Sneaky Book for Boys Read online

  The Sneaky Book for Boys copyright © 2008 by Cy Tymony. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of reprints in the context of reviews. For information, write Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC,

  an Andrews McMeel Universal company, 1130 Walnut Street, Kansas City, Missouri 64106.

  E-ISBN: 978-0-7407-9329-5

  Library of Congress Control Number: 2007941350

  www.andrewsmcmeel.com

  Cover design by Blacktop Creative

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  Disclaimer

  This book is for the entertainment and edification of its readers. While reasonable care has been exercised with respect to its accuracy, the publisher and the author assume no responsibility for errors or omissions in its content. Nor do we assume liability for any damages resulting from use of the information presented here.

  This book contains references to electrical safety that must be observed. Do not use AC power for any projects listed. Do not place or store magnets near such magnetically sensitive media as videotapes, audiotapes, or computer disks.

  Disparities in materials and design methods and the application of the components may cause results to vary from those shown here. The publisher and the author disclaim any liability for injury that may result from the use, proper or improper, of the information contained in this book. We do not guarantee that the information contained herein is complete, safe, or accurate, nor should it be considered a substitute for your good judgment and common sense.

  Nothing in this book should be construed or interpreted to infringe on the rights of other persons or to violate criminal statutes. We urge you to obey all laws and respect all rights, including property rights, of others.

  Contents

  Acknowledgments

  Introduction

  Part I

  Sneaky Tricks

  Detect Counterfeit Currency

  Sneaky Hiding Places

  How to Escape a Grasp

  Sneaky Tracing Machine

  Sneaky Magic Tricks

  Step through a Postcard

  Sneaky Color from Black and White

  Hand-powered Fan

  Sneaky Break String without Scissors

  Levitating Art Figures

  Part II

  Sneaky Science Projects

  Sneaky Periscope

  Sneaky Origami

  Bernoulli Principle Tricks

  Sneaky Frisbee from Paper

  Sneaky Animated Cassette Tape Creations

  Make Wire and Batteries in a Pinch

  Make Invisible Ink

  Part III

  Sneaky Resourcefulness

  Emergency Signaling

  Sneaky Water-Gathering Techniques

  Sneaky Animal and Fish Traps

  Emergency Flotation Devices

  Craft a Compass

  Direction Finding Methods

  Latitude and Longitude Info

  Sneaky Toy Modifications

  Sneaky Walkie-Talkies

  Candy Packaging Tricks

  Part IV

  Sneaky Animals and Humans

  Sneaky Animals

  Sneaky Humans

  Science and Technology Resources

  Acknowledgments

  I’d like to thank my agents, Sheree Bykofsky and Janet Rosen, for believing in my “sneaky uses” book concept from the start. Special thanks to Katie Anderson, my editor at Andrews McMeel Publishing, for her invaluable insights and support.

  I’m also grateful to the following people who helped spread the word about the first three “sneaky uses” books: Ira Flatow, Gayle Anderson, Susan Casey, Mark Frauenfelder, Sandy Cohen, Katey Schwartz, Cherie Courtade, Mike Suan, John Schatzel, Melissa Gwynne, Steve Cochran, Christopher G. Selfridge, Timothy M. Blangger, Charles Bergquist, Phillip M. Torrone, Paul and Zan Dubin Scott, Dana Vinke, Cynthia Hansen, Charles Powell, Harmonie Tangonan, and Bruce Pasarow.

  I’m thankful for project evaluation and testing assistance provided by Sybil Smith, Isaac English, and Bill Melzer.

  And a special thanks to Helen Cooper, Clyde Tymony, George and Zola Wright, Ronald Mitchell, and to my mother, Cloise Shaw, for providing positive motivation, resources, and support for an early foundation in science, and a love of reading.

  Introduction

  If you’re a boy, you’re a born sneak. You love to know something that others do not and fool your friends with magic tricks and illusions. Yet, some of you do not receive science instruction that relates to the real world, and this might explain why many of you do not excel in science later in life. The Sneaky Book for Boys provides a way to learn the basic principles of science, improvisational resourcefulness, and have fun at the same time.

  You don’t have to be MacGyver to adapt unique gadgets, secure a room from intruders, or get the upper hand on aggressors. You can learn how to be a real-life improviser in minutes using nothing but a hodgepodge of items fate has put at your disposal. Sure, it never hurts to have the smarts of Einstein or the strength of Superman, but it’s not necessary. The Sneaky Book for Boys is packed with science projects, sneaky product reuse applications, magic tricks, and seemingly impossible feats that will stump your friends. You will amaze your friends at a moment’s notice with just paper and cardboard while demonstrating how to conserve our resources.

