explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

213: Ghostbusters Marathon

2023-10-03T02:07:00Z

172.69.33.77: /* Transcript */ cat

{{comic
| number = 213
| date = January 22, 2007
| title = Ghostbusters Marathon
| image = ghostbusters marathon.png
| titletext = If you walk out that door you'll be crossing the Rubicon with me, and that's one stream I'm not ready to cross.
}}

==Explanation==
''{{w|Ghostbusters}}'' is a 1984 supernatural comedy film that spawned a sequel, two {{w|The Real Ghostbusters|animated television series}} (the {{w|Extreme Ghostbusters|latter}} of which lasted less than a season, didn't feature the same cast of titular Ghostbusters, and therefore is probably being pointedly ignored...or maybe left as a 'surprise' for later, after getting through the animated series), and, several years after the publication of this comic, a reboot and then another sequel (to the original movies, not the reboot). The box, a "Muon Containment Trap," is a device used in the film to capture ghosts. It is connected to a footswitch by a cable. The man trying to leave is about to be pulled into the box and held there indefinitely (against his will, of course).

The title text refers to Julius Caesar's crossing of the {{w|Rubicon#History|Rubicon}}, a river (or very large stream) that marked the border between Roman Italy and an area of land Caesar was the appointed governor of. At the end of his term, the Roman Senate ordered him to disband his army and return to Italy. Instead, he brought his forces past the border, an act of treason and rebellion against the Republic, instigating the Roman Civil War. The phrase "crossing the Rubicon" now means making a move with gigantic consequences that cannot be undone. In the film ''Ghostbusters'', the protagonists use "proton packs" that fire "streams" of energy. The inventor of the device warns that these streams should not be crossed against each other, as doing so "would be bad." Just how bad? "Try to imagine all life as you know it stopping instantaneously and every molecule in your body exploding at the speed of light." Important safety tip.

:Final quote taken from the 1984 movie ''{{w|Ghostbusters}}''.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball and a friend are in a room. Cueball is standing up. There is litter around them.]
:Cueball: Okay, that's all the Ghostbusters marathon I can handle. Later!
:Friend: You can't leave! We just started the animated series!

:Cueball: I've had my fill. I'm going home.
:Friend: I can't let you do that.

:[Cueball walks along a cord and past a box. The friend clicks a switch.]
:''Click''

:[Cueball is bathed in some kind of aura emitted by the box.]

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]
[[Category:Fiction]]

459: Holy Ghost

2023-10-03T02:06:08Z

172.69.33.77: /* Transcript */ cat

{{comic
| number = 459
| date = August 6, 2008
| title = Holy Ghost
| image = holy ghost.png
| titletext = Okay, everyone, cross yourselves, then cross the streams.
}}

==Explanation==
The majority of {{w|Christianity|Christian}} sects (including {{w|Catholicism|Roman Catholicism}}) profess belief in the conception of a singular {{w|God}} wherein there is a mysterious unity of three distinct 'persons' who share in one another's divinity, in a concept called the {{w|Trinity}}. The three persons are conventionally called {{w|God_the_Father|the Father}}, {{w|God the Son|the Son}}, and {{w|the Holy Spirit}} — but in more archaic English usage, the third person was referred to as {{w|the Holy Ghost}}.

The 1984 movie ''{{w|Ghostbusters}}'' was based on the premise that ghosts exist and that four unemployed men had access to technology that could trap such ghosts. These men formed a business as Ghostbusters, and an important tool in their arsenal was a so-called "proton stream" powered by a wearable backpack. These streams would prod or stun ghosts, allowing them to be maneuvered into traps. Throughout the movie, the Ghostbusters reminded each other 'not to cross the streams', as this was supposed to cause a disastrous reaction, until the climax of the movie where crossing the streams was required to banish the main antagonist.

Here we see that the Ghostbusters have apparently just encountered and eliminated the Holy Ghost, and are being taken to task by the {{w|Pope}}, the leader of the Roman Catholic Church. He points out that much of Christian theology is grounded in the doctrine of the Trinity and is unwilling to accept the Ghostbusters' apology.

The title text is a play on a short Catholic prayer called the {{w|Sign of the Cross}} (the physical motions of which involve touching the forehead, chest, and shoulders), the practice of which is colloquially called 'crossing oneself', and on the danger of the Ghostbusters' 'crossing the streams' and touching two proton streams together, which in ''Ghostbusters'' canon causes an explosive chain reaction in all nearby atoms.

==Transcript==
:[The Pope stands behind a table.]
:Pope: This is a disaster.
:Ghostbuster (off-screen): Is it really that bad?
:[The Pope seen from the side in white on a black background. The text is in white:]
:Pope: Do you know how much scripture we'll have to revise?
:Ghostbuster (off-screen): Look, we've apologized –
:[Zoom out from the pope]
:Pope: I mean, we can't have a trinity with just a Father and a Son!
:Ghostbuster (off-screen): Again we're sorry.
:[The four Cueball-like Ghostbusters with their proton packs.]
:Pope (off-screen): Sorry's not enough. Guards, take their proton packs.
:Ghostbuster: Hey, we were just doing our jobs!

:{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]
[[Category:Fiction]]
[[Category:Religion]]
[[Category:Comics with inverted brightness]]

1108: Cautionary Ghost

2023-10-03T02:04:17Z

172.69.33.77: /* Transcript */ mult cue

{{comic
| number = 1108
| date = September 14, 2012
| title = Cautionary Ghost
| image = cautionary_ghost.png
| titletext = But then the Ghost of Subjunctive Past showed up and told me to stay strong on 'if it were'.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic is a parody of {{w|Charles Dickens}}'s ''{{w|A Christmas Carol}}'', where Scrooge is replaced with someone who insists on calling people out on their incorrect usage of the word "literally", and speaks to the irrelevance of correcting people's speech.

In "A Christmas Carol", the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and future awaken the main character in the middle of the night to show him the negative causes and effects of his selfish and uncharitable behavior. In this comic the ghost wakes up a man who is intent on correcting people's usage of the word "literally." People often use "literally" as emphasis or exaggeration to a figurative statement, when the word's original meaning was that something had happened exactly as described. A statement such as "I literally ate 40 lbs of chocolate" might be said, when the person might have only actually eaten half a pound. A more correct statement would be "I ate a large amount of chocolate."

The ghost shows the protagonist two futures, one where he keeps correcting people, and one where he stops. That the two "different" futures are exactly (i.e., literally) the same suggests that the man's struggle to get people to stop using "literally" incorrectly will have no meaningful effect on the world, and so the man (and by extension, everyone else) may as well stop wasting time and energy on it.

Ironically, the title text indicates that a second apparition encouraged the man to continue the fight on a different grammatical issue, the use of the phrase "if it were," which is frequently incorrectly substituted with "if it was." "Were" is correctly used in a hypothetical condition, when referencing something that may not be true. The ghost of subjunctive past references the ghost of Christmas past and the {{w|English subjunctive#Use of the past subjunctive|'Subjunctive past tense'}}. The following sentences illustrate the correct usages:
*If I were rich, I wouldn't have to work for a living.
*When I was rich, I didn't have to work for a living.

Another xkcd comic, [[725: Literally]], also refers to the overly mocked usage of "literally."

A similar ghost is seen in [[1393: Timeghost]], where it reminds Cueball about the passing of time, and [[2836: A Halloween Carol]] similarly parodies Dickens's ''A Christmas Carol''.

===Popular Culture===
The comics ''[http://www.explosm.net/comics/2923/ Cyanide & Happiness]'' and ''[http://www.theoatmeal.com/comics/literally The Oatmeal]'' offer examples of this sort of derision.

==Transcript==
:[A man wakes up to an apparition hovering over his bed.]
:Apparition: ''ooOOOOOOOOOOooooo''
:Man: A ghost!?
:Apparition: ''I bring a '''cautionary vision''' of things to come!''

:Apparition: This is the future:
:[Two people are standing between a pair of houses. There is a tree. An airplane flies past.]

:Apparition: And '''''this''''' is the future if you give up the fight over the word "literally":
:[Two people are standing between a pair of houses. There is a tree. An airplane flies past. The cynical might suggest the panel is copy pasted.]

:[Back to the man in bed.]
:Man: They looked exactly the same.
:Apparition: ''ooOOOOOOOOOOOooo''
:Man: Ok, I get it.
:Apparition: Seriously, this is duuuuumb.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Language]]
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]

2836: A Halloween Carol

2023-10-03T02:03:28Z

172.69.33.77: /* Trivia */ ref to a xmas carol

{{comic
| number = 2836
| date = October 2, 2023
| title = A Halloween Carol
| image = a_halloween_carol_2x.png
| imagesize = 639x245px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = [after a minute] "Okay, I think I've got it, thanks. Can I--" "oOOOooOOooo!"
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a GHOST... oOOOooOOooo - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

In the classic Charles Dickens story ''{{w|A Christmas Carol}}'', the protagonist of the tale is visited by various ghosts, first that of his old business partner and then (successively) the spirits of Christmases Past, Present and Yet To Come, in order to rehabilitate him from his anti-Christmas ways and generally improve his humanity and spiritual future. In this case, however, three {{w|Halloween}}-style ghosts arrive as a spoof of that tale. They represent similar phases of the actual festival of Halloween, but have turned up to pester Cueball in his bed all at the same time. And the 'lesson' they convey to him is far less transformative in nature. Since the ghosts say nothing more than minor variations of "oOOOOOOOOo," the lesson may be that Halloween has no "true meaning" different from what is obvious (compare [[1108: Cautionary Ghost]]), or that the true meaning of Halloween consists merely of the kind of silly "scariness" represented by the sound "oOOOOOOOOo."

In the title text, in fact, it would appear that the very simple message has been received and taken to heart, but the apparitions feel the need to continue their haunting regardless.

Caroling, though these days almost exclusively associated with Christmas, had long been a term for festive songs and dances, and arguably it is largely through Dickens's use as his story title that we associate it so strongly with this particular annual festival.

A similar ghost saying "ooOOOOOOOOooo" appears in [[1393: Timeghost]].

==Transcript==

{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[Cueball is half sitting up in bed, his lower body underneath the blankets. He is looking at three ghosts flying above him.]
:Middle ghost: ooOOOOOooOOOoo
:[The "ooooo" of the ghosts is written in wavy letters of varying sizes]
:Middle ghost: We are the ghosts of halloween past, present and future

:[Just the middle ghost]
:Ghost: here to teach you the true meaning of halloween!

:[Back to the full scene]
:Left ghost: ooOOOOOOOooo
:Middle ghost: ooOOOOOooo

:[Again, the full scene]
:Left ghost: ooooooOOOooOooo
:Right ghost: ooOoooOOOoooo

==Trivia==
* '''This trivia section was created by a BOT'''
* The [https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/a_halloween_carol_2x.png standard size] image was uploaded with a resolution/size larger than the supposed 2x version.
* This may have been an error.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Fiction]]

2804: Marshmallow

2023-07-19T16:52:19Z

172.69.33.77: /* Transcript */ cats

{{comic
| number = 2804
| date = July 19, 2023
| title = Marshmallow
| image = marshmallow_2x.png
| imagesize = 670x334px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = The increasing number of graham crackers and chocolate bars in orbit has created a growing risk of Kessler s'mores.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a CELESTIAL S'MORE - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This comic shows the atmospheric re-entry process of a capsule similar to that used in the Apollo moon landing program in the late 1960s and early 1970s. This capsule features a fictional Reentry Marshmallow Toasting Module, with a marshmallow on a deployable stick, which is exposed to airflow during reentry.

