My sister recently blogged on a condition that my nephew has been exhibiting recently in her post "It must be genetic". I have to confirm her suspicion that it is genetic and provide a little more information on the condition. It is commonly referred to as "The Knack" and is described in the video clip below.
Thanks for the video explanation, JR! As a math major, I ran into a lot of engineering majors and always wondered what set them apart!
If only he could have been blessed with good comunication skills as well, he could have been a real person. Ha Ha!
On behalf of Grandpa Kane and Grandpa Andrews,
I have to point out that if the kids happen to be blessed with eternal optimism, and have all of the other qualities except “The Knack” maybe they will grow up to be farmers! Anybody can fix stuff with good equipment, but only a farmer will think that they can do it with a piece of junk that came from over under the oak tree.
Only a farmer would have tried to stick a fork into an electronic socket in the first place (usually with a bad result), but the “future engineer” who has “the knack” will do it and actually get a good outcome.
Both your post and Lisa’s post have really had me smiling a lot for the last couple of days as I watch the boys, and remember all of the stuff J.R. took apart since age 3.
As always
Grandpa Andrews
As an engineer, I feel obligated to defend my profession against the stereotype that engineers have poor communication skills. Engineers rarely work alone and are required to communicate ideas with other engineers and non-engineers. From my experience, the majority of engineers have very good communication skills. For a personal example, my senior year I placed 5th in Extemporaneous Speaking at State Speech. It was the first year we had a speech team and our team also won. The Kanes might remember that year at State speech as I believe Nuemann was there as well, though they were not quite as successful. I enjoy bringing that story up although I might regret it tonight out in Red’s dog house.