Since children we are fascinated by movies like Superman, Star Wars, Spider-Man, X-Men and many other science fiction movies.
What fascinates us most in these films is seeing men flying, shooting rays through their eyes, explosions in outer space, etc. But what a lot of people don't know is that this kind of thing completely escapes reality.
The possibility of a human being, like Superman or some characters from the X-Men movie, flying doesn't exist. For that to happen, these characters would have to have a propulsion system like airplane engines, and a completely different aerodynamics that would allow them to stay in the air. Therefore, for Superman to be able to fly, it would be necessary for him to have wings in place of a cape.
The Man of Steel uses his X-Ray vision to see through walls. To produce X-Rays it is necessary to apply a large potential difference to produce an electromagnetic wave. Since Superman doesn't have any high voltage sources in his head, he might not be able to see through opaque propagation media.
In films and drawings we can observe Spider-Man, “flying” between the buildings of a large metropolis. The error lies in the fact that the web needs a place to stick, and what happens in the movie is that the superhero always throws his webs upwards, where there is no place for them to stick. We also know that spiders have the ability to walk on walls because they have tiny hairs in them. its eight legs, systematically positioned to provide them with proper balance in position. vertical. Spider-Man, however, does not have these hairs, which makes climbing the walls of a large building impossible.
In the case of Star Wars it is common to hear big bangs, coming from explosions in space. Is this really possible?
According to the laws of physics, no! Sound is a mechanical wave and needs a material medium to propagate. Space is made up of a vacuum (absence of matter), which makes the propagation of sound impossible. The only types of waves that propagate in a vacuum are electromagnetic waves.
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Star Wars
But what would fictional films be if they faithfully portrayed reality?
We couldn't even imagine what Spider-Man would be like without his ability to climb walls and fly between buildings to fight big villains, or even Superman without his X-ray vision, to discover hidden bombs and save the humanity. Without fiction, who would be able to save a plane, with more than 300 passengers, from a major disaster?
The answer is quite simple: Hollywood.
The great thing about science fiction films is the fact that they combine reality with imagination, and everything what we want in these films is an integration of these two elements plus a lot of action and fun.
By Kléber Cavalcante
Graduated in Physics
Brazil School Team
Curiosities - Brazil School
Would you like to reference this text in a school or academic work? Look:
CAVALCANTE, Kleber G. "Physics vs. Science Fiction Films"; Brazil School. Available in: https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/curiosidades/erros-em-filmes-de-ficcao.htm. Accessed on June 27, 2021.
