The Science of Star Wars
An Astrophysicist's Independent Examination of Space Travel, Aliens, Planets, and Robots as Portrayed in the Star Wars Films and Books
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3.9 • 41 Ratings
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
Could the science fiction of Star Wars be the actual science of tomorrow?
-How close are we to creating robots that look and act like R2-D2 and C-3PO?
-Can we access a "force" with our minds to move objects and communicate telepathically with each other?
-How might spaceships like the Millennium Falcon make the exhilarating jump into hyperspace?
-What kind of environment could spawn a Wookiee?
-Could a single blast from the Death Star destroy an entire planet?
-Could light sabers possibly be built, and if so, how would they work?
-Do Star Wars aliens look like "real" aliens might?
-What would living on a desert planet like Tatooine be like?
-Why does Darth Vader require an artificial respirator?
Discover the answers to these and many other fascinating questions of physics, astronomy, biology and more, as a noted scientist and Star Wars enthusiast explores The Science of Star Wars.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The opening in May of the new Star Wars film has hardcore fans in a frenzy. Timed to release with The Phantom Menace, this book follows in the tradition of The Physics of Star Trek and Caveloss own The Science of the X-Files. The author examines five major areasplanetary environments, aliens, droids, space ships and weapons, and the Forcein sufficient detail to satisfy even knowledgeable fans. Take Lukes desert home world, Tatooine. When Star Wars first came out, scientists doubted the existence of planets in other solar systems, but since 1995 several have been found. Could a planet form around a binary star? Yes, but due to gravitational forces only if the stars were very far apart or very close, so as Luke gazes out at his two suns setting, he sees an accurate portrayal of a binary system. Most of the Star Wars aliens fare equally well. The Wookies keen sense of smell, for example, would give them an alternative means of communication so that they might need to vocalize only with grunts and howls. Can the force be with you? Physicist David Bohm posited a quantum potential force that would interpenetrate and bind together everything in the universe, but only Yoda knows if we can direct it with our minds. Caveloss engaging style makes this book a treat, with no science background necessary. FYI: The Science of the X-Files has been nominated for a 1998 Bram Stoker Award in the Nonfiction category.
Customer Reviews
Very insightful
As a Star Wars fan I really enjoyed this book. It examines all the neat little things everyone thought were cool when they first watched the movies like hyperspace, droids (especially C-3PO and R2-D2), diverse alien life, and almost everything else. This book also made its attempts at answering some unanswerable questions that are really just food for thought. Basically, this book is a feast of new and intriguing details for pondering about what life would be like if we lived in the Star Wars universe. The only issue I had with this book was its format. It presented the information in a list format, jumping from one subject to the next without much of a segway. It also is not as interesting enough to be as long as it is. Basically, it covers every detail of a topic, but does so in a dull manner. Overall, I would recommend this book over any to a science-and-Star Wars “geek” (like me).
A great book for Star Wars fans
The science of Star Wars is an interesting novel that talks about all different aspects of Star Wars. This book is strictly about earliest four made Star Wars movies number one, four, five and six. (Remember 4,5,6 were made first) for all Star Wars fans this is a must read about all aspects of the world that is Star Wars. In the book tons of items I discussed including planets, space, all types of planes and weapons. The only disappointing part about this novel is how most of the time all of the points brought up our disproven but still it is a very interesting read. For all Star Wars fans it will be almost impossible to put the book down until you are done. What makes this book so great is the author's ability to explain all of the math and science and so on in Star Wars and give clear examples of everything so the average person can understand it. She is also able in those examples to use more Star Wars characters and that's why this book is really a Star Wars lovers dream. No matter what the readers age or brain capability if you love space, if you love the movies, and your fascinated about the science behind them this book is for you
Great
This book is simply awsome great for fans of starwars