What is Engineering: Definition and 996 Discussions

Engineering is the use of scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. 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" and ingeniare, meaning "to contrive, devise".

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  1. ric peregrino

    New member!

    Hello, I'm an old fart, that used to self study GR and tensor calculus. I have a BS ECE from UCD, and a MS EE from Stanford. I've since retired from my electrical engineering career which was mostly at the old HP's Stanford Park Division, and I find myself once again pondering these things. I...
  2. Maulik Chaudhary

    An Engineering student and a Life long learner!

    I want to be a member of this forum for the prime reason to learn about other aspects of physics that currently I am unaware of.
  3. W

    I Question about Cartesian Tensors

    I am not a mathematician but an Engineer-in-Training studying mechanics. That being said why does equation I-10 equal 1 when k equals i and 0 when k does not equal i?
  4. pete94857

    Mechanical energy. questions

    1 watt equals 1 Newton metre 1 kg equals 9.81 Newton metres 2.5 kg = 24.525 Nm = 24.525 Watts of mechanical energy.
  5. S

    Other Well Written Materials Science / Engineering Books?

    I would love to find a materials book that is comparable to Taylor's Classical Mechanics. Taylor's book is well written with good problem sets, and it's designed for undergraduates. I also like that it burrows into one subject for 300 pages instead of being a general textbook with 2000 pages.
  6. S

    What Materials Fields are Heavy in Math?

    Hello, I'm a materials engineering undergraduate student. I would love to combine math and materials, what fields will allow me to combine these two?
  7. DaveC426913

    Real World Tesseract

    NOOOOOO!!! They actually built it! https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/cernsciencegateway Literally decades of design, engineering and troubleshooting: https://www.physicsforums.com/threads/real-world-tesseract-crafting-a-4d-table-from-3d-cubes.205845/...
  8. T

    Engineering I have a free body diagram that I have drawn to describe my problem of dry ice in a bottle

    This is my attached picture.
  9. Bilan

    Laser to burn insect

    What would be the ideal wavelength and power of a laser to kill an insect on human skin without burning the skin ?
  10. K

    Engineering and pressure related questions

    How did you find PF?: Friend I need to move a 2000 pound weight up twenty feet into the air on top of an eight inch diameter piston (surface area of 50 square inches) how much steady pressure would i need to achieve this and overcome the friction on the piston itself. Im trying to lift a door/wall
  11. D

    Electrical VTOL engineering, motor RPM vs weight loads,

    choosing the right motors, the RPMs and weight/load capabilities of the motor/ rotors, combined abilities of electric motors working in tandem, choosing the correct rotors for lift m/ weight ratios, or designing your own?, should one add a small gas powered generator to assist in stable...
  12. Benjamin Calloway

    Mechanical Design Engineer in Kentucky :)

    Hello! Thanks for being a welcoming community and an informative resource. I'm an engineering consultant in Kentucky, specializing in mechanical design and space tech. I graduated from the University of Kentucky in 2022, though I wasn't a huge fan of their program. I'm glad to be out :) I still...
  13. minalogy

    Schools Cornell vs. UC Berkeley for Engineering Physics

    I was very fortunate to get into both Cornell (with the Meinig Scholarship) and Berkeley (with the Regents Scholarship) and have the difficult decision of choosing between the two. While I know Berkeley is known for its engineering and physics programs, Cornell is apparently strong in that field...
  14. marco02

    My presentation

    Hi, I'm a 21 year-old aerospace engineering student
  15. P

    New to website but not physics

    Hello everyone. I am new to this website but not new to physics. I took physics in high school and college, but I did forget a lot of what I learned. I graduated from college with a degree in Electronics Engineering. I graduated in 1997. The areas of physics that I am the most interested in is...
  16. alessalessio

    Hello from AlessAless

    hi all I am an Engineer with a PhD in Information Engineering with a great passion for physics.
  17. Sh_lm

    Hello I'm new here.

