Thglimited - Heavy Industries

Engineering is all about change.  Engineering involves fixing things, creating things, and improving things.  Fixing something requires change, but the end result is more of maintaining a state than changing it.  The rest, I would argue, is all about change and is often very expensive.

Disruptive technologies are improvements in technology that obsolete old technologies.  Going back to cell phones and touch screens, any technology has the potential to be disruptive.  New technology can become disruptive just by the natural order of things because of popularity or the economy (but those are nuances that I can’t discuss in detail).  What I am most concerned with is any technology that, during the design process, is known to be purposefully disruptive.

As an engineer, I want to work to improve the environment and the quality of life.  I can do this by designing new cars that use alternative fuels or energy sources.  By the same token, I can design power plants or means of generating electricity that use alternative fuels or energy sources.

The fundamental elements behind these technologies are transportation and electricity.  If I were to design a new energy source that I called magic, these fundamentals would be obsolete.  On one hand, magic is infinitely abundant and produces no waste.  On the other hand, auto makers, appliance makers, utility companies, and many, many others would go out of business.  Is that okay?  Suddenly, traffic is non-existent because people can instantly teleport anywhere, but cars fill landfills, museums, and antique shops.  The oil company couldn’t let that happen.

Then, there’s the whole issue with infrastructure.  Perhaps this topic is too complicated to muse over without some organization.

Well, more generally, some changes occur naturally over time, others happen suddenly with lots of effort, and some are completely resisted.  I’m afraid that if I design the superefficientengine or a car that doesn’t use gasoline or a new solar energy thing, it won’t catch on or it will be swept under the table by some massive corporation because these are disruptive to their technology.

I can’t let that stop me.  Although, as a child, I was super opposed to change.  Just ask my mom.  If I broke a toy, I would be really sad, but I would still want to keep it.  I never wanted to change schools or move.  Then, for a while, I adopted my dad’s saying of, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”  But I’ve come a long way from them.  I know that change is necessary and beneficial.

What else could I do?  Oh, I don’t want to give away any of my secrets. Patent pending!  Patent pending!  Patent pending!