During reentry, the capsule would presumably be going at orbital speeds, which for Earth are in excess of 8 km/s. This high velocity heats up the air around the capsule as the kinetic energy is dissipated.{{Actual citation needed}} This has the effect of heating the marshmallow. Additionally, reentry heating effects typically look like flames covering the bottom of the reentering object. This is very similar to a common practice on the Earth's surface of holding a marshmallow on a stick over a static fire on the ground, like a campfire, which also heats the marshmallow, improving its taste.

At the start of the panel, the capsule is approaching atmospheric entry, so any aerodynamic forces would not have begun yet. "All systems nominal" is an aerospace phrase that means all systems (including life support, navigation and stability systems) are performing as expected. However, once the atmospheric effects begin then something goes wrong.

Having a long, thin extension to the airflow will disrupt the aerodynamics, as air starts pushing up against the roasting stick, creating an unbalanced torque that pushes the marshmallow further back into the airflow, rotating the entire capsule. This angular acceleration continues until the aerodynamic design of the rest of the capsule plays a significant factor, rotating the capsule back to its original position, and starting the uncontrollable cycle of oscillations anew. Hence, the astronaut on board reports some oscillations to Houston.

Houston is a city in Texas, United States, where Mission Control for NASA is established. Astronauts in space would communicate with "Houston", as the specific person on the other end would vary with which shift was working. These communications are established via radio. During reentry, the superheated air forms a plasma phase and disrupts radio wave signals. Hence, it is doubtful that Mission Control would have received this communication from the capsule, and it is very unlikely Mission Control would have received further updates from the capsule until the reentry process was largely finished. This would make the Mission Control operators very concerned over the success of the reentry.

This prompts the unnamed astronaut to tell his colleague, Smith, to put away the marshmallow roaster. This would clean up the aerodynamic profile and stop the oscillation. This is met with resistance that the marshmallow is not cooked yet. This may be expected, as due to the design of the module, it appears as though the marshmallow has been on the outside of the capsule for the entire journey, exposed to the vacuum of space. In this situation, it would have radiated all its heat energy away, reaching temperatures near absolute zero (approximately -273.15 degrees Celsius, the absolute coldest temperature physically achievable). A very brief moment of shock heating from atmospheric effects may not have bought the marshmallow up to a consumable temperature, or even affected the internals of the marshmallow at all. The goal of roasting marshmallows is often to melt the inside of a marshmallow completely, so if this is still frozen, that defeats the entire purpose of the module.

No Apollo mission had an astronaut with the name "Smith"

The caption for the panel muses that maybe the concept of the module was a mistake, which is a fair assessment given the number of flaws in the design.

The title text refers to a popular snack of s'mores, made by placing a marshmallow roasted over a fire with some chocolate between two crackers, similar to a sandwich. It also refers to a problem in rocketry known as Kessler syndrome, where vast amounts of space junk in low earth orbit reduce the chance of successful rocket launches, as new launches may crash into existing space junk, causing a rapid unplanned disassembly. These two concepts are combined in a ridiculous way, whereby instead of space junk, it is Graham crackers and chocolate bars that are polluting space. These, combined with the marshmallow from the toasting module, would create celestial s'mores, a novel and frankly whacky concept. The specific choice of Graham crackers may reference Graham's number, which is unfathomably large to the human mind. This connects to the unfathomable amount of crackers and chocolate bars that would be in orbit for Kessler s'mores to ever present a serious problem.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
[as follows, left to right, top to bottom]
Capsule begins reentry.
:Smith: We're approaching atmospheric entry.
:Smith: All systems nominal.
:Fwip
Marshmallow roasting rod deployed
:Smith: Houston, we're experiencing some oscillations. Vehicle is becoming difficult to control.
:Mission control: Smith, retract that stupid arm.
:Smith: No! It's not ready yet!

:[Caption below the panel:]
:In retrospect, the reentry marshmallow toasting module was a mistake.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Space]]
[[Category:Food]]

2706: Bendy

2023-06-05T21:12:17Z

172.69.33.77: /* Transcript */ cat

{{comic
| number = 2706
| date = December 2, 2022
| title = Bendy
| image = bendy_2x.png
| imagesize = 291x209px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Squaring the circle is really easy with some good clamps.
}}

==Explanation==
Geometry usually represents 2D polygons with simple straight lines. In the comic, the lines are compared to a physical object, and are shown to have the property of bendiness. Randall claims this simplifies geometry as now triangles can have arbitrarily defined side lengths by merely stretching the lines, but it is unclear what benefits this may have over current Euclidean geometry. These lines cannot have Euclidean properties, but other {{w|Non-Euclidean_geometry|non-Euclidean systems have been invented in the past with non-standard properties.}} One such non-Euclidean space can be modelled as the surface of a sphere. If the sphere had a circumference of 20, the triangle with three sides of length 5 would be right angled (at all three vertices).

This comic may be a reference to axis breaks in graphs, which shrink large segments and enhance readability and are denoted by a wiggly line on the axis in question, though this is more frequently done with angular zig-zags than the smoother curves as depicted.

The title-text talks about "{{w|Squaring the circle}}" (not to be confused with {{w|Tarski's circle-squaring problem|circle-squaring}}), a famous geometry problem based around constructing a square with the same area as a given circle, using a compass and straightedge, which was proven to be impossible (even with more powerful forms of construction, such as marked straightedges or origami) in 1882 as pi is a transcendental number. However, it then goes on to describe a way to literally turn one of these bendy shapes from a circle into a square - namely using clamps.

==Transcript==
:[There are two right triangles. The one to the left is a standard right triangle with the right angle denoted by a small square at that corner. The lengths of the sides are denoted around it, but it has been scribbled out with red lines. The triangle to the right has the same general shape as the first one, but with the legs appearing longer but bent with about three wiggles each near the right-angled corner. As with the first triangle, the side lengths are denoted around it, but they are not the same as for the first. Around this triangle is a red line circling about two times around it.]
:Left triangle: 3 4 5
:Right triangle: 5 5 5

:[Caption below the panel:]
:Huge geometry breakthrough: Turns out those lines we make triangles out of are bendy!

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Comics with red corrections]]
[[Category:Math]]
[[Category:Geometry]]

2451: AI Methodology

2021-04-17T04:59:54Z

172.69.33.77: Undo revision 210356 by 172.69.62.39 (talk)

{{comic
| number = 2451
| date = April 16, 2021
| title = AI Methodology
| image = ai_methodology.png
| titletext = We've learned that weird spacing and diacritics in the methodology description are apparently the key to good research; luckily, we've developed an AI tool to help us figure out where to add them.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BOT. TRAINED BY AN ADVERSARIAL AI. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

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

:[Cueball stands in front of a projection on a screen and points with a stick to a histogram with a bell curve to the left and one bar to the far right marked with an arrow]
:Cueball: Despite our great research results, some have questioned our AI-based methodology.
:Cueball: But we trained a classifier on a collection of good and bad methodology sections, and it says ours is fine.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Artificial Intelligence]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]

Talk:2450: Post Vaccine Social Scheduling

2021-04-15T06:36:13Z

172.69.33.77: US situation

That third line down in the cartoon, shouldn't the first 2 be a 1? [[Special:Contributions/198.41.238.116|198.41.238.116]] 02:56, 15 April 2021 (UTC)
:Plus, should they really be going to a movie during their two weeks? [[User:NixillUmbreon|NixillUmbreon]] ([[User talk:NixillUmbreon|talk]]) 03:20, 15 April 2021 (UTC)
:Third line down may have gotten a spoiled batch on their second shot (or could be lying, thereby creating errors the schedule), but it does look to me like a typo. NixellUmbreon correctly notes that Third Line also does ''not'' wait the requisite period after 2nd dose before going to a movie!
:[[User:ProphetZarquon|ProphetZarquon]] ([[User talk:ProphetZarquon|talk]]) 03:50, 15 April 2021 (UTC)
::Or perhaps they think that as soon as they've had their second shot, they're Good To Go? Not lying deliberately, but just plain old misinformed [[Special:Contributions/162.158.165.66|162.158.165.66]] 04:19, 15 April 2021 (UTC)

It seems unfair to attend any birthdays this year, considering how many could not be attended. Bobby gets a party but Susie doesn't? Hmm... Time is cruel.

Also, unrelated, but it's entirely possible that Lines 1, 2, 5, 7 & 8 are scheduling to gather on ''Line 3's'' birthday, while 3 isn't vaccinated yet.

''Edit:'' Also, also, what is a chungus? (I don't come to explainxkcd because I want to search random words on DuckDuckGo...)
[[User:ProphetZarquon|ProphetZarquon]] ([[User talk:ProphetZarquon|talk]]) 03:50, 15 April 2021 (UTC)
:according to dictionary.com, “Chungus is a meme featuring a chunky version of the cartoon character Bugs Bunny, typically captioned Big Chungus. It began as gaming joke that spread online as a slang term for anything ‘(adorably) chunky,’ similar to chonky.“ (which begs the question, what does that have to do with the explanation of this comic being written by a “big chungus”)[[Special:Contributions/162.158.62.233|162.158.62.233]] 04:18, 15 April 2021 (UTC)

Just wondering, how is Big Chungus related to this? Confuuusion [[User:Eelitee|Eelitee]] ([[User talk:Eelitee|talk]]) 04:29, 15 April 2021 (UTC)

Question as a European: Don't Americans use the Johnson & Johnson vaccine which just needs 1 shot (in addition to those that need 2 shots)? Everyone in this chart gets a "2" shot (and in the case of the 3rd person even two "2" shots.) --[[User:Lupo|Lupo]] ([[User talk:Lupo|talk]]) 05:03, 15 April 2021 (UTC)
:When scheduled for an immunisation an American may find that they are being administered Moderna, Pfizer, or until recently the J&J vaccine (currently that rollout is paused until an investigation into blood clot incidence can be concluded). The second shot if it exists needs to be the same as the first, but otherwise there is little local favouring of one manufacturer over the others. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.33.77|172.69.33.77]] 06:36, 15 April 2021 (UTC)

I thought this comic was also about the CDC guidance even after getting vaccinated to stay in small groups, this, there is no group of > 4 people or so. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.35.143|172.69.35.143]] 05:17, 15 April 2021 (UTC)
:Cabin and birthday are 5 people each. --[[User:Lupo|Lupo]] ([[User talk:Lupo|talk]]) 05:20, 15 April 2021 (UTC)
:: Hmm, but by "Cabin" everyone has already been vaccinated. So should've they all be able to attend? [[Special:Contributions/172.69.33.19|172.69.33.19]] 05:31, 15 April 2021 (UTC)

Might this also a take on the transistor 'NPN hole' diagram? The title text states 'NP-hard' which is something different, but the diagram does look a little like transistor holes and electrons! Emitter's and Collector's? [[User:Fan2012|Fan2012]] ([[User talk:Fan2012|talk]]) 06:21, 15 April 2021 (UTC)

2263: Cicadas

2021-04-13T09:52:29Z

172.69.33.77: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2263
| date = February 3, 2020
| title = Cicadas
| image = cicadas.png
| titletext = After a while you adjust to the new cicadian rhythm.
}}

==Explanation==
{{w|Cicada|Cicadas}} are a species of insect whose nymphs burrow underground and emerge as adults to reproduce several years later. One common species in North America is the 17-year cicada, also known as the {{w|periodical cicada}}. These cicadas form distinct {{w|Periodical_cicadas#Map_of_brood_locations|broods}} which burrow and emerge as a group every 17 years, with different broods starting the cycle at different times. This results in a couple of weeks every 17 years when the cicadas swarm in huge numbers, then vanish just as quickly when the adults die off. Cicadas also make a distinctive buzzing sound, which makes their periodic appearance even more memorable.

