Thinking Like an Engineer, 6th edition

Published by Pearson (February 27, 2025) © 2026

  • Elizabeth A. Stephan Clemson University
  • David R. Bowman
  • William D. Martin III Clemson University
  • Baker A. Martin The University of Tennessee, Knoxville
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In this eTextbook — More ways to learn

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  • More supportive. Get AI explanations and practice questions (select titles).
  • More interactive. Bring learning to life with audio, videos, and diagrams.
  • More memorable. Make concepts stick with highlights, search, notes, and flashcards.
  • More understandable. Translate text into 100+ languages with one tap.
$59.94
monthly payments or
pay undefined one-time
Instant access

In this eTextbook — More ways to learn

  • More flexible. Start learning right away, on any device.
  • More supportive. Get AI explanations and practice questions (select titles).
  • More interactive. Bring learning to life with audio, videos, and diagrams.
  • More memorable. Make concepts stick with highlights, search, notes, and flashcards.
  • More understandable. Translate text into 100+ languages with one tap.
$59.94
monthly payments or
pay undefined one-time
Instant access

In this eTextbook — More ways to learn

  • More flexible. Start learning right away, on any device.
  • More supportive. Get AI explanations and practice questions (select titles).
  • More interactive. Bring learning to life with audio, videos, and diagrams.
  • More memorable. Make concepts stick with highlights, search, notes, and flashcards.
  • More understandable. Translate text into 100+ languages with one tap.

Title overview

Thinking Like an Engineer: An Active Learning Approach helps you develop the skills new engineering students need to prepare for upper-level courses. Sections on surviving engineering, time management, goal setting, and study skills are integrated throughout to assist on topics where students often need them. It helps you move beyond “plug-and-chug” and memorizing problem-solving methods, encouraging you instead to ask if your approaches and answers make sense in the physical world. An emphasis on reading and practice helps you to arrive prepared for class.

The 6th Edition utilizes MATLAB® 2024 throughout, incorporates a new problem-solving framework, discusses AI in ethical engineering, and much more.

Table of contents

I: ENGINEERING ESSENTIALS

Engineering is an . . . Itch!

  • 1. Everyday Engineering
    • 1.1 Choosing a Career
    • 1.2 Choosing Engineering as a Career
    • 1.3 NAE Grand Challenges for Engineering
    • 1.4 Choosing a Specific Engineering Field
    • 1.5 Engineering Technology: A Related Field
    • 1.6 Gathering Information
    • 1.7 Pursuing Student Opportunities
    • Review Questions
  • 2. Ethics
    • 2.1 Ethical Decision Making
    • 2.2 Plagiarism
    • 2.3 Engineering Creed
    • 2.4 Social Responsibility
    • In-Class Activities
    • Review Questions
  • 3. Design, Teamwork, and Project Management
    • 3.1 Design Processes
    • 3.2 Defining the Problem or Need
    • 3.3 Criteria: Defining What Is Important
    • 3.4 Generating Ideas
    • 3.5 Comparing Designs and Making Decisions
    • 3.6 Prototyping and Testing
    • 3.7 Sustainability: A Special Design Criterion
    • 3.8 Working in Teams
    • 3.9 Experimental Design: PERIOD Analysis
    • 3.10 Project Timeline
    • 3.11 Modern Project Management
    • In-Class Activities
    • Review Questions
    • Mini Design Projects
  • 4. Engineering Communication
    • 4.1 Basic Presentation Skills
    • 4.2 Sample Presentations
    • 4.3 Basic Technical Writing Skills
    • 4.4 Common Technical Communication Formats
    • In-Class Activities
    • Review Questions
  • 5. Estimation
    • 5.1 General Hints for Estimation
    • 5.2 Estimation by Analogy
    • 5.3 Estimation by Aggregation
    • 5.4 Estimation by Upper and Lower Bounds
    • 5.5 Estimation Using Modeling
    • 5.6 Significant Figures
    • 5.7 Reasonableness
    • 5.8 Notation
    • In-Class Activities
    • Review Questions
  • 6. Solving Problems
    • 6.1 Problem Types
    • 6.2 SOLVEM: One Approach to Solving Problems
    • 6.3 Representing Final Results
    • 6.4 Avoiding Common Mistakes
    • 6.5 Examples of SOLVEM
    • In-Class Activities
    • Review Questions

