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The things we make : the unknown history of invention from cathedrals to soda cans / Bill Hammack PH.D.

By: Material type: TextTextPublisher: Naperville, Illinois : Sourcebooks, [2023]Copyright date: ©2023Description: xii, 251 pages : illustrations ; 22 cmContent type:
  • text
  • still image
Media type:
  • unmediated
Carrier type:
  • volume
ISBN:
  • 9781728215754
  • 1728215757
Subject(s):
Contents:
The invisible method: how to build a cathedral without mathematics, science, or a yardstick -- Best: the Vitruvian man, kodachrome, and the constant search for better -- Uncertainty: the art of the unknown and how engineers use it to create solutions -- Resources: from Mesopotamia to the Islamic empire to space- how materials, energy, and knowledge shape everything -- Engineering mindset: the three key strategies that created a ceramic masterpiece (and every other innovation) -- Science: the gold standard for rules of thumb -- Mathematics: how engineers offend mathematicians to predict the future -- Invention: the myth of the lone inventor and the race to light the world -- Conclusion: what the microwave oven teaches us about innovation, technology, and how the engineering method can save the world.
Summary: "In this book, Bill Hammack, better known as The Engineer Guy, takes us on a whirlwind tour of how humans built the world we know today. From the grand stone arches of medieval cathedrals to the mundane modern soda can, Hammack explains the golden rule of thumb that underlies every new building technique, every technological advancement, and every creative solution that leads us one step closer to a better, more functional world. Perfect for readers of Adam Grant and Jared Diamond, this fascinating examination of the method that keeps pushing humanity forward is a spotlight on the achievements of the past and a celebration of the potential of our future"-- Provided by publisher.
Holdings
Item type Home library Collection Call number Materials specified Status Date due Barcode Item holds
Adult Book Adult Book Dr. James Carlson Library NonFiction 620 H224 Available 33111011048515
Adult Book Adult Book Main Library NonFiction 620 H224 Available 33111011258221
Adult Book Adult Book Northport Library NonFiction 620 H224 Available 33111009467982
Total holds: 0

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Discover the secret method used to build the world...

For millennia, humans have used one simple method to solve problems. Whether it's planting crops, building skyscrapers, developing photographs, or designing the first microchip, all creators follow the same steps to engineer progress. But this powerful method, the "engineering method", is an all but hidden process that few of us have heard of--let alone understand--but that influences every aspect of our lives.

Bill Hammack, a Carl Sagan award-winning professor of engineering and viral "The Engineer Guy" on Youtube, has a lifelong passion for the things we make, and how we make them. Now, for the first time, he reveals the invisible method behind every invention and takes us on a whirlwind tour of how humans built the world we know today. From the grand stone arches of medieval cathedrals to the mundane modern soda can, Hammack explains the golden rule of thumb that underlies every new building technique, every technological advancement, and every creative solution that leads us one step closer to a better, more functional world. Spanning centuries and cultures, Hammack offers a fascinating perspective on how humans engineer solutions in a world full of problems.

Perfect for readers of Adam Grant and Simon Winchester, The Things We Make is a captivating examination of the method that keeps pushing humanity forward, a spotlight on the achievements of the past, and a celebration of the potential of our future that will change the way we see the world around us.

Includes bibliographical references.

The invisible method: how to build a cathedral without mathematics, science, or a yardstick -- Best: the Vitruvian man, kodachrome, and the constant search for better -- Uncertainty: the art of the unknown and how engineers use it to create solutions -- Resources: from Mesopotamia to the Islamic empire to space- how materials, energy, and knowledge shape everything -- Engineering mindset: the three key strategies that created a ceramic masterpiece (and every other innovation) -- Science: the gold standard for rules of thumb -- Mathematics: how engineers offend mathematicians to predict the future -- Invention: the myth of the lone inventor and the race to light the world -- Conclusion: what the microwave oven teaches us about innovation, technology, and how the engineering method can save the world.

"In this book, Bill Hammack, better known as The Engineer Guy, takes us on a whirlwind tour of how humans built the world we know today. From the grand stone arches of medieval cathedrals to the mundane modern soda can, Hammack explains the golden rule of thumb that underlies every new building technique, every technological advancement, and every creative solution that leads us one step closer to a better, more functional world. Perfect for readers of Adam Grant and Jared Diamond, this fascinating examination of the method that keeps pushing humanity forward is a spotlight on the achievements of the past and a celebration of the potential of our future"-- Provided by publisher.

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