WHAT DO YOU WANT TO KNOW?

The marathon title misses the point and may mislead children into thinking they've got another manual on their hands; but as an attractant it could be a blessing in disguise because that's what the book is. Fundamentally this is how to learn: finding answers follows encouragement to ask questions and advice on formulating them. So we start with the five senses (and potentially ESP. it's that openminded), extend them through instruments and logic (deduction, induction), enlist experience and authority (newspapers, magazines, books, reference books--each evaluated) via libraries (DDC, card catalog, Readers' Guide. etc.) and now computers (how programmed); we try out ideas by experiment (simple rules, including ethics), reach for new ideas by insight, play with ideas by brainstorming; we recognize uniqueness (as distinct from generalization) through empathy and mystic experiences, anesthetize bias through seeking different points of view; finally we communicate what we have learned (with tips on the techniques of teaching, composing a speech, etc.). The example of successful young people concludes (Heidrun Petrides was 15 when she wrote and drew Hans and Peter, David Milne 16 when he devised the Braille Electronic Translator typewriter for a younger brother). What everyone should know about knowing, and not only matters of fact.