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10 of the best iPad and iPhone science apps Save 40% when you subscribe to BBC Science Focus Magazine We love tapping and swiping our way through new apps, so we've picked out our best science apps for iOS for you to use on your iPad or iPhone. Aug 27, 2019 As the world’s largest science & technology magazine, Popular Science reports on the intersection of science and everyday life. We put the latest news in gadgets, software, and scientific innovation in the palm of your hand!
Help toddlers and preschoolers have fun with numbers! This early math app features 20 mini-games that get children to grow five pretty flowers, serve a seven-layer sandwich, find 14 colorful cupcakes, and more. The games teach quantity, order, and sorting. Plus, a sing-along counting song and an assisted counting guide help kids learn to count to 100.
Ages: 2-5
Price: $2.99
Sid's Science Fair
Join the stars of the hit PBS Kids series Sid the Science Kid to learn about key math and science concepts, including classification, identifying patterns, charting, and sequencing. The app includes three fun games: Gabriela's 'Collection Inspection' (finding patterns among collections of butterflies, coins, and more), May's 'Chart It!' (charting the shared traits of stuffed animals and other objects), and Gerald's 'Time Machine' (putting pictures in order of sequence). This app won an Editor's Choice Award from Children's Technology Review.
Ages: 4-6
Price: $2.99
Math Bingo
The goal of this app is to get a pattern of five BINGO bugs in a row by correctly answering math problems. The app includes five BINGO games — addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and mixed operations — at three different levels of difficulty. Players can see their scores on a scoreboard and collect BINGO bugs when they earn a high score. Plus, you can track your child's achievements in the report card feature.
Ages: 6-8
Price: $1.99
DragonBox Algebra 5+
DragonBox is 'the game that secretly teaches algebra.' It was developed by a former math teacher and has won numerous awards, including the 2013 ON for Learning Award from Common Sense Media and the Editor's Choice Award from Children's Technology Review. The game covers the algebraic concepts of addition, division, and multiplication, and gives kids a head start in learning the basic processes involved in solving linear equations — without even realizing they're practicing math skills. Check out the DragonBox Algebra 12+ app for kids ages 9 to 12.
Ages: 6-9
Price: $4.99
Slice Fractions
This Common Core–aligned app helps kids unravel the mystery of fractions alongside a math-loving mammoth. Through a series of fun games, players learn various fraction concepts, including part-whole partitioning, numerator/denominator notation, equivalent fractions, fraction ordering, and subtracting fractions from 1. Kids can collect funky hats for solving puzzles and games. This app won a 2014 Parent's Choice Gold Award and an Editor's Choice Award from Children's Technology Review.
Ages: 6-8
Price: $3.99
NASA App
This free app is out-of-this-world! Your aspiring astronaut will love the ever-growing library of 14,000 images; 10,000 videos; and the latest space-related news stories. Plus, she can track the International Space Station and NASA mission updates, and learn about upcoming sighting opportunities.
Ages: 7 & up
Apps For Mac
Price: Free
Bobo Explores Light
Free Video Apps For Mac
This award-winning iPad app features more than 100 pages of interactive content on 21 in-depth topics on the science of light. Kids will learn about colors, lasers, sunlight, photosynthesis, holograms, and more alongside a lovable robot named Bobo. In addition to hands-on activities and experiments, the app includes dozens of videos, animations, and trivia challenges.
Ages: 8-11
Price: $4.99
Hopscotch – Programming for Kids
Get your kids into coding! Computer science encourages problem-solving and critical thinking — plus, it's a booming career field. Kids (and parents) can dive into programming with this easy-to-use app. Design characters that can move, dance, draw, and interact. Control your project by tapping, tilting, shaking, and even shouting at your tablet. Follow simple videos to learn to create fun games like 'Food Fight Dodgeball' and more. This app won the 2013 Parent's Choice Gold Award and a 2014 Children's Technology Review award.
Ages: 8 & up
Price: Free (with a variety of $0.99 in-app purchases)
Mathmateer
3, 2, 1... Blast off — on any of the 56 different math missions in this nifty app. The missions range in difficulty, and include: even and odd numbers, fractions, decimals, telling time, counting money, identifying shapes (2D and 3D), addition, subtraction, multiplication, and square roots. Players must touch the correct objects or answers as they float through space. This app won an Editor's Choice Award from Children's Technology Review.
