> I have to admit that the days are long gone when an ordinary engineer needs to study algorithms in depth

Even that I architect and write software for a living, I don't consider myself an engineer, but a computer scientist. I've studied Computer Science in University, not Engineering. I like to understand how things work, why they work, how would they work if anything would be changed. I like to try, discover and do new things, not new only for me, but things which weren't done previously. And that is impossible without a solid understanding of theoretical principles and continuous learning.

If I wouldn't be into computers, I could see myself as a mathematician, physicist, biologist, doctor, artist or architect but not as an engineer since I do like to go deeply to the root of knowledge, not just apply the said knowledge.

I see a great value in engineering mentality, but it's just not for me.