Calypso, Engineering and the Era of Convergence: Why Fundamentals Matter More Than Ever

Last week, I had the honor of speaking at the National Society for Black Engineers Annual Convention in Detroit and, inspired by the birthplace of Motown, I talked about how music has been a significant inspiration for me as an engineer. In fact, I was at one point in my life a DJ and the general manager of a radio station, and have always appreciated how the greatest artists masterfully “engineer” their “products” to elicit such a wide array of emotions.

But being from Jamaica, Calypso is one of my greatest musical influences. And, like engineering today, it exists at a crossroads.  

Calypso is known for its rhythmic and harmonic vocals, but the magic is in its convergence of different genres — Folk, French Creole, West African, Trinidadian Carnival. It’s not afraid to take a stance. It pushes boundaries. More than anything, Calypso music works because the artists have a deep mastery of the fundamentals.

And for engineers looking ahead to careers in a field of converging technologies, that insight can be instructive: As the challenges and demands become seemingly more complex and intertwined, it’s more important than ever to have a solid handle on the basics. 

Advanced analytics is giving us unprecedented abilities to model and forecast, enabling us to design products faster than ever, and with greater initial product quality. Robotics is evolving to provide more flexibility, functionality and opportunities for human-robot collaboration. Virtual reality now lets mechanics “walk” inside a running engine to examine parts. And that barely scratches the surface of how new innovations are transforming and shaping engineering today.

But to truly excel in this dynamic field, engineers must first master the fundamentals — just as great songwriters and performers have mastered their crafts. Over the years, I’ve built up a solid framework and it has served me well, giving me the confidence to push for what I feel is right and ask the challenging questions when they need to be asked. This foundation is made up of my fundamental truths — for engineering, for your career, for life. Here are five of them:

1. Energy is always conserved.

?Engineering students learn this on day one: In a given system, energy can’t be created or destroyed, only transformed or transferred. But it’s a principle I come back to time and again, whether the challenge is technical, strategic or organizational. No matter how mind-bending the problem may be, remembering that nothing and no one is exempt from the laws of physics always serves me in good stead.

Think of the generation of entropy as lending energy to that one friend — the universe — who never pays you back. When you’re struggling with an answer, remember that you can always reduce an equation to the conservation of energy.

2. It’s the people who matter.

Engineered systems — as in systems designed for a purpose and optimized to achieve that purpose — don’t just happen. You need people who are creative and committed to a common goal to make them happen. And anything is possible with the right team, so surround yourself with people who are as good or better than you are.

My team started with my family. I had the benefit of having parents who never said that something was beyond my reach. Later, my team expanded to include professors, coaches, colleagues, scientists and philosophers who inspired me. Mighty Sparrow, a well-known Calypso singer and songwriter, is on my theoretical team. Voltaire and John Rawls are on my team. I’m also now a teacher, and my students bring a fresh perspective and show me new ways of thinking about old problems. They’re on my team.

Earlier in my career, I had an idea that seemed radical to some people. I wanted to challenge the accepted dogma dictating the procedure by which flights at airports around the world. I believed that shifting from a step-down landing to a continuous descent approach would significantly reduce the environmental impact of aviation. Bringing the right people together made all the difference. As a team, we successfully devised and advocated for a new approach that not only reduced noise, but also fuel consumption, flight time and gaseous emissions.

3. Practice makes permanent, not perfect.

This is slightly contrary to what you may have been told in the past. But it’s important to practice things in the way you want to perform them — otherwise you will have wasted your time.

I learned this from my track coach at MIT: If you practice something that’s stupid and wrong, you’re going to be stupid and wrong. This applies to engineering, too. Do it right from the start. Work hard on your weaknesses and accentuate your strengths.

A key part of this is embracing an agile process that prioritizes constant feedback and rapid iteration. Especially as the engineering challenges we face become more complex and interdisciplinary, it’s critical that we rely on model-based systems engineering, so that we have more opportunities to evaluate our progress, test boundaries and readjust as necessary. Consider models from multiple perspectives, test the integrity of your data and don’t let your tools become your crutch.  

4. Remember that nothing is certain.

This one is obvious. But whether it comes to making your next career move or solving a complex problem, you should always retain at least one option. When all else is equal, choose the option that in turn provides the most options. Consider all the nuances or else you’ll make mistakes.

And remember that the “right” way isn’t always the best way. Make sure you maintain your sense of individuality as you work collaboratively. Think independently. What makes you different is also what gives you a unique point of view. And diversity of thought is just as crucial as diversity in all other regards.

And it’s why I feel so at home at UTC — because it’s a key part of the company’s DNA. We know that our survival depends on our ability to evolve and change. At Pratt & Whitney, for example, we know that air travel needs to become more efficient, sustainable and accessible. That’s why Pratt & Whitney engineers spent years developing the Geared Turbofan (GTF) engine, which has helped our airline customers save 100 million gallons of fuel worth $180 million. The GTF engine has also helped avoid over 1 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions since it entered service in 2016. To put that in perspective: that’s equal to the energy use of 119,000 U.S. homes in one year. By reducing fuel burn, we can help airlines cut costs and reduce their environmental impact.

5. Stop doing something if you aren’t enjoying it.

When it comes to the opportunities and challenges that will come your way, some will immediately light a fire inside you. Others will be more of a slow burn. When you’re truly not enjoying something, you owe it to yourself and your talent to stop and examine why. If you don’t enjoy doing something, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you should never do it again. But it may mean that you should do it differently, or for another purpose or with a different team.

Right now, the world is facing big challenges and we need big talent. But talent and education will only make a difference if you apply it in ways that feel right to you and keep your passion for engineering alive.

We’re living during one of the most exciting and pivotal moments in human history. The realities that have long defined what it means to be human are changing. And, from health innovation to space exploration to autonomous transportation, engineering is central to the greatest ambitions of our time.

The marriage of computational techniques and capabilities with traditional engineering methods has created incredible new opportunities. But realizing this future starts with appreciating the fundamentals of the past. As engineers, we thrive when we can balance the knowledge that has brought us this far with the new insights and tools emerging every day. As my fellow Jamaican Bob Marley reminds us in his hit song “No Woman, No Cry,” “In this great future, you can’t forget your past.”