explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

2390: Linguists

2020-12-01T09:48:39Z

162.158.158.43:

{{comic
| number = 2390
| date = November 25, 2020
| title = Linguists
| image = linguists.png
| titletext = "Do you feel like the answer depends on whether you're currently in the hole, versus when you refer to the events later after you get out? Assuming you get out."
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by A LINGUIST IN A HOLE (OR IS IT A PIT?). As a non native English speaker, I do not at all understand the differences between what Ponytail perceives and what should have actually been said. And I did not get any the more wiser from the current explanation. What is it that Ponytail thinks is being said, and what should have been said to avoid misunderstanding? Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

Ponytail hears the cries of an unidentified person who has become trapped in a hole. She rushes over and asks whether the trapped person's chosen phrasing for their predicament – "fell down a hole" – is equivalent to "fell in a hole."

For the case "fell down a hole", most people would likely understand "fell" (action) "down" (direction) "a hole" (place), while it could also be understood as "fell" (action) "down a hole" (place). Since "down a hole" is about the same as "in a hole" (barring being completely inside or not), Ponytail would like to know if "fell down a hole" is meant as "fell in a hole" or not. This phrase, on the other hand, has the same problem of being ambiguous, but with the additional problem that it is not clear what the majority of people would understand {{Citation needed}}. "Fell down into a hole" would likely solve the problem, but isn't mentioned in the comic.

In the caption, Randall comments on the stereotype that linguists are obnoxious elitists who only love telling people how wrong they are ("{{w|Linguistic prescription|Grammar Nazi}}s"). He claims the truth is much worse, that linguists' desire to extract exact meaning from phrases is done with the best of intentions. He also claims that this is worse than if they were pedants browbeating their audience, possibly because a pedant could prioritize the elements of a situation better than Ponytail is doing here.

This is similar to the viewpoint dedicated to scientists in comic [[877: Beauty]], as in studying that field seems to be a cold and sad way to analyze the thing, but instead is an extreme form of child-like awe and inspiration.

The title text goes further on this quest of understanding by trying to see whether the different usages are tied to the current situation or not. Perhaps "I fell down a hole" means "I ''just'' fell down a hole" (one has currently fallen down this hole, explaining the situation as seen) or else "I ''once'' fell down a hole" (one had previously fallen down a(nother?) hole, retelling of a prior unseen occurrence). It may even be an explanation: Having discovered the joys of being down a hole, after a prior inadvertent fall, this is why the voice has (re)descended into this hole despite having had temporarily gotten out of that original depression.

The title text’s last sentence “assuming you get out” drives home the point that Ponytail is concerning herself with linguistic matters over practical ones. Ponytail’s use of “assuming” rather than “when” suggests that Ponytail doesn’t have a plan to get the person out, or that she has a plan but isn’t confident in its success. The former interpretation, that Ponytail is thinking of the person getting out as abstract and unconnected with her, is funnier and more consistent with Ponytail’s actions so far.

==Transcript==

:[Ponytail is walking to the left. A voice calls out from behind her (at the right of the panel):]
:Off-panel voice: Help!
:Off-panel voice: I fell down a hole!

:[Ponytail runs to the right, toward the hole.]

:[Ponytail, kneeling down next to the hole, calls out:]
:Ponytail: Hey!
:Ponytail: Is "fell down a hole" exactly equivalent to "fell in a hole," in your usage? Or do they have slightly different implications?

:[Caption below the panel]
:There's a myth that linguists are pedants who love correcting people, but they're actually just enthusiastic about understanding language in all its infinite varieties, which is much worse.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Language]]

Talk:2392: Cyber Cafe

2020-12-01T05:03:14Z

162.158.158.43:

Is it worth noting that this was posted on Cyber Monday? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.75.70|162.158.75.70]] 21:57, 30 November 2020 (UTC)
:Yes! That's almost certainly relevant. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]])

