explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

496: Secretary: Part 3

2016-12-12T14:19:58Z

173.245.52.119:

{{comic
| number = 496
| date = October 29, 2008
| title = Secretary: Part 3
| image = secretary part 3.png
| titletext = He actually installed each piece in a different car in the lot, then built a new car in the spot from the displaced pieces. It's a confusing maneuver known as the auto-troll shuffle.
}}

==Explanation==
When a person has been appointed to one of certain positions by the {{w|POTUS|President}}, they must first go through a confirmation hearing in front of the {{w|United States Senate|Senate}}, the upper house of {{w|United States Congress|Congress}} where they find if the person is qualified to be in the position they have been appointed to. Of course, [[Black Hat]] is not the cleanest of characters, so Congress has a lot of reservations about his {{w|résumé}}.

*{{w|Starbucks}} is an American coffee shop chain.
**He hasn't yet, but in [[562: Parking]], Black Hat will cut someone's car in half to make it fit in a single space. Not quite as dramatic as completely disassembling a car and, as the title text says, putting a single piece in another car parked in the lot, and building a car out of the displaced parts, which could almost be considered subtle; but, it is quite dramatic.
**Taking all the parts from different cars to build in a new car in the same spot parallels the idea in philosophy of the {{w|Ship of Theseus}} in which a question arises of whether a ship is the same ship if it is replaced piece by piece by identical pieces.
*{{w|Charles M. Schulz}} drew a comic called {{w|Peanuts}}. One of the recurring characters was {{w|Snoopy}} who would often use his doghouse as an imaginary {{w|Sopwith Camel}} in many battles with {{w|Manfred von Richthofen|The Red Baron}} who piloted a {{w|Fokker Dr.I|Red Fokker}} {{w|Triplane}}.
**The {{w|Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade}} is a parade that happens on {{w|Thanksgiving (United States)|Thanksgiving Day}} in the US. There are many giant balloons of pop-culture icons. Snoopy has made many appearances.
*{{w|9/11 Truth movement|9/11 Truthers}} believe that the terrorist attack on the {{w|World Trade Center}} towers on September 11, 2001 (thus 9/11) was not actually organized by terrorists, but by the United States government. Black Hat apparently claims to subscribe to a comedically exaggerated version of this conspiracy theory in which the attacks did not happen ''at all'' and the World Trade Center is presumably still standing. Such a conspiracy is extremely implausible, as it would require either the involvement of every single person to ever set foot in one of the world's largest cities, or some way to conceal a pair of hundred story tall buildings.
**Black Hat uses a common refrain [[:Category:Sheeple|Wake up, Sheeple]].
*{{w|RadioShack}} is a chain of consumer electronics shops that sold parts to build electronics with: resistors, transistors, etc. Apparently Black Hat managed to build a death ray from the parts there and accidentally vaporized a customer. His line "Figures that'd be the one day that there'd be a customer in the aisle" refers to the fact that RadioShack stores have been in steady decline over the years, largely propped up by momentum.
*{{w|Microsoft}} is the company that makes {{w|Microsoft Windows|Windows}}, and {{w|Steve Ballmer}} was its {{w|Chief executive officer|CEO}} until being replaced in 2014 by {{w|Satya Nadella}}. {{w|Windows Vista}} is an {{w|operating system}} released in 2007; it was widely panned by software critics. It is unclear how feeding a squirrel through a fax machine could possibly contribute to winning an argument about it{{Citation needed}}.
*{{w|Ruth Bader Ginsburg}} is the second female justice on the {{w|Supreme Court of the United States|Supreme Court}}, appointed by President Clinton. The relevance here is that during her own confirmation hearings, she refused to answer many questions about her personal views, frustrating many Senators (nevertheless, she was confirmed, 96-3). {{w|John Roberts}}, the current Chief Justice, was similarly evasive in his hearings, citing the "Ginsburg Precedent."
*Black Hat stole a nuclear submarine in xkcd [[405: Journal 3]] to get his hat back from [[Danish]].
*"Pleading the fifth" is to invoke the {{w|Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Fifth Amendment}} of the {{w|United States Bill of Rights}}. Specifically, when someone pleads the fifth, they mean that they cannot be compelled to give testimony against themselves. That is, they do not have to say anything that could be taken as an admission of guilt. The {{w|Third Amendment to the United States Constitution|third amendment}} states that no homeowner has to keep troops of the United States Army in their house against their will in peacetime. Either Black Hat
**Doesn't understand the 3rd Amendment,
**Just chooses this amendment over the 5th to confuse the committee which seems to forget the question,
**Believes the nuclear submarine to be his property, and rather than stealing it he was simply expelling military personnel who were "quartered" in his nuclear sub without his permission,
**Stole the submarine in order to have a convenient place other than his house to quarter troops

The final panels show Ron Paul's blimp finally approaching Washington DC. The balloon spotted on their radar is presumably piloted by blogger {{w|Cory Doctorow}}.

