PROF. E.O.E. PEREIRA MEMORIAL LECTURE IESL September 13, 2006 by Chandana Wirasinghe

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PROF. E.O.E. PEREIRA MEMORIAL LECTUREIESL

September 13, 2006by

Chandana WirasingheProfessor, University of Calgary

Hon. Senior Professor, University of Moratuwa

[email protected]

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“EOE” MEMORIAL LECTURE

• A GREAT HONOR TO BE INVITED

• I THANK THE IESL FOR INVITING ME AND IN PARTICULAR, PROFESSOR LAKSHMAN RATNAYAKE, WHO INITIATED THE ORIGINAL INVITATION WHEN HE WAS PRESIDENT. I WAS UNABLE TO BE HERE ON SEPT 13 UNTIL THIS YEAR.

• ALSO AN HONOR TO FOLLOW SUCH DISTINGUISHED PREVIOUS LECTURERS SUCH AS MY MENTOR PROF. A. THURAIRAJAH, & SENIOR COLLEAGUES PROF BL TENNEKOON, PROF MP RANAWEERA, & MY BATCHMATE DR. RANJITH GALAPPATHI AND MANY OTHERS

• MY BATCH, THE “CLASS OF 68”, WAS, AND IS, A GREAT ONE, IN MORE WAYS THAN ONE. I AM PLEASED TO REPRESENT THEM TODAY. WE NEED TO HEAR FROM KUMAR GUNAWARDENE IN FUTURE.

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“E.O.E.”

• CHIEF ENGINEER DESIGNS, PWD• FOUNDING DEAN, FACULTY OF

ENGINEERING, UNIVERSITY OF CEYLON, 1950 (NOW THE UNIV. OF PERADENIYA)

• VC, UNIVERSITY OF PERADENIYA, 1969• RETIRED 1971, PASSED AWAY IN 1988• ONE OF THE BEST ENGINEERS PRODUCED

BY SRI LANKA IN THE LEAGUE OF KULASINGHE, WIMALASURENDRA ET AL

• ONE OF SL’S GREATEST ACADEMICS• UNIQUE CONTRIBUTION

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PERSONAL ANECDOTES RE “E.O.E.” - 1

• I KNEW OF EOE EVEN AS A CHILD, BECAUSE MY FATHER, P.A. WIRASINGHE, GAVE SINHALA TUITION TO EOE’S TWO SONS AT OUR HOUSE

• LORENZ WAS AT THE TIME WAS THE “SCHOOL BOY CRICKETER” AND I WAS ABOUT 12Y OLD. HE WAS A GREAT HERO FOR ME.

• HOWEVER, I FIRST MET “EOE” PERSONALLY AT A ANANDA-ROYAL CRICKET MATCH HELD A FEW YEARS LATER, WHEN MY FATHER INTRODUCED ME AS A ‘WANNABE” ENGINEER

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PERSONAL ANECDOTES RE “E.O.E.” - 2

• WHEN I INQUIRED ABOUT ADMISSION TO THE “E-FAC”, HE SAID “STUDY YOUR CHEMISTRY”!

• AT PERADENIYA, I REMEMBER

- MARCHING TO ASK EOE NOT TO “RESIGN” AS DEAN - WORKING IN THE “EOE” PADDY FIELD! - EOE “PUSHING” A STUDENT

• DHAMITHA AND I HAVE FOND MEMORIES OF EOE AS HE WAS ONE OF THE SIGNATORIES AT OUR WEDDING IN 1971.

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IMPACT ON MY LIFE

• I LEFT PERADENIYA IN MARCH 1969 & WAS HIRED BY CM PERERA, DIRECTOR OF THE HIGHWAYS DEPT

• CAREER PATH: HIGHWAYS & TRANSPORTATION/ FULLBRIGHT 1972/ BERKELEY 72-76/ CALGARY 76-to date/ DEANSHIP Jan 94-June 06/ TWO PhD STUDENTS WHO ARE FULL PROF’s IN SL

• FOUNDING DEAN OF THE SCHULICH SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING

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WHEN I THINK OF EOE WHAT COMES TO MIND ARE

• LEADERSHIP• FOCUS• ENGINEERING MINDSET• INTEGRITY• DIGNITY• KINDNESS• TOUGH (“FOUGHT UP INSTEAD OF DOWN!”)• IN CONTROL WITHOUT BEING “CONTROLLING”• LOVED BY MOST STUDENTS

