The last weekend in April saw Workmanites at events of all kinds, from a crafter’s wedding paradise at the Etsy wedding expo to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden’s Sakura Matsuri, a Japanese cultural celebration. But the other big event of the weekend was the USA Science and Engineering Festival, a free event for families and kids to get up close and personal with real examples of science at work. I was lucky enough to represent Workman—and all of our awesome science books—at the two-day celebration, and I’m excited to share the details with you now!

The adventure began on Friday morning, when Maggie, John, and I hit the road in our amazing custom Brain Quest minivan!! This year marks Brain Quest’s 20th anniversary, and we’ve teamed up with Chrysler to give away over $25,000 in scholarship money and other prizes through the Brain Quest College Tuition Sweepstakes. Be sure to enter online!

Maggie and John are ready to hit the road in style.

It’s a long drive from New York City to Washington, D.C., but we came prepared: In addition to Brain Quest for the Car and Natan Last’s crossword puzzle book Word., we also brought a copy of All-American Car-I-Oke—and busted out a car-rocking rendition of “Proud Mary.”

Maggie bringing down the house---er, car.

When we arrived at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, we pulled the van into our booth, which was decked out with some truly amazing signage, made by our great studio team.

Brain Quest has never looked better.

After a good night’s sleep, we got up bright and early to greet the crowds! Thousands of eager science enthusiasts flocked to the convention center to get some hands-on scientific action. As you could probably guess, a huge part of our weekend was about Brain Quest. Lots of kids stopped by the booth to be quizzed on math and science topics from their grade levels. And we unveiled the brand new free Brain Quest app for iPad, iPhone, and Nook!

Jessica quizzes some Girl Scouts/future Marie Curies, while two others play with the new Brain Quest app for iPad (right).

Plus, just in case you think we were too easy on the Brain Questers, Selina fired questions at kids while they hula hooped.

"I'll take the physical challenge!"

We also had the distinct pleasure of hosting not one but two Workman authors in our booth. The first was Sean Connolly, author of The Book of Potentially Catastrophic Science and The Book of Totally Irresponsible Science. Sean performed experiments from those two books as well as from his most recent endeavor, The Book of Perfectly Perilous Math. Below, Sean Connolly demonstrates some of the more surprising principles of sound waves to young science buffs.

Stop, hey, what's that sound?

And did you ever hear the story of the inventor of chess, who asked only that his only reward for inventing such a spectacular game be a piece of rice for the first square of the board, two for the next, four for the next, and so on, doubling the amount for each square? Below, Sean uses a real chess board to show that the reward wasn’t as measly as you might think.

Scientists of all ages are amazed by Sean's math skills.

Also in attendance was Allen Kurzweil, author and inventor of Potato Chip Science, a book and kit that includes everything you need to complete 30 science experiments involving potatoes and potato chips. Allen showed us how to turn an ordinary potato into a mind-blowing display of Boyle’s Law, which states that volume and pressure are inversely related. In other words, as pressure increases, volume decreases (and vice versa). In other other words, load a chunk of raw potato into either end of a patented Potato Propulsion Pipe, apply pressure, and BAM! Potato goes flying! Science!!

A budding rocket scientist loads his Potato Propulsion Pipe.

No one can resist a mad scientist who advocates launching veggies in the air.

The USA Science and Engineering Festival was a truly wonderful experience, and I’m so glad I got to be a part of it. Seeing all those kids learning about the way science affects their everyday lives proved something I’ve been pretty sure of all along: It’s FUN to be smart!

—Avery, who got to stand about 50 yards from her childhood hero Bill Nye the Science Guy. BILL! BILL! BILL! BILL!

Welcome to Inside the Author’s Studio, where we give you a peek into the minds of your favorite Workman authors.

Today we celebrate National Potato Chip Day (yes, really) and Albert Einstein’s birthday by—how else?—stepping inside the secret lab of Allen Kurzweil, who makes up one half of the father-son duo behind the deliciously fun Potato Chip Science.

Recent book you loved/learned from:
Power of One (horrible title, wonderful novel)

Favorite bookstore:
Favorite bookstores, like offspring, should never be ranked. Doing so only leads to discord among loved ones.

