In my late 'forties, bored with sitting in a dark room, looking at black-and-white pictures, and talking to myself, I closed my radiology practice for a while and spent several years at a local university studying undergraduate electrical engineering.
It had always been my first love, and was probably the best time of my life, not leas…
In my late 'forties, bored with sitting in a dark room, looking at black-and-white pictures, and talking to myself, I closed my radiology practice for a while and spent several years at a local university studying undergraduate electrical engineering.
It had always been my first love, and was probably the best time of my life, not least of which were the lasting friendships I made there with men twenty years or more my junior.
One in particular, Chris, became my study partner. The product of a fine hardworking West Virginia family, he struggled with calculus, despite having had near-perfect math scores in a local high school - which, of course, was the problem.
During our DiffEq (differential equations) final exam, the professor left the room, and to my disappointment, Chris and another friend began collaborating and passing answers back and forth using the infrared functions on their calculators. Nobody said much, but after the examination, Talia - a ball-o-fire Russian girl, took the both of them to task - as we say, "ripped them a new a-hole."
Chris and I went to the local Chinese restaurant for lunch, and he began to criticise the woman for giving him and his buddy a hard time. I said nothing. "You're not sayng anything, Jim, and that bothers me."
I hadn't realized, but during the years we studied together, Chris had developed a respect for his older partner, and I saw this as a real teachable moment. "Chris, in the big scheme of things, this doesn't mean a damn thing. But you are going to be a professional engineer, and from time to time you will come under tremendous pressure to sign off on things that are not right, so that contractors can cut corners. The penalty for THAT is real and severe, and I don't mean legal. I mean people may die. Doctors only kill people one at a time; when engineers kill them, they kill them by the dozens. Now is the time to get your head right - when it DOESN'T matter."
"God. I never thought of that."
That was twenty years ago. I hear from Chris at least twice a year. He's married, with two beautiful daughters, and is a successful professional engineer. I hope I helped him a little.
When I first started working, I worked for an independent group of pathologists and one pathologist that I respected a lot gave me a similar ethics 2x4 to the head that to this day I am so thankful for. I was 21 and in sales at the time and we had a dermatologist client that was worth a lot and also very high maintenance. On a random second QA review the pathologist determined the original diagnosis made by one of his partners was incorrect and needed amended. The change in diagnosis would not change the course of treatment and thus patient outcome. I knew the formal amendment would result in loss of the client and suggested that perhaps he didn’t need to amend it after all. In a very serious tone he asked “Are you suggesting that I IGNORE a diagnostic error? That the patient and client don’t deserve to know the true diagnosis?”. It seemed like such a minor thing at the time that I wasn’t viewing it through the lens of right and wrong and how that behavior on a larger scale would be tragic. I think back on that moment often whenever I’m faced with an ethical dilemma and it reminds me how slippery that moral slope can be. The Chris’s of the world are lucky to have mentors willing to speak candidly about what’s truly at stake.
Engineering courses and exams should be completely re-engineered. Computers can solve complex integrals and differential equations. The challenge is in formulating the correct problem to solve.
A much more complex way to teach, but in the age of Wolfram Alpha and other online tools, it's essential that future engineers learn how to use them for problems that are not pre-digested for them.
Many of my students are in training to become professionals, who will be called on to make judgments that directly impact the lives and fortunes of others. Reality doesn't grade on a curve, and it doesn't give partial credit.
I continually remind students of this, though opportunities to really bring that message home, as you did with Chris, are few and far between. This was a "teachable moment" well spotted and flawlessly executed.
We ALL should mentor and help others like this. We should view it as an obligation and duty as a good citizen and person. I bet it’s one of you proudest memories.
In my late 'forties, bored with sitting in a dark room, looking at black-and-white pictures, and talking to myself, I closed my radiology practice for a while and spent several years at a local university studying undergraduate electrical engineering.
It had always been my first love, and was probably the best time of my life, not least of which were the lasting friendships I made there with men twenty years or more my junior.
One in particular, Chris, became my study partner. The product of a fine hardworking West Virginia family, he struggled with calculus, despite having had near-perfect math scores in a local high school - which, of course, was the problem.
During our DiffEq (differential equations) final exam, the professor left the room, and to my disappointment, Chris and another friend began collaborating and passing answers back and forth using the infrared functions on their calculators. Nobody said much, but after the examination, Talia - a ball-o-fire Russian girl, took the both of them to task - as we say, "ripped them a new a-hole."
Chris and I went to the local Chinese restaurant for lunch, and he began to criticise the woman for giving him and his buddy a hard time. I said nothing. "You're not sayng anything, Jim, and that bothers me."
I hadn't realized, but during the years we studied together, Chris had developed a respect for his older partner, and I saw this as a real teachable moment. "Chris, in the big scheme of things, this doesn't mean a damn thing. But you are going to be a professional engineer, and from time to time you will come under tremendous pressure to sign off on things that are not right, so that contractors can cut corners. The penalty for THAT is real and severe, and I don't mean legal. I mean people may die. Doctors only kill people one at a time; when engineers kill them, they kill them by the dozens. Now is the time to get your head right - when it DOESN'T matter."
"God. I never thought of that."
That was twenty years ago. I hear from Chris at least twice a year. He's married, with two beautiful daughters, and is a successful professional engineer. I hope I helped him a little.
Great job. I mean it. It’s good to know there are people out there like you, and that younger people are listening to them.
When I first started working, I worked for an independent group of pathologists and one pathologist that I respected a lot gave me a similar ethics 2x4 to the head that to this day I am so thankful for. I was 21 and in sales at the time and we had a dermatologist client that was worth a lot and also very high maintenance. On a random second QA review the pathologist determined the original diagnosis made by one of his partners was incorrect and needed amended. The change in diagnosis would not change the course of treatment and thus patient outcome. I knew the formal amendment would result in loss of the client and suggested that perhaps he didn’t need to amend it after all. In a very serious tone he asked “Are you suggesting that I IGNORE a diagnostic error? That the patient and client don’t deserve to know the true diagnosis?”. It seemed like such a minor thing at the time that I wasn’t viewing it through the lens of right and wrong and how that behavior on a larger scale would be tragic. I think back on that moment often whenever I’m faced with an ethical dilemma and it reminds me how slippery that moral slope can be. The Chris’s of the world are lucky to have mentors willing to speak candidly about what’s truly at stake.
Engineering courses and exams should be completely re-engineered. Computers can solve complex integrals and differential equations. The challenge is in formulating the correct problem to solve.
A much more complex way to teach, but in the age of Wolfram Alpha and other online tools, it's essential that future engineers learn how to use them for problems that are not pre-digested for them.
Many of my students are in training to become professionals, who will be called on to make judgments that directly impact the lives and fortunes of others. Reality doesn't grade on a curve, and it doesn't give partial credit.
I continually remind students of this, though opportunities to really bring that message home, as you did with Chris, are few and far between. This was a "teachable moment" well spotted and flawlessly executed.
We ALL should mentor and help others like this. We should view it as an obligation and duty as a good citizen and person. I bet it’s one of you proudest memories.