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E-FAC

• EOE’S MANDATE: PRODUCE SUPERB B.Sc. GRADAUTES FOR THE ENGINEERING PROFESSION (MOSTLY GOVERNMENT)

• THE “EOE” FORMULA: ORIGINALLY HIRED SUPERB ENGINEERS (E.G. PROF PAUL) SUBSEQUENTLY, HIRED THE BEST GRADUATES AS STAFF SENT THEM TO SOME OF THE BEST BRITISH UNIVERSITIES

FOR THEIR PhD IN SELECTED AREAS GAVE THEM THE BEST POSSIBLE FACILITIES GIVEN LIMITED

RESOURCES GAVE THEM (ACADEMICS & STUDENTS) ACADEMIC FREEDOM• MANY OF US IN THIS ROOM ARE PRODUCTS OF THIS

FORMULA• IT WAS A GOOD FORMULA FOR THAT ERA

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ENGINEERING, ENGINEERING EDUCATION, AND LEADERSHIP

• ENGINEERING – CONTINUING TRADITIONAL ROLE

THE HARNESSING OF NATURAL, INFORMATION AND

INTELLECTUAL RESOURCES FOR THE OPTIMAL BENEFIT OF

CURRENT AND FUTURE GENERATIONS OF ALL SPECIES

(ADAPTED AND MODIFIED FROM ICEL)

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“ENGINEER” AS TRADITIONAL ENGINEER

• NATURAL RESOURCES (E.G. BUILD A DAM FOR HYDRO POWER)

• INFORMATION RESOURCES (E.G. USE CURRENT AND PAST TRAFFIC DATA, SOCIO-ECONOMIC DATA & STATISTICAL ANALYSIS TO ESTIMATE FUTURE TRAVEL)

• INTELLECTUAL RESOURCES (E.G. SOLVE “NEW” PROBLEMS SUCH AS MITIGATION OF A FUTURE TSUNAMI IMPACT)

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A DIFFERENT WORLD TODAY

• WORLD ECONOMY• A CONNECTED WORLD• INTELLECTUAL RESOURCES ARE AS IF NOT MORE

IMPORTANT THAN NATURAL RESOURCES• WOMEN ARE EMPOWERED• OTHER PROFESSIONS HAVE MOVED FORWARD

(E.G. COMMERCE, MEDICINE)• VERY FEW REAL AND MAJOR ISSSUES HAVE “PUR

E” ENGINEERING SOLUTIONS• BLURRING OF ENGINEER, TECHNOLOGIST,

TECHNICIAN (“IT PEOPLE” ARE EVERYWHERE!)

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THE NEW ENGINEER

• TRADITIONAL ENGINEER• COMMUNICATOR (LOCAL/INTERNATIONAL)• MULTI-DISCIPLINARY TEAM MEMBER • LIFE LONG LEARNER• RESEARCHER• ENVIRONMENTALIST• SOCIAL ACTIVIST• CREATOR OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY• ENTREPRENEUR• LEADER

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ROLE OF ENGINEERING EDUCATION

THE ROLE OF UNDERGRADUATE

ENGINEERING EDUCATION IS TO

PRODUCE A MAJORITY OF

GRADUATES WITH SIGNIFICANT

“LEADERSHIP” POTENTIAL

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THE EDUCATORS & MENTORS

• FAMILY

• EDUCATION/SCHOOL SYSTEM

• UNIVERSITY SYSTEM

• INDUSTRY

• PROFESSION

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THE 21ST CENTURY ENGINEER


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COMMUNICATIONS/TEAMWORK

• INTENSIVE EDUCATION IN LANGUAGE SKILLS (WRITTEN/SPOKEN)

• REQUIRE COMMUNICATION IN COURSES (AS OPPOSED TO TEACHING COMMUNICATIONS)

• USE TEXTBOOKS!• HAVE COURSES WHERE THE MAIN COURSE

GRADE IS BASED ON MULTI-DISCIPLINARY TEAMWORK (IDEALLY WITH NON-ENG STUDENTS)

• REQUIRE A C/T COMPONENT WITHIN “INDUSTRIAL TRAINING”

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LLL/RESEARCH

• KEEPING UP WITH CHANGE CONTINUOUSLY THROUGH SELF-STUDY IS ESSENTIAL IN THE RAPIDLY CHANGING WORLD OF ENGINEERING (LLL)

• MUST BE ABLE TO “RESEARCH” A NEW TOPIC IN DETAIL AND TO USE THE INFORMATION

• PREPARATION BEGINS IN SCHOOL/UNIVERSITY

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ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY

• CRITICIZED FOR IMPACTING THE ENVIRONMENT

• ALSO CRITICIZED FOR NOT PROVIDING SUFFICIENT INFRASTRUCTURE/ UTILITIES/ SERVICES TO THE CURRENT GENERATION!

