explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

2520: Symbols

2021-09-24T20:19:13Z

Quackslikeaduck: /* Transcript */ fix typo

{{comic
| number = 2520
| date = September 24, 2021
| title = Symbols
| image = symbols.png
| titletext = "röntgen" and "rem" are 20th-century physics terms that mean "no trespassing."
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by an internet argument - 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.}}

;d/dx
:an undergrad is working very hard
;∂/∂x
:a grad student is working very hard
;ħ
:oh wow, this is apparently a quantum thing
;Re
:someone needs to do a lot of tedious numerical work; hopefully it's not you
;(Ta4 - Tb4)
:you are at risk of skin burns
;NA
:you are probably about to make an incredibly dangerous arithmetic error
;µm
:careful, that equipment is expensive
;mK
:careful, that equipment is very expensive
;nm
:don't shine that in your eye
;eV
:definitely don't shine that in your eye
;mSv
:you are about to get into an internet argument
;mg/kg
:go wash your hands
;µg/kg
:go get in the chemical shower
;π or τ
:whatever answer you get will be wrong by a factor of exactly two

{{comic discussion}}

2520: Symbols

2021-09-24T20:18:49Z

Quackslikeaduck: /* Transcript */ fix typo

2520: Symbols

2021-09-24T20:15:16Z

Quackslikeaduck: /* Transcript */ add line

{{comic
| number = 2520
| date = September 24, 2021
| title = Symbols
| image = symbols.png
| titletext = "röntgen" and "rem" are 20th-century physics terms that mean "no trespassing."
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by an internet argument - 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.}}

;d/dx
:an undergrad is working very hard
;∂/∂x
:a grad student is working very hard
;ħ
:oh wow, this is apparently a quantum thing
;Re
:someone needs to do a lot of tedious numerical work; hopefully it's not you
;(Ta4 - Tb4)
:you are at risk of skin burns
;NA
:you're probably about to make an incredibly dangerous arithmetic error
;μm
:careful, that equipment is expensive
{{comic discussion}}

1928: Seven Years

2017-12-26T22:27:41Z

Quackslikeaduck: /* Explanation */ grammatical corrections

{{comic
| number = 1928
| date = December 13, 2017
| title = Seven Years
| image = seven_years.png
| titletext = [hair in face] "SEVVVENNN YEEEARRRSSS"
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|May require explaining the activities shown, as in the explanation for [[1141: Two Years]].}}
[[Randall]]'s wife was diagnosed with cancer in late 2010, a matter he has discussed in the comic [[:Category:Cancer|multiple times before]]. Here, motivated by the seven-year period between the American solar eclipses of {{w|Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017|2017}} and {{w|Solar eclipse of April 8, 2024|2024}}, we see them reminiscing the seven years prior to the first eclipse, leaving an open question to what the next seven years will bring.

This comic is a continuation of [[1141: Two Years]], which is shown as the first eight panels, slightly grayed out.

It was released as a response to another cancer diagnosis, this is explained in the [[Design_of_xkcd.com#Header_text|Header text]], which, for [[Design of xkcd.com#Unique header text|this comic only]], has replaced the standard ''xkcd updates every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.'' The header for this comic, with the active link included, is:
Becky Beaton, sister of fellow cartoonist Kate Beaton, has also been diagnosed with cancer. You can support her treatment [https://www.youcaring.com/beckybeaton-1008390 here].
{{w|Kate Beaton}} is the creator of the web comic [http://www.harkavagrant.com/ Hark! A Vagrant]. Although this comic is not one on Randall's list of [[Design_of_xkcd.com#Comics_I_enjoy|Comics I enjoy]], he is clearly much influenced by another cancer diagnosis among someone in his own creative field.

[[Image:seven years key.png|right]]

Explanations of the individual panels:

*Panels 1–8: See [[1141: Two Years]], where there are also three more panels, not included here, with the punch line for that comic.
*Panel 9: Randall (drawn as [[Cueball]]) and Randall's wife (with her hair noticeably longer than it was at the end of [[1141: Two Years]], so she looks like [[Megan]]), are walking through a forest with very tall trees (maybe {{w|Sequoiadendron giganteum|giant redwood}}).
*Panel 10: Randall's wife is sitting down, not in the forest anymore. She is concerned because she has pain in her toe and worries that this is an early sign of her cancer spreading again. Randall points out the simpler explanation- that she stubbed her toe the previous day, and the pain is likely a result of that. This panel shows the paranoia that comes from cancer remission, as earlier explained in [[931: Lanes]].
*Panel 11: Randall and his wife are going spelunking (aka {{w|caving}}). Their guide, [[Hairy]], is gesturing deeper into the cave while Randall and his wife are climbing down.
*Panel 12: Randall's wife stands on a rock above an alligator in a swamp, photographing the alligator. Randall, on a balcony behind safety railings, observes that medical predictions about the odds of someone surviving cancer generally assume that the cancer patient doesn't risk something ''else'' killing them first. In this case her extreme hobbies (not related to [[:Category:My Hobby|Randall's hobbies]]).
*Panel 13: Randall's wife sits on an examination bed, listening to a doctor [[Ponytail]] holding a clipboard. The doctor talks about an issue which is "probably nothing" but ''might'' be the cancer -- again showing the paranoia that comes with cancer. Ponytail tells her not to worry about until they have the result of a full scan she will order for her. (This could be a full body {{w|Positron emission tomography|PET scan}} to ensure there are no active {{w|lymph node|lymph nodes}}. If there are this could be caused be {{w|metastasis}} of the cancer to the {{w|lymphatic system}}, which would often be impossible to cure. In the first comic we see that it is very difficult to wait for the reply of such a scan.
*Panel 14: Randall and his wife stand above a deep pond full of fish and other objects. Randall's wife is piloting a wired underwater camera with lights. Randall shared pictures of his [https://blog.xkcd.com/2010/11/05/submarines/ underwater ROV] before. If this panel can be taken as following directly after the previous, it could be concluded that after some years they have learned to go do something funny rather than sit and worry for a result that they cannot change and do not know when will arrive. That would be a positive take on the sequence.
*Panel 15: Randall and his wife are standing next to each other. Randall's wife has shoulder-length hair covering most of her face, and observes that, despite the chemotherapy robbing her of most of her hair six years ago, it is now growing enough to obscure her face. "The little girl from ''The Ring''" refers to {{w|Sadako Yamamura}}, the antagonist of the {{w|Ring (novel series)|''Ring'' series}} by {{w|Koji Suzuki}}, and popularized in a {{w|The Ring (2002 film)|2002 movie}}. See the title text,
*Panel 16: A line of six people, Ponytail between two other [[:Category:Multiple Cueballs|Cueball-like]] characters as well as Randall and his wife, with [[Megan]] to the right, stand and watch the corona of the Sun during the totality of the {{w|Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017|total solar eclipse of 2017}}. This has already been mentioned in [[:Category:Total Solar Eclipse 2017|several comics]] earlier in 2017, where this {{w|solar eclipse}} passed over the entire continental USA.
*Panel 17: The sky has been brightened, and the eclipse is over. As the eclipse is cool to see in person (as Randall made clear in [[1880: Eclipse Review]]), the onlookers are left with little more than exclamations of amazement, one of which comes from Randall's wife, which 7 years ago had not expected, or even thought that she would be here to watch it (or a bit earlier, had doubted that she would be!)
*Panel 18: Randall and his wife are walking together and holding hands. When his wife inquires about the next total eclipse, Randall replies that the next one is in seven years (2024), and asks whether they should go to see it.
*Panel 19: Still walking, Randall and his wife think together about a timeline. Seven years have passed since 2010, represented with a solid line from the past to 2017; seven years in the future will be 2024, represented with a dotted line into the future and surrounded by three question marks. This is reflective of Panel 6, where "next year" is not guaranteed to be a thing.
*Panel 20: The pair keeps walking, with his wife optimistically agreeing to this stating that she will do her best to accomplish this, and Randall states that they have a date! (His way of claiming her to still be there in seven years!)

The title text is a continuation to panel 15 concerning the horror movie ''The Ring''. Specifically, watching the videotape in ''The Ring'' is supposed to kill a person in seven days, but the title text instead says "seven years".

With all these thoughts in mind, there is no wonder that he wishes to participate in helping a colleague's cancer-stricken sister with the [[Design of xkcd.com#Unique header text|unique header text]] above this comic, as mentioned above.

==Transcript==

:[The first eight panels, used earlier in the comic 1141: Two Years, are in gray color.]

:[Randall and Randall's fiancée sit on a bed, Randall's fiancée is talking on the phone. The person she is talking to, a doctor holding a clipboard, is shown inset.]
:Randall's fiancée: Oh god.

