explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

2700: Account Problems

2022-11-20T13:24:55Z

Farnsworth: Added reference to the number of the comic 2700 in the context of its meaning

{{comic
| number = 2700
| date = November 18, 2022
| title = Account Problems
| image = account_problems_2x.png
| imagesize = 538x272px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = My password is just every Unicode codepoint concatenated into a single UTF-8 string.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a VISIBLE ZERO WIDTH SPACE. Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

[[Cueball]] asks [[Ponytail]] to help him because he can't log in to his account. Having attempted to fix [[:Category:Cueball Computer Problems|Cueball's tech issues]] in the past, Ponytail replies with dread. Cueball promises that "It's a normal problem this time", and Ponytail agrees to look at it. But then Cueball reveals that he has included a {{w|Null character|null string terminator character}} in his password when creating an account and now he can't log in. Ponytail responds in disbelief, and Cueball defends his actions by saying that the instructions said to use special characters.

In computer systems, every {{w|Character (computing)|"character"}} (letter, digit, punctuation, etc.) is represented as an integer. For example the lowercase letter 'a' is represented as the number 97, and the digit '1' is represented as the number 49 (when using the {{w|ASCII}} character encoding). A {{w|String (computer science)|"string"}} refers to a sequence of characters, and can be used to store arbitrary text (for example names, messages, passwords). Strings can be arbitrarily long, so some mechanism must be used to record their length. One approach is to store the length explicitly; this representation is often called a {{w|String_(computer_science)#Length-prefixed|Pascal string}} (after the programming language {{w|Pascal}}, which uses this representation). Another approach is to mark the end of the string using a specific character, usually the {{w|null character}} (which is represented as the number 0); such strings are called {{w|null-terminated string}}s, and are used by the {{w|C (programming language)|C programming language}}. Both approaches have advantages and disadvantages.

A limitation of null-terminated strings is that they cannot be used to represent text containing embedded null characters. This is usually not a problem, because normal text never contains null characters. However, if somehow a null character were to end up in the middle of the string, it would cause problems: any code that uses that string would assume this null character marks the end of the string, so the string would effectively be truncated.

Account registration systems often place requirements on passwords in an attempt to encourage users to pick stronger passwords. For example, they might ask that the password include at least one "special character" (such as <code>!@#$%^&*</code>). Cueball misunderstood this requirement as referring to characters such as the null character (which is more accurately referred to as a {{w|ASCII#Control_characters|control character}}). Cueball managed to type the null character as part of his password somehow (on some systems it is possible to type the null character using {{w|Null_character#Representation|certain keyboard shortcuts}} such as <code>Ctrl</code>+<code>Space</code>, <code>Ctrl</code>+<code>@</code>, or <code>Ctrl</code>+<code>2</code>), but the software running the registration system was poorly written and could not cope with this – it allowed him to create an account with that password, but then when he tried to log in with the same password the system didn't accept it.

The number of the xkcd comic is 2700. When interpreting this as two concatenated octal numbers \27 + \00 it represents both the {{w|End-of-Transmission-Block_character|ETB}} as well as the null character, both of these characters possibly leading to problems when processed in legacy systems (e.g. mainframe computers). When interpreting 2700 as hexadecimal 0x27 + 0x00 numbers it represents the ' character and the null character - a sequence that could lead to SQL injection when it is placed in unescaped form inside of a SQL command.

It's unclear how that particular situation might arise in real software, but here is a similar situation that can easily happen in practice: Suppose a website's registration form allows the user's new password to have up to 20 characters, but due to a programmer error the login page only accepts passwords with up to 18 characters. If the user picks a medium-length password (say with 12 characters), all is well. But if the user picks a password with 20 characters, they will be able to register but they won't be able to log in (which is what happened to Cueball). Another problem can arise when the password system allows the input of Unicode characters at first, but is later changed to only store UTF-8 passwords: language-specific characters like é or ö are then no longer allowed, locking the user from their account until a new password is set.

