How Things Work

by Steve Parker

Discover the inner workings of 150 machines, gadgets and vehicles, from digital cameras to bucketwheel excavators. Each illustration explains the technology behind central components and throughout there are photographs to show each subject in action. Every spread explores the history and the future of individual inventions while Internet links provide an exciting way to find out more.

Genres: Reference, Science, Childrens

384 pages, Paperback

First published February 6, 1991

About the author

Steve Parker is a British science writer known for producing hundreds of children's and adult nonfiction books covering zoology, medicine, evolution, and natural history. Educated at the University of Wales, Bangor, where he earned first class honours in zoology, he later worked at the Natural History Museum and held editorial positions at Dorling Kindersley before becoming a freelance author during the late 1980s. Parker contributed early titles to the acclaimed Eyewitness series and later wrote award-winning books including Science Crazy, Fizzing Physics, The Human Body Book, and Kill or Cure. He has also edited major collaborative works on evolution and medicine, regularly visits schools and libraries, and serves as a Senior Scientific Fellow of the Zoological Society of London.

Reviews

[Teethcrow Maltych]

Why did this madman think he can teach me how things work?

[Alanna]

There are a lot of great in-depth inner workings in this book that kept the kids asking for more. We took our time reading and talking about each section though, it was great to hear how they thought things worked both before and after reading the chapters out loud. Great scientific type discussions with young children curious about the world around them!

[Joshua]

This book tells us how things work. It tells you interesting things on how big heavy machinery work and how it can withstand the force of the heavy weights it lifts up. It explains how machines are built for speed and what type of motor they use and how streamlining helps it.

[Rose]

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