In the comic, [[Cueball]] and [[Ponytail]] have accidentally created 17-''second'' cicadas using {{w|genetic engineering}}. This means that rather than seeing a massive swarm every 17 years that lasts for a few weeks, they have to deal with a swarm every 17 seconds that lasts for a few moments. This makes it very difficult for them to do their work, especially to figure out how the cicadas were created because the swarm keeps interrupting their work. Note that the comic has been drawn differently than most other straight four-panel comics, probably to highlight the interruptions of the buzzing swarm - see the [[#Transcript|transcript]].

The title text is a pun on "{{w|circadian rhythm}}." In particular, it might resemble something said to someone getting adjusted to a new sleep schedule. But here it is the 17 seconds interruption, not a time zone shift, that has to be adjusted for.

This entire comic seems to only have been a lead-up to the "cicadian rhythm" punchline. This is an interesting suggestion since [[Randall]] has mentioned in an interview that he makes up the title text after completing the comic.{{Actual citation needed}} Seems like he made an exception here; unless he didn't.

==Transcript==
:[This comic is laid out in a variation of a regular four-panel comic. One wide panel is overlaid by two smaller panels, which are placed where the second and fourth panels would be. These panels are slightly offset so they extend above the wide panel.]

:[Cueball and Ponytail are facing each other across a desk while having a conversation. Cueball is holding up a tablet in his hand while Ponytail is typing at a laptop on the desk.]
:Cueball: What can you tell from genome comparison?
:Ponytail: I think there's a duplication on the -
:Ponytail: ''Look out!''

:[An overlaid panel shows that the air is full of flying cicadas, many of which have landed on Cueball, Ponytail, the laptop, the tablet, and the desk. Ponytail and Cueball have their arms up in a futile attempt to shield themselves from the bugs, with Cueball having put the tablet down on the table.]
:<big>'''''Bzzzzzzz'''''</big>

:[The cicadas are gone, and Cueball and Ponytail resume their conversation. Cueball has picked up the tablet again]
:Ponytail: - a duplication on the gene right before the cleavage site, so the resulting protein -
:Ponytail: ''Look out!''

:[An overlaid panel shows that the air is again full of flying cicadas, which have once again landed on Cueball, Ponytail, the laptop, the tablet, and the desk. Ponytail and Cueball have raised their arms to shield themselves again.]
:<big>'''''Bzzzzzzz'''''</big>

:[Caption below the large panel:]
:Our genetics work has produced 17-second cicadas, but we're having a hard time figuring out how.

==Trivia==
The widely-accepted scientific explanation for the long and seemingly arbitrary 17-year lifecycle is that seventeen is a {{w|prime number}} - it's believed that this is an evolutionary adaptation against lifecycles of competitors taking easy advantage of the cicada as a food source (if a predator) or emerging early to dominating their shared food source (if a fellow feeder), since 17 years cannot be divided by any whole number of years other than itself and 1.

A 16-year cicada might find a creature with an 8-year, 4-year, or [[1602:_Linguistics_Club|biennial]] cycle could profit from it in a 'clash' of expectations, but only a cycle that is a multiple of 17 (by an identical accident of evolution, that must also match the 'beat' years of the Cicada to be useful) would affect the presumed ancestors of the comic-strip breed. Predators often work to yearly cycles of plenty and scarcity of food or can survive a low number of famine years between the better ones, but if they have less than one year of 'bounty' for every decade or so of 'normal' feeding then they cannot build up the numbers needed to threaten such prey that plays the long-game.

Other broods of cicada have 13-year lifecycles (the next lowest prime number), and would potentially clash for resources (or hybridize) only every 221 years. Even if this causes a single bad cycle, for both sub-species, the next cycle of appearance is their own once more (for each) and the respective populations have plenty of opportunity to recover from this event by the time a further two centuries pass. Thus it is theorized the happenstance evolution of a period of dormancy that gives a cycle of a significantly large prime-number of years - though still low enough to ''survive'' that period - is ultimately more advantageous than any cousins who tried to evolve to a period with smaller factors/shorter harmonics.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Biology]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Puns]]

2448: Eradication

2021-04-11T00:11:57Z

172.69.33.77: Friday

{{comic
| number = 2448
| date = April 9, 2021
| title = Eradication
| image = eradication.png
| titletext = When you get to hell, tell smallpox we say hello.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a REVENGE-BASED PUBLIC HEALTH POLICY. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This is another comic in the [[:Category:COVID-19|COVID-19 series]] related to the {{w|2019-20 coronavirus outbreak|2020 pandemic}}, caused by the {{w|coronavirus}} {{w|SARS-CoV-2}}.

[[Megan]] wants revenge on the pandemic virus.

Megan assumes SARS-CoV-2 will remain in circulation even after the pandemic is over. "Vaccines and stuff" will, in all likelihood, reduce it to a background threat, but eradicating an infectious disease entirely is difficult. This can be seen in the ongoing struggle to {{w|Polio eradication|eradicate polio}}.

{{W|Smallpox}}, mentioned in the title text, was the first human disease that was successfully wiped out in the wild. This is why Megan tells Covid-19 to say hello to Smallpox when we send it permanently to Hell.

To date, the only other documented successful eradication was of {{w|rinderpest}}, a livestock disease declared eradicated in 2011.

==Transcript==
:[Megan holding a hand up, palm held out, is walking with Cueball.]
:Megan: Even if the threat eventually fades, thanks to vaccines and stuff,

:[They walk on, both with their arms down.]
:Megan: And it becomes just another circulating common cold virus,

:[Megan holds her hand up in a fist, while Cueball hold his hand to his chin as they walk on.]
:Megan: I think we should pursue global eradication of SARS-CoV-2 out of ''spite''.
:Cueball: Revenge-based public health policy. I like it.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:COVID-19]]
[[Category:COVID-19 vaccine]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]

2447: Hammer Incident

2021-04-08T02:17:00Z

172.69.33.77: Categories

{{comic
| number = 2447
| date = April 7, 2021
| title = Hammer Incident
| image = hammer_incident.png
| titletext = I still think the Cold Stone Creamery partnership was a good idea, but I should have asked before doing the first market trials during the cryogenic mirror tests.
}}

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

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[Cueball stands before a seated panel of four people.]
:Cueball: Yes, I know you're mad that I dropped that hammer.
:Cueball: But think about me—
:Cueball: ''Seven years of bad luck!''
:[Caption below the panel]:
:Man, NASA is really on my case about the James Webb Space Telescope.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category: Astronomy]]

376: Bug

2021-04-08T01:22:59Z

172.69.33.77: /* Explanation */ ce

{{comic
| number = 376
| date = January 28, 2008
| title = Bug
| image = bug.png
| titletext = The universe started in 1970. Anyone claiming to be over 38 is lying about their age.
}}

==Explanation==
In computer systems, time is measured starting from some arbitrarily chosen point. That particular time is known as the "{{w|Unix time|epoch}}" for that system. The {{w|UNIX}} operating system internally uses an epoch of January 1, 1970, and measures the time as a number of seconds from then. Since this was intended only for things internal to the OS (File last modified times and the like), using 1-Jan-1970 was safe, as no UNIX systems existed before that date.

However, since UNIX included a number of system functions to manipulate these dates, some developers mistook them for a general purpose date object, and misused them in applications requiring dates before the epoch, by using negative values. Such usage would inevitably fail; for example, since the value isn't specified to be signed or unsigned, the date might be considered to be far in the future, instead of in the past.

[[Cueball]] has clearly misused the system date in some way (probably by using an unsigned data type to store the timestamp, which cannot store negative values (in this case dates before 1970) or doing some other operation that doesn’t support negative values). His friend makes a pun by combining "Epoch" with "Epic Fail" - a colloquial term meaning "a very big mistake was made."

Another problem using the UNIX system date as a general purpose date object is commonly known as the {{w|year 2038 problem}}. At 03:14:08 on 19 January 2038, the 32-bit versions of the Unix time stamp will cease to work, as it will overflow the largest value that can be held in a signed 32-bit number. The 64-bit version "will" expire at 15:30:08 on 4 December 292,277,026,596.

The title text takes the joke to the next level, claiming that the entire universe began when Unix did, and therefore no one could have been older than 38 at the time when the comic was released in 2008. The formula is 'x - 1970', where x is the current year, which would explain the bug, since no earlier dates are possible. This is also similar to {{w|Last Thursdayism}}.

An example of this 2 to the 32nd power time overflow problem includes the {{w|Deep_Impact_(spacecraft)#Contact_lost_and_end_of_mission|Deep Impact spacecraft}}, which, on August 11, 2013, 00:38:49 (more than five years after the comic), was 2 to the 32nd power tenths of a second from January 1, 2000. There is speculation that a system on the craft tracked time in one-tenth second increments since January 1, 2000 and stored it in a signed 32-bit integer, which then overflowed at some point, similar to the Year 2038 problem.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball sits at a computer, staring at the screen and rubbing his chin in thought. A friend stands behind him.]
:Cueball: Weird — My code's crashing when given pre-1970 dates.
:Friend [pointing at Cueball and his computer]: Epoch fail!

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Computers]]
[[Category:Programming]]
[[Category:Puns]]

Talk:1363: xkcd Phone

2021-04-07T20:13:26Z

172.69.33.77:

[[Special:Contributions/108.162.249.216|108.162.249.216]]

Where, exactly, would one find a citation that mobile phones are not known to trap insects? Is the "citation needed" meant to be funny? It's like making the statement that humans aren't entirely made of glass- who would bother to write anything that could serve as a citation for that? [[Special:Contributions/172.69.68.139|172.69.68.139]] 22:26, 12 July 2020 (UTC)

14:14, 4 August 2014 (UTC) Mobile phones haven't always been electronic. Remember the old 'bricks' from the '80s and '90s? More machine than computer.

