Next fall John Wiley & Sons will publish a lighthearted but rigorous look at the scientific underpinnings of superhero and science fiction comic books.  Co-author Robert Weinberg was chairman of the Chicago Comic Convention for twenty years, and a publisher and editor of a great deal of science fiction, so he knows whereof he speaks.  The Science of Superheroes is a 224-page hardcover that will retail for $24.95 ($38.95 in Canada).  With superheroes increasingly prominent on both the big and small screens, the timing may be right for this examination of the plausibility of the origin stories of specific, iconic superheroes like Superman and Spider-Man.

Best-selling author Dean Koontz provides the introduction to this tome, which includes a lengthy discussion of Superman, the original superhero, as well as chapters on Batman, the 'non-super superhero,' undersea heroes, Spider-Man (and clones), 'Green Lanterns and Black Holes,' hyper-speed heroes, mutants, time-traveling, and much more.  Even with a near constant stream of spandex-clad heroes on the silver screen, the mass audience may not spring for this book, but what superhero fan can resist arguing about the nature of the gravity on Krypton or the possibility of 'fluid breathing' for aquatic superheroes, or the potential strength of a human-size ant?