Overview

The truth about superpowers ...science fact or science fiction? ""An entertaining and informative guide to comic book wonders bound to come."" -Julius Schwartz, Editor Emeritus, DC Comics Superman, Batman, The X-Men, Flash, Spider Man ...they protect us from evildoers, defend truth and justice, and, occasionally, save our planet from certain doom. Yet, how much do we understand about their powers? In this engaging yet serious work, Lois Gresh and Robert Weinberg attempt to answer that question once and for all. From X-ray vision to psychokinesis, invisibility to lightspeed locomotion, they take a hard, scientific look at the powers possessed by all of our most revered superheroes, and a few of the lesser ones, in an attempt to sort fact from fantasy. In the process, they unearth some shocking truths that will unsettle, alarm, and even terrify all but the most fiendish of supervillains. Lois Gresh (Rochester, NY) has written eight novels and nonfiction books as well as dozens of short stories and has been nominated for national fiction awards six times. Robert Weinberg (Oak Forest, IL) is a multiple award-winning author of novels, nonfiction books, short stories and comics.

Full Product Details

Author:   Lois H. Gresh ,  Robert Weinberg ,  Dean Koontz
Publisher:   Turner Publishing Company
Imprint:   John Wiley & Sons Inc
Dimensions:   Width: 16.60cm , Height: 1.90cm , Length: 23.70cm
Weight:   0.480kg
ISBN:  

9780471024606

ISBN 10:   0471024600
Pages:   224
Publication Date:   01 September 2002
Audience:   College/higher education ,  Professional and scholarly ,  Tertiary & Higher Education ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Out of print, replaced by POD  
We will order this item for you from a manufatured on demand supplier.

Table of Contents

Preface. A Word about the Law. Introduction: Men of Steel, Feathers of Fury by Dean Koontz. Chapter 1: More Powerful than a Speeding Locomotive: Superman. The Superman Legend Begins. What Makes Superman Super? Alien Visitors. The Drake Equation. Rare Earth? A Question of Gravity. Chapter 2: Rays--Cosmic and Gamma: The Fantastic Four and the Incredible Hulk. Humble Beginnings. A Fantastic Foursome. Frankenstein's Monster--Marvel Style. The Perils of Technobabble. The GFP Hulk. Chapter 3: The Dark Knight: Batman. A NonSuper Superhero. The Science of Batman. The Gotham City Earthquake. Chapter 4: Under the Sea: Aquaman and Sub-Mariner. Undersea Heroes. Our Aquatic Ancestors? Breathing Underwater. Pressure. Fluid Breathing. Talking to Fish. Chapter 5: Along Came a Spider: Spider-Man. With Great Power. The Power of a Spider? Clones, Clones, and More Clones. Chapter 6: Green Lanterns and Black Holes: Magic, Science, and Two Green Lanterns. Wanted: An Unlimited Power Source. The Life and Death of Stars. The Origin of Black Holes. Yellow Light. Chapter 7: Of Atoms, Ants, and Giants: Ant Man and the Atom. Ant Man. The Square Cubed Law. The Atom. The Atom Exploded. Chapter 8: Fast, Fast, Fast: The Flash. Introducing the Flash. Problems with Logic. The Speed Barrier. Chapter 9: Good, Evil, and Indifferent Mutants: The X-Men. A Victory Snatched from the Ashes. The Case for Evolution. The Truth about Creationism. Creating the X-Men. Chapter 10: Mysteries in Space: Science Fiction Superheroes. Super Science without Super Heroes. The Secrets of Other Worlds, Exposed! Doomsday on Earth. Across the Ages. The Grandfather Paradox. Chapter 11: The Right Stuff: Donald Duck. The Real Deal. The Duck Man. Appendix A: Who Missed the Cut? Appendix B: The Professionals Speak. Bibliography and Reading List. Acknowledgments. Index.

Reviews

The best part of this book is not the science, which is fine but somewhat perfunctory, but the material on the various superheroes. (Sci-Fi, December 2002) ...Gresh and Weinberg's wonderful little book is both a potted history of superhero comics, and a pop science manual for the extremely lazy... (hero.ac.uk-Higher Education and Research Opportunities, 28 October 2002) ...children who enjoyed the Spider-Man and X-men movies will delight in The Science of Superheroes...Perfect for turning a comic-book obsession into an enthusiasm for the laboratory... (The Times, 7 December 2002) ...This is definitely a fun book... (The Alchemist, 9 January 2003) ...All in all I can thoroughly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in science and at least a nostalgic fondness for comics... (Chemistry In Britain, December 2002) ...The Science of Superheroes could be a useful tool for encouraging comic fans to delve into science... (Physics World, February 2003)

The best part of this book is not the science, which is fine but somewhat perfunctory, but the material on the various superheroes. (Sci--Fi, December 2002) ...Gresh and Weinberga s wonderful little book is both a potted history of superhero comics, and a pop science manual for the extremely lazy... (hero.ac.uk--Higher Education and Research Opportunities, 28 October 2002) ...children who enjoyed the Spider--Man and X--men movies will delight in The Science of SuperheroesA...Perfect for turning a comic--book obsession into an enthusiasm for the laboratory... (The Times, 7 December 2002) ...This is definitely a fun book... (The Alchemist, 9 January 2003) ...All in all I can thoroughly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in science and at least a nostalgic fondness for comics... (Chemistry In Britain, December 2002) ...The Science of Superheroes could be a useful tool for encouraging comic fans to delve into science... (Physics World, February 2003)

The best part of this book is not the science, which is fine but somewhat perfunctory, but the material on the various superheroes. (Sci-Fi, December 2002) ...Gresh and Weinberg's wonderful little book is both a potted history of superhero comics, and a pop science manual for the extremely lazy... (hero.ac.uk-Higher Education and Research Opportunities, 28 October 2002) ...children who enjoyed the Spider-Man and X-men movies will delight in The Science of SuperheroesACA...Perfect for turning a comic-book obsession into an enthusiasm for the laboratory... (The Times, 7 December 2002) ...This is definitely a fun book... (The Alchemist, 9 January 2003) ...All in all I can thoroughly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in science and at least a nostalgic fondness for comics... (Chemistry In Britain, December 2002) ...The Science of Superheroes could be a useful tool for encouraging comic fans to delve into science... (Physics World, February 2003)

Author Information

LOIS GRESH has written dozens of suspense and science fiction stories, and has been nominated for national fiction awards six times. She is coauthor, along with Robert Weinberg, of The Computers of Star Trek. ROBERT WEINBERG s fiction has been nominated for Hugo, World Fantasy, and Balrog Awards. He is a two-time winner of the World Fantasy Award as well as the recipient of a Bram Stoker Award. Weinberg also writes the comic book series Cable for Marvel Comics. He previously served for twenty-four years as chairman of the Chicago Comicon, the second-largest comic convention in the United States.

Tab Content 6

Author Website:  

Countries Available

All regions