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How to succeed in X, Y and Z
(Education, Work, Life…)
A brief primer on life
(by someone who has lived a little)
Presented to MRSM TransKrian 22-Oct-2008
Dr. Horizon Walker Gitano-Briggs
University Science Malaysia
Mechanical Engineering
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Introduction
You will face many challenges in life. Different things, from passing a test, to getting
a job, to fixing your car when it is broken, getting a project finished, managing your
finances…
No single source of information exists to tell you what to do in every situation.
The hope is that this will “fill in some of the gaps” in your education about life.
WARNING:
Change comes from WITHIN,
It can not be imposed from the outside.
My telling you all this WILL NOT make you successful. Your success depends on YOU
(and you alone) and what you do with this information.
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Outline
Who does this Mat Salleh think he is!
Why should I bother?
Accept Responsibility for your situation
What Grad Students have to do
How to study: resources
Know your “enemy”
Know Your self
Discipline: What does it really mean?
Time Management: Prioritize
Being Persistent
DO THINGS: Experience doesn’t just happen, you make it happen.
Books vs. the real world
Plan B: The path doesn’t matter, the destination does
Do not accept FAILURE
New Rules for the New World
Malaysian Special: Racism
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Who does he think he is anyway?
Raised in Black Forest, Colorado, USA.
Had a junkyard full of surplus Air Force equipment handy by.
Learned electronics by making crazy projects using “borrowed” parts.
Learned computers when you could still “make your own”.
Learned mechanics from my dad (a WWII engineer, used to race Model T’s)
Got my 1st car at 14… with a burned out engine.
It was ready to run by the time I had my license at 15+
Under Grad: Colorado School of Mines… Had some fun. Had to work the whole time
to pay for school (programming 3D graphics software, Lab jobs, Wind turbine data)
Masters: University of California at San Diego… Had lots of fun!
Ran about 1M US$ of equipment, lasers, analyzers, computers…
Automated my experiment to run, take data, analyze and print out while I was at
lunch (I worked at the day care center 2 hours a day)
~1991 Worked in Central America: Park Ranger with Costa Rica National Parks,
Farming Yuka (Ubi Kayu), Landscaping, Electronics repairs, Commercial lighting,
Diesel Mechanic, House painter…
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Bio Continued
1992 Worked with Conner Peripherals (Disk Drive Manufacturer) in San Jose,
California
R&D working on Head/Disk interface. Got to work on some cool techniques:
Spin Down “Head Landing Velocity” measurement
“Copy paper” clamp force visualization… Easy things
1993 Transferred to Colorado to be close to home
Made a lot of “stress test” equipment: Temperature, Humidity, pressure chambers
1995 “Quit” to go traveling again. Big boss convinced me to join a team coming to
the factory in Malaysia to support engineering here.
Did a lot of “Failure Analysis” and wrote a manual on the subject.
Worked in S’pore, Malaysia, Thailand, China, Mexico and US factories.
2001 Quit Seagate (who had bought Conner) to go back to school for PhD.
2004 finished degree in Internal Combustion Engines
2004 Lived in Europe for 5 months
Began consulting (which continues to this day) Focus Applied Technologies
2006 – Present Professor of Mechanical Engineering at USM
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Why should you bother?
Don’t pay attention if you don’t want to! But know this:
If you don’t learn something, and one of your peers does, which one is better
prepared to win the next competition?
Malaysia is a small country. You can make a significant difference and the country is
counting on you to advance it. In a big country it is harder to have an impact.
Even though Malaysia is small, it is still competing with the “big boys”: China and
India, Europe and the US
For Malaysia to succeed, you must succeed, and to succeed you must beat the
Chinese, Indians, Europeans, and Americans and you can bet they are learning
everything they can!
It is a big ocean out there, so…
Sink or Swim!
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Who is responsible for your situation?
No one but you can make you succeed.
No one but you can make you fail.
I’m late with my paper because…
… the printer ran out of paper.
… computer system is down.
… stuck in traffic.
… sakit.
… hujan.
Your late cause you waited to the last day to do it!
The “blame vector” only points one direction… directly at YOU.
“He can because he is ______.”
“I can’t because ______.”
(Smart, rich, hard working…)
(Fill in excuse of your choice)
Excuses are for losers.
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Who is responsible for your situation?
Ever hear of Lance Armstrong?
He battled cancer (in brain and lungs) in 1996.
He has won the Tour de France bicycle race 7 times since then.
Ever hear of Steven Hawking?
He has a degenerative nerve condition that restricts him to a wheel chair without the
ability to speak.
He is the worlds authority on astrophysics, with several best selling technology books.
Albert Einstein?
Born with a speech impediment, and failed his college entrance exam.
Are you going to claim that your problems are worse then theirs?
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The life of a grad student
Graduate students (you all call them post-grads) have to study in a more “open
ended” fashion. There is not just a single text book or test to study for. Examining
what grad students have to do is a good way of looking into how you can prepare
for anything… even real life.
