Book excerpt: How does the temperature of ocean water make a difference in the strength of tropical storms? This question and many others can be answered with the principles of earth science. Supporting the Next Generation Science Standards, this book discusses everyday events to describe earth science principles in action. Each chapter contains a sidebar with information on places such as the Ring of Fire and the role Cepheid variable stars play in calculating the distance of objects in space. Simple experiments provide students an opportunity to see the science firsthand.