The well-known "a bee in a cathedral" analogy describes the size of an atom and its nucleus in understandable terms. The analogy goes that if an atom were expanded to the size of a cathedral, the nucleus would be only about the size of a bee. The Big Book of Science uses analogies to demonstrate 100 basic scientific truths and principles in new and exciting ways, describing the unbelievably massive, the inconceivably tiny and the unfathomably complex in everyday terms. Readers will be drawn to the book by its combination of intuitive reasoning and a highly visual presentation style. It's bursting with facts, figures, diagrams, charts, and illustrations. Each page helps readers understand fundamental scientific principles and theories by using analogies that describe abstract ideas using everyday objects. Each analogy is explained in direct terms and clearly illustrated. A range of facts and figures -- presented in uniquely accessible "infographics" -- complements the analogies. The book covers a wide array of scientific topics: physics, chemistry, astronomy, biology, earth sciences, anatomy and technology. The analogies include: If an atomic nucleus expanded to the size of a marble, it would weigh about 100 million tons, or roughly the equivalent of 16 Great Pyramids of Egypt. It would take a human heart less than 18 days to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool. The volcanic blast of Mount St. Helens released thermal energy 1,600 times the size of Hiroshima. Krakatoa's 1883 eruption was roughly 13,000 times as powerful as that same bomb. Informative and engaging, The Big Book of Science gives readers a deeper appreciation of the forces and facts that govern the universe and everything in it.

Introduces the seasons, weather, animals, plants, the earth, machines, matter, energy, and related topics.

Over fifty fantastically fun projects that use easy-to-find everyday materials.

This ultimate guide for tech makers covers everything from hand tools to robots plus essential techniques for completing almost any DIY project. Makers, get ready: This is your must-have guide to taking your DIY projects to the next level. Legendary fabricator and alternative engineer Chris Hackett teams up with the editors of Popular Science to offer detailed instruction on everything from basic wood- and metalworking skills to 3D printing and laser-cutting wizardry. Hackett also explains the entrepreneurial and crowd-sourcing tactics needed to transform your back-of-the-envelope idea into a gleaming finished product. In The Big Book of Maker Skills, readers learn tried-and-true techniques from the shop classes of yore—how to use a metal lathe, or pick the perfect drill bit or saw—and get introduced to a whole new world of modern manufacturing technologies, like using CAD software, printing circuits, and more. Step-by-step illustrations, helpful diagrams, and exceptional photography make this book an easy-to-follow guide to getting your project done.

Now in Paperback! Take science to a whole new level. Created in partnership with Prentice Hall, the Big Idea Science Book is a comprehensive guide to key topics in science falling into four major strands (Living Things, Earth Science, Chemistry, and Physics), with a unique difference — a website component with 200 specially created digital assets that provide the opportunity for hands-on, interactive learning.

A bumper book of over 60 projects and experiments to inspire and challenge budding young scientists. Science isn’t just for the classroom. My Big Book of Science is packed with projects that can be done safely at home, encouraging children to experiment, have fun, and learn at the same time. They can become a chemical wizard by making liquids magically change color and dazzle their friends with home-made glow-in-the dark slime, and get to grips with fabulous physics by learning to defy the laws of gravity and master electrical circuits. With brilliant biology projects, they will get to know their own body inside out, and even learn how to make fake poo and snot! None of the projects require specialist equipment: just a few basic items and enthusiasm and a willingness to learn. With My Big Book of Science rainy day afternoons just became a whole lot more fun!

Concepts embody our knowledge of the kinds of things there are in the world. Tying our past experiences to our present interactions with the environment, they enable us to recognize and understand new objects and events. Concepts are also relevant to understanding domains such as social situations, personality types, and even artistic styles. Yet like other phenomenologically simple cognitive processes such as walking or understanding speech, concept formation and use are maddeningly complex. Research since the 1970s and the decline of the "classical view" of concepts have greatly illuminated the psychology of concepts. But persistent theoretical disputes have sometimes obscured this progress. The Big Book of Concepts goes beyond those disputes to reveal the advances that have been made, focusing on the major empirical discoveries. By reviewing and evaluating research on diverse topics such as category learning, word meaning, conceptual development in infants and children, and the basic level of categorization, the book develops a much broader range of criteria than is usual for evaluating theories of concepts.