[afraidfortherepublic]

I did notice the A. And I did read 'psychology'. But my eye focused on the word ENGINEER and I saw red. I'm the daughter in law, wife, mother, and grandmother of a slew of engineers and I shudder at the phonies who squeak through their classes and put the public at risk. My husband has had to work with (and manage) some of those over the years.

Mea culpa for firing back so fast and forgetting about the psychology part.

And how do you know that I'm not in training to be an astronaut?

[cyclotic]

No problem. I agree with you about inept engineers. I’m sort of a practical engineer, seat of the pants variety.

I once worked with one who couldn’t properly use a tape measure. After I marked the holes she needed to drill, she started complaining that the drill bit wouldn’t bite through aluminum. I grabbed the drill and flipped the switch from reverse to forward and said to try it now.

I truly believe that way too many engineers have absolutely zero hands on experience. In my kid’s case, he spent three seasons on a high school robotics team, all on the mechanical side actually building the robots and fabricating the components. He also spent two summers working in home remodeling for a friend of mine. This all increases problem solving and hands on skills.

As to the astronaut part, I thought it a safe bet that since we have a small astronaut force, you probably weren’t. :)