Amazon.com
With the many recent advances in technology, it seems, there has followed a diminution of quality. Electronic books have several advantages over their print counterparts, for instance. But for the time being, they're hard to use and unattractive to boot. Computers, which are supposed to make our lives easier, are commonly sources of frustration and wasted time. Movies are wondrously chock-a-block with special effects--but someone forgot the story. And so on.
Donald Norman, a retired professor of cognitive science, is bothered to no end by the fact that grappling with unfriendly objects now takes up so many of our hours. Over the course of several books, of which The Psychology of Everyday Things was the first, he has railed against bad design. He scrutinizes a range of artifacts that are supposed to make our daily living a little easier, and he finds most of them wanting. Why, he asks, does a door need instructions that say "push" or "pull"? A well-designed object, he argues, is self-explanatory. But well-designed objects are increasingly rare, for the present culture places a higher value on aesthetics than utility, even with such items as cordless screwdrivers, dresser drawers, and kitchen cabinets. In their concern for creating "art," many designers don't seem to consider what people actually do with things. Such disregard, Norman suggests, leads to few objects being standardized: think of all the different kinds of unsynchronized clocks that lurk in microwave ovens, VCRs, coffee makers, and the like--and of all the different kinds of batteries needed to drive them. Why, he wonders, must we reset all those clocks whenever the power goes off? Some designer somewhere, he ventures, ought to develop a master clock that communicates with all other electric clocks in a home--one that, when reset, synchronizes its slave units.
You don't need to be especially interested in technological matters to enjoy Norman's arguments. The book's underlying question is aimed at a global audience: will the design of everyday things improve? If this entertaining and, yes, well-designed book changes even a few minds, perhaps it will. --Gregory McNamee
Book Description
Donald Norman's best-selling plea for user-friendly design, with more than 175,000 copies sold to date, is now a Basic paperback.
First, businesses discovered quality as a key competitive edge; next came service. Now, Donald A. Norman, former Director of the Institute for Cognitive Science at the University of California, reveals how smart design is the new competitive frontier. The Design of Everyday Things is a powerful primer on how--and why--some products satisfy customers while others only frustrate them.
Customer Reviews:
Ever wondered why a tea pot looks the way it does?.......2007-09-23
Donald Norman, a very established expert on usability, interaction design and cognitive psychology, wrote this book back in the 80s. Although this is quite some time ago (for a book on design, at least), it still contains a lot of true things. The authors tackles a large amount of absurd mistakes in the design of every day items and explains where, why and how the design has failed. The book is written in an almost informal, novel-like way and therefore is an easy read. The author put a high information density into his text, which allows the reader to quickly advance from one idea to the next, without having the impression that the material repeats itself. A large amount of examples and stories help to convey the relatively abstract material in a way that it is fun to read. The mostly funny aspects of the examples help to connect the abstract information with real incidents. Although the author points out many design flaws, he never speaks negatively and always explains why design mistakes (or even user errors) occur and how they can be avoided.
If you like a book that explains common design errors and how to avoid them, this book is for you. If you want a tutorial in how to design an interaction, I would like to suggest Sharp, Rogers, Preece, 2007, instead.
Open your mind to usability.......2007-09-23
The Design of Everyday Things is not a common book. It is a book about thinking how things are made, and more important, why they are made that way. It's a fantastic way of speaking about usability, about utility, and about design.
After you read it, you'll start to look all around you. You can apply it to software design: Remember those hellish tools nobody could master even reading once and again the help? Or remember that tool that was so easy to use you didn't even opened the help... And analyse them, extract that factors make it good (or bad).
But you can apply it to your life. Are you dumb because you can't program your dishwasher, or maybe is that having 10 buttons is a mess?
I am left-handed and a lot of times I've thought "I can't do this well because it's designed for right handed". Now, sometimes I look more closely and see that even for them it's hard to use.
Something not common to read to learn something about usability and design, but a good source to learn them.
