explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:1511: Spice Girl

2015-04-13T12:28:17Z

108.162.229.123:

Not being shouted (from without, at either cueball or his female companion) by a post-apocalyptic crowd, surely, but by Cueball (from within, at the post-apocalyptic person of whom he is currently trying to deny entry whilst possibly necessary weaponry is being loaded)... Or so I read it. If that makes sense. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.4|141.101.99.4]] 05:43, 13 April 2015 (UTC)
:It does look like that, but the caption states "through a door". -- microslayer
::The little lines around the origin point of the speech "bubble" is usually used in XKCD to indicate that the sound is coming through the surface or offscreen (see Writers Strike (360) and Time Vulture (926)). -Pennpenn [[Special:Contributions/108.162.250.155|108.162.250.155]] 06:52, 13 April 2015 (UTC)
:::Except that I read the ''caption'' as meaning "through a door" by our Cueball, i.e. what someone like him would be shouting ''out'', plosively. (It's "through the wall", anyway, if that's a 'through something' speech-bubble-originator-indicator (like the "THUMP"s are) rather than 'rather loudly' emphasis that I'd expect to be associated with Cueball. They are shown differently, with the non-THUMP indicator not really having the same appearance as all the other ones otherwise mentioned. Even in the very same panel.) Anyway, just my POV. Needs an Official Transcript to be sure, I suppose. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.4|141.101.99.4]] 07:12, 13 April 2015 (UTC)
::::The speak line clearly shows it is Cueball who shouts this quiz title through a door. No question is it like this, so I have corrected the transcript accordingly.--[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 08:54, 13 April 2015 (UTC)
:::::I disagree. It's not that clear. The marks around the end of the speech line indicate the question is being shouted from the other side of the wall, and I think - but can't be certain - that the line terminates near Cue Ball's head looks like to me like ambiguous drawing by the cartoonist. That, and the "through the door" make me think that Cue Ball is just silently holding the door shut against the rampaging hoards, who are doing all the shouting.
:: [[Special:Contributions/108.162.250.155|108.162.250.155]] and [[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.123|108.162.229.123]] are correct, the shouting is coming from outside the room. Randall/Cueball imagines he is hearing quiz titles "being shouted," he is not imagining shouting them himself. [[User:Pesthouse|Pesthouse]] ([[User talk:Pesthouse|talk]]) 11:56, 13 April 2015 (UTC)
::: Furthermore, ''"in order to make sure the one you '''let in''' is not some scary person but a merciful one"'' makes no sense because the Spice Girl in question is clearly meant to be the girl loading the gun behind the box. She's already in the room.
:::: Hmm, or maybe not. I thought the hair was too different from Megan's usual style, but it could be her. So now I'm about 50/50 on this one. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.123|108.162.229.123]] 12:28, 13 April 2015 (UTC)
I don't know much about the Spice Girls, but the comic seems to be referring to two; Is there a "merciful" Spice Girl? Is there one likely to "start a war"? And is there a "war" that is specifically to do with the Spice Girls? -[[Special:Contributions/141.101.106.95|141.101.106.95]] 08:01, 13 April 2015 (UTC)
What about Camp Spice??

Talk:1511: Spice Girl

2015-04-13T12:11:28Z

108.162.229.123:

