Reddit reviews The Physics of Superheroes

OH! It's actually a physics thing that was explained in "The Physics of Superheroes" and if I recall it's essentially that no matter what size he is his density is still the same. So, big or small he would still hit with the same force.

But OFTHEHILLPEOPLE, when he's Giant-Man he hits like a wrecking ball!

In the comics this is true but in reality it would not be true. Yes, the sheer size of his mitts would do a lot of damage to brick and concrete walls but it would do just as much damage to him if the physics were right. But this is explained away with the invention of Pym Particles that reinforce his mass and density thus allowing him to remove and regain atoms from his body to grow and shrink without falling apart at an atomic level.

Edit: This was all off the top of my head from remembering the explanation. If the terms are wrong that's my fault, but the basic idea is there.

There's a great book, the Physics of Superheros, The Physics of Superheroes https://www.amazon.com/dp/1592402429/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_KqvLwbR00FCWX, that actually does go into how some of that could happen. It turns out, the force needed to generate the kind of jumping altitude it takes for a 220 pound man to clear a 1930s skyscraper is only around 5000 pounds. I've been working on getting my numbers up to that poundage.

I see the difference between these two concepts. We grant the "superhero exception" to things directly related to powers or to allow for the story to happen in the first place. After that, the science should be plausible. James Kakalios does a lot of interesting discussions on this, including his book The Physics of Superheroes.

Maybe vibranium absorbs kinetic energy, allowing whatever repulsor beams are made of to reflect without any loss.
On a semi-related note, this reminds me of a book I read a while ago, The Physics of Superheroes. It's fun and educational! 5/7

Not much, really. I do best when I'm given questions.

You might enjoy this book, though!

If I recall correctly, it talks about stuff like the Flash having to eat truckloads (literally tons and tons) of food to manage the energy he puts out, and that if he was going close to the speed of light and started trying to slow down on the east coast, he'd leave skid marks and/or a trench all the way to the pacific and beyond. (Probably getting that wrong,.)

I don't remember if this book covered the genetics bit at all (I kinda remember it did? I might be confusing my books here), but if it doesn't, you might find something better suited in the "related products" for it.

I think the X-gene (or "X-factor in the genes") was mentioned in one of the first issues of X-Factor (1986), though I remember being pretty disappointed at the shallowness of the "explanation" there. There was also a tiny bit of genetics in the original origin story of Beast (I think you can find that in the 2nd or 3rd or 4th "Essential Classic X-Men" volume), but that might have been retconned by now because the story was basically "Hank's dad was exposed to radiation, so Hank was born a mutant", no X-gene involved.

I haven't read much beyond the early 1990s, but I suspect that you'll have better luck finding pseudoscience in the modern stuff (late 1990s & 2000s), since writers by then were way more concerned about their scientific explanations sounding somewhat plausible and well-thought-out (from the little that I've seen, anyway).

Shrinking powers make the least scientific sense of any superpower. You can’t just reduce the space between atoms! And even if you could, nothing about the human body is designed to work at tiny size. Your eyes wouldn’t be able to focus, you wouldn’t be able to breathe...it’s totally senseless.


Actually there’s a pretty fun book about it.

And here, I thought The Physics of Superheroes was the definitive text on that subject...

I assume you're referencing James Kakalios' The Physics of Superheroes?

I read The Physics of Superheroes and I found it very enjoyable and I just really wanted to be able to understand things the way the author did.

James Kaklios's book The Physics of Superheroes is awesome.

There's also The Physics of Superheroes and The Science of Superman

I would like to suggest the book [The Physics of Superheroes] (http://www.amazon.com/The-Physics-Superheroes-James-Kakalios/dp/1592402429) by James Kakalios -- he actually talks about what would need to happen for Ant Man and Superman to work.

For example, he does calculate what Ant Man's density is, as well as the mass of Krypton assuming the relative size of Krypton and earth allowed silver age Superman to "leap talk buildings on a single bounds"

https://www.amazon.com/Physics-Superheroes-James-Kakalios/dp/1592402429

Has a couple of chapters on superman.

http://smile.amazon.com/The-Physics-Superheroes-James-Kakalios/dp/1592402429/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1406752601&sr=8-2&keywords=physics+of+superheroes

https://www.amazon.com/Physics-Superheroes-James-Kakalios/dp/1592402429

It might also exist in epub/pdf format ^somewhere^on^the^internet!!

It's the same concept as how Thor flies faster. He throws his hammer, and 'rides' along with it. I originally read that theory, for both Thor and Superman, in The Physics of Superheroes when I was a kid. And other books since then, like Kingdom Come, Red Son, and All-Star Superman help to solidify my points.

He does not constantly punch his arms either, only initially when takes off and only if he is not attached to the ground. He does not always make punching motions either, as he can push his body in the same way, so the signature one arm at the side and one arm in front is the same concept.

I know that, like everything in comic books, these things are open for interpretation and have been handled differently by hundreds of writers. And I can see that a lot of people disagree with me, but the theories that I like best are the ones most grounded in the explanation that his yellow sun cells are the cause of everything he can do. I also subscribe to the theory that Superman is a god when it comes to his powers and his only limit is how much radiation he has absorbed.