explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

2888: US Survey Foot

2024-01-31T17:33:29Z

TenGolf MathHacker:

{{comic
| number = 2888
| date = January 31, 2024
| title = US Survey Foot
| image = us_survey_foot_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x606px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Subway refuses to answer my questions about whether it's an International Footlong or a US Survey Footlong. A milligram of sandwich is at stake!
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a 610 NANOMETER BOT - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

This comic pokes fun at a difference in length of the {{w|Foot_(unit)#U.S._survey_foot|US Survey Foot}} and the {{w|Foot_(unit)|International Foot}}. After {{w|International_yard_and_pound|an international agreement}} in 1959, the foot has been defined to be exactly 0.3048 metres, whilst the US survey foot is defined as 1200/3937 meters and is a bit longer than the international foot. However, the difference between the two is too small for short distances, as they only differ by 2 parts per million. In the fourth panel, Cueball says that [[Black Hat]] is drawing the world 610nm closer to madness, which is about the difference between the two measures. Cueball, outraged, then decides to capture Black Hat to stop him from using the US survey foot. The joke here is that his coordinates show that he is 8000 miles away, but since he is using the US survey foot, he is 0.016 miles away from the search team, making the search team unable to find him.

Note - 0.016 miles is about 28.16 yards, or 25.749 meters.

Randall is playing a bit fast-and-loose here. To make this joke work implies a rather absurd situation: that both Black Hat and the searchers would need to have set their devices to measure location ''in reference to'' NIST headquarters and not just use GPS and lat/long. That's where we get the 8,000 miles from to make the joke. So even in the unlikely event that the searchers' phones measure location like this because they're from NIST, it's very unlikely that black hat would override his device's in-built GPS to report its location in reference to NIST headquarters -- unless he knew that NIST searchers also did this and knew they wouldn't find it suspicious for him to do it too.

The title text references a {{w|Subway_(restaurant)#Sandwich_size|2013 lawsuit}} over the length of a "Footlong" sandwich sold by Subway fast food chain. However - in contrast to the issue at stake in that lawsuit - the difference in length between an 'international footlong' sandwich and a 'US survey footlong' sandwich is way below the precision that sandwiches are usually produced - making it understandable that subway would not think it necessary to clarify which definition of 'foot' they use for their products.

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

:[Closeup on Cueball.]
:Cueball: We thought it was over. After 60 years of struggle, the US survey foot was dead, deprecated by NIST in 2023.

:[Cueball is shown to be talking to Ponytail, Hairy, and Megan. He has a presentation behind him.]
:Cueball: We thought architects and engineers could rest east, free of the headaches of having two conflicting definitions of the foot that differ by 610 nanometers.
:International foot: 0.304 800 000 m
:US survey foot [crossed over in gray] R.I.P.: 0.304 800 609... m

:[Cueball points at an image of Black Hat]
:Cueball: But I bring dire news:
:Cueball: ''Someone has started using the US survey foot again.''

:[Closeup on Cueball again.]
:Off-panel voice: Why!?
:Cueball: We don't know.
:Cueball: Some people just want to drag the world 610nm closer to madness.

:[Farther view of Cueball only. He clenches a fist.]
:Off-panel voice: What can we do!?
:Cueball: A NIST team is already in the air. We will capture the scofflaw and end this nightmare.

:[Two helicopters flying, with mountains in the background.]

:Caption: 8,000 miles away
:[Two operatives in a forest with "NIST" helmets. One talks on a walkie-talkie.]
:Operative: We've reached the coordinates of the target's device. There's no one here.
:Voice from walkie-talkie: How!?

:Caption: 8,000.016 miles away
:[Black Hat walking elsewhere in the forest, very close by.]
:Black Hat: ♫ ♪

==Trivia==

The number of miles on the comic was originally 8,000.014, but was changed to 8,000.016.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]
[[Category:Characters with hats]]
[[Category:Geography]]

Talk:2888: US Survey Foot

2024-01-31T17:28:37Z

TenGolf MathHacker:

Breaking news- the comic just got changed to 8,000.016[[User:TenGolf MathHacker|TenGolf MathHacker]] ([[User talk:TenGolf MathHacker|talk]]) 17:28, 31 January 2024 (UTC)

Talk:2843: Professional Oaths

2024-01-31T14:13:01Z

TenGolf MathHacker:

added transcript [[User:Certified_nqh|Me]][[[285: Wikipedian Protester|''citation needed'']]][[Category:Pages using the "citation needed" template]] 05:47, 19 October 2023 (UTC)

every /^H.*ic$/ would be 4 syllables if it wasn't for hydroelectric [[User:Certified_nqh|Me]][[[285: Wikipedian Protester|''citation needed'']]][[Category:Pages using the "citation needed" template]] 05:55, 19 October 2023 (UTC)
:Maybe that should be "hydrœlectric", then! [[Special:Contributions/172.71.242.85|172.71.242.85]] 21:59, 19 October 2023 (UTC)

His-tor-ic[[Special:Contributions/162.158.146.77|162.158.146.77]]SomeoneElse1624

Clearly some lone editor had a grudge against hermeneutics, putting 'study' in scare quotes like that. AzureArmageddon 07:38, 19 October 2023 (UTC)

Hippopotamic Oath: First, lead your horse to water. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.86.139|172.70.86.139]] 08:02, 19 October 2023 (UTC)
:Cap doffed. Cap very much doffed. [[User:Yorkshire Pudding|Yorkshire Pudding]] ([[User talk:Yorkshire Pudding|talk]]) 20:16, 19 October 2023 (UTC)

Hypobolic Oath: Do your worst! [[Special:Contributions/172.70.250.73|172.70.250.73]] 09:55, 19 October 2023 (UTC)

Hypochondriac Oath: First, pretend to be sick! [[User:Elektrizikekswerk|Elektrizikekswerk]] ([[User talk:Elektrizikekswerk|talk]]) 13:05, 19 October 2023 (UTC)
:Nitpick: Hypochondriacs don't pretend to be sick, they believe they have an illness or are unduly worried about the possibility of having an illness. Someone who pretends to be sick is a malingerer. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.70.135|172.69.70.135]] 16:43, 19 October 2023 (UTC)
::Ok, fair :) So: Hypochondriac Oath: First, consult your doctor! [[User:Elektrizikekswerk|Elektrizikekswerk]] ([[User talk:Elektrizikekswerk|talk]]) 08:32, 20 October 2023 (UTC)

"A hippodrome is a circular arena" The classical Greek/Roman was not circular:
"One end of the ancient Greek hippodromos was semicircular, and the other end square with an extensive portico"
Maybe it would be more correct to talk about '''pairs''' of hypergolic substances?
[[User:Rps|Rps]] ([[User talk:Rps|talk]]) 12:19, 19 October 2023 (UTC)

I think the hyperbaric oath is probably referring to hyperbaric chambers, which are used in medical settings, such as treating scuba divers suffering from the bends. 14:08, 19 October 2023 (UTC)
:I wonder if the "holigraphic" one is directly inspired by [https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-67080941 this recent display]. (Although, by my reading, that's not ''really'' holographic, just an advanced form of stereographic display.) [[Special:Contributions/172.71.178.171|172.71.178.171]] 06:01, 20 October 2023 (UTC)

I missed the Hydroponic Oath (“first, maintain nutrient concentration”), the Hypocritic Oath (“first, judge others as you ''don't'' wish to be judged”), and the Hyperbolic Oath (“first, take two intersecting asymptotes”). [[Special:Contributions/108.162.221.60|108.162.221.60]] 15:34, 19 October 2023 (UTC)
:Isn't the Hypocritic Oath just "First, don't do this"?

I prefer the Hypocritical oath (insert political party of your choosing here). [[Special:Contributions/172.71.219.106|172.71.219.106]] 17:29, 19 October 2023 (UTC)
:All of them. [[explain_xkcd:Community_portal/Miscellaneous#Help_with_Creating_a_User_Page|Trogdor147]] ([[explain_xkcd:Community_portal/Miscellaneous#Help_with_Creating_a_User_Page|talk]]) 18:18, 19 October 2023 (UTC)

The Hypodermic Oath: "I've got you, under my skin..." [[User:Yorkshire Pudding|Yorkshire Pudding]] ([[User talk:Yorkshire Pudding|talk]]) 20:20, 19 October 2023 (UTC)

The Hypoglycemic Oath: "First, eat some sweets!" [[Special:Contributions/162.158.19.56|162.158.19.56]] 00:17, 20 October 2023 (UTC)

The Hypothetical Oath: "First, presume there is an oath." [[Special:Contributions/162.158.18.71|162.158.18.71]] 00:23, 20 October 2023 (UTC)

The Hieroglyphic Oath - “First, do no tomb-robbing.” [[User:Miamiclay|Miamiclay]] ([[User talk:Miamiclay|talk]]) 04:16, 20 October 2023 (UTC)

Hippy Oath: First, chill out, man! 
Hip-shaker Oath: First, do a shimmy. 
Hypotenuse Oath: First, find the squares of the other two sides. 
Hyperactive Oath: First, eat no sugar. 
[[Special:Contributions/172.70.91.236|172.70.91.236]] 10:36, 20 October 2023 (UTC)
::Hip-shaker Oath: First, do not lie.[[Special:Contributions/172.71.146.241|172.71.146.241]] 20:18, 23 October 2023 (UTC)

Hydrophilic Oath: First, attract water! 
Hydrophobic Oath: First, repel water! 
Hydrox Oath: First, enjoy a cookie! 
[[User:These Are Not The Comments You Are Looking For|These Are Not The Comments You Are Looking For]] ([[User talk:These Are Not The Comments You Are Looking For|talk]]) 14:24, 22 October 2023 (UTC)
::Hydrogenic Oath: First, make water! [[User:TenGolf MathHacker|TenGolf MathHacker]] ([[User talk:TenGolf MathHacker|talk]]) 14:13, 31 January 2024 (UTC)

Quite surprised that he didn't include a "Hypocritical Oath".
[[User:Nico31415926|An idiot]] ([[User talk:Nico31415926|talk]]) 06:11, 24 October 2023 (UTC)

I'm struggling to accept the shape of the hydroelectric turbine which appears more like a table fan to me. Is there something that could be explained? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.104.103|141.101.104.103]] 19:05, 25 October 2023 (UTC)
:Randall also had to draw all of the bricks in the wall. Maybe his hand was just tired. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.135.35|172.69.135.35]] 21:59, 27 October 2023 (UTC)
:{{w|Kaplan Turbine}}s are still popular and do indeed look just like that, ranging from 3-8 blades. There are other types, they all have their tradeoffs and sweet spots. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.38.8|172.70.38.8]] 21:23, 29 October 2023 (UTC)

Hula-hooping Oath: First, buy a large inedible donut! 
Hylonomic Oath: First, be a small forest lizard! [[User:TenGolf MathHacker|TenGolf MathHacker]] ([[User talk:TenGolf MathHacker|talk]]) 14:13, 31 January 2024 (UTC)

Talk:1617: Time Capsule

2024-01-26T14:06:45Z

TenGolf MathHacker:

I wrote this comment in the past so it would be first. {{unsigned ip|108.162.237.86|09:39, 16 December 2015 (UTC)}}
:: are you sure? [[User:SirKitKat|sirKitKat]] ([[User talk:SirKitKat|talk]]) 08:17, 16 December 2015 (UTC)
:: I'm responding in the future! I hope it's not too much of a spoiler to reveal that this website still exists in the future.... [[Special:Contributions/173.245.50.65|173.245.50.65]] 13:53, 16 December 2015 (UTC)
Is the "Do you still have sandwiches" line supposed to be a reference to the 2009 Star Trek movie? {{unsigned ip|108.162.221.42}}
: When considering if a phrase is a reference if you have to ask "is this a reference to X?", it's best to assume it's not a reference. Especially when it's an innocuous question or low value integer. -Pennpenn [[Special:Contributions/108.162.250.162|108.162.250.162]] 22:41, 17 December 2015 (UTC)

Beret Guy's statement in the last line reminded me of [[926|time vultures]]... actually, aside from the "eating" part, he seems to have been pretty similar to one of these anyway. --[[Special:Contributions/141.101.79.37|141.101.79.37]] 18:50, 16 December 2015 (UTC)

How does the beret slip over his eyes? I thought he stapled it to his head. {{unsigned ip|198.41.242.243}}
:: It's possible he hasn't done that at this point, or he removed the staples. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.33.109|172.69.33.109]] 12:52, 26 June 2020 (UTC)

He should've been upside down in the capsule to travel back in time. Trust me, it works. [[User:Certified_nqh|Me]][[[285: Wikipedian Protester|''citation needed'']]][[Category:Pages using the "citation needed" template]] 13:28, 1 September 1939 (UTC) [[User:Certified_nqh|Me]][[[285: Wikipedian Protester|''citation needed'']]][[Category:Pages using the "citation needed" template]] 22:36, 8 September 2023 (UTC)

Pretty sure he’s only been in there for a week [[1614]]. [[User:TenGolf MathHacker|TenGolf MathHacker]] ([[User talk:TenGolf MathHacker|talk]]) 14:06, 26 January 2024 (UTC)

Talk:107: Snakes on a Plane! 2

2024-01-22T22:38:57Z

TenGolf MathHacker:

I think he's also implying that it was a bad film and the sequel will be much worse [[User:OmiWan|OmiWan]] ([[User talk:OmiWan|talk]]) 23:06, 16 January 2013 (UTC)

I like proposing the parody of "Snakes On The ISS" because one, everything is cooler in space, two, I'm obsessed with the ISS, three, we can imagine the snakes destroy the Soyuz docked and now we have snakes flailing around unthreateningly in microg. XD [[User:International Space Station|International Space Station]] ([[User talk:International Space Station|talk]]) 04:17, 7 December 2015 (UTC)
mmm cooked snake meat...