Hidden talent:
Able to stand on one toe without the aid of ballet slippers

(c) A. Kurzweil

Bookmark, dog-ear, or virtuality?:
Unrepentant marginalian

Book you are most ashamed never to have read:
Reject the presumption of the question. That said, I am a bit embarrassed to say I’ve never read the Old Testament.

Most frequent form of writerly procrastination:
Don’t have the luxury to procrastinate. Kept much too busy pointing cans of compressed air at keyboard  and computer screen, inspecting contents of refrigerator, and searching Craig’s list for a left (driver’s) side view mirror that will fit a 1989 Dodge Neon.

Favorite childhood book:
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Alternate ambition (best if secret, never before revealed):
Monologist

Your perfect meal:
Beef, tomato, and mayo between two (center) slices of toasted rustic durum round. Unless I’m visiting my mother-in-law. In that case, I’d opt for her foie gras frais.

Big dream:
The perfect meal (See question 9 above)

Super power of choice:

Hmm. Novelists are already provided a long list of superpowers. (One of the most compelling reasons to write fiction.) However, if you’re giving me a chance to receive your garden-variety SP, I’d like to have the abilities of Longshot, one of the more underappreciated X-men. Longshot gets to mess around with probability. He can make the unlikely possible. Isn’t that exactly the power one needs to be a writer, editor, or publisher?

Favorite potato chip flavor:
(See question 2 above.) The potato chips one eats, like the children one raises and the bookstores one patronizes, should never be ranked.

Once you pop, you just can’t stop. True or false?:
To quote The Power of One (see question 1 above): “Absodoodle!” For independent and unbiased confirmation of this fact, one need only consult p. 58 of Potato Chip Science to learn that the inverse relationship of volume and pressure () presupposes that a piece of potato introduced into a propulsion pipe will indeed pop! when the proper force is applied. Thank you Robert Boyle for your thoughtful inquiry into the physics of pneumatics.

What Workman book would you like to receive as compensation for your involvement?:
The check book. Please forward this request to the accounting department.

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Allen Kurzweil is the co-author (with his son, Max) of Potato Chip Science: Book & Stuff, and the sole author of the two books that inspired the kit—Leon and the Champion Chip and Leon and the Spitting Image.

Here is a list of a few things that kids love, in no particular order:
1.       Gross stuff

2.       Making a mess

3.       Making things explode

4.       Experiments

When you combine all of these, and throw in some pictures and facts, you have the most dynamically explosive and dangerous book, perfect for boys and girls who want to make things and learn about them too. We give you, THE BOOK OF POTENTIALLY CATASTROPHIC SCIENCE by Sean Connolly. Sean made his way through five cities and six schools last week, wreaking havoc and demonstrating some of the best experiments from his prize-winning book.

Those watching learned a little about friction with Newton’s Science Friction and got messy with the crowd-pleasing Edward Jenner’s Germ Experiment. In the photo you can see a group of 4th, 5th, & 6th graders from Knapp Forest Elementary School in Grand Rapids, MI, with their eyes glued on Sean.

The tour ended in Washington DC as Sean accepted the 2011 AAAS & Subaru SB&F Award for Excellence in Science Books in the hands-on category presented by the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Quite the honor!

On Sunday, Sean appeared at the AAAS Family Science Day, where he presented the great video made by the Workman Studio and demonstrated more of his dangerously cool experiments. Even The Washington Post took notice!

Cheers to our friend for bringing a first-place prize back home to the UK and representing Workman children’s authors!

Okay. You’re going to think I’m obsessed with Maker Faire. And maybe I am. Or maybe the crafty holiday spirit is to blame. Around this time of year, I like to give gifts with a handmade touch — be they cookies, knitted goods (points for effort?), toys, or any number of household items crafted from repurposed fabric. So my apartment inevitably turns into a miniature Santa studio…. And what is Maker Faire, really, but a giant workshop bustling with high-octane elvish makers?

Relive the highs via this video by Workman designer Kevin Davidson. Featuring! Allen Kurzweil and son Max demonstrating laws of physics and optics in Potato Chip Science! Megan Nicolay transforming a T-shirt from Generation T: Beyond Fashion–while someone is actually wearing the T-shirt!

Perhaps they will inspire you to make something (explosions? fashion?) this holiday season. Back at the Workman compound, we’re busy making books to make all those things possible!

Watch Allen Kurzweil’s brand new Potato Chip Science video which just had its world premiere this morning at the Smithsonian in Washington D.C.