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Greetings!

Physics-the study of matter and energy and how they affect each other-is all around us! Pretty scary thought, eh?

It's not really. Physics doesn't have to be frightening at all. There's little that we do every day that doesn't involve physics.

Here's a list of some things that use physics: riding skateboards and bicycles, playing video games, watching TV... More

Greetings!

Physics-the study of matter and energy and how they affect each other-is all around us! Pretty scary thought, eh?

It's not really. Physics doesn't have to be frightening at all. There's little that we do every day that doesn't involve physics.

Here's a list of some things that use physics: riding skateboards and bicycles, playing video games, watching TV, listening to stereos, baking a cake, cooking an egg, drawing pictures, driving a car, working on your computer, shooting an arrow, playing the piano or guitar, turning on your shower, doing magic tricks, and playing practical jokes. In other words, physics is everywhere, and it can be fun if you look at it with an open mind.

I've written this series with as light a touch as possible. I've put in very little math, and all of the EXPERIMENTS can be done at or near your home for practically no expense. Almost all of the magic tricks are done with stuff you find around the house.

When you perform the magic, remember that if you want to fool your friends, you should keep the secret to yourself. If someone wants to know, "How did you do that trick?" you can honestly say, "I did it with science-physics, to be exact."

If you wish to share any secrets with your friends, don't tell them how the tricks are done; let them read the book. They can buy it or take it out of the library. If you tell them how you do a trick and they don't have to put any effort into finding out the secret, they won't respect you or the trick.

I hope that you enjoy the books in this series, and all of the experiments, tricks, and betchas that you'll find inside.

NOTE: About the use of the metric system and English system in this book. Although the metric system is easier to use, both systems are used in this series of books. In some experiments and tricks, only metric measurements are used; in others, only the English system. In still others, both are given.

***

Even though this series of books doesn't have to be read consecutively, it might help the beginning magical scientist to do so. The basics of physics start in the first book. Each succeeding book builds upon the knowledge of the one before. The tricks, experiments, and betchas are in there to help you have fun and get the most that you possibly can out of each book.

When you perform the experiments, you might want to keep a notebook or diary of all your results. In keeping the diary, you will be following in the footsteps of such great scientists of the world as Madame Marie Sklodowska Curie (1867-1934)-radiation; Rosalind Elsie Franklin (1920-1958)-DNA; Galileo Galilei (1564-1642)-astronomy, mathematics, and physics; and Albert Einstein (1879-1955)-theoretical physics.

The tricks are laid out with EFFECT first, to let you have an idea of what the trick is about. Next

comes the PROPS section, so you'll know what "stuff" you need. Then comes the METHOD, or ROUTINE part, which fully explains the workings of the trick. The NOTES that are at the very end of the trick try to tie the scientific principle in with the routine.

If you want to teach the science behind the tricks, you might want to explain the workings of the experiments to your friends. If you want to be a magician, you're better off not telling your friends how the tricks work. If your friends know the secrets to the trick, there is no magic.

To become a magician, you need to know all of the secrets of magic. To learn many of the secrets, you have to know something about science. You'll learn many of the "secrets" of science in this series of books.

When you learn the science, you become the magician. You just have to learn how to present the scientific principle in a mystifying way.

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