This seems like an SCP artifact [[Special:Contributions/108.162.249.220|108.162.249.220]] 10:09, 4 May 2014 (UTC)

^someone get on this, please [[User:Whiskey07|Whiskey07]] ([[User talk:Whiskey07|talk]]) 16:28, 6 May 2014 (UTC)

I really dislike the tone of the explanation. I mean it's so negative about the features! Not that they are all useful, but isn't this a wiki and should be neutral? It takes also the fun out of it. I would like a screaming while falling phone and the relativity thing would be great for teaching relativity! [[User:RecentlyChanged|RecentlyChanged]] ([[User talk:RecentlyChanged|talk]])

Where can i get one of these? :D [[User:UniTrader|UniTrader]] ([[User talk:UniTrader|talk]]) 04:11, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

I'm pretty sure the "scream when falling" thing and the "flightaware" stuff can be done somehow with Tasker. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.103.206|141.101.103.206]] 04:23, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

;Designer?

I suspect it was either Black Hat or Beret Guy, but I'm not sure which. A collaboration? [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.45|173.245.54.45]] 04:47, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

This sounds like something straight out of aperture. {{unsigned ip|108.162.221.55}}

;Simulates alternate speeds of light

Yes, useless as a feature on all the time; but it would be a cool app. [[User:Markhurd|Mark Hurd]] ([[User talk:Markhurd|talk]]) 05:57, 2 May 2014 (UTC)
:Absolutely. Where can I get an app like that?[[Special:Contributions/108.162.225.157|108.162.225.157]] 06:22, 2 May 2014 (UTC)
::Here: [http://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.pandorica.xkcdclock XKCD Clock] [[Special:Contributions/173.245.53.114|173.245.53.114]] 16:11, 7 May 2014 (UTC)

Travelling at above the simulated speed of light should give an imaginary time dilation, not a negative time dilation.
gamma = 1/sqrt{1-v^2/c^2}
Thus, after such travel, the value of the clock would be a complex number. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.35|108.162.219.35]] 15:42, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

Does the alternate speed of light simulator also dynamically adjust the mass of the phone? Better yet, does it also dynamically adjust the mass of its comoving surroundings (person holding phone, vehicle phone is traveling in)?[[Special:Contributions/172.69.23.27|172.69.23.27]] 01:38, 20 February 2020 (UTC)

'''Changed the speed of light to 2.99x10^8'''
:You guys should probably clarify that the relativisic affects actually depend on how long your trip is or how long you wait to sync your phone. For relativity to be observable on a 12 hour trip, Minimum speed for a phone would have to be 300 m/s or 3000 m/s for the clock to measure even a microsecond/millisecond difference in time. This is well known thanks to the certain [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_dilation#Velocity_and_gravitational_time_dilation_combined-effect_tests time dilation experiments with planes]. Your GPS chip helps account for an error of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Error_analysis_for_the_Global_Positioning_System#Relativity 7 to 47 microseconds per day]. My point is in terms of time dilation, relativity mattering depends on how long a trip or waiting for synchronization is. By synching, I literally mean with the atomic time clock or with a GPS satellite. The synchronization of your phone with satellites is actually a couple of hundred microseconds, so normally even a light changing clock might not have as noticable changes as you might think. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.225|108.162.238.225]] 13:49, 2 May 2014 (UTC) --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.225|108.162.238.225]] 13:49, 2 May 2014 (UTC)
Yeah sorry forgot to login. does anyone know how to do the indices formatting other than eg 2.99x10(littlex) rather then 2.99x10^x? [[User:Jonv4n|Jonv4n]] ([[User talk:Jonv4n|talk]]) 06:29, 2 May 2014 (UTC)
: Whas<sup>sup</sup>? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.89.220|141.101.89.220]] 07:43, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

; relativistic effect
Forgive me if I'm wrong, I'm not a physicist but the above explanation says that relativistic time dilation affects only occur at a significant fraction of the speed of light. It is my understanding that time dilation occurs at any speed, but is only perceptible/noticeable/measurable at very large fraction of the speed of light. Unless I'm mistaken the above it should reflect this. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.56.91|173.245.56.91]] 22:24, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

; putting "Relative" back into relativity
First time poster, please forgive my transgressions :)
My understanding regarding relativistic effects is that, for a given frame of reference (e.g. phone operator travelling at 0.9c) would be absolutely none. Relativistic effects (as I understand them) would only apply between two different frames of reference. The only effect I can see in this case is if you are moving towards, or away from the phone while operating, and red/blue shift of the radio frequencies. In general, wifi and bluetooth are used locally so wouldn't apply; only the phone network would be affected.

Also, perhaps the adjustable speed of light is a reference to the the game "A slower speed of light" by MIT Game Lab http://gamelab.mit.edu/games/a-slower-speed-of-light/ (in which you walk around collecting objects; each object slows light down, and increases relativistic effects).
[[User:Jaybee|Jaybee]] ([[User talk:Jaybee|talk]])

'''Phone may attract/trap insects; this is normal.'''
Funnier if you take it as a reference to the [http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2014/04/07/mazda_issues_recall_because_spiders_invade_fuel_tank_causing_fire_risk.html spider problems] Mazda keeps on having... {{unsigned ip|108.162.215.64}}

About the attracting insects ... I would expect this to be normal feature in night. Trapping, however ... -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 09:08, 2 May 2014 (UTC)
: There are other indications that the phone is at least partly biological, this being the strongest evidence of that. Insects could be the power source for the biological part(s). [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.45|173.245.54.45]] 14:07, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

This could also be a reference to computer bugs and the [http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:H96566k.jpg Harvard Mark II]. [[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.249|199.27.128.249]] 08:31, 15 May 2014 (UTC)

'''Siri'''

Could the Siri bit be a reference to Portal? When I first read it, I remembered this GLaDOS quote: "Your Aperture Science Weighted Companion Cube will never threaten to stab you, and in fact cannot speak. If your Weighted Companion Cube does speak, please disregard its advice." Could be completely wrong; just a thought. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.51|173.245.54.51]] 10:09, 2 May 2014 (UTC)
:Perhaps Siri is beling likened to the "ATMOS" device in the Doctor Who episode "The Sontaran Stratagem" [[User:Esp666|Esp666]] ([[User talk:Esp666|talk]]) 11:20, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

Lamest. Comic. Ever. And I'm not just saying that because he doesn't mention the Ubuntu Touch OS. ''– [[User:Tbc|tbc]] ([[User talk:Tbc|talk]]) 12:22, 2 May 2014 (UTC)''

'''Realistic case'''

Car telephones and the first cellphones were rather expensive, at least in Germany fake "realistic cases" were sold without any working electronics in it. Usage was to impress silly friends. {{unsigned ip|173.245.52.204}}

I thought this was aimed at the iPhone. Apparently these have an elegant case, but I have never actually seen one. Everyone I know covers their iPhone with some hideous plastic monstrosity, since the design is not practical.--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.218.59|108.162.218.59]] 14:10, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

Could possibly be a reference to the "Realistic" brand, which was used on various products sold by Radio Shack (U.S. electronics retail chain) from 1954 to some time in the '90s.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.76|108.162.219.76]] 16:14, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

I am not a native speaker of English. I thought the joke was on the double meaning of "case", meaning both "something that happened or might happen" (like "realistic scenario") and "something that covers something else". Does that make sense to you guys? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.17|108.162.219.17]] 10:06, 6 May 2014 (UTC)

'''Screaming when in free fall: my first Android app!'''

I love the bit about screaming when in free fall: that was the first Android app I hacked together back in 2009 (based on the tricorder app). [[User:Nealmcb|Nealmcb]] ([[User talk:Nealmcb|talk]]) 13:49, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

I actually made this app that simulates that [https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=it.siluxmedia.frefall freeFall app][[Special:Contributions/108.162.212.32|108.162.212.32]] 19:03, 30 May 2014 (UTC)

'''Title Text'''

Hover-over title text was truncated; love it.
14:43, 2 May 2014 (UTC)[[User:Pocono Chuck|Pocono Chuck]] ([[User talk:Pocono Chuck|talk]])
: you must have an really old firefox browser -- you should update !!! [[Special:Contributions/199.27.130.210|199.27.130.210]] 16:23, 2 May 2014 (UTC)
:: Happened to me. Using whatever the latest IE is at the moment. It cut off at nause-. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.54|173.245.54.54]] 17:13, 3 May 2014 (UTC)

'''Price includes 2-year Knicks contract.''' ... but a contract with the Knicks would only appeal to pro basketball players.

Nonsense. Lots of "regular" folks would buy this phone it it meant they got to play in the NBA. [[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.84|199.27.128.84]] 16:26, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

: I agree with this. A whole lot of people who think they have "skillz" would buy the phone if they got into the NBA. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.54|173.245.54.54]] 17:14, 3 May 2014 (UTC)

This may also be an indirect way of stating that it is incredibly expensive, seeing as those sort of contracts usually involve ''you'' getting compensated. --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.33|108.162.216.33]] 13:41, 3 May 2014 (UTC)

"Your mobile world just went digital" is an inversion of the marketing-speak that was common when what we'd now regard as smartphones first began to be adopted by the mainstream (iPhone/G1 era, since Symbians, Blackberries, and early WinMo tended to be business or enthusiast devices). People already ubiquitously e-mailed, browsed the Web, etc...what was presented as 'new' was that you could now do it from your phone. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.58|173.245.54.58]] 19:09, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

I think the "Under certain circumstances, wireless transmitter may control God" statement might be a reference to how transmitting devices have to comply with FCC regulation and not interfere with aircraft or government communications. Perhaps this phone is intended to be noncompliant so as to control high-level electronics, even at supernatural levels. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.56.66|173.245.56.66]] 21:11, 2 May 2014 (UTC)Dbrak

'''Frictionless'''

You could hold a frictionless phone just by hooking your little finger under the bottom edge, regardless of friction gravity will hold it into your hand. Just like you could leave it in a bowl without it jumping out. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.72|108.162.229.72]] 19:12, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

Unless you held your pinky perfectly balanced, horizontal and motionless, a frictionless object would slide right off it, as it would off any flat surface that is not perfectly horizontal.
14:13, 3 May 2014 (UTC) [[Special:Contributions/108.162.242.4|108.162.242.4]] 13:15, 3 May 2014 (UTC)DCollins

Wouldn't you be able to hold it somewhat like a normal phone, if you hold a finger under the bottom of it? [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.54|173.245.54.54]] 17:08, 3 May 2014 (UTC)

Saying a frictionless phone can't be held is like saying prisoners would slide out of prisons if they had frictionless surfaces. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.218|108.162.237.218]] 14:50, 4 May 2014 (UTC)

If it was frictionless, it would be only slightly harder to hold than a wet bar of soap. --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.186|108.162.219.186]] 22:56, 22 September 2014 (UTC)

;Why the hell this funny phone isn't available at the xkcd store?
I would buy if the price would be in the range of other articles there. Just for fun...--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 19:30, 2 May 2014 (UTC)
:Yeah, having a phone that causes symptoms of radiation poisoning would be very funny indeed. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.10.44|172.68.10.44]] 11:03, 16 July 2016 (UTC)

'''Root needed'''

I think that needing root for ajust the volume may be a allusion people needing to root Android to change fonts or to take screenshots (untill version 4.x). [[User:FlavianusEP|FlavianusEP]] ([[User talk:FlavianusEP|talk]]) 23:04, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

'''Alternative meaning: The spirit of xkcd'''

I think there's a secondary possible interpretation for this comic -- that the various features of the phone represent the overall "spirit" or "attitude" of xkcd, in a way reminiscent of an early strip -- http://xkcd.com/207/ -- about "what xkcd means." More specifically, a common theme in xkcd is taking advanced concepts in science and technology, and applying them to whimsical, humorous, impractical, or outright impossible uses. Several of phone's features -- such as the simulated speed of light -- touch on the same theme. Wordplay, another common xkcd theme, is present as well; and the anthropomorphism of technology, along with making devices appear 'cute', is also present, and also is something that has come up in xkcd many times in the past.

