Difference between revisions of "what if?"

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(→‎Articles: error in archive page on what if?)
(→‎Articles: Making in into a table with release dates and time lapsed since last release plus possibility for comments and notes on the subject)
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==Articles==
 
==Articles==
−
# {{what if|1|Relativistic Baseball}}
+
{| class="wikitable" | 
−
# {{what if|2|SAT Guessing}}
+
! No.
−
# {{what if|3|Yoda}}
+
! Title           
−
# {{what if|4|A Mole of Moles}}
+
! Release date           
−
# {{what if|5|Robot Apocalypse}}
+
! Weeks since last release           
−
# {{what if|6|Glass Half Empty}}
+
! Comment/Short note on subject           
−
# {{what if|7|Everybody Out}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|8|Everybody Jump}}
+
| 1 || {{what if|1|Relativistic Baseball}} || July 10, 2012 ||  ||     
−
# {{what if|9|Soul Mates}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|10|Cassini}}
+
| 2 || {{what if|2|SAT Guessing}} || July 10, 2012 || 0.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|11|Droppings}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|12|Rain Drop}}
+
| 3 || {{what if|3|Yoda}} || July 17, 2012 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|13|Laser Pointer}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|14|Short Answer Section}}
+
| 4 || {{what if|4|A Mole of Moles}} || July 24, 2012 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|15|Mariana Trench Explosion}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|16|Today's Topic: Lightning}}
+
| 5 || {{what if|5|Robot Apocalypse}} || July 31, 2012 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|17|Green Cows}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|18|BB Gun}}
+
| 6 || {{what if|6|Glass Half Empty}} || August 7, 2012 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|19|Tie Vote}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|20|Diamond}}
+
| 7 || {{what if|7|Everybody Out}} || August 14, 2012 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|21|Machine Gun Jetpack}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|22|Cost of Pennies}}
+
| 8 || {{what if|8|Everybody Jump}} || August 21, 2012 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|23|Short Answer Section II}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|24|Model Rockets}}
+
| 9 || {{what if|9|Soul Mates}} || August 28, 2012 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|25|Three Wise Men}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|26|Leap Seconds}}
+
| 10 || {{what if|10|Cassini}} || September 4, 2012 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|27|Death Rate}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|28|Steak Drop}}
+
| 11 || {{what if|11|Droppings}} || September 11, 2012 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|29|Spent Fuel Pool}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|30|Interplanetary Cessna}}
+
| 12 || {{what if|12|Raindrop}} || September 18, 2012 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|31|FedEx Bandwidth}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|32|Hubble}}
+
| 13 || {{what if|13|Laser Pointer}} || September 25, 2012 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|33|Ships}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|34|Twitter}}
+
| 14 || {{what if|14|Short Answer Section}} || October 2, 2012 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|35|Hairdryer}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|36|Cornstarch}}
+
| 15 || {{what if|15|Mariana Trench Explosion}} || October 9, 2012 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|37|Supersonic Stereo}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|38|Voyager}}
+
| 16 || {{what if|16|Today's topic: Lightning}} || October 16, 2012 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|39|Hockey Puck}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|40|Pressure Cooker}}
+
| 17 || {{what if|17|Green Cows}} || October 23, 2012 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|41|Go West}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|42|Longest Sunset}}
+
| 18 || {{what if|18|BB Gun}} || October 30, 2012 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|43|Train Loop}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|44|High Throw}}
+
| 19 || {{what if|19|Tie Vote}} || November 6, 2012 || 1.0 || The release date in the archive is the wrong year 2013.
−
# {{what if|45|ISS Music Video}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|46|Bowling Ball}}
+
| 20 || {{what if|20|Diamond}} || November 13, 2012 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|47|Alien Astronomers}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|48|Sunset on the British Empire}}
+
| 21 || {{what if|21|Machine Gun Jetpack}} || November 20, 2012 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|49|Sunless Earth}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|50|Extreme Boating}}
+
| 22 || {{what if|22|Cost of Pennies}} || November 27, 2012 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|51|Free Fall}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|52|Bouncy Balls}}
+
| 23 || {{what if|23|Short Answer Section II}} || December 4, 2012 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|53|Drain the Oceans}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|54|Drain the Oceans: Part II}}
+
| 24 || {{what if|24|Model Rockets}} || December 11, 2012 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|55|Random Sneeze Call}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|56|Restraining an Airplane}}
+
| 25 || {{what if|25|Three Wise Men}} || December 18, 2012 || 1.0 ||      
−
# {{what if|57|Dropping a Mountain}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|58|Orbital Speed}}
+
| 26 || {{what if|26|Leap Seconds}} || December 31, 2012 || 1.9 ||     
−
# {{what if|59|Updating a Printed Wikipedia}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|60|Signs of Life}}
+
| 27 || {{what if|27|Death Rates}} || January 8, 2013 || 1.1 ||     
−
