Book picks similar to
The Complete Guide To Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Reptiles by Chris McNab
dinosaurs
non-fiction
3-5
science
Ancient Egypt
George Hart - 1990
From the splendor of the pharaoh's court to the everyday life of ordinary people, the great civilization of the Nile valley is revealed in page after page of dramatic photos of the objects they left behind: human and animal mummies, reed brushes, children's pull-toys, and more. "Stunning."--School Library Journal.
How Tall Was a T. Rex?
Alison Limentani - 2018
Everyone’s fascinated by T. Rex and wants to know what this big, fearsome creature was really like. How tall was it? How much did it eat? Did it have scales or feathers? Find out! This brilliant exploration of the world’s scariest dinosaur offers loads of eye-opening facts and fun comparisons—for example, a T. Rex was as long as six lions and its teeth were as big as bananas—that budding paleontologists will love!
Periodic Tales: The Curious Lives of the Elements
Hugh Aldersey-Williams - 2011
Like you, the elements have lives: personalities and attitudes, talents and shortcomings, stories rich with meaning. You may think of them as the inscrutable letters of the periodic table but you know them much better than you realise. Welcome to a dazzling tour through history and literature, science and art. Here you'll meet iron that rains from the heavens and noble gases that light the way to vice. You'll learn how lead can tell your future while zinc may one day line your coffin. You'll discover what connects the bones in your body with the Whitehouse in Washington, the glow of a streetlamp with the salt on your dinner table. From ancient civilisations to contemporary culture, from the oxygen of publicity to the phosphorus in your pee, the elements are near and far and all around us. Unlocking their astonishing secrets and colourful pasts, Periodic Tales will take you on a voyage of wonder and discovery, excitement and novelty, beauty and truth. Along the way, you'll find that their stories are our stories, and their lives are inextricable from our own.
The Electra Story: The Dramatic History of Aviation's Most Controversial Airliner
Robert J. Serling - 1991
on the humid night of September 29, 1959, Braniff Flight 542 crashed on a farm near Buffalo, Texas. Less than six months later, Northwest Flight 710 crashed in a soybean field near Tell City, Indiana. Both planes were Lockheed Electras, and both, for no apparent reason, had lost a wing in mid-air. The combined toll of the two crashes was 97 lives. There were no survivors. Early the following October, during take-off from Boston’s Logan Airport, there was another Electra disaster, and the plane that had been supposedly foolproof became the object of the ugliest controversy in the history of commercial aviation. The Electra Story is an illuminating and incomparably thorough study of the plane’s entire career. From design through construction, rigorous testing, and brilliant initial performance, to the minute-by-minute record of the fatal flights, the scenes of wreckage, and then the painstaking efforts to solve the mystery. While the search for a “probable cause” went on, there was a crucial decision to be made: whether or not to let the Electras go on flying. Elwood R. Quesada, then Administrator of the Federal Aviation Agency, had to make that decision, and how he coped with this frightening responsibility is a remarkable tale in itself. The plane that had been a dream, then became a nightmare, is still flying today, and out of tragedy has come an important advance in man’s knowledge. Robert Serling’s evaluation of The Electra Story is an enlightening, vivid, unbiased and rare documented account. It is a human story of suspense, with dedication and courage. And as a story of how government, industry, technology, science and the public were all trapped in one intricate web, it is both revealing and significant. Praise for Robert Serling ‘High level of suspense and excitement.’ - De Moines Sunday Register ‘Serling has spun another winner’ – Publisher’s Weekly ‘…keeps you guessing til the end’ - Arizona Daily Star ‘Aviation buffs will revel in this thoroughgoing chronicle’ – Kirkus Robert J. Serling (1918-2010) was aviation editor of United Press International and won the annual TWA Best Aviation News Reporting Award for four years running.
