The invisible method: how to build a cathedral without mathematics, science, or a yardstick -- Best: the Vitruvian man, kodachrome, and the constant search for better -- Uncertainty: the art of the unknown and how engineers use it to create solutions -- Resources: from Mesopotamia to the Islamic empire to space- how materials, energy, and knowledge shape everything -- Engineering mindset: the three key strategies that created a ceramic masterpiece (and every other innovation) -- Science: the gold standard for rules of thumb -- Mathematics: how engineers offend mathematicians to predict the future -- Invention: the myth of the lone inventor and the race to light the world -- Conclusion: what the microwave oven teaches us about innovation, technology, and how the engineering method can save the world.