Engineering

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

For other uses, see Engineering (disambiguation).

The steam engine, the major driver in

the Industrial Revolution, underscores the importance of engineering in
modern history. This beam engine is on display in the Technical University
of Madrid.

Engineering
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Engineering is the practice of using natural science, mathematics, and

the engineering design process[1] to solve technical problems, increase
efficiency and productivity, and improve systems. Modern engineering
comprises many subfields which include designing and
improving infrastructure, machinery, vehicles, electronics, materials,
and energy systems.[2]

The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad range of more

specialized fields of engineering, each with a more specific emphasis on
particular areas of applied mathematics, applied science, and types of
application. See glossary of engineering.

The term engineering is derived from the Latin ingenium, meaning

"cleverness".[3]

Definition
The American Engineers' Council for Professional Development (ECPD,
the predecessor of ABET)[4] has defined "engineering" as:

The creative application of scientific principles to design or develop

structures, machines, apparatus, or manufacturing processes, or works
utilizing them singly or in combination; or to construct or operate the same
with full cognizance of their design; or to forecast their behavior under
specific operating conditions; all as respects an intended function,
economics of operation and safety to life and property.[5][6]

History
Main article: History of engineering

Relief map of the Citadel of Lille, designed in

1668 by Vauban, the foremost military engineer of his age
Engineering has existed since ancient times, when humans devised
inventions such as the wedge, lever, wheel and pulley, etc.

The term engineering is derived from the word engineer, which itself dates
back to the 14th century when an engine'er (literally, one who builds or
operates a siege engine) referred to "a constructor of military engines".[7] In
this context, now obsolete, an "engine" referred to a military machine, i.e., a
mechanical contraption used in war (for example, a catapult). Notable
examples of the obsolete usage which have survived to the present day are
military engineering corps, e.g., the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

The word "engine" itself is of even older origin, ultimately deriving from the
Latin ingenium (c. 1250), meaning "innate quality, especially mental power,
hence a clever invention."[8]

Later, as the design of civilian structures, such as bridges and buildings,

matured as a technical discipline, the term civil engineering[6] entered the
lexicon as a way to distinguish between those specializing in the
construction of such non-military projects and those involved in the
discipline of military engineering.
Ancient era

The Ancient Romans built aqueducts to bring a

steady supply of clean and fresh water to cities and towns in the empire.
The pyramids in ancient Egypt, ziggurats of Mesopotamia,
the Acropolis and Parthenon in Greece, the Roman aqueducts, Via
Appia and Colosseum, Teotihuacán, and the Brihadeeswarar
Temple of Thanjavur, among many others, stand as a testament to the
ingenuity and skill of ancient civil and military engineers. Other monuments,
no longer standing, such as the Hanging Gardens of Babylon and
the Pharos of Alexandria, were important engineering achievements of their
time and were considered among the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

The six classic simple machines were known in the ancient Near East.
The wedge and the inclined plane (ramp) were known
since prehistoric times.[9] The wheel, along with the wheel and
axle mechanism, was invented in Mesopotamia (modern Iraq) during the
5th millennium BC.[10] The lever mechanism first appeared around 5,000
years ago in the Near East, where it was used in a simple balance scale,
[11]
and to move large objects in ancient Egyptian technology.[12] The lever
was also used in the shadoof water-lifting device, the first crane machine,
which appeared in Mesopotamia c. 3000 BC,[11] and then in ancient
Egyptian technology c. 2000 BC.[13] The earliest evidence of pulleys date
back to Mesopotamia in the early 2nd millennium BC,[14] and ancient
Egypt during the Twelfth Dynasty (1991–1802 BC).[15] The screw, the last of
the simple machines to be invented,[16] first appeared in Mesopotamia
during the Neo-Assyrian period (911–609) BC.[14] The Egyptian
pyramids were built using three of the six simple machines, the inclined
plane, the wedge, and the lever, to create structures like the Great Pyramid
of Giza.[17]

