Why the Wheel Is Round: Muscles, Technology, and How We Make Things Move

by Steven Vogel

There is no part of our bodies that fully rotates—be it a wrist or ankle or arm in a shoulder socket, we are made to twist only so far. And yet, there is no more fundamental human invention than the wheel—a rotational mechanism that accomplishes what our physical form cannot. Throughout history, humans have developed technologies powered by human strength, complementing the physical abilities we have while overcoming our weaknesses. Providing a unique history of the wheel and other rotational devices, like cranks, cranes, carts, and capstans, Why the Wheel Is Round examines the contraptions and tricks we have devised in order to more efficiently move—and move through—the physical world.
 
Steven Vogel combines his engineering expertise with his remarkable curiosity about how things work to explore how wheels and other mechanisms were, until very recently, powered by the push and pull of the muscles and skeletal systems of humans and other animals. Why the Wheel Is Round explores all manner of treadwheels, hand-spikes, gears, and more, as well as how these technologies diversified into such things as hand-held drills and hurdy-gurdies.  Surprisingly, a number of these devices can be built out of everyday components and materials, and Vogel’s accessible and expansive book includes instructions and models so that inspired readers can even attempt to make their own muscle-powered technologies, like trebuchets and ballista.
 
Appealing to anyone fascinated by the history of mechanics and technology as well as to hobbyists with home workshops, Why the Wheel Is Round offers a captivating exploration of our common technological heritage based on the simple concept of rotation. From our leg muscles powering the gears of a bicycle to our hands manipulating a mouse on a roller ball, it will be impossible to overlook the amazing feats of innovation behind our daily devices.
 

Genres: Nonfiction, Science, History, Technology

344 pages, Hardcover

First published October 14, 2016

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Steven Vogel is James B. Duke Professor, Emeritus, in the Department of Biology at Duke University.

As it has turned out, my activities as a teacher and writer have extended well beyond the explication of the immediate results of research. The first two of my seven books, A Functional Bestiary: Laboratory Studies about Living Systems and A Model Menagerie: Laboratory Studies about Living Systems, provide eclectic material for teaching laboratories in introductory biology. The third, Life in Moving Fluids, finds most use as an entry point into fluid mechanics; it is now in its second (much enlarged) edition. The fourth, Life's Devices, takes comparative biomechanics as a paradigm for thinking about science, using the very mundanity of the subject to draw in non-scientists rather than presenting them with some system of revelation. The book was generated through a course given to adults in a non-specialist master's program and is now in use in a variety of undergraduate courses; it was selected by a science-oriented book club and has won a substantial award. Material in that book reappears in expanded and more sophisticated form in my recent undergraduate textbook, Comparative Biomechanics. The fifth, Vital Circuits, is of a deliberately less pedagogical character; it's about circulatory systems, whose disabilities are of widespread interest. But it uses them as a vehicle to talk in biological rather than pathological terms and to illustrate how a such a subject is viewed by a biological scientist in contrast to a journalist or a physician. Cats' Paws and Catapults, also aimed at the general reader, compares the mechanical technologies of nature with that of humans. Prime Mover, another trade book, tries to link the biomechanics and physiology of muscle to the role it has played in human activities. Finally, I've written for more popular publications, such as Natural History and Discover, attempting to create pieces that explain science rather than merely reporting on the current activities of scientists, and I've become involved with several science museums, again in activities aimed at explaining science as part of contemporary culture. Two additional books, both aimed at a general scientific readership, are currently in gestation.

Reviews

[Rossdavidh · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are some books which enchant with their use of language. There are some books which include ideas that make it feel like sparks are flying inside your mind. There are books which are deeply moving, emotionally. And then, there are books like this one, which mostly just feel like you are having a conversation with someone you just met, who you like a lot, and hope to become friends with. Steven Vogel's enthusiasm for his topic is infectious, and one gets the impression of a teacher in front of a class, speaking with energy, laughing with delight at the topic he's telling you about. I was moderately interested in the topic (muscles, technology, and how we make things move), but more than anything else I enjoyed this book because it felt like having a great conversation with a new friend.

