Reviews: (by author)

Johnson, Rebecca L. Nanotechnology. Minneapolis : Lerner Books, 2006. $25.26

Nanotechnology is one of a series of new books published under the Cool Science rubric by Lerner Books aimed at exposing children in the 4 th -6 th grades to cutting-edge developments in science and technology. Author Rebecca Johnson has written more than fifty books for children and young adults. Here she examines the basic concepts of nanotechnology as well as its historical origins and potential for future development.

Nanotechnology refers to the science and techniques involved in creating objects on the atomic level using atoms and molecules as building blocks. While the possibility of manipulating matter on the atomic level was raised as early as 1959 by physicist Richard Feynman, the actual onset of nanotechnological development dates from the early 1980s, beginning with the invention of the scanning tunneling microscope which allowed scientists to actually see individual atoms for the first time.

Johnson's review of the field is admirably concise and well-organized. She begins with a brief introduction of nanotechnological fundamentals and proceeds to review the most significant developments in the field to date. The text is interspersed with eye-catching illustrations and interesting sidebars that will enhance young readers' interest in the material. Her discussion of the virtually unlimited potential some researchers ascribe to the future of nanotechnology, from microcomputers to nanobots, is both provocative and cautionary. All in all, this book is well-designed to capture the imagination of young scientists.

Mark Janssen, January 2006

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