???How did the table fork acquire a fourth tine?? What advantage does the Phillips-head screw have over its single-grooved predecessor? Why does the paper clip look the way it does? What makes Scotch tape Scotch????In this delightful book Henry, Petroski takes a microscopic look at artifacts that most of us count on but rarely contemplate, including such icons of the everyday as pins, Post-its, and fast-food ?clamshell? containers.? At the same time, he offers a convincing new theory of technological innovation as a response to the perceived failures of existing products?suggesting that irritation, and not necessity, is the mother of invention.
The Evolution of Useful Things: How Everyday Artifacts-From Forks and Pins to Paper Clips and Zippers-Came to be as They are
Author:
Henry Petroski
By:
Vintage
ISBN10:
0679740392
ISBN13:
9780679740391
