The design and UX isn't done, Rob and Abbie, okkurrrr! 😌
elusorius's review against another edition
3.0
A quick read but a bit dissappointing.
In this book, weird hypothetical questions are scientifically answered. It's a fun concept that really makes you feel like a kid again. The author makes the science very understandable even for people without any prior knowledge. There are cartoons to further explain and the explanations are usually done in a funny manner.
However, a lot of the questions weren't that interesting and some of them were dragged out for too long. A lot of the questions I found interesting were ones he didn't even answer, but he instead joked about. Why even include those? It was also extremely clear that this book was written by an American, given that a lot of questions took place in the US, were compared to the US or used the US as a standard for measuring. As someone who isn't from there, this was off-putting at times.
2.5/5
In this book, weird hypothetical questions are scientifically answered. It's a fun concept that really makes you feel like a kid again. The author makes the science very understandable even for people without any prior knowledge. There are cartoons to further explain and the explanations are usually done in a funny manner.
However, a lot of the questions weren't that interesting and some of them were dragged out for too long. A lot of the questions I found interesting were ones he didn't even answer, but he instead joked about. Why even include those? It was also extremely clear that this book was written by an American, given that a lot of questions took place in the US, were compared to the US or used the US as a standard for measuring. As someone who isn't from there, this was off-putting at times.
2.5/5
malus23's review against another edition
5.0
I was so excited when this arrived at last. Love, love, love it. :)
sleightoffeet's review against another edition
4.0
Randall Munroe is brilliant. Not just because he knows lots of things and not just because he can do some really complicated math, but in how he organizes his thoughts and breaks everything down in order to answer these questions. On top of all of this, he makes it funny!
Math and physics funny?
In the hands of this guy, it is.
Don't worry if math is not your thing, and if, like me, scientific notation kind of acts like Novocain on the brain, he uses the best analogies to make you understand exactly how infinitely big or infinitely small these concepts are.
Math and physics funny?
In the hands of this guy, it is.
Don't worry if math is not your thing, and if, like me, scientific notation kind of acts like Novocain on the brain, he uses the best analogies to make you understand exactly how infinitely big or infinitely small these concepts are.
gingerswag22's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
informative
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
4.5
rebeccarennerfl's review against another edition
5.0
The questions in this book are definitely ridiculous, and the answers are certainly scientific, but they are by no means serious. Most of the answers are pretty ridiculous themselves. That's what makes this book so funny!
Highly recommended for scifi geeks and people who like explosions.
Highly recommended for scifi geeks and people who like explosions.
opticflow's review against another edition
4.0
If there's a scientist in your life, you're probably well accustomed to this sense of humor. If not, prepare yourself for some groanworthy puns. I was not familiar with this blog beforehand but I was impressed with the research. Some questions are deemed too stupid or dangerous to answer, which irks me a bit, as a person who partially answers questions for a living.
There's a lot of weather, geology, and astronomy questions in here, but not much biology or chemistry. I never took a physics class so some of this was over my head, but I still found it enjoyable. Your mileage may vary.
It does specify absurd hypothetical questions, but brings up less absurd questions along the way, and doesn't give an entirely satisfying answer to what happens during lightning storms at sea. Of all the questions, I was most invested in this one, which actually happened to me when I was 12, on a sailboat with a 38 foot aluminum mast pointing directly into a storm. I remember saying some Hail Marys and preparing for 1.21 gigawatts. After reading this I'm no more the wiser of why I'm still alive.
There's a lot of weather, geology, and astronomy questions in here, but not much biology or chemistry. I never took a physics class so some of this was over my head, but I still found it enjoyable. Your mileage may vary.
It does specify absurd hypothetical questions, but brings up less absurd questions along the way, and doesn't give an entirely satisfying answer to what happens during lightning storms at sea. Of all the questions, I was most invested in this one, which actually happened to me when I was 12, on a sailboat with a 38 foot aluminum mast pointing directly into a storm. I remember saying some Hail Marys and preparing for 1.21 gigawatts. After reading this I'm no more the wiser of why I'm still alive.