explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

3118: iNaturalist Animals and Plants

2025-07-22T06:34:31Z

Malaccan rats: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 3118
| date = July 21, 2025
| title = iNaturalist Animals and Plants
| image = inaturalist_animals_and_plants_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x508px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Washington, DC: Eastern gray squirrel, Amur honeysuckle. Puerto Rico: Crested anole, sea grape. US as a whole: Mallard, eastern poison ivy.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created AS IT WAS MOST REPORTED, NOT AS IT MOST COMMONLY OCCURS. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

This comic is a map of the United States showing, for each state, the name of the animal and plant most commonly reported on {{w|iNaturalist}}. As the comic notes, these are not the most-encountered species, just the ones reported the most on iNaturalist. iNaturalist is a citizen science social network that shares observations of nature. In some cases the species most reported is an invasive species causing concern, such brown anole and Amur honeysuckle.

For some smaller states, the animal and plant names are listed outside the state, with a line connecting to the state. Some non-state regions are covered in the title text: the {{w|District of Columbia}}, too small to list such information on the district itself and in an awkward location for a connector; {{w|Puerto Rico}}, an unincorporated U.S. territory with a large population outside the contiguous 48 states; and the U.S. as a whole.

The most common animals are Common Eastern Bumble Bee and White-tailed Deer, with 7 states each, while the most common plant is Common Milkweed, with 6 states. Of the 26 different animal species mentioned, 5 are mammals, 4 are birds, 12 are reptiles, and 5 are insects.

iNaturalist community members have [https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/today-s-xkcd-comic-is-about-inaturalist/67916 noted] that several species have made it on the list due to a few prolific contributors contributing large amounts of observations of the same species.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
:[The comic shows a map of the United States with state borders (including Hawaii and Alaska inset in the lower left) and two-letter state codes for each state. The map includes the {{w|Northwest Angle}}, which is not typically shown on maps of this scale.]
:[Above the map]: The Most-Observed Animal and Plant in Each State on iNaturalist
:[Below that, in parentheses]: Not the most common species in the state, just the one people have reported the most times.
:[Each state has text of the format "Animal" on top and "Plant" below. For RI, VT, NH, MA, CT, NJ, DE, and MD, the text is outside the state border with a line connecting them.]

[In alphabetical order, the states have the following Animal/Plant text]:

Alabama: Gulf Fritillary; American Sweetgum 
Alaska: Moose; Fireweed 
Arizona: Ornate Tree Lizard; Saguaro 
Arkansas: Three-toed Box Turtle; Chinese Privet 
California: Western Fence Lizard; California Poppy 
Colorado: Mule Deer; Great Mullein 
Connecticut: Common Eastern Bumble Bee; Striped Wintergreen 
Delaware: Fowler's Toad; American Pokeweed 
Florida: Brown Anole; White Beggar-ticks 
Georgia: Green Anole; American Sweetgum 
Hawaii: Green Sea Turtle; ʻŌhiʻa Lehua 
Idaho: Mallard; Big Sagebrush 
Illinois: Common Eastern Bumble Bee; Common Milkweed 
Indiana: American Robin; Amur Honeysuckle 
Iowa: White-tailed Deer; Common Milkweed 
Kansas: Ornate Box Turtle; Amur Honeysuckle 
Kentucky: Common Box Turtle; Amur Honeysuckle 
Louisiana: Green Anole; Bald Cypress 
Maine: American Herring Gull; Canadian Bunchberry 
Maryland: Common Eastern Bumble Bee; Eastern White Pine 
Massachusetts: Common Eastern Bumble Bee; Eastern White Pine 
Michigan: White-tailed Deer; Common Milkweed 
Minnesota: Common Eastern Bumble Bee; Common Milkweed 
Mississippi: Northern Cardinal; Pale Pitcher Plant 
Missouri: Brown-belted Bumble Bee; Amur Honeysuckle 
Montana: White-tailed Deer; Common Yarrow 
Nebraska: American Robin; Common Milkweed 
Nevada: Common Side-blotched Lizard; Creosote Bush 
New Hampshire: White-tailed Deer; Eastern White Pine 
New Jersey: Spotted Lanternfly; Common Mugwort 
New Mexico: Mule Deer; Creosote Bush 
New York: Eastern Gray Squirrel; White Snakeroot 
North Carolina: Eastern Gray Squirrel; Christmas Fern 
North Dakota: American Bison; Prairie Rose 
Ohio: Eastern Pondhawk; Virginia Springbeauty 
Oklahoma: Pond Slider; Eastern Redcedar 
Oregon: Mule Deer; Western Ponderosa Pine 
Pennsylvania: White-tailed Deer; Garlic Mustard 
Rhode Island: American Herring Gull; Rugosa Rose 
South Carolina: Northern Cardinal; American Sweetgum 
South Dakota: American Bison; Hoary Vervain 
Tennessee: American Robin; Christmas Fern 
Texas: Northern Cardinal; Pinkladies 
Utah: Mule Deer; Utah Juniper 
Vermont: Common Eastern Bumble Bee; Eastern White Pine 
Virginia: White-tailed Deer; Eastern Poison Ivy 
Washington: Mallard; Western Sword Fern 
West Virginia: White-tailed Deer; Great Rhododendron 
Wisconsin: Common Eastern Bumble Bee; Common Milkweed 
Wyoming: American Bison; Sticky Geranium 