Unrelated to cybercafés, but why is the edit link the viewed-outside mauve instead of the viewed-wiki violet? [[User:Bubblegum|bubblegum]]-[[User_talk:Bubblegum|talk]]|[[Special:Contributions/Bubblegum|contribs]] 04:13, 1 December 2020 (UTC)
:Which edit link(s)? The 'faux tab' ("Read | Edit | View History", etc) the "*TITLE HEADER* (Edit)" or A.N.Other? Is it something specific to your own browser stylesheet? Or set by your Wikilogin? For me (simple IP as I am) the only links of different colours (passing over your own .sig, Bubblegum) are the Main page/Latest comic/Community portal/xkcd.com links in the sidebar((*)), and those are in the universal "visited page" hue (because I have visited these) and all other non-image link text are in the colour of universally standard yet-to-visit link colour that is probably the same as NCSA Mosaic originally established/adopted (though I don't know if that's because it's set by the wikicode/styles or fallen back to default). ((* - plus, now, the "add a comment!" link and also the cybersex one, as a random in-explanation link I tested going to while writing this reply.)) [[Special:Contributions/162.158.158.43|162.158.158.43]] 05:03, 1 December 2020 (UTC)
"Cyber" is 'dated'? Well, I suppose it has been around as a popular term for a while, probably even before Gibson (and long-standing Internet Cafes 'round here now seem more to be rebranded as eSports hosts, because ''almost'' everyone who cares for one has an Internetted-device on their desk, kitchen table, maybe in their pocket, but a good well-maintained machine for the latest faddy FPSing or any satisfyingly tactile wheel/pedal controller seems to be what they can still offer up, almost arcadian...) but I don't think in the last thirty years I ever said "I'm in Cyber", even though I probably am by today's lingo (old fuddy-duddy as I am, I just say I work "in computing", if anybody has had to feign social interest in me to ask - and then reel off some of my actual sub-specialities if they foolishly indicate a desire to know more). Nor have I ever used such a café, in any capacity, but probably more from a "safe hex" standpoint (malware remediation and cracker-thwarting having been a big part of my career, for several years either side of the Millenium) than this year's issue with a certain non-software virus... [[Special:Contributions/162.158.158.43|162.158.158.43]] 05:03, 1 December 2020 (UTC)

Talk:2391: Life Before the Pandemic

2020-11-27T15:51:59Z

162.158.158.43:

This reminds me of the Four Yorkshiremen from At last the 1948 show. Tell that to youngsters nwadays. [[User:Arachrah|Arachrah]] ([[User talk:Arachrah|talk]]) 15:06, 27 November 2020 (UTC)

It is actually not clear to which ongoing pandemic the comic is referring. Wikipedia [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_epidemics] is listing 10 epidemics currently going on. The longest ongoing one is the HIV/AIDS pandemic since 1981. It is not unlikely that the majority of humans on earth has no recollection or barely remembers the time before 1981. --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.158.43|162.158.158.43]] 15:51, 27 November 2020 (UTC)

2391: Life Before the Pandemic

2020-11-27T15:46:24Z

162.158.158.43: /* Grilling in the Library */

{{comic
| number = 2391
| date = November 27, 2020
| title = Life Before the Pandemic
| image = life_before_the_pandemic.png
| titletext = I can't wait until this is all over and I can go back to riding my horse through the mall.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a STUPID CLAW. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

This is another comic in xkcd's [[:Category:COVID-19|series of comics]] about the COVID-19 pandemic. [[Megan]] and [[Cueball]] are having a conversation about life before the pandemic, which was declared as such on the 11th of March, 2020 by the World Health Organization. They talk about what they miss about life before the pandemic, but Cueball says that he can barely remember it, which is born out by the rest of their discussion, as none of the activities they listed were ever popular in any capacity. After they finish reminiscing, Megan says that she can't wait for a vaccine, further implying that she she can't wait to have all of these things "back." Both Pfizer and Moderna are making vaccines, with Pfizer making their application for emergency use on November 20th, 2020, 7 days before this comic's release. It is expected to be approved for use by the end of the year.

===SCUBA diving without a mask===
SCUBA stands for Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus. It consists of a tank of compressed air, which is conducted through a tube to a mask which allows the diver to breath underwater. The mask is a fundamental part of SCUBA diving. Cloth masks, to help lower the spread of the virus between people, became common around the and are recommended precaution when going into public. Megan is conflating these two different types of masks, misremembering world where SCUBA diving did not have masks involved. You do not need to wear a cloth mask if you are SCUBA diving.

===Free refills at Gas Stations===
Gas Stations are locations where you can buy gasoline, which powers internal combustion engines, especially those in cars. A "free refill," in this context, likely refers to getting the gas tank of your car filled for free, which was not a business practice that was ever common, and is the joke of this section. However, many gas stations also have a small convenience shop that accompanies them, where you can buy food, drinks, and can use the restroom. "Free refills" could refer to getting a free refill of a type of soft drink, which has happened in gas stations, but is not consistent with the theme of the comic.

