explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

1010: Etymology-Man

2014-02-26T09:40:56Z

108.162.229.45: /* Explanation */ Typo

{{comic
| number = 1010
| date = January 30, 2012
| title = Etymology-Man
| image = etymology_man.png
| titletext = I can't believe I'm saying this, but I wish Aquaman were here instead--HE'D be able to help.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic is a take on the traditional appearance of a super hero when a disaster strikes. In this case, Etymology-Man arrives, who apparently has the power of {{w|Etymology}} - the study of the history of words, their origins, and how their form and meaning have changed over time. As Etymology-Man is explaining the history of the words "{{w|tsunami}}" and "tidal wave", the water starts rising around them. As the waters continue to rise, he only continues explaining the words in an attempt to save them as a superhero should.

Also, the title text is a play on how useless {{w|Aquaman}} is (perceived to be) compared to other superheroes, as his powers - breathing underwater, speed swimming, and communicating with sea life - are very difficult for writers to make relevant. Indeed, in the case of a flood, Aquaman and his aquatic allies would be able to assist with evacuations.

Etymology-man returns two comics later in [[1012: Wrong Superhero]].

==Transcript==
:Cueball: Earthquake!
:Ponytail: We should get to a higher ground - There could be a tidal wave.

:[Cueball takes a pedantic pose]
:Cueball: You mean a tsunami. "Tidal wave" means a wave caused by tides.

:[A crash is heard, followed by Etymology-Man flying in while wearing a cape.]
:Etymology-man: You know, that doesn't add up.
:Cueball and Ponytail: Etymology-man!

:[Etymology-man takes a pedantic pose.]
:Etymology-man: What ''does'' "tidal wave" mean? There are waves caused by tides, but they're "tidal bores", and they're not cataclysmic.
:It can refer to the daily tide cycle, but that's obviously not what people mean when they say "a tidal wave hit".
:It's been obvious for centuries that these waves come from quakes. So why "tidal"?

:Etymology-man: Remember that until 2004, there weren't any clear photos or videos of tsunamis. Some modern writers even described them rearing up and breaking like surfing waves.
:Of course, in 2004 and 2011, it was made clear to everyone that a tsunami is more like a rapid, turbulent, inrushing tide - exactly what historical accounts describe.

:[Water begins to rush in. Etymology-man keeps his pedantic pose.]
:Etymology-man: Maybe those writing about Lisbon in 1755 used "tidal wave" not out of scientific confusion, but because it described the wave's form — a description lost in our rush to expunge "tidal wave" from English.

:[The water is now waist-deep. Etymology-man continues to drone on, but the others start to panic.]
:Etymology-man: "Tsunami" is now the standard, and I'm not trying to change that. But let's be a tad less giddy about correcting "tidal wave" - especially when "tsunami" just means "harbor wave", which is hardly...

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Language]]

1010: Etymology-Man

2014-02-26T09:40:15Z

108.162.229.45: /* Explanation */ Typo

{{comic
| number = 1010
| date = January 30, 2012
| title = Etymology-Man
| image = etymology_man.png
| titletext = I can't believe I'm saying this, but I wish Aquaman were here instead--HE'D be able to help.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic is a take on the traditional appearance of a super hero when a disaster strikes. In this case, Etymology-Man arrives, who apparently has the power of {{w|Etymology}} - the study of the history of words, their origins, and how their form and meaning have changed over time. As Etymology-Man is explaining the history of the words "{{w|tsunami}}" and "tidal wave", the water starts rising around them. As the waters continue to rise, he only continues explaining the words in an attempt to save them as a superhero should.

Also, the title text is a play on how useless {{w|Aquaman}} is (perceived to be) compared to other superheroes, as his powers - breathing underwater, speed swimming, and communicating with sea life - are very difficult for writers to make relevant. Indeed, in the case of a flood, Aquaman and his aquatic allies would be able to assist with evacuations.

Etymology man returns two comics later in [[1012: Wrong Superhero]].

==Transcript==
:Cueball: Earthquake!
:Ponytail: We should get to a higher ground - There could be a tidal wave.

