explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

1522: Astronomy

2015-05-08T23:45:25Z

173.245.56.209: Further analysis of today's comic

{{comic
| number = 1522
| date = May 8, 2015
| title = Astronomy
| image = astronomy.png
| titletext = Astrobiology is held back by the fact that we're all too nervous to try to balance on the ladder while holding an expensive microscope.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|New page}}

For many ordinary objects, one can achieve a better view in two ways: (#1) by looking at the object from a distance through a telescope, or (#2) by approaching the object and looking at it through a microscope, (e.g., a magnifying glass, a type of simple microscope.) Microscopes and magnifying glasses typically have very short resolving distances, anywhere between a few millimeters to a tenth of a meter, so approach #2 is effective only in the case where you can get very close to the object in question.

In the comic, the objects being viewed are celestial bodies. Megan takes approach #1, looking at them through a telescope. Beret Guy attempts approach #2, using a step-ladder to get close to the celestial bodies, and then looking through a magnifying glass. This approach could be successful only if the celestial bodies were within a few meters of us. In fact they are many orders of magnitude further away than that, although given Beret Guy's powers over time and space it's quite possible his method would yield similar results as Megan's.

The history of astronomy is filled with drastic misunderstanding of distances to celestial bodies, even up to the present day, (which topic Randall has already covered in [[1342: Ancient Stars]].) Thus, the comic could be in reference to the general overestimation of distances, albeit taken to the opposite extreme.
Alternatively, the comic could also be a reference to the fact that space-based telescopes are much smaller than ground-based telescopes: for example, the primary mirrors of the {{w|Hubble Space Telescope}} and the {{w|W. M. Keck Observatory}} are 2.4 m and 10 m respectively.

The title text assumes (for comic effect) that the only thing wrong with Beret Guy's strategy is the instability of the ladder endangering the expensive microscopes used by biologists for Astrobiology. {{w|Astrobiology}} is the study of life (or the possibility thereof) elsewhere in the universe.

It might be interesting to note that a lot of developments in "terrestrial" biology were made by the use of a simple microscope (similar to a magnifying lens), so Beret Guy's approach might be an attempt to build on that.

==Transcript==

[In front of a starry black sky, Megan looks at the stars through a telescope about twice her size, touching it at the base]

[Beret Guy enters the panel holding a ladder and a magnifying glass]

[Beret Guy places the ladder next to Megan and her telescope. The ladder is stands like a triangle, is slightly larger than Megan, but smaller than the telescope]

[Beret guy climbs to the top of the ladder, and looks at the stars through a magnifying glass]

{{comic discussion}}


[[Category:Science]]
[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Biology]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics with inverted brightness]]

Talk:1489: Fundamental Forces

2015-03-02T05:40:16Z

173.245.56.209:

«The off-panel audience, probably a student or class, is interested, but quickly begins to realize Cueball's lack of understanding. Instead of acknowledging the problem directly, Cueball simply blusters onwards.»

My interpretation is rather different. It looks like Cueball is a physicist who knows that the distinction of "four fundamental forces" is basically wrong/obsolete (the term "force" is not even used anymore in theoretical physics), but since his audience are high school students, he can't go into the many complex details underlying the fundamental interactions, and therefore is forced to gloss over it. This is confirmed by the title text (if Cueball didn't understand the theory of fundamental interactions, he wouldn't give that answer). --[[Special:Contributions/188.114.101.78|188.114.101.78]] 10:31, 20 February 2015 (UTC)

To me it appeared as a typical exam situation for Cueball with '''him''' being the pupil. And ironically that situation looks similar to the real scientific understanding of the topic. [[User:Renormalist|Renormalist]] ([[User talk:Renormalist|talk]]) 11:12, 20 February 2015 (UTC)
: I could see that, to an extent - it doesn't jive with the title text IMO, and it's less funny that a student would be glossing over this stuff than a someone in an instructive role, but I could see it -- [[User:Brettpeirce|Brettpeirce]] ([[User talk:Brettpeirce|talk]]) 11:46, 20 February 2015 (UTC)

Irony like this is not uncommon in physics. What was the first encounter with electric phenomena? Triboelectricity. What don't we understand at all? Right. Or take Zenos paradoxon. Or the divisibility paradoxon. The oldest nuts tend to be the toughest. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.230.221|108.162.230.221]] 12:26, 20 February 2015 (UTC)

:Those paradoxes are perfectly explained through calculus. Zeno's requires only algebra. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.100|108.162.219.100]] 06:13, 24 February 2015 (UTC)