===Grilling in the Library===
Grilling general poses a significant fire hazard and is thus typically not allowed in doors, especially in libraries.

===Tennis without a "safety" net===

{{w|Tennis}} is a sport where two players use racquets to hit a ball at each other. The game is played on a court divided in half by a low net. The net is not used for anyone's safety; it's to ensure that the ball must be volleyed to the other player with some minimum height. Megan seems to believe that the net is there to ensure that the players stay on opposite sides of the net, in order to lower the spread of the virus.

===Indoor Fireworks===
Many indoor activities were moved outdoors during the COVID-19 pandemic, as poorly-ventilated indoor spaces vastly increase the chance of the virus spreading. Fireworks are explosives shot into the air for entertainment, they are not suitable for use indoors.

Setting off fireworks indoors is not safe, even before the pandemic.{{Citation needed}}

===Arcade Claw Machines===

Arcade claw machines have a bin of prizes (often stuffed animals) with a claw mechanism hanging overhead. The player pays a few coins into the machine and maneuvers the claw over a desired prize. The claw will descend and "attempt" to grab the prize for retrieval, but to ensure a favorable revenue for the machine operator, there is often a hidden percentage chance that the claw will not fully close. This is a frustrating experience for the player (e.g. Cueball). Remote manipulator arms are used for handling dangerous items, but the arcade claw machine was not implemented for the purpose of safety.

===Title Text: Riding a Horse through the Mall===

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:COVID-19]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]

Talk:2387: Blair Witch

2020-11-20T20:07:19Z

162.158.158.43: harrowing meaning

The whole Blair Witch legend didn't exist before the movie. This doesn't seem too evident from the explanation, which is written as though there was a historical basis for it.[[Special:Contributions/172.69.33.245|172.69.33.245]] 03:23, 19 November 2020 (UTC)

https://www.google.com/search?q=single+sex+lizard+species&oq=single+sex+lizard+species

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Mexico_whiptail
Not the result that I can't remember right now, a tropical location? Has (moving to had) an all female lizard species.
SDT [[Special:Contributions/162.158.75.46|162.158.75.46]] 03:28, 19 November 2020 (UTC)

Have you considered the possibility that the Blair Witch, if female, could be bred with human males? They may not need Blair Witch males to reproduce. I seem to remember that some parthenogenic lizards need to have sex with a male of a different species to reproduce. The male sperm does not contribute to the genome of the offspring but is required to trigger necessary hormonal, etc. changes. I could not find a reference to this. (~Unsigned?~)
:It's a bit sparse, but mentioned in here anyway: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tremblay%27s_salamander (meanwhile, I was going to mention either the 'Jurassic Park' thing or the Komodo Dragon as an example (but WZ-parthonegenisis of isolated females would produce just male offspring). Maybe they have sequential hermaphrodism, probably protogynous given what we might consider the active population's active gender-bias. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.86|108.162.229.86]] 06:04, 19 November 2020 (UTC)

Why is the pointer called a baton? If it's not called a pointer, why not call it a wand?[[User:J Milstein|J Milstein]] ([[User talk:J Milstein|talk]]) 04:35, 19 November 2020 (UTC)
:I've never seen anyone call it a "baton" before this analysis. Maybe it's a foreign thing? [[Special:Contributions/172.68.65.214|172.68.65.214]] 09:45, 19 November 2020 (UTC)
::I would associate "baton" primarily with music conductors (but also relay races) where English has adopted the French/similar word for "stick". Meanwhile "pointer" ''might'' be right, but in my head relates more to a mouse-cursor these days, if there's a projected image. "Stick" itself seems to fit (there's much symmantic overlap, given it's just a different linguistic root of the same broad concept) but with not enough context could easily be a twig, thumb-drive, etc, so not entirely sure if it's the ideal replacement. English is complex like that, and I don't think there's a simple name that's universally better than any other. An imperfect search on an online store under office items gives "telescopic pointing stick" or (rarer) "...rod", from which we ''might'' drop the telescopic aspect given that's not an obvious/relevent detail above. But it was interesting to ponder... [[Special:Contributions/162.158.158.7|162.158.158.7]] 17:38, 19 November 2020 (UTC)
:I'm pretty sure they're called "pointers". And in modern times the physical sticks have been replaced with small laser devices, and they're called "laser pointers". [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 17:49, 19 November 2020 (UTC)
:"Baton" is the French (and perhaps other languages) word for "wand," although it can also refer to the musical conducting stick. [[User:Duraludon|Duraludon]] ([[User talk:Duraludon|talk]]) 02:04, 20 November 2020 (UTC)