There are other reasons to like this book, as well. I am a fan of old illustrations, and Vogel shows us woodcuts from Agricola and many other centuries-old books on how to get stuff done. He knows when and how to use a picture along with his thousands of words. He clearly knows his topic in depth, and he also seems to know how to explain in a way that makes sense. I am wondering how much of this material he had cause to test out in front of audiences of university students, such that he knew which parts to linger on, or explain in a different way; there's nothing like the feedback of many faces looking back at you, confused. I was rarely if ever confused while reading this book, and I have no great talent for mechanical devices.

He covers topics like, how is it we took so long to get around to making wheels, and what were the steps along the way? What is a horse-whim? How about a seed fiddle? When you see a drawing of an indeterminate device in ancient Egyptian murals, how do you figure out what it might be? (in his case, you go into your garage and try to replicate it) How do ropes work? (you think you already know, but actually there's a lot more going on than you might realize)

How exactly is it that a falling cat rights itself, mid-fall, so as to "always" land on its feet?

What would cause you to want to read this book? Man, I don't know. You either do or you don't. It's like being in the workshop or garage of a lovable old crank inventor, who shows you one cool old tool or device after another, and explains how they all work. If you don't like that sort of thing, maybe his enthusiasm for it will leave you cold. But I am about as mechanically uninclined as it is possible to be and still have a physical existence, and I found it to be a fun time.

[Elentarri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting. Technical. Not really for the "general" reader.

[Thom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Engineer and biologist Steven Vogel writes about the various rotational inventions through history, from water, pottery and spinning wheels to cranks, handspikes and pedal power. Meanders a little, but a lot of solid information to discover.

Chapters focus on specific technologies, covering both history and impact. Quite a few drawings help visualize the description, which isn't always as simple as a hub and axle. Notes and references follow an appendix full of models that can be made to demonstrate the concepts - the author made these while writing the book. His observations about how effective these are is also wonderful.

The topic can be daunting, and the author dives in deep. As mentioned, the timeline meanders a little, focusing on the technology instead. The subtitle is really the focus of the book; the title alone can be misleading. Minor quibbles, though - this is a pretty good book. I plan to refer back to it in the future, perhaps tackling some of the models.

[Dave Mills · Rating 4 out of 5]

Do you brush your teeth in a circular motion like your dentist advises, or do you do back-and-forth and up-and-down? In this clever book that's waaay over my head for the most part, Vogel shows fairly convincingly that we humans aren't designed for rotation (save a few gifted ice skaters and ballet dancers). We've created machines and other devices that do our circular work for us. Vogel puts together wonderful sentences that flow into a grand narrative. He likes insouciance, self-deprecating humor and puns. Beware the puns. Just wish I were smarter to understand all he has to say. A shame he died early.

[Charles · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Good Book for the Budding Mechanical Engineer

As a more general reader, I gave this book 3 stars although I suspect that it would be rated 4 or 5 by a budding mechanical engineer or someone who delights in obtaining hands-on experience with simple models that test physics and engineering concepts. (Such instructions on model building are found in the appendix the book).

Indeed it would be enlightening and a good gift for younger people who love gadgets but who have less familiarity with physical tools and mechanical objects than they do with the electronic devices that are now so much a part of our everyday lives.

Even for the reader with casual interest in mechanics, author Steven Vogel makes us think about objects that we take for granted without much thought about the concepts behind their design. We learn that the reason that “clockwise” is the standard design for tightening a screw relates to the fact that this is advantageous for right-handed people and that tightening generally requires more force than loosening a screw. Placement and size of the wheel on a wheelbarrow or cart affects performance in ways that I never considered.

