explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

2816: Types of Solar Eclipse

2023-08-18T02:53:30Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

{{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|solar eclipses}}. 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]]

2814: Perseids Pronunciation

2023-08-13T03:54:54Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

{{comic
| number = 2814
| date = August 11, 2023
| title = Perseids Pronunciation
| image = perseids_pronunciation_2x.png
| imagesize = 291x414px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = When speaking out loud, you can can [sic] call it the 'Perseids meatier shower' and no one will ever know. (If you do get caught somehow, just tell them to Google the 'Kentucky meat shower' and that will distract them while you escape.)
}}

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

This comic references the {{w|Perseids meteor shower}}, which are active in July and August. Their name ultimately derives from the ancient Greek hero ''Perseus'' (for ''his'' pronounciaton, check {{w|Perseus}}.). There are various ways of pronouncing ''Perseids'', and [[Randall]] gives the obvious ones before the comic spirals into virtual nonsense, or possibly parodies of {{wiktionary|va-jay-jay|common euphemistic replacement word}}.

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col"| Section
! scope="col"| Term
! scope="col"| Explanation

|-
! scope="row"| Generally accepted
| PER-see-ids
PURSE-yids
| These are the most common pronunciations in English.
|-
! scope="row"| Also heard sometimes
| Per-SEE-ids
Per-SAY-ids
| These are also considered acceptable.
|-
! scope="row"| Generally frowned on
|Per-SIDES
Per-ZAY-uds
PER-suds
| These are not very correct, but better than below
|-
!scope="row"| Definitely wrong
| Perky-ids
| Calling them Perky seems likely to be an attempt to be dirty.
|-
!scope="row"| Definitely wrong
| Pewpewpews
| This is referential to lasers, which are known for their "pewpewpew" sounds. However, meteors are most definitely not lasers{{citation needed}}.
|-
!scope="row"| Definitely wrong
| Per-say-says
| This is a tradition of rhyming lazy/cute slang, like referring to the female reproductive part as {{wiktionary|va-jay-jay}}.
|-
!scope="row"| Definitely wrong
| Percies Purps
| Seems largely akin to nicknaming it "Percy" and making it possessive - "Percy's" - but doing it incorrectly to match the spelling. Purps is close to Perps, a short slang form of Perpetrator (generally the person responsible for a crime). Percy's Purps sounds like a group name for a crime-committing gang led by Percy.
|-
!scope="row"| Definitely wrong
| Pepsids Peeps
| Pepsids seems to refer to Pepcid, an antacid, but misspelled to match the original word. It could also be referencing {{w|Pepsi}}. Peeps are shorebirds that are impossible to identify (for example, {{w|Least Sandpiper}}). See {{w|stints}}. But more likely either a reference to the Peep, a spongy candy which is shaped and decorated like baby chickens, or the slang for "people", particularly a group that the speaker identifies with, "my peeps". Together, this could mean a group of people who bond over needing antacids.
|}

The title text mentions how "meteor" sounds like "meatier," {{w|Homophone|although the meanings are completely different}}. It suggests telling people about the {{w|Kentucky meat shower}}, an anomalous weather event in 1876, as a distractor.

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

:How to pronounce the name of the Perseids meteor shower

:Generally accepted
::PER-see-ids
::PURSE-yids

:Also heard sometimes
::Per-SEE-ids
::Per-SAY-ids

:Generally frowned on
::Per-SIDES
::Per-ZAY-uds
::PER-suds

:''Definitely'' wrong
::Perky-ids
::Pewpewpews
::Per-say-says
::Percies Purps
::Pepsids Peeps

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Language]]
[[Category:Astronomy]]

2812: Solar Panel Placement

2023-08-08T13:10:47Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

{{comic
| number = 2812
| date = August 7, 2023
| title = Solar Panel Placement
| image = solar_panel_placement_2x.png
| imagesize = 506x364px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Getting the utility people to run transmission lines to Earth is expensive, but it will pay for itself in no time.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by an underpaid solar panel installer - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

{{w|Solar panels|Solar panels}} are a relatively common method of supplying/augmenting power for uses from calculators to factories. They work by gathering solar energy reaching the Earth from the Sun and converting it to electricity. More specifically, they absorb vast amounts of photons from the solar rays and use them to knock electrons free. Those electrons produce the flow of electric current around the circuit and convey power onwards to where it is needed.

This comic proposes a solution to the issue of solar panels not generating enough power due to basic physical limitations. Solar panels on Earth have multiple things reducing their efficacy, such as their distance from the Sun as well as atmospheric effects reducing the intensity of light hitting them and the fact that for half of the time they can't generate any power because their position on the Earth is facing away from the Sun. Putting your solar panels in a close orbit above the Sun would eliminate most, if not all, of these issues (and is a partial implementation of the concept of a {{w|Dyson sphere}}, theorised by scientists and used in science fiction). However putting solar panels on the surface of the Sun, as suggested here, introduces many new problems that can negatively impact their energy generating capacity, such as transmission losses and more undesirable effects from their proximity to the Sun, including total destruction of the panels.

The cost-effectiveness of solar panels is a complex topic, involving [https://www.energy.gov/eere/solar/solar-performance-and-efficiency efficiency], installation, and even costs of [https://cen.acs.org/environment/recycling/Solar-panels-face-recycling-challenge-photovoltaic-waste/100/i18 recycling at end-of-life]. The comic demonstrates a simplified calculation, where a solar panel of 1m^2 is estimated to return electricity equivalent to around $58/year, using 20% as the efficiency of conversion of sunlight to electricity for an otherwise optimally roof-installed solar panel unit.

To solve this, Randall here proposes a rather more direct solution: place the identical solar panel ''downwards'', towards the Sun, rather than ''upwards'' (upon a suitable equitorially-facing sloping roof), from the surface of the Earth. This gives access to substantially more light energy and would (through naïve upscaling of the power flux available, ignoring a number of technical issues) produce greatly increased amounts of energy for the owner.

The title text acknowledges ''some'' difficulties, but hand-waves them away as being surmountable and entirely worthwhile given the theoretical income generated. This may or may not be true, but is actually extremely unlikely at the end of the economies of scale whereby an individual is expected to make their own best use of a single solar panel. Perhaps in this case a better interpretation of "in no time" is "never".

Given that standard transmission losses (for long distance HVAC power lines) are [https://iea-etsap.org/E-TechDS/PDF/E12_el-t&d_KV_Apr2014_GSOK.pdf around 3% per 1000 km] and the Sun is 150 million km away, the energy reaching the Earth would be 0.97^(150000), a truly negligible amount (10^-1985 of the input energy).

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

:[Heading:] Option A:

:[A stereotypical house with a single solar panel upon its roof and an arrow from a label:] 1 m<sup>2</sup> (south-facing)

:[Formula:] ($0.20/kWh)×(4 kWh/m<sup>2</sup>/day)×(1 m<sup>2</sup>)×20% = <big>$58/year</big>

:[Heading:] Option B:

:[A short width of the Sun's undulating 'surface', with two solar prominances/flares and at their height (but above a different part of the surface) a solar panel with some attachment upon its upper surface, depicted horizontally aligned to the Sun and with an arrow from a label:] 1 m<sup>2</sup> (downward)

:[Formula:] ($0.20/kWh)×(sun luminosity/sun area)×(1 m<sup>2</sup>)×20% = <big>$22 million/year</big>

:[Caption below the panel:]
:Solar energy tip: To maximize sun exposure, always orient your panels downward and install them on the surface of the sun.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Tips]]

Talk:2809: Moon

2023-08-01T19:29:59Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

Happy birthday to me. This comic is a good birthday present, so I'm gonna try to add some stuff to the explanation now. [[User:R3TRI8UTI0N|R3TRI8UTI0N]] ([[User talk:R3TRI8UTI0N|talk]]) 02:11, 1 August 2023 (UTC)

Okay, added a Trivia section and a lot of stuff to the explanation. Request someone help add more information about lunar cycles and some wikipedia links. [[User:R3TRI8UTI0N|R3TRI8UTI0N]] ([[User talk:R3TRI8UTI0N|talk]]) 02:35, 1 August 2023 (UTC)
:Ah, well, I added more (sufficient? ...haven't wikilinked yet) info about the illumination/tide cycles. i.e. about half the time (at least) half reilluminating areas on the night side of Earth + roughly twice a day dragging/flinging the tides 'upwards' (modifying the Sun's own twice-daily effects).
:Had to heavily qualify the secondary Trivia point, for caveats. I mean selenically-specific names aren't rare, when refering to orb sometimes known as Phoebe/Cynthia, until you become more precise about "common English use". Didn't say anything about (the) Earth, but did mention the Sun(/suns in general) in the edit comment. Interesting point to make, but not so much unusual as stemming from long time (way into prehistory!) custom so really being the heavily weighted precedent. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.90.187|172.70.90.187]] 05:21, 1 August 2023 (UTC)
:Reminds me of that conversation from Dragonheart (paraphrized as I only watched the German dub): "So instead of calling me 'dragon" in your language you call me 'dragon' in another language... I think I like it" [[User:Elektrizikekswerk|Elektrizikekswerk]] ([[User talk:Elektrizikekswerk|talk]]) 07:16, 1 August 2023 (UTC)

If there was no Moon, would an Earth astronomer that discovered moons around one of the other planets be considered a loony? [[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]]) 02:40, 1 August 2023 (UTC)
:If there was no moon, it's quite possible there would be no intelligent life on Earth. Also, when Galileo Galilei found Jupiter's moons, he was totally considered loony by some, while others said it's defect of the telescope. Remember that at that point of history, suggesting that if Earth has moon, other planets might have one too was something you could be burned on stake for. -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 03:13, 1 August 2023 (UTC)

:Definitely not. (I see what you did there.) --[[Special:Contributions/172.70.247.155|172.70.247.155]] 12:55, 1 August 2023 (UTC)

I doubt the title text is intended as a reference to that saying. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.247.51|172.69.247.51]] 04:17, 1 August 2023 (UTC)
:Yeah, I don't get how that is related either. The title text references that it is pretty, but the nmoves away from that. Not sure how that is related to a quote that doesn't even use the word "pretty". --[[User:Lupo|Lupo]] ([[User talk:Lupo|talk]]) 09:28, 1 August 2023 (UTC)

Like many things,{{Citation needed}} it has probably seemed usual whilst we only know our own example. Once we started to find other examples out there, we can discover the ways in which it's an outlier. (Martian: "Well of ''course'' there's those two small rock 'stars' visibly zipping around overhead, that's what the sky alsays looks like for me, and I imagine that it's much the same for anyone else..." Earthling/Venusian/Jovian/Tritonian/Plutoid: "...hold my beer!") [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.133|141.101.99.133]] 07:26, 1 August 2023 (UTC)

I've been saying this about the Sun… A great fireball looming in the sky. It remotely powers life. (Even with 90% of that power lost at each trophic level!) It is worshipped as a god. It controls Earthlings' sense of time. When it leaves the sky at a regular interval, a wave of fear follows, and everything seeks shelter and goes dormant until its return. Oh, but it also burns and mutates the flesh of those who stand in its rays, to the point that it's ''dangerous to look at''. Sounds fake, right? And yet, there it is. <span style="background:#0064de;font-size:12px;padding:4px 12px;border-radius:8px;">[[User talk:AgentMuffin|<span style="color:#f0faff;">~AgentMuffin</span>]]</span> 08:00, 1 August 2023 (UTC)

I have a personal theory that the constant gravitational massage is responsible for sustaining the Earth's large magnetic field, thus preventing the solar wind making us like Venus or Mars, and probably keeping the tectonic plates on the move. (Oh and dogs domesticated themselves - just saying p.s. same for cats but only after we had barns). [[User:RIIW - Ponder it|RIIW - Ponder it]] ([[User talk:RIIW - Ponder it|talk]]) 09:38, 1 August 2023 (UTC)

I think we’re well past the point of “plans being made” of humans returning to the Moon. [[User:SilverTheTerribleMathematician|Silver]] ([[User talk:SilverTheTerribleMathematician|talk]]) 19:29, 1 August 2023 (UTC)

2809: Moon

2023-08-01T19:25:42Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

{{comic
| number = 2809
| date = July 31, 2023
| title = Moon
| image = moon_2x.png
| imagesize = 313x402px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = I mean, it's pretty, but it doesn't really affect us beyond that. Except that half the nights aren't really dark, and once or twice a day it makes the oceans flood the coasts.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a STRANGE ORB FLOATING IN THE SKY. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

The {{w|Moon}} is a celestial body orbiting Earth, first formed approximately 4.5 billion years ago - about 50 million years after the initial formation of the solar system. As of today, the Moon is still orbiting the Earth{{Citation needed}} at a distance of approximately 384,400 kilometers, or about 238,900 miles.

This comic points out how weird it is to have such an enormous celestial body near to us. The Moon has a radius more than one quarter of Earth's, and is around one eightieth of Earth's mass, and is close enough that we can see the craters and other stuff on the surface with our naked eye, though a telescope would help. The second nearest body of comparable size, Venus, is approximately 46.576 million kilometers away at its closest.

There are other planets with moons, but Earth's moon is very big compared to Earth - Mars's moons are way smaller and the biggest moon in our solar system, Ganymede, is just twice as massive with 1.5 the radius, despite orbiting Jupiter, which is 317 times more massive than Earth with 11 times the radius.

In human history, we have landed twelve people on the moon in the Apollo missions from 1969 to 1972. Despite advancements in technology since then, we have yet to land another person on the Moon{{Citation needed}}, though plans are being made.

The title text refers to two facts about how the Moon majorly impacts life on Earth, which, by the comic, also would seem strange if they weren't real. Firstly the lunar cycle, in which in roughly half the time, the Moon's orbit is on the opposite side of the Earth from the Sun and (being visibly at least half-illuminated, whilst there, except briefly during rare eclipses) provides a low but significant amount of reflected illumination that nature (as well as humanity) has found a nocturnal use for. Secondly, the tides, a very nearly twice-daily cycle where the Moon's gravity, modified by the Sun's, subtly pulls upon the Earth and drags the waters of the seas and oceans around, periodically increases the sea levels in most places. To a lesser extent the Moon's gravity also drags land up, [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth_tide]. Most people have a naïve point of view that these effects are minor and incidental, underestimating the profound ways in which they have shaped the history of the Earth. This reflects general attitudes - we like the Moon because it is close to us, but tend to be relatively unaware of its huge significance. This comic may be a way to call out how interesting and important the Moon is to humanity and the Earth in general.

==Transcript==
:[Ponytail is pointing and looking up to the left, while Cueball behind her looks the same way.]
:Ponytail: That thing hanging in the sky is a second nearby world. It's close enough that you can see its surface as it passes overhead.
:Cueball: Wow. Isn't that ... weird?
:Ponytail: I dunno, it's just always been there.

:[Caption below the panel:]
:If it didn't exist, the moon would sound like such an outlandish sci-fi concept.

==Trivia==
*Earth's moon can be considered weird for additional reasons.
**It is by far the largest and most massive moon relative to the planet it orbits.
**Our moon is the only moon in the solar system to not have a proper name, not even a jumble of letters and numbers. In English it is simply given the proper name of "the Moon" (capitalized), being the ancient archetype for all other moons discovered since the time of Galileo, although it can also be described by other titles such as "Luna" (directly taken from from Latin mythology/astronomy).
**It is almost exactly the same apparent size as the Sun in the sky which at various times enables both total solar eclipses (for which it needs to be close/large) and annular ones (for which it must not be ''too'' close/large). Much earlier in history it was too close to do both and much later it will gradually drift too far away to do so – making it additionally a temporal coincidence that humanity gets to witness it as we are so used to seeing it.
**There are even a couple of hypotheses that think that to get protein shaped right for life, the tides were needed, and that to evolve for living on land the tides are needed.
{{comic discussion}}

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

2809: Moon

2023-08-01T11:51:29Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2809
| date = July 31, 2023
| title = Moon
| image = moon_2x.png
| imagesize = 313x402px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = I mean, it's pretty, but it doesn't really affect us beyond that. Except that half the nights aren't really dark, and once or twice a day it makes the oceans flood the coasts.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a STRANGE ORB FLOATING IN THE SKY. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

The {{w|Moon}} is a celestial body orbiting Earth first formed approximately 4.5 billion years ago, about 50 million years after the initial formation of the solar system. As of today (August 1st, 2023), the Moon is still orbiting the Earth{{Citation needed}} at a distance of approximately 384,400 kilometers, or about 238,900 miles.

This comic points out how weird it is to have such an enormous celestial body near to us. The second nearest, Venus, is approximately 46.576 million kilometers away at its closest. The Moon is close enough that we can see the craters and other stuff on the surface with our naked eye, though a telescope would help.

There are other planets with moons,{{Citation needed}} but Earth's moon is very big compared to Earth - Mars's moons are way smaller and the biggest moon in our solar system, Ganymede, is just twice as massive with 1.5 the radius despite orbiting Jupiter, which is 317x more massive than Earth with 11x bigger radius.

In human history, we have landed twelve people on the moon in the Apollo missions from 1969 to 1972. Despite advancements in technology since then,{{Citation needed}} we have yet to land another person on the Moon, though plans are being made.