Learn to Apply Critical Aspects of Cognitive Engineering.......2007-09-13
Dr. Norman discusses many important aspects of cognitive engineering in this classic title, including human memory, errors, stages of action, constraints, knowledge in our heads vs. knowledge in the environment, feedback, mappings, to name just a few. He covers these topics fairly deeply, yet keeps them all quite interesting with his clear writing & excellent illustrations. A must read for industrial designers & usability engineers.
Past its 'sell-by' date.......2007-09-12
Originally published as "The Psychology of Everyday Things' in 1988, this book looks at the nexus of function and form from theoretical and practical points of view. While there is much to recommended it, and the principle are solid,the book is hopelessly out-of-date in its examples of everyday design, particularly computers and telephones. While Norman writes in a folksy, sometimes humorous style, DOET still reads like an undergraduate text book, and is highly repetitive. I'd look for something more contemporary.
Excellent reference.......2007-08-28
Its hard for me to imagine someone who _would not_ benefit from this book. This book is definitely meant to be studied, not simply read, although if you are just looking for some light reading, its nicely written for that too.
I am going to recommend this book to everyone I know.
Average customer rating:
- must like stores like radio shack
- Useless - not worth the money
- Greasy Kids' Stuff
- More for kids
- A little silly, but fun
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Sneaky Uses for Everyday Things: How to Turn a Penny into a Radio, Make a Flood Alarm with an Aspirin, Change
Cy Tymony
Manufacturer: Andrews McMeel Publishing
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Electronic Gadgets for the Evil Genius : 28 Build-It-Yourself
ASIN: 0740738593 |
Book Description
Do you know how to make something that can tell whether the $20 bill in your wallet is a fake? Or how to generate battery power with simple household items? Or how to create your own home security system?Science-savvy author Cy Tymony does. And now you can learn how to create these things¿and more than 40 other handy gadgets and gizmos¿in Sneaky Uses for Everyday Things. More than a simple do-it-yourself guide, this quirky collection is a valuable resource for transforming ordinary objects into the extraordinary. With over 80 solutions and bonus applications at your disposal, you will be ready for almost any situation. Included are survival, security, self-defense, and silly applications that are just plain fun.You¿ll be seen as a superhero as you amaze your friends by:¿ Transforming a simple FM radio into a device that enables you to eavesdrop on tower-to-air conversations.¿ Creating your own personalized electronic greeting cards.¿ Making a compact fire extinguisher from items typically found in a kitchen pantry.¿ Thwarting intruders with a single rubber band.By using run-of-the-mill household items and the easy-to-follow instructions and diagrams within, you¿ll be able to complete most projects in just a few minutes. Whether you use Sneaky Uses for Everyday Things as a practical tool to build useful devices, a fun little fantasy escape, or as a trivia guide to impress friends and family, this book is sure to be a reference favorite for years to come.
Customer Reviews:
must like stores like radio shack.......2007-06-15
This book describes how to make gadgets. If you already know about electricity and magnetism and basic physical science, buy this book and impress your young cousins/nephews/ nieces. there is survival stuff like collecting water from plants, safety stuff like making a fire extinguisher, and cool stuff like building a magnetic ring or wand to do things (hence the radio shack title).
Also a good purchase for budding mad scientist and science teacher.
Useless - not worth the money.......2007-05-23
I found this book to be useless and lacking in creativity. I think I'm actually dumber for reading the section on how to connect things. It says to twist wires together or tape things together. I hate the fact that my first review is negative, but I felt compelled to write because I don't want others to be as disappointed as I was.
Greasy Kids' Stuff.......2007-03-10
Color me disappointed. This would be a fun book for pre-teens to early teens, but the Make magazine / Burning Man crowd should stay away. Anyone with a basic grasp of physics or electronics probably won't find much to astound or amaze here.
