Fans of these popular marine mammals will be intrigued.
On boats and in labs, biologists study the dwindling population of orcas living in the waters off the San Juan Islands between Canada and Washington.
A study that began in 1971 is continued today by scientists from the Center for Whale Research. They photograph each orca in what are called the Southern Resident pods, follow them in the field, take blubber samples, collect their scat, and perform extensive lab analyses of their data. This attractively illustrated title introduces these family-loving mammals, often misnamed “killer whales.” The Southern Residents are fish eaters; their usual prey are salmon, whose populations are also shrinking. Joining researchers in a small boat, the author observes a mother teaching her calf to fish. She describes another series of studies proving that sounds made by boats stress the orcas. She demonstrates the use of dogs trained to find whale scat and the use of a camera-equipped drone to photograph the pods without disturbing them. Between six longer chapters are shorter sections of whale facts as well as descriptions of the Samish Nation orca-naming ceremony, orca food around the world, a captive whale in Florida, and a Chinook salmon’s migration; there are also suggestions for reader involvement. The exposition here is less immediate than in some other entries in this long-running series, the narrative arc hard to follow, and the maps unclear, but the story is important.
Fans of these popular marine mammals will be intrigued. (glossary, selected bibliography and sources, acknowledgements and author’s note, photo credits, index) (Nonfiction. 10-14)Pub Date: July 24, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-544-89826-4
Page Count: 80
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: May 27, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2018
Hot on the heels of the well-received Leonardo da Vinci (2005) comes another agreeably chatty entry in the Giants of Science series. Here the pioneering physicist is revealed as undeniably brilliant, but also cantankerous, mean-spirited, paranoid and possibly depressive. Newton’s youth and annus mirabilis receive respectful treatment, the solitude enforced by family estrangement and then the plague seen as critical to the development of his thoughtful, methodical approach. His subsequent squabbles with the rest of the scientific community—he refrained from publishing one treatise until his rival was dead—further support the image of Newton as a scientific lone wolf. Krull’s colloquial treatment sketches Newton’s advances in clearly understandable terms without bogging the text down with detailed explanations. A final chapter on “His Impact” places him squarely in the pantheon of great thinkers, arguing that both his insistence on the scientific method and his theories of physics have informed all subsequent scientific thought. A bibliography, web site and index round out the volume; the lack of detail on the use of sources is regrettable in an otherwise solid offering for middle-grade students. (Biography. 10-14)
Pub Date: April 1, 2006
ISBN: 0-670-05921-8
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2006
This glossy, colorful title in the “I Want To Be” series has visual appeal but poor organization and a fuzzy focus, which limits its usefulness. Each double-paged layout introduces a new topic with six to eight full-color photographs and a single column of text. Topics include types of environmentalists, eco-issues, waste renewal, education, High School of Environmental Studies, environmental vocabulary, history of environmentalism, famous environmentalists, and the return of the eagle. Often the photographs have little to do with the text or are marginal to the topic. For example, a typical layout called “Some Alternative Solutions” has five snapshots superimposed on a double-page photograph of a California wind farm. The text discusses ways to develop alternative forms of energy and “encourage environmentally friendly lifestyles.” Photos include “a healer who treats a patient with alternative therapy using sound and massage,” and “the Castle,” a house built of “used tires and aluminum cans.” Elsewhere, “Did You Know . . . ” shows a dramatic photo of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, but the text provides odd facts such as “ . . . that in Saudi Arabia there are solar-powered pay phones in the desert?” Some sections seem stuck in, a two-page piece on the effects of “El Niño” or 50 postage-stamp–sized photos of endangered species. The author concludes with places to write for more information and a list of photo credits. Pretty, but little here to warrant purchase. (Nonfiction. 9-11)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-15-201862-X
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2000
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