What if? 2

A #1 New York Times bestseller! “The questions in the second volume of “What If?” are brilliant, bizarre, and absurd, and the answers are comprehensive, thoughtful, and downright fun... Science isn’t easy, but in Munro’s deft hands, it can be downright fun.” —Time “Want to know what would happen if you rode in a helicopter, built a billion-story building, fashioned a lava lamp, or jumped onto an erupting volcanic fountain? Well, if you insist. Before you take a cosmic road trip, feed New York City residents to T. rexes, or fills every church with bananas, be sure to check out this practical guide to impractical ideas. Munro doesn’t bother with frivolity; he draws on the latest research in everything from the physics of seesaws to the design of airplane catapults to answer his readers’ questions clearly and concisely, with illuminating and occasionally terrifying illustrations.” As he continually demonstrates, you can learn a lot from studying how the world works in extremely harsh conditions. Praise for "What If?" 2

“The questions in “What If?” 2 are clever, weird, and absurd, and the answers are comprehensive, thoughtful, and highly entertaining... Science isn't easy, but in Munro's deft hands, it can be undeniably fun.” —Time

"Entertaining...combines Munro's genuine research with his genuinely funny prose and distinctive illustrations." —Washington Post

"It's a lot of fun! It's the coolest way to learn how the world really works." —Hank Green (on the "Dear Hank and John" podcast)

"A treat for science buffs with a penchant for quirky thought experiments." —Kirks

Praise for Randall Munroe's book "What If?"

"What If?" is one of my favorite online reads, and I look forward to each new installment and always read it with avid interest. —Cory Doctorow, Boing Boing

"Randall Munroe is a national treasure." —Phil Blight

“Rarely have complex astrophysics and arcane chemistry been explained so clearly or with such enduring wit.” —Entertainment Weekly “10 Best Nonfiction Books of the Year” “Consistently fascinating and entertaining... Munroe gives hard science a whimsical twist... an illuminating guide to ways of thinking.” —Wall Street Journal “It’s a joy to watch Munroe tackle each question and examine each potential complication with methodical and intelligent flair... The delightful and surprisingly engaging “What If?” is about the most fun you can have with math and science, short of becoming an evil genius yourself.” —Boston Globe “With his steady diet of math jokes, physics gags, and antisocial optimism, xkcd creator Randall Munroe, a former NASA roboticist, would drive traffic numbers to NBC.com or Oprah.com. Perhaps one of the keys to the strip’s success is that it doesn’t just comment on geek culture, it embodies it. —Wired, in an issue about “The People Who Shaped Planet Earth During the Past 20 Years”