Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/477523
40 The PCB Design Magazine • March 2015 enough to say, 'It works but if something goes wrong, we'll just stop in a port and fix it.' It's not like you're driving on the highway and you need a new tire or a new battery. You're shit out of luck if these things don't work reliably. They're designed for long life but people are shocked when I tell them, 'We have nuclear power to aircraft carriers that can operate for 18 years without refueling,' which means ev- erything in there has to be ultra-reliable. What good is it if things break down all the time? On TEChnOLOGy: Barry: What is your opinion on the direc- tion of technological progress? Stanton: My motto, mantra, is that techno- logical progress comes from doing things differ- ently in an unpredictable way. The future is not an extrapolation of the past. You have to change how you do things. Some people don't realize that. I lecture at a lot of universities. I run into opposition from the nasty, noisy, negativists as I call them. You can't get here from there. It's im- possible. An outstanding astronomer of the 19 th century, Simon Newcomb said, 'Man will never fly in an airplane.' Two months later, the Wright Brothers made their first flight. The year before Sputnik, Astronomer Royal Sir Richard van der Riet Woolley was quoted in Time Magazine as saying that 'space flight is utter bilge' and that 'nobody would every pay for it. What we need is better instruments for astronomy.' Mankind has a long history of underestimating change. On the ELECTROnICS MAnUFACTURInG InDUSTRy and UFO RESEARCh: Barry: Tell me about your experience here, at our industry event. Stanton: This industry, well, I'm intrigued to be here for two reasons. First, it's proof that technological progress comes from doing things differently in an unpredictable way because whatever they're doing today is altogether dif- ferent than the way it would have been done 20 years ago. Second, this is an international meeting. At least 49 countries are represented here. I am very worried about how we look to the aliens as a primitive society when our ma- jor activity is tribal warfare. We only killed 50 million people during WWII. That's pretty sad commentary, but here I see people from all over the world. They're exchanging ideas, talking to each other, being friendly, if you will, with each other instead of each one sticking to his own thing. We all realize there's benefit from inter- change. You may lose some sales, but in the big- ger picture you're better off. I'm very pleased about it. I've got an eight-year-old great-grand- son. I try to envision what the world is going to be like when he grows up. Barry: It's a real treat to talk to you today. I really appreciate your time. Stanton: My pleasure. I've enjoyed this con- ference. PCBDESIGn 2015 IPC aPeX eXPo show review show review