Something new to be terrorfied about: Engineers overrepresented in extremist groups

[Phlegmak]

http://www.eetimes.com/news/latest/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=205920319

The PDF linked to in the article, which I haven't read: http://www.nuff.ox.ac.uk/users/gambetta/Engineers of Jihad.pdf

The article states that engineers are overrepresented among extremist groups, and religion and national origin are irrelevant.

MANHASSET, N.Y. " Is there a thread that ties engineers to Islamic terrorism?

There certainly is, according to Diego Gambetta and Steffen Hertog at Oxford University, who recently published a paper titled, "Engineers of Jihad." The authors call the link to terrorism "the engineer's mindset."

The sociology paper published last November, which has been making rounds over the Internet and was recently picked up by The Atlantic, uses illustrative statistics and qualitative data to conclude that there is a strong relationship between an engineering background and involvement in a variety of Islamic terrorist groups. The authors have found that graduates in subjects such as science, engineering, and medicine are strongly overrepresented among Islamist movements in the Muslim world. The authors also note that engineers, alone, are strongly over-represented among graduates who gravitate to violent groups.

However, contrary to popular speculation, it's not technical skills that make engineers attractive recruits to radical groups. Rather, the authors pose the hypothesis that "engineers have a 'mindset' that makes them a particularly good match for Islamism," which becomes explosive when fused by the repression and vigorous radicalization triggered by the social conditions they endured in Islamic countries.

But what is the engineer's mindset?

The authors call it a mindset that inclines them to take more extreme conservative and religious positions.

A past survey in the United States has already shown that the proportion of engineers who declare themselves to be on the right of the political spectrum is greater than any other disciplinary groups--such as economists, doctors, scientists, and those in the humanities and social sciences.

The authors note that the mindset is universal.

Whether American, Canadian or Islamic, they pointed out that a disproportionate share of engineers seem to have a mindset that makes them open to the quintessential right-wing features of "monism" (why argue where there is one best solution) and by "simplism" (if only people were rational, remedies would be simple).

This should be deliciously juicy material for the anti-education conservatives in the world. (The anti-education conservatives I refer to use the word "intelligencia" and believe that universities are radical liberal breeding grounds and that teachers "indoctrinate" students. That group includes Sean Hannity and various people on this forum.)

So what should we do? Lock up the engineers in a "detention camp", like what Mike Gallagher suggested we do with antiwar celebrities?

 

[Babbler]

http://www.eetimes.com/news/latest/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=205920319

The PDF linked to in the article, which I haven't read: http://www.nuff.ox.ac.uk/users/gambetta/Engineers of Jihad.pdf

The article states that engineers are overrepresented among extremist groups, and religion and national origin are irrelevant.



This should be deliciously juicy material for the anti-education conservatives in the world. (The anti-education conservatives I refer to use the word "intelligencia" and believe that universities are radical liberal breeding grounds and that teachers "indoctrinate" students. That group includes Sean Hannity and various people on this forum.)

So what should we do? Lock up the engineers in a "detention camp", like what Mike Gallagher suggested we do with antiwar celebrities?

Did you read the article:

The authors call it a mindset that inclines them to take more extreme conservative and religious positions.

A past survey in the United States has already shown that the proportion of engineers who declare themselves to be on the right of the political spectrum is greater than any other disciplinary groups--such as economists, doctors, scientists, and those in the humanities and social sciences.

The authors note that the mindset is universal.

Whether American, Canadian or Islamic, they pointed out that a disproportionate share of engineers seem to have a mindset that makes them open to the quintessential right-wing features of "monism" (why argue where there is one best solution) and by "simplism" (if only people were rational, remedies would be simple).

We have meet the enemy, and he is us.

 

[mrt144]

engineers are also dullards. that is a crime in itself

 

[Phlegmak]

Did you read the article:



We have meet the enemy, and he is us.

Yeah, I read it.

