I agree that programming is a young man's game. But is this true of more traditional branches of engineering, such as Civil, Chemical, Materials Engineering? I

I agree that programming is a young man's game. But is this true of more traditional branches of engineering, such as Civil, Chemical, Materials Engineering? In Electrical and Software Engineering, Moore's Law means the technology really does change very quickly, and with it the surface skills required. Oddly, though, it seems that the same concepts are often reinvented, just with incompatible surfaces. For example, OO languages and XML are popular today... and two decades ago, OODBMS and SGML were popular (though in a narrower domain). My personal solution is to try to learn universal skills that will always be needed: communication skills, mathematics skills, business skills, investment skills, project management skills, general problem-solving skills etc. Within that set, I try to choose those skills that I like and value, and for which I have some aptitude. But of course, you can't get anything done without surface skills.