Can we keep the captured specimens in a brothel and ask them to enchant themselves to be irresistible to men? That way the conservation project can pay for itself, and it would merely be whoroing instead of harrowing. I'll show myself out. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.142.195|172.68.142.195]] 19:01, 19 November 2020 (UTC)

I got the feeling that the quotation marks in 'harrowing' are there because there is a wording joke. Since I lack vocabulary, I could not understand it, but it felt like a sex joke. Whoroing may be the intended one. (20/11/2020)
:by context, it's in quotes because she quotes the biologists. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.91.231|162.158.91.231]] 17:14, 20 November 2020 (UTC)
:it's also an agricultural term. After you plough the land, you harrow it. The gerund is "harrowing". Probably a typical activity in the type of landscapes the comic references? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.158.43|162.158.158.43]] 20:07, 20 November 2020 (UTC)

2384: Set in the Present

2020-11-12T14:35:36Z

162.158.158.43: /* Transcript */ Re-adding a sense of something spotted as having been overwrit whilst resolving the Edit Conflict.

{{comic
| number = 2384
| date = November 11, 2020
| title = Set in the Present
| image = set_in_the_present.png
| titletext = She referenced Billie Eilish, so this must be getting pretty close to the pandemic. But we've seen the last two years in-universe, so if it's set in the future, they must be in at least 2023 by now. [*adds thumbtacks and string to wall*]
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by an ALTERNATE NO-COVID TIMELINE. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

[[Cueball]] is watching a wall-mounted television set that's showing either a movie or a TV program. On-screen, people are talking face-to-face without face masks, and other maskless people mingle in the background. Although he's not engaged with the plot, Cueball has picked up enough setting clues to know that the story is set in or near the present day. However, the actual present day includes a raging pandemic ({{w|COVID-19 pandemic|COVID-19}}), the likes of which have not been seen in a century. The program doesn't reflect this, and Cueball is driven to distraction by the mismatch between his world and its.

In a generic setting, stories can date themselves through the appearance of era-specific technology (such as cell phone models, which Cueball notes) or pop culture references ({{w|Billie Eilish}} is mentioned in the title text). These clues support the idea that the story is current, but the story's world is still fundamentally different without the pandemic. Attempting to resolve the question, Cueball considers the possibility that the story is set in 2019 (COVID-19 did not emerge until late that year and did not become a pandemic until 2020); a vaccinated future where COVID-19 has been cured; or that it is 2020, but the characters are simply being reckless with their own (and each others') health. Alternatively, this story could occur in an {{w|alternate timeline}} with no COVID. In the realm of books, writers in at least one subgenre within romance fiction have adopted the 'alternate timeline' approach, on the argument that COVID-19 is an element of the real world from which their readership is trying to escape.

Movies and television productions are enormously complex, and months, if not years, can pass between when a screenplay is written and the finished product finishes filming. There is often an additional gap between the end of production and a program's release. Together, these delays mean that most movies and TV shows still coming out in the pandemic reflect the world as it was before COVID hit. Even if produced after COVID-19 had already began, many movies and TV shows may not reference COVID or mask-wearing, leading to Cueball's confusion/distraction. Also, the production lag time would affect era-specific technology such as cell phones, which would reflect the time at which the production was filmed rather than the time it was released and viewed. Thus, a story set in "the present day" will actually reflect the world of some months or years in the past.

The idea of using thumbtacks and strings (usually accompanied by newspaper clippings and photographs) to study a problem is pop-culture shorthand for a conspiracy theory. Randall has previously mentioned this in [[2244: Thumbtacks And String]].

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is standing and watching a presumed typical wall mounted flat-screen television. There is no background, nor other physical features, just Cueball and the obliquely aligned screen positioned to also let us view its foreshortened image. In this, Megan and Ponytail are seen talking face to face with hands almost or actually in contact. Their faces are sociably close together and they are not shown as wearing masks. In the background of the scene are several other Cueball-like figures, not notably masked up or distanced from each other, and two may be holding hands. Cueball himself is given a large thought bubble above him, within which is written his current distracted train of thoughts:]
:Cueball: Okay, they're hugging, and no one has masks, but she has a modern phone. Is this story set in 2019?
:Cueball: Or is this a post-vaccine future? Or an alternate no-Covid timeline?
:Cueball: Or are we supposed to think these characters are irresponsible?