The earliest civil engineer known by name is Imhotep.[6] As one of the

officials of the Pharaoh, Djosèr, he probably designed and supervised the
construction of the Pyramid of Djoser (the Step Pyramid) at Saqqara in
Egypt around 2630–2611 BC.[18] The earliest practical water-
powered machines, the water wheel and watermill, first appeared in
the Persian Empire, in what are now Iraq and Iran, by the early 4th century
BC.[19]

Kush developed the Sakia during the 4th century BC, which relied on
animal power instead of human energy.[20]Hafirs were developed as a type
of reservoir in Kush to store and contain water as well as boost irrigation.
[21]
Sappers were employed to build causeways during military campaigns.
[22]
Kushite ancestors built speos during the Bronze Age between 3700 and
3250 BC.[23]Bloomeries and blast furnaces were also created during the 7th
centuries BC in Kush.[24][25][26][27]

Ancient Greece developed machines in both civilian and military domains.

The Antikythera mechanism, an early known mechanical analog computer,
[28][29]
and the mechanical inventions of Archimedes, are examples of Greek
mechanical engineering. Some of Archimedes' inventions, as well as the
Antikythera mechanism, required sophisticated knowledge of differential
gearing or epicyclic gearing, two key principles in machine theory that
helped design the gear trains of the Industrial Revolution, and are widely
used in fields such as robotics and automotive engineering.[30]

Ancient Chinese, Greek, Roman and Hunnic armies employed military

machines and inventions such as artillery which was developed by the
Greeks around the 4th century BC,[31] the trireme, the ballista and
the catapult. In the Middle Ages, the trebuchet was developed.
Middle Ages
The earliest practical wind-powered machines, the windmill and wind pump,
first appeared in the Muslim world during the Islamic Golden Age, in what
are now Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, by the 9th century AD.[32][33][34][35] The
earliest practical steam-powered machine was a steam jack driven by
a steam turbine, described in 1551 by Taqi al-Din Muhammad ibn
Ma'ruf in Ottoman Egypt.[36][37]

The cotton gin was invented in India by the 6th century AD,[38] and
the spinning wheel was invented in the Islamic world by the early 11th
century,[39] both of which were fundamental to the growth of the cotton
industry. The spinning wheel was also a precursor to the spinning jenny,
which was a key development during the early Industrial Revolution in the
18th century.[40]

The earliest programmable machines were developed in the Muslim world.

A music sequencer, a programmable musical instrument, was the earliest
type of programmable machine. The first music sequencer was an
automated flute player invented by the Banu Musa brothers, described in
their Book of Ingenious Devices, in the 9th century.[41][42] In 1206, Al-Jazari
invented programmable automata/robots. He described
four automaton musicians, including drummers operated by a
programmable drum machine, where they could be made to play different
rhythms and different drum patterns.[43]

A water-powered mine hoist used for raising ore, c.

1556
Before the development of modern engineering, mathematics was used by
artisans and craftsmen, such as millwrights, clockmakers, instrument
makers and surveyors. Aside from these professions, universities were not
believed to have had much practical significance to technology.[44]: 32
A standard reference for the state of mechanical arts during the
Renaissance is given in the mining engineering treatise De re
metallica (1556), which also contains sections on geology, mining, and
chemistry. De re metallica was the standard chemistry reference for the
next 180 years.[44]
Modern era

The application of the steam engine allowed

coke to be substituted for charcoal in iron making, lowering the cost of iron,
which provided engineers with a new material for building bridges. This
bridge was made of cast iron, which was soon displaced by less
brittle wrought iron as a structural material.
The science of classical mechanics, sometimes called Newtonian
mechanics, formed the scientific basis of much of modern engineering.
[44]
With the rise of engineering as a profession in the 18th century, the term
became more narrowly applied to fields in which mathematics and science
were applied to these ends. Similarly, in addition to military and civil
engineering, the fields then known as the mechanic arts became
incorporated into engineering.

