explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:1560: Bubblegum

2015-08-05T12:44:41Z

Beth: /* Title text */

I believe the title text refers to the story about Calvin Coolidge about making a bet to not say 3 words.[[User:Blawho|Blawho]] ([[User talk:Blawho|talk]]) 04:51, 5 August 2015 (UTC)

Duke Nukem says: "It's time to kick ass and chew bubble gum...", not the other way around. Don't know if this is worth mentioning. [[User:Elektrizikekswerk|Elektrizikekswerk]] ([[User talk:Elektrizikekswerk|talk]]) 07:24, 5 August 2015 (UTC)

Thanks for the explanation, I didn't know the movie quote. With this info in mind, I now think that panel 2 shows that Cueball is perhaps not making friends, so he decides to just go for the chewing gum option?? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.36|141.101.99.36]] 08:40, 5 August 2015 (UTC)
I added that the dénouement was similar to something the naïve and childish Beret Guy would do, that okay? [[User:MadHaighaHatta|Completely sane (And not Anglo-Saxon)]] ([[User talk:MadHaighaHatta|talk]]) 11:27, 5 August 2015 (UTC)
===Title text===
Title text only 16 words? ''I(1) came(2) here(3) to(4) chew(5) bubblegum(6) and(7) say(8) no(9) more(10) than(11) eighteen(12) words(13) ... and(14) I'm(15) all(16) out(17) of(18)'' --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.93.98|162.158.93.98]] 10:26, 5 August 2015 (UTC)
: Title text 18 words, movie quote 16 words. Unless Randall takes the stuff in the movie quote as "bubble gum" where Randall's own text uses "bubblegum." Which is entirely possible, but weird. But then, what's not to like about "weird?" [[User:Taibhse|Taibhse]] ([[User talk:Taibhse|talk]]) 10:41, 5 August 2015 (UTC)

The description of the hovertext mentions "out of words" and "out of both"; might want to include the original, "out of bubblegum". Also, the deliberate truncation implies "out of time", which could relate to the possibility of it being a tribute to Roddy Piper.--[[User:Beth|Beth]] ([[User talk:Beth|talk]]) 12:44, 5 August 2015 (UTC)

Talk:1560: Bubblegum

2015-08-05T12:44:14Z

Beth:

1560: Bubblegum

2015-08-05T12:39:42Z

Beth: /* Transcript */ add minor descriptive details

{{comic
| number = 1560
| date = August 5, 2015
| title = Bubblegum
| image = bubblegum.png
| titletext = I came here to chew bubblegum and say no more than eighteen words ... and I'm all out of
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|First draft.}}

This comic spoofs the iconic line from the action movie "{{w|They Live}}", where the armed protagonist, upon entering a bank, states that "I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass, and I'm all out of bubblegum." This implies that the protagonist will soon fight the inhabitants of the bank, as he cannot do the other objective he came there for (chewing bubble gum). This phrase was also used by the title character of the video game ''{{w|Duke Nukem 3D}}'' and is often mistakenly believed to have originated in it. Furthermore the phrase has itself been parodied by British comedy ''IT Crowd''.

Former wrestler Rowdy {{w|Roddy Piper}}, who played the protagonist in "They Live," died five days prior to the publication of this comic. This comic may be a tribute to him.

In the comic, [[Beret Guy]] stands in the open doorway with a strong light behind him, a typical pose in action movies when someone is dramatically entering somewhere. However, in this instance, Beret Guy claims that he is here to "chew bubble gum and make friends". He then offers a stick of gum to both [[Megan]] and [[Cueball]], making it clear he intends to do both of his stated objectives. This is expected from Beret Guy, usually being quite naïve about the world/beings that surround him.

The title text is another variation of the line, with meta-humor. The speaker states that he is here to say 18 words and chew bubble gum, but reaches 18 words before he is able to finish his sentence. Thus, readers are left in ambiguity as to whether or not he is also out of bubble gum, as the line could either end "and I'm all out of words", or "and I'm all out of both".

The title text seems to be a slight dig at the trope of a laconic hero who utters only a few gnomic words, as in the They Live scene. Strangely, though, Randall has not preserved the number of words in the film quote: there are 16. There would be 18 if 'bubble gum' were taken as two words, but in the comic, it is clear that Randall takes it as one.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}
:[Beret Guy stands dramatically silhouetted in a doorway.]
:Beret Guy: I came here to chew bubblegum and make friends!