:[Caption below the panel:]
:Movies and shows that are vaguely set in "The Present" will be awkward for a while.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]
[[Category:COVID-19]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]

Talk:2350: Deer Turrets

2020-08-24T21:04:18Z

162.158.158.43:

There's no "next" button on [[2349]]? --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.250|108.162.219.250]] 18:44, 24 August 2020 (UTC)
Is this about something? I mean, it could be a commentary on the way politics handled Covid, some politicians taking terrible decisions, then saying it was a mistake and that science is still learning, but then still taking terrible decisions afterwards. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.69.83|141.101.69.83]] 21:02, 24 August 2020 (UTC)
The reason there's no Next button is that it's the newest comic. --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.158.43|162.158.158.43]] 21:04, 24 August 2020 (UTC)

2348: Boat Puzzle

2020-08-20T12:22:24Z

162.158.158.43: /* Explanation */ (better)

{{comic
| number = 2348
| date = August 19, 2020
| title = Boat Puzzle
| image = boat_puzzle.png
| titletext = 'No, my cabbage moths have already started laying eggs in them! Send the trolley into the river!' 'No, the sailing wolf will steal the boat to rescue them!'
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a GOAT THAT EATS WOLVES. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This comic is a twist on {{w|Wolf, goat and cabbage problem|an old riddle}}. In the original riddle, a person has to cross a river in a boat that can only hold them and one other object. They have a wolf, a goat, and a cabbage that they need to bring across with them, similar to the first panel. If the wolf is left alone with the goat, however, the wolf will eat the goat; and if the goat and cabbage are alone, the goat will eat the cabbage. (The problem can be solved in seven trips.)

However, the comic quickly devolves into surrealism in the later panels as new characters show up, bringing deviations of the original "cabbage", "goat", and "wolf" that add extra layers of complexity to the riddle. White Hat brings extra wolves and cabbages. Black Hat, in his traditional classhole style, brings {{w|cabbage moth}}s which will infest unsupervised cabbages with destructive larvae, and boat-destroying {{w|termite}}s. How he intends to bring them across the river (or even if he wants to) is unknown, but it brings to mind the parable of {{w|The Scorpion and the Frog}}. Beret Guy arrives with a wolf who can operate a boat, who could perhaps serve as a second pilot to expedite the crossing, so long as he is not asked to ferry a goat, and also a goat who eats wolves (which does not alter the problem constraints but is unusual, as one would expect from Beret Guy's associate).

The last panel is a reference to the {{w|Trolley_Problem|Trolley Problem}}, a moral test that asks the participant whether they would passively let people in the way of an uncontrollable trolley die or actively divert the trolley to kill a single person standing on a branch of the tracks. The comic gives a twist here too: according to the title text, the characters must choose between stopping the trolley full of wolves with a cushion of cabbages (in which the cabbage moths have laid eggs, which the speaking character treats as morally equivalent to "innocent children") or letting it crash into the river (at which point the wolf who can operate a boat will steal the boat to rescue the wolves from the trolley, which will delay the other characters from crossing the river).

The River Crossing puzzle was also mentioned in [[1134: Logic Boat]] and referenced in [[589: Designated Drivers]].

The Trolley Problem was also mentioned in [[1455: Trolley Problem]] and referenced in [[1938: Meltdown and Spectre]].

==Transcript==
[Cueball and Ponytail are standing on the bank of a river. There is a boat in the river. A goat and wolf are also on the riverbank, and Ponytail is holding a cabbage.]

Ponytail: I need to cross the river. I have a wolf, a goat, and a cabbage.

Cueball: Hmm.

[White Hat appears, accompanied by two wolves and pulling a wagon full of cabbages.]

Cueball: OK, here's what-

White Hat: Hi, I also need to cross. I have two wolves and 100 cabbages.

[Black Hat arrives, surrounded by a cloud of flying creatures and carrying a jar of bugs under his arm. Beret Guy follows with another wolf and goat on leashes.]

Black Hat: I have 50 cabbage moths and 2,000 boat-destroying termites.

Beret Guy: I have a wolf that can operate a boat, and a goat that eats wolves.