Canal building was an important engineering work during the early phases
of the Industrial Revolution.[45]

John Smeaton was the first self-proclaimed civil engineer and is often
regarded as the "father" of civil engineering. He was an English civil
engineer responsible for the design of bridges, canals, harbors, and
lighthouses. He was also a capable mechanical engineer and an
eminent physicist. Using a model water wheel, Smeaton conducted
experiments for seven years, determining ways to increase efficiency.[46]:
127
Smeaton introduced iron axles and gears to water wheels.[44]: 69 Smeaton
also made mechanical improvements to the Newcomen steam engine.
Smeaton designed the third Eddystone Lighthouse (1755–59) where he
pioneered the use of 'hydraulic lime' (a form of mortar which will set under
water) and developed a technique involving dovetailed blocks of granite in
the building of the lighthouse. He is important in the history, rediscovery of,
and development of modern cement, because he identified the
compositional requirements needed to obtain "hydraulicity" in lime; work
which led ultimately to the invention of Portland cement.

Applied science led to the development of the steam engine. The sequence
of events began with the invention of the barometer and the measurement
of atmospheric pressure by Evangelista Torricelli in 1643, demonstration of
the force of atmospheric pressure by Otto von Guericke using
the Magdeburg hemispheres in 1656, laboratory experiments by Denis
Papin, who built experimental model steam engines and demonstrated the
use of a piston, which he published in 1707. Edward Somerset, 2nd
Marquess of Worcester published a book of 100 inventions containing a
method for raising waters similar to a coffee percolator. Samuel Morland, a
mathematician and inventor who worked on pumps, left notes at the
Vauxhall Ordinance Office on a steam pump design that Thomas
Savery read. In 1698 Savery built a steam pump called "The Miner's
Friend". It employed both vacuum and pressure.[47] Iron merchant Thomas
Newcomen, who built the first commercial piston steam engine in 1712,
was not known to have any scientific training.[46]: 32

Jumbo Jet
The application of steam-powered cast iron blowing cylinders for providing
pressurized air for blast furnaces lead to a large increase in iron production
in the late 18th century. The higher furnace temperatures made possible
with steam-powered blast allowed for the use of more lime in blast
furnaces, which enabled the transition from charcoal to coke.[48] These
innovations lowered the cost of iron, making horse railways and iron
bridges practical. The puddling process, patented by Henry Cort in 1784
produced large scale quantities of wrought iron. Hot blast, patented
by James Beaumont Neilson in 1828, greatly lowered the amount of fuel
needed to smelt iron. With the development of the high pressure steam
engine, the power to weight ratio of steam engines made practical
steamboats and locomotives possible.[49] New steel making processes, such
as the Bessemer process and the open hearth furnace, ushered in an area
of heavy engineering in the late 19th century.

One of the most famous engineers of the mid-19th century was Isambard
Kingdom Brunel, who built railroads, dockyards and steamships.

Offshore platform, Gulf of Mexico

The Industrial Revolution created a demand for machinery with metal parts,
which led to the development of several machine tools. Boring cast iron
cylinders with precision was not possible until John Wilkinson invented
his boring machine, which is considered the first machine tool.[50] Other
machine tools included the screw cutting lathe, milling machine, turret
lathe and the metal planer. Precision machining techniques were
developed in the first half of the 19th century. These included the use of
gigs to guide the machining tool over the work and fixtures to hold the work
in the proper position. Machine tools and machining techniques capable of
producing interchangeable parts lead to large scale factory production by
the late 19th century.[51]

The United States Census of 1850 listed the occupation of "engineer" for
the first time with a count of 2,000.[52] There were fewer than 50 engineering
graduates in the U.S. before 1865. In 1870 there were a dozen U.S.
mechanical engineering graduates, with that number increasing to 43 per
year in 1875. In 1890, there were 6,000 engineers in civil, mining,
mechanical and electrical.[49]
There was no chair of applied mechanism and applied mechanics at
Cambridge until 1875, and no chair of engineering at Oxford until 1907.
Germany established technical universities earlier.[53]

