The social, political, and religious factors as they exist now in Haiti will have an impact on military planning for Haitian contingencies, as will the military establishment described below.
A BROKEN COUNTRY
Haiti is a country in which nearly everything needs help. The unsettled political situation and sinking economic vitality, exacerbated by the U. S. embargo since autumn 1991, has left Haiti in disarray. In Port-au-Prince and other built-up areas, electricity is produced but 10 hours a day, and water (nonpotable) is available about one hour a day. Garbage is collected intermittently, and transportation is difficult.
Public transportation is unreliable, and although seemingly chaotic to people experienced with modern mass-transit, the brightly colored jitneys or tap-taps (buses) work well enough to service Haiti's limited infrastructure. Roads throughout the nation are in disrepair to the extent that vehicles cannot negotiate the potholes without suffering damage to tires and suspension, and the embargo has ensured that repair parts are out of reach. While there are no apparent cases of starvation, there is malnutrition, and deaths among the very young can be traced to sanitation, diet, and a lack of available medical care and pharmaceutical products.
In a larger sense it has been observed that "everything has fallen apart." "What we really need," said one resident in Port-au-Prince, " is help putting Haitians back to work building the national infrastructure: hospitals, roads, bridges, wells, electricity, schools, and port facilities, along with the institutional know-how to make things work."
POVERTY BRINGS MISERY
Prior to the September 1991 coup, Haiti had an unemployment rate of 60 percent. It has been estimated that 90 percent of the population lives on less than $100 a year. The wealth is concentrated in only 4.5 percent of the population. As economic conditions have continued to deteriorate in this small country, many of the poor peasants have cut down trees to build huts or to make charcoal to sell. But straddling the hurricane belt, Haiti is subject to severe storms and the resultant deforestation has caused extensive erosion. This has hurt the agriculture and fishing industries. Following heavy rains, the waters around the island become muddied, killing the fish.
Socially, 95 percent of the population is black, while the remaining 5 percent are mainly mulattos or white. This 5 percent controls approximately 95 percent of the wealth of the country. With most living in abject poverty, Haitian life expectancy is just over 50 years. Many people who have not been able to earn a living in the countryside have fled to the capital city of Port-au-Prince, crowding into and expanding the slum areas, thus increasing their vulnerability to a myriad of diseases.
POLITICS AND RELIGION
Elections have not been held routinely, and political parties are not well-organized. The parties provide a focal point for galvanizing support around a charismatic personage. Real power has often centered on the country's leader and a small elite group who have used a system of counterbalances to prevent a coup. A continuing source of political influence in Haiti has been religion. With a long history of dictatorship and poverty, the masses have depended on religion for help. Although approximately 95 percent of the population is Roman Catholic, a vast majority of Haitians also practice Voodoo as an extension of their African heritage and culture. Political leaders have often taken advantage of the Roman Catholic pulpit, or the black magic of voodoo, to help influence the masses.
Religion, with its juxtaposition of traditional Catholicism and voodoo, has played a key role in the maintenance of power in Haiti. The Roman Catholic Church, enjoying a large percentage of popular participation, has often encouraged peace and acceptance. It is argued that the church has supported the elite in some cases, preaching politics from the pulpit.
Through the Duvalier era, the Catholic Church accommodated the dictatorship. After Francois Duvalier attempted to work with the Church, he finally expelled the Jesuit Order and recruited loyal Tonton Makout priests. "The ascendance of makout priests to positions of authority means that injustices were committed against those who were not aligned with Duvalier politically." Leadership posts went to Duvalier supporters. Also within the country, there has been a strong influence of "liberation" theology which has encouraged radical change in the political system of the country.
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Infinite Injustice Done to Women By TALIBAN
Before the Taliban took power, anarchy and corruption reigned supreme in Afghanistan. The great opium growers and their Mafia ruled uncontested, with the complicity of the then American-backed President, Rabbani. Brothels were everywhere, alcoholism was an epidemic and rapes, murders, kidnappings and all sorts of crime were the general rule. The Taliban, with the help of the Pakistani government took power with the aim to clean up Afghan society. And notwithstanding their extreme and ruthless methods, they succeeded. The law of the jungle was substituted by the law of the Sharia. Brothels were outlawed and prostitutes and male sex offenders flogged. All women were forced to wear the Burka, according to a Taliban spokesperson, "to defend public morality and the dignity of women themselves against men who would otherwise look upon them as objects of desire and not persons and would be tempted to use them". "Obscene" pictures of naked women and film stars were also forbidden, as was the viewing of TV and the listening to music which they considered the sound of the devil.
Even money transactions were strictly controlled with barter being the main method of commerce. This was done to avoid people falling victims to adulatory; becoming more fond of money than of Allah. Of course, the extreme measures implemented by the Taliban to bring law and order to Afghanistan might raise eyebrows and most people in our western style society might be scandalized and consider such a system as barbarism.
But shouldn't we, as true Christians be more scandalized by drug trafficking, money extortion, thefts, kidnappings, prostitution, pornography, adultery, indecency, gambling and all the forbidden fruits of the so called freedom brought about by our U.S.A. style free society? Or have our values so radically changed as a result of the incessant pounding of our "free!" western media that now half naked girls roaming our streets are normality and a woman in burka is a scandal? Or worst still; Not listening to music is a scandal and the murdering of thousands of innocent people to impose our western style society on others is not? But of course this is again the result of our exemplary free and democratic western media which considers women in burka and the lack of music as of news value while the massacre of innocent civilians as not.
The English paper Daily Star of Wednesday, November the 14th. 2001 is a typical example of what I mean. On the front page the headlines read; "Kelly's Got It All" and accompanying this heading, the picture of Hollywood film star Kelly Brook in a transparent black dress, displaying her naked bottom and her voluminous silicone engineered "boobs". The article continues by reporting the most important news of all, how this actress has become the new sex symbol and the number one object of desire of males in the U.S.A. Then you turn the pages, and you find the usual chorus of how less fortunate Afghan women were under the Taliban and how happy and jubilant they now are under their liberators and our friends, the so called 'Northern Alliance".