: Snakes On The HISS? --

Maybe he's saying planes as in planes of reality, as well as airplanes. 21:29, 15 December 2016 (UTC)~

It seems that these are not B747 jumbo jets and are actually A340s. Not very jumbo jets. [[User:TenGolf MathHacker|TenGolf MathHacker]] ([[User talk:TenGolf MathHacker|talk]]) 22:38, 22 January 2024 (UTC)

Talk:2362: Volcano Dinosaur

2024-01-05T20:06:26Z

TenGolf MathHacker:

The nearest living relative of any 125 million-year-old dinosaur is all living birds. They are all descended from the same "stem bird," which was a dinosaur of a different group. [[User:Nitpicking|Nitpicking]] ([[User talk:Nitpicking|talk]]) 02:08, 22 September 2020 (UTC)
: But some living birds will be fewer generations removed from that dinosaur than others [[User:Jeremyp|Jeremyp]] ([[User talk:Jeremyp|talk]]) 08:57, 22 September 2020 (UTC).
::True, but is a 100,000,000th cousin that different from a 100,000,001th cousin? [[User:Nitpicking|Nitpicking]] ([[User talk:Nitpicking|talk]]) 11:25, 22 September 2020 (UTC)
::Why would birds be closer relation than reptiles, since the dinosaurs were reptiles? [[User:SDSpivey|SDSpivey]] ([[User talk:SDSpivey|talk]]) 21:00, 23 September 2020 (UTC)
:::Being compulsive about explaining taxonomy: birds are closer to dinosaurs than to other reptiles because birds '''are''' dinosaurs. Living reptiles (common usage) are mostly not especially close relatives of the dinosaur clade, including the flying dinosaurs. The crocodilians are thought to be the closest surviving relatives of the dinosaurs, and all crocodilians are equally closely related (barring different numbers of intervening generations) to all birds. [[User:Nitpicking|Nitpicking]] ([[User talk:Nitpicking|talk]]) 16:14, 19 November 2023 (UTC)
:::One might wade in caustic lakes, except when it flies to its feeding grounds, the other breeds in icy wastes and be flightless but a superb swimmer in freezing oceans. And if there's a large intestate estate needing to be inherited then be prepared for legal challenges! [[Special:Contributions/162.158.155.198|162.158.155.198]] 11:47, 22 September 2020 (UTC)
:::Just in case, if you have a parrot you should ask it if its family has any stories of a great-to-the-millionth uncle who went missing around the time of an eruption. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 13:37, 22 September 2020 (UTC)
::::But how close are parrots to dinosaurs? They might be the poor dino's 100,000,002nd cousin. [[User:Donthaveusername|Donthaveusername]] ([[User talk:Donthaveusername|talk]])
:::That would depend on the value of the estate. [[User:BunsenH|BunsenH]] ([[User talk:BunsenH|talk]]) 17:32, 22 September 2020 (UTC)
::::After 65 million years of inflation and compounding, it must be worth quite a bit. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 17:40, 22 September 2020 (UTC)
:::::Compounding would indeed increase the value, but wouldn't inflation decrease the value? The value after 125 million years should depend on which factor is outpacing the other, on average. Also, bird species with short generations would be more distantly related than bird species with long generations. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.107.89|162.158.107.89]] 23:49, 22 September 2020 (UTC)
:::::That would depend upon many things, like how it turns out if progeniture is the basis of branch-prioritisation (male/female-preference giving different results to the absolute version) and sallic (including semi-sallic and quasi-sallic) rules which could see an entitlement even dive back up out of the avian branch and down into any other sprawl of the tree-of-life... [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.153|141.101.99.153]] 01:27, 23 September 2020 (UTC)

:This specimen is described as "basal ornithopod dinosaur" which means it is close to root of the species and is also described as adapted for burrowing which would make it a very unlikely to fly. So it seems to me that there is very low possibility that there are any DIRECT descendants. So to find the "closest living relative" would require going back up many prior generations to find an ancestor of modern birds. Unless birds are descended from burrowing dinosaurs who escaped getting wiped out with all the other dinosaurs.

I'm only who feeling that [CITATION NEEDED] joke is overused by now? In every second comic there is [CITATION NEEDED] at least once. We have around 450 pages with that, https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Special:WhatLinksHere/285:_Wikipedian_Protester [[Special:Contributions/162.158.183.205|162.158.183.205]] 09:15, 23 September 2020 (UTC) LauLain
:There are 358 links to that page from actual comics (excluding redirect, talk pages, etc.). Since we have 2,362 comics, that's around 15% of the explanations. Quite high, but I guess not really overused, especially since it's not annoying. [[User:Justhalf|Justhalf]] ([[User talk:Justhalf|talk]]) 09:33, 23 September 2020 (UTC)
::Links or pages? Some pages, like this one, have multiple links to it. [[User:JBYoshi|JBYoshi]] ([[User talk:JBYoshi|talk]]) 17:30, 23 September 2020 (UTC)

Why would 2020 not be a good year to dig it up and potentially let it free? 2020 is the perfect year for that. Let's get all the scary stuff over with so we can move on. I say we use the remaining three months of the year to open as many sealed graves, haunted houses and such things as possible. [[User:Bischoff|Bischoff]] ([[User talk:Bischoff|talk]]) 19:35, 23 September 2020 (UTC)
:Well, I ''tried'' to build my luxury hotel and backpacker's hostel in the woodlands that grew over the old Indian Burial Ground that they burnt all those witches in, but my builders said they were still too busy building the secret government bunker for extradimensional gateway research and development of an RNA-based immortality serum for the military. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.153|141.101.99.153]] 20:14, 23 September 2020 (UTC)
:We don't know if COVID-19 can infect dinosaurs. (Probably not, it seems to only infect mammals.)[[Special:Contributions/108.162.215.176|108.162.215.176]] 06:12, 24 September 2020 (UTC)

Chronostratigraphy update: 125 million years ago was in the Barremian age in the Lower Cretaceous.

Talk:2871: Definitely

2024-01-05T17:47:54Z

TenGolf MathHacker:

Regrettably for someone who has mild dyslexia, and with it in All Caps, I have difficulty seeing the subtleties of the spellings. [[User:RIIW - Ponder it|RIIW - Ponder it]] ([[User talk:RIIW - Ponder it|talk]]) 09:08, 23 December 2023 (UTC)
:Seems intentional; it would be less funny if the typos were more obvious?
:[[User:ProphetZarquon|ProphetZarquon]] ([[User talk:ProphetZarquon|talk]]) 13:40, 23 December 2023 (UTC)

I have defiantly left this typo as-is, on purpose, before.
[[User:ProphetZarquon|ProphetZarquon]] ([[User talk:ProphetZarquon|talk]]) 13:40, 23 December 2023 (UTC)

I buffed up the Explanation (basically replaced it, the editor-suggestions for 'other not-wrong-honest spellings' didn't fit. Maybe I should transplant that down here as a game for us all to play 'aside' from any Explain). Some phrasing or language I can see being ripe for going under the scalpel/wrecking-ball of the next editor to arrive here, but I think it's a decent framework that covers most of the points. Just the one thing I nearly added, but left off, was actually going into the various Word-Meaning pairs. I can imagine why some of the Meanings are used (seem to have a sense that aligns with the letter-jumble that makes the Word wrong), but not enough to do a full table about it (as an obvious attempt at over-analysis). But if anyone else has a yen to do so then... Just remember that I thought of it first. ;) [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.59|141.101.99.59]] 16:14, 23 December 2023 (UTC)
: You beat me to it. I was unable to ascertain any way to link clues in the misspellings to the meanings assigned to them, and I think that the meanings were haphazardly, even absurdly, assigned. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.186.248|162.158.186.248]] 16:28, 23 December 2023 (UTC)
Not sure whether or not this merits a table, but I think the apparent reference to the 2008 film "Definitely, Maybe" is worth mentioning, at least. (I probably put it in an awkward spot, though.)[[Special:Contributions/172.70.174.134|172.70.174.134]] 17:55, 23 December 2023 (UTC)
:Definitely. ... Maybe?
:No, definitely. Please do.
:[[User:ProphetZarquon|ProphetZarquon]] ([[User talk:ProphetZarquon|talk]]) 17:21, 25 December 2023 (UTC)

All options definotly accounted for. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.211.187|172.70.211.187]] 18:36, 23 December 2023 (UTC)

Randall misspelled leopard in the title text. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.202.7|162.158.202.7]] 23:23, 23 December 2023 (UTC)
:I'm in the cat right now, but when I get home I'll shove the car off my leopard & see about getting a correction
:[[User:ProphetZarquon|ProphetZarquon]] ([[User talk:ProphetZarquon|talk]]) 17:19, 25 December 2023 (UTC)

Diffinatley [[User:TenGolf MathHacker|TenGolf MathHacker]] ([[User talk:TenGolf MathHacker|talk]]) 17:47, 5 January 2024 (UTC)

1868: Eclipse Flights

2024-01-05T17:42:54Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 1868
| date = July 26, 2017
| title = Eclipse Flights
| image = eclipse_flights.png
| titletext = The captain has turned on the 'fasten seat belt' sign.
}}

==Explanation==

A {{w|total solar eclipse}} occurred on {{w|Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017|Monday, August 21, 2017}}. It was visible as a total eclipse in {{w|umbra|a narrow band}} across the contiguous United States from Oregon on the Pacific coast to South Carolina on the Atlantic. [[Cueball]] asks [[Megan]] what she is doing, which turns out to be mapping the flights of aircraft that will be flying through the path of totality during the eclipse. She has found between 50 to 100 such flights.

While most flights during the eclipse are coincidental, a few airlines had special flights planned for the occasion. Alaska Airlines, [https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/science/2017/07/20/solar-eclipse-2017-flights-offer-unobstructed-potentially-longer-view/493343001/ for example,] chartered an invitation only flight for about 50 astronomers and serious eclipse chasers.

On the map, the center of the greatest eclipse is shown on the border between {{w|Illinois}} and {{w|Kentucky}}. Cueball says that the airlines and pilots will be prepared and aware of the situation, but Megan wonders what it would be like on a plane with an unprepared crew. The last panel shows a plane flying into the area of the eclipse with one of the crew telling the passengers that the end of the world has come.

In many cultures such as ancient Egypt, the end of the world is represented by a great darkness and the sun going out. During past eclipses, people were said to have believed the world was ending much like this comic (except without planes). This could also be a reference to [[1391: Darkness]] as in that comic the reporters also believed a natural event to be the world ending although in a different setting.

The title text refers to the 'fasten seat belts' signs on display for the passengers, as a precautionary measure for turbulence. Many pop-culture depictions of the end of the world feature storms, earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, etc; as the captain believes that the end of the world is upon them, he feels it safe to ensure his passengers are prepared for turbulence from any of the phenomena that occur during the end times. However, the precaution of having one's seat belt fastened is vastly insufficient when confronted with such catastrophic events.{{Citation needed}}

This was the first reference to the Eclipse within a month of the totality. It was followed less than three weeks later by [[1876: Eclipse Searches]]. The 2017 eclipse was mentioned as early as 2013 in the title text of [[1302: Year in Review]]. And this year's New Year comic, [[1779: 2017]], also mentions it. Both comics express concern, in the title text, that it would be canceled/not happen.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is standing behind Megan, looking over her shoulder as she's seated in front of her laptop.]
:Cueball: What's that?
:Megan: Flight plans. Looks like there will be 50 to 100 flights whose route puts them in the path of the eclipse next month.

:[A map with a shaded path of the eclipse and red planes traveling is shown, with nine planes inside the path and one inside the eclipse shadow..]

:Cueball: I'm sure the airlines will be prepared. Pilots know that stuff.
:Megan: But can you imagine being on the one flight where the pilot ''didn't?''

:[A more detailed Boeing 737 Next Generation is shown flying into a curtain of darkness.]
:Captain: *KSSCHHH* [sound of intercom being activated]
:Captain: This is your captain speaking. If you look out the right side of the plane, you'll see, uhh...
:Captain: Folks, this appears to be the end times.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Total Solar Eclipse 2017]]
[[Category:Aviation]]

2868: Label the States

2023-12-15T19:05:58Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2868
| date = December 15, 2023
| title = Label the States
| image = label_the_states_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x500px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Even with a blank map, a lot of people can only name 45-50 of the 64 states.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a LEONIDA MAN - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
[[File:label the states 2x highlighted.png|thumb|300xp|The map with the extra states highlighted.]]
[[File:Blank map of states.png|thumb|300xp|A real blank map of the United States for comparison.]]
This is a blank map of the United States. At first glance, it looks correct, because all the large states with distinct shapes are correctly represented, but some states have been added. For example:

* On the west coast, Washington, Oregon, and California all have their normal shapes, but there is a new rectangular state south of Oregon and north of California.
* Ohio and Indiana have been narrowed with a new state being created between them.
* A new, Tennessee-shaped state has been added between Tennessee and Kentucky.
* Additionally, a new, North Carolina-shaped state has been added between Virginia and North Carolina.
* A square-shaped state has been added between Arizona and New Mexico.
* Another rectangular state has been added between North and South Dakota (Middle Dakota?).
* An Arkansas-esque state has been added between Arkansas and Missouri.
* New Hampshire now has a state that looks like its reflection between itself and Maine.
* Four rectangular states have been added between Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado and the Dakotas, Nebraska, and Kansas.
* Another rectangular state has been added between Colorado and Wyoming.
* Lastly, another rectangular state has been added between Idaho, Utah, and Nevada.

In summary, a whole row and a whole column of states have been added, and two new states have been added between Indiana and Ohio and between New Hampshire and Vermont. The external shape of the United States has also been slightly modified to accommodate the new states. As the title text says, there are now 64 states on Randall's map, not 50.

In comic [[2394]], this has also been done, but with 41 states instead of 64.

The title text comments on the fact that Americans are bad at geography, parodying comments that Americans cannot name all 50 of the US states.

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

:Geography Challenge:
:Can you label all the states?

:[An unlabeled map of the United States, but instead of 50 states, there are borders for 64.]