The foundations of electrical engineering in the 1800s included the

experiments of Alessandro Volta, Michael Faraday, Georg Ohm and others
and the invention of the electric telegraph in 1816 and the electric motor in
1872. The theoretical work of James Maxwell (see: Maxwell's equations)
and Heinrich Hertz in the late 19th century gave rise to the field
of electronics. The later inventions of the vacuum tube and
the transistor further accelerated the development of electronics to such an
extent that electrical and electronics engineers currently outnumber their
colleagues of any other engineering specialty.[6] Chemical
engineering developed in the late nineteenth century.[6] Industrial scale
manufacturing demanded new materials and new processes and by 1880
the need for large scale production of chemicals was such that a new
industry was created, dedicated to the development and large scale
manufacturing of chemicals in new industrial plants.[6] The role of the
chemical engineer was the design of these chemical plants and processes.
[6]

The solar furnace at Odeillo in

the Pyrénées-Orientales in France can reach temperatures up to 3,500 °C
(6,330 °F).
Aeronautical engineering deals with aircraft design process design
while aerospace engineering is a more modern term that expands the
reach of the discipline by including spacecraft design. Its origins can be
traced back to the aviation pioneers around the start of the 20th century
although the work of Sir George Cayley has recently been dated as being
from the last decade of the 18th century. Early knowledge of aeronautical
engineering was largely empirical with some concepts and skills imported
from other branches of engineering.[54]

The first PhD in engineering (technically, applied science and engineering)

awarded in the United States went to Josiah Willard Gibbs at Yale
University in 1863; it was also the second PhD awarded in science in the
U.S.[55]

Only a decade after the successful flights by the Wright brothers, there was
extensive development of aeronautical engineering through development of
military aircraft that were used in World War I. Meanwhile, research to
provide fundamental background science continued by
combining theoretical physics with experiments.

Main branches of engineering

For a topical guide, see Outline of engineering.

Hoover Dam
Engineering is a broad discipline that is often broken down into several
sub-disciplines. Although an engineer will usually be trained in a specific
discipline, he or she may become multi-disciplined through experience.
Engineering is often characterized as having four main branches:[56][57]
[58]
chemical engineering, civil engineering, electrical engineering, and
mechanical engineering.
Chemical engineering
Main article: Chemical engineering
Chemical engineering is the application of physics, chemistry, biology, and
engineering principles in order to carry out chemical processes on a
commercial scale, such as the manufacture of commodity
chemicals, specialty chemicals, petroleum
refining, microfabrication, fermentation, and biomolecule production.
Civil engineering
Main article: Civil engineering
Civil engineering is the design and construction of public and private works,
such as infrastructure (airports, roads, railways, water supply, and
treatment etc.), bridges, tunnels, dams, and buildings.[59][60] Civil engineering
is traditionally broken into a number of sub-disciplines, including structural
engineering, environmental engineering, and surveying. It is traditionally
considered to be separate from military engineering.[61]
Electrical engineering
Main article: Electrical engineering

Electric motor
Electrical engineering is the design, study, and manufacture of various
electrical and electronic systems, such as broadcast engineering, electrical
circuits, generators, motors, electromagnetic/electromechanical devices, el
ectronic devices, electronic circuits, optical fibers, optoelectronic
devices, computer systems, telecommunications, instrumentation, control
systems, and electronics.
Mechanical engineering
Main article: Mechanical engineering
Mechanical engineering is the design and manufacture of physical or
mechanical systems, such as power
and energy systems, aerospace/aircraft products, weapon
systems, transportation products, engines, compressors, powertrains, kine
matic chains, vacuum technology, vibration
isolation equipment, manufacturing, robotics, turbines, audio equipments,
and mechatronics.
Bioengineering
Main article: Biological engineering
Bioengineering is the engineering of biological systems for a useful
purpose. Examples of bioengineering research include bacteria engineered
to produce chemicals, new medical imaging technology, portable and rapid
disease diagnostic devices, prosthetics, biopharmaceuticals, and tissue-
engineered organs.
Interdisciplinary engineering
Main article: List of engineering branches
Interdisciplinary engineering draws from more than one of the principle
branches of the practice. Historically, naval engineering and mining
engineering were major branches. Other engineering fields
are manufacturing engineering, acoustical engineering, corrosion
engineering, instrumentation and
control, aerospace, automotive, computer, electronic, information
engineering, petroleum, environmental, systems, audio, software, architect
ural, agricultural, biosystems, biomedical,[62] geological, textile, industrial, m
aterials,[63] and nuclear engineering.[64] These and other branches of
engineering are represented in the 36 licensed member institutions of the
UK Engineering Council.

