Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Since the explosion of the Hindenburg in Lakehurst, New Jersey, energy-efficient, lighter-than-air ships have given way to gas-guzzling jet aircraft. But in the 1960s, an unusual band of inventors, engineers and investors, again in New Jersey, created the Aereon, a strange, wingless hybrid airplane/dirigible. The Aereon--the Deltoid Pumpkin Seed-- promised to be a safe workhorse of the skies, capable of carrying the payload of entire freight trains with minimal cost.
In this exquisitely crafted tale of back-to-the-drawing-board perseverance, McPhee tells the story not only of the Aereon, but of any product development team. He astutely delineates the team members' personalities and interactions, delves back in time to the origins of lighter-than-air craft and the history of propellers, and in the end, makes us wonder why this promising technology hasn't been perfected. Like Aramis: Or the Love of Technology, this is a splendid book about a potentially superior aircraft which has yet to be adopted.
--This text refers to the
Paperback
edition.
Los Angeles Times
What gives [McPhee's] writing its powerful fascination is the strange, raw quality of fact: it all really happened, just this way.... McPhee watches so intently that the Aereon and its people become real and important to the reader.
--This text refers to the
Paperback
edition.
The Deltoid Pumpkin Seed
The Deltoid Pumpkin Seed,John McPhee,Farrar, Straus and Giroux,0374137811,Aeronautics,Airplanes,Airships,Antiques/Collectibles,Aviation - General,Literature - Classics / Criticism,Technology / Aeronautics & Astronautics
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