Designing the new engineer
Today, small technologies are starting to appear in more and more aspects of our society. With small technologies, we mean nanotechnologies but also biotech. Everything that has to do with manipulating matter and life on the building block level, molecules and atoms.
The amazing thing is, that as soon as we drill down to the molecular level, in essence, things look the same whether we are looking at living tissue or some piece of metal. So, we should be able to combine these more and more. And we do: this is nanobiotechnology.
Of course, combining stuff sounds easy, but it is not. Physicists who are working at nanotechnologies, do not understand biology, and vice versa. Engineers who design semiconductor chips do not know how biological systems work.
It requires a non-traditional way of working and of thinking. Because it is not just different disciplines working together. They should understand what drives the other, what are the challenges of the other one, and perhaps most importantly, what are the opportunities by combining different technologies.
But, do we have the scientists and engineers today capable to do this combination? To understand each other? And to make these technologies beneficial enough for our society?
This is the theme for the next On Track seminar, taking place in a unique institute, the Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering, in Boston. Here is where you can find more information.
Start talking, today!
Jan