The title text refers to two facts how the moon majorly impacts life on earth, which also would seem strange if it wasn't real: Firstly the lunar cycle, in which the Moon's orbit is roughly half the time on the opposite side of the Earth from the Sun and (being visibly at least half illuminated, whilst there, except briefly during rare eclipses) provides a low but significant amount of reflected illumination that nature (as well as humanity) has found a nocturnal use for. Secondly, the title text also refers to the tides, a very nearly twice-daily cycle where the Moon's gravity (modified by the Sun's) subtly pulls upon the Earth and dragging the waters of the seas and oceans around to periodically increasing the sea levels in most places.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[Ponytail points to something in the sky, presumably the moon. Cueball stands nearby.]
:Ponytail: That thing hanging in the sky is a second nearby world. It's close enough that you can see its surface as it passes overhead.
:Cueball: Wow. Isn't that... weird?
:Ponytail: I dunno, it's just always been there.

:[Caption below the panel:]
:If it didn't exist, the moon would sound like such an outlandish sci-fi concept.

==Trivia==
Earth's moon is weird for an additional two reasons. First, it is by far the largest and most massive moon relative to the planet it orbits. Secondly, our moon is the only moon in the solar system to not have a proper name, not even a jumble of letters and numbers. In English it is simply given the proper name of "the Moon" (capitalized), being the ancient archetype for all other moons discovered since the time of Galileo, although it can also be described by other titles such as "Luna" (directly taken from from Latin mythology/astronomy).

{{comic discussion}}

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

2600: Rejected Question Categories

2023-04-19T00:37:10Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

{{comic
| number = 2600
| date = March 30, 2022
| title = Rejected Question Categories
| image = rejected_question_categories.png
| titletext = You can click to preorder to get a copy of What If? 2 when it comes out 9/13, assuming we all make it past the spider situation(?) on Tuesday(?).
}}

==Explanation==
[[Randall]] recently announced, in [[2575: What If? 2]], that he is publishing a new ''[[what if?]]'' book based on reader-submitted questions. This comic is another [[:Category:Book promotion|promotion]] of the book, and the entire comic is a link to his [https://xkcd.com/what-if-2/ what if? 2] page on xkcd.

This comic shows the [[#Question categories|categories of questions]] he claims to have received, but rejected to use in his book, giving an example question for each category. In typical xkcd fashion, these begin out by being plausible, although often unlikely to have been submitted as a ''what if?'' question, moving in to more and more absurd types of questions, especially with the last question, that appears to be a combination of all previous categories and is therefore marked "?????"

The title text refers to the launch date of the book September 13, rendered in the American style 9/13. This format can be confusing to non-Americans, although usually not when the date is larger than 12, since it would then appear to reference the 9th day of the 13th month. This "13th month" was, however, referenced in the first comic about the book: [[2575: What If? 2]]. See also Randall's take on the date format, {{w|ISO 8601}}, in [[1179: ISO 8601]].

Randall then continues the title text by referencing the second to last category with vague ominous questions. The example question here asks if there is need to worry about spiders after Tuesday. So Randall notes that the release date, 5.5 months after the release of this comic, is of course assuming anyone will survive past next Tuesday (2022-04-05).

Tuesday has been notably referenced in [[277: Long Light]], [[564: Crossbows]], [[1099: Tuesdays]] and most notably in [[1245: 10-Day Forecast]], where it seems that the last day ever will be a Tuesday. Tuesday is the second day of the week, and notably, the Tuesday of the week following the publication of this cartoon (April 5th, 2022) was the Day of the Spiders.

==Question categories==
{| class="wikitable"
|'''Category'''
|'''Question'''
|'''Explanation'''
|-
| People cheating on homework
| What if I made a pendulum by hanging a rock on a 2.75 meter string? What would its period be in seconds? (Show your work!)
| This appears to be a physics student trying to get out of doing their work by presenting the question for Randall to answer in ''What If'' (which is a common occurrence on question-and-answer sites such as Stack Overflow). Most school homework requires the student to "show their work", i.e. write out their process of solving the question. Making students show their work serves two purposes: it allows students to score partial credit on an incorrect answer if they show the right methodology and basic understanding even if they make a wrong turn along the way; it also prevents students from simply cheating by looking up the right answer without showing how they got that answer — the student including this caveat in their email is a giveaway as to their tactic (along with the boring nature of their inquiry).
|-
| Medical advice
| What if you got a scratch and the next day your hand looked like this [''📎 attachment'']? Should you see a doctor or what?
| Randall is not a physician, is not qualified to give medical advice, and will not answer medical questions. This was a problem on early Wikipedia which, for a time, required all articles covering medical topics to point to a {{w|WP:MEDICAL|Medical Disclaimer}}. This was also an issue covered in the 1st ''what if?'' book, under Weird and Worrying Questions from the Inbox, where a reader asks about the effects of a toxin on the excretory system. If your body is not behaving in the way you expect, consulting with a medical professional is, in general, a good idea.
|-
| Personal
| Why don't the squirrels in my yard like me???
| Randall has no way of knowing why the wildlife in a given area dislike a specific person, especially if this hints at a specific animosity/belligerence and not just general avoidance of humans as a perceived threat. These kind of questions are common on sites like reddit, and are usually covered by general explanation of animal behaviors unless the asker supplies more information in the comments. However, the choice of squirrels are likely not random since [[:Category:Squirrels|Squirrels]] are a recurring theme on xkcd and has often been [https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/Category:Squirrels#Uses_in_other_xkcd_media: used in what if?] (sometimes as {{what if|105|placeholder}} for a potentially horrible image).
|-
| Spam
| Do you want to meet lonely singles in your area tonight?
| This is a common online popup advertisement and is generally considered undesirable. An unavoidable side effect of Randall having an email address published where the public can find it is that spammers have just as much access to it. Most people do not respond to spam emails, and Randall is no exception.
|-
| Phishing
| Have you recently been the victim of phishing? To check, log in to your account by clicking <u>here</u>.
| Again, because Randall's What-If email is publicly available, phishers have access to it and can probe the recipient for information. Randall is experienced enough to recognize a phishing attempt and ignore it. This type of phishing scam, in which the scammer requests your personal data for the purported purpose of checking if it has been "stolen" thereby "stealing" it himself, has become more common as people have become aware of phishing, and phishers have thus embraced the possibility of exploiting a new niche in the layers of naivete.
|-
| Requests for help with a crime
| Using modern science, what would be the fastest way to get through this bank vault door? [''📎'' blueprints]
| No, Randall is ''not'' going to help a criminal commit breaking and entering or robbery, thank you very much. A common problem{{Citation needed}} with heist movies is that they show a believable{{Citation needed}} method for breaking in to a vault which people then try to replicate in real life. Such movies often portray an expert in some other field being "smart enough" to craft the plan, sometimes unwittingly.
|-
| Unanswerable
| Why am I me and not someone else
| There is a lot in this question that could be unpacked, and Randall doesn't want to touch on any of it.

At face value the question is asking about {{w|Philosophy of mind}}, a branch of philosophy with many questions that are unanswerable due to our own imperfect understanding of mind. The asker is inquiring as to what process is responsible for designating that their consciousness be tied to the body in which they currently reside, as opposed to another body presumed to have consciousness; furthermore, they likely wish to know the mechanics behind how this process works. There is as yet insufficient data for a meaningful answer.

It's also quite possible the asker is feeling melancholic and unsatisfied with their life. Randall doesn't feel qualified to try diagnosing or treating someone's existential depression.
|-
| Vague
| What is going to happen? (Be specific)
| Some humor is derived from the request for specificity in the question, which completely lacks any sort of specificity of its own.
|-
| Vague and ominous
| Will I have to start worrying about spiders after Tuesday?
| This implies some event that occurs on a (possibly next?) Tuesday. This event may relate to spiders in some way, and cause those who do not currently worry about spiders to do so. If you do not currently worry about spiders, this question does not give enough specifics for Randall to intelligently answer whether or not you should start.
Possibly a [[:Category:Red Spiders|red spiders]] reference. Could also be a reference to [[1688: Map Age Guide]] where some dangerous nuclear event involving spiders was apparently set to happen in 2022.
|-
| ?????
| Hi, we're lonely singles in your area, and we're wondering what would happen if we shot a nuclear bomb into a volcano! Click here to log in and tell us ...
| If nothing else, this entry is clearly made up by Randall, as it appears to be a combination of as many prior categories as he has room for, specifically Spam, Phishing, and an already-answered question, before getting cut off by the bottom of the panel.

"Would it be possible to stop a volcano eruption by placing a bomb (thermobaric or nuclear) underneath the surface?" was a question featured in the first ''what if'' book. Randall answered with an emphatic "No!"
|}

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
In ''What If? 2'' (xkcd.com/whatif2), I answer ridiculous questions sent in by readers about everything from volcanoes to spaceships to soup.

Here are a few of the common types of question that I did ''not'' answer:

[In separate boxes for each category]

[In row 1:]

People cheating on homework: What if I made a pendulum by hanging a rock on a 2.75 meter string? What would its period be in seconds? (Show your work!)

Medical advice: What if you got a scratch and the next day your hand looks like this [''📎 attachment'']? Should you see a doctor or what?

Personal: Why don't the squirrels in my yard like me???

[In row 2:]

Spam: Do you want to meet lonely singles in your area tonight?

Phishing: Have you recently been the victim of phishing? To check, log in to your account by clicking <u>here</u>.

Requests for help with a crime: Using modern science, what would be the fastest way to get through this bank vault door? [''📎'' blueprints]

[In row 3:]

Unanswerable: Why am I me and not someone else

Vague: What is going to happen? (Be specific)

Vague+Ominous: Will I have to start worrying about spiders after Tuesday?

?????: Hi, we're lonely singles in your area, and we're wondering what would happen if we shot a nuclear bomb into a volcano! [partially cut off horizontally:] Click here to log in and tell us

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Book promotion]]
[[Category:Physics]]
[[Category:Squirrels]]
[[Category:Spiders]]
[[Category:Nuclear weapons]]

2759: Easily Confused Acronyms

2023-04-07T02:15:36Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

{{comic
| number = 2759
| date = April 5, 2023
| title = Easily Confused Acronyms
| image = easily_confused_acronyms_2x.png
| imagesize = 557x444px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = 'Lever' was originally an acronym for Load Emplification by the Vimulated Emission of Radiation.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a RIGHT OMPLIFICATION BY THE BIMULATED OMISSION OF TADIATION - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
In this comic, [[Randall]] compared the Acronym "Laser" with various other five-letter acronyms. He first explained the "Laser" and "Maser" correctly, but the following three are simply the full name of "Laser" with the first word and initials changed. The replacement first word is correct for these acronyms, but the other words formed from changing the first letter are nonsense.

{| class="wikitable" style="margin:auto"
!Acronym !! Comic !! Actual
|-
| {{w|Laser}} || ✅ Light Amplification by the Stimulated Emission of Radiation || '''L'''ight '''A'''mplification by '''S'''timulated '''E'''mission of '''R'''adiation
|-
| {{w|Maser}} || ✅ Microwave Amplification by the Stimulated Emission of Radiation || '''M'''icrowave '''A'''mplification by '''S'''timulated '''E'''mission of '''R'''adiation
|-
| {{w|Sonar}} || ❌ Sound Omplification by the Nimulated Amission of Radiation || '''SO'''und '''N'''avigation And '''R'''anging
|-
| {{w|Radar}} || ❌ Radio Amplification by the Dimulated Amission of Radiation || '''RA'''dio '''D'''etection And '''R'''anging
|-
| {{w|Lidar}} || ❌ Light Implification by the Dimulated Amission of Radiation || '''LI'''ght '''D'''etection And '''R'''anging
|-
| {{w|Lever}} (title text) || |Load Emplification by the Vimulated Emission of Radiation. || ''(not an acronym in common usage)''
|}

Laser and maser are true-to-life acronyms. The remaining 3 words' true meanings are as follows: sonar is short for "sound/sonic navigation and ranging", radar for "radio detection and ranging", lidar for "light detection and ranging". (Note that these 3 each include the second letter from their first word in the acronym.)

The three false definitions simply suppose that all 5 of the acronyms follow the same model and swap out the necessary letters to fit, in a square-peg-round-hole manner.

The title text extends this to the 5-letter word "lever". This is an ordinary word, not a commonly used acronym. Levers have been used since time immemorial (even [https://quatr.us/physics/levers-simple-machines-physics.htm animals have been known to use them)], and predates high-tech uses of radiation by millennia (it's one of the {{w|simple machines}} that {{w|Archimedes}} studied in Ancient Greece). [https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/2722:_Etymonline Etymonline] traces the origin of the word to the year 1300, from the French "levier", which shares the same definition.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:Easily-confused acronyms cheat sheet

:Laser

:Light Amplification by the Stimulated Emission of Radiation

:Maser

:Microwave Amplification by the Stimulated Emission of Radiation

:Sonar

:Sound Omplification by the Nimulated Emission of Radiation

:Radar

:Radio Amplification by the Dimulated Amission of Radiation

:Lidar

:Light Implification by the Dimulated Amission of Radiation

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category: Science]]
[[Category: Language]]

User talk:SilverTheTerribleMathematician

2023-04-05T21:21:38Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician: /* Water and life */

==Astronomy/Astrology==
Regarding the recent edit of yours to [[:Category:Astronomy]], 'even' in Britain (well, amongst anybody not otherwise confused) Astrology isn't the same as Astronomy. The latter is the term for the whole subject of scientific knowledge in the realm of the stars, the former is that of making narrative stories from how the stars and planets might appear to us.

Admitedly, the early days of sky-watching probably had a lot of overlap/indistinguishability between the two practices (like practical chemistry when it had not yet emerged from the more fanciful concepts of alchemy), and the scientific use of "-logy" (of words; explanation or narrative) survives in sciences such as biology/ecology in some cases, rather than as "-nomy" (being about rules and laws) as with taxonomy – or such things as an autonomy. But if anyone currently thinks that astronomy and astrology are the same thing, by different names, then they don't know enough about at least one of them. Perhaps both. ;) [[Special:Contributions/172.70.85.57|172.70.85.57]] 21:30, 3 April 2023 (UTC)

== Water and life ==

"... but arguably they are not alive in any sense (other than containing a large amount of water)". Skewed logic. You're saying that merely by containing water gives it some sort of status of being alive.

Things that are alive may contain water (probably do, as in that we don't know of many things that are, but don't; but then we might be biased by being a carbon+water biosystem and not seeing the possible alternatives put into practice) and bodies of water may contain life (including clouds, at least transiently) but refuting the livingness of clouds, ''except'' that they contain water, suggests that the water is the life, not merely an aid to life. Ponds, rivers, lakes, seas and oceans also have a lot of water in them{{Citation needed}} and even contain living things (usually) so may be refered to as 'alive [with life]' but aren't alive any individualistic sense. Even to the extent that the creatures, protozoa or even viruses within it might simultaneously be considered to be. [[Special:Contributions/172.71.242.86|172.71.242.86]] 15:50, 5 April 2023 (UTC)
: I understand where your argument is. But when I was writing that, I was intending to state something along the lines of "despite being mostly made of water, like many living things are, clouds are not alive." I was hinting at a specific kind of bias, as well. I'm aware that water itself ''is'' life. [[User:SilverTheTerribleMathematician|Silver]] ([[User talk:SilverTheTerribleMathematician|talk]]) 21:21, 5 April 2023 (UTC)

2307: Alive Or Not

2023-04-05T15:11:43Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician: I mean, water IS evidently extremely important for life to develop and thrive, and clouds are made mostly of water vapor

{{comic
| number = 2307
| date = May 15, 2020
| title = Alive Or Not
| image = alive_or_not.png
| titletext = Computer viruses currently fall somewhere between prions and fire.
}}

==Explanation==
There is no universally-accepted definition of "{{w|life}}"; {{w|Life#Definitions|all definitions}} thus far proposed have either excluded some things commonly understood to be alive or included some things commonly understood to not be alive. Take reproduction, a trait commonly assumed to be essential and unique to life; by this definition, anything which cannot reproduce (including {{w|mules}}, {{w|worker bees}}, and postmenopausal women) would be considered nonliving, while anything which can duplicate itself (including {{w|computer viruses}}, {{w|3D printers|advanced 3D printers}}, and {{w|fire}}—see below) would be considered alive.

Many more elaborate definitions of life have been attempted over the decades. Some common additional factors include:

* {{w|Homeostasis}}, the ability to control an internal environment to maintain a constant state;
* {{w|Metabolism}}, converting nutrients into energy and building blocks for growth, reproduction, and so on;
* {{w|Adaptation}} through heredity and natural selection; and
* Responding to the environment.

Despite all of this, the only definite definition of "life" is "something everyone agrees is alive" - and even then, that’s also indefinite because of the further ambiguity of what counts as part of “everyone”. This comic attempts to rank several types of things by how likely people are to perceive them as "alive". As there is a debate as to whether viruses are alive or not, [[Randall]] has taken a side, and may spark debate, by putting viruses above the alive line.

Given that this comic was released during the early days of the [[:Category:COVID-19|COVID-19]] pandemic, viruses are for sure on Randall's mind, given that most comics more than a month before this one was about COVID-19. And this comic is most likely inspired by this, and the previous comic [[2306: Common Cold]], where the cold viruses are definitely alive, and afraid.