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>
[[Category:US maps]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Biology]]

2916: Machine

2024-04-07T04:16:29Z

Malaccan rats: /* Explanation */ "good job" trophy and glass cup

{{comic
| number = 2916
| date = April 5, 2024
| title = Machine
| image = machine_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x740px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = The Credible Machine
}}* To experience the interactivity, visit the [https://xkcd.com/2916/ original comic].

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a WELL OILED ROBOT. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This is the 14th [[:Category:April fools' comics|April fools' comic]] released by [[Randall]]. The previous April fools' comic was [[2765: Escape Speed]] from 2023, which was released on Wednesday, April 19, 2023.

Once again an April Fool's Day Comic came out late, as Randall did not release this on April 1st, even though April 1st did fall on a Monday, a normal release day. It first came four days later with the Friday release on April 5th. That this is to be considered an April fools' comic, in spite of the later release, was confirmed on the xkcd Facebook page, see the [[#Trivia|trivia section]] below.

This is a spin on the game {{w|The Incredible Machine}}.

Upon loading the page, you are presented with marbles being added to a box by geared wheels, with a button to open a “tool panel”. You are encouraged by Cueball to direct the marbles into a little “output” gear, and that marbles have a lifespan of 30 seconds to reduce clutter. There are large and small boards available for use, as well as some gimmicky stuff like prisms that sort marbles by color, and fans that blow marbles around.

The comic starts in a main screen where the user can create a {{w|Rube Goldberg machine}} in a "Cell" where the goal is to route a constant stream of colored balls from an input on the ceiling or a wall to outputs of a matching color on the walls or floor. After the comic is first opened a window pops up over the machine where Cueball in a lab coat tells you to route the balls from the inputs to the outputs. If any balls are left in your cell for more than 30 seconds, they fade away. The first time a ball fades away another popup informs you that the balls are removed for security reasons. When you have built a machine which succeeds in routing enough balls to the output, a popup will prompt you to submit your cell to be added to the public machine.

[Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/41510c.png]
[Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/4ec76a.png]
[Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/96a68a.png]

The different ball colors have different physical properties. Red balls are more bouncy than other balls, green balls are heavier, and yellow balls are lighter and slightly bouncy. The following values were extracted from the code:
{| class="wikitable"
! Color
! Mass
! Density
! Restitution (bounciness)
! Linear damping (drag)
|-
! Blue
| 0.08
| 1
| 0
| 0
|-
! Red
| 0.08
| 1
| 0.8
| 0
|-
! Green
| 0.75
| 9.325
| 0
| 0
|-
! Yellow
| 0.024
| 0.3
| 0.6
| 2
|}

The button in the bottom right corner brings you to a page where you can drag around to view all of the machines that have been submitted, with a title for each in the upper left corner. In this view you can see that all of the outputs are also inputs for another cell, except for the top row where the inputs come from off screen and the lowest row which output through a launcher of some kind to a set of four colored-coded containers far below. Any empty cells are marked off by yellow tape with the words "UNDER CONSTRUCTION" as well as "DJIA ↑ 31415" once in each cell. "DJIA" stands for the Dow Jones Industrial Average, with "DJIA ↑ 31415" indicating that it rose to 31415 points, 31415 being the first five digits of pi, without the period.