The comic is called "xkcd Phone", after all -- I think simultaneously with being a parody of phone advertisements, the comic is also meant to show us what a phone that fits into the xkcd world would be like. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.241.114|108.162.241.114]] 17:52, 3 May 2014 (UTC)

I agree; it seems like a basic comic at first glance, but I'm wondering if there's a meta-meaning if you put all of the pieces together. Each feature, and warning, is a clue to the overarching purpose of the phone, or to the true joke that this phone embodies. [[User:Imtrbl|imtrbl]] ([[User talk:Imtrbl|talk]]) 19:11, 8 May 2014 (UTC)

'''Blowing out candles....'''

For the birthday candles thing: I do remember seeing a video ad for an app back when the iphone was first opened up to outside developers that would turn the phone into a fan, and it demonstrated that it was strong enough to blow out a birthday candle. Seemed quite useless at the time. Still does today for that matter {{unsigned ip|108.162.215.47}}

'''Side-facing camera'''

I thought the joke here was that the camera ''only'' contained a side-facing camera rather than a side camera in addition to a front and back camera. While you can see the camera on the side, you don't see a camera on the front and they don't talk about a rear camera. It'd be pretty annoying to use a side-facing camera for anything but the surreptitious case you described. [[User:S|S]] ([[User talk:S|talk]]) 16:58, 4 May 2014 (UTC)

'''Do not submerge in water'''

I assumed this was also referencing the 4chan, etc pranks with the waterproof iPhone [[Special:Contributions/173.245.55.79|173.245.55.79]] 18:41, 5 May 2014 (UTC)

'''Wireless'''

A completely wireless phone would not be unuseable. The only wire phones need nowadays is for recharging their battery, but this can be done by induction, like with the Qi system with which some Nokia and Google (Nexus) phones are compatible. [[User:Zoyd|Zoyd]] ([[User talk:Zoyd|talk]]) 12:25, 6 May 2014 (UTC)

'''FoxTrot reference?''' I think this one could be a reference to th J-Pad in the foxtrot webcomic http://www.foxtrot.com/2012/03/03042012/ . Foxtrot's author has already published a guest comic for XKCD a few years ago, so Randall should know about it. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.212.203|108.162.212.203]] 16:31, 11 May 2014 (UTC)

'''Cell Phones Cure Cancer?'''

I know, I know, the editor who added "makes fun of the WHO claiming that cell phones might cause cancer despite huge studies showing the opposite" probably didn't mean that, but it's kind of amusing to interpret it that way. [[User:Nyperold|Nyperold]] ([[User talk:Nyperold|talk]]) 19:42, 15 June 2016 (UTC)

== Side-facing camera ==

Some fake phones actually feature things like that. See: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubd2dX0YeSI this]. It does have a rear cam, but no front-facing one. [[User:Real English|Real English]] ([[User talk:Real English|talk]]) 15:41, 24 August 2020 (UTC)

"Prolonged use may cause mood swings, short-term memory loss, or seizures" could also be referencing the adverse health effects commonly associated with spending too much time using a smartphone. Mood swings could be caused by the bewildering variety of content found on social media apps, which could result in the user's mood changing rapidly as they browse through unrelated topics that influence the way they feel. Short-term memory loss could be attributed to the fact that many users rely on their smartphones to take notes and set reminders. If a person depends almost solely on their phone to remember things for them, their short-term memory may degrade over time due to disuse. I don't know how seizures fits into this analogy, but it might've been included for the reasons described in the main explanation page. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.33.77|172.69.33.77]] 20:13, 7 April 2021 (UTC)

2266: Leap Smearing

2020-02-12T03:49:09Z

172.69.33.77: Smeary calculations

{{comic
| number = 2266
| date = February 10, 2020
| title = Leap Smearing
| image = leap_smearing.png
| titletext = Some people suspect that it started as a "No, I didn't forget Valentine's Day" excuse that got out of hand.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a SMEARED LEAP SECOND CALCULATING A TIP. Please check my calculations of the time if using the 10th February and evenly spread 24 hours over 28 smear-days. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

Humans measure time by regularly-sized intervals, but the natural world is not always so accommodating. Just like we add {{w|leap days}} every four years (except for years divisible by 100 but not 400) to prevent our calendars from drifting with respect to the seasons, we add {{w|leap seconds}} to the clock every now and then to prevent 12:00 PM from drifting away from solar noon. Unfortunately, Earth's day is not as regular as Earth's year, so leap seconds cannot be predicted with a formula but are instead added as needed, most recently in 2016. Officially, the leap second is added at midnight (so a clock will tick 23:59:59...'''23:59:60'''...00:00:00), but this is an extremely inconvenient edge case, to the point that there are many proposals to do away with leap seconds entirely (as of this comic strip's publication, the matter will be discussed in the World Radiocommunication Conference in 2023).

Rather than inserting an extra tick into timestamps and dealing with the resulting hiccups (e.g. programs hard-coded to expect that [https://infiniteundo.com/post/25509354022/more-falsehoods-programmers-believe-about-time#_=_ every minute will contain exactly sixty seconds]), {{w|Google}}'s services 'smear' the leap second over the course of a 24-hour period, officially called [https://developers.google.com/time/smear Leap Smear] by Google. The smear is centered on the leap second (at midnight) so from noon the day before to the noon the day after each second is 11.6 μs longer (1s/(24*60*60) = 11,574 μs). This difference is too small for computers to be bothered with, and by centering on midnight the difference in time will never be more than half a second at midnight; just before midnight it will be half a second behind, after midnight it'll be half a second ahead. This comic's joke arises from the idea of extending this practice to smearing leap days over the month of February. This comic strip was published three weeks before a leap day, February 29th, 2020.

In the comic, [[Cueball]] is visiting one of Google's facilities, presumably during office hours and on the 10th day of February, when the comic was released. But when he looks at their clocks he sees they are all around 3:00 AM (which is in the middle of the night). He thus asks [[Ponytail]] and [[Hairy]] why their clocks are wrong. Ponytail tells him it is because of leap day smearing.

Ponytail explains that adding an extra day creates too many glitches. So they just run their clocks 3.4% slower during February. She thus states that it works approximately like leap smearing for seconds, so that an extra day's 24 hours are spread evenly out over the course of February, keeping it at the regular 28 days, but still running over 24*29 = 696 hours, even though their clocks only go through 672 hours = 24*28.

Thus the 24 hours less to count are spread out over the 696 real hours, which means their clocks run 24/696 = 3.445 % slower (matching the 3.4% Ponytail mentions). Every smeared day will thus be about 0.86 hours longer (24/28) than a standard day. So when day-smearing clocks read 3:02 AM on February 10th (the comic was released on February 10th), about 9.1264 smeared days will have passed. This translates to about 9.4523 standard days (9.1264*29/28), which is approximately 10:51 AM on February 10th, well within normal working hours.

The idea would of course, contrary to leap second smearing, be very inconvenient for those following it, due to the fact that it would be out of sync with the rotation of the earth for most of the course of the month. And also with all their local business partners. (Of course it would mean they would sync up better with some of their partners abroad, see [[1335: Now]].) A different kind of time-smearing was looked at in [[320|a far earlier comic]] that was actually designed with a form of convenience in mind, and it would be interesting to see what the results could be of creatively combining both systems.

The title text humorously suggests that some people (at Google) suspect that the real reason for the leap day smearing was actually a "No, I didn't forget Valentine's Day" excuse that got out of hand. [[Randall]] has some issues with [[:Category:Valentines|Valentines]], see for example [[1016: Valentine Dilemma]]. This comic was released four days before {{w|Valentines Day}} of 2020. It was the first time in 8 years he made any reference to Valentine around this time of year, but the seventh time in total. Interesting to see if he also releases a Valentine related comic on Friday of the week, as that falls on Valentine Day February 14th 2020.

The idea is, that maybe a CEO at Google forgot to buy something for his Girlfriend for Valentine, and thus tried to suggest that it was not because he forgot, but that at his work it was still February 14th. Presumably, in February 2016, he used this excuse to buy himself 12 extra hours (as the end of a smeared Feb 14 is exactly halfway through the month) to get his girlfriend a present, and then required the company to actually implement "leap day smearing" by 2020 to maintain the illusion.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball, Ponytail, and Hairy are looking up at a digital clock on a wall. It displays the time in white on a black background, with a logo on the frame beneath the time.]
:3:02 AM
:Google

:Cueball: Why do the clocks say it's 3AM?
:Ponytail: Adding an extra day creates too many glitches. Instead, we're just running our clocks 3.4% slower during February, to avoid the irregularity.

:[Caption below the panel:]
:This year, Google has expanded their leap second "smearing" to cover leap days as well.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Valentines]] 
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairy]]
[[Category:Time]]

2122: Size Venn Diagram

2019-03-14T17:41:55Z

172.69.33.77: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2122
| date = March 11, 2019
| title = Size Venn Diagram
| image = size_venn_diagram.png
| titletext = Terms I'm going to start using: The Large Dipper, great potatoes, the Big Hadron Collider, and Large Orphan Annie.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a Large Terror. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
[[File:Symmetrical_5-set_Venn_diagram.svg|thumb|upright=0.5|{{w|Branko Grünbaum}}'s multi-set Venn diagram strategy from 1975, less symmetric than Randall's.]]
This comic is a {{w|Venn diagram}} illustrating the complete set of possible intersections of five different size adjectives: "little", "large", "small", "great" and “big”. Each unique intersection contains a short list of nouns that can be preceded by each of its intersecting adjectives.

For example, "flying fox" (a type of bat) appears at the intersection of "large", "small", and "great", because the species {{w|large flying fox}}, {{w|small flying fox}}, and {{w|great flying fox}} all exist, but there is no such species as a "big flying fox" or a "little flying fox". Similarly, humans have organs named the {{w|small intestine}} and {{w|large intestine}}, but no "little intestine", "great intestine", or "big intestine".

Some descriptors are applied in combination to their noun, rather than individually; for example, "planet" is placed in both the "little" and "big" groups in reference to the 2008 video game ''{{w|Little Big Planet}}''.

