True Fact: When I was a teenager, I dated a girl I met at a physique competition. Mind you, this was not a local high school competition. It was the National Physics Olympiad in Panama, where I was born and raised. And the stakes were high – whoever won would go on to compete in the International Physics Olympiad, to be held next year in Spain. So romance, national fame and a free trip to Europe were all on the line, thanks to Physics.
Whoever told teenagers that science isn’t exciting was clearly not running in the right circles.
For some reason, science is difficult for many teenagers and high school students. How many would say that a science course is their favorite class, if they take it at all? This is strange considering that science affects the lives of young people everywhere. Quantum physics, general relativity, material science and computer science make possible the mobile phones and computers they are constantly attached to. Biology, chemistry, and medicine affect the countless humors they circulate every day. Perhaps most importantly, science connects them to the universe around them, giving them context for our existence here on Earth. Knowing science helps you understand why things are the way they are and gives you confidence that we can find solutions to whatever problems we face.
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And for me, at least, it led to some romance. I ended up with the girl I met at that physics competition. Plot twist: she won them all.
Just imagine if everyone had a scientific mindset. What would our society be like if more of us thought more rationally and based our opinions more on proven facts rather than hearsay. Would we be so inclined to believe everything we see on our social media feeds?
All children are born with a natural curiosity about the world and how it works. Some might say that it is their main job to be little scientists. To survive, babies and young children must understand the rules, and quickly. They test, investigate and experiment to learn how gravity works and how forces and motion are related. They drill, drop, spill and collide to understand density, fluid dynamics and drag force. They bang on pots to analyze how sound is generated and jump on the bed to explore the exchange between kinetic and potential energy.
And they do it with joy. It’s fun to ask questions and learn new things. It’s fun to explore and find the answer to a question. It is exciting to learn that the world works in ways that we have or have not expected.
However, at some point, many of us seem to lose that curiosity about science. Perhaps as we grow older, we feel pressured by society to worry about other things, such as fitting in, making a living, and planning for the future. For many children, scientific questions take second place to social questions. It’s really hard to worry about science when, as a middle schooler or teenager, your whole world depends on whether or not someone is going to the dance with you.
That’s why I’ve tried to make the non-fiction books I’ve co-authored about science (We have no idea, Frequently asked questions about the universeand future Out of your mind) both scientifically accurate and funny. I use cartoons to illustrate and illuminate topics in Astrophysics, Quantum Physics and Neuroscience.
However, for high school students and early teens, I knew I needed something extra: a good story. What if, I thought, I wrote a book that had accurate scientific content delivered by an entertaining story that made readers want to see what happened next? But how? There are many pitfalls to this approach. If you make the story too fantastical (for example, with children flying through space or talking to aliens), young readers may not be able to tell the difference between fact and fiction. Also, they can spot an adult lecturing a mile away, so the book can’t be too obvious with the science exhibit.
Inspiration finally came one day when my youngest son, Oliver, announced over dinner that he wanted to be an astrophysicist when he grew up. “Fantastic!” His mother and I thought. Then we asked him if he knew what an astrophysicist does, and he confidently replied, “No.” I thought it was funny, and it was The great great universe of Oliver the series was born. A kid like Oliver would know what kids his age find interesting and he could use stories from his own life to make the topics relatable and funny.
For example, the time when the cafeteria was so full of kids, and then someone yelled, “Did someone fart?” And the children all scatter. Well, says Oliver, this is just like what happened during the Big Bang. Or the way the ingredients in a boba drink float at different levels in a cup? Well, Oliver explains, this is the same reason why the Earth’s interior has different layers and why tectonic plates move around (they float on top like ice cubes).
So far, it seems to be working. Oliver’s first book was named “best children’s science book” on several lists, including Science Friday and the Children’s Book Committee. I’ve heard from parents and teachers how the books have been read several times by their children, and I’ve heard from librarians how the books are in constant rotation in libraries.
So if you have a middle-aged or young teenager, or know one, who could use a dose of wonder and awe, tempt them with one of my books. of The great great universe of Oliver series are great for kids and teens (and adults too!).
And don’t worry, the real Oliver definitely knows the value of learning about science. After all, his mother—my wife—was the Panamanian National Physique Champion. Double plot twist!
Meet the author
Jorge Cham is the best-selling, Emmy-nominated creator. . . many things: from the hit PBS show Elinor Wonders Why to the successful adult non-fiction book We Have No Idea, along with the hit podcast Daniel & Jorge Explain the Universe and the popular webcomic PHD Comics. He is, without a doubt, an expert at explaining things about the world in interesting and entertaining ways. He received his PhD in robotics from Stanford University and was an instructor and research associate at Caltech from 2003 to 2005. He is originally from Panama.
Around Volcanoes are hot! (Oliver’s Big Big Universe #2)
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“Mind-expanding and funny! I got smarter reading this!”
—Jeff Kinney, author of the international bestselling Diary of a Wild Child series
Earth sciences meet Diary of a Weak Child IN Oliver’s Big Big Universe: Volcanoes Are Hot!the second in an original illustrated middle grade fiction series that blends science with narrative from best-selling author-artist Jorge Cham, the Emmy-nominated creator of PBS’s Elinor asks why
After writing his first book, 11-year-old Oliver is kind of famous at school – no big deal. But when he gets caught up in a cafeteria disaster, he quickly goes from being the “funny science kid” to one of the “Epic Barf Kids,” the result of a very explosive cherry pie in the lunchroom. Oliver is desperate to get his reputation back – and winning the science fair sounds like the perfect way for everyone to forget the whole barf thing. There is only one obstacle in his way: Ana Lía Quintero, who wins the science fair every year.
Luckily, Oliver has the help of his geoscientist aunt, even though she’s a little, um, weird (scratch that: really strange). If Oliver has any chance of defeating his nemesis, he’ll have to learn all about volcanic burps and bacterial farts, how the Earth’s layers are basically like boba tea, and how school cliques and the solar system have a lot in common. common.
With laugh-out-loud humor and cartoon-style illustrations by bestselling writer and PHD Comics creator Jorge Cham, The great great universe of Oliver is a STEAM-themed, diary-style series that follows a kid who’s taking over the entire universe—if he can survive high school first.
ISBN-13: 9781419764103
Publisher: Abrams Books
Publication date: 17.09.2024
Series: Oliver’s Great Big Universe #2
Age: 8 – 12 years
Filed Under: Guest Post