DK Science Encyclopedia (Revised Edition) [Hardcover]

Susan McKeever (Editor), Martyn Foote (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1999

The essential scientific reference book for today's young scientists.

Here is the ultimate guide to science and technology for the nineties and beyond. Packed with up-to-date information, The DK Science Encyclopedia explains the principles of science in a lively and exciting way. The scope of subjects covered is immense -- from atoms to lasers, acids to speedometers, and marsupials to magnets. More than 280 major entries cover key subjects such as evolution, energy, polymers, and pollution, while 1,900 subentries include biographies of great scientists and inventors, time charts detailing landmarks in science, and fact boxes on subjects of general scientific interest.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

This encyclopedia can make anyone feel like a scientist! Not only does it have fascinating facts on everything from atoms to zephyrs, it also shows how scientists work--describing, measuring, and asking questions about the world. Filled with detailed, sharp illustrations and eye-catching photographs, this book could keep a curious kid (or adult!) occupied for weeks. The one- and two-page entries are thematically organized--much more useful than alphabetical entries for making connections and thinking about whole systems. Some of the best categories are "Reactions," "Materials," "Weather," "Space," and "How Living Things Work." But every entry has accurate, well-written text cross-indexed to related pages and to the "Fact Finder" section in the back, with charts, tables, and maps to use with each section. A glossary and index round out this thorough package. You may grow so attached to this fantastic encyclopedia that you never want to leave it behind.... For portability, we recommend the pocket version, which weighs less, but is jam-packed with great science. And for budding biologists who can't get enough of the "Living Things" section in the Science Encyclopedia, the The DK Nature Encyclopedia is sure to please. (Ages 9 to 12) --Therese Littleton

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-8?A revision of the 1993 edition with minor changes and additions, this volume differs from its nearest competitor, The Kingfisher Science Encyclopedia (1993) chiefly in its basic organization; rather than an alphabetical arrangement, the 280 entries are grouped into 12 topical sections ("Weather," "Ecology," "Reactions," etc.). Each one-to-two page article is drizzled with small, clipped color photos and paintings supplemented by boxed capsule biographies, brief side excursions, and see-also references. The book concludes with a relatively dense "Fact Finder Section" into which are gathered charts, statistics, and specialized terms. Updating has been done with such a light hand that there is still no mention of flat-screen TV, the World Wide Web, cloned mammals, or the Mars Pathfinder expedition. Still, for its emphasis on the interconnectedness of science and technology, this title has a place in collections. Consider it as a fresh replacement copy rather than a new work.?John Peters, New York Public Library
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 448 pages
• Publisher: DK CHILDREN; Revised edition (September 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0789421909
• ISBN-13: 978-0789421906
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.9 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #232,999 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #39 in Books > Education & Reference > Encyclopedias > Children's
  • #52 in Books > Teens > Education & Reference > Reference

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent combination of graphical and textual learning, November 29, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (Los Gatos, California, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: DK Science Encyclopedia (Revised Edition) (Hardcover)

This book can clearly teach you the core basics of every branch of science. This book is a joy to read and see.

This book will appeal to old and young alike.

This book does not dwell on any subject for too long so don't expect exhaustive information on a particular category.

For people who like comics this book is especially suited.

With this book alone, anyone can have obtain an extensive understanding of the world of science and nature.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Typos, December 12, 2002

By 

HBeano (Cambridge, UK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: DK Science Encyclopedia (Revised Edition) (Hardcover)

This book covers almost everything school children will learn in science class. My children refer to it often to look for those extra new details concerning their classes. However they have discovered some errors (and this is the revised ed.)which I will call typos especially in the Periodic Table, which did dampen their enthusiasm with the book and shook their trust a little.

22 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Fragility of Science, December 31, 2004

By 

NorthAtlanticIslander "Redeemed" (San Diego, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: DK Science Encyclopedia (Revised Edition) (Hardcover)

DK makes some of the world's best books for kids; that is indisputable. It's easy to nitpick, of course. The precision photography of the DK books, and the very attention to detail can render the technology information obsolete fairly rapidly. But for the here and now, DK books have no rival. However, they may well not last beyond the now. Here's my pet peeve with this particular book: It is so big and heavy, that if your kids love this book as much as mine do, the cover will quickly separate from the book, leaving the whole thing vulnerable to unravelling. We've lost our contents and index already, now we're losing our science history pages! I'm so sad about this! This book literally falls apart under its own weight, when handled by children. I will attempt a hold-together fix with some duct tape, but I'm not sure how long that will last. This book is such an incredible resource, and kids will spend hours reading it to themselves or dragging it over to you for an explanation of this or that, but its construction is not sufficiently strong for its weight and target age level. A tough paperback binding would have been a far better thing. Kids need strong, strong books. If you want to keep this book in spiffy condition, then by all means put it up on a shelf, defeat the purpose of buying it in the first place, and then your kids can sell it on e-bay in 50 years or so as an antique curiosity. If you're some hyper-organized size-5 perfect freak of nature, you can keep it on your special shelf of fragile books that you personally take down and read to your children for 25 minutes every day after Yoga, and then you can do the same for your grandchildren, if your kids ever let you see them. If you let this book just get enjoyed and learned from freely, you can expect that a: Your kids will love it and learn a lot, and b: The book won't last two years, unless you only have girls, who tend to be less destructive little beasts. I don't think girls will attempt to place this book as a bridge between couch and coffee table, then jump on it. Boys might. Punks.