explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

195: Map of the Internet

2017-09-03T19:24:30Z

Mjychabaud22: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 195
| date = December 11, 2006
| title = Map of the Internet
| image = map of the internet.jpg
| titletext = For the IPv6 map just imagine the XP default desktop picture.
}}

==Explanation==
On the map, all allocated {{w|IPv4}} address blocks (as of 2006) are shown using a fractal mapping. (The {{w|Hilbert curve}} is used: the pattern is demonstrated at the bottom of the image.) In February 2011, the final remaining IPv4 blocks were allocated to the {{w|Regional Internet registry|Regional Internet registries}}, and so today there would no longer be any green spaces outside of Class E addresses (above 240 through 255, excluding the Broadcast address of 255.255.255.255).

In the early 1990s corporations and governments could register an entire {{w|Classful network|class A}} segment (one 256th of the total space) but later it was divided into smaller parts because of lack of space.

This leads to the title text, which mentions {{w|IPv6}}. This protocol has so many addresses that only a swarm of nanobots could exhaust them (see [[865: Nanobots]]). The default desktop picture in Windows XP is a green landscape, and the joke is that since barely any of the addresses are allocated yet, the IPv6 map would just be a green landscape.

Later Randall actually drew some "real" maps of the internet, or at least its online Communities (see [[256: Online Communities]] and [[802: Online Communities 2]]).

==Transcript==
:Map of the Internet The IPv4 Space, 2006 This chart shows the IP address space on a plane using a fractal mapping which preserves grouping--any consecutive string of IPs will translate to a single, compact, contiguous region on the map. Each of the 256 numbered blocks represents one 8 subnet (containing all IPs that start with that number). The upper left section shows the blocks sold directly to corporations and goverments in the 1990's before the RIRs took over allocation.
:Diagram showing IP ownership:
:0: Local
:1-2: Unallocated
:3: General Electric
:4: BB&N INC
:5: Unallocated
:6: Army AISC
:7: Unallocated
:8: BB&N INC
:9: IBM
:10: VPNs
:11: DoD Intel
:12: Bell Labs
:13: Xerox
:14: Public data nets
:15: HP
:16: DEC
:17: Apple
:18: MIT
:19: Ford
:20: CSC
:21: DDN-RYN
:22: DISA
:23: Unallocated
:24: [Cable TV][https://planetdish.com/dish-network-tv-packages// Cable TV]]
:25: UK MoD
:26: DISA
:27: Unallocated
:28: DSI
:29-30: DISA
:31: Unallocated
:32: NORSK
:33: DLA
:34: Halliburton
:35: Merit
:36-37: Unallocated
:38: PSI
:39: Unallocated
:40: Eli Lily
:41: ARINIC
:42: Unallocated
:43: Japan INET
:44: HAM Radio
:45: INTEROP
:46: BB&N INC
:47: Bell North
:48: Prudential
:49-50: Unallocated
:51: UK Social Security
:52: duPont
:55: Boeing
:56: USPS
:57: SITA
:58-61: Asia-Pacific
:62: Europe
:63-76: USA & Canada (contains: UUNET, Google, Digg, Slashdot, Ebay, Craigslist, XKCD, Flickr)
:77-79: Europe (unused)
:80-91: Europe
:92-95: Unallocated
:96-99: North America
:100-120: Unallocated
:121-125: Asia-Pacific
:126: Japan
:127: Loopback
:128-132: Various Registrars
:133: Japan
:134-172: Various Registrars
:173-189: Unallocated
:188: Various
:189-190: Latin America & Caribbean
:191-192: Various (contains Private (RFC 1918))
:193-195: Europe
:196: Africa
:197: Unallocated
:198: US & Various
:199: North America
:200-201: Latin America & Carribbean
:202-203: Asia-Pacific
:204-209: North America (contains Suicide Girls, BoingBoing)
:210-211: Asia-Pacific
:212-213: Europe
:214-215: U.S. Department of Defense
:216: North America (Contains Myspace, SomethingAwful)
:217: Europe
:218-222: Asia-Pacific
:223: Unallocated
:224-239: Multicast
:240-255: Unallocated

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Internet]]
[[Category:Maps]]

1845: State Word Map

2017-06-02T04:31:53Z

Mjychabaud22: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1845
| date = June 2, 2017
| title = State Word Map
| image = state_word_map.png
| titletext = The top search for every state is PORN, except Florida, where it's SEX PORN.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BOT - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

Similar in spirit to [[1138: Heatmap]], this comic pokes fun at many maps that attempt to use data to discern unique characteristics about various sub-regions, in this case {{w|U.S. state|American states}}.

