Most of us take precision for granted. A replacement battery you bought online fits in place perfectly with a click, bringing your laptop back to life… An inexpensive calculator gives results in 10 digits… A smartphone displays the exact time anywhere in the world at the touch of a button… What is precision anyway? Why is it needed? How did it evolve over centuries? How did it affect technologies, economies, societies? We will explore all these questions collaboratively during the course of the semester. We will use a recent book by Simon Winchester[1], which presents a unique historical perspective on the evolution of precision, as the framework for the syllabus. You will do research on the underlying technology, science, statistics and societal impact of each week’s material. In groups, you will present and lead discussions on weekly assigned topics. View details for this listing on our courses website.

You can read more about Professor Isik on the Engineering & Computer Science web site. 

[1] Winchester, Simon. The Perfectionists – How Precision Engineers Created the Modern World. Harper, 2018.