The missing science of superheroes — in a flash!
Words: Mark Lorch, Professor of Science Communication and Public Engagement at the University of Hull
How long does it take to write a book? A month? A year? A decade? I think we can do better than that, a weekend should be just long enough.
Whilst watching a Spiderman movie, it struck me that Peter Parker must have an enormously high protein diet to generate all that spider silk. And so whilst the credits rolled, and taking into account the tensile strength of silk, its stretchiness and so on, I calculated that Peter Parker must tuck into 900 eggs for breakfast.
Spiderman’s breakfast got some attention, I discussed it on the radio, The Times recounted my calculations and a TEDx talk ensued. And then the RSC got in touch to ask if I could expand the idea into a book.
The arduous task of researching a book began – holed up in a darkened living room, with nothing but a bucket of popcorn and beer for sustenance I worked my way through the back catalogue of superhero films.
When I finally emerged I’d learnt two important things. 1) All the best stories have teams: Give me X-men, The Justice League and the Fantastic Four over the lonely Spiderman or Batman any day. 2) Faster is better. You never hear of a hero travelling slower than a plodding tortoise or proclaiming to be the most ponderous man alive.
It dawned on me that a book about superpowers needs a heroic approach…
So I set about assembling my crack team of ultra science communicators and illustrators. Then gave them the Herculean task of writing this book in just 36 hours.
Writing a book, in a flash
Plonked in the middle of the Manchester Science Festival and Salford University’s Science Jam, in a blur of flying fingers worthy of the Flash, we cranked out our book delving into all the nitty gritty science that fascinates us but seems to have been overlooked by movie makers.
Each chapter explains the scientific bases of a superpower, assuming that our world's scientific laws apply to the comic books' universes. We covered everything from the breakfast of superheroes, to genetically engineering a super soldier, and from the Hulk’s metabolic processes to manufacturing of super alloys like vibranium and adamantium.
Writing is usually a solitary, serious process. We shut ourselves away in offices, create a quiet environment and remove all distractions. Our book sprint was the antithesis of this, it was noisy, with interruptions aplenty, it was sociable, fun, funny, collaborative and very very productive.
Over 50,000 words, 200 pages, 15 infographics and a dozen illustrations emerged. And it really is good stuff…
Keep your eyes peeled for The Missing Science of Superheroes in print next year.
The Missing Science of Superheroes team …
Akshat Rathi – Liberates trapped ideas
Brian Mackenwells – Uses words for everything he can think of
David Jesson – Is the breaker of things
Isabel Pires – Fast talking hypoxia geek
Kat Day – Chemist with the flask full of words
Karl Byrne – Can kill you with his brain
Louise Gentle – Knows why wombats do cube shaped poos
Mark Whiting – Controls the metallic keys to civilization
Rob Miles – Master of the robots
Suze Kundu – Nanochemist, literally
Joanna Verran – Might save humanity from a zombie apocalypse
Paul Coxon – Draws energy from the Sun.
Matthew Crossley – Creates artificial life
Flic Heathcoate-Marcz – Hunts cyborgs
Mark Lorch – Builds nature’s robots
Andy Miah – May be a posthuman
Andy Brunning – Is the master of compound interest
Romica Spiegl-Jones – Goes on an adventure everyday
Syeda Khanum – Illustrates the solution
Leanne Marle – Will make it into print