Why So Many Terrorists Get Their Start as Engineers

Sphere ^ | December 29, 2009 | Russell Berman

[1rudeboy]

(Dec. 29) -- Of all the biographical details that have emerged about the Nigerian man who allegedly tried to blow up a Northwest Airlines jet on Christmas, perhaps the least surprising -- at least to those who study these things -- is what he studied in college.

The terrorist suspect, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, earned a degree in mechanical engineering from University College London in 2008, just over a year before he tried to demonstrate his skills by detonating an explosive device aboard the Detroit-bound plane. Among violent Islamic extremists, that puts him in familiar company. Indeed, the propensity toward engineering studies is an aspect of the terrorist profile that has drawn increased scrutiny of late from scholars, who have been advancing theories about the high correlation between the two.

In a study published this year, European sociologists Diego Gambetta and Steffen Hertog researched more than 400 known violent jihadists since the 1970s, including the 25 men involved with the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Nearly half were known to have received some level of higher education, and of those, 44 percent were engineers -- including eight of the 9/11 plotters and hijackers. Engineering was by far the most popular field; the percentage of terrorists who had pursued it was more than twice as high as the second-place field, Islamic studies.

"The bottom line is that while the probability of a Muslim engineer becoming a violent Islamist is minuscule, it is still between three and four times that for other graduates," Gambetta wrote in an article in the New Scientist that summarized the pair's findings, which were published in August in the European Journal of Sociology.

[Nervous Tick]

>> Is this madness? If not, then what is is?

Your nick kinda spells it out, doesn’t it?

[wastedyears]

Because of the gross simplicity, coupled with frequent failure, of even these “advanced” attacks, I worry little about the notion of terrorists with nukes.

They don't really need that much competence to detonate a nuke successively, as a general detonation of the conventional explosive would still spread the radioactive material everywhere, and maybe even cause a dirty nuke detonation.

[irv]

This says that engineers are more likely to be terrorists because they’re more often conservative, and everyone knows those conservatives are rigid, ideological radicals.

They conflate ANY strict religious observance with conservatism. That’s a bit annoying.

[July4]

Muslim terrorists frequently have an engineering background because they come from countries where engineering is prestigious.

I dispute the theory that engineers are not risk-takers and tend to be conservative out of an excess of caution.

Engineers come in all flavors and political persuasions. What they do have in common is a background of scholastic discipline and the ability to analyze. Since it's obvious that Islam is using some of their engineers to attack us, perhaps it's time to use some of ours to tackle the problems of anticipating and thwarting the work of creeps who would blow airliners out of the sky.

[norton]

With due note to another poster's observation that just shy of 100% of terrorists are middle eastern muslims; you are closest to the truth.

Engineers are trained and probably preconditioned to focus on data that they can lay out on a table and work with - not the peripheral "noise" that other people might bring into consideration.

They also tend to over evaluate their own field of work and over simplify things outside of their realm. (I had a very respected associate once who ran for public office - couldn't fathom why people laughed at his campaign speeches because they were all so rational to him)

Conversely, today's engineering grads have been taught to trust computer programs written by others who are themselves programmers - it is often pointless to ask for confirmation of a finding because no one agrees on how the thing works and no one can do it on paper.

None of those attributes are "bad" but neither do they help in dealing with the less objective world; where it may be easiest to go for the absolutism that terrorists and socialism/fascism require.

[antisocial]

“A morbid childhood fascination with explosives led to my engineering degree. :-)”

Should have tried organic chemistry. heh heh

[353FMG]

Not so — they become politicians.

[sauropod]

Engineers come in all flavors and political persuasions.

Quite true. I've had run-ins with a very liberal engineer where I work.

He and I debated AGW (this was before "Climategate") and I pointed out the fake, phony, fraud that is James Hansen. That sent him off the deep end.

I've always been amazed how someone with engineering training can think like that. He is a good engineer though.

[GreyFriar]

Yes. However it was as construction engineers, building fortifications and buildings, not mechanical engineering.

[FreedomPoster]

When it was first started, I’m pretty sure *all* West Pointers received a military engineering education. It is the genesis for the term “Civil Engineer” - as opposed to a military engineer.

It is sometimes said the amateurs study tactics, while professionals study logistics. On that latter, it certainly helps if you can bridge and ford rivers, build fortifications, know how to take them down, etc. And an engineering education gives you some great tools for all that.

[Gene Eric]

>> I’ve always been amazed how someone with engineering training can think like that. He is a good engineer though.

Indeed.

[erman]

“4 years ago I could not spell engineer; now I are one”

An Aggie, huh?

[Redleg Duke]

Because they didn’t have the charisma to be an undertaker?

[bert]

There are Military Civil Engineers......

[reg45]

or community organizers

[FreedomPoster]

“When it was first started,” . . .

[bert]

I know..... Think Robert E Lee, great military Engineer

[AndyJackson]

engineers by nature are more likely to be drawn to the kind of rigid, hierarchical worldviews that radical Islam provides

Sounds like the infantile Objectivists from MIT who used to descend on my freshman dining hall spreading the gospel according to John Galt.

[LTCJ]

Engineering was the only degree.

[jim_trent]

Maybe it is because they use up the ones with liberal arts degrees in training.