Not being shouted (from without, at either cueball or his female companion) by a post-apocalyptic crowd, surely, but by Cueball (from within, at the post-apocalyptic person of whom he is currently trying to deny entry whilst possibly necessary weaponry is being loaded)... Or so I read it. If that makes sense. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.4|141.101.99.4]] 05:43, 13 April 2015 (UTC)
:It does look like that, but the caption states "through a door". -- microslayer
::The little lines around the origin point of the speech "bubble" is usually used in XKCD to indicate that the sound is coming through the surface or offscreen (see Writers Strike (360) and Time Vulture (926)). -Pennpenn [[Special:Contributions/108.162.250.155|108.162.250.155]] 06:52, 13 April 2015 (UTC)
:::Except that I read the ''caption'' as meaning "through a door" by our Cueball, i.e. what someone like him would be shouting ''out'', plosively. (It's "through the wall", anyway, if that's a 'through something' speech-bubble-originator-indicator (like the "THUMP"s are) rather than 'rather loudly' emphasis that I'd expect to be associated with Cueball. They are shown differently, with the non-THUMP indicator not really having the same appearance as all the other ones otherwise mentioned. Even in the very same panel.) Anyway, just my POV. Needs an Official Transcript to be sure, I suppose. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.4|141.101.99.4]] 07:12, 13 April 2015 (UTC)
::::The speak line clearly shows it is Cueball who shouts this quiz title through a door. No question is it like this, so I have corrected the transcript accordingly.--[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 08:54, 13 April 2015 (UTC)
:::::I disagree. It's not that clear. The marks around the end of the speech line indicate the question is being shouted from the other side of the wall, and I think - but can't be certain - that the line terminates near Cue Ball's head looks like to me like ambiguous drawing by the cartoonist. That, and the "through the door" make me think that Cue Ball is just silently holding the door shut against the rampaging hoards, who are doing all the shouting.
:: [[Special:Contributions/108.162.250.155|108.162.250.155]] and [[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.123|108.162.229.123]] are correct, the shouting is coming from outside the room. Randall/Cueball imagines he is hearing quiz titles "being shouted," he is not imagining shouting them himself. [[User:Pesthouse|Pesthouse]] ([[User talk:Pesthouse|talk]]) 11:56, 13 April 2015 (UTC)
::: Furthermore, ''"in order to make sure the one you '''let in''' is not some scary person but a merciful one"'' makes no sense because the Spice Girl in question is clearly meant to be the girl loading the gun behind the box. She's already in the room.
I don't know much about the Spice Girls, but the comic seems to be referring to two; Is there a "merciful" Spice Girl? Is there one likely to "start a war"? And is there a "war" that is specifically to do with the Spice Girls? -[[Special:Contributions/141.101.106.95|141.101.106.95]] 08:01, 13 April 2015 (UTC)
What about Camp Spice??

Talk:1511: Spice Girl

2015-04-13T09:58:32Z

108.162.229.123:

Not being shouted (from without, at either cueball or his female companion) by a post-apocalyptic crowd, surely, but by Cueball (from within, at the post-apocalyptic person of whom he is currently trying to deny entry whilst possibly necessary weaponry is being loaded)... Or so I read it. If that makes sense. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.4|141.101.99.4]] 05:43, 13 April 2015 (UTC)
:It does look like that, but the caption states "through a door". -- microslayer
::The little lines around the origin point of the speech "bubble" is usually used in XKCD to indicate that the sound is coming through the surface or offscreen (see Writers Strike (360) and Time Vulture (926)). -Pennpenn [[Special:Contributions/108.162.250.155|108.162.250.155]] 06:52, 13 April 2015 (UTC)
:::Except that I read the ''caption'' as meaning "through a door" by our Cueball, i.e. what someone like him would be shouting ''out'', plosively. (It's "through the wall", anyway, if that's a 'through something' speech-bubble-originator-indicator (like the "THUMP"s are) rather than 'rather loudly' emphasis that I'd expect to be associated with Cueball. They are shown differently, with the non-THUMP indicator not really having the same appearance as all the other ones otherwise mentioned. Even in the very same panel.) Anyway, just my POV. Needs an Official Transcript to be sure, I suppose. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.4|141.101.99.4]] 07:12, 13 April 2015 (UTC)
::::The speak line clearly shows it is Cueball who shouts this quiz title through a door. No question is it like this, so I have corrected the transcript accordingly.--[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 08:54, 13 April 2015 (UTC)
:::::I disagree. It's not that clear. The marks around the end of the speech line indicate the question is being shouted from the other side of the wall, and I think - but can't be certain - that the line terminates near Cue Ball's head looks like to me like ambiguous drawing by the cartoonist. That, and the "through the door" make me think that Cue Ball is just silently holding the door shut against the rampaging hoards, who are doing all the shouting.

