Comments by "Jake Johnson" (@ElectronFieldPulse) on "Why Can't we Remake the Rocketdyne F1 Engine?" video.
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Kenneth Barbee - Those were my exact thoughts. I have a B.S. in biochemistry, and I had to use my calculator for a multitude of different equations and mathematical approaches, but using the calculator was the smallest part of the problems I worked on. I know engineering is different than biochem, but a lot of the core scientific principles are the same. The hard part is figuring out what the data can tell you and which equations should be utilized in order to get the answer you need.
Honestly, some older people just do not understand the technology that exists today. They see an expensive calculator and assume it does all the work. Since they don't even understand the subject matter, let alone the limitations of calculator assistance, their perspective is entirely disconnected from reality. Rather, they allow their emotional reactions to dictate their thinking, assuming young students are lazy and incompetent and therefore they must be having the calculator do all the work. I'm not trying to be rude, but it is amusing seeing people act so sure about something they have no way of understanding and evaluating. At least they don't lack confidence.
And as to the comment that university graduates are useless and lazy compared to those who work in the trades, I have to disagree. As with any aggregate system, there are outliers to the norm, but from my own anecdotal experience, the trend of capability and productivity tends to favor the college graduates.
I have experience with both groups. I grew up in a farming community and worked for a few years on a farm. I also helped my dad, who was an electrician, complete jobs which often requires plumbing skills as well. I met other trade workers and have a decent idea of how they act in a general sense. I also went off to college and attained a B.S. in biochemistry.
Trade workers are very good for what they do, and it can require hard, physical labor. So regarding the physical requirements, it is true most university graduates won't be taxed nearly as hard as trade workers. But then again, most trade work can't compare to the demands of farming work. Having done all three, I would much rather work a trade or office job rather than have to go back out and work on a farm. My point is that physical exertion isn't much of a factor in determining laziness and capability, there will always be another job which makes you look lazy in comparison.
The other thing is that while trade workers are good at what they do, it is very limited in scope. I learned more in one semester at college than what I accumulated while working for years with my dad. The books my dad had to read to certify as a Master Electrician were miniscule compared to all the books I had to read in college. So while trade workers are good and necessary, they generally don't have the intellectual flexibility and capacity to function efficiently in our increasingly data driven economy. So no, University Graduates of today are not some uniform group of incapable pussies. There is a small contingent of ultra liberal PC crusaders who can't walk 5 feet without being offended, but they were the people 95% of the student body avoided at all costs.
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