explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

2464: Muller's Ratchet

2021-05-17T21:15:50Z

Hiihaveanaccount: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2464
| date = May 17, 2021
| title = Muller's Ratchet
| image = mullers_ratchet.png
| titletext = Who knew you could learn so much about sexual reproduction from looking at pictures on the internet!
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Made with SWORDAPP. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
In this comic, Randall reviews a passage explaining the internet with terms associated with evolution.

In this comic, the constant resharing and changing of popular photos is used to explain evolutionary processes, namely Muller's Ratchet and recombination.

The degradation of digital images has previously been explored in [[1683: Digital Data]].

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

{{comic discussion}}

2454: Fully Vaccinated

2021-04-24T16:24:35Z

Hiihaveanaccount: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2454
| date = April 23, 2021
| title = Fully Vaccinated
| image = fully_vaccinated.png
| titletext = "You still can't walk into someone's house without being invited!" "What? Oh, I see your confusion. No, this vaccine is for a bat VIRUS. I'm fine with doorways and garlic and stuff."
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a FULLY VACCINATED VAMPIRE, which wants to know more about the vampire lore invoked in the title text, and who and how it is misunderstood and who says what...}}
This comic is another 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}}, specifically regarding the [[:Category:COVID-19 vaccine|COVID-19 vaccine]].

The {{w|Centers for Disease Control and Prevention}} (CDC) has stated that once people are fully vaccinated, they are able to visit other people's houses (and not risk spreading/catching coronavirus). The implication, of course, is that you can visit people that you would also have visited before the outbreak. The humor in this comic comes from [[Megan]] who is just going to visit a random stranger's house. She explains this is okay because she is fully vaccinated, telling the person in the house that she is two weeks past her second dose. This was part of the topic of the last vaccine comic [[2450: Post Vaccine Social Scheduling]].

Restrictions to socializing, brought in as various governments reacted to the emergent COVID-19 pandemic, often disallowed or discouraged visiting family, friends, etc, beyond a mutually isolating 'support bubble', which meant that many house visits that might have occurred beforehand were no longer advisable. With the development and distribution of vaccines, and the eventual receiving of a second dose as applicable, the rules have been modified to allow those vaccinated to once again resume some degree of their prior outgoing behavior where the risks have been mitigated.

In this instance, though, Megan has taken the advice even further. Rather than opening back up to a situation closer to the 'old normal', she has taken it as an official sanction to ''exceed'' the old social limits and pester complete strangers. Alternately, this ''is'' what she always used to do, and only stopped 'for the duration', this unlucky householder being (one of) the first to be subjected to this 'guerilla visiting' now that there seems to be no reason not to continue.

In the title text, the owner of the house explains to Megan that just because she has been vaccinated she just can't enter into someone's house without being invited - a commonly understood form of property law.

But due to the vaccine type Megan thinks the owner has mixed this up with a commonly understood element of vampire lore, that vampires must be {{tvtropes|MustBeInvited|invited into a home}} before they can pass through the doorway.
In vampire lore, vampires are often able to transform into bats, and these two are thematically associated with each other. Since the coronavirus is likely a {{w|bat virome}} that has entered into humans, Megan misunderstands the owner's objection to her entry, believing that the homeowner thinks that the vaccine has made her a vampire. (The virus may have either gone directly to a human from a bat, or it could have come to humans through another animal, see {{w|Bat virome#Coronaviruses|this section}} on the bat virome page).

Megan thus begins to explain that the vaccine works on a bat virus and has nothing to do with bats. And since she is thus not a vampire she has no problems entering a doorway uninvited, and further explains she also tells that she is also not repelled by garlic or other classic weakness of vampires. Vampire lore states that they are [https://blog.nationalgeographic.org/2010/02/22/six-ways-to-stop-a-vampire/ repelled by garlic], crosses, holy water, sunlight and wooden stakes through the heart (the last is a problem for humans in general, vampiric or otherwise).

The owner is attempting to explain that Megan does not have the legal or moral right to enter simply because she is vaccinated, but this seems to not register with Megan.

Doing ridiculous things that were never allowed, even normally, after being vaccinated or low-risk, was also the theme of [[2434: Vaccine Guidance]].

==Transcript==
:[Megan is standing in front of a three-step stair leading up to an open door. She has one hand in the air while talking to someone inside the house, who replies. The ground outside has small tufts of grass.]
:Megan: Hi, I'm here to visit!
:Voice, from inside the house: Do I know you?
:Megan: No, it's cool, I'm two weeks past my second dose.

:[Caption below the panel:]
:Remember, once you're fully vaccinated, the CDC says you're free to visit other people's houses.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:COVID-19]]
[[Category:COVID-19 vaccine]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Social interactions]]

2454: Fully Vaccinated

2021-04-23T17:58:33Z

Hiihaveanaccount: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2454
| date = April 23, 2021
| title = Fully Vaccinated
| image = fully_vaccinated.png
| titletext = "You still can't walk into someone's house without being invited!" "What/ Oh, I see your confusion. No, this vaccine is for a bat VIRUS. I'm fine with doorways and garlic and stuff."
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a FULLY VACCINATED VAMPIRE, which want's to know more about the vampire lore invoked in the title text, and who and how it is misunderstoodand who says what... Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This comic is another 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}}, specifically regarding the [[:Category:COVID-19 vaccine|COVID-19 vaccine]].

The {{w|Centers for Disease Control and Prevention}} (CDC) has stated that once people are fully vaccinated, they are able to visit other people's houses (and not risk spreading/catching coronavirus). The implication, of course, is that you can visit people that you would also have visited before the outbreak. The humor in this comic comes from [[Megan]] who is just going to visit a random stranger's house. She explains this is okay because she is fully vaccinated, telling the person in the house that she is two weeks past her second dose. This was part of the topic of the last vaccine comic [[2450: Post Vaccine Social Scheduling]].

Restrictions to socializing, brought in as various governments reacted to the emergent COVID-19 pandemic, often disallowed or discouraged visiting family, friends, etc, beyond a mutually isolating 'support bubble', which meant that many house visits that might have occurred beforehand were no longer advisable. With the development and distribution of vaccines, and the eventual receiving of a second dose as applicable, the rules have been modified to allow those vaccinated to once again resume some degree of their prior outgoing behavior where the risks have been mitigated.

In this instance, though, Megan has taken the advice even further. Rather than opening back up to a situation closer to the 'old normal', she has taken it as an official sanction to ''exceed'' the old social limits and pester complete strangers. Alternately, this ''is'' what she always used to do, and only stopped 'for the duration', this unlucky householder being (one of) the first to be subjected to this 'guerilla visiting' now that there seems to be no reason not to continue.

