Extreme Abilities: Amazing Human Feats and the Simple Science Behind Them

The curiosities of the human body and mind are explored in Extreme Abilities: Amazing Human Feats and the Simple Science Behind Them. Nine chapters, with catchy titles like “Masters of Muscle”, “Deep-sea Mermaids (and Men)”, and “Mathemagicians”, profile individuals around the world who have extraordinary strength, flexibility, endurance, mind control, balance and speed. Galadriel Watson expertly combines a conversational, storytelling style with concise, easy-to-understand scientific explanations.

In the “Pretzel People” chapter, readers are introduced to professional contortionists like Zlata, “The Goddess of Flexibility”, who has squished, stretched and twisted her way into the Guinness Book of World Records, and Germany’s Martin Laurello who had the ability to turn his head around and who performed from the 1920s to the 1940s as “the Human Owl”. Anatomical facts about joints, ligaments and muscles are then presented, explaining why some people can move their bodies in ways the rest of us can’t.

In following chapters, other seemingly impossible capabilities are also explored, such as Jake, an 11-year-old boy who has what is a called a “Highly Superior Autographical Memory”, enabling him to pick a date from any moment in his life and recount all the fine details, even down to smell. The physics of running and marathon athletics are covered in “Ultra-Long Experts” and “Speed Demons”. “Body/Brain Bosses” looks at research on meditation, including a scientific study of Tibetan monks practicing Inner Fire Mediation.

Energetic, colourful illustrations by Cornelia Li show strongman Louis Cyr lifting a barbell with one hand and capture Jean Francois Gravelet’s death-defying tightrope walk over the foaming waters of Niagara Falls. The page layout and design feature an eye-catching assortment of “Fast Fact” sidebars, and a “How It’s Done” scientific explanation, complete with labeled, anatomical diagrams, in each chapter. The super powers presented are never sensationalized. The book’s introduction emphasizes context and safety: “It’s important to remember that the people in this book either were born with these traits or trained long and hard to get them. Never put yourself in danger by trying to copy what they’ve done.” This message of understanding limits is reinforced throughout, with “Hazard Alert!” sidebars reminding readers of potential physical dangers. “Over to You” suggests ways readers can safely improve their own fitness levels.

Extreme Abilities is a jaw-droppingly well-researched, informative, and entertaining look at what makes us uniquely human.