How does a boomerang return to the person who threw it?
asks Rajendra Singh, of Jaipur, India. Baseballs don’t. Footballs don’t. Even frisbees don’t. But boomerangs do–come back, that is. If boomerangs were a new toy on the market–just invented–there would probably be a boomerang craze going on. Everyone would rush out and stand in long lines to be the first on the block to have one. But in fact, boomerangs are very old. People were playing with the come-back toys thousands of years ago. How did people invent boomerangs? Archeologists on their digs have found that early humans threw heavy wood weapons to kill animals for food and hides. (They also used the weapons in battles with other tribes). These weapons are called “throwing sticks,” and they were made with a slight bend in the wood. While experimenting with carving throwing sticks, someone–no one is sure where–probably made the first boomerang. Presto: A stick that acts like a carrier pigeon. And a toy that gives old meaning to the phrase “right back atcha.” Because that’s what boomera