# {{what if|61|Speed Bump}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|62|Falling With Helium}}
+
| 28 || {{what if|28|Steak Drop}} || January 15, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|63|Google Datacenters on Punchcards}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|64|Rising Steadily}}
+
| 29 || {{what if|29|Spent Fuel Pool}} || January 22, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|65|Twitter Timeline Height}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|66|500 MPH}}
+
| 30 || {{what if|30|Interplanetary Cessna}} || January 29, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|67|Expanding Earth}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|68|Little Planet}}
+
| 31 || {{what if|31|FedEx Bandwidth}} || February 5, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|69|Facebook of the Dead}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|70|The Constant Groundskeeper}}
+
| 32 || {{what if|32|Hubble}} || February 12, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|71|Stirring Tea}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|72|Loneliest Human}}
+
| 33 || {{what if|33|Ships}} || February 19, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|73|Lethal Neutrinos}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|74|Soda Planet}}
+
| 34 || {{what if|34|Twitter}} || February 26, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|75|Phone Keypad}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|76|Reading Every Book}}
+
| 35 || {{what if|35|Hair Dryer}} || March 5, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|77|Growth Rate}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|78|T-rex Calories}}
+
| 36 || {{what if|36|Cornstarch}} || March 12, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|79|Lake Tea}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|80|Pile of Viruses}}
+
| 37 || {{what if|37|Supersonic Stereo}} || March 19, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|81|Catch!}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|82|Hitting a Comet}}
+
| 38 || {{what if|38|Voyager}} || March 26, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|83|Star Sand}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|84|Paint the Earth}}
+
| 39 || {{what if|39|Hockey Puck}} || April 2, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|85|Rocket Golf}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|86|Far-Travelling Objects}}
+
| 40 || {{what if|40|Pressure Cooker}} || April 9, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|87|Enforced by Radar}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|88|Soda Sequestration}}
+
| 41 || {{what if|41|Go West}} || April 16, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|89|Tungsten Countertop}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|90|Great Tree, Great Axe}}
+
| 42 || {{what if|42|Longest Sunset}} || April 23, 2013 || 1.0 ||      
−
# {{what if|91|Faucet Power}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|92|One-Second Day}}
+
| 43 || {{what if|43|Train Loop}} || April 30, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|93|Windshield Raindrops}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|94|Billion-Story Building}}
+
| 44 || {{what if|44|High Throw}} || May 7, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|95|Pyramid Energy}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|96|$2 Undecillion Lawsuit}}
+
| 45 || {{what if|45|ISS Music Video}} || May 14, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|97|Burning Pollen}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|98|Blood Alcohol}}
+
| 46 || {{what if|46|Bowling Ball}} || May 21, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|99|Starlings}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|100|WWII Films}}
+
| 47 || {{what if|47|Alien Astronomers}} || May 28, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|101|Plastic Dinosaurs}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|102|Keyboard Power}}
+
| 48 || {{what if|48|Sunset on the British Empire}} || June 4, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|103|Vanishing Water}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|104|Global Snow}}
+
| 49 || {{what if|49|Sunless Earth}} || June 11, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|105|Cannibalism}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|106|Ink Molecules}}
+
| 50 || {{what if|50|Extreme Boating}} || June 18, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|107|Letter to Mom}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|108|Expensive Shoebox}}
+
| 51 || {{what if|51|Free Fall}} || June 25, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|109|Into the Blue}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|110|Walking New York}}
+
| 52 || {{what if|52|Bouncy Balls}} || July 2, 2013 || 1.0 ||  The release date in the archive is the wrong month June.
−
# {{what if|111|All the Money}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|112|Balloon Car}}
+
| 53 || {{what if|53|Drain the Oceans}} || July 9, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|113|Visit Every State}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|114|Antimatter}}
+
| 54 || {{what if|54|Drain the Oceans: Part II}} || July 16, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|115|Into the Sun}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|116|No-Rules Nascar}}
+
| 55 || {{what if|55|Random Sneeze Call}} || July 23, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|117|Distant Death}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|118|Physical Salary}}
+
| 56 || {{what if|56|Restraining an Airplane}} || July 30, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|119|Laser Umbrella}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|120|Alternate Universe What Ifs}}
+
| 57 || {{what if|57|Dropping a Mountain}} || August 6, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|121|Frozen Rivers}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|122|Lava Lamp}}
+
| 58 || {{what if|58|Orbital Speed}} || August 12, 2013 || 0.9 ||     
−
# {{what if|123|Fairy Demographics}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|124|Lunar Swimming}}
+
| 59 || {{what if|59|Updating a Printed Wikipedia}} || August 20, 2013 || 1.1 ||     
−
# {{what if|125|Bowling Ball}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|126|Stairs}}
+
| 60 || {{what if|60|Signs of Life}} || August 27, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|127|Tug of War}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|128|Zippo Phone}}
+
| 61 || {{what if|61|Speed Bump}} || September 3, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|129|Black Hole Moon}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|130|Snow Removal}}
+
| 62 || {{what if|62|Falling With Helium}} || September 10, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|131|Microwaves}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|132|Hotter Than Average}}
+
| 63 || {{what if|63|Google's Datacenters on Punch Cards}} || September 17, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|133|Flagpole}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|134|Space Burial}}
+
| 64 || {{what if|64|Rising Steadily}} || September 24, 2013 || 1.0 ||      
−
# {{what if|135|Digging Downward}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|136|Spiders vs. the Sun}}
+
| 65 || {{what if|65|Twitter Timeline Height}} || October 1, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|137|New Horizons}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|138|Jupiter Submarine}}
+
| 66 || {{what if|66|500 MPH}} || October 8, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|139|Jupiter Descending}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|140|Proton Earth, Electron Moon}}
+
| 67 || {{what if|67|Expanding Earth}} || October 15, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|141|Sunbeam}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|142|Space Jetta}}
+
| 68 || {{what if|68|Little Planet}} || October 22, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|143|Europa Water Siphon}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|144|Saliva Pool}}
+
| 69 || {{what if|69|Facebook of the Dead}} || October 29, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|145|Fire From Moonlight}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|146|Stop Jupiter}}
+
| 70 || {{what if|70|The Constant Groundskeeper}} || November 5, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|147|Niagara Straw}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|148|Eat the Sun}}
+
| 71 || {{what if|71|Stirring Tea}} || November 12, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|149|Pizza Bird}}
+
|-
−
# {{what if|150|Tatooine Rainbow}}
+
| 72 || {{what if|72|Loneliest Human}} || November 19, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
−
# {{what if|151|Sun Bug}} - it was released [http://web.archive.org/web/20160718014924/http://what-if.xkcd.com/ between 18-20 July], as the link here was posted on the 20th. But on the [http://web.archive.org/web/20160724210016/https://what-if.xkcd.com/archive/ archive page] is says it was released on June 21, which should probably have been July 21.
+
|-
 +
| 73 || {{what if|73|Lethal Neutrinos}} || November 26, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 74 || {{what if|74|Soda Planet}} || December 3, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 75 || {{what if|75|Phone Keypad}} || December 10, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 76 || {{what if|76|Reading Every Book}} || December 17, 2013 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 77 || {{what if|77|Growth Rate}} || December 31, 2013 || 2.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 78 || {{what if|78|T-rex Calories}} || January 7, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 79 || {{what if|79|Lake Tea}} || January 14, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 80 || {{what if|80|Pile of Viruses}} || January 21, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 81 || {{what if|81|Catch!}} || January 28, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 82 || {{what if|82|Hitting a comet}} || February 5, 2014 || 1.1 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 83 || {{what if|83|Star Sand}} || February 11, 2014 || 0.9 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 84 || {{what if|84|Paint the Earth}} || February 18, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 85 || {{what if|85|Rocket Golf}} || February 25, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 86 || {{what if|86|Far-Traveling Objects}} || March 4, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 87 || {{what if|87|Enforced by Radar}} || March 11, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 88 || {{what if|88|Soda Sequestration}} || March 18, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 89 || {{what if|89|Tungsten Countertop}} || March 25, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 90 || {{what if|90|Great Tree, Great Axe}} || April 3, 2014 || 1.3 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 91 || {{what if|91|Faucet Power}} || April 8, 2014 || 0.7 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 92 || {{what if|92|One-Second Day}} || April 15, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 93 || {{what if|93|Windshield Raindrops}} || April 22, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 94 || {{what if|94|Billion-Story Building}} || April 29, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 95 || {{what if|95|Pyramid Energy}} || May 6, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 96 || {{what if|96|$2 Undecillion Lawsuit}} || May 14, 2014 || 1.1 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 97 || {{what if|97|Burning Pollen}} || May 20, 2014 || 0.9 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 98 || {{what if|98|Blood Alcohol}} || May 27, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 99 || {{what if|99|Starlings}} || June 3, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 100 || {{what if|100|WWII Films}} || June 11, 2014 || 1.1 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 101 || {{what if|101|Plastic Dinosaurs}} || June 18, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 102 || {{what if|102|Keyboard Power}} || June 25, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 103 || {{what if|103|Vanishing Water}} || July 2, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 104 || {{what if|104|Global Snow}} || July 9, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 105 || {{what if|105|Cannibalism}} || July 16, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 106 || {{what if|106|Ink Molecules}} || July 23, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 107 || {{what if|107|Letter to Mom}} || July 30, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 108 || {{what if|108|Expensive Shoebox}} || August 13, 2014 || 2.