Given the improved analytical capabilities of Excel, scientists and engineers everywhere are using it--instead of FORTRAN--to solve problems. And why not? Excel is installed on millions of computers, features a rich set of built-in analyses tools, and includes an integrated Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) programming language. No wonder it's today's computing tool of choice.

Chances are you already use Excel to perform some fairly routine calculations. Now the Excel Scientific and Engineering Cookbook shows you how to leverage Excel to perform more complex calculations, too, calculations that once fell in the domain of specialized tools. It does so by putting a smorgasbord of data analysis techniques right at your fingertips. The book shows how to perform these useful tasks and others:

• Use Excel and VBA in general

• Import data from a variety of sources

• Analyze data

• Perform calculations

• Visualize the results for interpretation and presentation

• Use Excel to solve specific science and engineering problems

Wherever possible, the Excel Scientific and Engineering Cookbook draws on real-world examples from a range of scientific disciplines such as biology, chemistry, and physics. This way, you'll be better prepared to solve the problems you face in your everyday scientific or engineering tasks.

High on practicality and low on theory, this quick, look-up reference provides instant solutions, or "recipes," to problems both basic and advanced. And like other books in O'Reilly's popular Cookbook format, each recipe also includes a discussion on how and why it works. As a result, you can take comfort in knowing that complete, practical answers are a mere page-flip away.

Amazon.com® Reader Reviews (Ranked by Helpfulness)

Average Amazon.com® Rating:  Based on 10 Ratings

COOKING WITH SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING!! - 2006-08-19
Reviewer Rating:
Do you have scientific or engineering calculations to perform? If you do, then this book is for you! Author David M Bourg, has done an outstanding job of writing a book that shows you how to leverage Excel as a capable computing tool to solve a variety of both routine and complex problems.

Bourg, begins by covering a variety of fundamental topics, including navigating Excel's interface, entering data and formulas, and formatting cells. Then, the author covers a variety of fundamental VBA programming topics, including VBA syntax, using the VBA editor, and integrating VBA code with Excel spreadsheets. Next, he shows you how to import data into Excel from a variety of sources, including text files, databases, and the Web. The author then shows you how to visualize data in Excel. He continues by showing you how to perform standard statistical calculations in Excel, such as computing summary statistics, calculating confidence intervals, and performing analysis of variance, among other calculations. Then, the author shows you how to conduct various time series analysis tasks, including forecasting and Fourier transforms in Excel. Next, he introduces you to many of Excel's useful math functions. The author continues the discussion of data analysis, specifically focusing on curve fitting and regression analysis. Then, the author shows you how to leverage Excel to solve linear and nonlinear equations, as well as linear and nonlinear systems. Next, he shows you how to perform various numerical integration calculations, such as computing areas and moments of areas, among others. The author then shows you how to solve initial value and boundary value problems using standard numerical techniques such as the Runge-Kutta and shooting methods. He continues by showing you how to leverage Excel to help solve problems involving partial differential equations. Then, the author shows you how to perform optimization analysis using Excel's built-in optimization tools. Finally, he introduces you to some of Excel's extensive financial analysis capabilities.

This most excellent book aims to present Excel as a cradle to the grave computing environment for scientific and engineering computations. More importantly, this book shows you how to use Excel and VBA in general, how to import data from a variety of sources, analyze data, perform calculations, and finally visualize the results for interpretation and presentation.

an alternative point of view - 2007-01-02
Reviewer Rating:
Be wary of using other programmer's work unless it has passed the
sort of critical tests as available on the NIST site.
A number of techniques in EXCEL are not useful for various
problems in the sciences. There are also problems inherent
in digital computation, regardless of language or platform,
which can result in serious errors. If you are doing serious
work, you should make the investment in the hardware and
software which can pass rigorous examination.

PROBLEM SOLUTION DISCUSSION - 2007-05-09
Reviewer Rating:
1.1 This Book

Problem
The entire book is written in this silly format.

Solution
If this sort of thing bothers you, buy something else

Discussion
This cloying and tiresome gimmick gets repeated throughout the entire book. Every time I pick it up, I feel like I'm listening to Donald Rumsfeld. There seems to be lots of good information about using Excel in scientific and engineering contexts, but the writing style is just too much for some of us. Whatever happened to straightforward narrative?

Excel Cookbook Half Baked - 2007-05-09
Reviewer Rating:
It appears to be a good book but the writers style lacks substance. I could have written this book! I am not an expert on Excel but I have used it since the mid to late 1980's so I know a few things. The section on VBA was weak. I expected more but got less. Most Excel books are concentrated on Business Applications and I was hopeful to find one that actually had something to do with Engineering but it was too weak. No good examples, just pictures of spreadsheets and no formulas. Cut and pasting function names is lame!

quick and easy tool : Excel - Take every usefulness from it. - 2009-03-18
Reviewer Rating:
Regarding everyday simple math tools I was considered two things.

1. Sharable and somewhat powerful tool for numerical calculation.
2. Quick and easy way to compare and prove the results of expensive math tools.

I have thought EXCEL might be the best one. That's why I have bought and read this book.

I was delighted that I was right and this book was fun also. I'll point out just one thing how good it is for a mechanical engineer like me: "solver": the optimization tool and more. I have been looking for something like that tool since I started the graduate school.

Well, here maybe I am just telling I am so ignorant about the excel, but anyway I really enjoyed this book and I strongly recommend it.

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