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Henry Petroski's lyrical history of bridge builders in America is organized around five engineers: James Eads (inventor of the diving bell, which bridged Mississippi at St. Louis); Theodore Cooper (railroad bridge engineer and designer of the ill-fated Quebec Bridge); Gustav Lindenthal (Hell Gate Bridge, New York); Othmar Ammann (George Washington and Verrazano-Narrow bridges); and David Steinman (Mackinac bridge). Petroski's opening and closing chapters, "Imagine" and "Realize," remind us how a bridge starts out as a dream of engineering, but ends as a reality of compromise and maintenance. Edward Tenner says that "The profound contribution of Engineers of Dreams is to remind us that communication across generations may be the most important bridge of all."
Book Description
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. It is the story of the men and women who built the St. Louis, the George Washington, and the Golden Gate bridges, drawing not only on their mastery of numbers but on their gifts for persuasion and self-promotion. It is an account of triumphs and ignominious disasters (including the Tacoma Narrows Bridge, which literally twisted itself apart in a high wind). And throughout this grandly engaging book, Petroski lets us see how bridges became the "symbols and souls" of our civilization, as well as testaments to their builders' vision, ingenuity, and perseverance.
"Seamlessly linked...With astonishing scope and generosity of view, Mr. Petroski places the tradition of American bridge-building in perspective."--New York Times Book Review
Customer Reviews:
BridgePros Review.......2002-08-12
If you want to learn more about the best American bridge designers and their bridges, this is the book for you! In particular it has a very good chapter on Steinman (the designer of the Mackinac Bridge).
This book will tell you the stories and politics behind each one of the designers featured and their bridges.
Book evokes a sense of wonder.......2000-06-07
Engineers of Dreams is a book I've read several times because it involves me in the history behind some of engineerings greatest triumphs... and failures. The story of great engineers with various combinations of vision and practicality, as well as perseverence in all cases, makes for a kind of drama. In some cases, we know how the story ended, with a great bridge we can see. In other cases, the story ends with a wreck and bodies. From the story of the San Francisco Bay Bridge to the story of the first Quebec Bridge, this book itself spans a range of ability and satisfaction that is a joy to perceive.
Not up to Petroski's usual high standard.......1998-12-13
I am a great fan of Henry Petroski, engineering professor and author of such minor classics as The Pencil and The Evolution of Useful Things. Perhaps it is because of these high expectations that I was so disappointed by Engineer of Dreams: Great Bridge Builders and the Spanning of America. In the end, Petroski seems much better at writing about engineering artifacts - pencils, paper clips, or, in this book, bridges - than the makers of those artifacts. Much of Petroski's "biography" here seemed nothing less than mere formula: you could almost see him filling in his computer template for "name, date and place of birth, school, mentor, etc." each time a new engineer was introduced. Further, he did not even attempt to vary the template from person to person, so that the repetitive style becomes unmistakable. This book is worth reading insofar as it provides a history of the bridges themselves, and the limits of engineering technique and imagination.
The Mackinac Bridge is finally recogized.......1998-04-05
Finally, FINALLY: a recognition of David Steinman's achievements. The Mackinac Bridge has been described as a "symphony of concrete and steel". If Steinman had not been an enginneer, he may have been a musician.Some structures clearly belong where they are placed. Just a few, though. Steinman had the eye for such places: Messina, for example. It was nice to see a chapter devoted to him, and the rest of the book was good, but otherwise documented.
A fine book explaining the history of building bridges.......1997-09-08
There are very few books which deal with the detail of what it took to build some of the most useful bridges that , even though they were built almost a hundred years ago, are still used and appreciated by millions of people today. I heartily recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in the subject and am not surprised, but disappointed that the book is not currently available by the publisher.I was going to purchase several copies as gifts to fellow engineers. I look forward to the second edition
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Engineers of Dreams: Great Bridge Builders and the Spanning of America.: An article from: American Scientist
Manufacturer: Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society
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ASIN: B00096KOFQ
Release Date: 2005-07-28 |
Product Description
In this best-selling novel, Patrick Smith tells the story of three generations of the MacIveys, a Florida family who battle the hardships of the frontier to rise from a dirt-poor Cracker life to the wealth and standing of real estate tycoons. The story opens in 1858, when Tobias MacIvey arrives in the Florida wilderness to start a new life with his wife and infant son, and ends two generations later with Solomon MacIvey, who realizes that the land has been exploited far beyond human need. The sweeping story that emerges is a rich, rugged Florida history featuring a memorable cast of crusty, indomitable Crackers battling wild animals, rustlers, Confederate deserters, mosquitoes, starvation, hurricanes, and freezes to carve a kingdom out of a swamp. But their most formidable adversary turns out to be greed, including finally their own. Love and tenderness are here too: the hopes and passions of each new generation, friendships with the persecuted blacks and Indians, and respect for the land and its wildlife. A Land Remembered was winner of the Florida Historical Society Tebeau Prize as the Most Outstanding Florida Historical Novel.
