Product Description

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 coast-to-coast media attention for its unique method of explaining complex physics concepts through comics. With The Physics of Superheroes, named one of the best science books of 2005 by Discover, he introduced his colorful approach to an even wider audience. Now Kakalios presents a totally updated, expanded edition that features even more superheroes and findings from the cutting edge of science. With three new chapters and completely revised throughout with a splashy, redesigned package, the book that explains why Spider-Man's webbing failed his girlfriend, the probable cause of Krypton's explosion, and the Newtonian physics at work in Gotham City is electrifying from cover to cover.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #29119 in Books
• Published on: 2009-11-03
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 448 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9781592405084
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.

About the Author
James Kakalios is a professor of physics at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. He has published more than one hundred physics papers and has conducted research on a variety of obscure physical phenomena. He serves as a science consultant on the adaptation of the graphic novel Watchmen into a major feature film.

Customer Reviews

The Physics of Superheroes: Spectacular Second Edition
Lab accidents, experimental test flights, military weapon malfunctions, alien technology... scientific principles inform and influence comic books on a fundamental level, but how much of what we see in the comics are true to the laws of physics?

That's the question //The Physics of Superheroes// seeks to answer, and it does an admirable job of straddling the line between keeping its explanations simple and properly detailing the principles involved. Superman leaping tall buildings, the Flash running up walls, the power of Ant-Man's punch, Iceman's freezing ability, Magneto's gravity-defying levitation... all are put to the test under Kakalios's insightful eye.

While it occasionally vacillates between using science to explain superheroes and using superheroes to explain scientific concepts, the difficulty level rarely wavers, even when tackling such mind-bending fields as solid-state physics, electromagnetism, and alternate universes.

The author's affection for the subject is undeniable, his knowledge of characters both famous and obscure is impressive, and his sense of humor is immensely nerdy, not to mention shamefully chuckle-inducing. In short, //The Physics of Superheroes// is the best of both worlds, or however many worlds you believe are possible.

Reviewed by Glenn Dallas