James A. Haught

The old song goes: "Tell me why the stars do shine. Tell me why the ivy twines. Tell me why the skies are blue. And I will tell you why I love you."

In response, an irreverent college student wrote: "Nuclear fusion makes stars to shine. Tropisms cause the ivy to twine. Rayleigh scattering makes skies so blue. And glandular hormones are why I love you."

Science awareness of this sort (with or without the levity) is necessary to understand the world and the amazing technological revolutions that are changing our lives.

No person is fully educated without a grasp of the fundamentals of science, which have profound philosophical implications. Yet at no other time in this century has the level of science knowledge among elementary and high school students been so dismally low.

Journalist James A. Haught, who created this book in response to queries from his four children as they were growing up, presents 100 basic science questions and provides simple answers with clear illustrations.

Why is the sky blue? Why are there seasons? What is the Milky Way? How fast does the Earth rotate? What holds an airplane up in the sky? These and many more questions are addressed in a breezy style that conveys broad, basic scientific ideas in the fastest, easiest form possible.

James A. Haught is editor of The Charleston Gazette in West Virginia. He has won investigative journalism awards from the National Press Club, the American Bar Association, and People for the American Way.

110 pp (illustrations on each page)
ISBN 0-87975-637-3 -- Paper $14.95 -- Ages 10 & up

Prometheus Books
59 John Glenn Drive
Amherst, NY 14228-2197
(800-421-0351)
FAX (716) 691-0137
WWW.PROMETHEUSBOOKS.COM
Email: PROMETHEUSBOOKS@Worldnet.Att.Net