by H. Scott Fogler, Steven E. LeBlanc
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Product Description
A Systematic, Proven Approach to Problem Solving–Now Fully Updated with New Examples and Interactive Resources Strategies for Creative Problem Solving, Second Edition, will help you sharpen your “street smarts” and leverage your creative skills to find better solutions for virtually any technical problem. Drawing on advanced, National Science Foundation-funded research, it introduces a start-to-finish problem-solving framework that integrates proven strategies from today’s most effective technical organizations. Using its hands-on techniques and exercises, you’ll learn how to gather data, systematically identify problems, generate superior alternatives, choose and implement the best solution, evaluate what you learn, and use that knowledge to create even better outcomes. The first edition of Strategies for Creative Problem Solving won the prestigious American Society for Engineering Education Meriam/Wiley Distinguished Author Award. This new edition has been systematically updated and revised, offering even greater value to every engineer, technical practitioner, and student. Among its many improvements: - Dozens of new examples, plus two detailed real-world case studies
- Better, more coherent organization, reflecting feedback from thousands of students and professionals
- New coverage of team-based problem solving, including conflict resolution
- More coverage of critical thinking, including the use of the Socratic method
- An introduction to the powerful TRIZ technique for resolving contradictions
- Proven troubleshooting algorithms for identifying root causes of equipment and process problems
All-New CD-ROM and Web Site The CD-ROM and Web site contain numerous enrichment opportunities for both students and instructors including - Interactive Computer Modules: Seven simulations, which are linked to the book’s content and are designed to deepen your expertise with every stage of the problem-solving process.
- Summary Notes: Chapter-specific material that highlights important points in each chapter–excellent for classroom presentations and concept review.
- Learning Resources: Thoughts on problem solving; closed-ended and open-ended problem-solving heuristics.
- Professional Reference Shelf: Additional examples and problem-solving material.
- Additional Study Materials: Course syllabi and Web links to related material.
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Average Customer Review:
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
Good book, 2006-06-11
I used either this book or a similar one for my freshman engineering class. The reading and technical difficulty was appropriate for me in that class. Having worked at TRW, a little at GM, and now at Intel, I believe the concepts taught in this book are quite useful, and are practiced often by engineers at "engineering" companies. The problem is this book is usually read by students in their 1st year, then for the following 2 - 3 years of undergraduate schooling, students essentially sit in lecture classes learning concepts of science and technology. Come senior year, students are then expected to implement the lessons from this book as part of doing their capstone project, as if they even remember this book.
Written by two engineering professors as a book for beginning engineering students, the problem solving concepts contained in this book are appropriate for anyone working in any field; not just engineering. The problem is it does not introduce students to the reality of life as a working engineer and does not help students choose which field of engineering they like to join. The question begs then as to what is the reality of life as an engineer... Excluding engineering professors, here is what I picture as the realities of being an engineer:
1) Technology constantly changes. Part of being an engineer is always deciding which changes to adopt and which to ignore. For example, at my biweekly group meeting in Intel, our manager shows us new automation software that we as a group must decide whether or not we want to adopt. We don't write these software, but we have to decide whether or not we want to use them.
2) Our skills are not needed. Doctors will always be needed, because people always get sick or hurt. Teachers will always be needed, because people always need to be taught stuff. But as engineers, many of the services and expertise we offer society can be done without. If the price of gasoline keeps going up, a lot of engineers who specialize on combustion engines are going to find themselves obsolete. Likewise, the rank of analog engineers working at Motorola have dwindled over the past decade. Therefore, part of being an engineer is having to constantly learn new skills.
3) We are very replaceable. For example, a family physician obtains and sustains his business by spending quality time with each and every of her patients. Very few people, once they find a family physician they like, will switch to another one. The same concept applies to dentists, car mechanics, hairdressers, tailors, vets, babysitters, home repairmen, insurance agents, etc...
But engineers by and large work on producing a physical item; i.e. a computer, a car, a knee implant, a radio, etc... Outside of bridges, airplanes, power plants, etc... the final purchaser of our product will never come into contact with any of the engineers who helped designed or produced it. Therefore, price becomes more important in the purchasing of engineered products. The products engineers make must therefore improve with time. Continuous improvement is the key phrase here.
4) Related to the previous item, the personal relationships engineers work with are quite different than those of other occupations. Specificaly, if I am a vet, and one of my customers does not like my work, she won't come back again. Simple as that. In extreme cases I might get sued. Likewise if I am a teacher, and students and parents constantly complain about my teaching, I might get moved to another school, or assigned to teach different classes, before I get fired.
