[Ken Leung]

I've been regretting it ever since I posted my last reply in this thread. In all the talks about inspiration and tolerance I let my emotions got better of me. I think we should let the argument end here and that's the end of that. There are only two more things I want to mention.

You are certainly entitled to your opinion, but the Engineers in this thread have been through a lot, and their view is one full of experiences that you and I have not had a chance to have. While your own experience have convinced you otherwise, I urge you to keep your mind open and not let what you know limit who you will be. Learning from the scientific method, our theories are only as good as the data we collect. If we continue to keep our eyes open and recognize when new data comes in, then our theories will only be more precise and beneficial. So, who knows. You might change your mind later when you've seen enough. Either way, I encourage you to challenge your own believes as often as you can, and only accept them after putting them through the harshest test you can think of. Because that’s the best way to learn and grow.

The other thing is, there is no name, no title, no test result, no degree, no action, no skill that can truly define who an engineer really is. But you will recognize one when you see one. It is in this kind of dilemma when I truly recognize how limiting words are. The more important thing is the idea behind the name "Engineer", and that's where I think we differ. While you have your version of what an Engineer is, so do others in this thread.

You are entitled to your opinion, but I am more inclined to agree with others who think becoming an Engineer should be hard, not because it makes the name more important, but because it is a better image to show to the students in FIRST. They should know that it should be hard to become an Engineer, that you can't just learn one skill, pass one test, or finish one course and become one. They should want to earn it, and push hard to achieve the title, instead of thinking they became one just because they joined FIRST and built a robot. Because when and only when that happen will they work so hard that they are guaranteed to become a great Engineer one day. Because that's the kind of Engineers our world really needs.


Anyway... I think we should point the discussion toward a more positive direction, so, let's go back to the original topic. While we are at it, I want to start another thread to discuss more about Engineering (While I have some free time to do so). It just feels so good when I am learning ;-).