Everyday STEM Science – Physics

Discover how physics is part of our daily lives with Everyday STEM Science – Physics.

Explore how physics is all around us! Learn how physics keeps a plane in the air, find out about light and dark matter, and meet the scientists who have brought physics to life, including Shohini Gose, Michael Faraday and Vera Rubin. Readers can also carry out cool physics experiments at home.

With easy-to-understand text written by STEM expert Dr Shini Somara and lots of colourful artworks, photos and diagrams, readers can best explore where we encounter physics and why it’s even important at all.

The Everyday STEM series makes science relevant to tweens. Instead of telling kids STEM is important and is the key to their future success, these books show readers how we use science, technology, engineering and maths in our everyday lives. While the topics sound high-level and complex, this series makes these concepts age-appropriate and accessible. So, while we can’t promise to teach 9 to 11-year-olds quantum physics, we can explain in the simplest terms the practical applications of STEM.

Dr Shini Somara is an engineer, television presenter/producer and author. She has consistently worked to demystify science, technology and innovation, making them more accessible and less intimidating. Having the experience of being a woman of colour in a male-dominated industry, she has a passion for making science more diverse and inclusive. Growing up with a father who was a mechanical and electrical engineer, she never doubted that she would follow in his footsteps. When she questioned why so many girls seem to feel that engineering (and STEM generally) is not for them, she wondered whether it was because they were not introduced to it early enough. The role-models which made children aspire to be astronauts or fire-fighters were not visible in STEM so she decided to write her own children’s book with characters who did not fit the stereotypical view of an engineer.

Luna Valentine is a Polish children’s book illustrator, living in Nottingham, UK. She works digitally, finding inspiration in (but not limited to) folk tales, video games, cute Japanese food, under her bed and other places nobody thinks to look. Her art has been described as humorous, quirky and colourful. At Nottingham Trent University she studied Graphic Design and gone on to do her Masters in Illustration. She has gone onto work with a variety of clients including Paper Rose, Paperchase and Arteza.