explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:1766: Apple Spectrum

2016-11-30T16:41:00Z

162.158.69.142: comment

Well, I did my best on explaining this one... Not really sure I got the Granny Smith part right. --[[User:Andyd273|Andyd273]] ([[User talk:Andyd273|talk]]) 14:32, 30 November 2016 (UTC)

Surely a desert island covered only in apple trees is not beyond all probabilities? [[User:Minimal|Minimal]] ([[User talk:Minimal|talk]]) 15:01, 30 November 2016 (UTC)

I believe his confusion on a desert island with one type of apple is because apples exhibit extreme heterozygosity meaning that any daughter apple tree will produce fruit extremely different from its parent; it would be difficult to have several plants in one area that are all the same that produce no differing offspring (at least on a deserted island...humans can intervene on actively managed orchards). Genetically, the apple does fall very far from the tree. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.59.197|162.158.59.197]] 15:10, 30 November 2016 (UTC)

: This is AMAZING. I had no idea. {{w|Apples}} --[[User:Jeff|Jeff]] ([[User talk:Jeff|talk]]) 15:16, 30 November 2016 (UTC)

What exactly does "doing their own thing" mean in this context? [[User:Drewthedude64|Drewthedude64]] ([[User talk:Drewthedude64|talk]]) 15:20, 30 November 2016 (UTC)Drewthedude64

: I'm assuming it means it was so different, that it couldn't be categorized by a low-high line (those 1-10 scales you see everywhere) --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.82|108.162.216.82]] 15:30, 30 November 2016 (UTC)

: Granny Smith apples are green while the other apples in this comic are red. Also, Granny Smith apples are more tart than sweet...these two characteristics distinguish it from many other apple breeds and is probably why he says they are doing their own thing. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.59.197|162.158.59.197]] 15:32, 30 November 2016 (UTC)

: Granny Smith apples are good all of the time (unless they're mealy). All other apples should be made into pie. Except for red delicious, which shall be cast into outer compost, where there are swine gnashing their teeth. - The Opinionated One. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.69.142|162.158.69.142]] 16:40, 30 November 2016 (UTC)

Has Randall ever explained why he doesn't like Red Delicious? Maybe not crisp enough? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.69.100|162.158.69.100]] 15:59, 30 November 2016 (UTC)

The explanation says that "Two (apple) trees of the same variety will not pollinate each other." I am no botanist, but I'm not sure this is correct. (The linked citation seems to blur the line between apple trees and fruit trees generally.) I think they will pollinate each other, and will even produce fruit, but the resulting fruit will be 'unpredictable.' No apple tree planted from seed will produce apples like its parent (except by chance), due to the heterozygosity mentioned above. BTW, because apples will not "breed true," this also means that every store-bought apple we've ever eaten came from a cloned or grafted tree. Apples are weird. [[User:Miamiclay|Miamiclay]] ([[User talk:Miamiclay|talk]]) 16:30, 30 November 2016 (UTC)

Talk:1765: Baby Post

2016-11-29T14:29:56Z

162.158.69.142: question

Somebody doesn't know young children very well. Or the amount of time they spend watching old movies. I know a couple of four year olds who might just do this after catching a rerun of one of the Pink Panther movies. Get away with it, though, is something entirely different.[[User:Seebert|Seebert]] ([[User talk:Seebert|talk]]) 14:35, 28 November 2016 (UTC)

Check the header, new shirts! [[User:Jacky720|Jacky720]] ([[User talk:Jacky720|talk]]) 15:01, 28 November 2016 (UTC)

If the cell phone or tablet is set to remember passwords, it's not impossible to a children to buy a ticket to london or even call an uber. [[User:Wrojr|Wrojr]] ([[User talk:Wrojr|talk]]) 15:24, 28 November 2016 (UTC)

This cartoon would be funnier if it didn't imply there were years (or decades) between the first and last frames. [[Special:Contributions/198.41.239.32|198.41.239.32]] 21:35, 28 November 2016 (UTC)
:It doesn't, what makes you say that? [[User:Jacky720|Jacky720]] ([[User talk:Jacky720|talk]]) 21:47, 28 November 2016 (UTC)

;Wrong use of plurals?

