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Henry Petroski

Henry Petroski is the Aleksandar S. Vesic Professor of Civil Engineering and a professor of history at Duke University. His most recent book is The Essential Engineer: Why Science Alone Will Not Solve Our Global Problems.

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Henry’s Recent activity

Lessons From Paper Clips
Lessons From Paper Clips
Nov 07, 2012
In the patent literature, the term "prior art" is virtually synonymous with "state of the art," the standard against which any claimed improvement is necessarily judged. Normally, "state of the art" implies the latest...
Petroski on Engineering: Mobile & Stabile Art
Petroski on Engineering: Mobile & Stabile Art
Oct 01, 2012
The American artist Alexander "Sandy" Calder (1898-1976) is best known for his kinetic sculptures known as mobiles and for his monumental static pieces known as stabiles. Many a museum, including the East Wing of the...
Petroski on Engineering: Everyone Loves Good Design
Petroski on Engineering: Everyone Loves Good Design
Sep 10, 2012
I receive a lot of letters, via both snail mail and email, from readers of my books and articles, and much of the correspondence comes with enclosures or attachments containing images of artistic, beautiful, clever...
Petroski on Engineering: Checklists & Design
Petroski on Engineering: Checklists & Design
Jul 02, 2012
Dr. Atul Gawande is a surgeon at Boston's Brigham and Women's Hospital, where he specializes in the removal of cancerous endocrine glands. He is also a staff writer for The New Yorker, where he has published...
Petroski on Engineering: a Geography of Design
Petroski on Engineering: a Geography of Design
Jun 01, 2012
The typical nontechnical user of electronic gadgets and devices is more interested in how they look on the outside than how they are assembled on the inside. While function matters to these users, form can seem to be...
Petroski on Engineering: Engineering & Civilization
Petroski on Engineering: Engineering & Civilization
May 03, 2012
Engineering and civilization have always gone together, it is difficult to imagine one existing without the other. Indeed, we tend to associate ancient civilizations specifically with their technological achievements...
Petroski on Engineering: Envelopes of Experience
Petroski on Engineering: Envelopes of Experience
Mar 19, 2012
I can't remember exactly when my correspondence with Chuck Siple began, but I'm sure it had its origins in his writing to me about something in one of my books on design. And I expect that he was supplementing what I...
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