:I'm not sure about ''the'' first one, but one of first electromagnetic phenomenons we encountered was light. We first observed it about 200000 years ago. :P [[Special:Contributions/141.101.104.77|141.101.104.77]] 13:45, 21 February 2015 (UTC)

I knew from the title, "Fundamental Horses", that this was going to be a great one. {{unsigned ip|199.27.128.200}}

I prefer Chromatic Horse and Flavor Horse. Why use weak names when we have new strong ones? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.254.98|108.162.254.98]] 11:58, 20 February 2015 (UTC)

In high school Physics, my class was taught that physicists had recently combined the Electromagnetic and Weak Nuclear forces into the Electro-Weak Force, so there were only three and if we were to find the Higgs Boson, there might be just two or one. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.241.11|108.162.241.11]] 21:55, 20 February 2015 (UTC)
:Actually, it is the Higgs Boson, that combines the electromagnetic and the weak nuclear interaction into the electroweak interaction, so it's still 3. But actually, even if electromagnetism and the weak interaction can be described in one theory, they are still viewed as two different phenomena, so it actually will always be 4. (Unless we discover other interactions). --[[Special:Contributions/141.101.105.192|141.101.105.192]] 22:23, 20 February 2015 (UTC)
:: Old timer physicists say the same thing about magnetism and electricity. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.64.35|141.101.64.35]] 16:53, 21 February 2015 (UTC)

Is it just possible that Randall posted this forum to see how we here actually try to explain strong and weak forces? [[Special:Contributions/188.114.111.224|188.114.111.224]] 22:34, 21 February 2015 (UTC)

In the first panel, Cueball forgot to mention Einstein's field equations. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.254.77|108.162.254.77]] 11:35, 22 February 2015 (UTC)

This comic and the ensuing discussion is more intriguing when the Chrome xkcd substitutions extension is turned on. Weak Horse, Strong Horse, Flavor Horse, Chromatic Horse... [[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.194|199.27.128.194]] 01:57, 24 February 2015 (UTC)

couldnt the title text joke just be joking about how the professor doesnt know anything? like if hes just saying that from a quantum point of view that gravity is the hardest, then its not really a joke. the joke is its the only one he can describe easily, but then he says its the most difficult one. i think thats irony, but maybe not. but yeah thats just my tide whats yours.[[User:TheJonyMyster|TheJonyMyster]] ([[User talk:TheJonyMyster|talk]]) 03:57, 26 February 2015 (UTC)

When I read this comic, I see a metaphor for the scientific community's difficulties explaining these interactions to laymen. Cueball is a stand-in for scientists, and while he likely understands these concepts very well, has no earthly idea how to encapsulate them for someone who hasn't studied them in-depth. As the concepts become more abstract and unintuitive, Cueball's explanations become more incomprehensible to the increasingly vexed lay audience. Gravity is a phenomenon that is readily observable to anyone, and so the audience accepts it without question--note that Cueball's explanation doesn't really do the topic any better justice than his explanations of the other forces; he just doesn't need to. Electromagnetism is less intuitive to a layman, but its effects are still observable, so the audience, accepting it, seems more concerned that Cueball glosses over a hint that it's a bit more complex than his initial explanation would suggest. The explanations of strong and weak forces are no more coherent, but the complete lack of observable effects to laymen makes this lapse unforgivable to the audience. The alt text highlights the irony of this situation, where the lack of any comprehensible explanation of the strong and weak forces leads the audience to believe that they are not well-understood, but in fact it is gravity, the force they simply accepted without question, that is a mystery.

207: What xkcd Means

2015-01-14T21:59:00Z

173.245.56.209: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 207
| date = January 8, 2007
| title = What xkcd Means
| image = what xkcd means.png
| titletext = It means shuffling quickly past nuns on the street with ketchup in your palms, pretending you're hiding stigmata.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic purports to finally answer the question, "What does 'xkcd' mean?" However, instead of giving an answer as to what the letters actually mean (according to Randall, it's literally "just a word with no phonetic pronunciation"), he offers five quirky behaviors. This is reminiscent of TV commercials that ask, "What does [brand name] mean? It means [happy activity]!".

The first panel shows a driver making a {{w|right turn on red|right turn at a red light}}, a {{w|U-turn}} on the connecting road, and then another right turn, returning him to his original direction presumably faster than waiting for the light. Right turns at red lights and U-turns are legal in some states and at some intersections, but not always, hence this complicated maneuver is "questionably legal".

The second panel shows [[Cueball]] searching for his mobile phone by having his friend call it to locate the ringtone, only to hear a ring from inside of his dog's stomach.

