Eyewitness Encyclopedia of Science

Published by Dorling Kindersley Multimedia, the Eyewitness Encyclopedia of Science, with its imaginative layout and creative use of sound and other effects, will entice even the most disinterested student into the world of science. Recommended for upper elementary and middle school. $89.95. On CD-ROM for Windows.

• Content
  • Who's Who
  • Quiz Master
  • Periodic Table
• Educational Merit
• Special Features
• Ease of Use
• Comments from Young Testers
• Installation Details
• Other Reviews
• Thank you, Student Testers!

Math, Physics, Chemistry, Life Science, the Earth and the Universe: these are the five main subjects covered in the Encyclopedia. Each main subject is divided into several general topics such as reactions (chemistry), nuclear fusion and nuclear fission (physics), and ecology and zoology (life sciences). The general topics are then broken down into subtopics and individual articles.

The articles provide concisely written explanations about each subtopic and are the primary source of information in the Encyclopedia. For example, the general topic ecology is divided into the four subtopics, The Living Earth, Where Organisms Live, the Earth's Cycles, and Human Influences. Each of these subtopics is explained in a separate article. Each article is full of links to related information in the Encyclopedia. Within the text, key words are highlighted in red and are links to the glossary, providing a quick way for students to access definitions of unfamiliar terms. There are slide and video sequences, and animation to help increase and reinforce the student's understanding of the subtopic.

Finally, there are "see also" and picture icons that a doubleclick of the mouse will either transport the student to related articles in another section of the Encyclopedia or will open pop-up screens that provide more detailed information about a concept or term. [Top of Page]

Who's Who: This is an alphabetically arranged collection of 46 brief biographies of men and women who have made significant contributions to math and the sciences. Some of the names included are Gregor Mendel, Lise Meitner, Pythagoras, Wilhelm Rontgen, Charles Darwin, and Hypatia. It is nice to see a good representation of women who have made their mark in the sciences in this collection.

Students will enjoy seeing the large pictures provided for each person in this biographical collection. In fact, scrolling through the biographical index, that has the person's last name alongside their picture, will be like reading through the school yearbook and matching names to faces. Finally, students can get more information about the individual by selecting the life story option and scrolling through a time line of that person's life. [Top of Page]

Quiz Master: This was a popular spot for the children observed exploring this program for the first time. It is a collection of questions hidden behind four corrugated metallic looking panels each representing a different category: energy, discoveries, structures, and microworld. Doubleclicking with the mouse on one of the panels causes the panel to slide up revealing the question inside. The student reads and tries to answer that question.

However, if the student doesn't like that question they can scroll up or down within that panel until they find a question they do like, or, with the doubleclick of the mouse, they can close that panel and open another one for a different question in another category. Each opening and closing of the panel is accompanied by a sound effect imitating the sound of a door opening and closing.

Another option, and several of the children observed preferred this one, is the chance option. By double clicking on a lever, located beneath the four panels, questions are selected randomly for the students to answer. Panels slide open automatically revealing the question inside. If the student doesn't like that question they can close that panel, and another, or sometimes the same panel, will open offering a different question.

The answer to every question can be found within The Encyclopedia. If the student wants to see the answer, they double click on the "find out" button with the mouse, and the program will take them on the path to where the answer is located. This is quite an involved step because the path involves traveling through the various nested shells beginning with the main subject, moving to the general topics, then on to the subtopics, until finally stopping at the individual article where the answer lies. While this process does take a little time, it offers the advantage of showing students the relationship of the question to the subject involved. [Top of Page]

Periodic Table: Viewers can quickly get information about the elements with this interactive and colorful arrangement of the Periodic Table. There is an audio introduction that briefly explains what the Periodic Table is. Double clicking on an element opens a pop-up window that defines the element and gives its atomic weight and other information unique to that element. [Top of Page]

This program is not intended to be a primary source for in-depth research. Instead, it's purpose is to present to children some basic scientific facts and concepts, and to generate ideas and possible topics for further research. Also, the biographical section provides students with a good introduction to an array of famous men and women who made significant contributions to science. Finally, the program will help generate excitement and interest in the sciences for those students previously not too enthusiastic about the subject. [Top of Page]

Visual Appeal: The strength of this program, like other DK products, rests in its visually appealing design and entertaining style of delivery. The quality illustrations, animations, and slide and video sequences in the program were collected from over thirty sources such as Image Bank, NASA, Oxford Scientific Films, Ltd, and Timescape Image Library.

Audio: The clear and melodic voices of Lorelei King and Jeff Harding narrating the text captivate the viewer. It was interesting to observe how children, 8 to 12 years of age, would stop and read the text when it was narrated. However, when the audio option was turned off, the children skipped over the text and quickly moved to another selection on the screen.

Index: Everything of significance in the Encyclopedia is listed in the index. Every term in the index is linked to a definition, and to the rest of the Encyclopedia. The user can search the index by typing a key word inside a search box at the top of the scroll, or by scrolling down in search of a particular subject of interest.

Options: This section is a small panel with printing, copying, and sound options available. Here the user can select to print or copy to a clipboard a specific screen or window. Also, the user can use the sound option to turn the audio portion of the program on or off. [Top of Page]

     
     "Woa!"

     "Cool!"

     "Awesome!"

     "I haven't seen anything like this before."

     "I can't believe I spent an hour on this!
      It seemed like 10 minutes."

     "I liked the Quiz Master because it was simple to use,
      and it would take me to the answer when I didn't know it."

     "I've got to see how this works!"

     "That's one weird machine!"
      (referring to the Who's Who section) 

For Best Video Quality: looks best in 256-color mode

Installation: After installation of this CD-ROM, the computer must be restarted. The program ran smoothly. The Help section has a useful "Having Problems?" chapter for troubleshooting problems with sound, video, printing and copying, or the display. [Top of Page]

C.F.G. "The Encyclopedia of Science: Pulleys, Bells and Whistles." CD-ROM World. January, 1995. Page 79:

     "...presents scientific topics in a manner that will amuse
      students while it delivers technical information." 

     "...is a good beginner's guide to the subject."