The New Book Of Popular Science

Astronomy, Space Science, Mathematics.

The Giant Book of Who, What, When, Where, Why and How is loaded with interesting information and inviting images. It answers all the questions kids really want to know! Through more than 1,000 fascinating facts and hundreds of awe-inspiring photos, kids will uncover answers to questions such as: Why are clownfish and sea anemones such close coral companions?; Why do scientists study dino poop? What is the slimiest and snottiest creature on the planet?; Where is the tallest waterfall?; What were the Vikings really like?; What is the largest living organism?; and Why does your body make so many gross noises? This must-read book includes chapters on animals, nature, amazing places, space, technology, history, the human body, sports, incredible inventions, and science. Kids will also discover record-breaking facts in Top 10 lists and Popular Science quizzes.

Technoscientific developments often have far-reaching consequences, both negative and positive, for the public. Yet, because science has the authority to decide which judgments about scientific issues are sound, public concerns are often dismissed because they are not part of the technoscientific paradigm they question. This book addresses the role of science popularization in that paradox; it explains how science writing works and argues that it can do better at promoting public discussions about science-related issues. To support these arguments, it situates science popularization in its historical and cultural context; provides a conceptual framework for analyzing popular science texts; and examines the rhetorical effects of common strategies used in popular science writing. Twenty-six years after Dorothy Nelkin's groundbreaking book, Selling Science: How the Press Covers Science and Technology, popular science writing is still not meeting its potential as a public interest genre; Communicating Popular Science explores how it can move closer to doing so.

Ingenious (and hilarious) projects that aspiring makers will love, brought to you by the tinkerers at Popular Science magazine. From useful, doable gadgets to outlandish contraptions that you’d likely be wise to avoid, this showcase of ingenuity is an entertaining tribute to the inventive spirit. In this book from the science and technology magazine that’s been inspiring everyday people for nearly 150 years, you’ll discover: Geek Toys: Be the life of any party with rad gaming hacks, amazing pyrotechnics, quirky DIY robots, wow-inducing projectiles, and lots of ways to make beer even better. Home Improvements: Pimp out your pad with a laser-security system, an improvised sous-vide cooker, and a life-sized cardboard display of anyone you want. Gadget Upgrades: Want to stash a flash drive in an old cassette? Use a DIY stylus on a touchscreen? Improvise a fisheye lens for your camera? With this book, you can. Things That Go: Give your motorbike a Tron vibe, deck out your car with an action-figure hood ornament, and keep gadgets charged on the go with a solar-powered backpack. …and much more!

To commemorate the 145th anniversary of Popular Science, this gorgeous, full-color, fun, and lively collection of retro covers from the magazine’s archives explores all those far-flung inventions that never quite made it off the drawing board—from flying cars to personal jet packs—and tracks the evolution of those innovations that did. A lot has happened since 1872, the first year that Popular Science hit the newsstand. From the introduction of the automobile in 1879 to the dropping of the A-bomb in 1945, from the first time a cell phone rang in 1973 to the first flyby of Pluto in 2015, Popular Science was there and chronicled it all. The Future Then steps you through this illustrious history of scientific and technological breakthroughs, diving deep into the magazine’s archives to share more than 400 fascinating covers. Organized by decade, each chapter opens with a discussion of the era’s major advancements, then launches into a selection of the decade’s most compelling covers—each accompanied by the fascinating story of the featured technology. With special breakouts on the beloved artists behind the charming illustrations and clever insights into how the past century’s near misses led us to true innovation gold, The Future Then is your first-class ticket on a ride to the retrofuture.

Despite the efforts of modern scholars to explain the origins of science communication as a social, rhetorical, and aesthetic phenomenon, most researchers approach the popularization of science from the perspective of present issues, thus ignoring its historical roots in classical culture along with its continuities, disruptions, and transformations. This volume fills this research gap with a genealogically reflected introduction into the popularization of science as a recurrent cultural technique. The category »popular science« is elucidated in interdisciplinary and diachronic dialogue, discussing case studies from all historical periods. Classicists, archaeologists, medievalists, art historians, sociologists, and historians of science provide the first diachronic and multi-layered approach to the rhetoric techniques, aesthetics, and societal conditions that have shaped the dissemination and reception of scientific knowledge.

The experiments in this book will help you get the lowdown on all the cool and fantastic phenomena that are right in front of you!