New specialties sometimes combine with the traditional fields and form new
branches – for example, Earth systems engineering and
management involves a wide range of subject areas including engineering
studies, environmental science, engineering ethics and philosophy of
engineering.

Other branches of engineering

Aerospace engineering
Main article: Aerospace engineering

The InSight lander with solar panels

deployed in a cleanroom
Aerospace engineering covers the design, development, manufacture and
operational behaviour of aircraft, satellites and rockets.
Marine engineering
Main article: Marine engineering
Marine engineering covers the design, development, manufacture and
operational behaviour of watercraft and stationary structures like oil
platforms and ports.
Computer engineering
Main article: Computer engineering
Computer engineering (CE) is a branch of engineering that integrates
several fields of computer science and electronic engineering required to
develop computer hardware and software. Computer engineers usually
have training in electronic engineering (or electrical engineering), software
design, and hardware-software integration instead of only software
engineering or electronic engineering.
Geological engineering
Main article: Geological engineering
Geological engineering is associated with anything constructed on or within
the Earth. This discipline applies geological sciences and engineering
principles to direct or support the work of other disciplines such as civil
engineering, environmental engineering, and mining engineering.
Geological engineers are involved with impact studies for facilities and
operations that affect surface and subsurface environments, such as rock
excavations (e.g. tunnels), building foundation consolidation, slope and fill
stabilization, landslide risk assessment, groundwater
monitoring, groundwater remediation, mining excavations, and natural
resource exploration.

Practice
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One who practices engineering is called an engineer, and those licensed to
do so may have more formal designations such as Professional
Engineer, Chartered Engineer, Incorporated Engineer, Ingenieur, European
Engineer, or Designated Engineering Representative.

Methodology
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Design of a turbine requires collaboration of engineers

from many fields, as the system involves mechanical, electro-magnetic and
chemical processes. The blades, rotor and stator as well as the steam
cycle all need to be carefully designed and optimized.
In the engineering design process, engineers apply mathematics and
sciences such as physics to find novel solutions to problems or to improve
existing solutions. Engineers need proficient knowledge of relevant
sciences for their design projects. As a result, many engineers continue to
learn new material throughout their careers.

If multiple solutions exist, engineers weigh each design choice based on

their merit and choose the solution that best matches the requirements.
The task of the engineer is to identify, understand, and interpret the
constraints on a design in order to yield a successful result. It is generally
insufficient to build a technically successful product, rather, it must also
meet further requirements.

Constraints may include available resources, physical, imaginative or

technical limitations, flexibility for future modifications and additions, and
other factors, such as requirements for cost, safety, marketability,
productivity, and serviceability. By understanding the constraints, engineers
derive specifications for the limits within which a viable object or system
may be produced and operated.
Problem solving
 A drawing for a steam locomotive.
Engineering is applied to design, with emphasis on function and the
utilization of mathematics and science.
Engineers use their knowledge of science, mathematics, logic, economics,
and appropriate experience or tacit knowledge to find suitable solutions to a
particular problem. Creating an appropriate mathematical model of a
problem often allows them to analyze it (sometimes definitively), and to test
potential solutions.[65]

More than one solution to a design problem usually exists so the

different design choices have to be evaluated on their merits before the one
judged most suitable is chosen. Genrich Altshuller, after gathering statistics
on a large number of patents, suggested that compromises are at the heart
of "low-level" engineering designs, while at a higher level the best design is
one which eliminates the core contradiction causing the problem.[66]

