A Guide to Writing as an Engineer, 2nd Edition

by David F. Beer (Univ. of Texas at Austin); David A. McMurrey (Austin Community College)

• ISBN13: 9780471430742
• ISBN10: 0471430749
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2004-04-01
• Publisher: Wiley

Summary

This book shows engineering students how to write and speak more effectively and develop the communication skills essential to success in their academic careers and on the job. The authors focus specifically on what an engineer needs on a day-to-day basis, providing an "engineering approach" to technical communication that features practical examples and situations from today\'s industry.Based on the engineering concept that anything that interferes with efficient communication is "noise," the book shows students how to make their signal-to-noise ratio as high as possible. Such things as grammar errors, typos, poor organization, and fuzzy thinking are treated as noise that needs to be eliminated from the message, so that communication can be as effective and efficient as the engineering ideas it conveys.

Author Biography

<b>David Beer</b> is professor of Electrical Engineering at the University of Texas Austin. <p> <b>David McMurray</b> is a technical writer from industry, most recently with IBM.&#160; This combination of academic and industry perspective gives this book its broad perspective covering all aspects of writing, from academic research to effective corporate communication.

Table of Contents

1.Engineers and Writing

2.Some Guidelines for Good Engineering Writing

3.Eliminating Intermittent Noise in Writing

4.Writing Letters, Memoranda, and Email

5.Writing Common Engineering Documents

6.Writing an Engineering Report

7.Constructing Tables and Graphs

8.Accessing Engineering Information

9.Engineering Your Presentation

10.Writing to Get an Engineering Job

11.Documentation and Ethics in Engineering Writing