No news of the atrocities being perpetrated by these "freedom fighters". How women were being stripped of their burkas, beaten, raped tortured and having their "boobs" cut off and then brutally murdered. But then, in a short article by Jerry Lawton concealed in page 6, the horrendous news of what these liberators were really doing. I quote: "The worst atrocity was the bloody execution of 100 children as they hid in fear.......in their school". Under the sub heading "Skinned", the article continues; "The mobs shattered youngsters' limbs by beating them with rifles until their parents handed over food, equipment and arms. The children's mothers were shot dead before their eyes. Fathers were beheaded or skinned alive......Worried Human Rights campaigners said at least 500 had died in the savagery".
But this story does not deserve to become a headline because since no CNN, no CBS no BBC no Reutors or Associated Press reported it, therefore it means it is not of news value. Only the Qatar News Agency Al-Jaseera reported it in headlines, but it was immediately silenced by one of the many American "collateral damage" bombs which "by mistake!" destroyed their transmitter in Kabul. The same "collateral damage" bombs whichhave hit "by mistake" schools, hospitals and homes, murdering thousands of innocent civilians.
If we are presenting this type of model of the Christian culture to Islamic nations, how can we expect to convince them that our system is better than that of the Taliban and that this aggression against Afghanistan is justified; let alone convert them to Christianity? Who are we to judge and condemn other cultures in the first place? Wasn't it that same Jesus Christ who once said, "Don't look at the speck of dust in the eyes of others; see the log which is in yours", and again "Whoever is free from sin cast the first stone".
And if we are scandalized by the "medieval mentality" of the Taliban with regard to money, see what Jesus has to say in the Gospel; "It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the gates of heaven". Well Mr. Young, maybe that would clarify a bit who qualifies most for the position of devil in this new holocaust.
As a last advice I recommend that you turn to page three of the same Daily Star, because maybe, one day, that same page might be occupied by the picture of an Afghani woman who once wore the Burka. But then we would not be scandalized. Rather we would be entertained and hate the Taliban even more for concealing for four long years such beauty from our hungry and lustful eyes and we would be surprised how much progress Afghanistan would have made since the fall of that tyrannicalregime.
And maybe one day that same woman might hit the world headlines and newspaper front pages with the heading " Miss Afghanistan is the new Miss World" and everybody would be happy and with the conscience in peace because now Afghanistan has become a member of the international community of "democratic" states in a globalized world, where Darwin's law of "the survival of the fittest" has been abolished in favor of the "survival of the richest and the most corrupt".
And while Afghanistan reverts back to the massacres, rapes and corruption of "our friends," the 'Freedom Fighters", we start to grab the full meaning of one of the thousands of leaflets dropped by American planes on the Taliban troops, which reads; "Resistance is futile. You will be assimilated!".
Even money transactions were strictly controlled with barter being the main method of commerce. This was done to avoid people falling victims to adulatory; becoming more fond of money than of Allah. Of course, the extreme measures implemented by the Taliban to bring law and order to Afghanistan might raise eyebrows and most people in our western style society might be scandalized and consider such a system as barbarism.
But shouldn't we, as true Christians be more scandalized by drug trafficking, money extortion, thefts, kidnappings, prostitution, pornography, adultery, indecency, gambling and all the forbidden fruits of the so called freedom brought about by our U.S.A. style free society? Or have our values so radically changed as a result of the incessant pounding of our "free!" western media that now half naked girls roaming our streets are normality and a woman in burka is a scandal? Or worst still; Not listening to music is a scandal and the murdering of thousands of innocent people to impose our western style society on others is not? But of course this is again the result of our exemplary free and democratic western media which considers women in burka and the lack of music as of news value while the massacre of innocent civilians as not.
The English paper Daily Star of Wednesday, November the 14th. 2001 is a typical example of what I mean. On the front page the headlines read; "Kelly's Got It All" and accompanying this heading, the picture of Hollywood film star Kelly Brook in a transparent black dress, displaying her naked bottom and her voluminous silicone engineered "boobs". The article continues by reporting the most important news of all, how this actress has become the new sex symbol and the number one object of desire of males in the U.S.A. Then you turn the pages, and you find the usual chorus of how less fortunate Afghan women were under the Taliban and how happy and jubilant they now are under their liberators and our friends, the so called 'Northern Alliance".
No news of the atrocities being perpetrated by these "freedom fighters". How women were being stripped of their burkas, beaten, raped tortured and having their "boobs" cut off and then brutally murdered. But then, in a short article by Jerry Lawton concealed in page 6, the horrendous news of what these liberators were really doing. I quote: "The worst atrocity was the bloody execution of 100 children as they hid in fear.......in their school". Under the sub heading "Skinned", the article continues; "The mobs shattered youngsters' limbs by beating them with rifles until their parents handed over food, equipment and arms. The children's mothers were shot dead before their eyes. Fathers were beheaded or skinned alive......Worried Human Rights campaigners said at least 500 had died in the savagery".
But this story does not deserve to become a headline because since no CNN, no CBS no BBC no Reutors or Associated Press reported it, therefore it means it is not of news value. Only the Qatar News Agency Al-Jaseera reported it in headlines, but it was immediately silenced by one of the many American "collateral damage" bombs which "by mistake!" destroyed their transmitter in Kabul. The same "collateral damage" bombs whichhave hit "by mistake" schools, hospitals and homes, murdering thousands of innocent civilians.
If we are presenting this type of model of the Christian culture to Islamic nations, how can we expect to convince them that our system is better than that of the Taliban and that this aggression against Afghanistan is justified; let alone convert them to Christianity? Who are we to judge and condemn other cultures in the first place? Wasn't it that same Jesus Christ who once said, "Don't look at the speck of dust in the eyes of others; see the log which is in yours", and again "Whoever is free from sin cast the first stone".
