explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

2976: Time Traveler Causes of Death

2024-08-28T15:08:35Z

Nutster: /* Table of death causes */ Grammar fix.

{{comic
| number = 2976
| date = August 23, 2024
| title = Time Traveler Causes of Death
| image = time_traveler_causes_of_death_2x.png
| imagesize = 332x677px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Many a hungry time traveler has Googled 'trilobites shellfish allergy' only to find their carrier had no coverage in the Ordovician.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a TIME TRAVELLING BOT WITH NO CELL SERVICE IN THE PROTOZOIC ERA- Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

Time travel is a common sci-fi/fantasy plot, in which someone from one era is sent forward or backward in time to another era. Normally, the travel itself goes off without a hitch, with the usual threats to the time traveler being what happens at some point ''after'' they arrive at their destination. More rarely, a time traveler might immediately encounter some hazard because of where their time travel method has deposited them.

This comic takes the latter situation to the extreme, observing different causes of death for potential time travelers through the ages based on the geologic evolution of Earth from its formation over 4 billion years ago to the present; see detailed explanation in the [[#Table of death causes|table]]. The chart shows only the most likely cause for a given period of time, although the title text reveals that there may always be others possible.

The title text suggests that an alternative fate within the "eaten by fish" era is the exact opposite - eating something hazardous. A time traveler, having fortuitously avoided the primary "Starving" fate of the prior era, may try eating a {{w|trilobite}}, a kind of shellfish. They may find that either some existing allergy is triggered by this prehistoric shellfish, or that the creatures of that age spark a new allergic condition that (as a modern human) they were not previously aware they could develop a reaction against. A person with a known allergy might check for the possible presence of a problematic ingredient in a potential snack by referencing online resources - a facility that is not available here, with the smartphone stuck in the past, long before any network is available to connect to (notwithstanding that Google Search has not existed historically for more than three decades). Alternatively, suspecting the food they've eaten has not agreed with them, they could find they are denied easy access to the best online information on how to properly treat their symptoms.

===Table of death causes===
{| class=wikitable
! scope="col" | Cause of death
! Scope=“col” | Time frame
! scope="col" | Explanation
|-
| Lava || Earth Forms || During the formation of the Earth, the surface was a hellish landscape of lava.{{fact}}
|-
| Asphyxiation || 4 billion years ago || Before {{w|cyanobacteria}} started photosynthesizing and producing oxygen, the atmosphere of the Earth was mainly composed of hydrogen sulfide, methane, and carbon dioxide, without significant oxygen humans need to breathe.
|-
| Meteors || 3.9 billion years ago || During the hypothesized {{w|Late Heavy Bombardment}}, the Earth's surface was subjected to a large number of asteroid and comet impacts, destroying much of Earth's early crust. According to the table, the heavy bombardment was so severe that this was the most likely cause of death during a period when there was still no oxygen. Even when these meteors came at an alarming rate, however, the chance of being hit by one of these before asphyxiation due to an atmosphere without any oxygen seems remote. Of course, if the time machine had some oxygen along with it and the reason people died from lack of oxygen was that they stayed there for a long time, the chance of death-by-meteor would increase.
|-
| Asphyxiation || 3 billion years ago || See above.
|-
| Slightly slower asphyxiation || 2 billion years ago|| Cyanobacteria had started photosynthesizing, leading to the {{w|Great Oxygenation Event|Oxygen Catastrophe}}, but oxygen levels still weren’t high enough to support human life.
|-
| Freezing || Less than 1 billion years ago || During the {{w|Cryogenian|Cryogenian Ice Age}}, the Earth’s temperature fell to -12°C, much too cold to support human life if not properly prepared.
|-
| Starving || 600 to 485 million years ago || During this time, the temperature was mild and comfortable; however, the only life during this time was single-cell organisms and – especially later – tiny multicellular organisms, which are very difficult to gather and may not be sufficiently healthy and nutritious. (Imagine surviving only on bacteria today.)
|-
| Eaten by fish || 485 to 250 million years ago || During the {{w|Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event}} and subsequent times, fish {{w|Evolution of fish|evolved jaws}} and some species grew quite large.
|-
| Trampled || 252 to 66 million years ago || The {{w|Mesozoic Era}} is often called the “Age of Dinosaurs." The majority of these dinosaurs were herbivorous and many were quite large, so being eaten would be less likely than being trampled on.
Note that this is an almost exact inversion of what happens in the classic story ''{{w|A Sound of Thunder}}'', in which the traveler survives personally unscathed but tramples an 'age of dinosaur' creature (to unfortunate effect).
|-
| Eaten by mammals || 66 million years ago to sometime before now || The {{w|Cenozoic Era}}, which began 66 million years ago, is often referred to as the "Age of Mammals". Though some eras have more likely causes of death (such as wars, but that would basically be during the "Now" period in the table), overall being eaten by large mammals is probably the biggest risk.
|-
| Time machine door gets stuck || Roughly present day || As the timeline approaches the present day, the conditions on Earth become more than suitable enough for a human time traveler to survive extended periods of time — as evidenced by the fact hominids and early humans begin to emerge. As such there's nothing else more likely to kill them than getting stuck in the time machine and dying of thirst or starvation (or, if the time machine is air-tight, asphyxiating). This assumes the time machine is also a {{w|Faraday Cage}} (that can block the signal of an emergency call) or the traveler doesn't take their phone with them, although the title text indicates they will. Or that the "Now" period extends back before cell phones and compatible cellular networks, maybe covering the entire period of human civilization. It could also be that time travel is deadly if the machine door does not close all the way. But mostly it is a punchline comparing severely dangerous situations to severely harmless ones.
|-
|}

==Transcript==
:[A chart with a time line going from top to bottom is shown. Starting when the Earth forms and ending at present day. The chart is a rectangle divided into 11 segments. Each segment has a label written inside it, except the bottom which is too thin, thus the label is to the right of the chart with an arrow pointing to the segment. The left side of the chart is a timeline with ticks and labels for the time period. At the top an arrow points to the top left corner of the chart with a label indicating the starting time. And then there are 5 ticks, the first four equidistant and then only half the distance for the last tick. A final label is at the bottom of the chart. Above the chart there is a heading:]
:Top causes of death for time travelers by geologic era:

:[Text in the table from the top, with the time to the left differentiated from the labels which are indented:]
:Earth forms
::Lava
::Asphyxiation
:4 billion years ago
::Meteors
::Asphyxiation
:3 billion years ago
:2 billion years ago
::Slightly slower asphyxiation
:1 billion years ago
::Freezing
::Starving
:500 million years ago
::Eaten by fish
::Trampled
::Eaten by mammals
:Now
::Time machine door gets stuck

== Trivia ==

Modern adults can actually have great difficulty surviving without modern conveniences, and may die of freezing if released into an earlier era than they are familiar with. Children of certain ages may thrive well, neither freezing or being eaten by mammals, after a period of adaptation.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Timelines]]
[[Category:Time travel]]
[[Category:Geology]]
[[Category:Animals]]

2117: Differentiation and Integration

2024-08-01T21:14:54Z

Nutster: /* Differentiation */ Error fixes.

{{comic
| number = 2117
| date = February 27, 2019
| title = Differentiation and Integration
| image = differentiation_and_integration.png
| titletext = "Symbolic integration" is when you theatrically go through the motions of finding integrals, but the actual result you get doesn't matter because it's purely symbolic.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|The HTML needs to be fixed. CS students, please help us.}}
This comic illustrates the old saying [https://mathoverflow.net/q/66377 "Differentiation is mechanics, integration is art."] It does so by providing a {{w|flowchart}} purporting to show the process of differentiation, and another for integration.

{{w|Derivative|Differentiation}} and {{w|Antiderivative|Integration}} are two major components of {{w|calculus}}. As many Calculus 2 students are painfully aware, integration is much more complicated than the differentiation it undoes.

However, Randall dramatically overstates this point here. After the first step of integration, Randall assumes that any integration can not be solved so simply, and then dives into a step named "????", suggesting that it is unknowable how to proceed. The rest of the flowchart is (we can assume deliberately) even harder to follow, and does not reach a conclusion. This is in contrast to the simple, straightforward flowchart for differentiation. The fact that the arrows in the bottom of the integration part leads to nowhere indicates that "Phone calls to mathematicians", "Oh no" and "Burn the evidence" are not final steps in the difficult journey. The flowchart could be extended by Randall to God-knows-where extents.

It should be noted that Randall slightly undermines his point by providing four different methods, and an "etc", and a "No"-branch for attempting differentiation with no guidelines for selecting between them.

===Differentiation===
'''{{w|Chain rule}}'''

For any <math> \frac{d}{dx}f(x)=f'(x)</math> and <math> \frac{d}{dx}g(x)=g'(x) </math>, it follows that <math> \frac{d}{dx}(f(g(x)))=f'(g(x))\cdot g'(x)</math>.

'''{{w|Power Rule}}'''

For any <math> f(x)=k x^a </math>, it follows that <math> \frac{d f(x)}{dx}=k a\cdot x^{a-1} </math>.

'''{{w|Quotient rule}}'''

For any <math> \frac{d}{dx}f(x)=f'(x)</math> and <math> \frac{d}{dx}g(x)=g'(x) </math>, it follows that <math> \frac{d}{dx} \frac{f(x)}{g(x)}=\frac{f'(x)\cdot g(x)-f(x)\cdot g'(x)}{(g(x))^2}</math> if <math>g(x)\ne 0</math>.

'''{{w|Product rule}}'''

For any <math> \frac{d}{dx}f(x)=f'(x)</math> and <math> \frac{d}{dx}g(x)=g'(x) </math>, it follows that <math> \frac{d}{dx}(f(x)\cdot g(x))=f'(x)\cdot g(x)+f(x)\cdot g'(x)</math>.

===Integration===
'''{{w|Integration by parts}}'''

The "product rule" run backwards. Since <math>(uv)' = uv' + u'v</math>, it follows that by integrating both sides you get <math> uv = \int u dv + \int v du</math>, which is more commonly written as <math>\int u dv = uv - \int v du</math>. By finding appropriate values for functions <math>u, v</math> such that your problem is in the form <math>\int u dv</math>, your problem ''may'' be simplified. The catch is, there exists no algorithm for determining what functions they might possibly be, so this approach quickly devolves into a guessing game - this has been the topic of an earlier comic, [[1201: Integration by Parts]].

'''{{w|Integration by substitution|Substitution}}'''

The "chain rule" run backwards. Since <math> d(f(u)) = f'(u) \frac{du}{dx} dx</math>, it follows that <math>f(u) = \int f'(u) \frac{du}{dx} dx</math>. By finding appropriate values for functions <math>f, u</math> such that your problem is in the form <math>\int f'(u) \frac{du}{dx} dx</math> your problem ''may'' be simplified.

'''{{w|Cauchy's integral formula|Cauchy's Formula}}'''

Cauchy's Integral formula is a result in complex analysis that relates the value of a contour integral in the complex plane to properties of the singularities in the interior of the contour. <math> \frac{d^n}{da^n}f(a) = \frac{n!}{2\pi i} \oint_\gamma \frac{f(z)}{\left(z-a\right)^{n+1}}\, dz.</math> It is often used to compute integrals on the real line by extending the path of the integral from the real line into the complex plane to apply the formula, then proving that the integral from the parts of the contour not on the real line has value zero.

'''{{w|Partial_fraction_decomposition#Application_to_symbolic_integration|Partial Fractions}}'''

Partial fractions is a technique for breaking up a function that comprises one polynomial divided by another into a sum of functions comprising constants over the factors of the original denominator, which can easily be integrated into logarithms.

'''Install {{w|Mathematica}}'''

Mathematica is a modern technical computing system spanning most areas. One of its features is to compute mathematical functions. This step in the flowchart is to install and use Mathematica to do the integration for you. Here is a description about the [https://web.archive.org/web/20180727184709/http://reference.wolfram.com/language/tutorial/IntegralsThatCanAndCannotBeDone.html intricacies of integration and how Mathematica handles those]. (It would be quicker to try [https://www.wolframalpha.com Wolfram Alpha] instead of installing Mathematica, which uses the same backend for mathematical calculations.)

'''{{w|Riemann integral|Riemann Integration}}'''

The Riemann integral is a definition of definite integration. Elementary textbooks on calculus sometimes present finding a definite integral as a process of approximating an area by strips of equal width, as in <math>\sum_{i=0}^{n-1} f(t_i) \left(x_{i+1}-x_i\right).</math>, and then taking the limit as the strips become narrower. Riemann integration removes the requirement that the strips have equal width, and so is a more flexible definition. However there are still many functions for which the Riemann integral doesn't converge, and consideration of these functions leads to the {{w|Lebesgue integration|Lebesgue integral}}. Riemann integration is not a method of calculus appropriate for finding the anti-derivative of an elementary function.

'''{{w|Stokes' Theorem}}'''

Stokes' theorem is a statement about the integration of differential forms on manifolds. <math>\int_{\partial \Omega}\omega=\int_\Omega d\omega\,.</math> It is invoked in science and engineering during control volume analysis (that is, to track the rate of change of a quantity within a control volume, it suffices to track the fluxes in and out of the control volume boundary), but is rarely used directly (and even when it is used directly, the functions that are most frequently used in science and engineering are well-behaved, like sinusoids and polynomials).

'''{{w|Risch Algorithm}}'''

The Risch algorithm is a notoriously complex procedure that, given a certain class of symbolic integrand, either finds a symbolic integral or proves that no elementary integral exists. (Technically it is only a semi-algorithm, and cannot produce an answer unless it can determine if a certain symbolic expression is {{w|Constant problem|equal to 0}} or not.) Many computer algebra systems have chosen to implement only the simpler Risch-Norman algorithm, which does not come with the same guarantee. A series of extensions to the Risch algorithm extend the class of allowable functions to include (at least) the error function and the logarithmic integral. A human would have to be pretty desperate to attempt this (presumably) by hand.

'''{{w|Bessel function}}'''

Bessel functions are the solution to the differential equation <math> x^2 \frac{d^2y}{dx^2}+x \frac{dy}{dx}+(x^2-n^2)*y=0</math>, where n is the order of Bessel function. Though they do show up in some engineering, physics, and abstract mathematics, in lower levels of calculus they are often a sign that the integration was not set up properly before someone put them into a symbolic algebra solver.

'''Phone calls to mathematicians'''

This step would indicate that the flowchart user, desperate from failed attempts to solve the problem, contacts some more skilled mathematicians by phone, and presumably asks them for help. The connected steps of "Oh no", "What the heck is a Bessel function?" and "Burn the evidence" may suggest the possibility that this interaction might not play out very well and could even get the caller in trouble.
Specialists and renowned experts being bothered - not to their amusement - by strangers, often at highly inconvenient times or locations, is a common comedic trope, also previously utilized by xkcd (for example in [[163: Donald Knuth]]).

'''Burn the evidence'''

This phrase parodies a common trope in detective fiction, where characters burn notes, receipts, passports, etc. to maintain secrecy. This may refer to the burning of one's work to avoid the shame of being associated with such a badly failed attempt to solve the given integration problem. Moreover, such a poor attempt at integration could be viewed as a 'crime against mathematics', with the working of the problem being criminal 'evidence' that must be destroyed to avoid exposure as the culprit. Alternatively, it could be an ironic hint to the fact that in order to find the integral, it may even be necessary to break the law or upset higher powers, so the negative consequences of a prosecution can only be avoided by destroying the evidence.

'''{{w|Symbolic integration}}'''

Symbolic integration is the basic process of finding an antiderivative function (defined with symbols), as opposed to numerically integrating a function. The title text is a pun that defines the term not as integration that works with symbols, but rather as integration as a symbolic act, as if it were a component of a ritual. A symbolic act in a ritual is an act meant to evoke something else, such as burning a wooden figurine of a person to represent one’s hatred of that person. Alternatively, the reference could be seen as a joke that integration might as well be a symbol, like in a novel, because Randall can't get any meaningful results from his analysis.

==Transcript==
:[Two flow charts are shown.]

:[The first flow chart has four steps in simple order, one with multiple recommendations.]
:DIFFERENTIATION
:Start
:Try applying
::Chain Rule
::Power Rule
::Quotient Rule
::Product Rule
::Etc.
:Done?
::No [Arrow returns to "Try applying" step.]
::Yes
:Done!

[The second flow chart begins like the first, then descends into chaos.]
:INTEGRATION
:Start
:Try applying
::Integration by Parts
::Substitution
:Done?
:Haha, Nope!

:[Chaos, Roughly from left to right, top to bottom, direction arrows not included.]
::Cauchy's Formula
::????
::???!?
::???
::???
::?
::Partial Fractions
::??
::?
::Install Mathematica
::?
::Riemann Integration
::Stokes' Theorem
::???
::?
::Risch Algorithm
::???
::[Sad face.]
::?????
::???
::What the heck is a Bessel Function??
::Phone calls to mathematicians
::Oh No
::Burn the Evidence
::[More arrows pointing out of the image to suggest more steps.]

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Analysis]]
[[Category:Flowcharts]]
[[Category:Math]]

2117: Differentiation and Integration

2024-08-01T21:13:33Z

Nutster: /* Differentiation */ The power rule does not need to combined with this style of chain rule, so I simplified it to just the power rule.

{{comic
| number = 2117
| date = February 27, 2019
| title = Differentiation and Integration
| image = differentiation_and_integration.png
| titletext = "Symbolic integration" is when you theatrically go through the motions of finding integrals, but the actual result you get doesn't matter because it's purely symbolic.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|The HTML needs to be fixed. CS students, please help us.}}
This comic illustrates the old saying [https://mathoverflow.net/q/66377 "Differentiation is mechanics, integration is art."] It does so by providing a {{w|flowchart}} purporting to show the process of differentiation, and another for integration.

{{w|Derivative|Differentiation}} and {{w|Antiderivative|Integration}} are two major components of {{w|calculus}}. As many Calculus 2 students are painfully aware, integration is much more complicated than the differentiation it undoes.

However, Randall dramatically overstates this point here. After the first step of integration, Randall assumes that any integration can not be solved so simply, and then dives into a step named "????", suggesting that it is unknowable how to proceed. The rest of the flowchart is (we can assume deliberately) even harder to follow, and does not reach a conclusion. This is in contrast to the simple, straightforward flowchart for differentiation. The fact that the arrows in the bottom of the integration part leads to nowhere indicates that "Phone calls to mathematicians", "Oh no" and "Burn the evidence" are not final steps in the difficult journey. The flowchart could be extended by Randall to God-knows-where extents.

It should be noted that Randall slightly undermines his point by providing four different methods, and an "etc", and a "No"-branch for attempting differentiation with no guidelines for selecting between them.

===Differentiation===
'''{{w|Chain rule}}'''

For any <math> \frac{d}{dx}f(x)=f'(x)</math> and <math> \frac{d}{dx}g(x)=g'(x) </math>, it follows that <math> \frac{d}{dx}(f(g(x)))=f'(g(x))\cdot g'(x)</math>.

'''{{w|Power Rule}}'''

For any <math> f(x)=kx^a </math>, it follows that <math> \frac{d f(X)}{dx}f(x)=k a\cdot x^{a-1}</math>.

'''{{w|Quotient rule}}'''

For any <math> \frac{d}{dx}f(x)=f'(x)</math> and <math> \frac{d}{dx}g(x)=g'(x) </math>, it follows that <math> \frac{d}{dx} \frac{f(x)}{g(x)}=\frac{f'(x)\cdot g(x)-f(x)\cdot g'(x)}{(g(x))^2}</math> if <math>g(x)\ne 0</math>.

'''{{w|Product rule}}'''

For any <math> \frac{d}{dx}f(x)=f'(x)</math> and <math> \frac{d}{dx}g(x)=g'(x) </math>, it follows that <math> \frac{d}{dx}(f(x)\cdot g(x))=f'(x)\cdot g(x)+f(x)\cdot g'(x)</math>.

===Integration===
'''{{w|Integration by parts}}'''

The "product rule" run backwards. Since <math>(uv)' = uv' + u'v</math>, it follows that by integrating both sides you get <math> uv = \int u dv + \int v du</math>, which is more commonly written as <math>\int u dv = uv - \int v du</math>. By finding appropriate values for functions <math>u, v</math> such that your problem is in the form <math>\int u dv</math>, your problem ''may'' be simplified. The catch is, there exists no algorithm for determining what functions they might possibly be, so this approach quickly devolves into a guessing game - this has been the topic of an earlier comic, [[1201: Integration by Parts]].

'''{{w|Integration by substitution|Substitution}}'''

The "chain rule" run backwards. Since <math> d(f(u)) = f'(u) \frac{du}{dx} dx</math>, it follows that <math>f(u) = \int f'(u) \frac{du}{dx} dx</math>. By finding appropriate values for functions <math>f, u</math> such that your problem is in the form <math>\int f'(u) \frac{du}{dx} dx</math> your problem ''may'' be simplified.

'''{{w|Cauchy's integral formula|Cauchy's Formula}}'''

Cauchy's Integral formula is a result in complex analysis that relates the value of a contour integral in the complex plane to properties of the singularities in the interior of the contour. <math> \frac{d^n}{da^n}f(a) = \frac{n!}{2\pi i} \oint_\gamma \frac{f(z)}{\left(z-a\right)^{n+1}}\, dz.</math> It is often used to compute integrals on the real line by extending the path of the integral from the real line into the complex plane to apply the formula, then proving that the integral from the parts of the contour not on the real line has value zero.

'''{{w|Partial_fraction_decomposition#Application_to_symbolic_integration|Partial Fractions}}'''

Partial fractions is a technique for breaking up a function that comprises one polynomial divided by another into a sum of functions comprising constants over the factors of the original denominator, which can easily be integrated into logarithms.

'''Install {{w|Mathematica}}'''

Mathematica is a modern technical computing system spanning most areas. One of its features is to compute mathematical functions. This step in the flowchart is to install and use Mathematica to do the integration for you. Here is a description about the [https://web.archive.org/web/20180727184709/http://reference.wolfram.com/language/tutorial/IntegralsThatCanAndCannotBeDone.html intricacies of integration and how Mathematica handles those]. (It would be quicker to try [https://www.wolframalpha.com Wolfram Alpha] instead of installing Mathematica, which uses the same backend for mathematical calculations.)

'''{{w|Riemann integral|Riemann Integration}}'''

The Riemann integral is a definition of definite integration. Elementary textbooks on calculus sometimes present finding a definite integral as a process of approximating an area by strips of equal width, as in <math>\sum_{i=0}^{n-1} f(t_i) \left(x_{i+1}-x_i\right).</math>, and then taking the limit as the strips become narrower. Riemann integration removes the requirement that the strips have equal width, and so is a more flexible definition. However there are still many functions for which the Riemann integral doesn't converge, and consideration of these functions leads to the {{w|Lebesgue integration|Lebesgue integral}}. Riemann integration is not a method of calculus appropriate for finding the anti-derivative of an elementary function.

'''{{w|Stokes' Theorem}}'''

Stokes' theorem is a statement about the integration of differential forms on manifolds. <math>\int_{\partial \Omega}\omega=\int_\Omega d\omega\,.</math> It is invoked in science and engineering during control volume analysis (that is, to track the rate of change of a quantity within a control volume, it suffices to track the fluxes in and out of the control volume boundary), but is rarely used directly (and even when it is used directly, the functions that are most frequently used in science and engineering are well-behaved, like sinusoids and polynomials).

'''{{w|Risch Algorithm}}'''

The Risch algorithm is a notoriously complex procedure that, given a certain class of symbolic integrand, either finds a symbolic integral or proves that no elementary integral exists. (Technically it is only a semi-algorithm, and cannot produce an answer unless it can determine if a certain symbolic expression is {{w|Constant problem|equal to 0}} or not.) Many computer algebra systems have chosen to implement only the simpler Risch-Norman algorithm, which does not come with the same guarantee. A series of extensions to the Risch algorithm extend the class of allowable functions to include (at least) the error function and the logarithmic integral. A human would have to be pretty desperate to attempt this (presumably) by hand.

'''{{w|Bessel function}}'''

Bessel functions are the solution to the differential equation <math> x^2 \frac{d^2y}{dx^2}+x \frac{dy}{dx}+(x^2-n^2)*y=0</math>, where n is the order of Bessel function. Though they do show up in some engineering, physics, and abstract mathematics, in lower levels of calculus they are often a sign that the integration was not set up properly before someone put them into a symbolic algebra solver.

'''Phone calls to mathematicians'''

This step would indicate that the flowchart user, desperate from failed attempts to solve the problem, contacts some more skilled mathematicians by phone, and presumably asks them for help. The connected steps of "Oh no", "What the heck is a Bessel function?" and "Burn the evidence" may suggest the possibility that this interaction might not play out very well and could even get the caller in trouble.
Specialists and renowned experts being bothered - not to their amusement - by strangers, often at highly inconvenient times or locations, is a common comedic trope, also previously utilized by xkcd (for example in [[163: Donald Knuth]]).

'''Burn the evidence'''

This phrase parodies a common trope in detective fiction, where characters burn notes, receipts, passports, etc. to maintain secrecy. This may refer to the burning of one's work to avoid the shame of being associated with such a badly failed attempt to solve the given integration problem. Moreover, such a poor attempt at integration could be viewed as a 'crime against mathematics', with the working of the problem being criminal 'evidence' that must be destroyed to avoid exposure as the culprit. Alternatively, it could be an ironic hint to the fact that in order to find the integral, it may even be necessary to break the law or upset higher powers, so the negative consequences of a prosecution can only be avoided by destroying the evidence.

'''{{w|Symbolic integration}}'''

Symbolic integration is the basic process of finding an antiderivative function (defined with symbols), as opposed to numerically integrating a function. The title text is a pun that defines the term not as integration that works with symbols, but rather as integration as a symbolic act, as if it were a component of a ritual. A symbolic act in a ritual is an act meant to evoke something else, such as burning a wooden figurine of a person to represent one’s hatred of that person. Alternatively, the reference could be seen as a joke that integration might as well be a symbol, like in a novel, because Randall can't get any meaningful results from his analysis.

==Transcript==
:[Two flow charts are shown.]

:[The first flow chart has four steps in simple order, one with multiple recommendations.]
:DIFFERENTIATION
:Start
:Try applying
::Chain Rule
::Power Rule
::Quotient Rule
::Product Rule
::Etc.
:Done?
::No [Arrow returns to "Try applying" step.]
::Yes
:Done!

[The second flow chart begins like the first, then descends into chaos.]
:INTEGRATION
:Start
:Try applying
::Integration by Parts
::Substitution
:Done?
:Haha, Nope!

:[Chaos, Roughly from left to right, top to bottom, direction arrows not included.]
::Cauchy's Formula
::????
::???!?
::???
::???
::?
::Partial Fractions
::??
::?
::Install Mathematica
::?
::Riemann Integration
::Stokes' Theorem
::???
::?
::Risch Algorithm
::???
::[Sad face.]
::?????
::???
::What the heck is a Bessel Function??
::Phone calls to mathematicians
::Oh No
::Burn the Evidence
::[More arrows pointing out of the image to suggest more steps.]

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Analysis]]
[[Category:Flowcharts]]
[[Category:Math]]

2963: House Inputs and Outputs

2024-07-27T06:26:59Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ A well could be used as a source of water pressure for hydrolic power transfer.

{{comic
| number = 2963
| date = July 24, 2024
| title = House Inputs and Outputs
| image = house_inputs_and_outputs_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x684px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = People think power over ethernet is so great, and yet when I try to do water over ethernet everyone yells at me.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a possible reference to [[1037: Umwelt]] in panel 16 - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

This is another comic in a series depicting {{w|confusion matrix|confusion matrices}}, similar to [[2813: What To Do]], [[2420: Appliances]], and [[1890: What to Bring]]. It is arranged as a table of five columns of conduits to and from a house, by five rows of resources and people, each of which typically enter, exit or both enter ''and'' exit the house via at least one of the identified conduits. The table cells have a green background for compatible methods of transit; a red tint is used for the more problematic pairings. Each panel can be read as "[row label] [entering and/or exiting] the house via the [column label]", for example, "Fresh water entering the house via the well".

{| class="wikitable" style="background-color: lightpink;"
|+ Explanations of the "House Inputs and Outputs" table cell drawings
! !! Well !! Garage !! Power lines !! Front door !! Septic tank
|-
! Fresh water (Input)
|style="background-color: palegreen;"| The purpose of a well is usually to supply fresh water into the home, primarily for drinking or washing. It may be unnecessary in many places if a reliable {{w|water supply network}} is available. || Long gone are the days of {{w|Labours_of_Hercules#Fifth:_Augean_stables|having to clean up after your primary mode of transportation}}, for most people. A source of water may be useful to clean a vehicle itself, although this would perhaps be more commonly done outside. || Power lines conduct electricity, not water. The two functions are inherently dangerous if carelessly combined. Water can be used to cool high-energy lines, such as fast battery charger cables[https://www.connectortips.com/where-liquid-cooled-connectors-and-connectors-for-liquid-cooling-used-in-evs-faq/] and cables supplying electric arc furnaces, but not overhead residential power lines. || Many people prefer to control the amount of water they get, and the water may damage things inside the house. || Pumping water into a septic tank could cause it to back up, resulting in the unpleasant contents being forced back in to the house. Also, if this were the only supply of water, most people would prefer anything they drink not to contain (or go through pipes that have contained) sewage.
|-
! Cars (Input/Output)
| Most cars can't fit inside most wells. Storing them in a well is also likely to be inconvenient when you come to need to use them again.
|style="background-color: palegreen;"| Garages are in fact built for the storage of cars and other similarly-sized vehicles. Placing a car in one will both help protect it from the elements and make it easier to access from inside your own home. || As of yet, cars cannot be transferred through power lines and require roads to travel on. This could significantly reduce travel costs. || Most cars can’t fit through a typical front door, and are likely to cause damage if forced. || Comedian {{w|Garrison Keillor}}'s 2008 ''More News from Lake Wobegon'' includes a story where an old septic tank is discovered to actually be a buried car.[https://theseriouscomedysite.com/comedy-cd-or-download/garrison-keillor-more-news-from-lake-wobegon/]
|-
! Electricity (Input)
| Wells are not designed to safely and effectively transfer electrical power to the devices that require it. The water would mostly just conduct the electricity into the surrounding construction. || In the United States, lightning is responsible for causing around 24,600 structure fires annually, resulting in $8 to $10 billion in losses.
|style="background-color: palegreen;"| Power lines are designed to facilitate the connection of individual homes to the broader local power network. [[Randall]] omits the fact that electricity can also be an output; e.g. houses with solar panels regularly export electricity too. || {{w|Benjamin Franklin}} invented the {{w|lightning rod}} to prevent lightning strike damage to structures. || As Knit Cap observes, septic tanks are not a source of electric power.
|-
! People (Input/Output)
|style="background-color: lightpink"| Wells are very dangerous.{{Citation needed}} The comic depicts a view from inside a well (as a [[:Category:Comics with inverted brightness|dark scene]], it is drawn red-on-black). The motif resembles poster art for the 2002 horror movie remake ''{{w|The Ring (2002 film)|The Ring}}'', which involves a girl left to die in a well who becomes a vengeful ghost (see also [[396: The Ring]]).
|style="background-color: palegreen;"| A person can enter and exit their home through a garage door, provided the garage has an internal door to the rest of the home. Though it is the perhaps a fairly common way for such a house's residents to conveniently enter and exit, it isn't generally the best way to welcome or discharge most guests through. || Overhead power lines to homes are generally not strong enough to climb, and attempting to do so incurs a very serious risk of electrocution.
|style="background-color: palegreen;"| The front door of a home is designed for entry and exit of humans and similarly sized items. || In general, people find crawling through waste unpleasant. Also, the septic tank is not connected to the street.
|-
! Sewage (Output)
| Sewage in drinking water can cause disease. It is/was the main cause for most {{w|cholera}} epidemics.
|colspan=3| Sewage spills are smelly, disgusting and hard to clean. They can destroy carpets, floors, drywall and property value.
|style="background-color: palegreen;"| A {{w|septic tank}} is an underground chamber through which wastewater flows for basic {{w|sewage treatment}}.
|}

The title text references {{w|Power over Ethernet|power over ethernet (PoE)}}, first implemented in the early 2000s, to provide electric power along with data on twisted-pair Ethernet cabling. A welcome development, it removed the need for many separate power supplies. While networked water delivery ("running water") is also a welcome development, doing so over ethernet cables would be extremely problematic, risking the several top points of failure, while providing limited amounts of water. However, again, electric vehicle fast charging cables and arc furnace power inputs are sometimes water-cooled.

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

:[A 5x5 grid of squares. The columns are labeled: Well, Garage, Power lines, Front door, Septic tank. Each row's label has an arrow and a basic house icon next to it. The rows are: Fresh water (horizontal arrow towards house), Cars (two-directional horizontal arrow and house), Electricity (horizontal arrow into house), People (two-directional horizontal arrow and house), Sewage (vertical arrow out of bottom of house).]

:Well, Fresh water: [green]
::[A many-featured house front and cross-sectional subsurface infrastructure, with various aspects that recur throughout most further grid-squares in one or other form. This particular one is distinguished by an arrow indicating movement up through a pipe leading inwards from an adjacent external borehole]
::Voice from house: Mmm! Refreshing!

:Garage, Fresh water: [red]
::[An obliquely off-frontal view of the house, featuring a set of Cueball-like figures directing a hosepipe's stream of water into the open garage-port doorway]
::''Fwoosh''

:Power lines, Fresh water: [red]
::[A different oblique angle concentrated upon the edge of the house upon which the overhead powerlines connect to, from a pole with transformer box and other wire coming from off-frame; the house wire appears to be dripping liquid]

:Front door, Fresh water: [red]
::[Normal frontal view of the house, featuring the hosepipe cueballs directing water into the front door]
::Voice from house: Stop it!
::''Fwoosh!''

:Septic tank, Fresh water: [red]
::[Normal frontal view; The subsurface septic tank feature has an arrow leading up from it through the diagonal pipe that connects to the house itself]
::Voice from house: Eww.

:Well, Cars: [red]
::[A view only of a ground pipe/borehole-head; A car seemingly upended and balanced atop on a front corner, being manhandled by Cueball and Megan figures]

:Garage, Cars: [green]
::[Normal frontal view; Garage door open, car seen parked inside]

:Power lines, Cars: [red]
::[Two power-line poles, the rightmost with transformer, having cables from off-left, between the poles and off-right; Two cueballs stand on the ground below, looking at a car heavily balanced mid-way along the central stretch of wire]

:Front door, Cars: [red]
::[Frontal view of house; Front doorway has surrounding damage and a car tightly wedged into it with two figures (Beret Guy and a Cueball) visible through the windows]
::Beret Guy, from car: Do you think I scratched the paint?

:Septic tank, Cars: [red]
::[Frontal view of the house; Within the underground sceptic tank, displacing some of the shallow dark liquid, is a car with two occupants]

:Well, Electricity: [red]
::[Borehole pipe-head; Cueball holds a laptop with a power lead trailing down into the pipe]
::Cueball's laptop: ⚠Low battery

:Garage, Electricity: [red]
::[Frontal view of house, with lightning strike explosively hitting the area of the garage door]
::''BOOM''

:Power lines, Electricity: [green]
::[Frontal view of house, arrow leading down the power-cable and several 'electricity' symbols scattered around]

:Front door, Electricity: [red]
::[Frontal view of house, with lightning strike explosively hitting the area of the front door]
::''BOOM''

:Septic tank, Electricity: [red]
::[Toilet and cistern, seat raised, with Knit Cap looking at a computer system, set up nearby on the floor, with a power lead draped into the toilet-bowl and (sic) a single 'electricity' symbol indicating power flow]
::Knit Cap: Why won't my console turn on?

:Well, People: [red (though overwhelmingly black)]
::[A mostly black tile with a rough circular outline of sketchy red lines]

:Garage, People: [green]
::[Frontal view of house; A Cueball exits the open (darkened) garage doorway, waving]
::Cueball: Bye!

:Power lines, People: [red]
::[Oblique side view of house; A Cueball is climbing up the power-line towards the top of the pole]
::Cueball: Bye!

:Front door, People: [green]
::[Frontal view of house; A cueball exits the open front doorway, waving]
::Cueball: Bye!

:Septic tank, People: [red]
::[Frontal view of house; A Cueball crawls into the elbow-deep dark liquid of the subsurface septic tank, emerging from the house-draining pipes]
::Cueball: Bye!

:Well, Sewage: [red]
::[Frontal view of house; Speech-line emerges from the house]
::Voice from house: ''Why do I keep getting sick???

:Garage, Sewage: [red]
::[Frontal view of house; Garage door is open, revealing Cueball knee-deep in dark liquid]
::Cueball: Oh no.

:Power lines, Sewage: [red]
::[Oblique side view of house; Wide pipe-end emerges from the roof, disgorging a stream of dark liquid out onto the rising power-cable]
::Cueball: Eww.

:Front door, Sewage: [red]
::[Frontal view of house; Front door is open, revealing Cueball knee-deep in dark liquid]
::Cueball: Oh ''no''.

:Septic tank, Sewage: [green]
::[Frontal view of house; Dark liquid drains down drain-pipes into sceptic tank, with an arrow indicating the direction of flow]
::''Flush''

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Knit Cap]]
[[Category:Confusion matrices]]
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]
[[Category:Charts]]

2943: Unsolved Chemistry Problems

2024-06-22T10:09:03Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ pOH is often used along side pH.

{{comic
| number = 2943
| date = June 7, 2024
| title = Unsolved Chemistry Problems
| image = unsolved_chemistry_problems_2x.png
| imagesize = 361x386px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = I'm an H⁺ denier, in that I refuse to consider loose protons to be real hydrogen, so I personally believe it stands for 'pretend'.
}}

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

Every field of research has [[:Category:Incomplete explanations|unsolved problems]] considered "important" or "significant" that motivate continued research. The scientists at what is apparently the "grand opening" of their new chemistry lab list several real chemistry problems, followed by one also-unsolved-but-less-scientific problem (the p in pH)

'''Arbitrary Enzyme Design:'''

{{w|Enzymes}} are catalytic proteins. Enzyme catalysis is often unique in comparison with other catalysis methods as it is highly specific, or tailored to a specific reaction. As such, enzyme catalysis, besides being the basis of all biochemical processes, is becoming increasingly relevant to industrial synthesis processes. As enzymes can easily be produced synthetically through recombinant gene technology, being able to design an arbitrary enzyme for any reaction would mean that effectively any reaction could be relatively easily catalyzed, revolutionizing the chemical synthesis industry.

