Good books for beginners
Good books for beginners
(OP)
Hello everyone. I'm going to start college real soon and looking to major in mechanical engineering. I was looking online for books on the introduction of the subject and there are many to choose from. Are there any books out there for beginners that this forum recommends? Thanks in advance!





RE: Good books for beginners
Next read Unfair Advantage by Mark Donnelly (?). How an engineer thinks.
Next read Volume 1 of Richard Feynman's lectures. Ignore the tough bits, just try and get a feel for the ideas.
The easiest way to have a smooth learning experience in engineering degrees is to be 100% confident on the maths side. I don't know what level maths you have , or will need in your first couple of years.
The other stumbling block is often thermo. Some familiarity with steam engines and gas engines won't do you any harm.
Good luck
Cheers
Greg Locock
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RE: Good books for beginners
I really wish I'd bought this book:
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instead of whatever dross it was that I bought instead. And once you have one thermo book as a student, it's hard to justify buying another. Specially when there's beer to be drunk.
My Fluids book (Masssey) is still in much better physical condition than it would have been if I ever opened it.
- Steve
RE: Good books for beginners
Not textbooks, but about engineering.
Regards,
Mike
RE: Good books for beginners
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John R. Baker, P.E.
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To an Engineer, the glass is twice as big as it needs to be.
RE: Good books for beginners
I have about 3000 textbooks at the moment, moved the library to the basement because of floor structural issues. The idea was to have a very comfortable, accessable, mechanical design library where the company could carry out R&D innovations. Like Intuit, a games room with bean bag chairs were the software engineers could lay back while thinking about a problem.
Works quite well, a good investment. Why not start your own?
Kenneth J Hueston, PEng
Principal
Sturni-Hueston Engineering Inc
Edmonton, Alberta Canada
RE: Good books for beginners
I second SnTMan's suggestion of anything by Henry Petroski. Otherwise, any books on 'why am I am engineer,' 'how to engineer things,' 'how do mechanical and structural things work,' etc. You need a strong interest in things structural and mechanical and why and how they work, so work to determine if that is to your liking.
RE: Good books for beginners
http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/mechanical-engineering/
Has a course called How & Why Machines Work:
http
Which has a lecture called Overview of Mechanical Engineering
http:/
How specific is that?
A fantastic resource for my primary field is Precision Machine Design:
http://ocw
By none other than Alex Slocum, same guy that wrote the $112 book of the same name.
Rob Campbell, PE
Imagitec: Imagination - Expertise - Execution
imagitec.net