Ace Your Human Biology Science Project

* Reviews *

This book offers a good overview and exploration of the human body and would best be suited for a high school student interested in learning some anatomy or general human biology. Each chapter begins with a description of a system and then has sections directing readers to explore the body (e.g., "Testing Reflex Actions"), beginning with a list of materials and then describing the activity and biology of the system. There are questions to get the reader to further explore and think about what is happening. Each section ends with a list of "Science Fair Project Ideas."The book begins with a good description of the scientific method and useful tips for science fair projects. However, none of the projects are modeled within the book's pages. The ideas for projects describe further explorations or pose questions that the reader could look up in other resources. The ideas do not use the scientific method or provide direction for setting up scientific experiments. Many of the explorations would require access to materials (e.g., an incubator, a stethoscope, a microscope, and reagents) through a school.Some of the materials, and the language used to describe the ideas, are quite complex, and there are a few errors in the book that would conflict with other sources, such as a textbook. Hence, a teacher may need to help clarify information. A creative student may be able to modify some of the suggestions to develop a hypothesis-driven science fair experiment. This book would be best suited to supplement a biology course, as a way to learn about, think about, and explore the human body., Science Books & Films September 2009