'''Protein Folding:'''

{{w|Protein|Proteins}} are large molecules that consist of chains of amino acids. These amino acid chains become {{w|Protein Folding|folded}} in extremely complex ways to form intricate 3D structures, and the way a protein is folded is of critical importance to its function. Because of the huge importance of proteins to biological life, biologists have devoted significant attention over many decades to the problem of {{w|Protein structure prediction|protein structure prediction}}. This refers to the ability to predict the 3D structure of a protein based on the amino acid sequence, and remains one of the most important problems in computational biology. The ability to predict protein structure purely from amino acid sequence — the so-called "de novo" prediction — is known in computational biology as an unusually difficult problem due to the complexity of amino acid chains. Known as "Levinthal's paradox," the number of possible conformations from the backbone conformations alone is estimated to be in the ballpark of 10^300. Despite this, protein folding occurs extremely quickly in reality. Because of this difficulty in sampling conformations, even with optimization, such as secondary structure prediction and Monte Carlo simulation, a "true" accurate simulation is extremely computationally expensive. Because of this, the most accurate solutions, such as AlphaFold, utilize a combination of homology modeling (sampling experimentally determined proteins with similar sequences to infer structural motifs and similarities) and deep learning to accurately guess protein structure. See also [[1430: Proteins]].

'''Depolymerization:'''

Polymers are very large molecules formed out of repeating subunits called monomers. Monomers are molecules, typically organic in nature, that can bond with at least one other molecule, with two or more making long chains or networks called polymers. That process is known as polymerization. Depolymerization is breaking polymers down into the small molecules they were originally made from. This is done through a variety of processes, such as radiation, electrolysis, adding chemicals, and other means. Plastics are the best-known polymers, but cellulose, proteins, and DNA are also technically polymers. The huge number of varieties and mixtures in plastics makes recycling them a huge challenge, and there is increasing concern about plastic waste damaging the environment.

Polymerization is usually exothermic, releasing energy as heat. To reverse this would require adding energy in a targeted way. Simply ''destroying'' a polymer — by means of highly-reactive chemicals, heat, or radiation — doesn't generally release the monomer molecules to a significant degree; most of the reaction products are highly degraded. Most polymers are made by a process of catalysis, with the small monomer molecules interacting via a catalyst structure, often in liquid form, and the eventual product is usually solid. To reverse this would require getting the catalyst to interact in a very precise way with the solid polymer, and it's relatively difficult for the catalyst structure to get into the proper configuration with the solid tangled polymer molecules.

Another highly-desired depolymerization process would be to convert cellulose into its component glucose molecules. That glucose could then be used for a variety of different purposes, including fermentation to alcohol to use as a fuel. Currently, when plants are grown, much of the solar energy and carbon dioxide they absorb ends up in the form of cellulose rather than as starch, sugar, protein, or other substances that we find useful. Our being able to make use of the cellulose would make farming much more energy-efficient. Some organisms are able to depolymerize cellulose by means of enzymes, but our ability to use similar processes on an industrial scale is still limited. (Those organisms use a complex multi-step biochemical process which essentially "invests" energy into splitting off a glucose molecule, then recoups the investment by metabolizing the glucose.) It's also possible to depolymerize cellulose at high temperature and pressure using nothing more than water and acid, but that process is energy-intensive. It ''might'' be possible to do it with a solar-heated reactor.

'''What the “p” in pH stands for:'''

“p” shows up in pH, pOH, pKa, pKb, and other things related to the concentration of H+ ions and OH- ions. The meaning of the "p" in "pH" has been the subject of much dispute. It is sometimes referred to as "power of Hydrogen", perhaps related to the fact that pH is a logarithmic scale, and the logarithm is the inverse of the exponented function and, in all three languages that pH was first published in, the word for "potency" is used for exponents. The term pH was introduced by {{w|Søren Peter Lauritz Sørensen|Søren Peter Lauritz Sørensen}}, who did not publish his results in English, and more accurately translates as "hydric exponent". The letter p could stand for, in the languages in which Sørensen published: the French 'puissance', German Potenz, or Danish potens, all referring to the concept of the "exponent" in exponential functions.

'''Title Text: Hydrogen Denier'''

In the title text, Randall claims to be an H+ denier by refusing to consider loose protons to be hydrogen atoms, and as such, the “p” stands for pretend. Part of the joke is Randall's implication that this is a well-known conspiracy theory that he personally buys into (it isn't). The word "denier" is often used as shorthand for other conspiracy theories, such as a "climate change denier" or a "moon landing denier."

Here's a breakdown of this joke:

* H+ is the chemical symbol for a positively-charged atom of hydrogen, the smallest atom on the Periodic Table. Since hydrogen is normally just one proton and one electron, when you take the electron away, you make it positively charged (the + sign in the superscript) and you effectively end up with just a single loose proton. So the shorthand for "loose proton" is to refer to it as an H+ ion.

* pH is taught in high school science class to essentially measure the concentration of extra loose protons in, say, an aquarium. (Different fish prefer slightly different pH levels/alkalinity.) As mentioned earlier, you can interpret the term "pH" to be referring to the "p" of "H" -- the power/potency of H+ ions.

(Note that in reality, lone H+ ions do not exist in water, and instead they glom onto H2O molecules to form H3O+ and H5O2+/(H2O--H--OH2)+ due to intermolecular hydrogen bonding. If you don't know what these chemical symbols mean, don't worry about it.)

But as an H+ denier, Randall doesn't consider loose protons to be hydrogen atoms. He has a purist's view of hydrogen, that it is just "pretending" to be hydrogen as soon as it loses an electron. As a denier, he interprets the term "pH" as referring to the concentration of "pretend Hydrogen".

==Transcript==
:[Hairbun stands behind a lectern on a podium speaking into a microphone on the lectern. A Cueball like guy stands to the left and another Cueball like guy and Megan stand to the right. There is a large sign hanging in the background along with some ornaments.]
:Sign: Grand Opening
:Hairbun: Our lab will be working on chemistry's top unsolved problems: arbitrary enzyme design, protein folding, depolymerization, and, of course, the biggest one of all:
:Hairbun: ''Figuring out what the "p" in "pH" stands for.''

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Hairbun]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics with lowercase text]]
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]
[[Category:Chemistry]]

2938: Local Group

2024-05-28T18:21:45Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ The dogs were out back, not in the restraunt, but still served by restraunt staff.

{{comic
| number = 2938
| date = May 27, 2024
| title = Local Group
| image = local_group_2x.png
| imagesize = 547x266px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Cosmologists estimate the spaghetti strand to be about 200 septillion calories, though it could be higher depending on the nutritional value of dark matter.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a COSMIC SPAGHETTI BOWL - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
In {{w|Timeline_of_the_far_future|less than 5 billion years}} into the future, the {{w|Andromeda Galaxy}} is expected to {{w|Andromeda–Milky Way collision|collide}} with the {{w|Milky Way}}. This comic suggests this will happen when both galaxies get into a kissing distance after having slurped the same cosmic spaghetti strand. This is a spoof of a famous scene in the movie ''{{w|Lady and the Tramp}}'', where the titular dogs are eating spaghetti at an Italian restaurant. They happen to be eating the same strand from opposite ends, so they end up meeting in the middle and kissing. This scene was mentioned before in [[2612: Lightsabers]].

It's possible that this is also a reference to {{w|Flying_Spaghetti_Monster|Pastafarianism}}, the spoof religion which claims that the universe might have been created by a "flying spaghetti monster". If both galaxies are eating one of the deity's "noodly appendages," they may be doing what the monster wishes, since one of the religion's holidays is about eating lots of pasta.

The title text figure of 200 septillions (2×1026) calories for the Milky Way-Andromeda noodle equates to approximately 2500 calories per foot of noodle. This value makes sense only if Randall is referring to the physics/chemistry {{w|Calorie|"small" calorie}} (= 4.184 joules) rather than the dietary {{w|Calorie|"large" Calorie}} (= 4184 joules). Dietary Calories, also called kilocalories (kcal), would be the usual meaning in a food-related context like this one, but Randall was trained as a physicist and apparently used the small calorie here. Having 2.5 dietary Calories per foot is roughly correct for a noodle size between thin spaghetti and angel hair.

The nutritional value of dark matter refers to the fact that evidence of 'dark matter' is particularly found in [https://www.nature.com/articles/nature11224 cosmic filaments] and the [https://www.space.com/dark-matter-detected-cosmic-web-filaments-universe-evolution-subaru-telescope cosmic web], implying that such "cosmic spaghetti" would have an appreciable amount of dark matter "sauce" on it. But, because the exact nature of dark matter is unknown, it is likely even more difficult to identify the calorific content that it might provide.

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

:[Two galaxies, positioned on the left and right sides of the panel, are each eating a single noodle of spaghetti, originating from a bowl of spaghetti in between them.]
:[Left galaxy:] ''Sluuurp''
:[Right galaxy:] ''Sluuurp''

:[Caption below the panel:]
:Astronomers have determined that the Milky Way and Andromeda are currently slurping up the same strand of cosmic spaghetti, suggesting that in 5 billion years they will likely kiss.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Food]]
[[Category:Cosmology]]

Talk:2933: Elementary Physics Paths

2024-05-17T16:04:52Z

Nutster: Chemistry and Biology are way more complicated.

First comment, heh. [[User:Psychoticpotato|Psychoticpotato]] ([[User talk:Psychoticpotato|talk]]) 20:27, 15 May 2024 (UTC)
:See also [[1258: First]]. --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.159.7|162.158.159.7]] 23:21, 15 May 2024 (UTC)
::Let me have my first "first" moment, man. [[User:Psychoticpotato|Psychoticpotato]] ([[User talk:Psychoticpotato|talk]]) 12:46, 16 May 2024 (UTC)
:::Could this be the last first? Or just the first of the last firsts. [[User:N0lqu|-boB]] ([[User talk:N0lqu|talk]]) 14:16, 17 May 2024 (UTC)

I assume the cosmology comment from the alt text is related to the speculative nature of dark matter and dark energy, but I am too ignorant of of cosmology to know if there is something more specific being referenced.[[Special:Contributions/172.69.23.203|172.69.23.203]] 22:27, 15 May 2024 (UTC)
:I think its more jokinly questioning the knowlege of the cosmos, saying "space is big, so are we 100% that EVERYTHING is made of these complicated little things, or just the parts we can see?" [[User:Apollo11|Apollo11]] ([[User talk:Apollo11|talk]]) 00:26, 16 May 2024 (UTC)

::I thought it was a reference to the incompatibility of the leading cosmological theory (Relativity) with Quantum theory. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.210.117|172.68.210.117]] 02:49, 16 May 2024 (UTC)

Am I the only one where it seems like the explanation was written by an AI? It seems like obvious things are left out, like the presence of dark matter in astronomy, or saying “quantum physics” instead of “quantum field theory”. It’s like in some areas it could be convincingly explaining without knowing, a little like chatgpt does. However, I’m thinking a lot of the explanations are like that and I’ve probably participated in it myself … [[Special:Contributions/172.68.23.215|172.68.23.215]] 00:46, 16 May 2024 (UTC)
:The reason we're using "Quantum Theory" (at least my reason) is because that's what the comic used [[User:Apollo11|Apollo11]] ([[User talk:Apollo11|talk]]) 00:59, 16 May 2024 (UTC)

According to the Copenhagen Interpretation, it's not determined whether a physicist studies Condensed Matter or Quantum Field Theory until we open his box. [[User:Doctorhook|Doctorhook]] ([[User talk:Doctorhook|talk]]) 02:45, 16 May 2024 (UTC)
: According to the Communist Russia Interpretation, the Universe studies physicists.[[Special:Contributions/172.71.178.172|172.71.178.172]] 08:22, 16 May 2024 (UTC)

you guys really need to solve your chatgpt problem
--[[Special:Contributions/172.70.143.28|172.70.143.28]] 03:59, 16 May 2024 (UTC)

Schrodinger's 'cat box thought experiment' is more complex than even Schrodinger realised, since for the duration of the experiment the cat assumes EVERY possible quantum state, including 'not actually in the box' and 'suddenly not being a cat anymore'.
[[Special:Contributions/172.70.91.231|172.70.91.231]] 05:09, 16 May 2024 (UTC)

Schrodinger did not argue against QM; he argued against a certain interpretation of it. Specifically, he argued that QM does not tell us how things really are; at most, it tells us what we can detect about those things. His cat in a box idea aims to make clear that we do not know what happens between observations and that using QM to describe this leads to nonsense.
[[Special:Contributions/172.70.46.13|172.70.46.13]] 06:44, 16 May 2024 (UTC)
:I removed the "further examples" and the mention of Schrödinger. Interesting for sure, but not relevant for the explanation of the comic. Schrödinger isn't even mentioned in the comic... [[User:Elektrizikekswerk|Elektrizikekswerk]] ([[User talk:Elektrizikekswerk|talk]]) 07:26, 16 May 2024 (UTC)

It feels like Randall has gone down the same Wikipedia rabbit hole that I have (spurred on by another comic). The universe is full of extremely weird things on every level. Even the Copenhagen Interpretation of QM isn't actually one interpretation. Everyone has different ideas because it's all so weird. I remember my physics teacher telling me about the time before QM was discovered when it seemed like we had figured out most of physics and now it seems like we barely know anything. [[User:Brycemw|Brycemw]] ([[User talk:Brycemw|talk]]) 13:31, 16 May 2024 (UTC)

It seems like there should be a third branch for chemistry, leading to biology. Just putting a bunch of atoms together gives a bunch of new, unrelated properties in the new molecules compared to their constituent atoms. When you look at organic chemistry, especially the self-perpetuating version (life), then the level of complexity is ''huge''.

Talk:2931: Chasing

2024-05-13T18:44:42Z

Nutster: /* Number of Apollo astronauts */ numeric details.

Weather permitting, the aurora borealis may be visible from northern US tonight. I wonder if that inspired this comic. There's also a new "Twister" sequel coming out this summer, which is about tornado chasers. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 21:14, 10 May 2024 (UTC)

Sadly, given last month's event, "Total Solar Eclipse" is not on the chart. With the changing clouds over Texas on eclipse day, many were driving around figuring out where best to watch from. I would put it at the top of the chart and almost fully to the right. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.34.61|172.68.34.61]] 21:41, 10 May 2024 (UTC)
:I'm ''astonished'' that solar eclipses aren't in this comic or the title text. [[User:Zowayix|Zowayix]] ([[User talk:Zowayix|talk]]) 22:42, 10 May 2024 (UTC)
:: Yeah, I would replace Tornados with that TSE. Tornados might be exciting in person, and people might be chasing them, but they are more terrifying than exciting. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.246.187|172.70.246.187]] 08:11, 11 May 2024 (UTC)

I feel like Randall is selling Ice Cream Trucks short. [[User:Doctorhook|Doctorhook]] ([[User talk:Doctorhook|talk]]) 02:56, 11 May 2024 (UTC)
:I strongly disagree with this chart, about the possibility of chasing the Grand Canyon & the international dateline. Owing to length & downhill grade of the former, & timing sensitive nature of the latter.
:[[User:ProphetZarquon|ProphetZarquon]] ([[User talk:ProphetZarquon|talk]]) 03:02, 11 May 2024 (UTC)
::What 'timing sensitive nature' of the latter? Apart from {{w|International Date Line#Historic alterations|historic changes}}, and lacking any further proposed ones, you're just talking about a discontinuity effect that happens ''continuously''.
::Unless you mean timing it for an hour (or maybe two, or more, depending upon less straightforward TZ-abuttal??) every day, you can perhaps step/paddle back and forth between "very late night" on one date and "very early in the morning" on the next-but-one date. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.195.62|172.69.195.62]] 09:39, 11 May 2024 (UTC)

Uhhh, isn't it an activity to take donkeys down into the Grand Canyon? That feels not all that different than the convoy thing - pretty sure it IS similarly done in groups, and that it's indeed to see the place better... :) And that radios would be advisable. And I've never even been anywhere near there! [[User:NiceGuy1|NiceGuy1]] ([[User talk:NiceGuy1|talk]]) 06:11, 11 May 2024 (UTC)
:I would moreso call that exploring than chasing. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.214.72|172.69.214.72]] 13:55, 13 May 2024 (UTC)

Seems to have completely missed the eclipse chasers all over the US recently :D [[Special:Contributions/172.70.246.187|172.70.246.187]] 08:08, 11 May 2024 (UTC)
:You could say "they've been eclipsed"... (Which is what they all want!) [[Special:Contributions/172.69.195.62|172.69.195.62]] 09:39, 11 May 2024 (UTC)

I believe I read about a plan to chase the interstellar object 'Oumuamua, which would be like chasing a comet but even more so. --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.38.70|162.158.38.70]] 20:17, 11 May 2024 (UTC)

Speaking as someone who lives where there are none of the former and many of the latter, seeing a possum would be much more exciting than seeing a hot air balloon.[[Special:Contributions/172.70.90.29|172.70.90.29]] 09:21, 13 May 2024 (UTC)
: Ok, not hot-air, but: https://projectpossum.org/research/balloon-nlc-imagery/ [[Special:Contributions/172.70.163.120|172.70.163.120]] 10:51, 13 May 2024 (UTC)
== Number of Apollo astronauts ==

Are we counting unique individuals or total visits? There were six landings with two astronauts each, but someone went twice? {{unsigned ip|162.158.186.249|20:48, 11 May 2024}}
:Nobody doubled up. 6x2=12. (Some went on up to three separate 'walks'/drives away from their craft, but no-one landed twice.) [[Special:Contributions/162.158.74.49|162.158.74.49]] 21:59, 11 May 2024 (UTC)

::Arguably the crews of Apollos 8, 10, and 13 also visited the Moon; As did the Command Module Pilots on the six missions with landings. These guys all got 99.9+% of the way there, and while they didn't touch it, nor did the twelve guys who landed (none of whom were brave enough to take their gloves off while outside the LEM).

::In this extended group of lunar visitors, there were some double ups, e.g. Jim Lovell, who was on Apollos 8 and 13. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.210.3|172.68.210.3]] 22:55, 11 May 2024 (UTC)

::You could also say that many of them got 100.1-% of the way there, when they orbited around the far side. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.211.99|172.70.211.99]] 00:35, 12 May 2024 (UTC)

:: In total, 24 people '''went''' to the moon on 9 trips (Apollo missions 8, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17), with 12 men actually landing, walking and driving around, and leaving (Apollo missions 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17). There were 3 people who flew there twice, but nobody landed more than once, ''yet''. [[User:Nutster|Nutster]] ([[User talk:Nutster|talk]]) 18:44, 13 May 2024 (UTC)

I so much want to include Gus Grissom, Ed White, and Roger Chaffee. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.71.130|172.69.71.130]] 14:46, 12 May 2024 (UTC)

2931: Chasing

2024-05-13T18:30:00Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ add reason.

{{comic
| number = 2931
| date = May 10, 2024
| title = Chasing
| image = chasing_2x.png
| imagesize = 462x474px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Certain hybrid events can only happen in certain locations where all the conditions are present; chasers flock to the area in and around Kansas known as tumbleweed-colliding-with-possum alley.
}}

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

This comic is a scatter plot comparing how exciting it is to see various things with how possible it is to chase them using a convoy of coordinated vehicles.

The least chasable are stationary places like the {{w|Grand Canyon}} or {{w|International Date Line}}. It makes no sense to chase them because they don't move around, you simply go to their known locations. At the other end of the chasability spectrum are animals that move around rapidly, and fleeting astronomical and atmospherical phenomena like {{w|clouds}}, {{w|meteors}}, and {{w|aurora}}. However, some of these are difficult to chase because they're small and hard to detect from a moving vehicle, e.g. {{w|gnats}}.

In the top-right position of most chasable and most exciting, tornadoes have a community of 'chasers' who attempt to predict their appearance and get as close to them as possible, which was the subject of a {{w|Twister_(1996_film)|1996 film}}, for which a sequel was due to be released shortly after this comic.

The title text suggests that combining some of these things into a single event would multiply the excitement derived from them. This makes sense on the surface, as the rarity value of the resulting event would be high, so even two relatively mundane events could, when combined, produce an interesting outcome. However, it somewhat undermines this by suggesting that, in this particular location, the event in question (possums being hit by passing tumbleweeds) is relatively routine.

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! rowspan="2" | Entity !! colspan="2" | Estimate of... !! rowspan="2" | Explanation
|-
! Chasing || Excitement
|-
| {{w|Grand Canyon|The Grand Canyon}}|| 10% || 90% || Stationary place in Arizona. It's the largest canyon in the US (but not the world), in addition to being very beautiful due to its depth and the color changes from different geological strata. Seeing a famous tourist attraction in person is exciting.
|-
| {{w|Niagara Falls}} || 15% || 75% || A generally stationary place on the border of US and Canada, between the state of New York and the province of Ontario. The waterfall is the largest in North America by width and water volume, making it very beautiful to watch.
|-
| {{w|Tourist attractions}} || 15% || 55% || Other stationary places that attract many tourists (e.g. national parks, monuments, and historic places) are exciting to see.
|-
| {{w|Tourist traps}} || 10% || 40% || Stationary places that market themselves as tourist attractions, but don't really have much to offer and exist mainly to sell food and souvenirs.
|-
| {{w|Hazard (golf)#Bunker|Sand trap}} || 15% || 25% || Pits of sand in golf courses. If your golf ball lands in one, it loses all its momentum almost instantly and it is difficult to hit out to the grassy portions (fairways or greens), which is why it is a "trap". A convoy of golf-carts might "chase" a golf-ball to the sand trap it lands in, but this would not be very exciting.
|-
| The International Date Line || 15% || 10% || A jagged conceptual line running from the North to South poles around 180 degrees of longitude, used to separate the time zones that start and end each day. There's nothing to see at these locations, as the line is a concept and does not actually coincide with anything in real life, as well as mostly being in the Pacific Ocean, by-passing actual landfall, as well as across the Arctic Southern Oceans. The zones for {{w|time in Antarctica}} are already more pragmatically simplified or just fall back to {{w|Coordinated Universal Time}}.
|-
| Meteors || 35% || 95% || Also called "shooting stars". These are fleeting streaks of light that are visible when bits of rock or dust enter the atmosphere and burn up. These are generally rare, making them exciting to see, but there are {{w|meteor showers}} when many are visible due to the Earth passing through a large cloud of dust (usually the remnants of a comet). To astronomy buffs, these can be like natural fireworks shows. Because each meteor streak lasts for a fraction of a second, it's not generally possible to chase them, although if the rock is large enough it may survive to the ground and become a {{w|meteorite}}, which chasers [[1723: Meteorite Identification|may be able to find]] by tracking its path through the sky.
|-
| {{w|Rainbows}} || 35% || 90% || A visual effect that occurs when sunlight is refracted by water droplets in the air, spreading the light into a spectrum of different colors. Their 'location' is relative to each observer, so long as the necessary components combine correctly in the first place, so any coordinated movement is restricted to finding the right sort of standpoint from which a rainbow is visible. Moving "towards" a rainbow typically results in the rainbow "moving away" from the observer at the same speed.
|-
| {{w|Comets}} || 40% || 85% || Comets are chunks of rock and ice that orbit the sun, usually in highly eccentric orbits that take them from the inner Solar System to the {{w|Kuiper Belt}} or {{w|Oort Cloud}} at the extreme outskirts of the Solar System. Few of them are visible to the naked eye until they are close to the sun. They're exciting to see because they are rare, and one of the few astronomical objects that looks like more than just a tiny dot because there is a glowing "tail". While they are moving very rapidly through the Solar System, from the Earth they don't appear to move much faster than planets. So there's no need to chase them; when near the Earth, they will be visible from much of the planet for days or weeks.
|-
| {{w|Sunsets}} || 35% || 75% || Disappearance of the Sun below the horizon, should happen usually once every 24 hours (except close to the poles). Depending on weather conditions, they can sometimes be very pretty. Traveling around the Earth from east to west is needed for a continuous view of a sunset.
|-
| {{w|The Moon}} || 40% || 70% || Earth's only natural satellite with a predictable orbit. While Randall is most likely referring to chasing the Moon on the Earth, the {{w|Apollo Missions}} very much fit the description of "chase in a convoy of vehicles coordinating over radio and using instruments and data to find optimal viewing locations". That is exactly what the astronauts did, they "chased" the Moon (the Moon was moving while they flew towards it) using a convoy of vehicles (the multi-stage rockets) while they "coordinated" to Earth with their radios. Only 12 people (the {{w|Apollo astronauts}}) have actually visited it in person; the rest of us see it from about 250,000 miles (400,000 km) away. Weather permitting, it's visible for about half of every day/night cycle (though may be more obvious when this occurs significantly in the night sky, for several reasons). It doesn't move quickly in the sky, by apparent movement, so little chasing is necessary. A 'supermoon' is when the Moon looks the largest and shiniest, occurring when a full moon appears closest to the Earth in its orbit, though Randall doesn't consider this phenomenon impressive (How To, chapter 21).
|-
| Unusual clouds || 40% || 55% || Clouds with unique forms or shapes, like {{w|Lenticular clouds}}. People may want to chase after them if they’re drifting away, as they may want to view the cloud further, perhaps for scientific purposes.
|-
| Regular clouds || 35% || 40% || Clouds are an aerosol consisting of a visible mass of miniature liquid droplets. People may chase clouds for the same reasons as wanting to chase unusual clouds.
|-
| {{w|Fog}} || 30% || 25% || Atmospheric condition where water droplets are very dense near the Earth's surface, resulting in a visible haze. Fog does not move much, but dissipates over time. Fog might pull away from its least ideal conditions before it vanishes completely. This entry might be a reference to {{w|Phileas Fogg}}, who was pursued around the world.
|-
| {{w|Rain}} || 35% || 20% || Water droplets falling from clouds. In most of the world, this is a pretty common occurrence. Unless the volume is extremely high, there's rarely much excitement due to them, but extreme cases may cause flooding that can be dangerous. The only people who might chase rain are weather reporters who want to get wet.
|-
| {{w|Gnats}} || 35% || 5% || Hardly anybody wants to track down gnats, as they are annoying to chase and difficult to see, but people could theoretically use advanced instruments to do so.
|-
| Aurora || 60% || 95% || Impressive light displays that result from excitement of the Earth's {{w|magnetosphere}} by charged particles in the {{w|solar wind}}. These are generally only visible in high latitudes, so most people do not live where they're visible. Their visibility can be tracked and forecasted via monitoring of solar wind output from the sun, and particularly intense episodes can be predicted (as well as locations for viewing) on the basis of the solar cycle and solar flare activity. The release of this comic coincided with the strongest geomagnetic storm warning forecasted by the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in 20 years [https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/news/g4-watch-effect-may-11] ({{w|May 2024 solar storms}}).
|-
| Your favorite band's shows || 60% || 80% || Musical acts often plan tours, where they go around the country (or world) putting on shows every few days. Extreme fans with time (and money) on their hands may "chase" them by going to a series of their shows. Since the tour dates are planned and publicized well in advance, the shows are easy to find. However, depending on the popularity of your favorite band, this might be an expensive hobby, especially for optimal viewing. Also, tickets may be sold out.
|-
| Rare birds || 60% || 60% || Many birders will "twitch" to see rare birds, and this requires a fair amount of checking location, behavior, etc. Also, rare birds tend to be exciting to see.
|-
| Regular birds || 55% || 40% || These are easier to see than rare birds.
|-
| Regular balloons || 55% || 25% || Both children and adults accidentally let go of helium balloons, and may attempt to chase after them to retrieve them.
|-
| {{w|Tumbleweed|Tumbleweeds}} || 60% || 15% || A roughly spherical portion of certain plants that breaks off from its roots and rolls along the ground, propelled by winds, to distribute the seeds of the parent plant. Most people don't find them very interesting to look at, and they're often used as a shorthand for nothing of interest happening. They don't usually travel very quickly, so it would be possible to chase them if you were so inclined. The locomotion of tumbleweeds is of interest to ecologists, as the non-native and extremely invasive plant disperses its seeds across a region.
|-
| {{w|Speed_limit_enforcement|Speed traps}} || 65% || 5% || A section of a road where police often wait for passing drivers who are exceeding the speed limit, so they can catch them and issue speeding tickets. Frequent drivers, especially truck drivers, have developed systems to warn each other of these locations ({{w|citizens band radio}} were once the most popular method, now this can be done using mobile phone using services like {{w|Waze}}).
|-
| {{w|Tornadoes}} || 85% || 95% || Wanting to witness a tornado is the typical objective of {{w|storm chaser}}s.
|-
| {{w|Whales}} || 85% || 90% || Widely distributed and diverse group of marine mammals. They are some of the largest animals to ever live, and often travel in groups, making them exciting and easy to see (when active at the surface). They have often been chased by humans, both for the purposes of hunting and exploiting them as a resource, and by tourist-oriented whale-watching trips.
|-
| {{w|Icebergs}} || 85% || 75% || Piece of freshwater ice broken off a glacier or ice shelf. These come in many sizes and shapes, making it interesting to see a new one. At the time of this comic, there had recently been substantial interest in tracking the progress of the giant {{w|Iceberg A23a}}.
|-
| {{w|Hot air balloons}} || 80% || 60% || An aircraft whose bag is filled with heated air. Hot air balloons are ridden for a variety of reasons (entertainment, sport, advertisement, etc.) and they usually involve a "chase crew" of people on the ground. To an uninvolved observer, catching an unexpected glimpse of an airborne balloon is a moderately exciting event; giving chase is not advised, however, as it may interfere with the chase crew's operation and may be perceived as a hostile act, thereby creating ''uncomfortable'' levels of excitement.
|-
| {{w|Radiosondes}} || 85% || 50% || Small instruments carried in weather balloons to gather and transmit atmospheric parameters. There's not much to see in them, but they're easy to track with a proper receiver.
|-
| Neighborhood possums || 85% || 35% || "Possum" is a common term for {{w|Virginia opossum}}s, the only species of opossum found in North America. In urban areas they will get into human garbage, and may carry diseases, so many may consider them pests and hunt them. A coordinated group of hunters can track them.
|-
| {{w|Ice cream trucks}} || 85% || 25% || Vans that sell ice cream. They're easy to chase because they often play music and/or ring a loud bell so customers will know they're coming, and make frequent stops to allow customers to make purchases. Ice cream trucks may typically be chased by children too young to drive a convoy of vehicles for their pursuit, but their excited screams might provide data that can be used to track an ice cream truck through a city.
|-
| Other chasers || 90% || 10% || May result in an awkward or friendly encounter if met in person. Chasers may bond over their enjoyment of chasing various objects, much like how [[Geohashing|geohashers]] connect with each other at specific geohashed locations. However, another group of chasers might not appreciate it if they find out that they're being the target themselves.
|}

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[An X Y axis graph]
:[Y axis label:]
:Exciting to see in person
:[X axis label:]
:Possible to chase in a convoy of vehicles coordinating over radio and using instruments and data to find optimal viewing locations?
:[X and Y axis values (from bottom left):]
:No
:Yes

:[Top left quarter:]
:The Grand Canyon
:Meteors
:Rainbow
:Comets
:Niagara Falls
:Sunsets
:The Moon
:Tourist attractions
:Unusual clouds

:[Top right quarter:]
:Aurora
:Tornadoes
:Whales
:Your favorite band's shows
:Icebergs
:Rare birds
:Hot air balloons

:[Bottom left quarter:]
:Tourist traps
:Regular clouds
:Sand traps
:Fog
:Rain
:The International Date Line
:Gnats

:[Bottom right quarter:]
:Regular birds
:Radiosondes
:Neighborhood possums
:Regular balloons
:Ice cream trucks
:Tumbleweeds
:Speed traps
:Other chasers

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Rankings]]
[[Category:Food]]
[[Category:Tornadoes]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Weather]]

2931: Chasing

2024-05-13T18:25:08Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ Grammar fixes

{{comic
| number = 2931
| date = May 10, 2024
| title = Chasing
| image = chasing_2x.png
| imagesize = 462x474px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Certain hybrid events can only happen in certain locations where all the conditions are present; chasers flock to the area in and around Kansas known as tumbleweed-colliding-with-possum alley.
}}

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

This comic is a scatter plot comparing how exciting it is to see various things with how possible it is to chase them using a convoy of coordinated vehicles.

The least chasable are stationary places like the {{w|Grand Canyon}} or {{w|International Date Line}}. It makes no sense to chase them because they don't move around, you simply go to their known locations. At the other end of the chasability spectrum are animals that move around rapidly, and fleeting astronomical and atmospherical phenomena like {{w|clouds}}, {{w|meteors}}, and {{w|aurora}}. However, some of these are difficult to chase because they're small and hard to detect from a moving vehicle, e.g. {{w|gnats}}.

In the top-right position of most chasable and most exciting, tornadoes have a community of 'chasers' who attempt to predict their appearance and get as close to them as possible, which was the subject of a {{w|Twister_(1996_film)|1996 film}}, for which a sequel was due to be released shortly after this comic.

The title text suggests that combining some of these things into a single event would multiply the excitement derived from them. This makes sense on the surface, as the rarity value of the resulting event would be high, so even two relatively mundane events could, when combined, produce an interesting outcome. However, it somewhat undermines this by suggesting that, in this particular location, the event in question (possums being hit by passing tumbleweeds) is relatively routine.