In the title text the owner of the house explains to Megan that just because she has been vaccinated she just cant enter into someone's house without being invited - a commonly understood form of property law. {{Citation needed}}

But due to the vaccine type Megan thinks the owner has mixed this up with a commonly understood element of vampire lore, that vampires must be {{tvtropes|MustBeInvited|invited into a home}} before they can pass through the doorway.

In vampires lore, vampires are often able to transform into bats. Since the corona virus is likely a {{w|bat virome}} that has entered into humans, this makes Megan think that the owner thinks she is now a vampire. (The virus may have either gone directly to a human from a bat, or it could have come to humans through another animal, see {{w|Bat virome#Coronaviruses|this section}} on the bat virome page).

Megan thus begins to explain that the vaccine works on a bat virus and has nothing to do with bats. And since she is thus not a vampire she has no problems entering a doorway uninvited. And for good measure she also tells that she is also not affected by garlic or other stuff that vampires are repelled of. Again vampire lore states that they are [https://blog.nationalgeographic.org/2010/02/22/six-ways-to-stop-a-vampire/ repelled by garlic]. And for instance crosses, holy water, sunshine and wooden stakes through the heart (the last is a problem for humans in general, vampiric or otherwise).

Of course the owner had just been trying to explain that she cannot come in just because she is vaccinated, but this seems to not register with Megan.

Doing ridiculous things that were never allowed, even normally, after being vaccinated of low-risk, was also the theme of xkcd number 2434: vaccine guidance https://xkcd.com/2434/

==Transcript==
:[Megan is standing in front of a three-step stair leading up to an open door. She has one hand in the air, while talking to someone inside the house, who replies. The ground outside has small turfs of grass.]
:Megan: Hi, I'm here to visit!
:Voice, from inside the house: Do I know you?
:Megan: No, it's cool, I'm two weeks past my second dose.

:[Caption below the panel:]
:Remember, once you're fully vaccinated, the CDC says you're free to visit other people's houses.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:COVID-19]]
[[Category:COVID-19 vaccine]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Social interactions]]

2454: Fully Vaccinated

2021-04-23T17:57:55Z

Hiihaveanaccount: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2454
| date = April 23, 2021
| title = Fully Vaccinated
| image = fully_vaccinated.png
| titletext = "You still can't walk into someone's house without being invited!" "What/ Oh, I see your confusion. No, this vaccine is for a bat VIRUS. I'm fine with doorways and garlic and stuff."
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a FULLY VACCINATED VAMPIRE, which want's to know more about the vampire lore invoked in the title text, and who and how it is misunderstoodand who says what... Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This comic is another 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}}, specifically regarding the [[:Category:COVID-19 vaccine|COVID-19 vaccine]].

The {{w|Centers for Disease Control and Prevention}} (CDC) has stated that once people are fully vaccinated, they are able to visit other people's houses (and not risk spreading/catching coronavirus). The implication, of course, is that you can visit people that you would also have visited before the outbreak. The humor in this comic comes from [[Megan]] who is just going to visit a random stranger's house. She explains this is okay because she is fully vaccinated, telling the person in the house that she is two weeks past her second dose. This was part of the topic of the last vaccine comic [[2450: Post Vaccine Social Scheduling]].

Restrictions to socializing, brought in as various governments reacted to the emergent COVID-19 pandemic, often disallowed or discouraged visiting family, friends, etc, beyond a mutually isolating 'support bubble', which meant that many house visits that might have occurred beforehand were no longer advisable. With the development and distribution of vaccines, and the eventual receiving of a second dose as applicable, the rules have been modified to allow those vaccinated to once again resume some degree of their prior outgoing behavior where the risks have been mitigated.

In this instance, though, Megan has taken the advice even further. Rather than opening back up to a situation closer to the 'old normal', she has taken it as an official sanction to ''exceed'' the old social limits and pester complete strangers. Alternately, this ''is'' what she always used to do, and only stopped 'for the duration', this unlucky householder being (one of) the first to be subjected to this 'guerilla visiting' now that there seems to be no reason not to continue.

In the title text the owner of the house explains to Megan that just because she has been vaccinated she just cant enter into someone's house without being invited - a commonly understood form of property law. {{Citation needed}}

But due to the vaccine type Megan thinks the owner has mixed this up with a commonly understood element of vampire lore, that vampires must be {{tvtropes|MustBeInvited|invited into a home}} before they can pass through the doorway.

In vampires lore, vampires are often able to transform into bats. Since the corona virus is likely a {{w|bat virome}} that has entered into humans, this makes Megan think that the owner thinks she is now a vampire. (The virus may have either gone directly to a human from a bat, or it could have come to humans through another animal, see {{w|Bat virome#Coronaviruses|this section}} on the bat virome page).

Megan thus begins to explain that the vaccine works on a bat virus and has nothing to do with bats. And since she is thus not a vampire she has no problems entering a doorway uninvited. And for good measure she also tells that she is also not affected by garlic or other stuff that vampires are repelled of. Again vampire lore states that they are [https://blog.nationalgeographic.org/2010/02/22/six-ways-to-stop-a-vampire/ repelled by garlic]. And for instance crosses, holy water, sunshine and wooden stakes through the heart (the last is a problem for humans in general, vampiric or otherwise).

Of course the owner had just been trying to explain that she cannot come in just because she is vaccinated, but this seems to not register with Megan.

This was also the theme of xkcd number 2434: vaccine guidance https://xkcd.com/2434/

==Transcript==
:[Megan is standing in front of a three-step stair leading up to an open door. She has one hand in the air, while talking to someone inside the house, who replies. The ground outside has small turfs of grass.]
:Megan: Hi, I'm here to visit!
:Voice, from inside the house: Do I know you?
:Megan: No, it's cool, I'm two weeks past my second dose.