And if we are scandalized by the "medieval mentality" of the Taliban with regard to money, see what Jesus has to say in the Gospel; "It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the gates of heaven". Well Mr. Young, maybe that would clarify a bit who qualifies most for the position of devil in this new holocaust.
As a last advice I recommend that you turn to page three of the same Daily Star, because maybe, one day, that same page might be occupied by the picture of an Afghani woman who once wore the Burka. But then we would not be scandalized. Rather we would be entertained and hate the Taliban even more for concealing for four long years such beauty from our hungry and lustful eyes and we would be surprised how much progress Afghanistan would have made since the fall of that tyrannicalregime.
And maybe one day that same woman might hit the world headlines and newspaper front pages with the heading " Miss Afghanistan is the new Miss World" and everybody would be happy and with the conscience in peace because now Afghanistan has become a member of the international community of "democratic" states in a globalized world, where Darwin's law of "the survival of the fittest" has been abolished in favor of the "survival of the richest and the most corrupt".
And while Afghanistan reverts back to the massacres, rapes and corruption of "our friends," the 'Freedom Fighters", we start to grab the full meaning of one of the thousands of leaflets dropped by American planes on the Taliban troops, which reads; "Resistance is futile. You will be assimilated!".
10 Things Engineering Students Should Mind to be Successful
1. Have fun with your engineering courses.
Do not believe the rumor that engineering courses are just way too tough. On the contrary, engineering courses can actually be so much fun. Far from being inscrutable and indecipherable, engineering courses -- being primarily based on the principles of physics and mathematics, which are highly coherent, systematic and even elegant -- are among the most ordered, logical and, therefore, understandable courses. What is more, you will actually be able to employ these principles in designing solutions to real-world problems. If many students can ace these courses, there really is no reason as to why you should not be able to achieve the same if only you exert the necessary effort. Just always keep in mind the right approach to solving engineering problems. Always learn the pertinent theory first before solving the problem. After identifying what is required by the problem, enumerate all the known parameters, articulate your assumptions, and then solve the problem while keeping track of your units of measure. Also, always find ways, and there are always ways, to check for the correctness of your final solution.
2. Check your assumptions.
While this is part of the previous item, it really deserves its own category because this is quite crucial, not only in solving classroom problems, but also in solving all engineering design problems. The set of assumptions that you adopt, whether done consciously or unconsciously, ultimately determines the effectiveness and worth of your engineering design solution. This is true in that your assumptions are what set apart the real-world engineering design solutions from the merely ideal or imaginary design solutions. Thus what you assume has far-reaching consequences. Numerous engineering students lose their way when they transition from solving structured and well-defined classroom engineering problems (wherein almost everything is identified, from the unknown to the given parameters to what should be assumed) to solving open-ended engineering design problems -- the kind found in the real world -- primarily because they do not know the first step in making or articulating the assumptions that they should employ to solve the engineering problem at hand. Stating your assumptions is tantamount to creating a certain model for your real-world engineering problem. You would like, of course, to have a model that is as close to reality as possible. This all depends on what assumptions you make. Therefore, be always aware of what assumptions you make and validate them periodically. (Indeed, this is not just an engineering lesson, but a life lesson as well.)
3. Develop your creativity.
A myth or stereotype is perpetuated that engineers are like living automatons that deal exclusively with numbers, hardware and technical stuff, and nothing else. Absolute nonsense. Engineers are artists. No, that was not a misprint. Engineers are artists. Indeed an engineer being an artist is what enables him or her to employ his/her knowledge of numbers and hardware and technical stuff to create effective and practicable engineering solutions. To be precise, engineers are artists who are trained in the discipline of buttressing their creations (engineering design solutions) on the solid supports of the engineering sciences. Thus, it is essential for engineers to be creative. The more creative an engineer is, the more alternative solutions he or she is able to imagine for a given problem. Therefore, develop your creativity. Do not despise the assortment of non-engineering courses that you are required to take in your program since you could find in them myriads of creative ideas, constructs and systems which -- you never know -- might provide you with just the right seed of an idea that you could germinate for solving an engineering problem in the future.
4. Endeavor to learn effective communication.
Another myth or stereotype that is perpetuated is that engineers are introverts who essentially keep to themselves and are not very comfortable with language and, therefore, do not communicate well with others. This is another categorical nonsense. If engineers can be very fluent and creative in expressing abstract ideas in mathematical forms or in computer program codes – languages that are absolutely exacting and meticulous in their syntax and grammar – there is no reason as to why they could not achieve effectiveness in expressing their thoughts and ideas in English (or any other language for that matter) whose syntax and grammar are relatively far more relaxed. One key is to read widely so that you get exposed to various language and communication styles. Just because you are an engineering student does not mean that you should not read on business, politics, literary criticism, history or religion. Pick up The New York Times or any other reputable newspaper or magazine once in a while. Learn how people from different professions and walks of life communicate and express their ideas. By doing so, you will not only learn how to understand different types of people and their ideas better, but you will also learn more how to make anyone understand you and your ideas better. One very important matter: make sure that you communicate effectively with your advisor periodically, at least once each semester. This way, neither you nor your advisor would get any surprise near the end of your program just before your anticipated graduation.
5. Seek to gain research experience.
The typical classroom engineering problems are mostly idealized, with ideal or imagined scenarios and parameter values. This is why solving real-world problems comes as a rude awakening for many undergraduate engineering students. Gaining some experience in research would help ease the transition from the ideal world to the real world. In doing research, you will be exposed to the imperfections of the real world – measurement errors, imperfect mixing, variable temperature, anisotropy, non-rigid or deformable objects, non-Newtonian fluids, turbulent flow, etc. Research experience can help remind you that, when proposing an engineering solution, it is healthy to contend with the imperfections of the real world. It forces you to keep it real. And as a student, it certainly would give you significant edge if you get the valuable opportunity to present a research abstract or paper at some technical conference, or maybe even serve as co-author for a paper for publication in a research journal. Do not wait around. Talk with professors in your Department (and others) and ask for opportunities for research experience in their laboratories. You will find some who would be glad to welcome you.
