All the companies and locations I included have a common and obvious theme. They are all defense companies or directly contribute to national defense. The United States has been a world power for mostly good since the conclusion of World War II. Companies like the ones on my road trip have made that power for good possible by arming U.S. warfighters with the tools they need to win or by arming those that align with the U.S. national interest. The engineers at these companies are constantly innovating what is possible by looking ahead. Much of what they do does not seem possible. The innovations that are created to keep the U.S. on top often make their way into products and services for the average person to enjoy. Cell phones, Global Positioning System, and commercial jets all came from engineers trying to create something that would help in national defense. I have not been to all the locations on my road trip before, but all the companies or agencies have touched and affected my life in many ways. For the last 8 years, I have worked with and on their products. I personally like and enjoy them. I look forward to the future when I have my electrical engineering degree and can work for one of these companies or one like them to help make things that will assist in the U.S. national interest or in making things the average person can enjoy. From looking into these companies, I have learned that I have quite a variety of work ahead of me and boredom in my work is not likely to be a feeling I will have.