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Oil

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Eyewitness Oil is a brand-new and up-to-date look at petroleum -- why we need it, where we get it, and how we use it. By tracing its roots from 6,500 years ago in the Middle East through the dawn of the Oil Age in 1853 and finally to present day, find out why oil truly is king. Stunning real-life photography of oil tankers, refineries, and spills lets you be an eyewitness to the substance long referred to as "black gold." This book also includes a CD with additional clip art as well as a pull-out wall chart to take you deeper into the world of fossil fuels. See the inner workings of a car engine, find out how geologists locate underground oil deposits, and get an insider's look at the controversial substance responsible for the beginning -- and, if we're not careful, the end of life as we know it today!

Includes CD with clip-art and wall chart -- at the same price as the original editions
Includes spectacular, detailed full-color photographs and illustrations
72-page format includes 8 bonus pages full of amazing facts
Library-bound editions available without CDs for all titles

72 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2007

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About the author

John Farndon

633 books31 followers
John Farndon is an internationally known author, as well as a playwright, composer and songwriter, whose work has been performed at such theatres as the Donmar and Almeida in London and the Salisbury Playhouse and selected for showcases, such as Beyond the Gate.

He has written hundreds of books, which have sold millions of copies around the world in most major languages and include many best-sellers, such as the award-winning Do Not Open, which received rave reviews in the USA and became a cult-hit as well as featuring on the New York Times and Washington Post best-seller lists. In earlier years, he wrote mostly for children, and has been shortlisted a record four times for the junior Science Book prize. Books such as How Science Works and How the Earth Works each sold over a million copies worldwide. But recently he has written much more for adults.

Many of his books focus on popular science, and in particular earth science, nature, and environmental issues. His Practical Encyclopedia of Rocks and Mineral is widely used as a reference work by geologists, while The Atlas of Oceans, his big book on endangered life in the oceans for Yale in the USA (A&C Black in the UK and Australian Geographic in Australia), garnered glowing reports prepublication from major figures such as the Cousteaus, Carl Safina, Nancy Knowlton and Harm de Blij.

But he has covered a wide range of topics, from contemporary China to the food market. The history of ideas and intellectual curiosity is a particular speciality.

In 2010, his book for Icon Do You Think You're Clever? was a best-seller, reaching the top 20 on Amazon and the top 10 in South Africa and Turkey, and was shortlisted for the Society of Authors Education Award. The follow-up The World’s Greatest Idea was selected as one of the top 50 Wish List books of the year in South Africa.

He has been interviewed extensively on radio and TV stations around the world, and conducted talks, demonstrations and displays at many events, from the Brighton Science Festival to the Oxford Literary Festival.

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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
1,921 reviews22 followers
January 17, 2016
I read a 2010 edition of this book. Very informative even though some of the technology has been surpassed. There are many more things made from oil than I was aware. The geology explanations were well done.
Profile Image for Angus Woodward.
Author 4 books11 followers
February 1, 2011
Excellent overview of oil's history, extraction, refinement, uses, etc., with surprising depth.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews

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