The title text describes a different situation, where a person's password is "simply" every Unicode character concatenated into a single string. {{w|Unicode}} is a standard for representing characters from many writing systems, and it has 149,186 characters[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unicode#Versions] as at the time of this comic (with new characters being added over time). A password consisting of all of those characters would be extremely long; it would be impractical to type by hand, and would be too long for pretty much all account registration systems. (A "codepoint" is the number assigned to a character, and {{w|UTF-8}} is a common encoding system for representing a Unicode codepoint as a sequence of {{w|byte}}s.)

==Transcript==
:[Cueball carries an open laptop over to Ponytail, holding in in both hands. The screen shows a box filling the screen with some text on lines. Ponytail is sitting in an office chair with her laptop at her desk. She has turned her head away from the computer looking at Cueball's screen.]
:Cueball: Can you help me with my account?
:Ponytail: Oh no.

:[Cueball holds his laptop up in front of Ponytail who has turned the chair so she faces him, with her hands in her lap. Her table is not drawn.]
:Cueball: No no, I promise it's a normal problem this time.
:Ponytail: Okay. Fine. What is it?

:[Cueball holds both hands out palm up towards Ponytail who is sitting with his laptop in her lap typing on it.]
:Cueball: I included a null string terminator as part of my password, and now I can't-
:Ponytail: '''''How?!'''''
:Cueball: They said to use special characters!

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Cueball Computer Problems]]

2626: d65536

2022-05-30T22:30:42Z

Farnsworth:

{{comic
| number = 2626
| date = May 30, 2022
| title = d65536
| image = d65536.png
| titletext = They're robust against quantum attacks because it's hard to make a quantum system that large.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a HEXAKISMYRIAPENTAKISCHILIAPENTAHECTATRIACONTAKAIHEXAHEDRON DICER - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
In binary computing, 16 bit numbers range from 0 to 65535 (or 1 to 65536). Generating large numbers randomly is a recurring problem in cryptography.

In board games and other tabletop games, dice are referred to as d[number] according to their number of sides. A traditional six-sided die would be a d6. Dice larger than a d20 are rare specialty dice, and are often nicknamed "golf balls" to emphasize how unwieldy they are.

Here, Cueball has somehow constructed a d65536 for generating random 16 bit numbers. It has solved the problem of being secure from a cryptography standpoint, but presents a new set of challenges from its sheer size, dwarfing an average human. While large in itself, a die that big could still be emulated by rolling multiple dice (e.g. 8 4-sided dice or 16 coin flips) and converting the result into binary before getting the desired number.

The closest regular shape similar to the depicted in the comic could be a {{w|Goldberg polyhedron}}. However no such polyhedron exists with exactly 65536 hexagonal faces. The closest Goldberg Polyhedron has a mixture of 65520 hexagons and 12 pentagons, totaling 65532 sides.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

[Drawing of a large die with many sides, about ten meters in diameter; Cueball is standing next to it as a size reference.]

[Text below the drawing:]
The hardest part of securely generating random 16-bit numbers is rolling the d65536.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Cryptography]]

2626: d65536

2022-05-30T22:18:34Z

Farnsworth: added reference to Goldberg polyhedron

{{comic
| number = 2626
| date = May 30, 2022
| title = d65536
| image = d65536.png
| titletext = They're robust against quantum attacks because it's hard to make a quantum system that large.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a HEXAKISMYRIAPENTAKISCHILIAPENTAHECTATRIACONTAKAIHEXAHEDRON DICER - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
In binary computing, 16 bit numbers range from 0 to 65535 (or 1 to 65536). Generating large numbers randomly is a recurring problem in cryptography.

In board games and other tabletop games, dice are referred to as d[number] according to their number of sides. A traditional six-sided die would be a d6. Dice larger than a d20 are rare specialty dice, and are often nicknamed "golf balls" to emphasize how unwieldy they are.

Here, Cueball has somehow constructed a d65536 for generating random 16 bit numbers. It has solved the problem of being secure from a cryptography standpoint, but presents a new set of challenges from it's sheer size, dwarfing an average human. While large in itself, a die that big could still be emulated by rolling multiple dice (e.g. 8 4-sided dice or 16 coin flips) and converting the result into binary before getting the desired number.

