Randall Munroe at Sanders Theatre

Harvard Book Store, the Harvard University Division of Science, and the Harvard Library welcome RANDALL MUNROE—creator of the beloved webcomic xkcd and #1 New York Times bestselling author of What If? Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions—for a discussion of the highly anticipated sequel, What If? 2: Additional Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions. He will be joined in conversation by JONATHAN ZITTRAIN—author and professor of law and professor of computer science at Harvard University.

Ticketing

Tickets go on sale Friday, August 19 at noon through the Harvard Box Office only:

• in person at the Smith Campus Center (1350 Mass Ave, Cambridge MA 02138)
• over the phone at 617.496.2222
• online at https://www.boxoffice.harvard.edu/

Ticket prices range from $34 to $44, based on seat location. Each ticket includes a copy of What If? 2 by Randall Munroe. These copies of the book may only be picked up at the venue the night of the event, and cannot be picked up in-store beforehand.

A Return to In-Person Events

Harvard Book Store is excited to be back to in-person programming. To ensure the safety and comfort of everyone in attendance, the following Covid-19 safety protocols will be in place at all of our Sanders Theatre events until further notice:

• All attendees are encouraged to wear masks. Performers may be unmasked.
• All attendees must attest to their current health status (e.g., no current infection, symptoms or recent exposure to others with COVID-19)
• All attendees must self-attest to the following:

1. I am fully vaccinated against COVID-19 using a vaccine authorized by the FDA or WHO and have received my booster (if eligible), or
2. I qualify for exemption based upon age, a medical contraindication, or firmly held religious belief.
3. I also agree to immediately share with Harvard University Health Services any proof of my vaccination status if I am identified as an exposed person through public health contact tracing efforts.
4. If not fully vaccinated, I have received a negative COVID-19 PCR or antigen test result in the last 24 hours.

For more information regarding Harvard University's Covid-19 safety protocols, please visit their website here. 

About What If? 2

The millions of people around the world who read and loved What If? still have questions, and those questions are getting stranger. Thank goodness xkcd creator Randall Munroe is here to help. Planning to ride a fire pole from the Moon back to Earth? The hardest part is sticking the landing. Hoping to cool the atmosphere by opening everyone’s freezer door at the same time? Maybe it’s time for a brief introduction to thermodynamics. Want to know what would happen if you rode a helicopter blade, built a billion-story building, made a lava lamp out of lava, or jumped on a geyser as it erupted? Okay, if you insist.

Before you go on a cosmic road trip, feed the residents of New York City to a T. rex, or fill every church with bananas, be sure to consult this practical guide for impractical ideas. Unfazed by absurdity, Munroe consults the latest research on everything from swing-set physics to airliner catapult–design to answer his readers’ questions, clearly and concisely, with illuminating and occasionally terrifying illustrations. As he consistently demonstrates, you can learn a lot from examining how the world might work in very specific extreme circumstances.

Praise for What If? 2

“A delight for science geeks with a penchant for oddball thought experiments.” —Kirkus