explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

722: Computer Problems

2016-04-16T10:05:14Z

108.162.237.162: Changed either to rather.

{{comic
| number = 722
| date = April 2, 2010
| title = Computer Problems
| image = Computer_problems.png
| titletext = This is how I explain computer problems to my cat. My cat usually seems happier than me.
}}

==Explanation==
[[Cueball]] explains to [[Megan]] that he is having computer problems. Normally, he is able to manipulate a "pattern" on his "metal rectangle full of little lights" (a reasonable, if oversimplified description of generated images displayed on a monitor). Today, however, the "pattern" is "all wrong". Megan suggests that he might be able to fix it by pressing more buttons, but following her advice doesn't seem to have the desired effect.

According to the title text, [[Randall]] uses a similar technique to explain his computer problems to his cat. Cats have the habit to walk over or lay on keyboards so they press a lot of buttons. This is however not to fix the "pattern" which they usually don't care about but rather to get the same attention the keyboard receives from the cat's owner. Often cats prefer to lay on a warm place — and a keyboard belonging to a notebook is designed to dispense some heat.

As evidenced by both past and future comics, Randall likes to [[1133: Up Goer Five|make an effort]] to explain things for simple minds.

Speculatively, Randall may be commenting on the abstract nature of events that effect Cueball's happiness or well being. While the work Cueball does on the computer seems very important to him, the deconstructed version as discussed by Megan and Cueball make his resulting distress seem out of proportion. This interpretation is further supported by the title text in which Randall's cat, unaware of more abstract representations of activity on the computer, enjoys greater happiness overall.

The concept of using simple English to explain complicated problems was first used in [[547: Simple]] and has been revisited in [[1133: Up Goer Five]] and [[1436: Orb Hammer]].

==Transcript==
:[Cueball and Megan are looking at his computer, on the desk.]
:Cueball: You know this metal rectangle full of little lights?
:Megan: Yeah.

:Cueball: I spend most of my life pressing buttons to make the pattern of lights change however I want.
:Megan: Sounds good.

:Cueball: But today, the pattern of lights is ''all wrong''!
:Megan: Oh god! Try pressing more buttons!
:Cueball: ''IT'S NOT HELPING!''

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Computers]]
[[Category:Simplified language]]

1563: Synonym Movies

2015-08-12T05:16:43Z

108.162.237.162:

{{comic
| number = 1563
| date = August 12, 2015
| title = Synonym Movies
| image = synonym_movies.png
| titletext = Fans eagerly await 2015's 'Space Fights: Power Gets Up', although most think 1999's 'Space Fights: The Scary Ghost' didn't live up to the hype.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|What's the Jewelry God explanation.}}

This comic shows several "Synonym Movies" Well known movies, but with the titles changed to words that are different, but mean essentially the same thing. 'Space Trips' is Star Trek, 'Space Fights' is Star Wars, The 'Jewelry God' is Lord Of The Rings.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Synonym
! Real Title
|-
| Space Fight: Sudden Optimism
| Star Wars: A New Hope
|-
| Space Fight: The Government Wins This One
| Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back
|-
| Space Fight: The Sword Wizard Is Back
| Star Wars: The Return Of The Jedi
|-
|The Jewelry God: The Jewelry Team
|The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
|-
|The Jewelry God: Double Houses
|The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
|-
|The Jewelry God: We Have a Czar Again
|The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
|-
|Space Trip: The Movie
|Star Trek: The Motion Picture
|-
|Space Trip: That Guy is Angry
|Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan
|-
|Space Trip: Where is the Vulcan
|Star Trek: The Search for Spock
|-
|Space Trip: Let's Go Back
|Star Trek: The Voyage Home
|}
==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}

{{comic discussion}}

Talk:1556: The Sky

2015-08-12T03:40:30Z

108.162.237.162:

Typical, I think nobody's actually going to try to explain this, and I get Save Conflicted. My (wordier) version. In case any of it is useful.
:The sky is ever changing, and can often give interesting views such as that illustrated in the comic. Cueball and Megan seem to be agreeing about this, and its pleasing nature.
:As (ignoring particularly unusual viewpoints, severe topography and obscuring vegetation/architecture) the sky is pretty much the upper hemisphere of any external view, it is inded a "half". It would seem to be redundant to say it is "one of my favourite halves", as that indicates both a list of at least two items to choose from ''and'' more than one 'favourite'. Being in 'the top two of a list of two' actually means nothing. But the other half could be the ground ''or'' the sea, ''or'' a composite of the two, so conceivably there ''might'' be more than two 'halves' to choose from in this case. Not that the statement makes much more sense.
:The title-text acknowledges the fact that the other half can have snakes (the land), shipwrecks (the sea) and rocks (either), in a manner that sounds like justifications for any non-sky 'halves' being interesting too, to the kind of people Cueball and Megan seem to be. But it also suggests that by removing all of these you'd be seeing sky, below, that people on the other side of the 'rocks' (the whole Earth) had been seeing as their own 'sky above'. At least until the effects of entirely removing the substance of the planet start to show, of course.
...for what it's worth. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.168|141.101.98.168]] 11:57, 27 July 2015 (UTC)

Maybe, maybe the comic is a slight refference to the recent observetory of plutos athmosphere. [[User:ẞ qwertz|ẞ qwertz]] ([[User talk:ẞ qwertz|talk]]) 12:55, 27 July 2015 (UTC)

Maybe this comic is related to comic [[1368]]? [[User:Gartenzaun|Gartenzaun]] ([[User talk:Gartenzaun|talk]]) 13:16, 27 July 2015 (UTC)
:Or this [[1524: Dimensions]]. Regarding the favourite of a small set.-[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 13:52, 27 July 2015 (UTC)I do
:I do not agree with [[1368: One Of The]] as it has nothing to do with the way this sentence is used here. I have removed it from the explanation.--[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 19:24, 29 July 2015 (UTC)

I can't defend this position properly (other than by appealing to shipwrecks) but I'm pretty sure "the other half" is the ocean (or water in general) and that this is a callback to something in early XKCD (the halves thing.) I don't care enough to find the reference though, so FFTI. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.88.224|141.101.88.224]] 13:18, 27 July 2015 (UTC)

My read on the "halves" bit is the Biblical Genesis bit where the world was split into sky and sea, "And God said, “Let there be a vault between the waters to separate water from water.” So God made the vault and separated the water under the vault from the water above it. And it was so. God called the vault “sky.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the second day." -[[Special:Contributions/173.245.56.112|173.245.56.112]] 14:36, 27 July 2015 (UTC)

: Agreed, this appears to be a biblical reference - [[https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis+1&version=GNT| this version]] explains it pretty clearly. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.249.177|108.162.249.177]] 14:41, 27 July 2015 (UTC)
: Thus taking "halves" as a verb. Nice. [[Special:Contributions/198.41.239.32|198.41.239.32]] 23:33, 27 July 2015 (UTC)

I can't tell if the sky is a photograph with a digital filter or a painting. [[User:Smperron|Smperron]] ([[User talk:Smperron|talk]]) 14:49, 27 July 2015 (UTC)

