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Atlas Shrugged - Ayn Rand 12

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"Atlas Shrugged" and "The Fountainhead" both by Ayn Rand, should be required reading for all engineers.

My Economics Professor recommended both to me years ago - I am indebted forever. He also told me to read the "Tao Teh Ching" frequently, which I do.

These three literary works have help me improve myself which in turn helps me get ahead in my work.

Can anyone recommend other great reads to help achieve these ends?

Thanks.
 
Click to expand...
A guy who closed a lot of factories & shipped US manufacturing jobs overseas.
[lotsa guys got the NAFTA-shafta :-( ]
 
When unions raise their ugly heads, they should learn to heed the warnings. I remember many years ago when Detroit was going thru a particularly hard negotiation with the unions (I forgot which of the big three). The concept of going overseas was expressed at that time. It gave me a chill, and it still does.

Going overseas, south of the border, etc. has time bombs attached. Don't expect technical support or quick response to changes. Many years ago I heard the story of buying shoes from Taiwan. They shipped by the container load - right foot in one and left foot in the other.

 
Are these the same union guys that hide parts to stop assembly lines until their overtime clock starts ticking? Wait, those are our union guys.

[bat]I may make you feel, but I can't make you think.[bat]
 
My contribution to the recommended reading list is:

Fate is the Hunter, by E.K. Gann - About life as a pilot during the first half-century of flight. Any engineer who has never flown one, but still wants to design, build, or do any work on an airplane, should read it to appreciate what it's like to fly for a living. I've also given a lot of thought to the chilling philosophy that for most pilots, it's only a matter of time. Risk can never be eliminated, only managed, outmaneuvered, or outwitted, and if you're still alive after screwing up on all three, then luck takes all the credit. Think hard about whether you expect it to be there for you next time.



STF
 
sparweb,
Add to the list Earnest Gann's:
The High and the Mighty,
the story of further adventures of airline pilots during and after WWII. If you read between the lines you will see why Gann quit airline flying for other pursuits.

For eight years I have been pursuing the publishing of my book, The National Airline Academy (NAA)- long overdue. There have been numerous disasters begging for the establishiment of the NAA, but the 1987 Air Florida crash in Washington should have triggered the NAA.

The model for the NAA is the Merchant Marine Academy (MMA) on Long Island. It was the result of the investigation of the Morro Castle cruise ship disaster, which claimed the lives of hundreds in 1935. Findings included incompetence from the top down. Modern day boat drill and comprehensive fire safety systems came out of this investigation. In itself The Morro Castle is a good read. The MMA was well timed for the training of merchant marine officers during WWII.
 
It has been mentioned beofore, but "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" by Robert Pirsig. Not really about Zen or motorcycles, but an excellent inquiry into the nature of quality and academics. Look for it in Free PDF format online.

And when you are done thinking, I highly recommend the Harry Potter series. Not just for kiddies these days!

miner
 
On the zen note, "Zen and the Art of Archery" is definitely a great read.

[bat]I may make you feel, but I can't make you think.[bat]
 
Hi

I love Sci Fi. I am a mold designer and product designer. I love new Ideas and old forgotten ones too. I have heard that the modern day space suit was in science fiction 50 or 75 years before they even needed it (you know environmental suit with a glass dome and a air pack on the back). Sci-Fi inspires people into doing things they would only dream of.

Some good reads are:
David Suzuki's autobiography. Scientist turned TV host.

Generation X. It is about people who don't do much they just sit and talk. But there are some wild statistics at the end of the book about the average population. Sciences are statistically driven.

Classic Sci Fi
The time machine and Short stories of HG wells.
There is one story about a guy who takes carbon and dynamite and makes diamonds but no one believes he could do it.

Ring World Series by Larry Nivin
Some one builds a flat ring around a sun the diameter of the orbit of earth (800 miles wide) and then leaves it to be discovered. Just a neat concept. Think about the material usage.