I don't know much about the Spice Girls, but the comic seems to be referring to two; Is there a "merciful" Spice Girl? Is there one likely to "start a war"? And is there a "war" that is specifically to do with the Spice Girls? -[[Special:Contributions/141.101.106.95|141.101.106.95]] 08:01, 13 April 2015 (UTC)

Talk:1476: Ceres

2015-01-21T13:53:47Z

108.162.229.123:

I'm not sure about Number 6 being a reference to The Prisoner. there's no other context in the comic to suggest that reference. {{unsigned ip|‎173.245.54.180}}

Number 6 could be a Battlestar galactica reference as well, which is again a reference to The Prisoner http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Number_Six_%28Battlestar_Galactica%29 {{unsigned ip|141.101.98.252}}

The novel The WindWalkers (in French "La Horde du Contrevent") from Alain Damasio is the story of the 34th team of people walking against the wind to go past the end of the known world. A group is sent every generation from a starting point and they walk over decades as far as they can go. The team leader is called Golgoth and is the 9th descendant of his family leading a team. He is obsessed with the idea of getting farther than his father (Golgoth 8) and the others Golgoth before them. At one point, while the team thought having been farther than any other, Golgoth 9 finds a sign let by Golgoth 6 (whose team had been thought lost) that demonstrates they were not the first ones reaching this point.
Maybe the comics does not make reference to this event in the novel, but readers of the novel will likely think about it. [[User:Marou|Marou]] ([[User talk:Marou|talk]]) 08:42, 21 January 2015 (UTC)

: Wikipedia has a list of characters in books and/or films named {{w|Number_6#In_the_arts_and_entertainment|Number 6}}, so unless there is a clear reference, I suggest we stick to assuming that Number 6 is simply the identifying number of un-named CERES employee. --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 11:16, 21 January 2015 (UTC)

Maybe include a picture of Ceres (the dwarf planet) to show the real white spot (not the inspection sticker) [[User:SirKitKat|sirKitKat]] ([[User talk:SirKitKat|talk]]) 09:14, 21 January 2015 (UTC)
: Or a ref to an [http://www.universetoday.com/118358/first-hubble-and-now-dawn-have-seen-this-white-spot-on-ceres-what-is-it/ image/animation] [[User:SirKitKat|sirKitKat]] ([[User talk:SirKitKat|talk]]) 09:16, 21 January 2015 (UTC)
: This image shows it really good: [http://d1jqu7g1y74ds1.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/2004HubbleRotation-580x515.jpg] (Images from the Hubble Space Telescope in 2004 of Ceres. Credit: NASA/Hubble) --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.254.134|108.162.254.134]] 09:29, 21 January 2015 (UTC)

Ceres is also a brand of vegetable fat manufactured by [http://www.belusafoods.sk/1/index.php?kat=3&ac=5&id_p=170 BELUŠA FOODS s.r.o.] (no english version, sorry). Salmonela in this kind of Ceres would be very interesting but I doubt that Randal refers to this Ceres. [[User:Jkotek|Jkotek]] ([[User talk:Jkotek|talk]]) 09:31, 21 January 2015 (UTC)

Earth the planet contains salmonella.
--[[Special:Contributions/141.101.104.12|141.101.104.12]] 09:45, 21 January 2015 (UTC)
: I agree, in that sense the joke is much funnier and more closely related to the rest of the comic (since (dwarf)planets are tested). -- [[User:Linuspogo|Linuspogo]] ([[User talk:Linuspogo|talk]]) 09:55, 21 January 2015 (UTC)

===German? Number Nein===
Unless this German company puts round inspection stickers onto products, '''in English''', then Randall is referring to [http://www.cafepress.com/inspector6 these stickers], which were used by [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=258182 US clothing manufacturers] in the mid-to-late 20th century. -- [[User:Frankie|Frankie]] ([[User talk:Frankie|talk]]) 12:52, 21 January 2015 (UTC)
: I would tend to agree on the stickers themselves, but the mention of salmonella and the fact that CERES is indeed a company which provides certification of agricultural processes and related inspection services across the EU, some sort of link seems patent, and I think a mention of the relationship should remain in some form. -- [[User:Brettpeirce|Brettpeirce]] ([[User talk:Brettpeirce|talk]]) 13:26, 21 January 2015 (UTC)

