NPR's This American Life posed this question to some random people - I missed the beginning of the show, so I do not know how they were selected.
My immediate response was flying. Why? Because then you can get places fast. And if you happen to end up someplace dangerous, you can fly out of harms way. In fact, I'm not sure I get the point of invisibility. In our modern world, this 'super power' almost seems built-in to our way of life.
Upon further reflection, I thought I would not like to fly very high because it gets cold quite quickly, and I do not like the cold. Also, I would not like to increase altitude quickly, because with a tendency for sinus issues, changes in air pressure can be painful. Also, in the winter, I would not fly if there was a snow storm, I think the cold ice hitting your face would hurt, and the wind might make flight hard, so on those days I would work from home. Also, I would not fly if there was a lightening storm, for obvious reasons. Still, flying would be fun and useful. Invisibility... not so much. Invisibility, as a super power, I dismiss you.
On NPR there was a suggestion that those that want invisibly are more full of guile and trickery and that those that want to fly are lying, or have a super hero complex. The idea was presented that invisibility is a 'villainous' trait while flying was 'heroic'. One person stated that everyone really, in their heart of hearts, wants invisibility. Several people stated it was a hard choice, and they flip-flopped between the two.
I would suggest that drawing such conclusions from a false choice, such as the one presented, is a bit silly. Still, since it's Saturday, maybe there is some truth to this, considering how the modern world has developed. People who were thinking about invisibility listed, as pluses, that they could sneak onto airplanes and travel for free (hello? If you could fly you could travel for free without being crammed into a plane). They also listed variants on the 'sneaking in to...' theme, which can be summed up by reviewing the most popular uses for the Internet. That's right, people also want to see Toy Story 3, for free. So, maybe that is what a majority of the population wants, though at this point it does seem redundant.
For me, barring finding myself at Hogwarts with a need to do unsanctioned research in the restricted section, I really don't see invisibility as being a practical super power. In fact, in real life I have sort of an inverse cousin of this superpower. People think they have seen me places when they have not seen me. These are not doppleganger situations. For example, one year the office had a Christmas party, and people kept telling me they saw me at the party. This was fascinating, because I had not attended. Conversations would go like this:
"So, do you remember the bread sculptures at the Christmas party?"
"bread sculptures? No. But I wasn't there."
"Yes you were, I remember seeing you!"
"Really? And did I say anything to you?"
"Hrmm. I know you were there."
Ok then. This has happened to me more than once. And I am not a quiet person, in fact I have a reputation for being loud (which I have decided to blame on my hearing-impaired father).
So, there is no question in my mind. Flying is the best choice. And it's not even like it has to be heroic or noble. You could be a really good villain if you could fly. You could put cats high up in trees, you could break into museums and banks through roof access panels, you could smash glass ceilings in mall food courts releasing trapped birds and stopping the horrid din of echoing voices. Though that last one might be too heroic for a villain. I really do not get the appeal of invisibility. So, I have decided, to do a non-scientific, unfunded, social experiment. I asked people (and by people I mean family and friends) to write down which super power, of the two, they would choose and why. I have told them that first they should write their gut reaction, then they should think about it and put their final decision.
Here are the results:
We had 2 people change their answer, the results posted are the final results.
Flying: 4
Invisibility: 5
Flying by gender: 3 f, 1 m
Invisibility by gender: 2 f, 3 m
Flying supporting reasons:
1. Fast Transport (most popular answer)
2. Dreams of flying, association with feelings of freedom
3. Travel to remote place, where you can be invisible
Invisibility supporting reasons:
1. Sneakiness (most popular answer)
2. Get free stuff
3. Get free admission
4. No place to fly
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