  Created for lovers of sneaky tricks, gadgetry, and trivia, The Sneaky Book for Boys is an amazing assortment of over forty fabulous build-it-yourself projects, self-defense and survival strategies, product reuse ideas, and fun magic tricks. The Sneaky Book for Boys also highlights incredible stories about sneaky humans and critters that will amaze and inspire. After reading this book, you will revel in your newfound powers and glance around the room with a sly grin.

  You can start your entry into sneaky tricks and resourcefulness here.

  Part I

  Sneaky Tricks

  Here are some fun and foolproof tricks you can do anytime to amaze your friends. Each sneaky trick uses odds and ends you have with you or around the house. The best part? These illusions don’t require a big production, special skills, or dexterity.

  Want to know how to spin paper with your hands without touching it, turn a black-and-white image into color, or step through a postcard? Break seemingly unbreakable string without scissors? Detect counterfeit currency with a common household item? Perform other sneaky magic tricks? It’s all here.

  With a little preparation and a personalized delivery, you’ll be ready at a moment’s notice to perform these amazing feats.

  Before you show off your new tricks, be sure to memorize the sneaky magician’s rules:

  Practice until you can do the sneaky trick with your eyes closed.

  Don’t reveal the secret behind the trick.

  Don’t repeat an illusion to the same audience.

  Detect Counterfeit Currency

  Whether it’s a hundred-dollar bill or a one, getting stuck with counterfeit money is a fear many of us have. In the United States in 2002, $43 million in fake currency was circulated. When counterfeit currency is seized, neither consumers nor companies are compensated for the loss. So what can we do about it? This project describes two methods to tell good currency from bad.

  The first method is a careful visual inspection of the bill. Compare a suspect note with a gen
uine note of the same denomination and series. Look for the following telltale signs:

  The paper on a genuine bill has tiny red and blue fibers embedded in it. Counterfeit bills may have a few red and blue lines on them but they are printed on the surface and are not really embedded in the paper.

  The portrait and the sawtooth points on Federal Reserve and Treasury seals are distinct and clear on the real thing.

  The edge lines of the border on a genuine bill are sharp and unbroken.

  The serial number on a good bill is evenly spaced and printed with the same color as the Treasury seal.

  The second way to verify paper currency is to test the ink. How can we do this in a sneaky way, at home or in the office? Easy: by using one important feature of the ink used on U.S. currency. A legitimate bill has iron particles in the ink that are attracted to a strong magnet. To verify a bill, obtain a very strong magnet or a rare-earth magnet. Rare-earth magnets are extremely strong for their small size. They can be obtained from electronic parts stores and scientific supply outlets. See the Resources section at the back of this book.

  You can also use small refrigerator magnets, connecting them end to end to create collectively a much stronger single magnet. See Figure 1.

  What’s Needed

  Dollar bill

  Strong magnet

  What to Do

  Fold the bill about in half crosswise and lay it on a table, as shown in Figure 2. Point the strong magnet near the portrait of the president on the bill, but do not touch it. A legitimate bill will move toward the magnet, as shown in Figure 3.

  FIGURE 1

  Whenever you doubt the authenticity of paper currency, simply pull out your magnet and perform the magnetic attraction test.

  FIGURE 2

  FIGURE 3

  Sneaky Hiding Places

  Hide and Sneak:

  Secure Valuables in Everyday Things

  You’ve seen movies where a character hides something at home and you think, That’s the first place I’d look! Well, this project will illustrate how to choose sneaky locations that are the last places a Man of Steal would look. You don’t always have access to a safe deposit box or can install alarms on all of your possessions. But you can find sneaky hide-in-plain-sight places to frustrate and waste a thief’s time.

  Selecting this hiding place generally depends on two factors: the size of the item and the frequency of access required. From a package of soap to a tennis ball, a typical home offers a variety of clever hiding places, as shown in Figure 1. Wrapping your valuables in black plastic bags will further prevent discovery.

  With enough time, a tenacious thief can eventually find virtually anything you hide. That’s why you should have a room entry alarm installed in combination with sneaky hiding places to reduce the time a thief will spend searching for your valuables.

  More Hide and Sneak

  When you think of sneaky you usually think of something that is secret or hidden from you. Actually, the most common sneaky-use application is hiding your valuable belongings from others.

  FIGURE 1

  The following ideas can be used to keep your things to yourself, even if they are in plain sight. Most likely a thief or nosy houseguest will briefly examine the item and then ignore it as a possible safe. See the list below for more examples.