In the title text, [[Randall]] declares that he will start intentionally using term combinations that don't appear in the above diagram, presumably to entertain himself while confusing people.

A similar concept can be seen in [[181: Interblag]], but in a tabular form rather than a Venn diagram.

===List of items in the diagram===
The following table lists all size/noun combinations that the Venn diagram can generate, with a description of each.
{| class="wikitable sortable"
!Item
!Big !! Great !! Large !! Little !! Small
|-
|width=10%|'''Aunt'''
|width=18%|
|width=18%| [[wiktionary:great-aunt|sister of one's grandparent]]
|width=18%|
|width=18%|
|width=18%|
|-
|'''Bang Theory'''
|currently-accepted {{w|Big Bang|scientific theory}} that explains the origin of the universe; also a {{w|The Big Bang Theory|TV sitcom}}|| || || ||
|-
|'''Barrier Reef'''
|
|{{w|Great Barrier Reef|world's largest coral reef system}}, off the coast of Australia
|
|
|
|-
|'''Bear Lake'''
|a {{w|Big Bear Lake, California|lake and surrounding community in California}}, in the mountains
|a {{w|Great Bear Lake|lake in Canada}}, in the Northwest Territories -- the largest lake entirely in Canada, and the fourth-largest in North America
|
|
|
|-
|'''Bend'''
| {{w|Big Bend|several geographic locations}}, including a {{w|Big Bend National Park|US National Park}} in Texas
| {{w|Great Bend (disambiguation)|several geographic locations}}, including a {{w|Great Bend, Kansas|city in Kansas}} and the description of the S-shaped curving of the {{w|Nile River}} in Egypt and Sudan
|
|
|
|-
|'''Billed Seed Finch'''
|
|{{w|Great-billed seed finch|species of finch}}, described in 1851
|{{w|Large-billed seed finch|species of finch}}, described in 1789
|
|
|-
|'''Blue'''
|nickname for [https://www.ibm.com IBM] and the {{w|New York Giants}}, also [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0095250 a movie] and a stage in {{w|F-Zero}} and borrowed into Mario Kart
|
|{{w|large blue|various different butterflies}}
|
|{{w|small blue|butterfly}}, smallest found in the UK
|-
|'''Blue Heron'''
|
|{{w|Great Blue Heron|species of heron}} that measures 91–137 cm (36–54 in) long
|
|{{w|Little Blue Heron|species of heron}} that measures about 60 cm (24 in) long
|
|-
|'''Board'''
| nickname for the {{w|New York Stock Exchange}} || || || ||
|-
|'''Cardiac Vein'''
|
|{{w|Great cardiac vein|left coronary vein}}
|
|
|{{w|Small cardiac vein|heart vein on the right side}}
|-
|'''Circle'''
|
|{{w|Great circle|largest possible circle}} that can be drawn on a sphere; the {{w|equator}} is an example of one on the Earth
|
|The {{w|Little_Circle|Little Circle}}, a group of political reformists based in Manchester, UK in the early 1800s
|{{w|Circle_of_a_sphere|a circle that lies on a sphere}} without passing through its center (which would make it a great circle)
|-
|'''Claims Court'''
|
|
|
|
|{{w|Small claims court|judicial court}} that handles cases involving only relatively small amounts of money
|-
|'''enchilada'''
|[[wiktionary:big enchilada|important person]] || || || ||
|-
|'''Depression'''
|
|{{w|Great Depression|period of prolonged economic downturn}} that affected the world economy in the 1930's
|
|
|
|-
|'''Dipper'''
|{{w|Big Dipper|subset collection of stars}} in the constellation {{w|Ursa Major}}
|
|
|name for the constellation {{w|Ursa Minor}}
|
|-
|'''Emerald'''
|
|
|{{w|Large_emerald|Geometra papilionaria}}, a bright green moth of the family {{w|Geometer_moth|Geometridae}}
|{{w|Jodis_lactearia|Jodis lactearia}}, a light green or white moth of the family {{w|Geometer_moth|Geometridae}}
|{{w|Hemistola_chrysoprasaria|Hemistola chrysoprasaria}}, a light green or yellow-white moth of the family {{w|Geometer_moth|Geometridae}}
|-
|'''End'''
|The {{w|Crankpin|bearing}} connecting a connecting rod to the crank shaft of a reciprocating engine.
| {{w|Great End|Mountain in England}}
|
|
|The {{w|Crankpin|bearing}} connecting a connecting rod to the gudgeon pin and hence the piston in a reciprocating engine.
|-
|'''Eyed Conger'''
|{{w|Sea conger|type of eel}}, found in the western Pacific Ocean
|
|{{w|Large-eye conger|type of eel}}, found in the northwestern and eastern central Pacific Ocean
|
|{{w|Smalleye conger|type of eel}}, found in the eastern Indian Ocean
|-
|'''Flying Fox'''
|
|{{w|Great flying fox}}
|{{w|Large flying fox}}
|
|{{w|Small flying fox}}
|-
|'''Foot'''
|The well known folk-lore monster ''{{w|Bigfoot}}''
|
|
|{{w|List_of_The_Land_Before_Time_characters#Littlefoot|Main character}} in the ''{{w|Land Before Time}}'' film series
|''{{w|Smallfoot (film)|Smallfoot}}'' is an animated film that inverts the Bigfoot legend, focusing on a group of yetis that tell stories about humans.
|-
|'''Forest Bat'''
|
|
|A common {{w|Large forest bat|bat}} found in Southeastern Australia
|A related {{w|Little forest bat|bat}} also found in Southeastern Australia
|
|-
|'''Format'''
|
|
|{{w|Large format|anything larger than 4x5 inches in photography}}
|
|
|-
|'''Foundation'''
|The BIG Foundation is a 501c3 non-profit charity
|May be a reference to Asimov’s Greater Foundation
|?
|
|
|-
|'''Frog'''
|Refers to someone who is important but only in a small group (Big frog in a small pond)
|
|?
|children's book [https://smile.amazon.com/Little-Frog-Crista-R-Stewart/dp/1616638702/ref=smi_www_rco2_go_smi_g5171374337?_encoding=UTF8&%2AVersion%2A=1&%2Aentries%2A=0&ie=UTF8 "The Little Frog"] by Crista R. Stewart
|{{w|Small frog|An Australian frog species}}
|-
|'''Game'''
|Large animals hunted for sport or food, usually referring to the African {{w|big five game}} (lion, leopard, rhinoceros, elephant, cape buffalo); can also refer to the NFL's {{w|Super Bowl}}
|{{w|Great Game|19th Century geopolitical competition}} between the British and Russian Empires over control of Afghanistan
|{{w|Game (hunting)|Large animals}} hunted for sport or food, such as bears or moose
|
|{{w|Game (hunting)|Small animals}} hunted for sport or food, such as rabbits or ducks
|-
|'''Hadron Collider'''
|
|
|{{w|Large Hadron Collider|particle accelerator}}
|
|
|-
|'''Hearted'''
|[[wiktionary:bighearted|kind, generous, selfless, noble]]
|[[wiktionary:greathearted|generous, selfless, noble]]
|[[wiktionary:largehearted|generous, benevolent, noble]]
|
|
|-
|'''House on the Prairie'''
|
|
|
|{{w|Little House on the Prairie|novel}} (later made into a TV show)
|
|-
|'''Intestine'''
|
|
|The {{w|Large Intestine}} or colon is the last part of the digestive system.
|
|The {{w|Small Intestine}} is the part of the gastrointestinal tract (gut) immediately after the stomach, where most absorption of nutrients takes place
|-
|'''Island'''
|{{w|Hawaii (island)|largest island in Hawaii}}, or numerous other islands: {{w|Big Island}}
|{{w|Great Island|in Cork Harbour, Ireland}}
|{{w|Large Island|island in the Antilles, owned by Grenada}}
|{{w|Little Island|several islands named such}}, plus a song in ''{{w|Randy Newman's Faust}}''
|{{w|Small Island (novel)|novel which was made into a movie}}
|-
|'''League'''
|Nickname for top-level competition
|One of the leagues in Pokemon Go
|
|{{w|Little League Baseball|Youth baseball organization}}
|
|-
|'''Lies'''
|''{{w|Big Little Lies (TV series)|Big Little Lies}}'', a novel made into a TV series; also a [[wiktionary:big lie|form of propaganda]]
|
|
|''{{w|Big Little Lies (TV series)|Big Little Lies}}'', a novel made into a TV series; also a {{w|Little Lies|Fleetwood Mac song}}
|
|-
|'''Magellanic Cloud'''
|
|
|A {{w|Large Magellanic Cloud|satellite galaxy}} of the Milky Way
|
|Another {{w|Small Magellanic Cloud|satellite galaxy}} of the Milky Way
|-
|'''Millimeter Telescope'''
|
|
|{{w|Large Millimeter Telescope|radio telescope}}
|
|
|-
|'''One'''
|Nickname for any large natural disaster that is expected to happen in the future, such as a tsunami or an earthquake in California
|Nickname for {{w|Wayne Gretzky}}, considered by many to be the greatest ice hockey player of all time, also comedian {{w|Jackie Gleason}} and many other people ([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_One Wikipedia disambiguation page]).
|
|affectionate term for a small person
|{{w|The Small One|A Disney animated short directed by Don Bluth}}
|-
|'''Orphan Annie'''
|
|
|
|{{w|Little Orphan Annie|comic strip}}
|
|-
|'''Planet'''
|Part of the video game ''{{w|Little Big Planet}}''
|
|
|Part of the video game ''{{w|Little Big Planet}}''
|
|-
|'''Potatoes'''
|
|
|
|
|[[wiktionary:small potatoes|something relatively unimportant]]
|-
|'''Pox'''
|
|an old name for {{w|syphilis}}
|
|
|{{w|smallpox|a deadly disease}} which was effectively eradicated by 1977
|-
|'''Professor'''
|
|
|{{w|Large Professor|rap artist}}
|{{w|Little Professor|educational math toy}} (also "Little Professor Syndrome", an informal name for autism)
|
|-
|'''Richard'''
|
|
|
|{{w|Little Richard|musician}}
|
|-
|'''Room'''
|
|{{w|Great room|a McMansion's signature space}}
|
|{{w|White_Blood_Cells_(album)#Track_listing|Track 6}} on "White Blood Cells," the third album by {{w|The_White_Stripes|The White Stripes}}
|{{w|May Sarton|"The Small Room", a novel by May Sarton}}, also various songs: {{w|Small Room}}
|-
|'''Screen'''
|[[wiktionary:big screen|another name for movies]]
|
|
|
|[[wiktionary:small screen|another name for TV]]
|-
|'''Sister'''
|[[wiktionary:big sister|older female sibling]]
|
|
|[[wiktionary:little sister|younger female sibling]]
|
|-
|'''Soldiers'''
|
|
|
|{{w|Little Soldiers|1996 Telugu drama film}}
|{{w|Small Soldiers|1998 movie}} about sentient animated toys at war
|-
|'''Sur'''
|{{w|Big Sur|coastal region of California}} famed for its mountain scenery
|
|
|
|
|-
|'''Terror'''
|
|{{w|Great Terror|One of two periods of violent political repression}}; one during {{w|Reign of Terror|the French Revolution}} between 1793 and 1794, the other in {{w|Great Purge|the Soviet Union under Josef Stalin}} between 1936 and 1938
|
|
|
|-
|'''Time'''
|[[wiktionary:big time|major]], the highest level of a field
|
|
|
|[[wiktionary:small time|minor]], or modest, level of achievement
|-
|'''Toothed Aspen'''
|A {{w|Populus grandidentata|tree}} native to North America
|
|Another name for the same tree
|
|
|-
|'''Wall of China'''
|
|{{w|Great Wall of China|Series of fortifications}} over 13,000 miles long that served to protect various Chinese empires from raids and invasion from their north
|
|
|
|-
|'''White'''
|{{w|Big White Ski Resort|ski resort in British Columbia}}
|{{w|Great white shark|species of shark}} or a {{w|Great White|rock band}}
|{{w|Pieris brassicae|a butterfly}} or {{w|Large White pig|a common breed of pig}}
|
|{{w|Dixeia|multiple species}} of {{w|Pieris rapae|butterflies}} are known as small whites
|-
|'''Wonder'''
|
|
|
|{{w|Little Wonder|"Little Wonder" is a song and single by David Bowie, from the 1997 album Earthling.}}
|{{w|Small Wonder (TV series)|American sitcom}}
|-
|'''World'''
|Australian company {{w|BigWorld|BigWorld}} which develops development tools for MMOs; also {{w|Big_World|a 1986 live album by Joe Jackson}}.
|Reference to either {{w|Great World City|Great World City}} or {{w|Great World Amusement Park|Great World Amusement Park}}, a Chinese shopping mall or amusement park, respectively
|
|A {{w|Little World|2013 Catalan documentary film}}
|{{w|Small_World_(board_game)|Board game by Days of Wonder}}, {{w|It's a Small World|ride at Disney parks}}, type of {{w|Small-world_network|mathematical graph.}}
|}

