[Image source: Facades Confidential]
Inspirational quotes are a well-tread territory online. Architects, designers, and all sorts of creatives get that much needed jolt of inspiration from the words of their heroes. In this installation, we’re targeting a specific genre of quotable quotes: Quotes by engineers or in reverence of engineering. It’s truly the backbone of good design, and we felt it deserved time in the spotlight. Here are a few of our favorites. Let us know some of yours in the comments below.
Some say the cup is half empty, while others say it is half full. However, in my opinion both are wrong. The real problem is the cup is too big.
Donald P. Coduto, Professor
[Image source: Cosmopolitan Scum]
Knowing there is a structure, hidden or felt, to the random gives pleasure.
Cecil Balmond, Engineer
[Image source: AIGA]
If the bones don’t work, you’ve got a pile of skin.
Samuel Antupit, Art Director
The engineer’s first problem in any design situation is to discover what the problem really is.
Unknown
[Image source: Facades Confidential]
Engineering problems are under-defined, there are many solutions, good, bad and indifferent. The art is to arrive at a good solution. This is a creative activity, involving imagination, intuition and deliberate choice.
Ove Arup, Engineer
[Image source: Blue Crab Yo Yo]
Gradually people come to you to buy surprise and the thing that’s nicest about it is that when people come to buy surprise, I have no idea of what I’m going to give them either.
Peter Rice, Engineer
You can’t push a rope.
Ken Carper, Professor
[Image source: Tom McGee]
You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.
Buckminster Fuller, Architect
[Image source: Indigos]
To fly, we have to have resistance.
Maya Lin, Artist
Cheers from Team BUILD
Classic Ken Carper quote you got there.
@ Brian -Carper had another quote that was sort of the counterpoint to the rope quote, but we couldn’t remember what it was. Any WSU grads out there with a sharp memory?
The three basic rules of engineering that I was taught which could be used to solve any engineering endeavor were as follows:
1) F = m*a
2) You can’t push a rope.
3) Water always flows downhill.
I can’t seem to remember as well. I do remember him, matter-of-factly, telling us all to pay attention so we didn’t kill anyone and have to go to jail.
I’m in an office full of former students of his and we all got a good laugh at his quote being put up there with Bucky Fuller, Maya Lin, et al.
You should be calling out for current students of his to submit tidbits for a follow-up post, “Quotes on Engineering Part II; The Ken Carper Extravaganza!” He’s currently teaching Arch 367 and Arch 466 at Idaho.
Some say the cup is half empty, while others say it is half full. It’s actually full, half full of liquid and half full of air!
I like the one about finding out what the problem is.
Too often I have seen engineering solutions fail because they have treated the symptom rather than the problem.
I often think an engineer needs similar skills to a detective