Engineering Computing for Design [Incomplete]

Now that we have a solid foundation in programming and the manipulation of data, we can appreciate how computing can serve as an essential engineering tool. The primary engineering use of computing is to assist in the design of products. Design is a different paradigm than analysis. Analysis breaks a complex problem into manageable parts. Design, also called synthesis, constructs something new from several elements. However, the engineering design process includes analysis as a guide to optimizing its products.

How can we represent and solve design problems computationally? This chapter presents an engineering computing paradigm that answers this question. This will guide the design of our programs in the following chapters.