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:US maps]]

Talk:2868: Label the States

2023-12-15T18:53:31Z

TenGolf MathHacker:

I have not counted the states, but I deeply hope reaching the 64-state count involves splitting Michigan's mitten and peninsula in separate states. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.241.130|108.162.241.130]] 16:02, 15 December 2023 (UTC)
:I have now counted them. Sadly, with a Unified Michigan, there are 64 states, plus DC, plus those 3 enclave-looking bits in California, Utah and Florida that have the darker outlines. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.214.73|172.69.214.73]] 16:09, 15 December 2023 (UTC)
::Those "enclave" parts are large bodies of water that actually exist. [[User:MAP|MAP]] ([[User talk:MAP|talk]]) 16:14, 15 December 2023 (UTC)
::I am not at all sure that the areas in California, Utah, and Florida are intended to be additional states. They look like Okeechobee (Lake in Florida), Salt Lake (Utah) and the Salton Sea (California), approximately. There does seem to be an additional band of states starting between Oregon and California though- as a supporter of the Great State of Jefferson, I appove![[User:Seebert|Seebert]] ([[User talk:Seebert|talk]]) 16:17, 15 December 2023 (UTC)
:::They didn't really seem to be; they do have the coastline outlines, instead of the lighter state boundaries. The 64-count did work out without these lakes (though a part of me wishes one of them had been one, because it would have been funny to imply a state formed fully landlocked inside another, and even funnier if that state is just an entire body of water) [[Special:Contributions/108.162.242.38|108.162.242.38]] 16:26, 15 December 2023 (UTC)

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

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

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

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

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

Labeled all… INCLUDING Central Dakota, Central Carolina, North Arkansas, West Mexico, Kansorado, Ohindiana, Kentussee, Eyoming, East Hampshire, North Wyoming, West Dakota, South Oregon, Udaho, and Montanyoming. [[User:TenGolf MathHacker|TenGolf MathHacker]] ([[User talk:TenGolf MathHacker|talk]]) 18:53, 15 December 2023 (UTC)

1241: Annoying Ringtone Champion

2023-12-13T18:58:01Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1241
| date = July 22, 2013
| title = Annoying Ringtone Champion
| image = annoying_ringtone_champion.png
| titletext = It beat out 'Clock radio alarm', 'B-flat at 194 decibels', 'That noise from Dumb & Dumber', and 'Recording of a sobbing voice begging you to answer'.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic satirizes the large variety of {{w|Ringtone|ringtones}} that may be used on their cell phones. While many are simply tunes that personalize a user's phone, some will use ringtones that resemble everyday sounds, such as doorbells, coughing, alarm noises, or in this case, the buzzing of a mosquito. Although rather innocuous, these ringtones can get very annoying to some people, which is what this comic is getting at.

Here, [[Black Hat]] has set his ringtone to "The sound a mosquito makes as it buzzes past your ear", the winner of the "Awful Ringtone Championship". [[Cueball]], hearing the sound, cries out and swats the air around his head, mistaking the ringtone for an actual mosquito buzzing past his ear. In addition to being an extremely unpleasant sound, it could also cause confusion to others, as shown in the comic, thus being unanimously decided as the most annoying ringtone. [[Black Hat]]'s response is likely a pun meaning both "Oh, I've got to take this [call]" (like someone who has been interrupted by a phone call) and need to leave and respond and "Oh, I've got to take this [competition]" since the ringtone is so annoying.

The title text refers to four other annoying ringtones, apparently none of which were deemed as annoying as a mosquito buzzing:
*"Clock radio alarm". These sounds are often loud and annoying, just to ensure that you really will wake up.
*"B-flat at 194 decibels". {{w|B♭ (musical note)|B-flat}} is a musical note with a pitch of 466.16 Hz (or any power of 2 or 1/2 multiplied by that). 194 decibels is 501187233627% (most devices only go up to 100%/0dB) and is the {{w|Sound pressure#Examples of sound pressure and sound pressure levels|limit at 1 atmosphere pressure}}. Any more energy would create a shockwave. This could also be a reference to a crowd of {{w|vuvuzela}}s as they also produce sounds pitched around B flat. This may also refer to several B-flat-related phenomena discussed in an NPR story, [http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7442915 Have You Heard About B Flat?] Specifically, B-flat has been found to agitate alligators, and waves passing through gas near a black hole have been found to resonate at a frequency which results in a B flat 57 octaves below middle C. Regardless of all this, a sound played as loud as 194 dB is quite literally deafening, so the ringtone would be not so much annoying as dangerous.
*"That noise from Dumb & Dumber". {{w|Dumb and Dumber}} is a comedy movie from 1994. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0cVlTeIATBs The noise] from Dumb & Dumber is referring to the point in the movie when Harry and Lloyd asked, "Do you want to hear the most annoying sound in the world?" and began shrieking in imitation of a loud fax machine.
*"Recording of a sobbing voice begging you to answer". Self-explanatory. Such a ringtone is obviously disruptive, annoying, and potentially worrying to those in the vicinity of the phone.

==Transcript==
:[At the top of the frame is a humming tone. It is written in small letters, that gradually get larger until the middle "M", when the letters gradually shrink again. Cueball is cringing while raising his arms above his head. Black Hat is holding his phone and looking at it.]
:Ringtone: hMMMMMM<big>M<big>M<big>M</big>M</big></big>MMMMMMMM
:Cueball: <big>Augh!</big>
:Black Hat: Oh, I've gotta take this.

:[Caption below the frame:]
:By unanimous decision, the winner of the Awful Ringtone Championship is "the sound a mosquito makes as it buzzes past your ear".

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]
[[Category:Rankings]] 
[[Category:Phones]]
[[Category:Music]]

993: Brand Identity

2023-12-06T20:00:46Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* List of all products in the shelves */ it’s clearly fart cutters, dude.

{{comic
| number = 993
| date = December 21, 2011
| title = Brand Identity
| image = brand_identity.png
| titletext = Legally-mandated information would be printed on the back or discreetly along the bottom. In small letters under the nutrition information it would say 'Like our products? Visit our website!' There would be no URL.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic presents [[Randall]]'s idea for a line of food products all with clear black font on a white background. The products with black block lettering and white background stand out from the other items in this comic. The irony is that even though the branding isn't terribly creative, the ''lack'' of complexity is what causes the products to stand out. These product packaging styles resemble {{w|no-frills}} products and {{w|generic brands}}. For example, in Canada, the "{{w|No Name (brand)|No Name}}" generic brand of low-cost products sold by {{w|Loblaw Companies Limited|Loblaws}} general features a plain yellow label with the description of the product in bold black text, and occasionally an image of the product. The brand name is minimalized as are other legally-required elements (e.g. the weight of the product). Another of Loblaws' generic brands, {{w|President's Choice}} (PC) currently has a plain white background with black bold text for the labels on most of its products (usually with an image of the product as well as the brand name), although more recently, text in accent colors has been introduced.

The style of packaging might be a reference to ''{{w|The Prisoner}}'' TV series from the '60s, a dystopia set in a village (actually, "the village") locked out from the outside world. The shops here only sell "village food". [https://www.wemadethis.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/Village-foods.jpg See this photo] for an example.
It might also be a reference to Portal’s bean cans.

In the title text, the lack of a listed URL relates to the lack of branding on the package. It is possible that omitting the URL the consumer's curiosity will be aroused, and they will spend time on the internet hunting for the actual site.

===List of all products in the shelves===
[[File:993_numbering.png]]

*[1] Rainbow
*[2] Ruffles
*[3] [unreadable]
*[4] '''Potato Chips''' [new brand]
*[5] [unreadable]
*[6] cheese crackers [Flavor 1]
*[7] cheese crackers [Flavor 2]
*[8] - [12] [unreadable]
*[13] [?] Beets
*[14] - [16] [unreadable]
*[17] '''Tissues''' [new brand]
*[18] cervical caps [what product is this? see comments]
*[19] [unreadable]
*[20] blue stripe shells
*[21] ear tonic
*[22] - [24] [unreadable]
*[25] - [26] [unreadable]
*[27] '''Crackers''' [new brand]
*[28] - [29] [unreadable]
*[30] '''Matches''' [new brand]
*[31] - [32] [unreadable]
*[33] '''Peanuts''' [new brand]
*[34] hot sauce [probably not the new brand, see comments]
*[35] - [40] [unreadable]
*[41] sugar [probably not the new brand, see comments]
*[42] - [45] [unreadable]
*[46] '''Milk''' [new brand]
*[47] - [48] [unreadable]
*[49] '''Pasta''' [new brand]
*[50] caccalion [there is no pasta named like this says the {{w|List of pasta}}]
*[51] free
*[52] [unreadable]
*[53] coffee
*[54] [unreadable]
*[55] '''Coffee''' [new brand]
*[56] - [61] [unreadable]
*[62] white beans
*[63] - [66] [unreadable]
*[67] sanfra beans [there are no beans named like this says the {{w|Bean#Types}}]
*[68] pinto beans
*[69] bean
*[70] pinto beans
*[71] '''Black beans''' [new brand]
*[72] [unreadable]
*[73] do beans [there are no beans named like this says the {{w|Bean#Types}}]
*[74] black beans
*[75] [unreadable]
*[76] lima beans
*[77] '''Lima beans''' [new brand]
*[78] fart cutters
*[79] three [unreadable] can
*[80] [unreadable]
*[81] pine + giant bean
*[82] beans with [unreadable]
*[83] refrie[d beans; unfinished due to bowing of can]
*[84 top] [unreadable]
*[84 middle] [unlabeled]
*[84 bottom] Bees
*[85] [unreadable]
*[86] mayonnaise
*[87] roo's simple mayo
*[88] simp[le] mayo [unfinished word due to bowing of can]
*[89] '''Mayo''' [new brand]
*[90] [unreadable]
*[91] red meat sauce
*[92] [unreadable]
*[93] oil
*[94] [unreadable]
*[95] oil
*[96] '''Ketchup''' [new brand]
*[97] - [98] [unreadable]
*[99] maple syrup
*[100] - [101] [unreadable]
*[102] eye sand
*[103] tea [yellow package with clear black font]
*[104] tea
*[105] - [106] [unreadable]
*[107] tea
*[108] country loaf
*[109] '''Bread''' [new brand]
*[110] white bread

==Transcript==
:[The incredibly varied shelf of a supermarket aisle. There are many different types of products on this shelf. Each type has numerous different brands, all surrounding a very plain brand that has, as its only label, the type of product. A plain bag, labeled in plain black letters, says "Potato Chips" and is surrounded by all the other various brands of potato chips. The same exists for tissues, crackers, matches, peanuts, hot sauce, sugar, milk, pasta, coffee, black beans, lima beans, mayo, ketchup, tea, and bread. There is a stark contrast between the incredibly noisy and complex labeling of every other brand and this simple one.]

:[Caption below:]
:If I ever sold a line of supermarket goods,
:this is how I'd build a brand identity overnight.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Food]]
[[Category:Bees]]

730: Circuit Diagram

2023-11-29T20:04:32Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 730
| date = April 21, 2010
| title = Circuit Diagram
| image = circuit_diagram.png
| titletext = I just caught myself idly trying to work out what that resistor mass would actually be, and realized I had self-nerd-sniped.
}}

==Explanation==
Another fine example of [[356|nerd sniping]], as mentioned in the title text.
There are pieces of circuit diagrams, road maps, chemical diagrams, and other things all mixed in.
Explanations for each below!