6. Seek internship opportunities.
Have you ever wondered how engineers spend their working hours and what they actually do on the job? And would you not like to find out whether or not what they are doing is what you would like to be doing after you complete your engineering degree? One of the best ways to get the answers to these questions is to gain internship experience in an engineering company. An internship will provide you with the privileged opportunity to observe, mingle with and work with engineers in their natural work habitat, which could mean in an office, a laboratory or out on the field. More important, an internship could give you a vision of what your future could look like as a practicing engineer, based on which you could decide which aspects you would like to keep and which ones you would like to be modified. An internship experience could also underscore for you the knowledge and skills that you really need to learn as an engineering student to enable you to have adequate preparation. And, of course, an internship helps open doors for future job offers -- and not just in the specific company that provided you your internship.
7. Network professionally.
Joining your professional engineering society has many important benefits, one of which is getting to meet the practicing engineers in your field locally, nationally and internationally. This is also an excellent way to learn about the culture of your engineering profession, which includes learning how professionals in your field interact and conduct business with one another. Talk with them and ask questions. By interacting with them, you will not only learn about what is out there relating to your field, but they will also get to know you and what you could potentially offer them now or in the future.
8. Connect what you are doing now with what you want to be doing in the future.
The most motivated and successful engineering students are those who both have some picture in their minds of where they would like to go professionally in the future and are clear about how the things that they are doing now connect to that future career destination. While connecting the present to the future may not be so easy at first, minding the previous seven things would help you arrive at this point. If you practice connecting what you are doing now with what you want to be doing in the future, it will be easier for you to maintain your motivation on your way to the finish line of your program.
9. Take care of yourself.
Face it, you are not merely an engineering student, but a whole and still developing human being. Hence, take care of yourself, not just mentally, but also emotionally, physically and spiritually. Aim for a balanced life. Treasure family ties and friendships. Do something good for others, and remember those who do not have as much opportunities in life as you do.
10. Plan for continuous career improvement.
Guess what, your education does not stop the moment you complete your engineering degree. It will go on. Therefore, start making plans down the road. You should plan on taking the Engineers in Training (EIT) examination immediately. And a master degree in the future, sooner rather than later, is highly recommended, since this will certainly make your engineering education more focused and well rounded. If you so desire, nothing, of course, should stop you from getting a Ph.D. degree, though this is not necessary for everyone. (And keep in mind that being an engineer does not necessarily mean working for a company. You surely have the option of starting your own business, in which case it would be necessary for you to acquire business knowledge by taking some business courses or getting an MBA or partnering with someone who is knowledgeable in business.) Maintain your membership in your professional engineering society, and make it a point to attend its annual meetings. And when the time comes, getting that professional engineer’s license is certainly recommended. In short, plan to keep on learning and growing as an engineer and as a person.
Do not believe the rumor that engineering courses are just way too tough. On the contrary, engineering courses can actually be so much fun. Far from being inscrutable and indecipherable, engineering courses -- being primarily based on the principles of physics and mathematics, which are highly coherent, systematic and even elegant -- are among the most ordered, logical and, therefore, understandable courses. What is more, you will actually be able to employ these principles in designing solutions to real-world problems. If many students can ace these courses, there really is no reason as to why you should not be able to achieve the same if only you exert the necessary effort. Just always keep in mind the right approach to solving engineering problems. Always learn the pertinent theory first before solving the problem. After identifying what is required by the problem, enumerate all the known parameters, articulate your assumptions, and then solve the problem while keeping track of your units of measure. Also, always find ways, and there are always ways, to check for the correctness of your final solution.
2. Check your assumptions.
While this is part of the previous item, it really deserves its own category because this is quite crucial, not only in solving classroom problems, but also in solving all engineering design problems. The set of assumptions that you adopt, whether done consciously or unconsciously, ultimately determines the effectiveness and worth of your engineering design solution. This is true in that your assumptions are what set apart the real-world engineering design solutions from the merely ideal or imaginary design solutions. Thus what you assume has far-reaching consequences. Numerous engineering students lose their way when they transition from solving structured and well-defined classroom engineering problems (wherein almost everything is identified, from the unknown to the given parameters to what should be assumed) to solving open-ended engineering design problems -- the kind found in the real world -- primarily because they do not know the first step in making or articulating the assumptions that they should employ to solve the engineering problem at hand. Stating your assumptions is tantamount to creating a certain model for your real-world engineering problem. You would like, of course, to have a model that is as close to reality as possible. This all depends on what assumptions you make. Therefore, be always aware of what assumptions you make and validate them periodically. (Indeed, this is not just an engineering lesson, but a life lesson as well.)
3. Develop your creativity.
A myth or stereotype is perpetuated that engineers are like living automatons that deal exclusively with numbers, hardware and technical stuff, and nothing else. Absolute nonsense. Engineers are artists. No, that was not a misprint. Engineers are artists. Indeed an engineer being an artist is what enables him or her to employ his/her knowledge of numbers and hardware and technical stuff to create effective and practicable engineering solutions. To be precise, engineers are artists who are trained in the discipline of buttressing their creations (engineering design solutions) on the solid supports of the engineering sciences. Thus, it is essential for engineers to be creative. The more creative an engineer is, the more alternative solutions he or she is able to imagine for a given problem. Therefore, develop your creativity. Do not despise the assortment of non-engineering courses that you are required to take in your program since you could find in them myriads of creative ideas, constructs and systems which -- you never know -- might provide you with just the right seed of an idea that you could germinate for solving an engineering problem in the future.