=== Things ranked as alive ===

* '''Animals (normal)'''
* '''Animals (weird ones like jellyfish and coral)''': Randall's categorization of animals as "normal" or "weird" can be seen as a simplified version of the {{w|Great chain of being}}, a philosophical framework in which humans are seen as the most "advanced" form of life, followed by a divine or otherwise justified hierarchy of progressively lesser life-forms (mammals, birds, fish, lizards, insects, and so on). Categorizing weird animals was already done in [[1587: Food Rule]]. Corals may be considered as lying between animals and fungi because corals, like, fungi and plants, are {{w|Sessility (motility)|sessile}}, i.e., they "grow" in one place. Jellyfish are not sessile, but {{w|Cnidaria#Basic_body_forms|many jellyfish are the same species as corals}} in different generations. The more unlike ourselves that creatures are, the more incomprehensible their 'lives' are to casual inspection - whilst being definitely alive and officially members of the Animal Kingdom, {{w|Sponge#Coordination of activities|some creatures}} can be very weird indeed.
* '''{{w|Fungi}}''': Fungi represent a unique lineage of eukaryotic, mostly multicellular organisms. Although historically studied by botanists specializing in the sub-discipline "mycology", modern scholarship places fungi in the "opisthokont" lineage, which contains both the animals and the fungi. Fungi, like animals, cannot make complex organic molecules from carbon dioxide, and must consume organic molecules as food to survive. Like plants, fungi are typically unable to move on their own. The various types of fungi include mushrooms, yeasts, rusts, smuts, and molds. Fungi evolution is also referenced in [[1749: Mushrooms]].
* '''{{w|Plant}}s''': Those often green<sup><nowiki>[</nowiki>{{w|Viridiplantae|citation needed}}<nowiki>]</nowiki></sup>, often leafy things outside your current isolation dwelling, sometimes inside, next to the window. They are primarily distinguished from other eukaryotes by being able to use photosynthesis to convert water, carbon dioxide and energy from light into sugar and free oxygen.
* '''{{w|Slime mold}}s''': Slime molds are eukaryotic single-celled organisms (so "more advanced" than bacteria). In the "plasmodial" slime molds, the "single cell" may expand to spread across several feet of territory, and weigh several pounds, while the "cellular" slime molds are most notable for their occasional congregation into macro-sized colonies which can appear to move as a single creature. It's interesting that Randall ranks them as "less alive" than fungi (which they were once thought to be), especially given some of their curious behaviors (e.g. [https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2014/feb/18/slime-mould-rail-road-transport-routes optimizing transportation networks] when presented with a collection of food flakes and obstacles).
* '''{{w|Bacteria}}''': Bacteria are one of two groups of prokaryotes, meaning cells that do not contain a nucleus and rarely harbor membrane-bound organelles. A small portion of Bacteria are pathogenic, but most are actually harmless. Bacteria's ability to convert raw materials into nutrients available for other living things makes them essential to other living things.
* '''{{w|Archaea}}''': Archaea (misspelled as ''Archea'' by Randall) is a {{w|domain (biology)|domain}} of organisms, which do not fall under eukaryotes or bacteria. They are single-celled organisms that lack a nucleus, and were initially thought to be ancient lineages of bacteria (i.e. ''archaeobacteria'') found in extreme environments similar to the early Earth, which is probably why Randall ranks them as "less alive" than bacteria. However, it is now known that they live pretty much everywhere that regular bacteria do, and that they have very distinct biochemistry from bacteria; they are actually more closely related to eukaryotes (i.e. slime molds and up) than bacteria are.
* '''{{w|Virus}}es''': Viruses are infectious agents consisting of a genome surrounded by a protein or lipid shell. When a virus contacts a cell, it delivers its genome inside the cell which causes the cells' reproductive machinery to create more viruses. Since viruses are incapable of reproducing without the aid of larger cells, [https://www.google.com/search?q=are+viruses+alive it is often debated] whether or not they are actually alive. Randall has ranked viruses as "alive" but on the lowest possible rung of such; indeed, many biologists say [https://askabiologist.asu.edu/questions/are-viruses-alive viruses fall in a gray area], or that [https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1369848616300103 the question is arbitrary and non-scientific]. By another criterion life on Earth is defined by the presence of extremely long molecules that can be replicated (copied). Every organism above viruses contains both DNA and RNA. Viruses only contain either RNA or DNA. Nothing below here contains any (biologically active) DNA or RNA. This comic came out the day after [[2306: Common Cold]], where cold virus was anthropomorphized and was asking humans to stop with all their hand washing when the [[:Category:COVID-19|COVID-19]] pandemic is over. Thus those viruses where definitely alive. Maybe that comic inspired this one.

===Things ranked as not alive===
* '''{{w|Prions}}''': Prions are misfolded proteins that cause other proteins to misfold. They are most famously the cause of various brain diseases such as "{{w|mad cow disease}}", and may be involved in Alzheimer's disease. Similarly to viruses, prions require something else to replicate, but unlike viruses, they do not possess a nucleic-acid genome or any other means of carrying heritable information, and they do not alter the cell's production machinery, but rather interact with proteins which are already made. In that sense, they're more like a particularly tricky kind of metabolic waste product or pollution.
* (from title text) '''{{w|Computer virus}}es''': A piece of code which hijacks computer systems to replicate itself, named by analogy to biological viruses. Strictly speaking, they're just a particular encoding of information, usually stored in electromagnetic media (although there's no reason one couldn't be stored on punch cards). Randall ranks them as "''currently''" more alive than fire, because they do carry "genetic" information (which anti-virus programs can be programmed to look for, analogous to vaccination) and some are capable of modifying themselves to adapt to new environments, but less alive than prions because they only operate within information systems. However, if a virus were able to e.g. hijack an electronics factory to start making flash drives and memory cards that carry the virus's code, then perhaps it might move up in the hierarchy.
* '''{{w|Fire}}''': Fire is a common example of something which meets many common definitions for life; it grows, reproduces by spreading seeds (sparks), and consumes energy and excretes waste (ashes and smoke) by the same net chemical process as respiration. However, while fire can be a necessary part of the life cycle of other organisms (e.g. redwood trees), it does not maintain a constant environment within itself, nor does it perform {{w|anabolism}}, the construction of larger molecules from smaller ones. Respirating life-forms use helper molecules to moderate the oxidation reaction into small steps to produce useful units of energy, rather than letting it all happen at once to produce heat.
* '''{{w|Clouds}}''': Random shapes taken by clouds may resemble animals and other objects, but arguably they are not alive in any sense (other than containing a large amount of water). Things like tornadoes and hurricanes, on the other hand, can meet some definitions of life: they maintain homeostasis, actively seek and consume energy, and occasionally reproduce. Cf. ''Fire'' above.
* '''{{w|Fossils}}''': Fossils are the petrified remains of once-living organisms, so in that sense they are more connected to life than "regular rocks", and some may hold DNA that could theoretically be used to clone the fossilized life-form.
* '''{{w|Rocks}} shaped like faces''': Humans have an extremely advanced capability for seeing patterns, and one of the most powerful patterns we seek is {{w|Face perception|faces}}, so much so that we see faces even where they don't exist (a common form of {{w|pareidolia}}). Humans instinctively anthropomorphize any object which vaguely resembles a face as having a sense of attention and mood, and so a rock shaped like a face would likely be treated differently than a rock not shaped like a face. Randall does not distinguish between rocks intentionally carved to look like faces (such as the famous {{w|Moai}} sculptures) or rocks that happen to look vaguely like faces under the right lighting conditions (such as the famous {{w|Face on Mars}}.)
* '''Regular {{w|rocks}}''': Modern taxonomy originates from Carl Linnaeus, who categorized all objects on Earth as animals, plants (often stated as "''vegetable''" in quiz games like Twenty Questions), or minerals. Minerals are most obviously not alive, although some cultures and works of fiction have creatures that turn to stone and will return later to life, and some people keep {{w|Pet Rock|rocks as "pets"}}.

Interestingly, the vertical line linking the categories extends beyond both the most-alive and least-alive things, making one wonder what Randall might think is more alive than "normal animals" or less alive than "regular rocks". In the latter direction an explanation might be that shortly before this comic the scientific press wrote about heat-resistant bacteria that live in the desert and slowly eat regular rocks generating their own water in this process making even the sand in the desert partially alive.

==Transcript==
:[A chart consisting of vertical line, with 14 dots and a horizontal dashed dividing line drawn across the list a bit below the middle. Each dot has a label to the right of the line with a line pointing to the dot they belong to. Above and below the dividing line is a label with a broad arrow pointing up above and down below.]
:Up arrow: Alive
:Down arrow: Not alive

:[Dot labels from top to bottom above the dashed line:]
:Animals (Normal)
:Animals (Weird ones like jellyfish and coral)
:Fungi
:Plants
:Slime molds
:Bacteria
:Archea
:Viruses

:[Dot labels from top to bottom below the dashed line:]
:Prions
:Fire
:Clouds
:Fossils
:Rocks shaped like faces
:Regular rocks

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Biology]]
[[Category:Geology]]
[[Category:Mycology]]

Category:Space

2023-04-03T18:05:38Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

[[Category:Comics by topic]]
Space is the region that is defined as to be about 100 kilometers (62.1371 miles) above from the surface of the Earth. Since [[xkcd]] contains scientific humour, and the study of space is a valid construct of science, [[Randall]] has created some comics that are relating and pertaining to the topic of space.

Category:Space

2023-04-03T18:05:05Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

[[Category:Comics by topic]]
Space is the region that is defined as to be about 100 kilometers (62.1371 miles) above from the surface of the Earth. Since [[xkcd]] contains scientific humour, and the study of space is a valid construct of science, Randall has created some comics that are relating and pertaining to the topic of space.

Category:Astronomy

2023-04-03T18:04:37Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

Randall often uses [[xkcd]] to express his fascination with the science of space, which is commonly known as ''astronomy'' (''astrology'' in British English).

[[Category:Space]]
[[Category:Science]]
[[Category:Physics]]

Category:Space

2023-04-03T18:03:29Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

[[Category:Comics by topic]]
Space is the region that is defined as to be about 100 kilometers (62.1371 miles) above from the surface of the Earth. Since XKCD contains scientific humour, and the study of space is a valid construct of science, Randall has created some comics that are relating and pertaining to the topic of space.

2757: Towed Message

2023-04-03T15:28:15Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

{{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,{{Citation needed}} 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 plane crashed and the phone was destroyed on impact.

==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.
* A similar concept was shown in [[1897: Self Driving]].
* 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 comic may have been inspired by a recent article in the Washington Post [https://www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2023/03/22/how-hard-is-it-land-plane/] on how a person who is not a pilot is unlikely to be able to land a plane.
* 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, TV shows, and other related media.
* 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}}.

{{comic discussion}}

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

2754: Relative Terms

2023-03-25T18:12:10Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician: Just wanted to clear that up

{{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 defines 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
|-
| 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 ||
|-
| Northern lights ||
|-
| Shark ||
|-
| Statue ||
|-
| The Moon || Lower left corner
|-
| 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]]

Category:Comics from 2018

2023-03-08T23:25:59Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

These are comics from the year {{w|2018}}.

[[Category:Comics by year]]

Category:Comics from 2019

2023-03-04T22:51:08Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

These are comics from the year {{w|2019}}.

[[Category:Comics by year]]

Category:Comics from 2020

2023-03-04T22:50:41Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

These are comics from the year {{w|2020}}.

[[Category:Comics by year]]

Category:Comics from 2021

2023-03-04T22:50:08Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

These are comics from the year {{w|2021}}.

[[Category:Comics by year]]

Category:Tribute

2023-03-04T20:13:57Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

When special people (mostly to [[Randall]]) die, he has sometimes dedicated the next comic to their memory as a tribute.
*If possible the comic occurs on xkcd already the day after the person dies.
*This has been know to disregard the usual release schedule for the comic.

So far six people have a tribute:
*{{w|Gary Gygax}} is remembered in the comic [[393: Ultimate Game]]; it came out three days after his death on a Friday.
*{{w|Steve Jobs}} is remembered in the comic [[961: Eternal Flame]] which came out on a Thursday since he died on a Wednesday.
*{{w|Terry Pratchett|Sir Terry Pratchett}} is remembered in the comic [[1498: Terry Pratchett]]. He died on a Thursday, so even though the comic came out the day after, it was released on a normal release day, Friday.
*{{w|Douglas Engelbart}} is remembered in the comic [[1234: Douglas Engelbart (1925-2013)]], which came out on a Sunday three days after his death.
*{{w|Roddy Piper}}, former wrestler known as ''Rowdy'', played the protagonist in "They Live," and he died five days prior to the publication of [[1560: Bubblegum]]. Less known than the others it is likely that Randall did not know about this the day it happened, and this may explain the delay in the tribute. It was released on a normal release day, Wednesday.
*{{w|John Horton Conway}} is remembered in the comic [[2293: RIP John Conway]], which came out two days after his death on a normal Monday.

[[Category:Comics by topic]]

Category:Comics from 2023

2023-03-01T16:48:32Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

These are comics from the year {{w|2023}}.

[[Category:Comics by year]]

2744: Fanservice

2023-03-01T16:47:30Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

{{comic
| number = 2744
| date = March 1, 2023
| title = Fanservice
| image = fanservice_2x.png
| imagesize = 188x278px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = I was eventually kicked out of my architectural engineering program because I wouldn't stop referring to HVAC as "the fandom."
}}

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

This comic is very similar to [[2036: Edgelord]] and [[2654: Chemtrails]]. In all three of these comics, a modern slang term or just a commonly used word ("chemtrails" was the case in 2654) is used to describe a job, and while the slang or word is ''technically'' accurate, it isn't the normally used term for the job. Previously a graph theory PHD was labeled an "edgelord", a reference to how mathematical graphs have edges, but this time a turbine maintenance engineer is called out for doing a lot of fanservice, as in, literally serving/maintaining a huge fan, many of which often use turbines. In the other comic, trails of ant pheromones were labeled as "chemtrails", a reference to how pheromones are chemicals.

Randall has previously touched on wind turbines ''not'' being fans, most notably in [[1378: Turbine]].

Fanservice is the practice of authors to change their characters and/or show characters in movies in ways the audience desires, although this would often go against what the character stands for. It can also refer to other parts of the work, such as excessive use of a nostalgic theme song in a reboot when it otherwise does not make sense.

In the title text, Cueball refers to HVAC (a term for the unified heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems of a given building) as "the fandom." Normally, "fandom" means the group of fans of something, but here refers to a system that relies on lots of fans.

{{wiktionary|Fanservice}} is a term often used to describe certain decisions made in TV or film productions that more make some form of knowing nod to the viewers than is strictly necessary to the plot or visualisation of the work. It can just mean inserting obscure details of the work's back-history, to spark gleeful recognition amongst the more devoted fans, or it could be increasing the ridiculousness of character's behaviour (often due to one or other overly contrived reason) to live up to their stereotype. A frequent form of this is the {{tvtropes|MsFanservice|Ms. Fanservics}} trope, where the more glamorous female characters find themselves in more figurehugging clothing, clothing that actually covers {{tvtropes|ChainmailBikini|much less of their figure}} than should be practical or even find themselves shoehorned into a situation where they {{tvtropes|CensorSuds|aren't wearing}} even their 'normal' skimpy outfit.

[[White Hat]] is, in actuality, a person who repairs and maintains air-conditioners, or similar, and thus {{w|Maintenance|services}} {{w|Fan (machine)|fans}}. He seems quite annoyed by the term that [[Cueball]] uses to describe his job. Clearly he has heard this assertion many times before, whether from many different people (who may have thought this was a witty comment) or just many times from Cueball himself.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
[Cueball stands next to White Hat (apparently a turbine maintenance engineer)]

Cueball: So, I hear you do a lot of fanservice.

White Hat: NO!

[Caption below the panel:] How to annoy a turbine maintenance engineer

{{comic discussion}}

2036: Edgelord

2023-03-01T16:41:52Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician: New comic!

{{comic
| number = 2036
| date = August 22, 2018
| title = Edgelord
| image = edgelord.png
| titletext = If you study graphs in which edges can link more than two nodes, you're more properly called a hyperedgelord.
}}

==Explanation==
"Edgelord" is modern slang describing a brash provocateur on social media; often in a satirical way that if taken literally would be found disturbing or insensitive. The term derives from the word "edgy", which is used to describe things which are designed to be provocative. "Edgy" and "edgelord" are quite derogatory, carrying further implications of being style over substance, or only having appeal with rambunctious teenagers.

In mathematics, {{w|Graph theory|graph theory}} is the study of graphs, mathematical structures made up of nodes (points) which are connected by edges (or lines).

This comic plays on the fact that graphs have edges. Calling someone with a Graph Theory Ph.D. an 'edgelord' (a master of edges) is somewhat analogous to calling an engineering student a 'forcelord', an astronomy PhD a '{{w|Star-Lord|starlord}}', or a pharmacologist a '{{w|druglord}}'.

In reply, [[White Hat]] shouts "No", and is also clenching his fists in anger, which is ironic, because he seems to be on edge. Because "edgelord" is perceived as an insult by socially aware adults, [[Cueball]] is actually provoking White Hat, making Cueball an edgelord in this interaction. Similar situational humor is also found in [[2008: Irony Definition]].

The title text makes the same joke, except that the title would be hyperedgelord instead of edgelord. A {{w|Hypergraph|hypergraph}} is a generalization of a graph in which each edge may have more than two endpoints. The term "hyper edge" could easily be considered stereotypically "edgy."

Very similar jokes appear in [[2654: Chemtrails]] (at the expense of entomologists) and [[2744: Fanservice]] (at the expense of engineers).

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is talking to White Hat, who is balling his fists and has small lines above his head to indicate annoyance.]
:Cueball: So, I hear you're a real edgelord.
:White Hat: '''''No!'''''