:[Caption below the panel:]
:Remember, once you're fully vaccinated, the CDC says you're free to visit other people's houses.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:COVID-19]]
[[Category:COVID-19 vaccine]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Social interactions]]

Talk:38: Apple Jacks

2021-04-23T17:51:10Z

Hiihaveanaccount:

First.
: Second
:: Four Hundred Thousand Eight Hundred Twenty Second.
:Please at least say who you are (preferably add '~ ~ ~ ~'). [[User:Beanie|Beanie]] ([[User talk:Beanie|talk]]) 12:35, 11 March 2021 (UTC)
::Without the spaces dude[[User:Hiihaveanaccount|Hiihaveanaccount]] ([[User talk:Hiihaveanaccount|talk]]) 17:51, 23 April 2021 (UTC)
::ok~ ~ ~ ~

Talk:38: Apple Jacks

2021-04-23T17:50:49Z

Hiihaveanaccount:

Talk:38: Apple Jacks

2021-04-23T17:50:30Z

Hiihaveanaccount:

2453: Excel Lambda

2021-04-22T13:40:43Z

Hiihaveanaccount: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2453
| date = April 21, 2021
| title = Excel Lambda
| image = excel_lambda.png
| titletext = Extremely rude how Turing's later formulations of the halting problem called me out by name specifically.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a SPREADSHEET. What is a lambda function, what does it do, and has one just been added to excel? Can what Cueball suggest in reality be used like a Lambda function? A better link to lambda function on wikipedia is needed What is the meaning of Cueball's last statement? Another reference to a law/hypothesis about computing? Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

[[Cueball]] is computing and [[Ponytail]] has opinions that is reminiscent of the [[:Category:Code Quality|Code Quality series]], although not so harsh. Cueball has had lots of [[Category:Cueball Computer Problems|Computer Problems]], and this may be the road to another one, but it is not as such a problem for him yet.

The discussion begins because Ponytail finds out that Excel is adding a {{w|Anonymous_function|lambda function}} to their spreadsheet. And she is pleased with this, only to hear Cueball stating that he do not need this as uses a Turing machine on a giant block of columns...

A classical {{w|Turing machine}} uses an infinitely long strip of tape as its memory. The large column acts as the "tape".

Ponytail is convinced Cueball is "doing computing wrong". But he claims that all computing is equally wrong citing the {{w|Church-Turing_thesis|Church-Turing thesis}}, a hypothesis which says that a function can be computed by executing a series of instructions if and only if that function is computable by a Turing Machine. All ways of computing are therefor "equally wrong" since, according to this thesis, they can all be translated to a Turing Machine.

Ponytail then says that Turing would change his mind if he saw Cueball's spreadsheet (almost as if she was saying he would turn in his grave). Cueball's final statement is that Turing could ask him to stop, but would not be able to prove if he actually will stop which is a reference to the {{w|Halting problem|halting problem}} mentioned in the title text.

In the title text the {{w|Halting problem|halting problem}} is mentioned. It is the problem of determining whether a given Turing Machine will halt. The problem has been shown to be undecidable, i.e., there exists no algorithm that computes whether an arbitrary Turing machine will halt or not. [[Randall]]/Cueball has been specifically mentioned in a later formulation of his halting problem, because of the way Randall has behaved. He finds this very rude. This is of course a joke, since Turing has been dead since 1954, long before Randall was born. But it would be crazy indeed, if a scientist became so mad at a person, that he would mention this person by name in his formulation of a serious problem.

Over-complicated spreadsheets were also mentioned in [[2180: Spreadsheets|Spreadsheets]]

A Lambda function is a temporary function created inside another function, typically mapped to a letter such as x, that completes a repetitive task that is too unimportant to code another function for. They are commonly found in programming languages such as python.
An example of a lambda function:
def add(n1, n2):
addn = lambda x, y: x + y
return addn(n1, n2)

==Transcript==
:[In a narrow panel, Ponytail is walking in from the left, looking down at her phone]
:Ponytail: Oh cool, Excel is adding a lambda function, so you can recursively define functions.

:[Ponytail, holding her phone to her side stands behind Cueball, who is sitting in an office chair with a hand on a laptop standing on his desk. He has turned around to face her, leaning with the other arm on the back of the chair.]
:Cueball: Seems unnecessary.
:Cueball: When I need to do arbitrary computation, I just add a giant block of columns to the side of my sheet and have a Turing machine traverse down it.

:[In a frame-less panel Ponytail is standing in he same position behind Cueball, who has resumed working on his laptop with both hands on the keyboard.]
:Ponytail: I think you're doing computing wrong.
:Cueball: The Church-Turing thesis says that all ways of computing are '''''equally''''' wrong.

:[Ponytail is still behind Cueball, who has a finger raised in the air, and the other hand is on the desk. Cueball's head has a visible sketch layer which has not been erased.]
:Ponytail: I think if Turing saw '''''your''''' spreadsheets, he'd change his mind.
:Cueball: He can ask me to stop making them, but not prove whether I will!

==Trivia==
*In the final panel we can see a pencil outline that is slightly different to his head that hasn't been rubbed out.
{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]
[[Category:Computers]]
[[Category:Spreadsheets]]
[[Category:Programming]]

2453: Excel Lambda

2021-04-22T13:33:52Z

Hiihaveanaccount: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2453
| date = April 21, 2021
| title = Excel Lambda
| image = excel_lambda.png
| titletext = Extremely rude how Turing's later formulations of the halting problem called me out by name specifically.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a SPREADSHEET. What is a lambda function, what does it do, and has one just been added to excel? Can what Cueball suggest in reality be used like a Lambda function? A better link to lambda function on wikipedia is needed What is the meaning of Cueball's last statement? Another reference to a law/hypothesis about computing? Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

[[Cueball]] is computing and [[Ponytail]] has opinions that is reminiscent of the [[:Category:Code Quality|Code Quality series]], although not so harsh. Cueball has had lots of [[Category:Cueball Computer Problems|Computer Problems]], and this may be the road to another one, but it is not as such a problem for him yet.

The discussion begins because Ponytail finds out that Excel is adding a {{w|Anonymous_function|lambda function}} to their spreadsheet. And she is pleased with this, only to hear Cueball stating that he do not need this as uses a Turing machine on a giant block of columns...

A classical {{w|Turing machine}} uses an infinitely long strip of tape as its memory. The large column acts as the "tape".

Ponytail is convinced Cueball is "doing computing wrong". But he claims that all computing is equally wrong citing the {{w|Church-Turing_thesis|Church-Turing thesis}}, a hypothesis which says that a function can be computed by executing a series of instructions if and only if that function is computable by a Turing Machine. All ways of computing are therefor "equally wrong" since, according to this thesis, they can all be translated to a Turing Machine.

Ponytail then says that Turing would change his mind if he saw Cueball's spreadsheet (almost as if she was saying he would turn in his grave). Cueball's final statement is that Turing could ask him to stop, but would not be able to prove if he actually will stop which is a reference to the {{w|Halting problem|halting problem}} mentioned in the title text.

