Reflective Journal 1 What is Engineering? 1. Write down your definition of an engineer in one paragraph.

. Engineering is the practice of applying scientific, mathematical, financial and environmental knowledge to provide, design, manufacture or create: - a solution to a problem or - for the purpose of enhancing the living and operating conditions of people. It requires not only an understanding of the context of the discipline, but also a creative approach and a logical mind; one that can readily seek ideas and identify the dilemma at hand. 2. Based on your reading of section 1.4 of the textbook (Brockman) and at least one of the web pages listed in the lectures so far, choose two different engineering disciplines you find interesting and write a description (of at least two paragraphs in length) for each of those engineering disciplines. Civil Engineering This discipline, one of the oldest and generally clichd images of an engineer, is also my personal favourite. It delves into the depths of structure and design and attempts to use those themes to create buildings, dams, bridges and other sorts of heavy-material construction. Because of the sheer variety that this discipline brings with it, it is typically broken into several sub-categories. A few examples highlighting this diversity are things like coastal engineering (which generally deals with matters of erosion and defense), earthquake engineering (the exploration of why structures succumb to the power of quakes and what can be done to prevent this) and transportation engineering (a discipline that covers all areas of the way in which people and goods travel efficiently and safely). Civil engineering is a very, if not the most, important discipline. Why? It is because of the practical use of the civil engineers final product. At a senior and/or highly publicized level, a civil engineer can be involved in the assembly of high-rise skyscrapers and office buildings. Irresponsibility or misunderstanding is intolerable, as sometimes thousands of lives are at risk. When looking at a more manufacturing based discipline the mistake consequences seem laughable in comparison. Sure, a company may lose tons of money on a valuable loss of raw materials from a mistake made by a clumsy chemical engineer, but there is no price that can be put on a human life, let alone hundreds. This makes civil engineering very safety focused and an analysis based discipline. Mining Engineering - Involved with the locating, processing and safe extraction of minerals, mining engineers play a key role in effectively removing resources from the ground from which an institution can make economic gain. Most allocations of mining engineers are put into the following categories: - Location and design of open-pit/underground extraction zones - Transportation of minerals - Development of equipment and filtering of minerals While the most important aspect of this occupation is in the engineers ability to perform in one of these three areas (frequently on a specific mineral), the environmental harm caused in this procedure is also endeavored to be minimized under many circumstances especially when a company is looking for public approval. Not only this, but safety should not be overlooked either. Mining engineering contains some of the most dangerous practices of any discipline, one of which is the placement and execution of high/low velocity explosive devices. This operation, if done successfully and in correct sequence, can be a quick means to releasing the maximum yield of ore possible in a rock formation. Being a primarily financial based discipline, mining engineers are often in high demand as the need for mineral extraction and preparation is a necessity in the modern age.