Thomas Friedman Congress Video Now Online

At the keynote event during the 2012 ASME International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition, author and New York Times columnist Thomas L. Friedman described how engineers and other professionals in America can remain relevant in a fast-changing, "hyper-connected" world.

During the 2012 ASME Congress last November, keynote speaker Thomas Friedman said that in the new hyper-connected world, engineers will have to rise above "average" through creativity and non-stop learning.

During his speech, one of the highlights of a dynamic conference program that drew more than 3,500 people to Houston last November, Friedman said that the key to maintaining our footing in this hyper-connected global environment was to improve education and skills across the labor spectrum. Knowledge and skills that previously guaranteed good jobs are no longer enough. "The central most important socioeconomic fact of our time," Friedman said, is "that average is officially over. To put this in more concrete labor terms, the high-wage, medium skill job, the foundation of the American middle class ... has disappeared."

If you weren't able to attend the Congress — or would just like to hear Friedman discuss his concepts again — you can now watch a video clip from his presentation, "Average is Over," on ASME.org.

Be sure to check out the accompanying article on ASME.org, Thomas L. Friedman Keynote Address to ASSME's 2012 Annual Congress.