Why Robotics?

I've never been particularly mechanically inclined, and yet I am drawn to Robotics Engineering. This field deals with a great bit of mechanical engineering, yet it also encompasses a field that I am intimately familiar with: Computer Science.

To me, the melding of the mind of a computer with the mechanics of a machine is a facinating science that will truly revolutionize the world and will be marked as the greatest achievement of the 21st Century. I have looked back upon the history and growth of the computing industry with great interest and to a small extent, remorse for having missed one of the greatest booms in technological and economic history.

Although not within the scope of my background, I am the grandson of an auto mechanic who was very talented in operating and repairing the most complicated machinery of his era. My father is also very talented in the field of construction and home renovation...so handiness and practical mechanics do run in my family.

My own history with computers dates back to as early as the age of 5...when I learned on an Apple IIe. I later attained a Packard Bell 266 which I owned and operated throughout much of the 90's, learning all the nuances of Windows and DOS and then later, the internet and web design. My childhood dream was to become a video game designer. I have never fully given up on this dream, and perhaps, one day, will design my own video game.

At the age of 18, I ditched the idea of going to college for the idea of opening my own Wireless Retail business. It was very successful, for a time, but did come to a tragic end in its third year of operation. The skills and lessons I learned in leadership, management, and business will serve me for the rest of my life. I took my sales skills to battle in the real estate industry throughout the early part of the housing downturn following the boom earlier this decade. It was another experience that I believe will continue to serve me throughout my life.

Currently, I am a Computer Technician by trade. I repair and fix problems with computers on a daily basis, and I have become intimately familiar with their operation. This knowledge, while rudimentary compared to the skills necessary to successfully design and implement custom robots, will surely serve me well in achieving my goal of becoming a Robotics Engineer. How so?

Well, first, it's going to be the profession that pays my way through college. Having no scholarships and having been out of High School for several years, I am going to be forced to work through college the hard way: full time student and full time employee.

Throughout high school, I was never a particularly focused student. I'm extremely smart and capable, but I never applied myself diligently. Having suffered through the failures of my past, I believe I value education and success much higher than I did before. I will use these lessons learned to motivate me through the most difficult parts of my multi-year journey, and to apply my mind in an effective and consistent manner.

I make this pledge to myself: I WILL BECOME A ROBOTICS ENGINEER.

But Why? I've never shown such an inclination before...

Frankly, I'm a genius. I don't mean to be cocky or arrogant, but I have nearly a 150 IQ...This means my wheels turn faster than 1 in 10,000 individuals. Growing up in a poor education system and a son of parents who grew up in the same education system...I believe my relative lack of academic achievement has been largely due to location and upbringings. I think that my mind has been largely untapped in the fields that I have entered thusfar.

I grew up in Gifted classes and at the age of 23, I can attest that many of my peers, whom are presumably just as smart as I am, have not gone on to particularly challenging or breakthrough careers considering their talents. I have read over and over that there is a lack of Engineering students in the University population and that America is simply not producing as many Engineers as it used to.

To fill the gap, politicians have been pushing for increased immigration based on special visas to recruit engineering and scientific talent. What does this say about America as a society? We are not producing Engineering talent! We will lose our ability to create things altogether if this keeps up...and soon, we will have nothing to offer the world economy! I think in the future that will be economic suicide!

I can't even explain why American people like me are not more compelled to enter Engineering as a profession...it seems to be a natural fit. I just know that Engineering has never crossed my mind as a career field until recently. Perhaps it is partially because I did not understand it...I thought engineers simply built roads and bridges and had to draft designs on paper all day! This goes to show you the complete lack of occupational education in the public school system!

I could go on and on about the state of the education system in America and how it has negatively impacted my life and put me on the slow track to success...but I'm not going to dodge all the blame. I'm an ambitious bastard. No, really, I want money and success so that I can enjoy all that life has to offer. I want the freedom to travel, the freedom to discover and explore the world...I want wealth! I want deciding how to spend my money to be the biggest problem I have...not wondering where my next nickel's going to come from. I abhor the rat race and detest the idea of working for an hourly wage the rest of my life.

I want to be rich. There's nothing wrong with it, nothing evil about it...it is the LOVE OF MONEY that is the root of all evil...not the money itself. I do not love money, never have, and never will. I do love FREEDOM, however, and to me, Robotics is a ticket to freedom. It is a ticket to owning my own home outright at a young age. It is a ticket to knowing where my kids' college fund is going to come from. It is a ticket to countless journeys and adventures that can be afforded by money...including outdoor excursions, hiking trips, skiing slopes, and sailboat voyages! It is a ticket to Outer Space on a zero gravity suborbital flight...perhaps one day it will be a ticket to the Moon!

No it is not MONEY that motivates me...it is FREEDOM. Sweet, precious, FREEDOM.

Knowing that, I understand that in order to attain FREEDOM, you most offer something of value to the marketplace. My goal, is to become valuable to the marketplace. I hope to invent some sort of robot that will improve the lives of men and women everywhere.

Will this be in the agriculture industry? Perhaps robotics will end world hunger? Will this be an elderly care robot? Will it be a supplemental cybersuit for our U.S. military? Will it be for a repetitious job in which human personnel are scarce? Will we finally stop the tens of thousands of lives being lost every year on American roadways through robotics? I find the technology and prospect of robotics to be both frightening and exciting. Not knowing where technology might go or who might be developing the next robot and whether it will be for good or for evil, I'd like to be at the forefront of understanding them.

I do know this, Robotics will shake the very foundation of American and worldwide economics. Man will now compete with machine even more so than ever before to prove themselves useful and economically viable. It appears to me that understanding how to build and design robots will be one of the most valuable and in-demand jobs throughout the rest of this century.

I want to be poised to ride the wave of growth that is set to come from the robotics industry. I want to help create that wave. I want to be a part of one of the greatest technological movements in human history! That is why I want to learn Robotics.

Prologue to Discovery

Why blog about learning and discovering the world of robotics? Quite simply, I hope to document my learning process for personal reference and perhaps to be useful to others one day. I also would like to use this blog as a motivational tool to spur my interest and desire in exploring the robotics world.

Writing has always been a passion of mine...I even wrote my first book at the age of 5! My hope, is to combine an old passion with a new one, in hopes of piggybacking both of them and furthering my skills, knowledge, and abilities in both areas.

I will begin this blog by exploring why I'm interested in robotics and why I'm going to seek a career path in this field. I will do this by researching the current robotics industry as well as projected growth and demand for the field. I'll also explore my personal tastes and talents that will lend a great deal in my persuit of a career in Robotics Engineering.

Once that is established and I am firmly sure of my direction, I will begin to experiment personally with robotics and document my learning process along the way. Over the next few years, I am sure to make many mistakes...I am sure to invest countless hours and dollars in toying around with insignificant projects and products in hopes of one day gaining the skills and knowhow to build the killer application: a marketable robot.

My greatest hope is that I can consistently update and document my learning process with robotics. I would like to provide at least weekly updates and insights into the field and how the industry, as well as myself, are advancing.