Naval architecture was born in the mountains of Peru; in the mind of a French astronomer named Pierre Bouguer who never built a ship in his life. So writes Larrie Ferreiro at the beginning of this pioneering work on the science of naval architecture. Bouguer's monumental book Traité du navire (Treatise of the Ship) founded a discipline that defined not the rules for building a ship but the theories and tools to predict a ship's characteristics and performance before it was built. In Ships and Science; Ferreiro argues that the birth of naval architecture formed an integral part of the Scientific Revolution. Using Bouguer's work as a cornerstone; Ferreiro traces the intriguing and often unexpected development of this new discipline and describes its practical application to ship design in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Drawing on previously untapped primary-source and archival information; he places the development of naval architecture in the contexts of science; navy; and society; across the major shipbuilding nations of Britain; France; Spain; the Netherlands; Sweden; Denmark; and Italy.Ferreiro describes the formulation of the three major elements of ship theory (the science of explaining the physical behavior of a ship): maneuvering and sail theory; ship resistance and hydrodynamics; and stability theory. He considers the era's influential books on naval architecture and describes the professionalization of ship constructors that is the true legacy of this period. Finally; looking from the viewpoints of both the constructor and the naval administrator; he explains why the development of ship theory was encouraged; financed; and used in naval shipbuilding. A generous selection of rarely seen archival images accompanies the text.
#4339171 in Books 1999-07-01Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.50 x 1.10 x 6.43l; #File Name: 0253335523296 pages
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. A Needed History of Buffalo; New YorkBy G. A. SmithI have met the author. She teaches at a university near me.I have just gotten into the book so don't feel worthy of reviewing it yet.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy Isaac WilliamsAn amazing read. Congrats to Lillian!0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. An Outstanding Blend of Scholarship and HumanityBy Arlene Reed-Delaney; M. D."Strangers in the Land of Paradise" by Lillian Serece Williams is a brilliantly written book about the creation of an African American community in Buffalo; New York from 1900-1940. Illuminating with new information; pictures and graphs; it answers many questions about the daily life experiences of a group of Americans adjusting to political and economic changes. The family support system that Williams delineated in this turn-of-the-century community is one of those strengths that too often are overlooked in contemporary literature on African Americans. Yet these are important strengths that are present in contemporary African American communities across the nation and upon which I frequently draw to treat some of my patients.This timely; outstanding blend of scholarship and humanity places this work in the category of a genuine classic. The book is a "must" for every serious scholar of American history. "No Shame in my Game" by Katherine Neuman would be a wonderful contemporary companion.
