How To: Absurd Scientific Advice for Common Real-World Problems

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