[The fourth panel is a zoomed-out shot, where everything but the sky appears black.]

[A trolley speeds in, leaving a trail of dust in its wake. A person is standing on the front, and many ears are barely visible above the seats.]

Cueball: Hang on, I need to make a spreadsheet.

Trolley operator: Look out!

Trolley operator: My wolf-filled trolley is out of control and can only be stopped by a cushion of cabbages!

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]
[[Category:Logic]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Food]]

2348: Boat Puzzle

2020-08-20T12:21:15Z

162.158.158.43: /* Explanation */ Seemed to be explained as an /inverse/ of the usual base Trolley Problem (before extra variations in conditions, or such as "Push one very fat man off a bridge to stop it").

{{comic
| number = 2348
| date = August 19, 2020
| title = Boat Puzzle
| image = boat_puzzle.png
| titletext = 'No, my cabbage moths have already started laying eggs in them! Send the trolley into the river!' 'No, the sailing wolf will steal the boat to rescue them!'
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a GOAT THAT EATS WOLVES. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This comic is a twist on {{w|Wolf, goat and cabbage problem|an old riddle}}. In the original riddle, a person has to cross a river in a boat that can only hold them and one other object. They have a wolf, a goat, and a cabbage that they need to bring across with them, similar to the first panel. If the wolf is left alone with the goat, however, the wolf will eat the goat; and if the goat and cabbage are alone, the goat will eat the cabbage. (The problem can be solved in seven trips.)

However, the comic quickly devolves into surrealism in the later panels as new characters show up, bringing deviations of the original "cabbage", "goat", and "wolf" that add extra layers of complexity to the riddle. White Hat brings extra wolves and cabbages. Black Hat, in his traditional classhole style, brings {{w|cabbage moth}}s which will infest unsupervised cabbages with destructive larvae, and boat-destroying {{w|termite}}s. How he intends to bring them across the river (or even if he wants to) is unknown, but it brings to mind the parable of {{w|The Scorpion and the Frog}}. Beret Guy arrives with a wolf who can operate a boat, who could perhaps serve as a second pilot to expedite the crossing, so long as he is not asked to ferry a goat, and also a goat who eats wolves (which does not alter the problem constraints but is unusual, as one would expect from Beret Guy's associate).

The last panel is a reference to the {{w|Trolley_Problem|Trolley Problem}}, a moral test that asks the participant whether they would passively let people in the way of an uncontrollable trolley die or actively divert the trolley to kill a single person standing on the tracks. The comic gives a twist here too: according to the title text, the characters must choose between stopping the trolley full of wolves with a cushion of cabbages (in which the cabbage moths have laid eggs, which the speaking character treats as morally equivalent to "innocent children") or letting it crash into the river (at which point the wolf who can operate a boat will steal the boat to rescue the wolves from the trolley, which will delay the other characters from crossing the river).

The River Crossing puzzle was also mentioned in [[1134: Logic Boat]] and referenced in [[589: Designated Drivers]].

The Trolley Problem was also mentioned in [[1455: Trolley Problem]] and referenced in [[1938: Meltdown and Spectre]].

==Transcript==
[Cueball and Ponytail are standing on the bank of a river. There is a boat in the river. A goat and wolf are also on the riverbank, and Ponytail is holding a cabbage.]

Ponytail: I need to cross the river. I have a wolf, a goat, and a cabbage.

Cueball: Hmm.

[White Hat appears, accompanied by two wolves and pulling a wagon full of cabbages.]

Cueball: OK, here's what-

White Hat: Hi, I also need to cross. I have two wolves and 100 cabbages.

[Black Hat arrives, surrounded by a cloud of flying creatures and carrying a jar of bugs under his arm. Beret Guy follows with another wolf and goat on leashes.]

Black Hat: I have 50 cabbage moths and 2,000 boat-destroying termites.

Beret Guy: I have a wolf that can operate a boat, and a goat that eats wolves.

[The fourth panel is a zoomed-out shot, where everything but the sky appears black.]

[A trolley speeds in, leaving a trail of dust in its wake. A person is standing on the front, and many ears are barely visible above the seats.]

Cueball: Hang on, I need to make a spreadsheet.

Trolley operator: Look out!

Trolley operator: My wolf-filled trolley is out of control and can only be stopped by a cushion of cabbages!