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 109 || {{what if|109|Into the Blue}} || August 20, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 110 || {{what if|110|Walking New York}} || August 27, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 111 || {{what if|111|All the Money}} || September 2, 2014 || 0.9 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 112 || {{what if|112|Balloon Car}} || September 17, 2014 || 2.1 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 113 || {{what if|113|Visit Every State}} || September 24, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 114 || {{what if|114|Antimatter}} || October 1, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 115 || {{what if|115|Into the Sun}} || October 8, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 116 || {{what if|116|No-Rules NASCAR}} || October 15, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 117 || {{what if|117|Distant Death}} || October 23, 2014 || 1.1 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 118 || {{what if|118|Physical Salary}} || October 30, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 119 || {{what if|119|Laser Umbrella}} || November 13, 2014 || 2.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 120 || {{what if|120|Alternate Universe What Ifs}} || November 20, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 121 || {{what if|121|Frozen Rivers}} || December 11, 2014 || 3.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 122 || {{what if|122|Lava Lamp}} || December 18, 2014 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 123 || {{what if|123|Fairy Demographics}} || January 1, 2015 || 2.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 124 || {{what if|124|Lunar Swimming}} || January 8, 2015 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 125 || {{what if|125|Bowling Ball}} || January 15, 2015 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 126 || {{what if|126|Stairs}} || January 22, 2015 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 127 || {{what if|127|Tug of War}} || January 28, 2015 || 0.9 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 128 || {{what if|128|Zippo Phone}} || February 5, 2015 || 1.1 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 129 || {{what if|129|Black Hole Moon}} || February 12, 2015 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 130 || {{what if|130|Snow Removal}} || February 19, 2015 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 131 || {{what if|131|Microwaves}} || February 27, 2015 || 1.1 ||  The release date in the archive is the wrong year 2014. 
 +
|-
 +
| 132 || {{what if|132|Hotter than Average}} || March 7, 2015 || 1.1 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 133 || {{what if|133|Flagpole}} || March 17, 2015 || 1.4 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 134 || {{what if|134|Space Burial}} || March 28, 2015 || 1.6 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 135 || {{what if|135|Digging Downward}} || April 5, 2015 || 1.1 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 136 || {{what if|136|Spiders vs. the Sun}} || April 12, 2015 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 137 || {{what if|137|New Horizons}} || July 14, 2015 || 13.3 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 138 || {{what if|138|Jupiter Submarine}} || July 28, 2015 || 2.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 139 || {{what if|139|Jupiter Descending}} || August 4, 2015 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 140 || {{what if|140|Proton Earth, Electron Moon}} || September 18, 2015 || 6.4 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 141 || {{what if|141|Sunbeam}} || January 12, 2016 || 16.6 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 142 || {{what if|142|Space Jetta}} || January 20, 2016 || 1.1 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 143 || {{what if|143|Europa Water Siphon}} || January 26, 2016 || 0.9 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 144 || {{what if|144|Saliva Pool}} || February 2, 2016 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 145 || {{what if|145|Fire From Moonlight}} || February 9, 2016 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 146 || {{what if|146|Stop Jupiter}} || February 16, 2016 || 1.0 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 147 || {{what if|147|Niagara Straw}} || February 26, 2016 || 1.4 ||     
 +
|-
 +
| 148 || {{what if|148|Eat the Sun}} || March 12, 2016 || 2.1 ||     
 +
|-
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| 149 || {{what if|149|Pizza Bird}} || March 26, 2016 || 2.0 ||     
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|-
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| 150 || {{what if|150|Tatooine Rainbow}} || May 23, 2016 || 8.3 ||     
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|-
 +
| 151 || {{what if|151|Sun Bug}} || July 21, 2016 || 8.4 || The release date in the archive is the wrong month June. It was released [http://web.archive.org/web/20160718014924/http://what-if.xkcd.com/ between 18-20 July], as the link here was posted on the 20th. But on the [http://web.archive.org/web/20160724210016/https://what-if.xkcd.com/archive/ archive page] is says it was released on June 21, which should probably have been July 21.    
 +
|}
  
 
[[Category:Meta]]
 
[[Category:Meta]]

Revision as of 10:48, 27 July 2016

Not to be confused with 17: What If.

whatifbanner.jpg

what if? is a blog hosted on the xkcd.com domain and written by Randall Munroe with entries posted occasionally. Before publishing the what if? book, articles were posted weekly.

On the blog, Randall uses his degree in physics and strong scientific background to discuss hypothetical physics questions apparently submitted by readers. Since 2014, there's also a book of the blog.

Unlike other sites which answer readers' questions, what if? typically takes the question beyond the original scope likely intended by the reader and takes it to some extreme for humorous effect. For example, in the first article, he discusses what would happen if a baseball were pitched at 90% of the speed of light. After effectively describing what would occur as a nuclear explosion, leveling the stadium and the surrounding mile radius, he concludes with the note "A careful reading of official Major League Baseball Rule 6.08(b) suggests that in this situation, the batter would be considered 'hit by pitch', and would be eligible to advance to first base."

The questions Randall tackles range from realistic possibilities (e.g. the probability of achieving a perfect SAT score by guessing) to completely fictional questions (e.g. How much Force power can Yoda output?). In his explanations, Randall, often uses diagrams in an xkcd style. Regardless of the context, Randall tends to take the questions extremely literally and responds seriously to them, even if they are whimsical (such as the Yoda question). This is clear from his response to the question of what would happen if everybody on Earth stood together and jumped at the same time. After acknowledging that the question has been answered elsewhere, he recaps the result, but then focuses more intently on the unasked resulting issue of the aftermath of everyone on Earth being magically transported to one location as they all try to return home.