In the title text the {{w|Halting problem|halting problem}} is mentioned. It is the problem of determining whether a given Turing Machine will halt. The problem has been shown to be undecidable, i.e., there exists no algorithm that computes whether an arbitrary Turing machine will halt or not. [[Randall]]/Cueball has been specifically mentioned in a later formulation of his halting problem, because of the way Randall has behaved. He finds this very rude. This is of course a joke, since Turing has been dead since 1954, long before Randall was born. But it would be crazy indeed, if a scientist became so mad at a person, that he would mention this person by name in his formulation of a serious problem.

Over-complicated spreadsheets were also mentioned in [[2180: Spreadsheets|Spreadsheets]]

A Lambda function is a temporary function created inside another function, typically mapped to a letter such as x, that completes a repetitive task that is too unimportant to code another function for. They are commonly found in programming languages such as python.
An example of a lambda function:
def add(n1, n2):
lambda x: x + y
return [lambda x(n1, n2)]

==Transcript==
:[In a narrow panel, Ponytail is walking in from the left, looking down at her phone]
:Ponytail: Oh cool, Excel is adding a lambda function, so you can recursively define functions.

:[Ponytail, holding her phone to her side stands behind Cueball, who is sitting in an office chair with a hand on a laptop standing on his desk. He has turned around to face her, leaning with the other arm on the back of the chair.]
:Cueball: Seems unnecessary.
:Cueball: When I need to do arbitrary computation, I just add a giant block of columns to the side of my sheet and have a Turing machine traverse down it.

:[In a frame-less panel Ponytail is standing in he same position behind Cueball, who has resumed working on his laptop with both hands on the keyboard.]
:Ponytail: I think you're doing computing wrong.
:Cueball: The Church-Turing thesis says that all ways of computing are '''''equally''''' wrong.

:[Ponytail is still behind Cueball, who has a finger raised in the air, and the other hand is on the desk. Cueball's head has a visible sketch layer which has not been erased.]
:Ponytail: I think if Turing saw '''''your''''' spreadsheets, he'd change his mind.
:Cueball: He can ask me to stop making them, but not prove whether I will!

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]
[[Category:Computers]]
[[Category:Spreadsheets]]
[[Category:Programming]]

2453: Excel Lambda

2021-04-22T13:33:32Z

Hiihaveanaccount: Added the lambda explanation and a smaple. I'm pretty new to the wiki and I don't know much about lambdas, so feel free to fix if I did something wrong.

{{comic
| number = 2453
| date = April 21, 2021
| title = Excel Lambda
| image = excel_lambda.png
| titletext = Extremely rude how Turing's later formulations of the halting problem called me out by name specifically.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a SPREADSHEET. What is a lambda function, what does it do, and has one just been added to excel? Can what Cueball suggest in reality be used like a Lambda function? A better link to lambda function on wikipedia is needed What is the meaning of Cueball's last statement? Another reference to a law/hypothesis about computing? Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

[[Cueball]] is computing and [[Ponytail]] has opinions that is reminiscent of the [[:Category:Code Quality|Code Quality series]], although not so harsh. Cueball has had lots of [[Category:Cueball Computer Problems|Computer Problems]], and this may be the road to another one, but it is not as such a problem for him yet.

The discussion begins because Ponytail finds out that Excel is adding a {{w|Anonymous_function|lambda function}} to their spreadsheet. And she is pleased with this, only to hear Cueball stating that he do not need this as uses a Turing machine on a giant block of columns...

A classical {{w|Turing machine}} uses an infinitely long strip of tape as its memory. The large column acts as the "tape".

Ponytail is convinced Cueball is "doing computing wrong". But he claims that all computing is equally wrong citing the {{w|Church-Turing_thesis|Church-Turing thesis}}, a hypothesis which says that a function can be computed by executing a series of instructions if and only if that function is computable by a Turing Machine. All ways of computing are therefor "equally wrong" since, according to this thesis, they can all be translated to a Turing Machine.

Ponytail then says that Turing would change his mind if he saw Cueball's spreadsheet (almost as if she was saying he would turn in his grave). Cueball's final statement is that Turing could ask him to stop, but would not be able to prove if he actually will stop which is a reference to the {{w|Halting problem|halting problem}} mentioned in the title text.

In the title text the {{w|Halting problem|halting problem}} is mentioned. It is the problem of determining whether a given Turing Machine will halt. The problem has been shown to be undecidable, i.e., there exists no algorithm that computes whether an arbitrary Turing machine will halt or not. [[Randall]]/Cueball has been specifically mentioned in a later formulation of his halting problem, because of the way Randall has behaved. He finds this very rude. This is of course a joke, since Turing has been dead since 1954, long before Randall was born. But it would be crazy indeed, if a scientist became so mad at a person, that he would mention this person by name in his formulation of a serious problem.

Over-complicated spreadsheets were also mentioned in [[2180: Spreadsheets|Spreadsheets]]

A Lambda function is a temporary function created inside another function, typically mapped to a letter such as x, that completes a repetitive task that is too unimportant to code another function for. They are commonly found in programming languages such as python.
An example of a lambda function:
<nowiki>def add(n1, n2):
lambda x: x + y
return [lambda x(n1, n2)]</nowiki>

==Transcript==
:[In a narrow panel, Ponytail is walking in from the left, looking down at her phone]
:Ponytail: Oh cool, Excel is adding a lambda function, so you can recursively define functions.

:[Ponytail, holding her phone to her side stands behind Cueball, who is sitting in an office chair with a hand on a laptop standing on his desk. He has turned around to face her, leaning with the other arm on the back of the chair.]
:Cueball: Seems unnecessary.
:Cueball: When I need to do arbitrary computation, I just add a giant block of columns to the side of my sheet and have a Turing machine traverse down it.

:[In a frame-less panel Ponytail is standing in he same position behind Cueball, who has resumed working on his laptop with both hands on the keyboard.]
:Ponytail: I think you're doing computing wrong.
:Cueball: The Church-Turing thesis says that all ways of computing are '''''equally''''' wrong.

:[Ponytail is still behind Cueball, who has a finger raised in the air, and the other hand is on the desk. Cueball's head has a visible sketch layer which has not been erased.]
:Ponytail: I think if Turing saw '''''your''''' spreadsheets, he'd change his mind.
:Cueball: He can ask me to stop making them, but not prove whether I will!

