One of the things I love about engineering is remembering those moments that inspire us to keep learning. For me, most of the time, it was related to somebody trying to fix something that was broken.
In a previous article, I wrote about the pumps failing at the crab tank I worked at during High School. That experience stuck with me because I had to sniff all the dead crabs to determine if they were still good to cook or not. A more pleasant experience I had (which was also a more positive olfactory experience) was taking care of a neighbor’s greenhouse when he travelled. He grew orchids and it really was not that big a deal — all I had to do was water them. As he explained to me how the greenhouse worked, he pointed to the roof and explained how wax-filled pistons adjusted roof louvers based on temperature.