Randall Munroe is the author of the #1 New York Times bestsellers What If? and Thing Explainer, the science question-and-answer blog What If, and the popular webcomic xkcd. A former NASA roboticist, he left the agency in 2006 to draw comics on the internet full-time. He lives in Massachusetts.
"The creator of the popular, extremely excellent and not a little
nerdy webcomic 'xkcd' cleverly illustrates a guide of complicated
solutions to simple tasks, thinking up Rube Goldbergian solutions
to tasks as common as digging a hole." -USA Today
"The mind behind the webcomic xkcd provides a slew of hilariously
overcomplicated instructions for everything from throwing a pool
party to winning an election, bringing his signature stick figures
- and his singular wit - along for the ride. How To is a
loving testament to the power of the human brain to take things to
absurd lengths." -Glen Weldon, NPR
"[How To] tackles problems from the mundane-such as how to
move to a new house-to those that may trouble a mad scientist
building her first lava moat. The solutions are often hilariously,
and purposefully, absurd. Embedded in these solutions, however, is
solid scientific, engineering, and experimental understanding . . .
[for] anyone who appreciates science-based, but Rube
Goldberg-esque, solutions to life's problems." -Science
Magazine
"How To is a pure delight, a salty-sweet mixture of hard
science and bonkers whimsy." -BoingBoing
"A brilliant provocation of a book: clamber in for a wild ride."
-Nature
"A witty, educational examination of 'unusual approaches to common
tasks' . . . generously laced with dry humor . . . Munroe's comic
stick-figure art is an added bonus. . . . Apart from generating
laughter, the book also manages to achieve his serious objective:
to get his audience thinking." -Publishers Weekly, starred
review
"An enjoyable treat for fans of logic puzzles, brain hacking,
kaizen, mad science, and other forms of mental stimulation."
-Kirkus Reviews
"Munroe (creator of the webcomic xkcd; What If?; Thing
Explainer) creates another fun series of questions and answers
that explore forces, properties, and natural phenomena through
pop-culture scenarios . . . With illustrated formulas that
humorously explain the science behind Munroe's conjectures, this
book is sure to entertain and educate thinkers from high school on
up." -Library Journal
"How To is a gleefully nerdy hypothetical instruction book
for armchair scientists of all ages." -Booklist
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