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! rowspan="2" | Entity !! colspan="2" | Estimate of... !! rowspan="2" | Explanation
|-
! Chasing || Excitement
|-
| {{w|Grand Canyon|The Grand Canyon}}|| 10% || 90% || Stationary place in Arizona. It's the largest canyon in the US (but not the world), in addition to being very beautiful due to its depth and the color changes from different geological strata. Seeing a famous tourist attraction in person is exciting.
|-
| {{w|Niagara Falls}} || 15% || 75% || A generally stationary place on the border of US and Canada, between the state of New York and the province of Ontario. The waterfall is the largest in North America by width and water volume, making it very beautiful to watch.
|-
| {{w|Tourist attractions}} || 15% || 55% || Other stationary places that attract many tourists (e.g. national parks, monuments, and historic places) are exciting to see.
|-
| {{w|Tourist traps}} || 10% || 40% || Stationary places that market themselves as tourist attractions, but don't really have much to offer and exist mainly to sell food and souvenirs.
|-
| {{w|Hazard (golf)#Bunker|Sand trap}} || 15% || 25% || Pits of sand in golf courses. If your golf ball lands in one, it loses all its momentum almost instantly and it is difficult to hit out to the grassy portions (fairways or greens), which is why it is a "trap". A convoy of golf-carts might "chase" a golf-ball to the sand trap it lands in, but this would not be very exciting.
|-
| The International Date Line || 15% || 10% || A jagged conceptual line running from the North to South poles around 180 degrees of longitude, used to separate the time zones that start and end each day. There's nothing to see at these locations, as the line is a concept and does not actually coincide with anything in real life, as well as mostly being in the Pacific Ocean, by-passing actual landfall, as well as across the Arctic Southern Oceans. The zones for {{w|time in Antarctica}} are already more pragmatically simplified or just fall back to {{w|Coordinated Universal Time}}.
|-
| Meteors || 35% || 95% || Also called "shooting stars". These are fleeting streaks of light that are visible when bits of rock or dust enter the atmosphere and burn up. These are generally rare, making them exciting to see, but there are {{w|meteor showers}} when many are visible due to the Earth passing through a large cloud of dust (usually the remnants of a comet). To astronomy buffs, these can be like natural fireworks shows. Because each meteor streak lasts for a fraction of a second, it's not generally possible to chase them, although if the rock is large enough it may survive to the ground and become a {{w|meteorite}}, which chasers [[1723: Meteorite Identification|may be able to find]] by tracking its path through the sky.
|-
| {{w|Rainbows}} || 35% || 90% || A visual effect that occurs when sunlight is refracted by water droplets in the air, spreading the light into a spectrum of different colors. Their 'location' is relative to each observer, so long as the necessary components combine correctly in the first place, so any coordinated movement is restricted to finding the right sort of standpoint from which a rainbow is visible. Moving "towards" a rainbow typically results in the rainbow "moving away" from the observer at the same speed.
|-
| {{w|Comets}} || 40% || 85% || Comets are chunks of rock and ice that orbit the sun, usually in highly eccentric orbits that take them from the inner Solar System to the {{w|Kuiper Belt}} or {{w|Oort Cloud}} at the extreme outskirts of the Solar System. Few of them are visible to the naked eye until they are close to the sun. They're exciting to see because they are rare, and one of the few astronomical objects that looks like more than just a tiny dot because there is a glowing "tail". While they are moving very rapidly through the Solar System, from the Earth they don't appear to move much faster than planets. So there's no need to chase them; when near the Earth, they will be visible from much of the planet for days or weeks.
|-
| {{w|Sunsets}} || 35% || 75% || Disappearance of the Sun below the horizon, should happen usually once every 24 hours (except close to the poles). Depending on weather conditions, they can sometimes be very pretty. Traveling around the Earth from east to west is needed for a continuous view of a sunset.
|-
| {{w|The Moon}} || 40% || 70% || Earth's only natural satellite with a predictable orbit. While Randall is most likely referring to chasing the Moon on the Earth, the {{w|Apollo Missions}} very much fit the description of "chase in a convoy of vehicles coordinating over radio and using instruments and data to find optimal viewing locations". That is exactly what the astronauts did, they "chased" the Moon (the Moon was moving while they flew towards it) using a convoy of vehicles (the multi-stage rockets) while they "coordinated" to Earth with their radios. Only 12 people (the {{w|Apollo astronauts}}) have actually visited it in person; the rest of us see it from about 250,000 miles (400,000 km) away. Weather permitting, it's visible for about half of every day/night cycle (though may be more obvious when this occurs significantly in the night sky, for several reasons). It doesn't move quickly in the sky, by apparent movement, so little chasing is necessary. A 'supermoon' is when the Moon looks the largest and shiniest, occurring when a full moon appears closest to the Earth in its orbit, though Randall doesn't consider this phenomenon impressive (How To, chapter 21).
|-
| Unusual clouds || 40% || 55% || Clouds with unique forms or shapes, like {{w|Lenticular clouds}}. People may want to chase after them if they’re drifting away, as they may want to view the cloud further, perhaps for scientific purposes.
|-
| Regular clouds || 35% || 40% || Clouds are an aerosol consisting of a visible mass of miniature liquid droplets. People may chase clouds for the same reasons as wanting to chase unusual clouds.
|-
| {{w|Fog}} || 30% || 25% || Atmospheric condition where water droplets are very dense near the Earth's surface, resulting in a visible haze. Fog does not move much, but dissipates over time. Fog might pull away from its least ideal conditions before it vanishes completely. This entry might be a reference to {{w|Phileas Fogg}}, who was pursued around the world.
|-
| {{w|Rain}} || 35% || 20% || Water droplets falling from clouds. In most of the world, this is a pretty common occurrence. Unless the volume is extremely high, there's rarely much excitement due to them, but extreme cases may cause flooding that can be dangerous. The only people who might chase rain are weather reporters who want to get wet.
|-
| {{w|Gnats}} || 35% || 5% || Hardly anybody wants to track down gnats, as they are annoying to chase and difficult to see, but people could theoretically use advanced instruments to do so.
|-
| Aurora || 60% || 95% || Impressive light displays that result from excitement of the Earth's {{w|magnetosphere}} by charged particles in the {{w|solar wind}}. These are generally only visible in high latitudes, so most people do not live where they're visible. Their visibility can be tracked and forecasted via monitoring of solar wind output from the sun, and particularly intense episodes can be predicted (as well as locations for viewing) on the basis of the solar cycle and solar flare activity. The release of this comic coincided with the strongest geomagnetic storm warning forecasted by the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in 20 years [https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/news/g4-watch-effect-may-11] ({{w|May 2024 solar storms}}).
|-
| Your favorite band's shows || 60% || 80% || Musical acts often plan tours, where they go around the country (or world) putting on shows every few days. Extreme fans with time (and money) on their hands may "chase" them by going to a series of their shows. Since the tour dates are planned and publicized well in advance, the shows are easy to find. However, depending on the popularity of your favorite band, this might be an expensive hobby, especially for optimal viewing. Also, tickets may be sold out.
|-
| Rare birds || 60% || 60% || Many birders will "twitch" to see rare birds, and this requires a fair amount of checking location, behavior, etc. Also, rare birds tend to be exciting to see.
|-
| Regular birds || 55% || 40% || These are easier to see than rare birds.
|-
| Regular balloons || 55% || 25% || Both children and adults accidentally let go of helium balloons, and may attempt to chase after them to retrieve them.
|-
| {{w|Tumbleweed|Tumbleweeds}} || 60% || 15% || A roughly spherical portion of certain plants that breaks off from its roots and rolls along the ground, propelled by winds. Most people don't find them very interesting to look at, and they're often used as a shorthand for nothing of interest happening. They don't usually travel very quickly, so it would be possible to chase them if you were so inclined. The locomotion of tumbleweeds is of interest to ecologists, as the non-native and extremely invasive plant disperses its seeds across a region.
|-
| {{w|Speed_limit_enforcement|Speed traps}} || 65% || 5% || A section of a road where police often wait for passing drivers who are exceeding the speed limit, so they can catch them and issue speeding tickets. Frequent drivers, especially truck drivers, have developed systems to warn each other of these locations ({{w|citizens band radio}} were once the most popular method, now this can be done using mobile phone using services like {{w|Waze}}).
|-
| {{w|Tornadoes}} || 85% || 95% || Wanting to witness a tornado is the typical objective of {{w|storm chaser}}s.
|-
| {{w|Whales}} || 85% || 90% || Widely distributed and diverse group of marine mammals. They are some of the largest animals to ever live, and often travel in groups, making them exciting and easy to see (when active at the surface). They have often been chased by humans, both for the purposes of hunting and exploiting them as a resource, and by tourist-oriented whale-watching trips.
|-
| {{w|Icebergs}} || 85% || 75% || Piece of freshwater ice broken off a glacier or ice shelf. These come in many sizes and shapes, making it interesting to see a new one. At the time of this comic, there had recently been substantial interest in tracking the progress of the giant {{w|Iceberg A23a}}.
|-
| {{w|Hot air balloons}} || 80% || 60% || An aircraft whose bag is filled with heated air. Hot air balloons are ridden for a variety of reasons (entertainment, sport, advertisement, etc.) and they usually involve a "chase crew" of people on the ground. To an uninvolved observer, catching an unexpected glimpse of an airborne balloon is a moderately exciting event; giving chase is not advised, however, as it may interfere with the chase crew's operation and may be perceived as a hostile act, thereby creating ''uncomfortable'' levels of excitement.
|-
| {{w|Radiosondes}} || 85% || 50% || Small instruments carried in weather balloons to gather and transmit atmospheric parameters. There's not much to see in them, but they're easy to track with a proper receiver.
|-
| Neighborhood possums || 85% || 35% || "Possum" is a common term for {{w|Virginia opossum}}s, the only species of opossum found in North America. In urban areas they will get into human garbage, and may carry diseases, so many may consider them pests and hunt them. A coordinated group of hunters can track them.
|-
| {{w|Ice cream trucks}} || 85% || 25% || Vans that sell ice cream. They're easy to chase because they often play music and/or ring a loud bell so customers will know they're coming, and make frequent stops to allow customers to make purchases. Ice cream trucks may typically be chased by children too young to drive a convoy of vehicles for their pursuit, but their excited screams might provide data that can be used to track an ice cream truck through a city.
|-
| Other chasers || 90% || 10% || May result in an awkward or friendly encounter if met in person. Chasers may bond over their enjoyment of chasing various objects, much like how [[Geohashing|geohashers]] connect with each other at specific geohashed locations. However, another group of chasers might not appreciate it if they find out that they're being the target themselves.
|}

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[An X Y axis graph]
:[Y axis label:]
:Exciting to see in person
:[X axis label:]
:Possible to chase in a convoy of vehicles coordinating over radio and using instruments and data to find optimal viewing locations?
:[X and Y axis values (from bottom left):]
:No
:Yes

:[Top left quarter:]
:The Grand Canyon
:Meteors
:Rainbow
:Comets
:Niagara Falls
:Sunsets
:The Moon
:Tourist attractions
:Unusual clouds

:[Top right quarter:]
:Aurora
:Tornadoes
:Whales
:Your favorite band's shows
:Icebergs
:Rare birds
:Hot air balloons

:[Bottom left quarter:]
:Tourist traps
:Regular clouds
:Sand traps
:Fog
:Rain
:The International Date Line
:Gnats

:[Bottom right quarter:]
:Regular birds
:Radiosondes
:Neighborhood possums
:Regular balloons
:Ice cream trucks
:Tumbleweeds
:Speed traps
:Other chasers

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Rankings]]
[[Category:Food]]
[[Category:Tornadoes]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Weather]]

2931: Chasing

2024-05-13T18:21:25Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ Niagara falls moves about a foot each year due to erosion. Nothing is truely instantanious.

{{comic
| number = 2931
| date = May 10, 2024
| title = Chasing
| image = chasing_2x.png
| imagesize = 462x474px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Certain hybrid events can only happen in certain locations where all the conditions are present; chasers flock to the area in and around Kansas known as tumbleweed-colliding-with-possum alley.
}}

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

This comic is a scatter plot comparing how exciting it is to see various things with how possible it is to chase them using a convoy of coordinated vehicles.

The least chasable are stationary places like the {{w|Grand Canyon}} or {{w|International Date Line}}. It makes no sense to chase them because they don't move around, you simply go to their known locations. At the other end of the chasability spectrum are animals that move around rapidly, and fleeting astronomical and atmospherical phenomena like {{w|clouds}}, {{w|meteors}}, and {{w|aurora}}. However, some of these are difficult to chase because they're small and hard to detect from a moving vehicle, e.g. {{w|gnats}}.

In the top-right position of most chasable and most exciting, tornadoes have a community of 'chasers' who attempt to predict their appearance and get as close to them as possible, which was the subject of a {{w|Twister_(1996_film)|1996 film}}, for which a sequel was due to be released shortly after this comic.

The title text suggests that combining some of these things into a single event would multiply the excitement derived from them. This makes sense on the surface, as the rarity value of the resulting event would be high, so even two relatively mundane events could, when combined, produce an interesting outcome. However, it somewhat undermines this by suggesting that, in this particular location, the event in question (possums being hit by passing tumbleweeds) is relatively routine.

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! rowspan="2" | Entity !! colspan="2" | Estimate of... !! rowspan="2" | Explanation
|-
! Chasing || Excitement
|-
| {{w|Grand Canyon|The Grand Canyon}}|| 10% || 90% || Stationary place in Arizona. It's the largest canyon in the US (but not the world), in addition to being very beautiful due to its depth and the color changes from different geological strata. Seeing a famous tourist attraction in person is exciting.
|-
| {{w|Niagara Falls}} || 15% || 75% || A generally stationary place on the border of US and Canada, between the state of New York and the province of Ontario. The waterfall is the largest in North America by width and water volume, making it very beautiful to watch.
|-
| {{w|Tourist attractions}} || 15% || 55% || Other stationary places that attract many tourists (e.g. national parks, monuments, and historic places) are exciting to see.
|-
| {{w|Tourist traps}} || 10% || 40% || Stationary places that market themselves as tourist attractions, but don't really have much to offer and exist mainly to sell food and souvenirs.
|-
| {{w|Hazard (golf)#Bunker|Sand trap}} || 15% || 25% || Pits of sand in golf courses. If your golf ball lands in one, it loses all its momentum almost instantly and it is difficult to hit out to the grassy portions (fairways or greens), which is why it is a "trap". A convoy of golf-carts might "chase" a golf-ball to the sand trap it lands in, but this would not be very exciting.
|-
| The International Date Line || 15% || 10% || A jagged conceptual line running from the North to South poles around 180 degrees of longitude, used to separate the time zones that start and end each day. There's nothing to see at these locations, as the line is a concept and does not actually coincide with anything in real life, as well as mostly being in the Pacific Ocean, by-passing actual landfall, as well as across the Arctic Southern Oceans. The zones for {{w|time in Antarctica}} are already more pragmatically simplified or just fall back to {{w|Coordinated Universal Time}}.
|-
| Meteors || 35% || 95% || Also called "shooting stars". These are fleeting streaks of light that are visible when bits of rock or dust enter the atmosphere and burn up. These are generally rare, making them exciting to see, but there are {{w|meteor showers}} when many are visible due to the Earth passing through a large cloud of dust (usually the remnants of a comet). To astronomy buffs, these can be like natural fireworks shows. Because each meteor streak lasts for a fraction of a second, it's not generally possible to chase them, although if the rock is large enough it may survive to the ground and become a {{w|meteorite}}, which chasers [[1723: Meteorite Identification|may be able to find]] by tracking its path through the sky.
|-
| {{w|Rainbows}} || 35% || 90% || A visual effect that occurs when sunlight is refracted by water droplets in the air, spreading the light into a spectrum of different colors. Their 'location' is relative to each observer, so long as the necessary components combine correctly in the first place, so any coordinated movement is restricted to finding the right sort of standpoint from which a rainbow is visible. Moving "towards" a rainbow typically results in the rainbow "moving away" from the observer at the same speed.
|-
| {{w|Comets}} || 40% || 85% || Comets are chunks of rock and ice that orbit the sun, usually in highly eccentric orbits that take them from the inner Solar System to the {{w|Kuiper Belt}} or {{w|Oort Cloud}} at the extreme outskirts of the Solar System. Few of them are visible to the naked eye. They're exciting to see because they're rare, and one of the few astronomical objects that looks like more than just a tiny dot because there's a glowing "tail". While they're moving very rapidly through the Solar System, from the Earth they don't appear to move much faster than planets. So there's no need to chase them; when near the Earth, they will be visible from much of the planet for days or weeks.
|-
| {{w|Sunsets}} || 35% || 75% || Disappearance of the Sun below the horizon, should happen usually once every 24 hours (except close to the poles). Depending on weather conditions, they can sometimes be very pretty. Traveling around the Earth from east to west is needed for a continuous view of a sunset.
|-
| {{w|The Moon}} || 40% || 70% || Earth's only natural satellite with a predictable orbit. While Randall is most likely referring to chasing the Moon on the Earth, the {{w|Apollo Missions}} very much fit the description of "chase in a convoy of vehicles coordinating over radio and using instruments and data to find optimal viewing locations". That is exactly what the astronauts did, they "chased" the Moon (the Moon was moving while they flew towards it) using a convoy of vehicles (the multi-stage rockets) while they "coordinated" to Earth with their radios. Only 12 people (the {{w|Apollo astronauts}}) have actually visited it in person; the rest of us see it from about 250,000 miles (400,000 km) away. Weather permitting, it's visible for about half of every day/night cycle (though may be more obvious when this occurs significantly in the night sky, for several reasons). It doesn't move quickly in the sky, by apparent movement, so little chasing is necessary. A 'supermoon' is when the Moon looks the largest and shiniest, occurring when a full moon appears closest to the Earth in its orbit, though Randall doesn't consider this phenomenon impressive (How To, chapter 21).
|-
| Unusual clouds || 40% || 55% || Clouds with unique forms or shapes, like {{w|Lenticular clouds}}. People may want to chase after them if they’re drifting away, as they may want to view the cloud further, perhaps for scientific purposes.
|-
| Regular clouds || 35% || 40% || Clouds are an aerosol consisting of a visible mass of miniature liquid droplets. People may chase clouds for the same reasons as wanting to chase unusual clouds.
|-
| {{w|Fog}} || 30% || 25% || Atmospheric condition where water droplets are very dense near the Earth's surface, resulting in a visible haze. Fog does not move much, but dissipates over time. Fog might pull away from its least ideal conditions before it vanishes completely. This entry might be a reference to {{w|Phileas Fogg}}, who was pursued around the world.
|-
| {{w|Rain}} || 35% || 20% || Water droplets falling from clouds. In most of the world, this is a pretty common occurrence. Unless the volume is extremely high, there's rarely much excitement due to them, but extreme cases may cause flooding that can be dangerous. The only people who might chase rain are weather reporters who want to get wet.
|-
| {{w|Gnats}} || 35% || 5% || Hardly anybody wants to track down gnats, as they are annoying to chase and difficult to see, but people could theoretically use advanced instruments to do so.
|-
| Aurora || 60% || 95% || Impressive light displays that result from excitement of the Earth's {{w|magnetosphere}} by charged particles in the {{w|solar wind}}. These are generally only visible in high latitudes, so most people do not live where they're visible. Their visibility can be tracked and forecasted via monitoring of solar wind output from the sun, and particularly intense episodes can be predicted (as well as locations for viewing) on the basis of the solar cycle and solar flare activity. The release of this comic coincided with the strongest geomagnetic storm warning forecasted by the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in 20 years [https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/news/g4-watch-effect-may-11] ({{w|May 2024 solar storms}}).
|-
| Your favorite band's shows || 60% || 80% || Musical acts often plan tours, where they go around the country (or world) putting on shows every few days. Extreme fans with time (and money) on their hands may "chase" them by going to a series of their shows. Since the tour dates are planned and publicized well in advance, the shows are easy to find. However, depending on the popularity of your favorite band, this might be an expensive hobby, especially for optimal viewing. Also, tickets may be sold out.
|-
| Rare birds || 60% || 60% || Many birders will "twitch" to see rare birds, and this requires a fair amount of checking location, behavior, etc. Also, rare birds tend to be exciting to see.
|-
| Regular birds || 55% || 40% || These are easier to see than rare birds.
|-
| Regular balloons || 55% || 25% || Both children and adults accidentally let go of helium balloons, and may attempt to chase after them to retrieve them.
|-
| {{w|Tumbleweed|Tumbleweeds}} || 60% || 15% || A roughly spherical portion of certain plants that breaks off from its roots and rolls along the ground, propelled by winds. Most people don't find them very interesting to look at, and they're often used as a shorthand for nothing of interest happening. They don't usually travel very quickly, so it would be possible to chase them if you were so inclined. The locomotion of tumbleweeds is of interest to ecologists, as the non-native and extremely invasive plant disperses its seeds across a region.
|-
| {{w|Speed_limit_enforcement|Speed traps}} || 65% || 5% || A section of a road where police often wait for passing drivers who are exceeding the speed limit, so they can catch them and issue speeding tickets. Frequent drivers, especially truck drivers, have developed systems to warn each other of these locations ({{w|citizens band radio}} were once the most popular method, now this can be done using mobile phone using services like {{w|Waze}}).
|-
| {{w|Tornadoes}} || 85% || 95% || Wanting to witness a tornado is the typical objective of {{w|storm chaser}}s.
|-
| {{w|Whales}} || 85% || 90% || Widely distributed and diverse group of marine mammals. They are some of the largest animals to ever live, and often travel in groups, making them exciting and easy to see (when active at the surface). They have often been chased by humans, both for the purposes of hunting and exploiting them as a resource, and by tourist-oriented whale-watching trips.
|-
| {{w|Icebergs}} || 85% || 75% || Piece of freshwater ice broken off a glacier or ice shelf. These come in many sizes and shapes, making it interesting to see a new one. At the time of this comic, there had recently been substantial interest in tracking the progress of the giant {{w|Iceberg A23a}}.
|-
| {{w|Hot air balloons}} || 80% || 60% || An aircraft whose bag is filled with heated air. Hot air balloons are ridden for a variety of reasons (entertainment, sport, advertisement, etc.) and they usually involve a "chase crew" of people on the ground. To an uninvolved observer, catching an unexpected glimpse of an airborne balloon is a moderately exciting event; giving chase is not advised, however, as it may interfere with the chase crew's operation and may be perceived as a hostile act, thereby creating ''uncomfortable'' levels of excitement.
|-
| {{w|Radiosondes}} || 85% || 50% || Small instruments carried in weather balloons to gather and transmit atmospheric parameters. There's not much to see in them, but they're easy to track with a proper receiver.
|-
| Neighborhood possums || 85% || 35% || "Possum" is a common term for {{w|Virginia opossum}}s, the only species of opossum found in North America. In urban areas they will get into human garbage, and may carry diseases, so many may consider them pests and hunt them. A coordinated group of hunters can track them.
|-
| {{w|Ice cream trucks}} || 85% || 25% || Vans that sell ice cream. They're easy to chase because they often play music and/or ring a loud bell so customers will know they're coming, and make frequent stops to allow customers to make purchases. Ice cream trucks may typically be chased by children too young to drive a convoy of vehicles for their pursuit, but their excited screams might provide data that can be used to track an ice cream truck through a city.
|-
| Other chasers || 90% || 10% || May result in an awkward or friendly encounter if met in person. Chasers may bond over their enjoyment of chasing various objects, much like how [[Geohashing|geohashers]] connect with each other at specific geohashed locations. However, another group of chasers might not appreciate it if they find out that they're being the target themselves.
|}

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[An X Y axis graph]
:[Y axis label:]
:Exciting to see in person
:[X axis label:]
:Possible to chase in a convoy of vehicles coordinating over radio and using instruments and data to find optimal viewing locations?
:[X and Y axis values (from bottom left):]
:No
:Yes

:[Top left quarter:]
:The Grand Canyon
:Meteors
:Rainbow
:Comets
:Niagara Falls
:Sunsets
:The Moon
:Tourist attractions
:Unusual clouds

:[Top right quarter:]
:Aurora
:Tornadoes
:Whales
:Your favorite band's shows
:Icebergs
:Rare birds
:Hot air balloons

:[Bottom left quarter:]
:Tourist traps
:Regular clouds
:Sand traps
:Fog
:Rain
:The International Date Line
:Gnats

:[Bottom right quarter:]
:Regular birds
:Radiosondes
:Neighborhood possums
:Regular balloons
:Ice cream trucks
:Tumbleweeds
:Speed traps
:Other chasers

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Rankings]]
[[Category:Food]]
[[Category:Tornadoes]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Weather]]

2921: Eclipse Path Maps

2024-04-25T11:52:01Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ Speeling fix.

{{comic
| number = 2921
| date = April 17, 2024
| title = Eclipse Path Maps
| image = eclipse_path_maps_2x.png
| imagesize = 562x674px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Okay, this eclipse will only be visible from the Arctic in February 2063, when the sun is below the horizon, BUT if we get lucky and a gigantic chasm opens in the Earth in just the right spot...
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a TORNADO WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP WINNER - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
A total {{w|solar eclipse}} occurred {{w|Solar eclipse of April 8, 2024|on April 8, 2024}} in North America, nine days before this comic. This comic comments on the fact that most solar eclipses happen on territories not easily reachable by humans, places with weather conditions that make viewing the eclipse less appealing, like cloudy skies (mentioned previously in [[2915: Eclipse Clouds]] and [[2917: Types of Eclipse Photo]]), fog, or tornadoes (also a [[:Category:Tornadoes|recurring subject]] on xkcd), or areas that experience only a short period of totality.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Zone label !! Geography !! Suitability for observation
|-
| Zone where totality lasts 1-2 seconds || Land || No stated issues for visiting, but rendered all too brief an experience for astronomical reasons.
|-
| Bay of shifting ice || Water (part frozen) || Open water might make this location accessible by boated observers. Solid ice ''might'' grant observers ready access by skidoo, ski and/or skid-plane. Shifting ice causes problems for all these modes of access.
|-
| Shipwreck cove || Water/Coast || The name describes the likely impediment to any boat access.
|-
| Desert so harsh they train Mars astronauts there || Land (peninsula) || Implied inhospitable, and probably a lack of any normal transport/accommodation infrastructure.
|-
| Sea of rocky crags and maelstroms || Water (straits) || Yet more risk of nautical hazards, including {{w|Whirlpool|strong rotating currents}}. Possibly a nod to Scylla and Charybdis from The Odyssey.
|-
| [State department travel advisory] || Island || Unknown risk, but probably involves some form of political instability, war, or major health hazard that makes unnecessary visits highly inadvisable. May also be a result of adverse weather effects. Or perhaps all of these at the same time.
|-
| Isle of perpetual fog || Island (inc. littoral zones?) || Meteorologically unfortunate (ground visibility; ''may'' not fully obscure the skyward view).
|-
| Nice, scenic, accessible area (6 square miles, 40,000,000 visitors expected) || Land || Apparently one plot of land is ideal for eclipse viewing in all respects. Naturally, everyone else wants to be there too. For scale, forty million visitors is slightly more than the total population of California (alternately, somewhere between those of Canada and Poland). Six square miles is about one ''tenth'' the area of Washington DC (similarly around one tenth of Liechtenstein or, if you prefer, less than eight times Monaco). This would mean up to three people for every square metre, even before accounting for existing population and obstructions, as well as a high probability of {{what if|8|travel congestion}}.
|-
| Tornado capital of the world || Land || Meteorologically unfortunate (frequent disruptive wind vortices, and cloud cover likely).
|-
| Area where the eclipse will be low in the sky, behind the tornadoes || Land || Astronomically disadvantageous, with added complications from the neighbouring weather system.
|}

The title text mentions the {{w|Solar eclipse of February 28, 2063|solar eclipse of February 2063}}, and claims it will only be visible from the Arctic, though in fact this annular eclipse will traverse through the Indian Ocean. The eclipse in the comic would supposedly happen when the {{w|Sun}} would be below the horizon, which is a contradiction in terms, since an eclipse is only an eclipse from the standpoint of the viewer — it is equivalent to saying that the eclipse is not visible from that location, but is visible from a location over the horizon, at a point that is at the other end of a direct straight line {{w|Chord (geometry)|through the Earth}} that is directed 'down' towards the unrisen Sun and Moon. It then jokingly suggests that a giant chasm could open up between the location being considered and the location from where it would be visible, allowing people to view it. If this did happen, the chasm itself would likely eclipse the eclipse as a spectacle. In most cases, it would also likely cause severely detrimental effects (for example, magma eruptions, tsunamis, etc.), and would therefore not be considered 'lucky' by most people, despite the small and short-term benefit of being able to view an eclipse from a previously unsuitable location.

Note: The {{w|Novaya Zemlya effect}} can make it possible to observe a solar eclipse when the Sun is below the horizon at the poles during certain weather conditions. Also called a "polar mirage", the effect is when an atmospheric inversion ducts sunlight along the surface of the Earth for distances up to 250 miles (400 km), which would make the Sun appear 5° higher in the sky than it actually is. This appears to be the rare situation where [[Randall]] was unaware of an obscure scientific phenomenon that would contribute to a joke.

===Possible references to actual eclipses===
* Despite the {{w|solar eclipse of April 8, 2024}} passing through many populated areas of the United States, many weather forecasts a few days before were pessimistic, predicting significant clouds, and even thunderstorms, along a large majority of the eclipse path. An example of one such archived forecast map is [https://web.archive.org/web/20240423203358/https://cms.accuweather.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Screenshot-2024-04-05-at-12.42.58-PM.png here]. Only the very northeast bit of the path had consistently good forecasts, leading to news [https://www.boston.com/news/environment/2024/04/09/many-eclipse-visitors-to-northern-new-england-pulled-an-all-nighter-trying-to-leave/ reports] of an all-nighter of traffic jams, which the comic may be alluding to.
* The {{w|solar eclipse of August 12, 2026}} starts in Siberia, almost touches the North Pole, then touches Greenland, (barely) Iceland, and finally sets in Spain around 8:30pm local. In the relevant part of Siberia, the local time will be very close to midnight and the Sun will still be below the horizon for some. (The Sun will rise around midnight, just before/during/after totality depending on location, and then set after 10pm local.) In Spain, the length of totality will be significantly shortened due to the shallow angle at which the Sun (and therefore the Moon's shadow) hits the Earth. Notably, this is the next upcoming total solar eclipse as of this comic's publish date.
* The {{w|solar eclipse of August 2, 2027}} touches the southern edge of Spain and Gibraltar, then proceeds to go through numerous areas known for their political instability.
* The {{w|solar eclipse of November 14, 2031}} takes place entirely over the Pacific Ocean.

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

:'''Every eclipse path map'''
:[A grey band representing the totality path of an eclipse travels along the map across several labels. Labels along the path from top to bottom:]
:[On land] Zone where totality lasts 1-2 seconds
:[On water] Bay of shifting ice
:[On water] Shipwreck cove
:[On land] Desert so harsh they train Mars astronauts there
:[On water] Sea of rocky crags and maelstroms
:[On a big island; label in square brackets] State department travel advisory
:[On a small island] Isle of perpetual fog
:[On small part of a peninsula] Nice, scenic, accessible area (6 square miles, 40,000,000 visitors expected)
:[On land] Tornado capital of the world
:[On land] Area where the eclipse will be low in the sky, behind the tornadoes

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Solar eclipses]]
[[Category:Maps]]
[[Category:Tornadoes]]
[[Category:Weather]]

2917: Types of Eclipse Photo

2024-04-10T16:56:15Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ Many parts of Canada were also over cast. :(

{{comic
| number = 2917
| date = April 8, 2024
| title = Types of Eclipse Photo
| image = types_of_eclipse_photo_2x.png
| imagesize = 594x460px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = The most rare, top-tier eclipse photo would be the Solar Earth Eclipse, but the Apollo 12 crew's attempt to capture it was marred by camera shake. They said it looked spectacular, though.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by an AUSTRALIAN CLOUD FROM THE FUTURE - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

On the day of this comic's release, {{w|Solar eclipse of April 8, 2024|a total solar eclipse}} traversed North America, allowing a substantial portion of the United States to view this phenomenon. Total eclipses in any given area are rare enough and impressive enough that witnessing it was a huge event for many people, both those living in the zone of totality and the many people who traveled specifically to view it. This strip addresses the event through different types of photos that people might take.

'''The Standard:''' A photo of the solar eclipse during totality, a typical photo most people might hope to take. This photograph captures the sun totally blocked by the moon, with a barely visible ring of light around the outside.

'''The Partial:''' A photo of the eclipse in progress, likely approaching totality. Another typical photo most viewers take as the eclipse progresses, and the only type of image available to people [[2914: Eclipse Coolness|outside the zone of totality.]]

'''The Reaction Shot:''' During an eclipse, people tend to gather outside in crowds to witness the event in person. Images of people gathering and looking up at the sky capture the human side of this event, and is likely to be more personal to the person taking the photo (particularly since the people may be their friends and family).

'''The Fancy Lens:''' A photo of this type, that features conspicuous {{w|solar prominence}}s, will almost certainly require a lot more preparation and equipment (the 'fancy lens', a tripod or other mounting, etc).

'''The Focus Issues:''' People new or unaware of the difficulties of astral photography typically experience challenges focusing their lenses on astral bodies, especially if they are trying to fight against a confused auto-focus. The eclipse is no exception to this, and this type of photo popped up more frequently during this event because more people were taking photos of the sky than usual.

'''The Traffic Jam:''' Since the experience of a total eclipse is only available in a specific geographical range, it's extremely common for people to travel to view them, particularly when this range is near to heavily populated areas (as in this case). The number of people trying to get into a particular area for a particular event naturally causes huge issues of traffic and accommodations. One example is traffic jams, which can become huge and last for many hours. The Daily Gazette [https://www.dailygazette.com/news/northway-eclipse-traffic/article_b6caad62-f6b4-11ee-b1b7-a76cdd73b560.html reports] a number ([https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/dailygazette.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/d/f6/df60ce28-f687-11ee-aff2-5f944ac2e1e0/661562238083b.image.jpg?resize=375%2C500 photo 1], [https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/dailygazette.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/2b/72b670a2-f687-11ee-bd48-074d85985429/661561749830e.image.jpg?resize=400%2C533 photo 2]) of traffic related slowdowns in Schenectady, New York as people return from viewing the eclipse. It states many people spent double the normal time to get to their destination as compared to normal (non post-eclipse) travel. The irony of waiting in traffic for hours in order to see an event lasting several minutes can be frustrating, and an image of the traffic jam may be a bitter way to capture this irony.

'''The Astronaut:''' Astronauts on the ISS had a particularly unique view of the solar eclipse, seeing the Moon's shadow on the Earth's surface. [https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamiecartereurope/2024/04/08/total-solar-eclipse-photos-nasa-astronauts-take-historic-images-from-space/?sh=4139cb0465aa Forbes] has an article that shows the pictures of the [https://imageio.forbes.com/specials-images/imageserve/6616ae80477b4ce765cb35fa/IMG-5058/960x0.jpg?format=jpg&width=1440 eclipse] from NASA and the International Space Station in orbit 250 miles above the earth.

'''The "Frustratedly Looking up the Cloud Situation in Australia for 2028":''' There were clouds over a large portion of the United States and Canada during the April 2024 eclipse. For a large portion of the country, this meant that heavy cloud cover [[2915: Eclipse Clouds|blocked their view of the sun during the eclipse]], badly impacting the viewing experience. This was naturally highly undesirable, particularly those who had planned and travelled to see it. The joke here is that such a person, seeing only clouds during the eclipse, might try to figure out the next time that seeing an eclipse would be possible. There will be a {{w|Solar eclipse of July 22, 2028|total eclipse passing over Australia and New Zealand in 2028}}. For someone in the United States, this would require a much more significant trip than the 2024 trip, but someone who missed one eclipse might be willing to go to extremes to see another. The irony is that weather is impossible to accurately predict 4 years in the future, so such a plan would involve the risk of traveling halfway around the world, only to miss another eclipse due to weather.

The title text refers to a [[:File:Apollo_12_view_of_Solar_Eclipse_(5052129615).jpg|photograph]] taken during the {{w|Apollo 12}} mission when the Earth came between the spacecraft and the Sun on the journey back home from the Moon.

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

:<big>Types of Eclipse Photo</big>

:[Eclipse during totality]
:The Standard

:[Partial eclipse with lighter sky]
:The Partial

:[Two Cueballs and Ponytail looking and pointing at the sky]
:The Reaction Shot

:[Eclipse during totality with red "ribbons" around the Moon]
:The Fancy Lens

:[A blurry ring of light in the center]
:The Focus Issues

:[The rear of an SUV]
:The Traffic Jam

:[A dark circle on Earth's surface]
:The Astronaut

:[A gray cover of clouds]
:The "Frustratedly Looking up the Cloud Situation in Australia for 2028"

==Trivia==
* The [https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/types_of_eclipse_photo.png standard size] image was uploaded with a resolution/size of 8920 by 6909, larger than the supposed 2x version at 1189 by 921. This was likely an error, and has since been fixed.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]
[[Category:Solar eclipses]]
[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Weather]]
[[Category:Photography]]

2886: Fast Radio Bursts

2024-01-29T21:10:17Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ Clarify the noun.

{{comic
| number = 2886
| date = January 26, 2024
| title = Fast Radio Bursts
| image = fast_radio_bursts_2x.png
| imagesize = 469x524px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Dr. Petroff has also shown that the Higgs boson signal was actually sparks from someone microwaving grapes, the EHT black hole photo was a frozen bagel someone left in too long, and the LIGO detection was just someone slamming the microwave door too hard.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by an ENERGETIC OVEN-SIZED STAR - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

[[Cueball]] is giving a presentation, stating the different sources of {{w|fast radio burst}}s, which are short high-energy signals which have been detected by astronomers, but whose source is not known. His team is pretty sure that most of these bursts are energetic stellar objects in space - that is, astronomical phenomena.

He then says that some of them are caused by {{w|microwave oven}}s, citing Dr. Emily Petroff's work on identifying the apparent source of "{{w|Peryton (astronomy)|peryton}}s" at the {{w|Parkes Observatory}}.<ref>E.Petroff et al. (2015). "[https://academic.oup.com/mnras/article/451/4/3933/1119649?login=false Identifying the source of perytons at the Parkes radio telescope]". ''Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society'', '''451'''(4):3933–3940.</ref> These are signals similar to fast radio bursts, but which originate on Earth and not in space; initial hypotheses included atmospheric effects related to {{w|lightning}}, and passing aircraft, but they were eventually identified as a much closer range signal from microwaves escaping as the oven door was opened inside the observatory.

After that, he explores two further options, combining attributes of the previous two:

* Energetic stellar-sized microwave ovens; this is unlikely since microwave ovens typically are not stellar-sized and all known microwave ovens originate on Earth rather than in space. (There is [https://global.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202106/30/WS60dbaca4a310efa1bd65ebc9.html apparently a microwave oven] installed in the Chinese Tiangong space-station, but it appears that the ISS [https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-51235555 is less well equipped] than that. Neither facility is ever likely to have room for 'stellar-sized' equipment of any kind.)
* An energetic stellar-sized object in the break room, which would be surprising, as we have yet to see a break room large enough to contain a stellar-sized object. Although unlikely, he says he is sending a grad student there to double-check. Presumably the student is being sent rather than Cueball himself both because it is unlikely to give useful data, and because if there is indeed energetic stellar plasma in the break room, the million-degree temperatures would probably kill anyone who enters it, and grad students are disposable when compared to researchers.

Note that, as well as the ''universe-''sized {{w|Cosmic microwave background}} radiation, there are various microwave-bright {{w|Pulsar}}s and other strong microwave signals [https://www.space.com/40840-nanodiamonds-mysterious-cosmic-microwave-light.html originating from actual stars], but no reason to believe that they are deliberately purposed/engineered as any kind of actual oven, despite [https://science.nasa.gov/missions/hubble/hubble-sees-a-stellar-furnace/ misleading language] sometimes employed by those in the field.

The title text references a number of other discoveries, with Dr. Petroff suggesting explanations based on microwave ovens for each of them, as was the case with her own discovery:

* The apparent detection of the {{w|Higgs boson}} at the Large Hadron Collider was actually someone [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wCrtk-pyP0I microwaving grapes], which generates plasma
* The [https://science.nasa.gov/resource/first-image-of-a-black-hole/ image of a black hole] captured by the Event Horizon Telescope was actually a burning bagel (a notably ring-shaped bread product)
* {{w|LIGO}} (the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory) did not detect gravitational waves, but was instead disturbed by someone slamming the microwave door too hard

In each case, these are highly improbable - for instance, LIGO used a complex suspension system, and two sites (one in Louisiana and one in Washington State) comparing signals, to rule out such interference.

See [[2289: Scenario 4]] for a similar situation.

==References==
<references/>

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

:[Cueball standing behind a lectern, with a poster hung from the ceiling behind him]

:Potential sources of fast radio bursts:
:(1) Energetic stellar-sized astrophysical objects floating in space
:Cueball: We're pretty sure this is what most of them are.

:(2) Microwave ovens in the observatory break room
:Cueball: This was definitely some of them, oops. (Petroff et. al., 2015)

:(3) Energetic steller-sized microwave ovens floating in space
:Cueball: We think this one is unlikely.

:(4) Energetic stellar-sized astrophysical objects in the observatory break room
:Cueball: This is almost certainly not it, though we're sending a grad student to double-check.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Physics]]
[[Category:Space]]

2880: Sheet Bend

2024-01-13T17:20:31Z

Nutster: Undo revision 332874 by Nutster (talk) Misunderstood definition.

{{comic
| number = 2880
| date = January 12, 2024
| title = Sheet Bend
| image = sheet_bend_2x.png
| imagesize = 317x244px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = A left-handed sheet bend creates a much weaker connection, especially under moderate loads.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a SHEETTY BEND - Please change this comment when editing this page. Can anyone elaborate on of this knot is right handed and what the differnces to a left handed would be and why this would decrease the strength of the knot as mentioned in the title text. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This is the seventh installment in the series of [[:Category:Cursed Connectors|Cursed Connectors]] and presents Cursed Connectors #46: The Sheet Bend. At the time of release this was the lowest number used for a cursed connector, with #286: [[2507: USV-C]] being the one with the highest number after those seven comics.

