Illustrated Guide to Home Forensic Science Experiments: All Lab, No Lecture

If youre taking a basic course in classical physics, or have a healthy curiosity for the way things work in the physical world, the Illustrated Guide to Home Physics Experiments provides an ideal hands-on introduction to physics lab techniques and data analysis. With this book and a few simple (and inexpensive) tools and materials, youll learn to conduct experiments that answer questions about our world, make demonstrations to show off physical principles, and do theoretical lab work to discover how the world works.

Perfect for do-it-yourselfers, home-schooled high school students, and college students, this book will help you:

• Learn everything from the basics of motion all the way to particle physics—including energy, thermodynamics, magnetic fields, optics, and much more
• Take careful measurements of physical phenomena and conduct data analysis
• Build and perform physics demonstrations that are fascinating and fun
• Construct computer models to represent aspects of the physical world

Its easy to get started. You can build most of the experiments and demonstrations in this book with ordinary household tools, using materials that you can scrounge, borrow, or get free. The most important thing is your willingness to enter the door of discovery that awaits you. The Illustrated Guide to Home Physics Experiments is your key.

Have you ever wondered whether the forensic science you've seen on TV is anything like the real thing? There's no better way to find out than to roll up your sleeves and do it yourself. The Illustrated Guide to Home Forensic Science Experiments offers advice for setting up an inexpensive home lab, and includes more than 50 hands-on lab sessions that deal with forensic science experiments in chemistry, biology, physics, and medicine. You'll learn the practical skills and fundamental knowledge needed to pursue forensics as a lifelong hobby--or even a career. This book will help you:

• Analyze soil, hair, and fibers
• Match glass and plastic specimens
• Develop latent fingerprints and reveal blood traces
• Conduct drug and toxicology tests
• Analyze gunshot, explosives, and metal residues
• Detect forgeries and fakes
• Analyze impressions, such as tool marks and footprints
• Match pollen and diatom samples
• Extract DNA samples and separate them by gel electrophoresis

You'll gain a real appreciation for forensic science, and discover how persistent and inventive these technicians really are. The world of forensics awaits you.

Robert Bruce Thompson is a coauthor of Building the Perfect PC, Astronomy Hacks, and the Illustrated Guide to Astronomical Wonders. Thompson built his first computer in 1976 from discrete chips. It had 256 bytes of memory, used toggle switches and LEDs for I/O, ran at less than 1MHz, and had no operating system. Since then, he has bought, built, upgraded, and repaired hundreds of PCs for himself, employers, customers, friends, and clients. Robert spends most clear, moonless nights outdoors with his 10-inch Dobsonian reflector telescope, and is currently designing a larger, computerized, truss-tube Dobsonian that he plans to build.

Barbara Fritchman Thompson is, with her husband Robert, the co-author of numerous books about computers, science, and technology. With her Masters in Library Science and twenty years' experience as a public librarian, Barbara is the research half of our writing team.