Engineers typically attempt to predict how well their designs will perform to
their specifications prior to full-scale production. They use, among other
things: prototypes, scale models, simulations, destructive
tests, nondestructive tests, and stress tests. Testing ensures that products
will perform as expected but only in so far as the testing has been
representative of use in service. For products, such as aircraft, that are
used differently by different users failures and unexpected shortcomings
(and necessary design changes) can be expected throughout the
operational life of the product.[67]

Engineers take on the responsibility of producing designs that will perform

as well as expected and, except those employed in specific areas of
the arms industry, will not harm people. Engineers typically include a factor
of safety in their designs to reduce the risk of unexpected failure.

The study of failed products is known as forensic engineering. It attempts to

identify the cause of failure to allow a redesign of the product and so
prevent a re-occurrence. Careful analysis is needed to establish the cause
of failure of a product. The consequences of a failure may vary in severity
from the minor cost of a machine breakdown to large loss of life in the case
of accidents involving aircraft and large stationary structures like buildings
and dams.[68]
Computer use

A computer simulation of high velocity air flow

around a Space Shuttle orbiter during re-entry. Solutions to the flow
require modelling of the combined effects of fluid flow and the heat
equations.
As with all modern scientific and technological endeavors, computers and
software play an increasingly important role. As well as the typical
business application software there are a number of computer aided
applications (computer-aided technologies) specifically for engineering.
Computers can be used to generate models of fundamental physical
processes, which can be solved using numerical methods.

Graphic representation of a minute

fraction of the WWW, demonstrating hyperlinks
One of the most widely used design tools in the profession is computer-
aided design (CAD) software. It enables engineers to create 3D models, 2D
drawings, and schematics of their designs. CAD together with digital
mockup (DMU) and CAE software such as finite element method
analysis or analytic element method allows engineers to create models of
designs that can be analyzed without having to make expensive and time-
consuming physical prototypes.
These allow products and components to be checked for flaws; assess fit
and assembly; study ergonomics; and to analyze static and dynamic
characteristics of systems such as stresses, temperatures, electromagnetic
emissions, electrical currents and voltages, digital logic levels, fluid flows,
and kinematics. Access and distribution of all this information is generally
organized with the use of product data management software.[69]

There are also many tools to support specific engineering tasks such
as computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) software to
generate CNC machining instructions; manufacturing process
management software for production engineering; EDA for printed circuit
board (PCB) and circuit schematics for electronic
engineers; MRO applications for maintenance management; and
Architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) software for civil
engineering.

In recent years the use of computer software to aid the development of

goods has collectively come to be known as product lifecycle
management (PLM).[70]

Social context

Robotic Kismet can produce a range of facial

expressions.
The engineering profession engages in a range of activities, from
collaboration at the societal level, and smaller individual projects. Almost all
engineering projects are obligated to a funding source: a company, a set of
investors, or a government. The types of engineering that are less
constrained by such a funding source, are pro bono, and open-
design engineering.

Engineering has interconnections with society, culture and human

behavior. Most products and constructions used by modern society, are
influenced by engineering. Engineering activities have an impact on the
environment, society, economies, and public safety.
Engineering projects can be controversial. Examples from different
engineering disciplines include: the development of nuclear weapons,
the Three Gorges Dam, the design and use of sport utility vehicles and the
extraction of oil. In response, some engineering companies have enacted
serious corporate and social responsibility policies.

The attainment of many of the Millennium Development Goals requires the

achievement of sufficient engineering capacity to develop infrastructure and
sustainable technological development.[71]

Radar, GPS, lidar, etc. are all combined to

provide proper navigation and obstacle avoidance (vehicle developed for
2007 DARPA Urban Challenge).
Overseas development and relief NGOs make considerable use of
engineers, to apply solutions in disaster and development scenarios. Some
charitable organizations use engineering directly for development:

