I love the TED talks. I get a new one every day downloaded to my iPad. They provide a wealth of information in short talks that are always quite interesting. Here’s one for you process engineers–one of your colleagues was found to have a problem with his rising aorta. It was swelling and would someday burst, sort of like a weak radiator hose.
Surgery plus a chemical regimen, the usual course of therapy for the condition, was particularly unappealing. He did what any good engineer would do–he defined it as a problem and set about to solve the problem. In the course of his work, he assembled a team that included a CAD engineer, mechanical engineer, surgeons, radiologists and more. The project proved once again the value of cross-discipline teams for solving complex problems.
They invented a simple solution, put it in his body, and he’s been better for 7 years. They have done the procedure many more times saving a tremendous amount of money and grief.
Here’s his story: