Structures: Or Why Things Don't Fall Down
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-05-17 11:53:16
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：J.E. Gordon
- ISBN：0306812835
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Summary
In a book that Business Insider noted as one of the "14 Books that inspired Elon Musk，" J。E。 Gordon strips engineering of its confusing technical terms， communicating its founding principles in accessible， witty prose。
For anyone who has ever wondered why suspension bridges don't collapse under eight lanes of traffic， how dams hold back--or give way under--thousands of gallons of water， or what principles guide the design of a skyscraper， a bias-cut dress， or a kangaroo， this book will ease your anxiety and answer your questions。
Structures: Or Why Things Don't Fall Down is an informal explanation of the basic forces that hold together the ordinary and essential things of this world--from buildings and bodies to flying aircraft and eggshells。 In a style that combines wit， a masterful command of his subject， and an encyclopedic range of reference， Gordon includes such chapters as "How to Design a Worm" and "The Advantage of Being a Beam，" offering humorous insights in human and natural creation。
Architects and engineers will appreciate the clear and cogent explanations of the concepts of stress， shear， torsion， fracture， and compression。 If you're building a house， a sailboat， or a catapult， here is a handy tool for understanding the mechanics of joinery， floors， ceilings， hulls， masts--or flying buttresses。
Without jargon or oversimplification， Structures opens up the marvels of technology to anyone interested in the foundations of our everyday lives。
For anyone who has ever wondered why suspension bridges don't collapse under eight lanes of traffic， how dams hold back--or give way under--thousands of gallons of water， or what principles guide the design of a skyscraper， a bias-cut dress， or a kangaroo， this book will ease your anxiety and answer your questions。
Structures: Or Why Things Don't Fall Down is an informal explanation of the basic forces that hold together the ordinary and essential things of this world--from buildings and bodies to flying aircraft and eggshells。 In a style that combines wit， a masterful command of his subject， and an encyclopedic range of reference， Gordon includes such chapters as "How to Design a Worm" and "The Advantage of Being a Beam，" offering humorous insights in human and natural creation。
Architects and engineers will appreciate the clear and cogent explanations of the concepts of stress， shear， torsion， fracture， and compression。 If you're building a house， a sailboat， or a catapult， here is a handy tool for understanding the mechanics of joinery， floors， ceilings， hulls， masts--or flying buttresses。
Without jargon or oversimplification， Structures opens up the marvels of technology to anyone interested in the foundations of our everyday lives。
Reviews
Marcos
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As a former structural engineer， it'd be nice to have known about books like this during university。 Just for a different and less formal perspective。 As a former structural engineer， it'd be nice to have known about books like this during university。 Just for a different and less formal perspective。 。。。more
Tony
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I have no background in civil engineer nor material engineer。 My background is in biology sciences but I bought this book because I'm a fan of Elon Musk。 Surprisingly， this book and the concepts are very easy to understand。 It also touches on subjects of biology and even goes on to rant a little， at the end， on human philosophy。 I have no background in civil engineer nor material engineer。 My background is in biology sciences but I bought this book because I'm a fan of Elon Musk。 Surprisingly， this book and the concepts are very easy to understand。 It also touches on subjects of biology and even goes on to rant a little， at the end， on human philosophy。 。。。more
Žiga
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Another one that ought to be required reading。
Pablo Miró
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I really enjoyed the way the author started the book and introduced the concepts of stress and strain。 I liked the book overall and found super interesting the last sections of the book where the author speaks a bit more about his opinions on Nature， engineering， aesthetics and the current approaches of building structures and products。
ЧІТАЮГУМІЛЬОВА ЧІТАЮГУМІЛЬОВА
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Ребята， это просто эмейзинг
Taco Taco
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喜欢物理、工程、建筑的都可以读一下，知道这本书是因为 Elon Musk 推荐过。
Max Van Meer