 Engineers Without Borders

 Engineers Against Poverty
 Registered Engineers for Disaster Relief
 Engineers for a Sustainable World
 Engineering for Change
 Engineering Ministries International[72]
Engineering companies in more developed economies face challenges with
regard to the number of engineers being trained, compared with those
retiring. This problem is prominent in the UK where engineering has a poor
image and low status.[73] There are negative economic and political issues
that this can cause, as well as ethical issues.[74] It is agreed the engineering
profession faces an "image crisis".[75] The UK holds the most engineering
companies compared to other European countries, together with the United
States.[citation needed]
Code of ethics
Main article: Engineering ethics
Many engineering societies have established codes of practice and codes
of ethics to guide members and inform the public at large. The National
Society of Professional Engineers code of ethics states:

Engineering is an important and learned profession. As members of this

profession, engineers are expected to exhibit the highest standards of
honesty and integrity. Engineering has a direct and vital impact on the
quality of life for all people. Accordingly, the services provided by engineers
require honesty, impartiality, fairness, and equity, and must be dedicated to
the protection of the public health, safety, and welfare. Engineers must
perform under a standard of professional behavior that requires adherence
to the highest principles of ethical conduct.[76]
In Canada, engineers wear the Iron Ring as a symbol and reminder of the
obligations and ethics associated with their profession.[77]

Relationships with other disciplines

Science
Scientists study the world as it is; engineers create the world that has never
been.

— Theodore von Kármán[78][79][80]

Engineers, scientists and technicians at

work on target positioner inside National Ignition Facility (NIF) target
chamber
There exists an overlap between the sciences and engineering practice; in
engineering, one applies science. Both areas of endeavor rely on accurate
observation of materials and phenomena. Both use mathematics and
classification criteria to analyze and communicate observations.[citation needed]

Scientists may also have to complete engineering tasks, such as designing

experimental apparatus or building prototypes. Conversely, in the process
of developing technology, engineers sometimes find themselves exploring
new phenomena, thus becoming, for the moment, scientists or more
precisely "engineering scientists".[81]

The International Space Station is used to

conduct science experiments in space.
In the book What Engineers Know and How They Know It,[82] Walter
Vincenti asserts that engineering research has a character different from
that of scientific research. First, it often deals with areas in which the
basic physics or chemistry are well understood, but the problems
themselves are too complex to solve in an exact manner.

There is a "real and important" difference between engineering and physics

as similar to any science field has to do with technology.[83][84] Physics is an
exploratory science that seeks knowledge of principles while engineering
uses knowledge for practical applications of principles. The former equates
an understanding into a mathematical principle while the latter measures
variables involved and creates technology.[85][86][87] For technology, physics is
an auxiliary and in a way technology is considered as applied physics.
[88]
Though physics and engineering are interrelated, it does not mean that a
physicist is trained to do an engineer's job. A physicist would typically
require additional and relevant training.[89] Physicists and engineers engage
in different lines of work.[90] But PhD physicists who specialize in sectors
of engineering physics and applied physics are titled as Technology officer,
R&D Engineers and System Engineers.[91]

An example of this is the use of numerical approximations to the Navier–

Stokes equations to describe aerodynamic flow over an aircraft, or the use
of the finite element method to calculate the stresses in complex
components. Second, engineering research employs many semi-empirical
methods that are foreign to pure scientific research, one example being the
method of parameter variation.[92]

As stated by Fung et al. in the revision to the classic engineering

text Foundations of Solid Mechanics:

Engineering is quite different from science. Scientists try to understand

nature. Engineers try to make things that do not exist in nature. Engineers
stress innovation and invention. To embody an invention the engineer must
put his idea in concrete terms, and design something that people can use.
That something can be a complex system, device, a gadget, a material, a
method, a computing program, an innovative experiment, a new solution to
a problem, or an improvement on what already exists. Since a design has
to be realistic and functional, it must have its geometry, dimensions, and
characteristics data defined. In the past engineers working on new designs
found that they did not have all the required information to make design
decisions. Most often, they were limited by insufficient scientific knowledge.
Thus they
studied mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology and mechanics. Often
they had to add to the sciences relevant to their profession. Thus
engineering sciences were born.[93]
Although engineering solutions make use of scientific principles, engineers
must also take into account safety, efficiency, economy, reliability, and
constructability or ease of fabrication as well as the environment, ethical
and legal considerations such as patent infringement or liability in the case
of failure of the solution.[94]
Medicine and biology

A 3 tesla clinical MRI scanner

The study of the human body, albeit from different directions and for
different purposes, is an important common link between medicine and
some engineering disciplines. Medicine aims to sustain, repair, enhance
and even replace functions of the human body, if necessary, through the
use of technology.