:I'm pretty sure it's a digital painting. For one thing, there's a little artistic license in the transition from sunset at the left to evening stars at the top right. [[User:FourViolas|FourViolas]] ([[User talk:FourViolas|talk]]) 14:58, 27 July 2015 (UTC)

:: I don't see it -- has the picture changed? [[User:Spongebog|Spongebog]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 16:31, 27 July 2015 (UTC)

::: I didn't notice the stars at the top right until [[User:FourViolas|FourViolas]] pointed it out. [[User:Smperron|Smperron]] ([[User talk:Smperron|talk]]) 16:37, 27 July 2015 (UTC)

:It's almost definitely a digital painting. As far as I know, Randall has never used photographs in his comics; I'd be surprised if he suddenly changed that. Moreover, the point of this comics seems to be mostly to showcase Randall's digital artwork (see also [[1024: Error Code]], which admittedly had slightly more surrounding humor) than to make a particular joke.[[Special:Contributions/162.158.255.250|162.158.255.250]] 02:54, 29 July 2015 (UTC)

I think it's important that Megan says the sky is ONE of her favorite halves, and that the explanation "at least at their present location...the ground is dark, flat, and otherwise boring" is thus too simplistic. The ground where they are standing is in silhouette (it's presumably sunrise or sunset), but I think the implication is that C. and M. (who are obviously not finding words adequate to express how they feel about what they're seeing), are awed by the beauty of Nature, regardless of whether it's sky, sea (shipwrecks), land (rocks) or living things (snakes).[[User:Jv|Jv]] ([[User talk:Jv|talk]]) 15:01, 27 July 2015 (UTC)
:The general idea here seems most reasonable to me. The sky is great (see also [[1117: My Sky]]), but so is the Earth. I find all this debate over possible implications of "one of the" almost absurd.[[Special:Contributions/162.158.255.250|162.158.255.250]] 02:44, 29 July 2015 (UTC)

Is it possible that the meaning of Megan's statement is that there are other binary sets where she prefers one over the other? For example, her favorites might include (in addition to sky) female, light, and loud. [[User:Smperron|Smperron]] ([[User talk:Smperron|talk]]) 16:43, 27 July 2015 (UTC)

Perhaps Megan is a reporter https://xkcd.com/1368/ [[User:Xquestion|Xquestion]] ([[User talk:Xquestion|talk]]) 16:51, 27 July 2015 (UTC)

What i understand under "favorite halves" is not about the mentioned tautology but about other things you can differentiate two halves and you like one more than the other.
My personal favorite halves in this sense would be; Sky(vs Earth), women(vs men), low alcohol drinks(vs liquors), etc 17:11, 27 July 2015 (UTC)[[Special:Contributions/141.101.103.202|141.101.103.202]] Bkack

There are multiple ways to split the earth into halves, so I don't think having one favorite way makes any tautology. For example, you can split North/South, East/West, sky/earth, water/earth, day/night. [[User:DMiller|DMiller]] [[Special:Contributions/173.245.50.150|173.245.50.150]] 18:28, 27 July 2015 (UTC)

I don't think it is a "tautology": a trivially true fact, eg "all red shoes are red". If anything it is an oxymoron (as it implies both halves are favourite, and so neither is). [[User:Zeimusu|Zeimusu]] ([[User talk:Zeimusu|talk]]) 18:58, 27 July 2015 (UTC)

Am I the only one who sees a possible (additional) visual joke in the second panel? (The drawing is divided along the diagonal: One half is mainly cloudy, another mostly clear sky.) [[Special:Contributions/162.158.92.44|162.158.92.44]] 19:37, 27 July 2015 (UTC)

In terms of two halves, should we mention https://xkcd.com/731/ "Desert Island?" It seems to be relevant in this situation, but I want someone else's opinion first. Also, mobile sucks for that kind of stuff, so... [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.110|108.162.216.110]] 20:45, 27 July 2015 (UTC)

"Mathematically, stating one of my favorites it must imply that there must be at least one other favorite" - Not mathematically, but intuitively (unless you can prove the implication). Mathematically, this just says that "Sky" is a member of the set "Favorite Halves", which may or may not include more elements. Intuitively, we don't talk like that unless there is another favorite.-[[Special:Contributions/173.245.50.91|173.245.50.91]] 21:38, 27 July 2015 (UTC)

This could be a reference to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Half_the_Sky [[Special:Contributions/173.245.56.131|173.245.56.131]] 04:06, 28 July 2015 (UTC)

I'm not so sure that the sky being one of Megan's favourite halves is either tautological or an oxymoron. It could simply mean that, of any given pair that can be described as two halves, she always has a preference for one over the other. Thus, of "earth / sky", "sky" is her favourite half, whereas perhaps of "Bonnie / Clyde", "Bonnie" might be her favourite half. In this way one could have many favourite halves. --[[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.162|141.101.98.162]] 08:02, 28 July 2015 (UTC)
: this ties in well with the recently popular theme of sets with the same number of elements being similar. (So even as Characters can't tell the dwarves from the days of the week, they also separate all pairs into 'favorite' and 'meh' piles.) This made more sense in my head, huh? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.88.224|141.101.88.224]] 14:06, 28 July 2015 (UTC)

I don't think "one of my favourite halves" ''needs to'' be a tautology. It only is if we consider it one of the favourite halves of the same whole, but the set of favourite halves could easily be something like [the sky, yolk, front meant, dark side of the Moon,...], that is, favourite halves of various things. Of course, it would be rather quirky to keep track of favourite halves like that, but I think it is not beyond xkcd. [[User:Jaalenja|Jaalenja]] ([[User talk:Jaalenja|talk]]) 15:07, 28 July 2015 (UTC)

Might the fact(?) that the cloud is a mamatis cloud be relevant? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.104.47|141.101.104.47]] 20:40, 29 July 2015 (UTC)

Looks to me like the stars in the upper right are almost but not quite in the pattern of the Pleiades. [[User:Taibhse|Taibhse]] ([[User talk:Taibhse|talk]]) 10:20, 30 July 2015 (UTC)

Isn't it possible that this is a reference to the famous proclamation by Mao Zedong that "women hold up half the sky"? There are books, organizations, and more that use this "half the sky" reference in this sense. - [[User:Dravecky|Dravecky]] ([[User talk:Dravecky|talk]]) 06:08, 31 July 2015 (UTC)

:I've reinserted this explanation. It's no more far-fetched than the existing explanation, and Randall has occasionally involved himself in sociopolitical analysis before. A Google search for "half the sky" turns up plenty of related material, and it's not a common-enough phrase to be able to believe that it hasn't been deliberately chosen as a reference here. [[User:Pookybot|Pookybot]] ([[User talk:Pookybot|talk]]) 07:29, 31 July 2015 (UTC)

Often, I hear "better half" being used as almost a nickname for your significant other. I think we're looking into it too much- Megan might be saying that the sky is one of her "favorite halves", with Cueball being the other "favorite half". After all, this is one of the comics that isn't supposed to be humorous. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.50.139|173.245.50.139]] 04:30, 9 August 2015 (UTC)

Tom Petty has a song 'Circus' with lyrics "Half of me is ocean, half of me is sky" - http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/tompettyandtheheartbreakers/wallscircus.html [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.162|108.162.237.162]] 03:40, 12 August 2015 (UTC)

1537: Types

2015-06-13T10:13:41Z

108.162.237.162: Fixed one line too many in [13]> FLOOR(10.5)

{{comic
| number = 1537
| date = June 12, 2015
| title = Types
| image = types.png
| titletext = colors.rgb("blue") yields "#0000FF". colors.rgb("yellowish blue") yields NaN. colors.sort() yields "rainbow"
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Title text not explained. More details before the list.}}

This comic is a series of programming jokes about a ridiculous new programming language, perhaps inspired by [https://www.destroyallsoftware.com/talks/wat Gary Bernhardt's CodeMash 2012 lightning talk] on JavaScript's unpredictable typing. In the talk, the (highly technical) audience was unable to correctly guess the results of adding various JavaScript types and roared with laughter when they were revealed. The programming language shown in this comic has types even more unpredictable than JavaScript.

