explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

3189: Conic Sections

2026-02-03T18:48:42Z

Aplookingbill: Cut the million-line description down to two paragraphs. Image attached was interesting but not particularly relevant--I removed it.

{{comic
| number = 3189
| date = January 2, 2026
| title = Conic Sections
| image = conic_sections_2x.png
| imagesize = 288x322px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = They're not generally used for crewed spacecraft because astronauts HATE going around the corners.
}}

==Explanation==
A {{w|Kepler orbit}} describes the simplified motion of one celestial object relative to another. Such an orbit will form a {{w|conic section}} — a curve obtained from a cone's surface intersecting a plane. The three types of conic section are the hyperbola, the parabola, and the ellipse. Being in a free orbit normally means following an ellipse in which there is net zero acceleration, combining the pull of gravity and the forces that would be felt due to the continually changing direction.

In this comic, however, the conic section representing the satellite's orbit (with its unseen point pointing generally to the left of the image) has been assumed to be through a cone which has a flat circular base (presumed to be somewhere close to vertical, towards the right of the image) set at a distance that inconveniently crosses the indicated orbital path (that might be assumed to be fully elliptical, otherwise), resulting in sharp corners where the angled planar intersection through the cone meets that base. The result would be extremely uncomfortable for an astronaut in a crewed spacecraft, as the transition from experiencing freefall/microgravity to suddenly being out-of-sync with the ship's momentum (whether just momentarily, twice each orbit, or for extended periods as continual corrections are made) would be disruptive. Such an extreme and {{w|Automan#Features|sudden change of direction}} would involve a very large G-force, to a degree that may be not merely uncomfortable, but potentially dangerous. It's generally believed that exposing the human body to a massive amount of force causes structural issues.{{Citation needed}}

{{clear}}

==Transcript==
:[A view of the Earth, focused on Asia and the Indian Ocean with East Africa at left and the Western Pacific and Australia at right. A satellite is shown in an unusual orbit around the planet. This orbit is similar in shape to an ellipse, except it has two corners and a straight edge on one side, giving it a hill-like appearance.]
:[Caption below the panel:]
:All Keplerian orbits are conic sections. For example, this one uses the base of the cone.
{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>

[[Category:Space]]
[[Category:Geometry]]

3193: Sailing Rigs

2026-02-03T18:39:47Z

Aplookingbill: Reworded

{{comic
| number = 3193
| date = January 12, 2026
| title = Sailing Rigs
| image = sailing_rigs_2x.png
| imagesize = 508x822px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = I wanted to make the world's fastest yawl, so I made the aft sail bigger, but apparently that means it's not a yawl anymore! It's a real ketch-22.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created by the birds flying in my kite. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
This comic shows the side profiles of a variety of different sailing boat/ship rigs, starting with six real ones, but then moving mostly into ones imagined by [[Randall]], with varying levels of absurdity. The [[#The Rigs|table below]] explains each type depicted.

The title text is a pun on {{w|Catch-22 (logic)|Catch-22}}, a term taken from the {{w|Catch-22|novel of the same name}} for a situation where success is impossible because it requires meeting self-contradictory conditions. For example, the novel introduces the term for a pilot who requests mental evaluation for insanity, hoping to be found not sane enough to fly and thereby escape dangerous missions, but who demonstrates his own sanity by creating the request and thus cannot be declared insane. Per the main panel, a ketch is similar to a yawl but has a larger aft sail, so increasing the aft sail of a yawl effectively turns the yawl into a ketch, effectively making it impossible to build a faster yawl. (This is not technically true, as the distinction between a {{w|yawl}} and {{w|ketch}} is based on whether the aft sail is mounted forward or aft of the rudder post, although a yawl with a large aft sail [https://www.woodenboatstore.com/products/hand-reef-and-steer-2nd-edition would probably be difficult to control.])

