Stomp Rockets, Catapults, and Kaleidoscopes 30+ Amazing Science Projects You Can Build for Less than $1

by Gabrielson, Curt

• ISBN13: 9781556527371
• ISBN10: 1556527373
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2008-02-01
• Publisher: Chicago Review Press

Summary

There's No better Way to understand how something works than to build it yourself. How does a toilet flush? Find out with a plastic drink bottle and a length of flexible tubing. What about the fingers on your hand? Construct a working model of their muscles, bones, and tendons using drinking straws, craft sticks, tape, and string. And how do musical instruments make sounds? Explore the many methods by creating your own harmonica, saxophone, marimba, oboe, and guitar.

Author Biography

Curt Gabrielson is the director of the Watsonville Environmental Science Workshop. He has been a science educator for more than 15 years, with positions in the California public schools, the National University of East Timor, and San Francisco’s Exploratorium Teacher Institute.

Table of Contents

Introduction	p. xi
A Note to Adults	p. xiii
Electricity and Magnetism
Holiday Light Circuit	p. 1
Crane	p. 6
Electric Car	p. 11
Electrostatics	p. 15
Magnetic Spinner	p. 21
Solenoid and Speaker	p. 25
Sound, Light, and Perception
Chirping Bird and Cuica	p. 30
Musica: Saxophone, Harmonica, Guitar, Bull Roarer, Oboe, and Sucker	p. 37
Xylophone and Marimba	p. 43
Kaleidoscope	p. 48
Thaumatrope	p. 53
Mechanics
Balancing Acts	p. 56
Catapult	p. 60
Dangling Spinner	p. 64
Mini-bot	p. 69
Rubber Band Racer	p. 73
Voladores de Papantla ("Birdmen of Papantla")	p. 77
Fluids and Aerodynamics
Airplanes	p. 82
Flying Fish	p. 88
Helicopters	p. 93
Hydraulic Butterfly	p. 98
Stomp Rockets	p. 104
Toilet	p. 108
Tornado	p. 113
Biology
Eye Model	p. 118
Fingers of the Hand	p. 124
Heart Pump	p. 129
Lung Model	p. 135
Chemistry
Cartesian Divers	p. 139
Oil on Water	p. 143
Gak and Oobleck	p. 146
Appendixes
Bringing These Projects into the Classroom	p. 151
About the Watsonville Environmental Science Workshop	p. 155
Index	p. 157
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