Engineering--An Endless Frontier

by Sunny Y. Auyang

Genetic engineering, nanotechnology, astrophysics, particle We live in an engineered world, one where the distinctions between science and engineering, technology and research, are fast disappearing. This book shows how, at the dawn of the twenty-first century, the goals of natural scientists--to discover what was not known--and that of engineers--to create what did not exist--are undergoing an unprecedented convergence. Sunny Y. Auyang ranges widely in demonstrating that engineering today is not only a collaborator with science but its equal. In concise accounts of the emergence of industrial laboratories and chemical and electrical engineering, and in whirlwind histories of the machine tools and automobile industries and the rise of nuclear energy and information technology, her book presents a broad picture of modern its history, structure, technological achievements, and social responsibilities; its relation to natural science, business administration, and public policies. Auyang uses case studies such as the development of the F-117A Nighthawk and Boeing 777 aircraft, as well as the experiences of engineer-scientists such as Oliver Heaviside, engineer-entrepreneurs such as Henry Ford and Bill Gates, and engineer-managers such as Alfred Sloan and Jack Welch to give readers a clear sense of engineering's essential role in the future of scientific research.

352 pages, Hardcover

First published April 30, 2004

Reviews

[John Kelley · Rating 1 out of 5]

Auyang is an MIT advocate--and it shows. In the interest of full disclosure, I work at the University of Illinois, and so have a bias regarding this great institution. However, anything that hints at an MIT connection is praised endlessly, and there are no direct references to the U of I and the seminal contributions in many of the areas discussed. If you can't even acknowledge peers, seems there might be insecurity there. Also, some of the chapters are unecessarily circuitous in their descriptions of events or key points. Although, certainly readable by the layity (being a non-engineer myself), it doesn't exactly engage the reader as a page-turner. In particular, you can tell Ms. Auyang loves math and computer science as she goes on ad nauseum about information and coding theory in the "Sciences of Useful Systems" chapter. This is the longest segment of the book, and the most boring. I would have enjoyed more real-world examples like the ones she used at Boeing and Lockheed, or regarding the nuclear industry. Her chapter on "Leaders Who are Engineers" dealt with the usual suspects like Edison and Ford, along with a cast of other characters, but then much of the last part was dedicated to policy issues. Rather than an endless frontier, I felt like this was an endless read.