Resources
Anytime you have a problem you should understand that you are probably not the
1st person to face this problem.
There is no need to face the problem alone!
Why reinvent the wheel?
Instead take someone else’s solution, and modify it for your needs…
Then you can focus on your unique contribution.
Find out more about your problem from what others have done before you.
Grad students go to the library, look up books on their subject, and read them.
They Google, they use Wikipedia, they download papers from on-line resources.
The read journal articles, and magazines. And any time they find something
interesting, they copy it down, save it, fotocopy it, and look up more on it.
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Educational Resources
Example: CC Leong is working on a small scale wind turbine for modest wind speeds
There are several books on the subject. Our library has some of them, and he can order
any book in print (Amazon.com, Half.com, Books4Less.com)
There are some great “online” books, notably the work of Hugh Piggot, which can be
purchased for a modest fee, or free like:
Dr. Gary Johnson's Renewable Wind Energy Systems
Occasionally you can get online plans or design calculations for these sorts of things.
Examples of Journal articles:
High-Capacity Factor Wind Energy Systems
J. Sol. Energy Eng. -- May 1995 -- Volume 117, Issue 2, 137 (7 pages)
DOI:10.1115/1.2870843
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Educational Resources
Dr. Gary Johnson's Renewable Wind Energy Systems: Free Book!
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Educational Resources
Wikipedia
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Educational Resources
Wikipedia References
^ Ahmad Y Hassan, (1986). Islamic Technology: An illustrated history, p. 54. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-42239-6.
^ Donald Routledge Hill, "Mechanical Engineering in the Medieval Near East", Scientific American, May 1991, p. 64-69. (cf.
Donald Routledge Hill, Mechanical Engineering)
^ a b Quirky old-style contraptions make water from wind on the mesas of West Texas
^ Alan Wyatt: Electric Power: Challenges and Choices. Book Press Ltd., Toronto 1986, ISBN 0-920650-00-7
^ Iowa Energy Center Wind Energy Manual.
^ Molendatabase Dutch text
^ Extract from Triumph of the Griffiths Family, http://au.geocities.com/ozwindmills/SouthernCross.htm, Bruce Millett, 1984,
accessed January 26, 2008
^ 1.5 MW Wind Turbine Technical Specifications
^ Size specifications of common industrial wind turbines
^ "Wind Turbine Design Cost and Scaling Model," Technical Report NREL/TP-500-40566, December, 2006, page 35,36.
http://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy07osti/40566.pdf
^ Magenn Power Inc. - Technology
^ see http://www.bwea.com/marine/devices.html and scroll down to SPERBOY™,
^ Jacobs wind turbine (page 18)
^ Mawson Station Electrical Energy - Australian Antarctic Division
Further reading
BBC News,"Wind farms 'must take root in UK", http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/4560139.stm, BBC News, 2007
Tony Burton, David Sharpe, Nick Jenkins: Wind Energy Handbook, John Wiley & Sons, 1st edition (2001), ISBN 0-471-48997-2
Darrell, Dodge, Early History Through 1875, Web Development, http://telosnet.com/wind/early.html, Copyright 1996-2001
David, Macaulay, New Way Things Work, Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, Copyright 1994-1999, pg.41-42
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Wind turbine
Wind Projects
Wind Energy Technology World Wind Energy Association
Wind turbine simulation, National Geographic
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What is the competition doing?
2600 years ago Sun Tzu wrote “The Art of War”
This text can be applied to many situations, including studies.
One of the key concepts in “Know your enemy.” In this case we
take it to mean “Know your competition”. If CC Leong is making a
small wind turbine he had better know what competing devices
are out there!
Here are a few commercially available systems:
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Know Yourself
Another important concept of Sun Tzu’s is to “Know yourself”.
This means knowing your capabilities, your strengths and weaknesses.
A skilled competitor is very aware of both his capabilities and his enemies.
Newbies tend to be the worst at estimating their capabilities. (you guys are Newbies
by the way)
How do they improve their own self knowledge?
A fighter does it by fighting. You do it by… doing!
You will only be able to correctly asses your ability in your field by practicing.
If you are a musician, make music.
If you are an engineer, build things.
You do not become an engineer by passing a test, you actually have to practice the
art… do things, make mistakes, learn from them, and learn how to get it right.
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What is Discipline?
Discipline means doing what you know is right… especially if you don’t want to.
It means getting up to go to work and cleaning up your own mess.
Wearing a collared shirt and long pants does not count.
Cleaning dishes you find in the sink does.
Smiling and pretending to be nice to someone’s face, when you talk bad about them
behind their back does not count.
It is not doing what is easy it is doing what is hard.
Doing your homework instead of copying your neighbors, that is discipline.
Making sure you show up 5 minutes before your boss, and slacking when he is out does
not count.
It is easy to be good when everyone is watching… but that doesn’t really matter. It is
what you do when no one can see you that counts.
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Be Persistent
It is easy to decide that you are going to accomplish something grand. It is a lot
harder actually getting it done.
