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Apr 19, 2004 The U.S. economy is still doing OK, probably because we keep creating new things. I've been very much interested in this, since I have 16 U.S. patents myself. Five of those inventions are in large scale use, although none are anything really wonderful, and anyhow, my former employers get all the royalties. But it's been of great concern to me, because during the last couple of decades, I've been trying to teach younger engineers how to become creative. I think we are going to need even more of this, in order to survive in today's world. When I was a student myself, way back in the 1950s, I was drinking beer during a discussion about creativity that lasted almost all night. I had several summer jobs in engineering, and I had observed the creation of some new ideas, so I thought I knew something about that subject. A Jewish guy in our beer-drenched college discussion said, "Name me four other people, all from the same culture, who had as much influence on the world's philosophy as Jesus, Marx, Freud, and Einstein --- all Jews!" A Chinese exchange student said, "Confucius, Buddha, Mohammed, and Jefferson." The Jewish guy said, "Not all from the same culture, and they're from huge populations. How could the tiny Jewish group create all those earth-shaking ideas? I think it's because we read a lot, think a lot, and argue a lot." Being an engineer and not a theoretical scientist, I am personally more interested in practical creativity, not just great ideas. But one collection of philosophical ideas, Christianity, might have led to the practical industrial revolution of 1750 AD. I said "It's more important to ask why the industrial revolution started in England, and not in China or India or Egypt. I think it's because of Christianity and its emphasis on mercy." The Jewish guy, who was a psychology major, said, "You're crazy, Dan. You need therapy. How could mercy have anything to do with it? And, anyhow, lots of religions talk about mercy." I said, "The one religion that emphasizes mercy more than any other is Christianity. You can sin, but if you confess and change your ways, you can still be saved and go to heaven. This is possibly why Christianity spread so fast throughout the world. Most people have been sinners at one time or other, at least in their thoughts, and they were happy to find that they could still be saved." The other guys almost jumped down my throat with "Mercy? Industry? You're crazy, Dan!" Fifty years later, I'm even more sure of the fact that "mercy" and "industrial creativity" are connected. In order to create something entirely new, which really works in mass production, you almost always have to try a skillion different things, and fail over and over. If your boss is impatient and fires you right away, there won't be any new machine. But maybe the boss says, "At least you're making some slight progress, and we still have some money left, so keep trying." Then you get still another chance, and you might succeed. The boss, and the venture capitalist supplying the money, are both being merciful. Christianity was not always merciful or tolerant of change, but it was more so than other religions, because of the deeply philosophical ideas of mercy and salvation. America's greatest invention is not the electric light --- it's "practical democracy." The concept of mercy is absolutely necessary for this to succeed. If the losers in an election get their heads cut off, nobody will vote honestly. Everybody will just figure out which side is likely to win and vote that way. (And, in fact that is what does happen in fake "democracies" like Communist China.) Our highly optimized engineering nowadays depends on the latest discoveries in theoretical science. And democracy is absolutely necessary in science. We only begin to believe in a new discovery, when an informal majority (a "consensus") of experts says they agree about it. And we don't cut off the heads of the minority who might disagree. It's practical mercy, and it was promulgated widely by the early Christians, eventually bringing great benefit to all of us. ------------ About the author: Dan Shanefield is a retired engineering prof, who worked at Bell Labs and then at Rutgers University. He wrote the book "Industrial Electronics for Engineers, Chemists, and Technicians". Visit his website or email Dan Shanefield: shanefield@ieee.org Tell a friend about this site! ------------ |
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