More for kids.......2007-01-05
The theme of this book is more for kids with nothing to do and have a little MacGyver in them. Not a bad bathroom read, but I don't really see myself ever using more than one or two of the projects described in the book. The theme is more for sneaking around which may be better for child thieves than survival tips.
A little silly, but fun.......2006-11-19
This book is a sort of training manual for MacGyver wannabes. It's a collection of low-tech, cheap little projects that one can do in order to simulate "real" technology. You could certainly use some of these in an emergency, which is what the author suggests, but that's not really the point of the book in my view.
The real use would be for kids-- or, even better, kids and parents-- who want to mess around with some every day items in ways they haven't previously, have some fun, and enjoy some "Wow! Look at that!" moments. Had the author designed the book explicitly for that purpose, many of the negative reviews here wouldn't have been written.
So, the book is both pretty silly and enjoyable, but it's not any sort of survival manual. A word of advice: Avoid the sequel; the author used all of his good ideas in this volume.
Customer Reviews:
Great Stuff.......2007-10-01
This book is fantastic!! It really get into the details so you clearly understand the path of where things come from. It's enlightening and well worth the money. While educational in nature it is also very interesting. You can't help running around the house looking for someone to tell them what you just read.
Great Stuff.......2007-05-16
Stuff is a terrific exploration of the lifecyle of products and services that we pay for as consumers. This book feeds us info, but more importantly, shows us how to be more aware of what we consume and why. Great exercise for anyone interested in learning or teaching about our environment, (which should be everyone!)
Book and HTML versions are very different.......2007-01-03
I bought the "HTML edition" thinking that I'd save a tree and burn pixels instead. But the HTML is not the book; it is a very short essay. If you're expecting the same content as what's on paper, be warned.
Excellent information! An Easy & Fun Read!.......2006-07-31
Ryan and Durnings book contains excellent information about products we use everyday, and how our choices matter. After reading the first section tracing the history of coffee, I was prompted to go to my health food store and purchase "shade coffee" (organic or cooperatively produced).
I especially liked the sections at the end of each chapter on "What to Do?" with their helpful recommendations. I'm a social psychologist and author of "Quotes, Questions & Actions for Global Understanding". I highly recommend Ryan and Durning's book to all who want to easily make better choices in their day-to-day activities.
Serious but fun read.......2006-02-08
This is one fun and informative book and one I am buying for young as well as older friends. I sit here typing on a computer keyboard and because of the book I see things I never really stopped to see before. And with this comes questions and answers about how many people and natural resources does it take to make all the elements of this modern marvel. Not just the keyboard, monitor and speakers, but the people behind Amazon.com who are consuming coffee, flushing toilets, using lights and machines to process my order.
This is what the book is all about. Becoming quiet and looking around at everything we touch and consume and looking at the bigger picture and 'seeing' all the hands, and natural resources it has taken to produce the coffee we drink, water we drink, car we drive, magazines we read, lights we use, clothes we wear, and the list goes on.
At the end of each chapter, rather than leave the reader feeling like a glutton and bad, the authors have suggested better choices or alternative. Like writing about the average T-shirt and what it takes to make one to what it takes to care for one the authors suggest that one wash only full loads and don't wash after every use but when the item is actually dirty. T-shirts in summer cool the body better which means less AC use, and in winter extra layers of clothing means less heating costs.
Anyway, the book is one that even when I re-read it I discover something new that I hadn't read before. Will check out their other books as well.
Book Description
This book is an unconventional introduction to physics and science that starts with whole objects and looks inside them to see what makes them work. It's written for students who seek a connection between science and the world in which they live. How Things Work brings science to the reader rather than the reverse. Like the course in which it developed, this book has always been for nonscientists and is written with their interests in mind. Nonetheless, it has attracted students from the sciences, engineering, architecture, and other technical fields who wish to put scientific concepts into context.
This book is written in English and organized in a case-study fashion. It conveys an understanding and appreciation for physics by finding physics concepts and principles within the familiar objects of everyday experience. Because its structure is defined by real-life examples, this book necessarily discusses concepts as they're needed and then revisits them later on when they reappear in other objects.