{|class="wikitable table-padding left-align"
!Image Fragment
!width="130px" | Image Location
!Description
|-
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=19|Y=25|W=106|H=37|image=circuit_diagram-019-025-106-037-scale.png|text=A map scale. Lists kilometers and miles as equivalent. (And makes the diagram many miles wide.)}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=15|Y=62|W=40|H=85|image=circuit_diagram-015-062-040-085-antenna.png|text=An antenna. Typical of radio receivers or transmitters. Or the Turtle in {{w|Logo (programming language)|LOGO programming language}}.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=53|Y=60|W=41|H=87|image=circuit_diagram-053-060-041-087-inductor.png|text=A coil or {{w|inductor}}. Normal, but unlabeled.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=107|Y=86|W=85|H=93|image=circuit_diagram-107-086-085-093-cloverleaf.png|text=A {{w|cloverleaf interchange}} or junction is a feature of road networks that does not belong in a circuit diagram. Of course, other types of {{w|p–n junction|junctions}} are important in electronics.
A cloverleaf junction has previously been used in comic: [[253: Highway Engineer Pranks]].}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=184|Y=12|W=87|H=63|image=circuit_diagram-184-012-087-063-battery.png|text=A battery. The voltage of square root of two is strange, but getting about 1.41412... volts is not unheard of. This could also indicate an {{w|Root_mean_square|RMS}} voltage, although this is unlikely given that this is a DC power supply and not an AC generator. The marked polarity is also the reverse of what is implied by the symbol (where the larger terminal is positive). A possible reference to [[567: Urgent Mission]].}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=187|Y=110|W=94|H=71|image=circuit_diagram-187-110-094-071-resister.png|text=A 120 ohm {{w|resistor}} is normal enough. "Or to taste" is odd for a circuit diagram and more like instructions from a recipe, e.g., "1 tbsp tomato purée, or to taste".}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=283|Y=50|W=90|H=63|image=circuit_diagram-283-050-090-063-switch.png|text=A normal {{w|switch}}, with a notation to glue it open. Reminiscent of the [http://catb.org/esr/jargon/html/magic-story.html MAGIC/MORE MAGIC] switch.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=337|Y=101|W=69|H=64|image=circuit_diagram-337-101-069-064-transisitor.png|text=A {{w|Bipolar_junction_transistor#PNP|bipolar PNP transistor}}, except that it has two emitters and no collector. It also resembles one of the schematic symbols for a {{w|DIAC}}, except the arrows are backwards.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=52|Y=141|W=79|H=107|image=circuit_diagram-052-141-079-107-compass-points.png|text=Compass points. A map feature, not a circuit feature, but possibly useful given the circuit is many miles wide.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=415|Y=18|W=63|H=58|image=circuit_diagram-415-018-063-058-resister.png|text=A normal resistor, labeled with color code. Brown-Blue-Orange would be 16000 ohms. {{w|Electronic color code|Resistor color codes}} are for reading the value on the physical device itself. They would not normally be shown on the circuit diagram, where it's much easier to just write the number, e.g. 16K.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=517|Y=14|W=42|H=32|image=circuit_diagram-517-014-042-032-diode.png|text=A normal {{w|diode}}.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=615|Y=55|W=73|H=74|image=circuit_diagram-615-055-073-074-666timer.png|text=A chip. The normal timer is a "{{w|555_timer_IC|555}}". "666" would be the number of the beast in [http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Rev&c=13&v=18&t=KJV#18 Rev. 13:18]. The pin connected to "?" is the CTRL pin on a normal 555 timer, which would typically be connected to ground (via a decoupling capacitor) if used at all; the implication here seems to be that it would be connected directly to Hell itself.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=632|Y=138|W=69|H=41|image=circuit_diagram-632-138-069-041-bat.png|text=A Batman logo.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=650|Y=211|W=75|H=71|image=circuit_diagram-650-211-075-071-squirrel.png|text=A squirrel, or perhaps a wire bent into the shape of a squirrel. {{w|Electrical disruptions caused by squirrels|Squirrels are among the leading causes of disruptions to electrical grids,}} so having one as part of a circuit is inviting disaster. [[:Category:Squirrels|Squirrels]] also appear in past and future xkcd comics.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=606|Y=165|W=54|H=53|image=circuit_diagram-606-165-054-053-inductor.png|text=A coil or inductor. An inductor in an AC circuit is analogous to a mass in an oscillating mechanical system; rather than listing the coil's inductance, the measurement of an analogous mechanical element is given: 11 kilograms of mass.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=538|Y=209|W=99|H=59|image=circuit_diagram-538-209-099-059-generator.png|text=A 240-volt AC generator (or other power source).}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=483|Y=186|W=111|H=103|image=circuit_diagram-483-186-111-103-shorted-generator.png|text=A shorting wire around a generator. The label reads "Omit this if you're a wimp." If this wire is included, it will quickly melt - or worse.
Theoretically, wimps will omit the wire, and people who know this fact will also, so it would be fine.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=419|Y=78|W=57|H=75|image=circuit_diagram-419-078-057-075-scarab-beetles.png|text=A jar of {{w|Scarabaeidae|scarab beetles}}. Possibly a conflation of a {{w|Leyden jar}}, that is an actual very old-style electrical/electronic component, and something like a {{w|killing jar}} or other {{w|Insect trap|insect-collection equipment}}. Or even, due to the traditionally Egyptian beetles, a repurposed {{w|canopic jar}}.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=482|Y=47|W=28|H=44|image=circuit_diagram-482-047-028-044-variable-resister.png|text=A {{w|variable resistor}} with center tap. Normally, there would be an arrowhead on the center tap.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=507|Y=53|W=22|H=27|image=circuit_diagram-507-053-022-027-capacitor.png|text=A normal {{w|capacitor}}.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=577|Y=318|W=96|H=62|image=circuit_diagram-577-318-096-062-magic.png|text="{{w|Magic Smoke}}" is the legendary stuff that all circuit components require to function. This is why all components cease to function after releasing smoke.{{acn}}. When an electrical component is subject to excessive current it often fails due to heat. This heat is often accompanied by a burning smell and smoke, right at the moment that the circuit fails. Hence the joke that the reason that the circuit failed is that "the magic smoke that makes it work has been released". }}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=669|Y=315|W=51|H=66|image=circuit_diagram-669-315-051-066-frayed-wires.png|text=Some frayed or dangling wires. The wire on the left seems confused because it did not manage to cross with the one on the right.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=567|Y=392|W=58|H=48|image=circuit_diagram-567-392-058-048-buoy.png|text=An object which is either a {{w|Fishing float|float}} used in fishing, a {{w|Tippe top}}, or perhaps a {{w|Naval mine|mine}}.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=458|Y=336|W=111|H=86|image=circuit_diagram-458-336-111-086-moral-rectifier.png|text=A {{w|Diode_bridge|bridge rectifier}}, which would normally turn alternating current at the top and bottom into direct current on the left and right. In this case, it is labeled as a "moral rectifier". This is presumably a play on the idea of moral rectitude – it makes your circuit more moral. Why this matters in a circuit is unclear.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=423|Y=259|W=80|H=85|image=circuit_diagram-423-259-080-085-warm-front.png|text=This resembles both the schematic symbol for part of a {{w|transformer}} and the meteorological symbol for a warm front. A {{w|warm front}} is a feature on a {{w|Surface weather analysis|synoptic weather map}}.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=190|Y=199|W=54|H=52|image=circuit_diagram-190-199-054-052-battery.png|text=A normal 50-volt battery.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=173|Y=200|W=89|H=56|image=circuit_diagram-173-200-089-056-shorted-battery.png|text=A battery is grounded on both sides. Something will melt or burn out quickly, unless these are separate "earth ground"s, in which case the ground might get a bit cooked.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=259|Y=198|W=174|H=25|image=circuit_diagram-259-198-174-025-pull-wire.png|text=Text reads "Pull this wire really tight". This kind of physical-property issue may indicate a high-frequency radio device. Or, given the absurdity of the context, it's a silly reference to a "high tension wire."}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=141|Y=211|W=41|H=91|image=circuit_diagram-141-211-041-091-3-8-inch.png|text=A specified 3/8-inch separation. This probably indicates a carefully controlled capacitance issue. Also contradicts the scale of the drawing, by which the distance shown would be about 0.8 miles or 0.8 km. Or both.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=173|Y=309|W=92|H=59|image=circuit_diagram-173-309-092-059-eel.png|text=An {{w|electric eel}}. This may be an effective power source in the circuit, capable of producing a shock at up to 600 volts and 1 ampere of current (600 watts), but for less than 2 ms.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=266|Y=307|W=35|H=41|image=circuit_diagram-266-307-035-041-resistor.png|text=A normal resistor.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=222|Y=358|W=34|H=29|image=circuit_diagram-222-358-034-029-capacitor.png|text=A normal capacitor.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=130|Y=335|W=44|H=40|image=circuit_diagram-130-335-044-040-resistor.png|text=A normal resistor, labeled "ë". This may be a play on {{w|e (mathematical constant)|Euler's Number}}, which doesn't normally have a {{w|tréma}} or an {{w|umlaut (linguistics)|umlaut}}. Alternatively instead of being an umlaut or tréma it may indicate the second {{w|derivative}} of e with respect to time in {{w|Newton's notation}}, in which case, as e is a constant, the resistance of this element is zero.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=65|Y=249|W=61|H=92|image=circuit_diagram-065-249-061-092-blender.png|text=Our best guess is that this is a {{w|blender}}. Due to the scale, this would certainly be the worlds largest blender. Record setting blenders are not typically part of computer circuits{{Citation needed}}}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=20|Y=342|W=115|H=73|image=circuit_diagram-020-342-115-073-arduino.png|text=An {{w|arduino}}, labeled "Arduino, just for blog cred". May refer to the fact that inexpensive, easy-to-integrate single-board computers like the arduino, which have contributed to the rise of {{w|Maker culture}}, are used and discussed frequently in that culture, and the use of one might impress readers. The comment implies that an arduino is not otherwise needed in this circuit, although it is necessarily hard to tell, given the other components of the circuit.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=39|Y=423|W=118|H=82|image=circuit_diagram-039-423-118-082-meca.png|text=A chip labeled "Most expensive chip available". The small curve at the top is a part of the packaging designed to show its orientation.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=159|Y=428|W=91|H=50|image=circuit_diagram-159-428-091-050-neck-strap.png|text=Labeled "Neck Strap". Perhaps a piece of torture equipment or indicating that the circuit is part of an {{w|electric chair}}? May also be a reference to the grounded wrist straps people working with electronics commonly wear, to prevent accidental static discharges from frying the circuitry.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=147|Y=480|W=110|H=88|image=circuit_diagram-147-480-110-088-switch.png|text=A switch labeled "Hire someone to open and close switch real fast." Possibly meant to perform the function of an {{w|Electronic oscillator|oscillator}} in a more hackish manner and the reason for the neck strap. Could also be a reference to {{w|Maxwell's Demon}}.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=273|Y=498|W=61|H=64|image=circuit_diagram-273-498-061-064-resistor.png|text=A 5 ohm resistor labeled "(decoy)". One end is not attached to anything. Perhaps this indicates wishful thinking that electrons might be tricked into entering this part of the circuit despite the fact that there's nowhere for them to go?}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=307|Y=453|W=103|H=56|image=circuit_diagram-307-453-103-056-tongue.png|text=A pair of contacts, labeled "Touch Tongue Here". Could be referring to the practice of daring someone to touch their tongue to the contacts of a 9V battery.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=301|Y=270|W=45|H=45|image=circuit_diagram-301-270-045-045-frown.png|text=A frowny-face. See the float/mine.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=294|Y=311|W=128|H=124|image=circuit_diagram-294-311-128-124-IC.png|text=A small integrated circuit. The lower gate is an {{w|Inverter (logic gate)|inverter}}, wired as a free-running oscillator. The upper gate is an {{w|XOR gate|XOR}} wired to act as either a free-running oscillator or a latch. Since the XOR will be slower than the inverter, the overall output of the upper gate is probably very chaotic. Two "input" wires are not connected at all. An additional wire is attached to the top with hot glue. This last wire probably acts to control static electricity and leakage.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=302|Y=235|W=91|H=25|image=circuit_diagram-302-235-091-025-curve.png|text=A caution sign at a curve. Another road feature in the circuit. This is a play on the notion that 90-degree corners on printed circuit board traces can disrupt signal integrity.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=401|Y=455|W=67|H=68|image=circuit_diagram-401-455-067-068-CH3.png|text=A {{w|methyl group}} (chemistry) attached to a corner. If the circuit were an organic chemical, it would be reasonable to find a number of these.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=453|Y=167|W=43|H=93|image=circuit_diagram-453-167-043-093-baloon.png|text=A balloon, possibly blowing in a breeze.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=572|Y=68|W=22|H=43|image=circuit_diagram-572-068-022-043-inductor.png|text=A coil or inductor.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=508|Y=96|W=42|H=20|image=circuit_diagram-508-096-042-020-inductor.png|text=A coil or inductor.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=534|Y=61|W=22|H=31|image=circuit_diagram-534-061-022-031-ground.png|text=A ground connection.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=472|Y=49|W=134|H=140|image=circuit_diagram-472-049-134-140-solderr-blob.png|text=A {{w|Soldering#Soldering_defects|solder blob}} covering a portion of the circuit. Normally, this would not be part of the circuit diagram, but a mistake in building the circuit.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=493|Y=443|W=207|H=158|image=circuit_diagram-493-443-207-158-res-rats-nest.png|text=A rat's nest of 1 ohm resistors. It is labeled "Oh, so you think you're such a whiz at EE201?" The name EE201 (Electrical Engineering 201) follows US course naming conventions for what appears to be a basic level course in electrical engineering (compare the term {{w|101 (term)|101}}), which would include being taught how to [http://www.wikihow.com/Calculate-Series-and-Parallel-Resistance calculate the effective resistance of various resistor networks]. Performing the calculation on a network this complex would probably be very difficult. Experimentally, the resistance of the mass can be measured as, likely coincidentally, about π/4.
A grid of 1 ohm resistors has appeared earlier in [[356: Nerd Sniping]], a comic also referred to in the title text.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=315|Y=533|W=232|H=200|image=circuit_diagram-362-531-151-167-arena.png|text=An {{w|arena}}, with a few bodies in it. Note the direction of movement enforced by the surrounding diodes, {{w|Mad_Max_Beyond_Thunderdome|"two men enter, one man leaves"}}, a film reference.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=569|Y=653|W=47|H=51|image=circuit_diagram-569-653-047-051-resistor.png|text=A "{{w|pi}}" ohm resistor.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=610|Y=655|W=75|H=70|image=circuit_diagram-610-655-075-070-generator.png|text=A 500-volt AC generator. The wiring to the right shorts out this generator.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=481|Y=682|W=85|H=64|image=circuit_diagram-481-682-085-064-ground.png|text=A ground connection, labeled "Bury deep, but not too deep". This type of ground connection is called an "earth ground" The "too deep" part might be a reference to {{w|Moria (Middle-earth)|Moria}} in Lord of Rings. The dwarves dug too deeply and disturbed a Balrog. See also comic [[760]].}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=17|Y=610|W=75|H=73|image=circuit_diagram-017-610-075-073-fishhook.png|text=A ground connection at the end of a curve, looking like a fishhook. Means perhaps "earthed down under", i.e., Australia or the southern hemisphere.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=206|Y=662|W=66|H=45|image=circuit_diagram-206-662-066-045-yarn.png|text=A length of "wire" is labeled "yarn". This probably makes it a terrible conductor.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=102|Y=590|W=93|H=88|image=circuit_diagram-102-590-093-088-fluxcapacitor.png|text=The {{w|DeLorean time machine#Flux capacitor|flux capacitor}} from {{w|Back to the Future}}. This may be difficult to implement, since flux capacitors are not available to most people,{{Citation needed}}}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=138|Y=685|W=54|H=24|image=circuit_diagram-138-685-054-024-I95.png|text=A road sign for "I-95". {{w|Interstate 95}} is the main north-south highway on the east coast of the United States, running from Maine to Florida.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=12|Y=713|W=134|H=36|image=circuit_diagram-012-713-134-036-tothesun.png|text=A connection labeled "To center of Sun". A 93-million-mile or 150-million-km circuit is rather large.{{Citation needed}}}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=31|Y=753|W=144|H=177|image=circuit_diagram-031-753-144-177-rats-nest.png|text=A rat's nest of wires. Everything winds up being connected. May also be a parody diagram of an [http://i.stack.imgur.com/np2p9.png undirected graph], from graph theory.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=22|Y=513|W=97|H=61|image=circuit_diagram-022-513-097-061-esf.png|text=A label reading "Electrons Single File". If this happens, the resistance in this section of wire would be rather high.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=256|Y=619|W=29|H=39|image=circuit_diagram-256-619-029-039-ground.png|text=A ground connection.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=589|Y=600|W=58|H=46|image=circuit_diagram-589-600-058-046-vibrator.png|text=A vibrator, which would be a motor with an off-center weight attached to it.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=532|Y=779|W=74|H=52|image=circuit_diagram-532-779-074-052-motor.png|text=A motor, labeled "To Scale". This indicates that the physical size and shape of the motor must match the size of the parts around it, or is consistent with the specified scale of the drawing. }}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=662|Y=822|W=73|H=109|image=circuit_diagram-662-822-073-109-holy-ground.png|text=A ground connection, in a beaker labeled "{{w|Holy Water}}", possibly creating {{w|Holy ground (religion)|holy ground}}.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=197|Y=740|W=48|H=55|image=circuit_diagram-197-740-048-055-speed.png|text=A sign indicating a speed limit of 55 MPH. This is a rather typical road sign, but inappropriate for a circuit diagram. It is presumably referring to the speed of individual electrons, which can normally vary up to almost the speed of light - although based on the width of the wire and assuming about 1A of current, the ''average'' speed of all electrons, the drift velocity, is likely to be in the order of 10-17mph.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=238|Y=706|W=100|H=116|image=circuit_diagram-238-706-100-116-flipflop.png|text=A pair of {{w|NOR gate}}s wired as a SR (set-reset) {{w|Flip-flop (electronics)|flip-flop}}. The label reads "May use an actual sandal instead", which is a play on the meanings of the term "{{w|Flip-flops|flip-flop}}". Also,the gate looks like a sandal.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=322|Y=708|W=70|H=54|image=circuit_diagram-322-708-070-054-holdingpen.png|text=Something that could be the side view of a fence, labeled "Holding Pen".}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=339|Y=777|W=42|H=49|image=circuit_diagram-339-777-042-049-knot.png|text=A simple {{w|overhand knot}}. Also looks like a pretzel, which would have pretty high resistance.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=191|Y=889|W=149|H=33|image=circuit_diagram-191-889-149-033-ecg.png|text=This appears to be an {{w|Electrocardiography|electrocardiograph}} (ECG) trace, but not the sort that would be seen in a healthy person. If this were a real ECG trace, the absence of large, clear {{w|P wave (electrocardiography)|P waves}} might indicate {{w|Atrial Fibrillation|fine atrial fibrillation}}, but in some recording configurations, P waves are sometimes lost in the noise anyway. Additionally, without a time scale to tell us the ventricular heart rate, it is impossible to make a strong educated diagnosis of any hypothetical disease at all. If we assume it is atrial fibrillation, it is not clear if Randall intended this, or if he is just not familiar with how a normal ECG should look. Lastly, we should throw all of these findings out of the window, as it does not appear that this is an actual ECG machine, but simply a bent wire, much like the "Not a resistor" label nearby.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=223|Y=826|W=82|H=68|image=circuit_diagram-223-826-082-068-photodiode.png|text=A {{w|photodiode}}, labeled "Tear Collector". A photodiode is a light-sensing device.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=373|Y=859|W=49|H=68|image=circuit_diagram-373-859-049-068-lamp.png|text=A lamp. This is not [http://electronicsclub.info/circuitsymbols.htm the symbol used in electrical circuits], but a drawing of a lightbulb.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=450|Y=887|W=65|H=32|image=circuit_diagram-450-887-065-032-inductor.png|text=A coil or inductor.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=537|Y=847|W=120|H=72|image=circuit_diagram-537-847-120-072-inductor.png|text=A coil or inductor, labeled "Take off shirt while wiring this part. Ooh, yeah, I like that." Stripping while wiring plays on the more mundane action of stripping a wire.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=504|Y=860|W=34|H=41|image=circuit_diagram-504-860-034-041-resistor.png|text=A resistor labeled "?". Presumably this means the resistance is unknown.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=459|Y=828|W=55|H=38|image=circuit_diagram-459-828-055-038-resistor.png|text=A resistor labeled "YES". Likely another improper unit - a reference to boolean values YES (TRUE) and NO (FALSE). Depending on the limits of a circuit, a resistor would still have a YES boolean value. Possibly indicating that this is a real resistor, as opposed to the one above it in the circuit, labeled "not a resistor." This may also be a reference to the question: "How much INSERT OBJECT HERE do you want?, Yes."}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=389|Y=774|W=58|H=53|image=circuit_diagram-389-774-058-053-resistor.png|text=A resistor labeled "8 mm". Resistance is measured in ohms, and while it might be useful to specify the dimensions of a component to be used (usually on an actual assembly template, or other written documentation, rather than upon a connectivity diagram) the lack of required resistance rating/acceptable range adds far more doubt.}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=443|Y=747|W=93|H=84|image=circuit_diagram-443-747-093-084-resistor.png|text=A resistor labeled "Not a resistor; wire just does this". Apparently the wire is or must be physically bent into a zig-zag shape, which would not serve much useful purpose in a low frequency or DC circuit, or perhaps it reflects the fact that any wire has a certain (small) amount of resistance just by being a wire. In a {{w|Radio frequency|high frequency circuit}} this can be actually useful, as the shape and length of the {{w|Transmission line|transmission line}} alters the {{w|Electrical impedance|impedance}} of the line. ([https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Phaseshifter2.png Example])}}
{{circuit-diagram-part|X=415|Y=863|W=82|H=24|image=circuit_diagram-415-863-082-024-unsure.png|text=A symbol for a feedthrough capacitor, labeled "3 Liters". Probable word-play on "capacity/capacitor." Also similar to the symbol for an orifice or flow restriction used on plumbing or hydraulic diagrams, in which case the "3 Liters" might mean 3 liters per minute or per second.}}
|}

