| College of Engineering celebrates turning 50 in style |  |
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| Written by Johnathan Silver, The Shorthorn senior staff | ||||
| Wednesday, 02 September 2009 09:19 PM | ||||
 
Inventor Dean Kamen speaks to a crowd of engineering
students about the DARPA prosthetic arm that he helped create Wednesday in
Nedderman Hall. Kamen is also responsible for the HomeChoice portable
kidney dialysis machine and more famously, the Segway. (The Shorthorn:
Meghan Williams) As the first speaker of the College of Engineering’s 50th anniversary speaker series, Kamen spoke Wednesday about the role of young Americans in the progression of technology, the American education system’s flaws, and how college students can be role models to younger people through mentorship. Kamen is the inventor of many medical appliances including the portable dialysis machines, a blood purification machine replacing kidney functions; and the infusion pump, a machine designed to slowly inject substances into a patient’s veins or tissues. His work led to newer forms of treatment for kidney disease and cancer. Some claim his fame comes from his Segway invention. The Segway is a self-balancing human transporter revealed in 2001. More than one billion people lack access to safe drinking water and access to electricity, according to Kamen. He showed NASA’s rendition of the world at night with city lights captured by satellite. With such technology, lack of electricity can be combated, Kamen said. “Why don’t we just wipe that one problem out?” Kamen said. “We don’t have to fix all the others just yet.” The young non-American generation doesn’t have access to the same opportunities as America’s youth, Kamen said. Young Americans are the most likely to be future leaders in the world of technology, he said. “In this country, what is the excuse for kids growing up stupid – wasting their time doing nonsense?” Kamen said. “The world can’t afford it.” In education, people only worry about supply instead of demand, Kamen said. “We need more standards, more teachers, more merit pay, more this, more that – this never ending debate,” he said. “It’s not that we don’t already have more of this than the rest of the world, but the rest of the world has a big advantage. They’ve seen what America can do, and so their kids, in the developing world, work hard, study hard – they appreciate knowledge. They’re your competitors.” Kamen suggested college students get involved in For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology, Kamen’s organization. Helping others helps everyone, he said. The group holds robotics competitions for kids, sponsored by different companies and universities. Universities act as venues for regional contests and college students mentor young participants. The organization has used UTA as a venue for a competition in the past and will again next spring. Electrical engineering senior Isura Ranatunga said he enjoyed Kamen’s lecture. “I think it was one of the most inspiring talks I’ve heard in a long time,” Ranatunga said. “He raised a lot of questions about the future of humanity and how science and technology can help.” Electrical engineering professor J.C. Chiao said Kamen’s lecture was inspiring. Some of his students considered quitting working in their fields. He asked Kamen what was his message to people who consider giving up. “Not only is failure OK, but if you can’t get comfortable with failure, if you can’t learn to pick yourself up after you fail, what you will learn instead, is how to not fail. You learn to take less risks,” Kamen said. “You can learn how to not fail. But the subtle and dangerous, but unintended consequence, is that you’ll never succeed.” Views: 224 | E-mail
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