Lou Bloomfield is a highly dedicated teacher and one of the most popular professors at University of Virginia, and was the recipient of the 1998 State of Virginia Outstanding Faculty Award. Lou has given talks all over the country on teaching physics through everyday objects. He has extreme attention to detail and knowledge of technical physics. He is very tech savvy and has been able to provide many of the photos and illustrations for the text himself.
Customer Reviews:
How Things Work.......2007-02-16
Book in excellent shape and quickly shipped would definitly buy from seller again.
Great book on a number of different levels.......2006-10-10
I'm a professor of engineering, and decided to use this book as the primary textbook to give a basic idea, for humanities and liberal arts students, of what engineers do. What a great decision! The first part of the book sweeps neatly through basic physics, which is also, as it turns out, basic engineering. Statics, dynamics, friction, thermo--it's all there, neatly encapsulated in a way that humanities students can easily understand what's going on. The text then moves on to the types of things that really float my boat as an engineer--how refrigerators, car engines, and microwave ovens work. Even though I've been involved in engineering for years, and am a licensed professional engineer, I still learned interesting and helpful new ways of thinking about devices and how things work from this book. Moreover, I think this book helps give non-science and non-engineering students the kind of broad-ranging education they *should* be receiving in a university level. Engineering students, after all, have to study at least a modicum of subjects that relate to world history, English, psychology, and so forth. But humanities students can graduate from college without even having the faintest idea about the workings of the technology that can make their lives so healthy, pleasant and liveable. Call me biased or part of the great NASCAR unwashed, but I think it's just as important for a student to be aware of the essentials of how their refrigerator and car work as it is for them to understand the nuances of Shakespeare. Understanding of the fundamentals of technology also leads to students having a better understanding of the tradeoffs involved in good stewardship of the environment.
Dr. Bloomfield has an extensive list of thoroughly researched demonstrations available through his website. I use some of these demonstrations almost every class day, and students really like them. (I couple the demonstrations with active learning exercises and cooperative learning activities, which helps keep them awake and motivated. I also combine use of Bloomfield's book with readings from Henry Petroski's "Success through Failure, and with short film clips from the National Association of Manufacturers.)
In a study I am working on, I've found that universities that use this text as the backbone of physics courses for non-scientists and non-engineers generally seem to have huge enrollments. That speaks of the giant educational need this book seems to fill.
A great book........2000-08-15
As a highschool physics teacher, I strongly recommend this book to every physics (and science) teacher. It can serve as a source for daily life examples of physics principles in your instructions. Even if you are an inquiry minded person, you are going to find well-designed explanations for the functioning of lots of tools, machines, etc. in the book. Really exciting, rich content, excellent book.
This is what physics is all about!.......2000-07-13
You don't need to be a physicist to understand this book. Take me for example, I took a year of Physics in college and this is enough for me to grasp the concepts presented in this book. What's so wonderful about this book is that it goes beyond the mere equations and formulas we desparately memorized before a physics test, it shows that how physics can be incorporated into our lives and improving the quality of our lives. This is a great book for those preparing for the physics AP test and those who simply want to keep themselves amazed.
What a wonderful holiday gift!.......1999-12-22
For all of those people that are struggling over what to get their science-loving friends and family members, this is the best book you could get! Adults and teenagers alike will surely love reading this book and looking at the wonderful pictures. I am so glad that I got this book, because I have learned about the devices that I use everyday.
Book Description
Did you ever wonder why cheap wine tastes better in fancy glasses? Why sales of Macintosh computers soared when Apple introduced the colorful iMac? New research on emotion and cognition has shown that attractive things really do work better, as Donald Norman amply demonstrates in this fascinating book, which has garnered acclaim everywhere from Scientific American to The New Yorker. Emotional Design articulates the profound influence of the feelings that objects evoke, from our willingness to spend thousands of dollars on Gucci bags and Rolex watches, to the impact of emotion on the everyday objects of tomorrow.