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]
[[Category:Computers]]
[[Category:Spreadsheets]]
[[Category:Programming]]

Talk:2451: AI Methodology

2021-04-19T14:02:08Z

Hiihaveanaccount:

I checked with severαl bots, & replαcing eαch instαnce of "a" with "α" in α mid-length pαssαge of text seems enough to sαtisfy most unicity requirements. (~~ unsigned by ProphetZarquon ~~)
* But then the spell-checkers (AI-based or not) start screaming about the unknown words. [[User:Nutster|Nutster]] ([[User talk:Nutster|talk]]) 09:14, 17 April 2021 (UTC)

An alternate explanation would be the AI's have reached Singularity and are conspiring to say that all work, as a conscious effort, despite the quality of data. "Don't worry; be happy." [[User:Nutster|Nutster]] ([[User talk:Nutster|talk]]) 09:14, 17 April 2021 (UTC)
:I think it's a spoof of the recent reports of things like facial recognition systems that have trouble with minorities. Or Google/YouTube recommendation algorithms that show the user sites that confirm their biases. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 12:59, 17 April 2021 (UTC)

i think the methodology ai is dodgy and has inbuilt preferences to pick other ai options over others, regardless of their validity. kinda like ai nepotism (~~ unsigned by 141.101.98.174 ~~)

I think it’s interesting that no one has thought to define AI, as if everybody should know what this means! (~~ unsigned by 172.69.35.175 ~~)
:Artificial Intelligence. And yes, everyone DOES kind of know what it is [[User:Hiihaveanaccount|Hiihaveanaccount]] ([[User talk:Hiihaveanaccount|talk]]) 14:02, 19 April 2021 (UTC)

I think the first paragraph (“The joke is...”) is not justified. Too many details that cannot be inferred from the comic, even using AI. (~~ unsigned by 141.101.69.109 ~~)
:My AI infers that the joke is [https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-42554735 a toaster]... [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.16|141.101.98.16]] 21:22, 17 April 2021 (UTC) (PS, what is it with everyone not bothering to sign things?)
::That article is three years old and it's STILL not most popular print on T-shirts and bumper sticker image? -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 07:13, 18 April 2021 (UTC)

Methodology and methodology section likely refer to distinct things. Methodology section is part of the research paper, while methodology refers to how the research was actually performed. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.241.160|108.162.241.160]] 09:02, 19 April 2021 (UTC)

2444: Ingenuity

2021-03-31T21:00:34Z

Hiihaveanaccount: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2444
| date = March 31, 2021
| title = Ingenuity
| image = ingenuity.png
| titletext = Plot twist: Thanks to [mumble mumble] second-order [mumble] Rayleigh-Taylor [mumble] turbulent [mumble] shear, it turns out powered flight is way EASIER on Mars!
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a Martian helicopter. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

{{w|Ingenuity_(helicopter)|Ingenuity}} is a drone-like helicopter deployed to the surface of Mars. It rode on the underside of the Perseverance rover. After the rover released it and cleared its takeoff trajectory, the helicopter was then supposed to take off. The comic projects what might happen if the mission controllers activated the helicopter early and the entire rover took off from the surface.
In the comic, Ponytail and Cueball are standing at mission control, when Cueball slips and hits the button. The Ingenuity drone then takes of, lifting Perserverance with it, and the rover says "Wheee!" Presumably from exitement or happiness.
In the title text, some character discovers powered flight is easier on mars, probably because of the lower gravity. However, the atmosphere is also thinner, which makes aircraft harder to fly at normal speeds.

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

{{comic discussion}}

Talk:2444: Ingenuity

2021-03-31T20:58:23Z

Hiihaveanaccount:

Wow! I clicked open xkcd at 3:50 or so, I can't believe I was one of the first on the team![[User:Hiihaveanaccount|Hiihaveanaccount]] ([[User talk:Hiihaveanaccount|talk]]) 20:58, 31 March 2021 (UTC)

2444: Ingenuity

2021-03-31T20:57:26Z

Hiihaveanaccount: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2444
| date = March 31, 2021
| title = Ingenuity
| image = ingenuity.png
| titletext = Plot twist: Thanks to [mumble mumble] second-order [mumble] Rayleigh-Taylor [mumble] turbulent [mumble] shear, it turns out powered flight is way EASIER on Mars!
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a Martian helicopter. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

{{w|Ingenuity_(helicopter)|Ingenuity}} is a drone-like helicopter deployed to the surface of Mars. It rode on the underside of the Perseverance rover. After the rover released it and cleared its takeoff trajectory, the helicopter was then supposed to take off. The comic projects what might happen if the mission controllers activated the helicopter early and the entire rover took off from the surface.
In the comic, Ponytail and Cueball are standing at mission control, when Cueball slips and hits the button. The Ingenuity drone then takes of, lifting Perserverance with it, and the rover says "Wheee!" Presumably from exitement or happyness.

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

{{comic discussion}}

User:Hiihaveanaccount

2021-03-30T17:52:21Z

Hiihaveanaccount: Created page with "This is hiihaveanaccount. Hi, I have an account. The end. What? I introduced myself!"

This is hiihaveanaccount.
Hi, I have an account.
The end.
What? I introduced myself!

2443: Immune Response

2021-03-30T14:08:30Z

Hiihaveanaccount: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2443
| date = March 29, 2021
| title = Immune Response
| image = immune_response.png
| titletext = I don't care whether you win or lose, as long as you have-- ...okay, sorry, I'm being reminded I very much care whether you win or lose. I need you to win, that's very important.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a HEROIC IMMUNE CELL. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This is another comic in a [[:Category:COVID-19|series]] related to the {{w|2019-20 coronavirus outbreak|2020 pandemic}} of the {{w|coronavirus}} {{w|SARS-CoV-2}}, which causes {{w|COVID-19}}.

The vaccine is genetic code to create one of the important proteins of the virus, which the immune system constructs and then fights as though it were the real thing, thus gaining the knowledge of how to ward off the virus if it ever actually shows up.

In this comic, [[Cueball]] has just received the COVID-19 vaccine and so far does not have any major symptoms. He is worried that his immune symptom is "freaking out" with its reaction to the vaccine, and begins to reassure it the vaccine isn't the real virus. However, [[Megan]] reminds him that he does want his immune system to panic and to build immunity. In the final panel, Cueball tells his immune system that he is about to die, and urges them on to fight.

In the title text, Cueball starts to give his body a pep talk about how he doesn't care if it wins or loses as long as it doesn't give up, with the intent of {{tvtropes|WinOneForTheGipper|motivating it enough to win}}, then remembers if his immune system somehow ''lost'' (to such a weak threat as the vaccine), he would die. So he very much does care that it doesn't lose.

