# Need engineering books! **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 11, 2000, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-engineering-books/45006 "2000-12-11T13:43:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2000, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-engineering-books/45006/1 "2000-12-11T13:43:38Z")
Every field has one or several “standard” textbooks and references, but for an outsider, it’s hard to know which ones are the classics. I’m a science student who needs to study some engineering, but I don’t know which books to get. It looks like there are quite a few engineer types here - what would you recommend? Specifically I think I need something on: [ul] [li]Electronics. Already got **Horowitz and Hill** but it doesn’t have enough math (network theory, active filters, etc.)[/li][li]Machining and drafting. Just general textbooks or references.[/li][li]Control theory[/li][li]Thermodynamics and heat transfer.[/li][li]Anything else that engineers need to know (structures? material?).[/li][/ul] ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2000, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-engineering-books/45006/2 "2000-12-11T15:09:47Z")
You would also want a good book on mechanics – preferably including both statics for civil engineering and dynamics for mechanical engineering. I’m sure you could find booklists for various universities on the net. I forget the names of some of the authors we used, but I will look for you later. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2000, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-engineering-books/45006/3 "2000-12-11T15:47:18Z")
In the ME world, Marks’ Standard Handbook for Mechanical Engineers (McGraw-Hill) is the most widely used general reference, and can orient you on most of the topics you’ve asked about. It ain’t cheap, though. ---
**Author:** ![zut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zut/32/2875_2.png) [@zut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zut)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2000, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-engineering-books/45006/4 "2000-12-11T15:54:38Z")
To expand on what **Dr\_Paprika** said, you might consider a set of three books (which are sometimes combined in various ways): Statics, Dynamics, and Mechanics of Materials. I’ve used the books by **Beer and Johnson** ; one of my colleagues recommends the set by **Hibbeler**. There are a few other “standard” sets, too, the names of which escape me. For machining, you might want to look at _Machinery’s Handbook_. Not really a textbook, but chock full o’ reference material on machining. Depending on what your intentions are, you might also consider something like _Mark’s Standard Handbook for Mechanical Engineers_ or Lindberg’s _Mechanical Engineering Reference Manual_ (I imagine civil and electrical, etc. have analogous texts). These are a sort of cross between text books and reference manuals: you get a quick overview of theory (written more densely than a textbook) as well as reference tables. Your science background might give you enough insight to understand the simpler things quickly; there’s an obvious advantage from only having to read one book instead of eight or so. ---
**Author:** ![Strainger](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/strainger/32/244_2.png) [@Strainger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Strainger)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2000, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-engineering-books/45006/5 "2000-12-11T17:16:47Z")
General mechanical engineering analysis and design: _Mechanical Engineering Design_ by Shigley and Mischke. Stress (structural) engineering formulas: _Roark’s Formulas for Stress and Strain_ by Roark and Young. Requires basic knowledge of stress theory to really understand what’s going on with this one.