This comic shows two double-core wires being joined to make an electrical connection. Instead of the join being made the conventional way, that is, silver being joined to silver and gold being joined to gold within the insulating white cable, the diagram shows each core being connected to a ductile outer sheath, then the wires being tied together such that the outer sheaths touch and the connection is completed that way.

This is not the way electrical connections are usually made, as you might get an electric shock from touching the outer side of the wires, if the current being passed was significant enough, and the possibility of contact between any of the wire's conductors and any other item (bridging gaps, leaking signal or possibly even ''introducing'' external interference) could be problematic for both high and low ampage cables (e.g. used to transmit power or just signals). Most connectors, even those like the relatively exposed {{w|punch-down block}} or {{w|screw terminal block}} types, would use some structural housing (and even {{w|AC power plugs and sockets#Protection from accidental contact|other methods}}) to ensure that the 'live' ends of a socket/plug/hybrid terminator are not trivially contactable to other exposed wires or objects/people, generally according to the relative dangers from, or to, the equipment to which the cable is connected.

If this knot were tightened, the gold and silver connectors would probably touch, shorting out the circuit, but there is also the possibility of the cable slipping loose (perhaps by improper tensioning or handling of the knot, from the start) and the exposed conducting sheaths making other improper/dangerous connections across or beyond the knot itself. In both cases, the connection of the 'connector' would be at least become unreliable, even if it only disconnected the intended contact-points due to slippage – whether or not it became mechanically untied.

The knot used to tie the two halves of the cable is a {{w|sheet bend}}, which is often used to join two ropes of different thicknesses, and explains the name for this type of cursed connector.

The title text says that a left handed sheet bend would provide a weaker connection. An actual left handed sheet bend provides less strength to the knot. This makes the title text a pun on the double meaning of "moderate load" (as in a moderate amount of physical tension applied through the cables ''or'' a moderate amount of electrical current passing through them). The difference between a left handed and right handed sheet knot is the free ends of the knots are on the same side in a right handed sheet knot (here both on the bottom side), but on opposite sides in a left handed sheet knot.

==Transcript==
:[Above the drawing there is a header. Below the header there is a double-core wire going in from the left and stopping just past the middle of the picture. It shows how the inside of the wire looks and how the silver and golden wires inside are connected to two rectangular pieces of silver and golden material respectively. The golden piece is to the left and the silver piece to the right, closest to the end of the wire. Beneath this wire is shown two double-core wires forming a knot of the sheet bend type. Here it becomes clear that the silver and golden pieces are on the outside of the wires (but connected to the wires running inside the wires). In the knotted part of the wires gold touches gold and silver touches silver, without them touching the other color. Beneath this knot there is a label for the connector.]
:Cursed Connectors #46:
:The Sheet Bend

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Cursed Connectors]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]

2880: Sheet Bend

2024-01-13T17:19:25Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ A little more detail.

{{comic
| number = 2880
| date = January 12, 2024
| title = Sheet Bend
| image = sheet_bend_2x.png
| imagesize = 317x244px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = A left-handed sheet bend creates a much weaker connection, especially under moderate loads.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a SHEETTY BEND - Please change this comment when editing this page. Can anyone elaborate on of this knot is right handed and what the differnces to a left handed would be and why this would decrease the strength of the knot as mentioned in the title text. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This is the seventh installment in the series of [[:Category:Cursed Connectors|Cursed Connectors]] and presents Cursed Connectors #46: The Sheet Bend. At the time of release this was the lowest number used for a cursed connector, with #286: [[2507: USV-C]] being the one with the highest number after those seven comics.

This comic shows two double-core wires being joined to make an electrical connection. Instead of the join being made the conventional way, that is, silver being joined to silver and gold being joined to gold within the insulating white cable, the diagram shows each core being connected to a ductile outer sheath, then the wires being tied together such that the outer sheaths touch and the connection is completed that way.

This is not the way electrical connections are usually made, as you might get an electric shock from touching the outer side of the wires, if the current being passed was significant enough, and the possibility of contact between any of the wire's conductors and any other item (bridging gaps, leaking signal or possibly even ''introducing'' external interference) could be problematic for both high and low ampage cables (e.g. used to transmit power or just signals). Most connectors, even those like the relatively exposed {{w|punch-down block}} or {{w|screw terminal block}} types, would use some structural housing (and even {{w|AC power plugs and sockets#Protection from accidental contact|other methods}}) to ensure that the 'live' ends of a socket/plug/hybrid terminator are not trivially contactable to other exposed wires or objects/people, generally according to the relative dangers from, or to, the equipment to which the cable is connected.

If this knot were tightened, the gold and silver connectors would probably touch, shorting out the circuit, but there is also the possibility of the cable slipping loose (perhaps by improper tensioning or handling of the knot, from the start) and the exposed conducting sheaths making other improper/dangerous connections across or beyond the knot itself. In both cases, the connection of the 'connector' would be at least become unreliable, even if it only disconnected the intended contact-points due to slippage – whether or not it became mechanically untied.

The knot used to tie the two halves of the cable is a {{w|sheet bend}}, which is often used to join two ropes of different thicknesses, and explains the name for this type of cursed connector.

The title text says that a left handed sheet bend would provide a weaker connection. An actual left handed sheet bend provides less strength to the knot because most ropes are twisted to the right. This makes the title text a pun on the double meaning of "moderate load" (as in a moderate amount of physical tension applied through the cables ''or'' a moderate amount of electrical current passing through them). The difference between a left handed and right handed sheet knot is the free ends of the knots are on the same side in a right handed sheet knot (here both on the bottom side), but on opposite sides in a left handed sheet knot.

==Transcript==
:[Above the drawing there is a header. Below the header there is a double-core wire going in from the left and stopping just past the middle of the picture. It shows how the inside of the wire looks and how the silver and golden wires inside are connected to two rectangular pieces of silver and golden material respectively. The golden piece is to the left and the silver piece to the right, closest to the end of the wire. Beneath this wire is shown two double-core wires forming a knot of the sheet bend type. Here it becomes clear that the silver and golden pieces are on the outside of the wires (but connected to the wires running inside the wires). In the knotted part of the wires gold touches gold and silver touches silver, without them touching the other color. Beneath this knot there is a label for the connector.]
:Cursed Connectors #46:
:The Sheet Bend

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Cursed Connectors]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]

Talk:2868: Label the States

2023-12-17T10:06:30Z

Nutster: New Worcestershire Sauce

I have not counted the states, but I deeply hope reaching the 64-state count involves splitting Michigan's mitten and peninsula in separate states. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.241.130|108.162.241.130]] 16:02, 15 December 2023 (UTC)
:I have now counted them. Sadly, with a Unified Michigan, there are 64 states, plus DC, plus those 3 enclave-looking bits in California, Utah and Florida that have the darker outlines. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.214.73|172.69.214.73]] 16:09, 15 December 2023 (UTC)
::Those "enclave" parts are large bodies of water that actually exist. [[User:MAP|MAP]] ([[User talk:MAP|talk]]) 16:14, 15 December 2023 (UTC)
::I am not at all sure that the areas in California, Utah, and Florida are intended to be additional states. They look like Okeechobee (Lake in Florida), Salt Lake (Utah) and the Salton Sea (California), approximately. There does seem to be an additional band of states starting between Oregon and California though- as a supporter of the Great State of Jefferson, I appove![[User:Seebert|Seebert]] ([[User talk:Seebert|talk]]) 16:17, 15 December 2023 (UTC)
:::They didn't really seem to be; they do have the coastline outlines, instead of the lighter state boundaries. The 64-count did work out without these lakes (though a part of me wishes one of them had been one, because it would have been funny to imply a state formed fully landlocked inside another, and even funnier if that state is just an entire body of water) [[Special:Contributions/108.162.242.38|108.162.242.38]] 16:26, 15 December 2023 (UTC)
:::: Should have been Salt Lake, if any of them, mostly because its closer to being "salt flats" than a "lake." And also nearly completely valueless as real estate (I've driven through, I forgot to fill my gas tank before leaving the city and in order to reach the nearest gas station I had to drive 10 miles to the next exit in order to turn around, because the tiny village the exit was for didn't have a gas station). [[User:Draco18s|Draco18s]] ([[User talk:Draco18s|talk]]) 21:25, 16 December 2023 (UTC)

I believe I have identified (but not named) all the new states:
# South of Oregon
# South of Idaho
# South of Wyoming
# East of Montana
# East of Wyoming
# South of the previous new state
# East of Arizona
# North of Tennessee
# North of North Carolina
# East of New Hampshire
Additionally, the following states have been stretch and/or split:
# Colorado
# Nebraska
# Arkansa
# Ohio
The distinction between a split state and a new state is purely arbitrary based on what preserves distinctive state corners. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.214.108|172.69.214.108]] 16:35, 15 December 2023 (UTC)
: Personally, would describe the new state as being south of North Carolina. The one to the north better matches the general outline of North Carolina (particularly the Outer Banks and that long, straight northern border). [[Special:Contributions/172.69.247.65|172.69.247.65]] 16:58, 15 December 2023 (UTC)

I added locations for the new states in the explanation. If you think my interpretation is wrong, feel free to change it! [[explain_xkcd:Community_portal/Miscellaneous#Help_with_Creating_a_User_Page|Trogdor147]] ([[explain_xkcd:Community_portal/Miscellaneous#Help_with_Creating_a_User_Page|talk]]) 16:49, 15 December 2023 (UTC)

Could this be considered in a "series" with other maps like the mixed up states and left out states ones? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.158.233|162.158.158.233]] 17:19, 15 December 2023 (UTC)

Not sure if it's relevant but the number of 64 (as a power of 2) doesn't seem completely random. Could be a hint towards states in the computer science sense. You could use 6 bit to represent any number of states up to 64 - and you'd already need 6 bit for the actual number of US states.[[Special:Contributions/172.69.22.129|172.69.22.129]] 17:40, 15 December 2023 (UTC)

someone with better photoshop skills than me should overlay the normal map and point out the inconsistencies! [[User:Mushrooms|Mushrooms]] ([[User talk:Mushrooms|talk]]) 17:51, 15 December 2023 (UTC)
:Overlaying the maps goes beyond my skills with Paint, but I hope showing the real map and xkcd's one with extra states highlighted is clear enough.--[[User:Pere prlpz|Pere prlpz]] ([[User talk:Pere prlpz|talk]]) 18:08, 15 December 2023 (UTC)

Labeled all… INCLUDING Central Dakota, Central Carolina, North Arkansas, West Mexico, Kansorado, Ohindiana, Kentussee, Eyoming, East Hampshire, North Wyoming, West Dakota, South Oregon, Udaho, and Montanyoming. [[User:TenGolf MathHacker|TenGolf MathHacker]] ([[User talk:TenGolf MathHacker|talk]]) 18:53, 15 December 2023 (UTC)
:I propose instead that the state north of Colorado be Wyoming, the one to the west become Wyamping, and the one to the north become Wyvolting. [[Special:Contributions/172.71.22.132|172.71.22.132]] 19:01, 15 December 2023 (UTC)

My proposal (hope the image is fine):

[[File:Labelledstates.png|400x400px]]
[[User:Mushrooms|Mushrooms]] ([[User talk:Mushrooms|talk]]) 20:00, 15 December 2023 (UTC)

: You've labeled Nebraska as a "new" state for some reason, and it looks like it's been added to the actual description. Someone really ought to fix that. [[Special:Contributions/172.71.154.118|172.71.154.118]] 08:24, 16 December 2023 (UTC)
:: I, too, object to Nebraska having been marked as one of the added states (and I don't even live there). [[User:Draco18s|Draco18s]] ([[User talk:Draco18s|talk]]) 08:44, 16 December 2023 (UTC)
::: Sorry, european moment. I just took the highlighted map at its word! [[User:Mushrooms|Mushrooms]] ([[User talk:Mushrooms|talk]]) 09:23, 16 December 2023 (UTC)
:::: No worries. I even screwed up the copy *I* did because I had to fix the in-color so it didn't look like ass and missed two of the new states (I love that no one can agree on which Wyoming is the right one, though). [[User:Draco18s|Draco18s]] ([[User talk:Draco18s|talk]]) 21:19, 16 December 2023 (UTC)

Here's my take. [https://imgur.com/a/Cjvybx1] [[User:N-eh|N-eh]] ([[User talk:N-eh|talk]]) 20:02, 15 December 2023 (UTC)

Loving the state name proposals. [https://imgur.com/a/DgWvox5 Here's mine.] [[User:Chasingballoons|Chasingballoons]] ([[User talk:Chasingballoons|talk]]) 21:16, 15 December 2023 (UTC)

: I liked N-eh's names better, except for "Occupied South Oregon and New Worchestershire". Those are truly inspired names.
:: New Worcestershire Sauce would be loaded with maple syrup as a major flavouring. [[User:Nutster|Nutster]] ([[User talk:Nutster|talk]]) 10:06, 17 December 2023 (UTC)

I'm sorry to burst your bubble, but what you have labelled as Kansbraska is actually just Nebraska. Just south of Nebraska is the new state, which I'd tentatively name Nebrahoma or perhaps Oklaska.

The image with the added states highlighted in the explanation has Nebraska highlighted. The correct state highlighted should be the one above Nebraska. [[User:Firestar233|guess who]] ([[User talk:Firestar233|if you want to]] | [[Special:Contributions/Firestar233|what i have done]]) 22:35, 15 December 2023 (UTC)
:The image history just flips between South Dacota (with notch in NE) and Nebraska (with inward corner in SW), without ever marking the new state between them. One half each of Arkansas and Ohio disappeared too. There will probably be some more iterations with similar edit collisions... :D Anyways, the maps are aesthetically pleasing. Good job! --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.87.205|162.158.87.205]] 14:32, 16 December 2023 (UTC)
Very proud of everyone here for somehow managing to edit war over which states to highlight and getting it wrong Four Times In A Row [[User:IloLisipo|IloLisipo]] ([[User talk:IloLisipo|talk]]) 17:31, 16 December 2023 (UTC)
:It's really bothering me that Colorado is currently marked in blue as a new state, when it seems rather obvious by the distorted outlines that "East Utah" (the one entirely West of Texas) is the "new" one... (Also, is ''no one'' going to make a Garfield joke about Wyoming being a made-up state?)
:[[User:ProphetZarquon|ProphetZarquon]] ([[User talk:ProphetZarquon|talk]]) 02:06, 17 December 2023 (UTC)
:Clearly, the state next to New Mexico is Newer Mexico.

2394: Contiguous 41 States

2023-12-17T09:44:13Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ Seperating Lakes Erie and Ontario?

{{comic
| number = 2394
| date = December 4, 2020
| title = Contiguous 41 States
| image = contiguous_41_states.png
| titletext = Linguists, settling some inscrutable grudge, have been steadily sneaking more backdated synonyms for 'sharing borders' into the dictionary. They've added 'contiguous,' 'coterminous,' 'conterminous,' and next year they're adding 'conterguous.'
}}

==Explanation==
[[File:states missing from xkcd 2394.png|thumb|300px|The states missing from the comic map.]]
The United States of America is composed of {{w|List_of_states_and_territories_of_the_United_States|50}} states, {{w|Contiguous United States|48 of which are contiguous}} – meaning they share common borders. Two states are separated from the other 48 states, {{w|Alaska}} and {{w|Hawaii}}. Alaska, purchased from Russia in 1867, is separated from the rest of the United States by the country of Canada (or at least appears to be as a result of the [[2082: Mercator Projection|Mercator Projection]]). Hawaii, annexed in 1898, is a group of islands in the Pacific Ocean. As these states are not ''contiguous'' to the rest of the 48 states, they may be omitted from maps of the United States. Typically, these 2 states are included in inset maps, separate sections usually placed at the bottom of the main map.

The United States also includes 5 permanently inhabited territories (Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa), which are not contiguous with states. Puerto Rico {{w|2020_Puerto_Rican_status_referendum|may become a state}}. The District of Columbia is not ({{w|Statehood_movement_in_the_District_of_Columbia|yet}}) a state, but is contiguous with the states.

The map in this comic is "Alaska and Hawaii's revenge", with seven additional states removed: North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, and Delaware. Most of these are accomplished by eliminating a column of states: North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Kansas. Oklahoma and Texas, which are directly south of these, are slid over to the west into the space freed up by deleting New Mexico. The other two deleted states are Pennsylvania and Delaware, with the states to their south and north slid/extended to fill the gap.

The map is also missing {{w|Isle Royale}}, Michigan, the third-largest island in the contiguous U.S. This seems to be a legitimate oversight, as the map includes numerous smaller islands in detail, including Michigan's Beaver Island and North Manitou Island. Even the non-contiguous {{w|Northwest Angle}} of Minnesota is depicted. (The {{w|Eastern Shore of Virginia}}, which is not connected to the rest of Virginia and only borders Maryland, is also not shown—presumably to make way for New Jersey replacing much of the {{w|Delmarva Peninsula}}).

Some states, while not removed, are significantly distorted. Iowa and Missouri lose their contours with the Missouri River, while Wyoming's eastern border is crooked. The eastern border of Maryland follows the Delaware river with New Jersey. The border between Oklahoma and Arkansas is moved west. Western New York is wider in the comic than it is in reality. Also, the location of the Niagara River, separating Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, is much less distinct than in reality.

The United States did have exactly 41 states for a few days in 1889, from the admission of Montana, the 41st state, on November 8, to the admission of Washington (the state, not DC), the 42nd state, on November 11. However, it was not the same 41 as shown here; for example, Pennsylvania and Delaware were two of the original 13 states (Delaware calls itself the first state, based on date of ratification of the Constitution) and Arizona and Oklahoma did not become states until the early 1900s.

The title text riffs on synonyms for "shared borders", which, according to Randall, linguists are inventing more of (while claiming they already existed) to make life more complicated for modern English users, for obscure reasons.

In fact, 'contiguous', 'coterminous', and 'conterminous' all date from early modern English, early-to-mid 17th century (just after the time of Shakespeare). 'Coterminous' and 'conterminous' are alternate spellings from the same Latin root ('cum' + 'terminus'), whereas 'contiguous' is from a different root (Latin 'contiguus'). Randall, facetiously, accuses linguists of having fabricated this history.

'Conterguous' is a neologism by Randall, though he blames it on linguists, consistent with his claim that they made up all the others. It is a portmanteau of 'CONTERminous' and 'contiGUOUS'. It is etymologically absurd (the prefix 'conter-' is meaningless). Its 'top-down' introduction into the language would simply be for the purpose of messing with people's minds, as Randall suggests. However, should the word catch on with English speakers, perhaps precisely because it is a joke, its 'bottom-up' entry into the language is certainly possible. One could then argue just how much Randall would have to answer for.

==Transcript==
:[Heading above the panel:]
:The Contiguous 41 States

:[A map of the United States, missing Delaware, Kansas, New Mexico, Nebraska, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, and South Dakota, along with Alaska and Hawaii.]

:[Caption below the panel:]
:Tired of being left off maps of the US, Alaska and Hawaii begin producing maps with ''other'' states missing, too.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:US maps]]
[[Category:Language]]

1992: SafetySat

2023-12-11T04:47:02Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ The corrosive chemicals could be acids or bases, depending on the battery technology. An alkaline battery contains a strong base.

{{comic
| number = 1992
| date = May 11, 2018
| title = SafetySat
| image = safetysat.png
| titletext = During launch, in the event of an unexpected sensor reading, SafetySat will extend prongs in all directions to secure itself and any other cubesats safely in the launch vehicle until the source of the problem can be determined.
}}

==Explanation==
{{w|CubeSat}} is a standard format for small satellites that can fit in a 10×10×10 cm format with a mass of less than 1.3 kg. They have been widely used by academics for research satellites, and by both small and large companies. CubeSats have been discussed both before and after this comic, in [[1866: Russell's Teapot]] and [[2148: Cubesat Launch]].

CubeSats are often launched as an additional payload on commercial launches but also deployed from the {{w|International Space Station}} at the {{w|Kibo (ISS module)|Kibo-Module}} or other airlocks. All these satellites are orbiting the Earth in a low orbit and since they have no propulsion system they also become a part of {{w|space debris}} when they are out of control; eventually they will reenter earth's atmosphere without any further hazard.

Only a few days before this comic was released the first interplanetary CubeSats called {{w|Mars Cube One}} was launched together with NASA's probe {{w|InSight}} (now offline) aiming to the planet {{w|Mars}}.

One of Randall's influences in creating this comic may have been [https://spectrum.ieee.org/tech-talk/aerospace/satellites/fcc-accuses-stealthy-startup-of-launching-rogue-satellites controversy surrounding a commercial launch of a sub-CubeSat sized pico-satellite] from a launch site in India, after the company had previously been denied launch permission within the US, due to safety concerns.

There are multiple safety rules to ensure that the CubeSat cannot damage the primary payload. However, the joke in this comic is that [[Randall]]'s design seeks to break as many rules as possible.

Items clockwise from top left:

;Rare-Earth Magnets
:Violates CubeSat Design Specification Rev. 13 § 3.1.10.
:{{w|Rare-earth magnets}} are very powerful magnets that have a high likelihood of messing up the functioning of nearby electronics, like other CubeSats. It might also cause the CubeSat to stick to other satellites, as the {{w|M-Cubed}} and {{w|Explorer-1 Prime}} CubeSats did.

;BIC Mini-Lighter
: Does not conform to AFSPCMAN 91-710, Volume 3 § 10.1.3, in turn violates CubeSat Design Specification Rev. 13 § 3.1.7
:Fire source, resting on the can of crude oil. The pressurized butane could also make the lighter burst, but in space without oxygen the lighter never would ignite. And even if the inside of the CubeSat contains some oxygen in weightlessness a flame would go out very soon, of course if it set off the crude oil or the guncotton then it would not matter, as the CubeSat would be destroyed.

;SDR/{{w|Software-Defined Radio}} (Code Editable via Public Wiki)
:Violates Title 47 CFR Part 97 § 97.207(b), in turn violates CubeSat Design Specification Rev. 13 § 3.4.3.2.1
:A radio which can be programmed to broadcast and receive in a range of frequencies, and formats. Software-Defined Radios are useful for development of new or modified wireless protocols, as well as for monitoring the raw waveform data of a transmission regardless of the protocols used. The radio in this comic is stated to run firmware which can be modified from a publicly editable Wikipedia-style webpage. Since anyone could change the radio's instructions, the radio could interfere with other satellites, or with the launch vehicle. This counts as a huge security risk, as ''anyone'' could edit it.

;Laser Pointers (Fixed)
: Does not conform to AFSPCMAN 91-710, Volume 3 § 8.2.2, in turn violates CubeSat Design Specification Rev. 13 § 3.1.7
:These three laser points will effectively point in 3 different random directions, which is not safe for other objects around this Cubesat. It depends on the power of the laser pointers but, in general a laser over 5 mW can heat up and damage things given enough time.{{Actual citation needed|reason=Why is a laser pointer dangerous?|date=May 2018}} Of course, with the satellite being in orbit it could potentially mess up the optical sensors of other satellites, but it would be a matter of chance. This could also be a reference to the book ''What If?'', specifically the chapter ''Laser Pointer''.

;Laser Pointer (Hubble-Seeking)
: Does not conform to AFSPCMAN 91-710, Volume 3 § 8.2.2, in turn violates CubeSat Design Specification Rev. 13 § 3.1.7
:Aiming a laser at a visible light telescope is potentially destructive to the telescope in question by damaging its optical sensors. This is because CCD & CMOS image sensors are designed to detect finite light sources, concentrated & focused by an optical lens. Lasers produce high light levels well beyond the (comparatively) very low intensity light which astronomical image sensors are designed to detect; The energy of these excess photons can heat up the circuits between rows of photosensitive cells to the point where they overheat and fuse. For much the same reason, originates the phrase "do not stare into laser with remaining eye". Unlike the fixed laser pointers above, this one would track and aim a laser at the Hubble, with potentially disastrous results.

;CFCs/Ozone-depleting CFC Spritzer
: Does not conform to AFSPCMAN 91-710, Volume 3 § 10.3, in turn violates CubeSat Design Specification Rev. 13 § 3.1.7
:{{w|Chlorofluorocarbons}} (CFCs) are fully halogenated paraffin hydrocarbons that contain only carbon, chlorine, and fluorine, produced as volatile derivative of methane, ethane, and propane. {{w|Freon}} is a common example of a CFC, and the use of CFCs has been linked to a depletion of the Earth's {{w|ozone layer}} leading many countries to ban their use. Thus spritzing CFCs in an area relatively close to the Ozone layer may be a bad idea.

;Celebratory Firework
: Violates CubeSat Design Specification Rev. 13 § 3.1.3.
: Does not conform to AFSPCMAN 91-710, Volume 3 § 13.2, in turn violates CubeSat Design Specification Rev. 13 § 3.1.7
:Explosive fire source that could hit other satellites in the vicinity; Also potentially breaking the adjacent seal & igniting the crude oil behind it, turning it into crude oil that is also on fire. Could also set off the guncotton and result in an explosion that destroys the satellite. At the very least, the off-axis position of the firework within the CubeSat would most likely send the satellite into an uncontrolled spin, upon celebratory launch.

;{{w|Crude Oil}}
: Violates CubeSat Design Specification Rev. 13 § 3.1.6
: Does not conform to AFSPCMAN 91-710, Volume 3 § 10.1.3, in turn violates CubeSat Design Specification Rev. 13 § 3.1.7
: § 3.1.6 permits 100 Wh of stored chemical energy, or about 9.8ml of crude oil. There appears to be more than that.

;Volatile Epoxy Seal
: Does not conform to AFSPCMAN 91-710, Volume 3 § 10.1.3, 12.1, in turn violates CubeSat Design Specification Rev. 13 § 3.1.7
:Epoxy is a substance composed of long-chain molecules which exhibit very strong adhesive bonds. Many mixtures of epoxy are flammable & produce hazardous fumes when burned. If this particular epoxy seal fails, everything within splatter range gets coated in flammable crude oil.

;Guncotton
: Does not conform to AFSPCMAN 91-710, Volume 3 § 10.1.3, in turn violates CubeSat Design Specification Rev. 13 § 3.1.7
:A form of {{w|nitrocellulose}}; an explosive. Could be set off by the firework, the crude oil, or the spark plug. Nitrocellulose {{w|Philae_(spacecraft)#Landing_events|does not work reliably in vacuum and possibly caused a failure of Philae space probe}}.

;Americium corners
: Does not conform to AFSPCMAN 91-710, Volume 3 § 9.1.1, in turn violates CubeSat Design Specification Rev. 13 § 3.1.7
:{{w|Americium}} is a very dense and radioactive substance. Depending on the amount of americium involved, this alone could shoot the mass over the 1.3 kg mass limit. The isotope 241Am is used in smoke detectors but also proposed for use in {{w|Radioisotope thermoelectric generator|radioisotope thermoelectric generators}} in spaceflight.

;Spark Plug
: Does not conform to AFSPCMAN 91-710, Volume 3 § 10.1.3, 10.1.4, in turn violates CubeSat Design Specification Rev. 13 § 3.1.7
:Fire ignition source, if connected to electricity; excess mass if not. The electrodes on the spark plug are next to the guncotton which could ignite if the spark plug fires. Additionally, sparks cause electromagnetic interference and electrical shorts.

;Solar Panel (Found)
:The quality of the solar panel and the power it produces would have to be investigated thoroughly before being cleared for space flight. Also, it isn't clear on the design exactly what, if anything, it is supposed to power, or if it is just excess mass.

;Batteries (eBay)
:The quality of batteries bought on auction sites can vary widely, and certain batteries exposed to conditions outside their design specifications can {{w|Battery_(electricity)#Explosion|explode or leak corrosive chemicals}}. These batteries might also be connected to the adjacent spark plug. Non-rechargable commercial batteries may leak or explode if a recharge is attempted, so if this is the intention of the Solar Panel, these would escalate into an even greater risk.

;Wet Sand Dispenser
:Violates CubeSat Design Specification Rev. 13 § 3.1.2, 3.4.3
:Possible reference to the {{w|Kessler syndrome}}, which refers to a hypothetical situation wherein there are enough objects floating around in low earth orbit that collisions between objects might result in a "domino effect," each collision causing more collisions and breaking objects into smaller pieces of space debris, which increase the likelihood of further collisions. Wet sand exhibits a high grip:slip ratio, where the surface tension of the water tends to make particulates clingy. Sand (silica granules) can be very harmful to a wide variety of systems, due to its hardness & abrasive qualities. Depending upon the pattern of water sublimation in either shaded or sunlit zones, the exact behavior of various quantities of "wet sand" in low Earth-orbital space might be of interest to the designers of this and of other spacecraft.

;Title text
:Violates CubeSat Design Specification Rev. 13 § 3.4.4
:{{Wiktionary|prong|Prong}}s that extend in the event of an unexpected sensor reading at launch could damage the rocket and/or nearby CubeSats/payloads. That the CubeSat reacts to an "unexpected" sensor reading - which could include any number of readings that aren't actually a problem - is also funny, as is the fact that this is described as "safely" securing the CubeSat and any surrounding CubeSats. Along with this, it is not unlikely that this CubeSat might be the source of any internal problem that might arise; in such a situation, having such a dangerous CubeSat further secure itself would be counterproductive, if spitefully entertaining.

==Transcript==
:[A prototype for a small cube-shaped "CubeSat" satellite, with labels on various components.]

:[Labeled on top:]
:Rare-Earth Magnets
:Bic Mini Lighter
:Software-Defined Radio (code editable via a public wiki)

:[Labeled on right:]
:Laser Pointers (fixed)
:Laser Pointer (Hubble-seeking)
:Ozone-Depleting CFC Spritzer

:[Labeled on bottom:]
:Celebratory Firework
:Volatile Epoxy Seal
:Filler (Guncotton)

:[Labeled on left:]
:Americium Corners
:Spark Plug
:Solar Panel (found)
:Batteries (eBay)
:Wet Sand Dispenser

:[Labeled from within drawing in white text on top of a black rectangle:]
:Crude Oil

:[Caption below the panel:]
:My CubeSat proposal was the first to be rejected for violating every design and safety requirement simultaneously.

== Trivia ==
*The normal sized image was originally broken at [[xkcd]] and the BOT uploaded that image here. It was just a gigantic Γ shape at first (though with a rounded corner). The problem was fixed soon, but it happened later again at comic [[1994: Repairs]].

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Space probes]]

2469: Astronomy Status Board

2023-12-04T14:54:09Z

Nutster: /* Conditions under which celestial objects might be considered "gone" */ Talk about supernovas and black holes.

{{comic
| number = 2469
| date = May 28, 2021
| title = Astronomy Status Board
| image = astronomy_status_board.png
| titletext = Junior astronomers hate getting put on board update duty, but someone's gotta make sure that stuff is still up there.
}}

==Explanation==
[[Ponytail]] is staring at the sky through a telescope while [[Cueball]] is operating a checklist, visible on a large screen on what looks like a large billboard.

Since they are junior astronomers, they appear to have been tasked with simply verifying whether normal celestial objects are still present in the sky, such as the Sun and the Moon. Only large objects that are clear in the sky (at least at night for those not the Sun). Although all of these objects will eventually disappear it is not expected to happen within the life of the status board. {{Citation needed}}

This is likely a reference to the many "status boards" for online services ([https://portal.office.com/ServiceStatus example], [https://status.cloud.google.com/ another example], [https://forum.suprbay.org/status a different example], [http://hasthelargehadroncolliderdestroyedtheworldyet.com/ a funnier example]). The joke is that it would be funny if there was a status board to check that all the celestial bodies are still there, and that with our modern culture few people are looking directly at the real sky, even though anyone with a telescope and an unobstructed view could just look at the sky to verify for themselves without referencing such a status board. This is compounded by the fact that the listed celestial bodies have existed for billions of years, and are expected to last for billions more, leading one to wonder why astronomers would bother checking and rechecking just to see if they're "still there" with any sort of regularity.

This comic may also be an oblique reference to the study of the projected future of celestial objects given our current understanding of physics. At various points in the future the objects on the billboard may become unobservable from Earth. The Moon is gradually receding from Earth, and when the Sun enters its red giant phase the Moon might be broken up.[https://www.space.com/3373-earth-moon-destined-disintegrate.html] Eventually the Sun itself will run out of {{w|Sun#After_core_hydrogen_exhaustion|usable fuel}} and will go dark as will other stars. Moreover, if current theories of dark energy and universal expansion hold, the acceleration of the universe could push galaxies beyond the {{w|Cosmological_horizon#Hubble_horizon|"Hubble Horizon"}}, meaning they would no longer be observable. Matter itself could even cease to exist under some hypothetical scenarios, such as {{w|Proton_decay|proton decay}} or the {{w|Big_Rip|Big Rip}}. The joke of the comic here would be that all these scenarios are only possible in the unimaginably far future (exception: {{w|False_vacuum_decay|False Vacuum Decay}} ) and do not need constant monitoring by astronomers.

==Transcript==
:[Ponytail is looking through a telescope, while Cueball is pressing buttons, which makes noises, on a remote control connected with a wire to a large board to their right. He controls the messages shown on this board.]
:Remote: Beep beep

:[The board has a black screen, with a label in a white section above the screen:]
:Astronomy Status Board:

:[The black screen has five rows with text in three columns. The first column is with white text. The second is in glowing green text and the last are in faded grey red text.]
Moon '''Still there''' Gone
Sun '''Still there''' Gone
Stars '''Still there''' Gone
Planets '''Still there''' Gone
Galaxies '''Still there''' Gone

==Conditions under which celestial objects might be considered "gone"==
Astronomers do regularly observe {{w|occultation}}s of stars by other celestial bodies, and sometimes also search through archived images for missed occultations. This can provide information on the size and orbit of an asteroid too small to observe directly, or other useful scientific knowledge, but occulted stars are not "gone", merely hidden. There are also a few astronomers who are searching image archives for [https://www.space.com/hunt-for-universe-missing-stars-space-mysteries stars that really have completely vanished without a trace] (or suddenly appeared), as this would be a sign of truly novel physics -- perhaps even a sign of extraterrestrial intelligence -- but no such vanishings have yet been identified. This comic appeared at the time the [https://vasconsite.wordpress.com/ VASCO project] is receiving media attention, claiming that [https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/1538-3881/ab570f 800 stars visible in 70 years old photos are not seen anymore].

Small stars which have exhausted their hydrogen fuel without building enough heat to fuse carbon or oxygen, are theorized to eventually collapse into faint "{{w|white dwarf}} stars" which are of such low luminosity that they are unlikely to remain visible to the naked eye from the Earth's surface except at very close proximities. The Earth's sun, Sol, is generally expected to follow this progression as a low-mass {{w|main sequence}} star, during the latter period of its {{w|stellar evolution}}. Although some stellar models predict that relatively rapid collapses are possible, the long time scale over which stellar evolutions are believed to occur decreases the odds of observing any one specific star both before and after this transition. In this comic, individual stars are not listed; therefore "gone" is unlikely to be useful for the stars, because a great number of stars would be "still there" until well after the expected collapse of our own sun.

Larger stars have enough mass and thus gravitational pressure to be able to react the waste products of previous stages, releasing more energy, until it starts fusing iron. Iron fusion actually absorbs energy which means the energy flow and the gravitational pressure are both going downward and in a few hours, the star with become a supernova, sending most of its mass away from the star with lots of even heavier elements included and crushing anything left in the middle down into degenerate neutron matter, forming a neutron star. Many neutron stars will continue to glow for millennia, but with no new reactions. Some neutron stars will have a "hot spot" which on the spinning surface of the neutron star forms a pulsar. If the original star was large enough, the neutron star will be so massive that it will curve space-time so much that it will become a black hole, which does not emit any light. In this way, some large stars will disappear, but the process of star formation to supernova to black hole still takes millions of years so is unlikely to be seen in a human lifetime. Many black holes will develop an accretion disc around them, made of in-falling matter, which will glow in visible to x-ray light; in this way a black hole can still be seen.

One of the proposed outcomes of the ultimate fate of the universe is the {{w|Big Rip}}. If it's correct, all the items on the status board will eventually move from Still There to Gone, beginning with the most distant galaxies and proceeding to the objects in our own solar system (although there will be hardly any time for the board to show Gone for the closest, especially the Moon). This scenario is dramatized in the short story "{{w|Last Contact}}" by Stephen Baxter.

Collisions between celestial bodies are commonly postulated as a fundamental part of the formation of {{w|planetary nebula}}. Since most mass in the known universe is observed to have a relatively low {{w|albedo}}, the presence of numerous unlit, massy bodies of planetary scale and smaller is strongly indicated. This is corroborated by measurements of orbital deflection detected in many visible stars, hinting at the possibility of large planets orbiting around them, unseen due to distance & low luminosity. The possibility of one or more local planets being "gone" could be attributed to unpredicted collision with another object of similar mass or equivalent velocity. Such a collision is one possible explanation for the sudden & catastrophic disintegration of Earth's moon, Luna, in the novel {{w|Seveneves}} by Neal Stephenson. This hypothetical event forms the premise of this book, during which Earth's whole sky becomes occluded by dust raised by millions of impacts across its surface & eventually by the constant incandescent descent of lunar debris itself. Again however, a single collision with any planet besides the Earth would not remove ''all'' the "Planets" from the Earth's visible night sky, so "gone" remains unlikely to be used for that category of celestial objects.

Occlusion of Earth's entire sky, due to airborne dust, volcanic ash, increased cloud cover, {{w|light pollution}}, or sufficiently dense layers of high-albedo material in orbit, may be the least unlikely potential reason for all of these celestial phenomena to be flagged as "gone". Notably, the phenomena in question would remain; only our view of them would be gone.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]

2627: Types of Scopes

2023-12-04T13:24:31Z

Nutster: /* Table with scopes */ Fixed formatting.