This map does not say anything real, but says: You can make these maps say whatever you want by adjusting the methodology. Half of the time you're just amplifying random noise because the underlying data doesn't change that much from one state to another. But whatever. Nobody checks this stuff. Just pick whatever normalization lets you make fun of Florida.

The joke is that none of these states actually say these words, and Randall has just done exactly what he says he can do (make fun of Florida by putting whatever he wants.) He also has not obtained the data from anywhere, just 'Something Something'.

The comic continues to make fun of Florida in the title text by saying that Florida searches for sex poem instead of porn, when porn is already about sex.

{{w|Florida}} is often the butt of many jokes, including the {{w|Florida Man}} meme and many mocking jibes regarding its {{w|2000 United States presidential election recount in Florida|historically-messy electoral history}}. [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/OnlyInFlorida See TV Tropes for examples of the "Only in Florida" phenomenon.]

==Transcript==

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

'''Most-Used Word in Each State'''

'''Based on Something Something Search Data'''

You can make these maps say whatever you want by adjusting the methodology. Half the time you're just amplifying random noise. Because the underlying data doesn't vary that much from one state to another. But whatever. Nobody checks this stuff. Just pick whatever normalization lets you make fun of {{w|Florida}}.

{{comic discussion}}

1845: State Word Map

2017-06-02T04:28:16Z

Mjychabaud22: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1845
| date = June 2, 2017
| title = State Word Map
| image = state_word_map.png
| titletext = The top search for every state is PORN, except Florida, where it's SEX PORN.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BOT - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

Similar in spirit to [[1138: Heatmap]], this comic pokes fun at many maps that attempt to use data to discern unique characteristics about various sub-regions, in this case {{w|U.S. state|American states}}.

This map does not say anything real, but says: You can make these maps say whatever you want by adjusting the methodology. Half of the time you're just amplifying random noise because the underlying data doesn't change that much from one state to another. But whatever. Nobody checks this stuff. Just pick whatever normalization lets you make fun of Florida.

{{w|Florida}} is often the butt of many jokes, including the {{w|Florida Man}} meme and many mocking jibes regarding its {{w|2000 United States presidential election recount in Florida|historically-messy electoral history}}. [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/OnlyInFlorida See TV Tropes for examples of the "Only in Florida" phenomenon.]

==Transcript==

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

'''Most-Used Word in Each State'''

'''Based on Something Something Search Data'''

You can make these maps say whatever you want by adjusting the methodology. Half the time you're just amplifying random noise. Because the underlying data doesn't vary that much from one state to another. But whatever. Nobody checks this stuff. Just pick whatever normalization lets you make fun of {{w|Florida}}.

{{comic discussion}}

1845: State Word Map

2017-06-02T04:23:27Z

Mjychabaud22: /* Explanation */

1845: State Word Map

2017-06-02T04:22:35Z

Mjychabaud22: /* Explanation */

Talk:1802: Phone

2017-02-22T15:22:10Z

Mjychabaud22:

That was my first explanation I wrote from scratch so feel free to change stuff that is bad. note: someone else wrote the last bit I dont know who.[[User:XFez|XFez]] ([[User talk:XFez|talk]]) 14:39, 22 February 2017 (UTC)
I wrote last bit. My first from scratch edit too. I think that the spare battery is a portable battery pack.

1802: Phone

2017-02-22T14:44:50Z

Mjychabaud22: First edit

{{comic
| number = 1802
| date = February 22, 2017
| title = Phone
| image = phone.png
| titletext = [*disables social networking accounts*] [*social isolation increases*] Wait, why does this ALSO feel bad?
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Feel free to add more info}}
Someone asks [[Cueball]] if he wants to go for a walk he says sure but first he has to get his phone. He describes this as a device that gives him a 24/7 stream of information much of which is out of context. He also mentions that news can be scary which is true and often times news outlets will use a title that exaggerates the topic and creates fear to get more people to look at the article. The random emotional stimuli could be from many things such as his text messages or email and several other things that can cause a shift in emotions. The spare battery could reference a portable charger as most phones use rechargeable batteries that often last longer than the rest of the phone. The title text implies that even after disconnecting from social networks, which Cueball may think causes his isolation by severing him from the real world, which Cueball thinks will solve the problem, he still feels as isolated as he was before. Presumably, he disconnected to solve his problem and be able to focus on his walk, however, he ends up feeling bad the whole walk.

