Energy: Green Science Projects about Solar, Wind, and Water Power

Children's Literature - Amy S. Hansen

Part of the "Team Green Science Projects" series, these demonstrations and suggestions for science fair projects are designed to get kids thinking past an immediate assignment and addressing bigger questions with a bit more depth than prompted by normal science fair books. Gardner provides short expository sections at the beginning of each chapter, and this feature is particularly important in a book on energy. Gardner deals with multiple topics within the umbrella of energy. He discusses fossil fuels and their impact to the environment, as well as the engineering and physics involved in producing electricity and heat through several sources. "Energy," he writes, "is not easily defined. It is not anything you can see or touch. But you can think of energy as something that enables us to get jobs done. It is what we need to move things, light lamps, heat buildings and run household appliances." While he explains the formulas for calculating energy and energy loss, most of the experiments and demonstrations do not need them. The science demonstrations and experiments that follow address solar energy, water, wind and geothermal energy, systems for conserving energy, and heat. Backmatter includes an appendix listing science supply companies, a glossary, lists of books and Internet addresses for further reading, and an index. Reviewer: Amy S. Hansen