It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s Superman! In 1938, Action Comics #1, released the first Superman comic to the public. Superman, also known as Kal El, has shown many different powers since his first debut in 1938. This paper will discuss various topics about four of his major powers and explain why they are all impossible for anyone to achieve in real life. Superman’s four major powers that will be discussed in this paper are X-ray vision, being able to fly, super strength, and invulnerability.
The X-ray was first discovered in 1895 by a German physicist named W.C. Roentgen (“The Discovery”). W.C. Roentgen was working in his lab one day in 1895 and decided to send a high electrical current through a cathode ray filled with special gas. He realized that a dim green colored light was being produced, and decided to hold the cathode ray just above his wife’s hand. When he did this he observed that the light was able to penetrate human skin, but would leave all the bones visible. There is a picture below of the X-ray of W.C. Roentgen’s wife’s hand (“The Discovery”). He named it the X-ray because he did not know the identity of what kind of ray it was. He just named it X, because of its use in solving unknowns in algebraic equations (“The Discovery”).
However, there are some limitations on this Superman power in both the laws of physics and in the laws of the human body. The first restriction is that in an X-ray, tiny rays will pass through any atoms that don’t have enough mass to stop the rays (Inglis-Arkell). This is because when an atom absorbs a photon (ray), one of the atom’s electrons has to jump from a space near the atom to a space that is further away using a precise amount of energy (Inglis-Arkell). However, an electron do...
... middle of paper ...
... Orlando, Fla.: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 2009. 35. Print.
13. Preston, Raymond. "Definitions of Relative Wind, Lift, Weight, Drag, Thrust, and Side Force ." Definition of Aerodynamic Terms. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Feb. 2014.
14. "The aqueous humour." Vision Eye Institute Cataract Retina Lasik and Laser Eye Surgery. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Feb. 2014. .
15. "The Discovery of X-Rays." The Discovery of X-Rays. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2014. .
16. "The Physics of Flight." Flight. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Feb. 2014.
17. Walk, Fr. Edward. "How to Calculate Mass." Honors Physics. Du Bois Area Catholic School. Du Bois Area Catholic School, Du Bois. 2 Dec. 2013. Class lecture.
On one end of the spectrum lays Superman, an alien who from birth is comparable to god, and on the opposite side lays Lex Luthor, a genius human who comes from nothing and created a financial empire. Superman
We are currently living in the Golden Age of Superheroes. They dominate our cultural life, and have become seemingly permanent fixtures in modern media. Since X-Men burst onto the screen fifteen years ago, we have witnessed the release of over forty superhero movies. By 2020 we will have seen the release of more than twenty-five more. Today, the much anticipated film Superman vs. Batman has come to theaters. Though a plethora of superhero movies have been released, it is to the dissatisfaction of many, having long been exhausted by the stories of the Hulk, Batman, and Spider-man. Although I must agree that it is quite easy to get bored with the constant action, and flashing colors of these films, if one looks deep enough into the story they will discover universal themes and metaphors. Though they may be fighting off alien invasions, these heroes are also battling with their personal challenges, challenges which we can
The pressures of society and many factors against us can at times seem impossible to overcome, however, these limitations are only the ones we place on ourselves. Whether it’s during the adolescent years as Sherman Alexie explained in “The Joy of Reading and Writing: Superman and Me”, about the struggles of overcoming the stigma bound by his culture where “A smart Indian is a dangerous person, widely feared and ridiculed by Indians and non-Indians alike”, as well as having the courage to break free for his own benefit. In addition, this theme was also explored in the later years of adulthood as demonstrated in Malcolm X’s essay, “Learning to Read” where he’d become so frustrated while kept in prison, unable to quite express himself as he did
Alexie, Sherman. "Superman and Me." Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, 19 Apr. 1998. Web. 14 May 2014. http://articles.latimes.com/1998/apr/19/books/bk-42979
Alan Moore successfully breaks down the effectiveness of superheroes portrayed in your average comic book with his use of Dr.Manhattan:Super-powers and the superpowers inside his graphic novel Watchmen. Dr.Manhattan is made out to be less than divine. The American’s “placing our superhuman benefactor in the position of a walking nuclear deterrent”(Dr.Manhattan:Super-powers and the superpowers.II), depicting him as the Vitruvian Man and having a God present among mere mortals all lead to Moore being able to break down the common conceptions about superheroes.
... an impact on people all throughout America. From having 130,000 people visit the Superman panel at comic-con to having an original Action Comic Book being sold at more than $2,000,000. Superman is known for wearing his blue suit with a red and yellow ‘S’ but many artists have their own color tones and facial and body features.
Marvel heroes and villains have a variety of powers and abilities. Among things like super strength,
"This Month in Physics History." This Month in Physics History. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Mar. 2014.
An example case that proves the new viewpoint and usage of these X-rays on the human body and medical sciences, was when a few days after Roentgen's initial public announcement of his discoveries, a doctor in America took X-ray photographs of a person with gunshot wounds in his hands.
Garcia, Kimberly. Wilhelm Roentgen and the Discovery of X Rays. Bear: Mitchell Lane, 2003. Print.
Mass is calculated by multiplying the object’s density by its volume. Volume is found by multiplying the object’s area of one of its sides
Superman’s first appearance in an Action Comics was in 1938. He could leap over forty-story building with ease, lift cars overhead and couldn’t be hurt by bullets smaller than artillery shells. Scientists explained Superman’s abilities essentially as the strengths obtained from being born on Krypton. A planet 1,000 times larger than Earth, Krypton also had fifteen times the gravity. Generating energy directly from the sun, Superman, used his plant like ability to photosynthesize energy. Perhaps his heart pumps green chlorophyll rather than red blood, which would allow him to perform on Earth like an Earth astronaut can perform on our moon. He had extraordinary abilities, and although he was super, he was not omnipotent. Gaining energy from
f) Markel, H. (2012). ‘I have seen my death’: How the world discovered the X-ray. [PBS.org Article]. URL http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/i-have-seen-my-death-how-the-world-discovered-the-x-ray/
Scientists from earlier times helped influence the discoveries that lead to the development of atomic energy. In the late 1800’s, Dalton created the Atomic Theory which explains atoms, elements and compounds (Henderson 1). This was important to the study of and understanding of atoms to future scientists. The Atomic Theory was a list of scientific laws regarding atoms and their potential abilities. Roentagen, used Dalton’s findings and discovered x-rays which could pass through solid objects (Henderson 1). Although he did not discover radiation from the x-rays, he did help lay the foundations for electromagnetic waves. Shortly after Roentagen’s findings, J.J. Thompson discovered the electron which was responsible for defining the atom’s characteristics (Henderson 2). The electron helped scientists uncover why an atom responds to reactions the way it does and how it received its “personality”. Dalton’s, Roentagen’s and Thompson’s findings helped guide other scientists to discovering the uses of atomic energy and reactions. Such applications were discovered in the early 1900’s by using Einstein’s equation, which stated that if a chain reaction occurred, cheap, reliable energy could b...