All comics in the [[:Category:Secretary|Secretary]] series:
*[[494: Secretary: Part 1]]
*[[495: Secretary: Part 2]]
*496: Secretary: Part 3 (this one)
*[[497: Secretary: Part 4]]
*[[498: Secretary: Part 5]]

This series was released on 5 consecutive days (Monday-Friday) and not over the usual Monday/Wednesday/Friday schedule.

==Transcript==
:[The confirmation hearings begin.]
:Senator: It appears you have quite an arrest record.

:Senator: Is it true you completely disassembled someone's car outside a Starbucks?
:Black Hat: It was parked across two spaces.

:Senator: You stole a red Fokker triplane and strafed the snoopy float at the Macy's Thanksgiving day parade?

:Black Hat: Got three mimes, too.

:Senator: You disrupted a 9/11 truth meeting, insisting the Twin Towers never actually collapsed?
:Black Hat: I have evidence! Don't trust the media! Wake up, sheeple!

:Senator: You were fired from Radio Shack after you built a death ray and vaporized a customer?

:Black Hat: I was just testing it! Figures that'd be the one day there was a shopper in the aisle.

:Senator: And you were thrown out of Microsoft headquarters for... trying to feed a squirrel through a fax machine?

:Black Hat: I forgot about that! it was part of an argument with Steve Ballmer about Vista.
::Which I won, by the way.

:[Senators look down at their notes.]

:Senator: This is the worst history of vandalism, gleeful mayhem, and general recalcitrance we've seen in a nominee since Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

:Senator: And this-you stole a nuclear submarine?
:Black Hat: I plead the third.

:Senator: You mean the fifth?
:Black Hat: No, the third.

:Senator: You refuse to quarter troops in your house?
:Black Hat: I have few principles, but I stick to them.

:Meanwhile...
:[Aboard Ron Paul's blimp.]
:Ponytail: We're nearing Washington, sir.
::Wait... There's something ahead on the sensors.

:Ponytail: It's a balloon.
:Ron Paul: ...Oh, no.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Secretary|03]]
[[Category:Comics sharing name|Secretary]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ron Paul]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]
[[Category:Sheeple]]

496: Secretary: Part 3

2016-12-12T14:18:27Z

173.245.52.119: Added "citation needed"

{{comic
| number = 496
| date = October 29, 2008
| title = Secretary: Part 3
| image = secretary part 3.png
| titletext = He actually installed each piece in a different car in the lot, then built a new car in the spot from the displaced pieces. It's a confusing maneuver known as the auto-troll shuffle.
}}

==Explanation==
When a person has been appointed to one of certain positions by the {{w|POTUS|President}}, they must first go through a confirmation hearing in front of the {{w|United States Senate|Senate}}, the upper house of {{w|United States Congress|Congress}} where they find if the person is qualified to be in the position they have been appointed to. Of course, [[Black Hat]] is not the cleanest of characters, so Congress has a lot of reservations about his {{w|résumé}}.

*{{w|Starbucks}} is an American coffee shop chain.
**He hasn't yet, but in [[562: Parking]], Black Hat will cut someone's car in half to make it fit in a single space. Not quite as dramatic as completely disassembling a car and, as the title text says, putting a single piece in another car parked in the lot, and building a car out of the displaced parts, which could almost be considered subtle; but, it is quite dramatic.
**Taking all the parts from different cars to build in a new car in the same spot parallels the idea in philosophy of the {{w|Ship of Theseus}} in which a question arises of whether a ship is the same ship if it is replaced piece by piece by identical pieces.
*{{w|Charles M. Schulz}} drew a comic called {{w|Peanuts}}. One of the recurring characters was {{w|Snoopy}} who would often use his doghouse as an imaginary {{w|Sopwith Camel}} in many battles with {{w|Manfred von Richthofen|The Red Baron}} who piloted a {{w|Fokker Dr.I|Red Fokker}} {{w|Triplane}}.
**The {{w|Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade}} is a parade that happens on {{w|Thanksgiving (United States)|Thanksgiving Day}} in the US. There are many giant balloons of pop-culture icons. Snoopy has made many appearances.
*{{w|9/11 Truth movement|9/11 Truthers}} believe that the terrorist attack on the {{w|World Trade Center}} towers on September 11, 2001 (thus 9/11) was not actually organized by terrorists, but by the United States government. Black Hat apparently claims to subscribe to a comedically exaggerated version of this conspiracy theory in which the attacks did not happen ''at all'' and the World Trade Center is presumably still standing. Such a conspiracy is extremely implausible, as it would require either the involvement of every single person to ever set foot in one of the world's largest cities, or some way to conceal a pair of hundred story tall buildings.
**Black Hat uses a common refrain [[:Category:Sheeple|Wake up, Sheeple]].
*{{w|RadioShack}} is a chain of consumer electronics shops that sold parts to build electronics with: resistors, transistors, etc. Apparently Black Hat managed to build a death ray from the parts there and accidentally vaporized a customer. His line "Figures that'd be the one day that there'd be a customer in the aisle" refers to the fact that RadioShack stores have been in steady decline over the years, largely propped up by momentum.
*{{w|Microsoft}} is the company that makes {{w|Microsoft Windows|Windows}}, and {{w|Steve Ballmer}} was its {{w|Chief executive officer|CEO}} until being replaced in 2014 by {{w|Satya Nadella}}. {{w|Windows Vista}} is an {{w|operating system}} released in 2007; it was widely panned by software critics. It is unclear how feeding a squirrel through a fax machine could possibly contribute to winning an argument about it{{citation needed}}.
*{{w|Ruth Bader Ginsburg}} is the second female justice on the {{w|Supreme Court of the United States|Supreme Court}}, appointed by President Clinton. The relevance here is that during her own confirmation hearings, she refused to answer many questions about her personal views, frustrating many Senators (nevertheless, she was confirmed, 96-3). {{w|John Roberts}}, the current Chief Justice, was similarly evasive in his hearings, citing the "Ginsburg Precedent."
*Black Hat stole a nuclear submarine in xkcd [[405: Journal 3]] to get his hat back from [[Danish]].
*"Pleading the fifth" is to invoke the {{w|Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Fifth Amendment}} of the {{w|United States Bill of Rights}}. Specifically, when someone pleads the fifth, they mean that they cannot be compelled to give testimony against themselves. That is, they do not have to say anything that could be taken as an admission of guilt. The {{w|Third Amendment to the United States Constitution|third amendment}} states that no homeowner has to keep troops of the United States Army in their house against their will in peacetime. Either Black Hat
**Doesn't understand the 3rd Amendment,
**Just chooses this amendment over the 5th to confuse the committee which seems to forget the question,
**Believes the nuclear submarine to be his property, and rather than stealing it he was simply expelling military personnel who were "quartered" in his nuclear sub without his permission,
**Stole the submarine in order to have a convenient place other than his house to quarter troops

