Using the modern home as a springboard Atoms Under the Floorboards presents the fascinating and surprising scientific explanations behind a variety of common and often entertainingly mundane household phenomena from gurgling drains and squeaky floorboards to rubbery custard and shiny shoes Packed with facts and fun each chapter focuses on the objects and processes familiar in everyday life and slowly unpicks the science behind them For example the chapter on how buildings work introduces static and dynamic forces in explaining why buildings and their foundations dont sink into the ground and why skyscrapers dont blow over in strong winds The chapter on bicycles explores how a couple of more or less empty circles better known as wheels with a few flimsy bits of metal spokes stretched between them are able to support your weight--and this leads into a discussion of compression tension and how gears work After reading Atoms Under the Floorboards youll never look at everyday objects the same way again.