{{comic
| number = 2627
| date = June 1, 2022
| title = Types of Scopes
| image = types_of_scopes.png
| titletext = An x-ray gyroscope is used to determine exactly which toppings they included in the pita.
}}

==Explanation==
''{{w|Electron microscopes}}'', ''{{w|Calorimetric Electron Telescope|electron telescopes}}'' and ''{{w|radio telescopes}}'' are special forms of {{w|microscopes}} and {{w|telescopes}}, respectively. This comic explores what you could do with a hypothetical "electron ___-scope" and "radio ___-scope" for other "regular" items whose name also ends in -scope (namely: {{w|periscope}}, {{w|stethoscope}}, {{w|kaleidoscope}}, {{w|gyroscope}} and {{w|horoscope}}).

The third column with "radio" often plays on different meanings of the word ''radio:'' 1) related to radiation and 2) a device for receiving radio communication or broadcasts.

The title text makes a pun on "gyroscope" and a middle-eastern pita wrap called a "{{w|gyros}}", incorrectly taken to be plural by many non-Greek speakers.
===Table with scopes===
{| class="wikitable"
|+ What the words could mean according to the comic
|-
! Word !! Regular ___ !! Electron ___ !! Radio ___
|-
| {{w|Microscope}} || A laboratory instrument used for magnifying small objects. || ''{{w|Electron Microscope|Really exists:}}'' A microscope that uses a beam of accelerated electrons as a source of illumination has a higher resolution than a conventional microscope. || Simply a microscope that one would use when repairing a radio.
|-
| {{w|Telescope}} || An optical instrument used for observing distant objects. || ''{{w|Calorimetric Electron Telescope|''Really exists''}}'': A type of telescope used to detect electrons and other high-energy particles, such as cosmic rays. || ''{{w|Radio Telescope|Really exists:}}'' A directional antenna is used to detect radio waves from astronomical radio sources in the sky.
|-
| {{w|Periscope }}|| Periscopes allow submarine crews to watch what happens above the water surface, without exposing the submarine to enemy observers, or enemy radars. In practice, periscope use is minimized because periscopes are still observable, but to a lesser degree. || An electron microscope seemingly mounted on a periscope. Examining enemy boats like a periscope, with the detail of an electron microscope. This would not be useful in combat.{{Citation needed}} || In principle, the German navy invented radio periscopes during World War II. The {{w|Metox radar detector}}'s early antenna had to be built up after surfacing and dismantled before diving. Later, the fixed ''Bali'' antenna could act as a true periscope, in order to detect aircraft and ships that were using radar to hunt submarines.

Radio signals do not propagate well in water, so raising a radio receiver above the water would be necessary for listening to {{w|NPR}} (National Public Radio, a popular public radio network in the United States) or any radio station which is not in the {{w|extremely low frequency}} band.
|-
| {{w|Stethoscope}}
|| A medical device for listening to sounds made by a patient's body, for example, the heart. It has a disc-shaped resonator that is placed against the patient's skin.
|| If the resonator is emitting electromagnetic radiation, it could burn the skin due to its close proximity.
|| Normally, the sounds are transmitted to an earpiece that the examiner wears. There are also recording stethoscopes. A radio stethoscope would transmit the sound either directly via radio waves, or send it to a radio station such as NPR where it could then be broadcasted.
|-
| {{w|Kaleidoscope}} || A optical instrument that uses two or more tilted reflectors to show a regular symmetrical pattern || Seemingly a pun of electron "collide"-scope, as electron collisions generate {{w|Bremsstrahlung}}. || The scan button on a radio scans through many frequencies, and the radio station changes a lot, depending on the frequency. The rapid change is reminiscent of a normal kaleidoscope.
|-
| {{w|Gyroscope}} || Gyroscopes are used for {{w|inertial navigation}}, for example. || Gyroscopes make stuff point in certain directions by spinning. An {{w|Electromagnet}} uses sometimes-spinning electric fields to induce a magnetic field, moving magnetic stuff and, in some instances, making it point in a certain direction. || A {{w|phonograph}}, also called a record player or a turntable, spins a {{w|Phonograph record|vinyl record}} to stimulate an electromagnetic needle, which plays music. Such devices are common in radio stations.

In theory, radio waves could be sent around in a triangular pattern, thus replicating the existing {{w|ring laser gyroscope}}.
|-
| {{w|Horoscope}}
|| In common usage, predictions or advice is given based on the position of stars and planets. Largely unscientific, it is much closer to a {{w|Rorschach Test}} than person-specific information.
|| Predicting the position of a particle, such as an electron (possibly based on the position of stars and planets). In a funny twist, the exact location of an electron cannot be determined, due to Heisenberg's uncertainty principle.
|| This seems to be little different from a regular horoscope, but recording the movement and position of the stars and galaxies with a radio telescope instead of a regular telescope.
|}

==Transcript==
Content is a table, with column headings "Regular ''Blank'' Scope", "Electron ''Blank'' Scope", and "Radio ''Blank'' Scope". Row headings are "Micro", "Tele", "Peri", "Stetho", "Kaleido", "Gyro", and "Horo".

;Regular Microscope
:Look at small stuff
;Electron Microscope
:Look at ''really'' small stuff
;Radio Microscope
:Figure out why your radio broke
;Regular Telescope
:Look at stuff that's far away
;Electron Telescope
:Detect cosmic rays
;Radio Telescope
:Look at distant high-energy stuff
;Regular Periscope
:Look for enemy ships
;Electron Periscope
:Examine the hull of an enemy ship for structural flaws
;Radio Periscope
:Let the crew of your submarine listen to NPR
;Regular Stethoscope
:Listen to a patient's chest
;Electron Stethoscope
:Burn a patient's skin
;Radio Stethoscope
:Play the noises from a patient's chest on NPR
;Regular Kaleidoscope
:See cool shapes and colors
;Electron Kaleidoscope
:See cool Bremsstrahlung
;Radio Kaleidoscope
:Another word for the "Scan" button
;Regular Gyroscope
:Balance by spinning
;Electron Gyroscope
:Another word for electromagnet
;Radio Gyroscope
:Another word for turntable
;Regular Horoscope
:Get random life advice
;Electron Horoscope
:Predict a particle's quantum state
;Radio Horoscope
:Get random life advice from exploding galaxies

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Food]]
[[Category:Science]]
[[Category:Space]]

2861: X Value

2023-12-02T11:04:58Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ c is specifically the speed of light in vacuum. It is slower in various media.

{{comic
| number = 2861
| date = November 29, 2023
| title = X Value
| image = x_value_2x.png
| imagesize = 291x192px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = The value of n is still unknown, but new results constrain it to fall between 8 and 10^500, ruling out popular 'n=1' and 'n=2' theories.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by A SET OF N MATHEMATICIANS TRYING TO FIND THE VALUE OF Y - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
In algebra, a {{w|Variable (mathematics)|variable}} is any symbol used to represent a number that has not been determined or chosen. The most familiar algebraic variable is ''x'' (the unknown input), with ''y'' often being the yet-to-be-determined output (its value being dependent on ''x''). According to the comic, the value of ''x'' has finally been found, being 4.1083. The joke is that a general-purpose variable, which may take different values in different scenarios, turns out to have a specific value, as though it were a constant. Constants in mathematics and other scientific fields are also often represented by a single symbol - some of the most well-known are {{w|Pi|''π''}} (3.14159...), ''e'' ({{w|E (mathematical constant)|Euler's number}}, 2.71828...), ''i'' ({{w|Imaginary number}}, equal to √-1), and ''c'' (the {{w|speed of light}} in a vacuum, 299,792,458 m/s (670,616,629 mph, 1,079,252,848.8 km/h, 1.8026x1012 {{w|FFF system|fur/ftn}})).

The specific number 4.1083 does not have any notable significance or special role in the contexts of physics, chemistry, finance, astronomy or cryptography. This number to 3 decimal places, 4.108, was referenced previously in comic [[899: Number Line]].

The '''title text''' declares the value of ''n'' is unknown. ''n'' is often used as an unknown/undetermined ''integer'' value. In {{w|Sampling (statistics)|statistics}}, it might be used to specify the size of a sample. For example, a list where ''n = 50'' would mean the list contains 50 data points, for which that number of iterations or a larger number of cross-comparisons might be expected.

According to the title text, however, the value of ''n'' ''has'' been narrowed down to somewhere between 8 and 10500, or one hundred quinsexagintacentillion. This narrowing-down isn't particularly narrow, although it is perhaps quite specific compared to the 'pre-narrowing' possibilities of being absolutely any finite value at all.

The title text also says that this narrowing has ruled out the (usually) simplest values of 1 or 2. Saying "n=1" or "n=2" is a popular way to disclaim or discredit a story implying causality. An anecdote followed by the disclaimer "n=1" typically involves a personal experience or observation that someone shares as a point of reference or evidence, but then acknowledges that it's just a single instance and may not be representative of a broader trend or truth.

For example, someone might say, "I started eating a spoonful of honey every morning, and ever since then, I haven't caught a cold. It must be boosting my immune system." Then, realizing that this is just their personal experience, they add, "But of course, that's just my experience - n=1. It's not scientific evidence that honey prevents colds."

In this example, "n=1" is used to acknowledge that the claim is based on a single instance (n refers to the sample size in a study, with 1 indicating only one subject or data point) and may not be a reliable or generalizable conclusion.

If values of 1 or 2 have been ruled out, that implies that all causality claims based on observations technically have at least 8 observations (whether known or unknown). In the honey-cold example, that means at least 7 other people have had the same experience.

==Transcript==
:[A math formula is circled.]
:<big><big>x = 4.1083</big></big>

:[Caption below the panel:]
: Big math news: They finally figured out the value of x.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Math]]

2847: Dendrochronology

2023-10-28T08:27:33Z

Nutster: /* Transcript */ grammar adjustment

{{comic
| number = 2847
| date = October 27, 2023
| title = Dendrochronology
| image = dendrochronology_2x.png
| imagesize = 332x444px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = These anomalies are known as Miyake events, named for the pioneering scientist who discovered them and was tragically devoured by a carnivorous tree.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by TOM BOMBADIL'S ARCH NEMESIS - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

{{w|Dendrochronology}} is a scientific method of using tree rings to tell the age of a tree and learn about historical climate from features found in each ring. It's based on the fact that trees add a new ring each year, so counting the rings will tell a tree's age in years. Additionally, climate and ecology affect the size and composition of that year's ring, so scientists can use them to estimate what conditions were like each year. They can cross compare tree-ring samples from overlapping ranges, of comparable trees grown and felled at different times, to build up and confirm a useful ring history well beyond that of a single tree.

In some cases, tree rings contain remnants of specific events, such as forest fires, large volcano eruptions, atomic tests or droughts. Extremely disparate years can often be seen represented by a clear visual change in the usual subtle variation of ring-growth. The comic posits that trees (for one particular year only, i.e. 1635) became somehow {{w|carnivorous}}, and the ring for that year contains indications of the bones of such creatures that they ate. This was just a temporary condition, since the rings after this have no bones, but clearly was a coordinated event to have caused this to be a comparable marker. And an event that may have reoccured at other times (see below), just not again/before within the lifetime of this particular tree as illustrated.

The title text says that anomalous years like this are called 'Miyake events', after a scientist named Miyake who discovered them and subsequently eaten by the trees. In actual fact, {{w|Miyake event}}s are periods when there are a larger than normal amount of certain isotopes that are created by cosmic rays. Evidence of these events are often found in ancient tree rings, and Fusa Miyake discovered them when investigating tree rings from years 774-775; but she wasn't then devoured by the trees – certainly not in 1635, which is a long time prior to 2012-13 when she published her discoveries.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[A cross section of a tree in beige, with a brown bark around the cross section and black rings throughout, except one layer around the middle where white bones are shown embedded in the ring.]

:[Caption below the panel:]
:Dendrochronologists can date wood samples by identifying growth ring anomalies that correspond to specific events. For example, it's often possible to spot the horrible summer of 1635 when trees turned carnivorous.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Biology]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]

2847: Dendrochronology

2023-10-28T08:24:29Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ Lots of excess carbon in a ring can indicate the tree survived a forest fire.

{{comic
| number = 2847
| date = October 27, 2023
| title = Dendrochronology
| image = dendrochronology_2x.png
| imagesize = 332x444px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = These anomalies are known as Miyake events, named for the pioneering scientist who discovered them and was tragically devoured by a carnivorous tree.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by TOM BOMBADIL'S ARCH NEMESIS - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

{{w|Dendrochronology}} is a scientific method of using tree rings to tell the age of a tree and learn about historical climate from features found in each ring. It's based on the fact that trees add a new ring each year, so counting the rings will tell a tree's age in years. Additionally, climate and ecology affect the size and composition of that year's ring, so scientists can use them to estimate what conditions were like each year. They can cross compare tree-ring samples from overlapping ranges, of comparable trees grown and felled at different times, to build up and confirm a useful ring history well beyond that of a single tree.

In some cases, tree rings contain remnants of specific events, such as forest fires, large volcano eruptions, atomic tests or droughts. Extremely disparate years can often be seen represented by a clear visual change in the usual subtle variation of ring-growth. The comic posits that trees (for one particular year only, i.e. 1635) became somehow {{w|carnivorous}}, and the ring for that year contains indications of the bones of such creatures that they ate. This was just a temporary condition, since the rings after this have no bones, but clearly was a coordinated event to have caused this to be a comparable marker. And an event that may have reoccured at other times (see below), just not again/before within the lifetime of this particular tree as illustrated.

The title text says that anomalous years like this are called 'Miyake events', after a scientist named Miyake who discovered them and subsequently eaten by the trees. In actual fact, {{w|Miyake event}}s are periods when there are a larger than normal amount of certain isotopes that are created by cosmic rays. Evidence of these events are often found in ancient tree rings, and Fusa Miyake discovered them when investigating tree rings from years 774-775; but she wasn't then devoured by the trees – certainly not in 1635, which is a long time prior to 2012-13 when she published her discoveries.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[A cross section of a tree in beige, with a brown bark around the cross section and black rings throughout, sans one layer around the middle wherein white bones are shown in lieu of the rings.]

:[Caption below the panel:]
:Dendrochronologists can date wood samples by identifying growth ring anomalies that correspond to specific events. For example, it's often possible to spot the horrible summer of 1635 when trees turned carnivorous.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Biology]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]

2844: Black Holes vs Regular Holes

2023-10-23T11:12:36Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ Grammar / Punctuation fixes

{{comic
| number = 2844
| date = October 20, 2023
| title = Black Holes vs Regular Holes
| image = black_holes_vs_regular_holes_2x.png
| imagesize = 525x743px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Created by the collapse of: [massive stars] [Florida limestone bedrock]
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a CHILD FALLING IN TO A FRIEND'S BLACK HOLE - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This comic is a comparison between {{w|black hole}}s and regular, everyday {{w|hole}}s.

{| class="wikitable"
!
! scope="col"| Black hole
! scope="col"| Regular hole
! Scope="col"| Explanation
|-
! scope="row" | Usually formed by...
| Supernovas, colliding stars
| Shovels, small mammals
| Black holes are created by large stars going supernova, or occasionally by two stars, especially neutron stars, colliding. On the contrary, regular holes are often created by humans using shovels, as well as small mammals such as moles or dogs. Of course, this is by no means limited only to small mammals. Many animals, from elephants to ants, are also known to create this kind of hole.
|-
! scope="row" | Falling in is...
| Definitely fatal
| Sometimes fatal
| Falling into a black hole is almost{{Actual citation needed}} always fatal. On the other hand, if a regular hole is deep enough, it is possible for someone to die by falling into it.
|-
! scope="row" | Created by the Big Bang
| Maybe
| No
| Like many other celestial objects, black holes may have been created by the {{w|Big Bang}}, however ordinary holes were almost definitely not created this way. But, because the entire universe started with the Big Bang, everything in it (including ordinary holes) could be argued to be "created" by it.
|-
! scope="row" | Created by children playing at the beach
| I '''''really''''' hope not
| Yes
| Creating black holes causes many unfortunate events to occur, and is very difficult to do. Hence, Randall really hopes that children are not accidentally creating black holes on the beach, as this would be cataclysmic for our planet.{{citation needed}} On the other hand, children commonly dig holes in sand at beaches, and this is a normal thing for them to do.
Alternatively it could be about some {{tvtropes|EldritchAbomination|Eldritch Abomination}} children playing at a cosmic beach we are talking about. In which case, "hopefully not" is also a good response.
|-
! scope="row" | Source of many precious metals
| Indirectly
| Yes
| Both the supernovae that create black holes and various events involving black holes, such as black hole/neutron star mergers, produce large quantities of heavy elements, including precious metals found on Earth. Those metals are often underground, and are thus recovered from a regular hole, called a mine.
|-
! scope="row" | Einstein imagined falling into one
| Yes
| Probably at least once
| The thought experiments of {{w|Albert Einstein}}, particularly in relation to {{w|general relativity}}, involve consideration of what happens when one falls through gravitationally-curved space. Aside from this, almost everyone has had a reason to consider the possibility of falling into a normal hole.
|-
! scope="row" | A component of dark matter
| Maybe
| Probably not
| {{w|Dark matter}} is a theoretical part of the universe, a large amount of its total calculated mass which cannot (yet) be directly seen. It is considered possible that at least some of this 'missing mass' is in the form of black holes. It is not generally considered an option that ordinary holes have anything to do with this.
|-
! scope="row" | Created by the Large Hadron Collider
| No
| Yes
| There were concerns when the {{w|Large Hadron Collider}} (LHC), a particle super-collider, was initially put into operation that it would create a black hole that would destroy the Earth. This did not happen.{{Citation needed}} However, the LHC is mostly underground, and its construction required the digging of many holes.
|-
! scope="row" | Massive stars often collapse into them
| Yes
| No
| If a star is large enough, when the star dies, it may still have enough gravity to collapse back into itself, thus creating a black hole. This does not happen with regular holes, and would likely mean the end of the world if one did.
|-
! scope="row" | Explored by humans in famous sci-fi stories
| Yes
| Yes
| Many sci-fi stories and movies explore black holes and regular holes alike. In particular, there's the eponimous classic ''{{w|The Black Hole}}'' and more recent films such as ''{{w|Interstellar (film)|Interstellar}}'', both about space missions that encounter a black hole. {{w|Journey to the Center of the Earth}} is a classic novel by {{w|Jules Verne}} (and made into {{w|Journey to the Center of the Earth (1959 film)|various}} {{w|Journey to the Center of the Earth (2008 theatrical film)|films}}) which involves going into a volcano tube (a kind of hole). H. P. Lovecraft's 1921 short story ''{{w|The Nameless City}}'' involves the explorer narrator venturing into an ancient tunnel (entered through a hole) dug by a pre-human civilization under the Arabian peninsula, and ''{{w|At the Mountains of Madness}}'' involves tunnels lost in the continent of Antarctica. 
|-
! scope="row" | Fatal to get a big one in your body
| Yes
| Yes
| If a black hole appeared inside of a person's body, they would almost definitely die instantly.{{citation needed}} The same goes for a regular hole - if you cut out a massive section of a human's body, they would likely bleed out. This also applies for the holes left by bullets and other high-speed projectiles.
|-
! scope="row" | Some of them are the mouths of wormholes
| Maybe
| Yes
| Black holes are commonly portrayed to be the entrances of {{w|wormhole}}s, especially in sci-fi stories. While wormholes remain purely theoretical, if they exist, some common models for them suggest one end would appear as a black hole, drawing matter in to be ejected from a 'white hole' elsewhere. On the other side, many species of worms live in shallow holes, with a "mouth" on the surface - the "mouth" of the "worm hole". This could also be a reference to Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, when the Millennium Falcon spacecraft almost gets swallowed by a giant worm in an asteroid hole.
|-
! scope="row" | Stephen Hawking and Kip Thorne argued that any information that falls into them is lost forever
| Yes
| No
| The {{w|Black hole information paradox}} is a paradox arising from a contradiction between two widely-accepted theories related to black holes. Scientist {{w|Stephen Hawking}}, famous for his research into black holes, said that black holes release their energy over time, eventually disappearing, through {{w|Hawking Radiation}}. According to this theory, if information was also to enter the black hole, it would be released alongside this radiation. On the other hand, the {{w|No-hair theorem}} states that all black holes are completely identical outside of three key features: mass, spin, and electric charge. If information that fell into a black hole is released with Hawking radiation, then that means that there ''must'' be more than three properties of black holes.
On the other hand, information that falls into a normal hole is not lost forever, and can likely still be reobtained, especially if the information is stored physically. Hawking and {{w|Kip Thorne}} famously made a {{w|Thorne–Hawking–Preskill bet|bet}} with {{w|John Preskill}} over this paradox.
|-
! scope="row" | Commonly inhabited by meerkats
| Undetermined
| Yes
|{{w|Meerkat}}s commonly live in holes underground. It is highly unlikely that Earth mammals live in black holes, but because it is impossible to know what lies beyond the event horizon it is [[technically]] impossible to falsify the postulate that there are meerkats there.
|-
! scope="row" | (title text) Created by the collapse of
| Massive stars
| Florida limestone bedrock
| As mentioned before, Black holes are often created by the collapse of massive stars. On the other hand, many {{w|sinkhole}}s in Florida are caused due to most {{w|bedrock}} in the state being made of {{w|limestone}}, which is naturally soluble - that is, easily dissolved in water. Sinkholes from dissolved limestone are generally entrances to [https://caves.org/ caves] that explore further limestone dissolving from underground waterways. Florida is known for its warm underwater caves [https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/science-behind-floridas-sinkhole-epidemic-180969158/ and opening sinkholes].
|}

==Transcript==
:[A table comparing two main columns of relevence to various statements]
:[First column is headed:] Black Hole
:[Second column is headed:] Regular Hole
:[Respective statements cells placed to the left of both, below]

:[Statement:] Usually formed by...
:[Black hole:] Supernovas, colliding stars
:[Regular hole:| Shovels, small mammals

:[Statement:] Falling in is...
:[Black hole:] Definitely fatal
:[Regular hole:| Sometimes fatal

:[Statement:] Created by the Big Bang
:[Black hole:] Maybe
:[Regular hole:| No

:[Statement:] Created by children playing at the beach
:[Black hole:] I really hope not [with emphasis on "really"]
:[Regular hole:| Yes

:[Statement:] Source of many precious metals
:[Black hole:] Indirectly
:[Regular hole:| Yes

:[Statement:] Einstein imagined falling into one
:[Black hole:] Yes
:[Regular hole:| Probably at least once

:[Statement:] A component of dark matter
:[Black hole:] Maybe
:[Regular hole:| Probably not

:[Statement:] Created by the Large Hadron Collider
:[Black hole:] No
:[Regular hole:| Yes

:[Statement:] Massive stars often collapse into them
:[Black hole:] Yes
:[Regular hole:| No

:[Statement:] Explored by humans in famous sci-fi stories
:[Black hole:] Yes
:[Regular hole:| Yes

:[Statement:] Fatal to get a big one in your body
:[Black hole:] Yes
:[Regular hole:| Yes

:[Statement:] Some of them are the mouths of wormholes
:[Black hole:] Maybe
:[Regular hole:| Yes

:[Statement:] Stephen Hawking and Kip Thorne argued that any information that falls into them is lost forever
:[Black hole:] Yes
:[Regular hole:| No

:[Statement:] Commonly inhabited by meerkats
:[Black hole:] Undetermined
:[Regular hole:| Yes

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Space]]
[[Category:Cosmology]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]

Talk:2844: Black Holes vs Regular Holes

2023-10-22T18:56:40Z

Nutster: More potentially humourous comments.

FIRST! hehehe [[User:SomeoneIGuess|someone, i guess]] ([[User talk:SomeoneIGuess|talk]]) 17:05, 20 October 2023 (UTC)
 
Alright, working on transcript now. [[User:SomeoneIGuess|someone, i guess]] ([[User talk:SomeoneIGuess|talk]]) 17:08, 20 October 2023 (UTC)
: Done! [[User:SomeoneIGuess|someone, i guess]] ([[User talk:SomeoneIGuess|talk]]) 17:16, 20 October 2023 (UTC)
:: Transcripts should really not be markup-tables, ideally. I know some (that describe tables) are, but you really need to set it all out in 'Transcript markup', such as:
:: [A table with three columns, the column headers are:] ... ... ...
:: [Row:] ...thing which the row says... [Black hole:] ...foo... [Normal hole:] ...bar...
:: ...etc
:: You need to think about how a screen-reader might interact with this text. Not all can 'deconstruct' an HTML table and make as much sense as a good description.
:: Although kudos for you for typing the text in, which the rest of the description should at least pad out fairly easily. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.79.131|172.69.79.131]] 18:46, 20 October 2023 (UTC)

Also got some of the explanation in, but i don't know too much. if anyone can improve on it please go ahead [[User:SomeoneIGuess|someone, i guess]] ([[User talk:SomeoneIGuess|talk]]) 17:33, 20 October 2023 (UTC)

[[User:DougM|DougM]] ([[User talk:DougM|talk]]) 18:05, 20 October 2023 (UTC) I think I disagree with his assessment that regular holes are not a result of the big bang. Convince me regular holes would exist without it?
:Only in the sense that ''everything'' is ultimately caused by the big bang. But "created by" is not the same as "caused by" -- we usually interpret creation as a more direct process. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]])

The LHC caused a regular hole by being built deep in the ground. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.200.142|172.70.200.142]] 18:08, 20 October 2023 (UTC)

"Regular" holes? Like square? Or perhaps strictly periodic in nature? [[Special:Contributions/172.69.79.131|172.69.79.131]] 18:36, 20 October 2023 (UTC)
:Regular == ordinary, normal. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 16:37, 22 October 2023 (UTC)
::An awful Americanism. If it isn't actually periodic, or of maximum symmetry, it shouldn't be called "regular". If it's "the usual or common thing" then there are already other words. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.79|141.101.98.79]] 18:15, 22 October 2023 (UTC)
:::So I put common gasoline in my car? [[User:Nutster|Nutster]] ([[User talk:Nutster|talk]]) 18:56, 22 October 2023 (UTC)

Everyone knows that CERN used the LHC to create Kerr black holes to make jelly. Randall must be an agent of the Organization if he's trying to hide it. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.90.132|172.70.90.132]] 18:57, 20 October 2023 (UTC)
:I could not locate any references to Kerr black holes and jelly. Is that an original concept?[[User:These Are Not The Comments You Are Looking For|These Are Not The Comments You Are Looking For]] ([[User talk:These Are Not The Comments You Are Looking For|talk]]) 14:39, 22 October 2023 (UTC)
::If you get too close to a black hole, Kerr or otherwise, much of your body will resemble jelly, then resemble spaghetti, then quark soup. Excuse me while I prepare lunch. [[User:Nutster|Nutster]] ([[User talk:Nutster|talk]]) 18:54, 22 October 2023 (UTC)

"Fatal to get a big one in your body"? Even medium-sized black hole is significantly bigger than human body, how would it fit inside? That said, being even just near any black hole is fatal: if it's not big enough to eat you, it's small enough to release dangerous amount of radiation. -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 21:20, 20 October 2023 (UTC)
: An Earth-mass black hole would be about 1.8 cm in diameter, which could pass through a human, but it would indeed be totally disruptive. [[User:Nutster|Nutster]] ([[User talk:Nutster|talk]]) 18:54, 22 October 2023 (UTC)

:Not necessarily if it's small enough. We don't know what would happen to a black hole of Planck mass. If it's stable, then it wouldn't really affect you, because it would be unable to radiate and also unable to accrete matter gravitationally. It would orbit the Earth as a WIMP doing practically nothing. Even if it's unstable and evaporates while releasing a colossal amount of energy (about 1.2 × 10¹⁶ TeV), it might not be a problem, because the particles might be moving too fast to transfer any meaningful amount of energy to your body. They would basically just pass right out of you with no effect. But of course we don't really know. [[User:EebstertheGreat|EebstertheGreat]] ([[User talk:EebstertheGreat|talk]]) 21:50, 20 October 2023 (UTC)

I would have liked to see a row: There are songs about them: Yes (e.g., Spaghettification by Christine Lavin) and Yes (e.g., Sea of Holes by the Beatles) [[User:Matchups|Matchups]] ([[User talk:Matchups|talk]]) 00:32, 21 October 2023 (UTC)
: Don't forget that Soundgarden song: Regular Hole Sun. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.247.62|172.69.247.62]] 05:19, 21 October 2023 (UTC)

Talk:2844: Black Holes vs Regular Holes

2023-10-22T18:54:06Z

Nutster: bunch of stuff.

FIRST! hehehe [[User:SomeoneIGuess|someone, i guess]] ([[User talk:SomeoneIGuess|talk]]) 17:05, 20 October 2023 (UTC)
 
Alright, working on transcript now. [[User:SomeoneIGuess|someone, i guess]] ([[User talk:SomeoneIGuess|talk]]) 17:08, 20 October 2023 (UTC)
: Done! [[User:SomeoneIGuess|someone, i guess]] ([[User talk:SomeoneIGuess|talk]]) 17:16, 20 October 2023 (UTC)
:: Transcripts should really not be markup-tables, ideally. I know some (that describe tables) are, but you really need to set it all out in 'Transcript markup', such as:
:: [A table with three columns, the column headers are:] ... ... ...
:: [Row:] ...thing which the row says... [Black hole:] ...foo... [Normal hole:] ...bar...
:: ...etc
:: You need to think about how a screen-reader might interact with this text. Not all can 'deconstruct' an HTML table and make as much sense as a good description.
:: Although kudos for you for typing the text in, which the rest of the description should at least pad out fairly easily. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.79.131|172.69.79.131]] 18:46, 20 October 2023 (UTC)

Also got some of the explanation in, but i don't know too much. if anyone can improve on it please go ahead [[User:SomeoneIGuess|someone, i guess]] ([[User talk:SomeoneIGuess|talk]]) 17:33, 20 October 2023 (UTC)

[[User:DougM|DougM]] ([[User talk:DougM|talk]]) 18:05, 20 October 2023 (UTC) I think I disagree with his assessment that regular holes are not a result of the big bang. Convince me regular holes would exist without it?
:Only in the sense that ''everything'' is ultimately caused by the big bang. But "created by" is not the same as "caused by" -- we usually interpret creation as a more direct process. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]])

The LHC caused a regular hole by being built deep in the ground. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.200.142|172.70.200.142]] 18:08, 20 October 2023 (UTC)

"Regular" holes? Like square? Or perhaps strictly periodic in nature? [[Special:Contributions/172.69.79.131|172.69.79.131]] 18:36, 20 October 2023 (UTC)
:Regular == ordinary, normal. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 16:37, 22 October 2023 (UTC)
::An awful Americanism. If it isn't actually periodic, or of maximum symmetry, it shouldn't be called "regular". If it's "the usual or common thing" then there are already other words. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.79|141.101.98.79]] 18:15, 22 October 2023 (UTC)

Everyone knows that CERN used the LHC to create Kerr black holes to make jelly. Randall must be an agent of the Organization if he's trying to hide it. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.90.132|172.70.90.132]] 18:57, 20 October 2023 (UTC)
:I could not locate any references to Kerr black holes and jelly. Is that an original concept?[[User:These Are Not The Comments You Are Looking For|These Are Not The Comments You Are Looking For]] ([[User talk:These Are Not The Comments You Are Looking For|talk]]) 14:39, 22 October 2023 (UTC)
::If you get too close to a black hole, Kerr or otherwise, much of your body will resemble jelly, then resemble spaghetti, then quark soup. Excuse me while I prepare lunch. [[User:Nutster|Nutster]] ([[User talk:Nutster|talk]]) 18:54, 22 October 2023 (UTC)

"Fatal to get a big one in your body"? Even medium-sized black hole is significantly bigger than human body, how would it fit inside? That said, being even just near any black hole is fatal: if it's not big enough to eat you, it's small enough to release dangerous amount of radiation. -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 21:20, 20 October 2023 (UTC)
: An Earth-mass black hole would be about 1.8 cm in diameter, which could pass through a human, but it would indeed be totally disruptive. [[User:Nutster|Nutster]] ([[User talk:Nutster|talk]]) 18:54, 22 October 2023 (UTC)

:Not necessarily if it's small enough. We don't know what would happen to a black hole of Planck mass. If it's stable, then it wouldn't really affect you, because it would be unable to radiate and also unable to accrete matter gravitationally. It would orbit the Earth as a WIMP doing practically nothing. Even if it's unstable and evaporates while releasing a colossal amount of energy (about 1.2 × 10¹⁶ TeV), it might not be a problem, because the particles might be moving too fast to transfer any meaningful amount of energy to your body. They would basically just pass right out of you with no effect. But of course we don't really know. [[User:EebstertheGreat|EebstertheGreat]] ([[User talk:EebstertheGreat|talk]]) 21:50, 20 October 2023 (UTC)

I would have liked to see a row: There are songs about them: Yes (e.g., Spaghettification by Christine Lavin) and Yes (e.g., Sea of Holes by the Beatles) [[User:Matchups|Matchups]] ([[User talk:Matchups|talk]]) 00:32, 21 October 2023 (UTC)
: Don't forget that Soundgarden song: Regular Hole Sun. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.247.62|172.69.247.62]] 05:19, 21 October 2023 (UTC)

2844: Black Holes vs Regular Holes

2023-10-22T16:16:46Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ Bullet holes are hard on somebody's survival.

{{comic
| number = 2844
| date = October 20, 2023
| title = Black Holes vs Regular Holes
| image = black_holes_vs_regular_holes_2x.png
| imagesize = 525x743px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Created by the collapse of: [massive stars] [Florida limestone bedrock]
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a CHILD FALLING IN TO A FRIEND'S BLACK HOLE - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This comic is a comparison between {{w|black hole}}s and regular, everyday {{w|hole}}s.

{| class="wikitable"
!
! scope="col"| Black hole
! scope="col"| Regular hole
! Scope="col"| Explanation
|-
! scope="row" | Usually formed by...
| Supernovas, colliding stars
| Shovels, small mammals
| Black holes are created by stars going into supernova, and occasionally by two stars colliding. On the contrary, regular holes are often created by humans using shovels, as well as small mammals such as moles or dogs. Even large mammals, like elephants, are known to create this kind of hole.
|-
! scope="row" | Falling in is...
| Definitely fatal
| Sometimes fatal
| Falling into a black hole is almost always fatal.{{Citation needed}} On the other hand, if a regular hole is deep enough, it is possible for someone to die by falling into it.
|-
! scope="row" | Created by the Big Bang
| Maybe
| No
| Like many other celestial objects, black holes may have been created by the {{w|Big Bang}}, however ordinary holes were almost definitely not created this way. But, because the entire universe started with the Big Bang, everything in it (including ordinary holes) could be argued to be "created" by it.
|-
! scope="row" | Created by children playing at the beach
| I '''''really''''' hope not
| Yes
| Children commonly dig holes in sand at beaches, however if one were to create a black hole at the beach, this could prove cataclysmic.{{Citation needed}}
|-
! scope="row" | Source of many precious metals
| Indirectly
| Yes
| Both the supernovae that create black holes and various events involving black holes, such as black hole/neutron star mergers, produce large quantities of heavy elements, including precious metals found on Earth. Those metals are often underground, and are thus recovered by a mine, i.e. a regular hole.
|-
! scope="row" | Einstein imagined falling into one
| Yes
| Probably at least once
| The thought experiments of {{w|Albert Einstein}}, particularly in relation to {{w|general relativity}}, involve consideration of what happens when one falls through gravitationally-curved space. Aside from this, almost everyone has had a reason to consider the possibility of falling into a normal hole.
|-
! scope="row" | A component of dark matter
| Maybe
| Probably not
| {{w|Dark matter}} is a theoretical part of the universe, a large amount of its total calculated mass which cannot (yet) be directly seen. It is considered possible that at least some of this 'missing mass' is in the form of black holes. It is not generally considered an option that ordinary holes have anything to do with this.
|-
! scope="row" | Created by the Large Hadron Collider
| No
| Yes
| There were concerns when the {{w|Large Hadron Collider}} (LHC), a particle supercollider, was initially put into operation that it would create a black hole that would destroy the Earth. This did not happen.{{Citation needed}} However, the LHC is mostly underground, and its construction required the digging of many holes.
|-
! scope="row" | Massive stars often collapse into them
| Yes
| No
| If a star is large enough, when the star dies, it may still have enough gravity to collapse back into itself, commonly creating black holes. This does not happen with regular holes, and would likely mean the end of the world if one did.
|-
! scope="row" | Explored by humans in famous sci-fi stories
| Yes
| Yes
| Many sci-fi stories and movies explore black holes and regular holes alike. In particular, there's the eponimous classic ''{{w|The Black Hole}}'' and more recent films such as ''{{w|Interstellar (film)|Interstellar}}'', both about space missions that encounter a black hole. {{w|Journey to the Center of the Earth}} is a classic novel by {{w|Jules Verne}} (and made into {{w|Journey to the Center of the Earth (1959 film)|various}} {{w|Journey to the Center of the Earth (2008 theatrical film)|films}}) which involves going into a volcano tube (a kind of hole). H. P. Lovecraft's 1921 short story ''{{w|The Nameless City}}'' involves the explorer narrator venturing into an ancient tunnel (entered through a hole) dug by a pre-human civilization under the Arabian peninsula, and ''{{w|At the Mountains of Madness}}'' involves tunnels lost in the continent of Antarctica. 
|-
! scope="row" | Fatal to get a big one in your body
| Yes
| Yes
| If a black hole appeared inside of a person's body, they would almost definitely die instantly.{{citation needed}} The same goes for a regular hole - if you cut out a massive section of a human's body, they would likely bleed out. This also applies for the holes left by bullets and other high-speed projectiles.
|-
! scope="row" | Some of them are the mouths of wormholes
| Maybe
| Yes
| Black holes are commonly portrayed to be the entrances of {{w|wormhole}}s, especially in sci-fi stories. On the other side, many species of worms live in shallow holes, with a "mouth" on the surface - the "mouth" of the "worm hole". This could also be a reference to Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, when the Millennium Falcon spacecraft almost gets swallowed by a giant worm in an asteroid hole.
|-
! scope="row" | Stephen Hawking and Kip Thorne argued that any information that falls into them is lost forever
| Yes
| No
| The {{w|Black hole information paradox}} is a paradox arising from the storage of information within black holes. Scientist {{w|Stephen Hawking}}, who is famous for his research into black holes, said that black holes release their energy over time, eventually disappearing, through {{w|Hawking Radiation}}. According to this theory, if information was also to enter the black hole, it would be released alongside this radiation. On the other hand, the {{w|No-hair theorem}} states that all black holes are completely identical outside of three key features: mass, spin, and electric charge. If information that fell into a black hole is released with Hawking radiation, then that means that there ''must'' be more than three properties of black holes.
On the other hand, information that falls into a normal hole is not lost forever, and can likely still be reobtained, especially if the information is stored physically. Hawking and {{w|Kip Thorne}} famously made a {{w|Thorne–Hawking–Preskill bet|bet}} with {{w|John Preskill}} over this paradox.
|-
! scope="row" | Commonly inhabited by meerkats
| Undetermined
| Yes
|{{w|Meerkat}}s commonly live in holes underground. It is highly unlikely that Earth mammals live in black holes, but because it is impossible to know what lies beyond the event horizon it is [[technically]] impossible to falsify the postulate that there are meerkats there.
|-
! scope="row" | (title text) Created by the collapse of
| Massive stars
| Florida limestone bedrock
| As mentioned before, Black holes are often created by the collapse of massive stars. On the other hand, many {{w|sinkhole}}s in Florida are caused due to most {{w|bedrock}} in the state being made of {{w|limestone}}, which is naturally soluble - that is, easily dissolved in water. Sinkholes from dissolved limestone are generally entrances to caves that explore further limestone dissolving from underground waterways. Florida is known for its warm underwater caves [https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/science-behind-floridas-sinkhole-epidemic-180969158/ and opening sinkholes].
|}

==Transcript==
:[A table comparing two main columns of relevence to various statements]
:[First column is headed:] Black Hole
:[Second column is headed:] Regular Hole
:[Respective statements cells placed to the left of both, below]

:[Statement:] Usually formed by...
:[Black hole:] Supernovas, colliding stars
:[Regular hole:| Shovels, small mammals

:[Statement:] Falling in is...
:[Black hole:] Definitely fatal
:[Regular hole:| Sometimes fatal

:[Statement:] Created by the Big Bang
:[Black hole:] Maybe
:[Regular hole:| No

:[Statement:] Created by children playing at the beach
:[Black hole:] I really hope not [with emphasis on "really"]
:[Regular hole:| Yes

:[Statement:] Source of many precious metals
:[Black hole:] Indirectly
:[Regular hole:| Yes

:[Statement:] Einstein imagined falling into one
:[Black hole:] Yes
:[Regular hole:| Probably at least once

:[Statement:] A component of dark matter
:[Black hole:] Maybe
:[Regular hole:| Probably not

:[Statement:] Created by the Large Hadron Collider
:[Black hole:] No
:[Regular hole:| Yes

:[Statement:] Massive stars often collapse into them
:[Black hole:] Yes
:[Regular hole:| No

:[Statement:] Explored by humans in famous sci-fi stories
:[Black hole:] Yes
:[Regular hole:| Yes

:[Statement:] Fatal to get a big one in your body
:[Black hole:] Yes
:[Regular hole:| Yes

:[Statement:] Some of them are the mouths of wormholes
:[Black hole:] Maybe
:[Regular hole:| Yes

:[Statement:] Stephen Hawking and Kip Thorne argued that any information that falls into them is lost forever
:[Black hole:] Yes
:[Regular hole:| No

:[Statement:] Commonly inhabited by meerkats
:[Black hole:] Undetermined
:[Regular hole:| Yes

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Space]]
[[Category:Cosmology]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]

2844: Black Holes vs Regular Holes

2023-10-22T16:12:03Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ Expanding the example space.