Most regular programming languages distinguish a number of types, e.g. integers, strings, lists … all of which have different behaviours. The operation "+" is conventionally defined over more than one of these types. Applied to two integers, it returns their addition; applied to two strings (denoted by being enclosed in quotes) it concatenates them:

<code>> 2 + 3

5

> "123" + "abc"

"123abc"</code>

While these behaviours are standard, conventional, and intuitive, there is a huge amount of variation among programming languages when you apply an operation like "+" to different types. One logical approach is to always return an error in all cases of type mixing, but it is often practical to allow some case mixing, since it can hugely simplify an operation. Variation and lack of a clearly more intuitive behaviour leads some languages to have weird results when you mix types.

# <code>2 + "2"</code> uses the <code>+</code> operator on a number and a string. In some programming languages, this might result in the number <code>4</code> (addition), or <code>"22"</code> (string concatenation); however, the new language converts the string to an integer, adds them to produce <code>4</code> and converts back to a string. Alternately, it may instead be adding 2 to the ASCII value of the character <code>"2"</code> (50), resulting in the character <code>"4"</code> (52). This is (somewhat) consistent with the behavior for item 4.
# <code>"2" + []</code> adds a string to an array or list, this time. This first inexplicably converts the string to a number again, and then it literally adds the number to the list by appending it (this would make sense if it was <code>[] + 2</code>, but usually not the other way around). And then the result (the entire array) is converted to a string again.
# <code>(2/0)</code> divides <code>2</code> by <code>0</code> and quite reasonably results in <code>NaN</code> (not a number), though in most languages, as prescribed by the IEEE 854 standard for floating point numbers, dividing a nonzero number by zero would instead return an infinity value.
# <code>(2/0)+2</code> adds <code>2</code> to <code>NaN</code>. <code>2</code> is "added" to the string <code>"NaN"</code> (again, the number is converted to a string for apparently no reason), which produces <code>"NaP"</code>. If the language's convention is to add to the ASCII value of a character or string, then in this case it added 2 to the character <code>"N"</code> (78), resulting in <code>"P"</code> (80).
# <code>""+""</code>: In many languages, two consecutive double-quote characters denote an empty string, so this expression would concatenate two empty strings, resulting in an empty string. However, it appears that this language treats only the outermost quotes of the expression as the string boundary, so all of the characters between them become part of the literal string, producing '<code>"+"</code>'.
# <code>[1,2,3]+2</code> seems to test whether it's sound to append <code>2</code> to the list <code>[1,2,3]</code>, and concludes that it doesn't fit the pattern, returning the boolean value <code>false</code>. It could conceivably also be the result of an attempt to add <code>2</code> to the ''set'' <code>[1,2,3]</code>, which already contains that element (although <code>{1,2,3}</code> would be a more common notation for sets).
# <code>[1,2,3]+4</code> returns <code>true</code> for much the same reason.
# <code>2/(2-(3/2+1/2))</code> is a floating point joke. Floating point numbers are notoriously imprecise. With precise mathematics, <code>(3/2+1/2)</code> would be exactly 2, hence the entire thing would evaluate to <code>2/0</code> or <code>NaN</code> in Randall's new language. However, the result of <code>(3/2+1/2)</code> is "just slightly off," which makes the result "just slightly off" of <code>NaN</code> (which would be ridiculous in a real language). The ironic thing is that fractions with 2 in the denominator are ''not'' the kind of numbers that typically suffer from floating point impreciseness. Additionally, if there was indeed a rounding error, the actual calculation becomes something like <code>2/0.0000000000000013</code>, which should not return a <code>NaN</code> since it is not division by zero.
# <code>range(" ")</code> normally wouldn't make any sense. However, the new language appears to interpret it as ASCII, and in the ASCII table, character #32 is space, #33 is <code>!</code>, and #34 is <code>"</code>. So, instead of interpreting <code>" "</code> as a string, it seems to be interpreted as <code>34, 32, 34</code> (in ASCII), and then <code>range</code> appears to transform this into <code>34, 33, 32, 33, 34</code> (the "ranges" between the numbers), which, interpreted as ASCII, becomes <code>['"', '!', ' ', '!', '"']</code>.
# <code>+2</code> refers to the Chinese/Japanese (Kanji) number system, where the plus sign is instead the symbol <code>十</code>. In Chinese, this symbol represents the number ten, and if you translate the <code>2</code> into Chinese, you get <code>二</code>. Therefore, in full Chinese the code is <code>十二</code>, which is equivalent to the number <code>12</code>. Alternately, it could simply be attempting to add 2 to the line number 10 to get 12.
# <code>2+2</code> would normally be <code>4</code>. However, the interpreter takes this instruction to mean that the user wishes to increase the actual value of the number <code>2</code> (aka the "literal value") by <code>2</code> for the remainder of the program, making it <code>4</code> and then reports that the work is "Done". The result can be seen in the subsequent lines where all <code>2</code>s are replaced by <code>4</code>s. This could be a reference to languages like Fortran where [http://everything2.com/title/Changing+the+value+of+5+in+FORTRAN literals could be assigned new values].
# <code>range(1,5)</code> would normally return <code>[1, 2, 3, 4, 5]</code>. However, since the value of <code>2</code> has been changed to <code>4</code>, it returns <code>[1, 4, 3, 4, 5]</code>, and this even affects the line number (which is 14 instead of 12).
# <code>floor(10.5)</code> should return <code>10</code> (the "floor" of a decimal number is that number rounded down). However, it instead returns {{w|ASCII art}} of the number on a "floor."

The title text contains three further examples relating to color. <code>color.rgb("blue")</code> returns the hexadecimal code for pure blue (as would be used in HTML, for example), which is how a real programming language might work. The lookup for "yellowish blue" returns "NaN" (Not a Number) again, which makes sense at one level because there is no such color as "yellowish blue" (yellow and blue are opposites on the color wheel, making yellowish-blue an {{w|impossible colour}}, which can only be perceived with great difficulty through contrived figures). However a more typical result would have been a failure indicating that the color database does not include the name, in the same way that a typo such as "bluw" would. Similarly sorting the colors would normally produce some defined ordering, such as alphabetical, but in this language it generates the string "rainbow". It seems that Randall's new language understands color theory in an unusually deep way.

