What's kryptonite poisoning like?

[JulianPerez]

I always thought of Kryptonite radiation to being akin to some other radiation---it's often not the initial radiation that kills you, but the secondary particles it forms upon collision.

    Kryptonite radiation probably passes right through us, like neutrinoes do, without even pausing. But when they meet an "invulnerable" Kryptonian, much harder than the objects around it, it splits into seconary particles that are deadly to the Kryptonian.

    Which would explain why the Silver Age Kryptonians weren't vulnerable to Kryptonite until they were rendered super-powered.

Ahhh, a very, very interesting idea. One obvious hole that has always existed whenever someone tries to account for why Kryptonite is so deadly, is this: why is it that Kryptonite is only deadly to Superman and others when their powers are in operation? Kryptonite is harmless, for instance, to those inside Kandor, the City in the Bottle.

If Kryptonite is only made dangerous on reaction with superpowered matter, it makes sense that it ought to be dangerous to Kryptonians only and harmless to the rest of us: they pass right through normal matter, but not to the superdense kind. For this reason, it is hard to accept the explanation present in SCIENCE OF SUPERMAN for how Kryptonite works: it is a radioactive element whose specific radiation is such that Kryptonian cells are not opaque to it. If this is true, it would affect Kryptonians whether they were powered or not.

One of the unintentionally funniest Kryptonite moments has to have been in one of the Superman/Batman team ups in WORLD'S FINEST, where Superman casts off Batman for a mysterious "Powerman."

BATMAN: "Kryptonite is DEADLY to Superman, but not to NORMAL people like US!"

...he says, as he pushes his way past his giant Penny and Chess Set to his car shaped like a bat.

[Gary]

If Kryptonite poisoning was like normal radiation poisoning, one would think it wouldn't get better right away once you took away the Kryptonite.

To me, it seems more akin to an allergic reaction, albeit much more severe.

[RedSunOfKrypton]

To me, it seems more akin to an allergic reaction, albeit much more severe.

Genius, pure genius....I wonder what makes me think so...

[Permanus]

I like the idea of kryptonite as some kind of allergen, because as a nut allergy sufferer I can see how that would work. If you so much show me a walnut or a hazelnut I start to get uneasy (well, okay, that's psychosomatic), and if they come into contact with my skin, I get all blotchy. And as for eating any, well, the reaction is instantaneous, and pretty spectacular too. I even change colour, just like Superman does when he is exposed to kryptonite, except I go bright red.

Unfortunately for me, nuts exist in much greater supply than kryptonite. I always hate it when someone offers me a box of delicious-looking Belgian chocolates, because they are completely out of bounds to me.

[Gary]

To me, it seems more akin to an allergic reaction, albeit much more severe.

Genius, pure genius....I wonder what makes me think so...

Okay, I guess reading the whole thread before posting would be a good idea.  Let's just say that great minds think alike, but fools seldom differ.

[RedSunOfKrypton]

:lol:

[Psybertrack]

Well a few facts:
Its called Kryptonite Fever (K-fever), so I guess it causes an awesome rising of a Kryptonians body temperature.  He is burning up alive.
Fever causes sweating and dehydration. Sufficient dehydration can be deadly to him too.
Lead blocks the deadly effects.
Distance decreases the effects of K-fever.
Kryptonite is a transmuted element from whatever element it was before Krypton blew up, possibly a side affect of a nuclear reaction just as the new element trinitite was created at Trinity , New Mexico.
So symptoms: high fever, sweating, dizziness, paralysis, weakness of limbs, partial or total nullifying of his powers.

Perhaps the key is deeper than simple radiation physics. Cosmic string theory, i am thinking.  The vibations of the cosmic strings affect gravity's affect on Superman when near K. so he can't fly away. The vibrations of the cosmic strings in k cancel out the positive affects of the yellow sun radiation which would normally allow him to recharge his powers.

Only lead and distance stop green k.   Lead must be very close to Kryptonite on the vibration scale so as to block the deadly rays.  

Normal a-bomb radiations can be blocked by enough thick cement or steel or earth , as well as lead. But K rays can be blocked by lead.

I think if K is out in the open and stationary and Superman is ready for it he can feel it from a distance before it paralyzes him . As he gets closer to it gets "hotter"(more painful) like a normal human does when putting his hand near a burning stove top.

It's unlikely to be a virus or bacteria that causes k radiation fever but its possible. Perhaps its a symbiote of the mineral. It exists on K, but it thrives on Kryptonian flesh. When Superman comes near the  virus senses his presence and migrates to him on the microscopic level and infects him with a transmutation virus that slowly turning his flesh into green K. The virus now grows enough to replicate. The result of k fever is a green superman. Perhaps like the Andromeda Strain , the virus is a silicon based life form!
this is all just my wild ramblings. No proof

Why don't normal people get hurt by K? because their cells are not living solar batteries like Superman's which make him able to absorb sunlight and so more vulnerable to absorbing the vibrations from Green K.

So this is all just guesswork on my part. Don't take me too serious.
Who believes in the unified field theory and cosmic strings anyway? :wink: