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Discussion of the Method: Conducting the Engineer's Approach to Problem Solving (Engineering & Technology)
 
 
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Discussion of the Method: Conducting the Engineer's Approach to Problem Solving (Engineering & Technology) [Paperback]

Billy Vaughn Koen (Author)
5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)

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Book Description

0195155998 978-0195155990 March 20, 2003
"While the study of the engineering method is important to create the world we would have, its study is equally important to understand the world we do have."
--Billy V. Koen, Introduction, Discussion of the Method

Discussion of the Method outlines the heuristic-based reasoning used by engineers and generalizes it to a universal method for problem-solving. Delving into the connection between engineering and philosophy, this ground-breaking text illustrates how the theoretical and the practical can merge to form real-world solutions. Furthermore, the methodology covered in this innovative book is extremely user-friendly, and easily synthesized with individual approaches to problem-solving. Discussion of the Method is an ideal supplement for introductory and advanced courses in engineering, philosophy, and other disciplines, as well as a compelling read for general audiences.

THE METHOD: AN OVERVIEW


·Part I describes the problem situation that calls for the talents of the engineer and emphasizes how frequently this situation is encountered.


·Part II defines the heuristic and the engineering method.


·Part III lists examples of heuristics and techniques used to implement the engineering method, describes several alternative definitions of the engineering method, and renders the method in its final form.


·Part IV generalizes the engineering method to a universal method.


·Part V gives a concise, justifiable statement of universal method.


·Part VI delivers a specific example of the universal method in use.

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Customers buy this book with Doing a Literature Review: Releasing the Social Science Research Imagination (Published in association with The Open University) $43.06

Discussion of the Method: Conducting the Engineer's Approach to Problem Solving (Engineering & Technology) + Doing a Literature Review: Releasing the Social Science Research Imagination (Published in association with The Open University)


Editorial Reviews

Review


"The best description of engineering that I have ever seen, and one of the most provocative hypotheses about science and nature that I have ever seen!" --Dr. William A. Wulf, President, National Academy of Engineering


"Koen has both mastered and melded a number of seemingly imiscable disciplines - philosophy, linguistics, theology - with his own professional field of engineering. It is reminiscent of the way that Thomas Aquinas reconciled Christianity with Philosophy." --Michael Murphy, Toronto, Canada


"Professor Koen's book suggests a startling, explicit statement of a new way to think about engineering and life.If we, as educators, wish to prepare our students for engineering practice, the techniques indicated in this book provide a philosophical underpinning for dealing with risks associated with engineering actions and designs, when there is insufficient applicable science."-Dendy Sloan, Chemical Engineering Education, Volume 38, Numer 3, Summer 2004 "Koen illuminates a path to greater understanding. His prose is very engaging and the book is well suited for general audiences. It is one of those book that begs to be read and re-read." --Michael Murphy, Toronto, Canada


"The book touches on so many topics that it is hard to imagine philosophers, mathematicians, linguists, physicists, and scientists of all stripes not having an opinion about it." --Julio M. Otto, Nature


"I found the book to be incredible. I am amazed I didn't even know what engineering is until now." --Howard Duhon, P.E., Chief Process Engineer and Decision Analyst, Gibson Applied Technology and Engineering, LLC


"A profound agglomeration of philosophy, mathematics, eastern mysticism, and very practical engineering." --H. Felix Kloman, GARP


About the Author


Billy V. Koen is Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Texas at Austin and a fellow of both the American Nuclear Society (ANS) and the American Society of Engineering Education (ASEE). He has received fifteen awards for teaching excellence, including the W. Leighton Collins Award, (the ASEE's highest honor for pedagogy), and the ASEE Centennial Medallion for his lasting impact on the field of engineering education. He is a pioneer in the application of artificial intelligence to nuclear reactor reliability and the introduction of self-paced teaching strategies in engineering education. He has written more than 125 technical publications and has contributed to numerous textbooks and engineering journals. Included in his body of work is the classic treatise, "Definition of the Engineering Method," published by the ASEE in 1985.

