The ingenious pencils of henry david thoreau the new york. A history of design and circumstance, henry petroski. His 17 books on these subjects include to engineer is human, design paradigms, and engineers of dreams, which deal principally with large. Henry petroski has taken on the challenge to track down and retell the history of the pencil in all its wonderful minutia. The author of more than a dozen books, he lives in durham, north carolina, and arrowsic, maine. Now in paperback, the fascinating, quirky, highly acclaimed book about that indispensable object, the pencil. In this engaging, informative history, henry petroski s the pencil traces the origins of the pencil back to ancient greece and rome, sketches its development over the centuries and around the world, and shows what the pencil can teach us about engineering and technology today. Henry petroski february 6, 1942 is an american engineer specializing in failure analysis. Free shipping and pickup in store on eligible orders.
Publication date 1990 topics pencils history publisher knopf collection. A copy that has been read, but remains in clean condition. How everyday artifactsfrom forks and pins to paper clips and zipperscame to be as they are, and more on. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets.
Henry petroski, who combines a talent for fine writing with a deep knowledge of. His many books include the pencil, the essential engineer, invention by design, and to engineer is human, as well as writing and presenting the acclaimed bbc series of the same name. The pencil ebook by henry petroski 9780307772435 rakuten kobo. By the time i had turned the last page, i had self.
Petroski traces its origins back to ancient greece. See all books authored by henry petroski, including to engineer is human. Years ago, when the pencil first appeared, i wrote to hp and received a reply in, yes, pencil. A professor both of civil engineering and history at duke university, he is also a prolific author. A history of design and circumstance kindle edition by petroski, henry. A history of design and circumstance ebook written by henry petroski. New criterion books by henry petroski the book on the bookshelf the evolution of useful things the pencil beyond engineering to engineer is. The role of failure in successful design, and the evolution of useful things.
Henry petroski received his bachelors degree from manhattan college and his ph. Publication date 1990 topics pencils history publisher knopf. Flat signed by henry petroski and by catherine petroski on the title page. A history of design and circumstance, petroski, henry. The book on the bookshelf by henry petroski, paperback. Petroski has written over a dozen books beginning with to engineer is. Pages can include limited notes and highlighting, and the copy can include previous owner inscriptions. The ingenious pencils of henry david thoreau the new. Jan 01, 2002 henry petroski has taken on the challenge to track down and retell the history of the pencil in all its wonderful minutia. The pencil a history of design and circumstance by henry. Henry petroskis previous bestsellers have delighted readers with intriguing stories about the engineering marvels around us, from the lowly pencil to the soaring suspension bridge. A thoreau iconography, thomas blanding and walter harding.
Henry petroski traces the origins of the pencil back to ancient greece and rome, writes factually and charmingly about its development over the centuries and around the world, and shows what the pencil can teach us about engineering and technology today. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading the pencil. Henry thoreau as remembered by a young friend, edward emerson. The road taken, by henry petroski the new york times. In this book, petroski delves deeper into the mystery of invention, to explore what everyday artifacts and sophisticated networks can reveal about the way engineers. Henry petroskis witty and unexpected history of the pencil includes a wide range of characters. Like most other human artifacts, the common pencil, made and sold today by the millions, has a long and complex history. Henry petroski books list of books by author henry petroski. Most of us take for granted that our books are vertical on our shelves with the spines facing out, but henry petroski, inveterately curious engineer, didnt. Henry petroski before coming to duke in 1980, he had taught at the university of illinois and the university of texas at austin and was a group leader at argonne national laboratory, where he was responsible for research and development efforts in fracture mechanics. Henry petroski s previous bestsellers have delighted readers with intriguing stories about the engineering marvels around us, from the lowly pencil to the soaring suspension bridge. The evolution of useful things, on the design of common objects such as the paperclip.
Henry david thoreau in american visual culture, mark w. A history of design and circumstance by petroski, henry and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. The author of more than a dozen previous books, he lives in durham, north carolina, and arrowsic, maine. Petroski traces its origins back to ancient greece and rome, writes factually and charmingly about its development, and shows what the pencil can teach us about engineering and technology today. His other books would likely be of interest to pr readers too, esp.
Vesic professor of civil engineering and professor of history at duke university. Read the pencil a history of design and circumstance by henry petroski available from rakuten kobo. A history of design and circumstance by petroski, henry. Nov 10, 1992 henry petroski, that most excellent of engineering writers, uses the pencil as a metaphor for the study of the engineering process in his firstrate history the pencil. He has written broadly on the topics of design, success and failure, and the history of engineering and technology. From the author of the highly praised the pencil and the evolution of useful things comes another captivating history of the seemingly mundane.
Henry petroski seemed to be looking over my shoulder as i read his rich tale of the pencil. Henry petroski traces the origins of the pencil back to ancient greece and rome. One could scarcely ask a book to be more using the story of the pencil as a paradigm, petroski shows how the process of engineering unfolds and how the. Vesic professor of civil engineering and a professor of history at duke university, where he also serves as chairman of the department of civil and environmental engineering. A history of design and circumstance by henry petroski. Henry petroski johns hopkins university engineering for. Henry petroski duke civil and environmental engineering. Shop amongst our popular books, including 32, an uncommon history of common things, success through failure and more from henry petroski. Vesic professor of civil engineering and a professor of history at duke university. Henry petroski traces the origins of the pencil back to ancient greece and rome, writes factually and charmingly about its. Henry petroski traces the origins of the pencil back to ancient greece and rome, writes factually and charmingly about i. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read the pencil. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders.
It is, first, a history of infrastructure from the appian way to the present. How everyday artifactsfrom forks and pins to paper clips and zipperscame to be as they are petroski, henry on. In this book i have chosen to approach engineering through the history and. Henry petroski johns hopkins university engineering. Henry petroski, as in his other books, weaves a tale that entertains and amazes in this history of the pencil, looking at both its historical progress and technical progress. Before coming to duke in 1980, he had taught at the university of illinois and the university of texas at austin and was a group leader at argonne national laboratory, where he was responsible for research and. The evolution of useful things, on the design of common objects such as the paperclip years ago, when the pencil first appeared, i wrote to hp and received a reply in, yes, pencil.
Apr 07, 2003 henry petroski s witty and unexpected history of the pencil includes a wide range of characters. Petroski has written over a dozen books beginning with to engineer is human. Henry petroski looks at the pencil and cites it as a prime example of elegant design and engineering with much to say about the world of modern technology. The pencil represents innovation, ingenuity and inventiveness. The author of more than 15 books, more about henry petroski. Worth the read, no matter whether you are interested in engineering or not. The history and future of americas infrastructure is really two books in one. In this book, petroski delves deeper into the mystery of invention, to explore what everyday artifacts and sophisticated networks can reveal about the way engineers solve problems. Henry petroski, that most excellent of engineering writers, uses the pencil as a metaphor for the study of the engineering process in his firstrate history the pencil. He includes facts such as that a single pencil could draw a line 70 miles long, and that hemingway and steinbeck wrote novels in pencil.
A history of design and circumstance by henry petroski 1990 0114. This is a fine as new hardcover first edition, first printing copy in a fine as new, mylar protected dj, brown spine. His 17 books on these subjects include to engineer is human, design paradigms, and engineers of dreams, which deal principally with large structures like. This line gets overused, but this book really does have just about everything. Henry petroski traces the origins of the pencil back to ancient greece a. In this engaging, informative history, henry petroskis the pencil traces the origins of the pencil back to ancient greece and rome, sketches its development over the centuries and around the world, and shows what the pencil can teach us about engineering and technology today.
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