I had no idea of why ducks' feet do not freeze. I had no idea electromagnetic forces were in the bottom of my toaster, for example. Helen Czerski, physicist at University College London's Department of Mechanical Engineering, explains what the physics is behind everyday stuff, like what makes a toaster toast bread or what forces are at work when we stir milk into a serving of tea. Is it worth paying more for a fluorescent light? Should my sunglasses have polarizing lenses? How can I tell a raw egg from a boiled egg without taking off their shells? Why isn’t my ketchup coming out of the bottle? Why does my tea water slosh around when I carry my mug to the other end of the room? Why don’t ducks get cold feet? Well, I never put much thought in about these things nor their physics but now I can amaze my friends with newfound knowledge! I could go on and on about the stuff I learned from Helen, but just do yourself a favor and go buy the book.
Storm in a teacup everyday physics full#
Chock full of tidbits on how/why stuff works, she breaks down things that I never even thought about and makes science easily understood.Ĭuriosity is human nature and I find myself more curious of everyday experiences and thinking about things in new ways after reading Helen’s book. This is a thoughtful debut by Czerski, a physicist/oceanographer. I can honestly say that you will not see everyday things in the same light again if you read this book and so, if you have any interest in how the world works and the strange, amazing patterns within it, give this a try.Īuthor and PhD Helen Czerski loves physics and wants others to share her enthusiasm. She does not dumb down her writing, but simply makes it accessible, understandable and entirely riveting. You have such titles as, “What goes up must come down,” “Why don’t ducks get cold feet?” and “Spoons, Spirals and Sputnik.” Who can resist? Being a child of the Seventies, when science was not a compulsory subject, my scientific knowledge is less than zero, but I found myself enthused by this book. From these innocuous springboards, she uses these examples to investigate much greater events in science and technology, using these seemingly simple beginnings.Įven the chapter titles in this book are delightful. Each chapter begins with something everyday – something small such as trying to get ketchup from a bottle or stirring a cup of tea. Along the way, she provides answers to vexing questions: How does water travel from the roots of a redwood tree to its crown? How do ducks keep their feet warm when walking on ice? Why does milk, when added to tea, look like billowing storm clouds? In an engaging voice at once warm and witty, Czerski shares her stunning breadth of knowledge to lift the veil of familiarity from the ordinary.How many times have you heard someone say (possibly one of your children…) that a particular subject at school is not relevant to them personally? In this book, author Helen Czerski attempts to show us how physics affects everyday life. But just occasionally a small one can produce something delicious") gravity (drop some raisins in a bottle of carbonated lemonade and watch the whoosh of bubbles and the dancing raisins at the bottom bumping into each other) size (Czerski explains the action of the water molecules that cause the crime-scene stain left by a puddle of dried coffee) and time (why it takes so long for ketchup to come out of a bottle). She guides us through the principles of gases ("Explosions in the kitchen are generally considered a bad idea. But did you know that the key to unveiling the secrets of the cosmos is as close as the nearest toaster? In Storm in a Teacup, Helen Czerski provides the tools to alter the way we see everything around us by linking ordinary objects and occurrences, like popcorn popping, coffee stains, and fridge magnets, to big ideas like climate change, the energy crisis, or innovative medical testing. Take a look up at the stars on a clear night and you get a sense that the universe is vast and untouchable, full of mysteries beyond comprehension.
"A physicist explains daily phenomena from the mundane to the magisterial.
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