==Transcript==
:[In the upper left corner there is a map scale, labeled with 1 mi (1 km).]
:[Underneath the scale is a circuit diagram with the following items connected:]
:An antenna symbol.
:A blender.
:An Arduino, labeled with "Arduino, just for blog cred".
:A chip, labeled "Most expensive chip available".
:A symbol for an inductor.
:A pattern that looks like a highway cloverleaf.
:A battery symbol (with the + and - symbols on the wrong ends) with a value of √2V.
:A resistor symbol label "120Ω or to taste".
:A switch that is labeled "glue open".
:A transistor with two emitters, one P and one N, and no collector.
:A jar of scarab beetles.
:A resistor labeled "brown blue orange".
:An unlabeled resistor with a center tap.
:A capacitor.
:A diode.
:A ground.
:An inductor.
:An another inductor.
::The two inductors and ground are all covered by a "solder blob".
:A "666 timer" that has pin 5 going into a question mark.
:A compass rose.
:A battery, labeled 50V, with grounds on both sides.
:A long horizontal wire that is labeled "pull this wire really tight".
:An AC source that is labeled 240V, shorted out, with a label on the short "Omit this if you're a wimp."
:An inductor that is labeled with "11kg".
:A Batman symbol.
:A squirrel.
:A wire that is labeled as a distance 3/8".
:A 50V battery.
:A frowny face.
:A vertical wire with a 90 degree bend labeled "caution".
:A balloon.
:An inductor symbol with a line on the bottom edge labeled as "warm front".
:A resistor labeled "ë".
:An electric eel.
:A capacitor.
:An unlabeled resistor.
:A gob of hot glue attached to a chip with an inverter hooked to an XOR gate, both with feedback into each other.
:A neck strap.
:A bridge rectifier labeled as "Moral rectifier".
:A bottle of magic smoke.
:A fishing bobber.
:A broken wire labeled with a question mark.
:A vertical wire labeled with "electrons single file".
:A switch labeled "Hire someone to open and close switch real fast."
:A contact labeled "touch tongue here".
:A resistor labeled "5Ω (decoy)" with only one terminal connected.
:A methyl group attached to a wire.
:A complex mesh of 1Ω resistors labeled with "Oh, so you think you're such a whiz at EE201?"
:A wire labeled "electrons single file".
:A wire bent in a U shape with an upside-down ground on the end.
:A flux capacitor with the bottom wire labeled "I-95".
:A wire labeled "yarn".
:An arena with two diodes going in and one leaving.
:An anode labeled "Bury deep, but not too deep."
:A motor labeled "vibrator".
:A resistor with a value of π.
:A 500V AC source.
:A wire that leads out of frame with a label "to center of sun".
:A 55 MPH speed limit sign.
:An SR latch (flip-flop) labeled "may use an actual sandal instead".
:A holding pen.
:A wire in a knot.
:A resistor labeled "8mm".
:A resistor symbol labeled "not a resistor; wire just does this".
:A motor symbol labeled "to scale".
:A tangled mess of wires connected and jumping over each other.
:A photo diode labeled "tear collector".
:A wire in the shape of a ECG.
:A light bulb.
:A capacitor-looking symbol labeled "3 liters".
:A resistor labeled "yes".
:An unlabeled inductor.
:A resistor with a question mark as a label.
:An inductor labeled "Take off shirt while wiring this part. Ooh, yeah, I like that."
:A ground symbol immersed in a beaker of holy water.

==Trivia==
This is one of the six [[Footer comics|footer comics]] featured in the bottom segment of [https://xkcd.com xkcd.com].

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Physics]]
[[Category:Engineering]]
[[Category:Maps]]
[[Category:Footer comics]]
[[Category:Squirrels]]
[[Category:Back to the Future]]

2860: Decay Modes

2023-11-28T14:45:56Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Explanation */ spell check

{{comic
| number = 2860
| date = November 27, 2023
| title = Decay Modes
| image = decay_modes_2x.png
| imagesize = 586x360px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Unlike an Iron Age collapse, a Bronze Age collapse releases energy, since copper and tin are past the iron peak on the curve of binding energy.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by an EXTANT MODE OF DECAY - Please change this comment when editing this page. Title text not explained. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
{{w|radioactive decay|Decay modes}} refer to the different ways in which unstable atomic nuclei transform into more stable ones, typically by emitting particles or radiation. The process of decay is a natural phenomenon that occurs in radioactive substances. There are several types of decay modes, each characterized by the particles emitted or the energy released during the process.
In the comic's diagram, protons are white and neutrons are gray.

The first six modes are real, and most occur relatively frequently:

In '''{{w|alpha decay}}''', an unstable nucleus emits an alpha particle, composed of two protons and two neutrons. Alpha decay is the primary source of helium on Earth, as alpha particles are 4He nuclei.

In '''{{w|beta decay}}''' (more properly beta-minus decay), a neutron-rich nucleus emits a W⁻ boson, converting one neutron into a proton — as shown in the diagram — which in turn decays into an electron (the titular beta (minus) particle) and an electron antineutrino. The diagram shows only the beta particle, which was the only thing expelled from the nucleus that could be observed directly when the types of nuclear decay were first described and enumerated.

In '''{{w|gamma decay}}''', an unstable nucleus (represented by the lumpy, prolate nucleus in the diagram – representing a high-energy {{w|nuclear isomer}}) emits a high-energy photon known as a gamma-ray and settles into a stabler, lower-energy state.

In '''{{w|electron capture}}''', a proton-rich atom slurps an electron from the K or L electron shell. This converts a proton into a neutron and emits an electron neutrino. No 'slurp' sound is actually produced in real electron capture event.{{Citation needed}}

In '''{{w|positron emission}}''', or beta plus decay, a proton-rich nucleus emits a W+ boson, converting one proton into a neutron, which in turn decays into a positron, the beta plus particle, and an electron neutrino. Again, the diagram shows only the beta particle, presumably for simplicity. This is much rarer than beta minus decay.

In '''{{w|neutron emission}}''', a neutron-rich/proton-deficient unstable nucleus emits a neutron (which then goes on to decay into further daughter particles).

The other six modes are fictional:

'''Baryon panic''': In this mode, all the subatomic particles flee the atom simultaneously, similar to a crowd fleeing a building during a fire alarm, or other similar states of panic in people. In reality, this mode of decay would require an incredible amount of energy. The like charges of protons do repel each other, but they are held together more tightly by the residual {{w|nuclear force}} in the presence of neutrons.

'''Omega decay''': The atom has decayed and left behind a skull in its wake, leaving cracks in the area surrounding it and send neutrons and protons flying everywhere. Whereas ''alpha'', ''beta'', ''gamma'' are the first three letters of the Greek alphabet, ''omega'' is the last, so the name ''omega'' might suggest the ultimate, final decay. The skull presumably represents the finality of such a decay, given that the end stage of human decay leaves behind a skeleton, something that does not exist in nucleons.{{Citation needed}} Many works of science fiction propose forms of radiation and/or particles with further letters in the Greek alphabet, such as {{w|The Omega Directive}} in Star Trek. In real life, the {{w|omega baryon}} was predicted to exist by Murray Gell-Mann's early quark theory, and then discovered several years later with the properties he had predicted. This mode may also represent the atom becoming the origin of a {{w|false vacuum decay}}, a theoretical decay of space itself, which would indeed spread outward and be very final and lethal.

'''Electron wilt''': The electrons surrounding the atom fall to the ground. Some plants are subject to diseases that cause this kind of wilting of their leaves. Electrons will attempt to settle into a 'ground state' but this does not involve them literally slumping to the ground, rather they will be as close as possible to the nucleus subject to the limitations of energy levels and the Pauli exclusion principle. In addition, since the ground is made of atoms,{{citation needed}} the electrons will just keep falling.

'''One big nucleon''': The protons and neutrons combine to form a single huge baryon. {{w|Exotic baryon|Exotic baryons}} with more than the usual three quarks, such as {{w|pentaquarks}}, have been created in the lab but are not known to exist in nature. String theorists propose that black holes are actually {{w|Fuzzball (string theory)|fuzzballs}}, single "subatomic" particles which are macroscopic in size (namely that of their event horizon) formed by the fusion of the strings of in-falling matter under extreme gravitational conditions.

'''Fungal decay''': The nucleus rots, and fungal fruiting bodies (toadstools and mushrooms) grow around it. This plays on the meaning of "decay".

'''Collapse due to invasion by the Sea Peoples''': The atom floats in water, with boats on either side full of Cueballs shooting arrows at it, and the atom is breaking up. The {{w|Sea Peoples}} are a somewhat mysterious group that attacked Egypt in the late Bronze Age (1200-900 BCE) and are associated with a widespread societal collapse around the central and eastern Mediterranean. Randall has mentioned the Sea Peoples already in cartoon 1732, "Earth Temperature Timeline".

Title text: The Iron Age and Bronze Age 'collapsed' – underwent widespread societal disruption and dispersal – because of various extrinsic factors: proposals include climatic change, mass migration and invasions. Nuclear fusion – the merging of small light elements – expels energy, powering stars and and creating increasingly heavier elements which also fuse until the process reaches iron, predominantly 56Fe. Fusing iron nucleii does not release energy, so the previous cycle of fusion abruptly stops and the star contracts under gravity (whereupon it can now create the different conditions from which small amounts of heavier nuclei ''do'' form, and disperse to be discovered in later star systems). In contrast, nuclear fission – where atoms spontaneously split into lighter elements, releasing the energy ultimately imbued into them during their synthesis – applies increasingly so to the more heavy nucleii with increasing instabilities as they 'collapse' out into their various fission products. The atomic components of bronze, {{w|tin}} and {{w|copper}}, ''could'' potentially release energy, in the right conditions. Tin's main isotopes (114Sn across to 124Sn, with more than two thirds being of weight 116, 118 or 120) are considered stable, as are the two for copper (63Cu and 65Cu, being practically all that is naturally present), but trace/synthesised isotopes beyond that range (e.g. actively induced by initiating a neutron bombardment) are known to, eventually, beta(±) decay/'collapse' to forms of antimony (from the tin) or nickel/zinc (from the copper).

