Engineering Books - Page 3

The Prize : The Epic Quest for Oil, Money & Power

Daniel Yergin

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 141 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Great book, still relevent even today 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I learned a great deal from this book, from the rise of Standard Oil, it's dissolution, wildcatters, and the rise of the Middle East. I now have a better understanding of the economics of oil. The knowledge this book covers is still applicable today, including Saudi Arabia's continued role in attempting to regulate oil prices, and the risks/rewards of offshore oil drilling, and why too low price of oil is bad (too high is obvious, as we all know with the summer-2008 gasoline prices). It should be required reading for all politicians and also should be read by anyone who voices an opinion (left or right-wing) on energy-related topics.

Highly recommended.

Editorial Review:

Daniel Yergin's first prize-winning book, Shattered Peace, was a history of the Cold War. Afterwards the young academic star joined the energy project of the Harvard Business School and wrote the best-seller Energy Future. Following on from there, The Prize, winner of the 1992 Pulitzer Prize for nonfiction, is a comprehensive history of one of the commodities that powers the world--oil. Founded in the 19th century, the oil industry began producing kerosene for lamps and progressed to gasoline. Huge personal fortunes arose from it, and whole nations sprung out of the power politics of the oil wells. Yergin's fascinating account sweeps from early robber barons like John D. Rockefeller, to the oil crisis of the 1970s, through to the Gulf War.

The Starfish and the Spider: The Unstoppable Power of Leaderless Organizations

Ori Brafman, Rod A. Beckstrom

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 65 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

Understanding the amazing force that links some of today’s most successful companies

If you cut off a spider’s leg, it’s crippled; if you cut off its head, it dies. But if you cut off a starfish’s leg it grows a new one, and the old leg can grow into an entirely new starfish.

What’s the hidden power behind the success of Wikipedia, craigslist, and Skype? What do eBay and General Electric have in common with the abolitionist and women’s rights movements? What fundamental choice put General Motors and Toyota on vastly different paths? How could winning a Supreme Court case be the biggest mistake MGM could have made?

After five years of ground-breaking research, Ori Brafman and Rod Beckstrom share some unexpected answers, gripping stories, and a tapestry of unlikely connections. The Starfish and the Spider argues that organizations fall into two categories: traditional “spiders,” which have a rigid hierarchy and top-down leadership, and revolutionary “starfish,” which rely on the power of peer relationships.

The Starfish and the Spider explores what happens when starfish take on spiders (such as the music industry vs. Napster, Kazaa, and the P2P services that followed). It reveals how established companies and institutions, from IBM to Intuit to the US government, are also learning how to incorporate starfish principles to achieve success. The book explores:
* How the Apaches fended off the powerful Spanish army for 200 years
* The power of a simple circle
* The importance of catalysts who have an uncanny ability to bring people together
* How the Internet has become a breeding ground for leaderless organizations
* How Alcoholics Anonymous has reached untold millions with only a shared ideology and without a leader

The Starfish and the Spider is the rare book that will change how you understand the world around you. BACKCOVER: Advance praise for The Starfish and the Spider
“The Starfish and the Spider is a compelling and important book.”
—Pierre Omidyar, CEO, Omidyar Network and Founder and Chairman, eBay Inc.

“The Starfish and the Spider, like Blink, The Tipping Point, and The Wisdom of Crowds before it, showed me a provocative new way to look at the world and at business. It's also fun to read!”
—Robin Wolaner, founder, Parenting Magazine and author, Naked in the Boardroom

“A fantastic read. Constantly weaving stories and connections. You'll never see the world the same way again.”
—Nicholas J. Nicholas Jr., former Co-CEO, Time Warner

“A must-read. Starfish are changing the face of business and society. This page-turner is provocative and compelling.”