==The Rigs==
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
!Type
!Image
!Real?
!Description 
!Explanation 
|-
|{{w|Lateen}}
|style="text-align:center;"|[[File:3193 Lateen.png|x75px]]
|{{Yes}}
|A single triangular sail.
|The triangular sail is affixed to a long yard or crossbar, mounted at its middle to the top of the mast and angled to extend aft far above the mast and forward down nearly to the deck. The sail, its free corner secured near the stern, is capable of taking the wind on either side, and, by enabling the vessel to tack into the wind, the [https://www.britannica.com/technology/lateen-sail lateen] immensely increases the potential of the sailing ship.  The best known Lateen sail boat is also the most popular fiberglass boat, the {{w|Sunfish (sailboat)|Sunfish}}.
|-
|{{W|Bermuda rig|Bermuda rigged sloop}}
|style="text-align:center;"|[[File:3193 Bermuda.png|x86px]]
|{{Yes}}
|A front and rear triangular sail share a mast.
|A {{w|sloop}} has one mast, typically with two sails mounted on the mast — one ahead and one behind.
|-
|{{w|Ketch}}
|style="text-align:center;"|[[File:3193 Ketch.png|x101px]]
|{{Yes}}
|A sailboat with two masts, where the main mast is taller than the mizzen (or aft mast), and the mizzen is forward of the rudder post
|Similar to a yawl (below), but with the mizzen (aft) mast mounted forward of the rudder post and its sail typically larger.
|-
|{{w|Gaff rig|Gaff rigged sloop}}
|style="text-align:center;"|[[File:3193 Gaff Sloop.png|x87px]]
|{{Yes}}
|A front triangular sail shares a mast with a rear quadrilateral sail.
|A sloop is a sailboat with one mast, typically with two sails mounted on it — one ahead and one behind. A [https://nauticalknowhow.mysailingcourse.com/glossary/gaff-rig/ gaff rig] is a sailing rig where one sail is four-sided and controlled by a spar (the gaff) at its top, which is hoisted at an angle to the mast.
|-
|{{w|Yawl}}
|style="text-align:center;"|[[File:3193 Yawl.png|x100px]]
|{{Yes}}
|Two triangular sails share a front mast, and a much smaller aft mast holds a small aft sail.
|A yawl is sailboat with two masts, where the main mast has two sails (one in front of the mast and one behind, known as {{w|Fore-and-aft rig|fore-and-aft rigging}}), and the mizzen (aft) mast is mounted aft of the rudder post, leading the mizzen sail to typically be small. Similar to a ketch.
|-
|{{w|Schooner}}
|style="text-align:center;"|[[File:3193 Schooner.png|x102px]]
|{{Yes}}
|A sailboat with two or more masts, where all have {{w|Fore-and-aft rig|fore-and-aft rigging}}, and where the foremast is typically smaller than the main mast
|-
|Ketch-rigged gaff
|style="text-align:center;"|[[File:3193 Ketch Gaff.png|x98px]]
|{{No}}
|Resembles a gaff, with the aft sail reduced and two triangular sails mounted above. The resulting shape resembles a vertical ketch.
|The first fictional rig. It might be capable of functioning like a sloop, but its rigging would be more complicated and it is likely less efficient at catching the wind.
|-
|Kloop-rigged sketch
|style="text-align:center;"|[[File:3193 Kloop.png|x100px]]
|{{No}}
|Four or five sails mounted in a nonsensical configuration, with elements from the schooner, ketch, and gaff
| A mixture of the names of {{w|ketch}} and {{w|sloop}}, poking fun at the unfamiliar and odd-sounding names of some rigs. Adding to the absurdity, the kloop-rigged sketch is neither a sloop nor a ketch. However it is technically a {{w|Sketch (drawing)|sketch}}, as "sketch" can mean "drawing"
|-
|Bunkbed rig
|style="text-align:center;"|[[File:3193 100% more boat.png|x118px]]
|{{No}}
|A gaff-rigged sloop mounted on top of a second hull.
|The name refers to a {{w|bunkbed}}, where one bed is mounted directly above another. Bunk-style sleeping arrangements are sometimes used on boats for reasons of space efficiency. It applies this idea to the whole ship, mounting one hull directly above another. While {{w|Multihull|boats with multiple hulls}} do exist, these are commonly mounted side-by-side to guarantee stability. Mounting one hull above another, however, is a design aspect used in the '{{w|small-waterplane-area twin hull}}' concept, usually ''along with'' side-by-side multihulling. It's possible that this 'bunk hulled' design normally floats with the upper hull astride the water-level, though needing a greater depth of water for the 'keel hull', but that {{w|hydrofoil|at speed}} (and/or by carefully pumping ballast water out of the two hulls, and increasing overall buoyancy) it can rise up to present only the thin connectors to the sea surface. Though the stability of such a system, in an otherwise singular bunk-hull, would seem to be a problem when running with any amount of side-wind, {{w|Foilboard|in principle}} it seems more than managable with the right design and use.
Notably, this ship's ''rigging'' is mundane; the connection between hulls seems to be structural. It may be more accurate to refer to it as a bunkbed ''hull''.
|-
|Flettner rig
|style="text-align:center;"|[[File:3193 Flettner.png|x94px]]
|{{Yes}}, though not typically called a rig
|The rectangular outline of a cylinder with motion lines around it, indicating a {{w|Flettner rotor}}
|A Flettner rotor is a right circular cylinder with disc end plates which is spun along its long axis. As air passes across it the {{w|Magnus effect}} causes an aerodynamic lift force to be generated in the direction perpendicular to both the long axis and the direction of airflow. In a {{w|rotor ship}}, the rotors stand vertically and lift is generated at right angles to the wind, to drive the ship forwards.

