REVIEW OF BOOKS
"Arithmetic for Engineering." By Charles B. Clapham, Hons. B. Sc. Eng., London, Goldsmiths' College, pp. xi, 465. Price $4.00. (New York: E. P. Button & Co.)
"Mathematics for Engineers." By W. N. Rose, B. Sc. Eng., London, Goldsmiths' College. In two parts, pp. xiv, 510 and xiv, 419. Part I $6.00, Part II $7.00. (New York: E. P. Button & Co.)
These three books are meant to bridge the gap between two sorts of treatises : those that lean so far toward the practical as to give little or no scientific basis for the mathematical processes used by engineers, and those that are so academic as to be too difficult for any but college trained men either to comprehend or to apply to everyday problems.
Useful processes are introduced in many instances before it is advisable to present proofs of the principles upon which they depend, and are followed by explanations, more or less complete, after further progress has been made. Proofs likely to be found too intricate or too abstract are abbreviated or omitted, and typical concrete instances are used to show the general truth. Approximate methods are in some instances distinguished from those that are exact; in other instances such discrimination is lacking or incomplete. The choice in most of these cases seems wisely made.
Readers without technical training are likely to find as great difficulty with these books as readers without adequate schooling find with the ordinary academic texts. The problems are direct from practice, with little attempt to simplify their technicalities.
The Arithmetic for Engineers presents ordinary arithmetical processes, simple algebra, mensuration, logarithms, graphs and the use of the slide rule. Some of the presentation, especially in the case of simple equations, is remarkably full and tedious; the author seems unduly impressed either with the difficulty of the subject or with the simplicity of his readers. In parts much space is given to warnings against possible errors. These characteristics are much less prominent in the later volumes and are partly accounted for by the author's desire to make the book useful to those who must study without teachers.
Part I of the Mathematics for Engineers reviews and extends the presentation of algebra, and treats practical mensuration, the use of graphs and plane trigonometry. Part II is devoted to the calculus and its applications; the theoretical treatment here is fuller than the earlier parts of the series would lead one to expect. Graphical and mechanical methods of differentiation and integration are given full prominence, but analytical methods are not slighted. The problems in the second part give the reader insight into principles of physics, mechanics, strength of materials, hydromechanics, and ship-design. There are chapters devoted to mean values, differential equations, physical applications, harmonic analysis, probability and least squares. A chapter on polar coordinates is interpolated, and another on the solution of spherical triangles. The graphic solution given for the spherical triangle is of little value; it does not compare at all favorably with the use of stereographic projections, which in a book of this nature might readily have been presented in brief form as the outcome of four or five principles.
The D. U. Series is full of interest and valuable information for a person trained in either school or shop; it could hardly be of great value to one trained in neither.
P. C.
"Drake Nelson and Napoleon." By Sir Walter Runciman, Bart. Price $4.50. (G. P. Putnam & Sons.)
In this interesting work Sir Walter Runciman deals first with Drake and his Confreres—the great sailors of the Elizabethan Period—pirates according to present standards, but pure patriots according to those of the age in which- they lived. They discovered new lands, opened up new avenues of commerce and fought the Spaniards wherever they could be found. In fact, Drake, the greatest seaman of that period, pursued the Spaniards into their own ports and captured their towns and ships on the Spanish. Main where the prizes of war consisted of vast ransoms and rich plunder. Drake and the leaders of his time may be considered the seeds or roots from which sprang the modern British Sea Power with its fine traditions dating back to the seventeenth century.
"Nelson may be considered the flower of the plant of which Drake was the seed. He has had no peer as a naval leader, but Sir Walter deals at length with Nelson as a man. In fact the major portion of the book treats of Nelson and his affair with Lady Hamilton. Sir Walter certainly calls black, black, and white—but no, there is no white to be found here.
It is amazing to read how this man—so great as a leader and still greater in the presence of the enemy—could be so mawkishly weak in his personal conduct. It makes one think of a strong and wise man made weak and foolish by too free use of liquor. And the corroding influence of his impure passion is shown to have affected finally Nelson's judgment.
