The Physics of Superheroes.

THE PHYSICS OF SUPERHEROES JAMES KAKALIOS

How strong did the gravitational force on Superman's home planet of Krypton have to be, if he could leap tall buildings in a single bound on Earth? How much tensile strength would Spiderman's webbing need to enable him to swing effortlessly from skyscraper to skyscraper? Kakalios, author of The Physics of Star Trek, answers these questions and more in this engaging and informative look at the surprising role of physics in comic books. He demonstrates that, more often than not, the amazing feats performed by fictional superheroes are theoretically possible. For example, Flash's technique for stopping speeding bullets is consistent with Newton's laws of motion, and Electro, the utility worker who shoots lightning bolts, can indeed create enough of a magnetic field to scale an iron building. Kakalios also describes, with equal measures of academic rigor and humor, how the modern physics of superconductivity and string theory can be explained through the feats of Superman and Iron Man. And comics anticipated the notion of parallel universes, says Kakalios. The surprisingly comprehensive text includes a section on superhero bloopers: the few instances where even a suspension of disbelief isn't enough to make a character's feats consistent with what is possible in the physical world. Gotham, 2005, 384 p., b&w illus., hardcover, $26.00.