Single Panel Science Lesson: Luthor’s Not Lying, But…
Sure, Daredevil can tell when people are lying by listening to their heartbeats speed up. But that’s Daredevil. But Superman can do this too. As shown in stories by Joshua Williamson, Tom Taylor, and many others, Superman always listens to Lois and Jon’s voices and...
Kraven, a Crossbow, and the Conservation of Momentum
Maybe you’ve seen the trailer for the upcoming Kraven the Hunter movie. Maybe you have thoughts. While comic fans are dissecting costumes, accents, origin, and more, one thing stuck out to me: the crossbow scene right around the 2:30 mark. The character comes in...
Doc Ock v Spider-Man: What’s an Apex Predator?
In Amazing Spider-Man #30, Doctor Octopus makes a claim to Spider-Man that needs some clarification. While wrapped up in a battle with Spidey, Ock says, “Don’t be ashamed of your fate Spider-Man. You’ve been harvested by an apex predator.” Okay - just so we’re clear...
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LIFE SCIENCES
Six Science Takeaways with Jurassic World
Over the course of 29 years and six movies, Jurassic Park has changed how we look and think about dinosaurs. It’s rekindled interest in the creatures from those of us who thought our dino days were behind us, and sparked a love for them among many millions of fans....
Better Than His Dad. Superboy and Heterosis
Superboy’s origin story is as convoluted as it gets in comics. Jon Kent is the biological son of Clark and Lois, originally conceived and born in reality that doesn’t exist anymore. That story retconned so he was conceived and born in the current DC Universe(*). Jon...
Science Class: The Flash’s Hypothermia
DC Comics’ latest event storyline has been Endless Winter, a fun story tying Viking-era history (and heroes) into the present day with the threat of the Frost King. The event is co-written by Andy Lanning and Ron Marz, and drawn by a host of artists across its...
Science Class: Patsy Walker & Lichtenberg Figures
Real quick - new Iron Man series by Christopher Cantwell and Cafu. Issue #3: Korvac is back. As part of that reveal, both Iron Man and Patsy Walker (aka Hellcat) got hit by a massive bolt of lightning, directed at them by the aforementioned Korvac. How bad was it? ...
CHEMISTRY
States of Matter and the New Mutants
So - New Mutants #7. Still out there on comic shop shelves, or digitally at Comixology.com. It’s one of the returns of a beloved series (and cast), spinning out of Jonathan Hickman’s revitalization of Marvel’s X books. The team pretty much exists in two settings now...
Gummy Bears Go Boom? Did Logan Lucky Teach Us How to Make a Bomb?
Watch enough science-based science fiction or “real world” movies/TV with science in them, and you’ll come to a simple conclusion: they’re leaving bits out. No matter how many episodes of Breaking Bad you watch, you’re never going to be able to make meth by imitating...
Hey Spider-Man: About the Top of the Washington Monument…
It stands out in the Washington Monument scenes in Spider-Man: Homecoming. It’s right there in the trailer and the movie – Spider-Man is at the top of the Washington Monument, and you can see it – the top is silvery gray. What? The top of the Washington Monument isn’t...
Wonder Woman’s Real-Life Dr. Poison: Fritz Haber
In Wonder Woman, Dr. Poison has everything going for her as a classic villain. She's broken. She's creepy. She's troubled. She's brilliant. And she knows her science. Apparently in the thrall of General Ludendorff, Dr. Poison – Isabel Maru, played by Elena...
TEACHING WITH POP CULTURE
Can Comics Improve Pre-College Science Education?
As more learning occurs online and at home with the global pandemic, keeping students engaged in learning about science is a challenge. In this post, undergraduate student Simon Rodriguez explores recent research on how comics might be helpful in increasing student...
You Should be Watching: Cells at Work
Okay - we're totally behind the curve here, but we should talk about Cells at Work. It showed up on Netflix last September and probably flew under the radar of a lot of the adult Netflix audience, but probably not its otaku fanbase. Apologies to said fanbase who are...
COVID Curriculum: Resources and Ideas for Teaching STEM in Pandemic World
One way or another, school will start again this fall. But I’m not here to talk about that this time. As a public school STEM teacher (chemistry and physics), I’ve seen the plans for schools to re-start in fall, from the most magical and optimistic to the more...