:[Caption below the frame:]
:How to annoy a graph theory Ph.D.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]
[[Category:Math]]
[[Category:Social interactions]]
[[Category:Puns]]

Talk:2744: Fanservice

2023-03-01T16:40:34Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician: /* New recurring subject? */ new section

I don’t want to be that guy but “I got to the explanation so early that its only 1 sentence!” [[Special:Contributions/172.70.174.43|172.70.174.43]]

== New recurring subject? ==

First we had [[2036: Edgelord]]. Then we had [[2654: Chemtrails]]. Now we have this comic. They all start with "So, I hear" and end with "How to annoy". So I think that
a new recurring subject has been established. I'm thinking it should be called something like "How To Annoy Comics". [[User:SilverTheTerribleMathematician|Silver]] ([[User talk:SilverTheTerribleMathematician|talk]]) 16:40, 1 March 2023 (UTC)

User:SilverTheTerribleMathematician

2023-03-01T16:40:11Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

Hi. I’m a person. If you want to read more about me, go to {{w|User:SilverTheTerribleMathematician|my user page}} on {{w|Wikipedia}}. I’m not copypasting the entire spiel to here.

Anyways, it did not take me that long to read through the entire xkcd comic series: mainly only between {{w|2022#December|December 2022}} and {{w|2023#January|January 2023}}. I made my account in December 2022.

I'm also one of the most active users on this platform (by edits). There was a time when I was such for about 1-2 weeks in late-2022 and early-2023. That was primarily because I was scrolling through all of the comics on this wiki, and decided it would be good to clean it up along the way. Mostly I do minor edits.

2743: Hand Dryers

2023-03-01T15:10:43Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2743
| date = February 27, 2023
| title = Hand Dryers
| image = hand_dryers_2x.png
| imagesize = 618x309px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = I know hand dryers have their problems, but I think for fun we should keep egging Dyson on and see if we can get them to make one where the airflow breaks the speed of sound.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a DYSON ENGINEER - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
A {{w|hand dryer}} is an electrical device which uses air flow, typically of hot air, to dry the user's hands after they have just washed them. In the 30 or so seconds it takes to dry the hands, the user may feel as though the air coming from the hand dryer isn't actually warm,{{citation needed}} hence seeming like they "take forever to heat up," while in reality the water evaporating from the user's wet hands absorbs heat from them, as well as the possibly heated air, as {{w|evaporation}} is an endothermic process. Thus the user does not ''feel'' that the air from the dryer is warm, even though it is, and will only start to do so once their hands have been significantly dried. Interestingly, this absorption of heat through evaporation is how human {{w|sweat}} has its cooling effect, which means that even warm ambient air can be made to feel colder by being wafted across a person's dampened skin (which is how a regular fan works).

Randall has procured a small airplane, accompanied by a banner with a message explaining this phenomenon. He elaborates in the caption that he's spent dozens of years angry at the engineers of these hand dryers, as he was under the comic's erroneous impression that the air from the dryers was not actually warm. In an act of justice for hand dryer engineers everywhere, he now considers it his personal mission to explain to the public why this is actually a misconception. And indeed, it seems to be working - a person on the ground has already been [[1053: Ten Thousand|enlightened]] by Randall.

In the title text, the {{w|speed of sound}} is the speed of a sound wave{{citation needed}} in a given medium, usually air. Breaking the {{w|sound barrier}} is often touted as a significant achievement for powered aircraft (this was first safely achieved in the 1940s, and became significantly 'easier' with the development of the jet engine). Here, Randall thinks it would be a good idea to try and get the {{w|Dyson (company)|Dyson company}} (a technology company known for making high-tech, fancy and expensive air-moving devices such as vacuum-cleaners, fans and hand dryers) to design a hand dryer whose airflow would exceed the sound barrier. This would be technically difficult to achieve with such a relatively small device as a typical wall-mounted hand dryer. Nor would such a hand dryer really be practically useful, given that air currents faster than the speed of sound could cause injury to the hands of the dryer's users,{{Citation needed}} amongst other unintended effects.

This comic is not the only one to involve people flying banner planes to inform people on technologically related things, as that was previous done in a (lengthier) [[1965: Background Apps]].

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

:[An airplane tows a banner. In the distance, there are three small clouds and three birds]

:[On the banner is written:] It seems like hand dryers take forever to heat up, but that's because the evaporation cools your skin, so the hot air feels cold until the water is gone.

:Voice coming from the bottom of the panel: Ohhh!

:[Caption below the panel:] I spent decades mistakenly annoyed at hand dryer engineers, so now I'm on a mission to save others from the same fate.

{{comic discussion}}

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

2742: Island Storage

2023-02-25T14:25:24Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

{{comic
| number = 2742
| date = February 24, 2023
| title = Island Storage
| image = island_storage_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x435px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = I always hate dragging around the larger archipelagos, but I appreciate how the Scandanavian peninsula flexes outward to create a snug pocket for the British Isles.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by A BAD MAP PROJECTOR FIRED - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

This is another world map vandalized{{Citation Needed}} by Randall, similarly to the [[:Category:Bad Map Projections|bad map projection series]]. This time, every major island, that is not considered a continent in its own right, is relocated into similarly-sized swathes of sea partly enclosed by the outlines of adjacent continents. The caption implies it's Earth's intended "storage mode", where everything 'loose' is neatly packed away. A similar comic is found at [[1784: Bad Map Projection: Liquid Resize]].

New locations of various islands:

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Island(s)
! Original Location
! New Location
|-
| Vancouver Island
| West of mainland Canada
| {{w|Salish Sea}}
|-
| Northern Canadian Islands
| North of mainland Canada
| {{w|Hudson Bay}}
|-
| {{w|Newfoundland (Island)}}, {{w|Prince Edward Island}}, and {{w|Anticosti Island}}
| {{w|Labrador Sea|Off the eastern coast of Canada}}
| {{w|Gulf of St Lawrence}}
|-
| {{w|Greenland}}
| {{w|Greenland Sea|Northeast of Canada}}
| {{w|Gulf of Mexico}}
|-
| {{w|Hispaniola}} and {{w|Cuba}}
| {{w|Caribbean Sea}}
| Gulf of Mexico
|-
| Other Caribbean Islands
| Caribbean Sea
| {{w|Gulf of Venezuela}}
|-
| {{w|Iceland}}
| {{w|Sargasso Sea|Northern Atlantic Ocean}}
| {{w|Gulf of Lion|Coast of southern France}}
|-
| {{w|Great Britain}} and {{w|Ireland}}, ??
| Northwest Europe
| {{w|Baltic Sea}}
|-
| {{w|Sardinia}} and {{w|Sicily}}
| {{w|Tyrrhenian Sea|Off western coast of Italy}}
| Coast of Italy
|-
| {{w|Aegean Islands}}
| {{w|Aegean Sea}}
| Coast of Greece
|-
| {{w|New Guinea}}, {{w|Sumatra}}, {{w|Java}}, {{w|Sulawesi}}
| {{w|Solomon Sea}}, {{w|Natuna Sea}}, {{w|Java Sea}}, {{w|Sulawesi Sea}}
| {{w|Mediterranean Sea}}
|-
| {{w|Philippines}}
| {{w|Philippine Sea}}
| Black Sea
|-
| {{w|Novaya Zemlya}}
| {{w|Pechora Sea}}
| {{w|White Sea}}
|-
| {{w|Japan}}, {{w|Sakhalin}}
| {{w|Sea of Japan}}, {{w|Sea of Okhotsk}}
| Sea of Okhotsk
|-
| {{w|Taiwan}}, {{w|Hainan}}
| {{w|South China Sea}}
| {{w|Yellow Sea}}
|-
| {{w|Madagascar}}
| {{w|Mozambique Channel}}
| {{w|Red Sea}}
|-
| {{w|Sri Lanka}}
| {{w|Laccadive Sea}}
| {{w|Persian Gulf}}
|-
| {{w|Borneo}}
| South China Sea
| {{w|Gulf of Thailand}}
|-
| {{w|New Zealand}}, {{w|Tasmania}}
| {{w|Tasman Sea|Off the coast of Australia}}
| {{w|Gulf of Carpentaria}}
|-
|}

Though much of the apparent strange distortions of relocated islands are probably due to the relative changes in length/area/angle across differing parts of the planar-stretched map of the globe (depending upon the {{w|map projection}} being used), Randall is clearly also not averse to distorting the landmasses slightly, to fit, even the the 'immobile' continental masses. He mentions in the Title Text that he likes to make use of the jutting outcrop of {{w|Scandinavia}} (though misspelled as it was in [[850: World According to Americans]]) by flexing it somewhat like one might do with a spring-clip, thus gripping tightly whatever islands he forces within the gap (in this instance, the British Isles and another currently unconfirmed island).

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[A map of Earth with the largest continents (except Antarctica) in their usual locations, but all of the major islands have been moved into various bays and seas.]

:[Caption below the panel:]
:Reminder: If you're the last one using the Earth, please put the islands away when you're done.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Maps]]

Category:Comics from 2022

2023-02-24T22:10:38Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician: added wikipedia link

These are comics from the year {{w|2022}}.

[[Category:Comics by year]]

2716: Game Night Ordering

2023-02-24T22:06:57Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2716
| date = December 26, 2022
| title = Game Night Ordering
| image = game_night_ordering_2x.png
| imagesize = 293x471px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = One good trick, if you get called on a fake service, is to build a working version of it and mention it again the next week.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic is poking fun at the [[927: Standards|proliferation]] of apps and internet services such as for [https://builtin.com/consumer-tech/food-delivery-companies food delivery] and [https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/banking/best-ways-to-send-money money transfer]. The characters are discussing which to use during an evening of tabletop gaming. The group has a running competition to see who can mention fake apps or services without being called out. The idea being that, since there are so many, it is difficult to identify which are real.

[[Cueball]] mentions three food delivery services, {{w|Grubhub}}, {{w|DoorDash}}, and Food.net, and [[Ponytail]] asks him to reimburse her using {{w|Venmo}}, {{w|PayPal}}, or Yahoo Cash. Cueball expresses skepticism about Yahoo Cash, after which Ponytail admits it's a fake service (it's a spoof of {{w|Google Pay}}) and is thus obligated to pay for Cueball's meal. (Incidentally, Yahoo does provide a money transfer service to facilitate private party gambling on {{w|fantasy sports}}, called [https://sports.yahoo.com/wallet/dailyfantasy/referafriend/ Yahoo Fantasy Wallet], but it uses PayPal.) Food.net, which Cueball mentioned without being called out, is not a real service; https://food.net exists but is "not available for use," and is not related to food.

Based on Ponytail's offer, if someone is correctly called out then they apparently must pay for the player who caught them, but what happens when a player isn't caught (e.g. when Cueball mentioned Food.net) isn't clear. The rules might be similar to variants of the card game often known as "{{w|Cheat (game)|Cheat}}," in which a successful bluff merely allows play to continue on until someone is caught bluffing or incorrectly accuses another player.

The title text offers a tip for winning the competition after being called out for mentioning a fake service: building a working version of it and then mentioning it again the next week. While it could be possible to prototype a user interface and possibly use it to perform food deliveries with a very limited number of drivers in a small area, or provide a front end interface to an existing money transfer service with strong API support, building a full-fledged viable service for either in a week is humorously beyond the reach of typical gamers. Also, as in Ponytail's case, it could cause trademark issues with brand names.

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

:[Cueball, Megan, and Ponytail are sitting at a table to order food. Cueball is on his phone, and Ponytail, sitting opposite, on her laptop.]
:Cueball: What should we use to order? Grubhub? DoorDash? Food.net?
:Ponytail: I'll do Grubhub; you can send me money. Do you do Venmo? Paypal? Yahoo Cash?
:Cueball: Yahoo Cash ''has'' to be fake.
:Ponytail: Yes. Dang. I'll get your share.
:[Caption below the panel:]
:Our game night has an ongoing competition to see who can mention the most fake apps and services without getting called on it.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Food]]
[[Category:Games]]

2742: Island Storage

2023-02-24T21:46:08Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

{{comic
| number = 2742
| date = February 24, 2023
| title = Island Storage
| image = island_storage_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x435px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = I always hate dragging around the larger archipelagos, but I appreciate how the Scandanavian peninsula flexes outward to create a snug pocket for the British Isles.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by A BAD MAP PROJECTOR FIRED - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

This is another world map vandalized{{Citation Needed}} by Randall, similarly to the [[:Category:Bad Map Projections|bad map projection series]]. This time, every major island, that is not considered a continent in its own right, is relocated into similarly-sized swathes of sea partly enclosed by the outlines of adjacent continents. The caption implies it's Earth's intended "storage mode", where everything 'loose' is neatly packed away. A similar comic is found at [[1784: Bad Map Projection: Liquid Resize]].

New locations of various islands:

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Island(s)
! Original Location
! New Location
|-
| Northern Canadian Islands
| North of mainland Canada
| {{w|Hudson Bay}}
|-
| {{w|Newfoundland (Island)}}, {{w|Prince Edward Island}}, and {{w|Anticosti Island}}
| {{w|Labrador Sea|Off the eastern coast of Canada}}
| {{w|Gulf of St Lawrence}}
|-
| {{w|Greenland}}
| {{w|Greenland Sea|Northeast of Canada}}
| {{w|Gulf of Mexico}}
|-
| {{w|Hispaniola}} and {{w|Cuba}}
| {{w|Caribbean Sea}}
| Gulf of Mexico
|-
| Other Caribbean Islands
| Caribbean Sea
| {{w|Gulf of Venezuela}}
|-
| {{w|Iceland}}
| {{w|Sargasso Sea|Northern Atlantic Ocean}}
| {{w|Gulf of Lion|Coast of southern France}}
|-
| {{w|Great Britain}} and {{w|Ireland}}, ??
| Northwest Europe
| {{w|Baltic Sea}}
|-
| {{w|Sardinia}} and {{w|Sicily}}
| {{w|Tyrrhenian Sea|Off western coast of Italy}}
| Coast of Italy
|-
| {{w|Aegean Islands}}
| {{w|Aegean Sea}}
| Coast of Greece
|-
| {{w|New Guinea}}, {{w|Sumatra}}, {{w|Java}}, {{w|Sulawesi}}
| {{w|Solomon Sea}}, {{w|Natuna Sea}}, {{w|Java Sea}}, {{w|Sulawesi Sea}}
| {{w|Mediterranean Sea}}
|-
| {{w|Philippines}}
| {{w|Philippine Sea}}
| Black Sea
|-
| {{w|Novaya Zemlya}}
| {{w|Pechora Sea}}
| {{w|White Sea}}
|-
| {{w|Japan}}, {{w|Sakhalin}}
| {{w|Sea of Japan}}, {{w|Sea of Okhotsk}}
| Sea of Okhotsk
|-
| {{w|Taiwan}}, {{w|Hainan}}
| {{w|South China Sea}}
| {{w|Yellow Sea}}
|-
| {{w|Madagascar}}
| {{w|Mozambique Channel}}
| {{w|Red Sea}}
|-
| {{w|Sri Lanka}}
| {{w|Laccadive Sea}}
| {{w|Persian Gulf}}
|-
| {{w|Borneo}}
| South China Sea
| {{w|Gulf of Thailand}}
|-
| {{w|New Zealand}}, {{w|Tasmania}}
| {{w|Tasman Sea|Off the coast of Australia}}
| {{w|Gulf of Carpentaria}}
|-
|}

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[A map of Earth with the largest continents (except Antarctica) in their usual locations, but all of the major islands have been moved into various bays and seas.]

:[Caption below the panel:]
:Reminder: If you're the last one using the Earth, please put the islands away when you're done.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Maps]]

2742: Island Storage

2023-02-24T21:44:59Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2742
| date = February 24, 2023
| title = Island Storage
| image = island_storage_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x435px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = I always hate dragging around the larger archipelagos, but I appreciate how the Scandanavian peninsula flexes outward to create a snug pocket for the British Isles.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by KERBAL ISLAND PROGRAM 2 - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

This is another world map vandalized{{Citation Needed}} by Randall, similarly to the [[:Category:Bad Map Projections|bad map projection series]]. This time, every major island, that is not considered a continent in its own right, is relocated into similarly-sized swathes of sea partly enclosed by the outlines of adjacent continents. The caption implies it's Earth's intended "storage mode", where everything 'loose' is neatly packed away. A similar comic is found at [[1784: Bad Map Projection: Liquid Resize]].

