What does the collapse of sub-prime lending have in common with a broken jackscrew in an airliners tailplane? Or the oil spill disaster in the Gulf of Mexico with the burn-up of Space Shuttle Columbia? These were systems that drifted into failure. While pursuing success in a dynamic, complex environment with limited resources and multiple goal conflicts, a succession of small, everyday decisions eventually produced breakdowns on a massive scale. We have trouble grasping the complexity and nor...

Acoustics and Noise Control provides a detailed and comprehensive introduction to the principles and practice of acoustics and noise control. Since the last edition was published in 1996 there have been many changes and additions to standards, laws and regulations, codes of practice relating to noise, and in noise measurement techniques and noise control technology so this new edition has been fully revised and updated throughout. The book assumes no previous knowledge of the subject and requ...