Why Are Terrorists Often Engineers?

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by porsche4life

Nonsense! I'm studying to be a pharmacist and we know how to blow some schit up too!

Yeah, but does a pharmacist know how to run a lathe to make the casing to put the coke and mentos in? I think not.

[Tobra]

That is a machinist Patrick.

[MotoSook]

Better to be practical and useful in life .

Quote de RWebb

an interesting set of response - I just figured it was because they were still angry from college at having to take the water-down dumb-azz physics for engineers courses, instead of being allowed to take the real physics courses.

Physic snob!

[sammyg2]

Originally Posted by gmeteer

Wait a minute. The article frames this as involving Islamic engineers (ie framing Islamic culture...) Drawing conclusions that engineers in general have a tendency to terror is a big jump and in fact stupid. I worked with engineers for many(40) years and cannot recall one that was a terrorist or had any such ideals. Straight arrows and serious people. I was on the "grey" side, and they mostly were black and white thinkers. Sure we had fun with them, but I'm sure they had fun with us too. But no terrorists.

LOL, yes we all know that.
That's why almost all the posts in this thread have been tongue in cheek, friendly pokes and not at all serious.
The original premise was so utterly silly that the only thing to do was have fun with it.
Anyone who would think that there might actually be a link would be ridiculed severely.

We all realize that in order to build a good bomb you have to have a certain intelligence and skill and engineers usually possess those types of understanding and skills and intelligence.
You need something developed and designed? that's what engineers do, so you'd ask an engineer.
You certainly wouldn't ask someone who has never actually designed or built anything in his or her entire life, would you?

[RWebb]

Originally Posted by sammyg2

...
to build a good bomb you have to have a certain intelligence and skill and engineers usually possess those types of understanding and skills and intelligence.
...

exactly - now back to the tongue in cheek, non-serious, friendly pokes

[plain fan]

Which is why I went with the MBA after the engineering degree!

And yes, the non engineering physics really is boring...calculus makes it much more interesting.

[sammyg2]

How can you tell if an engineer is an extrovert? He looks at your shoes when he talks to you instead of his

[sammyg2]

Originally Posted by plain fan

Which is why I went with the MBA after the engineering degree!

And yes, the non engineering physics really is boring...calculus makes it much more interesting.

I would do the same iffn i were still young.
But ..... I'm older and the shine of moving higher no longer shines. I'm as high up as i wanna be now.

I figured out a secret, please don't tell anyone:
after a certain point (usually head of a large department) advancement isn't worth it anymore. Twice the headaches and politics with 15% more pay. AT EACH BUMP!
As soon as you well into the six figure realm THEY OWN YOU!

There was a time I wanted to run an entire refinery, and an MBA would have helped. But now if it were ever offered to me (and it won't) I'd run away.

I got my engineering degree kinda late in life and my business degree a few years later. but I hadta work and make a living for a while until I could afford to go back to skool.
Gots plenty o'hands on experience tho, I think that helped.

[RWebb]

Ok, my big game (UO stomped a HS team) is over, so I also have an "advancement" story:

you start out using binoculars, a datalogger, and writing your own programs - life is good
next, you use spreadsheets
then statistical packages (some of which can or have to be programmed)
then, a word processor - life starts to go downhill a little bit, but you are still writing up your own research on the word processor (still a grad. student)
then, it's mostly just using a word processor, and you start having to write grant applications, lectures, and your own research
then, lectures, grant applications and reports
then editing lectures, grant applications and reports - mostly not even for you, just to support your grad. students - life has gone downhill
finally, you aren't doing any research anymore, just "directing" others - life is downhill

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by Tobra

That is a machinist Patrick.

Do you have any sense of humor??

[Tobra]

I do.

That was not humorous

[porsche4life]

Originally Posted by wdfifteen

Yeah, but does a pharmacist know how to run a lathe to make the casing to put the coke and mentos in? I think not.

Why would I be messing around with coke and mentos? That doesn't make much of a boom...

[p911dad]

Sammy, you are totally right, I am way too serious some times.

[VaSteve]

This is sort of a bizarre thread the way it turned out. I find the premise interesting however. I don't work with or have access to a lot of engineers except here on the intertubes and a few guys I know through the PCA. The ones of this board seem to be very much atheist/agnostics or don't talk about religion much. I think it goes with their scientific approach/background. As such, I guess they teach engineering differently in places where terrorists come from? Well, that and the no girls thing probably doesn't help.

[RWebb]

you'd think they'd just engineer themselves 72 virgins...

[Jim Richards]

you'd think they'd just engineer themselves 72 virgins...

the problem for them is that they'd have to rely on Sales and Marketing to come up with the specs. Now how many of those guys even know what a virgin is?

[GH85Carrera]

Originally Posted by Jim Richards

the problem for them is that they'd have to rely on Sales and Marketing to come up with the specs. Now how many of those guys even know what a virgin is?

Now that is funny!

[sammyg2]

Originally Posted by VaSteve

I don't work with or have access to a lot of engineers except here on the intertubes and a few guys I know through the PCA. The ones of this board seem to be very much atheist/agnostics or don't talk about religion much.

I can think of at least one glaring exception