I wonder where the high resolution detail came from. I imagine the frames of the animation could be used as sub-sampled images and hence combined to obtain higher resolution, but I should imagine that, had this been done, such images would also appear on the various science sites. So: did Randall one-up the mission handlers, did he fill in some other image or did I simply fail to find the source?[[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.123|108.162.229.123]] 13:53, 21 January 2015 (UTC)

Talk:1457: Feedback

2014-12-08T08:22:56Z

108.162.229.123: pigeon

Could the pineapple here have any relation to the [http://wiki.wifipineapple.com/index.php/WiFi_Pineapple wi-fi pineapple]? [[Special:Contributions/173.245.52.103|173.245.52.103]] 05:27, 8 December 2014 (UTC)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sm3_qEMTdc4 [[Special:Contributions/141.101.104.39|141.101.104.39]] 06:35, 8 December 2014 (UTC)
[[Special:Contributions/141.101.104.39|141.101.104.39]] 06:37, 8 December 2014 (UTC)

I think the comic also refers to another experiment where pigeons received a snack from a dispenser at totally random times. The pigeons, thinking that whatever it is they did last helped trigger the release of food would develop a complex ritual dance to receive food. (http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/Skinner/Pigeon/)

1427: iOS Keyboard

2014-09-30T12:32:52Z

108.162.229.123:

{{comic
| number = 1427
| date = September 29, 2014
| title = iOS Keyboard
| image = ios_keyboard.png
| titletext = More actual results: 'Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You [are the best. The best thing ever]', 'Revenge is a dish best served [by a group of people in my room]', and 'They may take our lives, but they'll never take our [money].'
}}

==Explanation==
It looks like [[Randall]] has been playing with his Apple device after installing the recently released {{w|iOS 8}} update. The comic is referencing the autocomplete function on the iOS virtual keyboard (aka [[1031:_s/keyboard/leopard/|leopard]]). A comparable feature is also available on other operating systems, like Android. When the phrase, for example, "Revenge is a dish best served" is typed, the keyboard will suggest “by” followed by “a” then “group” and so on.

The following movies are referenced:
:{{w|Sherlock_Holmes#.22Elementary.2C_my_dear_Watson.22|Sherlock Holmes}}: Holmes: "Elementary, my dear Watson." (paraphrased in several movies, never actually used in the books)
:[http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0086250/quotes Scarface (1983)]: Scarface: "You wanna fuck with me? Okay. You wanna play rough? Okay. Say hello to my little friend!"
:[http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0032138/quotes The Wizard of Oz (1939)]: Dorothy: "Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas any more."
:[http://www.imdb.com/character/ch0000007/quotes James Bond]: Bond: "Bond, James Bond." (nothing follows)
:[http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0379786/quotes Serenity (2005)]: Wash: "I am a leaf on the wind - watch how I soar."
:[http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0089218/quotes The Goonies (1985)]: Mikey: "Goonies never say die!"
:[http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120737/quotes The Lord of The Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)]: Aragorn: "If by my life or death I can protect you, I will. You have my sword." Legolas: "And you have my bow." Gimli: "And *my* axe."
:[http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093779/quotes The Princess Bride (1987)]: Montoya: "Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die."
:{{w|Revenge#Proverbs|Revenge is a dish best served cold}} (several movies, with variations, and books before that, e.g. [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0084726/quotes Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan (1982)]: Khan: "...do you know the Klingon proverb that tells us revenge is a dish that is best served cold?")
:[http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112573/quotes Braveheart (1995)]: Wallace: "They may take our lives, but they'll never take... OUR FREEDOM!"