Flettner rotors were previously mentioned in [[3119: Flettner Rotor]]
|-
|Oops, all spinnakers
|style="text-align:center;"|[[File:3193 Spinnakers.png|x78px]]
|{{No}}
|Three masts each with a sail billowing in front
|A {{w|spinnaker}} is a real type of sail, where a boat is propelled by a large sail directly pulled by the wind, similar in principle to a parachute. However, "Oops, all spinnakers" is not real, as spinnakers are only practical for smaller craft, and if multiple spinnakers are mounted in a row the earlier ones may disrupt the airflow to the later ones. It does not appear that there are any real boats propelled by more than one spinnaker.
The name of the rig is a reference to the {{w|Cap'n Crunch}} cereal type that became a meme, [https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/oops-all-berries-box-parodies ''Oops! All Berries''], which has also been referenced in [[2256]] and [[2719]].
|-
|Keel rig
|style="text-align:center;"|[[File:3193 Keel.png|x98px]]
|{{No}}
|Three sails in a ketch arrangement, but mounted to the keel, which would typically put the ''sails underwater''.
|The book {{w|Heaven (Stewart and Cohen novel)|''Heaven''}}, by Ian Stewart and Jack Cohen, features an aquatic protagonist who is introduced as sailing a surface craft with underwater 'sails' (and above-water 'keel'), due to the switched nature of his usual environment.
|-
|Kite rig
|style="text-align:center;"|[[File:3193 Kite.png|x109px]]
|{{Maybe|Kind of}}
|All sails are replaced by two groups of kites, each tied to the mast with their own independent line.
|A {{w|kite rig}} is a real thing, where a kite is deployed from a boat or ship to catch the wind and pull the vessel along. This rigging is used in various types of vessel, most commonly {{w|kite surfing}}, but occasionally other vessels too, up to [https://edition.cnn.com/2023/06/30/travel/airseas-giant-kites-ships-slash-carbon-emissions-scn-climate-spc trials with cargo ships].
However, the real kite riggings typically use one large kite optimised for catching the wind, rather than many small kites optimised for flying (as depicted) which would likely get tangled and not pull much on the ship.
|-
|Longsail rig
|style="text-align:center;"|[[File:3193 Longsail.png|x93px]]
|{{Maybe|Kind of}}
|A Bermuda rigged sloop with the aft sail extending ~5 times as far back, well beyond the end of the hull.
|While not technically impossible, such a long sail would likely be susceptible to damage from the wind, as well as potentially making it hard to control the boat.
This is reminiscent of the Sandbagger sloops of the mid- to late-1800s. The foresail was on a very long bowsprit and the boom extended past the stern by up to the length of the boat.

This design could be a reference to "{{w|Cargo bike#Longtail bicycle|long-tail bikes}}", a type of cargo bicycle useful for hauling heavy or voluminous charges at the cost of higher weight and reduced maneuverability.
|-
|Deckhand obliterator
|style="text-align:center;"|[[File:3193 Deckhand Obliterator.png|x86px]]
|{{No}}
|All sails replaced by an anchor that swings from the mast on a chain.
|Deckhands, or crew, are likely to be thrown off and/or seriously injured if an anchor is barreling down at them. While some captains may consider this counterproductive{{citation needed}}, it would likely be effective at its stated purpose.
There is a risk that the anchor might damage the mast in a collision or get wrapped around it. It would most likely be of little use as propulsion.
|-
|Offset rig
|style="text-align:center;"|[[File:3193 Offset.png|x108px]]
|{{No}}
|Gaff rigged sloop sails are mounted on a mast that is offset (forward) from the hull via an underwater extension of the keel.
|The extreme mechanical advantage of the sail, potentially combined with the uneven weight, would make this rigging hard if not impossible to control. 
There are in fact [https://junkrigassociation.org/technical_forum/470838 sail configurations] called [https://www.boatdesign.net/threads/gaffs-balanced-lugs-hoyt-offset-rig-etc.53504/ offset rigs] but they aren't like the one shown here.
|-
|Mastless rig
|style="text-align:center;"|[[File:3193 Mastless.png|x59px]]
|{{Maybe|Kind of}}
|A single sail is attached directly to the hull of the boat, without any mast to give it form.
|As depicted, the sail would provide little to no useful propulsion, as it would not be high enough to effectively catch the wind, and would, in any case, flap unpredictably.
However, ships do exist without masts, such as ships not powered by wind or, more rarely, inflatable sails (e.g. [http://inflatedwingsails.com/en/concept/ this concept]), which use air, rather than a mast, for rigidity. While not intentional, it is conceivable that the drawing depicts an inflatable sail in its deflated state.
|-
|Unclassifiable chaos rig
|style="text-align:center;"|[[File:3193 Unclassifiable Chaos.png|x86px]]
|{{Maybe|Arguably}}
|Includes elements of the schooner, yawl, lateen, and possibly others, including a sail mounted in an unusual position beneath the prow.
|While this specific rig is almost certainly fictional, there are many ways to rig a ship, some of which are chaotic and difficult to classify.
|}

==Transcript==
:[The comic shows five rows of silhouettes of different sail boats as seen from the side. In total 18 different boats are shown, three rows with four each and three in each of the two bottom rows. Each boat has a different sailing rig. All boats are oriented to the left of the comic, and beneath each boat there is a label. At the top of the panel there is a large heading:]
:<big>Common Sailing Rigs</big>