:[Cueball takes a pedantic pose]
:Cueball: You mean a tsunami. "Tidal wave" means a wave caused by tides.

:[A crash is heard, followed by Etymology-Man flying in while wearing a cape.]
:Etymology-man: You know, that doesn't add up.
:Cueball and Ponytail: Etymology-man!

:[Etymology-man takes a pedantic pose.]
:Etymology-man: What ''does'' "tidal wave" mean? There are waves caused by tides, but they're "tidal bores", and they're not cataclysmic.
:It can refer to the daily tide cycle, but that's obviously not what people mean when they say "a tidal wave hit".
:It's been obvious for centuries that these waves come from quakes. So why "tidal"?

:Etymology-man: Remember that until 2004, there weren't any clear photos or videos of tsunamis. Some modern writers even described them rearing up and breaking like surfing waves.
:Of course, in 2004 and 2011, it was made clear to everyone that a tsunami is more like a rapid, turbulent, inrushing tide - exactly what historical accounts describe.

:[Water begins to rush in. Etymology-man keeps his pedantic pose.]
:Etymology-man: Maybe those writing about Lisbon in 1755 used "tidal wave" not out of scientific confusion, but because it described the wave's form — a description lost in our rush to expunge "tidal wave" from English.

:[The water is now waist-deep. Etymology-man continues to drone on, but the others start to panic.]
:Etymology-man: "Tsunami" is now the standard, and I'm not trying to change that. But let's be a tad less giddy about correcting "tidal wave" - especially when "tsunami" just means "harbor wave", which is hardly...

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Language]]

1322: Winter

2014-01-28T10:20:05Z

108.162.229.45: /* Explanation */ sun --> sunlight (ofc the sun is warm!)

{{comic
| number = 1322
| date = January 27, 2014
| title = Winter
| image = winter.png
| titletext = Stay warm, little flappers, and find lots of plant eggs!
}}

==Explanation==
Beret Guy and Cueball (or White Hat?) are walking. Beret Guy is making several remarks about the situation. The sky is blue or the air is cold, there is ice to walk on, and the birds are chirping in the trees. When making these observations, however, he does not use the conventional terms. Instead he uses word compounds, similar to "[[1133: Up Goer Five|Up Goer Five]]". When Cueball brings up Beret Guy's choice of vocabulary, he retorts by declaring that the name does not matter, as long as the things themselves are what they should be. This is the same concept that is communicated in the line from the Shakespearean play, "Romeo and Juliet": "What's in a name? That which we call {{w|A rose by any other name would smell as sweet|a rose/by any other name would smell as sweet}}."

The title text further builds upon this idea.

;Dictionary

*The sky is cold: The sky is blue (a cold hue) or the air is cold
*floor water: puddle
*too hard to drink: frozen
*handcoats: mittens ''or'' gloves
*spacelight: sunlight
*flappy planes: birds
*beeping: chirping
*stick towers: trees
*little flappers: baby birds ''or'' small birds (as there are no baby birds in mid winter)
*plant eggs: seeds

==Transcript==
:[Beret Guy talking with Cueball, walking through a cold forest with ice on the ground]
:Beret Guy: The sky is cold and the floor water is too hard to drink.

:Beret Guy: But I have my handcoats and the spacelight is warm.

:[Birds chirp overhead.]
:Beret Guy: Listen–the flappy planes are beeping in the stick towers.

:[Cueball stops. Beret Guy walks off-panel]
:Cueball: Those are all the wrong words for those things.
:Beret Guy: Maybe.
:Beret Guy: But the things themselves are all right. So who cares?

:[Birds chirp overhead. Cueball resumes walking]

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Language]]

Talk:11: Barrel - Part 2

2014-01-08T10:27:35Z

108.162.229.45: add doctor who reference

None of the places you floated probably had land either. '''[[User:Davidy22|Davidy22]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 14:08, 8 January 2013 (UTC)

Maybe there's a chance this is a Doctor Who reference; The Empty Child http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Empty_Child aired 4 months before this comic, with the iconic "Are you my mommy?" quote.