Climbing a mountain takes more
than a good plan. It requires you
to carry your own weight every
step of the way… with your pack…
all the way… to the top.
Saying “I’ll love you for ever!” is easy at 18. But what about when you are 28? And
38? And 48? And 58? And 68? And 78?
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Be Curious
You can learn a lot about life by just observing.
Look all around you. Why are things how they are?
Why do Protons not have
real bumpers?
Why don’t their windows
roll up?
Why is there a ½ house?
What is that thing?
The answers to these things hold the
keys to many fascinating stories.
Economics. Cultural values. Politics.
It’s all out there somewhere…
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Time Management
If you are going to be hard working, curious and persistent… How can you do it all?
Easy: PRIORITIZE!
Eliminate those things from your schedule that DO NOT CONTRIBUTE to your achieving
your goal.
Put the most important things at the top of your list to do each day.
KILL YOUR TV!
KILL YOUR VIDEO GAMES!
 These can be a huge waste of time!
Things to do today:
1) Write a letter to Grandma
2) Register for USM
3) Finish algebra homework
4) Swim 2 miles in the ocean
5) Help friends build “Solar car demo”
Which is the most important?
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Experience doesn’t just happen
You get out of life what you put into it. If you put in no effort, you will get back little
in return.
Want more out of life than the minimum?
You must apply your self. You must do things.
No one else is going to force you to live life. You have to do it your self.
Ever want to run in a race? Do it.
Ever want to “pimp out” your old Honda 50? Do it.
Ever want to make a bridge out of sand? Do it.
Life is a “Do It Yourself” project!
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Books vs. The Real World
“A little knowledge is a dangerous thing”
Why? Because it can be misleading. What you “learn” from a book is often of limited
value without experience.
Moh’s Hardness scale tells us that Diamond is the hardest substance on earth.
Take a “diamond coated” pair of glasses and rub them against a softer mineral (like
feldspar) and you’ll be surprised to learn that you have just scratched your glasses to
$#IT!
There is no substitute for genuine experience. That is why “green” (newbie) engineers
are so dangerous. They think they know something, but have never actually done it
before.
So if you can, go out and work on whatever your passion is. Do it with your own hands.
And remember:
Don’t believe everything you read…
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Plan B: 1 Million paths to success
When the bridge falls, take a ferry. When that sinks go up stream and swim.
Do not get stopped by every little obstruction… find a way around it. You goal is not “to
follow the road” it is to get to the destination. Keep the goal in mind, and keep going.
Lets say you want to become an engineer. You apply to Massachusetts Institute of
Technology (MIT), but are not accepted (cause of your TOEFL score). So do you quit and
work at a burger stand?
NO!
You apply to USM (or UTP or UM or …). And you
keep applying until you are accepted. And if
you are not accepted you go to the library and
learn every engineering subject you can.
You keep going until one day you are an engineer, doing the work you love!
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Acceptance of Failure
If you accept failure, you will get failure. Here in Malaysia, we accept failure: People not
doing their jobs
The “classic” Malaysian work day is the boss tells you to do A. You try to do it but the
machine is down cause the battery ran out. You look around (weakly) and don’t find a
battery, so you cant do A.
Congratulations, you’re fired!
Every kedai runcit has a battery! If the machine doesn’t work then find something else
that does! Use a power supply instead of a battery! Get the guy in charge of equipment
to get the machine running! Chew him out for having his machine down!
DO NOT ACCEPT FAILURE FROM ANYONE, ESPECIALLY YOURSELF!
At the Colorado School of Mines (world renown for mining and petroleum engineering):
50% of the incoming class fails the 1st year.
50% of the rest fails out the 2nd year.
1,500 kids enter each year, 300 graduate each year. Their graduates are GOOD.
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New Times call for New Tools
What was good enough in the past is not good enough today.
Today you need to know how to:
Solid Model Drawing
Numerical Simulations
Computer Skills
Electronics
W (mm)
% Change of
W
Stress G
(N/m2)
2.7
2.85
3
3.15
3.3
-10
-5
0
5
10
0.8609
0.8481
0.8273
0.8096
0.8047
% Change of
Stress
Sensitivity
of Width
4.06
2.51
0
-2.14
-2.73
0.406
0.503
0.428
0.273
“Virtual” learning (through internet resources) has its place, but it is no substitute
for real, first hand experience.
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Malaysian Special: Racism
Children do not understand racism.
Working against each other can breed it.
Working together can eliminate it.
Schools inadvertently help create racism by making “competitive” environments.
But who is the enemy? Who are you competing against? Each other or China, India,
Europe, and the US?
What you learn from racist parents (or ideologically bankrupt political “leaders”) has to
be unlearned later in life when you are working in a team with Mohammed, Chan and
Gopal at a multinational, competing against Thailand and Italy, Japan and Brazil.
Don’t allow your self to fall into the trap of racism. It weakens us as a country.
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This is not the end. It is the Beginning!
For more information check out:
www.sykshorz.com
Or contact me via USM:
[email protected]
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