==Transcript==
My new language is great, but it has a few quirks regarding type:
<pre>
[1]> 2+"2"
=> "4"
[2]> "2"+[]
=> "[2]"
[3] (2/0)
=> NaN
[4]> (2/0)+2
=> NaP
[5]> ""+""
=> '"+"'
[6]> [1,2,3]+2
=> FALSE
[7]> [1,2,3]+4
=> TRUE
[8]> 2/(2-(3/2+1/2))
=> NaN.0000000000000013
[9]> range(" ")
=> ('"','!'," ","!",'"')
[10]> +2
=> 12
[11]> 2+2
=> DONE
[14]> RANGE(1,5)
=> (1,4,3,4,5)
[13]> FLOOR(10.5)
=> |
=> |
=> |
=> |___10.5___
</pre>
{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Programming]]
[[Category:Language]]

1529: Bracket

2015-05-25T15:50:43Z

108.162.237.162:

{{comic
| number = 1529
| date = May 25, 2015
| title = Bracket
| image = bracket.png
| titletext = I'm staring at the "doctor" section, and I can't help but feel like I've forgotten someone.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Explain the specific groupings.}}
A {{w|Bracket (tournament)|tournament bracket}} shows the planned series of matchups in a tournament. In this comic Randall has shown a plan for a tournament between a wide range of cultural icons, both real and fictional, based mostly on similarities in their names. Various internet groups have speculated on who would win in a fight between characters from different films. It may be relevant that the film {{w|Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice}} is soon to be released where the two namesake {{w|superheros}}, {{w|Batman}} and {{w|Superman}} fight against each other.

The individual starting pairings are generally based on common or similar given or surnames. Some adjacent brackets are "segued" by someone like Jeff Daniels who segues from a bracket of "Jeff"s into a bracket of "Daniels"es. The bracket itself is fairly arbitrary. Most initial matchups are pairs, although several are trios while a single entry, Beyoncé, is given a {{w|bye (sports)|first-round bye}}. Most of the participants in the tournament are people with a few exceptions: {{w|Shallots}} (small onions), {{w|scallops}} (bivalve mollusks), and {{w|scallions}} (green onions) are similar sounding foods, therefore may be confusing for some individuals (perhaps including [[Randall]]). The final grouping on the lower right of the bracket features a several retail stores and a film.

The [[title text]] may be referring to {{w|Dr. Dre}}, particularly as a reference to his 2001 song "{{w|Forgot About Dre}}". Alternatively, the title text could simply be a reference to the large number of pop culture personas that include the word "Doctor", such as {{w|Doctor Who}}, {{w|Gregory House|Doctor House}}, {{w|Mehmet Oz|Dr. Oz}}, {{w|Phil McGraw|Dr. Phil}}, {{w|Dr. Watson}}, {{w|Emmett Brown|"Doc" Brown}}, {{w|Dr. Seuss}}, {{w|Dr Pepper}}, {{w|Doctor Doom}}, and {{w|List of fictional doctors|many others}}. (Or, in fact, [http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/futurama-zoidberg-why-not-zoidberg why not Dr. Zoidberg]?) Another possibility is that the [[title text]] is supposed to make the readers ask themselves "{{w|Doctor who}}?" Though "The Doctor" is already listed, this could refer to either ''Doctor Who'' or ''{{w|Doctor (Star Trek: Voyager)|the Star Trek: Voyager character}}''. Notably, while the Doctor in "Doctor Who" is technically one character, the Doctor has currently been played by 13 different actors. The mythos of the Doctor Who even includes individual incarnations of the Doctor interacting with each other; knowing they are the same person, yet often expressing annoyance when grouped together. So perhaps Randall is implying that to just include the Doctor as one individual is not an accurate representation of this character.

The names and other entries in the bracket are:
{| class="wikitable" style="background:transparent;border:none;width:100%;"
| style="background:transparent;border:none;"|
<nowiki>*</nowiki> Armstrong:
:{{w|Louis Armstrong}} (musician)
:{{w|Neil Armstrong}} (first human on the moon)
:{{w|Lance Armstrong}} (bicyclist)
:{{w|Stretch Armstrong}} (action figure)

Jeff *:
:{{w|Jeff Gordan}}
:{{w|Jeff Bridges}} (Actor)

J* Daniels:
:{{w|Jeff Daniels}}
:{{w|Jack Daniels}} (Alcoholic beverage)

Mr. Well*s:
:{{w|Orson Welles}} (Known for "The War of the Worlds")
:{{w|H.G. Wells}} (Known for "The Time Machine")

<nowiki>*</nowiki>well*:
:{{w|George Orwell}} (Author of "1984" and "Animal Farm")
:{{w|Wells Fargo}} (Bank and stage coach company)

<nowiki>*</nowiki> Russell *:
:{{w|Kurt Russell}}
:{{w|Russell Brand}}
:{{w|Russell Crowe}}
:{{w|Russell Simmons}}

<nowiki>*</nowiki> Simmons:
:{{w|Richard Simmons}}
:{{w|Gene Simmons}}

<nowiki>*</nowiki>ckman:
:{{w|Gene Hackman}}
:{{w|Hugh Jackman}}
:{{w|Alan Rickman}}

Alan Par*:
:{{w|Alan Parsons}}
:{{w|Alan Partridge}}

McCarthy/Eugene:
:{{w|Jenny McCarthy}}
:{{w|Joseph McCarthy}} (Senator known for anti-communist witchhunt)
:{{w|Eugene McCarthy}}
:{{w|Eugene V. Debs}} (labor leader)

<nowiki>*</nowiki> Wilde*
:{{w|Gene Wilder}}
:{{w|Olivia Wilde}}
:{{w|Oscar Wilde}}

Oscar De La *:
:{{w|Oscar De La Renta}}
:{{w|Oscar De La Hoya}}

Jack *:
:{{w|Jack Nicklaus}} (Golf player)
:{{w|Jack Nicholson}} (Actor)

<nowiki>*</nowiki>ickle* / *ickel*:
:{{w|Phil Mickelson}}
:{{w|Nicholas Nickelby}}

<nowiki>*</nowiki>ryan Adams:
:{{w|Ryan Adams}}
:{{w|Bryan Adams}}

Popular Games:
:{{w|Chubby Checker}} (Checkers is a board games)
:{{w|Fats Domino}} (Dominoes [or dominos]) is a game. Domino's is a pizza chain.)