An older comic [[1068: Swiftkey]] is also about keyboard predictions, but without any preceding text (by the Swiftkey keyboard application instead of the iOS 8 keyboard).

==Transcript==
Movie Quotes
:[typed on an iPhone] Elementary, my dear
:[suggested by the virtual keyboard] Friend | Lord | Friends
According to iOS 8 keyboard predictions
:Say hello to my little [sister and my mom and my dad and my friends]
:Toto, I've a feeling we're not [going to the gym today]
:Bond, James Bond [yields]
:I'm a leaf on the wind. Watch [me play the piano]
:Goonies never say [anything]
:You have my sword. And my bow. And my [dad]

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Firefly]]
[[Category:Language]]
[[Category:Smartphones]]

Talk:574: Swine Flu

2014-09-24T11:12:55Z

108.162.229.123: HanneloreEC: genuine tweet

HANNELOREEC [http://questionablecontent.wikia.com/wiki/Hannelore_Ellicott-Chatham] is a character in the web comic Questionable Content [http://questionablecontent.net/]. Hannelore suffers from OCD and other issues including another anxiety disorder, and even the idea of kissing grosses her out. Her comment in this comic is a typical display of her OCD. {{unsigned|‎64.242.52.33}}

I do not wish to start an edit war, so I shall give my reasoning here for putting this under "furries."
According to ''xkcd'', furries are people with a fetish for animals. Given that Untoward seems to have "gotten intimate" with a pig (hence why he got a venereal disease), I decided that Untoward has an animal fetish, thus concluded that Untoward was a furry.
[[User:Greyson|Greyson]] ([[User talk:Greyson|talk]]) 22:41, 25 November 2012 (UTC)

* I'm pretty sure that all the twitter names are references to other online comics. [[Special:Contributions/69.121.10.82|69.121.10.82]] 04:53, 27 December 2012 (UTC)
* Besides that, such an act does not make one a furry. Instead, it makes one a moron. Furries are in fact simply those who have an interest in anthropomorphic animals. [[Special:Contributions/108.8.100.183|108.8.100.183]] 09:08, 1 January 2013 (UTC)

Anyone else notice the 1918 swine flu pandemic reference? [[Special:Contributions/86.15.83.223|86.15.83.223]] 19:57, 29 December 2012 (UTC)

I think the title text explanation misses a key point, some flu strains (http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/1918_flu_pandemic) disproportionately impact fit healthy young people due to an overreaction of the immune system. The title text humorously suggests that counter-intuitively being drunk and sleep-deprived will actually be good for your health in such circumstances. [[User:Plm-qaz snr|Plm-qaz snr]] ([[User talk:Plm-qaz snr|talk]]) 14:05, 8 July 2014 (UTC)

It may be worth noting that [https://twitter.com/hanneloreEC/status/1626300864 Hannelore's tweet is real].--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.123|108.162.229.123]] 11:12, 24 September 2014 (UTC)

1413: Suddenly Popular

2014-08-27T10:55:46Z

108.162.229.123:

{{comic
| number = 1413
| date = August 27, 2014
| title = Suddenly Popular
| image = suddenly_popular.png
| titletext = Are Your Teens Practicing Amplexus? Learn These Six Telltale Signs!
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Add explanation of each entry.}}

Many phrases that used to be of mainly academic interest become popular when an important event or global trend is described with such phrases in the media. Randall presents a timeline of past examples, and predicts phrases that may be popularised in the near future.

;World Wide Web
: Though first proposed in 1989, and the first test being completed in 1990, it took until around 1994 for the {{w|World Wide Web|world wide web}} to start becoming well known.

;DNA Evidence
: Prominent coverage of the {{w|O. J. Simpson murder trial}} in 1994 brought widespread discussion of {{w|DNA profiling|DNA Evidence}}, making it famous and showing its limitations.

;Militia Movement
:

;Supermax
: ({{w|Supermax prison|Super-Maximum Security prisons}})

;Butterfly Ballot
: {{w|United States presidential election in Florida, 2000}}

;Al-Qaeda
: The {{w|September 11th terrorist attacks}} brought the Al-Qaeda terrorist organisation into the spotlight almost overnight.