The Princeton Field Guide to Dinosaurs
Gregory S. Paul - 2010
World-renowned dinosaur illustrator and researcher Gregory Paul provides comprehensive visual and textual coverage of the great Mesozoic animals that gave rise to the living dinosaurs, the birds. Incorporating the new discoveries and research that are radically transforming what we know about dinosaurs, this book is distinguished both by its scientific accuracy and the quality and quantity of its illustrations. It presents thorough descriptions of more than 735 dinosaur species and features more than 600 color and black-and-white images, including unique skeletal drawings, life studies, and scenic views--illustrations that depict the full range of dinosaurs, from small, feathered creatures to whale-sized supersauropods.Heavily illustrated species accounts of the major dinosaur groups are preceded by an extensive introduction that covers dinosaur history and biology, the extinction of nonavian dinosaurs, the origin of birds, and the history of dinosaur paleontology--and that also gives a taste of what it might be like to travel back to the time of the dinosaurs.The Princeton Field Guide to Dinosaurs is a must-have for anyone who loves dinosaurs, from the amateur enthusiast to the professional paleontologist.The first authoritative field guide to dinosaursCovers more than 735 speciesBeautiful, large-format volumeLavishly illustrated throughout, with more than 600 color and black-and-white drawings and figures, including: More than 130 color life studies, including scenic views Close to 450 skeletal, skull, head, and muscle drawings 8 color paleo-distribution maps Color timelineDescribes anatomy, physiology, locomotion, reproduction, and growth of dinosaurs, as well as the origin of birds and the extinction of nonavian dinosaurs
Death by Black Hole: And Other Cosmic Quandaries
Neil deGrasse Tyson - 2006
"One of today's best popularizers of science." —Kirkus Reviews.Loyal readers of the monthly "Universe" essays in Natural History magazine have long recognized Neil deGrasse Tyson's talent for guiding them through the mysteries of the cosmos with stunning clarity and almost childlike enthusiasm. Here, Tyson compiles his favorite essays across a myriad of cosmic topics. The title essay introduces readers to the physics of black holes by explaining the gory details of what would happen to your body if you fell into one. "Holy Wars" examines the needless friction between science and religion in the context of historical conflicts. "The Search for Life in the Universe" explores astral life from the frontiers of astrobiology. And "Hollywood Nights" assails the movie industry's feeble efforts to get its night skies right. Known for his ability to blend content, accessibility, and humor, Tyson is a natural teacher who simplifies some of the most complex concepts in astrophysics while simultaneously sharing his infectious excitement about our universe.
The Book of Humans: The Story of How We Became Us
Adam Rutherford - 2016
All of those organisms are rooted in a single origin, with a common code that underwrites our existence. This paradox - that our biology is indistinct from all life, yet we consider ourselves to be special - lies at the heart of who we are.In this original and entertaining tour of life on Earth, Adam Rutherford explores how many of the things once considered to be exclusively human are not: we are not the only species that communicates, makes tools, utilises fire, or has sex for reasons other than to make new versions of ourselves. Evolution has, however, allowed us to develop our culture to a level of complexity that outstrips any other observed in nature.THE BOOK OF HUMANS tells the story of how we became the creatures we are today, bestowed with the unique ability to investigate what makes us who we are. Illuminated by the latest scientific discoveries, it is a thrilling compendium of what unequivocally fixes us as animals, and reveals how we are extraordinary among them.
Counting Birds: The Idea That Helped Save Our Feathered Friends
Heidi E.Y. Stemple - 2018
What can you do to help endangered animals and make a positive change in our environment? Get counting! Counting Birds is a beautifully illustrated book that introduces kids to the idea of bird counts and bird watches. Along the way, they will learn about Frank Chapman, who used his bird knowledge and magazine Bird-Lore to found the first annual bird count. Bird counting helps professional researchers collect data, share expertise, and spread valuable information to help all kinds of birds around the world, from condors to hawks to kestrels and more. Counting Birds introduces kids to a whole feathered world that will fascinate and inspire them to get involved in conservation and become citizen scientists.
Bugs! Bugs! Bugs!