Colin *:
:{{w|Colin Firth}}
:{{w|Colin Farrell}}

F*rell:
:{{w|Will Ferrell}}
:{{w|The Farrelly Brothers}}

<nowiki>*</nowiki>itt:
:{{w|Joseph Gordon-Levitt}}
:{{w|Jennifer Love Hewitt}}

<nowiki>*</nowiki> Glover:
:{{w|Danny Glover}}
:{{w|Donald Glover}}

<nowiki>*</nowiki> Wahlberg:
:{{w|Donnie Wahlberg}}
:{{w|Mark Wahlberg}}

Mark *:
:{{w|Mark Ruffalo}}
:{{w|Mark Shuttleworth}}

| style="background:transparent;border:none;"|
Bill */* Pullman:
:{{w|Philip Pullman}}
:{{w|Bill Pullman}}
:{{w|Bill Paxton}}

Ghostbusters:
:{{w|Bill Murray}}
:{{w|Dan Aykroyd}}

<nowiki>*</nowiki> Rogers:
:{{w|Ginger Rogers}} (Woman known for dancing with Fred Astaire)
:{{w|Mister/Fred Astaire/Rogers}} (Confusing reference to "Mister Rogers" [Fred Rogers] and Fred Astaire])

Doctor */* Spock:
:{{w|Mister Spock}} (Character on Star Trek)
:{{w|Doctor Spock}} (Author of book on childcare)
:{{w|Doctor Octopus}}

Doctors:
:{{w|Doctor Manhattan}}
:{{w|Doctor Strangelove}} (Character based on Henry Kissinger in movie about nuclear war)
:{{w|Doctor Strange}}

More doctors:
:{{w|Dr. No}} (Science fiction character)
:{{w|The Doctor}} (Science fiction character)
:{{w|Cory Doctorow}} (Real person)

<nowiki>*</nowiki> Jerry Lewis:
:{{w|Jerry Lee Lewis}}
:{{w|Jerry Lewis}}

Others with initial J:
:{{w|Jenny Lewis}}
:{{w|Xeni Jardin}}

Chris *:
:{{w|Chris Evans}}
:{{w|Chris Hemsworth}}

Chris P*:
:{{w|Chris Pine}}
:{{w|Chris Pratt}}

Homophones of Shallots:
:{{w|Shallots}} (small onions)
:{{w|Scallops}} (bivalve mollusks)
:{{w|Scallions}} (green onions)

S* (Similar phonetics):
:{{w|Siouxie Sioux}}
:{{w|Suzanne Vega}}

Arnold */* Palmer:
:{{w|Tom Arnold}} (ex-husband of Roseanne Barr)
:{{w|Arnold Palmer}}
:{{w|Amanda Palmer}}

Wes *:
:{{w|Wes Craven}}
:{{w|Wes Anderson}}

P* Anderson:
:{{w|Paul Thomas Anderson}}
:{{w|Poul Anderson}}

Sir Walter *:
:{{w|Sir Walter Scott}}
:{{w|Sir Walter Raleigh}}

F* Drake:
:{{w|Sir Francis Drake}}
:{{w|Frank Drake}}

Van *:
:{{w|Van Halen}}
:{{w|Van Morrison}}
:{{w|Van Wilder}}

<nowiki>*</nowiki> Van Winkle:
:{{w|Robert Van Winkle}}
:{{w|Rip Van Winkle}} (fictional character)

Connects the "Rip"s with Natalie Imbruglia - her most famous hit was the song "Torn":
:{{w|Rip Torn}}
:{{w|Natalie Imbruglia}}

Business with the word "Body" in their name:
:{{w|The Body Shop}}
:{{w|Bath and Body Works}}

Things with the word "Beyond" in their name:
:{{w|Bed Bath and Beyond}}
:{{w|Beyond Thunderdome}}

Beyoncé
:{{w|Beyoncé}}
|}

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}

:[A tournament bracket with the following:]

{| class="wikitable" style="background:transparent;border:none;width:100%;"
| style="background:transparent;border:none;"|
:{{w|Louis Armstrong}}
:{{w|Neil Armstrong}}
:{{w|Lance Armstrong}}
:{{w|Stretch Armstrong}}

:{{w|Jeff Gordan}}
:{{w|Jeff Bridges}}

:{{w|Jeff Daniels}}
:{{w|Jack Daniels}}

:{{w|Orson Welles}}
:{{w|H.G. Wells}}

:{{w|George Orwell}}
:{{w|Wells Fargo}}

:{{w|Kurt Russell}}
:{{w|Russell Brand}}
:{{w|Russell Crowe}}
:{{w|Russell Simmons}}

:{{w|Richard Simmons}}
:{{w|Gene Simmons}}

:{{w|Gene Hackman}}
:{{w|Hugh Jackman}}
:{{w|Alan Rickman}}

:{{w|Alan Parsons}}
:{{w|Alan Partridge}}

:{{w|Jenny McCarthy}}
:{{w|Joseph McCarthy}}
:{{w|Eugene McCarthy}}
:{{w|Eugene V. Debs}}

:{{w|Gene Wilder}}
:{{w|Olivia Wilde}}
:{{w|Oscar Wilde}}

:{{w|Oscar De La Renta}}
:{{w|Oscar De La Hoya}}

:{{w|Jack Nicklaus}}
:{{w|Jack Nicholson}}

:{{w|Phil Mickelson}}
:{{w|Nicholas Nickelby}}

:{{w|Ryan Adams}}
:{{w|Bryan Adams}}

:{{w|Chubby Checker}}
:{{w|Fats Domino}}

:{{w|Colin Firth}}
:{{w|Colin Farrell}}

:{{w|Will Ferrell}}
:{{w|The Farrelly Brothers}}

:{{w|Joseph Gordon-Levitt}}
:{{w|Jennifer Love Hewitt}}

:{{w|Danny Glover}}
:{{w|Donald Glover}}

:{{w|Donnie Wahlberg}}
:{{w|Mark Wahlberg}}

:{{w|Mark Ruffalo}}
:{{w|Mark Shuttleworth}}

| style="background:transparent;border:none;"|
:{{w|Philip Pullman}}
:{{w|Bill Pullman}}
:{{w|Bill Paxton}}

:{{w|Bill Murray}}
:{{w|Dan Aykroyd}}

:{{w|Ginger Rogers}}
:{{w|Fred Rogers|Mister/Fred Astaire/Rogers}}

:{{w|Mister Spock}}
:{{w|Doctor Spock}}
:{{w|Doctor Octopus}}

:{{w|Doctor Manhatten}}
:{{w|Doctor Strangelove}}
:{{w|Doctor Strange}}

:{{w|Dr. No}}
:{{w|The Doctor}}
:{{w|Cory Doctorow}}

:{{w|Jerry Lee Lewis}}
:{{w|Jerry Lewis}}

:{{w|Jenny Lewis}}
:{{w|Xeni Jardin}}

:{{w|Chris Evans}}
:{{w|Chris Hemsworth}}

:{{w|Chris Pine}}
:{{w|Chris Pratt}}

:{{w|Shallots}}
:{{w|Scallops}}
:{{w|Scallions}}

:{{w|Siouxie Sioux}}
:{{w|Suzanne Vega}}

:{{w|Tom Arnold}}
:{{w|Arnold Palmer}}
:{{w|Amanda Palmer}}

:{{w|Wes Craven}}
:{{w|Wes Anderson}}

:{{w|Paul Thomas Anderson}}
:{{w|Poul Anderson}}

:{{w|Sir Walter Scott}}
:{{w|Sir Walter Raleigh}}

:{{w|Sir Francis Drake}}
:{{w|Frank Drake}}

:{{w|Van Halen}}
:{{w|Van Morrison}}
:{{w|Van Wilder}}

:{{w|Robert Van Winkle}}
:{{w|Rip Van Winkle}}

:{{w|Rip Torn}}
:{{w|Natalie Imbruglia}}

:{{w|The Body Shop}}
:{{w|Bath and Body Works}}

:{{w|Bed Bath and Beyond}}
:{{w|Beyond Thunderdome}}

:{{w|Beyoncé}}
|}

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]

1529: Bracket

2015-05-25T15:47:15Z

108.162.237.162: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1529
| date = May 25, 2015
| title = Bracket
| image = bracket.png
| titletext = I'm staring at the "doctor" section, and I can't help but feel like I've forgotten someone.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Explain the specific groupings.}}
A {{w|Bracket (tournament)|tournament bracket}} shows the planned series of matchups in a tournament. In this comic Randall has shown a plan for a tournament between a wide range of cultural icons, both real and fictional, based mostly on similarities in their names. Various internet groups have speculated on who would win in a fight between characters from different films. It may be relevant that the film {{w|Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice}} is soon to be released where the two namesake {{w|superheros}}, {{w|Batman}} and {{w|Superman}} fight against each other.

