A colorful and fun companion to the popular MythBusters TV series, with experiments kids can do at home!

We’ ve all heard them– the popular myths and urban legends. Is it true that a penny dropped from a skyscraper can really kill someone on the sidewalk below? Only two men would be inventive– and adventurous– enough to try to find out: Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman, the MythBusters. Their popular MythBusters TV show airs on Discovery Channel and averages 1.7 million viewers. In ea episode, hosts Savage and Hyneman, both special effects experts, put another urban legend to the test. In this book, you’ ll learn how they either " busted" or confirmed many of the myths on their TV show, often with spectacular results. And it will show you how you can test the same scientific principles safely at home.

Some of the urban legends examined include: Is there really such a thing as killer quicksand? Does a goldfish have memory? And can a toy car beat a real car in a gravity slope race? And could Archimedes have invented an ancient death ray? The book provides many fun and exciting demonstrations that are related but appropriate for kids to do on their own.

Adam Savage (San Francisco, CA) has been an animator, graphic designer, stage and interior designer, and a carpenter. For the past eight years, he has concentrated on special effects and has worked on more than 100 commercials and twelve feature films, including Star Wars: Episode I and II, Terminator 3, and The Matrix films. Jamie Hyneman (San Francisco, CA) creates models and special effects for movies and commercials at his San Francisco— based company M5 Industries.

It's a tough job separating truth from urban legend, but the MythBusters are here to serve. For example, is it true that if you step in quicksand, you'll be sucked down to your death? Only two men would be inventive - and adventurous - enough to try to find out: Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman, the MythBusters. Each week, hosts Savage and Hyneman, both special effects experts, use modern science to put another three urban legends to the test on their popular TV show. In this book, you'll learn how they either busted or confirmed fifteen myths on their show, often with spectacular results. Here are just some of the urban legends in this book: Did a Ming Dynasty astronaut launch himself into space with a rocket? Can a swallowed octopus egg grow to full size inside a person's stomach? Is the daddy longlegs the world's most venomous spider? Will a sinking ship suck you down? How many balloons are needed to lift a small child off the ground? Does a duck's quack echo?

Mythbusters: Don't Try This at Home gets to the bottom of these urban legends and more, and it lets you do your own mythbusting with fun experiments you can do safely at home.

"Mythbusters: Don't Try This at Home!" gets to the bottom of these urban legends and more, and it lets you do your own mythbusting with fun experiments you can do safely at home.

MythBusters is a popular TV show that airs on Wednesdays at 9:00 on the Discovery Channel and averages 1.7 million viewers.  More than forty 60-minute episodes have been comitted to date.  In each episode, the hosts Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman, both special effects experts, put another urban legend to the test.  The MythBusters do more than explain how something may or may not be scientifically possible.  They actually demonstrate it, often with spectacular results. Although its aimed at adults, it's also very popular with children. Some of the urban legends examined include could a Ming Dynasty astronaut have launched himself into orbit using rockets?  Can quicksand really kill you?  Can a sunken boat be lifted with ping-pong balls?  And will a car really stall if you stick a banana in its tailpipe? The show goes out of its way to make the demonstrations fun and exciting, and this will be reflected in the book.  Many of the legends involve explosions, often to the detriment of the show's crash test dummy mascot Buster.  The book, of course, will caution readers not to try any of these demonstrations at home, and will provide other, less explosive demonstrations, that are safe for kids to do on their own. MythBusters is going into its third season next fall and will have a major marketing campaign.