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b_b · 4695 days ago · link · · parent · post: Why should you learn math? Because fuck you, that's why.
I too left engineering because I got so annoyed at the lack of a scientific approach. I hated engineering school in my third and fourth year, but thought maybe it would be better when making a paycheck. Fuck that. I worked from Chrysler in the final year or two it was owned by the Germans, and it was miserable. No one could possibly care any less about doing anything scientifically in that company, and you can see the result in the cars, unfortunately. That's why I quit and went into physics for grad work.
That said, safety factors can be important, mainly because material defects exist so often. Its easier to over-design by a factor of 2-10 than it is to perform quality inspections constantly (not to mention the whole lawsuit protection game).