Norman draws on a wealth of examples and the latest scientific insights to present a bold exploration of the objects in our everyday world. Emotional Design will appeal not only to designers and manufacturers but also to managers, psychologists, and general readers who love to think about their stuff.
Customer Reviews:
An interesting view about how products can change our lives.......2007-09-30
Don Norman with this books exposes a review based on how products can make us feel better, and how they can influence our daily life in different contexts of use. If you're lookin' for a tutorial about "how make an emotional product", this is not the choice. Nevertheless, you'll never find it eather. Norman only puts a name to a phenomenon that already exists, but in a entertaining way that offer to the reader a new form to understand the design of products. It is worth it to read this, absolutely recommended.
Jakob Nielsen's Other Half.......2007-09-22
This book breaks down 3 categories of things we look at when we're deciding whether or not we like things, and then proceeds to show how one can analyze everyday things in those terms. I wouldn't say it's enlightening, but it does give you categories and terms for expressing things you already knew on some level. Don Norman's writing style is warm, and personal, and the book is easy to read. I've seen his name next to Jakob Nielsen's plenty of times but had no idea who he was or what he was about, so it gives a little insight into who Don Norman is as well, and why he and Jakob make good partners.
Author Ego.......2007-09-04
This book is uninspiring and boring. The author has a huge ego and does not translate his ideas effectively. The book is a long boring read and not anything new to those in design.
Subtract robots to get a great book on how emotions affect purchases.......2007-02-15
Norman opens the book with a discussion of three teapots he owns. He doesn't use them, but he loves how each tells a story. One is impossible to use, one is a classy glassy Michael Graves design and one is unusual. Norman says when we like the look of an object; we're more willing to overlook its design flaws as opposed to using something with no flaws and an ugly design.
I believe [...] is a good example of this from a web site perspective. It isn't so much about flickr's look-and-feel, but many of the non-designers, everyday Internet users understandably find the site difficult to use. [...] gained a reputation in the world of web design and IT -- the kind of people who find their way around the more difficult to use sites -- and many flocked to it because of word of mouth.
A friend of Norman's enthusiastically showed off his recent purchase of old, heavy and shiny drawing instruments including compasses, dividers and extension arms. For the author, the instruments evoked negative memories of using the difficult and messy tools. Enough time had passed for his friend to overlook the negative experience he had with the tools. Thus, when he found them, he saw them as a collectible reminding him of the "good old days" rather than something he hated using. Had those negative experiences been more recent or memorable, would he have bought the set?
The focal point of Emotional Design is that "attractive things work better." Norman explores how emotions affect purchase decisions based on three aspects of design: the visceral (appearance), behavioral (performance) and reflective (memories and experiences).
Understanding the three parts of design helps a business make the most of their product designs and marketing efforts. After all, an ad has images and those images can stir emotions. Service-based business can turn the intangible into the tangible and apply the concepts from the book.
Norman offers intriguing examples in the book to show how objects evoke emotions. The book loses its way in the last part when the author delves in the world of robots. While it talks about the possibility of robots having emotions, it tells nothing about "products" and human behavior. Except for this part, the book was a quick and fascinating read. Those who want to understand how design influences purchases will enjoy the book. Many of its concepts apply to business situations related to selling and designing products.
Cognitive science explains our love of good design.......2007-01-06
Understanding the emotions consumers feel about the objects you sell can help your business make the most of its product designs. Expert Donald Norman explains how being attractive, fun and enjoyable makes a product better. He explains that the emotions which affect purchase decisions are based on three aspects of design: "visceral" (appearance), "behavioral" (performance) and "reflective" (memories and experiences). He provides interesting case studies to show how objects evoke emotions. Norman's central theme is that "attractive things work better." And, the book works best when he hews to that theme; the last section, where he veers into a discussion of robots, doesn't seem as pertinent or as strong. We recommend this book to anyone who wants to understand how design affects emotions, and how emotions affect purchasing decisions.