:[Beret Guy, in normal lighting, looks at Megan and Cueball]
:(dramatic tense silence)
:Beret Guy (offering a stick of gum): Want some gum?
{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]]

1417: Seven

2014-09-05T13:34:09Z

Beth: /* Explanation */ minor text fixes

{{comic
| number = 1417
| date = September 5, 2014
| title = Seven
| image = seven.png
| titletext = The days of the week are Monday, Arctic, Wellsley, Green, Electra, Synergize, and the Seventh Seal.
}}

==Explanation==
In this comic, [[Cueball]] (or perhaps [[Randall]]) says he can't distinguish between two sets if they both have exactly seven objects. This leads him to exchange the items in the sets without noticing, to the point where, when listing a set, every item truly belongs to a different set.

He shows this in the comic when trying to mention the seven dwarfs from ''{{w|Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937 film)|Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs}}'' (a task some people might find difficult, but they would not just chose words from other sets of seven to fill in the gaps...)

In the title text he also makes it clear that even a simple set of seven like the days of the week also goes completely wrong.

The comic is a reference to the oldest {{w|Set-theoretic_definition_of_natural_numbers#Oldest_definition|set-theoretic definition of the natural numbers}} in which for each natural number, an equivalence class is defined over all sets which contain the same number of items. As Cueball is known for mathematical thinking he could be presumed to have taken the underlying equivalence relation to heart, and (over)applying it to real life, genuinely judges sets to be identical if they both contain N objects.

Seven has culturally been regarded as a holy number, which contributes to the large number of familiar sets of seven that make this comic possible. This is probably the reason why Randall chose that number for the comic.

The number seven being the number for when sets become indistinguishable is possibly a reference to {{w|Miller's Law}}; however, this refers to elements within the same set becoming indistinguishable, rather than indistinguishability of different sets of the same size.

===Comic List===
For each of the seven list below the relevant items number on their list of seven fits with the number the list has. So were no. 2 phylum is no. 2 in the list as goes for the last item where the Colossus of Rhodes is also mentioned last.

The seven "dwarfs" mentioned and their relevant set of seaven are (the relevant items number in the set is written in brackets before the item):
# Disney's Dwarfs from the movie ''{{w|Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937 film)|Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs}}''): (1) '''Sneezy''', Dopey, Bashful, Sleepy, Grumpy, Happy and Doc
# Major {{w|taxonomic ranks}}: kingdom, (2) '''phylum''', class, order, family, genus and species
# Continents: Asia, Africa, (3) '''Europe''', North America, South America, Australia and Antarctica
# {{w|Seven deadly sins|Deadly sins}}: lust, gluttony, greed, (4) '''sloth''', wrath, envy and pride
# {{w|Seven-layer dip|Seven Layer Dip (recipe)}}: refried beans, cheese, ground beef, sour cream, (5) '''guacamole''', salsa and chopped black olives/chopped tomatoes/chopped green onions
# Layers of the {{w|OSI model|Open System Interconnection (OSI) data transmission model}}: application, presentation, session, transport, network, (6) '''data link''' and physical
# {{w|Wonders of the World|Wonders of the Ancient World}}: Great Pyramid of Giza, Hanging Gardens of Babylon, Statue of Zeus at Olympia, Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, Lighthouse of Alexandria and (7) '''Colossus of Rhodes'''

===Title Text List===
The title text extends this saying he also does the same with the set of the seven days of the week. However, the lists found so far (here below) does not follow the same pattern as the dwarfs. The item number does not fit with that of our lists. So were no. 4 spectral colour has Green as no. 4 in the list, this is not the case with no. 5 on the list the Pleiades - here Electra is mentioned as no. 2 in {{W|Pleiades_(Greek_mythology)#The_Seven_Sisters|the wikipedia list}}. (However, this could maybe be discussed?) There is, however, reason to belive we do not yet have the complete understanding of the comic.

