Worth the purchase just to learn the most effective angle to skip a stone across a water surface.
Hands-on demonstrations and explanations show how scientific principles apply in the wide world of sports.
Organized into seven chapters based on how and where the sports are played (bats and balls, indoor sports, aquatic sports, etc.), each short segment is based on a particular question: "Why does pumping up a basketball make it bouncier?" "Why are pole vaulting poles so bendy?" "Do tennis surfaces really matter?" The 54 demonstrations (which the author calls experiments but are often little more than observations) are also organized into sports-themed sections: necessary materials (“the line-up”), illustrated step-by-step instructions (“play ball!”), a section of any needed cautions (“two-minute warning”), and explanation (“slo-mo replay”). The materials are readily available, and expected times are given for each. Many can be done in a matter of a few minutes, a few might be as much as a half hour. For the most part the explanations really do connect a science principle with a sports phenomenon, though occasionally they show the opposite or muddy the waters. Terms such as “momentum,” “velocity,” “torque,” and “elastic collision” are defined in context and in a glossary. It’s a pity there is no index, but sports enthusiasts will find it entertaining, and science teachers could use examples to spice up their presentations.
Worth the purchase just to learn the most effective angle to skip a stone across a water surface. (Nonfiction. 9-14)Pub Date: Nov. 29, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-7611-8928-2
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Workman
Review Posted Online: Sept. 18, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Debuting a new series, Krull presents a compelling argument that the great painter of the Renaissance was one of the West’s first real modern scientists. Into the stew of superstition that passed for scientific thought in medieval Europe was born Leonardo, illegitimate and therefore only very sketchily schooled, he grew up largely on his own, rambling around his family’s property and observing nature. The portrait that emerges is of a magpie mind: He studied and thought and wrote about very nearly everything. The breezy text draws heavily from Leonardo’s own writings, discussing his groundbreaking forays into anatomy, water management and flight, always propelled by a commitment to direct scientific observation. That Krull manages, in some 100-plus text pages, to present Leonardo’s scientific accomplishments while at the same time conveying a sense of the man himself—his probable homosexuality is presented frankly, as are his pacifism and the overriding opportunism that had him designing weapons of war for the Duke of Milan—is no mean feat and bodes well for the succeeding volumes in the series. (appendix, bibliography, Web sites, index) (Biography. 10-14)
Pub Date: July 1, 2005
ISBN: 0-670-05920-X
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2005
Concise and still thorough, this is a solid addition to a wide-ranging and ecologically conscious series.
A passionate environmentalist explains why oceans are amazing and what young readers can do to keep them that way.
In her first book for young readers, novelist and biologist Eriksson connects her audience to the oceans around the world, describes current threats, suggests general ways to help, and offers specific examples of ways to “be an ocean hero.” The book’s four short chapters feature frequent subheadings, sidebars—her personal connections (labeled “My Marine Life”); paragraphs of “Ocean Facts”; and invitations for personal involvement (labeled “Make a Splash!”)—and small photographs. The author and publisher have made an effort to include images of people from around the world, including First Nations neighbors harvesting clams in front of the writer’s waterfront home on Thetis Island in British Columbia. (The author herself is white.) Opening with quotations from Dr. Sylvia Earle and ecologist Barry Commoner, she makes clear the importance of water in human lives. Her examples of ocean overload are sobering, but she concludes her list of challenges with the reminder that “Change = Opportunity” and devotes more than half her pages to appropriate actions, many within reach of kids, toward ocean rescue. For readers old enough to cope with the bad news, the range of suggestions will be welcome. Her organization makes sense, and the exposition is clear and often directly addressed to the reader.
Concise and still thorough, this is a solid addition to a wide-ranging and ecologically conscious series. (resources, glossary, index) (Nonfiction. 9-14)Pub Date: Oct. 9, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4598-1586-5
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Orca
Review Posted Online: July 23, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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