The final panels show Ron Paul's blimp finally approaching Washington DC. The balloon spotted on their radar is presumably piloted by blogger {{w|Cory Doctorow}}.

All comics in the [[:Category:Secretary|Secretary]] series:
*[[494: Secretary: Part 1]]
*[[495: Secretary: Part 2]]
*496: Secretary: Part 3 (this one)
*[[497: Secretary: Part 4]]
*[[498: Secretary: Part 5]]

This series was released on 5 consecutive days (Monday-Friday) and not over the usual Monday/Wednesday/Friday schedule.

==Transcript==
:[The confirmation hearings begin.]
:Senator: It appears you have quite an arrest record.

:Senator: Is it true you completely disassembled someone's car outside a Starbucks?
:Black Hat: It was parked across two spaces.

:Senator: You stole a red Fokker triplane and strafed the snoopy float at the Macy's Thanksgiving day parade?

:Black Hat: Got three mimes, too.

:Senator: You disrupted a 9/11 truth meeting, insisting the Twin Towers never actually collapsed?
:Black Hat: I have evidence! Don't trust the media! Wake up, sheeple!

:Senator: You were fired from Radio Shack after you built a death ray and vaporized a customer?

:Black Hat: I was just testing it! Figures that'd be the one day there was a shopper in the aisle.

:Senator: And you were thrown out of Microsoft headquarters for... trying to feed a squirrel through a fax machine?

:Black Hat: I forgot about that! it was part of an argument with Steve Ballmer about Vista.
::Which I won, by the way.

:[Senators look down at their notes.]

:Senator: This is the worst history of vandalism, gleeful mayhem, and general recalcitrance we've seen in a nominee since Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

:Senator: And this-you stole a nuclear submarine?
:Black Hat: I plead the third.

:Senator: You mean the fifth?
:Black Hat: No, the third.

:Senator: You refuse to quarter troops in your house?
:Black Hat: I have few principles, but I stick to them.

:Meanwhile...
:[Aboard Ron Paul's blimp.]
:Ponytail: We're nearing Washington, sir.
::Wait... There's something ahead on the sensors.

:Ponytail: It's a balloon.
:Ron Paul: ...Oh, no.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Secretary|03]]
[[Category:Comics sharing name|Secretary]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ron Paul]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]
[[Category:Sheeple]]

1026: Compare and Contrast

2016-12-09T17:08:34Z

173.245.52.119: Citation needed; am willing to do original research

{{comic
| number = 1026
| date = March 7, 2012
| title = Compare and Contrast
| image = compare_and_contrast.png
| titletext = Frankly, I see no difference between thee and a summer's day. Only Ron Paul offers a TRUE alternative!
}}

==Explanation==

A reference to the most well-known {{w|sonnet}} in the English-speaking world: {{w|William Shakespeare|William Shakespeare's}} "{{w|Sonnet 18}}", the first line of which is: "Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?". In this comic [[Randall]] sets about this in a typically goal-oriented chart, as opposed to the rather more romantic poetry of the Bard.

The lines are:

1. The first line is a reference to the sonnet itself, which reads: "Thou art more lovely and more temperate". He considers both thee and a summer's day to be "fair" (this is a pun; depending on context, "fair" can refer to complexion or weather) and "temperate" (meaning "warm", which again can describe a person or the weather).