  Figurine

  Tissue container

  Video or audio cassette shell

  Inner pocket

  Shoestring

  Between magazine pages

  Inside a candy box

  How to Escape a Grasp

  When possible, avoid physical confrontation. If necessary, call for help. Throwing punches is futile and dangerous, and in many cases, you injure your hand when you hit the other person. But in some instances, you may be attacked or grabbed without warning. In these situations, you must do something. The following techniques show easy-to-learn escapes that do not require lots of strength and can be quickly mastered.

  As shown in Figure 1, the weak spot on the hand is between the thumb and forefinger. When an assailant grabs you, you will have a big advantage toward escaping his grasp if you locate this weak spot on his hand.

  By pulling or twisting against the weak spot, as shown in Figures 2 and 3, you will escape from an assailant’s grasp without a lot of effort. Practice this technique with a friend until it’s a reflex action.

  FIGURE 1

  FIGURE 2

  FIGURE 3

  FIGURE 4

  FIGURE 5

  FIGURE 6

  If someone grabs your arm with both hands as shown in Figure 4, use your free arm to grab your other hand as shown in Figure 5. Then raise both arms and turn (Figure 6). This will affect the weak spot on both of the assailant’s hands causing him to release his grasp.

  Similarly, if an assailant grabs both of your arms, as shown in Figure 7, rapidly pull your arms upward to force him to release his grip. See Figure 8.

  FIGURE 7

  FIGURE 8

  Sneaky Tracing Machine

  Some items cannot be copied using a chemical transfer technique because their images are printed on coated paper or, in the case of text, the image will be reversed.

  Another way to make a duplicate of an original image is to use a Sneaky Tracer.

  What’s Needed

  Four cardboard strips

  Hole punch or nail

  Paper clips

  Paper-clip box

  Tape

  Two pencils

  What to Do

  First, cut two pieces of cardboard, each measuring 2 by 8 inches. Then cut another two pieces, each 2 by 4 inches.

  Arrange the cardboard pieces in the pattern shown in Figure 1 and then punch holes in the corners of the shape. Bend paper clips into C shapes and push them through the holes to secure the pieces, yet still allow them to move freely.

  Next, punch pencil-sized holes in the cardboard at points A and B, just large enough so a pencil can fit through snugly, and insert a pencil in each (see Figure 2). Now place the copier device so one end rests on the top of the paper-clip box and secure it with tape.

  The box acts as an elevated mounting platform to keep the pencils balanced and stable yet free to move about.

  Last, select an original drawing that you want to trace and set it under the pencil in hole A. Place a blank sheet of paper under hole B. Use pencil A to trace the drawing and you’ll see another picture being created by pencil B. If necessary, secure the pencils to the cardboard and the paper to the table with tape. See Figure 3.

  Now you can easily trace complex drawings and make copies for your needs. Experiment with the lengths of cardboard, and you’ll see that you can easily enlarge or reduce the size of the drawings made.

  FIGURE 1

  FIGURE 2

  FIGURE 3

  Sneaky Magic Tricks

  Here are some fun and useful tricks you can do anytime to amaze your friends. The best part? Each sneaky trick uses common objects you have with you or around the house.

  Make a Coin Vanish in Your Hand

  Making an object disappear before the eyes of an audience is one of the most popular magic tricks. With a little practice, you’ll be able to perform this simple trick anywhere with any small object.

  What’s Needed

  Coin

  What to Do

  Hold the coin upright in full view between your thumb and forefinger as shown in Figure 1.

  Note: You can perform the trick in either hand. In this example, the trick begins in the left hand.

  Next, place the thumb and middle finger of your right hand through the thumb and forefinger of your left hand as if you’re about to grab the coin. See Figure 2. As you cover the coin with your fingers, and obscure its view from onlookers, let the coin drop into the palm of your left hand as shown in Figure 3.

  Don’t immediately close your left hand. Instead, close your right hand into a fist, swing it away from your left hand, and bring it near your onlookers to bring atten
tion to it. Show them that it’s empty and point to your left hand and the coin.

  To your onlookers, it appears that you grabbed the coin from your left hand and the object is in your right hand’s closed fist. However, the coin was never removed from your left hand because you sneakily dropped it from your thumb and forefinger into your palm. You can also bring your left hand behind an onlooker’s ear and say that you made it travel there while you open your hand to reveal the coin.

  FIGURE 1

  FIGURE 2

  FIGURE 3

  Balancing Soda Can

  In this surprising trick, a soda can balances at a 45-degree angle on a surface or on your hand.

  What’s Needed

  Soda can

  Water

  What to Do

  First, pour out two-thirds of the soda from the can. See Figure 1. If you start with an empty can, pour water in it until it’s one-third full.

  Next, tilt the can on its edge so it stays in place as shown in Figure 2. If the can does not balance, add or remove liquid until the can stands on its edge.