[The tape] was used for all sorts of mending and attaching jobs, . . . and the notorious stubbornness with which it hid its end
and tore diagonally off the roll was accepted by users as just the way the tape was. . . . But inventors and tinkerers like Drew saw each shortcoming as a challenge for improvement. . . . Difficulties in getting the Scotch tape off the roll, for example, prompted the development of a dispenser with a built-in serrated edge to cut off a piece squarely and leave a neat edge handy for the next use. —The Evolution of Useful Things,
Henry Petroski
What drove improvements to Scotch® tape in the passage?
Customers finally complained about the problems.
Inventors wanted to fix the tape’s shortcomings.
The manufacturer wanted to make a cheaper product.
The manufacturer had to use up its supply of new dispensers.
answer b- inventors wanted to fix the tape shortcoming
In this text, we are first given the description of Scotch tape as it was initially manufactured. We learn that the tape had certain shortcomings, such as the fact that it was hard to find its end, or that the tape tore diagonally off the roll. However, these shortcomings were noted by inventors, who wanted to fix them. This desire drove them to improve the Scotch tape.
