[johnparkerg]

I think this is just a reflection of the gap between academia and the real world. One could argue that the problem is the lack of a 'trial and error' philosophy in 'theory and practice' or that scientists couldn't possibly develop so much if they were bothered with the real world.

I believe the true problem lies in our need to categorize people as either scientists and theoretical engineers or down-to-earth engineers, which only polarizes the spectrum.