Dean's Message
Unobtainium, Unaffordium, Impossibilium and Handwavium
May 2023
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As a young engineer, I learned that the four essential elements never to be used in a mechanical design were Unobtainium, Unaffordium, Impossibilium and Handwavium.
Is this design wisdom out-of-date?
No, I don't think so. These four words connect engineers and computer scientists to the big issues that we can't ignore as technologists working for the public good.
Unobtainium is about supply chain resilience and security.
Unaffordium is about cost, especially the accurate accounting of hidden costs.
Impossibilium is about the folly of ignoring reality in all its forms: geopolitical, economic, and climate impact, all in addition to the physical laws of the world.
And Handwavium?
Well, I confess that my Italian upbringing ensures that I'll always gesture with my hands. But waving away the inconvenient details, the contingencies, and the consequences of engineering decisions and designs? No, absolutely not. Eliminating Handwavium from engineering education and research is more important now than ever.
Stepping back, I feel that Unobtainium, Unaffordium, Impossibilium and Handwavium are particularly relevant terms right now. They represent the temptations we must resist as we avoid the engineering shortcuts that lead to poor solutions. Staying on the right path is what it takes to become a technologist capable of driving positive outcomes for the largest number of people possible.
In fact, the great engineering schools of the next decade will keep finding better ways to educate and empower our students NOT to rely on these four elements of hasty expedience. We'll do this in education, in research, in industrial collaboration, and in entrepreneurship. We must inspire, educate and train our students to have the courage, the ability, and the discipline to do the hard work to seek out the "best opposites" of Unobtainium, Unaffordium, Impossibilium and Handwavium.
This is how we work at the Jacobs School of Engineering. If you're interested in engaging with us in these efforts, please get in touch. As always, I can be reached at: DeanPisano@ucsd.edu
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-Al
Albert P. Pisano
Dean, UC San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering