To Engineer Is Human
The Role of Failure in Successful Design
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Narrated by:
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Matthew Boston
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By:
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Henry Petroski
About this listen
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.
©1992 Henry Petroski (P)2018 TantorListeners also enjoyed...
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In 1714, England's Parliament offered a huge reward to anyone whose method of measuring longitude could be proven successful. The scientific establishment--from Galileo to Sir Isaac Newton--had mapped the heavens in its certainty of a celestial answer. In stark contrast, one man, John Harrison, dared to imagine a mechanical solution--a clock that would keep precise time at sea, something no clock had been able to do on land. And the race was on....
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To hear Neil Armstongs Voice
- By Boots on 01-19-13
By: Dava Sobel
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Shortcut
- How Analogies Reveal Connections, Spark Innovation, and Sell Our Greatest Ideas
- By: John Pollack
- Narrated by: Sean Pratt
- Length: 7 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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Analogies are far more complex than their SAT stereotype and lie at the very core of human cognition and creativity. Once we become aware of this, we start seeing them everywhere - in ads, apps, political debates, legal arguments, logos, and euphemisms, to name just a few. At their very best, analogies inspire new ways of thinking, enable invention, and motivate people to action. Unfortunately, not every analogy that rings true is true. That's why, at their worst, analogies can deceive, manipulate, or mislead us into disaster.
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Analogies???
- By Frederick on 08-16-15
By: John Pollack
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Tesla vs Edison
- A Captivating Guide to the War of the Currents and the Life of Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison
- By: Captivating History
- Narrated by: Duke Holm
- Length: 4 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
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Human history has seen many surprising and profound turning points. The ways that humans learned to use raw materials to create activity and resources set the stage for the most compelling and life-altering phase of the modern era, the Industrial Revolution. Born during this time on different continents but connected by similar interests, two men indelibly marked their generation and those that followed with their genius and foresight. This audiobook covers the war of currents and the individual lives of Tesla and Edison.
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Arduous
- By Hasbro on 10-22-18
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The Road Taken
- The History and Future of America's Infrastructure
- By: Henry Petroski
- Narrated by: Michael Butler Murray
- Length: 10 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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Physical infrastructure in the United States is crumbling. The American Society of Civil Engineers has, in its latest report, given American roads and bridges a grade of D and C+, respectively, and has described roughly 65,000 bridges in the United States as 'structurally deficient'. This crisis - and one need look no further than the I-35W bridge collapse in Minnesota to see that it is indeed a crisis - shows little sign of abating short of a massive change in attitude amongst politicians and the American public.
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Well put
- By Lawrence on 08-10-17
By: Henry Petroski
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The Great Bridge
- The Epic Story of the Building of the Brooklyn Bridge
- By: David McCullough
- Narrated by: Nelson Runger
- Length: 27 hrs and 24 mins
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This monumental book tells the enthralling story of one of the greatest accomplishments in our nation's history, the building of what was then the longest suspension bridge in the world. The Brooklyn Bridge rose out of the expansive era following the Civil War, when Americans believed all things were possible.
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An Historian and not a Novelist
- By Tim on 06-01-12
By: David McCullough
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Everything All at Once
- How to Unleash Your Inner Nerd, Tap into Radical Curiosity and Solve Any Problem
- By: Bill Nye
- Narrated by: Bill Nye
- Length: 12 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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Everything All at Once is an exciting, inspiring call to unleash the power of the nerd mindset that exists within us all. Nye believes we'll never be able to tackle our society's biggest, most complex problems if we don't even know how to solve the small ones. Step by step, he shows his listeners the key tools behind his everything-all-at-once approach: radical curiosity, a deep desire for a better future, and a willingness to take the actions needed to make it a reality.
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Bill Nye is awesome, but skip this one
- By Evan on 08-15-17
By: Bill Nye
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The Idea Factory
- Bell Labs and the Great Age of American Innovation
- By: Jon Gertner
- Narrated by: Chris Sorensen
- Length: 17 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
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In The Idea Factory, New York Times Magazine writer Jon Gertner reveals how Bell Labs served as an incubator for scientific innovation from the 1920s through the1980s. In its heyday, Bell Labs boasted nearly 15,000 employees, 1200 of whom held PhDs and 13 of whom won Nobel Prizes. Thriving in a work environment that embraced new ideas, Bell Labs scientists introduced concepts that still propel many of today’s most exciting technologies.
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Great story -- horrible pauses
- By Rodney on 01-29-13
By: Jon Gertner
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Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin: Two Predator Leaders. The Biography Collection
- The Greatest People, Book 1
- By: The History Hour
- Narrated by: Jerry Beebe, Alexander G.
- Length: 3 hrs
- Unabridged
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Discover the lives and poltical history of German politician and demagogue Adolf Hitler - leader of the Nazi Party, chancellor of Germany, and führer of Nazi Germany - and Joseph Stalin, dictator of the Soviet Union.