:[Randall and Randall's fiancée sit together while Randall's fiancée, now bald, is receiving chemotherapy. They are both on their laptops.]
:IV pump: ... Beeep ... Beeep ... Beeep ...

:[Randall and Randall's fiancée (who is wearing a knit cap) are paddling a kayak against a scenic mountain backdrop.]

:[Randall and Randall's fiancée sit at a table, staring at a cell phone. There is a clock on the wall. Her head is stubbly.]
:Randall's fiancée: How long can it take to read a scan!?

:[Randall and Randall's fiancée are back at the hospital again, Randall's fiancée receiving chemo. They are playing Scrabble.]
:Randall: "Zarg" isn't a word.
:Randall's fiancée: But ''caaaancer.''
:Randall: ...Ok, fine.

:[Randall and Randall's fiancée (wearing a knit cap) are listening to a Cueball-like friend. A large thought bubble is above their heads and it obscures the friends talk. The text below, split in three is the only part there can be no doubt about:]
:Friend: So next year you should come visit us up in the mounta
::a
::and
:Randall and Randall's fiancée (thinking): '''"Next year"'''

:[Randall and Randall's fiancée are getting married, with a heart above their heads. Randall's wife's hair is growing back.]

:[Randall and Randall's wife (wearing a knit cap) stand on a beach, watching a whale jump out of water. This is the last gray panel, with an additional label in normal black color.]
:''Fwoosh''
:Label: Two years

:[Randall and Randall's wife (with her hair noticably longer) are walking through a forest.]

:[Randall's wife is sitting down, not in the forest anymore.]
:Randall's wife: My toe hurts and I found a report of a case in which toe pain was an early sign of cancer spreading.
:Randall: Wait—didn’t you stub your toe yesterday?
:Randall's wife: Yes, but what if this is unrelated?

:[Randall and his wife are going spelunking. The guide is gesturing deeper into the cave while Randall and his wife are climbing down.]

:[Randall's wife stands on a rock above an alligator in a swamp, photographing the alligator. Randall is on a balcony behind safety railings.]
:Randall: When they estimated your survival odds, I think they made some optimistic assumptions about your hobbies.

:[Randall's wife sits on an examination bed, listening to a doctor holding a clipboard.]
:Doctor: This is probably nothing.
:Doctor: But given your history, we should do a full scan.
:Doctor: We'll call with the results in a few days. Try not to worry about it until then!

:[Randall and his wife stand above a deep pond full of fish and other objects. Randall's wife is piloting a wired underwater camera with lights.]

:[Randall and his wife are standing next to each other. Randall's wife has shoulder-length hair covering most of her face.]
:Randall's wife: Hard to believe—six years ago, I was bald. But today, after a long struggle, I finally look like the little girl from ''The Ring''.
:Randall: That's, uhh... good?
:Randall's wife: ''Hissssss''

:[A line of six people, including Randall and his wife, stand and watch the solar eclipse.]

:[The sky has been brightened.]
:Figure with blonde hair: ''Wow.''
:Randall's wife: Yeah.

:[Randall and his wife are walking together and holding hands.]
:Randall's wife: That was incredible.
:Randall's wife: When's the next one?
:Randall: In seven years.
:Randall: Wanna go see it?

:[Still walking, Randall and his wife think together about a timeline. Seven years have passed since 2010, represented with a solid line from the past to 2017; seven years in the future will be 2024, represented with a dotted line into the future and surrounded by three question marks.]

:[The pair keeps walking.]
:Randall's wife: Yeah.
:Randall's wife: I'll do my best.
:Randall: It's a date!

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Randall Munroe]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]
[[Category:Cancer]]
[[Category:Romance]]
[[Category:Total Solar Eclipse 2017]]

Talk:1860: Communicating

2017-07-10T11:37:00Z

Quackslikeaduck: nonnpartisan

I took this to be a critique of deconstruction https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deconstruction and other similarly ridiculous approaches to hermeneutics/semiotics. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.2.88|162.158.2.88]] 00:15, 10 July 2017 (UTC)



Isn't this [[Science Girl]], and not necessarily "Alice"? Although they could be one and the same, in this comic and all comics? [[User:JohnHawkinson|JohnHawkinson]] ([[User talk:JohnHawkinson|talk]]) 16:45, 7 July 2017 (UTC)
*I agree that this is [[Science Girl]], but she could be playing the role of Alice, or alternatively she could be merely visiting the Looking Glass world as Alice also did. --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.94|108.162.216.94]] 17:13, 7 July 2017 (UTC)

