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mike340 · 07-04-2013, 12:38 AM

For those of you who like science or have kids you would like to be interested in science I recommend the following:
The Cartoon Guide to Genetics, The Cartoon Guide to Chemistry, The Cartoon Guide to Physics. For those interested in more "mathy" things they have ...Guide to Statistics and ...Guide to Calculus.

My kids love them for the humor as well as the pictures. And as they get older they understand more and more of them. (I also learn from them and I'm a scientist.) Each is written by Larry Gonick along with a professor (in the appropriate department) at a top-level university. The chemistry book covers at least as much as 2 college classes of material (and the others are similarly comprehensive), but the presentation is so humorous that it's hard to put down. The same author also wrote 'A Cartoon Guide to the History of the Universe' (3 books) and 2 books (similarly titled) about American History.

Another great book is Guy Murchie's 'The Seven Mysteries of Life'. He spent 17 years investigating the material (biology), and while the book is about 30 years old, the information he has in it is fascinating and the writing is exquisite. I haven't even gotten to the latter half (the 7 mysteries), but the first half covers so much biology in a fascinating way. For example, in 2 paragraphs he discusses plants that need absolutely no rainfall. (Which ones they are and how they cope.) I have seen this book captivate kids who absolutely detest school. It's well-enough written that I ended up buying all the works of the author (all out of print). It is amazing how he is so concise while at the same time not overbearing with the density of information.

The last thing I'll mention is the Johns Hopkins Physics Fair (usually held in April or May). (This is where I actually discovered the 'Cartoon Guide' series.) When it's over I usually have to drag my kids out kicking and screaming (them, not me.) They have about 200 hands-on experiments covering most aspects in phyics, including a trebuchet that launches cantaloupes about 200 feet. (I call it a cantapult.) When we have to choose between the Physics Fair and Maryland Day, we always choose the Physics Fair (even though I work at Maryland).

Hope these suggestions will be useful.

07-04-2013, 12:38 AM	#8
mike340 Special Teams Join Date: Jun 2006 Age: 68 Posts: 322	Re: All things Science related. λν = c For those of you who like science or have kids you would like to be interested in science I recommend the following: The Cartoon Guide to Genetics, The Cartoon Guide to Chemistry, The Cartoon Guide to Physics. For those interested in more "mathy" things they have ...Guide to Statistics and ...Guide to Calculus. My kids love them for the humor as well as the pictures. And as they get older they understand more and more of them. (I also learn from them and I'm a scientist.) Each is written by Larry Gonick along with a professor (in the appropriate department) at a top-level university. The chemistry book covers at least as much as 2 college classes of material (and the others are similarly comprehensive), but the presentation is so humorous that it's hard to put down. The same author also wrote 'A Cartoon Guide to the History of the Universe' (3 books) and 2 books (similarly titled) about American History. Another great book is Guy Murchie's 'The Seven Mysteries of Life'. He spent 17 years investigating the material (biology), and while the book is about 30 years old, the information he has in it is fascinating and the writing is exquisite. I haven't even gotten to the latter half (the 7 mysteries), but the first half covers so much biology in a fascinating way. For example, in 2 paragraphs he discusses plants that need absolutely no rainfall. (Which ones they are and how they cope.) I have seen this book captivate kids who absolutely detest school. It's well-enough written that I ended up buying all the works of the author (all out of print). It is amazing how he is so concise while at the same time not overbearing with the density of information. The last thing I'll mention is the Johns Hopkins Physics Fair (usually held in April or May). (This is where I actually discovered the 'Cartoon Guide' series.) When it's over I usually have to drag my kids out kicking and screaming (them, not me.) They have about 200 hands-on experiments covering most aspects in phyics, including a trebuchet that launches cantaloupes about 200 feet. (I call it a cantapult.) When we have to choose between the Physics Fair and Maryland Day, we always choose the Physics Fair (even though I work at Maryland). Hope these suggestions will be useful.