Shouldn't this be Crown Jewels Rooms? Beside which, how can one jewel be in more than one room? [[User:Bitsofstring|Bitsofstring]] ([[User talk:Bitsofstring|talk]]) 15:54, 28 November 2016 (UTC)
:I'm pretty sure that Ponytail just doesn't care about pluralizing in this informal context. [[User:Jacky720|Jacky720]] ([[User talk:Jacky720|talk]]) 16:05, 28 November 2016 (UTC)
I'm not sure if there's anything wrong with saying "crown jewel rooms". As an analogy, if you had several rooms for your trophies, you'd say "these are my trophy rooms" (ie. my rooms for trophies) even though, presumably, you have more than one trophy. The only part that makes me a bit hesitant is that they are called the "crown jewels". But "crown jewels rooms" sounds really awkward to me. {{unsigned ip|141.101.98.248}}

There is also the puzzle of using blueprints to describe a room's security plan. But it might just be simplified to put into a strip. 18:15, 28 November 2016 (UTC)

Feels like the baby might be related to {{w|Stewie Griffin|Stewie}} from Family Guy... --[[User:IByte|IByte]] ([[User talk:IByte|talk]]) 10:00, 29 November 2016 (UTC)

Is Fhfff''m supposed to be something? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.69.142|162.158.69.142]] 14:29, 29 November 2016 (UTC)

Talk:1763: Catcalling

2016-11-24T12:20:23Z

162.158.69.142: comment

Wouldn't this very quickly result in the extinction of all cats, as they are forced to rush from one chauvinist to another, unable to escape long enough to eat or sleep?
>Jesper


Is it just me or wouldn't this fail if the misogynists also were cat-lovers? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.224|141.101.98.224]] 15:16, 23 November 2016 (UTC)
* I doubt even cat-lovers would enjoy being swarmed by a hopeless amount of cats for an entire year.[[Special:Contributions/162.158.74.36|162.158.74.36]] 15:51, 23 November 2016 (UTC)
>"Misogyny"

The way I originally read this, in addition to wanting to stop getting harassed, Megan also just liked cats and wanted an easy way to gather them. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.55.71|172.68.55.71]] 15:56, 23 November 2016 (UTC)

My initial thought: Awww! Maybe by being confronted to care for neighborhood cats, such "men" might learn how to love and care for creatures who only want to exploit them, like said men do with women. That could work! ...And then I read the title text. --BigMal // [[Special:Contributions/162.158.74.36|162.158.74.36]] 16:52, 23 November 2016 (UTC)

Catcalling now attracts my friend Catherine. [[User:Int|Int]] ([[User talk:Int|talk]]) 17:00, 23 November 2016 (UTC)

Did we know Megan was a lefty? [[User:Jameslucas|jameslucas]] ([[User talk:Jameslucas|" "]] / [[Special:Contributions/Jameslucas|+]]) 18:18, 23 November 2016 (UTC)

The big question is... does it attract bobcats? --[[Special:Contributions/172.68.54.123|172.68.54.123]] 21:30, 23 November 2016 (UTC)

The cursor might not be left handed, rather, we might just be on the other side of the screen, eh? [[User:NotLock|NotLock]] ([[User talk:NotLock|talk]]) 07:40, 24 November 2016 (UTC)
:I was thinking the same thing, but dismissed the idea because the text ("Catcalling", "Attracts cats", etc) isn't similarly mirrored. The drop-down menu itself usually has its arrow-thingy on the right, though... Hmm... [[User:Maplestrip|Maplestrip]] ([[User talk:Maplestrip|talk]]) 11:22, 24 November 2016 (UTC)

I'm pretty sure the part about the title text being perl is wrong. It's definitely not perl5, because things like [2 miles] are not valid syntax at all. This might be perl6 with syntax I don't know, but I doubt it, since the square brackets would indicate something like an array rather than a single element: [2 miles] would then mean "2" and "miles" separately, which doesn't make much sense. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.49.75|173.245.49.75]] 09:23, 24 November 2016 (UTC)

:I agree, it looks much more like trying to indicate text fields in a ASCII string. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.69.142|162.158.69.142]] 12:20, 24 November 2016 (UTC)

1756: I'm With Her

2016-11-09T13:56:07Z

162.158.69.142: Added trivia section with election results.

