Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1104607
8 PCB007 MAGAZINE I APRIL 2019 I've been doing some research lately on the process of being creative. As manag- ing editor, this role often encourages (and sometimes forces) me to deliver a lot of creative material—and on a schedule, no less. In some ways, I didn't know I had it in me, this near-ballistic in- crease in my output. I mean, creativi- ty is an artistic talent, right? I'm more of a mathematician than a musician, myself. But coming nose-to-nose with that assumption spurred me to look into other research on the cre- ative process. One creativity expert is James Clear [1] who wrote, "The creative process is the act of making new connections between old ideas or recognizing rela- tionships between con- cepts." Clear continued, "Creative thinking is not about generating some- thing new from a blank slate, but rather about taking what is already present and combining those bits and pieces in a way that has not been done previously." Search for a definition of "en- gineering" and Wikipedia deliv- ers this example: "…the application of knowledge in the form of science, math- ematics, and empirical evidence to innovation, design, construction, operation, and main- tenance." Further, "The term engineering is derived from the Latin ingenium, mean- ing 'cleverness' and ingeniare, meaning 'to contrive, devise.'" No matter how often engineers say that engineering is more of a science than an art, it is still true that engineering is inherently cre - ative. This issue of PCB007 Magazine wraps up our extended coverage of the youth in the industry. Youth and creativity are two words that tend to go together. Based on various indus- try reports, the ongoing staffing gaps that electronics manufacturers face is likely to get worse be- fore it gets better. Unless, of course, industry-wide steps in leadership and creative outreach pro- grams are enacted. And there are two pieces of hopeful news in all this. First, industry groups are organizing. SEMI, SMTA, NextFlex, and IPC are all engaged in educational out- reach and skill-based train- ing programs. A number of these programs intentionally target the excitement of STEM creativity. Aca- demic youth are being engaged in more Nolan's Notes by Nolan Johnson, I-CONNECT007 Youth in the Industry– Reaching New Heights