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Some of these examples were discussed on other pages, but they are all here for convenience. Aren't I good to you? . Increases in mass In the introduction we saw that when a superhero transforms and increases in mass, the extra mass comes from the universe's background energy. That energy is also used to increase the distance between the atoms and the forces between them, otherwise the hero would be so heavy that they can't stand up. Note that the hero's body is chemically the same (assuming they don't gain any additional super powers). At a subatomic level it is totally different, and the atoms are spread out more, but at a molecular level - the chemicals that make up the body - the hero seems completely unchanged, except for being bigger and heavier. Blasts of cosmic energy Cosmic blasts are the simplest power of all to explain. The hero's atoms take from the background energy and release it in a different form, either as high energy photons or vibrations (concussive blasts.) Increases in strength Modest strength increases (to greatest-human-athlete levels) can be explained by simply increasing the size of the muscles. Further strength increases (up to a few tons of lifting power) come from creating different chemical structures in the muscles. Heavyweight class strength (hundreds or thousands of tons) comes from changing the forces between atoms. Note that each level of strength gain comes from a smaller and smaller scale. Each new level requires the body to be reengineered at a smaller and smaller level. Crazy Level Strength (millions of tons plus) really comes under the category or teleportation. The hero kicks the mountain and the mountain moves. The hero might THINK they have pushed it, but of course that kind of force would just crush the nearby rocks and leave the rest unchanged. What has really happened is that the hero has changed the atoms of the mountain itself so that they move. More about this when we discuss teleporting, force fields, and action-at-a-distance Bulletproof skin Bulletproof skin is simply a result of holding the atoms together more tightly, so that greater force is required to pull the chemical bonds apart. It's just another application of energy. The Human Torch I've mentioned the Human Torch as an example, so should perhaps explain how his power works. What we call fire is just molecules moving in a very energetic state, so they give off radiation in the form of heat and light. Fire in the normal sense requires fuel and oxygen, but anyone who can energize molecules sufficiently could create the same effect but with more heat, less heat, etc. Johnny Storm clearly does not need an external fuel source, so we can conclude that his form of fire is not the usual chemical reaction, but a more direct application of energy. So there is no reason why he needs oxygen for his flame. He clearly believes that he needs oxygen, and so his flame goes out when he believes there is none. Just as it went out once when Dr Doom (or someone, I forget) trapped all four of them in a sealed room, and they gasped for breath, but eventually realized it was all in their mind. In the same way, recent comics make clear that Ben Grimm is able to turn back and forth to the Thing at will, but (until recently) psychologically would not let himself. |
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So in the example given of flying to the bottom of the sea, it happened so quickly that either he did not need to breathe, or the force of the heat trapped oxygen from the surface inside his bubble. The flame itself did not need oxygen, but in recent years he believes strongly that it does and so he would never try that trick again. In the same way, a simple fire hose is enough to pout his flame out, even though he can generate enough energy to create an updraft that lifts hundreds of tons (see the end of the first appearance of the Submariner). The limitations of Johnny's flame are largely in his mind. But he needs to have a clear idea of what his flame does in order to control it, so these psychological limits are a good thing. As for the Torch's flame objects, by controlling the forces between the molecules, he could also make flaming cages, lassos, walls, etc. It may seem strange that the objects would maintain their shape for a while after the Torch leaves, but that is hardly surprising: however the energy is processed within his body, it seems to take a conscious thought to turn it on and another to turn it off, but no constant effort to lave it on. Whatever processes are being used, they clearly work on their own as far as possible. Finally, the control over other flame is just a manifestation of action at a distance (see force fields, below). Although not true flame, the effects are close enough to flame that the same processes that control Johnny's flame can also, with practice, control other flame. In the same way Johnny can make sure that he is never burned, and the energy only goes in one way. When his surface is at nova temperature, I strongly suspect that the temperature inside his body is rather less. Stretching I have mentioned strength, changing size, and having bullet proof skin as examples of adding mass and changing he energy between atoms. It is pretty obvious that stretching can be explained by applying the same principles. Some atoms move further apart and others move closer, while they retain their chemical structure and behavior. Note that stretching usually involves a change in mass and extra strength. Otherwise even a modest stretch would make an arm extremely thin and weak. Mr. Fantastic, for example, often changed his size as well as stretching, in the early days. He found it painful so he stopped doing it, but this is perfectly in keeping with his basic power. Passing through walls If an atom's mass is reduced to practically zero, yet it retains its chemical properties, the character can appear like a ghost. If the atomic forces are fine tuned so that they apply to