Seeing

Children's Literature

Sight is the most appreciated of our five senses and this book offers a thorough background for young students into how we see. Six of the eight chapters cover different components of sight, such as "Seeing Colors" and "Seeing Motion," and each explains the mechanisms involved. Information is also provided about the abilities of various creatures and how we humans have developed ways allowing us to expand our eyesight artificially. For instance, rattlesnakes have heat-sensitive pits on their faces, allowing them to find their prey by sensing body heat. We now have infrared devices based on heat-sensing technology. Up-to-date information is included about virtual reality as well as biometrics, the ability to identify people by scanning a physical attribute, such as the iris, which is so much in the news today. There are many sidebars containing interesting or unusual facts and an extensive glossary is included, as are sources for further information. Part of the "Senses and Sensors" series. 2001, Twenty-First Century Books/The Millbrook Press, $25.90. Ages 7 to 11. Reviewer:Carolyn Mott Ford