Although Vogel suspects the story may be apocryphal, he heard that the New York City subway lightbulbs are “special order” and have the threads in the opposite direction from normal, so that to tighten them you screw in the lightbulb counter clockwise. This prevents lightbulb theft as they are unusable in a standard lighting fixture. If this is a false story, perhaps transit systems should consider the idea!

There are a host of other interesting explanations, from the importance of devices we rotate and release, to the energy efficiency of the bicycle, to the reason for spinning fibers into thread or yarn. We learn that short fibers, when twisted into long tensile elements, exhibit friction when pulled and thus have much greater strength.

More challenging to lay readers are the physics explanations that are found in later chapters as Vogel discusses fluid mechanics, solenoids, pulse jet vs. ram jet engines, etc.

Almost everyone will learn something from this book and a reader’s interests and aptitude will determine how engaging it will be.

[Michael Stutzer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book in the science section of Barnes and Noble. The author was a top interdisciplinary scholar at the Univ. of Chicago, with the relatively rare ability to write a good popular text. The subject matter motivation is the general inability of human and most animal bodies to effect efficient circular motion. Because the latter is so critical for technological improvement, society has devised ways to harness our abilities to effect circular motion. Examples are seen everywhere. I went to a gym today, where I observed the back and forth movement of legs running on a treadmill. Readers of this book will envision the treadmills' circular motion connected by gears and belts to do marketable work, e.g. to turn a millstone that grinds grain into flour. Alas, all the treadmills produce in the uninformed are rapid heartbeats and sweat. The book chonicles the historical advent and improvement of seemingly countless practical devices over two thousand years, all of which cleverly work around our anatomical limitations. There is real science here, but very little math is needed. Hence the book should still appeal to those who would otherwise be constrained by back-and-forth eye movements over incomprehensible combinations of symbols.

[Frances · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fascinating book explaining the technology of how things move, in particular circular motions. For me, it ties back nicely to the summer in college spent in England studying Economics, including the history of the Industrial Revolution. Power sources... The diagrams were particularly well done and helpful in conveying the ideas he was describing.

[Nathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most "history of technology" books are written by professors of engineering, and have a lot in common. This one was written by a professor of biomechanics, and I loved how different it was. The basic thesis of the book is that for almost all of human history, essentially all motive power was muscle power. Muscles provide linear force, but so much of what we want to do with power is purely rotational- grinding grain, rolling wagons, spinning thread, etc. So this book is a history and exploration of the many ways we have turned muscle power into rotational power. I quite enjoyed it.

[Justin Suissa · Rating 2 out of 5]

The premise is good, however it's a bit technical was a little tough to follow without a bit of a mechanics background. I think this would be more interesting as a series on the Discovery Channel.

[Jack Laschenski · Rating 3 out of 5]

A tour through the mechanics of making things move.

Lots of physics and mechanics.

Much is beyond me.

Advice on making models of machines.

[Charles Lichtenwalner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating work. Hard to read

[Bradley Roth · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Steven Vogel's books, but this was not his best.

[Peter Tillman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This may be more than you want to know, but I had fun with this combination of a history of technology with explanation of how mechanical devices work. Older readers are more likely to have grown up with this stuff, but there are still plenty of mechanisms at work. I skimmed the last two chapters, which amount to "stuff that didn't quite fit in the main book."

Recommended overall, depending on your interest. Illustrations range from lucid to well, not -- but I could puzzle out the stuff I cared about. Definitely a browsing-type book.

[E · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is all about the machines that mankind has made to move things in a circular motion using human or animal power. In other words, cranks, treadmills, wrenches, wheels, bearings, flywheels, whims, pulleys, gears, drills, yo-yos, spinning wheels, and so on and so on and so on. It is a book of applied physics that is fascinating and fun. Vogel explains things well to the non-technical among us (including me!). He describes how things work in ways that I found informative and, hopefully, memorable. The book is full of history, too, as many of these machines have fallen out of favor things to other, newer forms of energy. All in all, an enjoyable and detailed work.

[Mills College Library]

612.76 V879 2016