The individual starting pairings are generally based on common or similar given or surnames. Some adjacent brackets are "segued" by someone like Jeff Daniels who segues from a bracket of "Jeff"s into a bracket of "Daniels"es. The bracket itself is fairly arbitrary. Most initial matchups are pairs, although several are trios while a single entry, Beyoncé, is given a {{w|bye (sports)|first-round bye}}. Most of the participants in the tournament are people with a few exceptions: {{w|Shallots}} (small onions), {{w|scallops}} (bivalve mollusks), and {{w|scallions}} (green onions) are similar sounding foods, therefore may be confusing for some individuals (perhaps including [[Randall]]). The final grouping on the lower right of the bracket features a several retail stores and a film.

The [[title text]] may be referring to {{w|Dr. Dre}}, particularly as a reference to his 2001 song "{{w|Forgot About Dre}}". Alternatively, the title text could simply be a reference to the large number of pop culture personas that include the word "Doctor", such as {{w|Doctor Who}}, {{w|Gregory House|Doctor House}}, {{w|Mehmet Oz|Dr. Oz}}, {{w|Phil McGraw|Dr. Phil}}, {{w|Dr. Watson}}, {{w|Emmett Brown|"Doc" Brown}}, {{w|Dr. Seuss}}, {{w|Dr Pepper}}, {{w|Doctor Doom}}, and {{w|List of fictional doctors|many others}}. (Or, in fact, [http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/futurama-zoidberg-why-not-zoidberg why not Dr. Zoidberg]?) Another possibility is that the [[title text]] is supposed to make the readers ask themselves "{{w|Doctor who}}?" Though "The Doctor" is already listed, this could refer to either ''Doctor Who'' or ''{{w|Doctor (Star Trek: Voyager)|the Star Trek: Voyager character}}''. Notably, while the Doctor in "Doctor Who" is technically one character, the Doctor has currently been played by 13 different actors. The mythos of the Doctor Who even includes individual incarnations of the Doctor interacting with each other; knowing they are the same person, yet often expressing annoyance when grouped together. So perhaps Randall is implying that to just include the Doctor as one individual is not an accurate representation of this character.

The names and other entries in the bracket are:
{| class="wikitable" style="background:transparent;border:none;width:100%;"
| style="background:transparent;border:none;"|
* Armstrong:
:{{w|Louis Armstrong}} (musician)
:{{w|Neil Armstrong}} (first human on the moon)
:{{w|Lance Armstrong}} (bicyclist)
:{{w|Stretch Armstrong}} (action figure)

Jeff *:
:{{w|Jeff Gordan}}
:{{w|Jeff Bridges}} (Actor)

J* Daniels:
:{{w|Jeff Daniels}}
:{{w|Jack Daniels}} (Alcoholic beverage)

Mr. Well*s:
:{{w|Orson Welles}} (Known for "The War of the Worlds")
:{{w|H.G. Wells}} (Known for "The Time Machine")

*well*:
:{{w|George Orwell}} (Author of "1984" and "Animal Farm")
:{{w|Wells Fargo}} (Bank and stage coach company)

* Russell *:
:{{w|Kurt Russell}}
:{{w|Russell Brand}}
:{{w|Russell Crowe}}
:{{w|Russell Simmons}}

* Simmons:
:{{w|Richard Simmons}}
:{{w|Gene Simmons}}

*ckman:
:{{w|Gene Hackman}}
:{{w|Hugh Jackman}}
:{{w|Alan Rickman}}

Alan Par*:
:{{w|Alan Parsons}}
:{{w|Alan Partridge}}

McCarthy/Eugene:
:{{w|Jenny McCarthy}}
:{{w|Joseph McCarthy}} (Senator known for anti-communist witchhunt)
:{{w|Eugene McCarthy}}
:{{w|Eugene V. Debs}} (labor leader)

* Wilde*
:{{w|Gene Wilder}}
:{{w|Olivia Wilde}}
:{{w|Oscar Wilde}}

Oscar De La *:
:{{w|Oscar De La Renta}}
:{{w|Oscar De La Hoya}}

Jack *:
:{{w|Jack Nicklaus}} (Golf player)
:{{w|Jack Nicholson}} (Actor)

*ickle* / *ickel*:
:{{w|Phil Mickelson}}
:{{w|Nicholas Nickelby}}

*ryan Adams:
:{{w|Ryan Adams}}
:{{w|Bryan Adams}}

Popular Games:
:{{w|Chubby Checker}} (Checkers is a board games)
:{{w|Fats Domino}} (Dominoes [or dominos]) is a game. Domino's is a pizza chain.)

Colin *:
:{{w|Colin Firth}}
:{{w|Colin Farrell}}

F*rell:
:{{w|Will Ferrell}}
:{{w|The Farrelly Brothers}}

*itt:
:{{w|Joseph Gordon-Levitt}}
:{{w|Jennifer Love Hewitt}}

* Glover:
:{{w|Danny Glover}}
:{{w|Donald Glover}}

* Wahlberg:
:{{w|Donnie Wahlberg}}
:{{w|Mark Wahlberg}}

Mark *:
:{{w|Mark Ruffalo}}
:{{w|Mark Shuttleworth}}

| style="background:transparent;border:none;"|
Bill */* Pullman:
:{{w|Philip Pullman}}
:{{w|Bill Pullman}}
:{{w|Bill Paxton}}

Ghostbusters:
:{{w|Bill Murray}}
:{{w|Dan Aykroyd}}

* Rogers:
:{{w|Ginger Rogers}} (Woman known for dancing with Fred Astaire)
:{{w|Mister/Fred Astaire/Rogers}} (Confusing reference to "Mister Rogers" [Fred Rogers] and Fred Astaire])

Doctor */* Spock:
:{{w|Mister Spock}} (Character on Star Trek)
:{{w|Doctor Spock}} (Author of book on childcare)
:{{w|Doctor Octopus}}

Doctors:
:{{w|Doctor Manhattan}}
:{{w|Doctor Strangelove}} (Character based on Henry Kissinger in movie about nuclear war)
:{{w|Doctor Strange}}

More doctors:
:{{w|Dr. No}} (Science fiction character)
:{{w|The Doctor}} (Science fiction character)
:{{w|Cory Doctorow}} (Real person)

* Jerry Lewis:
:{{w|Jerry Lee Lewis}}
:{{w|Jerry Lewis}}

Others with initial J:
:{{w|Jenny Lewis}}
:{{w|Xeni Jardin}}

Chris *:
:{{w|Chris Evans}}
:{{w|Chris Hemsworth}}

Chris P*:
:{{w|Chris Pine}}
:{{w|Chris Pratt}}

Homophones of Shallots:
:{{w|Shallots}} (small onions)
:{{w|Scallops}} (bivalve mollusks)
:{{w|Scallions}} (green onions)

