Why Civil Engineering?After a series of extremely unexpected but fortunate events, I find myself in Valencia, Spain (above you can see a wonderful view of the gorgeous evening on the balcony of our flat in Benimaclet) collaborating with professionals at AIDICO, a materials testing and research organization. The research project I have been assigned explores different forms of non-destructive testing on concrete structures under seismic conditions. In other words, we are exploring various ways of controlling the quality of ancient structures without the necessity of penetrating functional bridges and buildings. In a world where many economies are down in the dumps, it is important to find cost effective ways of preserving infrastructure. The idea of this project is to collaborate internationally for further effectiveness. For that, and many more reasons involving Mediterranean tans and sand, I am beyond excited to be a part of this research project! This summer of 2014 has come to break the boundaries of six young people. We are young students learning that we may come from different countries, languages, and backgrounds, but in the spirit of the Futbol World Cup 2014, "WE ARE ONE!".
The Motive.Being in Spain reminds me of why I chose to pursue a degree in civil engineering: the beautiful things that come from a mind driven by design. Primarily designing solutions to every day problems, but ultimately designing solutions for a better future. It is interesting to see how different societies perceive the idea of a future. I would like to be a part of globalization of the civil engineering profession. It has been said that there are power in numbers. More minds together accomplish exponentially more together than individually summed. That being said, I mostly decided to major in civil engineering because I liked math, I liked physics, and I couldn't decide on anything else.
Key Factors.When I first heard the words "Environmental & Sustainability Engineer" during my sophomore year at the University of Texas at Arlington, it was the attention grabber of the entire degree path. I knew right away that sustainability and problem solving went hand in hand and that they were perfect for me. The previous year, I had begun my college career as a Physics major at University of California, San Diego and I quickly lost interest in the path because I knew there was SOMETHING missing. That something, I eventually came to learn, was the connection and service to the beautiful Earth that my Creator has so generously placed my life on. As technology continues to accelerate, there is a lack of consciousness for the damage that can be caused. The ability to contribute to a more sustainable future is one of the most important factors motivating me to pursue a civil engineering degree.
My 2 Cents.As time goes on I hope to be able to contribute with creativity to conserve the wonderful resources. Spain is more frugal with their resources than the States. We can definitely learn from the appreciation for nature. The freshness of their fruits and vegetables. I hope to continuously contribute some fresh thinking to the field of engineering in the states or whichever country life leads me next. To the world in general. I most admire about the profession of civil engineering is the versatility. Part of it is being good with numbers, plenty of it is creativity, and a lot is communications.
Go-oooooohhhhh-ol! (Professional career goal, not to be mistaken with futbol goals).
As a professional I hope to be able to help and serve other people above all. In order to accomplish that, I would like to be able to learn to connect with people, more than math itself. Connecting with people in different countries is part of learning the versatility that engineering requires. Spain is the perfect place to begin learning how to do things a different way than what you have done all your life and try not to complain. That is the first skill we've learned here. And it's a very liberating feeling! Here we go, on our first week at work in a country where everything we learned before, we must relearn!
Above is a photo I took during our first week of research at AIDICO. The commute is a Train-Bus-Walk combination full of adventures, mishaps, language barrier, beautiful sights, and cultural learning experiences. Working with the people at AIDICO has been nothing less than a pleasure and learning a different custom is one of the most interesting things I have done in my life. Realizing that not everyone in the world eats lunch at noon, is little less than a mind-blowing truth to grasp. In Spain, our mentor is teaching us that regularly it goes like this: a breakfast at 8 am (coffee and sweet bread), almuerzo at 10:30 am (coffee with a small snack), lunch at 3pm (biggest and yummiest meal of the day!), and dinner after 10pm (tapas and wine/beer/more coffee). It is far to early to decide on a favorite Spanish dish but we have definitely attempted recreating "Patatas a lo Pobre". Photos of that will be provided once the recipe is perfected. Hasta ahora! :)
No hay comentarios:
Publicar un comentario