WHAT IF? (REISSUE)

This book opens with the best disclaimer I have ever seen: "Do not try any of this at home. The author of this book is an Internet cartoonist, not a health or safety expert. He likes it when things catch fire or explode, which means he does not have your best interests in mind. The publisher and the author disclaim responsibility for any adverse effects resulting, directly or indirectly, from information contained in this book." That disclaimer really sets the tone for this fun book about science: Dangerous ideas ahead, folks! Don't get too close -- these things could kill ya! Randall Munroe used to work at NASA, and now he creates the webcomic XKCD (which sounds less stressful than the NASA gig). On his website, he takes "absurd hypothetical questions" from readers and tries to answer some of them. Here are some of my favorite questions in this book: What would happen if everyone on Earth stood as close to each other as they could and jumped, everyone landing on the ground at the same instant? If every human somehow simply disappeared from the face of the Earth, how long would it be before the last artificial light source would go out? How long could a nuclear submarine last in orbit? From what height would you need to drop a steak for it to be cooked when it hit the ground? If everyone on the planet stayed away from each other for a couple of weeks, wouldn't the common cold be wiped out? Which US state is actually flown over the most? Is there enough energy to move the entire current human population off-planet? How high can a human throw something? How fast can you hit a speed bump while driving and live? When, if ever, will the bandwidth of the Internet surpass that of FedEx? How quickly would the oceans drain if a circular portal 10 meters in radius leading into space were created at the bottom of Challenger Deep, the deepest spot in the ocean? How would the Earth change as the water was being drained? How many Lego bricks would it take to build a bridge capable of carrying traffic from London to New York? Have that many Lego bricks been manufactured? What would happen to the Earth if the Sun suddenly switched off? If you are interested to know any of the answers to those questions, this book is for you! What made this so much fun, aside from the ridiculous questions, is Munroe's sense of humor. Several times I laughed out loud at his drawings and his answers, which is not something that usually happens when I'm reading about science. Oh, and be sure to read his footnotes, which have even more jokes. I think this book would be a great gift for kids who love to ask crazy questions about how the world works. I think I would have loved it when I was 10.

This book is incredibly entertaining, and the author's sense of humor shines throughout. You'll not only learn but also enjoy some light-hearted jokes and laughter along the way. It's a highly recommended read for students above the 8th grade since it will be more entertaining and educational for them. If you don't have a background in science, some parts may be a bit challenging to grasp. Despite this, the book is engaging and informative. I'm eagerly looking forward to reading the sequel!

I read 'What If?' because of it being recommended by Bill Gates (yeah, I am a sucker for a billionaire's reading suggestions, I know). This piqued my curiosity and I read it as I getting into the habit of reading books regularly. Anyways, I loved this book almost instantly!! If you are one of the curious types (you know who you are), this book has oodles of curiosity, logic, trivia and back-of-the-envelope calculations! The book is essentially a collection of hypothetical questions like "What if I took a swim in a spent nuclear fuel pool?" or "What would happen if Earth and all terrestrial objects suddenly stopped spinning, but the atmosphere retained its velocity"? The answers are well-thought and logical, while being extremely, ROFL funny. Go for this book, it's like a megadose caffeine shot.

Love it for the variety ❤️

Very well researched and written. 3 stars for this. However, I was expecting to have simple and short answers to the weird questions. Most of the answers stretches a lot with multiple scenarios which makes it boring. For example, what if everyone points laser pointer at the moon. Ok, nothing happens with normal one but then keep on using more and more powerful types of lasers one by one and you end up loosing interest in reading further :) Overall, if you are really interested in knowing the scientific stuff then go for it else you can skip it. Also, I found very few questions to be interesting.

One of the strengths of this book is Munroe's ability to explain complex scientific concepts in an approachable and engaging way, making it accessible to readers of all levels of scientific knowledge. He also includes clever illustrations and diagrams to help visualize his explanations, adding an extra layer of enjoyment to the reading experience.

If you are not aware of XKCD, you may find it somewhat arbitrary. Nonetheless, the book opens with interesting questions and answers them in a very meaningful way. Great narration for structured thinking. However, it was probably the compulsion to find 'n' number of problems to fill up so many pages that after a while, they become either repetitive or boring (or forcibly created) puzzles.

I had some thoughts about buying the book when I read the description. I though it was going to bounce on top of my head. To my surprise, the book is easy to read and far easier to digest. The writer takes a whack at some of the weirdest, less meaningful questions that can be found in the world we live in, and rings a serious tone in answering them. In fact, he has researched the topics extensively using all the resources he could gather and probably used his backyard to do few tests. He, then, subtly concludes his quest with a simple 'yes', 'no', or 'may be'. Watch out for the silly cartoons he has in every chapter. I can strongly recommend the book if you are into some fun stuff.

“What If?: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions” von Randall Munroe ist ein unglaublich unterhaltsames und zugleich lehrreiches Buch. Munroe, der Schöpfer von xkcd, gelingt es, scheinbar absurde und oft witzige Fragen mit ernsthafter wissenschaftlicher Akribie zu beantworten. Ob es darum geht, was passieren würde, wenn man einen Baseball mit Lichtgeschwindigkeit wirft oder wie hoch man eine Erdmauer stapeln könnte – seine Antworten sind gleichermaßen verblüffend wie humorvoll. Besonders gefällt mir, dass das Buch komplexe wissenschaftliche Zusammenhänge auf eine leicht verständliche Weise erklärt, ohne dabei je langweilig zu werden. Die Erklärungen sind voll von witzigen Illustrationen und trockenen Kommentaren, die das Lesen zu einem Vergnügen machen. Gleichzeitig lernt man eine Menge über Physik, Mathematik, Biologie und andere Naturwissenschaften – ganz ohne das Gefühl, dass es sich um ein Lehrbuch handelt. Munroes einzigartiger Humor und seine Fähigkeit, wissenschaftliche Theorien auf lustige und kreative Weise zu präsentieren, machen dieses Buch zu einer perfekten Mischung aus Unterhaltung und Wissen. Egal, ob man ein Wissenschafts-Fan oder einfach nur neugierig auf skurrile Fragestellungen ist – dieses Buch wird definitiv zum Nachdenken anregen und für viele Lacher sorgen. Insgesamt ist es ein absolutes Muss für jeden, der Spaß an kuriosen Gedankenspielen und cleveren Erklärungen hat. Sehr zu empfehlen!

My 20 year olds had fun with this book! Fun to read together. One example - if everyone on a planet jumped at the exact same time, would it register as an earthquake?

El libro es cómico, entretenido e interesante, puesto que explica las preguntas más absurdas que podamos tener, esto con bases científicas y muchas investigación, claro que no pueden faltar las clásicas tiras cómicas para darle ese toque especial. Esta lectura es una forma diferente de hacer comedia y porque no, también aprender cosas nuevas en el proceso.

This was a very funny read at the same time as being thought-provoking about how physics and science are (well, duh) all around us everyday and can help us make good decisions. Whilst some of the questions are wildly outlandish, all of them are really interesting - I particularly liked the calculation of whether Star Wars' The Force could be used to power our homes. Love the diagrams. I believe most of us would benefit from a greater tendency to see patterns and sciences operating around us. For example, there have been floods here recently, and people doing things like driving into floodwaters (where they can't see submerged objects), or going 100Kmph through deep puddles (apparently untroubled by the idea of totally losing traction and aquaplaning into oncoming traffic) could really benefit from thinking a bit more about how physics predicts some disastrous outcomes!

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