Science fun, with both terms emphasized equally.
Pretested by a crew of young assistants, these dozens of science demonstrations are both doable and worth doing.
The experiments are grouped into seven categories such as “Bugs and Microbes,” “Weird Physics” and “Things Water Does.” They range from making slime (“oobleck”) and “biofilm” to designing a cat IQ test and constructing skittering “brushybots” made from motorized toothbrushes. All include not only supply lists and step-by-step directions, but expected results, explanations of the science concepts involved, follow-up questions and cramped but usually helpful photos. Many also include potential glitches—a rare feature that, in the case of efforts to light up an LED with potatoes or lemons, manifests as a frank, detailed record of one failure after another (now, that’s science!). Admitting defeat at last, the author and her partners go on to design and construct a slingshot to dispose of all the used groceries. Experimenters may have to squint to read some of the more heavily colored inset boxes, but they shouldn’t have major trouble gathering materials, following the steps or adapting most of the demos into science-fair projects. Young closes with general science-fair advice, plus keys for all of the entries to the Next Generation Science Standards.
Science fun, with both terms emphasized equally. (general and materials indices) (Nonfiction. 10-14)Pub Date: Aug. 5, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4263-1711-8
Page Count: 160
Publisher: National Geographic
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Hot on the heels of the well-received Leonardo da Vinci (2005) comes another agreeably chatty entry in the Giants of Science series. Here the pioneering physicist is revealed as undeniably brilliant, but also cantankerous, mean-spirited, paranoid and possibly depressive. Newton’s youth and annus mirabilis receive respectful treatment, the solitude enforced by family estrangement and then the plague seen as critical to the development of his thoughtful, methodical approach. His subsequent squabbles with the rest of the scientific community—he refrained from publishing one treatise until his rival was dead—further support the image of Newton as a scientific lone wolf. Krull’s colloquial treatment sketches Newton’s advances in clearly understandable terms without bogging the text down with detailed explanations. A final chapter on “His Impact” places him squarely in the pantheon of great thinkers, arguing that both his insistence on the scientific method and his theories of physics have informed all subsequent scientific thought. A bibliography, web site and index round out the volume; the lack of detail on the use of sources is regrettable in an otherwise solid offering for middle-grade students. (Biography. 10-14)
Pub Date: April 1, 2006
ISBN: 0-670-05921-8
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2006
This glossy, colorful title in the “I Want To Be” series has visual appeal but poor organization and a fuzzy focus, which limits its usefulness. Each double-paged layout introduces a new topic with six to eight full-color photographs and a single column of text. Topics include types of environmentalists, eco-issues, waste renewal, education, High School of Environmental Studies, environmental vocabulary, history of environmentalism, famous environmentalists, and the return of the eagle. Often the photographs have little to do with the text or are marginal to the topic. For example, a typical layout called “Some Alternative Solutions” has five snapshots superimposed on a double-page photograph of a California wind farm. The text discusses ways to develop alternative forms of energy and “encourage environmentally friendly lifestyles.” Photos include “a healer who treats a patient with alternative therapy using sound and massage,” and “the Castle,” a house built of “used tires and aluminum cans.” Elsewhere, “Did You Know . . . ” shows a dramatic photo of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, but the text provides odd facts such as “ . . . that in Saudi Arabia there are solar-powered pay phones in the desert?” Some sections seem stuck in, a two-page piece on the effects of “El Niño” or 50 postage-stamp–sized photos of endangered species. The author concludes with places to write for more information and a list of photo credits. Pretty, but little here to warrant purchase. (Nonfiction. 9-11)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-15-201862-X
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2000
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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