: A book that simplifies the basics of engineering and I still found it tough reading. I enjoyed the examples he gives, but the general concepts in dry form were hard to comprehend. It still is worth reading in only that it makes you think of the way things are made; natural and man-made. ( )

An entertaining, nontechnical overview of structural engineering for the general reader. Using nothing more than basic school algebra and physics, the author provides clear, readable explanations of many basic principles for understanding the strength and reliability of engineering structures ranging from Gothic cathedrals to airplanes, with occasional excursions into biomechanical structures such as worms and bats.

Although some of the illustrative anecdotes may be more colorful than strictly accurate, the heart of the book is to be found in the exposition of the general scientific principles, which are not at issue. This book was written in the 1970s by an author who was born in 1913, and readers may be irritated by the occasional casual sexism that is fairly unavoidable in popular scientific writing of that vintage, but if this can be forgiven, the book is very rewarding for those who have ever wondered how bridges stay up, why ships occasionally fall apart, or whether Roman ballistae were more efficient than medieval trebuchets.

Fantastic. Many interesting science facts in pleasant prose.

"The resemblance between a bat and a Chinese junk is
immediately obvious (figure 9)." ( )