When you press submit, you will see your creation placed on the grid. However if you refresh that cell will likely be under construction or replaced with someone else's machine. However, other people's machines are consistently placed, so it appears that there is some moderation process selecting a machine for each cell out of the machines submitted by users.

The grid is 12 cells wide, and grows in height. The largest size observed so far is 12x44, for a total of 528 cells. The machine's height is determined by the lowest cell; This can be either your submitted cell, or a cell created by another user.

Whenever balls reach the bottom of the grid, they are directed towards 4 containers, one of each color. Below the containers is a pit. If no balls are entering the containers or pit, it will be empty. If one stream of balls is making it, Cueball and Megan sit in a small boat named the USS Buoyancy. More streams of balls are likely to add more changes.

The page header credits several people for helping to create the comic:
<blockquote>"Today's comic was created with [https://chromakode.com/ Max Goodhart], [https://github.com/spyhi Ed White], [https://twitter.com/uh_oh_thats_bad Alex Garcia], [https://twitter.com/cotrone Kevin Cotrone], [http://burningcandle.io/ Conor & Ami Stokes], [https://liranuna.com/ Liran Nuna], [https://www.instagram.com/fading_interest/ Patrick], [https://manishearth.github.io/ Manish Goregaokar], [https://github.com/benley Benjamin Staffin], [https://github.com/ayust Amber], and [https://github.com/dyfrgi Michael Leuchtenburg] with physics by [https://rapier.rs/ Rapier]."</blockquote>
----
{| class="wikitable" style="margin:auto"
|+ List of objects
|-
! Description !! Effect !!
|-
| Plank || Static || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/a8b809.png]
|-
| Hammer || Static || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/2d6deb.png]
|-
| Sword || Static || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/f245b2.png]
|-
| Hinged scoop || Rotates around its hinge, tries to stay upright with a springy effect || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/1b1e79.png]
|-
| Anvil || Static || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/81ef42.png]
|-
| Brick || Static || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/7b3961.png]
|-
| Fan || Blows away balls in front of it. Different colours are affected by differing amounts (red balls are lightest, and can be levitated above an upward-facing fan).|| [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/4d5467.png]
|-
| Pillow || Balls will not bounce if they hit it || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/e2cc7d.png]
|-
| Round bumper || Bounces balls away at significantly higher speed || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/67d78e.png]
|-
| Triangle bumper left || Bounces balls away at significantly higher speed || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/7c8f8d.png]
|-
| Triangle bumper right || Bounces balls away at significantly higher speed || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/625a2e.png]
|-
| Attractor/Black Hole || Pulls balls toward center, can be resized || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/88f05f.png]
|-
| Repulsor || Repels balls away from center, can be resized || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/f2a087.png]
|-
| Prism || "Refracts" balls as they enter and exit || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/bc114c.png]
|-
| Wheel || Spins normally (anticlockwise), deflects balls, can jam with enough resistance (e.g. glut of balls or against other elements). || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/f31887.png]
|-
| "Good job" trophy || ? || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/1193be.png]
|-
| Glass cup || ? || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/b0c4c6.png]
|}

{| class="wikitable" style="margin:auto"
|+ Characters
|-
! Description !! Image
|-
| Ponytail with raised arms || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/85dcb9.png]
|-
| Ponytail standing || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/120110.png]
|-
| Cueball with raised arms || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/b6e607.png]
|-
| White Hat || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/079478.png]
|-
| Knit Cap sliding? || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/bcbc01.png]
|-
| Knit Cap || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/0bb944.png]
|-
| Helmet? || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/406d05.png]
|-
| Probably Deterministic sign || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/10b2dc.png]
|-
| Squirrel || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/f5efa6.png]
|-
| Rabbit || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/4d5b81.png]
|-
| Cat || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/0d16d5.png]
|}

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
[Cueball with lab coat, intro popup]
Cueball: Balls falling into your cell should be routed to the outputs at a steady rate.

[Cueball with lab coat, warning popup]
Cueball: For security reasons, balls that remain in your device for more than 30 seconds will be removed and destroyed.

[Cueball with lab coat, submit popup]
Cueball: Congratulations! Your contraption has passed all tests. Press [submit button] to submit it to be added to the machine!