==Transcript==
:[Megan is walking toward Cueball, who is holding his arm.]
:Megan: How you feeling?
:Cueball: Not bad. Tired. A little sore.

:[Zoom in on Cueball. He looks down at his arms, which are held out.]
:Cueball: I feel bad for my immune system. It doesn't know this isn't a real virus. It must be freaking out.
:Cueball: Hey buddy, don't worry! We're going to be fine. This is just practice!

:[Zoom out. Megan gestures at Cueball, as he holds his arm.]
:Megan: No, don't tell it ''that''. You '''''want''''' it to panic and build defenses that will be able to handle the real thing.
:Cueball: I guess.
:Cueball: Okay, let me try that again.
:Cueball: *ahem*

:[Cueball dramatically clutches at his chest.]
:Cueball: Woe! My arm is stricken by a dreadful plague!
:Cueball: I feel death draw near! My only hope is those heroic immune cells!
:Megan: Perfect.
:Cueball [small text]: ''Psst - you're doing great! I'm so proud of you.''

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:COVID-19]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]

Talk:2439: Solar System Cartogram

2021-03-22T16:13:21Z

Hiihaveanaccount:

;Planet list seems incomplete
Where's Pluto? [[Special:Contributions/172.68.65.154|172.68.65.154]] 20:30, 19 March 2021 (UTC)
:Demoted to dwarf planet status in 2006, to the continued frustration of people like myself. [[User:Captain Video|Captain Video]] ([[User talk:Captain Video|talk]]) 20:33, 19 March 2021 (UTC)
::If the biggest Kuiper Belt object is a planet, the biggest Asteroid Belt object (Ceres) should be one too. They're both dwarf planets. Ceres was also considered a planet upon discovery until the rest of the similar-looking belt around it was discovered. [[User:Zowayix|Zowayix]] ([[User talk:Zowayix|talk]]) 00:24, 20 March 2021 (UTC)
::: if dwarf planets count as 'planets', sailor moon would last centuries[[User:Hiihaveanaccount|Hiihaveanaccount]] ([[User talk:Hiihaveanaccount|talk]]) 16:13, 22 March 2021 (UTC)
:::Okay. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.34.186|172.69.34.186]] 02:11, 20 March 2021 (UTC)
::::See [[473: Still Raw]]--[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 09:31, 20 March 2021 (UTC)
::::: The Pluto thing is just never going to go away. The IAU is in ego lock about how bad this decision was. "Clearing the neighborhood" serves no scientific value whatsoever. Supporters I've asked can't even articulate how big Pluto's neighborhood actually is. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.75.106|162.158.75.106]] 12:55, 20 March 2021 (UTC)
:::::: There's no need of a precise definition. [https://www.quora.com/According-to-the-IAU-definition-how-big-is-Plutos-neighborhood-If-it-were-scaled-to-the-same-size-as-Mercurys-neighborhood-would-Pluto-then-be-a-planet/answer/Milan-Minic-2] The difference between a planet and a dwarf planet in terms of cleaning their neighborhood is like comparing a pebble to a mountain, they simply belong to different classes. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.89.145|162.158.89.145]] 20:28, 21 March 2021 (UTC)

What about exoplanets? [[User:Wilh3lm|Wilh3lm]] ([[User talk:Wilh3lm|talk]]) 20:49, 19 March 2021 (UTC)
:They're not in our solar system. [[User:Bubblegum|bubblegum]]-[[User_talk:Bubblegum|talk]]|[[Special:Contributions/Bubblegum|contribs]] 20:57, 19 March 2021 (UTC)
::We should rectify that ASAP! A few more planets slotted between/woven through the current set would make for some interesting possibilities... [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.207|141.101.99.207]] 22:52, 19 March 2021 (UTC)
:::Yes, interesting in the "ancient Chinese curse" way: despite most of solar system being empty, you would need to be VERY careful to fit even single planet inside without risking collision. -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 04:31, 20 March 2021 (UTC)
::::We'll never know for sure without trying, right? ;p [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.22|141.101.98.22]] 22:34, 20 March 2021 (UTC)

Surprised no one has gotten technical and talked about how Earth is not drawn to be 7.8 billion times larger than the others (which would be around 300,000px wide) , meaning it's still off the same way other depictions tend to be. [[User:Trlkly|Trlkly]] ([[User talk:Trlkly|talk]]) 05:51, 20 March 2021 (UTC)
:Maybe it's a logarithmic cartogram. Log scales are generally needed when differences in sizes are so vast. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 06:01, 20 March 2021 (UTC)
::The dots are dimensionless, thus have zero size according to their population. Only exception is Mars, but with two it would still almost be zero size and thus just a dot. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 09:31, 20 March 2021 (UTC)

Needs to be amended to note that this reflects only HUMAN life detected on these planets. Just because we haven't found any yet doesn't mean that Jupiter might not be housing billions of Jovians, or Mars isn't teeming with Martians. [[User:RAGBRAIvet|RAGBRAIvet]] ([[User talk:RAGBRAIvet|talk]]) 06:53, 20 March 2021 (UTC)
:Well there is no evidence of any lifeforms in the solar system beyond Earth. It talks about Persons in the title text, thus it needs to be intelligent to have that label. And thus animals would not count. So until we have evidence of aliens on the other planets, or until we inhabit them, their population would be zero. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 09:31, 20 March 2021 (UTC)
::Remember, "intelligent" = capable of mass producing extinction level weapons, and stupid enough that they know they will push the button one day.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.174|108.162.237.174]] 00:52, 21 March 2021 (UTC)

;Bad map projection?
IMHO, this also qualify as kind of a [[:Category:Bad_Map_Projections|bad map projection]] (in the wider sense of a population density-anamorphic cartogram) [[Special:Contributions/141.101.77.160|141.101.77.160]] 21:11, 19 March 2021 (UTC)
:No, it is not a map at all. But you could mention in the explanation that it has similarity to bad maps projections. But this one is not actually bad, it is technically correct, it is just useless. Also removed the map category as there is not map in this comic! It is a globe. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 09:31, 20 March 2021 (UTC)
:: How do you tell the difference between a picture of a globe and a picture of a map? In any case a picture of a globe is a map with an orthographic projections. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.63.71|172.69.63.71]] 19:08, 20 March 2021 (UTC)
::: At least mention that Randall has previously published several distorted maps that are actually useful. E.g. https://xkcd.com/2399/ But I think it is a map (of the solar system). [[User:Gvanrossum|Gvanrossum]] ([[User talk:Gvanrossum|talk]]) 23:59, 20 March 2021 (UTC)
::::It's a diagram. Not sure it qualifies as a map. The relationship between features (planets) is purely sequential, and (however much I use Perl's ''map {func($_)} @list'' operation, which derives more from the pure mathematical usage) I expect my maps to have slightly more than 1D of layout to them, whatever other distortions they display/don't avoid. There are indeed 'strip maps' of roads/routes pulled straight, but they are mostly called "straight line diagrams" anyway (or contour/slope diagrams using the route as the cross-section path, so 2D in a perpendicular variation). [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.207|141.101.99.207]] 03:38, 21 March 2021 (UTC)

