COMMENT
3
Can kite flying save
engineering?
I was very taken by an interview that I received in a magazine by German company
Trumpf. It was an interview with Dr. Siegfried Dais, deputy chairman of the Board of
Management of Robert Bosch GmbH. In the piece Dais was asked how does high tech
manufacturing encourage more people to take up engineering. The continued
reduction of qualified engineers has been a problem for high tech manufacturing for
some time. In fact the decline of interest occurs across all engineering disciplines and
for some areas will possibly see a decline in such activity. Dr. Dais response was
simplistic but very enlightening. He said that if we want to see an increase in
engineering interest then we need to teach children to make kites in kindergarten.
Such an idea can appear trite in its simplicity but further examination shows an
underlying sensibility and provides a clear achievable goal that the current
Comment
engineering community can become involved in. I can remember clearly the
excitement of taking apart an old radio and pulling apart the various wires and valves
and imagining how this apparent magical machine worked. Then I would try to put
the device back together, usually without managing to restore the device to any
semblance of order although there were the odd
Eureka moments that maintained my interest. I am
sure many readers have similar memories although
the devices will vary depending on age. Today’s
young people can pull apart modern devices as
much as they like without being any wiser as to
what is going on or with no idea how to manipulate
or fix the device. So much engineering occurs below
basic visual perception.
Dr. Dais is rightly pointing out the need to educate
children about engineering through play. Kite
making teaches many aspects of fundamental
engineering and design and while the links to
advanced engineering may not be immediately
apparent, it is imperative that the natural curiosity
and wonder of a child is stimulated to see patterns
of possibilities and a desire to understand the Picture courtesy of
workings of their surroundings. There is a need for the engineering community to help Joshua M. Preston
develop new ways of educational entertainment. There are some good programmes
and activities developing but it is an area that is still seen as an aside to daily
activities rather than an imperative to maintain the human desire for continued
advances. If companies ask any engineering institute how important this process will
become to their future needs maybe it would become a part of company earnings as
important as capital expenditure.
It would be interesting to receive feedback from the readers on suggestions of
activities, games and devices they feel could help children develop their innate
curiosity and become more interested in the challenges of engineering. Maybe it is a
device or programme you know of or have thought of.
Meanwhile I am off to stimulate my mind and body by flying a kite.
David Ridsdale
Editor-in-Chief
August 2008 www.euroasiasemiconductor.com
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