Throughout history, humans have always been curious about their environment, themselves, and those around them; and tried to put order, purpose, and meaning to the things that they didn't understand. People have always turned to science to help them answer their questions, solve problems, and improve their lives. It began with humans' first exposure to fire and has been going strong ever since. In order to understand the direction of the future, it is important to understand the direction in which we have come from and why. This SMART GUIDE helps you do just that-it traces each major scientific area-the earth, life, physical, and social sciences-through time, providing a concise portrayal of how each evolved, where it is now, and what exciting developments may be possible in the future.Science is also behind just about all the conveniences we have available today, and taking a look backwards for a view as to just how today's fast-paced technology evolved is fascinating. For example, who still remembers telegraphs, Morse Code, switchboard operators, phones with party lines, rotary dial phones, phonographs, 8-track tapes, flashbulbs with flash powder, manual typewriters with ribbons you had to manually ink, carbon copiers, and computer card stack readers? Yet without these "simplistic" inventions, todays high-tech counterparts of electronic equipment would not exist. This GUIDE puts that evolution of technology into perspective for you, too!In this SMART GUIDE you will learn about:* The unsolved mysteries of the ancient world* Just how sophisticated those ancient scientists really were* Why the Middle Ages Weren't so Dark After All* The Amazing Technological Achievements of the Renaissance-it Wasn't All About Art* The Breakthroughs in the Physical Sciences During the Scientific Revolution* Amazing Discoveries in Exploration* Multitudes of Ingenious Inventions and Creative Ideas* How Wartime Technology Benefits You* Incredible Advances Made in Medicine and How They Will Help you Live Longer* The Technological Explosion of the Information Age and Why we Can't Live Without it Now* How Science is Present Everywhere we go and in Everything we do! The bottom line is that science has developed over the centuries and led up to the explosion of technology available today in virtually every aspect of life.