    II: UBIQUITOUS UNITS

  • 7. Fundamental Dimensions and Base Units
    • 7.1 The Metric System
    • 7.2 Other Unit Systems
    • 7.3 Conversion Procedure for Units
    • 7.4 Conversions Involving Multiple Steps
    • 7.5 Conversions Involving “New” Units
    • 7.6 Derived Dimensions and Units
    • 7.7 Equation Laws
    • 7.8 Conversion Involving Equations
    • In-Class Activities
    • Review Questions
  • 8. Universal Units
    • 8.1 Force
    • 8.2 Weight
    • 8.3 Density
    • 8.4 Amount
    • 8.5 Temperature
    • 8.6 Pressure
    • 8.7 Gas Pressure
    • 8.8 Energy
    • 8.9 Power
    • 8.10 Efficiency
    • 8.11 Electrical Concepts
    • In-Class Activities
    • Review Questions
  • 9. Dimensionless Numbers
    • 9.1 Constants with Units
    • 9.2 Common Dimensionless Numbers
    • 9.3 Dimensional Analysis
    • 9.4 Rayleigh’s Method
    • In-Class Activities
    • Review Questions

    III: SPECTACULAR SPREADSHEETS

  • 10. Excel Workbooks
    • 10.1 Cell References
    • 10.2 Functions in Excel
    • 10.3 Logic and Conditionals
    • 10.4 Lookup and Data Validation
    • 10.5 Conditional Formatting
    • 10.6 Sorting and Filters
    • In-Class Activities
    • Review Questions
  • 11. Graphical Solutions
    • 11.1 Graphing Terminology
    • 11.2 Proper Plots
    • 11.3 Available Graph Types in Excel
    • 11.4 Graph Interpretation
    • 11.5 Meaning of Line Shapes
    • 11.6 Graphical Solutions
    • In-Class Activities
    • Review Questions
  • 12. Models and Systems
    • 12.1 Proper Plot Rules for Trendlines
    • 12.2 Linear Functions
    • 12.3 Linear Relationships
    • 12.4 Combinations of Linear Relationships
    • 12.5 Power Functions
    • 12.6 Exponential Functions
    • In-Class Activities
    • Review Questions
  • 13. Mathematical Models
    • 13.1 Selecting a Trendline Type
    • 13.2 Interpreting Logarithmic Graphs
    • 13.3 Proper Plot Rules for Log Plots
    • 13.4 Converting Scales to Log in Excel
    • 13.5 Dealing with Limitations of Excel
    • Review Questions
  • 14. Statistics
    • 14.1 Histograms
    • 14.2 Statistical Behavior
    • 14.3 Distributions
    • 14.4 Cumulative Distribution Functions
    • 14.5 Statistical Process Control (SPC)
    • 14.6 Statistics in Excel
    • 14.7 Statistics in MATLAB
    • In-Class Activities
    • Review Questions

    IV: PROGRAMMING PROWESS

  • 15. MATLAB Basics
    • 15.1 Variable Basics
    • 15.2 Numeric Types and Scalars
    • 15.3 Vectors
    • 15.4 Matrices 572
    • 15.5 Character Arrays
    • 15.6 String Arrays
    • 15.7 Cell Arrays
    • 15.8 Structure Arrays
    • In-Class Activities
    • Review Questions
  • 16. Algorithms, Programs, and Functions
    • 16.1 Algorithms
    • 16.2 Programs
    • 16.3 Functions
    • 16.4 Deriving Mathematical Models
    • 16.5 Debugging MATLAB Code
    • In-Class Activities
    • Review Questions
  • 17. Input/Output in MATLAB
    • 17.1 Input
    • 17.2 Output
    • 17.3 Plotting
    • 17.4 Trendlines
    • 17.5 Microsoft Excel I/O
    • In-Class Activities
    • Review Questions
  • 18. Logic and Conditionals
    • 18.1 Algorithms Revisited: Representing Decisions
    • 18.2 Relational and Logical Operators
    • 18.3 Logical Variables
    • 18.4 Conditional Statements in MATLAB
    • 18.5 Application: Classification Diagrams
    • 18.6 switch Statements
    • 18.7 Errors and Warnings
    • In-Class Activities
    • Review Questions
  • 19. Looping Structures
    • 19.1 Algorithms Revisited: Loops
    • 19.2 while Loops
    • 19.3 for Loops
    • In-Class Activities
    • Review Questions

    Comprehension Check Answers

    Index

    Equation Tables

    MATLAB Graphing Properties

    APPENDICES

    • A. Basic Engineering Math (Online)
    • B. Basic Workbooks (Online)
    • C. Basic Excel Graphs (Online)
    • D. Basic Excel Trendlines (Online)

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