:[Here follows a list of the 18 boats with a description and then their label:]

:[A single triangular sail.]
:Lateen

:[A front and rear triangular sail share a mast.]
:Bermuda rigged sloop

:[Two triangular sails as above, with an additional triangular sail on a second rear mast.]
:Ketch

:[Front triangular sail shares mast with rear quadrilateral sail.]
:Gaff rigged sloop

:[Two triangular sails share front mast and a much smaller aft mast holds a small aft.]
:Yawl

:[Two triangular front sails share forward mast with quadrilateral center sail. An aft mast supports a quadrilateral aft sail.]
:Schooner

:[Resembles a gaff, with the aft sail reduced and two triangular sails mounted above. The resulting shape resembles a vertical ketch.]
:Ketch-rigged gaff

:[Includes elements of ketch and sloop.]
:Kloop-rigged sketch

:[A gaff-rigged sloop is mounted on top of a second hull.]
:Bunkbed rig

:[The rectangular outline of a cylinder with motion lines around it.]
:Flettner rig

:[Three masts each with a sail only attached to the top.]
:Oops, all spinnakers

:[Three sails in a ketch arrangement, but mounted to the keel.]
:Keel rig

:[All sails are replaced by two groups of kites, each tied to the mast with an independent line.]
:Kite rig

:[Bermuda rigged sloop with the aft sail extending ~5 times as far back, well beyond the end of the hull.]
:Longsail rig

:[All sails replaced by an anchor that swings around the mast on a chain, similar to tetherball.]
:Deckhand obliterator

:[Gaff rigged sloop sails are mounted on a mast that is offset (forward) from the hull via an underwater extension of the keel.]
:Offset rig

:[A single sail is attached where the mast would normally be mounted, flapping around freely.]
:Mastless rig

:[Includes elements of the schooner, yawl, lateen, and possibly others.]
:Unclassifiable chaos rig

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>

[[Category:Sailboats]]
[[Category:Kites]]
[[Category:Puns]]

702: Snow Tracking

2025-06-28T22:42:29Z

Aplookingbill: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 702
| date = February 15, 2010
| title = Snow Tracking
| image = snow_tracking.png
| titletext = I suppose that's more accurately a hare dryer.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic is a guide to recognizing various animals by their footprints. However, the comic typically detours into strange, ridiculous or pop-culture-referencing footprints. In order:

*The first panel is a regular cat, which is not unusual and relatively easy to find and recognize the tracks of.{{Citation needed}}
*"Moose and squirrel" is a reference to the cartoon ''{{w|Rocky and Bullwinkle}}''. Rocky and Bullwinkle were a flying squirrel and a moose, respectively, and were frequently referred to as "moose and squirrel" by the show's antagonist Boris Badenov.
*[http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/longcat Longcat] is an internet {{w|meme}} from pictures of cats all stretched out that make them look very tall (or long).
*"Mouse riding Bicycle" is a reference to ''{{w|Ralph S. Mouse}}'', a series of novels by {{w|Beverly Cleary}}.
*The hair dryer has melted an irregular region around the rabbit. The title text is a pun on the Rabbit with a hair dryer frame, possibly an homage to {{w|Looney Tunes}}, where shows with {{w|Bugs Bunny}} would often contain a pun on the {{w|Leporidae|closely related term}} of "hare".
*{{w|Legolas}} is a reference to the character in the ''{{w|Lord of the Rings}}'' trilogy of books and movies. Legolas, as an elf, was so light-footed he could walk on top of snow, while the other races in his party were forced to trudge through it.
*The "Bobcat on pogo stick" panel is a possible reference to the character Bonkers D. Bobcat from {{w|Bonkers (American TV series)|Bonkers}}
*The "Knight" panel is a {{w|chess}} reference, as the tracks move just like the knight piece in chess.
*The "kid with..." panels are a reference to ''{{w|Calvin and Hobbes}}'', a comic strip written by Bill Watterson. In it, Calvin has a pet tiger named Hobbes, and sometimes, a cardboard box that "transmogrifies" him to something else. In this panel we see tiger prints, meaning that Calvin became a tiger like Hobbes.
*The same cardboard box is now tipped on its side instead of upside down in the last panel. Now it functions as a duplicator, making multiple copies of whatever is in it. Calvin goes into it, duplicates himself, and they walk and duplicate again, and the cycle repeats.
*{{w|Prius}} is a reference to current events in which Toyota Prius's pedals have allegedly malfunctioned causing accidents. [http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/04/business/global/04prius.html]
*The {{w|Higgs Boson}} is an {{w|elementary particle}} which, at the time this strip was posted, had not yet been officially discovered (there had been detections at the Tevatron with 4 sigma certainty since the early 2000s). It was tentatively detected in March 2013 in the {{w|Large Hadron Collider}}. The “prints” in the snow in this case humorously resemble the tracks made by elementary particles following a collision of the kind used to search for the Higgs boson in a {{w|particle collider}}.

