Nypl Science Desk Reference (The New York Public Library Series) [Paperback]

It's too bad that some students don't understand the value of this sort of reference book. To expect it to cover in depth all of the fields that it addresses shows a misunderstanding of the purpose of an encyclopedic reference. It gives one a start on his or her in-depth research, and provides enough information for many investigations. I found it to be a most useful reference book. It is also a very convenient one volume source of most conversion tables and equivalents. Want to convert furlongs per fortnight to miles per hour? With the information included here you can do it.

I cannot end this review without commenting on the statement made by one reviewer that he had covered all this material in his high school science classes. What an amazing science department to cover everything from Astronomy to Evolutionary Theory to Genetics to Nuclear and Quantum Physics to Environmental Sciences to Space Exploration and to Paleontology to name but a few. I'd like to send my children to his or her school.

1. A breakdown into various fields of science.

2. Some idea of why each field of science is important.

3. Basic concepts within each field

4.Biographical information about men and women who have made key contributions to the field under discussion.

5. Historical highlights within the field under discussion

6. Terminology used in each field.

7. Lists of additional sources of information available to the researcher in need of more in-depth information.

How well does THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY SCIENCE DESK REFERENCE meet these criteria?

It is broken down into 14 major categories; 3 categories of general information -- "Scientific Measurement," Scientific Symbols and Signs," and "Time." The next 10 sections are devoted to specific fields of science such as "Biology," "Physics," and "Environmental Science." The final section is devoted to "Useful Science Resources" such as zoos, museums, scientific organizations, et al.

Using the section on Chemistry as an example, each section is broken down into subsections along these lines:

A general definition of Chemistry

A listing of the generally recognized branches of Chemistry (Analytical, Bio-, Geo-, etc.)

Classifications, Atomic Structures, States of Matter, Periodic Table of the Elements, and many others

An alphabetical listing of key contributors to the field of Chemistry throughout history

A chronological listing of key discoveries in Chemistry from 600 B. C. to the present

A list of common terms used in Chemistry

Finally, a list of 8 sources (Text Books, Scientific Papers, etc.) of additional information for those who wish to go into a more detailed study of a particular aspect of Chemistry.

This same type of information is provided in the section devoted to each of the other main categories of science.

It is my opinion that this book provides exactly the sort of information that one might expect from a one volume reference book covering such a broad field, and, through its sections on additional sources of information, provides the information needed by a student or researcher who wishes to delve deeper into a specific subject.