Physics

Eight Preposterous Propositions: From the Genetics of Homosexuality to the Benefits of Global Warming

Hal Harris | Sun, 02/01/2004 - 00:00

This is a sequel to Ehrlich's "Nine Crazy Ideas in Science", which was my pick for December, 2001. I don't think it is as good as the first one, although it does have some great strengths; his discussion of the climate change issue is about as good as any, and he also has an especially good discussion of the efficacy of placebos.

Ink Sandwiches, Electric Worms, and 37 Other Experiments for Saturday Science

Hal Harris | Thu, 01/01/2004 - 00:00

I am always looking for science/engineering projects that would be fun to do, and to encourage students to try. Neil Downie's first book, "Vacuum Bazookas, Electric Rainbow Jelly, and 27 Other Experiments for Saturday Science" was a Pick for March, 2002.

Einstein's Clocks, Poincare's Maps: Empires of Time

Hal Harris | Mon, 12/01/2003 - 00:00

When I bought this book, I didn't realize how complementary to my Pick for Marchit would turn out to be. I thought that Poincare's "maps" referred to were his geometric depictions of deterministic chaotic systems, which he was first to discover, and the book was going to be largely about mathematics.

The Genie in the Bottle: 67 all-new commentaries on the fascinating chemistry of ordinary life

Hal Harris | Wed, 07/02/2003 - 02:00

Joe Schwarcz's second collection of essays (see my pick for May for the first) about chemistry in everyday life begins with a Preface in which he confronts a door-to-door salesman of water filters with some basic information about the chemistry of water treatment.

Fun with Physics: The woman leading the hunt for nature's most elusive particles

Hal Harris | Sun, 06/01/2003 - 01:00

Janet Conrad received the 2001 Maria Goeppert-Mayer Award for outstanding contribution to physics by a young woman. In this New Yorker story, K. C. Cole describes the lengths to which experimental physicists must go in order to detect and study the properties of neutrinos, which barely interact with any other matter.

The Measure of All Things: The Seven-Year Odyssey and Hidden Error That Transformed the World

Hal Harris | Sat, 03/01/2003 - 00:00

In 1792, the French Academy of Sciences appointed two respected scientists to survey a north-south meridian from Dunkirk to Barcelona, for the purpose of determining the size (and shape) of the earth. Why is this important? Because it would establish an international basis for the meter, foundation of the metric system.

Relativity and the Global Positioning System

Hal Harris | Thu, 05/02/2002 - 02:00

An ideal companion to "The Universe in a Nutshell" is this article by Neil Ashby, a Professor of Physics at University of Colorado - Boulder. Hand- held GPS devices have become standard equipment for boaters, hikers, and technology junkies. It is now taken for granted that one's position on the earth can be obtained within a few seconds, accurately, and free.

The Universe in a Nutshell

Hal Harris | Wed, 05/01/2002 - 01:00

I was amazed at the popularity of Hawking's "A Brief History of Time" in 1998. Not because it was not a great book, but because the average reader's background in relativity, quantum mechanics, and cosmology is limited to their discussion in Star Trek.

Backyard Ballistics: Build Potato Cannons, Paper Match Rockets, Cincinnati Fire Kites, Tennis Ball Mortars, and More Dynamite Devices

Hal Harris | Sat, 03/02/2002 - 01:00

This book is not politically correct, in an era in which school science experiments have been tamed to the point that there is little possibility that the teacher will kill or maim him/herself.

Vacuum Bazookas, Electric Rainbow Jelly, and 27 Other Saturday Science Projects

Hal Harris | Fri, 03/01/2002 - 00:00

Those of us who were fans of the old "Amateur Scientist" column of Scientific American will enjoy this collection of projects that look to be fun to build and to play with. These are all things that the author has invented or adapted for a Saturday Science Club for kids near his home in Guildford, UK.