10/01 mechanical engineering: editorial

editorial

September 11, 2001

By
John G. Falcioni, Editor-in-Chief

Just as those of us who are old enough will always remember where we were when Americans first set foot on the moon, we all will remember where we were and what we were doing on September 11, 2001, when terrorists attacked New York City and Washington, D.C.

Those of us who have seen both events have witnessed a dichotomy: the pinnacle of engineering success and the devastation that can occur when even high-tech safeguards, in place to protect, aren't sufficient to guard us from the malicious acts of terrorists.

As I write this column from a hotel room in Houston—the city that houses the Johnson Space Center and was the center of engineering intelligence during the years of lunar exploration—today is a day that will live in our memories and in our hearts forever.

Here in Houston, all day I've been joined around a television set by colleagues from ASME's New York headquarters and offices throughout the country. We are here to attend and cover a meeting of instrumentation and control systems developers. We are no different from you and millions of others who share in the outrage of the incidents today, incidents so surreal that they make anything Hollywood screenwriters could ever dream up seem tame.

As we comfort ourselves, we sense the irony that we are here to cover the same technology of sensors and sophisticated equipment that proved insufficient in protecting our safety. Even with all of the technology functioning properly, we still were left vulnerable to attacks from terrorists.

How ironic it is that while so many engineers work to develop these instruments, there are some people who work to circumvent their intended use.

The surveillance instruments and the airport sensors are not to blame for what occurred. But the incidents of today certainly challenge our political, our civic, and our engineering imagination.

We're challenged to come up with even better instruments of surveillance. We're challenged to step up our efforts to devise ways to protect ourselves from terrorism. In these efforts, engineers will play a critical role. Today marks the beginning of an op-portunity to kick it up a notch and demonstrate the same type of engineering prowess that propelled us to reach great heights, heights as lofty as the moon.

As the space program enticed the minds of undergraduates to get involved in engineering, the hope here is that the activities of September 11, 2001, will stir the imaginations of bright young minds to get involved in engineering and develop even more sophisticated tools that will somehow, someday, help avert a similar disaster.

Today, our world has changed. But now we have an opportunity to help change the world in another way. Technologies such as MEMS, NEMS, and others can help take us to levels so sophisticated that only the best engineering minds in the world can imagine them.

Engineers have always been the catalysts of change. In years to come, as we reminisce about where we were, and what we were doing on September 11, 2001, let's make sure that we remember it as the day when we became even more serious about taking responsibility for change.

Engineers are at the backbone of growth. Only our imagination can limit how we can help the world be better and safer.

Email your comments or questions to: falcionij@asme.org