—David Martin, CEO, Young Presidents' Organization
“The Starfish and the Spider provides a powerful prism for understanding the patterns and potential of self-organizing systems.”
—Steve Jurvetson, Partner, Draper Fisher Jurvetson
“The Starfish and the Spider lifts the lid on a massive revolution in the making, a revolution certain to reshape every organization on the planet from bridge clubs to global governments. Brafman and Beckstrom elegantly describe what is afoot and offer a wealth of insights that will be invaluable to anyone starting something new—or rescuing something old—amidst this vast shift.”
—Paul Saffo, Director, Institute for the Future

“The Starfish and the Spider is great reading. [It has] not only stimulated my thinking, but as a result of the reading, I proposed ten action points for my own organization."
—Professor Klaus Schwab, Executive Chairman, World Economic Forum

The Singularity Is Near: When Humans Transcend Biology

Ray Kurzweil

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 127 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

upon reading it a second time... 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

In my opinion, this is an exceptional book. I was astonished to read some of the criticisms it has received on amazon.com. I truly could not put this book down. The depth of the subjects covered is great. For anyone who is interested in futurism, this should be on your bookshelf.

First of all, the author is an extremely accomplished man. Chances are you use one of his inventions everyday. Kurzweil was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame, received thirteen--yes, thirteen--honorary doctorates, the National Medal of Technology, the Lemelson MIT Prize (the world's largest award for innovation), and awards from three US Presidents. This makes me more than comfortable when reading this book.

I very much enjoy books of this nature, but have never encountered a book such as this; with every claim and prediction, Kurzweil provides more than ample evidence to support himself. Reading this book was an intellectual revolution.

Some of the criticisms I read about this book on amazon.com stated that the book lacked emotion and was quite dry. I couldn't disagree more. I find it impossible to be without emotion when discussing the things Kurzweil touches on and noticed no apathy in his writing. At times, his writing was quite humorous; the dialogue of a fictional character named Molly with various other characters at the end of every chapter was very entertaining.

I would recommend this book to anyone. It will truly change your outlook on the human civilization and its future. I plan to read it again and again.

Editorial Review:

For over three decades, Ray Kurzweil has been one of the most respected and provocative advocates of the role of technology in our future. In his classic The Age of Spiritual Machines, he argued that computers would soon rival the full range of human intelligence at its best. Now he examines the next step in this inexorable evolutionary process: the union of human and machine, in which the knowledge and skills embedded in our brains will be combined with the vastly greater capacity, speed, and knowledge-sharing ability of our creations.

Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything

Don Tapscott, Anthony D. Williams

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 93 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

An updated edition of the national bestseller—now with a new introduction and a new chapter

Today, encyclopedias, jetliners, operating systems, mutual funds, and many other items are being created by teams numbering in the thousands or even millions. While some leaders fear the heaving growth of these massive online communities, Wikinomics proves this fear is folly. Smart firms can harness collective capability and genius to spur innovation, growth, and success.

A brilliant guide to one of the most profound changes of our time, Wikinomics challenges our most deeply-rooted assumptions about business and will prove indispensable to anyone who wants to understand competitiveness in the twenty- first century.

Based on a $9 million research project led by bestselling author Don Tapscott, Wikinomics shows how masses of people can participate in the economy like never before. They are creating TV news stories, sequencing the human genome, remixing their favorite music, designing software, finding a cure for disease, editing school texts, inventing new cosmetics, or even building motorcycles. You'll read about:
• Rob McEwen, the Goldcorp, Inc. CEO who used open source tactics and an online competition to save his company and breathe new life into an old-fashioned industry.
• Flickr, Second Life, YouTube, and other thriving online communities that transcend social networking to pioneer a new form of collaborative production.
• Mature companies like Procter & Gamble that cultivate nimble, trust-based relationships with external collaborators to form vibrant business ecosystems.

An important look into the future, Wikinomics will be your road map for doing business in the twenty-first century.

Kids' Paper Airplane Book

Ken Blackburn

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 21 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

More and more paper 5 out of 5 stars.
7 of 7 people found this review helpful.

The paper in my printer has been stolen, all the loose paper in the house has gone the same route. Flying through the air and landing in various places like behind the couch, under the tables, into the closets, and onto the bookshelves.

good plane designs but didn't like the scary gruesome pictures 3 out of 5 stars.
4 of 4 people found this review helpful.