{{comic
| number = 1756
| date = November 7, 2016
| title = I'm With Her
| image = im_with_her.png
| titletext = We can do this.
}}

==Explanation==
In this serious, ''no joke'', comic released the day before the {{w|2016 United States presidential election}} (which was more contentious than most, due in part to many people finding both candidates unusually distasteful), [[Randall]] urged his American viewership to vote, and showed his {{w|Political endorsement|endorsement}} for {{w|Hillary Clinton}}, the {{w|US Democratic Party|Democratic}} nominee in the election. She was up against the {{w|US Republican Party|Republican}} nominee {{w|Donald Trump}}, who eventually won the presidency. There are also nominees from other parties, most prominently {{w|Green Party of the United States|Green Party}} nominee {{w|Jill Stein}}, and {{w|Libertarian Party (United States)|Libertarian}} nominee {{w|Gary Johnson}}. Neither is likely to become president, but {{w|spoiler candidate|they may affect the result in some states}} (no third-party candidate has ''won'' a state since {{w|United_States_presidential_election,_1968|1968}}, but some polls show independent candidate {{w|Evan McMullin}} with a chance in Utah.)

The "H" with an arrow is {{w|Hillary Clinton presidential campaign, 2016|Clinton's campaign}} logo, and '''I'm with her''' is an official slogan of the campaign and it is thus widely used by her supporters, and explains the title and the caption below the H. Randall then lists tips to help you cast your vote, [[#How to help|see table below]]. This suggests he is invested in the election. Clinton herself may be represented by [[Blondie]] sitting on top of the H looking out at the reader as the only of the 11 characters (see [[#Character gallery|character gallery]] below).

It is the second time Randall refers to this election, the first being [[1748: Future Archaeology]] three weeks before the election, but here it was just a wish to know the result using time travel (of course he did not learn the result…).

This is the first time Randall has used a comic to directly support a presidential campaign, although he did [https://blog.xkcd.com/2008/01/28/obama/ endorse] {{w|Barack Obama}} in 2008 on his [[Blag]]. He wrote himself later that it was very controversial when he endorsed Obama, but that it was not the most [[388:_Fuck_Grapefruit#Controversy|controversial comic he had published]] at that time. This comic might take that prize now, given that this is likely one of the most discussed elections up to its time, especially outside the US, where for instance some of European leaders have made it clear that they are against Trump while other endorse him.

Randall's support for Hillary Clinton may be to do with Donald Trump {{w|Donald_Trump#Healthcare.2C_education_and_environment|being a prominent}} {{w|climate change denier}}. Randall has published comics opposing climate change denial such as this: [[1732: Earth Temperature Timeline]], published less than two month before the election, as well as several other [[:Category:Climate change|comics on climate change]].

All the information on the bottom half of the comic includes sites, numbers, info, etc. that will help US voters to vote, regardless of whom they vote for. Including this information helps voters because every election many voters don't vote because they feel they don't know how or that it isn't worth it. It seems like Randall wants to boost voter turnout.

The title text, which states that "We can do this" refers to Randall's wish that the democratic voters united can put Hillary in the White House rather than Trump. It is possible to [https://www.lookhuman.com/design/86542-hillary-clinton-we-can-do-it/tshirt buy t-shirts] with the famed {{w|We Can Do It!}} logo from the war time poster, but with Hillary Clinton in the famed position. However this is not quite the same "We can do this" sentence that Randall uses. "We can do this" (or in German, "[https://www.dict.cc/?s=Wir+schaffen+das+%5BAngela+Merkel%5D Wir schaffen das]") was also the catchphrase of the German Chancellor {{w|Angela Merkel}} during the recent influx of refugees from the Syrian War—like Clinton, Merkel was fighting against {{w|Pegida|a populist nativist movement}} that wanted to close the country's borders.

===How to help===
The list of things that can help is all about getting people to vote. This could be interpreted as if Randall just wished for people to support the democracy and exercise their right to vote. But with the endorsement of Clinton in the main comic, there can be no doubt that he means that this advice should help Clinton. Generally there is evidence that certain more heavily Democratic-leaning demographics are less likely to vote, so increasing turnout is likely to help Clinton. In general, however, it is likely that Randall would in any case wish for more voters to support the democracy by actually voting.

