On 11/14/13, Greg D ko6th.greg@gmail.com wrote:
<snip>
I often get a similar reaction when I talk about amateur radio, particularly from younger people. They can't quite grasp why I'd want to put together a station and, perhaps, talk with someone when there are easier ways of doing that. Even if I don't have any contacts, I like to find out just what the hardware can do and how far my signal can go. It's fun to know that I can reach a satellite that's, say, somewhere over the Arctic Ocean north of Siberia putting only 5 W into my Arrow yagi.
Don't give up hope. Not all of the next generation is a lost cause.
What surprised me was that I got the aforementioned reactions from--ahem!--engineering students or recent engineering graduates.
When I started my engineering studies 40 years ago, I had been an SWL for nearly 2 years and had QSLs from a number of foreign stations. Even then, I knew I wanted to get my callsign some day.
I haven't given up hope. I'm just saddened that amateur radio is viewed not as a technical activity that makes use of much of what's taught in university but more like an eccentricity.
I just got back from the 38th anniversary reunion of the original Homebrew Computer Club, a group from the '70's and '80's with similar objectives focused on learning, experimentation, and mentoring. The group was formed in 1975, and by a show of hands, the vast majority of those attending the sold out event weren't even born yet. But they were there, engaged, excited, and wanting to pick up the torch being symbolically passed to them. "Cool" to them has a lot in common with what it is to us - accomplishing something with skills and random parts in ways nobody thought possible.
One thing that's often forgotten is that hams were among the earliest users of personal computers.
To me (an early member of the club), there's still nothing more amazing than being able to stand in the middle of nowhere with my TH-D7, and bounce a packet off the International Space Station as it zips by at 18,000 miles per hour, resulting in a PC elsewhere on the planet "ding" with a new bit of email. Then talking to a (younger) co-worker, as I did last week, explaining how I did that, and getting a genuine "wow" in reply.
Hang in there. Initiatives such as what the FunCube team is doing will help get the word out, and the awareness up. And a new generation of "Wows" will be inspired.
I still get similar comments from people but it's usually from older adults.
73s
Bernhard VA6BMJ @ DO33FL