An Inconvenient Truth

Singapore, located near the equator, experiences a tropical climate and is not subjected to the four seasons of temperate regions. Geologically, we are sheltered by our neighbours from monsoon clouds, protected from the vast ocean waves, and situated in a relatively earthquake free zone. Due to this climate changes which are associated with global warming affect us to a milder extent as compared to the rest of the world.

While this is hardly an excuse to not take action, people tend to ignore unseen problems and focus more on the pressing problems of the present. In Singapore, our main problem is the shortage of water. There are policies which encourage the minimal use of our household utilities such as monetary fines imposed on households who exceed the recommended level set by the government. These policies, while not meant to reduce the problem of global warming, actually allow the power stations to generate less electricity and emit less greenhouse gases. There are also efforts to discourage the population from driving private cars such as increasing road taxes and the setting up of Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) gantries at busy areas where drivers of private vehicles need to pay when they drive through these gantries. The population is encourage to use public transport when they travel as they are more fuel efficient and hence emit less exhaust fumes into the atmosphere.

Most people will feel that the focus of environmental groups should be to create awareness, while the ones taking a harder stand will probably stage protests and such. Personally, I feel that these methods are difficult to apply in today's society. With so much immediate problems at hand, such as the global economic crisis, and terrorists disrupting the peace, there is hardly a ‘felt need’ to combat global warming. Perhaps environment groups should do their part and help combat against these threats, and the world can spare the effort to combat global warming.

The Engineering Approach to Problem Solving

The day the world ceases to need engineers will be a fine day indeed. From the ancient pyramids to the little laptops on our table, engineering has been involved in their creation. Thoughout history, engineers have been present to solve problems, to improve our way of life, to make our world a better place to live in. While past and present engineers may have challenges of different kinds to overcome, the methods of approach and solving techniques have not differ much over the years.

When faced with a problem, engineers should create an appropriate model for them to analyse the problem in a more definitive way. They will then research for possible solutions. Usually there are mutiple possible solutions to a problem and each will have its own merits and vices. They will then choose the one best suited to their needs among other factors such as production cost and availability of materials.

Engineers will then create a prototype based on the chosen solution and allow the prototype to undergo intensive testing to make sure the product is working as intended when subjected to real conditions and to flush out possible flaws in the product design. This is an important step as failure will result in flawed products and might lead to catastrophic consequences such as collapsing bridges and software crashes. After removing the flaws and adding improvements to the design, the engineers will come up with the final product which is ready for the population's use- a product which is safe and efficient.

However, this engineering approach to problem solving is not limited to product design. The training that engineers go through equips them with a sharp, versatile and creative mind allowing them to analyse situations and make critical decisions on the spot when required of them. This is perhaps the main reason why engineers are also 'recruited by large corporations in banking, finance, logistics and commerce'. To conclude, engineers are an integral part of our society and it will be hard to do without these problem solvers in our lives.