Here is Randall's lists of suggestion for how to help Hillary Clinton win the election:
{|class="wikitable"
!What to do
!How to do it
!Explanation
|-
|Vote
|[https://iwillvote.com/ iwillvote.com]
|A site to look up polling location, ID requirements, etc.
|-
|Get a ride to the polls:
|[http://www.drive2vote.org/ drive2vote.org]
|For voters in Douglas or Sarpy County, Nebraska, who need a ride to the polls from {{w|Warren Buffett}} or his friends.
|-
|If you're having problems voting
|[http://www.866ourvote.org/ 866-OUR-VOTE]
|In many states, racism or other biases on the part of people running polling places is a real issue for minorities. Though it is illegal in theory, people may lie or deny rights to would-be-voters who they believe will not vote for the candidate they agree with. In some instances, these people may require backup from someone with legal understanding to get to vote, which is a service this phone number provides. Since Donald Trump has suggested that unofficial {{w|poll watchers}} should patrol voting stations - which has been described as potential [https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/nov/05/election-day-violence-donald-trump-poll-watchers voter intimidation] - this has been an especially widely discussed topic in this election. The phone number written out as numbers is (866) 687-8683
|-
|Experimental social turnout project
|[http://www.civicinnovation.com/ civicinnovation.com] App Store: VoteWithMe
|An app which "gives you a list of the top 10 highest-impact potential voters in your address book to get in touch with -- based on the likelihood that they support progressive candidates, and that they live in states with the most competitive races". This app is for Android and iOS, with the App Store ID as "VoteWithMe". The "VoteWithMe" app is created by Civic Innovation Works and "uses publicly available voter records to predict which of your contacts are likely to support Democratic candidates, but might not have a plan to vote", as it says on its [https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/votewithme/id1170104517/ App Store Page].
|-
|Reminder:
|If you're in line when the polls close, they have to let you vote.
|This is correct, as is printed on most election pamphlets as part of the ''Voters' Bill of Rights'', as well as being cited on numerous sources online (eg [http://votersedge.kqed.org/en/ca/ballot/election/area/42/section/voting-info?id=statewide-42-ca#section-my-rights-as-a-voter here].) Being turned down for trying to vote after the polling place is officially closed (if you were already in line ''when'' the polls closed) might be an instance where you want to use the phone number mentioned above.
|}

===Character gallery===
The comic show a gallery of 11 xkcd characters including all the main characters from xkcd (except [[Hairy]]), which stand united behind Randall and Clinton despite their lack of agreement in many other comics.

*From left to right on the left side of the H are:
**[[Ponytail]] with a ray gun for melting computers a possible reference to Hillary's email wipe, (the one she also wielded in [[322: Pix Plz]], a comic where she was named Joanna)
**[[Black Hat]] (who was the one introducing Joanna/Ponytail in the mentioned comic)
**[[Danish]] (Black Hat's girlfriend setting up a kite for him, although it could be Megan, but she is also shown later with her regular shorter hair). However it has mainly been Megan in comics with kites, like [[235: Kite]] and [[1614: Kites]]. Kites are a [[:Category:Kites|recurring theme]] on xkcd.
**[[White Hat]] looking at the kite.
*On top of the H are:
**[[Blondie]] (looking out at us, maybe representing Clinton herself)
**[[Megan]] (next to Cueball)
**[[Cueball]] (forming the standard couple in xkcd with Megan)
**[[Hairbun]] with glasses (so specifically not the one from the previous comic [[1755: Old Days]], but rather like in [[1637: Salt Mine]]).
*On the right side of the H are:
**[[Science Girl]] (The adult version of her, is holding her hand out towards a cute squirrel. Of course she could also be the girl from [[635: Locke and Demosthenes]] where the squirrel is poisoned...)
**[[Beret Guy]] is holding a squirrel out towards Science Girl. (The first time squirrels was mentioned was actually when Beret Guy found them in a tree in [[167: Nihilism]] and since then they have become a [[:Category:Squirrels|recurring theme]] on xkcd and a similar squirrel can for instance be seen in [[1503: Squirrel Plan]]. Beret Guy has not been seen together with a squirrel before, but has been shown to care for animals, for instance in [[614: Woodpecker]]).
**[[:Category:Multiple Cueballs|Another Cueball]] is standing on an office chair wielding a sword as he was shown in [[303: Compiling]]. (Interestingly enough the previous comic [[1755: Old Days]] was about Cueball asking Hairbun about {{w|compiling}} in the old days. Seems realistic that Randall has this comic ready for this Monday before the election for some time, and when finding this 9 year old version of Cueball in the old comics, he may have gotten inspired to make a comic about compiling in the old days).

Note that the two characters at either side of the comic wields weapons pointing out defending the other nine. Those next to the characters with weapons are doing recreational things like kiting and admiring adorable squirrels, both are recurring subjects in xkcd.

==Trivia==
Hillary Clinton lost the election in the {{w|electoral college (United States)}}. She did win Massachusetts (Randall's home state).