As Nelson was undoubtedly the greatest stumbling block in the ambitions of Napoleon, Sir Walter treats of Napoleon in the last part of the book. Here is shown the errors of diplomacy committed by the weak English King and diplomats of the time. According to Sir Walter these English leaders failed to recognize the legitimacy of Napoleon's efforts, and instead of uniting with him as they should have done, they united with the rest of Europe to overthrow and send him to an exile's death. By so doing they made the grievous error of clearing the field for Prussia which later combined, as clearly foretold by Napoleon, with the minor German States to form the German Empire. These errors of Englishmen were the seeds of the Great War with its overwhelming losses of blood and treasure.
Thus Sir Walter shows that the Great War was not the result of the act of an assassin but that the causes date back more than a century.
This is a most interesting book. One does not often read such frank opinions of men and their acts as Sir Walter expresses. It is most refreshing.
T. L. J.
"The Machinist's Blue Book." E. R. Glass, Editor. Price $4.00. (By International Association of Machinists Publishing Co., 25 West Street, New York.)
This book is a compilation of different mechanical subjects, and its nature is more nearly that of an aid to the worker than a text book for the student. It is essentially practical, describing not merely what to do, but how to do it and should be invaluable to the engineer, shop manager, or repair officer.
The contents are somewhat loosely arranged, consisting apparently of contributions from a large number of practical machinists.
The following is a general outline of the subjects handled: Properties of metals, alloys, etc. Influence of different elements on steel. Tempering, hardening, and testing of metals. Measuring instruments, verniers, micrometers, gauges, of all kind. A discussion of the slide valve, with the Stephenson link and Walschaerts gear for locomotives, and very complete instructions for valve-setting.
Bearings, their lubrication, and adjustment, re-lining and fitting. A treatise on all the common machine tools, lathes, drills, boring machines, planers, shapers, slotting, and milling machines. This part of the work goes deeply into the mechanism of the machines themselves, with their accessories, tools, methods of testing, centering, adjustment, face plate and chuck work, tapering, reaming, drilling, boring and screw cutting; the forging, tempering and grinding of tools; cutting angles, cutting speeds, etc. Similar matter for all the different machine tools with special instructions for the design and cutting of gear teeth.
Blue prints and mechanical drawings, and how to read them. Forge work, with welding, tempering, and hardening. Bench work, hammering, filing, chipping, broaching, tap-and-die threading.
Grinding machines, with the forging, hardening, and tempering of all kinds of drills and cutters. Formulae for the design of gears and gear teeth.
Pipes and pipe-fitting, flanges, couplings, gaskets, expansion-joints, with soldering, brazing, lead-wiping and other methods of joining. The grinding and re-seating of valves.
Mill-wright work, including engine foundations and the lining up of engines, shafting, etc. Special kinks and information of a useful nature for shop work.
Questions and answers in gas engines, turbines, condensate pumps, air ejectors, condensers, reduction gears and electricity. Spontaneous combustion, analysis of coal, chemical tests of water and a dictionary of terms used in shipbuilding.
Questions and answers on shop work.
About one-fifth of the whole book, is devoted to welding by the oxyacetylene process. This is most complete, covering the general theory, properties of metals to be handled, preparation, pre-heating, numerous examples of the method to be used in different cases, and a description of the plant for generating the gases required.
A large number of useful tables are included in the body of the work, comprising the following:
Tensile strength of materials, equivalents of millimeters in decimals of an inch, of fractions of an inch in millimeters, demical equivalents of parts of an inch, decimal equivalents of Stubs' steel wire gauge, and. of twist drills and steel wire gauge by number.
U. S. Standard Gauge for sheets and plates, giving No. of gauge, thickness in fractions of an inch and in decimals, and weight per square foot in ounces and pounds. Comparative table of various standard gauges. Thickness and weights of iron and steel sheets by Birmingham Wire Gauge and Brown and Sharpe.
