Structures: Or Why Things Don't Fall Down - J.E. Gordon

In a book that Business Insider noted as one of the "14 Books that inspired Elon Musk," J.E. Gordon strips engineering of its confusing technical terms, communicating its founding principles in accessible, witty prose.For anyone who has ever wondered why suspension bridges don't collapse under eight lanes of traffic, how dams hold back--or give way under--thousands of gallons of water, or what principles guide the design of a skyscraper, a bias-cut dress, or a kangaroo, this book will ease your anxiety and answer your questions.Structures: Or Why Things Don't Fall Down is an informal explanation of the basic forces that hold together the ordinary and essential things of this world--from buildings and bodies to flying aircraft and eggshells. In a style that combines wit, a masterful command of his subject, and an encyclopedic range of reference, Gordon includes such chapters as "How to Design a Worm" and "The Advantage of Being a Beam," offering humorous insights in human and natural creation.Architects and engineers will appreciate the clear and cogent explanations of the concepts of stress, shear, torsion, fracture, and compression. If you're building a house, a sailboat, or a catapult, here is a handy tool for understanding the mechanics of joinery, floors, ceilings, hulls, masts--or flying buttresses.Without jargon or oversimplification, Structures opens up the marvels of technology to anyone interested in the foundations of our everyday lives.

Published: 2003-07-10 (Da Capo Press)

ISBN: 9780306812835

Language: English

Format: Paperback, 395 pages

Goodreads' rating: -

Genres

Science Nonfiction Architecture Engineering

Reviews

Filbert rated it

A witty and extremely readable review of elasticity, tension, compression and shear physics and the applications of these in various everyday structures (or conversely, structural failure when they are not applied). If only I had read this book in high school, maybe I wouldn't have viewed Hooke's law and stress-strain curves as being as impractical as I did - then again, sweltering afternoons in the laboratory spent hanging weights to a flimsy spring made it somewhat difficult to imagine anything but. Would highly recommend for anyone who has an interest in structural mechanics.

Glenn rated it

"Naturally there is no sharp line between painting and drawing and technological design, and almost everything that gets made is likely to carry with it something of the personality of the maker." A light overview of structures: their design, history, and aesthetics. Clarity of technical explanations often left much to be desired. The book is divided into four sections, with a final section neatly tying up all the concepts & exploring the future and philosophy of engineering.

Georgianne rated it

DNFSimply because it wasn't as relevant to my work as I originally thought it might be and struggling through the first 200 pages was too difficult to warrant me continuing with the whole thing. I imagine this a rather interesting and even amusing read for anyone who really enjoys physics or engineering but it wasn't for me.I did learn some interesting facts such as the fact Hooke invented more useful stuff other than his Law; a lot of Yew trees grow in the ruins of Pompeii; a yew bow cannot be used reliably above 35 degrees Celsius; if you fire an empty bow it uses its own strain energy to destroy itself; the Roman's used to require their officers in charge of catapults have a good ear for music and that when gas lighting began to be installed in London the pipes had to be made in Birmingham (not far from my office) and the earliest ones were made by welding musket barrels end to end.Though I find all this interesting and may even use it in a quiz at some point, it helps me little as an Apprentice Building Surveyor.

Cary rated it

Here's some light reading about structural engineering. Well, there is some math, but not too much. Lots of really interesting insights in to what makes structures stay up or fall down, why planes or ships come apart, etc. I wold recommend this for anyone interested in general engineering.

Nada rated it

Having almost finished training as a physicist, it was a great pleasure to read this conceptual book on structures - a topic which has been missing in my education except for some basic mechanics in the first year. Hence, while the mathematics in the book have been relatively easy to grasp, the concepts of material science and the historical facts have been of great interest to me. For the first time ever, I've stopped to think about the inner workings of buildings, ships and aircraft. It gives me great satisfaction to know some basic principles about these quintessential structures and how they came into being. It's definitely a topic I will further investigate.