other superhero atoms and not to their non-super surroundings, the hero can pass through walls like so many neutrinos, yet retain their shape and still be able to think. Clever, eh? Flying Many heroes have the power of flight. Some (like the vision) do it by changing their mass so they are the same density as air. Others have rockets or similar devices (see super-technology, below). Some do much more! This is how. Mass is often defined in terms of inertia. Hence the famous physics image of a rubber sheet with stars and planets distorting the rubber and causing other objects to roll towards them. Mass is simply our relation with other objects. Clearly, a hero with the ability to change their inertia could move, fly, or do a number other useful things, like avoid leaning over when a car they are in takes a sharp corner. We see this in early issues of the Hulk. He would jump for miles, carrying people, yet they would not be killed by the sudden G-force. And he would even accelerate or change direction in mid-jump! Get a copy of Marvel Essential Hulk volume 1 and you’ll see plenty of examples of this. He thought he was just jumping, but clearly he was manipulating inertia. We see the same thing when a car crashes into him and it’s like hitting a brick wall. How much does the Hulk weigh, exactly? Something freaky is happening with his inertia. But the Hulk was never bright enough to realize he was messing with the rules of inertia, so he thought he was just standing there or jumping, and that’s the only way he could unconsciously control it. Later when he became a little smarter he stopped flying, because he realized it ought to be impossible. But we know better, eh readers? Stopping speeding trains (or other massive or fast moving objects) Stopping a speeding train is more than a matter of strength, it is a question of inertia. It doesn't matter how strong you are if a train hits you - you will be knocked off your feet because the train weighs more than you do. However, if a hero can affect the inertia of their atoms (or better still, the atoms of the train) then stopping a speeding train becomes easy. Super speed Super speed is just a combination of super strength, inertia, and (in extreme cases) teleportation, which are all dealt with separately. In this example, Lockjaw (the world's greatest superhero) demonstrates how teleportation and super speed are sometimes the same thing. |
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Sticking to walls, and the radioactive spider theory I noted that bullet proof skin is a question of skin molecules sticking together more firmly than usual. Spiderman simply takes this a step further and has the ability to stick to walls. This brings up an important point. The hero may have his own theory about his powers, but it is only a theory. In science a theory is how we explain things until a better theory comes along. Spiderman thought that he had somehow gained the spider's own ability to stick to walls. In actual fact he simply gained a variation on the one mass-energy power. The radioactivity part was the important thing, not the "spider" part. The spider had somehow had its DNA changed, and some of its molecules were enhanced with the ability to change mass and energy to a limited extent. The wall thing was just a coincidence. Peter Parker did not gain spider characteristics, otherwise he would have eight legs, no lungs, and would be proportionately much weaker than before (see the discussion of height and strength elsewhere). Force fields, telekinesis, and action at a distance Some heroes have the ability to generate force fields of some kind. This is nothing more than making atoms stick together strongly, or repel other atoms. If the force field is invisible, it just means that light gets through. Big deal. Some force fields have color - Green Lantern's fields are green and Atom Eve's fields are pink. This simply means that some wavelengths of gradation are absorbed or emitted more than others. It may seem amazing that someone can extend their abilities outside their own body, but however their atoms are controlled it must involve subatomic particles / radiation moving between them. It is no great feat of imagination to see that these particles or radiation could be flung a little further in some cases. Remember that the whole basis of superhero powers is smart particles - they act like normal particles in most cases but can be fine tuned. In the case of action at a distance, the particles are able to "read" the properties of other particles, then adapt themselves to only affect certain other particles. For example, the telekinetic hero looks at the villain (and unconsciously singles out his atoms), then sends out particles that only interact with those atoms and not any others on the way. Teleportation Teleportation is much more common than you might think. How else do some heroes appear to travel faster than light, or move mountain-sized objects without breaking them? Teleportation seems difficult to us, but within the BEM theory it is easy. You just remove mass at one point and bring it back at another. As Stephen Hawking reminded us with his work on black holes, particles are constantly popping in and out of existence all the time, even in a vacuum. The teleporting superhero can simply control this normal behavior by manipulating their smart atoms. Magic Magic just refers to technology that we do not understand. As technology advances it becomes easier and easier to use, and requires smaller and smaller physical technology. Eventually it becomes controllable by simply saying some words (which are recognized and obeyed by smart atoms). But this brings danger: what if people misuse this power and hurt someone? For that reason, super-advanced technology is protected by various tricks that ensure only the right people can use it. For example, the magic might require very unusual words or a magic object such as the Uru hammer (see Thor). Magic is simply highly advanced BEM technology that is not fully