The sets Cueball's "days of the week" come from are (the relevant items number in the set is written in brackets before the item):
# {{w|Days of the week}}: (1) '''Monday''', Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday
# {{w|Seven_Seas#Modern|The Seven Seas (modern version)}}: Pacific, Atlantic, Indian, (4?) '''Arctic''', Mediterranean, Caribbean, and the Gulf of Mexico.
## This could also be a reference to {{w|Climate zones}}. See [[#Trivia|Trivia]].
# {{w|Seven Sisters (colleges)|Seven Sisters}}, historically women's colleges in U.S.: Mount Holyoke, Vassar, (3) '''Wellesley''', Smith, Radcliffe, Bryn Mawr and Barnard
# Traditional {{w|spectral color}}s: red, orange, yellow, (4) '''green''', blue, indigo and violet
## However {{w|Indigo#Classification_as_a_spectral_color|indigo is stuck in}} by {{w|Isaac Newton}}. See [[#Trivia|Trivia]].
# {{w|Pleiades (mythology)|Pleiades}}, Seven Sisters, nymphs and daughters of Atlas and Pleone in Greek mythology: Maia, (2?) '''Electra''', Taygete, Alcyone, Celaeno, Sterope and Merope
# ''{{w|The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People}}'' by Dr. Stephen R. Covey: Be proactive, Begin with the end in mind, Put first things first, Think win-win, Seek first to understand and then to be understood, (6) '''Synergize''' and Sharpen the saw
# {{w|Seven_Seals|Seals}} in the Book of Revelation in the New Testament: First seal, Second seal, Third seal, Fourth seal, Fifth seal, Sixth seal and (7) '''Seventh seal'''
## Although '''very''' unlikely, ''The Seventh Seal'' could also refer to the 1957 film by Ingmar Bergman. See [[#Trivia|Trivia]].

==Transcript==
: [Megan and Cueball are talking]
: Megan: Can you name all the dwarves from Snow White?
: Cueball: Sure, there's, um...
: Cueball's thoughts: Sneezy, phylum, Europe, sloth, guacamole, data link, Colossus of Rhodes
: Caption: I have this problem where all sets of seven things are indistinguishable to me.

==Trivia==
*Arctic (no. 2 on the title text list) could also be a reference to {{w|Climate zones}}: '''Arctic''', North Temperate, Northern Subtropical, Tropical, Southern Subtropical, South Temperate and Antarctic.
** There are however usually only five mentioned acording to the {{w|Köppen climate classification}}. They are: Tropical, Dry, Temperate, Continental and Polar climate.
*Concerning the seven colour of the spectrum (no. 4 on the title text list) {{w|Indigo#Classification_as_a_spectral_color|indigo is stuck in}} by {{w|Isaac Newton}} to add up to the seven notes in the {{w|Scale_(music)#Western_music|Western musical scale}}
** It should be noted that {{w|Indigo#Classification as a spectral color|Newton probably meant}} the colours {{w|cyan}} and {{w|blue}} as we think of it today, rather than blue and {{w|indigo}}.
** Also note that in a {{w|rainbow}} you usually {{w|Rainbow#Number_of_colours_in_spectrum_or_rainbow|cannot distinguish more than six colours}} with cyan melting in with green and blue and the same for indigo with blue and violet.
** These are also the traditional seven artists' pigments, {{w|Roy_G._Biv|with the accompanying mnemonic "Roy G. Biv"}}. Indigo dye is a widely known and readily available colouring agent. The ongoing ubiquity of the ''pigment'' (think denim) gives it a unique prominence in spite of its uncertain status as a spectral colour.
*Although '''very''' unlikely, ''The Seventh Seal'' (no. 7 on the title text list) could also refer to the 1957 film by Ingmar Bergman.
**This was Bergman's seventh film with an English title beginning with the letter ‘S’ (ignoring articles). ''A Ship Bound for India'', ''Summer Interlude'', ''Secrets of Women'', ''Summer with Monika'', ''Sawdust and Tinsel'', ''Smiles of a Summer Night'', '''''The Seventh Seal'''''.
**Similary ''The Seventh Seal'' is also the seventh Bergman film whose Swedish title starts with ‘S’, although the list has some different members. ''Skepp till Indialand'', ''Sånt händer inte här'', ''Sommarlek'', ''Sommaren med Monika'', ''Sommarnattens leende'', ''Sista paret ut'', '''''Det sjunde inseglet'''''.
**''The Seventh Seal'' was also one of seven Bergman films submitted by Sweden for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film during the 1950s and 1960s. '''The Seventh Seal''', ''The Magician'', ''The Virgin Spring'', ''Through a Glass Darkly'', ''The Silence'', ''Persona'', ''Shame''.

