The world knows Charles Darwin as a keen observer of the natural world and as a theorist. In Darwin’s Backyard: How Small Experiments Led to a Big Theory, James Costa tells us story after story of Darwin the experimenter. Not only did Darwin form many hypotheses about the natural world, but he also undertook a huge and never-ending sequence of experiments of his own to prove (or, in some cases, disprove) his hunches. Costa also includes numerous sections on how to conduct your own experiments, similar to some of Darwin’s own, making this book an excellent resource for amateur scientists and science teachers. Don’t worry: if you aren’t into doing experiments, you can skip those sections!