I robot by Isaac Asimov
Another good read
I robot is the first statement made by a robot that realises what it(he) is.

peace


Rick Marmei - Tool Designer
 
Could also add...

any of Kafka's writings,
White Star - author not known, but one of the better technically correct sniper fiction works
Happy Birthday Wanda June - Kurt Vonnegut
Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
any of Patrick McManus' collections (outdoor humour at it's funniest)
Zen and the Art of Being a Target... to be written for theTick
 
I very much agree WRT McManus!

Skunk Works by Rich & Janos was a great read.
Silent Spring by Rachel Carson

20 years ago I read "A Walk Across America" and "The Walk West" by Peter Jenkins. I still read it from time to time.
 
I used to take the bus to work, which allowed me the luxury of an hour a day to read. When I changed jobs, I couldn't take the bus anymore. My wife brought home a bunch of books-on-tape, and my commute hasn't been the same since.

I've been through Stephen King's entire "Gunslinger" series, heard the biographies of 3 presidents, and indulged in plenty of audio junk-listening. Almost makes me look forward to a traffic jam. Now I have this thread for more listening ideas!

For audio book recommendations, #1 on my list is On the Road by Jack Kerouac, as read by Frank Muller (audio book narration's biggest superstar reader).

[bat]I may make you feel, but I can't make you think.[bat]
 
So many books, so little time. None of the following books have anything to do with engineering...especially see the last item about getting some balance in your life ;-)

Fiction: "The Golden Compass" by Philip Pullman. First of a trilogy. They are all good. Nothing to do with engineering but should get the oblique part of your brain working.

Historical perspectives:
A Brief History of Pi. by Petr Beckmann. (You should hear his take on Roman "civilisation").
A History of Warfare by John Keegan
"Cyrus the Great" by Harold Lamb. Amazing what this guy accomplished within the limitations of his time. Makes you think about minimalist government, separation of church and state etc.

Social perspective:
"Who Shall Live" by Victor R. Fuchs. Health, economics and social choice. Did you have a donut for breakfast or run at lunch time?

Last but otherwise first, subscribe to "Mountain Bike" magazine for inspiration then go buy a full suspension mountain bike and find a place to use it so you can get exercise while watching its suspension work. Engineering in action!
 
Skunk Works was great! Truly an excellent book.

I now plan to read "Tuxedo Park" about Loomis, the businessman/physicist during WWII.

 
I just came across a book by Douglas Adams. Called the meaning of LIFF (spelling is correct). If you want to fall off your chair laughing read it. We all need a good laugh now and again. It is a dictionary for things that don't have names.

I was also in the library and found a Dictionary of Mechanics and Engineering. Reminding my self of yelling over the office partition to find out if I spell the word "flange" correctly.

Peace
Rick Marmei


Rick Marmei - Tool Designer
 
Get your hands on tapes of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. The books are great, too, but the radio is where it all started. Every engineer should remember the "bad" designs, like Marvin, Deep Thought, and black battlecruisers that are easy to "borrow". The prescient elevators and the SEP field are other good concepts from the books.



STF
 
Godel Escher Bach by Hofstadter (I thought it was titled "The Golden Braid") Wonderful exploration of mathematics across different disciplines.

"No Highway" by Neville Shute - about the frustrations of an aircraft engineer, convinced his airliner design is flawed (might be based on the Comet disaster)

In 1919 the German fleet was scuttled in Scapa Flow, Scotland. There was a book, probably hard to find, about the extraordinary salvage operations.

RV Jones, a senior scientist in Britain during World War 2, wrote a fascinating account of the scientific intelligence war against Germany. What was it called? And from the other side, Germany's armaments minister (an architect, I think, what was his name, imprisoned for decaeds after the war). Both books strangely sit side by side.

Alvin Toffler's "Future Shock" and Rachel Carson's "Silent Spring". These would be interesting to read now to see how we have matched up to their predictions.

Cheers,
John.
 
Neville Shute also wrote "Slide Rule" about his days as a dirigible designer. Of course, his "On the Beach" was the quintessential nuclear war novel.

For some historical perspective, try "Engineering in the Ancient World"-JG Lanels, sometimes the forgotten solutions are very interesting.

Finally, "The Romance of Engines" by Takashi Suzuki, which gives the technical history of numerous interesting engines.

 
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