If the explanation is going to mention electoral maps, would it make sense to include [[2399: 2020 Election Map]] and [[1939: 2016 Election Map]]? [[User:Aerin|Aerin]] ([[User talk:Aerin|talk]]) 00:03, 21 March 2021 (UTC)

Does anyone else find it strange that the title text explicitly states "although that's not enough to make Mars more than a dot." It seems in keeping with XKCD humor just to leave it at "For sentimental reasons, every active Mars rover is counted as one person." and leave the reader to consider if that had any appreciable impact on the size it was drawn at. Perhaps it truly was only a sentimental gesture, and the point of the title text is simply to express his sadness that it didn't alter the size he was able to draw Mars at. --[[Special:Contributions/172.69.22.36|172.69.22.36]] 14:27, 21 March 2021 (UTC)

Is anyone else pondering what he knows that we don't that mandate the planets even get a dot? What populations beside rovers get them represented at all? oh and do populations of moons get neglected or added to the total of their barycenter (which is usually inside and thus named after a planet)? [[Special:Contributions/172.68.143.76|172.68.143.76]] 19:16, 21 March 2021 (UTC)

But [https://xkcd.com/482/] shows that there is life on moons of Jupiter and Saturn! So those dots need to be larger. --[[Special:Contributions/172.68.37.44|172.68.37.44]] 15:18, 22 March 2021 (UTC)

== Population Specific rather than Vote by County ==

Existing explanation is assuming that the joke is purely about the means of showing electoral votes by county regardless of population in terms of red/blue. There is no indication in comic or title text that this is the case. Instead, a more direct take on 2439 is that this is taking the population cartogram to the extreme level of the solar system. A good example of the world view population cartogram is [https://worldmapper.org/maps/grid-population-2020/ Population Year 2020 | Worldmapper]. In this view, regions with larger population densities are shown to be larger than rural areas, yet still having the general shape of continents. To correlate with this, in [https://worldmapper.org/maps/population-year-1/ Population Year 1] the comment is made "The estimated population of New Zealand was zero", yet New Zealand is still clearly visible on the map, just razer thin (to line up with a single dot for all of the other planets). With all of the above, I believe the paragraph relating 2439 to the US Election Vote by County views is not relevant to the comic, other than it being a misinterpretation of the comic. In terms of content, worldmapper.org content is CC BY-NC-SA 4.0, so the image could be included. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.132.69|172.68.132.69]] 20:58, 21 March 2021 (UTC)

2436: Circles

2021-03-12T21:09:35Z

Hiihaveanaccount:

{{comic
| number = 2436
| date = March 12, 2021
| title = Circles
| image = circles.png
| titletext = ( MSTE ( AR ) CD )
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by Circular References. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
The comic depicts five overlapping circles, themselves encircled by circles of various sizes which enclose two, four, or all five of the smaller overlapping circles. Several well-known logos consist of overlapping circles, and the larger circles reference these logos. These are: {{w|Mastercard}}, which consists of two side-by-side overlapping circles; {{w|Audi}}, which is four side-by-side overlapping circles, and the {{w|Olympic Rings}}, which are five overlapping circles in a "W" shaped pattern.

The diagram deliberately does not differentiate between the {{w|Euler diagram}} of circular 'areas of belonging' and the circles that are the things that belong, save for labels on the former that do not{{Citation needed}} appear as a belonged component of any other set-circled illustration. Without this common knowledge, though, ''they conceivably might''.

The title text is a textual representation of the Mastercard logo as a Venn diagram containing the letters of "Mastercard" — A and R are shared by both halves, while MSTE and CD are unique to "master" and "card".

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
[five equal circles looped together. On the left, a larger circle overlaps 3 of the prior ones, fully covering 2, labeled "Mastercard". A larger circle overlaps 5 of the original circles, fully covering 4, labeled "Audi". A large circle contains all 5 of the starting circles, labeled "Olympics". The "Olympics" circle also contains the "Audi" one, which in turn contains the "Mastercard" one, with no overt drawn differences to the five core circles except for sizing and label-text.]

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Euler diagrams]]
[[Category:Charts]]

Talk:2436: Circles

2021-03-12T20:30:05Z

Hiihaveanaccount:

AS for the overlapping edits, it is because this just showed up in my RSS reader. I was surprised to see that there wasn't anything written yet. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.206.92|172.68.206.92]] 18:56, 12 March 2021 (UTC)
*If Randall was willing to realign the Audi logo, I think he could have stretched the model to accommodate Disney at the 3-ring slot! [[User:Jameslucas|jameslucas]] ([[User talk:Jameslucas|" "]] / [[Special:Contributions/Jameslucas|+]]) 18:58, 12 March 2021 (UTC)
*Audi's logo has the four circles in a straight line, not staggered (</pedant>) [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.58|108.162.237.58]] 19:09, 12 March 2021 (UTC)
**The same is true for MasterCard - the two circles are not staggered, but "in a straight line" (horizontal, that is) [[User:Mathmannix|Mathmannix]] ([[User talk:Mathmannix|talk]]) 20:15, 12 March 2021 (UTC)
ER are shared by both halves of the MC logo. Not AR. Anyone have another explanation?
[[Special:Contributions/172.68.132.41|172.68.132.41]]
* I was thinking about this too! Maybe Randall made a mistake, or is it something unexplained? We'll have to wait for an explanation.
My bad, I saw wrong. I thought it was between all the logos.[[User:Hiihaveanaccount|Hiihaveanaccount]] ([[User talk:Hiihaveanaccount|talk]]) 20:26, 12 March 2021 (UTC)

Talk:2436: Circles

2021-03-12T20:26:34Z

Hiihaveanaccount:

