HIDDEN SYSTEMS BY DAN NOTT
Dan Nott defines a hidden system as “something we don’t notice until it breaks.” He explains that “when these systems are doing what they are supposed to be doing, they become so commonplace that we hardly see them.” Because we often take these systems for granted, we tend to overlook the inequalities and environmental harms they perpetuate. He used comics to create Hidden Systems: Water, Electricity, the Internet, and the Secrets Behind the Systems We Use Every Day and takes us along on his deep inquiry into three of the hidden systems we have come to rely on most.
Driven by a series of guiding questions—how do we picture the internet and what is it exactly, how do we power our world with electricity, and how do our water systems integrate with the Earth’s changing climate—this graphic nonfiction text is a detailed, informative, and highly readable exploration of the inner workings of the systems that provide our connectivity, power, and water.
Hidden Systems is filled with text features that can be incorporated into mini-lessons and craft studies. It also includes glimpses into Nott’s process for creating the book with images from his notebook that would be a fantastic addition to a process study.