Using Comics and Superheroes to Teach Math
Teaching math is an art. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. I did it for 32 years (I recently retired) and I’m here to tell you that if you’re in front of a classroom in the old-fashioned way, the “sage on the stage” as it were, you’d better have a rhythm like a...
PHYSICS
Starship’s Windows: Sci-Fi Materials Meet the Real World?
The violinist performs in front of a mesmerized audience. Her gown flows as she bows her instrument, notes reaching every ear. But she isn’t in a concert hall. She’s floating in zero gravity aboard SpaceX’s Starship, Elon Musk’s vision of a reusable transportation...
Doctor Psycho, Darkseid and The Nature of Time
In Season 2, Episode 12 of DC Universe’s Harley Quinn animated series, Doctor Psycho was on to a bigger question when he basically tried to ask Darkseid what time he was referring to, his time in Gotham City or that of Apokolips, Darkseid’s homeworld. To set things...
Scienceish Lesson: Captain Marvel and the EM Spectrum
A Science-ish Lesson for today: The Electromagnetic Spectrum (and a little more) with Captain Marvel. This comes from Avengers #233 (1983) by Roger Stern and John Byrne, back in the day when you could spend a whole issue trying to figure out a way to get through a...
The (Useful) Things We Left Behind – Retroreflectors
The moon shines at night, but some parts of it shine better than others - the retroreflectors we left behind. Okay - quick physics refresher. When visible light hits things it will do, general one (or combos) from the following list: Light can be absorbed: The...
SPACE
WandaVision and the CMBR. What’s the CMBR?
Okay, yeah - Disney+'s WandaVision is full of fun callouts, Easter Eggs, and hints about the Marvel Cinematic Universe to come, but episode 4, “We Interrupt This Program” had the biggest of callouts - literally. Just after astrophysicist Dr. Darcy Lewis (Kat...
Scienceish Lesson: The Alcubierre Drive & the Flash
Scienish Lesson - The Alcubierre Drive from Flash: Fastest Man Alive #7 in a story by Jay Baruchel and Sumit Kumar. In the story, STAR Labs is testing an Alcubierre Drive - a real (okay, still theoretical, but rumored to be of high interest to NASA) thing. But this...
Marvel Cosmology: A Skrull Census
The Skrull are one of the oldest threats to the earth in the Marvel Universe. The green, wrinkly-chinned, pointy-eared, shapeshifting aliens have had a heck of a run. While Marvel movie fans first spotted them in Captain Marvel and Spider-Man: Far From Home, they’ve...
Game of Thrones Winter, Geoengineering Here?
It’s been a little while since the Game of Thrones ended, feelings might have calmed...a little, and good memories may have started to creep in and cover up the perhaps no-so-good memories, so let’s go back to Westeros. One of Game of Thrones’ central plot points was...
TECHNOLOGY
STEM Breakdown: Dudley Datson & the Forever Machine
Full disclosure - I’m a sucker for young STEM students as heroes of stories. That’s what we have in Dudley Datson and the Forever Machine from Amazon’s Comixology Originals imprint. Written by Scott Snyder, with terrific art by Jamal Igle, the debut issue sets up the...
Batman Bulletproofing – What’s a Structured Polymer Composite?
Just look at that image of Batman above. Owwwww… It comes from The Batman’s Grave #5 by Warren Ellis and Bryan Hitch. Digitally, you can find it at Comixology here, or your local comic shop will surely be happy to mail it to you during this time when physical comic...
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TOP STORIES
Doc Ock v Spider-Man: What’s an Apex Predator?
In Amazing Spider-Man #30, Doctor Octopus makes a claim to Spider-Man that needs some clarification. While wrapped up in a battle with Spidey, Ock says, “Don’t be ashamed of your fate Spider-Man. You’ve been harvested by an apex predator.” Okay - just so we’re clear...
Single Panel Science Lesson: Luthor’s Not Lying, But…
Sure, Daredevil can tell when people are lying by listening to their heartbeats speed up. But that’s Daredevil. But Superman can do this too. As shown in stories by Joshua Williamson, Tom Taylor, and many others, Superman always listens to Lois and Jon’s voices and...
Kraven, a Crossbow, and the Conservation of Momentum
Maybe you’ve seen the trailer for the upcoming Kraven the Hunter movie. Maybe you have thoughts. While comic fans are dissecting costumes, accents, origin, and more, one thing stuck out to me: the crossbow scene right around the 2:30 mark. The character comes in...