;Wi-Fi
: {{w|Wi-Fi}}

;Tsunami
: The {{w|2006 Pangandaran earthquake and tsunami}} was the first tsunami to be widely captured on camera, bringing these previously obscure seismic events into the public eye.

;Viral
:

;Radicalize
:

;Metadata
:

''From this point onwards, phrases were in the future at the time of publishing''

;Lahar
: A {{w|Lahar}} is a mudslide caused by the eruption of a volcano. Randall is speculating on a future natural disaster being caused by such an incident.

;Insect-Borne
: Some {{w|Category:Insect-borne diseases|diseases are insect-borne}}, meaning specific species of insects are the main vector in spreading to humans. Malaria is an example of an insect-borne disease. Randall predicts some deadly disease become insect-borne around this time.

;Earth-Crossing
:

;Thermohaline
:

;Snow-Blindness
:

;Amplexus
:

;Controlled Hydroplaning
:

;Paradoxical Reaction
:

;Drone Dessertion
:

;Rapid Hair Growth
:

;I Swear Allegiance To The God-Empress In Life And In Death
:

==Transcript==
Title: Obscure words and phrases everyone suddenly becomes very familiar with.

{|
|
| <-- {{w|World Wide Web}}
|-
|
| <-- {{w|DNA profiling|DNA Evidence}}
|-
| 1995
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Militia organizations in the United States|Militia Movement}}
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Supermax prison|Supermax}}
|-
| 2000
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|United States presidential election in Florida, 2000|Butterfly Ballot}}
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Al-Qaeda|Al-Qaeda}}
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Wi-Fi}}
|-
| 2005
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Tsunami}}
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Viral video|Viral}}
|-
| 2010
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Radicalization|Radicalize}}
|-
|
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Metadata}}
|-
| 2015
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Lahar}}
|-
|
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Category:Insect-borne diseases|Insect-Borne}}
|-
| 2020
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|List_of_Earth-crossing_minor_planets|Earth-Crossing}}
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Thermohaline_circulation‎|Thermohaline}}
|-
|
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Photokeratitis|Snow-Blindness}}
|-
| 2025
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Amplexus}}
|-
|
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Aquaplaning|Controlled Hydroplaning}}
|-
| 2030
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Paradoxical reaction|Paradoxical Reaction}}
|-
|
| <-- Drone Dessertion
|-
|
| <-- Rapid Hair Growth
|-
| 2035
|
|-
|
|
|-
|
| <-- I Swear Allegiance To The God-Empress In Life And In Death
|-
| 2040
|
|-
|}

{{comic discussion}}

1413: Suddenly Popular

2014-08-27T10:55:11Z

108.162.229.123:

{{comic
| number = 1413
| date = August 27, 2014
| title = Suddenly Popular
| image = suddenly_popular.png
| titletext = Are Your Teens Practicing Amplexus? Learn These Six Telltale Signs!
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Add explanation of each entry.}}

Many phrases that used to be of mainly academic interest become popular when an important event or global trend is described with such phrases in the media. Randall presents a timeline of past examples, and predicts phrases that may be popularised in the near future.

;World Wide Web
: Though first proposed in 1989, and the first test being completed in 1990, it took until around 1994 for the {{w|World Wide Web|world wide web}} to start becoming well known.

;DNA Evidence
: Prominent coverage of the {{w|O. J. Simpson murder trial}} in 1994 brought widespread discussion of {{w|DNA profiling|DNA Evidence}}, making it famous and showing its limitations.

;Militia Movement
:

;Supermax
: ({{w|Supermax prison|Super-Maximum Security prisons}})

;Butterfly Ballot
: {{w|United States presidential election in Florida, 2000}}

;Al-Qaeda
: The {{w|September 11th terrorist attacks}} brought the Al-Qaeda terrorist organisation into the spotlight almost overnight.

