Structures: Or Why Things Don't Fall Down
Author: J.E.Gordon
November, 2016
- Rating:
Your life will not be same after reading this. First, your knowledge about structures will increase significantly and second nothing will ever fall down upon you :D Very nicely written book, with a detailed explanation of many daily life structures. One of the interesting things to read was how nature inspires various structures. Difference between structure and material, strength and toughness, and various other engineering concepts are covered in a very simple yet effective manner. I think this book must be taught in all undergraduate courses. It will bring life to the class.
Though everything is related to application, but most of the engineering courses forget that. This book is a reminder to all such courses and classes how one can create interest in any subject. Load, stress, strain, cracking, fracture mechanics, tension, pressure, walls, arches, dams, beams, trusses, sharing, design, accident, aesthetics – the book is amazing in its span. You will not get bored at any point and there is something for every reader. There are equations in case you need to know the physics and maths behind, there are images to display how amazingly simple concepts are applied to create magnificent structures, there is analysis to compare human structures to natural structures and there is philosophy to understand the design fundamentals.
The ancient structures are dissected and analysed properly, the aviation industry is analysed in great depth too. You will understand how important the development of aircraft industry was during the world war and how huge engineering problems were solved in a short span of time. The book was revealing in many aspects, it resolves some major definition related discrepancies, clarifies difference in various manufacturing/construction methods and illuminates the reader about general trivial structures surrounding him/her.
And most importantly the surely reveals why things don’t fall down. A must read for all the curious minds.
Share: