Science in Food Production: Done Right and Wrong

Cows grazing in the shadow of the Alps of the Jungfrau region of Switzerland

I've had this photo sitting on my desk at work since my wife and I visited Switzerland in 2010. In part, it was to keep my spirits up while sitting in a beige cubicle in decidedly non-mountainous South Carolina (the Blue Ridge just makes it into the corner of the state, and they are pretty, but those ain't mountains.) It also just resonates with my Alpine German/Swiss heritage and sense of pastoral aesthetic.

Today I read an article from NPR (thanks to my wife for sending it over) that is both interesting from a scientific standpoint, and a little disheartening from a social one. For a cheese-lover, its got some positives and negatives. On the one hand, it seems that alpine cow herders are a dying breed as young people move from the mountains to cities for more gainful employment. On the other, it seems that science is finally starting to explain what the rest of us who care already know: dairy products from pastured cows tastes better than those from feedlot or grain-fed cows, and that goes double if the pasture is on the side of the mountain.

Blog Right For Your Type

I was reading up a little bit on personality types today when I decided that it had been too long (5+ years) since taking a personality test. Some googling brought me here for a free adapted Myers-Briggs test.

I was fairly certain how I'd shake out in two of the four categories; its no secret that I fit the Introverted and Thinking types over the Extroverted and Feeling types. I figured going in that I would have some mix of the Intuitive/Sensing and Judging/Perceiving types. In answering the questions, I tried to think of an honest example and then pull the trigger without too much second guessing. My suspicions were (partially) confirmed when I was categorized as an INTJ. I was surprised at the significant margin in the Intuitive type over Sensing, and the low margin in the Thinking over Feeling type. I was close to 50/50 in the Judging/Perceiving category and very strongly Introverted so I was correct there. This personality is sometimes called "The Scientist", which is not too far off.

This post isn't an analysis of the Myers-Briggs methodology or my results in particular, but I was struck by the flaws outlined in a couple passages as they relate to my new blogging endeavour while researching the INTJ type here (the webpage is old-school html which these days lowers credibility, but at least the analysis seemed congruent with other sources I read):

Simple, Folding Workbench

I've been on a big organization kick lately, trying to de-clutter and de-own. While organizing our storage/gear room I was forced to confront a section of Ikea hardwood counter top I've had laying around for the past couple years waiting to be built into a workbench. Then earlier this week as I was wiring up a Bluetooth speaker amplifier (post to come later), sitting on a bar stool leaning over a low table while trying not to inhale solder smoke, I decided it was time to finally build that bench. I wanted something simple, cheap, and collapsible, so it could be tucked away if we needed some floorspace in our smallish Sierra cabin. I don't have a power saw and I didn't want to create a bunch of waste, so I sketched up a no-waste folding table base made from raw dimensional lumber.

Finished Folding Desk

The Value of an Engineer

Its a common line of thinking when one is navigating engineering school- "engineering is a good foundation, but it doesn't pay enough in the long run." Engineers typically have some of the highest starting salaries for graduates, and yet the pay curve generally flattens out by the time they hit mid-career. This trend can keep away prospective engineering students, but more importantly it causes engineers to plan career pivots before they even enter the profession.

When an engineer becomes dissatisfied with sluggish pay increases, the traditional next step is to jump ship and go into management. What engineer hasn't said at some point, "maybe I'll go back and get an MBA"? Engineering management, project management, product line management, or, for the more extroverted engineers, sales is an option. These are all valuable roles, but it typically causes the engineer to disengage his mind from the technical problems he had been working on during his early career, and which he presumably wanted to work on considering he decided to study engineering in the first place. With so many hard, technical problems to solve in the world, why are those equipped to solve them being driven away?

Hello World!

This post marks the beginning of my new (and first) blog. 

While I am normally the analytical, introverted type, rather than a "words" person, I've been compelled lately to create a place to document and share events, thoughts, and projects as they occur in my life. Partly its for archival purposes, and partly for use as a medium to share ideas with friends whom I do not have the fortune of seeing face-to-face on a regular basis. In general, though, putting pen-to-paper (or rather, cursor-to-word-processor) its part of a broader effort to be more mindful and thoughtful throughout daily life.