Becoming Bionic and Other Ways Science is Making Us Super, written by Heather Camlot and illustrated by Victor Wong. Owlkids, 2023. $21.95 ages

 

"Of all the powers Superman possesses, his
X-ray vision seems to spark the most debate:
scientists have studied whether it would really 
be possible, while others have wondered about
the ethics for being able to see through almost 
anything. Sure, it's super to be able to scan a 
body for broken bones or pinpoint the exact 
location of bad guys in a hostage-taking situation,
but could X-ray vision also cross the line into 
invasion of privacy? Hmm ... 

Who wouldn't want some of the imaginary superpowers attributed to pop culture icons? With the advances being made, often on a daily basis, are some of those powers far from being realized? Or, will they be available to people sooner than later?

Ms. Camlot introduces readers to reports on super parts, super flight, super sight, super strength, and super survival. Which chapter would you choose first?  I chose super sight; I read all day long as many of you do, and I can't imagine what life would be without the ability to read whenever I chose. Today, we are told, there are forms of super vision being developed: ' smart lenses and bionic eyes'. A timeline of the history for visionary inventions begins in 1021, and continues through the years until 2008 when Canadian filmmaker Rob Spence worked on a prosthetic eye to record video. 

"The prosthesis contains a video camera, a battery, and a transmitter. 
It's not connected to his optic nerve, so Spence uses it not to see but to 
record what's in his line of sight. 

Many tidbits of information are included throughout the book to garner interest and inform middle grade readers about advances being made. The author also encourages them to think clearly about the consequences and ethics for advances being made, such as the one in the quote that begins this post. These are issues worthy of careful thought and discussion. 

Knowing that some of the abilities readers see when they read comics and watch movies are close to, or already, a reality makes for some pretty absorbing reading. Science is a remarkable pursuit; lucky ae we to live at a time when scientists are doing incredible work to transform everyday occurrences and even our bodies. 

As happens in excellent nonfiction for middle graders, this book boasts fascinating text, impressive timelines and diagrams that add context for new learning.