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From: charlie@lindy.Stanford.EDU (Charlie Channel)
Newsgroups: sci.space.shuttle
Subject: Re: Hubble test
Message-ID: <10421@lindy.Stanford.EDU>
Date: 13 Jul 90 14:46:41 GMT
References: <269a39a1-13esci.space.shuttle@vpnet.chi.il.us>
Sender: charlie@lindy.Stanford.EDU (Charlie Channel)
Reply-To: charlie@lindy.Stanford.EDU (Charlie Channel)
Organization: Stanford University
Lines: 25

In article <269a39a1-13esci.space.shuttle@vpnet.chi.il.us> cgordon@vpnet.chi.il.us (Gordon Hlavenka) writes:
>
>Corrective lens in the camera?  Leave it to some programmer to recommend a
>hardware solution!  If they can't get a ten foot mirror right, what makes
>anyone think they can get a two inch (or whatever) lens right?
>-----------------------------------------------------------
>Gordon S. Hlavenka                  cgordon@vpnet.chi.il.us
If I may take a moment to be somewhat philosophical about this matter,
it seems to me that it must be a very great disappointing for those
who have put so much time, energy and life (not to mention money) into
making the thing work.

I feel that those in science may, on occasion, forget that life is an
imperfect science.  Put another way, applied science is artistically
using technology.  And for the stuff to work, an artist is necessary.
The real scientific genius is the the person with knowledge, who knows
how to "fudge" in a way that (1) maintains the integrity of the
"science" being used and (2) achieves the desired result.  Short of
that, what you need is a technician who remembers that a field
replacable unit may be more expensive, but at least nothing need be
known about whatever it is that's being replaced.  The technician's
job is to convince management that they might consider that in design.
Otherwise, give management the screw driver and let 'em go for it.

Charlie