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"It is energetically advantageous for a weight to fall to the ground， for strain energy to be released -and so on。 Sooner or later the weight will fall to the ground and the strain energy will be released; but it is the business of a structure to delay such events for a season， for a lifetime or for thousands of years。 All structures will be broken or destroyed in the end -just as all people will die in the end。 It is the purpose of medicine and engineering to postpone these occurrences for a de "It is energetically advantageous for a weight to fall to the ground， for strain energy to be released -and so on。 Sooner or later the weight will fall to the ground and the strain energy will be released; but it is the business of a structure to delay such events for a season， for a lifetime or for thousands of years。 All structures will be broken or destroyed in the end -just as all people will die in the end。 It is the purpose of medicine and engineering to postpone these occurrences for a decent interval。"It's a nice read if you're interested in getting a basic grasp on mechanics。 With a background in mechanical engineering， I did enjoy the historical anecdotes and the occasional practical note。 However， the author spends so much time elaborating on basic concepts like tension， stress and strain that I'm not sure that I'd recommend it to anyone who has followed at least a basic course in mechanics。 His switching between serious explanations and silly jokes doesn't feel well-balanced either - I， for one， am not interested in the Poisson's ratio of the author's tummy。 Moreover， for a book about structures， this book is structured very poorly。 There's no conclusion and each section of every chapter is a completely different subject without clear coherence or story。 If you have zero prior knowledge of mechanics， his detailed explanations， mixed with humour and history， might be just the right accessible starting point。 To anyone else， I would not recommend it。 。。。more
Luke
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Nicely explained stress/strain/torsion relationships to strengths of materials for architectural needs。。。 whether human infrastructure or biological systems。 Irreverent and focused on accidents and what for most of human history has been pragmatic guesses and extrapolations rather than maths， I enjoyed it。
Kyle Schumacher
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Entertaining book on various topics related to structures and insights into why things are made a certain way （and why some things should be made differently）
Saif Muaffaq
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As a Student of Civil engineering I find this book very rich and entertaining。 I recommend it to everyone， who is generally interested in Knowing the basics in Structure。 It's also most useful to Anyone， who wants to study Architecture， Civil engineering and any engineering major As a Student of Civil engineering I find this book very rich and entertaining。 I recommend it to everyone， who is generally interested in Knowing the basics in Structure。 It's also most useful to Anyone， who wants to study Architecture， Civil engineering and any engineering major 。。。more
Joel Collier
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AmazingI was not expecting a book about mechanical stresses and strains to open another room in my understanding of the world。 The book is simple， entertaining， direct， and informative。
Simon Vincent
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Interesting building my understanding of something completely new！ Now to build a bridge。。。！
Kobe Malagueno
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Informative read， especially if you are studying civil engineering。 He explains topics that are not usually thought of in design such as strain energy and material properties opposed to just tensile strength of a material。 This book did well on connecting different concepts together including fracture， shear failure and compressive members。 Some underlying things that we very well explained was the concepts of arches， suspension bridges and how column usually don't fail in crushing （ex: masonry Informative read， especially if you are studying civil engineering。 He explains topics that are not usually thought of in design such as strain energy and material properties opposed to just tensile strength of a material。 This book did well on connecting different concepts together including fracture， shear failure and compressive members。 Some underlying things that we very well explained was the concepts of arches， suspension bridges and how column usually don't fail in crushing （ex: masonry in arches）。 One of my favourite ties he brought up was how structures in living beings such as humans and plants function。 For example I didn't know that our tendons are integral parts of how humans resist load and are about 800 times stronger than muscles in tension。 It was very interesting to think of structural engineering in terms of nature and humans since it is usually thought of in just beams， columns and slabs。 In engineering school， we are usually taught concepts in terms of equations but this book achieves a more pragmatic vision by explaining the function of all the integral parts of building assembly。 。。。more
Andreas
