I hope the title of this entry isn’t too misleading, but this will be more of an expository of my current thoughts on engineering (and, thereby, life itself) in the context of my current location: Germany.
So it’s week six of my term abroad in Germany. I’m still going strong as a soulless robot and not missing home (for those keeping track, I’ve now been away for a total of 8 months). To give some historical background, I was enrolled at Drexel with a completely different major. Over the months leading to the start of freshman year, mysterious external forces gave me change of heart and led me to pursue the field of engineering. Now after nearly three years and countless nights of inner turmoil, regret, and indecision, I finally feel satisfied with this choice, and not only satisfied, but extremely excited for what my education will allow me to accomplish. It has taken quite a while, but my personal and educational goals have finally converged.
Now when sitting in a fluid dynamics lecture, I’m moved by the forces acting on a turbulent flow, and when hearing the digital voice of Professor Wrenn talking about heat transfer, I can feel myself absorbing the knowledge which radiates through the room (more on class structure to be discussed in a blog entry later this week).
To me, engineering is more than a means to an end (that end being different for different people, but frequently involving money and job security). To me, it’s an adventure into the microcosmic world of science– action and interaction between forces which, despite occurring on such a small scale, are what keep our society running. While it’s impressive to watch the development of innovative technologies for popular devices such as cars and cell phones, there’s a much more vital aspect to the field. That is, preventing those very forces that keep our society running from harming it. With this goal in mind, it is important to remember that the borders between nations of the earth are artificial, and that the environmental effects in one place affect the entire world. This is why globalization is also a large focus in my academia, and which has evidently led me to study here in Germany. Here I am able to obtain a wider perspective on the issues facing our society, and therefore, decide better how to act in response to them. And that’s exactly where I intend to focus and harness my engineering knowledge.
On a brighter note, there are currently pianos placed around campus. You can read about that here: http://marina-projekt.blogspot.de/. Also be sure to stay visually updated with my adventures here: https://vimeo.com/channels/718092
Happy Mother’s Day Everyone!
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