;Wi-Fi
: {{w|Wi-Fi}}

;Tsunami
: The {{w|2006 Pangandaran earthquake and tsunami}} was the first tsunami to be widely captured on camera, bringing these previously obscure seismic events into the public eye.

;Viral
:

;Radicalize
:

;Metadata
:

''From this point onwards, phrases were in the future at the time of publishing''

;Lahar
: A {{w|Lahar}} is a mudslide caused by the eruption of a volcano. Randall is speculating on a future natural disaster being caused by such an incident.

;Insect-Borne
: Some {{w|Category:Insect-borne diseases|diseases are insect-borne}}, meaning specific species of insects are the main vector in spreading to humans. Malaria is an example of an insect-borne disease. Randall predicts some deadly disease become insect-borne around this time.

;Earth-Crossing
:

;Thermohaline
:

;Snow-Blindness
:

;Amplexus
:

;Controlled Hydroplaning
:

;Paradoxical Reaction
:

;Drone Dessertion
:

;Rapid Hair Growth
:

;I Swear Allegiance To The God-Empress In Life And Death
:

==Transcript==
Title: Obscure words and phrases everyone suddenly becomes very familiar with.

{|
|
| <-- {{w|World Wide Web}}
|-
|
| <-- {{w|DNA profiling|DNA Evidence}}
|-
| 1995
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Militia organizations in the United States|Militia Movement}}
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Supermax prison|Supermax}}
|-
| 2000
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|United States presidential election in Florida, 2000|Butterfly Ballot}}
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Al-Qaeda|Al-Qaeda}}
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Wi-Fi}}
|-
| 2005
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Tsunami}}
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Viral video|Viral}}
|-
| 2010
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Radicalization|Radicalize}}
|-
|
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Metadata}}
|-
| 2015
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Lahar}}
|-
|
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Category:Insect-borne diseases|Insect-Borne}}
|-
| 2020
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|List_of_Earth-crossing_minor_planets|Earth-Crossing}}
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Thermohaline_circulation‎|Thermohaline}}
|-
|
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Photokeratitis|Snow-Blindness}}
|-
| 2025
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Amplexus}}
|-
|
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Aquaplaning|Controlled Hydroplaning}}
|-
| 2030
|
|-
|
| <-- {{w|Paradoxical reaction|Paradoxical Reaction}}
|-
|
| <-- Drone Dessertion
|-
|
| <-- Rapid Hair Growth
|-
| 2035
|
|-
|
|
|-
|
| <-- I Swear Allegiance To The God-Empress In Life And Death
|-
| 2040
|
|-
|}

{{comic discussion}}

1401: New

2014-07-30T08:05:46Z

108.162.229.123: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 1401
| date = July 30, 2014
| title = New
| image = new.png
| titletext = The nice thing about headcannnons is that it's really easy to get other people to believe in them.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete}}

This is a pun on the phrase “new headcanon”. A “headcanon” is a fan's thought imposed on a fictional world, often seen in fanfiction. Something that is 'canon' exists in the author's actual world; for example, a romantic pairing that is in the text or script of the fiction. A headcanon, then, is a fan thinking "these two characters, who are NOT together in the text, should totally be together." These ideas are notoriously contagious("It's really easy to get other people to believe in them."), and sometimes return to the author, who may decide to canonize them.
Randall's pun, adds an N and turns the imposed idea into a miniature cannon (a projectile weapon) attached to the head (which would be very easy to get people to believe in for other reasons).

The title text refers to the challenge of getting others to believe in, or accept, another's headcanon. Randall is implying that shooting a cannon at someone is enough evidence to believe in the cannon's existence.

==Transcript==
:[Black Hat walks in.]
:Black Hat: New headcannon:

:[Cueball is sitting at his desk, using his computer.]
:Cueball: Yeah?

:[Black Hat lifts his hat, revealing his "headcannon": a tiny cannon on the top of his head. The headcannon fires and blows up Cueball's desk, the explosion throwing Cueball backwards.]
:Headcannon: '''BOOM'''
:Cueball: AUGH!

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]