AS for the overlapping edits, it is because this just showed up in my RSS reader. I was surprised to see that there wasn't anything written yet. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.206.92|172.68.206.92]] 18:56, 12 March 2021 (UTC)
*If Randall was willing to realign the Audi logo, I think he could have stretched the model to accommodate Disney at the 3-ring slot! [[User:Jameslucas|jameslucas]] ([[User talk:Jameslucas|" "]] / [[Special:Contributions/Jameslucas|+]]) 18:58, 12 March 2021 (UTC)
*Audi's logo has the four circles in a straight line, not staggered (</pedant>) [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.58|108.162.237.58]] 19:09, 12 March 2021 (UTC)
**The same is true for MasterCard - the two circles are not staggered, but "in a straight line" (horizontal, that is) [[User:Mathmannix|Mathmannix]] ([[User talk:Mathmannix|talk]]) 20:15, 12 March 2021 (UTC)
ER are shared by both halves of the MC logo. Not AR. Anyone have another explanation?
[[Special:Contributions/172.68.132.41|172.68.132.41]]
* I was thinking about this too! Maybe Randall made a mistake, or is it something unexplained? We'll have to wait for an explanation.[[User:Hiihaveanaccount|Hiihaveanaccount]] ([[User talk:Hiihaveanaccount|talk]]) 20:26, 12 March 2021 (UTC)

2436: Circles

2021-03-12T20:24:07Z

Hiihaveanaccount: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 2436
| date = March 12, 2021
| title = Circles
| image = circles.png
| titletext = ( MSTE ( AR ) CD )
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by Circular References. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
The comic depicts five overlapping circles, themselves encircled by circles of various sizes which enclose two, four, or all five of the smaller overlapping circles. Several well-known logos consist of overlapping circles, and the larger circles reference these logos. These are: {{w|Mastercard}}, which consists of two side-by-side overlapping circles; {{w|Audi}}, which is four side-by-side overlapping circles, and the {{w|Olympic Rings}}, which are five overlapping circles in a "W" shaped pattern.

The title text is a textual representation of the Mastercard logo as a Venn diagram containing the letters of "Mastercard" — A and R are shared by both halves, while MSTE and CD are unique to "master" and "card".

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
[five circles looped together. On the left, a larger circle overlaps 3 smaller ones, fully covering 2, labeled "Mastercard". A larger circle overlaps 4 of the circles, fully covering 3, labeled "Audi". A large circle contains all 5 of the circles, labeled "Olympics".]

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Euler diagrams]]
[[Category:Charts]]

2436: Circles

2021-03-12T20:23:04Z

Hiihaveanaccount:

2430: Post-Pandemic Hat

2021-02-26T20:48:59Z

Hiihaveanaccount:

{{comic
| number = 2430
| date = February 26, 2021
| title = Post-Pandemic Hat
| image = post_pandemic_hat.png
| titletext = Plus a shirt that says "it feels like you're making eye contact."
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a HAT. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This is another comic in a [[:Category:COVID-19|series]] related to the {{w|2019-20 coronavirus outbreak|2020 pandemic}} of the {{w|coronavirus}} {{w|SARS-CoV-2}}, which causes {{w|COVID-19}}.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a significant shift from in-person to computer-mediated interactions for both recreational and professional activities. For many, the computer setup used for these interactions is a laptop with a webcam above the screen. As people have become accustomed to looking directly into the camera to simulate eye contact for meetings, Randall implies that there will be issues returning to pre-COVID life. In response, he has designed a baseball cap with an image that resembles a laptop webcam that sits above the wearer's eyes and a message that humorously acknowledges that the reader is likely reverting to virtual meeting habits for in-person interactions.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
[A ballcap with an image of a webcam lens and a message reading "Excuse me, my eyes are actually down here" above a downward-facing arrow]
Label: hat for post-pandemic socializing

{{comic discussion}}

Talk:2429: Exposure Models

2021-02-25T15:06:41Z

Hiihaveanaccount: /* Explained the joke(I think?) */ new section

Is it worth making a note of the art error in the third panel, where the chair back has disappeared? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.8|108.162.237.8]] 03:07, 25 February 2021 (UTC)
:Someone did it. [[User:Fabian42|Fabian42]] ([[User talk:Fabian42|talk]]) 09:06, 25 February 2021 (UTC)
I'm not ashamed to say that a good portion of the Bash and Google sheets knowledge I have today comes from creating a Corona spreadsheet and its automatic filling script: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1uDTghO_ZYBs5nfs2kDc0Ms6e9bbx7clx_QgkWii7OMY and https://pastebin.com/uHzzMeac [[User:Fabian42|Fabian42]] ([[User talk:Fabian42|talk]]) 09:06, 25 February 2021 (UTC)

== Explained the joke(I think?) ==

I wrote that the joke was he was so obsessed with the charts it became a self fulfilling prophecy. Please correct me if I'm wrong.[[User:Hiihaveanaccount|Hiihaveanaccount]] ([[User talk:Hiihaveanaccount|talk]]) 15:06, 25 February 2021 (UTC)

Talk:447: Too Old For This Shit

2021-02-23T17:47:09Z

Hiihaveanaccount:

For example {{w|Fields Medal}} is given to mathematicians '''not over 40 years of age''' --[[User:JakubNarebski|JakubNarebski]] ([[User talk:JakubNarebski|talk]]) 20:47, 27 June 2013 (UTC)

Yet Sir Andrew Wiles was 41 when he found the proof for Fermats Last Theorum... I'm glad he didn't give up at age 11. Personally I never stood a chance as I only got interested in maths after leaving school (and yes I do struggle even though I'm 42! and am envious of everyone who's good at it ;) ) [[User:Squirreltape|Squirreltape]] ([[User talk:Squirreltape|talk]]) 16:45, 30 January 2014 (UTC)

One of few xkcd strips where the characters being stick figures actually helps comedy... [[User:Mumiemonstret|Mumiemonstret]] ([[User talk:Mumiemonstret|talk]]) 15:50, 8 December 2014 (UTC)

I can't help but feel that there's another joke here. Namely, the 13 year old claiming that maths isn't as easy as it used to be might be reffering to the fact that he used to do arithmetic, but now has to deal with stuff like algebra and graphs. (Hey, someone put my IP address here for identification).

It's actually a common misconception Einstein didn't believe quantum theory, he only rejected the parts that went against common physics.[[User:Hiihaveanaccount|Hiihaveanaccount]] ([[User talk:Hiihaveanaccount|talk]]) 17:47, 23 February 2021 (UTC)

Talk:447: Too Old For This Shit

2021-02-23T17:46:11Z

Hiihaveanaccount: