Publications [#268054] of Henry Petroski

Papers Published

1. Petroski, H, Impossible points, erroneous walks, American Scientist, vol. 102 no. 2 (March, 2014), pp. 102-105, Sigma Xi, ISSN 0003-0996 [doi]
   (last updated on 2023/06/01)

   Abstract:
   The article discusses how artists make mistakes while drawing sharpened pencils and galloping horses. Half of the drawings of sharpened pencils depict the removal of wood from the wrong locations to form a sharpened pencil point. If graphic artists do, at least sometimes, copy a pre-existing image of a pencil, then the mistake is likely to persist. Disconcertingly, this false image appears in places from which one expects accuracy, such as a professionally designed advertisement in the New York Times touting the importance of an investment in education to help teachers inspire students. In 1878, Muybridge produced definitive visual evidence that a horse did indeed fully leave the ground as it trotted along. The images also shook the art world by exposing postural errors in classic equine sculptures and paintings. Examining more than 300 depictions of animal walking, in such sources as museum exhibits, textbooks, and toys, researchers found that almost 47 percent got it wrong.