Ages: 9-11
Price: $0.99
Monster Physics
Have fun with physics! Kids can build their own imaginative car, crane, rocket ship, plane, helicopter, or tank using 68 different parts and virtual welding and engineering techniques. Then they'll solve 50 fun problem-solving missions, from simple tasks to mind-bending challenges. They'll also learn the definitions of common physics terms, including friction, force, mass, and acceleration. Zoooom!
Ages: 9-11
Price: $1.99
What are the essential Mac apps for the backyard astronomer? In this article, I've listed some of the most notable OS X apps that round out a complete technical package for the amateur astronomer.
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The goal here is to recommend some very good, respected apps for beginners that are in typical use on the Mac. It would be impractical to list every available app, and I recognize that many advanced amateurs will have their own favorites.
I've defined six categories of apps: a sky chart that does telescope control, astronomy weather forecast, satellite look up, session planning, image processing and last but not least, a superb scientific calculator.
1. Sky Chart & Telescope Control. There are several Mac apps that combine a sky chart with telescope control for compatible GoTo telescopes. They include, for example, Equinox, SkySafari, TheSkyX and Starry Night. Based on previous reviews of the Mac and the iPad versions, as well as the technical energy being put into continuous development, I have come to consider SkySafari Pro or SkySafari Plus by Southern Stars the best option for the Mac. Here's a review of the Mac version by a well-known amateur astronomer.
Image Credit: Southern Stars, SkySafari Plus for Mac.
Southern Stars also offers SkyFi, a Wi-Fi telescope controller to operate a GoTo telescope with a Mac (or PC, iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch and, with some limitations, Android.) A description and list of compatible GoTo telescopes is on the SkyFi page.
2. Astronomy Weather Forecast. Before you can start planning for an observing session, it's helpful to know what the weather is going to be that evening as well as the phase of the moon. The weather will help determine a start time and what clothing you'll need. The phase of the moon will tell you whether you'll be doing some casual observing of the moon and planets during a bright full moon or perhaps some deep sky photography at new moon or after the moon in partial phase has set.
Two sites that help with that are 7Timer! and Clear Sky Chart.
3. Satellite Info. Satellite info is good in case you'd like to try to catch one with binoculars and need the azimuth and rise time. Some amateurs have used this data to anticipate and photograph the International Space Station from the ground with stunning results.
Check the Heavens-Above website.
4. Observational Planning. Once you've figured out the weather and what you want to look at or photograph, it's helpful to have a session planning app. Your start time and the positions of the selected objects will determine when they go below the horizon, so you'll want to start in the western sky before they set. A planner will help with all that.
AstroPlanner is a well regarded astronomy session planning app for the Mac. Here's a review.
Image credit: AstroPlanner.
5. Photographic Image Processing. If you move from introductory visual astronomy, simple gazing or things that can be done visually, such as sketching or double and variable star observations to astrophotography, you'll need a collection of apps that can process your images for research or publication.
Note that astrophotography will require some extra equipment and lots of trial and error to gain experience. There are plenty of good books that will help you get started. For example, 'Digital SLR Astrophotography' by Michael A. Covington.
Here are some image processing apps, in no particular order, that are typically used by amateur astronomers.
- Photoshop. For merging photos, enhacing in various ways, creating animated GIFs to show object movement over time, and so on.
- GIMP. An open source Photoshop alternative.
- Pixelmator. Another strong image editing app. Some people, including me, prefer Graphic Converter.
- Lynkeos Often, a better image can be obtained by digitally 'stacking' or combining several shorter duration photos on a Mac/PC rather seeking to obtain one long duration photo. This app does a good job of that for individual images.
- Keith's Image Stacking. This app can stack multiple frames from a single video file.
Image Credit: Lynkeos.
6. Scientific Calculator. Many astronomers have a good, physical scientific calculator or two handy, such as the HP-35s from Hewlett Packard. However, if you prefer to have one on your Mac, I give my highest recommendation to PCalc by James Thomson.
Amateur astronomy is an enormous field that encompasses a long scientific history, huge choices for equipment and a great many books on the subject. As I mentioned above, it's virtually impossible to cover the possibilities in a single article of this size. However, if you want to get started or already have some initial experience with a telescope, the links here should be helpful.
Next up: a similar look at iOS Astronomy apps for the iPad.
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Starry sky teaser image via Shutterstock.