Fight Like a Physicist: The Incredible Science Behind Martial Arts

An in-depth look into the physics behind martial arts.

Whether you are an experienced martial artist or a curious enthusiast, this book gives you an ＂unfair advantage＂ by unraveling the complex science of effective fighting techniques and examining the core principles that make them work. Did you know?

• Momentum is for knocking people over


• Energy is for breaking bones and causing pain


• A haymaker travels 3.14159 times farther than a jab


• You are only an ＂object＂ when you are rigid

Fight Like a Physicist blends inquiry, skepticism, and irreverent humor--all while punching holes in myth and mysticism. Highlights include

• Making physics your ＂unfair advantage,＂ in the ring and on the street


• Examining center of mass, pi, levers, wedges, angular momentum, and linear momentum for martial artists


• Reducing traumatic brain injury in contact sports


• Exposing the illusion of safety provided by gloves and helmets


• Overturning conventional wisdom on compliance during an assault


• Busting up Hollywood action clichés

Fight Like a Physicist reads like a manifesto on the rational practice of martial arts. It’s intelligent, fun, and dangerous--and nothing short of iconoclastic.

Jason Thalken has a PhD in computational condensed matter physics from the University of Southern California, and bachelor’s degrees in physics, mathematics, and philosophy from the University of Texas. He is the inventor on eight patent applications for data science and modeling in the financial services industry, and one patent application for protecting the brain from trauma in such sports as boxing, MMA, and football. Jason has studied and competed in numerous martial arts styles since 1995 and has a black belt in hapkido under Grand Master Ho Jin Song. Jason Thalken resides in Seattle, Washington.