National Geographic Angry Birds Furious Forces!

The Physics at Play in the World’s Most Popular Game

WASHINGTON — Whether or not they realize it, Angry Birds™ aficionados are experimenting with physics every time they pull back the slingshot. Each bird launched, each tower hit and every piggy popped moves according to the laws of physics: potential and kinetic energy, gravity, inertia and more. National Geographic Books and Rovio, creator of the Angry Birds app, have teamed up on a new book that brings to light not only the physics at work in the game but also in the world around us.

In National Geographic Angry Birds Furious Forces!: The Physics at Play in the World’s Most Popular Game (National Geographic Books; ISBN 978-1-4262-1172-0; on-sale date: June 4, 2013; $13.95 paperback), physics professor and Wired.com blogger Rhett Allain uses everyone’s favorite game characters and a dose of humor to illuminate the basic ideas behind physical science.

The book is divided into five chapters, each exploring the interesting and increasingly challenging concepts of physical science — mechanics, sound and light, thermodynamics, electricity, magnetism, particle physics and beyond. From the simplest ideas of force and motion to the complex notions of relativity and dark matter, Allain adeptly explains physics in a way that all readers can understand. The book serves as an entertaining and instructional tool for anyone interested in physics — and it may provide insight into how a better understanding of physics can help conquer that next level of Angry Birds, too.

Each chapter includes “Physics at Play” sections, which include experiments that readers can easily do at home to gain hands-on experience with physics concepts: launch Angry Birds at varying angles to explore gravity and projectile motion, scrape a steel nail along one end of a magnet to create a compass or use a balloon to simulate our expanding universe. Scattered throughout, “Physi-Facts” offer nuggets of physics knowledge: for example, the pound is often used as a unit of mass, but it is actually a unit of force, and the speed of sound changes with air temperature and humidity levels.

Allain profiles some of the favorite characters from the Angry Birds games, explaining the physical prowess of each and illuminating the physics behind their favorite tactics, like King Pig’s reliance on inertia and Mighty Eagle’s combustion-like outbursts. As readers progress through the clever explanations and colorful illustrations, they will gain a fresh perspective on the physics at play all around them. Like the game, National Geographic Angry Birds Furious Forces! will entertain kids and adults alike.

This is the third book in the ongoing collaboration between National Geographic, one of the world’s largest nonprofit scientific and educational organizations, and Rovio Entertainment, an industry-changing entertainment media company with a broader mission to make learning fun. The first two books, “National Geographic Angry Birds Space” and “National Geographic Angry Birds,” were published in 2012. A fourth book in the series is due out in September 2013.



About the Author

Rhett Allain spent most of his younger years in Illinois. In his youth, he enjoyed building things and taking things apart — although he couldn’t always put them back together. He studied physics at the University of Alabama and North Carolina State University. Currently he is a blogger at Wired Science Blogs and an associate professor of physics at Southeastern Louisiana University. He lives with his wife and children in Hammond, La., where he likes to ride his bike to work.

About National Geographic Books

National Geographic Books is a global publisher of 125 new books annually in Adult and Children’s combined, as well as a publisher of digital content and services with more than 50 partners who translate our books. The National Geographic Society is one of the world’s largest nonprofit scientific and educational organizations. Founded in 1888 to “increase and diffuse geographic knowledge,” the Society’s mission is to inspire people to care about the planet. It reaches more than 450 million people worldwide each month through its official journal, National Geographic, and other magazines; National Geographic Channel; television documentaries; books; music; radio; films; DVDs; maps; live events; school publishing programs; interactive media; merchandise; and travel programs. For more information on National Geographic Books, visit facebook.com/NatGeoBooks and nationalgeographic.com/books.

About Rovio Entertainment Ltd.

Rovio is an industry-changing entertainment media company headquartered in Finland and is the creator of the globally successful Angry Birds™ franchise. Angry Birds, a casual puzzle game, became an international phenomenon within a few months of its release and is now the number one paid app of all time. Angry Birds has expanded rapidly in entertainment, publishing and licensing to become a beloved international brand. www.rovio.com