==Transcript==
:BACKYARD SNOW TRACKING GUIDE

:[Each panel contains an overhead view of tracks through the snow, with a caption indicating the apparent source.]

:[Standard paw prints through the snow.]
:CAT

:[Large split-toe tracks and smaller rodent tracks.]
:MOOSE AND SQUIRREL

:[Cat prints, but with more space between the pairs of prints.]
:LONGCAT

:[Two similar careening tire tracks.]
:MOUSE RIDING BICYCLE

:[Longer tracks, with a large melted ring surrounding a point in the middle of the frame.]
:RABBIT STOPPING TO USE HAIR DRYER

:[No visible tracks.]
:LEGOLAS

:[Single deep holes with cratering.]
:BOBCAT ON POGO STICK

:[Round prints that suddenly turn to the right halfway into frame.]
:KNIGHT

:[Human footprints up to a square melting pattern, turning into animal prints.]
:KID WITH TRANSMOGRIFIER

:[Human footprints up to a rectangular melted area, which are then doubled to another rectangular area, which are then doubled again up to another rectangular area, which are then doubled.]
:KID WITH DUPLICATOR

:[Right curve on a road, with tire tracks careening out of frame.]
:Out of Frame Garden Owner: MY VEGETABLE GARDEN!
:PRIUS

:[A series of spiraling and outwardly traveling lines extend from a point in the middle of the frame.]
:HIGGS BOSON

== Trivia ==
* A section of this comic, along with its title text, is used as the image for {{tvtropes|AltText|Alt Text}} on TV Tropes.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Calvin and Hobbes]]
[[Category:Bobcats]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Kids]]
[[Category:Physics]]
[[Category:LOTR]]
[[Category:Chess]]

696: Strip Games

2025-06-28T21:56:28Z

Aplookingbill: Fin.

{{comic
| number = 696
| date = February 1, 2010
| title = Strip Games
| image = strip_games.png
| titletext = HOW ABOUT A NICE GAME OF STRIP GLOBAL THERMONUCLEAR WAR?
}}
==Explanation==
The frequency of strip versions of various games is measured by means of Google search results. Strip versions of popular games are a common activity at parties, especially when alcohol is involved. The obligation to remove pieces of clothing is supposed to add an extra zest to the game. A very widespread variant is {{w|Strip Poker}}, followed by strip versions of regular party games like {{w|Truth or Dare}} or {{w|Spin the Bottle}}.

However, the comic also suggests playing other games in a way that involves stripping. In reality, playing such games as "Strip {{w|Tennis}}" or "Strip {{w|Agricola (board game)|Agricola}}" is rather unusual. The Chris Van Allsburg picture book ''{{w|Jumanji (picture book)| Jumanji}}'' and the Robin Williams movie adaptation
''{{w|Jumanji}}'' are about a magical board game that manifests dangerous creatures and traps from the jungle and lost civilization therein; a theoretical Strip Jumanji would probably not remain very titillating during the chaos (evidently, therefore, "strip Jumanji" refers to [https://jumanji.fandom.com/wiki/Jumanji_(Milton_Bradley_Board_Game) the real-life board game based on the movie]).

The last column features games of which strip versions are (according to Google) nonexistent. While the other columns named sports or board games where a strip variant would be at least conceivable, the last one includes the {{w|zero-player game|zero-player}} {{w|Conway's Game of Life|Game of Life}} and the {{w|Prisoner's_dilemma#The_iterated_prisoner's_dilemma|Iterated Prisoner's Dilemma}}, which is a theoretical example in {{w|game theory}}. It is therefore left to the reader to imagine how a strip version of these pseudo-games would appear.

"Global Thermonuclear War" in the title text is a reference to the film "{{w|WarGames}}", where a young hacker accesses a US military supercomputer and starts a nuclear war simulation, believing it to be only a computer game. The film ends when the computer is shown that nuclear war is "a strange game" in which "the only winning move is not to play". The computer then proposes (on its all-caps screen): "HOW ABOUT A NICE GAME OF CHESS?"

Strip global thermonuclear war is a patently absurd idea; while it is a common trope for people to engage in one last moment of intimate pleasure before certain doom, foreplay (including strip games of any type) is a time-consuming practice, and time is something you don't have much of considering that the bomb could drop on your place of residence at any moment. Besides all that, the act of betting on which city is going to go up next in a nuclear inferno tends not to be an effective aphrodisiac for most people.{{Citation needed}} But at least you wouldn't be wearing your radioactive clothes!

