Physicists Explain The Universe In 'We Have No Idea'

The universe is a very mysterious place. I mean, if we're going to be totally honest with each other, I only found out that hedgehogs and porcupines weren't the same animal like last week, so believe me when I say that I am well aware that there are plenty of things out there in the cosmos that I have no comprehension of.

The good news, though, is that I'm not alone. Well, except for the hedgehog/porcupine thing. That one might just be me.

It turns out that there are things about this vast universe that even accomplished physicists who have spent their entire lives studying don't know, and now, two of them are sharing their knowledge about that lack of knowledge with us through the medium of comics. On May 9, 2017, Penguin Random House is publishing We Have No Idea, an illustrated guide to the mysteries of the universe from Jorge Cham and Daniel Whiteson.

Cham is the cartoonist behind the webcomic PhD (Piled Higher and Deeper), and along with Whiteson --- a particle physicist with an apparent penchant for cargo shorts who also works at CERN using the Large Hadron Collider --- he's previously produced videos explaining things like Gravitational Waves and the Higgs Boson. The book promises to have the same breezy-but-educational tone, tackling scientific mysteries like cosmic rays, black holes, and the Big Bang.

Here's the official description:

PHD Comics creator Jorge Cham and particle physicist Daniel Whiteson team up to explain everything we don't know about the Universe, from Cosmic Rays and Dark Matter to time travel and the Big Bang. Filled with their popular infographics, cartoons, and clear and entertaining explanations, this book is perfect for anyone who's curious about science and all the big questions we still haven't answered.

For more information, check out Cham and Whiteson's official site, and the announcement that went up today at PHD Comics.