[[Randall]] often describes simple object in a very complex or connotative manner such as in [[1616]].(Note: He also occasionally describes very complex things in very simple words as in [[1133]] or in his book [https://store.xkcd.com/pages/thing-explainer-book Thing Explainer])

This comic could be seen as a counter to [[1773: Negativity]], as both deal with the inability to escape the media during objectively peaceful pastimes. While in the former, the nature attacks Cueball with the types of comics he wishes to avoid, here, he brings along his phone even though it will ruin the goal of the walk he is going to take.

==Transcript==
Offscreen: Wanna go for a walk?

Cueball: Sure, just need to grab my device that feeds me a 24/7 stream of opinions, context-free scary world news, and random emotional stimuli. Plus a spare battery so the feed won't be interrupted.
{{comic discussion}}

1610: Fire Ants

2017-01-28T03:55:28Z

Mjychabaud22: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1610
| date = November 30, 2015
| title = Fire Ants
| image = fire_ants.png
| titletext = Here in the entomology department, we have a simple two-step formula for answering any question: (1) ants are cool, and (2) we forgot the question because we were thinking about ants.
}}

==Explanation==
[[Cueball]], a university student, is meeting with [[Hairbun]] asking her advice concerning his second thoughts about {{w|Graduate school|grad school}}. Her response begins with a popular reference [https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/1611_Proverbs-Chapter-6/#6 from the Bible] concerning {{w|ants}}; however, she specifically narrows in on the sub-family of {{w|fire ants}}.

The {{w|book of Proverbs}} is a [https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/1611_Proverbs-Chapter-1/#3 self-proclaimed book] on receiving wisdom and instruction to be made wise. Thus, her response appears to begin as an instruction to him in response to his question. The proverb in particular she appears to begin quoting instructs the lazy person to "Go to the ant, thou sluggard! Consider her ways..." as she prepares for the desolation of winter by providing during the bounty of summer despite not having to be told so. The assumption by the reader would be that she is going to compare Cueball to a lazy person and instruct him to prepare for the later years (winter of life) by studying now while he is young (summer of life).

However, after the initial phrase she instead discusses a cool fact about '''fire ants'''. (Specifically the ability of fire ants to join together to form [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2ZysgGAABw floating rafts] in case of flooding). Continuing in the vein of the joke, that Hairbun was going to use a {{w|metaphor}} as part of her instruction, Cueball asks her what lesson he is supposed to take away from that fact. To which she replies with her fascination for ants (''Ants are so cool'' ). Correctly Cueball states that she is ''not big on metaphors'', as there was none hidden in her first statement. She continues to tell him what she is big on: '''Ants'''.

This last exchange may imply that the expected metaphor would have had as little effect on Cueball's choice to continue grad school as an excited rant about fire ants (since he was just waiting for a metaphor anyway). Or perhaps it expresses that Hairbun finds more instruction in the study of the natural world than in ancient writings. In either case, it is left unanswered as to whether her argument was enough to answer Cueball's dilemma.

Before reading the title text the reader may have assumed that Cueball went to meet with a University adviser. But the title text makes it clear that he was actually in the {{w|entomology}} department (making her an entomologist - i.e. someone who studies insects). It is reasonable to assume that his grad studies are thus in entomology and he is meeting a professor that might act as a career mentor. Thus, her discourse on fire ants may have been to persuade Cueball that his grad studies in entomology where well worth continuing because of the exciting nature of the field of study. This would be achieving the intent of the Proverb she appeared to quote (convincing Cueball to continue life preparations by finishing grad school) although she discarded its wording.

In almost an immediate and seemingly bizarre contradiction, she chalks up her strange rambling on fire ants as just a formula that all entomology personnel use when asked any question. They use a two-step formula to answer any questions. It won't help you much because all you will learn is that ants are cool and then they have forgotten anything else you asked them while they continued to think of ants. This would imply that the answer Cueball received had literally nothing to do with his question or situation he was in and any similarity to being a meaningful answer or even a proverb of instruction was purely coincidental and unintended.

