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Product Description
View the world in living colour in this all-encompassing reference book for the 21st century. Dynamic and fun to browse, the 448-page Answer Book tackles every sort of question in the world. From galaxies light-years away to the soil beneath our feet, from ancient China to jam-packed modern cities, from international trade to the medical advances of the 21st century, here is a book of knowledge about our universe, our world, our history, and our future, brilliantly illustrated and carefully researched, as only National Geographic can deliver. Every spread is designed to pop with as many ideas and images as possible. This title includes such elements as: top ten lists, key dates, and major ideas; Click-It features that recommend websites for further investigation; a glossary of pertinent words; cross-references to related topics elsewhere in the book; and, Fast Facts, with quick hits of fascinating stats and information. Chapters are arranged by major topic, each detailed with lively text and visuals. The book begins with Picturing the World, packed with marvelous maps. The Universe covers celestial bodies, space exploration, and the latest on extraterrestrials. Planet Earth talks about the active geology underlying the continents, as well as landforms, water, and atmosphere. Life on Earth surveys the plant and animal kingdoms and the threats they face, while Climates and Habitats explains weather, environments, and the impact of man. The Human World is all about us: our language, religions, cultures, foods, industries, cities, and more. World History traces global events over millennia, while Science and Technology ponders the history of thought and the best of human innovation. The final chapter, Countries of the World, puts a mini-atlas at your fingertips, with handy information on every nation. Throughout this global adventure, you'll encounter ancient cultures and people of the modern melting pot. Get the facts on threatened rain forests, melting ice caps, and other fragile habitats. Find out about endangered species. Check current figures and superlatives, from population to mountain height. Every spread has something new to offer. Open to one page, follow where it leads you, repeat, and repeat. You won't want to put this book down.
About the Author
Kathryn Thornton, who wrote the foreword to this book, was a NASA astronaut from 1985 to 1996, flying four space missions including the first Hubble Space Telescope service mission and logging 21 extravehicular hours and 975 total hours in space. She is now a professor in the School of Engineering and Applied Science at the University of Virginia.
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7 reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Excellent book!
12 Oct 2010
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
This book is an invaluable resource for anyone, with or without children. I purchased it for my daughter, but found it so interesting, I began going through it!
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful
An Answer Book????
13 Feb 2011
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
National Geographic Answer Book: Fast Facts About Our World
Correct information is a primary concern in an "Answer Book", even when the answers are fast facts. From this point of view, the book is not as good as the advertisement would have us believe; the book might be useful, but be ready to check the answers using other sources. A few examples.
Picture (photograph) on page 310: "Charles Lindbergh lands at Croydon Airport, London, completing his historic transatlantic one-man flight on April 20, 1927 ......." (Croydon Airport?? April 20 1927???).
The TRUE FACTS: Lindbergh started his one-man transatlantic flight taking off from Roosevelt Field, Long Island, New York at 7:52am on MAY 20, 1927. He landed his plane (Spirit of St. Louis) at the Le Bourget Airdrome, Paris, France at 10:22pm (Paris time) on May 21, 1927.
"How does a flower work?" See picture of the PARTS OF A FLOWER on page 139:
the ovules are indicated as egg cells. Again, this is not a true fact: the ovule is a complex multicellular structure containing one egg cell.
The short description of plant responses to light signals (p.139) is on the short side and, as it is, does not tell the complete story; perhaps, photoperiodism should have been mentioned in addition to phototropism; and it would also have been nice to mention that there are other plant hormones
(gibberellins, cytokinis, etc) in addition to auxins.
All considered, one cannot give more than one star to this book, and if used to satisfy children's curiosity, the parents should make sure of confirming the information using other sources.
Correct information is a primary concern in an "Answer Book", even when the answers are fast facts. From this point of view, the book is not as good as the advertisement would have us believe; the book might be useful, but be ready to check the answers using other sources. A few examples.
Picture (photograph) on page 310: "Charles Lindbergh lands at Croydon Airport, London, completing his historic transatlantic one-man flight on April 20, 1927 ......." (Croydon Airport?? April 20 1927???).
The TRUE FACTS: Lindbergh started his one-man transatlantic flight taking off from Roosevelt Field, Long Island, New York at 7:52am on MAY 20, 1927. He landed his plane (Spirit of St. Louis) at the Le Bourget Airdrome, Paris, France at 10:22pm (Paris time) on May 21, 1927.