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]
[[Category:Logic]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Food]]

2339: Pods vs Bubbles

2020-07-29T16:29:50Z

162.158.158.43: /* Explanation */ Pure comment

{{comic
| number = 2339
| date = July 29, 2020
| title = Pods vs Bubbles
| image = pods_vs_bubbles.png
| titletext = Canada's travel restrictions on the US are 99% about keeping out COVID and 1% about keeping out people who say 'pod.'
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BUBBLE-PERSON, not a POD-PERSON. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

In the current Coronavirus situation, various degrees of household self-isolation were often asked of people - according to their location - once it became understood that there was a virus spreading through contact/proximity vectors.

As the initial surge of cases was dampened down, in places where such drastic restrictions had been implemented and seemingly had prevented ever higher infection rates, the tricky decision on 'opening the lockdown back up' has been by staged let-up in restrictions, such as allowing any two households (neither having signs of symptoms) to meet with each other ''and only each other'', or allowing one person in a multi-occupancy residence to invite just one other person to reassociate intimately with. Further relaxation of rules may have occured since, with the caveat that any one case of Covid-19 discovered in such a co-isolating group of people should be considered a risk factor to every other member (however the local jurisdiction deals with that).

A common term for the larger social unit, not to overlap with any other expanded social unit, is a 'bubble', perhaps to imply that you can only have membership of one bounded bubble at a time (unlike an Euler diagram). The term 'pod' has clearly been used elsewhere. There probably is as much variation across the world about what podding ''or'' bubbling practically means than there is between any two instances of those podded ''vs.'' those bubbled.

Despite the semantic inconsequentialities of the difference, here Cueball clearly expresses a personal preference that he would probably not like being kept in an enforced social situation with someone who uses the other term.

He (as Randall) also realises that he would have not so opined, a year ago, nor probably even understood the argument if he'd heard of it.



==Transcript==
[Cueball is walking to the right with Megan. He has raised a clenched fist.]

Cueball: I ''refuse'' to bubble with anyone who calls it a "pod" and not a "bubble".

Caption below panel: This is probably my opinion that would have sounded the most incoherent to me a year ago.

{{comic discussion}}

Talk:2333: COVID Risk Chart

2020-07-16T14:04:22Z

162.158.158.43:

I'm sticking to the green, except for grocery shopping. It'll be a pain to make any kind of table for this. The columns are much better defined than the rows, though. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.245.150|108.162.245.150]] 18:37, 15 July 2020 (UTC)
:Same! I think we do need to make a table or similar structure to explain each item though. Not exiting, but necessary! Do you think we should switch everything to columns? Since we've started with rows, maybe we should just continue...[[User:Cow|Cow]] ([[User talk:Cow|talk]])

Staying home is a death trap. Here some random numbers (Germany 2019): Deadly accidents at home - 8000, Deadly accidents in traffic - 3500. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.54.199|172.69.54.199]] 07:50, 16 July 2020 (UTC)

Singing in a church: is this where the expression "mass contamination" comes from?[[Special:Contributions/141.101.107.166|141.101.107.166]] 08:31, 16 July 2020 (UTC)

Not all the things on the far right seem to have equal covid risk. Simply going to a restaurant or some of the others that are simply dangerous by being around a lot of other people in close proximity doesn't seem to compare to opening a kissing booth at a covid testing site, the eating test tube things, and the mosh pit on a cruise ship for instance.--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.154|108.162.216.154]] 09:03, 16 July 2020 (UTC)
:There's no inherent extra disease risk in _opening_ a kissing booth (beyond the possible proximity to others). However, the people working/volunteering at the booth you opened that might have a higher-than-average risk due to kissing all the testers and people coming to be tested. :p [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.140|108.162.216.140]] 12:08, 16 July 2020 (UTC)
:: (Required to make a choice between them and someone else, for which all else is equal) I'd kiss an off-duty Covid-tester, because they're probably far more protected by PPE during their shift (and know how to don and doff safely) than most other people, and screened with even more caution. The tester would probably not want to kiss ''me'', in my booth, due to at least the latter point. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.158.43|162.158.158.43]] 14:04, 16 July 2020 (UTC)

I feel like [[1252: Increased Risk]] is quite relevant here. But I can't decide wether it should be linked as general trivia, or directly related to the paragraph about dangers of going to the beach. --[[User:Lupo|Lupo]] ([[User talk:Lupo|talk]]) 09:16, 16 July 2020 (UTC)