In the third panel, {{w|Graham's number}} is a (very) large number (once celebrated as the largest number ever used in a proof, although it is no longer the record holder), and the {{w|Ackermann function}} is a (very) fast-growing function, thus the function's output must be insanely large. (In fact, A(g64, g64) is less than g65.)

The fourth panel shows somebody walking in a pattern based on the position of black and white tiles on the floor. This is further referenced in [[245: Floor Tiles]].

The title text refer to stigmata, marks corresponding to Jesus' crucifixion wounds. Devout Catholics have claimed to have spontaneously developed stigmata.

==Transcript==
:What does xkcd mean?

:[Two cars sitting at a red light at a multi-lane intersection; one of them makes a right turn, then shifts over to the left lane and makes a U-turn across the dividing line to go back the way it came. It then shifts back to the right lane and makes another right turn, continuing down the road past the traffic light. This is shown with a red arrow.]
:It means saving a few seconds at a long red light via elaborate and questionably legal maneuvers.

:[In an inset circle in the panel, someone is on a cell phone. In the panel itself, a second person is looking at a dog.]
:It means having someone call your cell phone to figure out where it is.
:Dog's stomach: ''Ring''

:[The mathematical function "A(g64, g64)=" appears in the panel. Next to the equal sign stands a mathematician, clutching his head.]
:It means calling the Ackermann function with Graham's number as the arguments just to horrify mathematicians.
:Mathematician: ''Aughhh''

:[An approximately 8 by 8 square of floor tiles is shown; the first, fourth and seventh across in the first, fourth and seventh rows are black and the rest are white. A guy and girl are shown next to it, walking on what is presumed to be the same pattern of floor tiles.]
:It means instinctively constructing rules for which floor tiles it's okay to step on and then walking funny ever after.
:[Line indicating the uppermost right black tile: Black tiles okay.]
:[Line indicating tile directly below it: White tiles directly between black tiles okay.]
:[Line indicating a white tile in the last column over: Not okay.]

==Trivia==
*In his [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJOS0sV2a24#t=44m30s Google-speech], [[Randall]] said that ''xkcd'' originated as a previously unused random 4 letter string which he used, e.g., as his account name on various internet services.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Math]]
[[Category:Traffic light]]
[[Category:Religion]]

380: Emoticon

2014-10-21T18:30:04Z

173.245.56.209: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number =380
| date =February 6, 2008
| title =Emoticon
| image =emoticon.png
| titletext =U+FDD0 is actually Unicode for the eye of the basilisk, though for safety reasons no font actually renders it.
}}

==Explanation==
A {{w|basilisk}} is a legendary creature reputed to have the power to kill with a single glance. In this comic, Cueball learns much to his dismay that the basilisk's power is fully compatible with the 21st century, and can kill you just with a smiley emoticon over instant messaging.

Cueball's request for A/S/L is a standard question when first meeting someone online; it asks for age, sex (gender) and location.

The title text mentions U+FDD0, which in reality is the code for a {{w|Unicode#Character General Category|"non-character"}} in Unicode.

U+FDD0 did in fact kill at least one chat client at the time. Konversation in particular. (and presumably any other Qt based chat clients using QTextDocument)

"basically u+fdd0 (eye of basilisk, the snake) is in a char range that's marked for interchange and illegal in utf-8"

"but qt's utf-8 encoder let it through anyway"

"but it just so happens that qt's qtextdocument uses u+fdd0 as text frame delimiter"

"so when you append it to a qtd, counters run wrong and eventually you crash"

"d-bus closes the connection and crashes the client when it encounters illegal utf-8, and kde's notification system works through d-bus"

The problem was fixed after the XKCD "report" and Konversation now handles unicode normally.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball sits at computer, typing.]
:~!~ Opening Chat with BSLSK05
:<NICKM> Hi!
:<NICKM> A/S/L?
:<BSLSK05> :)
:[Cueball looks stunned, flies backward.]
:[Two smaller frames focus in on BSLSK05's emoticon, implying rotation to show a smile and two open eyes.]
:[Cueball at computer slouches in chair, dead, crossbones above his head.]
:[At the remote computer a basilisk is looking at its screen.]

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

380: Emoticon

2014-10-21T18:29:33Z

173.245.56.209: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number =380
| date =February 6, 2008
| title =Emoticon
| image =emoticon.png
| titletext =U+FDD0 is actually Unicode for the eye of the basilisk, though for safety reasons no font actually renders it.
}}

==Explanation==
A {{w|basilisk}} is a legendary creature reputed to have the power to kill with a single glance. In this comic, Cueball learns much to his dismay that the basilisk's power is fully compatible with the 21st century, and can kill you just with a smiley emoticon over instant messaging.