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Best informative.
- By Phyllis S Lopez on 10-25-19
By: The History Hour
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Explore/Create
- My Life in Pursuit of New Frontiers, Hidden Worlds, and the Creative Spark
- By: Richard Garriott, David Fisher
- Narrated by: Christopher Grove
- Length: 9 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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An inventor, adventurer, entrepreneur, collector, and entertainer, and son of legendary scientist-astronaut Owen Garriott, Richard Garriott de Cayeux has been behind some of the most exciting undertakings of our time. A legendary pioneer of the online gaming industry - and a member of every gaming Hall of Fame - Garriott invented the multi-player online game, and coined the term "Avatar" to describe an individual's online character. In this fascinating memoir, Garriott invites listeners on the great adventure that is his life.
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The Modern Day Explorer
- By Elijah on 04-17-17
By: Richard Garriott, and others
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Ignition! is the story of the search for a rocket propellant which could be trusted to take man into space. This search was a hazardous enterprise carried out by rival labs who worked against the known laws of nature, with no guarantee of success or safety. John Drury Clark writes with irreverent and eyewitness immediacy about the development of the explosive fuels strong enough to negate the relentless restraints of gravity. The resulting volume is as much a memoir as a work of history, sharing a behind-the-scenes view of an enterprise that eventually took men to the moon.
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Science man lists names of chemicals for 9 hours
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Good security device delivered by old misogynist
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Force
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Force explores how humans interact with the material world in the course of their everyday activities. Celebrated author Henry Petroski draws from a variety of disciplines to make the case that force—represented especially by our sense of touch—is a unifying principle that pervades our lives. In the wake of a prolonged global pandemic that increasingly cautioned us about contact with the physical world, Petroski offers a new perspective on the importance of the sensation and power of touch.
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The Idea Factory
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In The Idea Factory, New York Times Magazine writer Jon Gertner reveals how Bell Labs served as an incubator for scientific innovation from the 1920s through the1980s. In its heyday, Bell Labs boasted nearly 15,000 employees, 1200 of whom held PhDs and 13 of whom won Nobel Prizes. Thriving in a work environment that embraced new ideas, Bell Labs scientists introduced concepts that still propel many of today’s most exciting technologies.
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Great story -- horrible pauses
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What listeners say about To Engineer Is Human
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- CHRIS
- 09-13-20
A very thought provoking analysis
The title says it all. It's a an analysis of the human element of engineering. It's detailed and thorough but, not pendantic.I found it very thought provoking. The narration is good and is what I imagine the author intended as far as tone.
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- WYNTYR MOURNING
- 08-08-23
No "Monday morning QB" When Lives Are At Stake
I really wanted to like this book,but was immediately turned off when the author was describing the backlash from the engineering community after the disaster. There are some professions where you are dealing with the health and safety of the public and better have looked over those plans, materials, and construction techniques backward, forward and in a loop de loop to make sure the construct is safe. While there is always a chance of error where human activity is concerned, taking the TIME and RESPONSIBILITY to make that error as narrow as possible is, i.e., won't result in the loss of human life is the way to go.
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Overall
- Owen Grubb
- 09-21-18
Very interesting
Sometimes dry and sometimes outdated, but it did introduce many interesting outlooks on engineering that are still relevant today.
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1 person found this helpful
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- zachbloomfield
- 02-17-19
great book
It's a great book on the theory behind engineering failure's and their affects on future design.
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- Amazon Customer
- 03-29-18
What were they thinking or did they?
As an engineer with advanced degrees and 45 years of experience, this book did not tell me anything new. However, it was an interesting presentation on design failures more geared to the layman.
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- Angel
- 06-18-18
Very useful insights
Shows how successes become failures and failure may become successes. A book I feel I will listen to for years to come.
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- michael Kordek
- 12-13-22
Not worth it
Dated 1985 or so, and horrible reading . And beat each episode to death.
Only listened because I was bored .
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- dcb
- 07-27-23
A great listen for the aspiring engineer
I really enjoyed it. The content and the lessons were were arranged and balanced to provide a valuable perspective on engineering and technology in general. A wonderful reminder of the importance of detail to the entirety of any design. A positive yet sober response to the issue of development and progress.
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- Parker Ahlf
- 08-25-22
Not Sure Who The Intended Audience Is?
This felt like three books in one. It does have chapters detailing excellent examples of historical triumphs and tragedies, but most of the book was spent either describing engineering to non-engineers, or discussing common pitfalls with fellow engineers. In particular, it alternates jarringly between reminding engineers how difficult and complex their profession is, and assuring non-engineers that engineers have everything under control. I'd advise skipping chapters and fast-forwarding liberally.
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- Fredrick Olness
- 06-26-23
interesting case studies, but diluted
The case studies are quite interesting, but these are diluted with lots of other less relevant material.
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