4. Endeavor to learn effective communication.
Another myth or stereotype that is perpetuated is that engineers are introverts who essentially keep to themselves and are not very comfortable with language and, therefore, do not communicate well with others. This is another categorical nonsense. If engineers can be very fluent and creative in expressing abstract ideas in mathematical forms or in computer program codes – languages that are absolutely exacting and meticulous in their syntax and grammar – there is no reason as to why they could not achieve effectiveness in expressing their thoughts and ideas in English (or any other language for that matter) whose syntax and grammar are relatively far more relaxed. One key is to read widely so that you get exposed to various language and communication styles. Just because you are an engineering student does not mean that you should not read on business, politics, literary criticism, history or religion. Pick up The New York Times or any other reputable newspaper or magazine once in a while. Learn how people from different professions and walks of life communicate and express their ideas. By doing so, you will not only learn how to understand different types of people and their ideas better, but you will also learn more how to make anyone understand you and your ideas better. One very important matter: make sure that you communicate effectively with your advisor periodically, at least once each semester. This way, neither you nor your advisor would get any surprise near the end of your program just before your anticipated graduation.
5. Seek to gain research experience.
The typical classroom engineering problems are mostly idealized, with ideal or imagined scenarios and parameter values. This is why solving real-world problems comes as a rude awakening for many undergraduate engineering students. Gaining some experience in research would help ease the transition from the ideal world to the real world. In doing research, you will be exposed to the imperfections of the real world – measurement errors, imperfect mixing, variable temperature, anisotropy, non-rigid or deformable objects, non-Newtonian fluids, turbulent flow, etc. Research experience can help remind you that, when proposing an engineering solution, it is healthy to contend with the imperfections of the real world. It forces you to keep it real. And as a student, it certainly would give you significant edge if you get the valuable opportunity to present a research abstract or paper at some technical conference, or maybe even serve as co-author for a paper for publication in a research journal. Do not wait around. Talk with professors in your Department (and others) and ask for opportunities for research experience in their laboratories. You will find some who would be glad to welcome you.
6. Seek internship opportunities.
Have you ever wondered how engineers spend their working hours and what they actually do on the job? And would you not like to find out whether or not what they are doing is what you would like to be doing after you complete your engineering degree? One of the best ways to get the answers to these questions is to gain internship experience in an engineering company. An internship will provide you with the privileged opportunity to observe, mingle with and work with engineers in their natural work habitat, which could mean in an office, a laboratory or out on the field. More important, an internship could give you a vision of what your future could look like as a practicing engineer, based on which you could decide which aspects you would like to keep and which ones you would like to be modified. An internship experience could also underscore for you the knowledge and skills that you really need to learn as an engineering student to enable you to have adequate preparation. And, of course, an internship helps open doors for future job offers -- and not just in the specific company that provided you your internship.
7. Network professionally.
Joining your professional engineering society has many important benefits, one of which is getting to meet the practicing engineers in your field locally, nationally and internationally. This is also an excellent way to learn about the culture of your engineering profession, which includes learning how professionals in your field interact and conduct business with one another. Talk with them and ask questions. By interacting with them, you will not only learn about what is out there relating to your field, but they will also get to know you and what you could potentially offer them now or in the future.
8. Connect what you are doing now with what you want to be doing in the future.
The most motivated and successful engineering students are those who both have some picture in their minds of where they would like to go professionally in the future and are clear about how the things that they are doing now connect to that future career destination. While connecting the present to the future may not be so easy at first, minding the previous seven things would help you arrive at this point. If you practice connecting what you are doing now with what you want to be doing in the future, it will be easier for you to maintain your motivation on your way to the finish line of your program.
9. Take care of yourself.
Face it, you are not merely an engineering student, but a whole and still developing human being. Hence, take care of yourself, not just mentally, but also emotionally, physically and spiritually. Aim for a balanced life. Treasure family ties and friendships. Do something good for others, and remember those who do not have as much opportunities in life as you do.
10. Plan for continuous career improvement.
Guess what, your education does not stop the moment you complete your engineering degree. It will go on. Therefore, start making plans down the road. You should plan on taking the Engineers in Training (EIT) examination immediately. And a master degree in the future, sooner rather than later, is highly recommended, since this will certainly make your engineering education more focused and well rounded. If you so desire, nothing, of course, should stop you from getting a Ph.D. degree, though this is not necessary for everyone. (And keep in mind that being an engineer does not necessarily mean working for a company. You surely have the option of starting your own business, in which case it would be necessary for you to acquire business knowledge by taking some business courses or getting an MBA or partnering with someone who is knowledgeable in business.) Maintain your membership in your professional engineering society, and make it a point to attend its annual meetings. And when the time comes, getting that professional engineer’s license is certainly recommended. In short, plan to keep on learning and growing as an engineer and as a person.
TOP 10 INVENTIONS
1. The Telephone
The telephone is an instrument that converts voice and sound signals into electrical impulses for transmission by wire to a different location, where another telephone receives the electrical impulses and turns them back into recognizable sounds. In 1875, Alexander Graham Bell built the first telephone that transmitted electrically the human voice.
2. The History of Computers
There are many major milestones in the history of computers, starting with 1936, when Konrad Zuse built the first freely programmable computer.
3. Television In 1884, Paul Nipkow sent images over wires using a rotating metal disk technology with 18 lines of resolution. Television then evolved along two paths, mechanical based on Nipkow's rotating disks, and electronic based on the cathode ray tube. American Charles Jenkins and Scotsman John Baird followed the mechanical model while Philo Farnsworth, working independently in San Francisco, and Russian émigré Vladimir Zworkin, working for Westinghouse and later RCA, advanced the electronic model.
4. The AutomobileIn 1769, the very first self-propelled road vehicle was invented by French mechanic, Nicolas Joseph Cugnot. However, it was a steam-powered model. In 1885, Karl Benz designed and built the world's first practical automobile to be powered by an internal-combustion engine. In 1885, Gottlieb Daimler took the internal combustion engine a step further and patented what is generally recognized as the prototype of the modern gas engine and later built the world's first four-wheeled motor vehicle.
