``Green is the color of cultivated fields and the untouched wilderness,'' the Kidds begin, amplifying that observation with an intelligent discussion of the attendant issues that roil in the background. This entry in the Science and Society series illuminates the role played by science in the conflicting priorities of environmentalists and of the producers and consumers of the world food supply. They cite Rachel Carson's landmark Silent Spring and the subsequent ban on DDT as a ready example of the problem of pest control coexisting with sound ecological practices, then launch into a discussion that in no simple terms outlines the difficulties of balancing the needs of the food supply with conservation. Exit the notion of the high- minded, purely objective scientist and enter real people—early preservationists such as John Muir, applied ecologists such as Aldo Leopold (founder of this science), gate-keeping writers such as Carson, and nameless agricultural technologists and wildlife managers. The Kidds present student researchers with a panoply of personalities, from working scientists to people at the krill end of the food chain. A competent, useful volume on a vital topic. (b&w photos, diagrams, index, not seen, glossary, further reading) (Nonfiction. 11-15)
Pub Date: Jan. 1, 1998
ISBN: 0-8160-3583-0
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Facts On File
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 1998
BOOK REVIEW
Necessary for every library, personal or otherwise.
As fresh and funny as ever, a classic compendium of physics in action gets a light but needed makeover.
Most of the “Things” here are still working the way they did back in 1988, 1998, and 2004, when the original and the revised editions dropped—but along with sporting new and spruced-up colors, some of the content, notably the section dubbed “The Digital Domain,” has been brought into the 21st century. Thus, the space shuttle and the VCR are no more, the workings of the telephone have been replaced by those of smartphones and telephone networks, and the jump jet has given way to the quadcopter and other types of drones. But the details that made the earlier editions delightful as well as edifying remain. In the illustrations, flights of tiny angels move the “first whoopee cushion” into place, discombobulated woolly mammoths get caught up in silly side business while helping to demonstrate scientific principles, and best of all, Macaulay’s brilliantly designed, engagingly informal diagrams and cutaways bring within the grasp of even casual viewers a greater understanding of the technological wonders of both past and present.
Necessary for every library, personal or otherwise. (index) (Reference. 11-15)Pub Date: Oct. 4, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-544-82438-6
Page Count: 400
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2016
Few topics are more intrinsically interesting to young readers than disasters. Guiberson casts her net wide to examine ten natural and man-made disasters chronologically from smallpox in colonial America to Hurricane Katrina. The 20-page chapters, broken into subsections, describe the events with quotations from contemporary accounts and plenty of grim details. Photographs, drawings and diagrams, all usefully captioned, extend the lively text. The author analyzes causes of the disasters and factors that exacerbated them, such as building on landfill in 1906 San Francisco. In most chapters, she explores steps that could prevent or reduce future catastrophes, although only a brief introduction ties the chapters together. A Notes section highlights major sources for each chapter, without specific references, followed by an extensive bibliography but no further reading suggestions as such. Good for pleasure reading and as a starting point for research. (index, not seen) (Nonfiction. 11-14)
Pub Date: June 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-8050-8170-1
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Christy Ottaviano/Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: June 3, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2010
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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