The Evolution of Useful Things: How Everyday Artifacts-From Forks and Pins to Paper Clips and Zippers-Came to be as They are.

By: Henry Petroski

Published February 1st 1994 by Vintage

Category: Business

Pages: 288 pages

ISBN: 9780679740391

Description:
How did the table fork acquire a fourth tine?Ê 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?

ÊÊÊIn 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.Ê At the same time, he offers a convincing new theory of technological innovation as a response to the perceived failures of existing productsÑsuggesting that irritation, and not necessity, is the mother of invention.