S* (Similar phonetics):
:{{w|Siouxie Sioux}}
:{{w|Suzanne Vega}}

Arnold */* Palmer:
:{{w|Tom Arnold}} (ex-husband of Roseanne Barr)
:{{w|Arnold Palmer}}
:{{w|Amanda Palmer}}

Wes *:
:{{w|Wes Craven}}
:{{w|Wes Anderson}}

P* Anderson:
:{{w|Paul Thomas Anderson}}
:{{w|Poul Anderson}}

Sir Walter *:
:{{w|Sir Walter Scott}}
:{{w|Sir Walter Raleigh}}

F* Drake:
:{{w|Sir Francis Drake}}
:{{w|Frank Drake}}

Van *:
:{{w|Van Halen}}
:{{w|Van Morrison}}
:{{w|Van Wilder}}

* Van Winkle:
:{{w|Robert Van Winkle}}
:{{w|Rip Van Winkle}} (fictional character)

Connects the "Rip"s with Natalie Imbruglia - her most famous hit was the song "Torn":
:{{w|Rip Torn}}
:{{w|Natalie Imbruglia}}

Business with the word "Body" in their name:
:{{w|The Body Shop}}
:{{w|Bath and Body Works}}

Things with the word "Beyond" in their name:
:{{w|Bed Bath and Beyond}}
:{{w|Beyond Thunderdome}}

Beyoncé
:{{w|Beyoncé}}
|}

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}

:[A tournament bracket with the following:]

{| class="wikitable" style="background:transparent;border:none;width:100%;"
| style="background:transparent;border:none;"|
:{{w|Louis Armstrong}}
:{{w|Neil Armstrong}}
:{{w|Lance Armstrong}}
:{{w|Stretch Armstrong}}

:{{w|Jeff Gordan}}
:{{w|Jeff Bridges}}

:{{w|Jeff Daniels}}
:{{w|Jack Daniels}}

:{{w|Orson Welles}}
:{{w|H.G. Wells}}

:{{w|George Orwell}}
:{{w|Wells Fargo}}

:{{w|Kurt Russell}}
:{{w|Russell Brand}}
:{{w|Russell Crowe}}
:{{w|Russell Simmons}}

:{{w|Richard Simmons}}
:{{w|Gene Simmons}}

:{{w|Gene Hackman}}
:{{w|Hugh Jackman}}
:{{w|Alan Rickman}}

:{{w|Alan Parsons}}
:{{w|Alan Partridge}}

:{{w|Jenny McCarthy}}
:{{w|Joseph McCarthy}}
:{{w|Eugene McCarthy}}
:{{w|Eugene V. Debs}}

:{{w|Gene Wilder}}
:{{w|Olivia Wilde}}
:{{w|Oscar Wilde}}

:{{w|Oscar De La Renta}}
:{{w|Oscar De La Hoya}}

:{{w|Jack Nicklaus}}
:{{w|Jack Nicholson}}

:{{w|Phil Mickelson}}
:{{w|Nicholas Nickelby}}

:{{w|Ryan Adams}}
:{{w|Bryan Adams}}

:{{w|Chubby Checker}}
:{{w|Fats Domino}}

:{{w|Colin Firth}}
:{{w|Colin Farrell}}

:{{w|Will Ferrell}}
:{{w|The Farrelly Brothers}}

:{{w|Joseph Gordon-Levitt}}
:{{w|Jennifer Love Hewitt}}

:{{w|Danny Glover}}
:{{w|Donald Glover}}

:{{w|Donnie Wahlberg}}
:{{w|Mark Wahlberg}}

:{{w|Mark Ruffalo}}
:{{w|Mark Shuttleworth}}

| style="background:transparent;border:none;"|
:{{w|Philip Pullman}}
:{{w|Bill Pullman}}
:{{w|Bill Paxton}}

:{{w|Bill Murray}}
:{{w|Dan Aykroyd}}

:{{w|Ginger Rogers}}
:{{w|Fred Rogers|Mister/Fred Astaire/Rogers}}

:{{w|Mister Spock}}
:{{w|Doctor Spock}}
:{{w|Doctor Octopus}}

:{{w|Doctor Manhatten}}
:{{w|Doctor Strangelove}}
:{{w|Doctor Strange}}

:{{w|Dr. No}}
:{{w|The Doctor}}
:{{w|Cory Doctorow}}

:{{w|Jerry Lee Lewis}}
:{{w|Jerry Lewis}}

:{{w|Jenny Lewis}}
:{{w|Xeni Jardin}}

:{{w|Chris Evans}}
:{{w|Chris Hemsworth}}

:{{w|Chris Pine}}
:{{w|Chris Pratt}}

:{{w|Shallots}}
:{{w|Scallops}}
:{{w|Scallions}}

:{{w|Siouxie Sioux}}
:{{w|Suzanne Vega}}

:{{w|Tom Arnold}}
:{{w|Arnold Palmer}}
:{{w|Amanda Palmer}}

:{{w|Wes Craven}}
:{{w|Wes Anderson}}

:{{w|Paul Thomas Anderson}}
:{{w|Poul Anderson}}

:{{w|Sir Walter Scott}}
:{{w|Sir Walter Raleigh}}

:{{w|Sir Francis Drake}}
:{{w|Frank Drake}}

:{{w|Van Halen}}
:{{w|Van Morrison}}
:{{w|Van Wilder}}

:{{w|Robert Van Winkle}}
:{{w|Rip Van Winkle}}

:{{w|Rip Torn}}
:{{w|Natalie Imbruglia}}

:{{w|The Body Shop}}
:{{w|Bath and Body Works}}

:{{w|Bed Bath and Beyond}}
:{{w|Beyond Thunderdome}}

:{{w|Beyoncé}}
|}

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]

Category:Sunday comics

2015-05-20T16:54:59Z

108.162.237.162: fixed error

These are the comics that were posted on xkcd on a Sunday.

*Note that xkcd usually only posts a new comic Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
**However, for several reasons comics have been posted on all week days
**In the early days of the comic it happened frequently, but it has become very rare since [[LiveJournal]] closed.
***Only [[15: Just Alerting You]] falls into this category. Randall even mentioned that this was a special Sunday release - see [[15: Just Alerting You#Trivia|comic 15's trivia]].
**One notable exception that can lead to off-set release dates is [[:Category:April_fools'_comics|April Fools day]].
***This happened first time on a Sunday with [[1037: Umwelt]].
**There is no explanation for why [[152: Hamster Ball]] was released on a Sunday?
*Finally there could be incidences where a comic possibly has been miscategorized.
**The date given should be when posted on xkcd, not here.
**Please check up on this and explain here and at the comic why it has been released on a Sunday.
**The dates can be found in the [http://www.xkcd.com/archive/ xkcd archive]
***Hover mouse over title to view publication date.

[[Category:Comics by weekday| 7]]

Category:Saturday comics

2015-05-20T16:53:46Z

108.162.237.162: fixed error

These are the comics that were posted on xkcd on a Saturday.