Product Details

  • Paperback: 276 pages
  • Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (March 20, 2003)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0195155998
  • ISBN-13: 978-0195155990
  • Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 5.9 x 0.6 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #608,640 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliantly Original Synthesis of many Disciplines, January 10, 2004
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This review is from: Discussion of the Method: Conducting the Engineer's Approach to Problem Solving (Engineering & Technology) (Paperback)
This book came recommended to me by a professional engineer. As I started turning the pages during a first skim read, it struck me that Koen has brought together a huge amount of experience on engineering with a deep understanding of philosophy (to his credit, both Western and Eastern) plus a range subjects from classical literature, world religion and the vagarities of world languages and forged them into a brilliant synthesis of remarkable clarity and originality.

His central thesis is "All is heuristic" (All is rule of thumb). He has surrounded this argument with a phalynx of other heuristics (59 in total)that range from the practical (e.g., at some point in the project, freeze the design) to the metaphysical (e.g., sincerity of belief and the inability to disbelieve are poor justifications for claiming that a belief is true) to the paradoxical (e.g., if a concept produces paradoxes, unexplained complexities or unexpected departures from expected results, better consider it a heuristic)

In writing this book, Koen has both mastered and melded a number of seemingly imiscable disciplines - philosophy, linguistics, theology - with his own professional field of engineering (he is professor of Mechanical Engineering at University of Texas at Austin and a fellow of the American Nuclear Society). It is reminiscent of the way that Thomas Acquinas reconciled Christianity with Philosophy.

This is no mean feat, and Koen's book, unpretentiously entitled "a discussion", is an intellectual tour of the first order. Of course, his many references mean so much more if you are familiar with them. If you haven't, be sure to look them up - your life will be immeasurably enriched. In any event, Koen illuminates a path to greater understanding. His prose is very engaging and the book is well suited for general audiences. It is one of those books that begs to be read and re-read.

One can only wonder if Koen's book had been available earlier (it was published in 2003), would we have been faced with such disasters as Challenger and Columbia, as the Ford Explorer, Chevy Corvair, Ford Pinto, Bhopal, etc. A little more humility with the inherent uncertainties of engineering life might have made a positive difference. This book strives hard - and I believe succeeds - at doing just that. Bravo, Professor Koen for shedding new light on old problems. It comes as no surprise that Koen has won high awards for teaching excellence (W. Leighton Collins and Centennial Medallion) - both from the American Society of Engineering Education.

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2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent book that provoke you to re-think a lot, February 16, 2005
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Semyon D. Savransky (Silicon Valley, California, USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Discussion of the Method: Conducting the Engineer's Approach to Problem Solving (Engineering & Technology) (Paperback)
An excellent book that provoke you to re-think a lot. Strongly recommend esp. for scientists and TRIZniks.
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Inside This Book (learn more)
First Sentence:
The use of the engineering method rather than the use of reason is humankind's most equitably divided endowment. Read the first page
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
universale organum, present sota, engineering heuristics, situation within the available resources, heuristic position, dream hypothesis, interesting heuristic, best engineering practice, optimization space, word heuristic, engineering method, universal method, engineering answer, additional heuristics, ancient skeptics, other heuristics, heuristic one, good heuristic, engineering goals, fuzzy subset, heuristic analysis
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Lucky Luke, Bell's Inequality, Ghost Riders, Aswan High Dam, San Francisco, United States, Dean Machine, Grand Court, Knob Setting, New York City, Francis Bacon, Golden Gate Bridge, Salomon's House, Alpha Centauri, Bertrand Russell, Color Insert, John Gribbin, Sextus Empiricus, Artists Rights Society, Bell's Theorem, Estate of Pablo Picasso, Tacoma Narrows Bridge
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