Customer Reviews:
The best I've read in a very long time!.......2007-09-09
I read this book and totally loved it. Being a Florida native, I enjoyed the references to Florida landmarks that I have grown up knowing. I was unable to put it down and suggested that my 13 year old son read it over the summer. However x-box and computer games seemed more interesting to him. Now that he is in 8th grade, his very first assignment is to read this book. He now can't put it down either. I smile when I see him reading without being told to do so. Patrick Smith captured the real Florida and captured my heart as a real fan. If you ever want to visit a real Florida Cracker Farm, go to www.Morningsidefarm.com in Gainesville Florida. The location of this farm is not too far from the original hammock that the MacIveys lived on in Chapter One.
Sarasotashan.......2007-07-15
He really brought home what life was life in early Florida. The writing style was a bit unusual, but his characters were real, and the story fascinating. It's a don't miss read.
A land Remembered.......2007-07-09
A great read. I could not put it down. it is also a great leason on how we got where we are here in FL.
Great Florida story.......2007-06-11
Patrick Smith is one of our best writers and this is the very best of his excellent novels. He captures a place and time mostly overlooked by historical fiction - the open range cattle days of Florida. You don't have to be a native Floridian with a background, decades ago, of messing with cattle to enjoy this story, but it sure makes this story ring true! If you love Florida, cattle, outdoor adventure or just first rate fiction, this book is for you. I don't know how Patrick Smith has flown beneath the radar of so many readers across the nation. He ranks with the very, very best.
Florida Trip.......2007-05-15
It was on a tour in Florida that our tour guide suggested reading this book. It was the best
historic novel I've read in a very long time. To hear names like Miami, Palm Beach and others as being
wilderness and knowing their present state is just mind boggling and following generations
of this family and their adventures is so interesting that you can't put the book down. I would recommend it
to anyone.
Average customer rating:
- A Must Read Book for any age.
- Early Florida Saga
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A Land Remembered, Vol. 1 (Student Edition)
Patrick Smith
Manufacturer: Pineapple Pr
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A Land Remembered, Vol. 2 (Student Edition)
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A Land Remembered (Teacher's Manual for Student Edition)
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A Land Remembered
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Tales of Old Florida
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Middle School Teacher Plans And Resources for a Land Remembered
ASIN: 1561642231 |
Product Description
Florida's favorite historical novel, now available in a student edition. Broken into two volumes to facilitate classroom use. Adult language/situations made suitable for ages nine and up. Volume One covers the first generation of MacIveys to arrive in Florida and Zech's coming of age in the Florida country.
Customer Reviews:
A Must Read Book for any age........2007-05-03
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I could not put it down. This book should be required reading in all Florida schools.
Early Florida Saga.......2006-10-15
It's easy to see why almost every reviewer gave this book 5 stars. The story follows the MacIvey family from 1863 through three generations to the present. As they scratch out a hardscrabble living, the reader follows their experiences during the Civil War, and through Florida's pioneer days.
Immerse yourself in their struggle to build a home, drive cattle to market, start orchards, deal with rustlers, wild animals, life and death in Central Florida.
You learn so much about Florida's early landscape and the damage done by settlement, as well as the effect on the Native Americans. Some of the homespun life reminds me of Rawling's classic, The Yearling. I highly recommend it, not just for Floridians, but for everyone to know more about their country's development in this unique region. The story is compelling.
Product Description
Activities in the teacher's manuals for A Land Remembered aid in teaching language arts, social studies, and science coordinated with the Sunshine State Standards of the Florida Department of Education.
Book Description
This lively collection of four stories gives voices and names to women from biblical and ancient times whom we seldom remember. But God Remembered imagines and remembers, and weaves the stories of:
Lilith, the first woman in the garden of Eden, and her determination to have men and women treat each other as equals; Serach the musician, who, with her song, reveals to her grandfather Jacob that his son Joseph is still alive, and whose courage to speak out heals the wrongs of another generation; Bityah, who draws the baby Moses from the Nile and with a mother's bravery encourages him to become who he will be, proving that taking a risk to do what's right can change the world; the bold-spirited Daughters of Z, who struggle against discrimination with great daring--and extraordinary results.
But God Remembered is a modern reclaiming of the Bible, a celebration of courageous and wise women from ancient tradition. These stories invite children of all ages to remember, and to bring their own faith and dreams to life.