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As an aspiring engineer， this book reaffirmed why I want to be an engineer。Every chapter was delightfully written and logically structured， with lots of short examples from history or thought experiments （with accompanying images）。The book incorporated a fair bit of math， but it was simple to understand。 If you intend to use the principles of this book in your own life， I suggest taking notes in a separate notebook。Perhaps my favorite chapter was the last of the book （Chapter 15）， in which J。 E。 As an aspiring engineer， this book reaffirmed why I want to be an engineer。Every chapter was delightfully written and logically structured， with lots of short examples from history or thought experiments （with accompanying images）。The book incorporated a fair bit of math， but it was simple to understand。 If you intend to use the principles of this book in your own life， I suggest taking notes in a separate notebook。Perhaps my favorite chapter was the last of the book （Chapter 15）， in which J。 E。 Gordon discusses the relationship between beauty and functionality in structures， and how beauty has declined in the design process of recent years。 This chapter deeply resonated with me， although I can't say exactly why， and prompted some thought-provoking conversations with other members of my household。Overall， I highly， highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the rich history and design process of the structures of our daily lives。（P。 S。 It makes a great gift to the middle or high schooler in your life considering a career in engineering！） 。。。more
Bouke
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Enjoyable book that lies down a lot of principles for how to construct things in a good way。 It shows away from being too theoretical while also not being too 'popsci'， a good balance。 I found the chapters on aesthetics to be the most enjoyable。 Enjoyable book that lies down a lot of principles for how to construct things in a good way。 It shows away from being too theoretical while also not being too 'popsci'， a good balance。 I found the chapters on aesthetics to be the most enjoyable。 。。。more
Abhijeet Rathore
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A must read for structural engineers， who seldom get to read and learn anything other than formulae。 Great descriptions of structures from cathedrals to ships， animal bodies to aeroplanes and much more
Kevin Hollins
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I learned some interesting things in the reading， but felt like a squirrel finding acorns。 It was written in 1978 by an English professor， so this was long before science written for mass consumption became a real genre （with the appurtenant editors）。 The prose was not exactly dull， but neither was it grabbing。 There were quite interesting learnings in every chapter， but it meant paying close attention and finding them。 The final chapter was the most gratifying， when the reader learns that the a I learned some interesting things in the reading， but felt like a squirrel finding acorns。 It was written in 1978 by an English professor， so this was long before science written for mass consumption became a real genre （with the appurtenant editors）。 The prose was not exactly dull， but neither was it grabbing。 There were quite interesting learnings in every chapter， but it meant paying close attention and finding them。 The final chapter was the most gratifying， when the reader learns that the author， despite a healthy dose of practicality （a must-have quality in an engineer）， is at his core an aesthete。 。。。more
James Biskey
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Classic text and on Elon Musk's short list of book recommendations。 As an engineer but not a mechanical or structural one， I enjoyed what I read of it。 I found it pretty slow to start， but great diagrams and real-world examples。 As someone who appreciates structures but won't ever design or build them， I'm happy to keep this book in my collection as a handy reference。 Classic text and on Elon Musk's short list of book recommendations。 As an engineer but not a mechanical or structural one， I enjoyed what I read of it。 I found it pretty slow to start， but great diagrams and real-world examples。 As someone who appreciates structures but won't ever design or build them， I'm happy to keep this book in my collection as a handy reference。 。。。more
Santosh Vadlamani
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The structures gets stretched at parts， but still a really good read if interested in strength of materials and stuff。
Jamie O'Shea
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If you are considering a career in engineering you should read this book。
Roberta Falco
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The book provides an interesting outlook on engineering especially compared to biology， but as a female engineer I would have been able to appreciate it much more if the author didn’t insist on multiple useless comments objectifying women and portraying us just as things to look at or to explain things to。 Really off-putting。
H
