George D. Catalano

In a 2005 Ted talk, the architect William McDonough started his presentation with a question, “What is a bird?” We could respond with the dictionary definition: a warm-blooded egg-laying vertebrate distinguished by the possession of feathers, wings, and a beak and (typically) by being able to fly. That would work for birds in the natural world but what of birds that we create as toys for children? Consider the ubiquitous bright yellow rubber duck.  In California it comes with the warning, “This product contains chemicals known by the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm.”  That bird is a product of our work as makers of things. Perhaps we need to pose different questions when we practice our engineering profession. The purpose of the present work is formulate a new set of questions and to suggest that answers might result in a new engineering discipline which “loves all the children of all the species for all time.” That new discipline in engineering is referred to herein as omnium engineering. It arises from the nexus of the noble goals of humanitarian engineering with an expansion of those who matter to include the “species of all children for all time.” A literal translation of the Latin word omnium is “all” or “all beings” yet in the context of engineering it could be extended to more fully describe an engineering profession that considers the wants and needs of all life forms not only that of the human species. Such an engineering would take at its root the prayer offered by the Lakota , Mitákuye Oyás’i? (“All Are Related”).  That prayer reflects the world view of interconnectedness held by the Lakota people and translates in English as “all my relatives,” “we are all related,” or “all my relations.” It is a prayer of oneness and harmony with all forms of life: other people, animals, birds, insects, trees and plants, and even rocks, rivers, mountains and valleys.