Cueball's request for A/S/L is a standard question when first meeting someone online; it asks for age, sex (gender) and location.

The title text mentions U+FDD0, which in reality is the code for a {{w|Unicode#Character General Category|"non-character"}} in Unicode.

U+FDD0 did in fact kill at least one chat client at the time. Konversation in particular. (and presumably any other Qt based chat clients using QTextDocument)
"basically u+fdd0 (eye of basilisk, the snake) is in a char range that's marked for interchange and illegal in utf-8"

"but qt's utf-8 encoder let it through anyway"

"but it just so happens that qt's qtextdocument uses u+fdd0 as text frame delimiter"

"so when you append it to a qtd, counters run wrong and eventually you crash"

"d-bus closes the connection and crashes the client when it encounters illegal utf-8, and kde's notification system works through d-bus"

The problem was fixed after the XKCD "report" and Konversation now handles unicode normally.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball sits at computer, typing.]
:~!~ Opening Chat with BSLSK05
:<NICKM> Hi!
:<NICKM> A/S/L?
:<BSLSK05> :)
:[Cueball looks stunned, flies backward.]
:[Two smaller frames focus in on BSLSK05's emoticon, implying rotation to show a smile and two open eyes.]
:[Cueball at computer slouches in chair, dead, crossbones above his head.]
:[At the remote computer a basilisk is looking at its screen.]

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

380: Emoticon

2014-10-21T18:22:24Z

173.245.56.209: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number =380
| date =February 6, 2008
| title =Emoticon
| image =emoticon.png
| titletext =U+FDD0 is actually Unicode for the eye of the basilisk, though for safety reasons no font actually renders it.
}}

==Explanation==
A {{w|basilisk}} is a legendary creature reputed to have the power to kill with a single glance. In this comic, Cueball learns much to his dismay that the basilisk's power is fully compatible with the 21st century, and can kill you just with a smiley emoticon over instant messaging.

Cueball's request for A/S/L is a standard question when first meeting someone online; it asks for age, sex (gender) and location.

The title text mentions U+FDD0, which in reality is the code for a {{w|Unicode#Character General Category|"non-character"}} in Unicode.

Amusingly, U+FDD0 did in fact kill a chat client at the time. Konversation in particular.
"basically u+fdd0 (eye of basilisk, the snake) is in a char range that's marked for interchange and illegal in utf-8"
"but qt's utf-8 encoder let it through anyway"
"but it just so happens that qt's qtextdocument uses u+fdd0 as text frame delimiter"
"so when you append it to a qtd, counters run wrong and eventually you crash"
"d-bus closes the connection and crashes the client when it encounters illegal utf-8, and kde's notification system works through d-bus"

The problem was fixed after the XKCD "report" and Konversation now handles unicode normally.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball sits at computer, typing.]
:~!~ Opening Chat with BSLSK05
:<NICKM> Hi!
:<NICKM> A/S/L?
:<BSLSK05> :)
:[Cueball looks stunned, flies backward.]
:[Two smaller frames focus in on BSLSK05's emoticon, implying rotation to show a smile and two open eyes.]
:[Cueball at computer slouches in chair, dead, crossbones above his head.]
:[At the remote computer a basilisk is looking at its screen.]

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

1168: tar

2014-10-20T00:25:07Z

173.245.56.209:

{{comic
| number = 1168
| date = February 1, 2013
| title = tar
| image = tar.png
| titletext = I don't know what's worse--the fact that after 15 years of using tar I still can't keep the flags straight, or that after 15 years of technological advancement I'm still mucking with tar flags that were 15 years old when I started.
}}

==Explanation==
{{w|Tar (computing)|tar}} ("tape archive") is a {{w|Unix|Unix}} application that creates (and extracts) archives in the ".tar" format. It is typically used through the text-based terminal, using cryptic single-letter arguments such as "<code>tar -cvf archive.tar *</code>". The comic alludes to the fact that despite years of use of the command, it's still hard to remember the arguments without searching for them, such as with Google.

The title text points out that while much of computing changes very quickly, the tar program, which is very old (originating ca. 1975), is still around and heavily used. And yet, [[Randall]] complains he still cannot type out a line of tar command with correct flags without having to look the flags up.

The joke here is that a "tar" command with perfect syntax on the first try without outside help is such a daunting task that even Rob can't overcome it with assuredness, and apologizes for their imminent death.