An '''alternative explanation''' is that [[Randall]] has noticed that ''fire ants'' is an anagram of ''{{w|fine arts}}''. If you instead of ants put in art, and then put in an interesting fact about art, and finish with art is cool and I'm big on art, then he would not have been in the entomology department, but the department of art. Randall is known to make fun of people who take the arts too seriously. Just think about the description of his comic at the bottom of {{xkcd}}; the last part says: ''This comic occasionally contains ... advanced mathematics (which may be unsuitable for liberal-arts majors).'' The title text can likewise be changed so ant = art.

In a similar vein the title text could be referencing {{w|Etymology}} instead of entomology (the two words are close enough that they are listed as ''Not to be confused with'' at the top of each article). Etymology is the study of the history of words, and again you could exchange ants with words, that are so cool or state an interesting fact about words. Randall is '''''Big''' on [[:Category:Language|Language]].'' See also [[1010: Etymology-Man]].

Another popular example where the phrase ''consider the'' from the Bible has been spoofed can be found in {{w|Monty Python's Life of Brian}} ''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9czBBKof7Yo Consider the lilies]'' sketch. However, this refers to a passage in [https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/1611_Matthew-Chapter-6/#28 Matthew] instead of [https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/1611_Proverbs-Chapter-6/#6 Proverbs].

It seems likely that [[Randall]] is fascinated by ants (he is fascinated by a lot of cool stuff…)
*In [[638: The Search]] the SETI project is re-imagined from the perspective of ants, who reach the same conclusion humans often do.
*According to footnote 2 of the [[what if?]] no. 73: [https://what-if.xkcd.com/73/ Lethal Neutrinos], there are enough ants on earth to fill more than 100 football stadiums to the brim.
*In his celebration game for his new book [[1608: Hoverboard]], there is a scene in the Star Destroyer were Cueball is talking to a giant ant queen:
::Cueball: What's up?
::Ant queen: The usual. Poopin' out ants.
::Cueball: Eww.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is talking to Hairbun, an advisor, who is sitting behind a desk.]
:Cueball: I'm having second thoughts about grad school and could use some advice.

:[Same setting as before. The animated advisor talks while gesticulating with her hands.]
:Advisor: Consider the fire ant.
:Advisor: When there's a flood, fire ants survive by joining together into giant floating rafts.

:[Cueball is just standing there in the next beat-panel.]

:[Back to the first setting but in a larger frame.]
:Cueball: Wait, what lesson am I supposed to take from that?
:Advisor: Ants are '''''so cool!'''''
:Cueball: ...You're not big on metaphors, are you.
:Advisor: I am big on ants.

==Trivia==
===Fascinating facts about ants===
*The queen can lay millions of eggs in a lifetime that may reach [http://entnemdept.ufl.edu/walker/ufbir/chapters/chapter_34.shtml 30 years].
*Ants mainly [http://antark.net/ant-life/ant-communication/pheromones/ communicate through pheromones] which function as chemical signals.
*The queen does not directly control the other ants in the colony. She receives chemical feedback from the workers who care for and feed her; this feedback causes her to adjust the type and quantity of eggs she produces.
*All worker ants are female.
*{{w|Weaver ants}} weave together the leaves that form their colony's nest using larvae silk.
*{{w|Leafcutter ants}} cut up leaves to bring home to feed a {{w|Fungus-growing ants|fungus}} that they in turn eat.
**Ancestors of the Leafcutters began cultivating a variety of fungal gardens around [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2291119/ 50 million years ago]. This may make them the first farmers on Earth, millions of years before humans even existed.
*{{w|Army ants}}, known and feared for their aggressive raids which may claim 100,000 insect prey, have no permanent nest. They form temporary bivouacs [http://www.amentsoc.org/publications/bug-club-magazine/articles/the-raiders-army-ants.html using the ants' bodies] as the structure.
*Army and Driver worker ants are blind. They navigate by following trails laid down by blind scouts.
*{{w|Honeypot ants}} select specialized workers, called repletes, as storage containers, engorging them with food until they swell to maximum size. The repletes share the food with the colony when other food is scarce.
*Although it takes a million ants to weigh a pound, scientists believe that as recently as the time of the American Revolution, the total weight of ants was greater than the total weight of humans on the earth.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairbun]]
[[Category:Animals]]

1761: Blame

2017-01-26T01:31:35Z

Mjychabaud22: Grammar

{{comic
| number = 1761
| date = November 18, 2016
| title = Blame
| image = blame.png
| titletext = I bet if I yell at my scared friends I will feel better.
}}

==Explanation==

[[Cueball]] states that he feels sad and links it with his observation that bad things are happening. Sadness is a normal human reaction to perceived bad events<ref>http://www.clinical-depression.co.uk/dlp/depression-information/causes-of-depression/</ref>. (Other emotions that might be felt at such times include anger and guilt.)