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


:Big: Bang Theory, Enchilada, Board, Sur
:Little: Orphan Annie, House on the Prairie, Richard
:Large: format, Millimeter Telescope, Hadron Collider
:Small: claims court, potatoes
:Great: Barrier Reef, Wall of China, Depression, Terror, aunt

:Big/Great: Bend, Bear Lake
:Big/Small: time, screen
:Big/Little: Dipper, Planet, lies, sister
:Little/Great: Blue Heron
:Little/Large: Professor, Forest Bat
:Big/Large: Toothed Aspen
:Large/Small: intestine, Magellanic Cloud
:Little/Small: wonder, soldiers
:Small/Great: pox, cardiac vein
:Large/Great: Billed Seed Finch

:Big/Large/Great: hearted
:Big/Small/Great: end
:Big/Little/Small: foot
:Big/Little/Great: league
:Little/Large/Great: (none)
:Big/Little/Large: foundation
:Big/Large/Small: Eyed Conger, Blue
:Little/Large/Small: emerald
:Little/Small/Great: circle, room
:Large/Small/Great: flying fox

:Big/Large/Small/Great: game, white
:Big/Little/Small/Great : world, one
:Big/Little/Large/Great : (none)
:Big/Little/Large/Small : frog
:Little/Large/Small/Great : (none)

:Big/Little/Large/Small/Great: Island

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Venn diagrams]]
[[Category:Language]]

2122: Size Venn Diagram

2019-03-14T17:40:54Z

172.69.33.77: Undo revision 171170 by 162.158.106.252 (talk)

{{comic
| number = 2122
| date = March 11, 2019
| title = Size Venn Diagram
| image = size_venn_diagram.png
| titletext = Terms I'm going to start using: The Large Dipper, great potatoes, the Big Hadron Collider, and Large Orphan Annie.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a Large Terror. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
[[File:Symmetrical_5-set_Venn_diagram.svg|thumb|upright=0.5|{{w|Branko Grünbaum}}'s multi-set Venn diagram strategy from 1975, less symmetric than Randall's.]]
This comic is a {{w|Venn diagram}} illustrating the complete set of possible intersections of five different size adjectives: "little", "large", "small", "great" and “big”. Each unique intersection contains a short list of nouns that can be preceded by each of its intersecting adjectives.

For example, "flying fox" (a type of bat) appears at the intersection of "large", "small", and "great", because the species {{w|large flying fox}}, {{w|small flying fox}}, and {{w|great flying fox}} all exist, but there is no such species as a "big flying fox" or a "little flying fox". Similarly, humans have organs named the {{w|small intestine}} and {{w|large intestine}}, but no "little intestine", "great intestine", or "big intestine".

Some descriptors are applied in combination to their noun, rather than individually; for example, "planet" is placed in both the "little" and "big" groups in reference to the 2008 video game ''{{w|Little Big Planet}}''.

In the title text, Randall declares that he will start intentionally using term combinations that don't appear in the above diagram, presumably to entertain himself while confusing people.

A similar concept can be seen in [[181: Interblag]], but in a tabular form rather than a Venn diagram.