==Transcript==
:[Eleven characters are drawn left, right and on top of a huge H with an arrow as the horizontal bar connecting the two vertical towers. The arrow breaks the right part of the H. It represents the logo from Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign for 2016. From left to right on the left side of the H are Ponytail with an exotic looking futuristic ray gun like weapon looking to the left away from the H and the others. Behind her is Black Hat who looks at a girl that might be Danish or Megan (but with longer hair than Megan typically has). She is setting up a kite that flies above the first two characters. Behind her and looking up at the kite is White Hat. The H is right behind him, and on top of the left tower of the H sits Blondie looking straight out at the reader with her legs dangling over the edge and her arms resting on her knees. On the arrow between the two H towers sits Megan leaning against the left H tower, also dangling her legs over the edge and arms resting on her knees. Cueball is standing to her right, just left of the right H tower. On top of the right H towers sits Hairbun with glasses looking straight right with her legs dangling over the edge one arm resting on a knee and leaning back on the other arm. On the right side of the H is an adult version of Science Girl holding a hand out towards the squirrel which Beret Guy is holding out in both arms towards her. Behind them is another Cueball standing on an office chair holding a sword high up in front of him to the right away from the others. He keeps his balance by holding his other arm out behind him. Below the H there is a large caption.]
:<big><big><big>H</big></big></big>
: <big><big>I'm with her.</big></big>

:[Below the panel there are several lines of text. The first header line refers to the next four lines with solutions to problems, title/problem on one side then a long dash and the web-link or other information on the right side of that. Below those there is a reminder.]
:<big>How to help</big>
:Vote - iwillvote.com
:Get a ride to the polls - drive2vote.org
:If you're having problems voting - 866-OUR-VOTE
:Experimental social turnout project - civicinnovation.com App Store: VoteWithMe

:<big>Reminder:</big>
:If you're in line when the polls close, they have to let you vote.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Danish]]
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Blondie]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairbun]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Science Girl]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring politicians]] 
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]
[[Category:Politics]]
[[Category:Kites]]
[[Category:Squirrels]]

Talk:277: Long Light

2016-10-24T19:04:28Z

162.158.69.142: comment

The driver seems to know that the light always takes forever and yet there he is. Sometimes people get what they deserve. {{unsigned|99.234.144.69}}

when I'm at a long light like this, I don't blame the engineer of that light, I blame the city planner who decided to put that light at that intersection when a different system would have worked better (one that adjusts to time of day and/or uses sensors to notice that someone's waiting and there's no traffic). just sayin' [[Special:Contributions/70.72.16.171|70.72.16.171]] 13:42, 25 April 2013 (UTC)

:Not that 70.72.16.171 will necessarily see this, but there are traffic engineers, who design intersections (not only the types, number, and arrangement of individual signal assemblies and sensors in a given intersection, but also any timing or sensor-based relationship with other intersections and several other things not signal-related). I think the engineer in the comic is one of these traffic engineers (maybe that's what ...16.171 is calling a city planner?). It's not the one that designed the actual assembly of bulbs, lenses, circuits and housing that makes up a given "signal" - which would also no doubt be an engineer (somewhere in the civil/electrical area I might venture to guess)[[User:Brettpeirce|Brettpeirce]] ([[User talk:Brettpeirce|talk]]) 18:28, 18 February 2014 (UTC

:I am a traffic engineer, and there are lots of reasons why intersections are designed as they are, and lots of reasons why they don't live up to expectations. Aside from the inherent difficulty of predicting traffic, there are issues centring around when the intersection was designed and when the user experiences it (this can be decades), the availability of data on the subject (in all but the densest/busiest areas most people would be surprised how little data there is, I think), and just the sheer expense of some "simple" solutions. For example, ...16.171's jurisdiction may not consider worth ~$100 000 to put in a sensor just so the occasional driver who wants to turn left from a low-volume approach only waits 20 seconds instead of 60.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.102|108.162.219.102]] 22:27, 26 May 2015 (UTC)

[[Special:Contributions/108.162.250.203|108.162.250.203]] 06:44, 27 April 2014 (UTC)Doesn't mean Cueball can't reverse away to get the engineer off his car. Unless it's a one-way street.
:Or there's another car behind him that we can't see because of reasons of artistic brevity. -Pennpenn [[Special:Contributions/108.162.249.221|108.162.249.221]] 04:50, 6 February 2015 (UTC)

The punchline gets funnier based on how far away you are from the forthcoming Tuesday. Only share this comic on Wednesdays. {{unsigned ip|108.162.216.71}}

: LOLing right now as it's monday and I scrolled down to see when it was posted (Friday) [[Special:Contributions/162.158.69.142|162.158.69.142]] 19:04, 24 October 2016 (UTC)