He then reasons that it must be someone's fault. If the "bad things" in question are not natural calamities or accidents, it is usually logical to surmise that someone is responsible for them taking place.

After some thinking, he has an idea. Ideas are usually the result of thinking (unless they are a result of {{w|computers}}{{Citation needed}}), although it might not always be conscious thinking like Cueball is doing.

He then blames his "friends on {{w|Facebook}}", a social media website and app, for connecting with and talking to friends and family. While there could be possible reasons for bad events (for example if the bad event was nobody wishing him a happy birthday or someone posting compromising pictures,) his friends would not be a likely source for bad events extending beyond a personal or local scope. Most people have a few hundred (or thousand) "friends" on Facebook, most of whom do not have enough influence to cause bad events on a national or global level.{{Citation needed}}

This is a reference to people ranting on {{w|social media}} sites (like Facebook) about various things which are blamed on certain people (or sometimes everyone), but the person doing the ranting never thinks that the problem might be with themselves.

It could possibly also be a reference to how an individual's Facebook news feed has probably been inundated by political posts due to the results of the recent 2016 {{w|United States presidential election}}, and possibly due to state and local elections. One read on this is that, many people, including [http://www.npr.org/sections/alltechconsidered/2016/07/24/486941582/the-reason-your-feed-became-an-echo-chamber-and-what-to-do-about-it| some news sources], have pointed out that social media forms an "echo chamber", and some sources have claimed that this is responsible both for political polarization (see [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rE3j_RHkqJc&t=2s| this video]) and even for [http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/donald-trump-president-social-media-echo-chamber-hypernormalisation-adam-curtis-protests-blame-a7409481.html| the recent victory] of {{w|Donald Trump}}. Notably, [[Randall]] supported {{w|Hillary Clinton}}, the {{w|Democratic}} nominee in [[1756|a recent comic]]. Therefore, blaming social media for the election can be read as blaming his friends echoing his ideas back to him as causing (partially) Clinton's loss; thus they are (partially) at fault for his presumed sadness over her loss in the election. A second read on this would be that constant reminders of Clinton's loss only serve to make Randall sadder: again the proximal cause being his friends' posts. A third read would be that friends with whom Cueball/Randall disagrees are posting things that he finds unpleasant to read, either ideas that he finds offensive or inconvenient, or posts "rubbing in" the victory of the candidate Randall opposed.

The fourth meta-read is that Cueball (as very much distinct from Randall) is not especially smart, and Cueball's mistake here is something that Randall has seen other people make, and Randall is bitter that many people are making said mistake -- not only will venting on facebook be counterproductive generally, in particular blaming your facebook friends for the loss of your favored candidate will only make your interpersonal relationships more difficult, such venting will do nothing to correct the root cause of the sadness, partly because a small group of people is relatively powerless, and partly because the very nature of self-selecting facebook friend-groupings forms a bubble of insular ideological uniformity. Convincing yourself that your ideological allies are to blame, and then alienating your ideological allies by unfairly blaming them, is dumb; that is the point of the comic, that this "bright idea" that Cueball comes up with in panel three, is actually so dumb of an idea as to be humourous. (In real life, where Randall supported Hillary and is sad she lost, one might infer that Randall has seen real-life ideological allies blaming each other: you should have worked harder for the campaign, you should have donated more, you never should have been mean to that Bernie supporter, you should have listened to me when I said we needed to get out the vote in Michigan, and so on and so on. Finding a perceived problem, and then blaming your ideological allies as being the cause of that problem, makes it LESS likely that the actual problem will be corrected in future elections, thereby perpetuating the sadness. Not only is Randall sad that his candidate lost the election, he is sad that facebook 'friends' are accusing each other of being to blame, and he is expecting to remain sad in future election-cycles thanks to the disunity and infighting that were the byproduct of THIS election-cycle. See also: 'vicious circle'.) Thus, the comic is actually intended to be entertaining, but also intended to have a moral lesson, like Aesop's fables: if you lose an election because turnout for your candidate was lower across the board than in was in 2012 and 2008, picking fights with your ideological allies will not help you in 2020, because that will only further disunify the factions within your coalition. The only way to increase turnout for one's preferred candidate, is to expand the coalition by bringing new voters -- and in some cases re-enticing former voters -- to join with you. Difficult to do when you spend all your time blaming each other. Somewhat ironically, this plain message is something that Randall cannot put forth... because telling your ideological allies that they need to stop blaming each other for the problems of the 2016 election-cycle, or they are gonna screw up the 2020 election-cycle, is in itself a way of blaming your allies! Thus, the comic makes fun of people who blame their ideological allies for not being very bright, but also shows that Randall himself may not have been able to figure out what to do either... which is a cause for sadness, indeed, and one that cannot easily be corrected. Even though Randall understands the problem, and can make humourous comics which illuminate the trouble, and poke fun at the counterproductive nature of blaming one's local allies for national or global setbacks, that does not mean he can keep people from falling into those counterproductive habits (himself included to some degree).

