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snishar 's review for:
What If?: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions
by Randall Munroe
Disclaimer: I am a fan of Randall Munroe's wildly popular webcomic 'xkcd' already. I am not exactly a random reader here. I already have a taste for having fun with math and science.
Having said that, the premise of the book is made abundantly clear on the cover page: serious scientific answers to absurd hypothetical questions. It seems like a fairly straightforward job for someone with a background in robotics at NASA.
First, the sheer simplicity with which he presents his estimations with a step by step breakdown on how he arrives at his conclusions will deceive into understanding what your textbooks couldn't teach you. There are very few places in these 300 pages where he will use a formula and not explain it. The clarity of his analyses speaks of not only how well he understands the core physics and mathematics behind these answers but also his empathy for the average person not inclined towards the subjects. The passion with which the explanations are drawn is almost palpable and will leave you with a sense of healthy curiosity for long after.
Second, his penchant for humour and comics is very well woven into his explanations. There are very few instances (they do exist) where the humour seems forced or unnatural. The cartoons lend levity without cheating the gravity of the problems at hand, which, to me, is an art form.
Third, while the text is not focused on the author at all, the narrative style reveals how the author does not take himself seriously at all. This has always been a very charming quality in an author for me and I believe it goes with the subject matter quite well. It also helps make the author more likeable which is an invaluable catalyst when picking up a book like it.
I think the end result of having read this book, seeing how unpractical and useless most of the knowledge itself is, is learning the APPROACH to seemingly impossible questions. The book will help the keen reader figure out how to take a one-sentence-long problem into its most intimate details and fetch answers from the world around you without any prompting. Gaining this ability, in whatever limited capacity, is a step closer to feeling the exhilaration associated with Godhood. Just make sure you don't take yourself too seriously when you get there.
Having said that, the premise of the book is made abundantly clear on the cover page: serious scientific answers to absurd hypothetical questions. It seems like a fairly straightforward job for someone with a background in robotics at NASA.
First, the sheer simplicity with which he presents his estimations with a step by step breakdown on how he arrives at his conclusions will deceive into understanding what your textbooks couldn't teach you. There are very few places in these 300 pages where he will use a formula and not explain it. The clarity of his analyses speaks of not only how well he understands the core physics and mathematics behind these answers but also his empathy for the average person not inclined towards the subjects. The passion with which the explanations are drawn is almost palpable and will leave you with a sense of healthy curiosity for long after.
Second, his penchant for humour and comics is very well woven into his explanations. There are very few instances (they do exist) where the humour seems forced or unnatural. The cartoons lend levity without cheating the gravity of the problems at hand, which, to me, is an art form.
Third, while the text is not focused on the author at all, the narrative style reveals how the author does not take himself seriously at all. This has always been a very charming quality in an author for me and I believe it goes with the subject matter quite well. It also helps make the author more likeable which is an invaluable catalyst when picking up a book like it.
I think the end result of having read this book, seeing how unpractical and useless most of the knowledge itself is, is learning the APPROACH to seemingly impossible questions. The book will help the keen reader figure out how to take a one-sentence-long problem into its most intimate details and fetch answers from the world around you without any prompting. Gaining this ability, in whatever limited capacity, is a step closer to feeling the exhilaration associated with Godhood. Just make sure you don't take yourself too seriously when you get there.