They have some planes with preprinted pictures that I would have prefered they left out like a vampire and ghoul. I don't know why they have to make stuff which doesn't need to be scary.

Fun, fun, fun 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

this was a Christmas gift for my 11 yr. old grandson. We have had so much fun doing this together and his father joined in to add even more fun. Winter has flown by much faster with this FAMILY TIME craft project. We are looking forward to logging our flight distances as soon as the weather warms a bit. Quiet time together becames lots of laughs and individual creative juices began to flow. who knew paper airplanes could be so much fun.

Editorial Review:

Calling all pilots: Fly them indoors. Fly them outdoors. Perform loops, dives, and other stunts, or challenge yourfriends to a race. And get to know your drag and your lift. Kids' Paper Airplane Book has everything you need to fold and fly a squadron of bold, bright, custom-designed paper aircraft. Plus games, activities, the pilot's alphabet, a full-color, pull-out poster of an airport, field guide to common aircraft, flight log, pilot's license, and more.

Abc's Of Reloading: The Definitive Guide For Novice To Expert (ABC's of Reloading)

Bill Chevalier

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 5 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

The best place to start 5 out of 5 stars.
18 of 18 people found this review helpful.

This is the book I used when I got started reloading about 10 years ago, and this book gave me just what I needed. When I first got the itch to load my own ammunition, I was overwhelmed by the amount of information and terminology involved in this fascinating field/hobby. It was very difficult to take all the individual pieces of information that I had and form it into an understandable process. I was snowed in under a blizzard of data that I was piecing together through chat rooms and web sites. Everyone was very helpful - basically shooters are the most helpful people I know - but still I was just getting fragments without a solid, complete overview. Phrases like "roll crimp", "seating and sizer dies," and "headspace" came at me in a blizzard. I could look up each phrase, understand each one as a piece, but still the whole picture was fuzzy. In essence, that is what this book will do for you: turn it all into a coherent, linear whole. The writing is very solid and clear, the illustrations are well done and helpful, and the information is very complete. After reading this book, the entire process made sense to me, and more importantly, I was fully warned about the does and don'ts of the reloading world. The coverage is very complete. Primers, powders, bullets and cases are explained with regard to nomenclature and history. All necessary tools and accessories are discussed and explained. This is just a great book. It won't make you an expert (only actual reloading for years will do that), but it will put you on the right road if you wish to become one. --Mykal Banta

Editorial Review:

Starting with the basics, this guide will lead the reader through the process of reloading handgun, rifle and shotgun cartridges with ease. Perfect for beginners and a great refresher for experienced reloaders, the book first discusses all the necessary tools and accessories needed to get started, then goes through step-by-step instructions and safety tips for loading metallic cartridges and shotshells. Helpful illustrations guide readers through each step and make the process easy to understand."The ABCs of Reloading" covers all aspects of the hobby, from benchrest loading techniques, to ballistic software, to competition and hunting loads and more. Readers will appreciate how the book makes a complex subject understandable and fun.

The Laws of Simplicity (Simplicity: Design, Technology, Business, Life)

John Maeda

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 43 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

Received an Honorable Mention in the Communication and Cultural Studies category of the 2005 Professional/Scholarly Publishing Annual Awards Competition presented by the Association of American Publishers, Inc.

Finally, we are learning that simplicity equals sanity. We're rebelling against technology that's too complicated, DVD players with too many menus, and software accompanied by 75-megabyte "read me" manuals. The iPod's clean gadgetry has made simplicity hip. But sometimes we find ourselves caught up in the simplicity paradox: we want something that's simple and easy to use, but also does all the complex things we might ever want it to do. In The Laws of Simplicity, John Maeda offers ten laws for balancing simplicity and complexity in business, technology, and design—guidelines for needing less and actually getting more.

Maeda—a professor in MIT's Media Lab and a world-renowned graphic designer—explores the question of how we can redefine the notion of "improved" so that it doesn't always mean something more, something added on.

