Are his powers physical or psionic?
I don’t know why many bios of Magneto out on the ‘net include a variation of this phrase: “Nor is it clear whether Magneto’s power is psionic or purely physiological in nature.” Actually, it is quite clear: It’s physical/physiological. For a long time, at least since New Mutants (Vol.1) #29, we’ve known that when Magneto is physically injured his ability to wield electromagnetism is dampened and causes him pain. Since Adjectiveless X-Men #2, we’ve known that overuse of his abilities causes chemical imbalances in his nervous system that drive him mad. In X-Men Unlimited #2, we were gifted with a medical scan which finally gave us the 411. Magneto routes the Earth’s (or any) EM field through his nervous system, which he then controls by extra connections between his medulla oblogata (his autonomic nervous system) and his pons (sensory information relay between the cerebrum and cerebellum). Everything in Magneto’s physiology is designed to help him manipulate EM forces as well. Electrolyt
