Engineering and the Scientific Revolution
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 4022013 |
|---|---|
| Authors | A Rupert Hall (corresponding author) |
| Year | 1961 |
| Volume | 2 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 333 |
| Publication date | 1961-01-01 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Technology and Culture (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0040-165X • E-ISSN: 1097-3729 |
| Publisher | JSTOR (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.2307/3100888 |
| OpenAlex | W2314015318 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
HARDLY MORE THAN a couple of generations ago sound engineering practice consisted for the most part of a combination of manual dexterity with a rather large number of empirical rules approved by long, evolving experience. Yet engineering had already been invaded by formulae or principles which were not merely empirically derived: thermodynamical calculations, the procedures for determining structural stresses, part at least of the theory of fluid-flow as well as the whole new development of electrical engineering were products of theoretical investigation which had been confirmed by experiments and in due course by experience. In such cases as these we may properly speak of engineering's being dependent upon science. It is true that the practical engineer of the nineteenth century derived his figures rather from tables and graphs than by going back to pure theory; what matters is the origin of the rules he applied in a theoretical analysis rather than in a codification of successful empirical practice. And it is significant that all the time the trend was away from customary rules to theoretically-derived ones; by and large the engineer did not distrust science: he welcomed it
Engineering ethics · Epistemology · Political science · Scientific revolution · Engineering · History and Developments in Astronomy · Philosophy
| Citations per year | 0.07 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 1984 - 2013 (30) |
| Highly cited | No |