I've heard that the nursery rhyme never makes explicit that Humpty is an egg. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.212.83|108.162.212.83]] 18:36, 7 July 2017 (UTC)
:It’s my understanding that the original nursery rhyme was a riddle where the question was “What is Humpty Dumpty?” and the answer is “an Egg.” [[User:Rylon|Rylon]] ([[User talk:Rylon|talk]]) 21:51, 7 July 2017 (UTC)
::If that is the case, then the riddle is nearly as bad as "Words that end in -gry." [[User:OriginalName|OriginalName]] ([[User talk:OriginalName|talk]]) 04:08, 8 July 2017 (UTC)

http://myths.e2bn.org/mythsandlegends/origins1-humpty-dumpty-and-the-fall-of-colchester.html

I took this to mean politicians stating false things then equivocating by saying the words they used mean something different from what the traditional meaning the listeners assumed they meant were. Maybe I just watch too much late night TV tho. [[User:Djbrasier|Djbrasier]] ([[User talk:Djbrasier|talk]]) 19:44, 7 July 2017 (UTC)
:Can't you children discuss in a nonpartisan matter instead of turning literally everything into politics? Maybe you should have voted instead of gathering in mass pro-illegal-immigrant protests. --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.246.137|108.162.246.137]] 23:42, 9 July 2017 (UTC)
:The comic's subject matter is applicable to many things, but that doesn't mean it's about those things. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.212.83|108.162.212.83]] 04:33, 8 July 2017 (UTC)
::[[User:Djbrasier|Djbrasier]]'s comment ''was'' nonpartisan. ~ [[User:Quackslikeaduck|Quackslikeaduck]] ([[User talk:Quackslikeaduck|talk]]) 11:37, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

I agree - this reminded me of how politicians especially Trump claim their meaning after people react.

I think this might be the first time I've seen Randall draw a facial expression in one of his comics. Surely this can't be the only one, right? --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.241.22|108.162.241.22]] 18:03, 8 July 2017 (UTC)
: I wasn't able to finish, I got up to 1516. Here's a list of comics which include expressions by humans. 1, 9, 11, 12, 15, 16, 18, 23, 24, 38, 39, 46, 53, 57, 67, 68, 78, 93, 109, 110, 119, 130, 133, 135, 142, 143, 160, 380, 463, 824, 902. Also 778 if a detailed skull is a facial expression, 1004 if that's Joker's face and not make up, 1256, 1393, if the ghostly afterlife is just a phase of being human and if ghosts have faces. I also have comics that include animals, didn't think that was in the spirit of the question but most of the animals in xkcd have faces.
: Time for a new list of comics with facial expressions! [[Special:Contributions/172.68.110.52|172.68.110.52]] 12:36, 9 July 2017 (UTC)
This reminds me of Samantha Bee's "Semantic Vortex" on the June 21 episode of ''Full Frontal''. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.78.22|172.68.78.22]] 18:02, 9 July 2017 (UTC)

Talk:1180: Virus Venn Diagram

2013-03-01T13:40:28Z

Quackslikeaduck: Created page with "If nothing else, defragging the Singularity would keep it busy for a few hours. ~ ~~~~"

If nothing else, defragging the Singularity would keep it busy for a few hours. ~ [[User:Quackslikeaduck|Quackslikeaduck]] ([[User talk:Quackslikeaduck|talk]]) 13:40, 1 March 2013 (UTC)

Talk:1096: Clinically Studied Ingredient

2012-08-17T18:59:12Z

Quackslikeaduck: Other examples

* The 1997 parody film {{w|Plump Fiction}} (an atrocious film from the looks of it) jokingly used the tagline «From the producers who saw "Pulp Fiction", "Reservoir Dogs" and "Braveheart"» to the same effect. --[[User:Buggz|Buggz]] ([[User talk:Buggz|talk]]) 11:53, 17 August 2012 (UTC)
*:It's a similar effect, although in that case, the joke isn't that the tagline doesn't indicate whether the producers liked the other films, the joke there is that normally the tagline would tell you other works the producers had themselves produced. There is no ambiguity in the tagline, as it's pretty clear the producers of that film ''didn't'' produce the other films. [[User:TheHYPO|TheHYPO]] ([[User talk:TheHYPO|talk]]) 14:30, 17 August 2012 (UTC)

