Engineering is a vocation that usually doesn’t get the deep treatment in modern literature. Popular portrayals often play off an inventor’s brilliance and introversion, but don’t poke around in depth about what made an innovation successful. Instead of one distinct epiphany to an individual, inventions often follow a series of efforts by a community. These efforts often include many failures and halted efforts. Society has less tolerance for these difficulties and prefers a story of narrow adulation about the triumph. In contrast, Bill Hammack chronicles in this history how engineers actually use science, economic pressure, and group contributions to propel technology forward.

This book describes, in detail, how nine technologies developed over time. Popular lore parodies most of them individual efforts, but in truth, these inventions grew out of more complicated and nuanced histories. Hammack brings out the human side while describing the nitty gritty of how these feats were accomplished. He highlights the engineer’s role in the venture, over and above the scientist. Concepts span many domains of engineering, including electromagnetics, electricity, statistics, and construction.

As a criticism, some of this book falls into a trap of engineering pride that denigrates other professions like scientists. That’s a common pitfall among many professions, admittedly, especially among their teachers, but it counts as a weakness nonetheless. Also, as a shortcoming, Hammack struggles to bring out a central narrative that spans the nine chapters. Each chapter tells an interesting story in and of itself, but contrary to what we’d expect in a history, the nine works taken together don’t really add too much more than they would individually. Perhaps an additional chapter on how Hammack’s understanding of how the engineering method evolved historically (instead of the “rah rah engineering!” refrain) might provide a more impactful conclusion for a broader community.

This book’s subtitle is frankly inaccurate. This book provides a history of methods of innovation through case studies. This history is not necessarily “unknown” but rather not often discussed. Nonetheless, it can serve two types of readers most directly. First, it can inspire younger engineers and engineering students about their profession’s breadth, depth, and impact. Second, it can enlighten non-engineers, like myself, who work with engineers around the problems that technologies solve. Specifically, it can teach us how our colleagues think to solve problems. Such human understanding is critical for many of today’s problems which require team science and interdisciplinary knowledge. I’m certainly more inspired to continue to invent in my work from Hammack’s historical narratives. ( )