survival

This pocket-sized, waterproof booklet was created by Smithsonian scientists for soldiers and airmen in the Pacific to carry with them during World War II.  It details survival information for stranded servicemen, including how to navigate without instruments, abandon ship, start fires, find water, build shelter, and identify edible and dangerous plants and animals in the tropics, the arctic, and the desert.  Over 1 million booklets were distributed by the end of the war and potentially saved numerous lives.