understood by its user. How exactly does the most advanced technology (magic) work? By creating the smartest possible smart atoms, so they can control Background Energy, producing energy, increasing strength, teleporting, and all the rest, all designed to be used by saying certain words, putting on a magic belt, drawing a pentagram, or whatever. Note that magic works in a hierarchy: the most powerful magic is too dangerous to be given to mere mortals. So the average magician must call upon the demons or lower gods, if they can't do the job they in turn call upon the higher gods, and so on. It is just like using ordinary human technology: let's take transport for an example. A kid might own a bike, but must get help from parents if they need a car. The average western adult might own a car, but can't afford an airplane so must go to a business that runs airplanes. But if you want to go even faster you need to go to a government to get access to a spacecraft. Magic is just advanced technology, and it follows the same principles as primitive human technology. You might ask, if magic is just advanced technology, why don't magic beings look like scientists? For the same reason that you can use a car but I bet you don't wear a white lab coat or talk with an Einstein accent when you drive. Advanced technology lets ordinary people do miraculous things as long as they learn the rules. Some very ancient beings (the gods) have spent centuries learning how to use magic and so they are very powerful indeed. Where does the advanced technology come from in the first place? As any society advances its rate of progress increases exponentially. it finally reaches "the singularity," the time when every problem can be solved as quickly as it is imagined. At that stage the society transforms into some things that we lesser mortals can barely understand - let's call it pure energy. These are the guys who make the magic technology and run the universe. Case study, by popular request: The Mighty Thor To see how this all works, let's look at The Mighty Thor. Thor comes from a race that is both extremely ancient and in touch with numerous other dimensions and advanced races. So we should expect him to have a very high level of BEM sophistication, and indeed he does. Thor exhibits close to the full range of BEM abilities: extreme strength, bulletproof skin, teleporting (to other dimensions through the Uru hammer) and so on. The really interesting thing about Thor is his use of magic. After centuries of contact with advanced beings of all descriptions, everything he does is entwined with magic of all kinds. As is normal with magic, he has to do things in a certain way (gain help from other beings, use the belt of power, the Uru hammer, and so on). Thor's power can sometimes increase dramatically (such as when he is in a berserker rage, or using the belt of power) - a sure sign of deep level BEM powers. BEM energy is only limited by the user's skill and the arrangement of their atoms. In recent years he has mastered the Odin Power, one of the most advanced forms of magic in existence, attaining cosmic-level power, like Galactus and other cosmic beings. In short, magic represents the most advanced uses of BEM, and Thor combines natural BEM abilities and the use of highly advanced magic. Thor is awesome! Advanced technology Advanced technology is dealt with on its own page. Basically, it's all based on alien technology. And the alien technology is based on smart atoms. It doesn't matter if you get super speed from your body, from a special suit, or from a space ship, it's the same principles at work. So there's no need to repeat everything again. Just read the rest of this page and you'll figure it out. Iceman (Update, March 2007) I wrote the rest of this page about a year ago, but I just discovered something that proves my thesis: Iceman from the X-Men! We all thought that Iceman could just, well, y’know, just create ice. And snowballs. And make things cold, and... er.... that’s about it really. Not the most powerful hero in the universe, right? Not exactly Phoenix class, right? Wrong! Actually it turns out that Iceman IS one of the most powerful beings in the universe, he IS Phoenix class (technically an Omega Class mutant). But how can this be, you ask? Read on and all will be revealed. It turns out that a few years ago Bobby Drake (Iceman) had a run-in with Rachel Summers (another Omega class mutant) and she released some of his powers and explained how it works. For all these years we thought that little Bobby just had an overactive thyroid or something, but no! We were all wrong! Well you were wrong anyway. I was the one jumping up and down and pointing, saying “I told you so! I told you so!” It turns out that this snowball making power is just a manifestation of his ability to exchange mass and energy with water molecules, which in turn is a manifestation of his ability to exchange mass and energy with the surrounding universe. And these abilities are coded into everyone’s genes, no doubt at a subatomic level, by the Celestials no less. Everyone has the potential to do this but just does not know how to, so it’s pretty obvious that all superpowers can be traced to this subatomic mass energy potential. So there you have it. The BEM theory is vindicated as the origin of all superpowers! They scoffed, they mocked, they didn’t believe me, but who’s laughing now, eh? The BEM theory rules the world! Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-hahaha! Conclusion OK, true believer, now you know the secrets! Now you know everything you need to know to understand how super powers work. It's simple! No mumbo jumbo and hand waving about magic and transistors. Now you have the hard science. You are no longer an ignorant child, comic-wise. You have the secrets of the eternities and it is time for you to go forth into the wide world and use your newfound knowledge. May the power cosmic be with you! Class dismissed! |
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