But as an engineer, a) our skills are so specialized and b) the products we produce can be so easily quantified in metrics, we in general are subjected to more (not necessarily harder) standards and guidelines. As an engineer, my customer is not Joe on the street, but is another engineer farther down the "assembly line" who has certain specifications he has for the product/service he expects, but who does not have the ability to fire me or find a different supplier. Therefore, engineering companies have produced a whole system of procedures, data collection systems, automation software, tracking software, and work practices oriented around quantifying and qualifying the work of engineers. The goal of course is to maximize the efficiency and effectiveness of every thought, word and motion by evey employee. This is something that many individuals find hard to respect or appreciate when they first join Intel. In essence, working as an engineer means working not in a fishbowl, but in an aquarium tank; multiple eyes can and will look over you while you navigate the waters with other fishes present.
5) Automated devices and machinery. Engineers by and large are constantly working with automated tools of various sorts, sizes and dangers. Many of these tools are worth more to the employer than the engineer; so discipline and the ability and willingness to follow specific operating procedures is an absolute must for practicing engineers. At Intel, engineers get fired for operating a tool without having the proper certification, permission and documentation.
These then are the facts of life for engineers, and none of these are covered in Fogler's book.
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
 Lecturer and Engineer, 2004-07-26
I would highly recommend any engineering student to read this book. It is worthy to buy and keep it on your library. This will be one of many most useful books you have ever considered in your engineering career.
2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
Fantastic Book: Not For Cry Babies, 2003-07-29
This is mainly a to stress that problems can be solved with an open minded approach such as the authors recommend. Unlike the cry baby whose essentially useless review shows that he has not and never will solve any real world problems. Probably a disgruntled ex student who got a D-.
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
Well organized, and entertaining intro to problem solving, 1999-08-29
This is a systematic and well organized introduction. I used it with managers and students not just engineers. What was important was not just to follow an algorithmic approach but to imbue a way of thinking. It simply is not true that everyone has formed the discipline to use their mind following these or similar heuristics. We may stumble on them naturally, I agree. But for many people this is a useful revelation. In addition to the book, they have produced software to engage you in learning the problem strategies. Compared to many other books on the subject, this book has enough real world examples and strategies that it is not just pop psychology or wishful thinking or one more brainstrom with web-like diagrams.
8 of 33 people found the following review helpful:
 Surprisingly poor book considering the topic: Thinking!, 1999-08-19
I read about half of this book before setting it down in disgust. The book is targeted to working engineers that are confronted with unique challenges on regular occasion. As such, I would have expected the authors to know a bit more about real word problem solving.The authors basically postulate that any person, of any ability can solve any problem if they employ a problem solving heuristic. While a nice idea, and certainly politically correct, this is simply not the case. A good (adequate) engineer looks at a failed design or unique problem and without sitting down in a group brainstorming session or plotting his creative solution process on paper, she mentally decides what is important and then asks the necessary questions, performs the necessary calcs, researches the appropriate topics, etc.. I've never seen a talented engineer plot his problem solving approach on paper when confronted with a problem. Those engineers that actually employed a heuristic never solved the problems presented to them and ultimately lost their jobs. Either you know your material or you don't. You're either creative or your not. You have a strong work ethic paying sufficient attention to detail, or you don't. Period. Exercises (like those that the authors suggest) to increase your capacity for creativity are foolish, unnecessary and ineffective. (If you don't believe me, check out the book. You'll get a good laugh.) The authors are clearly young academics that have no real information to offer the public in this book. While I believe that they meant well, I truly believe that neither of them has actually ever solved a real problem and they are therefor not qualified to sell a book on this topic. The accurate information that they do present is obvious to the most average of high school students. Consequently, this material can hardly be used in an argument to redeem this book's worth. One good thing about the book: The authors include quite a few real-world examples and case histories that are both entertaining and insightful. The authors should have published a collection of these stories and omitted their useless dribble. (About 60% of the examples are useful. The remaining examples are over-simplified with significant details omitted. The authors regularly neglect important factors including: economic factors, regulatory body concerns, availability of resources, and others when they cast blame on the problem solver. This further indicates that the authors read a lot, but don't actually have any breadth of experience to draw upon) (If, indeed, the authors do have real problem solving experience; then I wonder how effective they were in industry. The way they tackled the problem of writing a book, I wouldn't hire either of them to sharpen my pencils.) One last point to counter their foolishness: As dangerous as it is to make assumptions when a problem statement is sufficiently vague; it is the in-effective (and unemployed) engineer that doesn't draw upon his experiences to form a reasonable set of assumptions. The engineer that does otherwise takes three months to fold a drawing. I'd really like to see the author(s) work in the field; I need a good laugh.
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