The Bars Are Not the Code
The intuitive reading of a barcode is that each bar is a symbol, like a letter, and the sequence of bars spells out the…
The cheapest components on the building, protecting the most expensive ones. Here are eleven.
1. They Stop the Roof Edge Being Fed Into the Wall
A roof with no gutter…
Nobody numbered a house until somebody official wanted something. Here are eleven.
1. Numbering Was Imposed, Not Adopted
Systematic house numbering spread through Europe in the eighteenth century, introduced by…
The least designed-looking thing in the street, and all of it is deliberate. Here are ten.
1. The Backrest Decides How Long You Stay
A bench with a back supports…
Nobody thinks of them as equipment, which is what they are. Here are eleven jobs.
1. Trapping a Layer of Still Air
Most of the insulating effect is not the…
Almost everything that makes a chair comfortable or unbearable was decided by a handful of measurements, and they interact. Here are fifteen.
1. Seat Height Decides Everything Else
The distance…