Reddit mentions of Structures: Or Why Things Don't Fall Down

It's called: "Structures, or why things don't fall down" by J E Gordon

It's pretty good. Definitely worth checking out if you're into this kind of thing.

J. E. Gordon's Structures : or why things don't fall down had a very entertaining and informative explanation of the differences between a Greek temple and a Gothic cathedral. One thing he said particularly stood out: "If the Greek architecture of the Parthenon was inspired, the roof was intellectually squalid."

The Greeks laid wooden beams across the pillars and walls, then piled dirt and straw on top and smoothed them into gables, then laid tiles on top of the dirt to shed water. This filling made a good home for vermin, he noted. Trusses were beyond the Greeks.

I would like to see lacy steelwork on the inside, with a copper (treated) or bronzed roof that will resist tarnishing (I would love to see a copper-colored Lady Liberty again, as well). It should be good for 400 years.

J. E. Gordon's book Structures goes into this topic quite a bit.

The short answer is that the compressive strength of masonry is high enough that you can ignore it (assume it is infinite) for practical buildings. What you do have to worry about is your walls toppling over from unbalanced forces. For this purpose, scale models are actually very useful. If your model doesn't fall down, the real thing is probably good (assuming it really is to scale, same materials, etc).

So the builders of the Colosseum probably designed it by playing with blocks.

Structures: Or why things don't fall down. Excellent if you're considering civil or mechanical.

https://www.amazon.com/Structures-Things-Dont-Fall-Down/dp/0306812835

So I made this: http://imgur.com/a/vPsOM

It's the Kindle DX, Kindle Touch, and the Kindle app on a Nexus 7. All have the smallest font.

They are both in the amazon store (so, MOBI/AZW files, not PDFs). The two books are

Hardcoregaming101.net Presents: The Guide to Classic Graphic Adventures

and

Structures: Or Why Things Don't Fall Down

So they all look great (ignore the crappy cellphone camera quality). I think it's interesting for the Structures one, the DX does not manage to fit both figures on the page, but does for the N7. Also something to keep in mind, the Kindle app does not zoom in on pictures when you change the text size. You have to select it and choose the zoom option. Interesting how on the DX they are huge. Let me know if you have any other questions.

I'll plug these books at every opportunity I get. J. E. Gordon is a great writer.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0306812835/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0691180989/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i1

Aww Yisss, that book is fantastic. It was recommended to me by coworkers when I was interning in a space company.

http://imgur.com/8DwcXga (Proof)

Just pulled it out and another book that was recommended to me called Structures: Or Why Things Don't Fall Down

Not along the lines of Electrical but I think Structures: Or why things don't fall down by JE Gordon is without a doubt the best book I've ever read on the Materials side of engineering. Technical in nature but so well written it reads like a novel. Written in the 60's but still just as relevant today. Got a recommendation by Bill Gates. Elon Musk read it when he wanted to understand more about materials science and loved it. Should be required reading for all freshman

As a casual read, I'd suggest 'Structures: Or Why Things Don't Fall Down' by J. E. Gordon. It's supposed to serve as a very basic introduction to what Structural Engineering is all about, and is written very well. I found it quite interesting.

Here you go: https://www.amazon.com/Structures-Things-Dont-Fall-Down/dp/0306812835
Amazing book for beginners or people with a decade of experience. I have read this several times now and still love it.

Not specific to bikes, but along with Bill Gates, I highly, highly recommend this book about materials science /architecture:

https://www.amazon.com/Structures-Things-Dont-Fall-Down/dp/0306812835

This teaches concepts such as elasticity (Hooke's law), toughness, ductility, etc. ... you will have a new appreciation for every "carbon fiber vs. aluminum vs. steel" argument on the 'net after you read it. My only regret is that there aren't other books like it. I read this and it changed my life for about a year; I wanted to become an engineer or bike builder.

The Eurocode series.

Ah but really, I quite like this: Reinforced Concrete Design

This is supposed to be quite good:Dynamics of Structures: Theory and Applications to Earthquake Engineering

I used to love this book, but I wonder if there is an updated version for eurocodes, will have to check it out

And of course it always depends on your field of interest, for instance I particularly like this book: Theory of Shell Structures

Also, this is supposed to be a classic: Structures: Or Why Things Don't Fall Down


I now apologise if you don't live or work in Europe.