==Trivia==
*When Randall posted a [https://www.facebook.com/TheXKCD/posts/pfbid0Cs97awQZi1ZiaEXouAex9tXrwAS3qJV3RmAiuCq5uvZQwqZVMgDmcqJ7JU9LYodYl link to this comic] on his [https://www.facebook.com/TheXKCD Facebook feed], he directly wrote that it was a late April Fools' Day!
**MACHINE
**Happy Belated April Fool's Day!
*This thus ends any discussion of whether this should be seen as an April Fool's comic or not.
**It just came out 4 days late. This has also happened several times since [[Garden]].
[[File:2916 Machine Facebook April fools' confirmation.png]]

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:April fools' comics]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Dynamic comics]]
[[Category:Comics with animation]]
[[Category:Interactive comics]]

2916: Machine

2024-04-07T01:59:17Z

Malaccan rats: rabbit and cat

{{comic
| number = 2916
| date = April 5, 2024
| title = Machine
| image = machine_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x740px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = The Credible Machine
}}* To experience the interactivity, visit the [https://xkcd.com/2916/ original comic].

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a WELL OILED ROBOT. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This is the 13th [[:Category:April fools' comics|April fools' comic]] released by [[Randall]]. The previous April fools' comic was [[2601: Instructions]] from 2022, which was released on Thursday, April 1st, 2022. There was no fools' comic in 2023.

Once again an April Fool's Day Comic came out late, as Randall did not release this on April 1st, even though April 1st did fall on a Monday, a normal release day. It first came four days later with the Friday release on April 5th. That this is to be considered an April fools' comic, in spite of the later release, was confirmed on the xkcd Facebook page, see the [[#Trivia|trivia section]] below.

This is a spin on the game {{w|The Incredible Machine}}.

Upon loading the page, you are presented with marbles being added to a box by geared wheels, with a button to open a “tool panel”. You are encouraged by Cueball to direct the marbles into a little “output” gear, and that marbles have a lifespan of 30 seconds to reduce clutter. There are large and small boards available for use, as well as some gimmicky stuff like prisms that sort marbles by color, and fans that blow marbles around.

The comic starts in a main screen where the user can create a {{w|Rube Goldberg machine}} in a "Cell" where the goal is to route a constant stream of colored balls from an input on the ceiling or a wall to outputs of a matching color on the walls or floor. After the comic is first opened a window pops up over the machine where Cueball in a lab coat tells you to route the balls from the inputs to the outputs. If any balls are left in your cell for more than 30 seconds, they fade away. The first time a ball fades away another popup informs you that the balls are removed for security reasons. When you have built a machine which succeeds in routing enough balls to the output, a popup will prompt you to submit your cell to be added to the public machine.

[Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/41510c.png]
[Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/4ec76a.png]
[Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/96a68a.png]

The different colors balls have slightly different masses: red is the lightest, followed by yellow, blue, and then green. Balls with less mass can be moved more easily by tools but are also slowed down more by drag. Other physical properties like bounciness and charge also vary, which can be used to sort the balls through the use of different physical effects.

The button in the bottom right corner brings you to a page where you can drag around to view all of the machines that have been submitted, with a title for each in the upper left corner. In this view you can see that all of the outputs are also inputs for another cell, except for the top row where the inputs come from off screen and the lowest row which output through a launcher of some kind to a set of four colored-coded containers far below. Any empty cells are marked off by yellow tape with the words "UNDER CONSTRUCTION" as well as "DJIA ↑ 31415" once in each cell. "DJIA" stands for the Dow Jones Industrial Average, with "DJIA ↑ 31415" indicating that it rose to 31415 points, 31415 being the first five digits of pi, without the period.

When you press submit, you will see your creation placed on the grid. However if you refresh that cell will likely be under construction or replaced with someone else's machine. However, other people's machines are consistently placed, so it appears that there is some moderation process selecting a machine for each cell out of the machines submitted by users.

The grid is 12 cells wide, and grows in height. The largest size observed so far is 12x44, for a total of 528 cells. The machine's height is determined by the lowest cell; This can be either your submitted cell, or a cell created by another user.

Whenever balls reach the bottom of the grid, they are directed towards 4 containers, one of each color. Below the containers is a pit. If no balls are entering the containers or pit, it will be empty. If one stream of balls is making it, Cueball and Megan sit in a small boat named the USS Buoyancy. More streams of balls are likely to add more changes.