===List of items in the diagram===
The following table lists all size/noun combinations that the Venn diagram can generate, with a description of each.
{| class="wikitable sortable"
!Item
!Big !! Great !! Large !! Little !! Small
|-
|width=10%|'''Aunt'''
|width=18%|
|width=18%| [[wiktionary:great-aunt|sister of one's grandparent]]
|width=18%|
|width=18%|
|width=18%|
|-
|'''Bang Theory'''
|currently-accepted {{w|Big Bang|scientific theory}} that explains the origin of the universe; also a {{w|The Big Bang Theory|TV sitcom}}|| || || ||
|-
|'''Barrier Reef'''
|
|{{w|Great Barrier Reef|world's largest coral reef system}}, off the coast of Australia
|
|
|
|-
|'''Bear Lake'''
|a {{w|Big Bear Lake, California|lake and surrounding community in California}}, in the mountains
|a {{w|Great Bear Lake|lake in Canada}}, in the Northwest Territories -- the largest lake entirely in Canada, and the fourth-largest in North America
|
|
|
|-
|'''Bend'''
| {{w|Big Bend|several geographic locations}}, including a {{w|Big Bend National Park|US National Park}} in Texas
| {{w|Great Bend (disambiguation)|several geographic locations}}, including a {{w|Great Bend, Kansas|city in Kansas}} and the description of the S-shaped curving of the {{w|Nile River}} in Egypt and Sudan
|
|
|
|-
|'''Billed Seed Finch'''
|
|{{w|Great-billed seed finch|species of finch}}, described in 1851
|{{w|Large-billed seed finch|species of finch}}, described in 1789
|
|
|-
|'''Blue'''
|nickname for [https://www.ibm.com IBM] and the {{w|New York Giants}}, also [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0095250 a movie] and a stage in {{w|F-Zero}} and borrowed into Mario Kart
|
|{{w|large blue|various different butterflies}}
|
|{{w|small blue|butterfly}}, smallest found in the UK
|-
|'''Blue Heron'''
|
|{{w|Great Blue Heron|species of heron}} that measures 91–137 cm (36–54 in) long
|
|{{w|Little Blue Heron|species of heron}} that measures about 60 cm (24 in) long
|
|-
|'''Board'''
| nickname for the {{w|New York Stock Exchange}} || || || ||
|-
|'''Cardiac Vein'''
|
|{{w|Great cardiac vein|left coronary vein}}
|
|
|{{w|Small cardiac vein|heart vein on the right side}}
|-
|'''Circle'''
|
|{{w|Great circle|largest possible circle}} that can be drawn on a sphere; the {{w|equator}} is an example of one on the Earth
|
|The {{w|Little_Circle|Little Circle}}, a group of political reformists based in Manchester, UK in the early 1800s
|{{w|Circle_of_a_sphere|a circle that lies on a sphere}} without passing through its center (which would make it a great circle)
|-
|'''Claims Court'''
|
|
|
|
|{{w|Small claims court|judicial court}} that handles cases involving only relatively small amounts of money
|-
|'''enchilada'''
|[[wiktionary:big enchilada|important person]] || || || ||
|-
|'''Depression'''
|
|{{w|Great Depression|period of prolonged economic downturn}} that affected the world economy in the 1930's
|
|
|
|-
|'''Dipper'''
|{{w|Big Dipper|subset collection of stars}} in the constellation {{w|Ursa Major}}
|
|
|name for the constellation {{w|Ursa Minor}}
|
|-
|'''Emerald'''
|
|
|{{w|Large_emerald|Geometra papilionaria}}, a bright green moth of the family {{w|Geometer_moth|Geometridae}}
|{{w|Jodis_lactearia|Jodis lactearia}}, a light green or white moth of the family {{w|Geometer_moth|Geometridae}}
|{{w|Hemistola_chrysoprasaria|Hemistola chrysoprasaria}}, a light green or yellow-white moth of the family {{w|Geometer_moth|Geometridae}}
|-
|'''End'''
|The {{w|Crankpin|bearing}} connecting a connecting rod to the crank shaft of a reciprocating engine.
| {{w|Great End|Mountain in England}}
|
|
|The {{w|Crankpin|bearing}} connecting a connecting rod to the gudgeon pin and hence the piston in a reciprocating engine.
|-
|'''Eyed Conger'''
|{{w|Sea conger|type of eel}}, found in the western Pacific Ocean
|
|{{w|Large-eye conger|type of eel}}, found in the northwestern and eastern central Pacific Ocean
|
|{{w|Smalleye conger|type of eel}}, found in the eastern Indian Ocean
|-
|'''Flying Fox'''
|
|{{w|Great flying fox}}
|{{w|Large flying fox}}
|
|{{w|Small flying fox}}
|-
|'''Foot'''
|The well known folk-lore monster ''{{w|Bigfoot}}''
|
|
|{{w|List_of_The_Land_Before_Time_characters#Littlefoot|Main character}} in the ''{{w|Land Before Time}}'' film series
|''{{w|Smallfoot (film)|Smallfoot}}'' is an animated film that inverts the Bigfoot legend, focusing on a group of yetis that tell stories about humans.
|-
|'''Forest Bat'''
|
|
|A common {{w|Large forest bat|bat}} found in Southeastern Australia
|A related {{w|Little forest bat|bat}} also found in Southeastern Australia
|
|-
|'''Format'''
|
|
|{{w|Large format|anything larger than 4x5 inches in photography}}
|
|
|-
|'''Foundation'''
|The BIG Foundation is a 501c3 non-profit charity
|May be a reference to Asimov’s Greater Foundation
|?
|
|
|-
|'''Frog'''
|Refers to someone who is important but only in a small group (Big frog in a small pond)
|
|?
|children's book [https://smile.amazon.com/Little-Frog-Crista-R-Stewart/dp/1616638702/ref=smi_www_rco2_go_smi_g5171374337?_encoding=UTF8&%2AVersion%2A=1&%2Aentries%2A=0&ie=UTF8 "The Little Frog"] by Crista R. Stewart
|{{w|Small frog|An Australian frog species}}
|-
|'''Game'''
|Large animals hunted for sport or food, usually referring to the African {{w|big five game}} (lion, leopard, rhinoceros, elephant, cape buffalo); can also refer to the NFL's {{w|Super Bowl}}
|{{w|Great Game|19th Century geopolitical competition}} between the British and Russian Empires over control of Afghanistan
|{{w|Game (hunting)|Large animals}} hunted for sport or food, such as bears or moose
|
|{{w|Game (hunting)|Small animals}} hunted for sport or food, such as rabbits or ducks
|-
|'''Hadron Collider'''
|
|
|{{w|Large Hadron Collider|particle accelerator}}
|
|
|-
|'''Hearted'''
|[[wiktionary:bighearted|kind, generous, selfless, noble]]
|[[wiktionary:greathearted|generous, selfless, noble]]
|[[wiktionary:largehearted|generous, benevolent, noble]]
|
|
|-
|'''House on the Prairie'''
|
|
|
|{{w|Little House on the Prairie|novel}} (later made into a TV show)
|
|-
|'''Intestine'''
|
|
|The {{w|Large Intestine}} or colon is the last part of the digestive system.
|
|The {{w|Small Intestine}} is the part of the gastrointestinal tract (gut) immediately after the stomach, where most absorption of nutrients takes place
|-
|'''Island'''
|{{w|Hawaii (island)|largest island in Hawaii}}, or numerous other islands: {{w|Big Island}}
|{{w|Great Island|in Cork Harbour, Ireland}}
|{{w|Large Island|island in the Antilles, owned by Grenada}}
|{{w|Little Island|several islands named such}}, plus a song in ''{{w|Randy Newman's Faust}}''
|{{w|Small Island (novel)|novel which was made into a movie}}
|-
|'''League'''
|Nickname for top-level competition
|One of the leagues in Pokemon Go
|
|{{w|Little League Baseball|Youth baseball organization}}
|
|-
|'''Lies'''
|''{{w|Big Little Lies (TV series)|Big Little Lies}}'', a novel made into a TV series; also a [[wiktionary:big lie|form of propaganda]]
|
|
|''{{w|Big Little Lies (TV series)|Big Little Lies}}'', a novel made into a TV series; also a {{w|Little Lies|Fleetwood Mac song}}
|
|-
|'''Magellanic Cloud'''
|
|
|A {{w|Large Magellanic Cloud|satellite galaxy}} of the Milky Way
|
|Another {{w|Small Magellanic Cloud|satellite galaxy}} of the Milky Way
|-
|'''Millimeter Telescope'''
|
|
|{{w|Large Millimeter Telescope|radio telescope}}
|
|
|-
|'''One'''
|Nickname for any large natural disaster that is expected to happen in the future, such as a tsunami or an earthquake in California
|Nickname for {{w|Wayne Gretzky}}, considered by many to be the greatest ice hockey player of all time, also comedian {{w|Jackie Gleason}} and many other people ([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_One Wikipedia disambiguation page]).
|
|affectionate term for a small person
|{{w|The Small One|A Disney animated short directed by Don Bluth}}
|-
|'''Orphan Annie'''
|
|
|
|{{w|Little Orphan Annie|comic strip}}
|
|-
|'''Planet'''
|Part of the video game ''{{w|Little Big Planet}}''
|
|
|Part of the video game ''{{w|Little Big Planet}}''
|
|-
|'''Potatoes'''
|
|
|
|
|[[wiktionary:small potatoes|something relatively unimportant]]
|-
|'''Pox'''
|
|an old name for {{w|syphilis}}
|
|
|{{w|smallpox|a deadly disease}} which was effectively eradicated by 1977
|-
|'''Professor'''
|
|
|{{w|Large Professor|rap artist}}
|{{w|Little Professor|educational math toy}} (also "Little Professor Syndrome", an informal name for autism)
|
|-
|'''Richard'''
|
|
|
|{{w|Little Richard|musician}}
|
|-
|'''Room'''
|
|{{w|Great room|a McMansion's signature space}}
|
|{{w|White_Blood_Cells_(album)#Track_listing|Track 6}} on "White Blood Cells," the third album by {{w|The_White_Stripes|The White Stripes}}
|{{w|May Sarton|"The Small Room", a novel by May Sarton}}, also various songs: {{w|Small Room}}
|-
|'''Screen'''
|[[wiktionary:big screen|another name for movies]]
|
|
|
|[[wiktionary:small screen|another name for TV]]
|-
|'''Sister'''
|[[wiktionary:big sister|older female sibling]]
|
|
|[[wiktionary:little sister|younger female sibling]]
|
|-
|'''Soldiers'''
|
|
|
|{{w|Little Soldiers|1996 Telugu drama film}}
|{{w|Small Soldiers|1998 movie}} about sentient animated toys at war
|-
|'''Sur'''
|{{w|Big Sur|coastal region of California}} famed for its mountain scenery
|
|
|
|
|-
|'''Terror'''
|
|{{w|Great Terror|One of two periods of violent political repression}}; one during {{w|Reign of Terror|the French Revolution}} between 1793 and 1794, the other in {{w|Great Purge|the Soviet Union under Josef Stalin}} between 1936 and 1938
|
|
|
|-
|'''Time'''
|[[wiktionary:big time|major]], the highest level of a field
|
|
|
|[[wiktionary:small time|minor]], or modest, level of achievement
|-
|'''Toothed Aspen'''
|A {{w|Populus grandidentata|tree}} native to North America
|
|Another name for the same tree
|
|
|-
|'''Wall of China'''
|
|{{w|Great Wall of China|Series of fortifications}} over 13,000 miles long that served to protect various Chinese empires from raids and invasion from their north
|
|
|
|-
|'''White'''
|{{w|Big White Ski Resort|ski resort in British Columbia}}
|{{w|Great white shark|species of shark}} or a {{w|Great White|rock band}}
|{{w|Pieris brassicae|a butterfly}} or {{w|Large White pig|a common breed of pig}}
|
|{{w|Dixeia|multiple species}} of {{w|Pieris rapae|butterflies}} are known as small whites
|-
|'''Wonder'''
|
|
|
|{{w|Little Wonder|"Little Wonder" is a song and single by David Bowie, from the 1997 album Earthling.}}
|{{w|Small Wonder (TV series)|American sitcom}}
|-
|'''World'''
|Australian company {{w|BigWorld|BigWorld}} which develops development tools for MMOs; also {{w|Big_World|a 1986 live album by Joe Jackson}}.
|Reference to either {{w|Great World City|Great World City}} or {{w|Great World Amusement Park|Great World Amusement Park}}, a Chinese shopping mall or amusement park, respectively
|
|A {{w|Little World|2013 Catalan documentary film}}
|{{w|Small_World_(board_game)|Board game by Days of Wonder}}, {{w|It's a Small World|ride at Disney parks}}, type of {{w|Small-world_network|mathematical graph.}}
|}

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


:Big: Bang Theory, Enchilada, Board, Sur
:Little: Orphan Annie, House on the Prairie, Richard
:Large: format, Millimeter Telescope, Hadron Collider
:Small: claims court, potatoes
:Great: Barrier Reef, Wall of China, Depression, Terror, aunt

:Big/Great: Bend, Bear Lake
:Big/Small: time, screen
:Big/Little: Dipper, Planet, lies, sister
:Little/Great: Blue Heron
:Little/Large: Professor, Forest Bat
:Big/Large: Toothed Aspen
:Large/Small: intestine, Magellanic Cloud
:Little/Small: wonder, soldiers
:Small/Great: pox, cardiac vein
:Large/Great: Billed Seed Finch

:Big/Large/Great: hearted
:Big/Small/Great: end
:Big/Little/Small: foot
:Big/Little/Great: league
:Little/Large/Great: (none)
:Big/Little/Large: foundation
:Big/Large/Small: Eyed Conger, Blue
:Little/Large/Small: emerald
:Little/Small/Great: circle, room
:Large/Small/Great: flying fox

:Big/Large/Small/Great: game, white
:Big/Little/Small/Great : world, one
:Big/Little/Large/Great : (none)
:Big/Little/Large/Small : frog
:Little/Large/Small/Great : (none)

:Big/Little/Large/Small/Great: Island

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Venn diagrams]]
[[Category:Language]]

2123: Meta Collecting

2019-03-14T17:39:35Z

172.69.33.77: Undo revision 171171 by 162.158.106.252 (talk) having fun, dear?

{{comic
| number = 2123
| date = March 13, 2019
| title = Meta Collecting
| image = meta_collecting.png
| titletext = I'm trying to get the page locked because some jerk keeps adding "Yachts".
}}

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

This is another comic in the "[[:Category:My Hobby|My Hobby]]" series.

Many people's hobbies involve {{w|collecting}} many items of the same category: Post stamps, collectable cards, painted dolls, wine, and so on. Just about anything can be collected, however, some things are collected much more often than others. Wikipedia has a page listing the most popular categories of such {{w|collectable}} items.

In Randall's usual style of going meta with everything, he decided to start a meta-collection—a collection of examples of different things that people can collect. He uses Wikipedia's {{w|list of collectables}} for reference. In the comic, [[Cueball]] is showing to his friend his collection of various items that have nothing in common except that they're all popular collectibles. So while most people try to collect everything in one narrow category of collectibles, Cueball's collection will only be complete if he can get one item from each of the list of collectible items as cataloged by Wikipedia's list, so he has a collection of representative elements from all collections.

In the title text, Randall complains about a wiki editor who keeps adding {{w|yacht}}s to the list of collectables, probably because it would force him to buy a yacht if he ever wanted to complete his collection of collectables. Yachts are traditionally considered immensely expensive and the vast majority of people own zero yachts, let alone a collection of them. Note that Randall does not specify how he is trying to get the page locked, and the comic itself might be a rather meta way of doing so: xkcd fans have a history of making lots of edits to Wikipedia articles Randall mentions, resulting in them being protected or locked. The article has in fact been edited and reverted about 50 times by these fans over the course of a single day and was put in protected status on March 14th, 2019.

==Transcript==

:[The comic depicts Cueball reading from a list to White Hat, standing next to a case filled with collectables including an urn, a model ship, a compact disc, a vinyl record, a doll or figurine, a martini glass, and a teapot.]
:Today we're looking for a lunchbox, a snow globe, a Maytag dryer, a Harley Davidson, and a stamp.

:[Caption below the frame:]
:My hobby: Collecting one item from every category listed on Wikipedia's "List of collectables."

==Trivia==

As of 13 March 2019 at 6:44 PM ET, there ''was'' a debate on the Wikipedia [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:List_of_collectables#May_consider_a_temporary_editing_protection talk] tab about locking this page.
This has now been upheld, and the page was temporarily locked.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:My Hobby]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]
[[Category:Wikipedia]]

2123: Meta Collecting

2019-03-13T16:21:13Z

172.69.33.77: /* Explanation */ fix

2123: Meta Collecting

2019-03-13T16:18:14Z

172.69.33.77: /* Explanation */ add more

2123: Meta Collecting

2019-03-13T16:15:48Z

172.69.33.77: add cats, wlink