5. The Cotton Gin Eli Whitney patented the cotton gin on March 14, 1794. The cotton gin is a machine that separates seeds, hulls and other unwanted materials from cotton after it has been picked.
6. The CameraIn 1814, Joseph Nicéphore Niépce created the first photographic image with a camera obscura, however, the image required eight hours of light exposure and later faded. Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre is considered the inventor of the first practical process of photography in 1837.
7. The Steam EngineThomas Savery was an English military engineer and inventor who in 1698, patented the first crude steam engine. Thomas Newcomen invented the atmospheric steam engine in 1712. James Watt improved Newcomen's design and invented what is considered the first modern steam engine in 1765.
8. The Sewing MachineThe first functional sewing machine was invented by the French tailor, Barthelemy Thimonnier, in 1830. In 1834, Walter Hunt built America's first (somewhat) successful sewing machine. Elias Howe patented the first lockstitch sewing machine in 1846. Isaac Singer invented the up-and-down motion mechanism. In 1857, James Gibbs patented the first chain-stitch single-thread sewing machine. Helen Augusta Blanchard patented the first zig-zag stitch machine in 1873.
9. The Light BulbContrary to popular belief, Thomas Alva Edison didn't "invent" the light bulb, but rather he improved upon a 50-year-old idea. In 1809, Humphry Davy, an English chemist, invented the first electric light. In 1878, Sir Joseph Wilson Swan, an English physicist, was the first person to invent a practical and longer-lasting electic lightbulb (13.5 hours) with a carbon fiber filament. In 1879, Thomas Alva Edison invented a carbon filament that burned for forty hours.
10. Penicillin Penicillin was discovered by Alexander Fleming in 1928. Andrew Moyer patented the first method of industrial production of penicillin in 1948.
The telephone is an instrument that converts voice and sound signals into electrical impulses for transmission by wire to a different location, where another telephone receives the electrical impulses and turns them back into recognizable sounds. In 1875, Alexander Graham Bell built the first telephone that transmitted electrically the human voice.
2. The History of Computers
There are many major milestones in the history of computers, starting with 1936, when Konrad Zuse built the first freely programmable computer.
3. Television In 1884, Paul Nipkow sent images over wires using a rotating metal disk technology with 18 lines of resolution. Television then evolved along two paths, mechanical based on Nipkow's rotating disks, and electronic based on the cathode ray tube. American Charles Jenkins and Scotsman John Baird followed the mechanical model while Philo Farnsworth, working independently in San Francisco, and Russian émigré Vladimir Zworkin, working for Westinghouse and later RCA, advanced the electronic model.
4. The AutomobileIn 1769, the very first self-propelled road vehicle was invented by French mechanic, Nicolas Joseph Cugnot. However, it was a steam-powered model. In 1885, Karl Benz designed and built the world's first practical automobile to be powered by an internal-combustion engine. In 1885, Gottlieb Daimler took the internal combustion engine a step further and patented what is generally recognized as the prototype of the modern gas engine and later built the world's first four-wheeled motor vehicle.
5. The Cotton Gin Eli Whitney patented the cotton gin on March 14, 1794. The cotton gin is a machine that separates seeds, hulls and other unwanted materials from cotton after it has been picked.
6. The CameraIn 1814, Joseph Nicéphore Niépce created the first photographic image with a camera obscura, however, the image required eight hours of light exposure and later faded. Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre is considered the inventor of the first practical process of photography in 1837.
7. The Steam EngineThomas Savery was an English military engineer and inventor who in 1698, patented the first crude steam engine. Thomas Newcomen invented the atmospheric steam engine in 1712. James Watt improved Newcomen's design and invented what is considered the first modern steam engine in 1765.
8. The Sewing MachineThe first functional sewing machine was invented by the French tailor, Barthelemy Thimonnier, in 1830. In 1834, Walter Hunt built America's first (somewhat) successful sewing machine. Elias Howe patented the first lockstitch sewing machine in 1846. Isaac Singer invented the up-and-down motion mechanism. In 1857, James Gibbs patented the first chain-stitch single-thread sewing machine. Helen Augusta Blanchard patented the first zig-zag stitch machine in 1873.
9. The Light BulbContrary to popular belief, Thomas Alva Edison didn't "invent" the light bulb, but rather he improved upon a 50-year-old idea. In 1809, Humphry Davy, an English chemist, invented the first electric light. In 1878, Sir Joseph Wilson Swan, an English physicist, was the first person to invent a practical and longer-lasting electic lightbulb (13.5 hours) with a carbon fiber filament. In 1879, Thomas Alva Edison invented a carbon filament that burned for forty hours.
10. Penicillin Penicillin was discovered by Alexander Fleming in 1928. Andrew Moyer patented the first method of industrial production of penicillin in 1948.
Enzo Ferrari- Heard of him before???
Enzo Ferrari was born on February 18, 1898 near Modena, Italy. When he was 10 his father took him to an automobile race in Bologna. After attending a number of other races, he decided he wanted to become a racing car driver.
While working at a small carmaker involved with converting war surplus, Ferrari took up racing. In 1919 he finished ninth at the Targa Florio. He ended up landing a job with Alfa Romeo and drove a modified production car in the 1920 Targa Florio. Ferrario managed to finish second.
In 1923 while racing at the Circuit of Sivocci at Ravenna he was approached by Count Enrico and Countess Paolina Baracca, the parents of the heroic Italian pilot Francesco Baracca. Francesco was known as the Italian ace of aces. He died on Mount Montello during the war. His parents gave Ferrari their son's squadron badge, which was the famous prancing horse on a yellow shield.
Enzo Ferrari was connected with Alfa Romeo for many years, however, he built only a few sports cars bearing his name and his famous prancing horse badge. In 1929 Enzo formed the Scuderia Ferrari with the aim of organizing racing for members. The Scuderia Ferrari team competed in 22 events and scored 8 victories and several good placings.