New locations of various islands:

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Island(s)
! Original Location
! New Location
|-
| Northern Canadian Islands
| North of mainland Canada
| {{w|Hudson Bay}}
|-
| {{w|Newfoundland (Island)}}, {{w|Prince Edward Island}}, and {{w|Anticosti Island}}
| {{w|Labrador Sea|Off the eastern coast of Canada}}
| {{w|Gulf of St Lawrence}}
|-
| {{w|Greenland}}
| {{w|Greenland Sea|Northeast of Canada}}
| {{w|Gulf of Mexico}}
|-
| {{w|Hispaniola}} and {{w|Cuba}}
| {{w|Caribbean Sea}}
| Gulf of Mexico
|-
| Other Caribbean Islands
| Caribbean Sea
| {{w|Gulf of Venezuela}}
|-
| {{w|Iceland}}
| {{w|Sargasso Sea|Northern Atlantic Ocean}}
| {{w|Gulf of Lion|Coast of southern France}}
|-
| {{w|Great Britain}} and {{w|Ireland}}, ??
| Northwest Europe
| {{w|Baltic Sea}}
|-
| {{w|Sardinia}} and {{w|Sicily}}
| {{w|Tyrrhenian Sea|Off western coast of Italy}}
| Coast of Italy
|-
| {{w|Aegean Islands}}
| {{w|Aegean Sea}}
| Coast of Greece
|-
| {{w|New Guinea}}, {{w|Sumatra}}, {{w|Java}}, {{w|Sulawesi}}
| {{w|Solomon Sea}}, {{w|Natuna Sea}}, {{w|Java Sea}}, {{w|Sulawesi Sea}}
| {{w|Mediterranean Sea}}
|-
| {{w|Philippines}}
| {{w|Philippine Sea}}
| Black Sea
|-
| {{w|Novaya Zemlya}}
| {{w|Pechora Sea}}
| {{w|White Sea}}
|-
| {{w|Japan}}, {{w|Sakhalin}}
| {{w|Sea of Japan}}, {{w|Sea of Okhotsk}}
| Sea of Okhotsk
|-
| {{w|Taiwan}}, {{w|Hainan}}
| {{w|South China Sea}}
| {{w|Yellow Sea}}
|-
| {{w|Madagascar}}
| {{w|Mozambique Channel}}
| {{w|Red Sea}}
|-
| {{w|Sri Lanka}}
| {{w|Laccadive Sea}}
| {{w|Persian Gulf}}
|-
| {{w|Borneo}}
| South China Sea
| {{w|Gulf of Thailand}}
|-
| {{w|New Zealand}}, {{w|Tasmania}}
| {{w|Tasman Sea|Off the coast of Australia}}
| {{w|Gulf of Carpentaria}}
|-
|}

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[A map of Earth with the largest continents (except Antarctica) in their usual locations, but all of the major islands have been moved into various bays and seas.]

:[Caption below the panel:]
:Reminder: If you're the last one using the Earth, please put the islands away when you're done.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Maps]]

2742: Island Storage

2023-02-24T21:28:08Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

2025: Peer Review

2023-02-14T19:47:02Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

{{comic
| number = 2025
| date = July 27, 2018
| title = Peer Review
| image = peer_review.png
| titletext = Your manuscript "Don't Pay $25 to Access Any of the Articles in this Journal: A Review of Preprint Repositories and Author Willingness to Email PDF Copies for Free" has also been rejected, but nice try.
}}

==Explanation==
When a researcher wants to publish their findings, they send it to an academic journal. The editor of the journal is another researcher (usually a college professor), ''who gets paid nothing or a minimal honorarium'' for editing the journal. The editor chooses a few (usually three) peer reviewers who are other researchers familiar enough with the study's subfield to judge the study's quality fairly and accurately, and sends it out to them for review. These peer reviewers ''do not get paid'' for the work of reviewing the manuscript and offering a detailed critique of every part of the study, from literature review to methodology to conclusions drawn from the results. If the peer reviewers and editor agree that the study was well-conducted and the paper well-written (or just needs minor revisions), it is accepted and published in the journal. The researcher ''is not paid'' for getting their paper published in the journal.

In short, nobody in the process is paid for their work except the journal publisher, who charges other researchers, libraries and individuals for access to the fruit of these people's free labor. This is commonly referred to as a "{{w|paywall}}".

This system relies upon researchers to be employed by either companies or universities in positions which require them to publish in order to remain employed or achieve promotions or pay raises. In universities, only postdocs and tenure-track or tenured professors are paid in a way that figures in their research time as well as their teaching time, which means that anyone not in one of those positions (lecturers, educators, adjunct instructors) is not paid for any research they might be doing and publishing, nor are those who are conducting research but cannot get a tenure-track job due to universities replacing tenure lines with non-tenure-track positions.

Charging for access to these works has raised {{w|The Cost of Knowledge|controversy}} in recent years, due to concerns that this may lead to {{w|information silo}}s.

[[Ponytail]] seems to be presenting papers concluding that this flow of currency is not equitable. Unfortunately, the journal she has submitted these findings to has opted not to review or publish them, likely because they have a financial interest that conflicts with the publishing of her findings, since sending her paper to review would reach her target audience of voluntary peer reviewers and could potentially incite them to go on strike and demand payment for their work.

Furthermore, the comic contains the joke that Ponytail is doing exactly what she is dis-encouraging in the paper: publishing it in a journal, which probably does not pay their reviewers and possibly locks the papers behind a paywall. However, as this is how science works at the moment, she is obliged to do so in order to reach her audience.

The title text refers to a [https://twitter.com/hwitteman/status/1015049411276300289 Twitter post] that went viral. Researcher Dr. Holly Witteman informs the public that you could just ask many researchers for a PDF copy of their academic paper and that they would be delighted to do so free of charge. (This hearkens back to the days of snailmail, when researchers would distribute printed copies, "reprints", of their work for, at most, the price of a self-addressed stamped envelope.) She has additionally written [https://holly.witteman.ca/getting-access-to-paywalled-papers/ an article] on the situation and how to get papers for free.

Pre-print repositories, such as {{w|arXiv}}, are online databases for researchers to publish drafts of their research for quick distribution to willing reviewers, sidestepping the lengthy and often arduous reviewing process as conducted by many research journals. These databases are free to access by researchers and the general public, and often papers will remain on these sites long after their journal publication, making them a convenient way to get to papers locked behind a paywall. However, the pre-print versions of the papers will often lack peer review, and as such may contain a higher occurrence of errors. There are also sites which collect and re-publish papers for free, such as [https://sci-hub.hkvisa.net/ Sci-Hub], which attempts to provide all published papers free of charge globally. Links to Sci-Hub can go dead after being widely published; and as of 2023-02-15, this particular link is dead.

In the title text, the publisher refuses to publish a paper that describes ways to get around the paywall restrictions that make up their bottom line. In this refusal they even acknowledged that the author has tried to trick them, maybe by using one of those very long titles filled with incomprehensible jargon that is almost impossible to read, and remember to the end. So they finish the refusal by adding a "but nice try".

==Transcript==
:[Ponytail is sitting in a office chair at a desk reading from a laptop. Above her the text from the screen is shown in a frame with a zigzag arrow pointing to the laptop.]
:RE: Economics Journal Submission
:We have received your manuscript ''"The Bizarre Economics of Academic Publishing: Why Volunteer Peer Reviewers Should Rise Up and Demand Payment from For-Profit Journals."''
:We have elected not to send it out for review.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Science]]
[[Category:Scientific research]]

1456: On the Moon

2023-02-12T18:46:26Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician: Updating it a little bit

{{comic
| number = 1456
| date = December 5, 2014
| title = On the Moon
| image = on_the_moon.png
| titletext = "I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on Venus and returning him safely to--" [an aide frantically whispers in the president's ear for a moment] "... of landing a man on Venus."
}}

==Explanation==
The phrase "If we can land a man on the Moon, why can't we <blank>" is commonly used to question a perceived shortcoming of government, society or humanity in general. The {{w|Apollo program}} landed {{w|List of Apollo astronauts#Apollo astronauts who walked on the Moon|twelve astronauts}} on the {{w|Moon}} in six landing missions from July 1969 to December 1972 and returned all of those twelve astronauts safely to the Earth. However, from 1964 to 1967, there were eight deaths of astronauts or men training to be astronauts: three in the Apollo One fire, four in T-38 crashes, and one in an F-104 crash. The premise is usually that if "we" (whether referring generally to humanity, or specifically to the United States) have been able to achieve this extraordinary feat, our inability to achieve some lesser goal is questionable and/or ironic. Right after the Philae landing, the similar hashtag [https://twitter.com/hashtag/wecanlandonacometbutwecant #WeCanLandOnACometButWeCant] began on Twitter.

Here, Megan cuts Cueball's argument's short by implicitly reminding him that humanity has not put another human on the Moon since the end of the Apollo program in December 1972 (nearly 42 years at the time this comic was published). New manned programs to return to the Moon, such as the {{w|Constellation Program}}, have been repeatedly cancelled. The {{w|Orion (spacecraft)|Orion spacecraft}}, which will be capable of carrying humans beyond {{w|low Earth orbit}} for the first time in over 40 years, executed its first test flight on the day after this comic was published. However, this is outdated, as {{w|NASA}} is planning to go to the moon again with the {{w|Artemis Program}}. The launch date of when {{w|Artemis 3}}, the mission where humans will return, has been provided as being sometime in 2025, three years from now (and at that point this comic would be eleven years old).

The title text is a retelling of {{w|John F. Kennedy|President Kennedy's}} famous inspirational [http://www.jfklibrary.org/Asset-Viewer/xzw1gaeeTES6khED14P1Iw.aspx address to the U.S. Congress in May 1961] ("I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth"), which set into motion the Apollo program, except that this time, the speaker is talking about putting a man on planet {{w|Venus}}. The aide presumably explains to the president that, unlike Moon, Venus has gravity close to that of the Earth, but what's more, its surface {{w|Atmosphere_of_Venus|atmosphere}} density and pressure, and other factors including high temperature, strong winds and sulfuric acid clouds would make manned launch back to orbit practically impossible at our current technological level. As a result, the president backtracks from the goal of returning the astronauts safely to the Earth and comically limits the aspiration to landing an astronaut on Venus, full stop, without regard to the astronaut's safe return. This differs slightly from Kennedy's goal, which included the safe return of at least one astronaut from the moon. Although the overall 8:12 ratio of deaths to moonwalkers (during the period for Kennedy's speech to the end of the Apollo program) was too high to be considered "safe" by most standards, Kennedy had specified the safety only of the men who landed on the moon, and set a goal of "a" man returning safely. Technically, even if most of the men who landed died, as long as one returned safely by the end of 1969, Kennedy's goal would have been met.

Kennedy's 1961 speech was also mentioned in the title text of [[753: Southern Half]].

==Transcript==
:[Cueball and Megan are walking together heading right.]
:Cueball: If we could land a man on the Moon, why can't we-
:Megan: -land a man on the Moon?
:Cueball: ...ok, fair. But we're working on it, OK?

{{comic discussion}}

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

Footnote

2023-02-10T22:30:46Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician: /* Current footnote */

{{xkcdmeta}}{{TOC}}
At the bottom of the [[xkcd]] comics beneath [[Randall|Randall's]] list of ''Comics I Enjoy'' there is a footnote written in a very tiny font, as to make it almost unreadable. There have been two footnotes displayed over the course of xkcd's history, with a gap of 22 days without any footnotes after the first footnote's removal.

See [[Design of xkcd.com]].

== Current footnote ==
A new footnote was added either on [https://web.archive.org/web/20161004143542/http://xkcd.com/ October 4th] or on [https://web.archive.org/web/20161005090723/http://xkcd.com/ October 5th], 2016.

As of October 2016 the footnote/tiny print at the bottom of xkcd.com pages reads:
:{{Quote|xkcd.com is best viewed with Netscape Navigator 4.0 or below on a Pentium 3±1 emulated in Javascript on an Apple IIGS at a screen resolution of 1024x1. Please enable your ad blockers, disable high-heat drying, and remove your device from Airplane Mode and set it to Boat Mode. For security reasons, please leave caps lock on while browsing.|xkcd.com}}
It did not (immediately) replace the [[#Original footnote|Original footnote]] as there had been a span of [[#Removal of original footnote|22 days without a footnote]] in between these two footnotes.

The text gives questionable advice on how to view xkcd.com. Using a discontinued browser on an Apple computer released in 1986 with a screen resolution one pixel tall would be extremely difficult.

;Netscape Navigator 4.0 or below
:It is normal to specify browser and minimum version, as all later versions typically retain needed features from previous versions. Instead, the footnote claims that older versions are better (perhaps due to reliance on a bug fixed after version 4.0). No version of Netscape Navigator is currently maintained.

;on a Pentium 3±1
:Pentium was a brand of processors made by Intel. Instead of specifying a minimum processor generation (as in software system requirements), both a minimum and maximum are given. This notation is often used for specifying tolerances, usually of a physical property (e.g. electrical resistance) - a tolerance range of "Pentium 3, plus or minus one" indicates anything older than Pentium 2 or newer than Pentium 4 is sub-optimal. It may also refer to the more mathematical usage of plus or minus, which would indicate it's best viewed on a Pentium 2, or a Pentium 4, but nothing else.

;emulated in Javascript
:Javascript is a programming language used on web pages. While it may be possible to write a Pentium emulator in Javascript, this would be a very strange choice.

;on an Apple IIGS
:The Apple IIGS was a computer made in the 1980's. Even the slowest Pentium computers are hundreds of times faster than the Apple IIGS. Combined with the inefficiencies of processor emulation, this would result in a painfully slow experience, if it worked at all.
:The Apple IIGS was made before Internet connections were common, and there was probably no web Javascript-compatible browser for it, if any browser at all. There are now Ethernet cards available for the IIGS.

;at a screen resolution of 1024x1.
:If the dimensions given are in pixels, as they usually are, then the recommended display setting would only show one horizontal line. 1024 pixels is wider than the maximum supported display width of the Apple IIGS.

;Please enable your ad blockers,
:Many sites ask users to disable ad blockers, either so the owner can get ad revenue, or because blockers sometimes inadvertently block other parts of the page. But here it is recommended to enable the blockers, even though there would be nothing to block since xkcd does not have advertisements.

;disable high-heat drying,
:This appears to be referring to clothes dryer heat settings, which are irrelevant to websites. Some clothing is damaged if dried with high heat.

;and remove your device from Airplane Mode and set it to Boat Mode.
:Many portable devices, especially cell phones and tablets, have an "Airplane Mode," which disables all radio-frequency transmissions (wifi, mobile/cellphone connectivity, etc) to avoid potential interference with an aircraft's own electronics while flying. "Boat Mode" is fictional. (Though it might be nice to have a boat mode that turns the phone off if dropped, to reduce water damage, although this wouldn't help much, as the phone would probably never be found.)

;For security reasons, please leave caps lock on while browsing.
:Having caps lock on would not improve security. It may reduce your security if it prevents you from using lower-case letters in passwords.

== Original footnote ==
Previously the footnote was (the earliest webarchive with it is from [https://web.archive.org/web/20070503171452/http://xkcd.com/ May 2007]):
:BTC 1FhCLQK2ZXtCUQDtG98p6fVH7S6mxAsEey
:We did not invent the algorithm. The algorithm consistently finds Jesus. The algorithm killed Jeeves.
:The algorithm is banned in China. The algorithm is from Jersey. The algorithm constantly finds Jesus.
:This is not the algorithm. This is close.

Relevant info/links:
*[[BTC]] means {{w|bitcoin}}. The string of alphanumeric characters is his bitcoin address.
**[https://blockchain.info/address/1FhCLQK2ZXtCUQDtG98p6fVH7S6mxAsEey 1FhCLQK2ZXtCUQDtG98p6fVH7S6mxAsEey]
*[http://www.flickr.com/photos/chrisnoessel/455335731/ The algorithm killed Jeeves].
*[http://www.flickr.com/photos/omargutierrez/444552272/ The algorithm is banned in China].
*[http://www.flickr.com/photos/19873723@N00/451996056/ The algorithm is from Jersey].
*[http://www.flickr.com/photos/thejof/453596732/ The algorithm constantly finds Jesus].

It was added by Randall in April 2007, according to his [http://blog.xkcd.com/2007/04/19/billboards/ April 19th, 2007] [[Blag]] post as a response to [http://web.archive.org/web/20070601192105/http://valleywag.com/tech/mystery-billboards/asks-advertising-campaign-249274.php random billboards] appearing in the New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco areas. It turned out these were a viral marketing campaign by the ask(jeeves) search engine to drive publicity around their new search algorithm. The campaign is long over, but Randall kept the text there (apparently) as a self referential advertising campaign. Specifically, people who find the small text will use a search engine to see what it means and the search engine will likely lead them back to [[xkcd]] — where they saw the text initially.

=== Removal of original footnote ===
The entire old footnote was removed on September 12th, 2016 as was the [[xkcd warning]] above it. The [https://web.archive.org/web/20160912181546/https://xkcd.com/ last day these were on the page] was September 12th, 2016 when [[1732: Earth Temperature Timeline]] was released.

It was maybe due to the [[1732#Popularity_of_comic|popularity of the comic]] that this footnote
was removed along with the warning to not scare new fans away.

Four hours later that day the page [https://web.archive.org/web/20160912204204/http://xkcd.com/ looked like this] with no footnote or warning.

There was then a span from the 12th September until the 5th of October where there where no footnote, before the [[#Current footnote|Current footnote]] was added.

== No footnote ==
Before the [[#Original footnote|Original footnote]] was printed there was no footnote at least [https://web.archive.org/web/20070406183323/http://xkcd.com/# until April of 2007].

[[Category:Design of xkcd]]

User:SilverTheTerribleMathematician

2023-02-09T20:32:21Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

Talk:813: One-Liners

2023-02-09T19:25:46Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

I dunno, "Bangarang, motherfucker!" seems a lot more quotable to me than most of the others. Actually, I think I'm going to try to use it in my daily life. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.55.210|173.245.55.210]] 15:54, 31 October 2013 (UTC)
:I guess that it is deemed least likely since it comes from a children's movie about children who do not wish to grow up (which back in Peter Pans day meant not to use swear words). But this is a very sketchy draft like explain - hope someone can do it better now that it has been marked incomplete. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 14:28, 8 January 2015 (UTC)

* Well, that, and Skrillex. {{unsigned ip|108.162.218.101}}
I think the last frame is the most quotable as well. It's very similar to John McClain's one-liner from the Die Hard movies: "Yippie Ki-Yay, Mother Fucker". {{unsigned ip|173.245.56.85}}

Well, I'd gladly use the one in the title text daily; now that I've seen this comic, I probably will.--[[User:NSDCars5|NSDCars5]] ([[User talk:NSDCars5|talk]]) 11:14, 10 March 2014 (UTC)NSDCars5.

