Henry petroski the book on the bookshelf with documentary

Packed with interesting facts, written in an incredibly accessible style this book is simply amazing. The book on the bookshelf henry petroski, author alfred a. Read science, entertainment and television documentary by vincent campbell available from rakuten kobo. Noted engineer and writer petroski civil engineeringduke univ to forgive design. Beans and bookcases an interview with henry petroski. Henry petroski to discuss the book on the bookshelf on. Henry petroski received his bachelors degree from manhattan college and his ph. His first book was made into the film when engineering fails. Shipping cost may be slightly higher depending on weight of book and shipping destination. From early attempts to map the world, where strangely east was at the top of some maps hence the term orient yourself, to a map of the world created by facebook connections simon garfield shows how maps and map making have been central to human knowledge and development. The role of failure in successful design by henry petroski online at alibris.

Vesic professor of civil engineering and professor of history at duke university, as well as a wellknown author of influential books on the nature of engineering, and in particular on why some engineering designs fail, received the 2014 john p. His books have been translated into more than a dozen languages, and he lectures nationally and internationally. Review by neville thompson the book on the bookshelf. The book on the bookshelf, published in 1999, tracks the history of book storage and display throughout the centuries. Vesic professor of civil engineering and a professor of. Petroski is an engineer, and brings a very practical eye to the development of the book as a physical object, and the influence it has cast on the development of the. Petroski begins by describing the ways in which scholars in ancient greece and rome stored precious scrolls and then moves on to explain the systems developed to house bound manuscripts during the early medieval era. Top reader compiled by two leaders in the field of composition features works by distinguished.

The bard of the overlooked, the ordinary, and the takenforgranted objects in our daily lives, petroski has. Abaa book on the bookshelf by petroski, henry search. Content from detective fiction bookshelf and others to follow soon. 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. Petroski has written over a dozen books beginning with to engineer is human. Henry petroski, who has been called the poet laureate of technology, will discuss his latest book, the book on the bookshelf knopf, 1999 at the library of congress at noon, wednesday, september 26, in the west dining room, sixth floor, james madison memorial building, 101 independence ave. Author, project participant, person, award winner, person or entity appearing in film, topic. For book lovers who havent met petroski in print, bookthink highly recommends the book on the bookshelf as a starting point. 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. Conversely, when the rockets failed, they blamed the engineers said prof. He has written a number of books on the history of everyday objects, among them the pencil, the evolution of useful things, and the book on the bookshelf. The book on the bookshelf by henry petroski goodreads.

Henry petroski in book and the bookshelf, a superb account of the history of books and bookshelves, states that its a natural law that books soon outgrow the shelves originally meant to house them. This book is written by seth godin and name of this book is purple cow pdf. Mcgovern award for science from the cosmos club foundation in washington, d. Tuesday feburary 5 quay brothers anamorphosis documentary and their the cabinet of jan svankmaje r 1984. Obviously, bookshelves adapted to physical changes in books themselves. Henry petroski duke civil and environmental engineering. The role of failure in successful design 1985, and is the writer and presenter of the 1987 bbctelevision documentary, to engineer is human, which has been broadcast on pbs. Henry petroskis profile, publications, research topics, and coauthors. A professor both of civil engineering and history at duke university, he is also a prolific author. Starting out with calculated, movieready anecdotes about his boyhood gang, carcaterras memoir takes a. Maybe reorganize by movie release date or movie title later. Henry petroski is a professor of engineering and of history at duke university. Other interesting reading on this general topic is henry petroskis to engineer is human. Science, entertainment and television documentary ebook by.

Petroski does for the bookcase what he did for the pencil 1990 and for bridges in engineer of dreams. If being a purple cow is such an easy, effective way to break through the clutter. Buy a cheap copy of the book on the bookshelf by henry petroski. A fascinating history of two related common objects, im. Henry petroski, the poet laureate of technology and author of the highly acclaimed the pencil and the evolution of useful things now sets his sights on perhaps the greatest technological advances of the last two thousand years.

If theres one thing im taking away from henry petroskis the book on the bookshelf, its the fact that no technology is so basic as to be selfevident. I always thought of the humble bookshelf as a foregone conclusion. An uncommon history of common things, volume 2 by national. Professor petroski is the author seventeen popular books on engineering and design, including the classics to engineer is human. Many a family subscribed to this book club in order to provide their children with the classics. The book was developed into a bbc television documentary, which dr.

An essential and enthralling book about the development of the book as a physical object from scriptoriums to the computer age. This documentary examines engineering and explains how failures of imagination rather than miscalculations can often lead to disaster and how engineers can often learn more from a single failure than from a thousand successes. The shift from traditional documentary to factual entertainment television has been the subject of much debate and cri. 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. Though goodnight moon and finnegans wake differ considerably in content and intended audience, they do share some basic characteristics. Henry petroski february 6, 1942 is an american engineer specializing in failure analysis. Most of us take for granted that our books are vertical on our shelves with the spines facing. The book on the bookshelf sep 12, 2000 by henry petroski. The interior walls of many european libraries of the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries were lined with wooden bookshelves, some heavily ornamented, some offering attached desks or lecterns. The role of failure in successful design 1985 and including a number of titles detailing the industrial design history of. On a dusty bookshelf at home, i have the book, to engineer is human the role of failure in successful design by henry petroski. The role of failure in successful design 1994 by henry petroski. 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 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. A history of design and circumstance 1990, the book on the bookshelf 1999, and to forgive design. Book storage might not seem like the sort of topic to get our hearts thumping, but if you had never read walden because you thought it was about beans, where would you be today. The role of failure in successful design 1985, the pencil. Librarything is a cataloging and social networking site for booklovers. Petroski has written over a dozen books beginning with to engineer is. 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.