The title text refers to people venting. The (humorous) assumption here is that one will feel better after doing so. While some amount of venting might help to relieve stress caused by bad events, alienating people you know by blaming them for bad events usually causes more stress in the long run. (See above explanation about how blaming ideological allies can become a vicious circle.) The fact that he recognizes his friends are scared, like him, but still thinks yelling at them is a good idea shows he's more interested in making himself feel better rather than caring about the well being on his friends. Additionally, "yelling" on social media would likely only increase the influx of:
* Political posts reminding Cueball of his sadness
* Angry messages back at him
* Reminders of the reason he's sad, including possibly "rubbing in" the sad feelings
* Posts designed to offend Cueball, including posts designed to offend his political sensibilities
* new & improved reasons to be sad, such as being unfriended for incorrectly blaming his acquaintances
* future vicious-circle reasons to be sad, including picking future candidates which are a poor compromise and losing future elections
All of these would make him feel worse, potentially in relatively short order.

==Transcript==
:Cueball (thinking): I feel sad.
:Bad things are happening.

:Cueball (thinking): They must be someone's fault.
:But whose?

:[Cueball makes several thinking poses before a light bulb appears, indicating he has an idea]

:Cueball (thinking): ''My friends on Facebook.''

==Citations==
<references/>

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]
[[Category:Social networking]]

1463: Altitude

2017-01-24T23:06:11Z

Mjychabaud22: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1463
| date = December 22, 2014
| title = Altitude
| image = altitude.png
| titletext = "TURN OFF THE LASER GUIDE STAR" "WHY" "STAR CATS"
}}

==Explanation==
In this comic, Randall is making fun of how {{w|Altitude sickness|oxygen deprivation}} can lead to reduced mental acuity. In this case, the mental clarity of the researchers devolves as they approach the high altitude telescope, leading to juvenile and almost intoxicated behavior. Dizziness, lightheadedness, impaired judgment, and euphoria are symptoms of oxygen deprivation, or hypoxia. Those researchers would benefit from having a written list or plan developed while they were still functioning at peak mental acuity.
Note that high altitude does not lead to severe effects as described in the comic.

[http://exoplanets.astro.yale.edu/instrumentation/iodine_cells.php Iodine cells] are used for wavelength calibrations of high-resolution RV spectra between 501 and 610 nm.

Note that the phrase "low oxygen" refers to the lower partial pressure of oxygen at altitude. The proportion of oxygen at high elevations is still approximately 2/9ths of the atmosphere, the same as at sea level. The altitude sickness is caused by lowered atmospheric pressure which leads to smaller amount of oxygen actually delivered ("pushed") into bloodstream.

The title text refers to a {{w|laser guide star}} a device for focusing telescopes by making artificial reference points in the sky. The reference points are created by shooting a powerful laser into the sky. The concern of the astronomer in the comic is that an imagined "star cat" may be attracted to the laser in the same way that [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcjB2qN0TxM cats playfully chase laser beams] projected on surfaces. Cats' reactions to laser pointers were previously explored in [[729: Laser Pointer]].