The fact that [[Megan]] and [[White Hat]] assume that [[Rob]] can disarm the nuclear bomb because he uses Unix can be referring to an overgeneralization fallacy that a partaker in a practice is an expert of a practice. Not all people who use Unix necessarily know how to use tar commands. Then again, since he's the only person nearby who knows ''any'' Unix and thus their only hope, their fallacy is pretty justified.

There is probably also a pun on "{{w|tarbomb}}," a poorly created tar archive that, when extracted, dumps a load of files into the current directory that the user has to clean up.

Alternative explanation: Tar is a very common command that Unix users will come across regularly. Much like Windows users will come across .zip files. Depending on the flavor of Unix, the order of the flags, or the lack or inclusion of a '-' could render the command incorrect. Most true Unixes (AIX, HPUX, Solaris) not using the GNU utilities would give an error on the above tar example. For such a simple command, it is one that most people need to look up references to use.

==Transcript==
:[Megan and White Hat wearing a white hat stand next to a nuclear bomb. The bomb has a hatch open on top, and a small blinking screen. The two people are shouting off-screen.]
:Megan: Rob! You use Unix!
:White Hat: Come quick!

:[Megan, White Hat, and Rob look at the screen. Rob peers closely. The screen reads:
:To disarm the bomb, simply enter a valid tar command on your first try. No Googling. You have TEN seconds.
:~# _]

:[They continue to peer.]

:White Hat: ...Rob?
:Rob: I'm so sorry.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Computers]]
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Rob]]

1386: People are Stupid

2014-07-01T15:58:48Z

173.245.56.209: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1386
| date = June 25, 2014
| title = People are Stupid
| image = people_are_stupid.png
| titletext = To everyone who responds to everything by saying they've 'lost their faith in humanity': Thanks--I'll let humanity know. I'm sure they'll be crushed.
}}

==Explanation==
It is a common thing for people on the Internet (on forums and comments sections of various websites) to make vague generalizations about the "stupidity of all people" or "losing faith in {{W|human|humanity}}," for instance when the topic is actually the stupidity or irrational/extreme behavior of one individual or group of individuals. Also the comment can come in any type of Internet forum, disregarding the subject.

However, the overall {{w|world population}} ("people") is not more stupid than the average - by definition. There is also no other human population to compare to to draw the conclusion this population is stupid. So it is a ''stupid'' comment that [[White Hat]] makes. The award being given to him by [[Cueball]] is thus a very sarcastic one.

It is possible that for a non-normal distribution of intelligence a median individual could be less intelligent than the mean. However, the statement as it is usually formulated (including here), "People are stupid," refers to humanity as a whole. White Hat's anecdotal and subjective experience has led him to make a statistically impossible statement.

White Hat's {{W|Illusory superiority|self-perceived superiority}} may be an example of the {{w|Lake_Wobegon#The_Lake_Wobegon_effect|Lake Wobegon effect}}, so named because {{w|Lake Wobegon}} (a fictional city) is "where all the women are strong, all the men are good looking, and all the children are above average".

The last panel may be a reference to the ''First Annual Montgomery Burns Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Field of Excellence'' which is a fictional award in the story of {{w|The Simpsons}} episode ''{{w|Brother, Can You Spare Two Dimes?}}'' where it is presented to {{w|Homer Simpson}}.

In the title text the other phrase about having ''lost their faith in humanity'' also gets a comment on the way from Cueball. There are people who use this phrase every time someone disagrees with them or say something they think is stupid. He jokes that he will let humanity (everyone other than the guy who makes the comment) know that he has lost faith in them - and very sarcastically remarks that humanity will probably be crushed (i.e. the rest of the world does not care if a single guy has lost faith in them).

==Transcript==
:[White Hat and Cueball are standing next to each other]
:White Hat: Well, you know, people are stupid.
:Cueball: *Sigh*

:[They have moved a little further apart]
:Cueball: No, people aren't stupid. On average, people are of average intelligence. When you say "people are stupid," you mean stupid compared to ''your'' expectations.

:[Close up of Cueball]
:Cueball: What you're really saying is "other people aren't as smart as '''me.'''"
:Cueball: And maybe you're right! In which case

:[White Hat is presented with a trophy by Cueball.]
:Cueball: I'd like to bestow upon you the
:[In the panel there is a close up of the trophy plaque (the text is in a frame):]
:First Annual Award for Excellence in Being Very Smart
:Cueball: May you continue to grace our internet with your wisdom

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]