Table of sharp V-threaded screws, of thread parts for Acme Standard or 29° thread, of Morse tapers for shanks and sockets, of lathe cutting speeds for different materials, of Footstock Setovers for Morse and Brown and Sharpe tapers.
Table of lathe cutting speeds in feet per minute for various diameters of work and speed of revolution, of lubricants for cutting various materials, of decimal equivalents of normal sizes of drills for tapping.
Thread tables for Whitworth Standard, British Standard Fine, and Acme Standard. Tables for tap drills, giving size of tap, number of threads, and size of drill hole. Tables of tooth parts for gearing in terms of diametral and circular pitch, thickness of tooth, etc.
Table of dimensions and weights of pipe fittings, etc. Tables of allowances and limits for sliding, driving, and shrinkage fits. Tables of ordinary weights and measures, of areas and circumferences of circles, and of squares, cubes, square and cube roots.
The foregoing sounds like dry reading, but as a matter of fact the book will be found of interest, not only to the machinist, but to anyone of general technical knowledge.
R. C. P.
"The Elements of Fuel Oil and Steam Engineering." By Sibley and Delany. Price $5.00 (McGraw-Hill Book Company, Inc., 1921.)
The book is divided into three main subdivisions, the first including a general description of the modern power plant equipped with oil burning boilers and giving an exposition of the elementary laws of steam engineering; the second dealing with the efficient utilization of fuel oil in a modern power plant, and the third covering the testing of oil fired boilers and giving suggestions for conducting boiler tests and taking, recording and tabulating the data.
The description of the modern power plant is too general to be of value to any save those entirely lacking in knowledge of the subject. The presentation of the elementary laws of steam engineering is too disconnected to be of use to a beginner in this subject and not complete enough for an advanced student.
The subject of safe operation of steam boilers, the efficient operation of oil fired boilers, and furnaces in fuel oil practice is well handled.
Generally the illustrations are of little value. Many are not clear, few are described and a large number are photographs of no value to the student.
The third subdivision on testing oil fired boilers is excellent and contains many valuable suggestions.
J. O. R.
"Introduction to the Study of Submarine Warfare." By Commander A. Laurens. (Published by Augustin Challamel, Paris, France.)
In his preface to the book, Commander Laurens explaining the title states it as a brief and rather dry collection of facts concerning the action of submarines during the World War.
This most valuable collection of data, while rather dry reading, furnishes an excellent historical record to be used as a basis for study of the possibilities of submarine development in the future.
Commander Laurens takes up in chronological order the economic results brought about by submarine warfare and the political action of the various powers, allied and neutral, which were taken as the result of these economic conditions. The actual campaign of the submarines is detailed, and the offensive and defensive measures taken by the Allies to meet the enemy submarine warfare.
Commander Laurens was fortunate in being on duty at the Ministry of Marine during the greater part of the war, and was personally interested in compiling, month by month, the many valuable charts and tables in the appendix of the book. One of these tables gives the cruise of each submarine and the numbers and types of vessels sunk on each cruise. Another interesting table shows, by curves, the rise in the destruction of tonnage until April 1917, and the gradual fall until August 1918, when it became evident that the submarine warfare was a failure. Another table gives the life of each submarine. It shows how short was the life of most of the boats. A study of this table makes clear the mode of destruction; but this mode of destruction was unknown to the Germans themselves, they only knew that the boats did not return.
The British, early in the war, urged that nothing should be given out concerning this destruction of the submarines, arguing that if the Germans did not know how the boats were lost they would have great difficulty in avoiding further loss from the same cause. They further argued that the mysterious disappearance of boat after boat would eventually have a tremendous psychological effect upon the officers and men who still survived, and that they would evince greater and greater reluctance to go out to an unknown fate until finally they would be driven to mutiny. As is well known the German Navy did finally mutiny, and, no doubt this policy had much to do with the mutiny.
As a compilation of the official facts of submarine warfare this book is particularly valuable.
R. H. J.