In 1940 Enzo Ferrari left Alfa Romeo and started a new company Auto-Avio Costruzioni Ferrari. During World War II the Ferrari workshop moved from Modena to Maranello. The workshop became a victim of the war in 1944 - it was leveled by bombs. A year after the war in 1946 the shop was rebuilt and work began on the first ever Ferrari motorcar, the 125 Sport. This car started a grand tradition of winning for Ferrari. Since it's first race in 1947, Ferrari's have had over 5,000 successes on race tracks around the globe.
In 1969 Enzo Ferrari sold 50% of Ferrari's share capital to the Fiat group. That figure grew to 90% in 1988. Enzo Ferrari died at the age of 90 in Modena on August 14, 1988.
While working at a small carmaker involved with converting war surplus, Ferrari took up racing. In 1919 he finished ninth at the Targa Florio. He ended up landing a job with Alfa Romeo and drove a modified production car in the 1920 Targa Florio. Ferrario managed to finish second.
In 1923 while racing at the Circuit of Sivocci at Ravenna he was approached by Count Enrico and Countess Paolina Baracca, the parents of the heroic Italian pilot Francesco Baracca. Francesco was known as the Italian ace of aces. He died on Mount Montello during the war. His parents gave Ferrari their son's squadron badge, which was the famous prancing horse on a yellow shield.
Enzo Ferrari was connected with Alfa Romeo for many years, however, he built only a few sports cars bearing his name and his famous prancing horse badge. In 1929 Enzo formed the Scuderia Ferrari with the aim of organizing racing for members. The Scuderia Ferrari team competed in 22 events and scored 8 victories and several good placings.
In 1940 Enzo Ferrari left Alfa Romeo and started a new company Auto-Avio Costruzioni Ferrari. During World War II the Ferrari workshop moved from Modena to Maranello. The workshop became a victim of the war in 1944 - it was leveled by bombs. A year after the war in 1946 the shop was rebuilt and work began on the first ever Ferrari motorcar, the 125 Sport. This car started a grand tradition of winning for Ferrari. Since it's first race in 1947, Ferrari's have had over 5,000 successes on race tracks around the globe.
In 1969 Enzo Ferrari sold 50% of Ferrari's share capital to the Fiat group. That figure grew to 90% in 1988. Enzo Ferrari died at the age of 90 in Modena on August 14, 1988.
THE BIRTH OF MICROSOFT
Microsoft was started by BILL GATES. This is wat everyone thinks. But Paul Allen, a hacker like Gates should be given equal credits for the formation of MICROSOFT. The story behind the formation of this company goes like this:
In December of 1974, Allen was on his way to visit Gates when along the way he stopped to browse the current magazines. What he saw changed his and Bill Gates's lives forever. On the cover of Popular Electronics was a picture of the Altair 8800 and the headline "World's First Microcomputer Kit to Rival Commercial Models." He bought the issue and rushed over to Gates's dorm room. They both recognized this as their big opportunity. The two knew that the home computer market was about to explode and that someone would need to make software for the new machines. Within a few days, Gates had called MITS (Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems), the makers of the Altair. He told the company that he and Allen had developed a BASIC that could be used on the Altair [Teamgates.com, 9/29/96]. This was a lie. They had not even written a line of code. They had neither an Altair nor the chip that ran the computer. The MITS company did not know this and was very interested in seeing their BASIC. So, Gates and Allen began working feverishly on the BASIC they had promised. The code for the program was left mostly up to Bill Gates while Paul Allen began working on a way to simulate the Altair with the schools PDP-10. Eight weeks later, the two felt their program was ready. Allen was to fly to MITS and show off their creation. The day after Allen arrived at MITS, it was time to test their BASIC. Entering the program into the company's Altair was the first time Allen had ever touched one. If the Altair simulation he designed or any of Gates's code was faulty, the demonstration would most likely have ended in failure. This was not the case, and the program worked perfectly the first time [Wallace, 1992, p. 80]. MITS arranged a deal with Gates and Allen to buy the rights to their BASIC.[Teamgates.com, 9/29/96] Gates was convinced that the software market had been born. Within a year, Bill Gates had dropped out of Harvard and Microsoft was formed.
In December of 1974, Allen was on his way to visit Gates when along the way he stopped to browse the current magazines. What he saw changed his and Bill Gates's lives forever. On the cover of Popular Electronics was a picture of the Altair 8800 and the headline "World's First Microcomputer Kit to Rival Commercial Models." He bought the issue and rushed over to Gates's dorm room. They both recognized this as their big opportunity. The two knew that the home computer market was about to explode and that someone would need to make software for the new machines. Within a few days, Gates had called MITS (Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems), the makers of the Altair. He told the company that he and Allen had developed a BASIC that could be used on the Altair [Teamgates.com, 9/29/96]. This was a lie. They had not even written a line of code. They had neither an Altair nor the chip that ran the computer. The MITS company did not know this and was very interested in seeing their BASIC. So, Gates and Allen began working feverishly on the BASIC they had promised. The code for the program was left mostly up to Bill Gates while Paul Allen began working on a way to simulate the Altair with the schools PDP-10. Eight weeks later, the two felt their program was ready. Allen was to fly to MITS and show off their creation. The day after Allen arrived at MITS, it was time to test their BASIC. Entering the program into the company's Altair was the first time Allen had ever touched one. If the Altair simulation he designed or any of Gates's code was faulty, the demonstration would most likely have ended in failure. This was not the case, and the program worked perfectly the first time [Wallace, 1992, p. 80]. MITS arranged a deal with Gates and Allen to buy the rights to their BASIC.[Teamgates.com, 9/29/96] Gates was convinced that the software market had been born. Within a year, Bill Gates had dropped out of Harvard and Microsoft was formed.
Review: 'Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull'
It's been 19 years since the last Indiana Jones movie, which helps explain the hysteria leading up to the release this week of Steven Spielberg's "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull." For the past month you couldn't open up a paper, surf the Internet, or turn on the TV without hearing about this film – this event.