==Table of games==
{| class="wikitable sortable"
!style="width:15%"|Frequency
!style="width:20%"|Name
!Explanation
|-
|rowspan="5"|Frequent n > 1%
|{{w|Poker}}
|Poker, a card game with rounds of betting, is a game with common "strip" variations, see {{w|strip poker}}.
|-
|{{w|Spin the bottle}}
|Spin the bottle is a party game where players must kiss a randomly selected other player. As this is a semi-sexual party game, strip varieties are relatively popular.
|-
|{{w|Beer pong}}
|Beer pong is a drinking game common at universities and colleges, occasionally accompanied with stripping for either missing a shot or for the opponent making one.
|-
|{{w|Never have I ever}}
|Never have I ever is a drinking game where players take turns asking other players about things they "have not done". A relatively common variation has players remove clothing, rather than put down fingers, if they have done something.
|-
|{{w|Truth or Dare}}
|Truth or dare? is a party game, in which players are given the choice between answering a question truthfully, or performing a dare. A common twist is for players who wish to skip a truth or dare offered to them to remove an article of clothing instead.
|-
|rowspan="5"|Rare 1% >= n > 0.01%
|{{w|Chess}}
|Chess is a board game between two players. Theoretically, clothing could be removed whenever a piece is captured.
|-
|{{w|Blackjack}}
|Blackjack is a gambling card game, played between players and a dealer, in which players do not play against each other. This makes it harder than poker to create rules for stripping, but it is still feasible.
|-
|{{w|Tennis}}
|Tennis is a racket sport played between 2 players (or between teams of 2, in the case of doubles). As the sport is active and outdoors, there may be hazards associated with stripping during tennis, but it isn't implausible.
|-
|{{w|Settlers of Catan}}
|Settlers of Catan is a strategy board game, where players compete to "settle" an island by harvesting resources. Settling on a set of rules to strip to may be difficult, as the points scored in Catan are kept secret until the end.
|-
|{{w|Pictionary}}
|Pictionary is a party board game, involving drawing and guessing words. Enforcing stripping on a missed word is a plausible twist, though not particularly common.
|-
|rowspan="5"|Extremely rare 0.01% >= n > 0
|{{w|Cricket}}
|Cricket is a bat-and-ball sport, commonly played in the UK, India, and other Commonwealth countries. The laws of cricket (and, given that cricket is an outdoor sport, public obscenity laws) disencourage the players' removal of clothing, though it is far from unknown for {{w|Sheila Nicholls|spectators}} to do so.
|-
|{{w|Magic: The Gathering}}
|Magic: The Gathering is a trading card game, released in 1993 by Wizards of the Coast. The rules of Magic: The Gathering do not have allowances for stripping built into them, but it is still likely possible for someone to come up with a ruleset.
|-
|{{w|Stickball}}
|Stickball is a game similar to baseball, using a broom handle and a rubber ball. Consequentially, strip stickball likely has the same hazards as strip cricket and strip tennis, though it differs from stick tennis in that agreeing on a set of stripping rules may be difficult.
|-
|{{w|Agricola (board game)|Agricola}}
|Agricola is a farming-inspired strategy board game. Agricola is not a game designed for stripping, though it isn't impossible to figure out a way to accommodate it.
|-
|{{w|Jumanji#Games|Jumanji}}
|''Jumanji'' is a 1995 fantasy film (based on a {{w|Jumanji (picture book)| picture book by Chris Van Allsburg}}) that centers on a supernatural board game. A board game based on the film was released by Milton Bradley. As explained above, Jumanji is not a particularly sexy game, and therefore may not serve as an effective medium for stripping.
|-
|rowspan="5"|Nonexistent n = 0
|{{w|Poohsticks}}
|A children's sport mentioned in the {{w|Winnie-the-Pooh|Winnie-the-Pooh books}} played by dropping sticks into a river and watching them reappear on the other side of a bridge. Despite the kid-friendly origins, and unlike the other games below it, a "strip" version of Poohsticks is actually viable.
|-
|[[wikia:w:c:starwars:Podracing|Podracing]]
|Podracing appears in the {{w|Star Wars}} films as a racing competition held with hovering vehicles. How a "strip" version would work between two racers is unclear, but a determined set of spectators "wagering" their clothes on the races could probably hammer out a system.
|-
|{{w|Prisoner's_dilemma#The_iterated_prisoner's_dilemma|Iterated Prisoner's Dilemma}}
|The prisoner's dilemma is a "game" that is analyzed in game theory, showing why rational individuals may not cooperate, even if it is in their best interest to do so. While the standard version of the game seems to lack any scoring mechanism that could be tied to stripping, the iterated prisoner's dilemma could conceivably having such a mechanism, being repeated over and over.
|-
|{{w|Chess by mail}}
|Could conceivably work if the players include increasingly-nude photographs of themselves in their correspondences. The problem is, a game by e-mail can take days to finish, and a game by {{w|snail-mail}} can take upwards of ''several months''. The titillation factor is far too spread out to satisfy the desires of anyone who would elect to play a game of strip chess in the first place.{{Citation needed}}
|-
|{{w|Conway's Game of Life}}
|Conway's Game of Life is a zero-player {{w|cellular automaton}} devised by British mathematician John Horton Conway in 1970. It is not a "game" in the traditional sense, so "stripping" would also be very difficult, if not impossible.
|}

