"Millions of people visit xkcd.com each week to read Randall Munroe's iconic webcomic. His stick-figure drawings about science, technology, language, and love have a large and passionate following. Fans of xkcd ask Munroe a lot of strange questions. What if you tried to hit a baseball pitched at 90 percent the speed of light? How fast can you hit a speed bump while driving and live? If there was a robot apocalypse, how long would humanity last? In...

A baseball player slides on the ground to tag a base. A toy car's wheels rub against the floor and slow the toy car down. Friction is at work all around you. But what exactly is friction? And how does it affect different objects? Read this book to find out! Learn all about matter, energy, and forces in the Exploring Physical Science series, part of the Lightning Bolt Books collection. With high-energy designs, exciting photos, and fun text, Lightning...

In exhilarating and behind-the-scenes detail, Panek takes his readers on a tour of the bitter rivalries and fruitful collaborations, the eureka moments and blind alleys, that have fuelled the search, redefined science, and reinvented the universe. Science journalist Panek (The Invisible Century) offers an insider's view of the quest for what could be the ultimate revelation: the true substance of the unseen dark matter and energy that makes up some...

"For more than half a century, physicists and astronomers engaged in heated dispute over the possibility of black holes in the universe. The weirdly alien notion of a space-time abyss from which nothing escapes--not even light--seemed to confound all logic. This engrossing book tells the story of the fierce black hole debates and the contributions of Einstein and Hawking and other leading thinkers who completely altered our view of the universe. Renowned...

Why do socks stick together when taken from the dryer? Learn the shocking truth in Static Electricity.

"AT ONCE A PLAYFUL BRAINTEASER ABOUT GEOMETRY, A POINTED SATIRE OF VICTORIAN MANNERS-AND A STRANGELY COMPELLING ARGUMENT ABOUT THE GREATEST MYSTERIES OF THE UNIVERSE." – The Wall Street Journal This highly entertaining satirical novella, written by English schoolmaster Edwin A. Abbott was first published in 1884, and for more than 100 years has continued to charm readers. A masterpiece of science fiction, it is in actuality a social commentary...

This edition includes a modern introduction and a list of suggested further reading. René Descartes is perhaps most remembered for declaring, "I think, therefore, I am." First published in 1644, Descartes's Principles of Philosophy elucidates the meaning of those words that ushered in a new era of philosophical thought. Unlike the medieval philosophers who often began by examining the existence and nature of God in a spirit of faith, Descartes begins...

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Book Preview: #1 The ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle believed that the earth was a round sphere rather than a flat plate. He knew that eclipses of the moon were caused by the earth coming between the sun and the moon, and that the North Star appeared lower in the sky when viewed in the south than it did in more northerly regions. #2 Aristotle believed the earth was the center...

Get the Summary of Carlo Rovelli's The Order of Time in 20 minutes. Please note: This is a summary & not the original book. Original book introduction: Why do we remember the past and not the future? What does it mean for time to "flow"? Do we exist in time or does time exist in us? In lyric, accessible prose, Carlo Rovelli invites us to consider questions about the nature of time that continue to puzzle physicists and philosophers alike. For most...

Contains magic tricks that are based in important physics concepts such as gravity, inertia, magnetism, sound vibrations, and more.