Communication Toolbox
“Think of the tools in a tool-box: there is a hammer, pliers, a saw, a screw-driver, a ruler, a glue-pot, glue, nails and screw. The functions of words are as diverse as the functions of these objects. (And in both cases there are similarities.)”
— Ludwig Wittgenstein, an engineer-turned-philosopher of language
Writing Guides
MU CE Communication Portfolio
ABET and BOK Standards
Additional References
- William Likos’s “Universal Recipe”
This short Powerpoint attachment provides an excellent generic overview of report writing. - Cynthia Finley’s “Oral Presentations”
This short Powerpoint attachment provides an excellent overview of principles of graphic design and oral delivery. - George Gopen and Judith Swan’s “Science of Scientific Writing”
This article provides an excellent overview of reader-based principles of style. It complements principles spelled out in more depth in Joseph Williams’ book Style: Ten Lessons in Clarity and Grace. http://www.amstat.org/publications/jcgs/sci.pdf. - Mike Ashby’s “How to Write a Paper”
This long article by a Cambridge engineer compares writing to the engineering design process and stresses “knowing your market” or readers. It includes a section on style and editing. - Other Engineering Communication Resources
This links you to additional websites addressing documentation, figures and tables, grammar, history of science writing, posters, presentation design, and many other areas of technical writing.
