Review: Introduction to engineering

In a clever way, author Henk Tolsma sets out the basics of the technique in a concise but comprehensive argument.

What do psychology, economics and sociology have that engineering lacks? Technology journalist Henk Tolsma, who has published regularly in this magazine, knows the answer: an accessible introduction that guides interested readers through the field. So Tolsma took it upon himself to write that introduction. He recently self-published the result: Zoveel bereikt, en nog zover te gaan (So much achieved, and still so far to go). And to come right to the point: Tolsma has pulled off a feat.

Indeed, the book turned out to be exactly what he had envisaged: a very readable introduction to almost all areas of technology. From digital technology and AI to mechanical engineering, from communication technology to energy: everything is covered. The ease with which Tolsma has managed to turn it into a flowing narrative, with a logical line, betrays his smooth mastery of the material.

Trias Technologica

Tolsma builds his introduction into three parts. In the first, he presents his 'trias technologica': materials, energy and ICT. 'In any object, device or construction, in any domain of technology, it always revolves in millions of variations around combinations of materials and energy, increasingly in connection with ICT/AI,' he explains. 

Part two deals with the engineering process: from initial design to final disposal. 

Part three looks at the language of engineering: how do engineers record their work and what methods and sources of knowledge can they fall back on?

Tolsma writes it all down clearly, without his argument becoming top-heavy anywhere. Anyone who manages to tell the whole story of engineering within 170 pages - and who also finds room for all kinds of nice examples and amusing asides - deserves a big compliment.