Engineers: Tapping into accumulative wisdoms and not just the Sciences
Sitting around a hearth located in the middle of the ground floor room of one of the oldest surviving Gassho-zukuri houses in Gokayama Japan, a bus full of visitors watched the slow burn of the small open fire pit while waiting for a member of the Murakami family to begin their welcome.
We learnt about the harsh living conditions that meant communities learned to adapt and develop creative ways to manage and survive. Particularly in the deep snowy winters, where communities were effectively isolated from other villages. The shape of these Gassho-zukuri houses, akin to the shape of “praying hands”, and the thatched roofs are effective for bearing the heavy snow fall in winter.
The communities also developed methods to produce commodities that were used and sold, such as silk and gunpowder. They developed food preservation methods and clothing for the harsh winters. ?Fumigating the houses as an insect repellent was an effective method of preserving the wooden structure, a method that is used today.
A European architect visiting Japan almost 100 years ago took inspiration from the structural ingenuity of these houses and the methods of construction, later advocating to protect them. The survival of these village hamlets is another great reminder of accumulated wisdoms that we should tap into when developing new innovations for emerging needs. Rightly so, places like these and their methods of living are being protected to preserve the knowledge collected over the generations – a great resource for engineers and innovators.
Engineers apply principles and processes learnt from all sciences to maintain, develop and create new innovative solutions. We rely heavily on scientific facts, which typically are taken as unshakable truths. However, there is often a widely held belief that science is wholly unbiased and therefore can 'most' objectively define our world. Through this, we often use science to challenge some of the dogmatic beliefs that as a society we have held. In fact, some would go as far as to depend on scientific fact to believe something to be true. However, science IS biased and perhaps does more to test the ideas of scholars and researchers than seek out objective truth. Although it does often do both, science is undeniably subjective. Sorry to pop the bubble.
Scientific knowledge versus accumulative wisdoms
[Note: Terms also used include practical wisdoms, ancient wisdoms, traditional wisdoms, etc]
Having said that, much of our modern technologies have been an accumulation of experiential knowledge through scientific approaches and literary traditions. Because of this, and the utility of the products/structures that survive, we can trust them. Whereas practical wisdoms are acquired through learning-by-doing, social practice and oral traditions. These traditional wisdoms are the knowledge that people and societies possess but are sometimes not necessarily aware of. Similarly, because they work, we have no reason not to trust them. But compared to scientific knowledge, which is more accurate? Less prone to bias? Less dogmatic? More reliable?
The answer is neither and both. There are truths to be learned from both traditions and engineers should be mindful to tap into both. ?Therefore, when we teach students approaches such as user centred design (UCD), we are really teaching them a way of tapping into the wisdoms that are embedded in people’s experience, groups and communities. Solutions are found through exploring both technical knowledge and human experience.
However, part of our unspoken ethos as researchers is to not assume anything and therefore assumptions should be tested or at least declared. But I must admit, I am slightly embarrassed when we, myself included, report on interesting findings that prove what people knew all along. Despite humbling an inflated ego, respectfully capturing these wisdoms distilled through time and human experience using our scientific and literary traditions is still a necessary and important process.
Sarah Junaid
Churchill Fellow
NOTE: any reflections and comments are the opinion of the writer alone and are not necessarily shared by associated institutions or collaborators.
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Resources:
When Scientists "Discover" What Indigenous People Have Known For Centuries | Smithsonian (smithsonianmag.com)
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