==Transcript==
:Because of low oxygen, astronomers working at high altitude telescopes may need to write down their plans ahead of time while at sea level.

:[Some astronomers are inside a sea-level research facility.]
:Astronomer #1: Ok, let's head up to the observatory.

:[The astronomers drive uphill.]
:Astronomer #1: When we reach the summit, we'll check the iodine cell and do a general calibration.
:Astronomer #2: Sounds good.

:[The astronomers have reached the high-altitude observatory.]
:Astronomer #1: My head feels funny.
:Astronomer #2: Look at those telescope domes. I hope they don't roll away.
:Astronomer #1: Maybe we should tape them down.

:[The astronomers are inside one of the domes.]
:Astronomer #1: Haha, look at this mirror! My face is huge!
:Astronomer #2: I see your face in the telescope! I discovered you!
:Astronomer #1: Let's make out!

{{comic discussion}}

862: Let Go

2017-01-24T23:00:22Z

Mjychabaud22: Grammar fix

{{comic
| number = 862
| date = February 18, 2011
| title = Let Go
| image = let go.png
| titletext = After years of trying various methods, I broke this habit by pitting my impatience against my laziness. I decoupled the action and the neurological reward by setting up a simple 30-second delay I had to wait through, in which I couldn't do anything else, before any new page or chat client would load (and only allowed one to run at once). The urge to check all those sites magically vanished--and my 'productive' computer use was unaffected.
}}

==Explanation==
It is human nature to lose interest in difficult or boring tasks, and instead do something easier, more interesting or more rewarding in the short term. While procrastination and distraction from more important tasks has always been present, this comic casts a light on the internet and the huge potential for distraction which it provides.

The first two frames in this comic are the set-up, and contain the websites {{w|CNN}} and {{w|Reddit}} and thoughts over the top of them. These types of websites are regularly updated with new content are prime candidates for distraction. The thought bubbles indicate that the reader is fully aware that they shouldn't be looking at these websites, but is unable to stop himself. Even the very rational thought that checking news stories more than once a day is bordering on pointless doesn't seem to stop him.

In the third frame, it starts to look a little different as the screen is not a computer but is in fact the targeting computer from {{w|Luke Skywalker|Luke Skywalker's}} {{w|X-wing}}. At this point it becomes clear that there are ''far'' more important tasks at hand, namely flying the craft. Even then, Luke has an internal conflict and considers checking {{w|Facebook}}, but mentally checks himself, and to prevent himself from further compulsive browsing shuts down the system. The thought bubble at the bottom is one that is probably familiar to many people (especially students), where he realizes that he has to turn off the computer to actually concentrate on the important task.

In the fourth frame, we finally get the movie reference from {{w|Star Wars}} as {{w|Princess Leia}} and one of the Rebel Alliance's officers are gathered around the holographic table that allows them to follow the battle. In the movie, Luke turns off his targeting computer because he uses the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Force_%28Star_Wars%29 force] to fire the torpedoes at the right time. But in this comic, Luke turns off the computer because he keeps getting distracted by Reddit and CNN. When they ask whether he is alright, he responds in the way most people would who have nearly been caught wasting time on the internet. This is however a quote of what he actually replies in the movie.

See the [http://youtu.be/DOFgFAcGHQc Destruction of Death Star] scene on YouTube. The ''Let Go'' remark from {{w|Obi-Wan Kenobi}} that had given the title to this comic occurs about [http://youtu.be/DOFgFAcGHQc?t=2m two minutes into the clip]. Though here it is a reference to let go of refreshing websites...

The headlines on CNN read 'Bees?', 'Where is {{w|Oman}}?', and 'iReport (we mean you, that is.)'.

The headline ''Bees?'' could be a reference to {{w|Cards Against Humanity}}. One of the white cards says exactly that. It could also just be a question to the picture above - if it was bees following the guy.

The headline ''Where is Oman?'' is below a map where land is white. It shows Cyprus, Northern Egypt and the Middle East with the Mediterranean Sea, the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf (seas are grey). Oman is not on this map as it is not situated on the Persian Gulf; it's on the Gulf of Oman and on the Arabian Sea, both of which can be considered parts of the Indian Ocean.

The title text is a serious solution to a procrastination problem that we see in the comic, [http://blog.xkcd.com/2011/02/18/distraction-affliction-correction-extensio/ later explained] to take the form of simply rebooting the computer.