2. "Hot, sticky" also refers to both, in different ways. "Hot" can mean sexually attractive or simply that the temperature is high. A "sticky" day refers to humidity.

3. "Short" is another pun. "Thee" is not tall. A summer day is chronologically long (time from dawn to dusk.)

4. "Harbinger of hurricane season" is technically accurate; hurricane season does follow the summer.

5. "Required for a good beach party" is not a pun, although it is another example of a word with slightly different meanings. The party is required to be held on summer's day and with "thee" present at the party. The party would not be held on "thee", although some of the other lines suggest that the writer might personally be on top of "thee" during the party.

6. Heat stroke is a condition mainly affecting children and the elderly. Heat waves and excessively hot days are highly linked with heat stroke incidence; see [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heat_stroke#cite_ref-23 Epidemiology]

7. "Linked to higher rates of juvenile delinquency" apparently refers juveniles committing crimes in the summer. However, this results, to some degree, from school not being in session, rather than simply as a direct result of the summer weather.

8. "Sometimes too stifling" is another pun. It is also unusual in that it expresses a negative feeling about "thee", unlike the other entries which express what the author likes or admires about thee.

9. "Arrested for releasing snakes in the library" is possibly inspired by the movie ''Snakes on a Plane''.

10. The last line "difficult to focus on work while I'm in" is a sexual reference, on the "thee" side, not on the "summer's day" side. To be "in" someone refers to the penetrative part of sex, which would occupy a typical person's attention{{Citation needed}}.

In Shakespeare's day, English had informal pronouns and formal pronouns, thou/thee (informal), and ye/you (formal). This is similar to what is still used today in many European languages. {{w|English personal pronouns#Full list of personal pronouns|Wikipedia}} has a nice chart for all of English's personal pronouns, current and archaic.

For both the chart and the original sonnet, whether or not the work is autobiographical is unknown. Also unknown is the identity of the person whom each work refers to. It is believed that Sonnet 18 is addressed to a {{w|Shakespeare's Sonnets#Fair Youth|young man}}.

And of course, the title text is a reference to {{w|Ron Paul}}, a former {{w|Republican Party (United States)|Republican}} candidate for {{w|President of the United States|President}} who was on top in the {{w|Republican Party presidential primaries, 2012|Republican Primary}} against a few other challengers for the nomination. Ron Paul was frequently represented on the internet using similar language to the image text. Paul has been seen as an alternative because he is a strict {{w|Libertarian Party (United States)|Libertarian}} and believes the government should be as small as possible and stay out of people's lives.

==Transcript==
:[A checklist comparing thee to a summer's day:
:Fair, Temperate: Thee & A Summer's Day
:Hot, Sticky: Thee & A Summer's Day
:Short: Thee
:Harbinger of Hurricane Season: A Summer's Day
:Required for a Good Beach Party: Thee & A Summer's Day
:Major Cause of Heat Stroke in the Elderly: A Summer's Day
:Linked to Higher Rates of Juvenile Delinquency: Thee & A Summer's Day
:Sometimes Too Stifling: Thee & A Summer's Day
:Arrested for Releasing Snakes in Library: Thee
:Difficult to Focus on Work While I'm In: Thee & A Summer's Day]

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Ron Paul]]
[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Sex]]
[[Category:Politics]]
[[Category:Romance]]

Talk:1761: Blame

2016-11-18T05:21:28Z

173.245.52.119:

It seems like he's talking about all of the bad things that have happened in 2016 so far making fun of Facebook posts that blame everyone for the things that are happening
[[Special:Contributions/173.245.52.119|173.245.52.119]] 05:21, 18 November 2016 (UTC)

Talk:1249: Meteor Showers

2015-09-01T11:28:51Z

173.245.52.119: Added a theory on the Lyrids text

The dates are not in order {{unsigned ip|‎99.108.140.97}}

Maybe the tennis reference is to Bob and Mike Bryan, they are twins. [[Special:Contributions/83.227.33.35|83.227.33.35]] 09:36, 9 August 2013 (UTC)

The date for Dromaeosaurids was originally June 12, but on the page displayed at 9:44 ET, is now July 22.

Lyrids: Scream because of the similarity to "Lyrics"? [[Special:Contributions/74.125.57.36|74.125.57.36]] 15:08, 9 August 2013 (UTC)

I don't know if it's relevant, but pyramidal cells are needed in complex object recognition and in vision-guided motor function. By closing your eyes, you're basically not using much of your pyramidal cells' capabilities. They're also one of the largest neurones, but I doubt that's relevant. [[Special:Contributions/83.173.97.36|83.173.97.36]] 15:28, 9 August 2013 (UTC)

When it comes to the Leonids, John Lennon (I know it's a stretch), made his "bigger than Jesus" comment in '66 {{unsigned ip|12.1.208.178}}

Or perhaps it's related to the film 300 where Leonidas says: "Even a god can bleed?"--[[Special:Contributions/129.215.124.225|129.215.124.225]] 21:50, 15 August 2013 (UTC)