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

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Chemistry]]
[[Category:Physics]]

2860: Decay Modes

2023-11-28T14:43:06Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2860
| date = November 27, 2023
| title = Decay Modes
| image = decay_modes_2x.png
| imagesize = 586x360px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Unlike an Iron Age collapse, a Bronze Age collapse releases energy, since copper and tin are past the iron peak on the curve of binding energy.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by an EXTANT MODE OF DECAY - Please change this comment when editing this page. Title text not explained. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
{{w|radioactive decay|Decay modes}} refer to the different ways in which unstable atomic nuclei transform into more stable ones, typically by emitting particles or radiation. The process of decay is a natural phenomenon that occurs in radioactive substances. There are several types of decay modes, each characterized by the particles emitted or the energy released during the process.
In the comic's diagram, protons are white and neutrons are gray.

The first six modes are real, and most occur relatively frequently:

In '''{{w|alpha decay}}''', an unstable nucleus emits an alpha particle, composed of two protons and two neutrons. Alpha decay is the primary source of helium on Earth, as alpha particles are 4He nuclei.

In '''{{w|beta decay}}''' (more properly beta-minus decay), a neutron-rich nucleus emits a W⁻ boson, converting one neutron into a proton — as shown in the diagram — which in turn decays into an electron (the titular beta (minus) particle) and an electron antineutrino. The diagram shows only the beta particle, which was the only thing expelled from the nucleus that could be observed directly when the types of nuclear decay were first described and enumerated.

In '''{{w|gamma decay}}''', an unstable nucleus (represented by the lumpy, prolate nucleus in the diagram – representing a high-energy {{w|nuclear isomer}}) emits a high-energy photon known as a gamma-ray and settles into a stabler, lower-energy state.

In '''{{w|electron capture}}''', a proton-rich atom slurps an electron from the K or L electron shell. This converts a proton into a neutron and emits an electron neutrino. No 'slurp' sound is actually produced in real electron capture event.{{Citation needed}}

In '''{{w|positron emission}}''', or beta plus decay, a proton-rich nucleus emits a W+ boson, converting one proton into a neutron, which in turn decays into a positron, the beta plus particle, and an electron neutrino. Again, the diagram shows only the beta particle, presumably for simplicity. This is much rarer than beta minus decay.

In '''{{w|neutron emission}}''', a neutron-rich/proton-deficient unstable nucleus emits a neutron (which then goes on to decay into further daughter particles).

The other six modes are fictional:

'''Baryon panic''': In this mode, all the subatomic particles flee the atom simultaneously, similar to a crowd fleeing a building during a fire alarm, or other similar states of panic in people. In reality, this mode of decay would require an incredible amount of energy. The like charges of protons do repel each other, but they are held together more tightly by the residual {{w|nuclear force}} in the presence of neutrons.

'''Omega decay''': The atom has decayed and left behind a skull in its wake, leaving cracks in the area surrounding it and send neutrons and protons flying everywhere. Whereas ''alpha'', ''beta'', ''gamma'' are the first three letters of the Greek alphabet, ''omega'' is the last, so the name ''omega'' might suggest the ultimate, final decay. The skull presumably represents the finality of such a decay, given that the end stage of human decay leaves behind a skeleton, something that does not exist in nucleons.{{Citation needed}} Many works of science fiction propose forms of radiation and/or particles with further letters in the Greek alphabet, such as {{w|The Omega Directive}} in Star Trek. In real life, the {{w|omega baryon}} was predicted to exist by Murray Gell-Mann's early quark theory, and then discovered several years later with the properties he had predicted. This mode may also represent the atom becoming the origin of a {{w|false vacuum decay}}, a theoretical decay of space itself, which would indeed spread outward and be very final and lethal.

'''Electron wilt''': The electrons surrounding the atom fall to the ground. Some plants are subject to diseases that cause this kind of wilting of their leaves. Electrons will attempt to settle into a 'ground state' but this does not involve them literally slumping to the ground, rather they will be as close as possible to the nucleus subject to the limitations of energy levels and the Pauli exclusion principle. In addition, since the ground is made of atoms,{{citation needed}} the electrons will just keep falling.

'''One big nucleon''': The protons and neutrons combine to form a single huge baryon. {{w|Exotic baryon|Exotic baryons}} with more than the usual three quarks, such as {{w|pentaquarks}}, have been created in the lab but are not known to exist in nature. String theorists propose that black holes are actually {{w|Fuzzball (string theory)|fuzzballs}}, single "subatomic" particles which are macroscopic in size (namely that of their event horizon) formed by the fusion of the strings of in-falling matter under extreme gravitational conditions.

'''Fungal decay''': The nucleus rots, and fungal fruiting bodies (toadstools and mushrooms) grow around it. This plays on the meaning of "decay".

'''Collapse due to invasion by the Sea Peoples''': The atom floats in water, with boats on either side full of Cueballs shooting arrows at it, and the atom is breaking up. The {{w|Sea Peoples}} are a somewhat mysterious group that attacked Egypt in the late Bronze Age (1200-900 BCE) and are associated with a widespread societal collapse around the central and eastern Mediterranean. Randall has mentioned the Sea Peoples already in cartoon 1732, "Earth Temperature Timeline".

Title text: The Iron Age and Bronze Age 'collapsed' – underwent widespread societal disruption and dispersal – because of various extrinsic factors: proposals include climatic change, mass migration and invasions. Nuclear fusion – the merging of small light elements – expels energy, powering stars and and creating increasingly heavier elements which also fuse until the process reaches iron, predominantly 56Fe. Fusing iron nucleii does not release energy, so the previous cycle of fusion abruptly stops and the star contracts under gravity (whereupon it can now create the different conditions from which small amounts of heavier nuclei ''do'' form, and disperse to be discovered in later star systems). In contrast, nuclear fission – where atoms spontaneously split into lighter elements, releasing the energy ultimately imbued into them during their synthesis – applies increasingly so to the more heavy nucleii with increasing instabilities as they 'collapse' out into their various fission products. The atomic components of bronze, {{w|tin}} and {{w|copper}}, ''could'' potentially release energy, in the right conditions. Tin's main isotopes (114Sn across to 124Sn, with more than two thirds being of weight 116, 118 or 120) are considered stable, as are the two for copper (63Cu and 65Cu, being practically all that is naturally present), but trace/synthesised isotopes beyond that range (e.g. actively induced by initiating a neutron bombardment) are known to, eventually, beta(±) decay/'collapse' to forms of antinomy (from the tin) or nickel/zinc (from the copper).

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

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Chemistry]]
[[Category:Physics]]

1449: Red Rover

2023-11-27T14:10:24Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 1449
| date = November 19, 2014
| title = Red Rover
| image = red_rover.png
| titletext = I just learned about the Slide Mountain Ocean, which I like because it's three nouns that sound like they can't possibly all refer to the same thing.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic shows what the landmasses of {{w|Pangaea}} were hypothesized to have looked like when it had "just" broken up in the late {{w|Triassic}} Period (roughly 200 million years ago). "Shortly" after the separation of Pangaea the two {{w|Supercontinent|supercontinents}} {{w|Laurasia}} (northern supercontinent) and {{w|Gondwana}} (southern supercontinent) formed. After this, {{w|continental drift}}, the process by which landmasses moving over the Earth's mantle collide and separate, brought them into the configuration we see today.

The top map shows the landmass Laurasia declaring, "Red rover, red rover, send India over!" as if the continents were playing the game {{w|Red Rover}}. In the second map we can see how Gondwana actually sends over the {{w|Indian subcontinent}} to Laurasia.

In the game of Red Rover, the aim is for an individual to charge into the opposing team who are holding hands, and attempt to cause a break in the human chain. If the individual succeeds, they take one of the opposing teams members back to their own team. If the chain doesn't break, the individual joins that team.

In the game portrayed here, an isolated landmass (India in contemporary geography), is the individual charging towards the Laurasian landmass, attempting to break through. We know of course that India failed in this attempt, and as per the games rules joined the Laurasia 'team'. This part of the supercontinent later developed in to {{w|Asia}}.

It is accepted that the {{w|Himalayas}}, the highest elevated mountain range on earth, formed by the collision of India into what is now Asia. For various reasons, the movement of the Indian plate from its location in Gondwana 90 million years ago to its impact point with the rest of Asia 50 million years ago was extremely rapid (as plate movements go) at about 20 cm per year.

The idea that the landmasses on Earth are sentient and moving about in an incredibly slow game of Red Rover, with India's rapid movement being a result of being "called over", is not one which is currently scientifically accepted{{Citation needed}}.

The title text refers to the {{w|Slide Mountain Ocean}}, which was located between the {{w|Intermontane Islands}} and North America in the Triassic period beginning around 245 million years ago. The name interests [[Randall]] because oceans (bodies of water), mountains (land masses), and slides (playground equipment) are mutually exclusive concepts when using the most common definitions. In this case, however, "slide" is short for "{{w|landslide}}" which is a common feature of mountains. [http://travelingluck.com/North+America/Canada/British+Columbia/_6149492_Slide+Mountain.html Slide Mountain] is a particular mountain in {{w|British Columbia}}, the result of the remnant of the Slide Mountain {{w|List of tectonic plates#Tertiary plates|microplate}} which {{w|Accretion (geology)|accreted}} onto the continent, becoming the {{w|Slide Mountain Terrane}}, as the majority of the microplate was {{w|Subduction|subducted}}. "Slide Mountain Ocean" refers to the sea between the Slide Mountain microplate before it was subducted under what is now North America.

==Transcript==
:[Two maps of Earth at different points in continental formation, one above the other.]
:[In the top map (roughly -165 Ma) the two largest continents are labeled:]
:Laurasia
:Gondwana
:[A speech bubble is shown next to Laurasia.]
:Laurasia: Red Rover, Red Rover, send India over!
:[The bottom map (roughly -130 Ma, but with India at -60) show the land mass that would become India moving, with motion lines, toward Laurasia.]
:[Below the maps:]
:How the Himalayas formed

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Maps]]
[[Category:Geography]]
[[Category:Geology]]

2854: Date Line

2023-11-16T14:02:22Z

TenGolf MathHacker: One grammar check

{{comic
| number = 2854
| date = November 13, 2023
| title = Date Line
| image = date_line_2x.png
| imagesize = 443x522px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = They estimate the rocket should be free by approximately ... uh ... well, in about two hours.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a SNAGGED LINE THAT COULDN'T FINISH THE EDITING JOB - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
The {{w|International Date Line}} is a nominal line on Earth near the {{w|180th meridian|antimeridian (180°)}} that represents where adjoining territories observe a full calendar day of difference (give or take the 'normal' time of day adjustment).

It causes one of three situations where the date might change for you, the usual one being when (in your time zone) you pass from the hour of 11 pm across beyond midnight, and a second being if you travel directly between time zones at such a time (usually that being a window of just one specific hour, at night) where they are each either side of midnight. Most people don't travel at or around midnight, and just being awake as the clocks tick over is not often such a remarkable thing, other than to perhaps mark reaching a special date (significant birthdays, perhaps, or {{w|New Year's Day}}). However, travel across or between certain areas of east and west Pacific (or [[503: Terminology|vice-versa]]) is not so uncommon, yet brings with it the special need to effectively adjust your watch by a full day (plus or minus any other time to be adjusted).

The International Date Line is not a physical string,{{Citation needed}} and therefore could not be caught by a rocket. It should also be noted that the International Date Line is not a straight line, but extends either side of the antimeridian to avoid confusion on internal land journeys (like Russia, {{w|Chukotka Autonomous Okrug|a portion of which}} overlaps the antimeridian), similarly cutting off 'nearby' outlying island territories or adding needless complexity {{w|Tokelau#Timezone|when dealing with chosen trading partners}}. (There may also be the niche tourism-led motivation of being able to claim 'first' in experiencing the new date.)

Based off what is shown in the comic, the rocket could have been launched by the Russians (e.g. from the {{w|Vostochny Cosmodrome}}), but the caption implies that the American space agency is the one expecting to resolve the issue (whoever's original error it was), and all orbital flights are pretty much guaranteed to cross (over) the dateline at some point in the initial track. Of course, the odds of a rocket getting stuck on such a line (if it existed) would be incredibly slim. Additionally, striking such an object wouldn’t trap the rocket. Instead, the rocket (and likely the line) would undergo what many [[:Category:Kerbal Space Program|KSP]] users have encountered: Rapid Unplanned Disassembly.

The caption suggests that this event has messed up the normal regulation of time, and is somehow unsafe to 'use' as a result, so people should pause their usage of it by stopping their clocks and calendars. Also, because time is not behaving normally, ‘they’ can’t give a time for when it will be fixed. If, say, it was 8:00 when the rocket got snagged, then it is 8:00 until they fix it. This means that no matter how much time should have passed, until they fix it, it will remain 8:00. In reality, even if a physical dateline did exist, and if disturbing it were to mess up our ability to measure time, synchronize clocks, and so on, time itself would continue to flow regardless, and pausing one's clock would have no effect on this. Indeed, if time stopped operating, it's not entirely clear what an amount of time that 'should have passed' would even mean, or if we would be able to perceive that anything was wrong.

More worryingly, yet oddly not mentioned by the announcement, is that the International Date Line and Greenwich Meridian appear to be a single continuous physical line, and consequently the stretching of the former is pulling in the latter, causing significant geological disruption along that line, which would result in danger to life and property and infrastructure damage affecting many millions of people living close to it, and probably tsunamis that could threaten many more further afield.

The title text states that the estimated time the rocket should be free is "about two hours,” but the speaker/writer hesitates
when about to give a estimated time stamp, as normal time cannot work if the IDL is not working

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

:[The earth, with the International Date Line as a physical band being pulled off of the surface by a rocket, cutting into the land on the other side.]
:[Caption below the panel:]
:Timekeeping announcement: A rocket accidentally became snagged on the International Date Line during launch. Please pause all clocks and calendars until NASA is able to free it and safely resume the normal flow of time.