==Transcript==
:[Reddit page.]
:Luke (thinking): I shouldn't be looking at Reddit. Why can't I stop?

:[CNN page.]
:Luke (thinking): Refreshing CNN again. Do news stories so affect my life that I benefit from checking them more than once a day?

:[Shutdown screen.]
:Luke (thinking): I should at least check Faceb... no. Screw it. I can't do my job when I'm distracting myself every five minutes like this.

:[Two people before a battlefield screen.]
:Cueball: His computer's off. Luke - You've switched off your targeting computer. What's wrong?
:Luke: Nothing. I'm all right.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Star Wars]]
[[Category:Internet]]

1787: Voice Commands

2017-01-19T15:22:51Z

Mjychabaud22: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1787
| date = January 18, 2017
| title = Voice Commands
| image = voice_commands.png
| titletext = Dvorak words may sound hard to pronounce, but studies show they actually put less stress on the vocal chords.
}}

==Explanation==
The {{w|Dvorak_Simplified_Keyboard|Dvorak keyboard layout}} was designed to replace the {{w|QWERTY}} keyboard layout (the de facto standard keyboard layout in English-speaking countries, so named for the starting letters in the top row). The Dvorak layout was designed in the belief that it would significantly increase typing speeds over the QWERTY layout. This can be seen, among other ways, by the popular misconception that the placement of letters in the QWERTY standard were deliberately organized to limit typing speed in accommodation the tendency of original mechanical typewriters to jam if two adjacent keys were pressed in quick succession. (In fact, the original QWERTY layout was designed to help type American Morse code and subsequently optimized a bit for different users [http://hackaday.com/2016/03/15/the-origin-of-qwerty/], [http://kanji.zinbun.kyoto-u.ac.jp/~yasuoka/publications/PreQWERTY.html].)

Even as other arguably better layouts were proposed over the years since the introduction of the QWERTY keyboard, QWERTY remained the standard due to widespread use.

Using Dvorak for speech to text, however, makes no sense whatsoever as there is no keyboard, real, virtual, or otherwise, involved in speaking. Even the virtual keyboard (usually QWERTY layout but often changeable) included in most phones and tablet devices is not used when speaking to the phone.

The sentence Cueball tells his phone translates to "Okay Google send a text" - he says it as if he were typing the sentence on a Dvorak layout with the keyboard set to a QWERTY layout. How such words would be pronounced is a mystery, as the letters in the words are merely substituted with others with no regard to phonetics; without standardized pronunciations, a speech-to-text program would be useless. To add to the confusion, one of the words in Cueball's sentence includes an unpronounceable semi-colon as one of its letters.

The title text is a reference to the fact that many users of DVORAK keyboards claim they may be hard to learn, but they are more movement efficient and put less stress on your fingers due to less movement. For example, see the link at http://www.dvzine.org/zine/10-11.html . This makes little sense in the scenario set up by the comic, as speaking gibberish using oddly placed vowels would be equally difficult, if not in fact harder, on the vocal cords. The use in the title text of 'vocal chords' rather than 'vocal cords' may be a reference to a stenograph (a typewriter used by a court stenographer) using multiple keys pressed at the same time, called a 'chord', to produce a single letter.

Using a Dvorak layout on a smartphone (for actual typing, not voice commands) is possible, but the very features that make it desirable in a physical touch-typing environment are drawbacks on a swipe-enabled keyboard. A placement designed to alternate a typist's left and right hands requires the finger of a swipist to travel back and forth across the keyboard more often. Fitting commonly-used letters onto the typist's home row reduces finger movement but makes many words the swipist enters indistinguishable. On a QWERTY swipe keyboard, four English words can be entered by swiping right to left from P to T: "pot", "pit", "put", and "pout"; however, setting the layout to Dvorak causes this to happen with many more common sets of words.

==Transcript==
[Ponytail and Cueball are standing looking at each other. Cueball is holding a phone.]

Ponytail: Can you text it to me?

Cueball: Sure!

Cueball: ''SVAT USSUPD ;DLH A KDBK''

Ponytail: ...What?

Phone: *BEEP*

[Caption under the panel:]

Setting my phone's speech recognition to Dvorak was a pain at first, but it's more efficient in the long run.

Note: Cueball is saying "OKAY GOOGLE SEND A TEXT" if you account for keyboard layout.

{{comic discussion}}

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