Terry Coombs writes:

On 1/26/2020 6:22 AM, Richard Smith wrote:
Hi Jim
I read with interest.
You are describing a like situation, as I understand it. You are
seeing the same "mismatch".
Thanks for taking me into your area of expertise in explaining.

Trusses and stresses - as I learned about vectors, wishing to design a
bridge in the form of a truss, I realised I could look up at Victorian
railway station roof supports and see which were in tension and which
were in compression (here in the UK). Those in pure tension could be
and often are flat plates, while those in compression are channel
sections.

Best wishes,
Rich S

You think in 3 dimensions ... most people just can't see what you see
. I also have that ability , which is why I was so good at building
"special projects" in the cabinet shop . I'm betting you can look at a
drawing and visualize the finished product in your mind before the
first piece of material is cut ...

Hi Terry

Being "confronted" with this was a major juncture in my life.

That I can see things which few others will ever see in all their
lives / careers.

That happened when I was in my mid-20's and was feeling very confused.

What this friend said was transformational - inverted the perception.
That what I was seeing the real, and they were lost in a convenient
substitute for reality.

I gained great self-confidence to go forth to the next step(s).

I got so successful pursuing science and technology that I attracted
resentment from others who were actually very bright themselves, and
wrecked-up unable to defend against so many causes attacking
simultaneously.

But life as a welder, with occasional engineering jobs, is not bad...
:-)

This about seeing things in simulataneous multidimensional dynamic
interactions, interacting and intersecting to produce "contours" and
"envelopes" of usable / interesting conditions. Rather than a
narrative sequence of zero-dimension / single-point "rules" /
assertions - rather like a "necklace" assembly of hard immutable
points.

This is what many of "us" share (?)

In shop-floor "leadership" jobs (when I can get them in this
"service-economy" country), I have to start with little things, so the
people who have been doing the jobs a long time can see "I have
something". Then build up to bigger refinements spanning across
various processes. Delivering each time and becoming valued (given in
manufacturing, most shop-floor workers know their job and reasonable
way-of-life dependss on customers keeping on wanting what the company
makes - more than what many management bother with).

Best was working in Turkey on the 3rd Bosphorus Bridge project -
representing Hyundai (lead contractor). They expressed that I made it
possible to complete the bridge, sorting out the steel (bridge-deck
and tower + cable-anchor fitments) parts of the project.
No job back in UK though - straight back to meeting this impenetrable
wall of "non-discriminatory equal-opportunities" recruitment where
administrative grades have seized control of interview / recruitment
processes...