"How does a flower work?" See picture of the PARTS OF A FLOWER on page 139:
the ovules are indicated as egg cells. Again, this is not a true fact: the ovule is a complex multicellular structure containing one egg cell.
The short description of plant responses to light signals (p.139) is on the short side and, as it is, does not tell the complete story; perhaps, photoperiodism should have been mentioned in addition to phototropism; and it would also have been nice to mention that there are other plant hormones
(gibberellins, cytokinis, etc) in addition to auxins.
All considered, one cannot give more than one star to this book, and if used to satisfy children's curiosity, the parents should make sure of confirming the information using other sources.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Good Reference Book, But There Are Mistakes
16 Feb 2011
Format:Hardcover
THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC ANSWER BOOK is an attempt by the editors of National Geographic to provide the modern reader with a concise and relevant reference book about Planet Earth. In the days before the Internet (pre-1994) was common, encyclopedias and the like were necessary tools for the professional and amateur scholar alike. However, in the age of Wikipedia and Google, reference books have largely been regulated to the dustbins of history. Still, they have their place and THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC ANSWER BOOK is a good one.
The book is divided into nine chapters and attempts to provide a go-to source for basic questions about geography, geology, astronomy, anthropology, world history, and basic science. The chapters are Maps & Globes, The Universe, Planet Earth, Life on Earth, Climates & Habitats, The Human World, World History, Science & Technology, and Countries of the World. My favorite section of the book is Chapter Nine: Countries of the World. This section provides a profile of all 194 countries of the world. The countries are divided into the six continents they can be found upon. For each country there is a small picture of the nations national flag, the complete name of the country, basic information about the country (land area, population, capital, etc.), and a short paragraph about the country. I also liked how colorful the book is. NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC is known for there breathtaking photos and they don't disappoint in this book. There are over 500 colored photographs and illustrations as well as more than 100 modern and archival maps.
I enjoy THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC ANSWER BOOK and believe it will be a reference book I refer to often. However, it's not flawless. For instance, on page 310 there is a photograph of Charles Lindbergh with the caption "Charles Lindbergh lands at Croydon Airport, London, completing his historic transatlantic one-man flight on April 20, 1927." Lindbergh completed his solo transatlantic flight on May 20, 1927 in Paris. The picture could be of him flying into Croydon because he visited there shortly after his stop in Paris, but his visit to Croydon wasn't on April 20, 1927. I understand how such an error could happen, but for a book such as this, there shouldn't be errors like that and is the reason why I can't give this book as high a recommendation as I would like. That's why you shouldn't use Wikipedia and Google to do your research for a book like this.
The book is divided into nine chapters and attempts to provide a go-to source for basic questions about geography, geology, astronomy, anthropology, world history, and basic science. The chapters are Maps & Globes, The Universe, Planet Earth, Life on Earth, Climates & Habitats, The Human World, World History, Science & Technology, and Countries of the World. My favorite section of the book is Chapter Nine: Countries of the World. This section provides a profile of all 194 countries of the world. The countries are divided into the six continents they can be found upon. For each country there is a small picture of the nations national flag, the complete name of the country, basic information about the country (land area, population, capital, etc.), and a short paragraph about the country. I also liked how colorful the book is. NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC is known for there breathtaking photos and they don't disappoint in this book. There are over 500 colored photographs and illustrations as well as more than 100 modern and archival maps.
I enjoy THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC ANSWER BOOK and believe it will be a reference book I refer to often. However, it's not flawless. For instance, on page 310 there is a photograph of Charles Lindbergh with the caption "Charles Lindbergh lands at Croydon Airport, London, completing his historic transatlantic one-man flight on April 20, 1927." Lindbergh completed his solo transatlantic flight on May 20, 1927 in Paris. The picture could be of him flying into Croydon because he visited there shortly after his stop in Paris, but his visit to Croydon wasn't on April 20, 1927. I understand how such an error could happen, but for a book such as this, there shouldn't be errors like that and is the reason why I can't give this book as high a recommendation as I would like. That's why you shouldn't use Wikipedia and Google to do your research for a book like this.
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