==Transcript==
:Frequency of Strip Versions of Various Games

:n = google hits for "strip <game name>" / google hits for "<game name>"
:(at the time of this writing)

:Frequent
:(n > 1%)
:-Poker
:-Spin the Bottle
:-Beer Pong
:-Never Have I Ever
:-Truth or Dare

:Rare
:(1% >= n > 0.01%)
:-Chess
:-Blackjack
:-Tennis
:-Settlers of Catan
:-Pictionary

:Extremely Rare
:(0.01% >= n > 0)
:-Cricket
:-Magic: the Gathering
:-Stickball
:-Agricola
:-Jumanji

:Nonexistent
:(n = 0)
:-Poohsticks
:-Podracing
:-Iterated Prisoner's Dilemma
:-Chess by Mail
:-Conway's Game of Life

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Sport]]
[[Category:Chess]]
[[Category:Nuclear weapons]]
[[Category:Games]]
[[Category:Google Search]]

696: Strip Games

2025-06-28T21:52:45Z

Aplookingbill: Working on making the explanations actually explain. WIP

{{comic
| number = 696
| date = February 1, 2010
| title = Strip Games
| image = strip_games.png
| titletext = HOW ABOUT A NICE GAME OF STRIP GLOBAL THERMONUCLEAR WAR?
}}
==Explanation==
The frequency of strip versions of various games is measured by means of Google search results. Strip versions of popular games are a common activity at parties, especially when alcohol is involved. The obligation to remove pieces of clothing is supposed to add an extra zest to the game. A very widespread variant is {{w|Strip Poker}}, followed by strip versions of regular party games like {{w|Truth or Dare}} or {{w|Spin the Bottle}}.

However, the comic also suggests playing other games in a way that involves stripping. In reality, playing such games as "Strip {{w|Tennis}}" or "Strip {{w|Agricola (board game)|Agricola}}" is rather unusual. The Chris Van Allsburg picture book ''{{w|Jumanji (picture book)| Jumanji}}'' and the Robin Williams movie adaptation
''{{w|Jumanji}}'' are about a magical board game that manifests dangerous creatures and traps from the jungle and lost civilization therein; a theoretical Strip Jumanji would probably not remain very titillating during the chaos (evidently, therefore, "strip Jumanji" refers to [https://jumanji.fandom.com/wiki/Jumanji_(Milton_Bradley_Board_Game) the real-life board game based on the movie]).

The last column features games of which strip versions are (according to Google) nonexistent. While the other columns named sports or board games where a strip variant would be at least conceivable, the last one includes the {{w|zero-player game|zero-player}} {{w|Conway's Game of Life|Game of Life}} and the {{w|Prisoner's_dilemma#The_iterated_prisoner's_dilemma|Iterated Prisoner's Dilemma}}, which is a theoretical example in {{w|game theory}}. It is therefore left to the reader to imagine how a strip version of these pseudo-games would appear.

"Global Thermonuclear War" in the title text is a reference to the film "{{w|WarGames}}", where a young hacker accesses a US military supercomputer and starts a nuclear war simulation, believing it to be only a computer game. The film ends when the computer is shown that nuclear war is "a strange game" in which "the only winning move is not to play". The computer then proposes (on its all-caps screen): "HOW ABOUT A NICE GAME OF CHESS?"

Strip global thermonuclear war is a patently absurd idea; while it is a common trope for people to engage in one last moment of intimate pleasure before certain doom, foreplay (including strip games of any type) is a time-consuming practice, and time is something you don't have much of considering that the bomb could drop on your place of residence at any moment. Besides all that, the act of betting on which city is going to go up next in a nuclear inferno tends not to be an effective aphrodisiac for most people.{{Citation needed}} But at least you wouldn't be wearing your radioactive clothes!

