Change Management: Concepts and Practice
Marcus Goncalves. ASME Press, Three Park Ave., New York, NY 10016-5990. 2007. Softcover. 136 pages. ASME members, $40; retail, $50. ISBN 0-7918-0264-7. 

In this book, aimed predominantly at team and project managers and leaders, author Marcus Goncalves says that once business and market strategies are in place, and goals are met, trying to keep up with the constant pace of change becomes the main challenge. He acknowledges that implementing change in organizations is easier said than done, and the process requires not only a transfer of knowledge, but the establishment of a different behavior. This includes consideration of whether people are well placed in the organization and whether they are sufficiently trained to handle the change. Goncalves seeks to provide a good overview on the topic of managing change. The book should also serve as a resource companion for those professionals attempting the Engineering Management Certificate International offered by ASME, for which this book was tailored. Among its 10 chapters, two of the more compelling are "Overcoming Emotional Obstacles" and "Dealing With Resistance to Change."

Patent Savvy for Managers: Spot and Protect Valuable Innovations in Your Company
Kirk Teska. Nolo, 950 Parker St., Berkeley, CA 94710. 2007. Softcover. 296 pages. $29.99. ISBN 978-1-4133-0694-1.

The author, Kirk Teska, is a partner in Iandiorio & Teska, an intellectual-property law firm in Waltham, Mass. He has written for the non-law-degreed public before with articles in several magazines, including this one. In Patent Savvy for Managers, he presents a book-length discussion in plain English of issues relating to patents, primarily utility patents. Teska offers lists of estimated costs and warns of pitfalls along the way that can invalidate or at least severely limit the value of a patent. He talks about the kind of scrutiny the Patent Office will give to claims, and the far more rigorous parsing they may undergo in litigation. The author suggests methods that businesses can use to determine if the estimated cost of applying for and following through with the patent process is worthwhile. Sometimes, he says, an objective estimate of an invention's sales potential makes it hard to justify the time and money spent to pursue a patent. The book includes a formula for working out the patent-or-not decision. Teska also discusses the complexities and costs of foreign patents, and some of the things American companies can do that will lose them their chances to patent a product outside the United States. He warns, too, that nothing is guaranteed in the patent game, and illustrates by recounting wins and losses in court. Some of the cases that he uses as examples in this book, including a suit between Gillette and Schick over multiblade razors, have been subjects of Teska's articles in Mechanical Engineering.

The Rise of the Project Workforce: Managing People and Projects in a Flat World
Rudolf Melik. John Wiley & Sons Inc., 111 River St., Hoboken, NJ 07030. 2007. 352 pages.$34.95. ISBN 978-0-470-12430-7.

Economically speaking, the world is flat again. Globalization, fragmentation of the enterprise-including outsourcing-and real-time collaboration across the world have enabled companies to reduce costs, use a global talent pool, and achieve desired results with a connected project workforce. Author Rudolf Melik shows how the flattening of the world has basically transformed the structure of modern organization and the nature of the work we do. He explores the disciplines, technology, and tools required in today's business climate and offers guidelines to managers, directors, and executives for better collaboration across the workforce. There are three parts to the book: working in a flat world, project workforce management, and implementation.

Statistical Thermodynamics: Fundamentals and Applications
Normand M. Laurendeau. Cambridge University Press, 32 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10013-2473. 2005. 448 pages. $90. ISBN 0-521-84635-8.

Written by an ASME Fellow who is a professor of combustion at Purdue University, this book discusses the fundamentals and applications of statistical thermodynamics for beginning graduate students in the engineering sciences. It makes few presumptions concerning students' previous exposure to statistics, quantum mechanics, or spectroscopy. A highlight of the book is its discussion of modern applications, such as laser-based diagnostics. Statistical thermodynamics is fundamental to combustion, propulsion, transport phenomena, spectroscopic measurements, and nanotechnology.

Integral Mechanical Attachment: A Resurgence of the Oldest Method of Joining
Robert W. Messler Jr. Butterworth-Heinemann, an Elsevier imprint, 30 Corporate Dr., Suite 400, Burlington, MA 01803. 2006. 856 pages. $125. ISBN 978-0-7506-7965-7.