The page header credits several people for helping to create the comic:
<blockquote>"Today's comic was created with [https://chromakode.com/ Max Goodhart], [https://github.com/spyhi Ed White], [https://twitter.com/uh_oh_thats_bad Alex Garcia], [https://twitter.com/cotrone Kevin Cotrone], [http://burningcandle.io/ Conor & Ami Stokes], [https://liranuna.com/ Liran Nuna], [https://www.instagram.com/fading_interest/ Patrick], [https://manishearth.github.io/ Manish Goregaokar], [https://github.com/benley Benjamin Staffin], [https://github.com/ayust Amber], and [https://github.com/dyfrgi Michael Leuchtenburg] with physics by [https://rapier.rs/ Rapier]."</blockquote>
----
{| class="wikitable" style="margin:auto"
|+ List of objects
|-
! Description !! Effect !!
|-
| Plank || Static || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/a8b809.png]
|-
| Hammer || Static || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/2d6deb.png]
|-
| Sword || Static || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/f245b2.png]
|-
| Hinged scoop || Rotates around its hinge, tries to stay upright with a springy effect || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/1b1e79.png]
|-
| Anvil || Static || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/81ef42.png]
|-
| Brick || Static || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/7b3961.png]
|-
| Fan || Blows away balls in front of it. Different colours are affected by differing amounts (red balls are lightest, and can be levitated above an upward-facing fan).|| [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/4d5467.png]
|-
| Pillow || Balls will not bounce if they hit it || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/e2cc7d.png]
|-
| Round bumper || Bounces balls away at significantly higher speed || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/67d78e.png]
|-
| Triangle bumper left || Bounces balls away at significantly higher speed || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/7c8f8d.png]
|-
| Triangle bumper right || Bounces balls away at significantly higher speed || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/625a2e.png]
|-
| Attractor/Black Hole || Pulls balls toward center, can be resized || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/88f05f.png]
|-
| Repulsor || Repels balls away from center, can be resized || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/f2a087.png]
|-
| Prism || "Refracts" balls as they enter and exit || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/bc114c.png]
|-
| Wheel || Spins normally (anticlockwise), deflects balls, can jam with enough resistance (e.g. glut of balls or against other elements). || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/f31887.png]
|}

{| class="wikitable" style="margin:auto"
|+ Characters
|-
! Description !! Image
|-
| Ponytail with raised arms || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/85dcb9.png]
|-
| Ponytail standing || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/120110.png]
|-
| Cueball with raised arms || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/b6e607.png]
|-
| White Hat || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/079478.png]
|-
| Knit Cap sliding? || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/bcbc01.png]
|-
| Knit Cap || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/0bb944.png]
|-
| Helmet? || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/406d05.png]
|-
| Probably Deterministic sign || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/10b2dc.png]
|-
| Squirrel || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/f5efa6.png]
|-
| Rabbit || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/4d5b81.png]
|-
| Cat || [Media:https://xkcd.com/2916/client/static/0d16d5.png]
|}

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
[Cueball with lab coat, intro popup]
Cueball: Balls falling into your cell should be routed to the outputs at a steady rate.

[Cueball with lab coat, warning popup]
Cueball: For security reasons, balls that remain in your device for more than 30 seconds will be removed and destroyed.

[Cueball with lab coat, submit popup]
Cueball: Congratulations! Your contraption has passed all tests. Press [submit button] to submit it to be added to the machine!

==Trivia==
*When Randall posted a [https://www.facebook.com/TheXKCD/posts/pfbid0Cs97awQZi1ZiaEXouAex9tXrwAS3qJV3RmAiuCq5uvZQwqZVMgDmcqJ7JU9LYodYl link to this comic] on his [https://www.facebook.com/TheXKCD Facebook feed], he directly wrote that it was a late April Fools' Day!
**MACHINE
**Happy Belated April Fool's Day!
*This thus ends any discussion of whether this should be seen as an April Fool's comic or not.
**It just came out 4 days late. This has also happened several times since [[Garden]].
[[File:2916 Machine Facebook April fools' confirmation.png]]

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:April fools' comics]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Dynamic comics]]
[[Category:Comics with animation]]
[[Category:Interactive comics]]