I have been saying "Bangarang, motherfucker" for 4 years now because of this cartoon. OK, I am lying, I have never said in my life, but I will this week. Next week at the latest. --[[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.11|173.245.54.11]] 16:13, 12 May 2014 (UTC)

I can recall one or so squabbles in infant school and am sure the mentality carried to primary school where those that didn't take their shot when you called bang were decidedly unfair. I always died heroically when it was my turn. Why not them?
Bastards!

Anyway I am over it now. I wouldn't approach a crashed car with an empty gun if I could see the bank robber was still alive in it. I would suspect that he wouldn't take his shot and die heroically. Or that his brother was tumbled over in the back seat waking up just in time to become a problem.

How come Dirty Harry never read "Shooting to Live with the One-Hand Gun"?

[[User:Weatherlawyer| I used Google News BEFORE it was clickbait]] ([[User talk:Weatherlawyer|talk]]) 00:11, 26 January 2015 (UTC)

Is the "forgot to carry the two" a reference to Laser Tag? The advertising for this many years back featured an action sequence followed by the question "did he fire six shots, or only five?" Miscounting the number of rounds available is a common action movie trope, though it would be a rather extreme form of calculation that would require carrying the two (the result of adding or subtracting a pair of larger numbers than the carrying capacities of most hand weapons). - Andrew, 7:15pm, Saturday 10th January 2015.

: I hadn't thought of it that way. To me the chalkboard filled with maths/physics in the background and the fact the other character only has a knife suggests that it isn't relating to bullets. --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 15:45, 14 January 2015 (UTC)

I removed the incomplete tag which called for an explanation of what "Carry the two" means. I could add a description of what is meant by 'carrying' in arithmetic, but it doesn't really matter. As I read it, the only thing that matters is that Cueball is pointing out a maths error, which is already in the explanation. It could be "You've divided by zero", "You've forgotten to add the 5", "You missed the exponent". --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 15:45, 14 January 2015 (UTC)

Number four is pretty great ( :-) ). [[Special:Contributions/108.162.221.150|108.162.221.150]] 06:42, 21 August 2015 (UTC)

I think "You forgot to carry the two" is about pointing a flaw in the other's plan, which led to him losing the fight. It's funny because it's a really stupid flaw. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.70.22|141.101.70.22]] 11:00, 13 April 2016 (UTC)

A variation of number four appears in the Doctor Strange movie, about not reading all the warnings before casting spells. It is even used as a (sort-of) one-liner near the end! [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.94|108.162.216.94]] 08:53, 2 August 2017 (UTC)

I first read the line as; "Batarang, motherfucker!". I was so confused at what I thought was a Batman reference :P [[User:The Cat Lady|-- The Cat Lady]] ([[User talk:The Cat Lady|talk]]) 14:47, 20 August 2021 (UTC)

I've added another possible explanation for the "carry the two", which was my initial reading of it. Hope it doesn't seem too bizarre... [[Special:Contributions/172.70.162.147|172.70.162.147]] 19:15, 16 March 2022 (UTC)

I'd have to agree that "Bangarang, motherfucker" is actually the most quotable... [[User:SilverTheTerribleMathematician|SilverTheTerribleMathematician]] ([[User talk:SilverTheTerribleMathematician|talk]]) 19:25, 9 February 2023 (UTC)

Category:Footer comics

2023-02-09T19:10:09Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

*These six comics ([[150]], [[730]], [[162]], [[688]], [[556]], & [[1732]]) are all found on the current footer of the [[xkcd|xkcd site]]. These comics can be often described as heavily representational of the comic itself.

**See [[Design of xkcd.com]] for more on the [[Design_of_xkcd.com#Footer_comics|Footer comics]]

==Changes to footer comics==
*On [https://web.archive.org/web/20060207154349/http://www.xkcd.com/ Feb 7, 2006] the first footer comics were available. It featured [[40]], [[49]], [[37]], [[44]] & [[10]], in that order.
*On [https://web.archive.org/web/20060408214700/http://www.xkcd.com/ April 8, 2006] the first one changed to [[77]].
*On [https://web.archive.org/web/20061013224954/http://www.xkcd.com/ Oct 13, 2006] it changed to current style, although still only the five top footer comics, and with [[150]], [[123]], [[162]], [[55]] & [[77]], rather than the current set of five.
*On [https://web.archive.org/web/20100817210844/http://xkcd.com/ Aug 17, 2010] it changed three of the comics leaving [[150]], [[730]], [[162]], [[688]], [[556]]. Those five are all still there.
*On [https://web.archive.org/web/20190301225128/https://xkcd.com/ March 1, 2019] it changed to the current version by including [[1732: Earth Temperature Timeline]] below the other five comics. The new addition was included as one long image taking up the same space as the other five comics.

==Image of current footer comics==
:[[File:footer.png|center|700px]]

[[Category:Distinctive comics]]

April Fools' Day comics

2023-02-09T06:23:41Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

*Comics (or other happenings related to xkcd) that were put up on {{w|April Fools' Day}} as an April Fools' Day joke. They have been annual, having been featured every year since 2018.

*'''Click''' to expand for a more detailed explanation:
<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed leftAlign" style="width:100%">
<br>

==Explanation==
In 2006, the first year that xkcd released in March and April, there was no comic released on April 1st and no April Fools' comic was released. The two comics before and after were [[83: Katamari]] from March 31st and [[84: National Language]] from April 3rd.

[[Randall]] first posted an April Fools' comic on Sunday, April 1, 2007. This comic ("[[Syndication]]") was not numbered; sequentially, it came between [[242: The Difference]] and [[243: Appropriate Term]]. It has not been preserved in the official xkcd archives, though it survives on a [http://forums.xkcd.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=3701 thread in the xkcd forums].

For April Fools' Day 2008 [[Randall]] created [[404: Not Found]], which is a meta-comic, since it in fact doesn't exist. But that he considers it a comic is both made clear in the explanation for said "comic" and also since he links to it in his 2018 April fools' comic [[1975: Right Click]], from a fools' menu that links to all his comic alphabetically by title.

The comic for April 1st 2009 had no obvious ties to April Fools' Day, but on that day Randall made an April Fool in another way. See the [[563:_Fermirotica#Trivia|Trivia section]] for [[563: Fermirotica]], released that day.

April 1st, 2010 didn't coincide with a comic release. However, on that day the site was altered to mimic a Unix command line interface, the so called [[UniXKCD]]. (This happened wile [[721: Flatland]] was the newest comic, but it was released March 31st and had nothing to do with April Fools' Day, see this [[721:_Flatland#UniXKCD|trivia]]).

Starting on Friday, April 1st, 2011 with [[880: Headache]], [[Randall]] has released a real April Fools' Day joke annually, except 2017.

Beginning with the second year in that row, with [[1037: Umwelt]], he moved the release day to Sunday April 1st 2012, and thus began the practice of releasing an April Fools Day comic on April 1st, notwithstanding [[#Release Weekday|what day of the week]] it fell on by shifting the comic's release to that day. Typically it would thus replace the next release day, so there would not be a comic on Monday the 2nd or 3rd of April, if April 1st fell in the weekend.

This worked for the next three years with [[1193: Externalities]] in 2013, [[1350: Lorenz]] in 2014 (first Tuesday release) and [[1506: xkcloud]] in 2015. But then the project became so complicated that in 2016, the release was delayed until [[1663:_Garden#Monday_4th_of_April_release|Monday April 4th]] with [[1663: Garden]].

The yearly trend thus continued until 2017, where no comics were released on April 1st. And the two comics around the date had nothing to do with such a joke. See more on this, and why this may have been the case, in the [[1818:_Rayleigh_Scattering#No_April_Fools.27_Day_comic_in_2017|trivia section]] of the first of these two, [[1818: Rayleigh Scattering]].

Then from 2018 Randall once again began releasing April Fools' Day comic. In 2018 he again moved the release day from Monday April 2nd to Sunday April 1st with [[1975: Right Click]]. In this comic he both links to [[404: Not Found]] and [[UniXKCD]] two of his previous "not a real comic" April Fools' Day jokes. In 2019 April 1st was a Monday so a normal release day, and he released [[2131: Emojidome]], another user generated comic.

In 2020 he again had trouble and the release of [[2288: Collector's Edition]] was delayed two days for a [[2288:_Collector's_Edition#Trivia|Friday April 3rd release]]. Instead the planned Friday comic [[2289: Scenario 4]] was released on Saturday.

In 2021 [[2445: Checkbox]] was released on Thursday April 1st, making it the first April Fools' Day comic to be released on a Thursday. Only Saturday has yet to see a special release. It could have been in 2017, but that was the year without such a comic. Next Saturday April 1st will be in 2023.

In 2022 [[2601: Instructions]] was released on Friday April 1st, a normal release day. There was though an interesting fact related to this release. First of all it visually was similar to the previous Fools' comic, which had only a {{w|checkbox}} to begin with. Instructions only had a {{w|radio button}}. But more interesting, like last year, this comic had an audio part. Thus making it a recurring Fools' theme, and also making these two comics the, at that time, only [[:Category:Comics with audio|comics with audio]]. Although in Instructions the sounds was a vital part of the joke, which was not the case the year before. (Also both comics had a mute button, that could toggle the sound on and off. But the two comics similar buttons worked in reverse, so the mute button had muted sound in the first, but the audio on in the second of the two comics...)

[[Randall]] discusses several April Fools comics in his talk at [https://vimeo.com/78912850 Øredev 2013].

===Release Weekday===
*Here is a list of the day of the week the "real" April 1st comic was released.
**Those not on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, have been moved to hit April 1st.
***Example with the first to do so [[1037: Umwelt]].
***It was planned for release on Monday April 2nd but came out Sunday April 1st 2012.
***The next comic [[1038: Fountain]] skipped Monday and came out as normal Wednesday April 4th.

#2008 '''Tuesday''' April 1st:
##[[404: Not Found]]
##This was technically not a comic, but it did specifically "not come out" on April 1st.
##But it DID not come out, between the normal Monday and Wednesday release making it "not" an extra comic that week.
#2011 Friday April 1st:
##[[880: Headache]]
#2012 '''Sunday''' April 1st:
##[[1037: Umwelt]]
##The next release was not Monday but Wednesday, so it replaced the Monday release.
#2013 Monday April 1st:
##[[1193: Externalities]]
#2014 '''Tuesday''' April 1st:
##[[1350: Lorenz]]
##This was the first Tuesday release, but the other two releases that week fell normally on Monday and Friday, thus it replaced Wednesdays release.
#2015 Wednesday April 1st:
##[[1506: xkcloud]]
#2016 [[1663:_Garden#Monday_4th_of_April_release|Monday April 4th]]:
##[[1663: Garden]]
##This comic was supposed to be released Friday April 1st but had technical problems and ended up being released on Monday April 4th.
##There where thus only two comics in the week before. See the link above.
##There was [[1663:_Garden#April_Fool.27s_comic|no doubt]] that this was supposed to be the April Fools' day comic.
###There where [[1818:_Rayleigh_Scattering#No_April_Fools.27_Day_comic_in_2017|No April Fools' Day comic]] in 2017!
#2018 '''Sunday''' April 1st:
##[[1975: Right Click]]
##The next release was not Monday but Wednesday, so it replaced the Monday release.
#2019 Monday April 1st:
##[[2131: Emojidome]]
#2020 [[2288:_Collector's_Edition#Trivia|Friday April 3rd]]:
##[[2288: Collector's Edition]]
##This comic was supposed to be released Wedenday April 1st but had technical problems and ended up being released on Friday April 3rd.
##The original planned Friday comic, [[2289: Scenario 4]], was then released on Saturday April 4th
#2021 '''Thursday''' April 1st:
##[[2445: Checkbox]]
##The next release was not Friday but Monday, so it replaced the Friday release.
#2022 '''Friday''' April 1st:
##[[2601: Instructions]]
</div>
<br>

[[Category:Comics by date]]
[[Category:Comics from April]]
[[Category:Distinctive comics]]

Talk:404: Not Found

2023-02-08T05:43:12Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

Maybe it was skipped because he had to. In some, if not all websites, there's the 404.html file that is displayed when there's a 404 error (example: /var/www/404.html/), so it would have shown the '404' page that existed the whole time, because xkcd.com/404 would have shown 404.html.[[Special:Contributions/173.245.55.73|173.245.55.73]] 22:58, 2 April 2014 (UTC)
: But there's a 401, a 402, a 403, 405, a 451. If it was done because an error code got in the way, he would have had to skip these too (and going to them manually would show the respective error pages). Also, comic 404's page appears to be the server's default 404 page, which probably isn't even stored in the same directory as the comics. [[User:Hppavilion1|Hppavilion1]] ([[User talk:Hppavilion1|talk]]) 21:28, 10 August 2016 (UTC)
:: "404.html" is merely the default name for a 404 page in several web server configurations. It can be easily changed or disabled and most definitely did not factor into the comic's creation. [[User:Zekesonxx|Zekesonxx]] ([[User talk:Zekesonxx|talk]]) 02:17, 18 October 2016 (UTC)

April 1st, 2008 was a Tuesday, so no xkcd comic would have normally come out then. For that week, [[403|xkcd 403]] was Monday, March 31st, 2008, [[405|xkcd 405]] was Wednesday, April 2nd, and [[406|xkcd 406]] was Friday, April 4th. 404 was just skipped. It is also skipped in the "previous comic"/"next comic" links on his site. I don't think it was an April Fools gag. [[User:Blaisepascal|Blaisepascal]] ([[User talk:Blaisepascal|talk]]) 19:03, 22 August 2012 (UTC)

:Well, I'd say that it certainy might be. In any case, it's an interesting observation! [[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 11:22, 23 November 2012 (UTC)

:Then again, his skipping from 403 to 405 (making 404 come up "404: Not Found") may have been his April Fool joke that year. The timing may have been coincidental, but I don't blame him for taking advantage of it. --[[User:Aaron of Mpls|Aaron of Mpls]] ([[User talk:Aaron of Mpls|talk]]) 23:16, 15 April 2013 (UTC)

::No, because there was already another April's Fool joke in 2008: xkcd, Questionable Content and Dinosaur Comics rotated their content ([https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dinosaur_Comics&oldid=680776133#April_Fool.27s_jokes]). However the timing does seem quite suspicious. -- [[User:Xorg|Xorg]] ([[User talk:Xorg|talk]]) 21:52, 16 April 2013 (UTC)

This entry isn't on the list of all comics 1-500, and I made the mistake of adding this comic to the list. I was about to add an explanation, with a link to a webcomic about it, when I found this page. I think that this page should be liked in the all comics 1-500 list so that others don't make the same mistake and so that curious people can easily get to it. [[User:Rylon|Rylon]] ([[User talk:Rylon|talk]]) 18:10, 17 July 2013 (UTC)
:The link is changed.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 18:55, 17 July 2013 (UTC)

;The hidden link
Nobody did find that hidden link? A shame. Just a simple test on this [http://www.xkcd.com/test/ http://www.xkcd.com/test/] gives me a link to this comic: [[1335: Now]]. And this page still appears like it was on the original release date on February 26 this year. I'm pretty sure there is still a link, some avant-garde, and Randall still giggles about that nobody did find this within six years. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 23:12, 10 March 2014 (UTC)
: Actually, you may be interested to note that xkcd.com/test now links to the Lorenz comic (#1350). [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.73|108.162.219.73]] 15:16, 16 April 2014 (UTC)
: It keeps changing then... Today it was [[1367: Installing]]. It was 12, then 15 and now 19 days between the test and the day the link pointed at it. [[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 15:00, 31 May 2014 (UTC)
: Now it's [[1446: Landing]]. --[[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.182|199.27.128.182]] 22:56, 25 November 2014 (UTC)
::[[1485: Friendship]] now --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 07:52, 1 April 2015 (UTC)
:::And now it links to [[1664: Mycology]] [[User:Zorlax the Mighty|Zorlax the Mighty would like to connect on Linkedin]] ([[User talk:Zorlax the Mighty|talk]]) 21:52, 21 April 2016 (UTC)
::::Today almost two years after last post it was [[1812: Onboarding]]. Wrote here because of today's comic [[1969: Not Available]] which references 404 error message --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 20:33, 20 March 2018 (UTC)
:::::Today, it is this own comic, 404. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.122.120|162.158.122.120]] 22:30, 18 December 2019 (UTC)

I’m getting rid of the Internet Explorer stuff and taking a picture of it on Edge. IE is hardly even used anymore. [[User:SilverTheTerribleMathematician|SilverTheTerribleMathematician]] ([[User talk:SilverTheTerribleMathematician|talk]]) 05:43, 8 February 2023 (UTC)

Category:Extra comics

2023-02-08T05:39:26Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

This category contains comics by [[Randall Munroe]] not belonging to the common numbered posts on [[xkcd]]. Considering that the last non-numbered comic was released nearly 8 years ago (October 22nd, 2015), it seems as Randall has retired this concept.

[[Category:Distinctive comics]]

2734: Electron Color

2023-02-07T16:49:17Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

{{comic
| number = 2734
| date = February 6, 2023
| title = Electron Color
| image = electron_color_2x.png
| imagesize = 568x256px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = There's quark color, but that's not really color--it's just an admission by 20th century physicists that numbers are boring.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by A SUPER-INTELLIGENT SHADE OF THE COLOUR BLUE - Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
In this comic [[Miss Lenhart]] is teaching a school class physics. One of her students ask what the color of electrons is.