Amazon.com
This surprising book may appear to be about the simple things of life--forks, paper clips, zippers--but in fact it is a far-flung historical adventure on the evolution of common culture. To trace the fork's history, Duke University professor of civil engineering Henry Petroski travels from prehistoric times to Texas barbecue to Cardinal Richelieu to England's Industrial Revolution to the American Civil War--and beyond. Each item described offers a cultural history lesson, plus there's plenty of engineering detail for those so inclined.
Book Description
Petroski tells fascinating stories about the arduous processes that resulted in paper clips, Post-its, Phillips-head screwdrivers, Scotch tape, and fast-food "clamshell" containers. "Petroski . . . an examines the simplest . . . tools in our lives with an appraising eye."--Washington Post Book World. 45 illus.
Customer Reviews:
All about the context.......2006-08-07
I found this book to be very illuminating in light of what I do (interaction design) and the books I have read recently on the latest in computational neuroeconomics, maninstream pattern recognotion theory, interaction design, visual design, industrial design, computer engineering, new marketing theory, and information design around complex systems. In fact, this book is almost a stake in the ground on how the manufacturing process, invention, and branding created the artifacts in our environment. Better than the Industrial Desig books I read 10 years ago. I think we would call these "case studies" and "use cases" in modern terminology. I mention all the fields above because every single one of them have an exact doppelganger in the past.
This book is a brilliant look at process and can be used as a research tool when looking at why something like the iPod caught on and why almost everything that has been developed at MIT in recent history (except eInk) has never gained a foothold in popular American culture. In the face of the rise of "everyware" computing, it's adoption in places like Korea and Japan, and only limited use by the rich for personal security in the US, I would say this is a must read for contemporary designers, no matter what depth of complexity their task at hand. This book predates the web, making it very enlightening in light of user-centered design in recent years.
This book looks at the relationship of genius design, corporate R+D, pop culture, the feedback loop for product innovation, and the adoption of standards around SIMPLE things. This means these case studies can be used to analyse the failures (and how failure breeds innovation, not "form follows function") of our complex information economy and embedded systems. Society has gone through it all before. And as projects become increasingly team based and open sourced (like Stanford's new d.school), just about anyone can find value in this book based within this context.
Worth the read.......2006-06-05
while I agree with some of the previous reviews that Petroski may overstate and repeat a little bit, this book is an excellent in depth look at the invention process as practiced by many people in parallel and in concert.
If you have any interest in Industrial Design, Interaction Design or just trivia for how object evolve this is a great read and Petroski surely knows his stuff.
I don't agree with some who call it too academic, the text is in depth, but not dry. It is not breazy or flip either...Just right*
An eye opener! .......2006-01-10
Ideal for anyone who harbours a casual interest in forks, pins, paper clips and zippers. Not recommended for people who hate forks, pins, paper clips and zippers, or people who are obsessed with forks, pins, paper clips and zippers and already know how they came to be as they are.
Hidden Depth.......2005-12-12
On the face of it, the Evolution of Useful Things simply lists fun trivia about familiar objects. Why does a fork have four tines and not two or three? What's a perfect paperclip? Is there such a thing? Who invented the zipper? How many things can you see on your desk right now?
However the book gives us much more. Petroski uses a large number of concrete facts to present general laws of human thought and activity. The paper clip appeared because pins used to hold papers together made holes in them and could injure someone looking through files, but it took a while for it to reach the form we know today. We invent new things because we are dissatisfied when we find problems. Form follows not function, but failure.
While small objects play the center role here, large machines such as locomotives and large projects such as bridges also come up. Petroski argues that for his concepts to be valid, they must apply to the great as well as the small and he shows that engineers design new bridges or tunnels by solving problems observed found while building other bridges and tunnels.
