The heaviest train was a bhp iron ore train weighing 79,577 tons. First published in 2005, it explores the basic laws of physics. Newtons laws of motion explain how force and gravity work and provide the foundation for classical physics. For the love of physics walter lewin may 16, 2011 duration. When he takes the pressure off as he blows it out his. The physics of superheroes in the physics of superheroes. The problem with superman, and other physics conundrums. The physics of superheroes james kakalios download. Physics professor james kakalios explains the physics behind the. What if superhero movies actually followed the laws of. Comic book fans who love superman, flash, wonder woman, hulk, ant man, atom, etc. About the only movie that got this realistic was the amazing spiderman 2 when gwen stacy died. Join in the fun as we explore physics through comic book examples where the superheroes got their physics right.
Comprises a fairly solid introductory education in physics, sweetened with a history lesson in classic comic book superheroes. Rather, all of the examples come from superhero comic books and in particular, those cases where the superheroes get their. To leap a 30story building in a single bound, supermans leg muscles must produce nearly 6,000 pounds of force while jumping, kakalios calculates. Superheroes dont have to obey the laws of physics and thats probably what makes them so attractive to the poor physicists who labor long and hard in the hope of making those laws work correctly.
But, physics requires that the change in the heros momentum as a result of the strike must be equal and opposite to the change in the baddies momentum. Superman could keep pockets of ammonia, or nitrogen, or some other element, compressed and stored in a part of his lungs at high pressure. The physics of superheroes everything i need to know about gravity i learned from. Comic book lover and physics professor at the university of minnesota, kakalios employs the mathematics behind electricity, motion, power, time, theory and, if it applies, logic, to defend or debunk the ideas behind super powers. Any lover of superheroes with a yearn to read funny textbooks is honorbound to pick up this piece of reference by james kakalios.
The gravity on krypton was 15 times greater than that of earth, so supermans probably feeling as light as a feather. The physics of superman, and other pop culture science. What supermans strength can tell us about the newtonian physics of force, mass, and acceleration. Instead of just sitting there and saying wow superman can jump high, kakalios proves it with simple physics that makes sense. Call him what you will, but superman is quite possibly the most recognised superhero in the comic book. The physics of superman in 2020 with images superman book. How icemans and storms powers illustrate the principles of thermal dynamics. Kakalios does not set out to show where the world of superheroes contradicts modern science, granting the heroes one or more miracle exceptions from natural law. To do this you need some kind of a thrust source to give you that massive impu. James kakalios, a physics professor at the university of minnesota, has produced a book, the physics of superheroes now in paperback. Here, the author to talks about why comic books are good teaching tools. Superman book superman images superman family superman comic batman superman stuff superman news comic book artists comic book characters. Geeks, gangsters, and the birth of the comic book author james kakalios is a scientific genius who could put lex luthor and dr.
Now, we see this in a variety of forms in the original batman. This terrific book demonstrates a number of important points. The article tells of a scientific experiment in which a researcher put several chickens in a centrifuge and raised them in twicenormal gravity for months at a time. Did you know that, in order for superman to leap a tall building of a certain. Superman the city of metropolis finds superman guilty on all accounts of breaking the laws of physics. Sadly, we might not have a chance to see the dc extended universe correct this physics mistake, as there are no confirmed plans for superman to appear in a future film in the franchise. Author james kakalios is a scientific genius who could put lex luthor and dr.
Superman has a total body surface area of around 12 sq feet. The physics of superheroes by jim kakalios superbly explains the understanding of physics in a fun and new way. In the movie she actually bounced off the ground, but in the comic book she broke her neck in midair. The physics of superheroes by james kakalios, paperback. San diegoyou wont learn much physics watching a scifi movie or tv show, but reading an old comic book or taking jim kakalioss physics of superheroes seminar at the university of minnesota. So says a university of minnesota physicist who uses nothing but comics to teach the subject. Now weve got some answers, thanks to rhett allain, author of the new book geek physics and a contributor. This lecture by professor alan davies, university of hertfordshire, aimed at exploring and explaining the scientific and nonscientific background in the powers and superpowers of some of the comics. The realworld physics of superman visual broadcast. I was able to find examples in superhero comic books of the correct descriptions of basic. A complete update to the hit book on the real physics at work in comic books, featuring more heroes, more villains, and more science since 2001, james kakalios has taught everything i needed to know about physics i learned from reading comic books, a hugely popular university course that generated coasttocoast media attention for its unique method of explaining complex physics. In the second edition of his book, the physics of superheroes, professor james kakalios teaches physics with comics. Trevor evanoff 11222011 kalel, better know as superman is probably one of the best know comic book superheros. James kakalios explores the scientific plausibility of the powers and feats of the most famous superheroes and discovers that in many cases the comic writers got their science surprisingly right.