Jennifer Dussling - 1998
Launched in the spring, this exciting learning-to-read program combines DK's highly visual, non-fiction Eyewitness style with engaging, age-appropriate stories to help children learn to read. The four reading levels make up a structured literacy program that carefully guides children through their first steps in reading, and progressing to become confident and proficient readers. Each book is guaranteed to capture a child's interest, while developing his or her reading skills and general knowledge. Introducing 8 new titles each season, these are high quality paperbacks at affordable prices. Children will want to collect them all!
Whitaker's World of Facts
Russell Ash - 2005
It combines the most up-to-date, 'must have' information on every important subject on earth, with lashings of fact files, world record-breakers and 'top ten' style lists -all lavishly illustrated with full colour photographs. Hugely entertaining and informative, this book is a superb reference title for all the family. Praise for the first edition includes: "Russell Ash is the king of lists, the author of reference books that offer a short cut to pub-quiz stardom." The Independent "A Christmas read to dip into again and again. Essential Stuff." The Sunday Times
Adventures with Barefoot Critters
Teagan White - 2014
From gathering honey in spring to building cozy campfires in fall, the friends make the most of each season, both enjoying the great outdoors and staying snug inside. Learning the alphabet is fun when adventuring with these critters, and children and adults alike will delight in Teagan White's sweet, nostalgic illustrations.
New Scientist: The Origin of (almost) Everything
New Scientist - 2020
If these galaxies had always been travelling, he reasoned, then they must, at some point, have been on top of one another. This discovery transformed the debate about one of the most fundamental questions of human existence - how did the universe begin?Every society has stories about the origin of the cosmos and its inhabitants, but now, with the power to peer into the early universe and deploy the knowledge gleaned from archaeology, geology, evolutionary biology and cosmology, we are closer than ever to understanding where it all came from. In The Origin of (almost) Everything, New Scientist explores the modern origin stories of everything from the Big Bang, meteorites and dark energy, to dinosaurs, civilisation, timekeeping, belly-button fluff and beyond.From how complex life evolved on Earth, to the first written language, to how humans conquered space, The Origin of (almost) Everything offers a unique history of the past, present and future of our universe.span
River
Elisha Cooper - 2019
Through perilous weather and river rushes, the canoe and her captain survive and maneuver their way down the river back home.River is an outstanding introduction to seeing the world through the eyes of a young explorer and a great picture book for the STEAM curriculum.Maps and information about the Hudson River and famous landmarks are included in the back of the book.
A Bird Is a Bird
Lizzy Rockwell - 2014
Some birds are fantastically colorful and some are plain. But what do all birds share? Early nonfiction expert Lizzy Rockwell explains that birds have beaks, wings, and feathers, and hatch from eggs. Other animals might have some of these features in common, but only a bird has them all.Only a bird is a bird!A clear text and beautiful illustrations cover dozens of different birds and their shared characteristics, as well as the unique qualities of unusual birds, such as penguins and peacocks.
Prairie Dog Song: The Key to Saving North America's Grasslands
Susan L. Roth - 2016
The prairie and desert grasslands were home to a variety of animals, from small prairie dogs to huge bison. But in the nineteenth century, ranching and farming took hold in the grasslands, and over time many of the animals and plants vanished.Then, in the late 1980s, scientists discovered a region in Mexico where green and gold grasses still waved and prairie dogs still barked. The scientists understood the importance of this grassland ecosystem and the prairie dogs' key role in it. Could they now preserve the area and bring back its lost animals and plants?This moving nonfiction tale of environmental recovery builds on the success of the acclaimed Parrots Over Puerto Rico and The Mangrove Tree. Cumulative song text plus prose passages combine to celebrate North America s grasslands, their iconic prairie dogs, and the dedicated scientists who work to make the grasslands healthy again. Comprehensive backmatter makes this book perfect for classroom use, with text that hits both Science and Social Studies Common Core Standards. Teacher s Guide available at leeandlow.com."