*Note that xkcd usually only posts a new comic Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
**However, for several reasons comics have been posted on all week days
**In the early days of the comic it happened frequently, but it has become very rare since [[LiveJournal]] closed.
***All five comics released on a Saturday are from before that time.
**The Radiation chart is not a normal comic but part of a [[Blag]] post.
**One notable exception that can lead to off-set release dates is [[:Category:April_fools'_comics|April Fools day]].
***This has not occurred on a Saturday yet as of 2015.
*Finally there could be incidences where a comic possibly has been miscategorized.
**The date given should be when posted on xkcd, not here.
**Please check up on this and explain here and at the comic why it has been released on a Saturday.
**The dates can be found in the [http://www.xkcd.com/archive/ xkcd archive]
***Hover mouse over title to view publication date.

[[Category:Comics by weekday| 6]]

Talk:1527: Humans

2015-05-20T10:54:39Z

108.162.237.162: Jurassic World?

Yes! Preach it, Randall! [[Special:Contributions/188.114.106.23|188.114.106.23]] 08:23, 20 May 2015 (UTC)
:Everyone knows they're more akin to big cows, anyway. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.106.143|141.101.106.143]] 09:33, 20 May 2015 (UTC)
::Big ''spherical'' cows. --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 10:22, 20 May 2015 (UTC)

Robots complaining about science is like humans complaining about evolution. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.231.60|108.162.231.60]] 09:49, 20 May 2015 (UTC)
:Great line :) --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.215.118|108.162.215.118]] 10:51, 20 May 2015 (UTC)

Given the title text, the reference to movie humans makes this cartoon likely an oblique commentary on the upcoming film ''Jurassic World'' where the dinosaurs remain featherless. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.162|108.162.237.162]] 10:54, 20 May 2015 (UTC)

460: Paleontology

2014-08-09T19:54:22Z

108.162.237.162: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 460
| date = August 8, 2008
| title = Paleontology
| image = paleontology.png
| titletext = Dinosaurs totally jumped the ichthyosaur when they got rid of Brontosaurus.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic is essentially a set up for a pun: "Underground" can mean "under the ground" (buried in the dirt) or "non-mainstream." In this case, [[Ponytail]] is whining that she had been doing paleontology before {{w|Jurassic Park}} kicked paleontology into the mainstream with living reproductions of dinosaurs, thus apparently undermining the hard work paleontologists had done. In other words, this comic is also poking fun at hipsters.

Of note is the fact that "[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acrocanthosaurus '''acro'''canthosaur]" is misspelled in the third panel as "'''arco'''canthosaur." Assuming this isn't merely a spelling mistake on [[Randall]]'s part, Ponytail's incorrect pronunciation further undermines her self-proclaimed superiority over all the Jurassic Park-inspired "bandwagon" paleontologists.

The title text refers to both the phenomenon called '{{w|jumping the shark}}' and the controversy having the ''Brontosaurus'''s scientific name changed to ''{{w|Apatosaurus}},'' despite that ''Brontosaurus'' had already made a name for itself in the mainstream. [[636: Brontosaurus]] also references the ''Brontosaurus'' name change. An ''Apatosaurus'' also appears in [[15: Just Alerting You]], and [[650: Nowhere]]. {{w|Ichthyosaur}}s are marine reptiles with bodies resembling sharks or dolphins, which lived alongside dinosaurs during the {{w|Mesozoic}} era.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball and Ponytail in a museum, near a reconstructed dinosaur fossil.]
:Ponytail: Man, paleontology sucks these days.
:Cueball: Why?
:Ponytail: Jurassic Park came out 15 years ago.
:Cueball: So?
:Ponytail: Today's grad students got into dinosaurs after seeing it as kids. They don't care about fossils. Brats.
:[A woman in a hat exploring a barren landscape.]
:Ponytail: Before they had living dinosaurs handed to them by Hollywood, I was out in Texas digging up Arcocanthosaur teeth.
:Cueball: So, you were into dinosaurs when they were still underground?
:Ponytail: Exactly!

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

1231: Habitable Zone

2014-08-09T18:05:09Z

108.162.237.162: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1231
| date = June 28, 2013
| title = Habitable Zone
| image = habitable zone.png
| titletext = They have a telescope pointed RIGHT AT US!
}}

==Explanation==
While searching for {{w|extrasolar planet}}s this gullible astronomer is looking at a reflection of the Earth itself. He's very excited because he found a planet in a star's {{w|habitable zone}}, with oceans and visible weather. It is presumably quite likely to have life on it, which would be the first discovery many astronomers are looking for.

The caption explains that someone has used a mirror to fool the astronomer. The title text goes on and incorrectly says that an astronomer falling for this prank would be able to see the reflection of the telescope being used to make the observation. In reality, the telescopes used for this type of research are designed to view faint, distant objects. In the images that they produce, objects the size of telescopes are not visible. Therefore, the astronomer would not see the reflection of the telescope.

Also, the telescopes have a motor that moves them to compensate for earth's rotation, so that they stay pointed on the same part of the sky. This means that the telescope would not stay pointed at the mirror. The prankster would have to move the mirror in a very precise way to maintain the illusion.

Another problem with [[Randall]]'s premise is that the comment that the planet is in a star's habitable zone means that the astronomer observed the planet to be the size of earth and observed the distance between the planet Earth and its star the Sun, and the approximate size of that star. However, in a mirror at any reasonable distance from the earth, up to several times the distance of the moon, the earth would appear to be larger than the sun. For the relative sizes of the earth and sun to be correct in the reflection, the mirror would have to be as far from earth as the mirror was from the sun. But even pointing to a mirror at a distance of the moon would require a real huge one, probably more than one hundred kilometers (sixty miles) in diameter.

Because Randall is doubtlessly aware of all these issues, it may be that the intended joke is not merely the prankster's deception of the astronomer, but the astronomer's self-deception. Because the authenticity of the prank is so flimsy, a professional astronomer should be able to realize nearly instantaneously that they're not looking at an Earth-like, extrasolar planet (as should anyone, in fact, who is familiar with even the basic arrangement of Earth's continents and oceans). As mentioned near the beginning of this section, however, many astronomers are understandably eager to locate other life-supporting planets. This particular astronomer has proven so eager that he has thoughtlessly disregarded all the very obvious evidence to the contrary - an extreme example of {{w|confirmation bias}}. Thus the comic may either be simply a humorous observation of the natural scientific appeal to be found in the idea of living or finding life outside our solar system, or a request that we ensure our eagerness to make these discoveries - understandable though it may be - does not unduly cloud our scientific judgment.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball stands in front of a huge telescope, looking through the eyepiece.]
:Cueball: I've discovered an Earth-sized planet in a star's habitable zone! It even has oceans! And visible weather!
:To mess with an astronomer, put a mirror in the path of their telescope.

==Trivia==
*Searching for extrasolar planets is still a hard job, so even the results from the {{w|Kepler (spacecraft)|Kepler mission}} are only classified as candidates. The findings still have to be confirmed by other (mostly earth based) telescopes.
*As in July 2013 there are no earth-sized planets confirmed, habitable or not.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Science]]
[[Category:Exoplanets]]