    I'm Shalom, a mechatronics engineering student. I'm in L3 and I'm 19. I'm very passionate about mathematics, physics, electronics, system modelling, coding and others stuffs alike . I'm already done I don't know what more to say😅. I hope I'll learn a lot from you guys and have a wonderful...
  18. C

    Engineering Help Calculating Length And Position Of Connections On Rotating Object

    Hi, i need to find a formula or calculation that would allow me to connect three lines when rotating. The three lines must fall so that they mirror themselves on the opposite side. I need to be able to calculate this for now just the example above but be able to apply to a range of lengths and...
  19. tommcgtx

    Physics knowledge advice for a Civil Engineering undergrad

    Hi all! I'm currently enrolled in a civil engineering program, and need some advice and recommendations. I've taken Calculus 1 through 3, and am finishing up Elementary Differential Equations this semester. I've taken Physics 1, and received a B. I'm honestly surprised I made it out of that...
  20. tommcgtx

    Hello from WV

    My name is Tom. I'm a 50 year old student in an online Civil Engineering program at the University of North Dakota. I currently work as a Project Engineer at a land development firm. I started this degree around 10 years ago, and had to stop due to health reasons. I'm currently finishing up my...
  21. T

    Job Skills Possibilities of a Career in Physics/Engineering

    I live in the SF Bay Area. I graduated in 2019 with a B.S. in Engineering Physics from UC Berkeley. My college experience began with me failing to actually sign up for orientation, and then contracting tonsillitis which lasted my entire first semester. The combination of these two things...
  22. T

    Engineering Physics Major Needing Advice

    Hello, I graduated from UC Berkeley's College of Engineering with a degree in Engineering Physics in 2019. I performed extremely poorly academically, made no friends/connections, and have not been employed since then. I will be posting a more detailed post asking for some advice.
  23. Syandan21

    Is electrical engineering a good major for machine learning/AI jobs?

    Hello, I am looking into electrical engineering because I think it is an awesome major because of the math and physics involved. I am not really into building things though. I love software and computer science-related things, but I do not want to major in CS because it is a very popular major...
  24. C

    ChemE Major

    Hello! I am currently a chemical engineering major. I love all of my class but I am struggling in Physics
  25. U

    Rapidograph, technical drawing

    In the past was enginners/students draw directly with rapidograph or first with mechanical pencil and after that redraw everything with rapidograph? Is rapidograph good for writing or he works only in vertical position? Why rapidograph if we have ozalid machines?
  26. D

    Senior Aerospace Scientist

    Senior Scientist Aerospace engineering concentrating on mechanical and structural engineering analysis for space telescopes
  27. Odin2568

    Hello all

    Hello all I'm new here hopefully I can get some help with some engineering mathematics.
  28. D

    Why Does Calculating Ethanol's AFR Yield Different Results from Standard Values?

    First I have seen a few forums dotted about covering this subject already, however I couldn't find exactly what I was looking for so I apologise if its somewhere on here already. I am trying to calculate the AFR value for pure ethanol. I am only including oxygen in the category of "air" due to...
  29. L

    What Questions Can You Ask About Physics, Mathematics, and Engineering?

    I've come here to ask any future questions I have regarding physics, mathematics or engineering. Thank you very much.
  30. MrAndrew

    What Is PF and Why Is It Popular Among Mechanical Engineering Enthusiasts?

    Hello everyone, I heard about PF from Reddit. I'm a mechanical engineering enthusiast and looking forward to engaging with everyone here!
  31. Hauzen

    I look forward to your kind cooperation :)

    Hi. I am Hauzen from South Korea. I came here to gain a lot of engineering knowledge from this forum. I want to be a competent engineer with a lot of your help. I look forward to your kind cooperation :)
  32. C

    B Question about units for "area under curve"

    Hello everyone, I am curious, suppose you have a function ##f(x)=x^3## and you to find the area under the curve from 0 to x, the area would be ##\frac {x^4}{4}## but this is units of ##L^4## if x is length, but area is units of ##L^2## so what is going on here? The reason I'm curious is I...
  33. E

    Programs Trying to decide what program to study (physics or engineering)

    I am passionate about physics and math and science, you've heard the story a million times. I don't know whether I should study in physics or engineering. I find the concept of Engineering Physics really cool. I've heard it still gives you the opportunity to go study graduate physics? (Lets...
  34. gmason85

    Is Thermal Paint Really Effective in Heat Transfer?