{{comic
| number = 2844
| date = October 20, 2023
| title = Black Holes vs Regular Holes
| image = black_holes_vs_regular_holes_2x.png
| imagesize = 525x743px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Created by the collapse of: [massive stars] [Florida limestone bedrock]
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a CHILD FALLING IN TO A FRIEND'S BLACK HOLE - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This comic is a comparison between {{w|black hole}}s and regular, everyday {{w|hole}}s.

{| class="wikitable"
!
! scope="col"| Black hole
! scope="col"| Regular hole
! Scope="col"| Explanation
|-
! scope="row" | Usually formed by...
| Supernovas, colliding stars
| Shovels, small mammals
| Black holes are created by stars going into supernova, and occasionally by two stars colliding. On the contrary, regular holes are often created by humans using shovels, as well as small mammals such as moles or dogs. Even large mammals, like elephants, are known to create this kind of hole.
|-
! scope="row" | Falling in is...
| Definitely fatal
| Sometimes fatal
| Falling into a black hole is almost always fatal.{{Citation needed}} On the other hand, if a regular hole is deep enough, it is possible for someone to die by falling into it.
|-
! scope="row" | Created by the Big Bang
| Maybe
| No
| Like many other celestial objects, black holes may have been created by the {{w|Big Bang}}, however ordinary holes were almost definitely not created this way. But, because the entire universe started with the Big Bang, everything in it (including ordinary holes) could be argued to be "created" by it.
|-
! scope="row" | Created by children playing at the beach
| I '''''really''''' hope not
| Yes
| Children commonly dig holes in sand at beaches, however if one were to create a black hole at the beach, this could prove cataclysmic.{{Citation needed}}
|-
! scope="row" | Source of many precious metals
| Indirectly
| Yes
| Both the supernovae that create black holes and various events involving black holes, such as black hole/neutron star mergers, produce large quantities of heavy elements, including precious metals found on Earth. Those metals are often underground, and are thus recovered by a mine, i.e. a regular hole.
|-
! scope="row" | Einstein imagined falling into one
| Yes
| Probably at least once
| The thought experiments of {{w|Albert Einstein}}, particularly in relation to {{w|general relativity}}, involve consideration of what happens when one falls through gravitationally-curved space. Aside from this, almost everyone has had a reason to consider the possibility of falling into a normal hole.
|-
! scope="row" | A component of dark matter
| Maybe
| Probably not
| {{w|Dark matter}} is a theoretical part of the universe, a large amount of its total calculated mass which cannot (yet) be directly seen. It is considered possible that at least some of this 'missing mass' is in the form of black holes. It is not generally considered an option that ordinary holes have anything to do with this.
|-
! scope="row" | Created by the Large Hadron Collider
| No
| Yes
| There were concerns when the {{w|Large Hadron Collider}} (LHC), a particle supercollider, was initially put into operation that it would create a black hole that would destroy the Earth. This did not happen.{{Citation needed}} However, the LHC is mostly underground, and its construction required the digging of many holes.
|-
! scope="row" | Massive stars often collapse into them
| Yes
| No
| If a star is large enough, when the star dies, it may still have enough gravity to collapse back into itself, commonly creating black holes. This does not happen with regular holes, and would likely mean the end of the world if one did.
|-
! scope="row" | Explored by humans in famous sci-fi stories
| Yes
| Yes
| Many sci-fi stories and movies explore black holes and regular holes alike. In particular, there's the eponimous classic ''{{w|The Black Hole}}'' and more recent films such as ''{{w|Interstellar (film)|Interstellar}}'', both about space missions that encounter a black hole. {{w|Journey to the Center of the Earth}} is a classic novel by {{w|Jules Verne}} (and made into {{w|Journey to the Center of the Earth (1959 film)|various}} {{w|Journey to the Center of the Earth (2008 theatrical film)|films}}) which involves going into a volcano tube (a kind of hole). H. P. Lovecraft's 1921 short story ''{{w|The Nameless City}}'' involves the explorer narrator venturing into an ancient tunnel (entered through a hole) dug by a pre-human civilization under the Arabian peninsula, and ''{{w|At the Mountains of Madness}}'' involves tunnels lost in the continent of Antarctica. 
|-
! scope="row" | Fatal to get a big one in your body
| Yes
| Yes
| If a black hole appeared inside of a person's body, they would almost definitely die instantly.{{citation needed}} The same goes for a regular hole - if you cut out a massive section of a human's body, they would likely bleed out.
|-
! scope="row" | Some of them are the mouths of wormholes
| Maybe
| Yes
| Black holes are commonly portrayed to be the entrances of {{w|wormhole}}s, especially in sci-fi stories. On the other side, many species of worms live in shallow holes, with a "mouth" on the surface - the "mouth" of the "worm hole". This could also be a reference to Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, when the Millennium Falcon spacecraft almost gets swallowed by a giant worm in an asteroid hole.
|-
! scope="row" | Stephen Hawking and Kip Thorne argued that any information that falls into them is lost forever
| Yes
| No
| The {{w|Black hole information paradox}} is a paradox arising from the storage of information within black holes. Scientist {{w|Stephen Hawking}}, who is famous for his research into black holes, said that black holes release their energy over time, eventually disappearing, through {{w|Hawking Radiation}}. According to this theory, if information was also to enter the black hole, it would be released alongside this radiation. On the other hand, the {{w|No-hair theorem}} states that all black holes are completely identical outside of three key features: mass, spin, and electric charge. If information that fell into a black hole is released with Hawking radiation, then that means that there ''must'' be more than three properties of black holes.
On the other hand, information that falls into a normal hole is not lost forever, and can likely still be reobtained, especially if the information is stored physically. Hawking and {{w|Kip Thorne}} famously made a {{w|Thorne–Hawking–Preskill bet|bet}} with {{w|John Preskill}} over this paradox.
|-
! scope="row" | Commonly inhabited by meerkats
| Undetermined
| Yes
|{{w|Meerkat}}s commonly live in holes underground. It is highly unlikely that Earth mammals live in black holes, but because it is impossible to know what lies beyond the event horizon it is [[technically]] impossible to falsify the postulate that there are meerkats there.
|-
! scope="row" | (title text) Created by the collapse of
| Massive stars
| Florida limestone bedrock
| As mentioned before, Black holes are often created by the collapse of massive stars. On the other hand, many {{w|sinkhole}}s in Florida are caused due to most {{w|bedrock}} in the state being made of {{w|limestone}}, which is naturally soluble - that is, easily dissolved in water. Sinkholes from dissolved limestone are generally entrances to caves that explore further limestone dissolving from underground waterways. Florida is known for its warm underwater caves [https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/science-behind-floridas-sinkhole-epidemic-180969158/ and opening sinkholes].
|}

==Transcript==
:[A table comparing two main columns of relevence to various statements]
:[First column is headed:] Black Hole
:[Second column is headed:] Regular Hole
:[Respective statements cells placed to the left of both, below]

:[Statement:] Usually formed by...
:[Black hole:] Supernovas, colliding stars
:[Regular hole:| Shovels, small mammals

:[Statement:] Falling in is...
:[Black hole:] Definitely fatal
:[Regular hole:| Sometimes fatal

:[Statement:] Created by the Big Bang
:[Black hole:] Maybe
:[Regular hole:| No

:[Statement:] Created by children playing at the beach
:[Black hole:] I really hope not [with emphasis on "really"]
:[Regular hole:| Yes

:[Statement:] Source of many precious metals
:[Black hole:] Indirectly
:[Regular hole:| Yes

:[Statement:] Einstein imagined falling into one
:[Black hole:] Yes
:[Regular hole:| Probably at least once

:[Statement:] A component of dark matter
:[Black hole:] Maybe
:[Regular hole:| Probably not

:[Statement:] Created by the Large Hadron Collider
:[Black hole:] No
:[Regular hole:| Yes

:[Statement:] Massive stars often collapse into them
:[Black hole:] Yes
:[Regular hole:| No

:[Statement:] Explored by humans in famous sci-fi stories
:[Black hole:] Yes
:[Regular hole:| Yes

:[Statement:] Fatal to get a big one in your body
:[Black hole:] Yes
:[Regular hole:| Yes

:[Statement:] Some of them are the mouths of wormholes
:[Black hole:] Maybe
:[Regular hole:| Yes

:[Statement:] Stephen Hawking and Kip Thorne argued that any information that falls into them is lost forever
:[Black hole:] Yes
:[Regular hole:| No

:[Statement:] Commonly inhabited by meerkats
:[Black hole:] Undetermined
:[Regular hole:| Yes

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Space]]
[[Category:Cosmology]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]

1116: Traffic Lights

2023-10-16T00:31:23Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ A little more precise definition.

{{comic
| number = 1116
| date = October 3, 2012
| title = Traffic Lights
| image = traffic_lights.gif
| titletext = There's an intersection I drive through sometimes that has a forward green arrow, a red light, and a 'no turns' sign all on one pole. I honestly have no idea what it's telling me to do.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic is an {{w|animated gif}} which features an array of {{w|traffic light}}s which are lighted signals posted at intersections to control vehicular traffic. The standard North American traffic light has three solid lights: red, yellow and green (meaning, in simplistic terms, "stop", "stop if you can, otherwise exit the intersection" and "go if it is safe" respectively). More complicated lights sometimes have additional signals such as arrows indicating go or stop for a specific direction such as left or right turns.

However, as in the strip, sometimes an intersection has multiple lights with certain of them designated to apply solely to a specific lane or specific direction of travel. A common one is a left-turn light that allows the lights to stop or allow left-turn traffic independent of the rest of the traffic. Another common example is a light that applies only to public transit like streetcars that run on tracks on the city streets.

There are also other rules and features that tend to be unique to different localities as noted in the Wikipedia article for {{w|Traffic-light signalling and operation}}.

In this comic, [[Randall]] is commenting on the confusion that can be caused by having too many lights with multiple rules attached by creating an exaggerated example.

In this strip, the right light has a sign indicating that the light and the right lane are for ''left'' turners, while the 3rd-from-left is a straight or ''right'' turn lane and the 2nd from left is ''right'' turn only. In normal course, right turns would be permitted from the right lane and left turns from the left lanes. The system in this comic would have turning traffic crossing each other, as well as the straight-ahead traffic and would cause chaos (and require very complicated traffic light phases to control). The left-most light on the post has a sign indicating that left, right and straight travel are all prohibited, which is even more confusing.

The comic, as an animated gif, cycles through various phases, at first appearing somewhat normal, but then adding unusual phases. The animated gif takes about 90 seconds to cycle through the 32 discrete panels before repeating. The left post light has (unusually) left ''and'' right arrows, later becoming up and down arrows. At times the light completely shuts off, and at other times, has conflicting signals.

The third-from-left light has red ''and'' yellow, and later all three lights come on at the same time, then all three lights go yellow, and then reverse with green at top and red at bottom. The bottom light then becomes an arrow.

The fourth-from-left traffic light switches from a green light to a purple light at times.

The right light only lights red in each position.

The second-from-left light and second-from-right lights do not appear to have any quirks other than changing phases in unusual patterns.

At frames 21 and 22 (see below) the colors of the latter five lights correspond to the color sequence of the letters in the Google logo. Only the first letter of the logo, which is blue, is not reproduced on the first traffic light.

===Title Text===
The title text mentions a straightforward intersection that allows going forward but not turning. Even though Randall is confused, in some places, a red light and a forward green arrow permits going forward but disallows turns.

==Frame by frame breakdown==
The following is a breakdown of all of the frames of the animated gif comic.

[[File:traffic lights list.png]]

==Closeups on the Lights==
The following is a closeup on the lights, and the bird. The lights from left to right are here shown top to bottom. Time advances to the right.

[[File:traffic lights closeups revised.png]]

Originally, the second light had a couple frames near the start that were different. The closeup of this was as follows:

[[File:traffic lights closeups.png]]

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Comics with animation]]
[[Category:Traffic light]]
[[Category:Dynamic comics]]

2816: Types of Solar Eclipse

2023-08-17T22:20:35Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ Third-person wording.

{{comic
| number = 2816
| date = August 16, 2023
| title = Types of Solar Eclipse
| image = types_of_solar_eclipse_2x.png
| imagesize = 501x572px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = The best place to be for a hug eclipse is a scenic natural area with good views and few clouds. The worst place to be is the lunar surface.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a DARK SHADOW OF A <s>DRAGONITE</s> ULTRA-NECROZMA THAT PERIODICALLY EATS THE SUN - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

There are various different types of {{w|solar eclipse}}. The comic purports to show and name a number of them, initially quite real and accurate before heading into traditional xkcd fantasticality.

The punchline is where he likens an eclipse to a 'hug' of the Moon by the Sun. This is of course, not practically possible.{{Citation needed}} The Sun is about 93 million miles or 150 million kilometers away from the Moon (and Earth). Even if it was somehow moved into touching distance by advanced sci-fi tech or a terrible disaster, the Moon would vaporize on contact with the Sun's plasma, thus not allowing for any sort of hug. In fact, we would not live very long if this happened, as the Earth would also be baked by the Sun's light, then swallowed by its intense gravity.

In the title text, the hug eclipse is mentioned again, this time in regards to where the best location would be to observe the event. First, normal advice is given about how the best way to view the eclipse would be in a scenic and natural area, predicted to have few clouds at the time, from somewhere along the rather narrow 'track of totality' for the day. Then he mentions that the lunar surface would be the worst place to go in a solar hug - as it would be blasted with thousands of degrees of heat from the Sun.

A normal Sun-Moon-Earth eclipse seen from the Moon would either be ineffectual or perfectly normal 'night-time', depending upon your lunar location. A Sun-Earth-Moon eclipse, seen from the Moon would be far more than total (if sought for from the nearside face) due to the much larger size of the Earth blotting out much more of the background, although the 'circular sunset' that gives the fully eclipsed Moon a dull red illumination could be worth seeing.

{| class="wikitable"
!Label
!Image
!Occurs naturally
!Description
|-
|Partial
|Sun partly obscured by an offset occlusion
| Yes
|Whenever the Moon does not totally line up with the Sun (for any or all observers), the 'shadow' will not cross the center of the Sun. The parts of a full eclipse before second contact and after third contact are also described as partial phases of the eclipsing event.
|-
|Total
|Sun entirely obscured by a slightly larger concentric occlusion
| Yes
|When the Moon is close to perigee (or assisted by the Earth being at aphelion) during an eclipse, the Moon's apparent size is slightly larger than that of the Sun and will cover the whole solar disc. This is an astronomically useful effect, as well as aesthetically interesting to look at, as observers can study solar prominences and the atmosphere of the Sun whilst not being blinded by the glare of the bright 'surface' of the star.
|-
|Annular
|Sun partly obscured by a slightly smaller concentric occlusion
| Yes
|With the Moon nearer its apogee (and/or the Earth at perihelion), the Sun has a larger angular size than the Moon and will not be totally covered even by the most central alignment of each body.
An eclipse can also be called "hybrid" (not illustrated in the diagram), by being seen as both Total and Annular by different observers. Those viewing at more extreme latitudes or more westerly/easterly (the eclipse being closer to dawn and dusk, local time) are viewing both Moon and Sun from slightly further away around the curve of the planet and, as such, the nearer Moon decreases in angular size proportionately greater than the much more distant Sun. Thus they may see annularity in the same eclipse for which others would see totallity.
|-
|Oblate
|Oval Sun obscured by a concentric circle, except for at the edges of its major axis
| No
|If the Sun were a grossly exagerated oblate (or prolate) spheroid, for any reason, the equatorial (or polar) bulge might extend significantly beyond the original limits of totality, or the narrower radii fall beneath the limits of the nominally annular occlusion.
|-
|Interior
|Sun obscured at its edge by a thick ring, leaving its centre visible
| No
|When an occluding object visibly larger than the Sun has a significant hole in the middle, only the rim of the Sun is blocked in the manner of an inverted annular eclipse.
|-
|Cuboid
|Sun obscured by a square cross-section
| No
|In this example, the 'Moon' appears to be a cube-like shape, rather than spherical, thus unable to "square the circle" of the solar disk. It must be turned face-on to Earth (and Sun), as other orientations of a true cubic (or cuboid) object might cause a rectangular or even hexagonal 'shadow'. It is twisted in the other axis (to be a diamond, rather than aligned square), but this will always be a matter more of one's precise viewing point upon the surface of the Earth regardless of the orbital and rotational alignments.
|-
|Transverse
|Obscuring circle drawn as a perpendicular plane intersecting the Sun on a centre-line
| No
|This depicts the solar disc as two dimensional (and at an oblique angle) and the 'shadow' disc as a second 2D object somehow passing through the same space. This may be a spoof on the 'flat earth' explanation for the solar eclipse.
|-
|Saturnian
|Obscuring circle is given an oblique (shadow) ring system
| Yes, but only while orbiting Saturn
|While it is theoretically possible that Saturn (and its rings) could eventually find itself in a position to cause a solar eclipse on Earth (and/or that Earth moves beyond Saturn, or that the Moon gains significant debris rings in its own right), this scenario does not appear to be likely any time soon.
There are Saturnian moons that naturally travel behind their parent planet, but none that would ever see a near-Sun-sized Saturn doing so like this, and no human is yet in a position to directly see such an effect by any currently available means. However, probes sent to Saturn have captured images[https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/news/13101/spectacular-eclipses-in-the-saturn-system/] of this type of eclipse.
|-
|Hug
|Obscuring shape is pinched over at both sides by the respective overlapping edges of the Sun
| No
|In this image it appears the Sun has extended its 'limbs' to affectionately hold the Moon, which might be problematic in several different ways.{{Citation needed}}
|}

In all these images, the solar disc does not actually have a solid Moon in front of it, but a semi-transparent shadow, more typical of the representation of the Earth's solar shadow as it passes across the face of the Moon in a {{w|lunar eclipse}}. This may be an additional part of the humour, but it is likely an artistic choice made to improve the diagrams' legibility.

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

:[Nine diagrams of solar eclipses are shown in a 3x3 grid layout. The first three are all real solar eclipses, the rest are all ficticious.]
:Caption: Types of Solar Eclipse
:[The Sun is partially covered by a similarly sized Moon:] Partial
:[The Sun is completely covered by a similarly sized Moon:] Total
:[The Sun is partially covered by a slightly smaller Moon, surrounding its shadow:] Annular
:[An oval 'sun' is mostly covered by a round Moon, except at the extremes of its distortions:] Oblate
:[Sun partially covered by a similarly sized 'moon', except for a hole in this moon's center:] Interior
:[Sun partially covered by a square 'moon'-shadow, turned by an arbitrary angle:] Cuboid
:[2D 'sun' being intersected with a 2D 'moon' at a perpendicular angle:] Transverse
:[Sun being partially obscured by a body that has a prominent multi-ring system:] Saturnian
:[Moon is pinched at the sides by the Sun behind it, as if being grabbed:] Hug

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Astronomy]]

2813: What To Do

2023-08-11T17:54:50Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ Proper case column headings. Move '''slowly'' from lightning?

{{comic
| number = 2813
| date = August 9, 2023
| title = What To Do
| image = what_to_do_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x723px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = FYI: The 'drop, cover, and hold on' advice only applies to earthquakes. If you encounter a mountain lion, you should absolutely not drop to the ground, crawl under it, and hold on to one of its legs.
}}

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

Similar to [[1890: What to Bring]], this comic takes four unrelated dangerous situations (mountain lion sighting, nearby lightning, fire alarm, and bleeding), and tries to mix-and-match the solutions. Predictably,{{citation needed}} mixing up good advice leads to fairly nonsensical behavior, so only the original four matches are marked green as acceptable.

The title-text introduces another disaster, an earthquake, into the mix-and-match. A common safety precaution during an earthquake is to [https://www.shakeout.org/dropcoverholdon/ drop, cover, and hold on], which helps prevent you from being thrown about and/or hit by debris. However, attempting to "drop, cover, and hold on" in response to a mountain lion sighting is more likely to get you into danger than out of it. {{citation needed}}

;Advice

{| class="wikitable"
! (problem) vs (solution)
! scope="col"| Stand Up Straight, Speak Firmly, and Slowly Back Away
! scope="col"| Run Toward a Building or Hard-Topped Vehicle
! scope="col"| Calmly Exit the Building
! scope="col"| Apply Firm Pressure
|-
! scope="row"| {{w|mountain lion}}
| This is a common recommendation when encountering a mountain lion (puma, cougar, etc) out in nature.
| Running away may cause the animal to chase you, and it may consider you as prey. If you safely make it into a building or vehicle, you may be able to hide or drive away from the animal and may be safer than being outdoors with it; however, it is safer to approach said building or vehicle ''slowly'', so as to not provoke the animal.
| Exiting a building and approaching the animal is not a good idea. If the animal is inside the building, however, it is recommended to combine this advice with (1).
| Applying "firm pressure" to the (wild) animal is a terrible idea and may result in injury or death. Applying light pressure to a domesticated cat may make it less likely to attack, but wild cats do not respond positively to it.
|-
! scope="row"| {{w|lightning}}
| Yelling at lightning is ineffective. {{citation needed}} Also, backing away slowly from lightning will not provide effective protection.
| This is the recommended solution when encountering lightning - to go indoors or inside of a hard-topped vehicle to avoid being struck, or to be ''inside'' some form of Faraday cage if lightning does strike your location. Staying inside of a metal vehicle may cause other problems, but it's generally better than being directly struck.
| Exiting a building is a poor idea, as the risk of getting struck by lightning is increased.
| There is no safe way to "apply firm pressure" to lightning. In the diagram, Cueball applies pressure to the tree, which is just about the worst possible thing to do in a storm.
|-
! scope="row"| {{w|fire alarm}}
| Yelling at a fire alarm is ineffective. {{citation needed}}
| When a fire alarm is sounding, it is terrible advice to run ''towards'' the sound of the alarm, unless you are a trained fire fighter with suitable tools. If, however, you happen to be the cause of the fire, running towards a vehicle is completely understandable.
| This is the recommended advice when hearing a fire alarm - to calmly exit the building, and move to a safe location.
| Applying firm pressure to a fire alarm will not result in stopping the alarm, unless you are able to damage the device, suppress the sound (either by covering the noisemaker or by pressing the alarm's button to temporarily silence it), or block the fire alarm sensors. Regardless, this will not stop the actual fire. Also, there is no safe way to "apply firm pressure" to fire, although applying firm pressure could be interpreted as using a fire blanket.
|-
! scope="row"| {{w|bleeding}}
| Yelling at a bleeding person, or at the bleeding itself, is ineffective.
| Running toward a building or vehicle is not a typical solution if someone is bleeding. However, there could be medical supplies and/or medically trained people (nurses, doctors, paramedics, etc.) inside the building or vehicle, so this idea is not completely incorrect.
| Exiting a building is not helpful if someone is bleeding, if either the exiting one is the injured one, or the non-injured one. Although, if someone/something in the building (such as a mountain lion) is the cause of the bleeding, this could be a good idea so that the bleeding or injury does not get worse.
| This is the recommended solution to stop bleeding - apply firm pressure to stop the bleeding.
|}

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

:[The comic is laid out like a grid, with situations down the left-hand side (mountain lion / lightning / fire alarm / bleeding) and the solutions across the top (stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away / run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle / calmly exit the building / apply firm pressure ). The grid illustrates the "match-ups", with a green square denoting a "correct" match-up and a red square denoting a bad idea.]

:[From the top left corner, going from left to right, top to bottom, with each first item being on its own line in the grid, the squares are as follows:]

:[Green square, a mountain lion (drawn as a large cat) sits on the left, on a perch. Cueball and Megan have their arms raised and are speaking to it. Lines in front of them indicate they are backing up.]
:Cueball: ''HEY. STOP.''
:Megan: ''SHOO.''
:*'''stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away''' -> '''mountain lion'''

:[Red square, Cueball and Megan are being chased by a mountain lion, and are running towards a building to their right.]
:*'''run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle''' -> '''mountain lion'''

:[Red square, Cueball and Megan exit a building and approach a mountain lion.]
:Megan: ''Hello.''
:*'''calmly exit the building''' -> '''mountain lion'''

:[Red square, Cueball is putting his hands firmly on a mountain lion.]
:*'''apply firm pressure''' -> '''mountain lion'''

:[Red square, lightning strikes a tree. Cueball is standing outside, with his arms raised, yelling at the lightning. Lines in front of him indicate he is backing up.]
:''BOOM''
:Cueball: ''NO!''
:*'''stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away''' -> '''lightning'''

:[Green square, lightning strikes a tree. Cueball and Megan run toward a building to their right.]
:''BOOM''
:*'''run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle''' -> '''lightning'''

:[Red square, lightning strikes a tree. Cueball and Megan exit a building and approach the lightning-struck tree.]
:''BOOM''
:*''' calmly exit the building''' -> '''lightning'''

:[Red square, lightning strikes a tree. Cueball pushes on the lightning-struck tree.]
:''BOOM''
:*'''apply firm pressure''' -> '''lightning'''

:[Red square, a fire alarm is beeping. Cueball yells at the alarm, with his arms raised. Lines in front of him indicates he is backing up.]
:''BEEP BEEP BEEP''
:Cueball: ''HEY.''
:*'''stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away ''' -> '''fire alarm'''

:[Red square, a fire alarm is beeping next to a building with flames on its roof. Cueball and Megan run toward the burning building.]
:''BEEP BEEP BEEP''
:*'''run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle''' -> '''fire alarm'''

:[Green square, a fire alarm is beeping next to a house with flames on its roof. Cueball and Megan are exiting the burning building.]
:''BEEP BEEP BEEP''
:*'''calmly exit the building''' -> '''fire alarm'''

:[Red square, a fire alarm is beeping, and Cueball is trying to "suppress" the beeping sound. Behind him are flames.]
:''BEEP BEEP BE-eep eep eep eep eep''
:*'''apply firm pressure''' -> '''fire alarm'''

:[Red square, Cueball is bleeding from his right arm, and holds it. Megan to his right yells at him with her arms raised. Lines in front of her indicates she is backing up.]
:Megan: ''HEY!''
:Megan: ''STOP IT!''
:*'''stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away''' -> '''bleeding'''

:[Red square, Megan, holding a first aid kit in one hand and a bandage in the other, runs with a bleeding Cueball towards a building to their right.]
:*'''run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle''' -> '''bleeding'''

:[Red square, Megan holds a bandage, and to the ground in front of her is a first aid kit. Cueball is walking to the right of the panel, with an injured and bloody left arm raised.]
:Cueball: Bye!
:*'''calmly exit the building''' -> '''bleeding'''

:[Green square, Cueball sits in a chair and Megan is treating him by putting her hands on his injured limb. Behind her on the ground is a first aid kit.]
:*'''apply firm pressure''' -> '''bleeding'''

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Weather]]

2813: What To Do

2023-08-10T14:11:21Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ Push firmly enough, you can damage the alarm, thus stopping the sound.

{{comic
| number = 2813
| date = August 9, 2023
| title = What To Do
| image = what_to_do_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x723px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = FYI: The 'drop, cover, and hold on' advice only applies to earthquakes. If you encounter a mountain lion, you should absolutely not drop to the ground, crawl under it, and hold on to one of its legs.
}}

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

Similar to [[1890: What to Bring]] and [[1681: Laser Products]], this comic takes four unrelated dangerous situations (mountain lion sighting, nearby lightning, fire alarm, and bleeding), and tries to mix-and-match the solutions. Predictably,{{citation needed}} mixing up good advice leads to fairly nonsensical behavior, so only the original four matches are marked green as acceptable.

The title-text introduces another disaster, an earthquake, into the mix-and-match. A common safety precaution during an earthquake is to [https://www.shakeout.org/dropcoverholdon/ drop, cover, and hold on], which helps prevent you from being thrown about and/or hit by debris. However, attempting to "drop, cover, and hold on" in response to a mountain lion sighting is more likely to get you into danger than out of it. {{citation needed}}

;Advice

{| class="wikitable"
! (problem) vs (solution)
! scope="col"| stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away
! scope="col"| run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle
! scope="col"| calmly exit the building
! scope="col"| apply firm pressure
|-
! scope="row"| {{w|mountain lion}}
| This is a common recommendation when encountering a mountain lion (puma, cougar, etc) out in nature.
| Running away may cause the animal to chase you, and it may consider you as prey. If you safely make it into a building or vehicle, you may be able to hide or drive away from the animal and may be safer than being outdoors with it; however, it is safer to approach said building or vehicle ''slowly'', so as to not provoke the animal.
| Exiting a building and approaching the animal is not a good idea. {{citation needed}}
| Applying "firm pressure" to the (wild) animal is a terrible idea and may result in injury or death. Applying light pressure to a domesticated cat may make it less likely to attack, but wild cats do not respond positively to it.{{citation needed}}
|-
! scope="row"| lightning
| Yelling at lightning is ineffective. {{citation needed}}
| This is the recommended solution when encountering lightning - to go indoors or inside of a hard-topped vehicle to avoid being struck, or to be ''inside'' some form of faraday cage if lightning does strike your location. Staying inside of a metal vehicle may cause other problems, but it's generally better than being directly struck.
| Exiting a building is a poor idea, as the risk of getting struck by lightning is increased.
| There is no safe way to "apply firm pressure" to lightning.
|-
! scope="row"| fire alarm
| Yelling at a fire alarm is ineffective. {{citation needed}}
| When a fire alarm is sounding, it is terrible advice to run ''towards'' the sound of the alarm, unless you are a trained fire fighter with suitable tools.
| This is the recommended advice when hearing a fire alarm - to calmly exit the building, and move to a safe location.
| Applying firm pressure to a fire alarm will not result in stopping the alarm, unless you are able to manage to damage the device, suppress the sound, or the fire alarm sensors. Regardless, this will not stop an active fire. Also, there is no safe way to "apply firm pressure" to fire, although applying firm pressure could be interpreted as using a fire blanket.
|-
! scope="row"| bleeding
| Yelling at a bleeding person, or at the bleeding itself, is ineffective. {{citation needed}}
| Running toward a building or vehicle is not a typical solution if someone is bleeding. However, there could be medical supplies and/or medically trained people (nurses, doctors, paramedics, etc.) inside the building or vehicle, so this idea is not completely incorrect.
| Exiting a building is not helpful if someone is bleeding, if either the exiting one is the injured one, or the non-injured one. Although, if someone/something in the building is the cause of the bleeding, this could be a good idea so that the bleeding or injury does not get worse.
| This is the recommended solution to stop bleeding - apply firm pressure to stop the bleeding.
|}

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

:[The comic is laid out like a grid, with situations down the left-hand side (mountain lion / lightning / fire alarm / bleeding) and the solutions across the top (stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away / run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle / calmly exit the building / apply firm pressure ). The grid illustrates the "match-ups", with a green square denoting a "correct" match-up and a red square denoting a bad idea.]

:[From the top left corner, going from left to right, top to bottom, with each first item being on its own line in the grid, the squares are as follows:]

:[Green square, a mountain lion (drawn as a large cat) sits on the left, on a perch. Cueball and Megan have their arms raised and are speaking to it. Lines in front of them indicate they are backing up.]
:Cueball: ''HEY. STOP.''
:Megan: ''SHOO.''
:*'''stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away''' -> '''mountain lion'''

:[Red square, Cueball and Megan are being chased by a mountain lion, and are running towards a building to their right.]
:*'''run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle''' -> '''mountain lion'''

:[Red square, Cueball and Megan exit a building and approach a mountain lion.]
:Megan: ''Hello.''
:*'''calmly exit the building''' -> '''mountain lion'''

:[Red square, Cueball is putting his hands firmly on a mountain lion.]
:*'''apply firm pressure''' -> '''mountain lion'''

:[Red square, lightning strikes a tree. Cueball is standing outside, with his arms raised, yelling at the lightning. Lines in front of him indicate he is backing up.]
:''BOOM''
:Cueball: ''NO!''
:*'''stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away''' -> '''lightning'''

:[Green square, lightning strikes a tree. Cueball and Megan run toward a building to their right.]
:''BOOM''
:*'''run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle''' -> '''lightning'''

:[Red square, lightning strikes a tree. Cueball and Megan exit a building and approach the lightning-struck tree.]
:''BOOM''
:*''' calmly exit the building''' -> '''lightning'''

:[Red square, lightning strikes a tree. Cueball pushes on the lightning-struck tree.]
:''BOOM''
:*'''apply firm pressure''' -> '''lightning'''

:[Red square, a fire alarm is beeping. Cueball yells at the alarm, with his arms raised. Lines in front of him indicates he is backing up.]
:''BEEP BEEP BEEP''
:Cueball: ''HEY.''
:*'''stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away ''' -> '''fire alarm'''

:[Red square, a fire alarm is beeping next to a building with flames on its roof. Cueball and Megan run toward the burning building.]
:''BEEP BEEP BEEP''
:*'''run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle''' -> '''fire alarm'''

:[Green square, a fire alarm is beeping next to a house with flames on its roof. Cueball and Megan are exiting the burning building.]
:''BEEP BEEP BEEP''
:*'''calmly exit the building''' -> '''fire alarm'''

:[Red square, a fire alarm is beeping, and Cueball is trying to "suppress" the beeping sound. Behind him are flames.]
:''BEEP BEEP BE-eep eep eep''
:*'''apply firm pressure''' -> '''fire alarm'''

:[Red square, Cueball is bleeding from his right arm, and holds it. Megan to his right yells at him with her arms raised. Lines in front of her indicates she is backing up.]
:Megan: ''HEY!''
:Megan: ''STOP IT!''
:*'''stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away''' -> '''bleeding'''

:[Red square, Megan, holding a first aid kit in one hand and a bandage in the other, runs with a bleeding Cueball towards a building to their right.]
:*'''run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle''' -> '''bleeding'''

:[Red square, Megan holds a bandage, and to the ground in front of her is a first aid kit. Cueball is walking to the right of the panel, with an injured and bloody left arm raised.]
:Cueball: Bye!
:*'''calmly exit the building''' -> '''bleeding'''

:[Green square, Cueball sits in a chair and Megan is treating him by putting her hands on his injured limb. Behind her on the ground is a first aid kit.]
:*'''apply firm pressure''' -> '''bleeding'''

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Weather]]

2813: What To Do

2023-08-10T13:57:52Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ The vehicle could be an occupied fire truck or ambulance and the building could be a hospital or medical clinic.

