Explore Further

February 2005

A bimonthly e-newsletter for students in the College’s degree programs; participants in enrichment programs such as Great Conversations, Compleat Scholar, Split Rock Arts Program, or Curiosity Camp; and curious community members

The father of invention

What is the purpose of the little triangular piece of plastic in a pizza box?

Are cars engineered with flaws that shorten their lifespan so consumers are forced to buy new cars more frequently?

What caused the eye-catching Tacoma Narrows Bridge to oscillate and collapse during light winds in 1940?

Welcome to the world of Henry Petroski, the man once called the poet laureate of technology. A civil engineer and historian, Petroski has written 11 books investigating the effects of design in our everyday lives. He often takes mundane objects such as the paper clip, the fork, the doorknob, and the pencil, and explores their creation and evolution in extraordinary detail - with a keen interest in every flaw.

Petroski provokes people into thinking about the competing objectives of form versus function, aesthetics versus practicality, as well as the overriding concern of cost.

You can hear Petroski discuss “Design of Everyday Life” on Wednesday, March 9. This is the next topic in the College of Continuing Education’s ongoing Great Conversations series - public discussions between U of M faculty with experts from around the world. Petroski will share the stage with University Librarian Wendy Pradt Lougee, who until now has admired his writing from afar.

Lougee recalled, “His work got me to thinking about the design of libraries and the design of things they contain. There truly is this kind of engineering versus design aspect of almost everything we do. We want things to be aesthetically pleasing and cost-effective, but they also have to function. Some things accomplish one of these aspects very well, but not all of them at the same time.”

Lougee has read a number of Petroski’s books but the one that piqued the most interest was The Book on the Bookshelf, literally a history of bookcases. It explores the engineering design of bookshelves and how it has changed over time as the value we place on books has changed. In an era when books were extremely rare, for example, bookshelves often had chains to secure the books. When books became more commonly available, simpler, more accessible designs evolved.

“I think the whole notion of libraries has changed from focusing on the books themselves to how people and information interact,” said Lougee. “Sometimes that’s with a book, sometimes that’s with a computer, and sometimes it’s with your colleague.”

For instance, you walk into the U’s Wilson Library and you see an Information Commons that allows for collaboration centered around computers.

Lougee added, “How do we create online environments that are functional, aesthetically pleasing, and sustainable? I think there’s actually a fair amount of what Petroski says that should be a part of our thinking as we shape our physical and virtual libraries.”

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