Lots of Purdue affiliation in this topic. I guess you can't talk about engineering without Purdue coming up. Love It! Boiler Up!
Originally Posted by Goshawk:
Lots of Purdue affiliation in this topic. I guess you can't talk about engineering without Purdue coming up. Love It! Boiler Up!
I wondered why all the road signs say "Welcome to Indiana" instead of Purdue? 
As I tell my good friend, a Purdue grad-a great chicken school!!
Originally Posted by cjack:
Originally Posted by Goshawk:
Lots of Purdue affiliation in this topic. I guess you can't talk about engineering without Purdue coming up. Love It! Boiler Up!
I wondered why all the road signs say "Welcome to Indiana" instead of Purdue?
Love it! I'm not saying we're cocky but, there is this awesome sweatshirt...
Originally Posted by Pat Kn:
Lee,
This is one of the rare occasions where I disagree with you. I think being an engineer has a lot to do with my (and your) approach to model railroading. Engineers are problem solvers. They tend to think outside the box. They are usually somewhat intelligent practical and inquisitive. These traits make them better engineers able to find real practical solutions to solve technical problems using experience and the tools they learned in school and on the job.
My observation of you is that you are clever and imaginative. Your projects are unique and somewhat non-mainstream. you research your projects and have a purpose for every detail. Your space train, for instance, is unique. It's the result of a lot of research. You use a practical application of what is available to you (dowels, models) to create accurate models of the spacecraft. This is using your engineering mind in your approach to model railroading.
I'm similar if not as talented as you. I like to focus on the Pennsylvania railroad. I research the Pennsy and create trains that reflect my understanding of how the Pennsy works. In my club I work on projects that allow me to create unique items for the club using a practical approach. An example is I made an observatory for the top of a mountain using the round bottom of a plastic soda bottle as the dome. Yes, I am the electrical guru for the club (I'm an EE). That reflects my expertise where some others don't have as much. My approach to model railroading reflects my engineering background and experience.
Thanks. I have to agree that I do approach things like an engineer. I guess what I was saying is I don't do any of the engineering that I do at work (figital system, etc.) at home on my layout. But yeah, I think like an engineer. My parents tell me I did even at age five.
Best regards.
NYC Z-MAN,
Jim as I have indicated here on the OGR many times in the past, I have never met a NASA Sr. level Engineer, of any kind especially in my era, that did not start his engineering Career building O gauge train layouts. I am a (PWE) Professional Welding Engineer, MIT Metals Joining graduate, when MIT was actually a Institute of technology. I was employed by both Martin Marietta (NASA) and United Technologies HSD Aero Space, after my military career. I have both Law and Engineering education and backgrounds. I was lucky to have a Professional Engineer Grandfather on one sides and a Grandfather who was a Lawyer on the other. I was even luckier to have a Father who was a PE/math wizard employed by the Union Switch & Signal. My actual Engineering education started long before grade school, on my Grandfather knee when I was given my Fathers 263E Lionel Train for Christmas. We still build multi level layouts & run that train every Christmas.
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Never finished a degree but studied for EE.
Been doing Electronic Design for over a decade now with solid results.
Trains, Lincoln Logs and Erector sets were staples of my youth.
As a child I wanted to walk on the moon.
Looking at NASA I determined most of the Astronauts at the time were former Military Test Pilots. So I set out to become one. Then upon joining the Air Force I was handed a pair of glasses and told "We do not train pilots that need glasses."
So much for the childhood dream. I went into Aircraft Electronics.
Russell,
Bummer about the eyes man, with your drive you would have been an NASA Astronaut for sure. Eye sight is a NASA Career critical function for flight, I am color blind in light yellow and dark blue, got a similar problem. Fortunately in my career paths it mattered little.
Take a good look at the signatures on my NASA Space Shuttle 1st Mann Flight Award, as those guys said to us, you build em, we will fly them for ya. Both these two men were fantastic human beings, and great military pilots/Astronauts.
Lee,
I know what you mean about thinking like an engineer, it starts at a very young age when given the correct guidance and discipline. My engineer Grandfather actually told me not to spend to much time studying Law books, building something for people was much more important than putting them in jail. He was very happy that I used my Law education to serve our US Constitution however.
PCRR/Dave
Agree completely with Lee Willis, regardless of engineering specialty, practicing engineers develop analytical work and writing skills, this is accrued with actual work experience. After years as a practicing engineer one does not leave your analytical skills at work, I applied these same skills to auto repairs, home repairs and projects and yes model railroading.
I would say that when I was a kid in the 50's, the erector set, Lionel train set and occasional plastic model kit, and scrap wood from a millwork ship that my friends and I made into bows, arrows, swords, soap box racer with axles from a scrapped Radio Flyer wagon, or discarded wood line skids that we made into forts helped in the development of these skills because we used our imaginations.
BSChE Drexel University
Designed large Fluid agitators for several years: then specialized in chemical process design and reactor kinetics.
A bunch of smart guys on this forum, no wonder I enjoy it so much. I wanted to be an engineer but never made it through school. Had to settle for flying helicopters for the Air Force. I love the mechanics of stuff and loved to take stuff apart when I was kid but always had trouble getting them back together!! Didn't even learn to solder until my 60s!
Yea, large flux reactors and muffled micronic stabilators with physical camshaft sensors powered by atomic neutronic transmatic fluidic transducers. That's what I do.
Did you know that the U of M had a railroad with 500 volt Steeple Cab?
