The evolution of useful things (1992)

Petroski presents a captivating history of industrial ingenuity, demonstrating through everyday physical artefacts that form follows failure rather than function alone. By examining how continuous flaws and ergonomic shortcomings spur iterative mechanical improvements, he illuminates the perpetual refinement driving all tool design. His thesis provides hardware engineers and industrial designers with a foundational framework for understanding how manufactured objects evolve towards physical perfection.