Creativity is not easy to define. In its broadest sense it is the ability to create something new that didn’t exist before. Assembling a piece of furniture from IKEA parts by following instructions, by this definition, is creativity. In a narrower sense creativity is doing something which is mentally new to produce ideas and solutions …
What is more important to a designer, creativity or experience? Read More »
Before we begin to consider whether design is art let us look at the various definitions of art from the dictionary: Art is: Human effort to imitate, supplement, alter, or counteract the work of nature. Skill that is attained by study, practice, or observation. The products of man’s creative activities. The creation of works of …
Is it really such an important question? It is important because it affects the way we define ourselves, the way we perform and criticise our work. It is important to the way we teach and it is important to the way we continue to develop our skills. History shows us that the human race has …
I was watching a TV program about new data and photos from the Titanic when suddenly my wife remarked: “You engineers must be learning a lot from these investigations!” It is easy to criticise I quickly scanned my memory: unlike investigations of airplane crashes, the Titanic is a century old technology. The art of riveting …
Lessons we can learn from the sinking of the Titanic Read More »
Let me start with an intriguing question: Is design a science or an art? When I first heard this question it bothered me a lot. I began studying engineering in order to follow my love of physics in high school. It seemed that engineering was directly in line with physics; you learn the rules, you use formulas, …
The difference between school and “real life” problem solving When we pass from high school to university we bring with us the idea that answers are obtained by engineering calculations. We use analytical formulas and we are educated to believe that the results are either right or wrong – there is no in between and …
I wasn’t planning to write this article now, but a response to my earlier article “Can Design Be Taught at University” made me realise that perhaps I hadn’t made my point. Actually, the response by forum member cwg999 in many ways demonstrated exactly what had gone wrong. Where should you focus your attention? Cwg999 stated …
Engineers are supposed to do calculations. That’s what we do. We calculate everything from strength and mass flow, temperature rise and heat transfer, fuel consumption and top speed as well as simple things such as the total weight of a newly designed product. However, what do these calculations mean? Do we really have to calculate all …
When I was still a student I came to my father, who was a mechanical engineer himself, and told him very proudly about my studies and mechanical design courses. I was very impressed by the ability to use mathematical tools to solve all sorts of theoretical problems. To my surprise, he told me that the …
Design is a synthesis. We have a target in mind, usually given to us by our boss or client, and we use our imagination, creativity and whatever knowledge we gathered through our life. It is like a game of catch: catch as you can! No rules. Just bring results, and fast! And it better work, …
With so many scientific tools, why do designs fail? Why the unsinkable Titanic sank? Why did the thoroughly tested Columbia space shuttle burned out on return? Why Toyota had to call back thousands of cars designed by expert engineers? Design might fails because somebody made a stupid mistake in his calculations, like in the old …
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