Published by Lindsay Publications in 2006, Heat reproduces educational material originally created by the International Correspondence Schools for its early-20th-century steam-engineering courses.

The International Correspondence Schools allowed working adults to learn skilled trades through lessons delivered by mail. Its technical courses helped train engineers, boiler operators, machinists, and other industrial workers who could not attend a traditional school.

This volume explains the scientific principles of heat that every steam engineer needed to understand. Topics include measuring heat and temperature, thermal expansion, heat transfer, specific and latent heat, vaporization, gas expansion and compression, and the relationship between heat and mechanical work. It also introduces important thermodynamic concepts used to understand how steam engines convert thermal energy into motion.

These principles are fundamental to every steam-powered system. Heat from burning fuel changes water into steam, and the expanding steam carries energy that can operate an engine or other equipment. Understanding this process allowed engineers to improve efficiency, calculate performance, and operate machinery more safely.

Displayed in the Power Mechanical Steam Museum, this volume represents both the science behind steam power and the educational systems that helped working engineers master their trade.