The Best Tool of the Millennium The seeds of Rybczynskis elegant and illuminating new book were sown by The New York Times; whose editors asked him to write an essay identifying "the best tool of the millennium." The award-winning author of Home; A Clearing in the Distance; and Now I Sit Me Down; Rybczynski once built a house using only hand tools. His intimate knowledge of the toolbox -- both its contents and its history -- serves him beautifully on his quest. One Good Turn is a story starring Archimedes; who invented the water screw and introduced the helix; and Leonardo; who sketched a machine for carving wood screws. It is a story of mechanical discovery and genius that takes readers from ancient Greece to car design in the age of American industry. Rybczynski writes an ode to the screw; without which there would be no telescope; no microscope -- in short; no enlightenment science. One of our finest cultural and architectural historians; Rybczynski renders a graceful; original; and engaging portrait of the tool that changed the course of civilization.
#3188739 in eBooks 2013-05-16 2013-05-16File Name: B00CV4KIG4
Review
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful. Brilliant writingBy BB in SeattleThis quirky play about science and God features Charles Darwin; kind of reincarnated as a beach bum; along with Thomas Huxley resuming his debate with Bishop Wilberforce over the theory of evolution. Theres a memorable tirade by Darwin about the absurdity of God; yet the play is surreal enough to imagine all views on the matter.