is programmed to think systematically. By looking at a problem from its source, an engineer gradually and systematically looks into different aspects of the problem until a final solution is being crafted.
As a whole, engineers have always been playing an important role in our community. But now, their importance in the society has increased due to the recognition of an engineer’s ability to develop meaningful solutions thanks to their systematic thinking abilities. A huge part of the training to become an engineer emphasizes on these skills, and now, there is a wide demand for engineers in the work force because of the increased awareness regarding the importance of the skills an engineer can deliver.
For the past decade or so, engineers have been creating new inventions and building taller structures to keep up with the rapidly advancing technological breakthroughs and discoveries. These are the people who hold the important role of making the world a more comfortable place for mankind to live in.
The definition of an engineer, as stated by www.dictionary.com, is “a person trained and skilled in the design, construction, and use of engines or machines, or in any of various branches of engineering”. This has somewhat become the stereotypical image that pops up in one’s head when the word ‘engineer’ is mentioned, as pointed out by Professor Seeram Ramakrishna. Without a doubt, the definition is not wrong at all. Engineers are the people who construct the various machines and structures that surround us, and the majority of people who were trained in this field are still very much carrying out their duties till this day.
However, since recent times, engineers are being sought after by a diverse range of other disciplines, such as the service and finance sector, just to name a few. One of the reasons engineers are in demand is because engineers have an edge over other graduates, in a sense where engineers are technologically inclined. In an era of ubiquitous computing, where computers and machines are everywhere, being knowledgeable in new technologies or understanding existing ones proves to incur a positive impact in the solutions that engineers provide.
From the article, Professor Seeram states that “an engineer’s training helps to systematically analyze complex information and apply a holistic (systematic) approach in designing solutions”. A huge part that contributes to this ability of an engineer is through the training in tertiary institutes. These days, the course structure for an engineering diploma or degree in these institutes is designed to challenge aspiring engineers in decision-making as well as systematic thinking.
As an example, polytechnic engineering students are given a year-long final year project which requires intensive planning and wise decision-making. Through extensive hands-on practice and exposure, these skills are subconsciously fused into the minds of an engineer.
A more illustrative way to look at it is by looking at a car for example. As an engineer, the first step to building a complete car is to fix the first nut and bolt. By identifying this first step, the engineer is then able to build different parts of the car, such as the engine, the brakes, the doors and the gearbox. The next stage is to assemble all these parts together, where the end product is a complete car. Through practical exercises like these, indirectly, an engineer is programmed to think systematically. By looking at a problem from its source, an engineer gradually and systematically looks into different aspects of the problem until a final solution is being crafted.
As a whole, engineers have always been playing an important role in our community. But now, their importance in the society has increased due to the recognition of an engineer’s ability to develop meaningful solutions thanks to their systematic thinking abilities. A huge part of the training to become an engineer emphasizes on these skills, and now, there is a wide demand for engineers in the work force because of the increased awareness regarding the importance of the skills an engineer can deliver.
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