Includes bibliographical references (pages 198-199) and index.

Another one bites the dust -- Out with a bang: Building demolition -- We've got a job to do: Demolition engineer -- Crushing it: Car crushers -- Timber!: Taking down giant trees -- Smash it up: Wrecking balls -- Lesson learned!: Demolition disaster -- Look out below: Breaking bridges -- Try this!: Da Vinci Bridge: make a bridge out of craft sticks -- Built to break -- Crash compactor: Safe car design -- We've got a job to do: Crash-test Engineer -- Shock absorber: Electrical fuses -- Big bangs: Exploding fireworks -- Lesson learned!: Fireworks fail -- Head protector: Helmet technology -- Burn, baby, burn: Self-destructing spacecraft -- Try this!: Snack smasher: build a package to protect a precious treat -- Famous failures -- The Titanic: Iceberg encounter -- Sticky situation: The Great Molasses Flood -- We've got a job to do: Forensic engineer -- Up in flames: the Hindenburg -- Lesson learned!: Buckling Bridge -- Tippy tower: The Leaning Tower of Pisa -- Sinking stadium: The Minneapolis Metrodome -- Not-so-great Pyramids: Failed wonders of the world -- Try this!: Incredible edible edifice: Build a strong tower, then watch it fall -- Destructive by nature -- Swallowed up: Sinkholes -- Shake it up: Earthquakes -- Lesson learned!: One big quake -- Gone to rot: How things decompose -- Avalaaaaanche!: Fast-moving snow slides -- We've got a job to do: Storm chaser -- Plague of pests: Locusts -- Try this! Apple mummies: Keep apples from decomposing -- Everyday chaos -- The big burst: Popping balloons -- Screen saver: Shattering smartphones -- We've got a job to do: Skateboard smasher -- Say "Aaaaah!": Tooth decay -- Super skeleton: Broken bones -- Metal destroyer: Rust -- All backed up: Clogged toilets -- Lesson learned!: The great sink -- Try this! A bit rusty: Discover how to make rust, and stop it from forming in the first place.

Ages 8-12 National Geographic

Grades 4-6 National Geographic