1082: Geology

2026-06-19T00:43:07Z

2607:F2C0:B1C3:AA00:1070:D914:EDA7:7CF8: More clear pronunciation

{{comic
| number = 1082
| date = July 16, 2012
| title = Geology
| image = geology.png
| titletext = That's a gneiss butte.
}}

==Explanation==
Here we have [[Cueball]] and [[Megan]] discussing {{w|geology}} and the words they use are ripe with puns and {{w|double entendre}}s which also have sexual meanings. In the end, they just decide to get it on.

Specifically, the suggestive terms are "{{w|Bed (geology)|bedding}}," "{{w|Extensional tectonics|spreading}}," "{{w|friction}}," "{{w|Cleavage (geology)|cleavage}}," "deeper in the {{w|rift}}," "{{w|orogeny}}," (perhaps a {{w|portmanteau}} of {{w|orgy}} and {{w|erogenous}}), "huge," and "{{w|Thrust fault|thrust}}."

The technical terms are:
;Bedding : The division of usually {{w|sedimentary rock|sedimentary rocks}} into distinct layers.
;Spreading : A process in which two geological regions are moving apart, and potentially allowing for {{w|magma}} to rise between them. Spreading occurs in {{w|mid-ocean ridge|mid-ocean ridges}} and in {{w|rift valley|rift valleys}}.
;Friction breccia : {{w|Breccia}} is a rock made of broken fragments of other rocks. When these fragments can be formed from the rubbing between rocks in a fault, it is a friction breccia.
;Flow cleavage : The {{w|crystal|crystals}} in a rock can be aligned by the {{w|plastic flow}} of a rock when it is hot. This causes the rock to split (cleave) along particular planes.
;Rift : A result of spreading is that rocks break, forming vertical faults, and allowing regions to sink and form valleys.
;Orogeny : The process of mountain forming, or a period in which mountains are formed.
;Thrust fault : A sloping crack in the rocks at which one region of rocks is pushing another up.

So it seems that Megan tells Cueball to ignore the layers in the rock, as there is evidence that the valley they are in is a recent rift valley. It was formed in cracking following the lifting up of the surrounding rocks.

The title text is a wordplay, as it could sound like "nice butt". {{w|Gneiss}} is a type of {{w|metamorphic rock}} made up of different bands, and a {{w|butte}} is an isolated hill with steep sides and a flat top that is smaller than a {{w|plateau}}. However, "butte" is not pronounced as "butt", but more like "byoot".

==Transcript==
:[Two people are doing a geological survey in a rock-strewn landscape. Megan pointing off at the ground, wearing a fedora, Cueball apparently comparing a paper/map with another patch.]
:Megan: Forget the bedding - we were wrong about the whole valley.
:Cueball: The spreading is recent.

:[Close up on the figures: Megan in a thoughtful pose, Cueball turned her way.]
:Megan: See the friction breccia?
:Cueball: Oh - flow cleavage!
:Cueball: Deeper in the rift.
:Megan: Deeper.
:[An idea pops into Megan's head.]

:[Megan also turns to Cueball.]
:Megan: This orogeny
:Cueball: is driven by a
:Megan: ''huge''
:Cueball: ''thrust'' fault

:[They both drop to the ground, off-panel, leaving only Megan's tumbling hat and a vocal effect.]
:The couple: MMM
:[Down from comic]: Geology: Surprisingly erotic.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Language]]
[[Category:Romance]]
[[Category:Geology]]
[[Category:Physics]]
[[Category:Sex]]
[[Category:Puns]]

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1082: Geology