The Science of Failing Well
What's the name of the author of this book?
Amy Edmondson
What's the name of the author of this book?
Charles Perrow
What's the first accident in the first chapter of Perrow's book?
Accident at the Three Mile Island Unit 2 Nuclear Plant
What field of failure are we exploring this week?
Engineering!
What are the 3 types of failure?
Basic, Complex, Intelligent
What are 2 special characteristics mentioned in the introduction of Perrow's book?
interactive complexity and tightly coupling
What caused the cabin fire in the Israel Aircraft Industries Model 1124 flying over Iowa?
a wire to the coffee-maker shorted, introducing more current to other wires
What is Professor Macphail's exact email address?
tmacphai@stevens.edu
Fill in the blank: Framing --> Amplifying --> _______
Why are DNA discovery failures hard to account for?
It's new territory (there may be unexpected interactions we can't account for)
What year did the Texas City Incident occur?
1947
How many copies did Professor Macphail sell of her recent book?
11,000
What are the FOUR sources of error?
Inattention, assumptions, overconfidence, neglect
Fill in the blank: Minor failures can cascade into major accidents when combined with _______
other failures or operational conditions
What is the name of the plane McDonnell Douglas manufactured, which was questioned due to its asymmetrical slat and crashed in the late 1970s to early 1980s?
DC-10
What caused the door to fly off the Boeing plane?
A loose screw
What are the two models talked about in chapter 4 of this book?
Swiss Cheese and Perrow's Classic
How many people died during the Teton Dam Catastrophe?
11
What is the disaster of Flixborough attributed to? (List at least 3 things)
organizational ineptitude, hasty decision-making, inadequate safety measures, and production pressures
How many times did Edison fail before successfully making the light bulb?
1000 times