The book describes, and where possible illustrates, historic mechanical engineering landmarks, representing the accomplishments of mechanical engineers over the past 250 years-from the steam engine of Thomas Newcomen (1712), which launched the Industrial Revolution, to the Saturn V rocket (1967). Some of them are recognizable to us all, such as Xerography, Sikorsky's helicopter, and Disneyland's monorail. Others work behind the scenes or have been superseded, such as the Owens "AR" bottle machine and the Jackson Ferry Shot Tower. The landmarks are grouped into such categories as mechanical power production, power transmission, minerals extraction and refining, food processing, environmental control, transportation, biomedical engineering, and communications and data processing. Each section is introduced by an essay that helps place each landmark into the context of technical and general history. While some of these landmarks have not survived intact, others can be visited, and travel information is provided. The machines that shape our society help educate us about an important facet of human history and how technology has influenced it. ASME International's landmarks program identifies and recognizes artifacts of significance before they disappear. This roster of landmarks tells a magnificent story of people and places and of innovation and discovery.
Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Library Journal
This interesting collection from the History and Heritage Committee of the American Society of Mechanical Engineering (ASME International)?a successor to an earlier, and much smaller, volume entitled National Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmarks?is really a sort of museum guide to more than 130 mechanical relics scattered around the country, standing resolutely?though retired?as monuments to the aspirations and achievements of mechanical engineers. Each entry includes a brief history of the objet de mechanique, a shallow explanation of how it worked, directions for getting to it today (including hours and fee information), and a list of further reading. Photos, but virtually no schematics, help illuminate the machines. Introductory essays by committee members are proud and dry; the text in each entry isn't much better. The latest entry is the Saturn V rocket (1967); the earliest, Newcomen's steam engine (1712). Recommended for libraries in search of a single volume enshrining the great works of the mechanical engineering profession.?Robert C. Ballou, Atlanta
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Review
There is a particular breed of human abroad in the land. You will find them haunting hardware stores hefting every cordless drill on display, punching the trigger to test torque. They take an unexpressed joy in spinning a well-tooled nut onto its bolt. You find them surreptitiously running their hands over the riveted skin of a P-51 at air museums, and who would understand such people better than the American Society of Mechanical Engineers? In their superb publication, Landmarks in Mechanical Engineering, the ASME have complied a fascination collection of "1385 historic mechanical engineering landmarks." Ranging from the famous (Edison and his engine driven dynamo) to the obscure and wonderfully arcane (Jackson Ferry Shot Tower), this compendium is particularly important in celebrating the lesser-known pioneers of mechanical engineering and their inventions. Following the text for each of the 135 landmarks is a paragraph describing the location/access to each landmark, including telephone numbers and visiting hours (for most). There is also a listing of further readings on each landmark. The description and history of each landmark are presented in a straight-forward, no nonsense manner-what one might expect from a society for whom form follows function is the essential credo. For anyone interested in the history of machines and engineering, this publication is an important addition to your library, and may even keep you out of the hardware store for awhile. --From Independent Publisher
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