The book's title is especially good. The evolution of man-made things differs fundamentally from the evolution of living things. Natural selection follows a mindless process of sifting through countless minute _random_ changes. Things, however, evolve through a different process of sifting through countless _intended_ changes (sometimes small, somtimes large) until something arises that works better than before.
Petroski's writing does annoy me a little; he's got some really bad puns. For example he follows two different quotations of how to manufacture a needle with the phrase "there's more than one way to make a point." Another problem is that he repeats himself. For instance, he twice mentions Karl Marx's astonishment at finding 500 different kinds of hammers in a Birmingham factory.
But the originality of his thesis far outweighs these minor flaws. Henry Petroski is a philosopher of engineering examining the question of why we invent things. He asks why we are always perfecting our inventions, why we are never satisfied with our tools as they are. His proposed answers in no small way explain much of the history of our rich living environment with its tens of thousands of useful things.
Vincent Poirier, Tokyo
Worthwhile Reading.......2005-10-23
I really enjoyed this book. It was fascinating to learn how so many things came about. I enjoyed the history and the anecdotes and in-depth analysis of each topic.
I found it inspirational in many places. The creative artisan not only perfects his skills but looks beyond the routine to develop improved tools and processes. I read many passages to my kids.
I was dismayed when the author started writing about forks again when I thought we were all done with forks until I noticed the way the book is broken out by ideas and concepts rather than the specific examples. I think this is probably the most well-organized book I have ever read.
Average customer rating:
- wonderful fun in a yellow cover!
- Better for kiddie-types
- Don't waste your money on this book
- Cool ideas.
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Sneakier Uses for Everyday Things: How to Turn a Calculator into a Metal Detector, Carry a Survival Kit in a Shoestring, Make a Gas Mask with a Balloon, ... a Styrofoam Cup into a Speaker, and Make
Cy Tymony
Manufacturer: Andrews McMeel Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Experiments & Projects
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General
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Book Description
How to Turn a Calculator into a Metal Detector, Carry a Survival Kit in a Shoestring, Make a Gas Mask with a Balloon, Turn Dishwashng Liquid into a Copy Machine, Convert a Styrofoam Cup into a Speaker, and Make a James Bond Spy Jacket with Everyday Things
Did you know that your standard issue of Sports Illustrated magazine can be turned into over 20 useful gadgets? In author Cy Tymony's Sneakier Uses for Everyday Things, you'll learn how an average magazine can become many extraordinary gadgets such as a compass, hearing aid, magnifier, peashooter, and bottle opener.
Sneakier Uses for Everyday Things covers 40 new educational and unique projects that anybody can successfully complete with simple household items. The book includes a list of necessary materials, detailed sketches, and step-by-step instructions for each gadget and gizmo. Among the sneaky schemes are:
" Creating a electroscope out of a glass jar
" Turning a drinking cup into a speaker
" Using an AM radio as a metal detector
" Making a spy gadget jacket with over 20 individual sneaky uses ranging from a siren and
whistle to a walkie-talkie and voice recorder
These days, "be prepared" applies to more than just the Boy Scouts. Sneakier Uses for Everyday Things provides loads of practical ideas, science projects, and captivating solutions for dealing with life's unexpected challenges. Great fun for the curious, inventive, and creative of all ages.
Customer Reviews:
wonderful fun in a yellow cover!.......2007-03-26
The uniqueness of this book is in it's humor and lively spirit. I'd recommend it to anyone seeking odd knowledge.
Better for kiddie-types.......2007-01-05
This is a good bathroom book, but a little too cheesy for adult readers, but there are some neat activities.
Don't waste your money on this book.......2006-11-11
I bought this along with the author's first "sneaky" book (I'd give the first one two stars) and now wish I had saved my money. Cheesy is the best description I can give. The sneaky uses are completely obvious and, in many cases, too flimsy to survive construction. The author apparently is fascinated with safety pins, magnets, etc. but who needs a book to explain how to make a wire out of a paperclip? Also, the art is as amateurish as the ideas. Not exactly rocket science.