• ONLY ENGINEERS CAN DO THE NECESSARY “CLEAN UP”, & LIFE CYCLE MANAGEMENT

• ENGINEERS MUST LEAD TEAMS THAT OPTIMIZE AMONG SPECIES AND GENERATIONS, COSTS AND BENEFITS, OLD AND NEW TECHNOLOGY

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SOCIAL ISSUES

• CRITICIZED FOR NOT BUILDING ENOUGH ROADS, AND NOT MANAGING THE TRAFFIC WELL

• IN COLOMBO, SOME OF THE WORST TRAFFIC IS DURING THE “SCHOOL RUSH HOUR”

• THE ANSWER IS NOT TO BUILD MORE ROADS FOR THE SCHOOL TRAFFIC

• WE NEED BETTER SCHOOLS IN THE SUBURBS AND NEARBY TOWNS!

• WE MUST LEARN TO APPRECIATE THE THOUGHT PROCESSES OF THE NON-ENGINEERS

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I.P./ENTREPRENEUR

• LONG TERM PROSPERITY DEPENDS ON CREATING I.P. THAT CAN BE “SOLD” IN THE WORLD MARKET

• COURSES WHERE STUDENTS MUST CREATE SOME NEW IDEAS FOR ENGINEERING SERVICES/PRODUCTS ARE IMPORTANT

• WE MUST KNOW HOW TO CREATE AND RUN A “START UP”

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ENGINEER AS LEADER

• A HIGHLY “EDUCATED” ENGINEER• APPRECIATOR OF OTHER VIEWPOINTS• COMMUNICATOR• TEAM BUILDER• INITIATOR• SOCIALLY / & ENVIRONMENTALLY

SENSITIVE• ENTREPRENEUR

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EDUCATING FOR LEADERSHIP

• CHOOSE STUDENTS WITH GOOD LANGUAGE ABILITIES (“A” OR “O”!)

• EMPHASISE “COMMUNICATION” WITHIN ALL COURSES

• ENCOURAGE ACADEMICS TO WRITE TEXT BOOKS

• REQUIRE SIGNIFICANT “MULTI-DISCIPLINARY” TEAMWORK

• ALLOW “REAL” NON-ENGINEERING COURSES, e.g. START-UP CREATION, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

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EDUCATING FOR LEADERSHIP - 2

• REQUIRE COURSES WHERE STUDENTS MUST “INITIATE” PROJECTS

• HIRE ACADEMICS WHO WILL LEAD CHANGE• CONSIDER FIVE YEAR JOINT PROGRAMS

- B.Sc/BA {ENGINEERING/e.g. HISTORY}

- B.Sc./MBA

- B.Sc. Double majors

- B.Sc./M.Sc.

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EDUCATING FOR LEADERSHIP-3

• MOVE TO 12 MONTH “INTERNSHIPS”

• ALLOW NON-ENGINEEERING BUSINESS & NGO INTERNSHIPS

• DISCUSS THE ROLES OF THE 21ST CENTURY ENGINEER WITH STUDENTS

• THINK OF EDUCATING A MAJORITY OF STUDENTS TO BE LEADERS

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CONCLUDING REMARKS

• PERADENIYA & MORATUWA ARE EXCELLENT PROGRAMS

• SOME OF THESE IDEAS ARE ALREADY IN PLACE

• THE SOLUTIONS PROPOSED ARE NOT EASY TO IMPLEMENT

• WE AS INDIVIDUAL ENGINEERS MUST CONTRIBUTE TO THE SOCIAL DEBATE

• THE “EOE” LEGACY MUST EVOLVE • ALL IS IMPERMANENT AND CHANGE IS

GOOD!

Documents

PROF. E.O.E. PEREIRA MEMORIAL LECTURE IESL September 13, 2006 by Chandana Wirasinghe