Customer Reviews:
A must for all ages!.......2000-09-26
Many of the lessons we all need to hear are best heard from the perspective of a child -- and by becoming childlike in our listening! These are the old stories so often over looked by our culture and our religious communities. A must to read to all children. A must to celebrate with the women of tomorrow! But I have used this book mostly with adults to re-enforce positive feminine lessons with a biblical back up they did not know exists. Let us continue to tell the stories! The author and illustrator do a beautiful job keeping the message alive!
God remembered.......2000-04-30
Sasso has taken four "incomplete" little known stories from the Bible-- the stories of Lilith, Serach, Bityah and the Daughters of Z-- and filled in the blanks, so to speak. The result is a beautiful volume that is a pleasure to read.
Average customer rating:
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A Land Remembered, Vol. 2 (Student Edition)
Patrick Smith
Manufacturer: Pineapple Press (FL)
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Binding: Paperback
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A Land Remembered, Vol. 1 (Student Edition)
-
A Land Remembered (Teacher's Manual for Student Edition)
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A Land Remembered
-
Middle School Teacher Plans And Resources for a Land Remembered
-
Tales of Old Florida
ASIN: 156164224X |
Book Description
In this best-selling novel, now accessible to young readers, Patrick Smith tells the story of three generations of the MacIveys, a Florida family who battle the hardships of the frontier to rise from a dirt-poor Cracker life to the wealth and standing of real estate tycoons. The story opens in 1858, when Tobias MacIvey arrives in the Florida wilderness to start a new life, and ends in 1968 with Solomon MacIvey, who realizes that the land has been exploited far beyond human need. Between is a sweeping story rich in Florida history.
A teacher's manual is available for using A Land Remembered to teach language arts, social studies, and science coordinated with the Sunshine State Standards of the Florida Department of Education.
Product Description
Activities in the teacher's manuals for A Land Remembered aid in teaching language arts, social studies, and science coordinated with the Sunshine State Standards of the Florida Department of Education.
Average customer rating:
- Superb, poignant photo-essay of African DPx2 Eclectic Archi.
- An Excellent Resource for Historians!
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A Land and Life Remembered: Americo-Liberian Folk Architecture
Svend E. Holsoe ,
Bernard L. Herman , and
Max Belcher
Manufacturer: Univ of Georgia Pr
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Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0820310859 |
Customer Reviews:
Superb, poignant photo-essay of African DPx2 Eclectic Archi........2004-03-23
What a uniquely valuable photo-documentary! Hundreds of high-quality b&w photos (plus 4 in nice Polaroid-transfer style color) of (mostly) Liberian (mostly) dwellings, from proud to humble, including interiors and details. Also some shots of the Southern U.S. 19th-century exemplars that the return immigrants remembered living in and (mostly) around, and served as the basis of an eclectic architectural vernacular. Also included are some floor plans, and a number of sensitive portraits of current residents (evidently descendants of the original builders in most cases).
I haven't read the text yet, but the pix are absolutely stunning. The vernacular is as unique as in many of the tropical islands and other mythical locations, but in addition, given the status of the builders as culturally twice-displaced persons, you can feel the struggle and the aspirations of these newly (and genuinely) freed people.
Now for the doubly poignant part: would these folks have stayed in the U.S. had they known what wholesale tragedy was eventually going to overwhelm their new homeland? That's anyone's guess, but we can't help feeling a tug at the heartstrings, what with the shocking reports out of contemporary Liberia (ongoing events had reduced many of the dwellings to shambles, a la Mauritius, even in 1988; we can only imagine their condition in the wake of all the current horrors).
This book is an absolute must for any African American library, architectural eclectic library, African cultural library, gorgeously-produced historical photo library. Slide it on your shelf, and give it some companionship by way of the African/world adobe book "Spectacular Vernacular" by Bourgeois and Davidson, and the delectable "Living In Mauritius" by De Marigny and Lagesse. Both are superb complements to this invaluable study of the artistic and cultural richness of African/American/African vernacular architecture.
An Excellent Resource for Historians!.......1998-11-06
The Authors have presented the transfer of antebellum American Culture to Liberia via the Emigrants who settled there with the American Colonization Society. An excellent resource for any historian working in this field- plus LOTS OF PHOTOGRAPHS!
Average customer rating:
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Look away! Dixie Land remembered
Marion Cyrenus Blackman
Manufacturer: McCall Pub. Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
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ASIN: 0841500843 |
Books:
- Everything and Nothing : The Dorothy Dandridge Tragedy
- Evita - Imagenes de Una Pasion
- Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream
- Flyboys: A True Story of Courage
- Gary Cooper: American Hero
- Gaudi - the Complete Buildings (Midsize)
- Giacometti: A Biography of his Work
- Ginger Rogers: A Bio-Bibliography (Bio-Bibliographies in the Performing Arts)
- Gold Digger: The Outrageous Life and Times of Peggy Hopkins Joyce
- Harlem: Lost and Found
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