Small things considered henry petroski biography
Small Things Considered : Why There Is No Perfect Design!
Anyone who's ever gotten an inexplicable kitchen utensil in a Christmas stocking–and gone through the embarrassment of asking the gift-giver what it's supposed to be–will appreciate the work of Duke University engineering and history professor Henry Petroski, who contends that a well-designed object should reveal its own purpose.
Small things considered henry petroski biography
For more than a decade, Petroski has converted his interests and pet peeves into a series of popular-science texts like The Evolution Of Useful Things and To Engineer Is Human: The Role Of Failure In Successful Design.
His formula is simple and entertaining: He juggles anecdotes and observations about commonplace inventions, and comes to thought-provoking conclusions about how daily life is influenced by prosaic gadgetry. Petroski's new book Small Things Considered recounts the creation and refinement of the likes of shopping bags and cup holders, considering how items that seem to be ideally functional are constantly being