Supermans time to reach lois from ground 10 seconds timed from video 20 seconds, figure this is doubled for dramatic effect, so actual time should be half. I dobecause the physics of superheroes is this comicbook writers newest favorite indispensable resource. The physics of superheroes hardcover elliott bay book. One of the most wellknown characters in comic book history, superman is also one of the oldest.
A complete update to the hit book on the real physics at work in comic books, featuring more heroes, more villains, and more science. Since supermans powers are derived by absorbing and metabolizing solar energy then using that energy to fuel super strength, speed, and other enhanced abilities, one of the more literal examples of this process is supermans heat vision which allows the hero to emit stored solar energy as directed beams of focused heat through his eyes. The caped crusaders flight speed would likely kill him, physics students find, but supermans gifts make him the mightiest alison flood thu. The 10 locmotives and 540 ore cars ran from newman to port hedland, western australia, a distance of 253. Metro offers a droll but sincere look at what superman and spiderman can teach about physics. I dobecause the physics of superheroesis this comicbook writers newest favorite indispensable resource. Your unique way of approach to this is appreciable. Of course physics is a little confusing to some people, and if you dont have a background of physics it will be a little confusing. Supermans velocity at half the distance to the top of the building. About the physics of superheroes james kakalios explores the scientific plausibility of the powers and feats of the most famous superheroes and discovers that in many cases the comic writers got their science surprisingly right. But the real reason students dont complain is undoubtedly that the comic book examples are fun, while inclined planes arent.
Spectacular second edition, professor james kakalios explains in a fun and accessible manner a broad range of physics, from isaac newton to the transistor but theres not an inclined plane or pulley in sight. The problem with both the hulk and superman jumping is that it requires pushing on the ground. Physics is not an easy subject, but jim kakalios helps people have a better understanding of the book. When a normal human jumps, the feet push on the ground with a force, and the human moves up in the air. Superman by renato guedes dc comics superman comic, mundo superman, superman book. Surprisingly enough, according to kakalios, comic books get their physics right. More powerful than a locomotive physics of superman.
The science of superman hardcover november 26, 2002. Physics of superheroes 3 supermans blooper youtube. A cover gallery for the comic book lois lane from supermans main squeeze had her own comic, supermans girl friend, lois lane, and in it some really wtf things went down. A complete update to the hit book on the real physics at work in comic books, featuring more heroes, more villains, and more science since 2001, james kakalios has taught everything i needed to know about physics i learned from reading comic books, a hugely popular university course that generated coasttocoast media attention for its unique. What supermans strength can tell us about the newtonian physics of force, mass, and acceleration how icemans and storms powers illustrate the principles of thermal dynamics the physics behind the death of spidermans girlfriend gwen stacy. Since 2001, james kakalios has taught everything i needed to know about physics i learned from reading comic books, a hugely popular university course that generated coasttocoast media attention for its. The science of superman by mark wolverton goodreads. Third, superhero comic books have socially redeeming qualities. Superman winces, the crowd goes nuts, many men in lab coats begin hugging. From his beginnings as the featured character in his own 10cent comic book, through multiple. The physics of superman the man of steel is impossible.
Newtonian mechanics and superman section 1 addresses newtonian mechanics. Kryptonite in the comic books is described as a mineral. The newest movie installment of the superman franchise opens this week, but some. The man of steel was that strong because he was designed to resist kryptons powerful gravity. The real science behind supermans super powers screen rant. The first chapter is about the original version of superman, who is merely. The physics of superheroes audiobook by james kakalios. Judge contd i think it is hard not to see that superman has broken quite a few. The physics of superman superman is an alien that is 6ft 4inches tall, 220 lbs, faster than a speeding bullet and more powerful than a locomotive. Superman science is an amazing book that uses supermans powers to show you how. Questions for the author of the physics of superheroes. One might initially wonder whether superman might seem more real to students than pulleys, ropes, and inclined planes. All the force is distributed over less surface area, resulting in higher stress.
The physics of superheroes by james kakalios goodreads. Not only is he the fastest man alive, but thanks to the cw and its upcoming fall lineup, hes also one of the most talked about comic book heroes in modern times. Illustration for article titled the physics of superman. Along the way he provides an engaging and witty commentary while introducing the lay reader to both classic and cuttingedge concepts in physics, including. At one point, he plunges from the top of a building, along with kim basinger, to. Based on physics, the superhero actually makes things worse. Comic books get their science right more often than one would expect. By combining his love for physics with his love of comic books, university of minnesota physicist kakalios has written a book for the general reader covering all of the basic points in a first. Pdf the physics of superheroes download full pdf book. An anonymous reader writes seems many of the feats of spiderman, superman and other superheroes obey the basic requirements of physics. The physics of superheroes is a popular science book by physics professor and longtime comicbook fan james kakalios. Is it possible to explain supermans flying by any laws of. Like the physics of star trek, the author cleverly teaches traditional physics while evaluating comic book super heroes relating what is and what is not possible according to the theories of basic physics.