Examines the process of the development of an engineering design and discusses the causes of the unsuccessful designs of engineering structures

To Engineer Is Human: The Role of Failure in Successful Design

Engineering & Transportation

Petroski, Henry

Engineering

St Martins Pr

To engineer is human: The role of failure in successful design

How did a simple design error cause one of the great disasters of the 1980s - the collapse of the walkways at the Kansas City Hyatt Regency Hotel? What made the graceful and innovative Tacoma Narrows Bridge twist apart in a mild wind in 1940? How did an oversized waterlily inspire the magnificent Crystal Palace, the crowning achievement of Victorian architecture and engineering? These are some of the failures and successes that Henry Petroski, author of the acclaimed The Pencil, examines in this engaging, wonderfully literate book. More than a series of fascinating case studies, To Engineer is Human is a work that looks at our deepest notions of progress and perfection, tracing the fine connection between the quantifiable realm of science and the chaotic realities of everyday life.

Business & Money

VINTAGE

How did a simple design error cause one of the great disasters of the 1980s-the collapse of the walkways at the Kansas City Hyatt Regency Hotel? What made the graceful and innovative Tacoma Narrows Bridge twist apart in a mild wind in 1940? How did an oversized waterlily inspire the magnificent Crystal Palace, the crowning achievement of Victorian architecture and engineering? These are some of the failures and successes that Henry Petroski, author of the acclaimed The Pencil, examines in this engaging, wonderfully literate book. More than a series of fascinating case studies, To Engineer Is Human is a work that looks at our deepest notions of progress and perfection, tracing the fine connection between the quantifiable realm of science and the chaotic realities of everyday life.

Science & Math

Technology

Tantor Media Inc

1994 Barnes &amp; Noble hardcover, Henry Petroski (The House with Sixteen Handmade Doors: A Tale of Architectural Choice and Craftsmanship). The authori covers many of the best known examples of well-intentioned but ultimately failed design in action.

Computers & Technology

Graphics & Design

Barnes & Noble Books

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Books by Petroski, Henry