What Advice Did Catherine Lacavera Give as a Convocation 2017 Honorary Degree Recipient?

TL;DR

Catherine Lacavera advises the graduating class of 2017 to combine passion with ability, embrace change, take chances on uncertain opportunities, and collect experiences rather than things. Drawing on her shifts from chemical engineering to computer engineering, law, an MBA, and technology work at Google, she argues that an engineering education supplies a durable way to solve problems. Read on for her views on innovation, responsibility, and career decisions.

Transcript

good morning everyone thank you to president Gertler and Sabine Aman and Sabine Iacobucci and to Professor Nam here somewhere professor Ozaki and the awards committee for the very very great honor of this degree and for the great privilege of addressing all of you here today congratulations to the graduating class of 2017 you have made it as dean a... Read More

Key Insights

• 🤔 Engineering is not just a degree but a way of thinking that empowers individuals to solve real-world problems.
• 🙈 The last two decades have seen significant advancements in technology, and engineers have played a pivotal role in these advancements.
• 👮 Legal battles have shaped the future of technology, and engineers must continue to navigate the evolving laws and ethical implications.
• 🏑 Embracing change, taking risks, and gathering experiences are key to personal and professional growth in the engineering field.
• 🌐 Engineering graduates have the opportunity to build a global network, stay connected, and support each other's successes.
• 🏑 The speaker shares their own experiences of switching career paths, highlighting the value of embracing change and learning from different fields.
• 👻 The speaker encourages graduates to compete only with themselves and to allow their imagination to drive their success.

Questions & Answers

Q: What advice did Catherine Lacavera give the graduating class of 2017?

Lacavera advises graduates to find work they both love and are good at, while remaining willing to change direction. She urges them to take chances on opportunities cloaked in uncertainty, gather experiences and memories rather than things, and recognize the golden moments they are living.

Q: Why does Catherine Lacavera describe an engineering degree as more than a piece of paper?

She calls engineering a way of thinking and a method for tackling and solving problems. The degree provides a foundation and a set of tools graduates can use to build, create, and turn dreams into reality.

Q: How do engineers turn science fiction into science fact?

Lacavera says engineers transform ideas into reality by designing roads and buildings, cleaning water, filtering air, detecting disease-related genes, formulating drugs, and coding the digital world. Their work addresses increasingly difficult problems and supports a healthier, happier, and sustainable future.

Q: What technological changes does Catherine Lacavera highlight from the previous two decades?

She contrasts the barely established internet of 1997 with smart phones, smart cars, smart homes, and smart cities. She also mentions plant-based hamburger meat, diabetes-detecting contact lenses, delivery drones, self-driving electric cars, disease-diagnosing algorithms, and increasingly humanlike robots.

Q: Which technology-related legal battles did Catherine Lacavera work on?

Lacavera says she fought legal battles involving free expression on the internet, YouTube and other user-generated content platforms, Android open-source software, and the Java programming language. She also names genetically engineered cotton and corn and the advent of self-driving cars.

Q: What legal and ethical challenges does Catherine Lacavera expect engineers to face?

She says laws are still evolving as they try to keep pace with innovation. The challenges ahead include the legality and ethics of artificial intelligence, genetic engineering, life-extending technologies, privacy, data security, and technologies the graduates may create.

Q: What does the iron ring represent in Catherine Lacavera’s speech?

Lacavera describes the iron ring as light on an engineer’s finger but heavy with meaning. It recalls the fallen iron bridge and serves as a reminder of the responsibility engineers carry for their important work.

Q: How did changing careers and locations shape Catherine Lacavera’s own path?

She moved from chemical engineering to computer engineering, then from engineering to law and an MBA. She also shifted from genetics and pharmaceuticals in big law to computer technology at Google, while moving among New York, Silicon Valley, Munich, and London; she says these leaps of faith helped her grow and learn.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• The speaker reflects on the honor of addressing the graduating class and highlights the accomplishments of engineers in various fields.

• Engineering is not just a degree but a way of thinking that provides the foundation and tools to solve problems and turn dreams into reality.

• The speaker emphasizes the importance of embracing change, taking risks, and gathering experiences to grow and succeed in the engineering world.