Dear Arlen,
Thanks for your reply to me questions on arcing. Perhaps you are a genius
and can remember everything you've every been taught in a classroom. I
do not.
>
>Being new to the group may explain lack of expertise on tubes, but it
>does not explain absence of knowledge of undergraduate physics.
>
>Sorry to be so rough, Jon, but ... I've spent a good bit of my career
>attempting to prove to the powers that be that our higher educational
>system is going to the dogs and...well...fifteen years ago no junior
>could have asked the questions you ask, so I believe my point is
>demonstrated, although not proven. So I've an emotional stake here, but
>not attached to tubes, merely to the evident failures of higher
>education.
Well, I went to the number 4 school in the world for EE, the University
of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. You would think that the education I
received there would save me the embarassement of asking such "stupid"
questions. However, I have forgotten more of what I learned than I can
remember. Why? I don't use it every day. Unless knowledge is put to
use on a regular basis, it is soon forgotten. I once knew how to do
triple integrals, chemical formulas, differential equations,etc. If I
tried to do them today, nearly 9 years after leaving college, I'd
probably have a tough time. Why? In the commercial design world of
corporate America, the most complex math one generally uses is high
shcool algebra. You don't mess with the theoretical stuff that requires
the complex math.
So what good is a college education then? Well, it taught me how to
solve problems! I constantly wondered during my freshman year why I
needed to take chemistry - something I'd never use. It's true. I never
use it. However, it taught me a great deal about problem solving.
Secondly, even at a school like UIUC, the undergrad education leaves a
lot to be desired. Most profs are more concerned about their reasearch
and grad students than the undergrads. You have teaching assistants that
can barely speak english that teach. You have other TAs that while they
can speak English, all they do is copy examples from the book onto the
black board and expect you to learn. You have professors so arrogant
that they threaten to fail the whole class if you don't do things their
way.
So was I taugh about arcs in sophmore physics? Probably. However, I can
tell you that my TA was a knucklehead grad student who cared only about
his research and not about students. The guy couldn't teach. As human
beings we tend to block out unpleasant situations from our minds. Is it
any wonder than that I don't remember all I learned?
The key to learning is to never stop. The only stupid question is the
one not asked. I am sorry if mine seemed so basic for someone who is
supposedly an RF designer. Too bad. In all my years in the commercial
world, I never once worried about arcs in a vacuum. Never dealt with it.
So now, I need to come back and have my memory jogged.
Your answer was complete and very good. I appreciate it. I feel it is
also very accurate. However, don't expect people to remember everything
they have ever been taught regardless of how good or bad their education
was or is. We forget that which we do not use. Again, maybe you can
remember it all. Most of us can't.
>Not learning what you're exposed to creates ignorance.
WRONG. That's about the most arrogant attitude that I can think of.
Ignorance comes from being afraid to ask questions regardless of wether
you learned it before or not.
73,
Jon
KE9NA
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jon Ogden
jono@webspun.com
www.qsl.net/ke9na
"A life lived in fear is a life half lived."
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