{{comic discussion}}

1417: Seven

2014-09-05T13:28:26Z

Beth: /* Title Text List */

{{comic
| number = 1417
| date = September 5, 2014
| title = Seven
| image = seven.png
| titletext = The days of the week are Monday, Arctic, Wellsley, Green, Electra, Synergize, and the Seventh Seal.
}}

==Explanation==
In this comic, [[Cueball]] (or perhaps [[Randall]]) says he can't distinguish between two sets if they both have exactly seven objects. This leads him to exchange the items in the sets without noticing, to the point where, when listing a set, every item truly belongs to a different set.

He shows this in the comic when trying to mention the seven dwarfs from ''{{w|Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937 film)|Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs}} (a task some people might find difficult, but they would not just chose words from other sets of seven to fill in the gaps...)

In the title text he also makes it clear that even a simple set of seven like the days of the week also goes completely wrong.

The comic is a reference to the oldest {{w|Set-theoretic_definition_of_natural_numbers#Oldest_definition|set-theoretic definition of the natural numbers}} in which for each natural number, an equivalence class is defined over all sets which contain the same number of items. As Cueball is known for mathematical thinking he could be presumed to have taken the underlying equivalence relation to heart, and (over)applying it to real life, genuinely judges sets to be identical if they both contain N objects.

Seven has culturally been regarded as a holy number, which contributes to the large number of familiar sets of seven that make this comic possible. This is probably the reason why Randall chose that number for the comic.

The number seven being the number for when sets become indistinguishable is possibly a reference to {{w|Miller's Law}}; however, this refers to elements within the same set becoming indistinguishable, rather than indistinguishability of different sets of the same size.

===Comic List===
# Disney's Dwarfs from the movie ''{{w|Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937 film)|Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs}}''): (1)'''Sneezy''', Dopey, Bashful, Sleepy, Grumpy, Happy and Doc
# Major {{w|taxonomic ranks}}: kingdom, (2)'''phylum''', class, order, family, genus and species
# Continents: Asia, Africa, (3)'''Europe''', North America, South America, Australia and Antarctica
# {{w|Seven deadly sins|Deadly sins}}: lust, gluttony, greed, (4)'''sloth''', wrath, envy and pride
# {{w|Seven-layer dip|Seven Layer Dip (recipe)}}: refried beans, cheese, ground beef, sour cream, (5)'''guacamole''', salsa and chopped black olives/chopped tomatoes/chopped green onions
# Layers of the {{w|OSI model|Open System Interconnection (OSI) data transmission model}}: application, presentation, session, transport, network, (6)'''data link''' and physical
# {{w|Wonders of the World|Wonders of the Ancient World}}: Great Pyramid of Giza, Hanging Gardens of Babylon, Statue of Zeus at Olympia, Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, Lighthouse of Alexandria and (7)'''Colossus of Rhodes'''

===Title Text List===
The title text extends this saying he also does the same with the set of the seven days of the week. However, the lists found so far (here below) does not follow the same pattern as the dwarfs. The item number does not fit with that of our lists. So were no. 4 spectral colour has Green as no. 4 in the list, this is not the case with no. 5 on the list the Pleiades - here electra is mentioned as no. 2 in the wiki pedia list. (However, this could maybe be discussed?) There is, however, reason to belive we do not yet have the complete understanding of the comic.

