Strange Universe


Book Description

"Touches on a dizzying array of subjects, including UV rays, inert gases, fossils, meteorites, microwaves, rainbows . . . Like many a good teacher, Berman uses humor to entertain his audience and liven things up." —Los Angeles Times Bob Berman is motivated by a straightforward philosophy: everyone can understand science—and it's fun, too. In Strange Universe, he pokes into the bizarre and astonishingly true scientific facts that determine the world around us. Geared to the nonscientist, Berman's original essays are filled with the trademark wit and cleverness that has earned him acclaim over many years for his columns in Astronomy and Discover magazines. He emphasizes curiosities of the natural world to which everyone can relate, and dishes on the little-known secrets about space and some of science's biggest blunders (including a very embarrassing moment from Buzz Aldrin's trip to the moon). Fascinating to anyone interested in the wonders of our world and the cosmos beyond, Strange Universe will make you smile and think.




Janice VanCleave's Wild, Wacky, and Weird Earth Science Experiments


Book Description

In a series of fun and involving hands-on earth science experiments, kids learn why the Earth bulges at the equator, demonstrate the movement of the Earth’s axis, determine how the composition of the Earth affects its motion, and replicate the cause of the day-and-night cycle. They will also determine why the sky is not dark as soon as the Sun sinks below the horizon, learn how salt beds are formed, demonstrate how air takes up space, observe the effects of cool and warm temperatures on air movement, and replicate the formation of sea breezes. Featuring color illustrations and safe, simple step-by-step instructions, Janice VanCleave again shows just how much fun science can be.




Many More of Janice VanCleave’s Wild, Wacky, and Weird Earth Science Experiments


Book Description

In a series of fun and involving hands-on earth science experiments, kids learn why the atmosphere is thinner at the Earth's poles, how a lunar eclipse can indicate Earth's shape, and how to create a Foucault's pendulum. They will also demonstrate continental drift, learn how to model meridians and parallels, and create a topographic map and a 3D model of a mountain. Featuring color illustrations and safe, simple step-by-step instructions, Janice VanCleave shows just how much fun science can be.




More of Janice VanCleave's Wild, Wacky, and Weird Earth Science Experiments


Book Description

In a series of fun and involving hands-on earth science experiments, kids learn why the Earth bulges at the equator, demonstrate the movement of the Earth’s axis, determine how the composition of the Earth affects its motion, and replicate the cause of the day-and-night cycle. They will also determine why the sky is not dark as soon as the Sun sinks below the horizon, learn how salt beds are formed, demonstrate how air takes up space, observe the effects of cool and warm temperatures on air movement, and replicate the formation of sea breezes. Featuring color illustrations and safe, simple step-by-step instructions, Janice VanCleave again shows just how much fun science can be.




Even More of Janice VanCleave's Wild, Wacky, and Weird Earth Science Experiments


Book Description

In a series of fun and involving hands-on earth science experiments, kids learn how crystals and metamorphic and sedimentary rocks form, why seismic waves move more slowly through sand, the effect of rain on hills with and without ground cover, the effect of acid on statues, and how freezing water causes rock movement. They will also determine and demonstrate how rain affects topsoil, what amount of pressure is required to fold the Earth�s crust, how a gentle breeze can move heavy objects, and how air pressure can be used to create a spraying fountain. Featuring color illustrations and safe, simple step-by-step instructions, Janice VanCleave again shows just how much fun science can be.




Janice VanCleave's Wild, Wacky, and Weird Physics Experiments


Book Description

In a series of fun and involving hands-on physics experiments, kids charge an object with static electricity, demonstrate how static charges produce sound, use magnetic force to suspend a paper airplane, determine that objects in water have a different weight than they do in air, and learn how a substance’s buoyancy can be changed. They will also determine if shape determines the strength of an object, learn the effect that an object’s center of gravity has on motion, demonstrate how the length of a pendulum affects the time of each swing, and discover how the center of gravity is also the balancing point of an object. Featuring color illustrations and safe, simple step-by-step instructions, Janice VanCleave again shows just how much fun science can be.




Wild Discoveries


Book Description

A look at new animal discoveries around the world.




Even More of Janice VanCleave's Wild, Wacky, and Weird Physics Experiments


Book Description

In a series of fun and involving hands-on physics experiments, kids learn how airspeed affects flight, how unbalanced forces produce motion, how polarized light moves, how to separate light into colors, and how a mirror affects the reflected image. They will also determine and demonstrate why popcorn pops, how temperature affects the bounce of a rubber ball, the effect of solids on the speed of sound, and how the length of a flute affects the pitch of the sound it produces. Featuring color illustrations and safe, simple step-by-step instructions, Janice VanCleave again shows just how much fun science can be.




More of Janice VanCleave's Wild, Wacky, and Weird Chemistry Experiments


Book Description

In a series of fun and involving hands-on chemistry experiments, kids observe the effect of molecular motion, try to inflate a balloon inside of a bottle, demonstrate the cleaning of water by capillary action, discover how detergent causes other molecules to move, and make water appear to boil with only the touch of a finger. They will also demonstrate how salt makes it harder for water to freeze, learn how to grow salt crystals and how to produce an elastic material, and observe liquids that will and will not mix together. Featuring color illustrations and safe, simple step-by-step instructions, Janice VanCleave again shows just how much fun science can be.




More of Janice VanCleave's Wild, Wacky, and Weird Physics Experiments


Book Description

In a series of fun and involving hands-on physics experiments, kids charge an object with static electricity, demonstrate how static charges produce sound, use magnetic force to suspend a paper airplane, determine that objects in water have a different weight than they do in air, and learn how a substance’s buoyancy can be changed. They will also determine if shape determines the strength of an object, learn the effect that an object’s center of gravity has on motion, demonstrate how the length of a pendulum affects the time of each swing, and discover how the center of gravity is also the balancing point of an object. Featuring color illustrations and safe, simple step-by-step instructions, Janice VanCleave again shows just how much fun science can be.