Discover how reading fuels innovation by expanding your mental toolkit. Learn why diverse books are essential for engineers, designers, and creative thinkers.
All in Inspiration & People
Book Review: Thinking, Fast and Slow
Explore how Daniel Kahneman’s Thinking, Fast and Slow optimizes engineering design by balancing intuitive expertise with methodical, conscious processes to reduce errors and improve objectivity.
Exploring “The Design of Everyday Things”
Explore Don Norman’s classic The Design of Everyday Things with Dalton White, uncovering how human-centered design and seven core principles transform our interaction with the world.
Lessons Learned From Soichiro Honda
Explore the engineering legacy of Soichiro Honda. Learn how curiosity, hands-on experience, and fearless risk-taking can transform your design process and drive innovation in engineering.
Good Design: Giving Machines
Explore the brilliant design of Giving Machines. Learn how the charitable vending kiosks maximize accessibility, transparency, and public visibility for donations.
A Design-Inspired Book Review of Elon Musk
Published in 2015, Ashlee Vance's biography of Elon Musk offers a fascinating look at the tech mogul’s early successes. Rereading it today reveals how his methods, from maniacal attention to detail to an unwavering worldview, continue to drive his companies forward.
America the Beautiful: How Ansel Adams Designed His Landmark Landscapes
Ansel Adams's iconic landscapes weren't just pretty pictures; they were masterworks of design. This article reveals how Adams's revolutionary principles—from empathy to composition and vision-driven innovation—offer invaluable lessons for engineers seeking to craft impactful solutions.
The Scarf: A Most Versatile Design
Journey to Cambodia with Dr. John Salmon to discover the krama, a traditional Cambodian scarf, and its surprising versatility. Learn how this single item, rich in cultural meaning, offers a variety of practical uses, from sun protection to carrying essentials. Explore how the power of design blends beauty, meaning, and utility.
Lessons Learned from Capstone: Tips For A Successful Product Design
BYU's Capstone Program reveals how thoughtful design transforms ideas into impactful realities. Learn 14 principles for product designers to create solutions that exceed expectations, from decoding customer needs and embracing systems thinking to iterating early, guarding against scope creep, and designing for manufacturability.
Dr. Paul MacCready and The Kremer Prize
Flight! People have wondered about it since the beginning of time. Paul MacCready was one of those people deeply interested in flight. What follows is a story of Paul MacCready, and what we can learn from him in the engineering design process.
Exercises to Build Design Strength
If you’re like me, you might find yourself yearning to be a better designer but not sure where to start! I’d like to share with you some mindsets and actionable exercises we can use to grow in our design strength.
Using Engineering Intuition and Strategic Experimentation to Overcome Technical Challenges
Learn from Dr. David Parsi as he discusses his research on overcoming technical challenges in reconfigurable radio frequency instruments. He emphasizes core engineering principles such as intuition, strategic experimentation, and efficient research methodologies.
"Albert Einstein: His Life and Universe" by Walter Isaacson
Walter Isaacson’s Albert Einstein: His Life and Universe presents a nuanced portrait of Einstein, blending his scientific achievements with personal struggles and insights. Dr. John Salmon offers his insights to this must-read for those seeking inspiration from one of history’s greatest minds.
Piñata Design for Celebrations
Learn how to design and craft your own piñata—a vibrant centerpiece for any gathering. Discover the rich history of this tradition, from its symbolic 7-point star to modern, fun designs. Follow this step-by-step guide to create a stunning piñata that’s sure to bring joy to your next celebration!
Seeing Everything Together
Dr. Nathan Usevitch and his team of students have entered NASA's BIG Idea Challenge competition! Learn about their extraordinary robot and principles of design from this dedicated group of engineers in this article.
Designing an Ice Cream Flavor: Crafting an Adventure
Designing a new ice cream flavor is an adventure! Read what Dylan Conover discovered after talking to Chef John, an ice cream designer.
How to Design a Halloween Costume
Happy Halloween! Take a look at this year’s Halloween article where Emelia Sunday shares some thoughts on how the engineering design process can help you create your own Halloween costume.
A Woman, An Immigrant, and A Nuclear Engineer: Interview with Guirong Pan
Emelia Sunday was able to tour the Westinghouse nuclear fuel production facility and meet some engineers. She shares select questions from her interview with Guirong Pan, a nuclear engineer, and learned some useful things we should all know.
I see optimization all around. But while spending time in nature, I find its expression most beautiful and abundant. Let’s go on a hike together and talk about optimization.
Book Review of Tim Harford's "Adapt"
If you want to succeed, you need to get some failures behind you. For anyone interested in how to fail better, fail faster, and fail successfully, Adapt is a great place to start.