---
title: "The four curses of hard engineering"
description: "A checklist drawn from Chernobyl for judging how dangerous a device is to build without full understanding."
canonical: https://tomsharman.com/bookshelf/if-anyone-builds-it-everyone-dies/the-four-curses-of-hard-engineering/
updated: 2026-11-03
---

# The four curses of hard engineering

> A checklist drawn from Chernobyl for judging how dangerous a device is to build without full understanding.

Eliezer Yudkowsky and Nate Soares's framework, from If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies, pp. 139 to 195.

Framework 3 of 5 from [If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies](https://tomsharman.com/bookshelf/if-anyone-builds-it-everyone-dies/index.md) by Eliezer Yudkowsky and Nate Soares. Category: Leadership.

## The steps

1. **Speed.** Processes that run faster than humans can react leave operators frozen if the slowing contrivance fails.
2. **Narrow margins.** A thin gap between unimpressive and explosive means small errors are fatal.
3. **Self-amplification.** Feedback loops, such as boiling coolant raising reactivity, leave little room for error.
4. **Complications.** Unknown interactions, such as graphite-tipped control rods, create states no engineer designed for.

## Where it comes from

From chapter: PART III: FACING THE CHALLENGE, pp. 139–195

## The animation

24 seconds, 4:5, no sound.

- MP4: https://tomsharman-downloads-006143767029.s3.eu-north-1.amazonaws.com/downloads/bookshelf/if-anyone-builds-it-everyone-dies/the-four-curses-of-hard-engineering.mp4
- MP4, dark: https://tomsharman-downloads-006143767029.s3.eu-north-1.amazonaws.com/downloads/bookshelf/if-anyone-builds-it-everyone-dies/the-four-curses-of-hard-engineering-dark.mp4
- Still: https://tomsharman-downloads-006143767029.s3.eu-north-1.amazonaws.com/downloads/bookshelf/if-anyone-builds-it-everyone-dies/the-four-curses-of-hard-engineering.png
- Still, dark: https://tomsharman-downloads-006143767029.s3.eu-north-1.amazonaws.com/downloads/bookshelf/if-anyone-builds-it-everyone-dies/the-four-curses-of-hard-engineering-dark.png