{{comic
| number = 2813
| date = August 9, 2023
| title = What To Do
| image = what_to_do_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x723px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = FYI: The 'drop, cover, and hold on' advice only applies to earthquakes. If you encounter a mountain lion, you should absolutely not drop to the ground, crawl under it, and hold on to one of its legs.
}}

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

Similar to [[1890: What to Bring]] and [[1681: Laser Products]], this comic takes four unrelated dangerous situations (mountain lion sighting, nearby lightning, fire alarm, and bleeding), and tries to mix-and-match the solutions. Predictably,{{citation needed}} mixing up good advice leads to fairly nonsensical behavior, so only the original four matches are marked green as acceptable.

The title-text introduces another disaster, an earthquake, into the mix-and-match. A common safety precaution during an earthquake is to [https://www.shakeout.org/dropcoverholdon/ drop, cover, and hold on], which helps prevent you from being thrown about and/or hit by debris. However, attempting to "drop, cover, and hold on" in response to a mountain lion sighting is more likely to get you into danger than out of it. {{citation needed}}

;Advice

{| class="wikitable"
! (problem) vs (solution)
! scope="col"| stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away
! scope="col"| run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle
! scope="col"| calmly exit the building
! scope="col"| apply firm pressure
|-
! scope="row"| {{w|mountain lion}}
| This is a common recommendation when encountering a mountain lion (puma, cougar, etc) out in nature.
| Running away may cause the animal to chase you, and it may consider you as prey. If you safely make it into a building or vehicle, you may be able to hide or drive away from the animal and may be safer than being outdoors with it; however, it is safer to approach said building or vehicle ''slowly'', so as to not provoke the animal.
| Exiting a building and approaching the animal is not a good idea. {{citation needed}}
| Applying "firm pressure" to the (wild) animal is a terrible idea and may result in injury or death. Applying light pressure to a domesticated cat may make it less likely to attack, but wild cats do not respond positively to it.{{citation needed}}
|-
! scope="row"| lightning
| Yelling at lightning is ineffective. {{citation needed}}
| This is the recommended solution when encountering lightning - to go indoors or inside of a hard-topped vehicle to avoid being struck, or to be ''inside'' some form of faraday cage if lightning does strike your location. Staying inside of a metal vehicle may cause other problems, but it's generally better than being directly struck.
| Exiting a building is a poor idea, as the risk of getting struck by lightning is increased.
| There is no safe way to "apply firm pressure" to lightning.
|-
! scope="row"| fire alarm
| Yelling at a fire alarm is ineffective. {{citation needed}}
| When a fire alarm is sounding, it is terrible advice to run ''towards'' the sound of the alarm, unless you are a trained fire fighter with suitable tools.
| This is the recommended advice when hearing a fire alarm - to calmly exit the building, and move to a safe location.
| Applying firm pressure to a fire alarm will not result in stopping the alarm, unless you are able to manage to suppress the sound, or the fire alarm sensors. Regardless, this will not stop an active fire. Also, there is no safe way to "apply firm pressure" to fire, although applying firm pressure could be interpreted as using a fire blanket.
|-
! scope="row"| bleeding
| Yelling at a bleeding person, or at the bleeding itself, is ineffective. {{citation needed}}
| Running toward a building or vehicle is not a typical solution if someone is bleeding. However, there could be medical supplies and/or medically trained people (nurses, doctors, paramedics, etc.) inside the building or vehicle, so this idea is not completely incorrect.
| Exiting a building is not helpful if someone is bleeding, if either the exiting one is the injured one, or the non-injured one. Although, if someone/something in the building is the cause of the bleeding, this could be a good idea so that the bleeding or injury does not get worse.
| This is the recommended solution to stop bleeding - apply firm pressure to stop the bleeding.
|}

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

:[The comic is laid out like a grid, with situations down the left-hand side (mountain lion / lightning / fire alarm / bleeding) and the solutions across the top (stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away / run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle / calmly exit the building / apply firm pressure ). The grid illustrates the "match-ups", with a green square denoting a "correct" match-up and a red square denoting a bad idea.]

:[From the top left corner, going from left to right, top to bottom, with each first item being on its own line in the grid, the squares are as follows:]

:[Green square, a mountain lion (drawn as a large cat) sits on the left, on a perch. Cueball and Megan have their arms raised and are speaking to it. Lines in front of them indicate they are backing up.]
:Cueball: ''HEY. STOP.''
:Megan: ''SHOO.''
:*'''stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away''' -> '''mountain lion'''

:[Red square, Cueball and Megan are being chased by a mountain lion, and are running towards a building to their right.]
:*'''run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle''' -> '''mountain lion'''

:[Red square, Cueball and Megan exit a building and approach a mountain lion.]
:Megan: ''Hello.''
:*'''calmly exit the building''' -> '''mountain lion'''

:[Red square, Cueball is putting his hands firmly on a mountain lion.]
:*'''apply firm pressure''' -> '''mountain lion'''

:[Red square, lightning strikes a tree. Cueball is standing outside, with his arms raised, yelling at the lightning. Lines in front of him indicate he is backing up.]
:''BOOM''
:Cueball: ''NO!''
:*'''stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away''' -> '''lightning'''

:[Green square, lightning strikes a tree. Cueball and Megan run toward a building to their right.]
:''BOOM''
:*'''run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle''' -> '''lightning'''

:[Red square, lightning strikes a tree. Cueball and Megan exit a building and approach the lightning-struck tree.]
:''BOOM''
:*''' calmly exit the building''' -> '''lightning'''

:[Red square, lightning strikes a tree. Cueball pushes on the lightning-struck tree.]
:''BOOM''
:*'''apply firm pressure''' -> '''lightning'''

:[Red square, a fire alarm is beeping. Cueball yells at the alarm, with his arms raised. Lines in front of him indicates he is backing up.]
:''BEEP BEEP BEEP''
:Cueball: ''HEY.''
:*'''stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away ''' -> '''fire alarm'''

:[Red square, a fire alarm is beeping next to a building with flames on its roof. Cueball and Megan run toward the burning building.]
:''BEEP BEEP BEEP''
:*'''run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle''' -> '''fire alarm'''

:[Green square, a fire alarm is beeping next to a house with flames on its roof. Cueball and Megan are exiting the burning building.]
:''BEEP BEEP BEEP''
:*'''calmly exit the building''' -> '''fire alarm'''

:[Red square, a fire alarm is beeping, and Cueball is trying to "suppress" the beeping sound. Behind him are flames.]
:''BEEP BEEP BE-eep eep eep''
:*'''apply firm pressure''' -> '''fire alarm'''

:[Red square, Cueball is bleeding from his right arm, and holds it. Megan to his right yells at him with her arms raised. Lines in front of her indicates she is backing up.]
:Megan: ''HEY!''
:Megan: ''STOP IT!''
:*'''stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away''' -> '''bleeding'''

:[Red square, Megan, holding a first aid kit in one hand and a bandage in the other, runs with a bleeding Cueball towards a building to their right.]
:*'''run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle''' -> '''bleeding'''

:[Red square, Megan holds a bandage, and to the ground in front of her is a first aid kit. Cueball is walking to the right of the panel, with an injured and bloody left arm raised.]
:Cueball: Bye!
:*'''calmly exit the building''' -> '''bleeding'''

:[Green square, Cueball sits in a chair and Megan is treating him by putting her hands on his injured limb. Behind her on the ground is a first aid kit.]
:*'''apply firm pressure''' -> '''bleeding'''

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Weather]]

2813: What To Do

2023-08-10T13:53:45Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ Clarify fire fighter. Having the right tools '''and training''' is essential.

{{comic
| number = 2813
| date = August 9, 2023
| title = What To Do
| image = what_to_do_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x723px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = FYI: The 'drop, cover, and hold on' advice only applies to earthquakes. If you encounter a mountain lion, you should absolutely not drop to the ground, crawl under it, and hold on to one of its legs.
}}

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

Similar to [[1890: What to Bring]] and [[1681: Laser Products]], this comic takes four unrelated dangerous situations (mountain lion sighting, nearby lightning, fire alarm, and bleeding), and tries to mix-and-match the solutions. Predictably,{{citation needed}} mixing up good advice leads to fairly nonsensical behavior, so only the original four matches are marked green as acceptable.

The title-text introduces another disaster, an earthquake, into the mix-and-match. A common safety precaution during an earthquake is to [https://www.shakeout.org/dropcoverholdon/ drop, cover, and hold on], which helps prevent you from being thrown about and/or hit by debris. However, attempting to "drop, cover, and hold on" in response to a mountain lion sighting is more likely to get you into danger than out of it. {{citation needed}}

;Advice

{| class="wikitable"
! (problem) vs (solution)
! scope="col"| stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away
! scope="col"| run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle
! scope="col"| calmly exit the building
! scope="col"| apply firm pressure
|-
! scope="row"| {{w|mountain lion}}
| This is a common recommendation when encountering a mountain lion (puma, cougar, etc) out in nature.
| Running away may cause the animal to chase you, and it may consider you as prey. If you safely make it into a building or vehicle, you may be able to hide or drive away from the animal and may be safer than being outdoors with it; however, it is safer to approach said building or vehicle ''slowly'', so as to not provoke the animal.
| Exiting a building and approaching the animal is not a good idea. {{citation needed}}
| Applying "firm pressure" to the (wild) animal is a terrible idea and may result in injury or death. Applying light pressure to a domesticated cat may make it less likely to attack, but wild cats do not respond positively to it.{{citation needed}}
|-
! scope="row"| lightning
| Yelling at lightning is ineffective. {{citation needed}}
| This is the recommended solution when encountering lightning - to go indoors or inside of a hard-topped vehicle to avoid being struck, or to be ''inside'' some form of faraday cage if lightning does strike your location. Staying inside of a metal vehicle may cause other problems, but it's generally better than being directly struck.
| Exiting a building is a poor idea, as the risk of getting struck by lightning is increased.
| There is no safe way to "apply firm pressure" to lightning.
|-
! scope="row"| fire alarm
| Yelling at a fire alarm is ineffective. {{citation needed}}
| When a fire alarm is sounding, it is terrible advice to run ''towards'' the sound of the alarm, unless you are a trained fire fighter with suitable tools.
| This is the recommended advice when hearing a fire alarm - to calmly exit the building, and move to a safe location.
| Applying firm pressure to a fire alarm will not result in stopping the alarm, unless you are able to manage to suppress the sound, or the fire alarm sensors. Regardless, this will not stop an active fire. Also, there is no safe way to "apply firm pressure" to fire, although applying firm pressure could be interpreted as using a fire blanket.
|-
! scope="row"| bleeding
| Yelling at a bleeding person, or at the bleeding itself, is ineffective. {{citation needed}}
| Running toward a building or vehicle is not a typical solution if someone is bleeding. However, there could be medical supplies inside the building or vehicle, so this idea is not completely incorrect.
| Exiting a building is not helpful if someone is bleeding, if either the exiting one is the injured one, or the non-injured one. Although, if someone/something in the building is the cause of the bleeding, this could be a good idea so that the bleeding or injury does not get worse.
| This is the recommended solution to stop bleeding - apply firm pressure to stop the bleeding.
|}

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

:[The comic is laid out like a grid, with situations down the left-hand side (mountain lion / lightning / fire alarm / bleeding) and the solutions across the top (stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away / run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle / calmly exit the building / apply firm pressure ). The grid illustrates the "match-ups", with a green square denoting a "correct" match-up and a red square denoting a bad idea.]

:[From the top left corner, going from left to right, top to bottom, with each first item being on its own line in the grid, the squares are as follows:]

:[Green square, a mountain lion (drawn as a large cat) sits on the left, on a perch. Cueball and Megan have their arms raised and are speaking to it. Lines in front of them indicate they are backing up.]
:Cueball: ''HEY. STOP.''
:Megan: ''SHOO.''
:*'''stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away''' -> '''mountain lion'''

:[Red square, Cueball and Megan are being chased by a mountain lion, and are running towards a building to their right.]
:*'''run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle''' -> '''mountain lion'''

:[Red square, Cueball and Megan exit a building and approach a mountain lion.]
:Megan: ''Hello.''
:*'''calmly exit the building''' -> '''mountain lion'''

:[Red square, Cueball is putting his hands firmly on a mountain lion.]
:*'''apply firm pressure''' -> '''mountain lion'''

:[Red square, lightning strikes a tree. Cueball is standing outside, with his arms raised, yelling at the lightning. Lines in front of him indicate he is backing up.]
:''BOOM''
:Cueball: ''NO!''
:*'''stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away''' -> '''lightning'''

:[Green square, lightning strikes a tree. Cueball and Megan run toward a building to their right.]
:''BOOM''
:*'''run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle''' -> '''lightning'''

:[Red square, lightning strikes a tree. Cueball and Megan exit a building and approach the lightning-struck tree.]
:''BOOM''
:*''' calmly exit the building''' -> '''lightning'''

:[Red square, lightning strikes a tree. Cueball pushes on the lightning-struck tree.]
:''BOOM''
:*'''apply firm pressure''' -> '''lightning'''

:[Red square, a fire alarm is beeping. Cueball yells at the alarm, with his arms raised. Lines in front of him indicates he is backing up.]
:''BEEP BEEP BEEP''
:Cueball: ''HEY.''
:*'''stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away ''' -> '''fire alarm'''

:[Red square, a fire alarm is beeping next to a building with flames on its roof. Cueball and Megan run toward the burning building.]
:''BEEP BEEP BEEP''
:*'''run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle''' -> '''fire alarm'''

:[Green square, a fire alarm is beeping next to a house with flames on its roof. Cueball and Megan are exiting the burning building.]
:''BEEP BEEP BEEP''
:*'''calmly exit the building''' -> '''fire alarm'''

:[Red square, a fire alarm is beeping, and Cueball is trying to "suppress" the beeping sound. Behind him are flames.]
:''BEEP BEEP BE-eep eep eep''
:*'''apply firm pressure''' -> '''fire alarm'''

:[Red square, Cueball is bleeding from his right arm, and holds it. Megan to his right yells at him with her arms raised. Lines in front of her indicates she is backing up.]
:Megan: ''HEY!''
:Megan: ''STOP IT!''
:*'''stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away''' -> '''bleeding'''

:[Red square, Megan, holding a first aid kit in one hand and a bandage in the other, runs with a bleeding Cueball towards a building to their right.]
:*'''run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle''' -> '''bleeding'''

:[Red square, Megan holds a bandage, and to the ground in front of her is a first aid kit. Cueball is walking to the right of the panel, with an injured and bloody left arm raised.]
:Cueball: Bye!
:*'''calmly exit the building''' -> '''bleeding'''

:[Green square, Cueball sits in a chair and Megan is treating him by putting her hands on his injured limb. Behind her on the ground is a first aid kit.]
:*'''apply firm pressure''' -> '''bleeding'''

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Weather]]

2813: What To Do

2023-08-10T13:51:29Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ Copy edit.

{{comic
| number = 2813
| date = August 9, 2023
| title = What To Do
| image = what_to_do_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x723px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = FYI: The 'drop, cover, and hold on' advice only applies to earthquakes. If you encounter a mountain lion, you should absolutely not drop to the ground, crawl under it, and hold on to one of its legs.
}}

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

Similar to [[1890: What to Bring]] and [[1681: Laser Products]], this comic takes four unrelated dangerous situations (mountain lion sighting, nearby lightning, fire alarm, and bleeding), and tries to mix-and-match the solutions. Predictably,{{citation needed}} mixing up good advice leads to fairly nonsensical behavior, so only the original four matches are marked green as acceptable.

The title-text introduces another disaster, an earthquake, into the mix-and-match. A common safety precaution during an earthquake is to [https://www.shakeout.org/dropcoverholdon/ drop, cover, and hold on], which helps prevent you from being thrown about and/or hit by debris. However, attempting to "drop, cover, and hold on" in response to a mountain lion sighting is more likely to get you into danger than out of it. {{citation needed}}

;Advice

{| class="wikitable"
! (problem) vs (solution)
! scope="col"| stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away
! scope="col"| run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle
! scope="col"| calmly exit the building
! scope="col"| apply firm pressure
|-
! scope="row"| {{w|mountain lion}}
| This is a common recommendation when encountering a mountain lion (puma, cougar, etc) out in nature.
| Running away may cause the animal to chase you, and it may consider you as prey. If you safely make it into a building or vehicle, you may be able to hide or drive away from the animal and may be safer than being outdoors with it; however, it is safer to approach said building or vehicle ''slowly'', so as to not provoke the animal.
| Exiting a building and approaching the animal is not a good idea. {{citation needed}}
| Applying "firm pressure" to the (wild) animal is a terrible idea and may result in injury or death. Applying light pressure to a domesticated cat may make it less likely to attack, but wild cats do not respond positively to it.{{citation needed}}
|-
! scope="row"| lightning
| Yelling at lightning is ineffective. {{citation needed}}
| This is the recommended solution when encountering lightning - to go indoors or inside of a hard-topped vehicle to avoid being struck, or to be ''inside'' some form of faraday cage if lightning does strike your location. Staying inside of a metal vehicle may cause other problems, but it's generally better than being directly struck.
| Exiting a building is a poor idea, as the risk of getting struck by lightning is increased.
| There is no safe way to "apply firm pressure" to lightning.
|-
! scope="row"| fire alarm
| Yelling at a fire alarm is ineffective. {{citation needed}}
| When a fire alarm is sounding, it is terrible advice to run ''towards'' the sound of the alarm, unless you are a trained member of the fire department.
| This is the recommended advice when hearing a fire alarm - to calmly exit the building, and move to a safe location.
| Applying firm pressure to a fire alarm will not result in stopping the alarm, unless you are able to manage to suppress the sound, or the fire alarm sensors. Regardless, this will not stop an active fire. Also, there is no safe way to "apply firm pressure" to fire, although applying firm pressure could be interpreted as using a fire blanket.
|-
! scope="row"| bleeding
| Yelling at a bleeding person, or at the bleeding itself, is ineffective. {{citation needed}}
| Running toward a building or vehicle is not a typical solution if someone is bleeding. However, there could be medical supplies inside the building or vehicle, so this idea is not completely incorrect.
| Exiting a building is not helpful if someone is bleeding, if either the exiting one is the injured one, or the non-injured one. Although, if someone/something in the building is the cause of the bleeding, this could be a good idea so that the bleeding or injury does not get worse.
| This is the recommended solution to stop bleeding - apply firm pressure to stop the bleeding.
|}

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

:[The comic is laid out like a grid, with situations down the left-hand side (mountain lion / lightning / fire alarm / bleeding) and the solutions across the top (stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away / run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle / calmly exit the building / apply firm pressure ). The grid illustrates the "match-ups", with a green square denoting a "correct" match-up and a red square denoting a bad idea.]

:[From the top left corner, going from left to right, top to bottom, with each first item being on its own line in the grid, the squares are as follows:]

:[Green square, a mountain lion (drawn as a large cat) sits on the left, on a perch. Cueball and Megan have their arms raised and are speaking to it. Lines in front of them indicate they are backing up.]
:Cueball: ''HEY. STOP.''
:Megan: ''SHOO.''
:*'''stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away''' -> '''mountain lion'''

:[Red square, Cueball and Megan are being chased by a mountain lion, and are running towards a building to their right.]
:*'''run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle''' -> '''mountain lion'''

:[Red square, Cueball and Megan exit a building and approach a mountain lion.]
:Megan: ''Hello.''
:*'''calmly exit the building''' -> '''mountain lion'''

:[Red square, Cueball is putting his hands firmly on a mountain lion.]
:*'''apply firm pressure''' -> '''mountain lion'''

:[Red square, lightning strikes a tree. Cueball is standing outside, with his arms raised, yelling at the lightning. Lines in front of him indicate he is backing up.]
:''BOOM''
:Cueball: ''NO!''
:*'''stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away''' -> '''lightning'''

:[Green square, lightning strikes a tree. Cueball and Megan run toward a building to their right.]
:''BOOM''
:*'''run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle''' -> '''lightning'''

:[Red square, lightning strikes a tree. Cueball and Megan exit a building and approach the lightning-struck tree.]
:''BOOM''
:*''' calmly exit the building''' -> '''lightning'''

:[Red square, lightning strikes a tree. Cueball pushes on the lightning-struck tree.]
:''BOOM''
:*'''apply firm pressure''' -> '''lightning'''

:[Red square, a fire alarm is beeping. Cueball yells at the alarm, with his arms raised. Lines in front of him indicates he is backing up.]
:''BEEP BEEP BEEP''
:Cueball: ''HEY.''
:*'''stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away ''' -> '''fire alarm'''

:[Red square, a fire alarm is beeping next to a building with flames on its roof. Cueball and Megan run toward the burning building.]
:''BEEP BEEP BEEP''
:*'''run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle''' -> '''fire alarm'''

:[Green square, a fire alarm is beeping next to a house with flames on its roof. Cueball and Megan are exiting the burning building.]
:''BEEP BEEP BEEP''
:*'''calmly exit the building''' -> '''fire alarm'''

:[Red square, a fire alarm is beeping, and Cueball is trying to "suppress" the beeping sound. Behind him are flames.]
:''BEEP BEEP BE-eep eep eep''
:*'''apply firm pressure''' -> '''fire alarm'''

:[Red square, Cueball is bleeding from his right arm, and holds it. Megan to his right yells at him with her arms raised. Lines in front of her indicates she is backing up.]
:Megan: ''HEY!''
:Megan: ''STOP IT!''
:*'''stand up straight, speak firmly, and slowly back away''' -> '''bleeding'''

:[Red square, Megan, holding a first aid kit in one hand and a bandage in the other, runs with a bleeding Cueball towards a building to their right.]
:*'''run toward a building or hard-topped vehicle''' -> '''bleeding'''

:[Red square, Megan holds a bandage, and to the ground in front of her is a first aid kit. Cueball is walking to the right of the panel, with an injured and bloody left arm raised.]
:Cueball: Bye!
:*'''calmly exit the building''' -> '''bleeding'''

:[Green square, Cueball sits in a chair and Megan is treating him by putting her hands on his injured limb. Behind her on the ground is a first aid kit.]
:*'''apply firm pressure''' -> '''bleeding'''

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Weather]]

2811: Free Fallin'

2023-08-06T00:50:57Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ Expand NTSB jurisdiction.

{{comic
| number = 2811
| date = August 4, 2023
| title = Free Fallin'
| image = free_fallin_2x.png
| imagesize = 546x376px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Their crash investigation team had some particularly harsh words for Dave Matthews.
}}

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

The {{w|National Transportation Safety Board|National Transportation Safety Board}} (NTSB) issues reports on incidents involving various types of vehicles, including airplanes. In this comic, Randall suggests that due to an obscure law, the NTSB has to do a report if a song is downloaded to a {{w|Flight data recorder|flight data recorder}}. In this instance, the song used is the 1989 ballad {{w|Free Fallin'|''Free Fallin'''}} by {{w|Tom Petty|Tom Petty}}. Interpreting the song's lyrics as a description of an incident, the NTSB's report describes a flight over northern Los Angeles County, California. The pilot apparently takes off from his home in Reseda, gliding over Mulholland Drive, skywriting the name of his loved one, and then presumably either skydiving from the craft or turning off its power to achieve free fall. Assuming Tom Petty is the [amateur] solo pilot, either action would be a dangerous maneuver risking not only his vehicle but the lives of the civilians below, and quite possibly his own.

The title text refers to the 1996 song "Crash Into Me", off the Dave Matthews Band's second album, ''Crash''. The investigation team likely would not enjoy a song which reminds them of their job, even if it was referring to love instead of planes.{{Citation needed}}

Both songs were on heavy radio rotation when Munroe was a teenager, a time when many people make especially emotional connections to the popular music of their era.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Map item !! Corresponding ''Free Fallin''' lyric
|-
| Tom Petty home || And it's a long day livin' in Reseda
|-
| vampires || And all the vampires walkin' through the valley Move west down Ventura Boulevard
|-
| boys (bad) || And all the bad boys are standin' in the shadows
|-
| girls (good) (sad) || And the good girls are home with broken hearts
|-
| glide phase || I wanna glide down over Mulholland
|-
| skywriting incident || I wanna write her name in the sky
|-
| ? || I'm gonna free fall out into nothin' Gonna leave this world for awhile I'm free fallin'
|}

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

[Map of {{w|San Fernando Valley|San Fernando Valley, California}}, with dotted line labeled “flight path” and several other features marked on and around the line:]

* Tom Petty home (in {{w|Reseda, Los Angeles|Reseda}})
* flight path (the dotted line)
* vampires (on {{w|Ventura Boulevard}}, with an arrow pointing west)
* boys (bad)
* girls (good) (sad)
* glide phase (over {{w|Mulholland Drive}})
* skywriting incident (loops in flight path)
*? (at end of flight path, near {{w|Burbank, California|Burbank}})

[In the top left of the map, the logo of the {{w|National Transportation Safety Board}} (NTSB)]

[Caption below the panel:] Due to an obscure law, if you download a song onto a flight data recorder and send it to the NTSB, they have to do a report on it.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Maps]]
[[Category:Music]]
[[Category:Aviation]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]

2796: Real Estate Analysis

2023-07-30T04:03:21Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ Grammar fix

{{comic
| number = 2796
| date = June 30, 2023
| title = Real Estate Analysis
| image = real_estate_analysis_2x.png
| imagesize = 474x458px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Mars does get a good score on 'noise levels' and 'scenic views,' but the school district ranking isn't great; the only teacher--the Perseverance rover--is too busy with rock samples to teach more than the occasional weekend class.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by an EASILY IMPRESSED URBANIST - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

This comic shows a chart ranking locations in our solar system (the eight currently recognised planets and Earth's own moon) along two scales: their walkability and their proximity to shops. As this is a "real estate analysis", this comic mocks real life "real estate analyses" for people who are looking for a new home. Walkability measures the ease of walking as a form of transportation in an area (often related to how urban that area is), and is measured by metrics like the 100-point walk score, with higher numbers representing easier and safer walking. Proximity to commercial shops and eating establishments can likewise be a factor for potential residents looking for a convenient living environment. While no units are provided, proximity can be defined as a number that increases with decreasing distance.

Earth is rated as highly walkable, probably because humans can walk on much of its surface without immediate & continuous existential need for environmental survival gear (so far), and due to the gravity on its surface. Earth also rates high on the "proximity to shops and restaurants" scale because its surface hosts all commercial establishments known to humans; most businesses are within a few building stories of the surface, though some "shops" on airplanes are up to several kilometers above it.

All other locations are rated as completely unwalkable, and remote from any shops or restaurants. The next closest body, the Moon, typically around 384,400 km away from Earth, is about five orders of magnitude further from shops and restaurants than anywhere on Earth. (A dozen people have actually walked ''on'' the Moon, [https://sei-engagement.pubpub.org/pub/nmjeoom7/release/8 more or less], but none have actually walked ''to'' the Moon, or to wherever else they may want to go from there.) Venus is 108 million km away while Uranus is 2.9 billion, so all these bodies' clustering near the origin on the proximity scale masks a large difference in accessibility. The gas giants Jupiter and Saturn are assessed marginally higher walkability scores than the solid Mercury (where temperatures are extreme, but do briefly pass through the range survivable for humans as the planet rotates); maybe their less-hostile (and, in the case of Ganymede and Titan, physically larger) moons are taken into account here.

Based on Earth's high score on both metrics, Randall makes the claim "I get why this place is so popular". Most humans would agree with Earth being preferable (no human is known to have permanently inhabited any celestial body besides Earth[https://www.planetary.org/worlds/pale-blue-dot]), but would be more concerned with local differences in livability.

Walkability scores on websites such as https://www.walkscore.com/ take into account proximity to restaurants, groceries, and shopping (among other factors, such as proximity to parks, schools, and culture and entertainment venues), so it would be fairly unusual for a location to score high on walkability but low on proximity to shops and restaurants, or vice versa.

The alt text comments that Mars did score high on the 'noise levels' and 'scenic views' scores. Generally, lower noise levels help maintain a calm and relaxed lifestyle, and are therefore a desirable quality for real estate. Due to it having a thinner atmosphere and (almost) zero sources of manmade noise, Mars is very quiet (though [https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/the-fact-and-fiction-of-martian-dust-storms not entirely silent]). However, this extreme lack of noise may turn out to be detrimental to human wellbeing. Access to scenic areas is also generally seen as a positive when assessing property, and the large, barren scenery of Mars has been abundantly documented by the several rovers sent to its surface, resulting in widespread fascination with its serene landscapes (though the ever-present dust, and the need to deal with it, mars the serenity somewhat). Again, though, the sheer emptiness of the landscape might turn out to be a negative rather than a positive.

It then states the 'school district' ranking (proximity to a good schooling system, which is also desirable, especially to families) is rather poor on account of there being only one available teacher - the rover ''Perseverance'' - and it being too busy with its rock samples. ''Perseverance'' is (at the time of this comic's publication) a still-active Mars rover whose main purpose is to examine minerals from Mars' surface and scan them for signs compatible with ancient life: while it could hypothetically serve as a teacher (using its memory banks as teaching material, for instance), doing so would greatly interfere with its main mission if done regularly.

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

:[A graph is shown. Both axes have a label with an arrow and 10 visible ticks.]
:Y-axis: Walkability score
:X-axis: Proximity to shops and restaurants
:[Labels of multiple dots at around (0, 0), clockwise:]
:Mars, The Moon, Mercury, Venus, Neptune, Uranus, Saturn, Jupiter
:[Label of a dot at roughly (9.5, 9.5):]
:Earth

:[Caption below the panel:]
:After doing a real estate analysis, I get why this place is so popular.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Mars rovers]]

Talk:2807: Bad Map Projection: ABS(Longitude)

2023-07-27T14:12:01Z

Nutster: Explain the projection.

...actually, there's quite a bit of 'foldover' that's covered by the Atlantic, but it's still not quite so much as the Pacific gap across the ±180° edge-to-edge, so forgive me if consider the likes of places in India partnered with the over-adopted American locations as being trans-Atlantic (and across the whole width of Africa and some of the Indian Ocean too) rather than anything else. It could definitely do with a more precise analysis/description, though. Plus how bits of western Western Europe are folded over onto more-central Western Europe (not a very good mirror of Scotland, I think, but I'm particularly more familiar with its effective profile than Randall has any reason to be). [[Special:Contributions/172.71.242.195|172.71.242.195]] 01:20, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
This would make a great EU4 mod [[Special:Contributions/172.68.146.52|172.68.146.52]] 01:21, 27 July 2023 (UTC)

Oh, good, thank you. I on ABS I couldn't get past antilock brakes. And the picture spam from the other day seemed to be tendeon repair. Looked like a surgicical procedure to to fasten cut tendons back together but I didn't see a cast to prevent movement. Shrug. Quite gross, as all surguries are. Poorly of course couldnt see all of the pic.[[Special:Contributions/172.71.222.70|172.71.222.70]] 02:35, 27 July 2023 (UTC)[[Special:Contributions/172.71.222.71|172.71.222.71]] 02:57, 27 July 2023 (UTC)

Added a very basic transcript because this comic is a little too complicated for me and it's my first time. Also, we need more positive vibes considering the previous comic about anti-vaxxers and the... interesting comments in the discussions.

Also, the Galapagos being near to Singapore (that's where I live) would be interesting! [[User:R3TRI8UTI0N|R3TRI8UTI0N]] ([[User talk:R3TRI8UTI0N|talk]]) 03:48, 27 July 2023 (UTC)

This map does not appear to be particularly…correct. For instance, Seoul, South Korea, is given as about 38N/155. But actually it is at 127E longitude. That's nowhere close. On a real map, 155E longitude is several hundred miles east of Japan into the open Pacific ocean, approx. the longitude of the Marshall Islands (but far north of them). Closer to home, for Randall and for me, Boston is given as about 59, but it is really 71W. What's up with that? Is everything shifted…and why? [[User:JohnHawkinson|JohnHawkinson]] ([[User talk:JohnHawkinson|talk]]) 05:00, 27 July 2023 (UTC)

:Oh, wait. I was reading the coordinates like it was a cartesian plane, like on a Lambert or Mercator projection. But in retrospect this is some kind of elliptical projection ({{w|Robinson projection|Robinson}}? {{w|Winkel tripel projection|Winkel tripel}}?) such that the longitude lines are bowed out, further as you get away from the center (here 90°, I guess). That is...too hard for me to read with precision without doing too much math and drawing lines (so I guess I'm lazy), so, probably it's just fine? I dunno. [[User:JohnHawkinson|JohnHawkinson]] ([[User talk:JohnHawkinson|talk]]) 05:09, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
:: This projection keeps the lines of latitude horizontal, allowing the lines of longitude to "bend", with only 90 degrees being vertical. 90 degrees, east/west, it doesn't really matter for this projection. [[User:Nutster|Nutster]] ([[User talk:Nutster|talk]]) 14:12, 27 July 2023 (UTC)

I just quickly put together an abs(longitude) "projection" image based on a real (public domain) map, to show what this would look like more realistically, with overlap. Are home-made images allowed? I cannot upload though ("You do not have permission to create new pages"). Is this because I'm a new user or are uploads prohibited for most users? [[User:Mtcv|Mtcv]] ([[User talk:Mtcv|talk]]) 07:41, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
:It's just your newness (but I'm not sure how un-new/whatever you need to be). But I've 'sent in' things, before, by using some other public image host (not actually being new, but never having had the account here so of course the site won't accept my IP source - for good reason) and allowing an established uploader to spot the link, grab it and submit it locally by proxy if they thought it worthwhile.
:I'm already half tempted to do an ABS(Latitude) for my own ennoyment. Maybe even combined with the above (might be too busy, though, as I mentally model how the Eurasiamerindiafricaustralian subercontinent wouldn't leave much room for recognisable land-mass coastline). Further arbitrary overlapping transforms could also be fun, and perhaps even 'wrong but rational-looking'. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.90.165|172.70.90.165]] 08:16, 27 July 2023 (UTC)

::I see, thanks for the info! Well here's a link: [https://i.ibb.co/TRTW1nq/abslongitude.png]. It's not that interesting, but to me it clarifies where North America has gone, all swallowed up by Asia. Better versions than this are certainly possible. I can add the image's info if someone uploads it. Absolute latitude sounds interesting too. [[User:Mtcv|Mtcv]] ([[User talk:Mtcv|talk]]) 08:44, 27 July 2023 (UTC)

All technical analysis aside, this map is really cool and would make a fantastic fantasy setting.

So... Lemuria was South America all along! [[User:Shirluban|Shirluban]] 12:20, 27 July 2023 (UTC)

== an ABS(Latitude) map ==

After looking at this map, I wanted to see, what an ABS(Latitude) map would look like and [https://imgur.com/LzOp15b this is what I quickly threw together].

Unsurprisingly it doesn't change the world as much, since most of the land mass is on the northern hemisphere. The former South America has now created the worlds largest inland lake in the form of the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico but the Panama Canal is still intact. Africa mostly folds up on itself and Australia is now the land bridge between China and Japan. However it was a fun and quick thing to do and I thought I should share it here.

2802: Fireflies

2023-07-16T18:06:40Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ Exoplanet?

{{comic
| number = 2802
| date = July 14, 2023
| title = Fireflies
| image = fireflies_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x573px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = I feel bad for Earth 2 and their shadowflies.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by THE INSECT VERSION OF DYLAN THOMAS - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

{{w|Fireflies}} are a variety of beetles that are able to emit flashes of light, a process known as {{w|bioluminescence}}. Megan explains that while this ability is not uncommon in ocean-dwelling species, it's pretty rare on land; presumably this is because sunlight doesn't penetrate very far under water, so there's evolutionary pressure to develop a process to generate one's own light. Land animals have much less need to generate their own light -- even at night there's light from the moon and stars, so nocturnal animals tend to have good eyesight or other enhanced sensory abilities (e.g. {{w|echolocation}}). It's thought that it originally served to ward off predators of the larvae, but adults coopted it as a mating signal. There are many varieties of {{w|List of bioluminescent fungus species|bioluminescent fungus species}}, and the ecological benefit of that effect is uncertain. Some ocean-dwelling species, such as {{w|anglerfish}}, use their bioluminescence as lures for prey.

While Megan and Cueball are walking towards a field with fireflies, she points all this out and suggests that it was just a fluke that fireflies developed this ability. When they see the firefly display, the two of them agree that we're lucky to be on a planet where this happened.

The title text suggests that there's an alternate Earth that has "shadowflies", which are presumably like fireflies but cast shadows instead of light, and that this isn't as nice for the people there. Since everything that's opaque casts a shadow{{citation needed}}, this isn't really much of an ability. Possibly Randall's shadowflies have some sort of {{w|vantablack}}-like coating, or somehow create darkness near them beyond merely absorbing incident light (in violation of physics as we understand it). "Earth 2" is the name of an {{w|Earth-Two|alternate world in the DC Comics universe}}, but it's unclear if this is the specific world being referred to. A presumably different alternate earth has been [[1268: Alternate Universe|mentioned before]]. Earth 2 may also be a reference to an actual {{w|exoplanet}} which appears very similar to Earth.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[Cueball and Megan are seen in silhouette (drawn in white against a black background) throughout the strip. They are walking to the right.]
:Cueball: So where is this spot?
:Megan: It's just up ahead.

:[Cueball and Megan continue walking.]
:Megan: You know,
:Megan: fireflies didn't have to exist.

:[Closeup on Megan.]
:Megan: The ocean has lots of bioluminescence, but it's less common on land.
:Megan: Creatures that glow are pretty rare here.

:[Cueball and Megan continue walking. The light of one firefly is seen to their right.]
:Megan: So it's not some niche whose exploitation was inevitable.
:Megan: If insects hadn't stumbled on their fatty acid enzyme trick, Earth just wouldn't have fireflies.
:Megan: Ooh, look!
:Megan: They're starting!

:[A panel as wide as the first four combined. Cueball and Megan stand in the tall grass, at night, and many stars can be seen in the sky above them. Above and below them, to their left and right, the lights of dozens of fireflies can be seen.]
:Cueball: I'm glad we got a planet that has these.
:Megan: Yeah, it's a good one.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Biology]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Comics with inverted brightness]]

Talk:2778: Cuisine

2023-05-20T04:33:31Z

Nutster: Reply to a question.