For Draconids, are there any movies with dragons that would fit the given description? --[[User:Irino.|Irino.]] ([[User talk:Irino.|talk]]) 18:56, 9 August 2013 (UTC)
:{{w|Reign_of_Fire_(film)|Reign Of Fire}} first came to mind as far as dragons are concerned, but unlike the Jurassic Park T-Rex (which ''might'' be an influence, given their co-billing alongside the 'Raptor threat) I don't ''think'' they were blind to the motionless (just had bad vision at sunset?) and neither were they were notably slow (far from it!). Various zombies (non-Rage ones) are slow but surprisingly good at catching people who trip, but I don't see any obvious connection there either. Maybe there's another Monster Movie which has the same sort of thing with dragons? I had also considered Komodo Dragons, which are often filmed lumbering about, although they've got a turn of speed on them when attacking so... Anyway, my thoughts, FWIW. [[Special:Contributions/178.104.103.140|178.104.103.140]] 23:00, 9 August 2013 (UTC)

With regard to "daytime" meteor showers being a NASA hoax, would anyone be able to see a meteor shower during the daytime? [[User:Odysseus654|Odysseus654]] ([[User talk:Odysseus654|talk]]) 00:12, 10 August 2013 (UTC)

Regarding Centaurids: You could look at a meteor shower from inside through a window. Glare or perhaps light absorbed by the glass could make it difficult or impossible to see a meteor shower unless it is bright enough. (I nearly lost my edit to Odysseus654 who posted just before me.) [[Special:Contributions/76.106.251.87|76.106.251.87]] 00:15, 10 August 2013 (UTC)

Perseids (“Instead of falling from sky, meteors erupt from ground”) are named after Perseus, a well-known hero of Ancient Greek mythology. The Perseids line apparently refers to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadmus#Founder_of_Thebes another Ancient Greek myth], about founding the Thebes city by another Ancient Greek hero, Cadmus, who, according to the story, sowed the dragon teeth into the ground, from where the fierce warriors have grown ("erupted"); these warriors then, after a couple of story twists, assisted Cadmus in building the city. [[User:Honeyman|Honeyman]] ([[User talk:Honeyman|talk]]) 01:03, 10 August 2013 (UTC

Geminids: how about Prince of Tennis? [http://princeoftennis.wikia.com/wiki/Gemini]{{unsigned ip|84.193.43.190}}

Lyrids: The first thing I thought of was those "screamer" rockets on July 4th, possibly due to the fireworks reference in the first row of the table.

1547: Solar System Questions

2015-07-06T17:44:12Z

173.245.52.119: /* Explanation */ repair my recent bad edit

{{comic
| number = 1547
| date = July 6, 2015
| title = Solar System Questions
| image = solar_system_questions.png
| titletext = My country's World Cup win was exciting and all, but c'mon, what if the players wore nylon wings and COULD LITERALLY FLY?
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BOT - Please change this comment when editing this page.}}