This site is not under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.5 License like xkcd is.

Randal took a hiatus from updates from May 2015 to July 14th 2015 with a note stating "What If updates are temporarily on hold, and will resume on July 14th, 2015 at 7:49:59 AM EDT." This was the date and time that the New Horizons probe achieved its closest approach to Pluto. The article for July 14th was about the New Horizons probe.


The book

Randall announced his what if? book on 12 March 2014 in the blag. It was published on September 2, 2014, and the UK edition of the book was published on September 4, 2014. It is the 2nd book published by Randall.

The general cover of the book

It is just like 'xkcd:volume 0' a compilation of some questions from the website, but half of them are new.

In the UK edition of the book, Randall included a preface about his thoughts on the units used in the UK. (The Metric System)

Summary

The summary on the back of the book reads:

Randall Munroe left NASA in 2005 to start up his hugely popular site XKCD 'a web comic of romance, sarcasm, math and language' which offers a witty take on the world of science and geeks. It now has 600,000 to a million page hits daily. Every now and then, Munroe would get emails asking him to arbitrate a science debate. 'My friend and I were arguing about what would happen if a bullet got struck by lightning, and we agreed that you should resolve it . . . ' He liked these questions so much that he started up What If.

  • If your cells suddenly lost the power to divide, how long would you survive?
  • How dangerous is it, really, to be in a swimming pool in a thunderstorm?
  • If we hooked turbines to people exercising in gyms, how much power could we produce?
  • What if everyone only had one soulmate?
  • When (if ever) did the sun go down on the British empire?
  • How fast can you hit a speed bump while driving and live?
  • What would happen if the moon went away?

In pursuit of answers, Munroe runs computer simulations, pores over stacks of declassified military research memos, solves differential equations, and consults with nuclear reactor operators. His responses are masterpieces of clarity and hilarity, studded with memorable cartoons and infographics. They often predict the complete annihilation of humankind, or at least a really big explosion. Far more than a book for geeks, WHAT IF: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions explains the laws of science in operation in a way that every intelligent reader will enjoy and feel much the smarter for having read.

The summary on the back of the UK edition of the book reads:

Hey! Thanks for looking at my book. If you're thinking about buying it, here are some things you might want to know:

Humans can't digest the cellulose in paper, but if we could, eating this book would give you about 2,300 calories (including the cover).

This book can't stop most bullets; if you want to use it for armour, you may want a lot more than one copy.

If you have a good arm, you could probably throw this book about 45 feet. With practice, it's possible to throw a book every 800 milliseconds, which means that if human attackers are sprinting towards you, you'll have three or four chances to hit them before they reach you. If, on the other hand, you're being attacked by a coyote, it's higher top speed means you'll have only one chance to hit it. Aim carefully.

HIDDEN FEATURE: The inside of this book has words and pictures, plus a special UK foreword. It answers many important questions, including whether you could jump from a plane with a helium tank and inflate balloons fast enough to slow your fall and survive (yes) and whether you could hide from a supersonic windstorm in Finland (yes, but it won't help).

Trivia

  • There is an easy way to link to a given what if? story by using a template. For instance write the following:
    • See the [[what if?]] ''{{what if|147|Niagara Straw}}''.
  • Copy paste the above text and correct the number and the title to get this result:

Articles

No. Title Release date Weeks since last release Comment/Short note on subject
1 Relativistic Baseball July 10, 2012
2 SAT Guessing July 10, 2012 0.0
3 Yoda July 17, 2012 1.0
4 A Mole of Moles July 24, 2012 1.0
5 Robot Apocalypse July 31, 2012 1.0
6 Glass Half Empty August 7, 2012 1.0
7 Everybody Out August 14, 2012 1.0
8 Everybody Jump August 21, 2012 1.0
9 Soul Mates August 28, 2012 1.0
10 Cassini September 4, 2012 1.0
11 Droppings September 11, 2012 1.0
12 Raindrop September 18, 2012 1.0
13 Laser Pointer September 25, 2012 1.0
14 Short Answer Section October 2, 2012 1.0
15 Mariana Trench Explosion October 9, 2012 1.0
16 Today's topic: Lightning October 16, 2012 1.0
17 Green Cows October 23, 2012 1.0
18 BB Gun October 30, 2012 1.0
19 Tie Vote November 6, 2012 1.0 The release date in the archive is the wrong year 2013.
20 Diamond November 13, 2012 1.0
21 Machine Gun Jetpack November 20, 2012 1.0
22 Cost of Pennies November 27, 2012 1.0
23 Short Answer Section II December 4, 2012 1.0
24 Model Rockets December 11, 2012 1.0
25 Three Wise Men December 18, 2012 1.0
26 Leap Seconds December 31, 2012 1.9
27 Death Rates January 8, 2013 1.1
28 Steak Drop January 15, 2013 1.0
29 Spent Fuel Pool January 22, 2013 1.0
30 Interplanetary Cessna January 29, 2013 1.0
31 FedEx Bandwidth February 5, 2013 1.0
32 Hubble February 12, 2013 1.0
33 Ships February 19, 2013 1.0
34 Twitter February 26, 2013 1.0
35 Hair Dryer March 5, 2013 1.0
36 Cornstarch March 12, 2013 1.0
37 Supersonic Stereo March 19, 2013 1.0
38 Voyager March 26, 2013 1.0
39 Hockey Puck April 2, 2013 1.0
40 Pressure Cooker April 9, 2013 1.0
41 Go West April 16, 2013 1.0
42 Longest Sunset April 23, 2013 1.0
43 Train Loop April 30, 2013 1.0
44 High Throw May 7, 2013 1.0
45 ISS Music Video May 14, 2013 1.0
46 Bowling Ball May 21, 2013 1.0
47 Alien Astronomers May 28, 2013 1.0
48 Sunset on the British Empire June 4, 2013 1.0
49 Sunless Earth June 11, 2013 1.0
50 Extreme Boating June 18, 2013 1.0
51 Free Fall June 25, 2013 1.0
52 Bouncy Balls July 2, 2013 1.0 The release date in the archive is the wrong month June.
53 Drain the Oceans July 9, 2013 1.0
54 Drain the Oceans: Part II July 16, 2013 1.0
55 Random Sneeze Call July 23, 2013 1.0
56 Restraining an Airplane July 30, 2013 1.0
57 Dropping a Mountain August 6, 2013 1.0
58 Orbital Speed August 12, 2013 0.9
59 Updating a Printed Wikipedia August 20, 2013 1.1
60 Signs of Life August 27, 2013 1.0
61 Speed Bump September 3, 2013 1.0
62 Falling With Helium September 10, 2013 1.0
63 Google's Datacenters on Punch Cards September 17, 2013 1.0
64 Rising Steadily September 24, 2013 1.0
65 Twitter Timeline Height October 1, 2013 1.0
66 500 MPH October 8, 2013 1.0
67 Expanding Earth October 15, 2013 1.0
68 Little Planet October 22, 2013 1.0
69 Facebook of the Dead October 29, 2013 1.0
70 The Constant Groundskeeper November 5, 2013 1.0
71 Stirring Tea November 12, 2013 1.0
72 Loneliest Human November 19, 2013 1.0
73 Lethal Neutrinos November 26, 2013 1.0
74 Soda Planet December 3, 2013 1.0
75 Phone Keypad December 10, 2013 1.0
76 Reading Every Book December 17, 2013 1.0
77 Growth Rate December 31, 2013 2.0
78 T-rex Calories January 7, 2014 1.0