This is a relevant question for a kid to ask since on many scientific diagrams of atoms, the subatomic particles have been assigned colors to identify them for the reader. Neutrons are generally red, green, or gray; protons red or green and electrons might be blue or yellow. But there is no general rule so the kid may be confused.

In completely off character style Miss Lenhart actually gives a correct explanation and states that, unlike the diagrams, which are colored for convenience, the particles are not colored. She even gives the correct explanation for this fact: ''They're too small to interact with visible light, so "color" isn't even defined for them.'' For a more typical Miss Lenhart see for instance [[1519: Venus]].

Of course she then continues by saying that electrons are definitely yellow. If she means they should be yellow on diagrams, because she feels that is to correct way to depict them in drawings of atoms, or if she just teases her young pupils is uncertain. But her off-panel pupils takes her word for it. Presumable the kid who asked question says he knew it, to the fact that electrons are yellow (the first color he mentions in his original question.) He and the other pupils completely ignores what Miss Lenhart just told them. The debate then starts as one pupil claims ''and protons are red?'', and another chimes in, with a ''No, they're gray!'' This only makes sense in a debate of how to draw atoms. Not regarding their actual color, as Miss Lenhart just explained.

The opinions over the colors are probably based on what kind of diagram a persons has initially been exposed, and those 'standard' diagramatic conventions and now forevermore culturally predisposed to different 'correct' interpretations of which hues to use.

Although individual electrons do not have a color, it's possible to produce a solution of [https://chemed.chem.purdue.edu/demos/main_pages/9.4.html 'solvated' electrons], which lend a blue tint to the solvent.

The title text refers to the {{w|color charge}} property of quarks, a property which is part of {{w|quantum chromodynamics}}. As mentioned by [[Randall]], these have nothing to do with color as we know it, but is just a way to represent interactions between quarks in a sufficiently analogous fashion that avoids inventing entirely new words to describe a particular threefold quality of the necessary {{w|color confinement|inter-quark groupings}}. And he jokingly says that the 20th century physicists that came up with the three color system did this as ad admission that numbers are boring. They could just have called the color charge 1 2 and 3.

==Transcript==
:[Miss Lenhart is teaching a class. A boy with spiky hair sits at his desks with his hand raised asking a question. Science Girl sits in front of him looking back at him while leaning an arm on the back of her chair.]
:Miss Lenhart: You have a question?
:Boy: Yeah-What color are electrons and protons? Are they yellow? Red? Blue?

:[Zoom in on Miss Lenhart's head.]
:Miss Lenhart: Subatomic particles don't have a color.
:Miss Lenhart: They're too small to interact with visible light, so "color" isn't even defined for them.

:[Zoom back out but only showing Miss Lenhart. Three pupils reply from off-panel with speech lines coming from starburst at the right edge of the panel.]
:Miss Lenhart: That said, electrons are '''''definitely''''' yellow.
:Off-panel voice 1: I knew it!
:Off-panel voice 2: And protons are red, right?
:Off-panel voice 3: ''What?'' No! They're gray!

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Miss Lenhart]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Science Girl]]
[[Category:Kids]] 
[[Category:Physics]]

1795: All You Can Eat

2023-02-05T22:34:46Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1795
| date = February 6, 2017
| title = All You Can Eat
| image = all_you_can_eat.png
| titletext = After my absent-mindedness resulted in a bad posterboard-related stomachache, I learned to do the sign-making place last.
}}

==Explanation==
An all-you-can-eat {{w|buffet}} is when a restaurant will charge you once for entry and then continuously serve you more food at no additional cost until you have eaten all-you-can-eat. Part of the "[[:Category:My Hobby|My Hobby]]" series, this comic shows [[Randall]] wishes to prepend "all-you-can-eat" to random stores.

With the exception of the pet store, which sells pet food, these stores do not sell food, so the very idea of eating their product would be ridiculous for most humans. However, this is what Randall's stunt makes the stores he defaces seem to advertise. Most people would not seriously consider eating the products these stores sell{{Citation needed}} even with the signs suggesting they should, as they sell {{w|tires}}, {{w|hair cuts}}, {{w|lumber}} and {{w|flooring}} and {{w|pets}}.

The "all-you-can-eat" signs obscured the top line for three of the four shops signs. It is not really possible to read the obscured part of the first two signs, although it is likely that the first and last letters in the first sign are A and K. And also since the A is taller than the white sign, this first letter must be larger than the others which do not show above the white sign. There could be room for anything from 8 to many more letters hidden as it can be seen in the second line below that the I's take up much less space than the other letters. But from the letters below it seems likely there were 9 (maybe including a space) if no I's were used resulting in a word or two like "A _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ K". All letters in the comic seem to be capital, but Randall sometimes uses small caps, where the first capital letter is larger than the others. This would fit with this sign.

The third sign is fully visible, and it makes sense as it is not a name in the top line but part of the description of what the store provides.

The last sign is clearly readable even though the white sign covers the name at the top, and it says "Kevin's Pet Store". There actually exists a [http://kevinspetshopcom.weebly.com/ web page with the name "Kevin's Pet Shop"], supposedly located in Texas, but there is very limited information on the page. See more about the use of Kevin in xkcd in the [[#Kevin|trivia]] below.

In the title text, Randall seems to have fallen for his own prank. After he puts the "all-you-can-eat" sign onto the signmakers' place, he proceeds to heed his own sign literally and eat the poster boards that he is supposed to make signs from. To remind himself not to make the same mistake again, he tells himself to "do the sign-making place last."

It should also be noted that sometimes "all-you-can-eat" is used to mean "unlimited usage". An all-you-can-eat data plan, for example, is another way to say unlimited data. If this definition of the word were used, all-you-can-eat would mean "unlimited copies of our product for a one time fee". A {{w|kapsalon}} can, arguably, also be called an all-you-can-eat hair salon.

Note that some pets are considered food in some cultures; rabbits are commonly kept as pets as well as served as food, dogs are consumed in some areas in eastern Asia, guinea pigs in South America and Africa, and [http://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/alf/images/9/92/Cat_sandwich.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20110128060130 some fictional characters] are known for eating cat. Even more normally, a cat owner that wants to buy an "all-you-can-eat" bird feast for their cat would be happy with this last store.

Aside from pets, pet stores also sell pet food, and while frowned upon by some, it is common practice to give human nutrition supplements to pets and vice versa. Some animal snacks are considered very tasty by many people, and there even exist several brands of snacks designed to be eaten both by people and their pets so that the owners could feel somehow closer to their beloved companion. Premium pet foods are made to standards that are no worse than standards for human food, so eating them poses no health risks in the short term - long term, most pet diets would fail to deliver the right balance of nutrients needed by humans.

And it would also be very weird for a pet store to have a buffet in general, even if the food is edible.{{Citation needed}}

==Transcript==
:[The comic shows the facades of four stores next to each other on a street, with the sidewalk shown in front of them. To the top of each store's name there has been appended white signs. Three of the white signs partially cover the name part of the sign above three of the stores, but the fourth sign is placed entirely above the text of the third store. Thus that white sign's top is higher up than the building's.]

:[First store from the left. The top line of two on the store's sign is obscured by the white sign:]
:White sign: All-you-can-eat
:Store sign: Discount Tires

:[Second store from the left. The top line of two on the store's sign is obscured by the white sign:]
:White sign: All-you-can-eat
:Store sign: Hair Salon

:[Third store from the left. The white sign on this store is slightly tilted, and most of it is above the top of the store completely above the store sign:]
:White sign: All-you-can-eat
:Store sign: Lumber and
:Store sign: Flooring Depot

:[Fourth store from the left. The top line of two on the store's sign is obscured by the white sign. However, the name can still be deduced, and the top line says "Kevin's".]
:White sign: All-you-can-eat
:Store sign: Pet Store

:[Caption below the frame:]
:My hobby: Going out at night and adding "all-you-can-eat" to every store's sign

*'''Click''' to expand for a more detailed image description without any more text:
<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed leftAlign" style="width:100%">
<br>
:[First store from the left has one small rectangular section next to the door and then a larger window. The first section may be a poster with information about the store. It could also be a small window. Through the large window (or on it) two rectangular signs can be seen with unreadable text. There are also three half circles at the bottom of the large window, possibly chairs or tires on display. On the normal sized door there hangs an open/closed sign, but no text is visible. On the stores sign the top line of text, likely with the name of the store, is obscured by the white sign so most of the letters are completely covered. Less than half of the first capital letter and ditto for the last letter is visible. It looks like the first letter is an "A", and the last a "k".]

:[Second store from the left has two posters over each other, the top one with unreadable text, the bottom a picture of a person with messy black hair, seen from the torso and up. Next to this is a double door with large windows from below the middle and up near the top. Next to the door there is a small window. On the stores sign the top line of text, likely with the name of the store, is completely obscured by the white sign. This line is shorter than the white sign, but the letters are taller, so top and bottom of the letters can be seen. But it is not easy to guess any letters.]

:[Third store from the left has two posters over each other, but the lower poster is smaller and more to the right. Both has unreadable text, and the top one also some kind of image with two tilted rectangles. Similarly there are three signs above each other with different size and text on the right side of the store. Between them is a large open door. Wider than the double doors of store two, but there is no sign of the doors. Inside the store there are two signs, one hanging down from two rods from the ceiling, both with unreadable text. The one from the ceiling is in the center the other is partly obscured by the door frame to the left. Left and right there are two rectangular structures, which both goes behind the frame. The left is taller. In the middle there is one broad but low rectangular structure with another higher rectangle on top, which does not go to either side of the one below. The white sign on this store is slightly tilted, and most of it is above the top of the store, and thus also almost completely above the store sign. Only the top of the first and last letter in the last word in the top line is touched by the sign.]

:[Fourth store from the left has a window to the left. Behind the window is a flat surface on which two rectangular structures are standing on their long sides. Over the lowest to the left there is sign with unreadable text. Below the window there is a thin sign with more text. The normal sized door has a window from below the middle and up. There are three several signs up the left sign, and possible another three small signs at the bottom of the window. The top right corner has a curved line around the corner. No text is visible on the door. Next to the door is another square. It could be a window of a place to post things. There are one large posters to the left with unreadable text and to the top right another smaller white rectangle. Below along the bottom of the square there are three small rectangles shown in full, and two more is only partly shown, which could indicate that it is a window and that they are inside the store. On the stores sign the top line of text, with the name of the store, is obscured by the white sign. The name is just a bit longer than the white sign, and as the letters are a bit higher than in store two it can be deduced that it says "Kevin's".]
</div>
<br>

==Trivia==
===Kevin===
*The name Kevin has been used twice before this comic and quite recently.
**That makes this comic the third with a Kevin in only 77 comics:
***In [[1719: Superzoom]], Kevin worked in a shop that sold superzoom cameras.
***In [[1729: Migrating Geese]], Kevin was the different goose.
***In [[1795: All You Can Eat]] (this one), Kevin has a pet shop, with his name in the shop's name.
**In the previous 1718 comics there seems to have been no use of Kevin except when referring to real persons like:
***Actors [[1412: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles|Kevin]] [[599: Apocalypse|Bacon]] or [[1555: Exoplanet Names 2|Costner]].
***[[1392: Dominant Players|Chess players]] Gariett and Durant.
**So maybe Kevin is Randall's new go to name when he just needs one!
***This has also been discussed in the Geese comic, see the last entry in the [[1729:_Migrating_Geese#Table of labels|table]].
**After this comic it took half a year and 78 comics before the next Kevin appeared but still a short span compared to before the three others:
***In [[1873: Email Reply]], Kevin is addressed in an e-mail by [[Cueball]].

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:My Hobby]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Food]]

1795: All You Can Eat

2023-02-05T22:34:19Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1795
| date = February 6, 2017
| title = All You Can Eat
| image = all_you_can_eat.png
| titletext = After my absent-mindedness resulted in a bad posterboard-related stomachache, I learned to do the sign-making place last.
}}

==Explanation==
An all-you-can-eat {{w|buffet}} is when a restaurant will charge you once for entry and then continuously serve you more food at no additional cost until you have eaten all-you-can-eat. Part of the "[[:Category:My Hobby|My Hobby]]" series, this comic shows [[Randall]] wishes to prepend "all-you-can-eat" to random stores.

With the exception of the pet store, which sells pet food, these stores do not sell food, so the very idea of eating their product would be ridiculous for most humans. However, this is what Randall's stunt makes the stores he defaces seem to advertise. Most people would not seriously consider eating the products these stores sell{{Citation needed}} even with the signs suggesting they should, as they sell {{w|tires}}, {{w|hair cuts}}, {{w|lumber}} and {{w|flooring}} and {{w|pets}}.

The "all-you-can-eat" signs obscured the top line for three of the four shops signs. It is not really possible to read the obscured part of the first two signs, although it is likely that the first and last letters in the first sign are A and K. And also since the A is taller than the white sign, this first letter must be larger than the others which do not show above the white sign. There could be room for anything from 8 to many more letters hidden as it can be seen in the second line below that the I's take up much less space than the other letters. But from the letters below it seems likely there were 9 (maybe including a space) if no I's were used resulting in a word or two like "A _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ K". All letters in the comic seem to be capital, but Randall sometimes uses small caps, where the first capital letter is larger than the others. This would fit with this sign.

The third sign is fully visible, and it makes sense as it is not a name in the top line but part of the description of what the store provides.

The last sign is clearly readable even though the white sign covers the name at the top, and it says "Kevin's Pet Store". There actually exists a [http://kevinspetshopcom.weebly.com/ web page with the name "Kevin's Pet Shop"], supposedly located in Texas, but there is very limited information on the page. See more about the use of Kevin in xkcd in the [[#Kevin|trivia]] below.

In the title text, Randall seems to have fallen for his own prank. After he puts the "all-you-can-eat" sign onto the signmakers' place, he proceeds to heed his own sign literally and eat the poster boards that he is supposed to make signs from. To remind himself not to make the same mistake again, he tells himself to "do the sign-making place last."

It should also be noted that sometimes "all-you-can-eat" is used to mean "unlimited usage". An all-you-can-eat data plan, for example, is another way to say unlimited data. If this definition of the word were used, all-you-can-eat would mean "unlimited copies of our product for a one time fee". A {{w|kapsalon}} can, arguably, also be called an all-you-can-eat hair salon.

Note that some pets are considered food in some cultures; rabbits are commonly kept as pets as well as served as food, dogs are consumed in some areas in eastern Asia, guinea pigs in South America and Africa, and [http://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/alf/images/9/92/Cat_sandwich.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20110128060130 some fictional characters] are known for eating cat. Even more normally, a cat owner that wants to buy an "all-you-can-eat" bird feast for their cat would be happy with this last store.

Aside from pets, pet stores also sell pet food, and while frowned upon by some, it is common practice to give human nutrition supplements to pets and vice versa. Some animal snacks are considered very tasty by many people, and there even exist several brands of snacks designed to be eaten both by people and their pets so that the owners could feel somehow closer to their beloved companion. Premium pet foods are made to standards that are no worse than standards for human food, so eating them poses no health risks in the short term - long term, most pet diets would fail to deliver the right balance of nutrients needed by humans.

And it would also be very weird a pet store to have a buffet.{{Citation needed}}

==Transcript==
:[The comic shows the facades of four stores next to each other on a street, with the sidewalk shown in front of them. To the top of each store's name there has been appended white signs. Three of the white signs partially cover the name part of the sign above three of the stores, but the fourth sign is placed entirely above the text of the third store. Thus that white sign's top is higher up than the building's.]

:[First store from the left. The top line of two on the store's sign is obscured by the white sign:]
:White sign: All-you-can-eat
:Store sign: Discount Tires

:[Second store from the left. The top line of two on the store's sign is obscured by the white sign:]
:White sign: All-you-can-eat
:Store sign: Hair Salon

:[Third store from the left. The white sign on this store is slightly tilted, and most of it is above the top of the store completely above the store sign:]
:White sign: All-you-can-eat
:Store sign: Lumber and
:Store sign: Flooring Depot

:[Fourth store from the left. The top line of two on the store's sign is obscured by the white sign. However, the name can still be deduced, and the top line says "Kevin's".]
:White sign: All-you-can-eat
:Store sign: Pet Store

:[Caption below the frame:]
:My hobby: Going out at night and adding "all-you-can-eat" to every store's sign

*'''Click''' to expand for a more detailed image description without any more text:
<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed leftAlign" style="width:100%">
<br>
:[First store from the left has one small rectangular section next to the door and then a larger window. The first section may be a poster with information about the store. It could also be a small window. Through the large window (or on it) two rectangular signs can be seen with unreadable text. There are also three half circles at the bottom of the large window, possibly chairs or tires on display. On the normal sized door there hangs an open/closed sign, but no text is visible. On the stores sign the top line of text, likely with the name of the store, is obscured by the white sign so most of the letters are completely covered. Less than half of the first capital letter and ditto for the last letter is visible. It looks like the first letter is an "A", and the last a "k".]

:[Second store from the left has two posters over each other, the top one with unreadable text, the bottom a picture of a person with messy black hair, seen from the torso and up. Next to this is a double door with large windows from below the middle and up near the top. Next to the door there is a small window. On the stores sign the top line of text, likely with the name of the store, is completely obscured by the white sign. This line is shorter than the white sign, but the letters are taller, so top and bottom of the letters can be seen. But it is not easy to guess any letters.]