The closest regular shape similar to the depicted in the comic could be a {{w|Goldberg polyhedron}}. However no such polyhedron exists with exactly 65536 hexagonal faces. The closest Goldberg Polyhedron consisting of a mixture of 65520 hexagons and 12 pentagons (totaling 65532).

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

[Drawing of a large die with many sides, about ten meters in diameter; Cueball is standing next to it as a size reference.]

[Text below the drawing:]
The hardest part of securely generating random 16-bit numbers is rolling the d65536.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Cryptography]]

Talk:2336: Campfire Habitable Zone

2020-07-23T20:12:27Z

Farnsworth:

Amazingly how similar my aborted (edit-conflicted) edit matched what I found had gazumped me within the prior few minutes. Almost paragraph-for-paragraph on the same topic, with very similar details. Great minds think alike! (Fools never differ...) [[Special:Contributions/162.158.159.100|162.158.159.100]] 01:58, 23 July 2020 (UTC)
:Same thing happened to me. This was my first time trying to submit the main explanation. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 02:11, 23 July 2020 (UTC)
Since the marshmallow's axis of rotation (i.e. the stick) is parallel rather than perpendicular to its orbital plane, it cannot be tidally locked in terms of its rotation. However, for the same reason, one side of the marshmallow, that which is closest to the end of the stick, does always face the campfire. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.62.75|162.158.62.75]] 02:43, 23 July 2020 (UTC)

Take note of how Ponytail is toasting the Marshmallow above the fire with the stick nearly horizontal. In this orientation, the marshmallow typically becomes too gooey inside to maintain traction on a skewer or smooth stick. Rotating the skewer/stick becomes futile as the marshmallow spins relative to the skewer/stick but remains in the same direction relative to the fire, which will be with the heaviest part down due to the earth's gravity. In maintaining the analogy, the more massive side of the marshmallow is attracted to the fire... it has become tidally locked and cannot escape, preventing even toasting of the marshmallow. [[User:Dodgo|Dodgo]] ([[User talk:Dodgo|talk]]) 04:14, 23 July 2020 (UTC)
:you cannot toast marshmallows on a single tip skewer, you need to use a marshmallow fork (which for linguistic reasons that escape me is called a fork despite having only two prongs). Care still must be exercised that the insides don’t become so gooey that the marshmallow falls off, but with a fork you can rotate and brown all sides evenly.[[Special:Contributions/162.158.78.128|162.158.78.128]] 04:20, 23 July 2020 (UTC)
:(A fork in the road has only two 'tines', or is liable to puncture a tyre if it was just a joke set-up. Four-pronged forks for general dining only became common in the early 1800s, and all kinds of contemporary forks, for given purposes, have three or two tines. The earliest forks were indeed ''just'' two-forked, as they do the basic job of doubly-impaling, whereas modern ones have to partly act as 'shovel', or even 'rake', so need more prongs. Though rarely >4.) [[Special:Contributions/162.158.159.14|162.158.159.14]] 12:01, 23 July 2020 (UTC)

How long a stick would we need to roast marshmallows with the sun? [[User:Probably not Douglas Hofstadter|Probably not Douglas Hofstadter]] ([[User talk:Probably not Douglas Hofstadter|talk]]) 06:25, 23 July 2020 (UTC)
:Don't know about marshmallows, but from a [https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000kv7j recent radio show (first item)] I learnt that a (cylindrical, so marshmallow-shaped) burrito should be placed 60 million km sunwards. Assuming "no additional equipment", but plenty of other caveats. No discussion of how you get your snack back to you while still ''only'' cooked and before it cools down. Obviously marshmallows (on sticks, solving one issue) are a different prospect, but maybe start with that and experiment a few times? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.159.14|162.158.159.14]] 12:23, 23 July 2020 (UTC)
:Maybe this question could revive "What If?" and in addition to tackling "roasting" the marshmallow it could address how fast you'd have to retrieve it before it radiated away enough heat to no longer be "gooey"[[Special:Contributions/162.158.74.167|162.158.74.167]] 12:30, 23 July 2020 (UTC)

