Entertaining Science Experiments with Everyday Objects


Book Description

A prominent popular science writer presents simple instructions for 100 illustrated experiments. Memorable, easily understood experiments illuminate principles related to astronomy, chemistry, physiology, psychology, mathematics, topology, probability, acoustics, other areas.




Science of Everyday Things


Book Description

Contains forty entries that examine the principles that underlay various phenomena of chemistry and explore their application in everyday life, covering measurement, matter, atoms and molecules, elements, metals, nonmetals and metalloids, bonding and reactions, solutions and mixtures, and organic chemistry.




The Physics of Everyday Things


Book Description

Physics professor, bestselling author, and dynamic storyteller James Kakalios reveals the mind-bending science behind the seemingly basic things that keep our daily lives running, from our smart phones and digital “clouds” to x-ray machines and hybrid vehicles. Most of us are clueless when it comes to the physics that makes our modern world so convenient. What’s the simple science behind motion sensors, touch screens, and toasters? How do we glide through tolls using an E-Z Pass, or find our way to new places using GPS? In The Physics of Everyday Things, James Kakalios takes us on an amazing journey into the subatomic marvels that underlie so much of what we use and take for granted. Breaking down the world of things into a single day, Kakalios engages our curiosity about how our refrigerators keep food cool, how a plane manages to remain airborne, and how our wrist fitness monitors keep track of our steps. Each explanation is coupled with a story revealing the interplay of the astonishing invisible forces that surround us. Through this “narrative physics,” The Physics of Everyday Things demonstrates that—far from the abstractions conjured by terms like the Higgs Boson, black holes, and gravity waves—sophisticated science is also quite practical. With his signature clarity and inventiveness, Kakalios ignites our imaginations and enthralls us with the principles that make up our lives.




Cut in Half


Book Description

A science writer and a photographer explore the complicated inner workings of seeming simple everyday objects. What exactly is inside a laptop, a golf ball, a vacuum cleaner, or a novelty singing fish toy? The insides of these and dozens of other objects are revealed in this photographic exploration of the stuff all around us, exposed and explained. With the help of a high-pressure waterjet cutter able to slice through four inches of steel plate, designer and fabricator Mike Warren (creator of the popular Cut in Half YouTube channel) cuts into everything from boom boxes to boxing gloves, oil filters to seashells, describing and demystifying the inner workings and materials of each. With gorgeously detailed photography, Cut in Half is a fascinating and accessible popular science look at the extraordinary in the everyday. Praise for Cut in Half “If you’ve ever wondered what it looks like inside a hair dryer, or a baseball, or a Magic 8-ball, this book is for you. Mike Warren cuts things in half with a high-pressure waterjet cutter and then has an explanation of what you’re looking at inside. . . . One fun feature: the cover of the book itself is “cut in half” along the center.” —GeekDad “A book of mesmerizing photographs of objects that have been perfectly cut in half. . . . Accompanying each photograph are explanations from Warren, who has been doing this for years on his YouTube channel, that walk us through the amazing complexity of the many apparently simple objects.” —Fast Company “Let your device addict explore the fascinating inner workings of common household items with this book from gadget You Tuber Mike Warren.” —Real Simple




Breakfast with Einstein


Book Description

A Sunday Times Book of the Year From the author of the international bestseller How to Teach Quantum Physics to Your Dog Your humble alarm clock, digital cameras, the smell of coffee, the glow of a grill, fibre broadband, smoke detectors… all hold secrets about quantum physics. Beginning at sunrise, Chad Orzel reveals the extraordinary science that underpins the simplest activities we all do every day, from making toast to shopping online. It’s all around us, the wonderful weirdness of quantum – you just have to know where to look.




The Science of Everyday Life


Book Description

A fascinating and accessible guide to chemistry and physics using the everyday objects around us.




Doing Things with Things


Book Description

It has been claimed that the natural sciences have abstracted for themselves a 'material world' set apart from human concerns, and social sciences, in their turn, constructed 'a world of actors devoid of things'. While a subject such as archaeology, by its very nature, takes objects into account, other disciplines, such as psychology, emphasize internal mental structures and other non-material issues. This book brings together a team of contributors from across the social sciences who have been taking 'things' more seriously to examine how people relate to objects. The contributors focus on every day objects and how these objects enter into our activities over the course of time. Using a combination of different theoretical approaches, including actor network theory, ecological psychology, cognitive linguistics and science and technology studies, the book argues against the standard notion of objects and their properties as inert and meaningless and argues for the need to understand the relations between people and objects in terms of process and change.




Sneaky Uses for Everyday Things


Book Description

The original, practical guide that offers readers “a chance to become real-life MacGyvers” with “sections on gimmicks, gadgets and survival techniques” (Publishers Weekly). Do you know how to generate battery power with simple household items? Or how to create your own home security system? Science-savvy author Cy Tymony does. And now you can learn how to create these things—and more than 40 other handy gadgets and gizmos—in Sneaky Uses For Everyday Things. More than a simple do-it-yourself guide, this quirky collection teaches you how to transform ordinary objects into the extraordinary just a few minutes. With more than 80 solutions and bonus applications at your disposal, you will be ready for almost any situation. Included are survival, security, self-defense, and silly applications that are just plain fun




The Kid's Book of Simple Everyday Science


Book Description

"These 40 simple science activities will have young kids searching the house for everyday items to learn about temperature, pressure, water, air, heat, and plants! Each easy and fun activity includes how-to photos, simple instructions, short explanations, and introduces beginning math principles. With tips and extra information to extend the scientific experience, this book will get kids thinking like scientists in no time at all! Book includes: supply & tool lists, visual and text-based explanations, step-by-step instructions and photos, and safety information."--




The Beauty of Everyday Things


Book Description

The daily lives of ordinary people are replete with objects, common things used in commonplace settings. These objects are our constant companions in life. As such, writes Soetsu Yanagi, they should be made with care and built to last, treated with respect and even affection. They should be natural and simple, sturdy and safe - the aesthetic result of wholeheartedly fulfilling utilitarian needs. They should, in short, be things of beauty. In an age of feeble and ugly machine-made things, these essays call for us to deepen and transform our relationship with the objects that surround us. Inspired by the work of the simple, humble craftsmen Yanagi encountered during his lifelong travels through Japan and Korea, they are an earnest defence of modest, honest, handcrafted things - from traditional teacups to jars to cloth and paper. Objects like these exemplify the enduring appeal of simplicity and function: the beauty of everyday things.