That's me! Engineers (the real ones, not boiler repair men) are practical scientists. They have to both comprehend and apply the science. Theoretical scientists spend all their time trying to get funding for their pet theories and projects and very often fail to see the bigger picture. Some of them do some useful stuff but before you get too excited about their research you should always look to see who's funding it.
(My original comment didn't say 'better', I said that engineers were way ahead of scientists, or was it 'beyond'?)