Am I the only person thinking that Cueball left the habitable zone because Megan, trying to get her marshmallow to toast, has just poked him in the face with her stick? [[User:Angel|Angel]] ([[User talk:Angel|talk]]) 09:03, 23 July 2020 (UTC)

According to my research, not all campfires possess a habitable zone. A few are too small to roast marshmallows; some are large enough that you cannot comfortably stand within marshmallow-roasting distance; and others just had some of that colored-fire gunk thrown in them and you don't want to roast food over whatever that gives off. [[User:GreatWyrmGold|GreatWyrmGold]] ([[User talk:GreatWyrmGold|talk]]) 13:39, 23 July 2020 (UTC)
: I doubt that. Since you can roast a marshmallow on a candle flame just fine I can't imagine a campfire(!) being too small for that. And as for the problem with too big fires it all depends on the length of the stick you are using. But again, we are talking about campfires - these are generally meant to be used for cooking. If you want to actually eat that marshmallow is indeed dependent on the stuff you are burning, on that I agree. [[User:Elektrizikekswerk|Elektrizikekswerk]] ([[User talk:Elektrizikekswerk|talk]]) 13:54, 23 July 2020 (UTC)

I've found that the habitable zone can get compromised by the smoke direction. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.159.66|162.158.159.66]] 16:32, 23 July 2020 (UTC)

Is it too far fetched to think that "Campfire habitable zone" is a much more direct 1:1 reference on the term "Circumstellar habitable zone". According to the Wikipedia article the first scientific definition of habitable zone from Dole (1964) was the range of 0.72 A.U. to 1.24 A.U. If the same horizontal scaling is applied to the green zones in the comic, then the position of Ponytail pretty precisely corresponds to the distance of planet Earth, the position of Cueball pretty precisely corresponds to the position of Planet Venus and Meghans position quite well corresponds to the position of Planet Mars? [[User:Farnsworth|Farnsworth]] ([[User talk:Farnsworth|talk]]) 20:12, 23 July 2020 (UTC)

2330: Acceptable Risk

2020-07-10T16:50:47Z

Farnsworth: added reference to "Acceptable Risk" being a formal term in "Risk asessments"

{{comic
| number = 2330
| date = July 8, 2020
| title = Acceptable Risk
| image = acceptable_risk.png
| titletext = Good thing I'm not already prone to overthinking everyday decisions!
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a SOCIALLY AWKWARD BOT THAT IS PRONE TO OVERTHINKING. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

This comic is another comic in a [[:Category:COVID-19|series of comics]] related to the {{w|2019–20 coronavirus outbreak|2020 pandemic}} of the {{w|coronavirus}} {{w|SARS-CoV-2}}, which causes {{w|COVID-19}}.

This comic shows [[Cueball]] and [[Ponytail]], who are nervous to spend time in close proximity while the coronavirus is still widespread, and while lockdown procedures are still in effect across the world. Despite taking many precautions, such as wearing masks and maintaining physical separation, they still fear the effects of the virus, and attempt to weigh the value of actually seeing each other in-person versus potentially catching the virus. This is a dilemma faced by many, as the United States enters the fourth month since stay at home orders began. Cueball and Ponytail are particularly affected because they are known to [[:Category:Social interactions|overthink]] everyday decisions and interactions (in spite of their protestation to the contrary in the title text), as seen in e.g. [[1445: Efficiency]]. Moreover, Cueball is bad at social interactions, virus or no virus, as pointed in the last panel.

The comic title "Acceptable Risk" is formally used in {{w|Risk_assessment|risk asessments}} as a risk level that so low that it is comparable with other daily life risks. Typically, Acceptable Risk is defined as the probability of death being about one in a million. Cueball implicitly makes a risk assessment where he takes into account local virus prevalence and steps to reduce transmission risk coming to the conclusion that the risk to "hang out" is an acceptable risk. During the meeting however he becomes aware that for a good risk control strategy he also has to consider the trade-off between the benefits of taking the risk of "social interaction" over the benefits of completely avoiding the risk. Cueball and Ponytail figure that it is extremely hard to measure the benefits of social interaction for them. Therefore they decide that for now risk avoidance is the better risk control strategy.