79 Lake Tea January 14, 2014 1.0
80 Pile of Viruses January 21, 2014 1.0
81 Catch! January 28, 2014 1.0
82 Hitting a comet February 5, 2014 1.1
83 Star Sand February 11, 2014 0.9
84 Paint the Earth February 18, 2014 1.0
85 Rocket Golf February 25, 2014 1.0
86 Far-Traveling Objects March 4, 2014 1.0
87 Enforced by Radar March 11, 2014 1.0
88 Soda Sequestration March 18, 2014 1.0
89 Tungsten Countertop March 25, 2014 1.0
90 Great Tree, Great Axe April 3, 2014 1.3
91 Faucet Power April 8, 2014 0.7
92 One-Second Day April 15, 2014 1.0
93 Windshield Raindrops April 22, 2014 1.0
94 Billion-Story Building April 29, 2014 1.0
95 Pyramid Energy May 6, 2014 1.0
96 $2 Undecillion Lawsuit May 14, 2014 1.1
97 Burning Pollen May 20, 2014 0.9
98 Blood Alcohol May 27, 2014 1.0
99 Starlings June 3, 2014 1.0
100 WWII Films June 11, 2014 1.1
101 Plastic Dinosaurs June 18, 2014 1.0
102 Keyboard Power June 25, 2014 1.0
103 Vanishing Water July 2, 2014 1.0
104 Global Snow July 9, 2014 1.0
105 Cannibalism July 16, 2014 1.0
106 Ink Molecules July 23, 2014 1.0
107 Letter to Mom July 30, 2014 1.0
108 Expensive Shoebox August 13, 2014 2.0
109 Into the Blue August 20, 2014 1.0
110 Walking New York August 27, 2014 1.0
111 All the Money September 2, 2014 0.9
112 Balloon Car September 17, 2014 2.1
113 Visit Every State September 24, 2014 1.0
114 Antimatter October 1, 2014 1.0
115 Into the Sun October 8, 2014 1.0
116 No-Rules NASCAR October 15, 2014 1.0
117 Distant Death October 23, 2014 1.1
118 Physical Salary October 30, 2014 1.0
119 Laser Umbrella November 13, 2014 2.0
120 Alternate Universe What Ifs November 20, 2014 1.0
121 Frozen Rivers December 11, 2014 3.0
122 Lava Lamp December 18, 2014 1.0
123 Fairy Demographics January 1, 2015 2.0
124 Lunar Swimming January 8, 2015 1.0
125 Bowling Ball January 15, 2015 1.0
126 Stairs January 22, 2015 1.0
127 Tug of War January 28, 2015 0.9
128 Zippo Phone February 5, 2015 1.1
129 Black Hole Moon February 12, 2015 1.0
130 Snow Removal February 19, 2015 1.0
131 Microwaves February 27, 2015 1.1 The release date in the archive is the wrong year 2014.
132 Hotter than Average March 7, 2015 1.1
133 Flagpole March 17, 2015 1.4
134 Space Burial March 28, 2015 1.6
135 Digging Downward April 5, 2015 1.1
136 Spiders vs. the Sun April 12, 2015 1.0
137 New Horizons July 14, 2015 13.3
138 Jupiter Submarine July 28, 2015 2.0
139 Jupiter Descending August 4, 2015 1.0
140 Proton Earth, Electron Moon September 18, 2015 6.4
141 Sunbeam January 12, 2016 16.6
142 Space Jetta January 20, 2016 1.1
143 Europa Water Siphon January 26, 2016 0.9
144 Saliva Pool February 2, 2016 1.0
145 Fire From Moonlight February 9, 2016 1.0
146 Stop Jupiter February 16, 2016 1.0
147 Niagara Straw February 26, 2016 1.4
148 Eat the Sun March 12, 2016 2.1
149 Pizza Bird March 26, 2016 2.0
150 Tatooine Rainbow May 23, 2016 8.3
151 Sun Bug July 21, 2016 8.4 The release date in the archive is the wrong month June. It was released between 18-20 July, as the link here was posted on the 20th. But on the archive page is says it was released on June 21, which should probably have been July 21.
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