I’m surprised it’s not Beret guy at the stove… [[Special:Contributions/108.162.245.186|108.162.245.186]] 03:33, 20 May 2023 (UTC)

Well, here "'''''very''''' high heat" is millions of degrees (any kind), yes? [[User:GcGYSF(asterisk)P(vertical line)e|GcGYSF(asterisk)P(vertical line)e]] ([[User talk:GcGYSF(asterisk)P(vertical line)e|talk]]) 04:13, 20 May 2023 (UTC)

Is the title text that stupid American thing where people consider themselves some nationality despite no cultural exposure because one of eight great-grandparents was?
[[Special:Contributions/162.158.2.77|162.158.2.77]] 04:26, 20 May 2023 (UTC)
: Taken to the extreme, to the time when galaxies were first starting to condense out of vast hydrogen clouds and form the first generation of stars and black holes. [[User:Nutster|Nutster]] ([[User talk:Nutster|talk]]) 04:33, 20 May 2023 (UTC)

2775: Siphon

2023-05-13T21:44:32Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ Remove unnecessary redundant word. Speeling fixes.

{{comic
| number = 2775
| date = May 12, 2023
| title = Siphon
| image = siphon_2x.png
| imagesize = 310x378px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = ADDITIONAL NOTES: Fixed a bug that caused some rocks to generate virtually infinite heat while just sitting there.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a SIPHONIC WINDS - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
Cueball and Megan have a demonstration of a {{w|siphon}}, by which the gravitational force on an upper reservoir of liquid and molecular cohesion move a liquid upward through a tube, traversing a higher peak to reach a lower exit. Randall has also mentioned siphons in [https://what-if.xkcd.com/143/ whatif 143] and in his book, "how to," section "how to make a pool."

Siphons are commonly used in modern society (e.g., most American residential toilets are flushed by siphon action).

Siphons are separate from a similarly counter-intuitive phenomenon of {{w|capillary action}}, where a liquid flows through narrow spaces (even upwards, entirely against gravity) in that a siphon need not be of such small diameter. Capillary action will also move liquid into an initially empty channel, whilst a siphon must be 'primed', by filling the tube, in order to draw liquid over a high point to ultimately always drop down into a lower container. Capillary action is caused by surface tension and attractive forces between the liquid and the walls of the channel; the liquid level will rise until the weight of the column of liquid matches the attractive forces. A siphon requires that the weight of the liquid column on the "higher" side of the channel peak not exceed atmospheric pressure, or else the liquid will split, leaving a {{w|Torricelli's_experiment|partial vacuum}}. Capillary action can lift liquid higher than the maximum height of the "higher" side of a siphon with the same liquid, if the attractive forces are strong enough. This is why, for example, water/sap can rise to the tops of tall trees via capillary action, far higher than a siphon could raise water/sap.

Apparently, even though Cueball and Megan have set up the experiment correctly, the water no longer demonstrates a siphon by flowing from the upper bucket to the lower. Cueball observes in surprise that "it's true," meaning that this is a very recent development, and Megan remarks that it was honestly weird in retrospect that scientists had ever tried to rationalize this admittedly counter-intuitive phenomenon in the first place.

The punchline of the comic is in the caption, which delivers a piece of physics news that the "2023 update to the universe" finally fixed this phenomenon, dubbed "the siphon bug". The joke here is that the entire complex and multifaceted system of {{w|physics}} in and of itself is treated as though it's simply the logic (or perhaps the sometimes unintentional result of various default [[1620: Christmas Settings|configuration options]] combined) to a video game, and that siphoning (rather than being an interesting physical phenomenon worth studying) was nothing more than a bug unintentionally created by the "devs" (whoever that may be). In reality, siphons still very much exist in our universe,{{citation needed}} though {{w|simulation hypothesis|the idea that we live in a computer simulation}} is also prevalent in {{w|the matrix|our modern pop culture}}.

The title text is a reference to [[2115: Plutonium]]. It expands on the joke surrounding the idea of an "Earth dev log" by referencing {{w|nuclear power}}, and how it's apparently another bug that some nuclear elements (notably {{w|uranium}} and {{w|plutonium}}, among others) can be and have been harnessed by humanity in order to continually generate energy (though in decreasingly useful amounts, making it not useful after some length of time, possibly that of several decades), all while the elements themselves are simply sitting there in the core of some {{w|nuclear reactor}}.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[There are two buckets: the one on the left is on a stool and is filled with water, the other on the right is on the ground and has a small amount of water. Cueball is standing on the left and holding a tube between the buckets. No water is flowing through the tube, which appears to have just emptied from both ends. Megan is standing on the right and watching the proceedings.]
:Cueball: Wow, it's true—the water doesn't flow up the tube anymore.
:Megan: Honestly, it's weird that it ever did.
:Megan: Why did we think that was normal?

:[Caption below the panel:]
:Physics news: The 2023 update to the universe finally fixed the "siphon" bug.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Physics]]

2774: Taxiing

2023-05-11T03:56:27Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ Marshallers do not stand on the runway. That is where the airplanes land and take off at high speed. They usually work on the ramp.

{{comic
| number = 2774
| date = May 10, 2023
| title = Taxiing
| image = taxiing_2x.png
| imagesize = 399x431px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = I don't understand why anyone would pay full price for a flatbed truck rental when you can buy 'DETOUR' signs online for like $10.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a STOLEN WATERBED TRUCK - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
[[File:A Polish airman marshals a U.S. Air Force C-130J Super Hercules aircraft March 13, 2014, at Lask Air Base, Poland 140313-F-BH566-088.jpg|thumb|400px| A marshaller marshalling, indicating the airplane should stop. Or possibly a {{w|Sith}}. (From Wikimedia Commons)]]
In this comic, [[Cueball]] is acquiring an airplane by directing it with marshalling wands onto a ramp that leads onto a trailer, so he can presumably drive away with it. Thus, he wonders why anyone would buy a plane, when those "glowing wand things" can be bought cheaply on the internet.

{{w|Aircraft marshalling|Marshallers}} stand or walk on aircraft pathways and use marshalling wands to direct planes around while they are taxiing. Ironically, the area that mashallers most often work is an area called "the ramp", where airplanes will typically park while trans-loading passengers and cargo. Cueball is using glowing wand things to hijack a plane and direct it into a trailer, where it will presumably be locked up and taken somewhere else with the plane claimed. The caption claims that paying "full price" for an airplane (buying one normally) is ridiculous when the wand things that allow you to direct planes to where you want them to go are about $30 online.

This may be illegal.{{citation needed}} However, empirical evidence is rather slim in this regard, and, as such, it is not entirely clear if this is correct. Any person who is willing should attempt to gather further empirical evidence to this end.

The title text mentions doing a similar thing, but with detour signs rather than glow wands and flatbed trucks rather than planes. It seems Cueball used this tactic to obtain the truck he is loading the airplane onto.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is waving two orange sticks in the air, one in each hand. They are glowing as indicated with small orange lines all around the orange part. The handle he holds them by is black. Cueball is pointing one stick to the left where, behind him, is a ramp that extends beyond the panel. The other stick is held up in front of his face and he looks up onto the front end of a large plane. Only a small part of the plane is visible, mainly the very tip with just a bit of the window into the cockpit shown. The underside of the tip is gray, the rest is white with the window in black.]
:Cueball: ...Keep going...
:Cueball: ...Slightly left...
:Cueball: ...Okay, good...you're lined up with the ramp...
:Cueball: ...Now pull forward slowly up onto the trailer...

:[Caption below the panel:]
:I don't understand why anyone would pay full price for an airplane when you can buy those glowing wand things online for like $30.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Aviation]]

2757: Towed Message

2023-04-02T07:26:48Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ A little clarification.

{{comic
| number = 2757
| date = March 31, 2023
| title = Towed Message
| image = towed_message_2x.png
| imagesize = 613x236px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = "Hi, what you do is fly over a designated zone and detach the--" "WE'RE SORRY, THE MOBILE CUSTOMER YOU ARE TRYING TO REACH IS OUT OF SERVICE"
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by an UNLANDABLE PLANE - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
In this comic, an {{w|Aerial_advertising#Banner_towing|aircraft is towing a banner}}. Notably, these aircraft do not take off or land with the banner in tow, but instead have a hook and release mechanism to [https://www.wgbh.org/news/local-news/2022/09/02/the-surprising-way-those-beach-plane-banners-get-airborne add and drop the banner in flight]. The banner ''could'' be interpreted as a recruitment ad by an aerial advertising company looking for additional pilots. But the humorous interpretation is that the banner is a distress signal – the pilot of the aircraft doesn't know how to land, and is hoping that someone will see the banner and give assistance. This makes the banner self-referential, because the presence of the banner (which makes landing difficult) is the very reason for displaying the banner. It is paradoxical, because printing and deploying the banner requires planning, and if the pilot had anticipated that they would need assistance to land with a banner, they could have simply chosen not to deploy a banner in the first place.

The title text features a caller who dials the phone number from the banner and starts to explain the correct method for landing (detach the banner over a designated empty location then land the plane regularly), but the call is disconnected halfway through. Presumably the number is that of the pilot's cellphone. The call could have disconnected because the aircraft moved out of range of the {{w|cell site}} the phone was connected to and the phone failed to automatically connect to an adjacent cell; or possibly the cell network detected the call on {{w|Cellular_network#Frequency_reuse|multiple sites}} due to the phone's {{w|Mobile_phones_on_aircraft#Technical_discussion|altitude}} and disconnected it from the network; or the phone was simply destroyed on impact when the plane crashed.

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

:[An airplane tows a banner. In the background, there are four small clouds and five birds]

:[Text on the banner:] Do '''''you''''' know how to land a plane that's towing a banner? Call '''555-0127''' now!

==Trivia==
* In a similar joke, a pilot used {{w|skywriting}} to write [https://laughingsquid.com/comedian-hires-pilot-to-skywrite-a-joke-over-los-angeles/ "How do I land?"] as a prank in 2013.
* Banner towing is generally safe for an experienced pilot, [https://www.aopa.org/news-and-media/all-news/2020/november/pilot/imperiled-pickup though not entirely without risk].
* The aircraft in the illustration is similar to a {{w|Piper J-3 Cub}}, which is popular for towing banners due to its low operating cost and good performance at low {{w|airspeed}}.
* Aircraft communication is usually done using {{w|radio}}. The {{w|aircraft emergency frequency}} at 121.5 MHz is reserved for aircraft emergencies including pilots in distress and needing assistance.
* Phone numbers beginning with "{{w|555 (telephone number)|555}}" are commonly used for fictional phone numbers in movies etc.
* The emphasis on the word ''you'' in the banner is reminiscent of ads such as the well-known {{w|Uncle_Sam|US Army recruitment poster}}.
* A similar concept was shown in [[1897: Self Driving]].

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Airplane banner]]
[[Category:Aviation]]

2754: Relative Terms

2023-03-26T06:07:47Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ Update cricket and giraffes.

{{comic
| number = 2754
| date = March 24, 2023
| title = Relative Terms
| image = relative_terms_2x.png
| imagesize = 425x442px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Small sewing machines are sewing machines that are smaller than a sewing machine. A sewing machine is larger than a small sewing machine, but quieter than a loud sewing machine.
}}

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

The terms "small" and "big" are used to refer to size; the terms "loud" and "soft" are used to refer to (audial) volume.

However, these terms are clearly{{fact}} relative.

The center of the chart is a sewing machine, and the comic is claiming that the scales of "loud and quiet" and "big and small" are measured in comparison to a standard size sewing machine. A standard sewing machine is roughly 60Db in volume and approximately 42” X 21”, although this is for industrial machines, and those in the home would be both smaller and quieter.

The title text is humorously tautological because it compares the standard against those things that are themselves defined against the standard.

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Small and quiet (upper left)
|-
! Item !! Description
|-
| Ant ||
|-
| Balloon ||
|-
| Book ||
|-
| Bun (rabbit or pastry) || "Bun" is an informal term for a rabbit and a loaf of bread, this comparison was made in [[1871: Bun Alert]]
|-
| Butterfly || This entry is found on the top left corner, corresponding to the extremes of quietness and smallness. Butterflies are very small and make little noise.
|-
| Hat ||
|-
| Mouse ||
|-
| Newt ||
|-
| Pin drop || The expression "hear a pin drop" is used to indicate that an area is exceptionally quiet; the idea is that the space is so silent that even something as insubstantial and tiny as a pin can be heard hitting the ground.
|-
| Snow globe ||
|}

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Small and loud (upper right)
|-
! Item !! Description
|-
| Baby ||
|-
| Blender ||
|-
| Cricket || Top right corner. This would refer to the insect, which is pretty small and can be quite loud; the sport of cricket or a cricket game would be much larger and potentially much louder.
|-
| Fire alarm ||
|-
| Firecracker ||
|-
| Flute ||
|-
| Harmonica ||
|-
| Popcorn ||
|-
| Songbird ||
|-
| Whistle || This could apply to either the device known as a whistle or to the act by humans; the former is used functionally in place of the latter. The loudest human whistle ever recorded was 8,372 HZ and roughly 110 DB, which is a C9 in the standard musical scale and is roughly as loud as a jackhammer.
|}

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Big and quiet (lower left)
|-
|-
! Item !! Description
|-
| Anaconda ||
|-
| Giraffe || Giraffes can be quite loud, but they usually speak using frequencies well below the range of human hearing. So, to a human, giraffes are quiet.
|-
| Northern lights ||
|-
| Shark ||
|-
| Statue ||
|-
| The Moon || Lower left corner; the Moon is very, very big{{fact}}, but it is also completely quiet because sound cannot travel through the vacuum of space.
|-
| Tree ||
|-
| Windmill ||
|}

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Big and loud (lower right)
|-
! Item !! Description
|-
| Airplane ||
|-
| Cannon ||
|-
| Riding mower ||
|-
| [[wikipedia:Calliope_(music)|Steam calliope]] || A large musical device which functions by sending steam (or more recently compressed air) through attached whistles.
|-
| Train ||
|-
| Tuba ||
|-
| Volcano || Lower right corner
|-
| Waterfall ||
|-
| Whale ||
|}

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

:[A chart, with "Quiet" to "Loud" on the X-axis, and "Small" to "Big" on the Y-axis. It is split into four quarters, with "Sewing machine" in the center.]

:[Upper left quadrant (Small & Quiet items):] Butterfly, Pin drop, Mouse, Ant, Bun (rabbit or pastry), Snow globe, Newt, Balloon, Book, Hat

:[Upper right quadrant (Small & Loud items):] Popcorn, Cricket, Songbird, Whistle, Baby, Harmonica, Flute, Fire alarm, Blender, Firecracker

:[Lower left quadrant (Big & Quiet items):] Shark, Tree, Anaconda, Giraffe, Statue, Windmill, Northern lights, The Moon

:[Lower right quadrant (Big & Loud items):] Tuba, Riding mower, Cannon, Airplane, Train, Waterfall, Steam calliope, Whale, Volcano

:[Caption below the panel:]
:''Big'', ''Small'', ''Loud'', and ''Quiet'' are relative terms. The thing they're relative to is a sewing machine.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Aviation]]

2753: Air Handler

2023-03-24T09:56:13Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ Rewrite paragraph

{{comic
| number = 2753
| date = March 22, 2023
| title = Air Handler
| image = air_handler_2x.png
| imagesize = 591x228px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = It maintains odor levels in a normal familiar range, so if you open the windows and the air gets too fresh, it filters it through some dirty laundry samples to compensate.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by an UNUSUAL AMOUNT OF BEES - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

[[Black Hat]] is demonstrating some form of air-conditioning unit that covers a wide-variety of air qualities, as opposed to a heater that just warms air, a filter that just removes dust or a dehumidifier with the main purpose of removing moisture from the air.

In many devices that manage certain atmospheric conditions in a building using one device, an operational range is usually defined, and not one number. For example, when using a {{w|heat pump}}, if the interior temperature drops below a preset lower limit, then the heating function would be activated. If the interior temperature rises above another preset upper limit, the cooling function would be activated. This kind of ranged function is common with humidifier/dehumidifier units as well, to create a comfortable condition not too dry nor damp for comfort. By specifying upper and lower limits for the operation of the device in question, minor variations of the controlled value will not cause the device to be rapidly turning on and off, even working against itself, improving efficiency and reducing unnecessary wear and tear on the device and the building contents.

Devices that manage temperature and humidity are often installed in buildings to improve occupant comfort. Beyond that, the listed qualities become increasingly problematic and even dangerous.

Changing the pressure of the air could lead to <s>unintended</s> effects like large winds blowing through any cracks in the house.

The air handler also attempts to force the parameters of dust, smoke, odors, and number of bees into an "ideal" range. However, as opposed to being in a certain range, most homeowners prefer that they be minimized.{{fact}}

It is not particularly usual to directly monitor the number of bees in an air-stream (usually, insect-screens are the main way to filter out any pesky creatures that might find themselves likely to be caught up in that way), and one might imagine that the upper limit ''should'' be zero, for use indoors in standard living/working spaces, but it might be technically feasible to accurately count bees (with or without distinguishing from wasps and other flying insects) and be able to allow ''some''. But, unlike temperature or humidity, it would be rare (outside of a location used for agriculture) to have a non-zero ''minimum'' desirable quantity of bees. Even more so to then be directly equipped to upwardly correct the current value. For any minimum value that is not zero, this machine would be equipped to deal with it by, presumably, releasing bees (it seems to have at least one trapped inside it ready to be released, judging by the buzzing sound), or by generating smoke, dust and odors – something one would typically not miss if lacking.

As the title text elaborates, the machine analyses and adjusts the 'freshness' of the air. A smart system in charge of odor-control (by spraying smell-suppressing chemicals and/or more desirable and dominant scents) could be made less wasteful by only trying to 'freshen' the air when it detects enough necessity. But, of course, this machine also has an opposing limit. And, when the air is considered ''too'' fresh, it has a way of ''adding'' staleness/stinkiness, to meet expectations.

==Transcript==
:[Black Hat is standing to the right of an "air handler", talking to Cueball and Megan on the left side, probably presenting the sales pitch for the air handler in between them.]
:Black Hat: Our device monitors your home's air and keeps every variable between a lower and upper limit.

:[Zoom in on Black Hat]
:Black Hat: Temperature, humidity, pressure, dust, smoke, odors, number of bees...

:[Zoom out similar to Frame #1]
:Megan: Wait.
:Megan: What's the '''''lower''''' limit for "number of bees"?
:Black Hat: A normal amount.
:Air Handler: Bzzzzzz

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Bees]]

2745: Obituary Editor

2023-03-06T06:39:23Z

Nutster: /* Explanation */ Grammar clean-up.

{{comic
| number = 2745
| date = March 3, 2023
| title = Obituary Editor
| image = obituary_editor_2x.png
| imagesize = 383x232px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = As the editor has reportedly defeated Death in a series of games of skill, no further obituaries are expected.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by an AUTO-POST SYSTEM - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
An {{w|obituary}} is an article in a newspaper about person who has recently passed away, celebrating their life. (It is distinct from a '''death notice,''' which is a paragraph, often short, usually paid, describing a [local?] person who has recently passed away. They usually offer a few words of praise and a list of surviving relatives, as well as a scheduled time for memorial services.)

Apparently, the editor of this newspaper's obituary section has just died. However, instead of somebody writing their obituary after the fact, as is conventionally done, the editor has seemingly taken matters into their own hands and written their own obituary. They (somewhat vainly) describe themselves as cool, attractive, and universally beloved, a dubious claim at best. The following sentence reveals that the editor had pre-arranged the scheduled release of this obituary, after their death, probably {{w|Dead man's switch|entirely automatically}}. Obituaries are often pre-written for famous people, ahead of the actual need arising, as this (not-so-famous) person has done for themself. Though this is generally to avoid needing to rush the writing of every biography, including carefully ensuring it is accurately written and sufficiently complete, leaving only minor circumstantial updates and details to be inserted and checked as and when events lead up to its actual publication.

Rather than the names of some close family (usually parents, a spouse, and children), the editor is allegedly survived by 8 billion people, or the current population of the entire Earth, who further are all heartbroken by the loss. All public spaces will now be reserved for a memorial service of the editor every single day (or, at least, the editor hopes they will be). Given that the entire population of earth is unlikely to care about one editor at a local newspaper,{{citation needed}} they are most likely exaggerating the effect which their death will have.

The title text references a common trope in culture, in which a person who has just died decides to challenge Death, or the {{w|Grim Reaper}}, to a game of skill ({{tvtropes|ChessWithDeath|usually chess}}). Apparently, it is (possibly prematurely) claimed by the editor that they have challenged death to a series of games of skill (probably most or all variations of the trope, including chess), and defeated Death in all of them. Rather than gaining themselves a "second chance at life," however, as is usually the reward promised by Death for the dead person's victory, the editor's victory over Death has been so absolute that Death itself has been nullified for all of humanity. Hence no more obituaries will ever be required, as every human currently alive (and presumably future ones) will now live forever. Of course, if this did actually occur, then the entire population of earth would not be unlikely to care about the editor, because even if the editor's work at the newspaper wasn't significant to them, the editor's role in preventing their deaths would be. Randall has referenced this trope in [[393: Ultimate Game]], as a tribute to Gary Gygax, the inventor of ''Dungeons and Dragons''.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[Text on the top-left corner of a gray newspaper page:]

:Obituaries
:<hr width="50" style="background-color:black" align="left">
:The cool, attractive, universally beloved
:editor of the obituary section has died,
:hopefully of natural causes after a long
:life. They take with them the password to the
:heretofore unrevealed auto-post system.

:They are survived by 8 billion heartbroken
:people. Memorial services will be held
:daily in all public spaces from now on.
:<hr width="50" style="background-color:black" align="left">

{{comic discussion}}

2737: Weather Station

2023-02-14T06:04:37Z

Nutster: Add caption.

{{comic
| number = 2737
| date = February 13, 2023
| title = Weather Station
| image = weather_station_2x.png
| imagesize = 359x401px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = 'Pour one out for precipitation data integrity,' I say, solemnly upending the glass into the rain gauge.
}}

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

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
Caption: Whenever I see one of those little weather stations, I have to fight the urge to climb up and spin the anemometer real fast to make a computer somewhere think it's in a tornado.
{{comic discussion}}
[[Category: Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category: Weather]]
[[Category: Tornadoes]]

Talk:2728: Lane Change Highway

2023-01-24T14:44:06Z

Nutster: Descibing passing lanes? Spelling fixed.

There's a section of the M25 motorway around London which does this... Never did like it. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.85.201|172.70.85.201]] 07:14, 24 January 2023 (UTC)
:I hope you are kidding ;-) Although there are some funny histories about that road. For instance Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett. (Now a series - see [https://youtu.be/M0S3a32RzEo?t=112 Crowley Creates (and Destroys) The M25 - Good Omens]. :-) --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 08:25, 24 January 2023 (UTC)

:A lot of highways in France do something similar. At every ascend, the ascending traffic gets its own new lane, presumably to keep ascending cars from doing merging manoeuvres. To keep the same number of lanes, the leftmost lane merges into the adjacent lane before the ascend. So if you simply stay on your lane, you kind of drift to the left with every ascend. I am not sure if this really helps to cut accidents, but I think it is a clever solution at least for some accident-prone ascends. [[Special:Contributions/172.71.160.36|172.71.160.36]] 08:32, 24 January 2023 (UTC)
:: That sounds like using passing lanes, so that slower traffic, with more difficulty going up the hill, like transport trucks, will use the outside lane and faster cars will be on the inner lane, to not be significantly impeded by the slower traffic. [[User:Nutster|Nutster]] ([[User talk:Nutster|talk]]) 14:44, 24 January 2023 (UTC)
Saved the image to the wayback machine here https://web.archive.org/web/20230124073752/https://xkcd.com/ [[User:Mushrooms|Mushrooms]] ([[User talk:Mushrooms|talk]]) 07:41, 24 January 2023 (UTC)
:Doesn't that happen automatically? I like they are there, but do webcrawlers not manage that on a daily basis? --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 08:17, 24 January 2023 (UTC)
::Huh, didn't know that. Better safe than sorry! [[User:Mushrooms|Mushrooms]] ([[User talk:Mushrooms|talk]]) 08:33, 24 January 2023 (UTC)
It's really a very wide single-lane road. The left lanes originate from the edge of the road so no cars feed into them, and on the right side once you merge there is no where to go except to merge into the next right-hand side, so the net effect is that the road is 4 lanes wide, but is functioning as a single-lane road. That assumes everyone is entering from the right side. But I guess they could be entering from the left but still in a very short time all cars are on the right. [[User:Rtanenbaum|Rtanenbaum]] ([[User talk:Rtanenbaum|talk]]) 12:24, 24 January 2023 (UTC)

This is very similar to major roundabouts, in the UK at least, that have a spiral outwards. If entering a four-way junction (and there can be more feed-offs than that) , you may be invited to assume one of three entry lanes (as soon as the feed-in is wide enough to accommodate them) for left (the side of the road upon which we drive), forward or right that lead onto one of three lanes going clockwise round the island.
 (Sometimes the left-lane becomes marking- or even curb-separated from the island lanes, effectively skirting the island so there's no waiting for traffic on the island to pass. It merges with the feed-out lane, or becomes a two-lane carriageway direction, some useful distance from the junction.)
 On safely entering the junction (by giving way to anything already on it ''or'' being filtered by traffic signals), the semi-perpendicular lane markings (oblique crosses at the lane-edge intersections) guide you to the outer/inner or any median encircling lane which, as each outlet is passed, shifts over by one with a new 'inner' lane for that latest input road's "(almost) all the way round" traffic. (For some junctions, 180 degree change of travel is also a necessity, e.g. due to no cross-traffic (right-hand turning) possible on the lead up to the island, but a sub-junction comes off it in that direction anyway.)
 It tends to work best on the rounder roundabouts with periodic entry/exit points, or on the truly huge ones that act like a town-centre one-way inner ring-road, only without the town. When there's a large complex with straights and curves, the guiding lines (especially across the 'crosses' might not be so obvious (if they are for the first car on the road, the one immediately behind might not have sufficient sight of the outward jinks in the indicated path and lose track of which path they should be on (especially if it is their first use of the junction) and the cross-overs can get worn and/or dirtied to make it less obvious), so inevitably there's lane-drift (and ''more'' wear/obscuration of the lane-guides).
 But, in general, with only accidental merging needed ("no, not this exit, it's the next one... there's nothing behind, so quickly...") and continuous lane-generation (to which the rarer all-the-way-round traffic can shift over into), I think there's a parallel. But this not being the inspiration or reference. [[Special:Contributions/172.71.178.65|172.71.178.65]] 13:12, 24 January 2023 (UTC)

I feel like this comic was posted later in the day than usual. It would be interesting to see a graph of what time of day comics were posted in (ignoring the day of posting, just in hours since the previous midnight EST) [[Special:Contributions/172.69.68.66|172.69.68.66]] 14:41, 24 January 2023 (UTC)Bumpf

1679: Substitutions 3

2023-01-08T03:18:34Z

Nutster: /* Table of Substitutions */ Silver bullet could be ammunition.

{{comic
| number = 1679
| date = May 11, 2016
| title = Substitutions 3
| image = substitutions_3.png
| titletext = BREAKING: Channing Tatum and his friends explore haunted city
}}

==Explanation==
This is the third comic in the [[:Category:Substitution series|Substitution series]] where [[Randall]] has suggested substitutions that will make reading the news more fun. This time it will be even '''more''' fun! But there have been several [[:Category:Substitutions|comics using substitutions]] both before and after these ones.

The series as of 2022:
*[[1288: Substitutions]]
*[[1625: Substitutions 2]]
*[[1679: Substitutions 3]]

The title text in original form would be "Scientists explore ancient city", which most would consider a fairly bland headline. Two days before this comic came out, there was [http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/forgotten-mayan-city-discovered-in-central-america-by-15-year-old-a7021291.html news] that a potential ancient Mayan city had been found by a 15 year old boy through satellite imagery, which may be what Randall was referencing. The Mayan city has now been proven nonexistent. Imagining Channing Tatum and his "friends", and pretending that the city is haunted, provides a much more dramatic setting mirroring many episodes (and later films) of ''Scooby Doo'' featuring a gang of friends (Mysteries, Inc.).

===Table of Substitutions===
{| class="wikitable" border="1" cellpadding="4" style="border-collapse: collapse;"
|-
! Original word/phrase !! Meaning !! Substitution !! New meaning
|-
| Gaffe || A social mistake, faux pas || Magic spell || A form of sorcery
|-
| Ancient || Very old || Haunted || Occupied by ghosts, spirits, etc., spooky
|-
| Star-studded || Featuring a lot of popular celebrities || Blood-soaked || Full of blood, or a place where a lot of violent deaths occurred
|-
| Remains to be seen || Unknown as of yet, speculative || Will never be known || Can never be determined, final statement indicating we've given up trying to understand, etc.
|-
| Silver bullet || Perfect solution or ammunition made of that metal || Way to kill werewolves || In {{w|werewolf}} folklore, a {{w|silver bullet}} was usually the only way to actually kill a werewolf. The phrase "silver bullet" is usually used to mean something like "perfect solution" — this substitution suggests the more literal meaning of the phrase.
|-
| Subway system || A network of underground tunnels for commuter trains || Tunnels I found || A more personal and colloquial way to refer to underground tunnels, as though they had just been discovered for the first time.
|-
| Surprising || Unexpected || Surprising (but not to me) || The speaker/writer claims that everyone else is surprised by something, but they had anticipated it all along.
|-
| War of words || Public arguments, smear campaigns, etc. || Interplanetary war || A major conflict involving the civilizations of multiple planets (as seen in e.g. ''War of the Worlds''). ({{w|Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy|"Well, that escalated quickly."}})
|-
| Tension || Anxiety, conflict between people or groups || Sexual tension || Situation in which two or more people attempt to avoid acknowledging being sexually attracted to each other.
|-
| Cautiously optimistic || A guarded statement of optimism about a situation || Delusional || Firmly believing something in spite of clear evidence to the contrary
|-
| {{w|Doctor Who}} || Popular sci-fi TV series about time travel || {{w|The Big Bang Theory}} || A different TV comedy series about scientifically-gifted and socially awkward friends.
|-
| Win votes || To make a politician more popular and more likely to win an election || Find {{w|Pokémon}} || To collect virtual creatures in a popular video game series
|-
| Behind the headlines || Usually, to go into greater depth on a news story || Beyond the grave || To communicate with (or experience) life after death
|-
| Email / {{w|Facebook}} post / {{w|Twitter|Tweet}} || All are forms of electronic communication. The last two are forms of social networking. || Poem || An artistic form of writing that usually involves rhyming and meter.
|-
| Facebook CEO || At time of writing, {{w|Mark Zuckerberg}} || This guy || Any generic person. Sometimes used in a derogatory fashion, or to refer to one's self.
|-
| Latest || The most recent in a series || Final || The last entry in a series (as in, there won't be any more).
|-
| Disrupt || Interrupt, temporarily hinder || Destroy || Make completely inoperable, remove all trace of, etc.
|-
| Meeting || A gathering of people to discuss a topic, as in business || Ménage à trois || One or more sex acts performed among three people.
|-
| Scientists || A group of people considered authorities in various scientific realms of study || {{w|Channing Tatum}} and his friends || A famous actor and a group of people closely associated with him. The name was likely chosen at random.
|-
| You won't believe || A catchphrase used in "click-bait" headlines to attract attention and traffic || I'm really sad about || A different catchphrase expressing disappointment in the topic
|}

===Real life examples===
*Remains to be seen ➜ Will never be known
**[http://english.cri.cn/12394/2016/04/30/4203s926079.htm Japan's Sincerity in Improving Bilateral Ties Will Never Be Known]
*Cautiously optimistic ➜ Delusional
**[http://jewishvoiceny.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=14455:london-jews-cautiously-optimistic-about-first-ever-muslim-mayor&catid=106:international&Itemid=289 London Jews Delusional About First-Ever Muslim Mayor]
*Silver Bullet ➜ Way to Kill Werewolves
**[http://moneymorning.com/2016/05/10/why-no-silver-bullet-will-ever-kill-crude-oil/ Why no Way to Kill Werewolves will Kill Crude Oil]
* Tension ➜ Sexual Tension; Meeting ➜ Ménage à Trois
**[http://townhall.com/tipsheet/cortneyobrien/2016/05/09/2016-race-roundup-tension-between-trumpryan-ahead-of-thursday-meeting-n2160407 Sexual Tension Between Trump-Ryan Ahead of Thursday Ménage à Trois]
*Gaffe ➜ Magic Spell
**[http://www.theguardian.com/politics/blog/2016/may/11/david-cameron-corruption-remark-gaffe Was David Cameron's corruption remark really a magic spell?]
*Ancient ➜ Haunted
**[http://gizmodo.com/teen-discovers-lost-maya-city-using-ancient-star-maps-1775735999 Teen Discovers Lost Maya City Using Haunted Star Maps]
*Star-Studded ➜ Blood-Soaked
**[http://ewn.co.za/2016/05/11/Woody-Allen-tops-bill-at-star-studded-Cannes-festival Woody Allen tops bill at blood-soaked Cannes Festival]
*Subway system ➜ Tunnels I found
**[http://pix11.com/2016/05/09/dhs-releasing-harmless-gas-in-nyc-subway-system-to-test-bioterror-airflow/ DHS releasing harmless gas in NYC tunnels I found to prepare for possible attack]
*Surprising ➜ Surprising (but not to me)
**[http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2016/05/11/476198119/a-surprising-japanese-presence-in-central-ohio A Surprising (But Not to Me) Japanese Presence In Central Ohio]
*War of Words ➜ Interplanetary War
**[http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Coimbatore/road-caves-in-leading-to-war-of-words-between-aiadmk-and-dmk/article8577830.ece Road caves in leading to interplanetary war between AIADMK and DMK]
*Tension ➜ Sexual Tension
**[http://allafrica.com/stories/201605111244.html Uganda: Use Swearing-in to Ease Sexual Tension]
*Doctor Who ➜ The Big Bang Theory
**[http://www.themarysue.com/doctor-who-trans-identity/ On The Big Bang Theory and My Struggle With My Trans Identity]
*Win votes ➜ Find Pokémon
**[http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/14479510.Jeremy_Corbyn_must_urgently_develop_strategy_to_win_votes__warns_failed_leadership_candidate_Yvette_Cooper/ Labour's Jeremy Corbyn must urgently develop strategy to find Pokémon, warns failed leadership candidate Yvette Cooper]
*Behind the headlines ➜ Beyond the grave
**[http://www.theyeshivaworld.com/news/headlines-breaking-stories/411443/behind-the-headlines-the-erev-pesach-story-we-all-should-be-talking-about.html Beyond the Grave: The Erev Pesach Story We All Should Be Talking About]
*Email / Facebook Post / Tweet ➜ Poem
**[http://www.cbsnews.com/news/wtae-anchor-and-reporter-wendy-bell-apologizes-for-facebook-post-that-could-be-viewed-as-racist/ TV anchor admits poem about fatal shooting "could be viewed as racist"]
*Facebook CEO ➜ This guy
**[http://hotair.com/archives/2016/05/10/senator-thune-demands-answers-from-facebook-about-news-bias/ Senator Thune demands answers from this guy about news bias]
*Latest ➜ Final
**[http://www.engadget.com/2016/05/11/garmin-forerunner-735xt-running-watch/ Garmin's final running watch tracks your suffering]
*Disrupt ➜ Destroy
**[https://news.fastcompany.com/amazon-thinks-it-can-disrupt-youtube-4006719 Amazon thinks it can destroy YouTube]
*Scientists ➜ Channing Tatum and his friends
**[http://www.futurity.org/memory-acetylcholine-ptsd-1159862-2/ Channing Tatum and his friends test a way to erase scary memories]
*You won't believe ➜ I'm really sad about
**[http://www.komando.com/happening-now/357958/iphone-7-rumor-you-wont-believe-what-it-looks-like iPhone 7 rumor: I'm really sad about what it looks like]

==Transcript==
:[Caption above the panel:]
:Even More
:<big>'''Substitutions'''</big>
:That make reading the news more fun

:[A table of words/sentences on the left that change in to those on the left. Between each set of words there is an arrow pointing from right.]
:{|
|-
| style="text-align:right;" | Gaffe
| ➜
| Magic spell
|-
| style="text-align:right;" | Ancient
| ➜
| Haunted
|-
| style="text-align:right;" | Star-Studded
| ➜
| Blood-soaked
|-
| style="text-align:right;" | Remains to be seen
| ➜
| Will never be known
|-
| style="text-align:right;" | Silver bullet
| ➜
| Way to kill werewolves
|-
| style="text-align:right;" | Subway system
| ➜
| Tunnels I found
|-
| style="text-align:right;" | Surprising
| ➜
| Surprising (but not to me)
|-
| style="text-align:right;" | War of words
| ➜
| Interplanetary war
|-
| style="text-align:right;" | Tension
| ➜
| Sexual tension
|-
| style="text-align:right;" | Cautiously optimistic
| ➜
| Delusional
|-
| style="text-align:right;" | Doctor Who
| ➜
| The Big Bang Theory
|-
| style="text-align:right;" | Win votes
| ➜
| Find Pokémon
|-
| style="text-align:right;" | Behind the headlines
| ➜
| Beyond the grave
|-
| style="text-align:right;" | Email \
|-
| style="text-align:right;" | Facebook Post
| ➜
| Poem
|-
| style="text-align:right;" | Tweet /
|-
| style="text-align:right;" | Facebook CEO
| ➜
| This guy
|-
| style="text-align:right;" | Latest
| ➜
| Final
|-
| style="text-align:right;" | Disrupt
| ➜
| Destroy
|-
| style="text-align:right;" | Meeting
| ➜
| Ménage à trois
|-
| style="text-align:right;" | Scientists
| ➜
| Channing Tatum and his friends
|-
| style="text-align:right;" | You won't believe
| ➜
| I'm really sad about
|}

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Substitution series]]
[[Category:Comics sharing name|Substitutions]]
[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]] 
[[Category:Language]]
[[Category:Science]]
[[Category:Politics]]
[[Category:Pokémon]]
[[Category:Doctor Who]]