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Major challenges in engineering and its role in society
Grandes retos de la ingeniería y su papel en la sociedad
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15446/ing.investig.v31n1SUP.27931Keywords:
engineering and society, engineer-training, engineering-challenges in the 21st century (en)ingeniería y sociedad, ingenieros-formación, ingeniería-retos en el siglo XXI (es)
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Engineering has a long historical tradition; it began as a discipline in the sixteenth century and reached maturity during the twentieth century. However, the twenty-first century's features strongly differentiate it from earlier times; when referring to this period, we speak of globalisation, knowledge society and national innovation systems. This is a period marked by contradictions. Technological developments and social and political changes have improved human beings' quality of life. New technologies have provided the context for its opening decade: nanotechnology, microelectronics and nanoelectronics, photonics, materials science, biotechnology, information and communications technology, logistics, medical engineering and renewable and clean energy. Technologies feed each other and off each other, offering endless possibilities for development. This is a time where the doors of political democratisation, art and culture have opened; however, it is also a world facing political, financial and environmental crisis. Colombia, particularly, is a country encountering problems regarding its competitiveness, having crippling levels of corruption and impunity, problems related to education, health and infrastructure. Colombia needs more engineers who can contribute towards resolving complex problems. Such engineers must have had excellent technical and humanistic training; they must be creative, able to work as a team, have become leaders who can listen and communicate and help develop a world to ensure that humans and other living species on earth can flourish with a uniform, durable level regarding their quality of life. Work must thus be done on critical engineering education and the present work presents some characteristics concerning what these engineers training/education should be.
La ingeniería tiene una larga e histórica tradición. Como disciplina se inició en el siglo XVI, y en el siglo XX llegó a su madurez. Sin embargo, el siglo XXI tiene características que lo diferencian fuertemente de épocas anteriores. Para referirse a esta época se habla de globalización, de sociedad del conocimiento y de sistemas nacionales de innovación. Ésta es una época caracterizada por contradicciones. Se han dado desarrollos tecnológicos, sociales y políticos que han permitido una mejora en la calidad de vida de los seres humanos. Nuevas tecnologías determinan el contexto de la década que comienza: nanotecnología, microelectrónica y nanoelectrónica, fotónica, ciencia de materiales, biotecnología, tecnologías de la información y la comunicación, logística, bioingeniería y energías limpias y renovables; tecnologías que se retroalimentan entre ellas ofreciendo infinitas posibilidades de desarrollo. Una época donde se han abierto las puertas de la democratización política, del arte y de la cultura. Pero también un mundo en crisis política, financiera y ambiental. Y un país con problemas de competitividad, con índices agobiantes de corrupción e impunidad, con problemas en educación, salud e infraestructura. Colombia requiere más ingenieros que puedan apoyar la solución de problemas de alta complejidad; ingenieros con excelente formación técnica y humanística, creativos, capaces de trabajar en equipo, líderes capaces de escuchar y de comunicarse y que ayuden a desarrollar un mundo que garantice que los humanos y las demás especies vivas florezcan en la tierra con un nivel de calidad de vida uniforme y duradero. Por esta razón, se debe trabajar en la formación de ingenieros críticos y se presentan algunas características de cómo debería ser la formación de dichos ingenieros.
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