Wimps and nerds

Top Gear, the popular BBC programme has its own iconic racing driver, The Stig. But, we at Know+How have our own answer. Some say he was built from used parts following the annual maintenance shutdown, others that he emerged fully formed from a vat of chemicals…all we know is that he's a tame maintenance engineer and he's called, The Tig.

In the first Triple xXx movie, when the scientists and engineers were forced to create a killer virus and an ingenious method of delivering it worldwide, they were portrayed as timid men in lab coats who were cynically terminated by the šbaddie' after they had created the weapon. It's a far cry from the šheroes' of yesteryear, who were responsible for bridges, roads, ships and the infrastructure that brought wealth and posterity to Western Europe. Latterly even the achievements of the space programmes are struggling to look good, despite the best efforts of Brian Cox and his excellent Wonders of the Solar System series bringing some of the most fantastic technology-driven imagery to our eyes, in a context that adds wonder and awe.

The infrastructure of the country is seen by the media to be crumbling, and with a greater awareness of environmental issues it is difficult to avoid the image of science and engineering as the cause of a potential technical dystopia, more akin to the blighted Earth of Blade Runner than any ideal of common technological progress. The attitude of the population as a whole is also bent towards complaining that life is difficult and that roadworks, computers and any gadget or machine that does not work perfectly are a cause of huge stress and annoyance.

Better maintenance and engineering are vital and we need to make our case. Communication is, after all, the art of being understood.

If you have a good example of making improvements, or a blatant case of šI-told-you-so' that needs to be aired (you'll remain anonymous, of course) email The Tig on TheTig@eriks.co.uk and we'll include it in the next issue.