Which innovative ideas and inventions began in the Stone, Bronze, and Iron Ages? These periods, stretching from the first ancestors of modern humans to the start of the ancient civilizations of Greece and Rome, was a time of amazing developments. Find out how making fire and tools, farming the land, and writing down symbols to communicate transformed society and had a lasting impact on the way we live today.
Which innovative ideas and inventions began with the Romans? Find out how the Romans trained their soldiers, built their roads and buildings, and supplied their people with food and water. Discover how their brilliant developments in language, government, law, and entertainment still influence the way we live today.
Which innovative ideas and inventions began with the Maya? Find out how the Maya built their cities to suit the landscape and population, traded their resources, and developed a complex system of writing. Discover how their brilliant developments in farming, astronomy, and cloth-making still influence the way we live today.
Which innovative ideas and inventions began in the Benin Kingdom in Africa? Find out how a collection of separate villages and communities grew into a strong, united kingdom and developed a network of successful trading relationships. Discover how their brilliant developments in town planning, language, art, and medicine still influence the way we live today.
Which innovative ideas and inventions began with the Anglo-Saxons? Find out how the Anglo-Saxons farmed their land, built their houses, and organized their society. Discover how their brilliant developments in defense, law, language, and storytelling still influence the way we live today.
Which innovative ideas and inventions began with the ancient Greeks? Find out how the ancient Greeks organized their society, trained their soldiers, used their ships for trade and transportation, and built their temples. Discover how their brilliant developments in architecture, politics, art, medicine, theater, and sports still influence the way we live today.
Which innovative ideas and inventions began with the ancient Egyptians? Find out how the ancient Egyptians built their temples and pyramids, irrigated and farmed their land, and took care of their people during life and after death. Discover how their brilliant developments in farming, papermaking, timekeeping, and medicine still influence the way we live today.
Learn all about the computer technology used in modern transportation. Use the algorithms and ideas that control real forms of transportation technology to create your own on-screen vehicles. Six step-by-step projects use the latest version of Scratch, the free online coding program, to help you learn how sensors work, create a hoverboard game, program a drone, and much more!
Pollution is seriously damaging our planet. Human activity and waste are harming the environment by polluting the air, water, and land. Discover the facts about where pollution comes from, where garbage really goes after we throw it away, and how we can reduce waste.
Human overpopulation is putting pressure on our planet and its natural resources.The more people there are, the more resources are consumed, harming the environment and depleting the world's supplies. Discover the facts about the world's growing population, which countries have the highest and lowest birth rates, and how overpopulation affects climate change.
Natural resources on Earth are at risk of running out. Using too many natural resources, such as water, trees, and fossil fuels, is putting pressure on our supplies and damaging the environment. Discover the facts about how resources are used around the world, which resources are renewable and non-renewable, and what the future of natural resource management looks like.
Our modern world runs on energy to power our homes and industries. We all know the problems with burning fossil fuels to create energy— it pollutes the planet and we are running out of these resources. Discover the facts about renewable and non-renewable energy resources, how our energy use contributes to global warming, and what the future of energy looks like.
Climate change is reshaping the planet before our eyes. From melting ice caps and rising sea levels to drought and destructive hurricanes, no corner of Earth is protected from the effects of global warming. Discover the facts about what climate change is doing—and will continue to do—to our planet, and how we might reduce its impact.
The huge variety of plants and animals that live on Earth is called biodiversity. As ecosystems are destroyed by climate change and human activity, plants and animals are becoming endangered and even extinct. Find out how the loss of biodiversity affects food chains and natural habitats, why it is important to humans, and how its loss threatens the health of all living things on the planet.
Scale models are usually built as accurate miniatures of real objects such as vehicles, buildings, and even people. This awesome introduction to model making explains the mathematics of scale, and the difference between building from a kit and building from scratch. Tips on painting, scoring, cementing, and weathering help build fine-motor skills. Young readers are encouraged to build patience, concentration, perseverance, and problem-solving.
The year 2017 saw the most active and costly hurricane season on record. Moving photographs help tell the human stories of Harvey, hitting Texas and Louisiana; Irma, the strongest Atlantic basin hurricane ever recorded, pummeling Florida; and Maria, the worst natural disaster ever to hit Puerto Rico and Dominica. Detailed information tracks the paths of each storm, the clean-ups that followed, what remains to do.
It cost $10 billion to combat the wildfires in California in 2017 that scorched 300,000 acres of land and left 100,000 people displaced. With dry weather and drought bringing more catastrophic wildfires to the western United States and Canada, this timely title discusses the human and physical impacts of these and other fire disasters and how fire professionals and policymakers are combatting them.
Draw a realistic-looking fossil like paleontologist Mary Anning did and make a plaster cast of it; or make your own terrarium like Doctor Nathaniel Bagshaw Ward to study plants and insects. This title gives readers both an understanding of the properties of living things and the skills to investigate great discoveries and works. Exciting and easy-to-understand experiments encourage budding scientists, inventors, engineers, and artists to stand on the shoulders of the curious and creative people who came before them.
Build a model hovercraft like engineer Christopher Cockerell did, or a sculpture that moves in the breeze like artist Lin Emery. This title gives readers both an understanding of the properties of forces and the skills to investigate great discoveries and works. Exciting and easy-to-understand experiments encourage budding scientists, inventors, engineers, and artists to stand on the shoulders of the curious and creative people who came before them.
Make a simple refrigerator like pottery-maker Mohammed Bah Abba did that does not use electricity, or create little models of people out of ice like sculptor Néle Azevedo. This title gives readers both an understanding of the different states of matter and the skills to investigate great discoveries and works. Exciting and easy-to-understand experiments encourage budding scientists, inventors, engineers, and artists to stand on the shoulders of the curious and creative people who came before them.
Our views and opinions on many things are heavily influenced by our culture and what we see in the media. They can even shape how we see ourselves, including what is an acceptable or desirable body. Using relatable examples, this timely title explores the body image messages we receive from movies, video games, magazines, and social media, and how they affect our self-esteem.
Build your own amplifier like experimenter Athanasius Kircher did, or turn the sound of your voice into unusual patterns of art like singer/composer Megan Watts Hughes. This title gives readers both an understanding of the properties of sound and the skills to investigate great discoveries and works. Exciting and easy-to-understand experiments encourage budding scientists, inventors, engineers, and artists to stand on the shoulders of the curious and creative people who came before them.
A major societal issue in the world today, opioid addiction is causing a devastating number of deaths and is costing countries millions of dollars. This timely book includes information on the causes and effects of opioid addiction and the methods being used to combat this deadly epidemic.
Cultural beliefs surrounding illness and societal beliefs about how we should offer health care are discussed in this fascinating addition to the Our Values series. Discussions about the treatment of common diseases, as well as topics of interest, such as how a cast is made, are compared and contrasted with the way health care is provided throughout the world.
Should the Internet be a place for free thought and free sharing? Or should the government and Internet service companies be able to censor and block content? This up-to-date book will help equip readers with tangible tools to help understand the issues involved in net neutrality and encourage them to stay informed of further developments.