    Hi all, Mechanical engineer by education; soon to have a MPhil in Architecture. Building Scientist/ Energy Efficiency consultant by trade. I have a decent physics background, but not an expert around the subject of radiative heat transfer. My posts will likely involve confirming bs from...
  35. Z

    I enjoy complex problems in science

    Male in my twenties, enjoying hard problems in engineering, mathematics, and physics.
  36. Gstoettenmayr

    How Can a Multidisciplinary Engineer Advance Fertilizer Production Techniques?

    Hi there, Thank you for welcoming into your community. I completed a five year electrical control engineering college, then studied chemical engineering followed by a PhD in analytical chemistry. Since the last seven years I work in a role that involves chemical engineering and process...
  37. jedishrfu

    Student Recreates the Archimedes Death Ray

    Student Recreates the Archimedes Death Ray https://www.giantfreakinrobot.com/sci/ancient-death-ray-recreated.html
  38. mashmead

    Applied physics and systems analysis/engineering

    Be nice.
  39. R

    Addressing Source Credibility and Clarifying Guidelines for Engineering

    Just noticed (as a follow up of a recently terminated one) that many topics posted in 'Engineering' actually does not conform with the general rule about respectable sources, causing confusion. Sure, engineering has a way to say 'see? Works.' and it's totally (!) respected in the actual attitude...
  40. R

    New Engineering student here

    Hi, I'm an aerospace engineering student in Turin. This semester, I have an aerodynamics class, and I need some help understanding some of the equations. I also really like physics and enjoy math and I think this forum can help me explore new and interesting topics, especially during times...
  41. T

    How Does Britain's New £140m 'DragonFire' Laser Transform Air Defense?

    New British LASER is one heck of an anti-aircraft gun! LIGHT-SAVER Britain blows up drones with £140m LASER dubbed ‘DragonFire’ in incredible first – with each shot costing just a tenner The futuristic laser can destroy a target from miles away with pin point accuracy... The highly focused...
  42. farispksalmanul

    How to reduce humidity through mist eliminator

  43. hya_t

    Calculating the inlet lengths of a fluid circulating in a pipe?

    TL;DR Summary: why do we need input length in fluid's dynamics What is the purpose of calculating the inlet lengths of a fluid circulating in a pipe? and how to calculate it correctly? why do we need it in engineering? This is for a class project where we are asked to calculate it and I think...
  44. Greg Bernhardt

    Engineering Award

    Please select up to 3 members who were most impactful in the engineering forums in 2023. This is a popular vote. Polls were created by weighing activity and measure of helpfulness. Everyone nominated should feel honored. Many more could be added to this poll, we can never realistically add...
  45. Abdullah A H

    Want to know if there are any particular sites for mechanical engineering for getting recommendable research papers

    where can I get best research papers for my undergrade thesis in Mechanical Engineering?
  46. berkeman

    Unusual Engineering Gadgets: Test Your Intuition and Share Your Pics!

    I saw this on Facebook today, and thought it might be a fun general thread for Engineering to post pics of things that made you stop and think about what they were designed for. I had to click into the FB post to see if my intuition was right on this one. Thoughts on this one? Do you have...
  47. bhobba

    Can Any Country Achieve Net Zero Without Nuclear?

    If you are lucky enough to have copious amounts of hydropower, you may be able to. But aside from that, I can't see how it can be done. In Australia, we have a policy of net zero by 2050, but it is beyond me how you can do it without nuclear. However, Australia has banned nuclear...
  48. N

    Help with final year uni course selection for defense and rocket industry

    TL;DR Summary: Help with final year courses that will help for defense and rocket industry. Hello , what extra courses would be best to help with knowledge in defense/rocket industry as a mechanical engineer in final year. I am going to do thermofluid specilisations for my final year and I am...
  49. Nik_2213

    Non-cryogenic separation of Helium_3 from Helium_4?

    IIRC, He_3 is usually separated from much less rare He_4 by cryogenic cooling of gas mix to 'liquid', at which point the mix divides to two phases, one with each isotope... IIRC, Hydrogen and Deuterium, as gas mix, may be progressively separated at near-ambient conditions by differential...
  50. J

    Make 2 launchers that shoot a straw with clay at the end

    TL;DR Summary: The goal of the project is to make 2 launchers that shoot a straw with clay at the end for weight. Here are the requirements: Performance Requirements Performance requirements (each launcher): Range Distance 1 - projectile must travel exactly 12 feet measured where it first...
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