The United States could not build a Saturn 5 rocket if we wanted to today. The unique set of skills needed to built one died out. Certain material sciences and mechanical skills are gone with the people who once knew them. It’s not that we can’t build rockets. We just can’t build them like we used to. In general that’s not a disaster, but sometimes those skills would have saved a lot of reinventing the wheel.
I’ve an engineer friend who was hired after two years of retirement. His unique set of skills are quickly dying out. He’s one of the “young” ones with the skill set and he’s 64. The industry he works for isn’t training new people. They are poaching workers from each other instead. That’s not a long term plan for success but in the short term it’s cheaper. The bean counters are happy with short term results.
On the other hand I know someone in her 50s who works for another industry. Her skills are also dying out. However, a big company just hired her. Their plan over the next two years is to move her into a full time teaching position. My bet is that five or ten years from now that company will be at the top of their industry. They think ahead.
It’s surprising how many useful skills are allowed to die out. There are exceptions. I’ve a friend in his early 40s who knows a lot of old timey ways. When he was a kid he spent a lot of time with old timers learning their skills. He’d fit in just fine if dropped into the 18th century. A lot of those skills are local homesteading knowledge that isn’t written down anywhere. I hope his kids are paying attention.
-Sixbears
Lack of Skills and social supporting efforts are why Africa for all its natural wealth (mostly hauled away for Europe to work with) is still a 3rd world shithole full of tribalism and poverty.
ReplyDeleteSee South Africa as a morality play about the real time (tm) loss of skillsets to keep up a modern society.
America, Rome 2.0 but with Wi Fi.
1800's technology is a good skillset to know.
Africa was once a land of Kings. Problem is the Kings became corrupted and The Devil is strumming the strings. As for modern society, give me a fiddle and I'll play as it burns down. Where's the restart button? 80)
DeleteSkills are one thing. Being in a society where your efforts are protected instead of being stolen is something else.
DeleteThat's the nut 6 bears. To grow a garden and lose it to trampling feet and theft makes it nearly impossible to survive, let alone grow a thriving society with things like art and architecture.
DeleteJohn, are you first or second fiddle to Nero? chuckling.
Oh, him... He needed a teacher at some point. 80)
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