The Engines of Our Ingenuity: An Engineer Looks at Technology and Culture

by John H. Lienhard

Book Overview

Millions of people have listened to John H. Lienhard's radio program "The Engines of Our Ingenuity." In this fascinating book, Lienhard gathers his reflections on the nature of technology, culture, and human inventiveness. The book brims with insightful observations. Lienhard writes that the history of technology is a history of us--we are the machines we create. Thus farming dramatically changed the rhythms of human life and redirected history. War...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0195167317
• ISBN13: 9780195167313
• Release Date: December 2003
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
• Length: 262 Pages
• Weight: 0.90 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.9" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

Genuinely ingenious!

An enjoyable writing style combined with a wealth of interesting facts makes this a book that few would dislike. Every story that glorifies engineers is matched by one showing their shortcomings or failures, providing a book that seems to have a well balanced perspective on the impact of technology on science, not the biased view one might anticipate in a book by an engineer about engineering.The huge volume of assorted facts borders on random trivia, but it is always organised in a logical fashion, and enthusiastically written, so the end result is hardly tedious, but rather a very compelling read.I would love to have access to his radio program if it is anywhere near as good as this book.

milestone classic on technology and culture

The first thing I want to say about this book is: about time!!!John Lienhard is a philosopher who has been using his daily public radio broadcasts to share his wonderful meditations on art, science and humanity. He reads with a inspirational tone, and often his meditations wander into territories unforeseen. I remember one episode where Leinhard starts by talking about a tabloid column about bigfoot on the north pole, then shelley's frankenstein and then some scientific topic. I remember also with fondness Leinhard's paean to the man who invented leaded gasoline and how significant a technological improvement it was considered at the time (and how maligned his invention is in the modern day). Leinhard writes with a keen sense of historical irony and can transition from one discipline into another with ease. I would compare Leinhard's prose to that of a Francis Bacon, a Carl Sagan or an Edmund Wilson. His writing is at the top of his field, and his mastery of the intracies of engineering, physics or any other scientific field are truly astounding. The 5 minute radio program form forced them to be concise, and frequently I've been impressed by how succinctly he can convey an entire life of a scientist in less than 5 minutes: the tragedies and triumphs. Perhaps in book form these meditations won't seem as remarkable. (I compare it with Garison Keilor, whose wonderfully witty spoken prose hangs limp on the book page). However, I've read many of his essays at his web site at University of Houston, and there is still the same excitement and vigor in the written prose. My only complaint is that they are not available for download in audio form. I am not a scientist, but Lienhard makes me want to be. He has helped me to see the connections between art and science, life and science, god and science. I can't tell you how many times I've been driving in a daze and how Mr. Lienhard's 5 minute meditation suddenly fills my life with clarity.

From the Airwaves to the Page. . with Smashing Success

Not a Blow by Blow of the Radio Series, but a fresh writing about John Lienhard's unique perspective on Technology, History, and above all. . . Humanity. Beautifully written in a prose style that bespeaks a depth of understanding of the human condition one would expect from a philosopher. . . not an engineer. . . then again. . . John Lienhard is no ordinary engineer.

The Engines of Our Ingenuity : An Engineer Looks at Technolo

John Lienhard has done an excellent job of putting a human face on technology and its history. He makes one think as he assails the "conventional wisdom" that "success breeds success." He also gives new perspective with his notion of when the industrial revolution really took place. This is excellent reading for anyone who is interested in how technology shapes our lives, and how our culture shapes technology.

Excellent

If you love hearing The Engines of Our Ingenuity on Public Radio then you will love this book. Professor Lienhard (Professor of Engineering at the University of Houston) is a master storyteller, weaving together tidbits of information and little know facts to explore civilization's machines and how they came to be. I have been anxiously awaiting this book because Lienhard is limited to only about 3 minutes on the radio. In book form I was not at all disappointed. I could hear his deep voice resonating on each page.