Holt Science & Technology: Physical Science

Otzi, the iceman, who was found mummified in the Alps in 1991 shows up twice in this book ... on page 403 with his left arm raised over his chest, and on page 394 with his right arm raised over his chest. He is dried up and presumable has very little flexibility now. I found more than a dozen images of him on the Internet today with his left arm raised. Why pay money for something that's more accurate and free? The Golden Gate Bridge on the cover of the book is dramatic. Inside the book, on p. 135, Holt presents the concepts of compression and tension. The towers are in compression, and the cables supporting the roadway are under tension. Students are to "imagine a hammock 1,965 m long supporting a 20-ton roadway." The Golden Gate Bridge has its own website. 20 tones is less than a couple of schoolbusses. Maybe the kids are to respond, "OMG, that's heavy!"

Anyone arguing about science and using the words "proven," "hoax," "proof," have NO idea what Science actually IS, let alone religious faith. THERE IS NO "PROOF" INVOLVED IN SCIENCE. The concept of proof is limited to the court and legal systems as well as to Geometry class proofs,a class which I doubt many of the naysayers actually took when they were in High School. As far as faith goes, I do not need "proof" to believe what I believe about God, if I do, then I am a Doubting Thomas and I have no faith. Asking God to prove Him or Her self is a mockery of faith. In Science we use the available data from observations to understand our physical world bettter. Sometimes we are wrong, as I believe the people who do not believe an omnipotent God who is capable of making evolution are wrong. Its a world I believe God gave us as a gift to try to get to know better and to understand. It's not here for us to fight over and ask for "proof." If our faith requires proof for us to believe, we are not really believers. As scientists, when we get new data, we can change our ideas to better ones. I sincerely hope that these people who hide in their imitation of faith asking for proof are one day able to free themselves to believing in God just because He or She is there and not because of some paltry "proof." We crawl up a slippery slope when we try to prove God's existence. Anyone who has taken a college-level logic class can tell you that it only takes three lines to negate the existence of God, but you can never prove God exists in a logical argument. So, arguing about God and evolution is pointless. There must be some other way one can spend one's time, maybe seeing to an elderly neighbor or perhaps teaching little urban children how to read. I've taught from this book for two years and I find it to be a 4/5 because it does not follow our California Standards directly. I think with over 50 million people we Californians would warrant our own version. I am more worried about my Language Learners understanding the sometimes dense text and my Gifted Learners not getting enough enrichment out of it than I am about the references to "evolution" in it. There is one section of one chapter about biochemistry and that is it for Life Science in this book-hence the title "Physical Science."

Of Physical Science books I have yet to find one superior to this. The text is thorough enough to be challenging yet inviting to the student. Regardless of your religious beliefs I would highly recommend this text. Our local Christian school uses this text and skips over the evolution part. Don't throw the baby out with the bath water. It's such a shame. Another plus for this series is the support materials offered to supplement the text. There are skill sheets, lab sheets, CDroms, test booklets, a plethora of choices. Great for home schoolers!

Even if you do not beleive the evolution theory, that does notmean that there is no hard evidence for it. I think that this textbook is a good teaching resource and would recommend the "Holt Science & Technology" series to all non-religeous middleschool science teachers. THIS IS A PURELY SCIENTIFIC REFERENCE. THIS BOOK IS NOT FOR RELIGEOUS SCHOOLS.--Anonymous Teacher