Over 120 specialists have researched and prepared the 17,000-plus entries of this state-of-the-art one-volume encyclopedia. It is the only reference book of its kind to be not only endorsed, but actually written by the key authorities in each branch of human knowledge today. The result is, in effect, a one-volume library designed to reflect the latest and most up-to-date state of its many fields. The photographs, drawings and diagrams, plus the dozens of quick-reference tables have been compiled under the supervision of the Editorial Board. Virtually every country in the world is represented in the some 150 individual maps - this in addition to the ful-colour atlas section that provides an overall view of the world.