''When Technology Fails'', edited by
Neil Schlager, is a collection of 103
case studies
A case study is an in-depth, detailed examination of a particular case (or cases) within a real-world context. For example, case studies in medicine may focus on an individual patient or ailment; case studies in business might cover a particular fi ...
about significant technological disasters, accidents, and failures of the 20th century. It was published in 1994 by
Gale Research, Inc. It was one of the top referenced books in the
New York Public Library
The New York Public Library (NYPL) is a public library system in New York City. With nearly 53 million items and 92 locations, the New York Public Library is the second largest public library in the United States (behind the Library of Congress ...
in 1995. The book was updated and re-released in 2005.
The book consists of 1,000- to 1,500-word entries, arranged by subject, that discuss the background, timeline, and impact of each event. Each entry is written by journalists, engineers, and researchers, and provides a cursory overview, rather than in-depth technological analysis. Entries are supplemented by
bibliographies
Bibliography (from and ), as a discipline, is traditionally the academic study of books as physical, cultural objects; in this sense, it is also known as bibliology (from ). English author and bibliographer John Carter describes ''bibliography ...
, black-and-white photographs, charts, and other print media.
[Book Review. '']Booklist
''Booklist'' is a publication of the American Library Association that provides critical reviews of books and audiovisual materials for all ages. ''Booklist''s primary audience consists of libraries, educators, and booksellers. The magazine is av ...
,'' American Library Association
Accessed 2011-04-14.
See also
*
Normal Accidents
''Normal Accidents: Living with High-Risk Technologies'' is a 1984 book by Yale sociologist Charles Perrow, which provides a detailed analysis of complex systems from a sociological perspective. It was the first to "propose a framework for charac ...
*
Megaprojects and Risk
''Megaprojects and Risk: An Anatomy of Ambition'' is a 2003 book by Bent Flyvbjerg, Nils Bruzelius, and Werner Rothengatter, published by Cambridge University Press. According to chief economist and director of transportation policy at Infrastruc ...
*
Northeast Blackout of 2003
The Northeast blackout of 2003 was a widespread power outage throughout parts of the Northeastern and Midwestern United States, and most parts of the Canadian province of Ontario on Thursday, August 14, 2003, beginning just after 4:10 p.m. ...
*
Brittle Power
''Brittle Power: Energy Strategy for National Security'' is a 1982 book by Amory B. Lovins and L. Hunter Lovins, prepared originally as a Pentagon study and re-released in 2001 following the September 11 attacks. The book argues that the U.S. dom ...
*
Fukushima nuclear disaster
The was a nuclear accident in 2011 at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in Ōkuma, Fukushima, Japan. The proximate cause of the disaster was the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, which occurred on the afternoon of 11 March 2011 and ...
References
External links
* https://openlibrary.org/books/OL1430475M/When_technology_fails
Accidents
Engineering failures
Books about nuclear issues
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