Engineering superheroes

These were all questions I raised in a previous blog 'Engineering, the Nobel Occupation', which was very widely received. Interestingly, many agreed that the industry does not receive the recognition it deserves, that it was in fact a 'noble' occupation. Engineers are rarely credited by society for the impact of their groundbreaking work but then again, prizes aren't why they're doing it. We asked if there was to be named an engineering hero – someone whose work has made significant advances and impacted society greatly – who would it be? Those in favour of modern day heroes voted Steve Jobs, who has made electronics more aesthetic and mainstream, highlighting the significance of engineers work in our daily lives. Another clear favourite was Claude Elwood Shannon, who for some, was seen as the founding father of electronics. Others felt recognition should be given to the early innovators of the industry, arguing that the effect of a brilliant engineer's discoveries are only realised years after they have gone and today's advancements and evolving technologies could only be made possible by the genius discoveries made before them. They felt that engineers today 'stand on the shoulders of giants' that they owe their success to the brilliant minds and discoveries of their predecessors. If in fact the industry owes its success to its early innovators does that mean it's not possible to crown a modern day engineering hero? Nobel Prizes are not given posthumously and so none of the early influencers would be eligible. Does that mean engineers, past and present go unrecognised? Perhaps there is no clear engineering hero in today's society because he (or she!) simply doesn't exist. Maybe we can't name an engineering hero because the industry has evolved and become so complex that it takes a whole team of brilliance to create the technology we have come to love. There is no one person who singlehandedly possesses all the knowledge to create the impact engineering has on today's society. Although someone like Steve Jobs is regarded as a pioneer for Apple, he didn't work alone. Instead of searching for a sole modern day hero should we be applauding engineering teams, who collectively, have changed the world we live in? Should we be applauding their humble sense of teamwork in pursuit of their achievements? Given that engineering teams, together, make a greater impact to our lives, should they be applauded to a greater extent than say, football teams are applauded for their teamwork on the pitch? A group I recently spotted on a social networking site named 'I want to study hard but there is no Nobel Prize in Engineering' highlights the demand for higher recognition in the industry. The Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering is doing just that, with £1million awarded to a "groundbreaking advance in engineering which has led to significant international public benefit". The QE Prize is dubbed as the 'British Nobel Prize for Engineering', but is this enough recognition for the industry which has such a global impact on today's modern society? Anndeep Sandhu is a marketing executive with Enigma People Solutions.