When we think of hobbies, perhaps we normally think of stamp collecting, or photography, or gardening, or coin collecting.. But of course, one can probably make a 'hobby' of almost anything; perhaps the most fascinating for those of a curious turn of mind would be based in science: studying the starry heavens, or examining bugs and crystals under a microscope, or hunting for fossils, or collecting antique scientific instruments..
Here is a brief list of scientific hobbies suitable for children or adults. Some may be more suitable for children than adults, or vice versa, due to cost or safety considerations.
Contemplate the cosmos! Hopefully no-one is ever too old and world-weary to be amazed at the sheer scale of the Universe and wonder deep thoughts about how it happened, how beautiful it is, are we alone, etc.. Start with simple star gazing and learn some constellations. Then buy some binoculars and study the Moon etc. Do not buy the cheapest telescope you can find, they're almost useless. Generally an equatorial reflector will serve better than an altazimuth refractor.
http://stargazing.suite101.com/article.cfm/how_to_become_an_amateur_astr...
http://www.astronomy2009.org/
http://www.astronomy2009.co.uk/
Here is another hobby that can amaze anyone who will just look and wonder! In Darwin's Bicentenary we can admire the creatures that evolved to what we see: ant farms, butterfly.., sea monkeys, triops, owls, worms, bird feeders, ... The younger or older naturalist can find much to study, even in the urban back garden. They can also explore life in forests, fields, pools, hedgerows, the sky, etc. The most important thing is to be respectful of living creatures and not cause unnecessary harm, e.g. do not take bird's eggs from their nests (illegal in the UK), but photograph them instead. The observation of nature is humanity's oldest pastime. From this has emerged the natural sciences as well as a variety of hobbies. Nature itself provides a wide range of subjects for study—trees, flowers, shrubs, …
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biology
http://tolweb.org/tree/phylogeny.html
http://biology.about.com/
Very safe these days. In fact so safe that many people feel the zing has gone out of modern chemistry sets. "Throughout much of the 20th century, amateur chemistry was an unexceptional hobby, with high-quality chemistry sets readily available, and laboratory suppliers freely selling to hobbyists. For example, Linus Pauling had no difficulty in procuring potassium cyanide at the age of eleven. However, due to increasing concerns about terrorism, drugs and safety, suppliers became increasingly reluctant to sell to amateurs, and chemistry sets were steadily toned down. This trend has gradually continued, leaving hobbyists in many parts of the world without access to most reagents." (wikipedia)
http://www.homechemistry.org/
http://sciencemadness.org/
There are many inexpensive kits available to start crystal growing.
http://www.crystalgrowing.com/index_e.htm
http://chemistry.about.com/od/growingcrystals/Growing_Crystals.htm
http://www.waynesthisandthat.com/crystals.htm
youngsters can start with the modern 'pop snap' kits that make it easy to assemble circuits - no soldering. Some kits still use spring clips. Building your own radio is very rewarding, and can lead into amateur radio, e.g. shortwave, listening and talking to people far away who share this hobby. Robotics can start with simple devices that navigate their environment. Many disciplines come together in robotics—mechanical engineering, electricity, math, materials science, physics and more. Algebra’s ratios and proportions are covered by many different aspects of robots including most obviously gear ratios, Ohm’s Law (E=IR), work force problems (W=F x D) and Newton’ laws (F=ma). These are also physics in the form of simple machines, electricity, work and force. Finding connections to other math disciplines like geometry and pre-calculus is not hard. Even connecting robots to Chemistry, with batteries and biology, with any variety of sensors, is relatively trivial.
http://www.hobby-electronics.info/
http://www.eskimo.com/~billb/amateur/elehob.html
Fossil Hunting/Paleontology.
http://www.fossils-facts-and-finds.com/
http://geology.about.com/library/weekly/aa122098.htm
With an induction coil, Wimshurst machine, VDG, or Tesla coil.. need not be as dangerous as it sounds, but sensible care should be exercised. The VDG famously raises hair, and can generate hundreds of thousands of volts. But its "volts that jolts, but mils that kills" (ie milliamperes, a unit of electric current). Tesla coils create the most spectacular sparks and streamers, and should be treated with great respect.
An odd one this, you might feel that its not really a science as it doesn't seem to be experimental - at first glance. However, you can make conjectures about numbers, say, such as whether there are infinitely many twin primes - and then set about gathering evidence. Or you can probe deep into fractal space, e.g. using Mandelbrot software
http://g4g4.com/recmath1.htm
Meteorology
http://weatherfaqs.org.uk/node/15
http://www.tornadoquest.com/aboutus.htm
Do not buy a children's toy microscope, they are rarely suitable even for children. If you don't want to spend over $100 get a used one (e.g. from eBay, or CM).
http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/
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