For those of us who do not regard the series as the pinnacle of Hollywood action-adventure escapism, all this hoo-ha may seem like a bit much. But then again, the three previous installments – "Raiders of the Lost Ark," "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom," and "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" – made $1.2 billion worldwide. The ka-ching factor is so high that it's no wonder pulses are racing.
The Indiana Jones movies began as salutes to the cheapo Saturday-afternoon serials that Spielberg and series producer George Lucas devoured as kids. But there's nothing cutrate about the budgets for these escapades. "Crystal Skull" weighs in at $185 million. I usually make it a point to review a movie, not its cost. But that's a lot of wampum for what is essentially – well, a Saturday-afternoon serial. These Indy films are not indie films.
Harrison Ford, complete with fedora and rucksack, is back as Indiana. Did you ever doubt it? He may be 65, but he does a manly job of holding down the part. In fact, nothing much has changed with Indy – he's still surly and afraid of snakes.
But a couple of key changes have occurred around him. For one thing, the time frame has now moved up to 1957. Make way for the cold war and the Red scare. Early on, Indy runs up against Col. Irina Spalko (Cate Blanchett), a Stalin fave and three-time winner of the Order of Lenin who, with Indy held at gunpoint, engineers a raid on a top-secret US Army warehouse in Nevada containing mummified remains of … well, let's just say the box is marked "Roswell."
From this it is but a short leap – and there are many leaps in this film, short and long – to the discovery deep in the Peruvian jungles of the Crystal Skull of Akator (don't ask). Colonel Spalko wants to track down the origin of the skull, which she believes will grant her eternal knowledge – i.e., power.
At least Spielberg and Lucas and screenwriter David Koepp haven't brought back the Nazis for a third tour of duty. Not that Russkies are much of an improvement. Neither is it such a great improvement to saddle Indy with an equally surly young sidekick, Mutt Williams, played by Shia LaBeouf, who's a dead ringer for Marlon Brando in "The Wild One." The pairing is all too obviously a ploy to attract a younger demographic, but I don't think the series needs this sop. The previous installments have been hugely successful with kids who only know these movies on DVD. Much more welcome is the return of Karen Allen as Indy's old flame Marion Ravenwood, even though they spend most of their screen time together bickering. Allen still has the most captivating smile in the business and she knows how to be spunky without being cloying (not as easy as it sounds).
How does the new Indiana Jones movie stack up with the other ones? I'd place it somewhere in the middle, but since, as I say, I'm not a die-hard enthusiast, that's faint praise. All of the films seem too overly engineered, too by-the-numbers, too pushily "iconic." Spielberg is such a fantastically adept filmmaker that, even when he's working at half speed, he can work up a pretty good action sequence. But even the best set pieces in "Crystal Skull," like the pursuit of Indy through the Amazonian jungle by the KGB, or a dive over a triple-decker waterfall, have a déjà vu quality.
"Crystal Skull" is a fun ride, but if we have to wait 19 years for the next one, that's OK by me.
For those of us who do not regard the series as the pinnacle of Hollywood action-adventure escapism, all this hoo-ha may seem like a bit much. But then again, the three previous installments – "Raiders of the Lost Ark," "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom," and "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" – made $1.2 billion worldwide. The ka-ching factor is so high that it's no wonder pulses are racing.
The Indiana Jones movies began as salutes to the cheapo Saturday-afternoon serials that Spielberg and series producer George Lucas devoured as kids. But there's nothing cutrate about the budgets for these escapades. "Crystal Skull" weighs in at $185 million. I usually make it a point to review a movie, not its cost. But that's a lot of wampum for what is essentially – well, a Saturday-afternoon serial. These Indy films are not indie films.
Harrison Ford, complete with fedora and rucksack, is back as Indiana. Did you ever doubt it? He may be 65, but he does a manly job of holding down the part. In fact, nothing much has changed with Indy – he's still surly and afraid of snakes.
But a couple of key changes have occurred around him. For one thing, the time frame has now moved up to 1957. Make way for the cold war and the Red scare. Early on, Indy runs up against Col. Irina Spalko (Cate Blanchett), a Stalin fave and three-time winner of the Order of Lenin who, with Indy held at gunpoint, engineers a raid on a top-secret US Army warehouse in Nevada containing mummified remains of … well, let's just say the box is marked "Roswell."
From this it is but a short leap – and there are many leaps in this film, short and long – to the discovery deep in the Peruvian jungles of the Crystal Skull of Akator (don't ask). Colonel Spalko wants to track down the origin of the skull, which she believes will grant her eternal knowledge – i.e., power.
At least Spielberg and Lucas and screenwriter David Koepp haven't brought back the Nazis for a third tour of duty. Not that Russkies are much of an improvement. Neither is it such a great improvement to saddle Indy with an equally surly young sidekick, Mutt Williams, played by Shia LaBeouf, who's a dead ringer for Marlon Brando in "The Wild One." The pairing is all too obviously a ploy to attract a younger demographic, but I don't think the series needs this sop. The previous installments have been hugely successful with kids who only know these movies on DVD. Much more welcome is the return of Karen Allen as Indy's old flame Marion Ravenwood, even though they spend most of their screen time together bickering. Allen still has the most captivating smile in the business and she knows how to be spunky without being cloying (not as easy as it sounds).
How does the new Indiana Jones movie stack up with the other ones? I'd place it somewhere in the middle, but since, as I say, I'm not a die-hard enthusiast, that's faint praise. All of the films seem too overly engineered, too by-the-numbers, too pushily "iconic." Spielberg is such a fantastically adept filmmaker that, even when he's working at half speed, he can work up a pretty good action sequence. But even the best set pieces in "Crystal Skull," like the pursuit of Indy through the Amazonian jungle by the KGB, or a dive over a triple-decker waterfall, have a déjà vu quality.
"Crystal Skull" is a fun ride, but if we have to wait 19 years for the next one, that's OK by me.
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