==Table of games==
{| class="wikitable sortable"
!style="width:15%"|Frequency
!style="width:20%"|Name
!Explanation
|-
|rowspan="5"|Frequent n > 1%
|{{w|Poker}}
|Poker, a card game with rounds of betting, is a game with common "strip" variations, see {{w|strip poker}}.
|-
|{{w|Spin the bottle}}
|Spin the bottle is a party game where players must kiss a randomly selected other player. As this is a semi-sexual party game, strip varieties are relatively popular.
|-
|{{w|Beer pong}}
|Beer pong is a drinking game common at universities and colleges, occasionally accompanied with stripping for either missing a shot or for the opponent making one.
|-
|{{w|Never have I ever}}
|Never have I ever is a drinking game where players take turns asking other players about things they "have not done". A relatively common variation has players remove clothing, rather than put down fingers, if they have done something.
|-
|{{w|Truth or Dare}}
|Truth or dare? is a party game, in which players are given the choice between answering a question truthfully, or performing a dare. A common twist is for players who wish to skip a truth or dare offered to them to remove an article of clothing instead.
|-
|rowspan="5"|Rare 1% >= n > 0.01%
|{{w|Chess}}
|Chess is a board game between two players. Theoretically, clothing could be removed whenever a piece is captured.
|-
|{{w|Blackjack}}
|Blackjack is a gambling card game, played between players and a dealer, in which players do not play against each other. This makes it harder than poker to create rules for stripping, but it is still feasible.
|-
|{{w|Tennis}}
|Tennis is a racket sport played between 2 players (or between teams of 2, in the case of doubles). As the sport is active and outdoors, there may be hazards associated with stripping during tennis, but it isn't implausible.
|-
|{{w|Settlers of Catan}}
|Settlers of Catan is a strategy board game, where players compete to "settle" an island by harvesting resources. Settling on a set of rules to strip to may be difficult, as the points scored in Catan are kept secret until the end.
|-
|{{w|Pictionary}}
|Pictionary is a party board game, involving drawing and guessing words. Enforcing stripping on a missed word is a plausible twist, though not particularly common.
|-
|rowspan="5"|Extremely rare 0.01% >= n > 0
|{{w|Cricket}}
|Cricket is a bat-and-ball sport, commonly played in the UK, India, and other Commonwealth countries. The laws of cricket (and, given that cricket is an outdoor sport, public obscenity laws) disencourage the players' removal of clothing, though it is far from unknown for {{w|Sheila Nicholls|spectators}} to do so.
|-
|{{w|Magic: The Gathering}}
|Magic: The Gathering is a trading card game, released in 1993 by Wizards of the Coast. The rules of Magic: The Gathering do not have allowances for stripping built into them, but it is still likely possible for someone to come up with a ruleset.
|-
|{{w|Stickball}}
|Stickball is a game similar to baseball, using a broom handle and a rubber ball. Consequentially, strip stickball likely has the same hazards as strip cricket and strip tennis, though it differs from stick tennis in that agreeing on a set of stripping rules may be difficult.
|-
|{{w|Agricola (board game)|Agricola}}
|Agricola is a farming-inspired strategy board game.
|-
|{{w|Jumanji#Games|Jumanji}}
|''Jumanji'' is a 1995 fantasy film (based on a {{w|Jumanji (picture book)| picture book by Chris Van Allsburg}}) that centers on a supernatural board game. A board game based on the film was released by Milton Bradley.
|-
|rowspan="5"|Nonexistent n = 0
|{{w|Poohsticks}}
|A children's sport mentioned in the {{w|Winnie-the-Pooh|Winnie-the-Pooh books}} played by dropping sticks into a river and watching them reappear on the other side of a bridge. Despite the kid-friendly origins, and unlike the other games below it, a "strip" version of Poohsticks is actually viable.
|-
|[[wikia:w:c:starwars:Podracing|Podracing]]
|Podracing appears in the {{w|Star Wars}} films as a racing competition held with hovering vehicles. How a "strip" version would work between two racers is unclear, but a determined set of spectators "wagering" their clothes on the races could probably hammer out a system.
|-
|{{w|Prisoner's_dilemma#The_iterated_prisoner's_dilemma|Iterated Prisoner's Dilemma}}
|The prisoner's dilemma is a "game" that is analyzed in game theory, showing why rational individuals may not cooperate, even if it is in their best interest to do so. This does not seem like a "playable" game that could involve removing clothing.
|-
|{{w|Chess by mail}}
|Could conceivably work if the players include increasingly-nude photographs of themselves in their correspondences. The problem is, a game by e-mail can take days to finish, and a game by {{w|snail-mail}} can take upwards of ''several months''. The titillation factor is far too spread out to satisfy the desires of anyone who would elect to play a game of strip chess in the first place. It could be an interesting idea for a long-distance relationship, however.
|-
|{{w|Conway's Game of Life}}
|Conway's Game of Life is a {{w|cellular automaton}} devised by British mathematician John Horton Conway in 1970. It is not a "game" in the traditional sense, so "stripping" would also be very difficult, if not impossible.
|}

==Transcript==
:Frequency of Strip Versions of Various Games

:n = google hits for "strip <game name>" / google hits for "<game name>"
:(at the time of this writing)

:Frequent
:(n > 1%)
:-Poker
:-Spin the Bottle
:-Beer Pong
:-Never Have I Ever
:-Truth or Dare

:Rare
:(1% >= n > 0.01%)
:-Chess
:-Blackjack
:-Tennis
:-Settlers of Catan
:-Pictionary

:Extremely Rare
:(0.01% >= n > 0)
:-Cricket
:-Magic: the Gathering
:-Stickball
:-Agricola
:-Jumanji

:Nonexistent
:(n = 0)
:-Poohsticks
:-Podracing
:-Iterated Prisoner's Dilemma
:-Chess by Mail
:-Conway's Game of Life

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Sport]]
[[Category:Chess]]
[[Category:Nuclear weapons]]
[[Category:Games]]
[[Category:Google Search]]