Design Paradigms
From ancient Greek temples to twentieth-century towers, engineers have learned more about design from failure than success. The concept of error, according to the author, is central to the design process. As a way of explaining the enduring aspect...
An Engineer's Alphabet
Written by America's most famous engineering storyteller and educator, this abecedarium is one engineer's selection of thoughts, quotations, anecdotes, facts, trivia and arcana relating to the practice, history, culture and traditions of his profe...
To Forgive Design
To Forgive Design
To Engineer is Human: The Role of Failure in Successful Design
Examines the process of engineering design and explains what can be learned by studying unsuccessful designs and the reasons for their failure
Book on the Bookshelf
The Book on the Bookshelf
Invention by Design
Henry Petroski's previous bestsellers have delighted readers with intriguing stories about the engineering marvels around us, from the lowly pencil to the soaring suspension bridge. In this book, Petroski delves deeper into the mystery of inventio...
The Pencil: A History of Design and Circumstance
Henry Petroski traces the origins of the pencil back to ancient Greece and Rome, writes factually and charmingly about its development over the centuries and around the world, and shows what the pencil can teach us about engineering and technology today. 'Very engaging and wonderfully informative.... The Pencil unfolds a history of invention, craftsmanship, engineering, manufacture and business that is also at times a history of cultural life on both sides of the Atlantic...No reader of this book will ever be able to pick up a pencil again without marveling.'-- Hilton Kramer, Newsday 'So engrossing that I read it through in one sitting... An utterly absorbing history -- Martin Gardner, Raleigh News and Observer 'Beguiling...surprising, entertaining, informative. One could scarcely ask a book to be more!... using the story of the pencil as a paradigm, Petroski shows how the process of engineering unfolds and [how] the pencil is the end result of process that parallels those by which
Success through Failure
From the acclaimed author and engineer, an engaging and lively account of the surprising secret of great design Design pervades our lives. Everything from drafting a PowerPoint presentation to planning a state-of-the-art bridge embodies this unive...
Alternate Reality Games
While formal training and communication are a foundational approach to developing employees in the workplace, alternate reality games (ARGs) provide a framework for increased and sustained engagement within business organizations. ARGs are transme...
Spatiotemporal Patterns in Ecology and Epidemiology
Although the spatial dimension of ecosystem dynamics is now widely recognized, the specific mechanisms behind species patterning in space are still poorly understood and the corresponding theoretical framework is underdeveloped. Going beyond the c...
Dispersal, Individual Movement and Spatial Ecology
Dispersal of plants and animals is one of the most fascinating subjects in ecology. It has long been recognized as an important factor affecting ecosystem dynamics. Dispersal is apparently a phenomenon of biological origin; however, because of its...