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great insight
Huw
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Wow， this book is brilliant。 The way Mr Gordon explains about structures from bridges to cheetahs to humans is brilliant。 This book will go down as one of the greats of engineering。
Chandrasen Rajashekar
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Book recommendations from Elon Musk。 From the YouTube video “Elon Musk: The Scientist Behind the CEO （and how He Teaches Himself） Documentary”
Xavier Shay
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Delightful。 Need to read through the casual -isms of the time， unfortunately。
Ruben Hekkens
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Writing a book on engineering has two dangers。 If one uses too much detail， formulas and numbers he will scare the reader with complexity and probably also bore him to death。 If however the writer uses too little detail or does not venture into important technical concepts at all， it will appear as if he has no insight in the matters himself and tries to "wing it"。 Mr。 Gordon manages to avoid both pitfalls and deliver an entertaining book full of examples of buildings， bridges， boats and aeropla Writing a book on engineering has two dangers。 If one uses too much detail， formulas and numbers he will scare the reader with complexity and probably also bore him to death。 If however the writer uses too little detail or does not venture into important technical concepts at all， it will appear as if he has no insight in the matters himself and tries to "wing it"。 Mr。 Gordon manages to avoid both pitfalls and deliver an entertaining book full of examples of buildings， bridges， boats and aeroplanes and the structural concepts that underly them。 It really does feel like I'm one step closer to becoming Elon Musk after reading this （even though it was written in the seventies！） 。。。more
Reddle
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A good book that aptly describe "Structures: Or Why Things Don't Fall Down"。 It explains many structures: Stone Masonry， Suspension Bridges， Arches; Wood， steel， Stone as support structures; Tension， Compression of Materials; Lattices， Fracture Mechanics and many more。 Through simple observation I'm sure people understand these concepts intuitively- Take fracture mechanics for example: You have one solid block of material like a wall- it requires a large amount of concentrated force to cause a s A good book that aptly describe "Structures: Or Why Things Don't Fall Down"。 It explains many structures: Stone Masonry， Suspension Bridges， Arches; Wood， steel， Stone as support structures; Tension， Compression of Materials; Lattices， Fracture Mechanics and many more。 Through simple observation I'm sure people understand these concepts intuitively- Take fracture mechanics for example: You have one solid block of material like a wall- it requires a large amount of concentrated force to cause a small crack/fracture in that wall。 However， once the initial crack is in place the material around the crack is subject to astronomically more tensile strain （in some cases 10，000 times the initial tension）。 This makes the next possibility of a crack more likely to occur in a domino effect。 It also explains how stone walls collapse through the conversion of compression from stack stones to tension， which occurs on the sides of a brick。 If you've ever seen old stone architecture you can see that the corners of stone appear shaved， this principle explains why this is so。 It also explains why bodies can diffuse energy as soft tissue can rebound shape and dissipate energy through kinetic links while brittle materials like stone or bricks smash with a modest amount of force。 The last chapter tells us a few things about the energy consumption of materials like Steel: Steel was sustained to be developed due to an excess of high concentrated energy sources like Coal and Oil。 Our obsession with steel isn't sustainable when we consider the energy needed to produce this so we should try to move to other materials that are net-free energy: Timber has very interesting structural properties like being lightweight， similar compression to Concrete， Elasticity and a high tensile Strength。 There's a fair amount of formulas in this book so it's definitely useful for a structural engineer， slightly less so for a non-practitioner but the conception of ideas explained are very useful for mapping the world around you。 。。。more
Denis Vasilev
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Хорошая разминка для мозгов。 Инженерия это все-таки отчасти наука， отчасти искусство。 Поэтому книга получилась с поэзией。 Читал из списка Илона Маска， поэтому настроен был с большим интересом， чем если бы сам нашел。 Это помогло дочитать книгу， хоть и после нескольких месяцев медленного прогресса。 По результату - обещание книги выполняется， намного лучше понимаю как обеспечивается прочность конструкций。 Здания， мосты， корабли， самолеты - нашлось место всему
Rafidannafi
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wonderful book for learning engineering！！！
Shahabaz
，