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3.77k reviews for:
What If?: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions
Randall Munroe
4.14 AVERAGE
3.77k reviews for:
What If?: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions
Randall Munroe
4.14 AVERAGE
Very interesting and I learned a bit. Sometimes got so detailed it was hard to follow. Sometimes I thought the question was asking something slightly different that wasn't addressed. Read it in chunks, not something you can just sit down and read for long periods of time.
This book was fantastic, and hilarious! As the title suggests, it contains well thought-out answers to absurd questions. But they don't have just a simple answer; Munroe takes the ball and runs with it, often giving us multiple answers for various scenarios, and probably going further than the question-asker intended. But that's just fine because we are dealing with situations that would never happen anyway so why not have fun with it?
And fun we will have, beginning with Munroe's stick figure comics in each chapter. (If you like his xkcd webcomic you will most certainly appreciate these.) He also has footnotes within each chapter; some are standard citations supporting his explanations, while others are there for the sake of humour and they might be the funniest part of the book.
The fun continues all the way to the dust jacket. Munroe drew his own author portrait as an xkcd faceless stick figure, and the inside of the jacket is a detailed map of how the world would look if a drain was installed in the Marianas Trench. This also means if you're going to read this book, read the hardcover edition; certainly don't get the audiobook as you'll miss half the fun.
And fun we will have, beginning with Munroe's stick figure comics in each chapter. (If you like his xkcd webcomic you will most certainly appreciate these.) He also has footnotes within each chapter; some are standard citations supporting his explanations, while others are there for the sake of humour and they might be the funniest part of the book.
The fun continues all the way to the dust jacket. Munroe drew his own author portrait as an xkcd faceless stick figure, and the inside of the jacket is a detailed map of how the world would look if a drain was installed in the Marianas Trench. This also means if you're going to read this book, read the hardcover edition; certainly don't get the audiobook as you'll miss half the fun.
Pense nas perguntas mais loucas e bizarras... (bem, há algumas bem intencionadas).
Randall Munroe busca nos vários campos das ciências, respostas para tais perguntas, e as coloca de forma clara, fluente e o mais importante, quase sempre de forma hilária!, além de seus desenhos de pessoas em formato palito! Muito muito bom!
Randall Munroe busca nos vários campos das ciências, respostas para tais perguntas, e as coloca de forma clara, fluente e o mais importante, quase sempre de forma hilária!, além de seus desenhos de pessoas em formato palito! Muito muito bom!
3.5* fun geeky read, gained some interesting though ultimately useless scientific knowledge.
This was such a fun book! Legit science. Clever illustrations. Great humor.
funny
informative
slow-paced
Funny science! My favorite!
Very, very funny. But more importantly, very, very informative. Even if it's information that no human being would ever need. With the creepy addition of frequent peeks into the minds of some very strange people.
Very, very funny. But more importantly, very, very informative. Even if it's information that no human being would ever need. With the creepy addition of frequent peeks into the minds of some very strange people.
That was so much fun! Science for the purpose of absurdity. I learned a lot. Bonus points for scientifically proving that if soul mates existed, it would be a horrible, horrible nightmare.