Richard,

I like your definition of engineering. I guess I am a successful engineer,
because I worked for exactly six years, three months after I got out of
school, and I have been retired for eleven years since. I call that "the
economical application of scientific knowledge to a physical application".
Sure I could have worked for twice as long, had a couple heart attacks, and
there would be enough money for my widow, kids and grandkids to never have
to be afraid of poverty or hunger again. There is a parallel here, and
someday I am going to figure out what it is. Until then, you keep doing
what you are doing.

"Posters simulating critical thought with platitudes", I love this. Please
feel free to post here again, the next time you engineer something. ;^)

Earle

"Richard J Kinch" wrote in message
. ..
Andrew VK3BFA writes:

Why not just do it, cover the situation where
"Someone Else" might be tempted to overload it. This is called
engineering. Plan for the worse.

I am an engineer.

I define engineering as the economical application of scientific
knowledge to a physical application.

To "plan for the worse" is not engineering, if the worst is not worth
planning for. It is spending too much on the biggest and baddest in the
catalog, which is the anti-engineering mentality of "I built it as
strong as possible, so I didn't have to think about it, nothing more
could have been done". You don't build a wooden crate when a cardboard
box will do, even though it won't stand up to a gorilla jumping on it.

Look, the item tows my boat, economically, and with some material
analysis, albeit casual. It does not fit the worst case, nor is it
intended to.

One of the beginnings of maturity is recognising how little you know
as an individual.

Ya gotta love Usenet. Posters simulating critical thought with
platitudes, without knowing who they are talking to.