==Trivia==
* '''This trivia section was created by a BOT'''
* The [https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/date_line.png standard size] image was uploaded with a resolution/size larger than the supposed 2x version.
* This may have been an error.
* The about two hours might reference the orbital time of LEO satellites

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Time]]
[[Category:Space]]
[[Category:Calendar]]

Talk:2158: Qualifiers

2023-11-15T20:05:20Z

TenGolf MathHacker:

I'm not entirely sure he's "run out of" qualifiers after 20 minutes per se. It may just be that he has finally decided what he wanted to say was "hi" and he otherwise may have still gone on with additional qualifiers (potentially even repeating some of them since there is no indication that they must be unique). [[Special:Contributions/108.162.242.13|108.162.242.13]] 16:49, 3 June 2019 (UTC)
:I agree. Given the punch line of the main comic, the message "hi" is probably just the first applicable message Cueball came up with. Don't get me wrong, hear me out on this, I know everything is subjective, I'm not an expert or anything, correct me if I'm mistaken, anything is possible, I've been wrong before, Lord only knows, life is funny, your mileage may vary, I can't believe I'm saying this, it's just an impression I get, it could be any other explanation, maybe the jury is still out on this, but I don't think there's any practical limitation to gratuitous preamble or equivocation. I think when it's done professionally that's called politics.
:[[User:ProphetZarquon|ProphetZarquon]] ([[User talk:ProphetZarquon|talk]]) 01:30, 4 June 2019 (UTC)
:: When has a politician ever said "correct me if I'm mistaken" or "I've been wrong before"..?[[Special:Contributions/172.68.59.144|172.68.59.144]] 15:03, 4 June 2019 (UTC)
:::In my experience, politicians seem to prefer phrases such as "I am not a scientist, ~" or "You'll have to ask [Person\s] about [specifics], but ~". [[User:ProphetZarquon|ProphetZarquon]] ([[User talk:ProphetZarquon|talk]]) 22:27, 4 June 2019 (UTC)
:Hi, I just wanted to say, apropos of nothing, probably, that, IMO (YMMV!) and FYI, there's not ''necessarily'' even that much content in the "Hi", either. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.154.205|162.158.154.205]] 14:50, 4 June 2019 (UTC)
:It’s been three years and he used “but” twice. But, like, what I was gonna say was, well, so, now, I gotta know…[[User:TenGolf MathHacker|TenGolf MathHacker]] ([[User talk:TenGolf MathHacker|talk]]) 20:05, 15 November 2023 (UTC)

"although it actually fits in White Hat's unusual mentality." I disagree. All of the xkcd figures usually think a little outside the box; that's why it's funny. I haven't seen anything anywhere suggesting that White Hat is the type to listen endlessly either. Thoughts? [[User:Jacky720|That's right, Jacky720 just signed this]] ([[User talk:Jacky720|talk]] | [[Special:Contributions/Jacky720|contribs]]) 20:46, 3 June 2019 (UTC)
:Aren't ''all'' white hats rule-obsessed compulsives with completion fixation?
:[[User:ProphetZarquon|ProphetZarquon]] ([[User talk:ProphetZarquon|talk]]) 01:30, 4 June 2019 (UTC)

I removed the "good" from in front of patience because, well, when is patience a bad thing? [[User:Ianrbibtitlht|Ianrbibtitlht]] ([[User talk:Ianrbibtitlht|talk]]) 11:42, 4 June 2019 (UTC)
:The word you are looking for is hesitation. Still agree, that the good in that place was not needed. --[[User:Lupo|Lupo]] ([[User talk:Lupo|talk]]) 11:52, 4 June 2019 (UTC)
:If White Hat was delayed for 20 minutes in getting to an appointment to operate a food line for the homeless, then maybe his patience in this particular case was not as good. But in general patience is a virtue.... but just WHERE IS the next XKCD already?! [[User:N0lqu|-boB]] ([[User talk:N0lqu|talk]]) 15:52, 5 June 2019 (UTC)

Thinking further about this comic (while waiting for today's new comic...), it seems to be another in a long series of comics from Randall about social awkwardness. I have experienced this before myself, and it's not easy to admit to someone that you forgot what you wanted to say. In this situation, it would probably be better to just tell the other person that you lost your train of thought, apologize, laugh a little, then move on. However, in this case Cueball seems reluctant to admit that he forgot what he was going to say and would rather yammer on with random qualifiers instead, waiting for something else to say. [[User:Ianrbibtitlht|Ianrbibtitlht]] ([[User talk:Ianrbibtitlht|talk]]) 16:38, 5 June 2019 (UTC)

2851: Messier Objects

2023-11-15T15:25:57Z

TenGolf MathHacker: actual citation not needed

{{comic
| number = 2851
| date = November 6, 2023
| title = Messier Objects
| image = messier_objects_2x.png
| imagesize = 293x294px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = The debate over the correct Messier number for the Ship of Theseus is ongoing.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BUNCH OF PEOPLE ARGUING OVER WHAT TO LABEL THE SHIP OF THESEUS - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

This comic is a play on the {{w|Messier object|Messier Catalog}}, which is a famous list of astronomical objects compiled by the French astronomer Charles Messier in the 18th century. The real Messier Catalog includes 110 objects, which are all deep-space objects like nebulae and galaxies.

In the comic, it's humorously suggested that the catalog includes not just these distant celestial objects, but also very ordinary things found here on Earth. Each ordinary object is labeled with an "M" followed by a number, just as the real Messier objects are numbered (like M1, M31, etc.). However, the numbers are much higher than the 110 included in the actual catalog, and they point to mundane things such as the Earth, Charles Messier himself, a tree, a butterfly and a squirrel.

The numbers increase as the objects go from large and significant to humans (the Earth, Charles Messier) to those that are smaller and less significant (a tree, a butterfly, and a squirrel). However, this pattern isn't strictly numerical (i.e., there's no clear mathematical sequence), but rather a conceptual one where the numbers arbitrarily become larger for things that are commonly considered less monumental or noteworthy than celestial objects.

So, the comic is a playful take on a piece of astronomical history, suggesting that everything in the universe is part of the Messier Catalog, not just the deep sky objects Messier originally listed.

The title text refers to the {{w|Ship of Theseus}}, which is a thought experiment. If a ship is repaired and/or modified such that it has ''all'' of its parts replaced over the years, is it the same ship as the original? And then, what if you take all of the parts that were removed and create another ship using those parts? Are they ''both'' the same ship, and if not, which one ''is'' the original ship? The title text suggests that this leads to a debate as to whether the original ship and the new ship (with all of its parts replaced) should be considered the same object and therefore given the same Messier number, or the two ships should be considered different objects with different Messier numbers, and if so, which of them should retain the original number.

"M41592" may be a reference to pi as it contains 5 of the first digits at 3.1'''41592'''. Also noteworthy is that (the real) M6 is called the {{w|Butterfly Cluster}}. However, there are no real galaxies in the original Messier Catalog named after trees or squirrels.{{citation needed}}

"M137" for Earth seems likely to be a reference to {{w|Rick_and_Morty|Rick And Morty}}, since the versions of Rick and Morty primarily followed by the show identify as being from Dimension / Earth 137 (identifying themselves as Rick 137 and Morty 137) when around Ricks and Mortys from other dimensions.

==About the Messier Catalog==
The Messier Catalog was devised as a tool for comet hunters to differentiate between permanent, blurry celestial objects and the transient, moving comets that appear similar at first glance. Such blurry objects, unlike comets, remain fixed against the stellar backdrop, and their inclusion in the catalog ensures that astronomers could avoid mistaking these for newly visible comets, when systematically looking for unfixed 'fuzzy' objects to start to track. The catalog excludes terrestrial objects, as they pose no risk of confusion with comets.{{Citation needed}} Following the creation of the Messier Catalog, other catalogs like the New General Catalogue ({{w|New General Catalogue|NGC}}) and the Sloan Digital Sky Survey ({{w|Sloan Digital Sky Survey|SDSS}}) emerged, expanding the documentation of astronomical bodies.

==Similar Numbering Systems==
This numbering system is somewhat reminiscent of Wikidata which also gives objects a number starting with a letter. Numbers starting with Q refer to concepts including specific physical objects (like the Earth) and more abstract ideas (butterflies as organisms known by a particular common name). Here are some of the objects mentioned in the comic:
:[https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2 Q2] (Earth) (The normal one)
:[https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q14524 Q14524] (Charles Messier) (The astronomer)
:[https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q10884 Q10884] (tree) (The plants known by that common name)
:[https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q11946202 Q11946202] (butterflies) (The Lepidoptera known by that common name)
:[https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q9482 Q9482] (squirrel) (The taxon of rodents)
:[https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q14530 Q14530] (Messier object) (The astronomical catalog)
:[https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1050837 Q1050837] (Ship of Theseus) (The thought experiment)
:[https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q13915 Q13915] (xkcd) (The webcomic)

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

:[Multiple objects are labelled with M followed by a number.]
:[There is a tree, a butterfly, a squirrel, a man with a powdered wig labeled Charles Messier, a squirrel, and ground.]
:M137 (Earth) (pointing to the ground)
:M205 (Charles Messier) (pointing to Charles Messier)
:M21860 (pointing to a tree on the left of the panel)
:M41592 (pointing to a butterfly above Charles)
:M30712050 (pointing to a squirrel)

:[Caption below the panel:]
:People usually focus on the first 110, but the Messier Catalog actually includes '''''all''''' objects.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Squirrels]]
[[Category:Philosophy]]

1984: Misinterpretation

2023-11-15T15:17:11Z

TenGolf MathHacker: @172.70.91.242 Actually, this one links to a comic. When we actually need a citation we use {{acn}}.

{{comic
| number = 1984
| date = April 23, 2018
| title = Misinterpretation
| image = misinterpretation.png
| titletext = "But there are seven billion people in the world! I can't possibly stop to consider how ALL of them might interpret something!" "Ah, yes, there's no middle ground between 'taking personal responsibility for the thoughts and feelings of every single person on Earth' and 'covering your eyes and ears and yelling logically correct statements into the void.' That's a very insightful point and not at all inane."
}}

==Explanation==
[[Cueball]] is complaining that people are mad at him ''again'' because of a misinterpretation of his statements. This is referenced by the comic's title. He complains that since (he believes) he is being perfectly clear, it cannot be his fault that everyone misinterprets him. The off-screen voice sarcastically agrees that communication is an activity that only involves one person; in fact, of course, it {{w|Models of communication|famously involves at least two}}.{{citation needed}}

Cueball speaks as though his communications are complete and perfect once he has finished making them. The reality is that communication can't be considered complete until the message has also been received and understood. Cueball is failing to take into account the need for partnership between sender and receiver, and doesn't realize that the problem may well be in the way he carries out his side of the transaction rather than in the way ''everybody'' else is carrying out theirs.

In the title text, Cueball then answers that he cannot possibly account for the many possible interpretations which the message, potentially reaching the whole world, could acquire. This is an example of the {{w|Nirvana fallacy}}. Cueball's idealized solution is to consider how every person on Earth would interpret the message, so Cueball rejects doing anything less as insufficient; however, actually figuring out how every person on Earth would interpret the message is unfeasible, so Cueball doesn't do that either. The reply comes once again sarcastically, deriding his point and saying that a middle ground between taking up such an effort and entirely avoiding it must be reached.

This avoidance is phrased using a [[762: Analogies|simile]] as “covering your eyes and ears and yelling logically correct statements into the void”, implying that no one would understand the logical sentences (thus the void), and would instead read them more naturally – and also that ignoring the appalled reaction of listeners to their own interpretation of the sentences is similar to covering your eyes and ears. This action makes communication more difficult through the popular{{Citation needed}} means of speech, text and sign language. If the hands are occupied with covering either part, then Braille communication is also impossible. Therefore, the action of “covering your eyes and ears” is a metaphor for deliberately making it more difficult to communicate with oneself. The simile might also mean that Cueball subconsciously rejects criticism as it would hurt his ego.

It is clear that Cueball is acting as a straw man to further Randall's point, and the off-panel character is portrayed as the (sarcastic) voice of reason.

Randall returns to a recurring theme in his comics, regarding, in contexts of communication, the responsibility of the speaker for how they are interpreted. Having gradually gotten less subtle, this theme is now laid bare, there being no joke other than the sarcasm. What follows is a chronological history of this theme.

*Much earlier than the other comics below, but related, [[169: Words that End in GRY]] is a surreal reprimand upon people who act smug when their bad communication is misunderstood.
*The title text of [[1028: Communication]] notes that “Anyone who says that they're great at communicating but 'people are bad at listening' is confused about how communication works.”
*The title text of [[1860: Communicating]] also asserts that the responsibility of a misunderstanding lies with the speaker, not the listener — a theme explored in the comic via the character Humpty Dumpty.
*The comic [[1911: Defensive Profile]] implies that a person who boasts of having “no filter” in their (social media) speech is actually merely insecure about making people mad with their statements.

This theme is part of the larger category of comics about [[:Category:Social interactions|social interactions]].

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is sitting in an office chair at a desk in front of a laptop with his hands raised above the keyboard. An off-panel person replies to his remarks.]
:Cueball: Ugh, people are mad at me again because they don't read carefully.
:Cueball: I'm being perfectly clear. It's not '''''my''''' fault if everyone misinterprets what I say.
:Off-panel person: Wow, sounds like you're great at communicating, an activity that famously involves just one person.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Social interactions]]

Talk:2854: Date Line

2023-11-15T15:12:07Z

TenGolf MathHacker:

The 'standard' and '2x' sized images had unexpected sizes, so a Trivia section has been automatically generated, and an imagesize parameter has been added (at half size) to render the image consistently with other comics on this website. --[[User:TheusafBOT|TheusafBOT]] ([[User talk:TheusafBOT|talk]]) 22:56, 13 November 2023 (UTC)

Is it just me or are these size errors becoming more common? What going wrong in the infra?
[[Special:Contributions/172.69.62.90|172.69.62.90]] 22:57, 13 November 2023 (UTC)

:Yeah, and this one came in HUGE. The image size upon loading the comic at xkcd.com was 6642x7838. At first, I thought it was a special comic or an interactive one. But just huge. [[User:Orion205|Orion205]] ([[User talk:Orion205|talk]]) 00:25, 14 November 2023 (UTC)

added an explanation [[Special:Contributions/172.70.174.61|172.70.174.61]] 23:49, 13 November 2023 (UTC)

The IDL might not normally be straight, but when the rocket pulls in it, it will straighten it out. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 00:54, 14 November 2023 (UTC)

The Kentucky State Police resent the implication about their organizational infrastructure.

