First-time author Weber (Psychology/Oklahoma State) on how
inventions - from doorknobs to Velcro - come to be. Weber sees
invention as "the connection between technology and the creative
spark or crawl of the mind." Often, this connection is made by
"parsing" - dividing an invention into its parts or procedures.
Thus, the Wright Brothers achieved motorized flight by parsing
their goal into problems of lift, power, and control, and
addressing each in turn, while rival aeronauts with greater
financial resources failed through inadequate analysis. Weber gives
lessons on how to describe, compare, and evaluate inventions: An
elaborate chart detailing differences between nail and screws is
typical and may lead some to wonder whether the writer is
belaboring the obvious. Fledgling inventors may be more
enthusiastic over Webers discussion of "heuristics," a "rule of
thumb for generating ideas or for solving problems." Heuristics
range from repetition ("once an interesting component is
discovered...try copying or repeating it as often as necessary") to
linkage ("try joining those tools or devices that undo the actions
of one another. These are often useful combinations") or
transformation (how did the tooth evolve into the saw?). Upon this
rather abstract loom, Weber weaves the story of dozens of devices,
from forks to coffeepots to screws. He dotes on handles and
containers (the latter involved in everything from tea bags to
cooking pots). Invention is more than objects, as he shows by
parsing a supermarket into the various shopping "procedures" that
make it tick. A final chapter, on gene splicing between different
species, draws some doubtful parallels between ancient mythology
and modern gene splicing, and is notable for failing to address the
moral issues involved. Covers some of the same ground as Henry
Petroski's The Evolution of Useful Things (p. 1297), with less
flair but more hands-on advice. (Kirkus Reviews)
How do inventions take shape? How did the inventors of the sewing
needle, the hammer, or the wheel find their ideas? Are these
creations the result of random events, or are hidden principles at
work? Using everyday objects most of us take for granted--from
forks and Velcro to safety pins and doorknobs--noted cognitive
psychologist Robert Weber takes a fascinating look at how our world
of inventions came into being, and how the mind's problem-solving
abilities gave them the forms they have.
As an archaeologist studies shards of pottery for clues about an
ancient culture, Weber examines the many forms of inventions, from
stone knives to genetically engineered mice, and finds a rich
record of the work of many minds over time--a record of human
creativity and problem-solving handed down through the centuries.
He offers various methods for analyzing what mental paths might
have been taken by these inventive minds. In the test for design,
for example, he ponders how an item would work if various
components were shuffled or constructed differently, revealing how
the optimal shape of the invention was discovered. He challenges
the reader to engage in thought experiments to explore how the
horse-drawn cart, the waterscrew, or the fork might have taken
shape over many years, through the efforts of successive inventors
and adapters. In stripping these simple artifacts to the bone,
Weber finds a hidden intelligence at work in everyday objects as
well as recurrent heuristics (basic principles or rules of thumb)
that are common among many of our most successful
inventions--heuristics powerful enough to generate endless new
ideas. Weber ranges across the work of Archimedes, Leonardo da
Vinci, the Wright brothers, as well as grade-school children who
have won national awards for their inventions, revealing that the
same principles are at work in the discoveries of all of them.
Basic principles of invention, he writes, govern how we think,
solve, and manipulate ideas, whether mechanical or mental, real or
mythological.
Weber's playful, original, and insightful look at the inventions
around us reveals a hidden intelligence in everything from screws
to tea bags to synthesizers--an intelligence based on principles of
creativity and problem-solving. His fascinating account sheds light
on how the mind hones its most original thoughts and products, and
provides a field guide for how we can tap into our own creativity.
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