Also:
I'm a computer programmer. I wonder if that makes me prone to radical violence. So far, the answer would have to be "no".

 

[IglooDame]

I'm a network engineer that regularly practices poisoning drinking water, fomenting rebellion, and occasionally nuking cities. Fortunately it's only Civ4.

 

[Babbler]

There is also a Slashdot story, with some interesting comments

 

[Phlegmak]

There is also a Slashdot story, with some interesting comments

Slashdot is where I got this from.

 

[Jawz II]

Well it makes sense, I mean their minds have to make sense of all things, and can't accept "I dunno" as an answer to the big questions (why we are here, etc).

Scary, 2 of the people I love most in the whole world, are engineers.

 

[nivi]

There was a study which said that proportionally more suicide bombers in Israel were University educated, so I guess this isn't too surprising.

 

[rmxtrax]

There was a study which said that proportionally more suicide bombers in Israel were University educated, so I guess this isn't too surprising.

Naturally those people are only a bunch of idiots

i will never suicide myself after 18 years of study
it's very very stupid

 

[MOTH]

its pretty simple. Engineers like to blow things up (then you get to build new stuff). If we don't give me<del><del> them a way to vent this desire then they will go to these extreme groups.

Its only natural that they are more likely to go the right than the left as most of those leftie liberals don't want me to blow things up (bad for the environment and all that)

 

[The Yankee]

I'm a network engineer that regularly practices poisoning drinking water, fomenting rebellion, and occasionally nuking cities. Fortunately it's only Civ4.

It's not because you're a network engineer. It's because you're in New Hampshire.

 

[rmxtrax]

It's because you're in New Hampshire.

also in italy engineers play CIV 4

 

[Mise]

Educational profiling anyone?

Profession should definitely be used to narrow down the number of suspects in cases of terrorism.

 

[Ecofarm]

I hate to be the one to be un-PC and point out the obvious, but...

Ever taken a stroll over to the engineering department at your univ? It's like India and the Middle East are field testing their Epcot displays. Do you know an Indian who's not an engineering major?!

 

[Mise]

I hate to be the one to be un-PC and point out the obvious, but...

Ever taken a stroll over to the engineering department at your univ? It's like India and the Middle East are field testing their Epcot displays. Do you know an Indian who's not an engineering major?!

Most are doctors. If they're not smart enough to be a doctor they become engineers or computer programmers. Sometimes they become lawyers, but only if they have a family member who is a lawyer.

Pakistanis, OTOH, become cornershop owners.

 

[innonimatu]

Education is an absolute requirement for the effectiveness of modern propaganda. People must consume the "information" produced by the media, read books, understand the basics about politics, in order to be indoctrinated with any ideology. That, by itself, should explain this.

To make things worse the education engineers receive (I should know) doesn't include anything about humanities. Thus they are not prepared to challenge what propaganda reaches them. The irrational they will challenge, but anything that appears rational has a good chance of influencing them.

 

[Phlegmak]

I hate to be the one to be un-PC and point out the obvious, but...

Ever taken a stroll over to the engineering department at your univ? It's like India and the Middle East are field testing their Epcot displays. Do you know an Indian who's not an engineering major?!

Yes, I have, and don't forget the article says that religion and nationality are irrelevant.

 

[mrt144]

I hate to be the one to be un-PC and point out the obvious, but...

Ever taken a stroll over to the engineering department at your univ? It's like India and the Middle East are field testing their Epcot displays. Do you know an Indian who's not an engineering major?!

you know whose fault that is? the american student's.

i say if we already accept them into college, why not keep them here and offer them citizenship? absorb the most talented people for the betterment of all americans. it isn't like they are taking the jobs of blue collared americans

 

[Mise]

Funny thing is, Indian universities are beginning to surpass American and British universities in quality of education for many subjects. One day, Indians will be commenting that British and Americans are overrepresented in Indian Engineering departments.