This comic is a list of questions which Randall has about the Solar System, which at first glance may appear to be things that Randall would like to learn about.
In actual fact most of the questions have not been satisfactorily answered or proven by anyone in the scientific community.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Question given
! Answer given by Randall (in Red)
! Comments
|-
| Why is the the Moon so blotchy?
| Lava
| "the the" could be a Randallism (intended or unintended).
|-
| Why are all the blotches on the near side?
| ...
| The nearside of the Moon is dominated by the blotchy 'seas' (volcanic flats), the far side by craters. Possibly an overabundance of craters obliterate the blotches, and the far side was always more 'exposed' to impacts.
|-
| Did Mars have seas?
| Yes (briefly?)
| Recent explorations have confirmed there was once standing water (not just occasional flowing water), but not yet how long, save that it created the sedimentary layers that we have seen.
|-
| Was there life on Mars?
| ...
| One of the big mysteries, not yet answered.
|-
| What's Titan like?
| Cold, yellow, lakes + rivers (methane)
|
|-
| What was Earth like during the Hadean?
| ...
| {{w|Hadean}}
|-
| Is the Oort Cloud a real thing?
| ...
| The {{w|Oort Cloud}} is a theoretical spherical cloud of icy planetsimals centred around our sun.
|-
| Why is the Sun's corona so hot?
| Something about magnets?
| The {{w|corona}} of the sun is hotter than it theoretically should be. The looping magnetic fields in this area could be responsible.
|-
| What are comets like?
| Precipitous
| The {{w|Philae (spacecraft)|Philae lander}} is next to a cliff...
|-
| Where's Philae, exactly?
| ...
| ...but we're not sure ''which'' cliff.
|-
| What's Pluto like?
| rowspan="2" | [Soon!]
| rowspan="2" | The probe {{w|New Horizons}} may be about to answer both of these questions.
|-
| What's Charon like?
|-
| Why don't we have in-between-sized planets?
| ...
| There is a size-gap between the rocky planets (up to Earth size) and the gas giants
|-
| What's Ceres like?
| [Working on it!]
| Another probe, {{w|Dawn (spacecraft)}}.
|-
| Why is Europa so wierd-looking and pretty?
| Ice over a water ocean
|
|-
| Why is Io so weird-looking?
| Sulfur volcanoes (? in the wrong places?)
|
|-
| Why are so many Kuiper Belt objects red?
| ...
| {{w|Kuiper Belt}}
|-
| What are those spots on Ceres?
| ...
| {{w|Ceres (dwarf planet)|Ceres}}
|-
| What's in the seas under Europa's ice?
| ...
| {{w|Europa (moon)|Europa}}
|-
| Which of the other moons have seas?
| Several
| (Partial/initial list possible? Definition of 'seas' would affect this.)
|-
| What are the big white things in Titan's Lakes?
| ...
| {{w|Lakes of Titan}}
|-
| What do Jupiter's clouds look like up close?
| ...
|
|-
| What's all that red stuff in the Great Red Spot?
| ...
|
|-
| What's pushing the Pioneer Probes?
| Heat from the RTG
| Discussed as the {{w|Pioneer anomaly}}. RTG stands for {{w|Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator}}.
|-
| What pushes spacecraft slightly during flybys?
| ...
| The related {{w|Flyby anomaly}}.
|-
| Where are all the Sun's Neutrinos?
| Oscillating
| {{w|Solar neutrino problem}}
|-
| Why is there so much air on Titan?
| ...
|
|-
| Why <sic? Where?> does the Kuiper Belt Stop?
| ...
| A reference to the {{w|Kuiper Cliff}}.
|-
| Why is Iapetus weird-colored?
| ...
|
|-
| Why does iapetus have a belt?
| ...
|
|-
| What's the deal with Miranda?
| ...
| {{w|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miranda_(moon)|Miranda}} is the smallest of Uranus's five round satellites. Also possibly a [[Firefly|''Firefly'' reference]] since {{w|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Firefly_planets_and_moons#Miranda|Miranda}} is the name of a planet in {{w|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serenity_(film)|''Serenity''}}, a film in the {{w|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firefly_(TV_series)|''Firefly''}} series.
|-
| Did Uranus and Neptune change places?
| ...
| The {{w|Nice model}} is a theory of how our solar system formed, which suggested the possibility of Uranus and Neptune having swapped places before reaching their current positions. Work by Professor S. Desch [http://dusty.la.asu.edu/~desch/publications/2007/Desch2007.pdf| also came to this result].
|-
| Did the Late Heavy Bombardment happen?
| ...
|
|-
| Did life start before it?
| ...
|
|-
| Is Europa covered in Ice Spikes?
| ...
|
|-
| Why haven't we build a big inflatable Extreme Sports Complex on The Moon?
| ...
| See, e.g., ''{{w|The Menace From Earth}}'', a 1957 short story by Robert Heinlein.
|
|-
| (Titletext) My country's World Cup win was exciting and all, but c'mon, what if the players wore nylon wings and COULD LITERALLY FLY?
| ...
| {{w|2015 FIFA Women's World Cup}}
|}

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Firefly]]

1547: Solar System Questions

2015-07-06T17:42:30Z

173.245.52.119: /* Explanation */ add ref to RAH short story with lunar sports

{{comic
| number = 1547
| date = July 6, 2015
| title = Solar System Questions
| image = solar_system_questions.png
| titletext = My country's World Cup win was exciting and all, but c'mon, what if the players wore nylon wings and COULD LITERALLY FLY?
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BOT - Please change this comment when editing this page.}}