:[Third store from the left has two posters over each other, but the lower poster is smaller and more to the right. Both has unreadable text, and the top one also some kind of image with two tilted rectangles. Similarly there are three signs above each other with different size and text on the right side of the store. Between them is a large open door. Wider than the double doors of store two, but there is no sign of the doors. Inside the store there are two signs, one hanging down from two rods from the ceiling, both with unreadable text. The one from the ceiling is in the center the other is partly obscured by the door frame to the left. Left and right there are two rectangular structures, which both goes behind the frame. The left is taller. In the middle there is one broad but low rectangular structure with another higher rectangle on top, which does not go to either side of the one below. The white sign on this store is slightly tilted, and most of it is above the top of the store, and thus also almost completely above the store sign. Only the top of the first and last letter in the last word in the top line is touched by the sign.]

:[Fourth store from the left has a window to the left. Behind the window is a flat surface on which two rectangular structures are standing on their long sides. Over the lowest to the left there is sign with unreadable text. Below the window there is a thin sign with more text. The normal sized door has a window from below the middle and up. There are three several signs up the left sign, and possible another three small signs at the bottom of the window. The top right corner has a curved line around the corner. No text is visible on the door. Next to the door is another square. It could be a window of a place to post things. There are one large posters to the left with unreadable text and to the top right another smaller white rectangle. Below along the bottom of the square there are three small rectangles shown in full, and two more is only partly shown, which could indicate that it is a window and that they are inside the store. On the stores sign the top line of text, with the name of the store, is obscured by the white sign. The name is just a bit longer than the white sign, and as the letters are a bit higher than in store two it can be deduced that it says "Kevin's".]
</div>
<br>

==Trivia==
===Kevin===
*The name Kevin has been used twice before this comic and quite recently.
**That makes this comic the third with a Kevin in only 77 comics:
***In [[1719: Superzoom]], Kevin worked in a shop that sold superzoom cameras.
***In [[1729: Migrating Geese]], Kevin was the different goose.
***In [[1795: All You Can Eat]] (this one), Kevin has a pet shop, with his name in the shop's name.
**In the previous 1718 comics there seems to have been no use of Kevin except when referring to real persons like:
***Actors [[1412: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles|Kevin]] [[599: Apocalypse|Bacon]] or [[1555: Exoplanet Names 2|Costner]].
***[[1392: Dominant Players|Chess players]] Gariett and Durant.
**So maybe Kevin is Randall's new go to name when he just needs one!
***This has also been discussed in the Geese comic, see the last entry in the [[1729:_Migrating_Geese#Table of labels|table]].
**After this comic it took half a year and 78 comics before the next Kevin appeared but still a short span compared to before the three others:
***In [[1873: Email Reply]], Kevin is addressed in an e-mail by [[Cueball]].

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:My Hobby]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Food]]

Talk:30: Donner

2023-02-05T06:01:57Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

The indication is that they were waiting a long time for the table and decided to eat one of their companions. {{unsigned|‎64.85.162.210}}
:So you think that's why Kramer is missing from that episode? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.58|108.162.219.58]] 01:20, 1 February 2014 (UTC)
----

Outside of the obvious pointed out by the previous user: the restaurant, Joe's, could be a reference to Tex Avery's Eat at Joe's. In one of the episodes, the customers were eaten by 'Joe'. The cannibalism scenario works out as well. [[User:Torappu|Torappu]] ([[User talk:Torappu|talk]]) 18:48, 24 June 2013 (UTC)
:I feel that it may not have been intended by Randall, but a good pickup nonetheless. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.58|108.162.219.58]] 01:20, 1 February 2014 (UTC)
----

I disagree with the original interpretation. The party of three was, I believe, more likely concerned by an additional, undepicted party, also waiting to eat at the establishment, and possibly fearing for their own safety from said cannibalism.--[[User:StrangerDanger|StrangerDanger]] ([[User talk:StrangerDanger|talk]]) 20:46, 27 June 2013 (UTC)
:Clearly you are incorrect. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.58|108.162.219.58]] 01:20, 1 February 2014 (UTC)
----

My interpretation - after reading the above explanation - is that the Donner was a party of four, who had preordered a table at Joe. But when these three arrived, they had just eaten the fourth person (as a snack before leaving home...?) And then they realized that they are not really hungry anymore - when Joe asks them in. Joe obviously knows they are the Donner - and they do not deny this. (I originally wrote this on 8 October - before I today signed up with a user account - thus this edit). [[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 11:29, 13 October 2013 (UTC)
----

My first interpretation was that "Donner" in the comic is intended to be an alternate spelling of {{w|Doner kebab|doner}}, and the comic might be a reference to the classic urban legend that the shadier kind of doners are supposedly made of meat from animals not otherwise normally eaten (typically cats). But that doesn't explain the apparently real existence of the Donner party. --[[Special:Contributions/172.68.11.39|172.68.11.39]] 15:34, 5 December 2016 (UTC)
----

MY interpretation was simply that there was no Wendigo psychosis involved causing them to become cannibalistic, they just had such a long wait they figured it would be better to eat one of their own. [[User:SilverTheTerribleMathematician|SilverTheTerribleMathematician]] ([[User talk:SilverTheTerribleMathematician|talk]]) 06:01, 5 February 2023 (UTC)

Talk:30: Donner

2023-02-05T06:01:06Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

The indication is that they were waiting a long time for the table and decided to eat one of their companions. {{unsigned|‎64.85.162.210}}
:So you think that's why Kramer is missing from that episode? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.58|108.162.219.58]] 01:20, 1 February 2014 (UTC)
----

Outside of the obvious pointed out by the previous user: the restaurant, Joe's, could be a reference to Tex Avery's Eat at Joe's. In one of the episodes, the customers were eaten by 'Joe'. The cannibalism scenario works out as well. [[User:Torappu|Torappu]] ([[User talk:Torappu|talk]]) 18:48, 24 June 2013 (UTC)
:I feel that it may not have been intended by Randall, but a good pickup nonetheless. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.58|108.162.219.58]] 01:20, 1 February 2014 (UTC)
----

I disagree with the original interpretation. The party of three was, I believe, more likely concerned by an additional, undepicted party, also waiting to eat at the establishment, and possibly fearing for their own safety from said cannibalism.--[[User:StrangerDanger|StrangerDanger]] ([[User talk:StrangerDanger|talk]]) 20:46, 27 June 2013 (UTC)
:Clearly you are incorrect. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.58|108.162.219.58]] 01:20, 1 February 2014 (UTC)
----

My interpretation - after reading the above explanation - is that the Donner was a party of four, who had preordered a table at Joe. But when these three arrived, they had just eaten the fourth person (as a snack before leaving home...?) And then they realized that they are not really hungry anymore - when Joe asks them in. Joe obviously knows they are the Donner - and they do not deny this. (I originally wrote this on 8 October - before I today signed up with a user account - thus this edit). [[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 11:29, 13 October 2013 (UTC)
----

My first interpretation was that "Donner" in the comic is intended to be an alternate spelling of {{w|Doner kebab|doner}}, and the comic might be a reference to the classic urban legend that the shadier kind of doners are supposedly made of meat from animals not otherwise normally eaten (typically cats). But that doesn't explain the apparently real existence of the Donner party. --[[Special:Contributions/172.68.11.39|172.68.11.39]] 15:34, 5 December 2016 (UTC)
----

MY interpretation was simply that there was no Wendigo psychosis involved causing them to become cannibalistic, they just had such a long wait they figured it would be better to eat one of their one. [[User:SilverTheTerribleMathematician|SilverTheTerribleMathematician]] ([[User talk:SilverTheTerribleMathematician|talk]]) 06:01, 5 February 2023 (UTC)

2733: Size Comparisons

2023-02-04T06:10:26Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

{{comic
| number = 2733
| date = February 3, 2023
| title = Size Comparisons
| image = size_comparisons_2x.png
| imagesize = 238x373px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = If you shrank the Solar System to the size of Texas, the Houston metro area would be smaller than a grasshopper in Dallas.
}}

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

[[Cueball]] attempts to emphasize {{w|Texas}}' size (as the largest state in the {{w|contiguous US}}) to [[Ponytail]] by making a size comparison. He states that if Texas was expanded to the size of the {{w|Solar System}}, the ants in Texas will be as large as {{w|Rhode Island}} (the smallest US state). However, Cueball on purpose (According to the caption) proves how small Texas actually is compared to the Solar System (which is a lot larger).

There are a lot of definitions for how large the Solar System is, but the most common of which is Neptune's Aphelion (farthest point from Sun). Using the circle area equation, we find the "area" of the solar system to be 6.49E19 (a lot) kilometers squared. Texas's area is 696,241 km2, if we then divide, we get 9.32E13 (still a lot though). Ants, unfortunately for the calculations, vary vastly in their size. Rhode Island's area is 3,144 kilometers squared. We can therefore get that Randall's average "ant" is 33.73 square millimeters large. Unscientifically measured, an ant has an "aspect ratio" of 1:2, which will result in a length of 8.21mm, which falls into the range of 2mm~25mm. Therefore, Randall's calculations are correct.

The title text refers to the opposite, where the entire Solar system is being scaled down to the size of Texas, the {{w|Houston}} (a city in Texas) {{w|Greater Houston|metropolitan area}} (a bit larger than Houston's area) would be smaller than a grasshopper in {{w|Dallas}} (another city in Texas). We can reuse the 9.32E13 multiplier, this time with the Houston metro area's area (26,061 kilometers squared), and receive 279.6 millimeters squared, a grasshopper is thinner than an ant, so we use the aspect ratio of 1:3 instead, getting an answer of 28.96 mm, or almost 3 centimeters, this falls on the slightly shorter side of the 1~7 cm range and is definitely smaller than a lot of grasshoppers.

A common trope in explaining the sizes of unfamiliar things is to compare the thing to something people are likely to know. For instance, a human-sized flea could jump over the Eiffel Tower, if jumping distance scaled with animal size (It happens to not). In this case, Randall is comparing objects that are extremely different in scale (the state of Texas and a small insect), but then blowing Texas up to yet another size that's many orders of magnitude larger, with the result that the comparison is of no value in understanding how big Texas is (which was supposed to be the point). The only message you get in the end is, "Texas is much bigger than an ant." And most people happen to be aware of that.{{Citation needed}}

This is another comic in the series of [[My Hobby|Randall's Hobbies]].

==Transcript==

:[Cueball speaking to Ponytail.]
:Cueball: Texas is so big that if you expanded it to the size of the Solar System, the ants there would be as big as Rhode Island.
:Ponytail: Wow!
:Ponytail: ...Wait.

:[Caption below panel]
:My hobby: Unhelpful size comparisons

{{comic discussion}}

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

2733: Size Comparisons

2023-02-04T06:10:02Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician:

{{comic
| number = 2733
| date = February 3, 2023
| title = Size Comparisons
| image = size_comparisons_2x.png
| imagesize = 238x373px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = If you shrank the Solar System to the size of Texas, the Houston metro area would be smaller than a grasshopper in Dallas.
}}

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

[[Cueball]] attempts to emphasize {{w|Texas}}' size (as the largest state in the {{w|contiguous US}}) to [[Ponytail]] by making a size comparison. He states that if Texas was expanded to the size of the {{w|Solar System}}, the ants in Texas will be as large as {{w|Rhode Island}} (the smallest US state). However, Cueball on purpose (According to the caption) proves how small Texas actually is compared to the Solar System (which is a lot larger).

There are a lot of definitions for how large the Solar System is, but the most common of which is Neptune's Aphelion (farthest point from Sun). Using the circle area equation, we find the "area" of the solar system to be 6.49E19 (a lot) kilometers squared. Texas's area is 696,241 km2, if we then divide, we get 9.32E13 (still a lot though). Ants, unfortunately for the calculations, vary vastly in their size. Rhode Island's area is 3,144 kilometers squared. We can therefore get that Randall's average "ant" is 33.73 square millimeters large. Unscientifically measured, an ant has an "aspect ratio" of 1:2, which will result in a length of 8.21mm, which falls into the range of 2mm~25mm. Therefore, Randall's calculations are correct.

The title text refers to the opposite, where the entire Solar system is being scaled down to the size of Texas, the {{w|Houston}} (a city in Texas) {{w|Greater Houston|metropolitan area}} (a bit larger than Houston's area) would be smaller than a grasshopper in {{w|Dallas}} (another city in Texas). We can reuse the 9.32E13 multiplier, this time with the Houston metro area's area (26,061 kilometers squared), and receive 279.6 millimeters squared, a grasshopper is thinner than an ant, so we use the aspect ratio of 1:3 instead, getting an answer of 28.96 mm, or almost 3 centimeters, this falls on the slightly shorter side of the 1~7 cm range and is definitely smaller than a lot of grasshoppers.

A common trope in explaining the sizes of unfamiliar things is to compare the thing to something people are likely to know. For instance, a human-sized flea could jump over the Eiffel Tower, if jumping distance scaled with animal size (It happens to not). In this case, Randall is comparing objects that are extremely different in scale (the state of Texas and a small insect), but then blowing Texas up to yet another size that's many orders of magnitude larger, with the result that the comparison is of no value in understanding how big Texas is (which was supposed to be the point). The only message you get in the end is, "Texas is much bigger than an ant." And most people happen to be aware of that.{{Citation needed}}

This is another in the series of [[My Hobby|Randall's Hobbies]].

==Transcript==

:[Cueball speaking to Ponytail.]
:Cueball: Texas is so big that if you expanded it to the size of the Solar System, the ants there would be as big as Rhode Island.
:Ponytail: Wow!
:Ponytail: ...Wait.

:[Caption below panel]
:My hobby: Unhelpful size comparisons

{{comic discussion}}

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

2732: Bursa of Fabricius

2023-02-03T17:42:15Z

SilverTheTerribleMathematician: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2732
| date = February 1, 2023
| title = Bursa of Fabricius
| image = bursa_of_fabricius_2x.png
| imagesize = 298x399px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = If an anatomical structure is named for a person, it means they were the only person to have it. Pierre Paul Broca had a special area of his brain that created powerful magnetic fields, enabling him to do 19th century fMRI research.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by FLYING BIRD SCIENTISTS WITH TRANSPLANTED AVIAN LYMPHATIC ORGANS - Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
The {{w|Bursa of Fabricius}} is an organ found in birds that is necessary for the development of their immune systems.

This comic claims that the 16th century anatomist {{w|Hieronymus Fabricius}} (for whom the organ was named) had that organ and therefore was able to fly like a bird. However, despite being found only in birds, this organ does not in fact contribute directly to flight. Also given that it only exist in birds, then it is doubtful that Fabricius also independently had this same anatomical feature.

Many scientific and mathematical discoveries, including anatomical structures, are named after the people who discovered or described them. For example, the {{w|islets of Langerhans}} were discovered by Paul Langerhans. Likewise, rare diseases are often named for the doctor who first describes the disease to the medical community, or for a researcher who identifies the specifics involved. They may attempt to set their own name to it, for posterity, or they are later honoured in this manner by those who recognise their vital contribution to the field, such as with {{w|Parkinson's disease#History|Parkinson's disease}}.

In other cases, rare diseases are named for the first or most famous (possibly even the only) person known to have had the disease. For instance {{w|ALS}} is commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease in the US because of baseball player {{w|Lou Gehrig}} having notably developed the condition. Outside of the US, it may be more known just as "amyotrophic lateral sclerosis" (alternatively "motor neurone disease") or, for simplicity, the initials ALS (or MND).

The title text continues with the idea from the comic claiming that anatomical structures are solely possessed by the human for which they are named, in another similar example. {{w|Pierre Paul Broca}}, a French physician, anatomist and anthropologist, was known for his research on what is now known as {{w|Broca's area}}, a region of the brain used for speech and language processing. The premise being that, having this feature, he was uniquely gifted with the special ability to created powerful magnetic fields, enabling him to do {{w|fMRI}} research in the 19th century.

Broca did not do fMRI research,{{Citation needed}} a powerful method of non-intrusively imaging and analysing the internal structures of the living human body (amongst other things), as it was not invented in his lifetime. Nor is it likely that this ability could be 'naturally' possessed by any individual, such as he. He did, however, physically study brains of known speech-impaired patients who had then subsequently died, determining what damage (in the area of the brain which was then to be named for him) was directly related to their specific group of ailments. Today, we can safely view this area in living people, using fMRI, and directly connect what we see with the current condition of patients. This increases our knowledge of the brain, as with the mythical abilities Randall gave Broca, but also possibly even allows us to help those currently under the effects of any observed damage (not necessarily possible by any 19th century physician, even with this superpowered form of vision to assist them).

In reality, if Broca was the only person to have ever possessed Broca's area then this might have meant that only he had ever had the power of speech (as we understand it), which would indeed give him a very special ability; but one begging a number of other vital questions, if only anybody else could have asked them...

This may also be a nod to the Discworld character [https://wiki.lspace.org/Bursar|"Bursar"], a wizard at Unseen University who can fly because he once hallucinated that he could, and so now he can.

==Transcript==
:[An almost bald man with hair around the neck and a full beard, is shown flying in the top right part of the image, swooping down from the sky with arms outstretched in front of him while yelling. Three dotted lines behind him indicate his path. Two people look up at him from the bottom left corner, a man with a wide-brimmed hat and a black haired woman with a scarf over her hair, which is hanging down behind her. She is holding both her hands up to her mouth. At the top of the panel there is text:]
:The '''''bursa of Fabricius''''' is a lymphoid organ found only in birds and in 16<sup>th</sup> century anatomist Hieronymus Fabricius, to whom it conferred the power of flight.
:Hieronymus Fabricius: ''Wheee''

{{comic discussion}}

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