Their screaming actually increases the risk of the interaction; this is why [https://www.wsj.com/articles/reopened-theme-parks-ban-screaming-on-roller-coasters-riders-are-howling-11594222278 Japan recently banned screaming on amusement park rides], and why many jurisdictions are levying particular restrictions on singing even when gatherings are permitted.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

:[All of the panels depict the same two characters seen from a long distance, making them difficult to recognize. However, they appear to be Cueball (on the left) and Ponytail (on the right). They are each wearing a mask.]

:[Cueball and Ponytail talk to each other, standing at a distance:]
:Cueball: Okay. Based on the local virus prevalence, our careful quarantines, and the steps we've taken to reduce transmission risk,
:Cueball: I ''think'' it's okay for us to hang out.
:Ponytail: I agree.

:[Three small panels, vertically on top of each other]
:[Cueball and Ponytail get closer to each other.]
:[Cueball and Ponytail get still closer.]
:[Cueball and Ponytail standing near each other:]
:Cueball: Hi.
:Ponytail: Hi.

:[A normal sized panel, with Cueball and Ponytail standing near each other. They are yelling, with their arms raised:]
:Cueball: ''Is this social interaction good enough that it's worth risking our lives and the lives of others?!''
:Ponytail: ''I don't know!''
:Cueball: ''AAAAA!''
:Ponytail: ''AAAAAA!''

:[Cueball and Ponytail stand much farther apart.]
:Cueball: Healthy socializing was hard enough ''before'' the pandemic.
:Ponytail: Let's just try again in 2021.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:COVID-19]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Social interactions]]

2328: Space Basketball

2020-07-04T12:11:37Z

Farnsworth:

{{comic
| number = 2328
| date = July 3, 2020
| title = Space Basketball
| image = space_basketball.png
| titletext = My shooting will improve over the short term, but over the long term the universe will take more shots.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a METEORIC BASKETBALL. Should discuss expected time to make 30 shots in a row at 30% (and other percentages), and odds of meteorite impact, and NBA Jam and Space Jam. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

This comic strip is another one of Randall's [[:Category:My Hobby|strange hobbies]] (released within the same week as his last hobby comic, [[2326: Five Word Jargon]]). Because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, or perhaps just due to his difficulties in making friends (cf. [[1917: How to Make Friends]]), Randall wishes to play basketball but has nobody to play with, and so he chooses to play against {{w|outer space}}. His goal is to make thirty baskets in a row before the universe puts a meteor through his hoop. (Technically, it would be a ''meteorite'', the term given to meteors that reach the surface, rather than breaking up in the atmosphere).

Randall estimates that his success rate at {{w|free throw|free-throw shooting}} is approximately 30%. Some of the world's best basketball players have free-throw percentages over 90%, and even professional players with reputations of being "poor" free-throw shooters (e.g. Shaquille O'Neal) are above 50%. Some specialists have achieved much higher success rates, with the record for most consecutive baskets being held by {{w|Tom Amberry}} with 2,750.

However, the chances of Cueball making 30 shots in a row is (0.3)^30, or about 1 in five quadrillion. The lifetime odds of being killed by a meteorite have been estimated at 1 in 75,000, 600,000 or 700,000 [https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-probability-of-me-getting-killed-by-a-meteorite-in-the-next-one-hour]. These calculations are usually based on the probability of being alive at a time when a huge impact kills billions of people. Randall just uses the chance of one meteorite shot on earth hitting this hoop (hoop-area / earth-area = 3.2×10^-16) which is in the same range as (0.3)^30. Actual {{w|meteorite fall statistics}} report an average of 1.2 meteorites per year hitting the European contintent which suggests that the average probability of Cueball winning after each shot attempt is about equivalent to a meteorite passing through the hoop over the period of 10 hours. Therefore Cueball has a better chance of winning than the universe "on the short term" if he makes more than 840 free-shot attempts per year for the rest of his life. The expected time for the universe to actually "complete" the challenge would be in the range of 8 billion years, the same magnitude to the current age of the universe and longer than the estimated remaining lifetime of the {{w|solar system}}.