This comic is a list of questions which Randall has about the Solar System, which at first glance may appear to be things that Randall would like to learn about.
In actual fact most of the questions have not been satisfactorily answered or proven by anyone in the scientific community.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Question given
! Answer given by Randall (in Red)
! Comments
|-
| Why is the the Moon so blotchy?
| Lava
| "the the" could be a Randallism (intended or unintended).
|-
| Why are all the blotches on the near side?
| ...
| The nearside of the Moon is dominated by the blotchy 'seas' (volcanic flats), the far side by craters. Possibly an overabundance of craters obliterate the blotches, and the far side was always more 'exposed' to impacts.
|-
| Did Mars have seas?
| Yes (briefly?)
| Recent explorations have confirmed there was once standing water (not just occasional flowing water), but not yet how long, save that it created the sedimentary layers that we have seen.
|-
| Was there life on Mars?
| ...
| One of the big mysteries, not yet answered.
|-
| What's Titan like?
| Cold, yellow, lakes + rivers (methane)
|
|-
| What was Earth like during the Hadean?
| ...
| {{w|Hadean}}
|-
| Is the Oort Cloud a real thing?
| ...
| The {{w|Oort Cloud}} is a theoretical spherical cloud of icy planetsimals centred around our sun.
|-
| Why is the Sun's corona so hot?
| Something about magnets?
| The {{w|corona}} of the sun is hotter than it theoretically should be. The looping magnetic fields in this area could be responsible.
|-
| What are comets like?
| Precipitous
| The {{w|Philae (spacecraft)|Philae lander}} is next to a cliff...
|-
| Where's Philae, exactly?
| ...
| ...but we're not sure ''which'' cliff.
|-
| What's Pluto like?
| rowspan="2" | [Soon!]
| rowspan="2" | The probe {{w|New Horizons}} may be about to answer both of these questions.
|-
| What's Charon like?
|-
| Why don't we have in-between-sized planets?
| ...
| There is a size-gap between the rocky planets (up to Earth size) and the gas giants
|-
| What's Ceres like?
| [Working on it!]
| Another probe, {{w|Dawn (spacecraft)}}.
|-
| Why is Europa so wierd-looking and pretty?
| Ice over a water ocean
|
|-
| Why is Io so weird-looking?
| Sulfur volcanoes (? in the wrong places?)
|
|-
| Why are so many Kuiper Belt objects red?
| ...
| {{w|Kuiper Belt}}
|-
| What are those spots on Ceres?
| ...
| {{w|Ceres (dwarf planet)|Ceres}}
|-
| What's in the seas under Europa's ice?
| ...
| {{w|Europa (moon)|Europa}}
|-
| Which of the other moons have seas?
| Several
| (Partial/initial list possible? Definition of 'seas' would affect this.)
|-
| What are the big white things in Titan's Lakes?
| ...
| {{w|Lakes of Titan}}
|-
| What do Jupiter's clouds look like up close?
| ...
|
|-
| What's all that red stuff in the Great Red Spot?
| ...
|
|-
| What's pushing the Pioneer Probes?
| Heat from the RTG
| Discussed as the {{w|Pioneer anomaly}}. RTG stands for {{w|Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator}}.
|-
| What pushes spacecraft slightly during flybys?
| ...
| The related {{w|Flyby anomaly}}.
|-
| Where are all the Sun's Neutrinos?
| Oscillating
| {{w|Solar neutrino problem}}
|-
| Why is there so much air on Titan?
| ...
|
|-
| Why <sic? Where?> does the Kuiper Belt Stop?
| ...
| A reference to the {{w|Kuiper Cliff}}.
|-
| Why is Iapetus weird-colored?
| ...
|
|-
| Why does iapetus have a belt?
| ...
|
|-
| What's the deal with Miranda?
| ...
| {{w|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miranda_(moon)|Miranda}} is the smallest of Uranus's five round satellites. Also possibly a [[Firefly|''Firefly'' reference]] since {{w|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Firefly_planets_and_moons#Miranda|Miranda}} is the name of a planet in {{w|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serenity_(film)|''Serenity''}}, a film in the {{w|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firefly_(TV_series)|''Firefly''}} series.
|-
| Did Uranus and Neptune change places?
| ...
| The {{w|Nice model}} is a theory of how our solar system formed, which suggested the possibility of Uranus and Neptune having swapped places before reaching their current positions. Work by Professor S. Desch [http://dusty.la.asu.edu/~desch/publications/2007/Desch2007.pdf| also came to this result].
|-
| Did the Late Heavy Bombardment happen?
| ...
|
|-
| Did life start before it?
| ...
|
|-
| Is Europa covered in Ice Spikes?
| ...
|
|-
| Why haven't we build a big inflatable Extreme Sports Complex on The Moon?
| ...
| See, e.g., ''{w|The Menace From Earth}, a 1957 short story by Robert Heinlein}''.
|
|-
| (Titletext) My country's World Cup win was exciting and all, but c'mon, what if the players wore nylon wings and COULD LITERALLY FLY?
| ...
| {{w|2015 FIFA Women's World Cup}}
|}

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Firefly]]

445: I Am Not Good with Boomerangs

2015-04-30T23:25:34Z

173.245.52.119:

{{comic
| number = 445
| date = July 4, 2008
| title = I Am Not Good with Boomerangs
| image = i_am_not_good_with_boomerangs.png
| titletext = Bonus strip: just read the rightmost panels straight down.
}}

==Explanation==
The strip shows [[Cueball]] throwing a boomerang four times, each time finding a difficulty in catching it.

The first time, it merely hits him in the head.<br>
The second time, six boomerangs come after him.<br>
The third time, a shark somehow returns to him.<br>
The fourth and final time, his girlfriend [[Megan]] floats back to him - then she states: "I'm leaving you."

The title text refers to a bonus strip — if one reads the rightmost panels straight down, you get a strip that suggests that Megan threw multiple things at him out of anger before breaking up with him. This seems to mirror the plot of the 2006 comedy film ''{{w|My Super Ex-Girlfriend}}'', in which the eponymous character throws multiple things at the protagonist (including a shark) prior to breaking up with him.

Boomerangs returns in a kind of sequel [[475: Further Boomerang Difficulties]], which might also have yet another sequel in [[939: Arrow]]. Finally boomerangs also became a main theme in the interactive comic [[1350: Lorenz]]. The same format of multiple bad endings to the same starting set-up is used in [[1515: Basketball Earth]].

==Transcript==
:[Cueball throws a boomerang, but it hits him in the head when it returns.]

:[Cueball throws the boomerang again, but this time several boomerangs chase after him.]