Maeda's first law of simplicity is "Reduce." It's not necessarily beneficial to add technology features just because we can. And the features that we do have must be organized (Law 2) in a sensible hierarchy so users aren't distracted by features and functions they don't need. But simplicity is not less just for the sake of less. Skip ahead to Law 9: "Failure: Accept the fact that some things can never be made simple." Maeda's concise guide to simplicity in the digital age shows us how this idea can be a cornerstone of organizations and their products—how it can drive both business and technology. We can learn to simplify without sacrificing comfort and meaning, and we can achieve the balance described in Law 10. This law, which Maeda calls "The One," tells us: "Simplicity is about subtracting the obvious, and adding the meaningful."

The Renewable Energy Handbook: A Guide to Rural Energy Independence, Off-Grid and Sustainable Living

William H. Kemp

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 20 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

As oil prices continue to rise, many people are starting to think about how to unhook from the electricity grid. The Renewable Energy Handbook focuses completely on off-grid, sustainable living and rural energy independence.

Author/engineer William H. Kemp, who is a leading expert in small- and mid-scale renewable energy technologies, designed and built his own off-grid home. The result is a house that has all the standard “middle-class” creature comforts while using less than five times the total fossil-fuel energy of the average North American house.

The Renewable Energy Handbook focuses on the unique requirements of off-grid living and contains chapters on energy conservation; heating and cooling; backup power; domestic water heating; wireless communications; photovoltaic, wind, and microhydro energy generation; battery selection; and inverters.

Since its release in 2003, The Renewable Energy Handbook has been a top-selling technology book and is recognized as the best book in its field.

The book is augmented with hundreds of illustrations, line drawings, photographs, and appendices.

The Design of Everyday Things

Donald A. Norman

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 149 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Vey fast delivery very prompt service 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 3 people found this review helpful.

very nice delivery very fast response. One of the best sellers at amazon.
will do business any time with them.

It's OK - but how can this be the seminal book on usability...? 3 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Having heard that this was the seminal work in usabiliy, my expectations were probably too high.

Some of the principles laid out are indeed excellent and well illustrated.

The structure of the book is - ironically - not crystal clear. As I am reading the book I find myself looking back at the table of contents to understand the structure.

The writing style is slightly entertaining at first and you sympathize with the author hanging out himself as a clumsy and spacey academic. However, after the first 30 pages the rambling style and the somewhat unstructured content makes the book really boring. I had to push myself to finish it.

What strikes me is the lack of other books in this topic. Despite my criticism I'd be curious to read Norman's new book.

Editorial Review:

Anyone who designs anything to be used by humans--from physical objects to computer programs to conceptual tools--must read this book, and it is an equally tremendous read for anyone who has to use anything created by another human. It could forever change how you experience and interact with your physical surroundings, open your eyes to the perversity of bad design and the desirability of good design, and raise your expectations about how things should be designed.

Water Storage: Tanks, Cisterns, Aquifers, and Ponds for Domestic Supply, Fire and Emergency Use--Includes How to Make Ferrocement Water Tanks

Art Ludwig

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 14 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Read the book, Build the tank 5 out of 5 stars.
10 of 11 people found this review helpful.

I Built a 10,000 Gal tank straight out of this book for US$ 1,500.
It looks good & it doesn't leak.
What more can you ask for ?

very excellent detailed book 5 out of 5 stars.
7 of 9 people found this review helpful.

This book is well written and complete. I feel that after reading this book I can safely capture rainwater and I know all the details to think about when designing our system, specific reasons to place pipes etc in specific places ... an excellent detailed referrence book and enjoyable read; I read the entire book and enjoyed it. If you are seriously considering to have a rainwater catchment system this is a must read.

Water Storage: Tanks, Cisterns, Aquifers, and Ponds for Domestic Supply, Fire and Emergency Use--Includes How to Make Ferrocemen 4 out of 5 stars.
2 of 4 people found this review helpful.

This book can help you for how to planning the different water systems in rural and urban areas, the best is how to make ferrocement water tanks.

Editorial Review:

A do-it-yourself guide to designing, building, and maintaining water tanks, cisterns and ponds, and sustainably managing groundwater storage. It will help you with your independent water system, fire protection, and disaster preparedness, at low cost and using principles of ecological design. Includes building instructions for several styles of ferro cement water tanks.