The New Science of Strong Materials or Why You Don't Fall through the Floor
http://www.amazon.com/Science-Materials-through-Princeton-Library/dp/0691125481

Structures: Or Why Things Don't Fall Down

http://www.amazon.com/Structures-Things-Dont-Fall-Down/dp/0306812835/ref=pd_bxgy_b_text_y

Great real world overview of lots of mechanical engineering concepts like stress/strain, how I beams work, how cracks form etc.
Not too theory/equation heavy, very well written. 1960s Era but still pretty relevant.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0306812835/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1449385131&sr=8-1&pi=SY200_QL40&keywords=structures+or+why+things+don%27t+fall+down&dpPl=1&dpID=516rxXknhsL&ref=plSrch

I just ordered a copy for me and my just off to college wannabe engineer brother in law. Thanks!

Steel Construction Manual

Or if you want less math and more math theory? https://www.amazon.com/Structures-Things-Dont-Fall-Down/dp/0306812835

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Let me hit you with a different angle. These aren't about distillation, but they will give you a good feel for what's on the line if you go into industry. It's hard to get your head around, but your title comes with a certain amount of people blindly trusting you, and so that responsibility has to be carried with the hard knowledge of just how fast and bad things can fail if you don't have your bases covered.

• Normal Accidents - Living With High Risk Technologies, Perrow This is an absolutely fascinating look at the tendency toward failure in a whole host of industries. Written simply, and not too harshly long, I would recommend it as assigned reading to ANY engineer.
  
• The Challenger Launch Decision: Risky Technology, Culture, and Deviance at NASA, Vaughan A fascinating look at how production pressure, heirarchical secrecy, and overconfidence can lead to tragedy. This one is a bit longer, but is probably the most in-depth case study every performed on these topics.
  
  And as a small treat, I will leave a related quote taken from my third recommendation, which is much less ChemE specific but is still great, fun reading for anyone, not just engineers:
  Structures: Or Why Things Don't Fall Down, Gordon
  
  "In the course of a long professional life spent, or mis-spent, in the study of the strength of materials and structures I have had cause to examine a lot of accidents, many of them fatal. I have been forced to the conclusion that very few accidents just 'happen' in a morally neutral way. Nine out of ten accidents are caused, not by more or less abstruse technical effects, but by old fashioned human sin - often verging on plane wickedness. Of course I do not mean the more gilded and juicy sins like deliberate murder, large-scale fraud or Sex. It is squalid sins like carelessness, idleness, won't-learn-and-don't-need-to-ask, you-can't-tell-me-anything-about-my-job, pride, jealousy and greed that kill people."
  
  - J.E.Gordon, Structures

structures: or why things dont fall down.

https://www.amazon.com/Structures-Things-Dont-Fall-Down/dp/0306812835/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1482348485&sr=8-1&keywords=structures+or+why+things+don%27t+fall+down

No problem, if you haven't already I would suggest reading:

https://www.amazon.com/European-Building-Construction-Illustrated-Francis/dp/1119953170/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1494355026&sr=8-1&keywords=european+building+illustrated

https://www.amazon.com/Building-Construction-Illustrated-Francis-Ching/dp/1118458346/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1494354977&sr=8-1&keywords=building+construction+illustrated

https://www.amazon.com/Why-Buildings-Stand-Up-Architecture/dp/0393306763/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1494355012&sr=8-2&keywords=strength+of+architecture

and

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0306812835/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

A distressingly-high ratio of pop psych nonsense suggestions in here. Sticking to engineering, one of my faves is Structures: Or Why Things Don't Fall Down by JE Gordon (and The New Science of Strong Materials by the same author). Does a great job of qualitatively AND quantitatively explaining structures and materials.

Civil engineering to shipbuilding: Structures and The new science of strong materials, by J.E. Gordon. These are incredibly enlightening.

Physics (also some chemistry and biology): It Must Be Beautiful: Great Equations of Modern Science is a collection of essays by great scientists - among others, it contains a very insightful discussion on the birth of the Schroedinger equation, which is rather different from the usual stories of cats in boxes, chicken crossing the road, gods playing dice, and the like.

Chemistry: The Elements: A Very Short Introduction, by Philip Ball.

Biochemistry: Chance and necessity, by Jacques Monod. Seems it's out of print, I guess my knowledge of the field is a bit out-of-date. There must be some other book out there that explains elegantly protein folding and enzymatic regulation, which are the base mechanisms of living matter.

A good wikipedia page on the square-cube law to start digging for various sources. It's such a solid part of maths and materials that most papers on it are probably filled with 'thou art' and so forth.

Again a wikipedia page, this time on fracture mechanics and, specifically the 'griffiths crack length'. This stuff was worked out after WW1 boats started splitting in half unexpectedly due to square portholes and access hatches rather than ones with rounded edges. This subject is so demonstrated we cover it in first-year engineering at uni.

A great pair of books on the subject that are both very informative AND fun to read rather than just dry academia are Structures; or why things don't fall down and The new science of strong materials; or why we don't fall through the flaw. I know those links are for amazon but hopefully you can find a copy in a library or something.