:[Cueball throws the boomerang once more, and this time a shark inexplicably appears.]

:[Cueball throws the boomerang a final time, and Megan appears, hovering.]
:Megan: I'm leaving you.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Boomerangs]]
[[Category:Sharks]]

1469: UV

2015-01-05T11:12:34Z

173.245.52.119: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 1469
| date = January 5, 2015
| title = UV
| image = uv.png
| titletext = Hey, why stop at our house? We could burn down ALL these houses for the insurance money.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Ruff draft. Nerds editing, lynx, and speciation.}}

Ultraviolet (or UV, the title of the comic) light is a kind of light that is slightly more energetic than the visible light spectrum. Ultraviolet light is normally by itself invisible, but can induce fluorescing (glowing) of certain organic molecules. This is a means to detect small amounts of blood (as most television watchers know) and also urine. The first part of this comic focuses on Megan showing off her new UV flashlight to Cueball, who in this scenario lives with Megan, by revealing how disgusting their bathroom really is despite how clean it appears. She manages this due to UV light's special property of causing chemicals in urine to glow. Both Cueball and Megan are horrified by their discovery. A common meme with UV lights or other cleanliness tests resulting in over reaction to the normal state that didn't previously require extreme responses, but some how does when revealed. Feeling that their house will never be clean, Cueball and Megan resolve to burn it down for the insurance money ({{w|insurance fraud}}). The last panel of the comic reveals that the two hadn't purchased fire insurance beforehand, and plan on purchasing it now, only to make a claim immediately afterwards. This plan will not work, because insurance only covers fires that begin after purchasing the insurance, and does not cover anything that happens before purchasing the insurance or intentionally caused situations.

The title text shows just how morally bankrupt the UV flashlight made Megan and Cueball, as one of them suggests burning down many houses in order to claim the insurance money. This plan also will not work. Even if insurance has been purchased for the other homes, the insurance companies will pay the owners of those homes, not Cueball and Megan (And Cueball and Megan would be arrested).

==Transcript==
:[Megan standing behind Cueball, who's sitting at a computer.]
:Megan: Our bathroom looks pretty clean, right?
:Cueball: I think so, why?
:Megan: I got a UV flashlight, come look.

:[Megan and Cueball are walking]

:[Megan and Cueball are offscreen]
:Cueball: Looks fine.
:*click click*
:Cueball: ...Oh my god.

:[Megan and Cueball walking in the opposite direction]
:Cueball: The toilet looked like the guy's chest after the alien broke out.
:Megan: What do we ''do''?

:[Megan and Cueball standing]
:Cueball: We clean. Clean and clean and never stop.
:Megan: It won't be enough. We should just burn the place down for the insurance money.

:[Cueball standing behind Megan, who's pouring gasoline onto the floor.]
:Cueball: Isn't that wrong?
:Megan: My morality evaporated under the harsh UV lught.

:[Megan and Cueball standing outside a burning building]

:[Megan and Cueball standing, Cueball looking at his phone]
:Cueball: Ok, I'm Googling insurance companies. Which one do you think pays the most?
:Megan: Let's just try calling around.

{{comic discussion}}

1468: Worrying

2015-01-02T06:03:51Z

173.245.52.119:

{{comic
| number = 1468
| date = January 2, 2015
| title = Worrying
| image = worrying.png
| titletext = If the breaking news is about an event at a hospital or a lab, move it all the way over to the right.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|unfinished}}
This chart is a visual representation of how worried you should be by various events in real life compared to the same events in movies. Events on the chart are further up the more worrying they are in real life, and further to the right the more worrying they are in movies.
Explanation by event:
Spilling a drink on your shirt: This is nothing much to worry about, either in a movie or in real life.
Parking ticket: In movies, parking tickets are usually ignored, but in real life, they are moderately worrying because you can get a fine and points.
Getting knocked out by a punch: In movies, people are often knocked out by punches, and are perfectly OK afterwards. However, in real life, being knocked out by blunt-force trauma to the head can cause a concussion and lead to all kinds of problems.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}

{{comic discussion}}

1468: Worrying

2015-01-02T06:02:48Z

173.245.52.119: Added summary of comic and some explanations of specific events

{{comic
| number = 1468
| date = January 2, 2015
| title = Worrying
| image = worrying.png
| titletext = If the breaking news is about an event at a hospital or a lab, move it all the way over to the right.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete}}
This chart is a visual representation of how worried you should be by various events in real life compared to the same events in movies. Events on the chart are further up the more worrying they are in real life, and further to the right the more worrying they are in movies.
Explanation by event:
Spilling a drink on your shirt: This is nothing much to worry about, either in a movie or in real life.
Parking ticket: In movies, parking tickets are usually ignored, but in real life, they are moderately worrying because you can get a fine and points.
Getting knocked out by a punch: In movies, people are often knocked out by punches, and are perfectly OK afterwards. However, in real life, being knocked out by blunt-force trauma to the head can cause a concussion and lead to all kinds of problems.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}

{{comic discussion}}