Fwd: Engineering

..umm, hang on a second
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From: Bonnie Smithson  <smithson@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: Multiple recipients of list <futurework@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Thu, 5 Jan 1995 17:11:45 -0700
Subject: FW Intro
I discovered your group and subscribed yesterday.  It's been great to have the
day's work punctuated by this discussion.

Several issues raised by technology seem to require policy design to deal
with them effectively.  This policy is social, political, and economic at the
very least.  As an engineer, I generally feel that those things are out
of my element.  It has been dawning on me for some time now, that I can no
longer shirk responsibility in those areas and expect to continue growing
technology.

I am enrolled in an MSEE program at Santa Clara University in control systems
and robotics, and I have a day job as a software engineer designing ATE
equipment for the semiconductor industry.  I want to design robots to realize
a dream rooted in my 1950's childhood of robots freeing human beings from
toil and want so that they can enjoy life and develop art, science, athletics,
and their own basic humanity.  This isn't happening at all.  In fact, in
Japan and the US automation and computers are most used, we are increasingly
overworked.  It sounds like FUTUREWORK will address this issue.

Here are some other issues which I feel are related: Introduction of
automation tends to have catastrophic effects on a workforce, and so technology
is not embraced.  The technology has to improve in reliability and safety to
penetrate markets beyond the factory floor.  The runaway costs of product
liability suits causes some attrition of ideas that may be beneficial.
and intellectual property needs to be examined against the pressures from
current technology.  I feel that most engineers take up their profession to
contribute value to society, but control of their work is quickly diverted
to a point where they have no say over how their work will be used, and the
major rewards go to business managers, not developers.

Anyway, I'm happy to be part of this group.

                                        Bonnie
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