Illustrated Guide to Home Chemistry Experiments: All Lab, No Lecture (DIY Science)

Robert Bruce Thompson's Preface to this fine book took me back to a Christmas many years ago:

"My parents had been watching my brother and me ripping through gifts like Tasmanian Devils. Just as I'd decided that I hadn't gotten the one gift that I really, really wanted, mom and dad called me into the kitchen. There it sat, on the kitchen table, exactly what I'd been hoping for. It was already unboxed and spread wide open to show the contents. My father said, 'This is from your mother and me. It is not a toy.'

"It was a Lionel/Porter/Chemcraft chemistry set, and the exact model I'd asked for. The biggest one, with dozens of chemicals and hundreds of experiments. Glassware, an alcohol lamp, a balance, even a centrifuge. Everything I needed to do real chemistry. I instantly forgot about the rest of my presents, even the BB gun. I started reading the manual, jumping from one experiment to another. I carefully examined each of the chemical bottles. The names of the chemicals were magical. Copper sulfate, sodium carbonate, sulfur, cobalt chloride, logwood, potassium ferricyanide, ferrous ammonium sulfate, and dozens more."

My parents gave me a similar (albeit simpler) kit when I was twelve, and it was one of the most educational presents I ever received. My interest in science broadened from chemistry and then from the sciences to other areas of interest, but I still remember some of the wonder, the magic, even, of those chemistry experiments. As soon as I heard about O'Reilly's series on DIY Science, I pre-ordered this first entry as a present to myself.

As a generalist, Thompson has re-introduced me to those magical years so long ago. Of course, modern chemistry kits are little more than toys, "defanged" as Thompson writes because of product liability concerns of the kit makers. And there are real dangers here; "After all, some of the experiments in this book use concentrated acids, flammable liquids, corrosives, and poisons. In one experiment we manufacture napalm, for heaven's sake. Will readers of this book be dropping like flies, blowing themselves up, burning the house down, or growing extra arms? Of course not. Dangers can be dealt with. One of the recurring lessons throughout this book is the importance of assuming personal responsibility for useful but dangerous actions--understanding the specific risks and taking the necessary steps to minimize or eliminate them."

Thompson does an excellent job of teaching responsible teenagers and curious adults to learn about chemistry by doing real laboratory experiments, and doing them well and safely. There are four introductory sections dealing with safety, equipment, chemicals and laboratory skills. The substance of the book lies in seventeen chapters devoted to specific topics: from separating mixtures to synthesis of compounds and forensic chemistry.

I can't imagine a more useful book for a responsible teenager who has the least interest in science or for a general reader who wants to re-learn the principles of chemical changes. (I've already placed an order for glassware and a few other essential bits of equipment.)

Robert C. Ross 2008