This book highlights one of the world's oldest technologies and looks at it in a new light. Mechanical attachment systems have continued to play an important role in manufacturing and assembly of products and various engineered systems. For many years, according to the publisher, it has been difficult to find a single-source reference that provides an overview of the various categories of attachment systems and their applications. This is said to be the first reference to address that issue. Design engineers should find this book useful as a source of detailed, illustrated information on how such attachments work, and how they can be put to use to save time and money when thinking through the best means for joining one part to another. The attachments discussed include wood, plastic, metal, and polymer, to name a few.

Nuclear Power in Canada and Beyond
Roger G. Steed. General Store Publishing House, 499 O'Brien Rd., Box 415, Renfrew, Ontario, Canada K7V4A6. 2007. Softcover. 409 pages. $40. ISBN 978-1-897113-51-6.

This book, measuring 8.5 x 11 inches, is an illustrated guide to nuclear power, explaining how it works in Canada's nuclear power stations and those elsewhere. According to author Roger G. Steed, it is time for the general public to become better informed on the subject of nuclear power. He provides ample detail with that end in mind, describing the workings of some of the larger Canadian power stations, such as the one at Pickering, some 20 miles east of Toronto. Steed tells how nuclear power works, what it looks like, and why it is safe. He explains how nuclear fission works, how nuclear reactors are controlled, and how their safety systems protect the public. He also addresses concerns about radiation protection, the lifespan of nuclear plants, and plant decommissioning. Numerous drawings and photographs supplement the text.

Better Be Running! Tools to Drive Design Success
Ronald L. Hollis. CLSI,301 Perimeter Center North, Suite 500, Atlanta, GA 30346. 2007. Softcover. 218 pages. $29.95. ISBN 978-0-9795760-2-7.

According to author Ronald L. Hollis, P.E., "There is a void in the product development marketplace for a book that educates business leaders about critical information on currently available technologies. With knowledge, these technologies can be implemented into the product development process to get products to market faster as well as reduce development budgets. The purpose of this book is to fill that void." In his role as president, CEO, and co-founder of Quickparts.com Inc., Hollis has built his company through innovation and accepting the risks to change the way one buys custom parts with instant online quoting. Presenting technical information in a humorous, conversational style, Hollis addresses designers, engineers, business leaders and executives, procurement professionals, and teachers. He also emphasizes understanding China and how it fits into manufacturing strategy.

Machine Elements: Life and Design
Boris M. Klebanov, David M. Barlam, and Frederic E. Nystrom. CRC Press, Taylor & Francis Group, 6000 Broken Sound Pkwy. NW, Suite 300, Boca Raton, FL 33487-2742. 2008. 442 pages. $129.95. ISBN 978-0-8493-9563-5.

Focusing on how a machine "feels" and behaves while operating, Machine Elements: Life and Design seeks to impart both intellectual and emotional comprehension regarding the "life" of a machine. It presents a detailed description of how machine elements function, seeking to form a sympathetic attitude toward the machine and to ensure its well-being through more careful and proper design. The book is divided into three sections. The first covers microscopic deformations and displacements in permanent connections and within the bodies of stressed parts. The second section examines machine elements and units. The third addresses strength calculations and life prediction of machine parts. The authors address parts and units common to all machines, and they present real-world calculations and examples.

Fluid Structure Interaction and Moving Boundary Problems IV
S.K. Chakrabarti, C.A. Brebbia, J.D. Baum, and M. Giltrud, Editors. WIT Press, c/o Computational Mechanics, 25 Bridge St., Billerica, MA 01821. 368 pages. 2007. $245. ISBN 978-1-84564-072-9.

Encompassing a range of topics within fluid structure interaction, this volume features papers presented at the Fourth International Conference on Fluid Structure Interaction held in the U.K. in 2007. The book contains contributions from specialists in the field, presenting new ideas and the latest techniques, and should be of great interest to mechanical and structural engineers, among others, according to the publisher. Among the subjects covered are hydrodynamic forces, offshore structure and ship dynamics, flow induced vibrations, moving boundary problems, and acoustics and noise.