* I think the joke isn't just that what Megan was tested for isn't clear, but like the clinically studied compound, she doesn't say if she was found to be healthy or not.
*: I don't think the fact that she doesn't say what she was tested for is part of the joke at all. I think we just come in in the middle of a conversation where the previous line was something like "How do I know you don't have any STDs?". Also, please sign your comments by putting four tildes after it (<nowiki> ~~~~ </nowiki>) [[User:TheHYPO|TheHYPO]] ([[User talk:TheHYPO|talk]]) 14:30, 17 August 2012 (UTC)

* Longer hair than normal, but maybe it's just too early this morning for me. Tebow Time, Twice a Day. 12:03, 17 August 2012 (UTC)
*: Hmmm... I'm inclined to think it's not Megan, unless she has a perm. (Megan's is consistently spaghetti-straight.) (qv {{explain|1089}}) -- [[User:IronyChef|IronyChef]] ([[User talk:IronyChef|talk]]) 13:53, 17 August 2012 (UTC)
*:: I'll go on record that this is *not* Megan. We have a few variants of female characters based only on the hair and this is not consistent with her other appearances. --[[User:Jeff|Jeff]] ([[User talk:Jeff|talk]]) 14:29, 17 August 2012 (UTC)

* No matter how I squint at this one, that extra line just doesn't seem to make sense... unless there is a penis in this cartoon.
*: Nope, nothing so bawdy. The left knee is just a little higher than the right. -- [[User:IronyChef|IronyChef]] ([[User talk:IronyChef|talk]]) 13:30, 17 August 2012 (UTC)
*:: I don't even see an extra line. I took the pointed corner Cueball's right arm is on to be the corner of the bed (a stylized slanted bed) with the round line being the covers that don't come to the end. Alternatively, as IronyChef suggests, the round is the end of the bed, and cueball has his right hand on his right leg while his left leg is raised (with his knee around the area of his right wrist) [[User:TheHYPO|TheHYPO]] ([[User talk:TheHYPO|talk]]) 14:30, 17 August 2012 (UTC)

*Interestingly, a Google search of the subject phrase of this comic brings up this comic as the first (few) results. There are, however, actual product examples that come up. I had never heard the phrase used; but apparently it is, for example, by [https://www.progesic.com/articles/clinically-studied-ingredients.html Progesic] or [http://www.muscletech.com/products/myobuild/index.shtml Myobuild] (note: explainxkcd does not endorse the use of these misleading products) [[User:TheHYPO|TheHYPO]] ([[User talk:TheHYPO|talk]]) 14:30, 17 August 2012 (UTC)
**Other examples include Super CitriMax®, which contains "a clinically studied ingredient for weight management", and UC-II®, which contains an ingredient that has been "clinically studied to support joint comfort, mobility and flexibility". [http://www.interhealthusa.com/ingredients.aspx] ~ [[User:Quackslikeaduck|Quackslikeaduck]] ([[User talk:Quackslikeaduck|talk]]) 18:59, 17 August 2012 (UTC)
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]

1094: Interview

2012-08-15T13:44:24Z

Quackslikeaduck: /* Explanation */ modify run-on sentence; improve wording; etc.

{{comic
| number = 1094
| date = August 13, 2012
| title = Interview
| image = interview.png
| titletext = Hey, before you go, can you explain to me what job I now have?
| imagesize =
}}

==Explanation==
This comic is based on a common annoyance when job hunting, being told that they'll "keep you in mind", but don't offer you a job.

A job interviewer tells [[Black Hat]] that the job he was applying for was already filled. Black Hat offers a briefcase to his interviewer that contains a portal or gateway into an impossibly deep chasm.

After falling through the chasm, the interviewer lands in the interviewee's seat, and Black Hat is now sitting in the interviewer's seat, effectively switching their roles.

The former interviewer tries to pull the same trick on Black Hat, creating a momentary illusion of an [[infinite loop]] through [[recursion]], a common theme in xkcd comics.

When Black Hat opens the briefcase, however, he reveals another common annoyance when job hunting, being told that the opening has already been filled. Black Hat's statement works on two levels, one meaning that "the job opening has been filled", and the second meaning "the opening to the briefcase's chasm has been filled".

The text refers to the fact that, even though Black Hat now has the interviewer's job, he has no idea what his function is.

{{Comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]