Engineering Library

The rising costs of scientific journals This 2001 display was inspired by a similar exhibit at the Health Sciences and Human Services library at the University of Maryland. Designed by the Cornell University Engineering Library team of Gregory Tomso (Reference Assistant), Jill Powell (Reference Librarian), and John M. Saylor (Director) with technical help from Kristina […]

The theory that living organisms arise from nonliving materials is known as the theory of spontaneous generation. The belief in the spontaneous development of microorganisms was widely held for many centuries, and continued until the 19th century, when the Microbe Hunters proved the germ theory of disease, which showed that diseases are caused by the […]

Students of Professors Mark Turnquist and Daniel Loucks working with Stacks Manager Catherine Vellake (pictured to the right) have focused on solving practical library problems for Cornell’s Engineering Library in their recent class projects over Fall 1999, Fall 2000, and Spring 2002 in these two courses: CEE 593 (Engineering Management Methods I: Data, Information, and […]

David M. Lederman (Ph.D. 1966, EP) Artificial Heart CEO, Abiomed “The AbioCor device itself is totally implantable. An external tool – a coil – transfers battery power through the skin and into the device. A full charge can last 30 to 40 minutes. The external portion can also be plugged into an electric outlet if […]

Kate Gleason Attended Cornell in 1884 and 1888 Starting as the secretary, treasurer, and chief sales representative of her father’s machine-tool business in Rochester, NY, she helped put the company at the forefront of the machine-tool business. Many, Henry Ford included, gave her credit for the invention of the Gleason bevel-gear planer. She was the […]

“This book is about our machines and their evolution over the centuries as seen through the lives of two engineers who became symbols of their own machine age: Leonardo da Vinci, an Italian artist and engineer of the Renaissance, and Franz Reuleaux, a German engineer scientist of the late 19th century Industrial Revolution. It is […]

The cost of journal subscriptions continues to rise and the prices will shock you!   The International Journal of Solids and Structures costs $7,833 (A 34% increase in price since 2002!). For that price you could join the Cornell Alumni Trip “Machu Picchu to the Galapagos,” book roundtrip airfare from Ithaca to South America, and even […]

The Engineering Library is not going away. The book collection will be transferred to other libraries on campus. The space will remain open to students, electronic resources will be enhanced, and the computers and librarians will remain on-site. What’s going on? The Engineering Library at Cornell has about 200,000 volumes. A study in 2009 showed […]

As of July 2011, all engineering books were moved elsewhere on campus. The most frequently used and recent books were kept on central campus, while older and more specialized books were sent to the Library Annex. Engineering Books On Central Campus Based on subject area, just over 25,000 books were redistributed to Uris (19,500), Mann […]

What are technical standards? A formal standard is a document giving requirements about a technical system. It establishes uniform engineering criteria, measurements, methods, processes or practices.   A de facto standard can be a company’s product or just a custom observed and regarded as good practice–but not written down–in an industry (i.e. the QWERTY keyboard […]