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What If?
- Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions
- Narrated by: Wil Wheaton
- Length: 6 hrs and 35 mins
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What If?
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Summary
From the creator of the wildly popular xkcd, What If? gives hilarious and informative answers to important questions you probably never thought to ask. Millions visit xkcd.com each week to read Randall Munroe's iconic webcomic. Fans ask him a lot of strange questions. How fast can you hit a speed bump, driving, and live? When (if ever) did the sun go down on the British Empire? When will Facebook contain more profiles of dead people than living? How many humans would a T Rex rampaging through New York need to eat a day? In pursuit of answers, Munroe runs computer simulations, pores over stacks of declassified military research memos, solves differential equations and consults nuclear reactor operators. His responses are masterpieces of clarity and hilarity. They often predict the complete annihilation of humankind - or at least a really big explosion.
This audiobook edition is read by geek icon Wil Wheaton (Star Trek: The Next Generation, Stand by Me, The Big Bang Theory) and has been adapted for audio in collaboration with the author.
Shortlisted for the Goodreads Choice Awards
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What listeners say about What If?
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- misstash007
- 06-05-21
brilliant and funny
will is incredible as the narrator, so funny. the content is interesting and educational too.
I recommend it to anyone.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- James Farrant
- 04-01-19
It’s funny and engaging
It’s funny and engaging in the same way that QI is. And it teaches people how to think about physics.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- A
- 16-03-15
science for the curious - fantastic
interesting and enjoyable to listen to. However, some terms are not common! Needs some explanation.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Towards
- 05-08-20
Brilliant listen with a fantastic reader
Loved hearing Wil Wheaton reading this - it was really entertaining. Some crazy questions to think about - perhaps I need to expand my mind a little more to catch up. Really enjoyed the read - although you do need to concentrate otherwise you get lost very quickly and miss things.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- David
- 26-11-14
Surprisingly informative
What made the experience of listening to What If? the most enjoyable?
The absurdity of the questions threw me to start with - but I soon realised that the answers were incredibly informative and actually could have a place in the teaching of science at school. I have always been the one to point out the impossibilities of hypothesis - I now realise that was just a defence because I didn't have the knowledge to answer with the depth and openness Randall Munroe can muster.
Which character – as performed by Wil Wheaton – was your favourite?
First time I have enjoyed a performance from Will Wheaton, having struggled with him previously.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Phil D
- 01-06-15
WHAT If? :
I love this type of non fictional book. The question's pondered are many and varied. From "lf man were to disappear from earth where and approximately when would the last man made light go out" to the scale of earthquake severity the ratings end at -15 being a speck of dust lightly brushing against a surface when it Lands! The narrative is nicely done. The narrator pleasent to listen to. I would strongly recommend this Audio book to anyone liking answers to questions you never thought about asking.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Littlejohn David Dellar
- 21-11-16
Seriously Funny...
Great to pick up and put down. This hilarious set of mostly successful attempts to answer silly questions with serious answers should not be listened to in public unless you want the world to think you are deranged.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Rhodri Reed
- 30-05-20
interesting book
loved the random what if questions scattered throughout the book. Wil the man as always
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Daryl
- 29-11-15
entertaining and educational?
It was an interesting listen, I enjoyed the explanations. I've now discovered the website too.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Sarah
- 07-01-17
Funny look at the odder questions
This book is a fantastic listen. It takes a look at the science behind questions I'm sure we've all considered at some point. Can you swim in the water surrounding spent nuclear fuel? What would happen if a 15 magnitude quake hit New York? What would happen if you had a mole of moles?
These and many other weird and wonderful questions are pondered and answered over the course of this audiobook. The narrator does a great job, adding just enough humour whilst keeping the science bits clear and concise. Its very light on the maths, instead focusing more on the basic concepts behind the questions, so its easy to understand.
Its very entertaining, as well as educational. I recommend it to anyone who has ever pondered the odder questions in life. You may even find an answer
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