I was already planning to check out The Physics of Superheroes by James Kakalios when I passed on this lovely Dresden Codak strip to my brother Darth, the librarian. He let me know about a sort of graphic novel about the life and work of Nils Bohr (Suspended in Language, by Jim Ottaviani), so I checked that out as well.
They turned out to be perfect books to read in a row.
The Physics of Superheroes begins as a physics primer for comic book fans who have little actual understanding of physics. The first topic is an exploration of how much force Golden Age Superman must generate in order to leap a tall building in a single bound, and from f=ma, well, it's all downhill, innit. Around midway through the book, Kakalios gets to Quantum Mechanics, and then the fun really starts. He finishes up with Kitty Pryde walking through walls, which, it turns out, is pretty much where Suspended in Language picks up.
Understand that Suspended in Language is pretty unabashedly pro-Bohr, so if you're looking for a hard-hitting expose on the Danish bedstefar (gudfar?) of modern physics, this isn't it. However, if you're interested in getting started learning about the folks who eventually brought us the atomic bomb and quantum entanglement (spooky action at a distance), well, this is a fine place to start.
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