Engineering Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow

In early times, the practice of engineering was that of a trade or craft with training occurring through some form of apprenticeship. As it developed into a profession and more recently as an academic discipline, it took on the shape of other academic disciplines, with preparation being an education rather than training. An important turning point in the Unites States was the land grant college act (Morrill act) of 1862 which established an institution for the teaching of agriculture and the mechanical arts (engineering) in each state. This officially legitimated engineering in higher education although it still had the form of training. Interestingly, this act came into being during the American Civil War and was signed by Abraham Lincoln.

World-War II was the second turning point when it was discovered that many of the technical innovations necessary for that effort came from scientists, mathematicians, and theoretically educated engineers rather than traditionally trained engineers. Most engineers prior to that time had been trained to develop and apply ideas already in existence, not to create new solutions to new problems. After WWII, the university curricula in engineering became much more scientific and mathematical. It took on more elements of an education rather than a training. It slowly became a real academic discipline in its own right rather than only an application of other disciplines. However, it retains the integrating role of applying the physical and life sciences using some of the tools of the social sciences, law, and policy and the values derived from the humanities, letters, arts, and business.

We are now going through a third transition in engineering in response to many factors in society and in technology itself. In the larger picture, society went through the agricultural phase, the industrial phase, and now the information phase. These three phases of civilization created and were created by the most powerful and applicable technologies of the time. Engineering is and will be the creative element in the information age as it has been in preceding ages.

8. Find the synonyms in the text

Foregoing

Hold

Art Liberal arts

Distinguish

Prosper

Meet needs

Education

Of course

Achieve

Attempt

Research

8. Give the opposites

Destroy

Artificial

Animate

Weak

8. Answer the questions

1. What is the difference between science and engineering? Do you agree with the author of the article?

2. Give the definition of “engineering”. Find it in the article and in different dictionaries or glossaries.

3. What is the role of engineering and science in our life, in your opinion?

4. What are the benefits and drawbacks of engineering?

8. Summarize the text

Lesson 2 a job in engineering

(ex.1-4 White, L. Engineering p.2)

The right person in the right job

1. Read the text A job in Engineering. Put the main ideas (A-D) in the same order as they are in the text.

A You need to think carefully about your personality.

B There are lots of different jobs in engineering.

C Think carefully about what you are interested in.

D Engineering is a big subject.

A job in Engineering

1 There are lots of different types of engineering. The one thing they have in common is that they all use Maths and Science to improve industry and manufacturing. The whole science of engineering can be broadly divided into three main areas:

• civil engineering (buildings, roads, etc.)

• mechanical engineering (machines, including tool-making)

• electrical engineering (electricity, lighting, etc.) '

2 Each of these three main area can be divided again into specialist subjects: civil engineering covers mining and bridge building, mechanical engineering covers aeronautical and automobile engineering, electrical engineering covers electricity generation and wiring.

3 Clearly there is a big difference between building a road and designing a computer system so the best advice for students is:

• think carefully about which area of engineering interests you most. It is difficult to study if you are not interested - and you may do the job until you are 60 years old.

• think about what sort of person you are. Will you be happiest working in an office, in a factory, or outdoors? Do you mind getting dirty? Do you want to work with other people or alone? If you like wearing high heels and beautiful clothes, you may not be happy on a building site.

4 When you have decided which area you are interested in and thought realistically about what sort of person you are, then you can decide what sort of engineer you want to be.

2. Look at the types of engineers (1-5) below. First, underline any new words and check the meaning in the glossary or your dictionary. Then write whether the jobs are indoor or outdoor, and dirty or clean.

1 petroleum

2 sanitation

3 textile

4 computer

5 chemical