Bobby Mercer

A children's instructional book on how to use readily available materials to turn the house into a science lab Physics teacher Bobby Mercer provides readers with more than 50 great hands-on experiments that can be performed for just pennies, or less. Turn a plastic cup into a pinhole camera using waxed paper, a rubber band, and a thumbtack. Build a swinging wave machine using a series of washers suspended on strings from a yardstick.

"The 20 easy-to-build robots in this project book can be constructed for little or not cost using common household objects and repurposed materials."--

"Children love challenges, especially ones that involve hands-on experimentation and friendly competition. Can they build a bridge using only pasta and glue, one that a toy car can drive both under and over, and is sturdy enough to carry a considerable weight? Can they construct a "roller coaster" from recycled cardboard tubes in which the marble "car" jumps a track to land safely at its final destination? And can they create a device to safely catch...

There's no need for expensive, high-tech lab equipment to conduct chemistry experiments -- you probably have all you need in your home junk drawer. Turn three pennies and two galvanized washers into a simple battery. Crush a soda can using atmospheric pressure. Convert an LED flashlight into a simple electrolyte tester. Split liquid water into two unique gasses, or use cornstarch to create a gooey, mysterious, non-Newtonian fluid. And model radioactive...

"Algebra as a hands-on subject? With this helpful resource, you can simplify equations using pennies and nickels, use aluminum foil to multiply polynomials (the FOIL method), create coordinate graphs with candy, examine exponential decay functions with a bouncy ball and much more. Junk Drawer Algebra proves that you don't need high-tech equipment to comprehend math concepts--just what you can find around the house or in your recycling bin. Each of...