Genetically engineered mice expressing green

fluorescent protein, which glows green under blue light. The central mouse
is wild-type.
Modern medicine can replace several of the body's functions through the
use of artificial organs and can significantly alter the function of the human
body through artificial devices such as, for example, brain
implants and pacemakers.[95][96] The fields of bionics and medical bionics are
dedicated to the study of synthetic implants pertaining to natural systems.

Conversely, some engineering disciplines view the human body as a

biological machine worth studying and are dedicated to emulating many of
its functions by replacing biology with technology. This has led to fields
such as artificial intelligence, neural networks, fuzzy logic, and robotics.
There are also substantial interdisciplinary interactions between
engineering and medicine.[97][98]

Both fields provide solutions to real world problems. This often requires
moving forward before phenomena are completely understood in a more
rigorous scientific sense and therefore experimentation and empirical
knowledge is an integral part of both.

Medicine, in part, studies the function of the human body. The human body,
as a biological machine, has many functions that can be modeled using
engineering methods.[99]

The heart for example functions much like a pump,[100] the skeleton is like a
linked structure with levers,[101] the brain produces electrical signals etc.
 These similarities as well as the increasing importance and application
[102]

of engineering principles in medicine, led to the development of the field

of biomedical engineering that uses concepts developed in both disciplines.

Newly emerging branches of science, such as systems biology, are

adapting analytical tools traditionally used for engineering, such as systems
modeling and computational analysis, to the description of biological
systems.[99]
Art

Leonardo da Vinci, seen here in a self-portrait, has

been described as the epitome of the artist/engineer.[103] He is also known
for his studies on human anatomy and physiology.
There are connections between engineering and art, for
example, architecture, landscape architecture and industrial design (even
to the extent that these disciplines may sometimes be included in a
university's Faculty of Engineering).[104][105][106]

The Art Institute of Chicago, for instance, held an exhibition about the art
of NASA's aerospace design.[107] Robert Maillart's bridge design is perceived
by some to have been deliberately artistic.[108] At the University of South
Florida, an engineering professor, through a grant with the National
Science Foundation, has developed a course that connects art and
engineering.[104][109]

Among famous historical figures, Leonardo da Vinci is a well-

known Renaissance artist and engineer, and a prime example of the nexus
between art and engineering.[103][110]
Business
Business engineering deals with the relationship between professional
engineering, IT systems, business administration and change
management. Engineering management or "Management engineering" is a
specialized field of management concerned with engineering practice or the
engineering industry sector. The demand for management-focused
engineers (or from the opposite perspective, managers with an
understanding of engineering), has resulted in the development of
specialized engineering management degrees that develop the knowledge
and skills needed for these roles. During an engineering management
course, students will develop industrial engineering skills, knowledge, and
expertise, alongside knowledge of business administration, management
techniques, and strategic thinking. Engineers specializing in change
management must have in-depth knowledge of the application of industrial
and organizational psychology principles and methods. Professional
engineers often train as certified management consultants in the very
specialized field of management consulting applied to engineering practice
or the engineering sector. This work often deals with large scale
complex business transformation or business process
management initiatives in aerospace and defence, automotive, oil and gas,
machinery, pharmaceutical, food and beverage, electrical and electronics,
power distribution and generation, utilities and transportation systems. This
combination of technical engineering practice, management consulting
practice, industry sector knowledge, and change management expertise
enables professional engineers who are also qualified as management
consultants to lead major business transformation initiatives. These
initiatives are typically sponsored by C-level executives.