Author Description

You probably don't think of a supermarket as a science laboratory. After all, you go to a supermarket to buy food, cleaning supplies, or paper products - not to conduct experiments. The truth is every aisle, shelf, nook, and cranny of a supermarket could be the source of a scientific wonder. All you have to do is take the time to look around and use your imagination. Items found in the produce aisle can teach you about biology. The aisle with cleaning products offers all kinds of lessons in chemistry. The dairy aisle can teach you something about science too. Wherever you look, you can study the sciences. The order and location of the aisles and the arrangement of the shelves have all been carefully designed to get customers to buy as much as possible. The strategies used by supermarket designers are based on the science of psychology, which looks at the behavior of human beings. Bob Friedhoffer has a master's degree in the history and philosophy of science from the City University of New York. Also known as the Madman of Magic, he has been performing for children and young adults for 30 years. He lectures frequently on science and magic. His entertaining approach to science can be found in more than a dozen books written for Franklin Watts. Several of these books have won awards.