The sets Cueball's "days of the week" come from are (the relevant items number in the set is written in brackets before the item):
# {{w|Days of the week}}: (1)'''Monday''', Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday
# {{w|Seven_Seas#Modern|The Seven Seas (modern version)}}: Pacific, Atlantic, Indian, (4?)'''Arctic''', Mediterranean, Caribbean, and the Gulf of Mexico.
## This could also be a reference to {{w|Climate zones}}. See [[#Trivia|Trivia]]
# {{w|Seven Sisters (colleges)|Seven Sisters}}, historically women's colleges in U.S.: Mount Holyoke, Vassar, (3)'''Wellesley''', Smith, Radcliffe, Bryn Mawr and Barnard
# Traditional {{w|spectral color}}s: red, orange, yellow, (4)'''green''', blue, indigo and violet
## However {{w|Indigo#Classification_as_a_spectral_color|indigo is stuck in}} by {{w|Isaac Newton}}. See [[#Trivia|Trivia]]
# {{w|Pleiades (mythology)|Pleiades}}, Seven Sisters, nymphs and daughters of Atlas and Pleone in Greek mythology: Maia, (2?)'''Electra''', Taygete, Alcyone, Celaeno, Sterope and Merope
# ''{{w|The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People}}'' by Dr. Stephen R. Covey: Be proactive, Begin with the end in mind, Put first things first, Think win-win, Seek first to understand and then to be understood, (6)'''Synergize'''' and Sharpen the saw
# {{w|Seven_Seals|Seals}} in the Book of Revelation in the New Testament: First seal, Second seal, Third seal, Fourth seal, Fifth seal, Sixth seal and (7)'''Seventh seal'''
## Although '''very''' unlikely, ''The Seventh Seal'' could also refer to the 1957 film by Ingmar Bergman. See [[#Trivia|Trivia]]

==Transcript==
: [Megan and Cueball are talking]
: Megan: Can you name all the dwarves from Snow White?
: Cueball: Sure, there's, um...
: Cueball's thoughts: Sneezy, phylum, Europe, sloth, guacamole, data link, Colossus of Rhodes
: Caption: I have this problem where all sets of seven things are indistinguishable to me.

==Trivia==
*Arctic (no. 2 on the title text list) could also be a reference to {{w|Climate zones}}: (1?)'''Arctic''', North Temperate, Northern Subtropical, Tropical, Southern Subtropical, South Temperate and Antarctic.
** There are however usually only five mentioned acording to the {{w|Köppen climate classification}}. They are: Tropical, Dry, Temperate, Continental and Polar climate.
*Concerning the seven colour of the spectrum (no. 4 on the title text list) {{w|Indigo#Classification_as_a_spectral_color|indigo is stuck in}} by {{w|Isaac Newton}} to add up to the seven notes in the {{w|Scale_(music)#Western_music|Western musical scale}}
** It should be noted that {{w|Indigo#Classification as a spectral color|Newton probably meant}} the colours {{w|cyan}} and {{w|blue}} as we think of it today, rather than blue and {{w|indigo}}.
** Also note that in a {{w|rainbow}} you usually {{w|Rainbow#Number_of_colours_in_spectrum_or_rainbow|cannot distinguish more than six colours}} with cyan melting in with green and blue and the same for indigo with blue and violet.
** These are also the traditional seven artists' pigments, {{w|Roy_G._Biv|with the accompanying mnemonic "Roy G. Biv"}}. Indigo dye is a widely known and readily available colouring agent. The ongoing ubiquity of the ''pigment'' (think denim) gives it a unique prominence in spite of its uncertain status as a spectral colour.
*Although '''very''' unlikely, ''The Seventh Seal'' (no. 7 on the title text list) could also refer to the 1957 film by Ingmar Bergman.
**This was Bergman's seventh film with an English title beginning with the letter ‘S’ (ignoring articles). ''A Ship Bound for India'', ''Summer Interlude'', ''Secrets of Women'', ''Summer with Monika'', ''Sawdust and Tinsel'', ''Smiles of a Summer Night'', '''''The Seventh Seal'''''.
**Similary ''The Seventh Seal'' is also the seventh Bergman film whose Swedish title starts with ‘S’, although the list has some different members. ''Skepp till Indialand'', ''Sånt händer inte här'', ''Sommarlek'', ''Sommaren med Monika'', ''Sommarnattens leende'', ''Sista paret ut'', '''''Det sjunde inseglet'''''.
**''The Seventh Seal'' was also one of seven Bergman films submitted by Sweden for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film during the 1950s and 1960s. '''The Seventh Seal''', ''The Magician'', ''The Virgin Spring'', ''Through a Glass Darkly'', ''The Silence'', ''Persona'', ''Shame''.

{{comic discussion}}