How to photograph the planets, take the pulse of a hummingbird,
smash an atom, construct a robot... This and much more in the first
American BOOK OF PROJECTS FOR
THE AMATEUR SCIENTIST
1 f IT'
A etoud ch.ralwr of tb.
(JlffuilMi iriw nintl from
i PMnul-hutl.r Jtr. i
OR THE DEVOTED AMATEUR
of twentieth-century science,
a magnificent book the first
C'Sfy of its kind has just been pub-
it is a now-to-ao-it dook on
the grand order: how to chart
distant earthquakes from the
vibrations in your garden, make a powerful micro
scope from a glass stirring rod, grow a pioneer
crop of algae on your window shelf, construct and
launch research rockets, contribute to the growing
body of archaeological knowledge and perform
many other fascinating and meaningful investiga
tions in every field of science from Astronomy to
Nuclear Physics.
"Mlracl drugs" to rocketry -587
pagat of axparlmants In
vary major area of icianca
Interested in outer space? Learn how to track an
earth satellite with the help of a piano.
Mathematical machines? Make a puzzle-solving
machine that cries when it's in trouble.
Fix up a cloud chamber from a two ounce whiskey
glass and embark on the hobby of detecting cosmic
rays. Observe how a bacterium reacts to a wonder
drug. Make the flow of air
visible.
These and scores of other
projects are offered and il
lustrated with 256 drawings
and photographs to help you.
The book derives from Sci
entific American, the maga
zine of which The New York
Times has said "Its roster of contributors reads
like a who's who of contemporary science." C. L.
Stonc's "Amateur Scientist" Department, appear
ing there monthly, is America's 1 clearing house
for the activities of serious amateurs. This 587-page
$EN0 NO MONEY - MAIl THE COUPON TODAYji
To tour hooktflttr or II
SIMON ANO SCHUSTER, INC., Dept. 75, I
30 fifth Avenue, Nw York 30, N. T.
Please send ntc for free examination:
copies of C L. Siong's Scientific Am eh-
ican Book of Projects for the Amateur
Scientist. Price $5.95
...... .copies of Martin Gardiner 2nd Scikn
T1MC A MM ICAN B(HIK OF M ATHKM TICAL l'l'Z-
2lks and Diversions. Price $3.95
If not delighted I'll return book!) in 14 days.
Otherwise vou will bill me prire per copy shown
above plus postage.
Detail from drawlnt of mo
tor and prwrllrr aucmttlr
for MrwMni invoke tunntl.
1 I Chrrk here if rfloin remittance. Tht av rmb-
L " lihr pay puMaff- Same rrlunri ftiiaranirr.
volume contains the most exciting projects pre
sented to date revised, expanded, indexed, fur
nished with references for further reading, and pref
aced with an introduction by Vannevar Bush.
Maka a proton wobblo . . . study a buttarfly
Learn how to make a proton wobble and thereby
identify its atom.
Capture the scedtng fragment from a star that
exploded a million years ago and examine its na
ture. Relax with the "After-dinner Experiments"
which require almost no equipment or experience . . .
There has never been a science-at-home book
like this. Every project whether
it relates to the atom or shows you
how to raise butterflies for scien
tific investigation deals with mat
ters that concern the professional
scientist today. You discover the
valuable contributions to science
that amateurs around the country
are making and how you get in
on the excitement. suncii.i for mimi
rkjck time.
A suparb gift
Not only for the amateur, but for the profes
sional this is a superbly stimulating book. Among
those who will light up like an Aurora Borealis
when they receive this book for their very owns
Tinkerers, dreamers (it's a joy to
browse in I, engineers
Parents of young people entering
Science Fairs
Science PhD's who take busman's
holidays
Industrial executives, lab technicians
Teachers, people with basement
workshops & imaginations
And for the serious adolescent ( some of the most
awesome experiments in the book were designed
by highschoolers) here is a gift that inspires by
furnishing the best of food for scientific creativity
to grow on: work that engrosses and delights.
7
Sand for your fraa
anamination copy today
Order your copy and gift copies
of Scientific American Book of
Projects for the Amateur
Scientist today. Send no money.
Simply fill in and mail the cou
pon. When the mailman brings
your book examine it for 14 days
at no risk. If you are not alto
gether delighted, return the
book(s) and owe nothing. Otherwise, we'll bill you
at $5.95 plus postage. Send off the coupon today
and look forward to countless hours of adventure on
the highroads and byways of 20th century science.
Simon and Schuster, publishers
Apparatus wiup nl
In writhing a hue-
iulntlrtl
i i
PARTIAL CONTENTS
ASTRONOMY. How to construct a
telescope more powerful than Ga
lileo's ... A transistorized drive
for telescopes . . . How to make
clear photographs of the planets
... An aslrophysicat laboratory
in your back yard ... A universal
sundial made from a globe of the
earth . .i 3-D photographs of the
moon . . . and more.
ARCHAEOLOGY. Do's and don't for
the amateur . . . The excavation at
Wapanucket No. 6: how a group
of amateurs made a real contribu
tion to science . . .
BIOLOGY. Microscopic gardening
. . . How tn tranquil ire a rat . . .
Measuring the metabolism of ani
mals . . . Chromatography . . .
How to analyze subtle chemical
mixtures . . . and more . ,
NATURAL SCIENCES. Nature's "un
'important" puzzles . . . How to at
tract and study hummingbirds . . .
Raising butterflies as experi
mental animals . . . Bird-handing
for the amateur . . . How to live
with reptiles and amphibians . . .
EARTH SCIENCES. How to read
rocks . . . Amateur Seismology
. . . Tracking satellites . , . How
to measure the earth's electric
charge ... An electronic weather
forecaster . . , Detecting the
earth's rotation . . . and more.
NUCLEAR PHYSICS. Exploring the
atom at home . . . Cloud cham
bers for detecting nuclear events
... A simple magnetic -resonance
spectrometer ... A homemade
atom smasher . . . The Millikan
Oil Drop experiment . . . and more.
MATHEMATICAL MACHINES. A puz
zle-solving machine that signals
when in trouble ... A ticktacktoc
machine whose design resembles
that of all electric calculating de
vices . . . Some computer theory
. . . How to design a "pircuit" or
nuzzle circuit . . . An electronic
mouse that learns from experi
ence . . . and more.
AERODYNAMICS. The charms of
low-speed aerodynamics ... A
low.sneed wind tunnel ... A
smoke tunnel that can be made
for S3 if vou have a vacuun
cleaner and a camera . . . What
vou can learn bv flvingw model
airplanes in water . . . Detailed
instructions for building and
launching two research rockets . . .
OPTICS. HEAT. ELECTRONICS. Ama
teur microscopy . . . Homemade
electrostatic generators . . . From
inexpensive materials you can con
struct an X-rav machine that will
make pictures through an inch of
wood . . . The "Hilsch" vortex tube
... An experiment with the op
tical effect that imparts color to
soap bubbles . . . How to use the
piezoelectric effect to make an
electric clock keep accurate time
. . . Some after-dinner experi
ments . . .
A CLOSING CHALLENGE. The ama
teur is invited to design experi
ments nf his own and to con
sider, as a starter, the unsolved
riddle of the skipping stones ,
And sand for Martin Gardiner's 2nd Scientific American ocok
of Mathematical Puixles and Diversions, just out. From parlor
tricks with Digital Roots to the mathematics of Slicing Doughnuts A
Oriaomi. Brain Hnnlinn ntrtninmnt. urlth mathinaticol commen
taries, pictures, solutions, biblioaroohies. $3.95