I am putting on my engineer’s (hard)hat tomorrow. I have to be an engineer again. I am speaking to 50+ people about why I came Cambridge and why I am a better engineer for it. How to talk about myself in public without sounding like a twat? Interesting problem. I’ve done it before but I’m afraid I will be twatful tomorrow.

It’s surprisingly easy, going back to being an engineer after months of being a social scientist, business student, technology policy scholar, and change agent. Even when I tried to think of non-engineering examples for my ‘script’, I couldn’t. All I came up with was engineering — it was all about construction and industry and water and sludge. I guess… I guess that’s what I am.

I kind of resent it.

You know what I need? I need an engineering role model. I want to talk to engineers that deal with the biggest of big pictures. I want to meet engineers who don’t always go for the technical solution (Don’t kid yourself, renewable energy is a technical solution. Why aren’t you dealing with demand management?). But maybe those that do that aren’t engineers, then.

As you can see, I am a bit crazy tonight.

Here is an example of engineering.

Isn’t it clever? Instead of using a spring to keep the gate shut, we have something even more low-tech. It’s a weight! Attached to a chain! Gravity does it all! How fantabulous.

You know you’re an engineer when you plan a trip to Paris and want to go to the Sewer Museum.