The car took a turn up a windy road into the mountains. From the back seat I got that sinking feeling in my stomach knowing I was likely going to be sick. My boss, who happened to be very conservative, was in the driver seat with his wife in the passenger seat next to him. Then the question came, “So Jake, what are your feelings about women in power and administration?” — Definitely gonna be sick.

(Time out)

I grew up with a stubborn, very blue-Democrat mother in stubborn, very red-Republican Idaho. My father, much like his, built his relationships on trust and therefore never … » More …

She approached with one of her friends and, I don’t really know why, I got that fun feeling of excitement and anticipation where the hairs all over your body seam to stand up a little. How she said “I need to talk to you about something,” said it all. I was so excited to know she was going to ask me out on a date. Sometimes you just know. Two years later we married.

You can imagine that relationships don’t exactly come natural to an intensely philosophical engineer. There was a streak in high school … » More …

The student walked down the hallway led by a scientist in a lab coat. A room was opened and they were sat in front of a microphone and a button. “The instructions are simple” said the study administrator. “You are to teach a person in another room simple facts to remember. If they get one wrong, you are to press this button. Each time you press the button the amount of electricity they are shocked with increases; eventually you can reach up to 450 volts.” Then the study administrator left and the student was left in the role of the teacher, to shock the person … » More …

I remember exactly where I was standing when I got the call.

My wife had gone into the hospital for a checkup on our first pregnancy.

As soon as I heard her voice I knew something was wrong.

She said I needed to get to the hospital right away.

I spun around to run to the hospital which was over a mile away and remembered how far away it was.

I spun around again to run home to my truck, which was a half mile away.

For what felt like an … » More …

I was in Madison for a conference and the annual Art Walk happened to be on the Capital Square. As I was walking through the displays, I noticed a strongly consistent theme: each booth had it’s own theme. Take a random sampling of pieces out of display booths, put them in a lineup, and ask a team of children to match them with the original display booths. I’d bet they’d match 80% or better.

Why?

Because the same artist made the pieces. Duh! But really, if artists are the creative ones, that produce works that correspond to a plausible human experience, that help us see … » More …

All the parents have been there. You arrive at a birthday party and discover the hosts rented a trampoline or bouncy house. You’re both excited and concerned at the same time. You know it will be fun for your child, but also a big safety risk… I myself have a fake front tooth in the place of one claimed by a trampoline in the second grade.

Before sending little Johnny or Jenny in, you take a quick scan to see how many other kids are on the bouncy surface, how fast they are moving, how empathic the big ones are to the little ones, and … » More …

When I was a junior in high school, my mom wanted to know what my summer plans were. I told her my plan was to lift weights and do football drills with fishing and mowing lawns on the side. She was not amused, “Football won’t help you pay for college. You need to get to work, make some money, and start studying.” Later that day my dad quietly told me I had a long life of work ahead of me and I should spend the summer having fun. Six months later I had a full-ride scholarship to play football.

Go no further than the 2016 … » More …

Students keep coming to me in search of advice, and leaving shocked that nobody told them this before. I have just 3 rules for success during your undergraduate engineering degree, but could really work in any major.

1. Get a circle of friends

It’s well known throughout the animal kingdom that animals who play with friends are smarter than those who don’t. Why? Empathy. Here’s an example: I was once trying to finish a large code for a homework … » More …

There.

I did it.

I finished it.

Now it’s time to go back and write the introduction.

Let’s see… how to tell a story that helps people empathize with why and how I decided to write this book?

Tell the story!

Studies have shown that when I tell the story like this, the same part of my brain lights up as in yours.

I’m in your head!

Or are you in mine?

Oh this is going to be fun.

(And hopefully not too … » More …

Back when I was on the University of Idaho football team I had the most interesting end to a conditioning workout imaginable. We’d just finished mandatory offensive line summer conditioning — about 16 of us 6’2″-6’8″ 280+ pound gorillas sweaty with our shirts off. Returning to the locker room in the Kibbie Dome we heard hip-hop music thumping inside the dome and saw flashing police lights. Like moths to a flame, we wondered in to see what was happening. The Dome floor had several police cars, a large military enforcement vehicle, blockades, and a line of about 50 police officers in full riot squad gear … » More …