Research Guides: New Books and Resources in Engineering and Science: Home

Librarian for Research Services

Michael White

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Douglas Library, Room 520

613-453-2609

Subjects: Astronomy and Astrophysics, Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Physics

Introduction

Check the sections below to see books and other resources recently added to the library's collection.

Remembering Hubert Reeves (1932-2023)

Acclaimed astrophysicist and ecologist Hubert Reeves passed away recently at the age of 91. A Montrealer by birth, Reeves studied at the Université de Montréal and McGill before earning his PhD at Cornell University. Throughout his lengthy career, Hubert served as an advisor to NASA, as a professor at universities in North America and Europe, and as the Director of Research at the French National Centre for Scientific Research. He was also a renowned popularizer of science and a dedicated advocate for nature conservation, preserving biodiversity, and fighting climate change. Queen's libraries own a number of his books in both French and English, a selection of which are listed below.

Atoms of Silence
Call Number: Douglas QB 981 R413 1984
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Discusses how the universe evolved from its primordial stage to the present. When this title was first published as Patience dans l'Azur in 1984, one reviewer in L'Express remarked "Reeves turns astrophysics into an epic saga, a metaphysical fresco, a story in the fullest sense of the word."
Nuclear Reactions in Stellar Surfaces and Their Relations with Stellar Evolution
Call Number: Douglas QB 806 R44 1971
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Adapted from lectures given by Reeves at universities in Israel and Switzerland in 1969, this volume discusses, among other topics, how elements such as carbon and oxygen can be synthesized in thermonuclear reactions in stars and how nuclei as heavy as iron can be created through supernovae.
Malicorne : Earthly Reflections of an Astrophysicist
Call Number: Douglas Q 175 R3513 1994
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Taking its name from the Burgundian village that was Reeves' home for over forty years: Malicorne, this very personal work discusses the interrelation of science and culture and how understanding science not only leads to a more vibrant life but also will help prevent apathy to the world's most pressing issues.
Terracide
Call Number: Stauffer GE 149 R4413 2009
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Originally published as Mal de Terre in 2003, this expanded edition, with translation by Donald Winkler brings Reeves' polemic about the existential ecological threats to the planet and what can be done to prevent them to an Anglophone audience.

Remembering Henry Petroski (1942-2023)

Henry Petroski, a professor of civil engineering and history at Duke University who wrote extensively on the history, philosophy, and practice of engineering and design, passed away in June at the age of 81. He wrote approximately 20 books and countless articles for magazines and newspapers. Below are a selection of his books in the library's collection.

Design Paradigms: Case Histories of Error and Judgement in Engineering
Call Number: TA174 .P473 1994
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From ancient Greek temples to twentieth-century towers, engineers have learned more about design from failure than success. The concept of error, according to Henry Petroski, is central to the design process. As a way of explaining the enduring aspects of engineering design, he relates stories of some of the greatest engineering successes and failures of all time.
An Engineer's Alphabet: Gleanings from the Softer Side of a Profession
Call Number: T14 .P473 2011
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Written by America's most famous engineering storyteller and educator, this abecedarium is one engineer's selection of thoughts, quotations, anecdotes, facts, trivia and arcana relating to the practice, history, culture and traditions of his profession.
Engineers of Dreams: Great Bridge Builders and the Spanning of America
Call Number: TG23 .P47 1996
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Petroski reveals the science and engineering--not to mention the politics, egotism, and sheer magic--behind America's great bridges, particularly those constructed during the great bridge-building era starting in the 1870s and continuing through the 1930s.
Force: What It Means to Push and Pull, Slip and Grip, Start and Stop
Call Number: QC73 .P487 2022
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Celebrated author Henry Petroski delves into the ongoing physical interaction between people and things that enables them to stay put or causes them to move. He explores the range of daily human experience whereby we feel the sensations of push and pull, resistance and assistance. Petroski draws from a variety of disciplines to make the case that force--represented especially by our sense of touch--is a unifying principle that pervades our lives.
Paperboy: Confessions of a Future Engineer
Call Number: TA140.P43 A3 2002
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Henry Petroski has been called “the poet laureate of technology.” In Paperboy, he turns his intellectual curiosity inward, on his own past. Petroski grew up in the Cambria Heights section of New York City’s borough of Queens during the 1950s, in the midst of a close and loving family. Paperboy is also the story of the intellectual maturation of an engineer. Petroski’s curiosity about how things work—from bicycles to Press-books to newspaper delivery routes—was evident even in his youth. He writes with clear-eyed passion about the physical surroundings of his world, the same attitude he has brought to examining the quotidian objects of our world. Paperboy is a delightful memoir, telling the dual story of an admirable family in a more innocent, bygone America, and the making of an engineer and writer.
The Pencil: A History of Design and Circumstance
Call Number: TS1268 .P47 1990
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Henry Petroski traces the origins of the pencil back to ancient Greece and Rome, writes factually and charmingly about its development over the centuries and around the world, and shows what the pencil can teach us about engineering and technology today.
The Road Taken: The History and Future of America's Infrastructure
Call Number: HE355.3.E3 P48 2016 (Stauffer Library)
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Acclaimed engineer and historian Henry Petroski explores our core infrastructure from both historical and contemporary perspectives, explaining how essential their maintenance is to America's economic health.
Small Things Considered: Why There is No Perfect Design
Call Number: TA174 .P4738 2003 (Education Library)
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In this book, Petroski takes us inside the creative process by which common objects are invented and improved upon in pursuit of the ever-elusive perfect thing.
Success Through Failure: The Paradox of Design
Call Number: E-book
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Design pervades our lives. Everything from drafting a PowerPoint presentation to planning a state-of-the-art bridge embodies this universal human activity. But what makes a great design? In this compelling and wide-ranging look at the essence of invention, distinguished engineer and author Henry Petroski argues that, time and again, we have built success on the back of failure--not through easy imitation of success.
To Forgive Design: Understanding Failure
Call Number: TA169.5 .P48 2012
Publication Date: 2012
When planes crash, bridges collapse, and automobile gas tanks explode, we are quick to blame poor design. But Henry Petroski says we must look beyond design for causes and corrections. Known for his masterly explanations of engineering successes and failures, Petroski here takes his analysis a step further, to consider the larger context in which accidents occur.