Geeky Engineering Stuff

My fellow “Reality Distillates” should have known that would only be a matter of time before I threw in some engineering geek stuff. Here is a wonderful book that I recommend. There is a lot more to ceramics than making birdbaths and bathroom sinks.

The Magic of Ceramics
David W. Richerson, Bonnie J. Dunbar (Foreword by)
ISBN: 978-1-57498-050-9
Hardcover
302 pages
February 2000

Description
What do the following things have in common: the space shuttle, cosmetics, color TVs, concrete, and kayaks? Ceramics! All these items are made of or include ceramics, the most common and diverse of all materials - yet most of us would be surprised at its variety of uses. You will be amazed by how ceramics make possible such diverse products as cellular phones, many of your favorite sporting goods, radio, television, and lasers. You will be surprised by how ceramics are used in medicine for cancer treatments and restoring hearing, in our cars, and even in some cosmetics. This book introduces readers to the many exciting applications of ceramics. By using simplified technical explanations, it answers the question: How do ceramics improve your everyday life? It describes how the ceramic material functions, and why it is superior to other materials, while teaching key scientific concepts like atomic structure, color, and the electromagnetic spectrum.

Table of Contents
Our Constant Companions.
From Pottery to the Space Shuttle.
The Beauty of Ceramics.
Ceramics and Light.
Amazing Strength and Stability.
Ceramics and the Electronics Age.
Piezo Power.
Medical Miracles.
Ceramics and the Modern Automobile.
Heat Beaters.
The Hardest Materials in the Universe.
Energy and Pollution Control.

On sale at Amazon for only $38.65. It is currently #1,711,433 on the Amazon Best Seller list