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THE EVOLUTION OF USEFUL THINGS

THE EVOLUTION OF USEFUL THINGS Paperback - 1994

by Henry Petroski

  • Used
  • as new
  • Paperback

Petroski tells fascinating stories about the arduous processes that resulted in paper clips, Post-its, Phillips-head screwdrivers, Scotch tape, and fast-food "clamshell" containers. "Petroski . . . an examines the simplest . . . tools in our lives with an appraising eye".--Washington Post Book World. 45 illus.

Description

New York, New York, U.S.A.: Vintage Books. As New. 1994. Paperback. 0679740392 . 12mo 7" - 7½" tall; Pages are clean, unmarked, tight, bright. No ownership marks. Remains in plastic wraps. .
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Details

  • Title THE EVOLUTION OF USEFUL THINGS
  • Author Henry Petroski
  • Binding Paperback
  • Edition Reprint
  • Condition New
  • Pages 304
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher Vintage Books, New York, New York, U.S.A.
  • Date 1994
  • Illustrated Yes
  • Features Bibliography, Illustrated, Index
  • Bookseller's Inventory # 6173
  • ISBN 9780679740391 / 0679740392
  • Weight 0.48 lbs (0.22 kg)
  • Dimensions 7.96 x 5.24 x 0.65 in (20.22 x 13.31 x 1.65 cm)
  • Library of Congress subjects Inventions, Patents
  • Library of Congress Catalog Number 93006351
  • Dewey Decimal Code 609

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From the publisher

Henry Petroski is the Aleksander S. Vesic Professor of Civil Engineering and Professor of History at Duke University. He is the author of more than ten books.

From the jacket flap

Petroski tells fascinating stories about the arduous processes that resulted in paper clips, Post-its, Phillips-head screwdrivers, Scotch tape, and fast-food "clamshell" containers. "Petroski . . . an examines the simplest . . . tools in our lives with an appraising eye."--Washington Post Book World. 45 illus.

Categories

Media reviews

"A celebration of inventiveness...By cataloging the clutter of our desks, closets, and workbenches, and giving them a human history, Petroski makes us feel more at home in our homes."- Newsweek

"Petroski is a valuable resource—an engineer who examines the simplest, most ubiquitous tools in our live with an appraising eye."- Washington Post Book World

"Mr. Petroski's case histories delightfully illustrate his thesis... You never know when you will turn a page and find some tiny corner of your mind enlightened."- The New York Times

"Petroski has an eye for the mundane that distracts and delights... [His] wealth of literary and cultural references runs from Aristotle... to Russell Baker... The book has substance."- Newsday

Citations

  • Rec Ref Bks in Paperback, 01/01/2000, Page 93

About the author

Henry Petroski is the Aleksandar S. Vesic Professor of Civil Engineering and a professor of history at Duke University. The author of more than a dozen previous books, he lives in Durham, North Carolina, and Arrowsic, Maine.