Science of Structures and Materials (Scientific American Library) [Hardcover]

J. E. Gordon (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 217 pages
• Publisher: Times Books (March 15, 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0716750228
• ISBN-13: 978-0716750222
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 8.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #549,507 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Why is glass fragile and not steel?, January 17, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (Sockholm, Sweden) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Science of Structures and Materials (Scientific American Library) (Hardcover)

I used to beleve that questions like that are not possible to answer without mathematics and advanced physics. Gordon does it, and he does it very good. If you like aha-experiences, read this book!

5.0 out of 5 stars Another brilliant book, September 10, 2009

By 

Robin Hoare (beautiful New Zealand) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Science of Structures and Materials (Scientific American Library) (Hardcover)

Though this book like its stablemate on Strong Materials was written some time ago I think it should be essential background reading for all teachers of science and engineering.
The writer has a real gift of making quite difficult subjects interesting, and with humourous though relevant asides. Professor Gordon had wide experience in many fields and this shows... even people with no mathematical knowledge can read with profit... especially interesting is the section on how accidents happen, sometimes when a person with insufficient technical knowledge tries to "strengthen" a structure and ends up by weakening it. See for instance the WWI Fokker D8 monoplane and the heating vessels towards the end of the book.
The writer also explores the strengths of natural creatures (see "How to design a Worm")
Compulsive reading!

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Disapointing, April 28, 2010

By 

Renaud Olgiati (Asuncion, Paraguay) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Science of Structures and Materials (Scientific American Library) (Hardcover)

This book is mainly a re-hash of Prof. Gordon's "The New Science of Strong Materials or Why You Don't Fall through the Floor", with more pictures and some new annecdotes.
As I already owned the above-mentionned work, this book was a disappointment.