In the title text, Randall assumes that he would get better at free throwing shooting with practice in his lifetime ("the short term"). However he acknowledges that in "the long term" (the life of the universe, or at least the Earth), the Earth will be hit by very many meteorites.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

:[Cueball is standing in front of a basketball hoop, holding a basketball.]
:Cueball: Okay, here are the rules:
:Cueball: I have to make 30 shots in a row before a meteor falls through the hoop.
:Cueball: I'm a 30% free throw shooter so the odds are actually pretty even.
:Cueball: Ready...go!

:[Caption below panel:]
:My hobby: playing basketball against space

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:My Hobby]]
[[Category:Basketball]]
[[Category:Astronomy]]

2328: Space Basketball

2020-07-04T12:01:18Z

Farnsworth:

{{comic
| number = 2328
| date = July 3, 2020
| title = Space Basketball
| image = space_basketball.png
| titletext = My shooting will improve over the short term, but over the long term the universe will take more shots.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a METEORIC BASKETBALL. Should discuss expected time to make 30 shots in a row at 30% (and other percentages), and odds of meteorite impact, and NBA Jam and Space Jam. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

This comic strip is another one of Randall's [[:Category:My Hobby|strange hobbies]] (released within the same week as his last hobby comic, [[2326: Five Word Jargon]]). Because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, or perhaps just due to his difficulties in making friends (cf. [[1917: How to Make Friends]]), Randall wishes to play basketball but has nobody to play with, and so he chooses to play against {{w|outer space}}. His goal is to make thirty baskets in a row before the universe puts a meteor through his hoop. (Technically, it would be a ''meteorite'', the term given to meteors that reach the surface, rather than breaking up in the atmosphere).

Randall estimates that his success rate at {{w|free throw|free-throw shooting}} is approximately 30%. Some of the world's best basketball players have free-throw percentages over 90%, and even professional players with reputations of being "poor" free-throw shooters (e.g. Shaquille O'Neal) are above 50%. Some specialists have achieved much higher success rates, with the record for most consecutive baskets being held by {{w|Tom Amberry}} with 2,750.

However, the chances of Cueball making 30 shots in a row is (0.3)^30, or about 1 in five quadrillion. The lifetime odds of being killed by a meteorite have been estimated at 1 in 75,000, 600,000 or 700,000 [https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-probability-of-me-getting-killed-by-a-meteorite-in-the-next-one-hour]. These calculations are usually based on the probability of being alive at a time when a huge impact kills billions of people. Randall just uses the chance of one meteorite shot on earth hitting this hoop (hoop-area / earth-area = 3.2×10^-16) which is in the same range as (0.3)^30. Actual {{w|meteorite fall statistics}} report an average of 1.2 meteorites per year hitting the European contintent which suggests that the average probability of Cueball winning after each shot attempt is about equivalent to a meteorite passing through the hoop over the period of 10 hours. Therefore Cueball has a better chance of winning than the universe "on the short term" if he makes more than 840 free-shot attempts per year for the rest of his life. The expected time for the universe to actually "complete" the challenge would be in the range of 8 billion years, the same magnitude to the current age of the universe.

In the title text, Randall assumes that he would get better at free throwing shooting with practice in his lifetime ("the short term"). However he acknowledges that in "the long term" (the life of the universe, or at least the Earth), the Earth will be hit by very many meteorites.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

:[Cueball is standing in front of a basketball hoop, holding a basketball.]
:Cueball: Okay, here are the rules:
:Cueball: I have to make 30 shots in a row before a meteor falls through the hoop.
:Cueball: I'm a 30% free throw shooter so the odds are actually pretty even.
:Cueball: Ready...go!

:[Caption below panel:]
:My hobby: playing basketball against space

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:My Hobby]]
[[Category:Basketball]]
[[Category:Astronomy]]