Cool ideas........2006-08-28
Book bought for fun. Styrofoam speaker idea is cool. Some of the ideas are a real stretch but I enjoyed the book. Not as many ideas that I could use in my classes, but overall, worthwhile.
Average customer rating:
- Extraordinary Origins of Everyday Things
- Book Reading
- so much to know
- Quite simply, an extraordinary book!
- For The Curious-Minded, This Is What You've Been Looking For
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Extraordinary Origins of Everyday Things
Charles Panati
Manufacturer: Harper Paperbacks
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0060964197 |
Book Description
For lovers of facts, students of popular culture, history buffs, and science enthusiasts, the fascinating stories behind 500 everyday items, expressions, and customs--from Kleenex to steak sauce, Barbie Dolls to honeymoons.
Customer Reviews:
Extraordinary Origins of Everyday Things.......2007-08-24
This book has alot more pages then I expected it also is well organized. The author gave enough information on each subject to satisfy one's curiosity about a subject but not to the point of distraction, just enough to give the reader clarity on the subject matter. I'm not a youngster anymore and I knew some of the answers to the origins of everyday things but there was more in this book that I've never heard before. It doesn't cover just products but superstitions from whatever country they started. I've enjoyed it very much and would recommend it for those curious where some of our ideas and products originated long ago.
Book Reading.......2007-03-31
Found it to be an excellent book to give to the grandchildren to help answer their questions and curiosity of where things came from.
so much to know.......2006-07-11
I love this book and now have to find the rest of his books. This book alone explains tidbits of things like the origin of the comb, or the napkin, holidays... so much. People @ my work couldn't wait to read it since I'd give out a history here and there.
Quite simply, an extraordinary book!.......2006-02-07
One of my favorite reference books. It's pithy writing style is guaranteed to make learning about the many things we take for granted seem remarkable!
For The Curious-Minded, This Is What You've Been Looking For.......2005-06-14
This review needn't be long, for the title tells it all. Whether you want to know the origin of blue jeans, dental floss or a comb, you'll find it here. Because for some reason or another, I am on an unfulfillable quest to always know more and more, this is the type of book I love, and one I'd recommend more than any of the others I've read.
The book is broken up very nicely into setions so the thoughts are coherent and the content flows. This is actually a book you can read before bed or on the train - rather than others written in similar style, but that are better for reference.
Enjoy.
Book Description
In this erudite and gracefully written ethnography, Mariane Ferme explores the links between a violent historical and political legacy, and the production of secrecy in everyday material culture. The focus is on Mende-speaking southeastern Sierra Leone and the surrounding region. Since 1990, this area has been ravaged by a civil war that produced population displacements and regional instability. The Underneath of Things documents the rural impact of the progressive collapse of the Sierra Leonean state in the past several decades, and seeks to understand how an even earlier history is reinscribed in the present.
Customer Reviews:
Academic indeed.............2003-12-28
Honestly, I couldn't make heads or tails of this book - and I am an entirely over-educated offspring of academics, a native speaker of English, and a voracious reader. I just didn't understand the words! I purchased this book before moving to Sierra Leone to manage an aid program, hoping to gain insight into the people I would be living and working with. This book, however, was more about anthropological theory than the Mende people; it served to illustrate academic points rather than the cultural world they inhabit. Entire chapters were devoted to such esoterica as the meaning of "twins" and the supreme symbolic significance of placement of hammocks vs. stools within the household. Meanwhile, the prose is peppered with endless usage of such words as "homologous" and "hermeutic" along with liberal sprinklings of Mende words - which are defined the first time they are used, but as there is no glossary to subsequently refer to by the end of the book the reader is lost in linguistic gobbledy-gook.
I am sure that this book has contributed to academic inquiry -- but from my perspective, I have never read an entire book about a people and place and learned so little about them.
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