Color Me Physics: American Physical Society Coloring Book for Kids

[ZapperZ]

OK, this would have been funny if it were a joke. However, the American Physical Society (APS) has produced a http://www.physicscentral.com/coloringbook/index.html" . It intends to "... introduce children to physics and some of its most famous characters..." I kid you not!

How successful the book is remains unknown. If you have children of the age intended, and you decide to download and try it out, I'd love to hear from you of the outcome. It'll be our own (non)scientific test on whether such a thing actually works!



Zz.

 

[Moonbear]

That actually sounds like a good idea (though I haven't looked at the link yet...am I likely to change my mind if I do?)

They have things like anatomy coloring books to get kids interested in science (and laugh if you want, but I've known undergrads who used it to supplement their biology lessons...they seemed to remember things better when coloring them in, and the labels were all accurate).

Edit: I just looked at some of the pages. I guess it's NOT going to introduce them to proper English grammar! Couldn't they have made the physicists a bit smaller and the rest of the picture, that looks more fun to color in, a bit bigger? Who wants to color in Copernicus (what color crayon do you use for a physicist anyway?) when they could color in the planets?

 

[DaveC426913]

I agree. This is great.

 

[hypatia]

Aww its cute! I'm going to d/l it for my grandson, not that it would be a true test, he colors everything that isn't moveing.

 

[JasonRox]

They have things like anatomy coloring books to get kids interested in science (and laugh if you want, but I've known undergrads who used it to supplement their biology lessons...they seemed to remember things better when coloring them in, and the labels were all accurate).

That's what my brother did!

 

[Garth]

OK, this would have been funny if it were a joke. However, the American Physical Society (APS) has produced a http://www.physicscentral.com/coloringbook/index.html" . It intends to "... introduce children to physics and some of its most famous characters..." I kid you not!
Zz.

Ah! - Now I understand...

Garth

 

[Ivan Seeking]

I want to see a pro-string/anti-string coloring book that has colorful language.

 

[moose]

I want to see a pro-string/anti-string coloring book that has colorful language.

Do I see a new physics party coming on? The physicists will be split into either Stringist or Anti-Stringists! God this gives me a great idea for a comic, too bad I can't draw...

 

[ZapperZ]

I want to see a pro-string/anti-string coloring book that has colorful language.

Actually, there is a string coloring book, only no one has made an observation of it yet.

<slaps himself silly>

Zz.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

Does it come with three color, and three anti-color crayons?

 

[Physics is Phun]

haha, the last page in the book says, 'now draw yourself as a physicist' and leave a nice blank page for you

 

[DaveC426913]

Do I see a new physics party coming on? The physicists will be split into either Stringist or Anti-Stringists! God this gives me a great idea for a comic, too bad I can't draw...

Seriously, the ability to draw has nothing to do with making http://xkcd.com/c181.html".

 

[Danger]

Ah, the joys of electronic art. I can just import that to Illustrator and colour it without ever picking up my crayons.
(Good thing, too, because the budgie ate all of my green ones and W put the rest someplace where I can't find them. )

Good comics, Dave. I love that second one.

 

[Math Is Hard]

Seriously, the ability to draw has nothing to do with making http://xkcd.com/c181.html".

I think this one is cute, too:
http://xkcd.com/c55.html

 

[Beeza]

Actually, there is a string coloring book, only no one has made an observation of it yet.

<slaps himself silly>

Zz.

For some reason I laughed really hard at that.

 

[physics girl phd]

What was the creative team thinking?
hideous. Yes -- people too large... cheesy rhymes not REAL science.
And much too PC with the diversity of kids on the cover. "Color me physics" indeed! In order to get all major skin colors in we must put the Asian girl in the wheelchair? Please. Why isn't the blond white kid with glasses depicted as blind with assist-dog and cane?

When one of my stepsons (at age seven) drew a picture of me "in the lab" I was very small and surrounded by bottles, hoses, beakers, and all kinds of stuff... me in a dangerous lab, free of interference from campus "Environmental Health and Safety" regulations! YEA! The cell and anatomy coloring books are full of useful information. Kids above five would know and respect that. Kids I know would. Heck -- the "diverse" kids you want to reach have seen a LOT and know a LOT.

Kid's aren't dumb, don't treat 'em like they are, or you won't catch their attention. It's patriarchal in the worse way.

And:
WHY WHY WHY give Maria Gepphart a female symbol to lean on? I'm not a nuclear physicist, but I don't think that's a symbol for nuclear force. Am I wrong there? Please inform me if I am -- this book doesn't.

BLAH. They probably dumped lots of money into it and should have come up with better. Pay some of us to fix it up.