I like how this comic came out the same day (in UTC+10) as I am studying Earth geometry including the IDL. Nice little coincidence. [[User:OmniDoom|OmniDoom]] ([[User talk:OmniDoom|talk]]) 03:46, 14 November 2023 (UTC)

Why's there a missing line of latitude? [[Special:Contributions/172.68.140.145|172.68.140.145]] 05:47, 14 November 2023 (UTC)
:That is actually a good question. Seems like an error. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 08:01, 14 November 2023 (UTC)
: I would assume the lines that are shown are intended to be the equator, tropics, and arctic circle (antarctic being hidden out of view), being the most commonly known lines of latitude.[[Special:Contributions/172.70.85.151|172.70.85.151]] 12:04, 14 November 2023 (UTC)
:I think it's just the angle. If viewed from the side (instead of diagonally above as in the image), I think they would appear more equidistant. Or maybe they're based on a different projection entirely, that wouldn't be out of character for Randall either. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.46.254|172.70.46.254]] 12:08, 14 November 2023 (UTC)

Even if the lines were actual physical strings/ropes, they appear to be lying right on the earths surface instead of being suspended in mid air. So how would a rocket accidentally get snagged on one? You'd have to purposefully shove the rocket between the earth and the line before launch. [[User:Bischoff|Bischoff]] ([[User talk:Bischoff|talk]]) 08:39, 14 November 2023 (UTC)
:Well, obviously you wouldn't want ships/trains/etc hitting them as they moved longitudes(/latitutudes) or timezones, so they must be held up out of the way by skyhooks. Probably also above plane travel, or we'd see them being snagged quite often...
:Noting that I had to caveat the idea of the Russian launch-site, as NASA seems to be the named agency needing to fix the mess. Could of course be 'Hollywood Exceptionalism', regarding who it is who <s>leads</s> saves the world. Or ''actual'' expertise such as might have actually helped with the Kursk submarine, in a pinch (except that, geoplitically, currently it'd probably take even longer for Russia to deign to request assistance from the US than 23 years ago).
:I also, for brevity, skipped the needless pedantic analysis of typical 'first orbit' trajectories from ''all'' [https://aerospace.csis.org/data/spaceports-of-the-world/ current launch sites], worldwide, so as to work out whether any others might encounter such a North Pacific crossing-point at 'first hit' (after which, it's clearly high enough to not snag again). Depending on launch eccentricity, it's feasible from practically any of them, naturally. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.195.51|172.69.195.51]] 10:37, 14 November 2023 (UTC)

:Maybe it was a submarine launched rocket.[[Special:Contributions/172.70.86.53|172.70.86.53]] 12:06, 14 November 2023 (UTC)

:It's obviously North Korean. Russia disclaims any involvement. [[Special:Contributions/172.71.102.143|172.71.102.143]] 08:42, 15 November 2023 (UTC)

I think the "about 2 in the title text references the Windows approximate download times dialogs - GreyFox [[Special:Contributions/172.71.150.133|172.71.150.133]] 18:31, 14 November 2023 (UTC)
:It's not. They were about to say an absolute time, e.g. "by approximately 12:00" but they realized absolute time is paused so they gave a relative time instead. --[[User:NeatNit|NeatNit]] ([[User talk:NeatNit|talk]]) 22:39, 14 November 2023 (UTC)

This looks devastating for western Europe and western Africa. --[[User:NeatNit|NeatNit]] ([[User talk:NeatNit|talk]]) 22:39, 14 November 2023 (UTC)

I just tripped over the 90º24’ line. What is with these new strings? [[User:TenGolf MathHacker|TenGolf MathHacker]] ([[User talk:TenGolf MathHacker|talk]]) 15:12, 15 November 2023 (UTC)

939: Arrow

2023-11-13T19:56:54Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 939
| date = August 17, 2011
| title = Arrow
| image = arrow.png
| titletext = 'The Return of the Boomerang' would make a great movie title.
}}

==Explanation==
The comic appears to be a reference to [[475: Further Boomerang Difficulties]], which was a sequel to [[445: I Am Not Good with Boomerangs]], which had a man throwing a boomerang that never returned. [[Cueball]] shoots an arrow off with a bow and a boomerang returns to him. This confounds him. As it was also a [[Cueball]] that threw the boomerang in the other comic, this may be the same Cueball that now finally has his boomerang return to him after a long time (464 comics and nearly three years later). This would really freak him out then.

The title text is a pun on how boomerangs always come back, along with how "The Return of X" is often used for movie names.

However, as shown in the prequel as well as in an even earlier comic, Cueball/[[Randall]] has to admit: [[I Am Not Good with Boomerangs]]. So for him it would be a surprise if the boomerang returned!

Boomerangs also became a main theme in the interactive comic [[1350: Lorenz]].

==Transcript==
:[Cueball stands with a bow and arrow drawn tightly, aiming off-screen.]
:[He fires the arrow, it disappears offscreen. The bowstring vibrates for effect.]
:[He stands holding the bow by their side, watching the arrow fly away.]
:[A boomerang flies on-screen, coming from the direction the arrow was fired. Cueball reaches up to catch the boomerang.]
:[Cueball is now holding the boomerang, staring at it with confusion.]

==Trivia==
*Part of this comic and [[475: Further Boomerang Difficulties]] is the picture for the {{tvtropes|BrickJoke|Brick Joke}} page on TV Tropes.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Boomerangs]]

1418: Horse

2023-11-13T17:07:59Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1418
| date = September 8, 2014
| title = Horse
| image = horse.png
| titletext = Officer suspended from horse.
}}

==Explanation==
[[Cueball]] has set his browser to auto-replace the word "force" with the word "horse." Some of the humorous resulting news headlines are shown.

*Ukrainian town threatened by pro-Russian horses
**At the time this comic was published, there was civil unrest in Ukraine, mostly framed as pro-European vs pro-Russian. In earlier centuries, the phrase "pro-Russian horses" could refer to the animals riden by Cossacks, or by their enemies, as alliances shifted.
***In 2022, this statement would perhaps become even more relevant. 
**It should be noted that Randall spelled "Ukrainian" incorrectly, forgetting the first 'i'.
*Governor appoints task horse
**A {{w|Task force}} is a unit or formation established to work on a single defined task or activity, which makes it quite comical to picture a horse instead of a unit. A "task horse" would presumably be a horse performing tasks.
*Iraqi Air Horse growing
**The Air ''Force'' of Iraq may indeed be being up-armed, especially in light of the threat, at this time, of ISIS/ISIL/Islamic State forces across swaths of both Iraq and Syria. In mythology, Pegasus was a winged horse that could fly through the air, and might be considered an "air horse". In real life, "Air Horse One" is an airplane equipped for transporting horses.
*Quarks, which are bound together by the strong nuclear horse…
**{{w|Quark|Quarks}} are elementary particles. They form bound states e.g. the {{w|proton}} (two up + one down-quark) mediated by the {{w|Strong interaction|strong force}}, similarly as atoms are bound states of {{w|Electron|electrons}} and charged {{w|Nucleon|nucleons}} held together by the {{w|Electromagnetism|electromagnetic horse}}.
**They are also referenced in [[474: Turn-On]], [[1621: Fixion]] and in [[1731: Wrong]].
**There is a real Nuclear horse in a different sense, which is a racehorse born in 2017 and named Nuclear.
*Officer suspended from horse (title text)
**Being suspended from a police force (i.e. usually being forced upon mandatory leave pending resolution of the issue at hand; paid, part-paid or unpaid) is a common practice where culpable wrongdoing of sufficiently serious nature is suspected of the individual concerned. It may also occur in some countries when the police officer grew too old for the job. A person could literally be suspended from a horse if they fall off the horse but got stuck in the stirrups. Unlike most of these "horse" terms, a police horse is a real thing.

This is probably a parody of the [https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/cloud-to-butt-plus/apmlngnhgbnjpajelfkmabhkfapgnoai?hl=en Cloud to Butt Chrome Extension] (since it says ''new'' favorite browser text replacement).

There has been several [[:Category:Substitutions|comics using substitutions]] before and also at least one after this one.

==Transcript==
:[Headlines above the main frame of the comic:]
:New favorite browser text replacement:
:'''Force → Horse'''

:[In the comic frame Cueball is sitting in front of his PC reading the following headlines that are written above him in separate frames:]
:Ukranian towns threatened by pro-Russian horses
:Governor appoints task horse
:Iraqi air horse growing
:Quarks, which are bound together by the strong nuclear horse...

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Substitutions]]
[[Category:Language]]

1389: Surface Area

2023-11-09T00:26:38Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Other Moons, Asteroids, and Dwarf Planets */

{{comic
| number = 1389
| date = July 2, 2014
| title = Surface Area
| image = surface_area.png
| titletext = This isn't an informational illustration; this is a thing I think we should do. First, we'll need a gigantic spool of thread. Next, we'll need some kind of... hmm, time to head to Seattle.
}}
*A [http://xkcd.com/1389/large/ larger version] of this image can be found by clicking the image at xkcd - which can be reached easily from here as always, by clicking on the comic number above.
{{TOC}}

==Explanation==
This map shows the total {{w|surface area}}s of all {{w|terrestrial planet}}s, {{w|dwarf planet}}s, {{w|natural satellite|moons}}, {{w|asteroid}}s and {{w|minor planet}}s that are larger than 100 m in the {{w|Solar System}}. They have all been represented as regions of a single massive landmass - a {{w|supercontinent}} like {{w|Pangaea}} - which is clearly surrounded by some kind of ocean.
===Solid Surfaces Present in Comic===
====Earth====
On the area that signifies {{w|Earth}} the {{w|continents}} are drawn using a {{w|map projection}} that keeps the scale of the continents correct. (This is something that [[Randall]] cares about as can be seen in [[977: Map Projections]]). The parts of the surface of the Earth that are covered by oceans are also included in the surface area of the Earth (i.e. the map shows the Earth's {{w|Crust (geology)|crust}}). An extra layer of 3–4 km of water seems rather insignificant when comparing to the Earth's radius of 6,370 km.

====The Moon====
{{w|Moon|The Moon}} has been inlaid in this map next to {{w|Antarctica}} which thus makes a great comparison of how small the Moon is compared to the Earth (there is room for more than 13 lunar surfaces on the Earth). Similarly, it is clear that the planet {{w|Venus}} is almost as big as the Earth.

This is also the general idea of the map - to give an idea about how big the Earth is and how small many of the other known planets etc. are; both compared to Earth and to each other. The map drawn on the Earth is probably there mainly as a guide to size, because none of the features that are known on some of the other objects, especially The Moon (i.e. {{w|Impact crater|craters}} and "{{w|Lunar mare|seas}}") and on {{w|Mars}} (i.e. {{w|Olympus Mons}}), are included.

====Other Moons, Asteroids, and Dwarf Planets====
The objects mentioned by name on the map are all but one amongst those that have reached {{w|hydrostatic equilibrium}} and these are all included on this {{w|List of gravitationally rounded objects of the Solar System}}.

The one named object that is '''not''' on the above list is the asteroid {{w|4 Vesta|Vesta}}, which is included because it is the second largest object in the {{w|Asteroid belt}}. It is placed right next to the largest object in this belt, the dwarf planet {{w|Ceres (dwarf planet)|Ceres}}, which is no longer considered an asteroid. {{acn}} And next to these two are the rest of the asteroids in two areas (see below), which thus groups all asteroids together.

The only object from the above list, (that qualifies for having a solid surface in hydrostatic equilibrium), '''which is not included''' is the {{w|Saturn}} moon {{w|Mimas (moon)|Mimas}}, which is also clearly the smallest object on the list.

This moon should have been located amongst the other five smaller moons of Saturn between the Earth and {{w|Titan (moon)|Titan}} (the largest of Saturn's moons). Mimas has a surface area of 490,000 km2 which is somewhat smaller than the smallest included Saturn moon {{w|Enceladus}} with a surface area of 799,000 km2.

Generally the moons that belong to a given planet (for those with more than one moon large enough to be included), have been clustered together. Apart from the six (not seven...) moons of Saturn to the right of Earth, the four {{w|Galilean moons}} moons of {{w|Jupiter}} are located above the Earth, the five included moons from {{w|Uranus}} is located at the top to the far right.

The last planet to have many moons is {{w|Neptune}}, but only {{w|Triton (moon)|Triton}} is included. This is a fairly large moon, and the only of the 14 known moons of Neptune to be on the above list. However, there is one other moon, {{w|Proteus (moon)|Proteus}} which is notable for being as large as a body of its density can be without being pulled into a spherical shape by its own gravity. It has a length of 424 km in the longest direction, and a mean radius of 210 km. A rough calculation of its surface area from this mean radius gives an area of 550,000 km2, making the surface area slightly larger than Mimas. As there is an '''unlabeled area''' located right next to the other Neptune moon Triton, it is most likely that this small area '''should represent Proteus''', and that it is an error that it was not labeled.

As this is the smallest area, the cut-off of objects could have been at 500,000 km2, as Vesta is also larger than this, which would make room for Proteus, but explain the missing Mimas.

Two of the included objects also have moons that are large enough to be included: Earth, of course, and the dwarf planet {{w|Pluto}} with its moon {{w|Charon (moon)|Charon}}. In both cases these moons have been inlaid in the area of their mother planet.

Whereas the moons of the {{w|gas giant}}s and the asteroids have been located above and to the right of the Earth, the planets and dwarf planets have been included below earth (along with the two moons mentioned above). {{w|Mercury (planet)|Mercury}}, Mars and Venus all touching Earth, and then below them the four {{w|Trans-Neptunian object|Trans-Neptunian}} dwarf planets - the {{w|Plutoid}}s.

====Not Included Dwarf Planets====
On the list from above there are, however, also these {{w|List of gravitationally rounded objects of the Solar System#Most-likely additional dwarf planets|10 objects}} which have not been included with name on the map. These object are, however, only likely candidates for being dwarf planets (depending on whether they have reached hydrostatic equilibrium or not), and on the map they have thus been relegated to the sections without individual names. These object are thus probably grouped together (along with other relatively small objects like comets and smaller moons) in the area labeled ''Various small moons, comets, etc'', which is located at the bottom of the map between Mercury and Mars. The surface area for all of these object, when the surface area have been estimated, are larger than 1 million square kilometer, and thus larger than several of the named objects. So it is not the size that is the reason why such objects as {{w|90377 Sedna|Sedna}} and {{w|50000 Quaoar|Quaoar}} are not included with name, but probably the fact they are not investigated enough yet.

The remaining objects in the Solar System with a solid surface are the minor planets, which on the map has been labeled as asteroids even though these objects are grouped together in several other "belts" than the Asteroid belt. Here they have been assigned to two regions at the top of the map. Above the right part of the Earth area is the area ''Asteroids (1 km+)'' which include any object not already included larger than 1 km. (As these objects are no longer round it is the largest dimension, the length, that should be at least 1 km long). And finally the area ''Asteroids (100 m+)'' thus include any object not already included larger than 100 m.

Most of the rest of the objects that have been included in these three sections can likely be found on this {{w|List of Solar System objects by size}}.
====Very Small Objects====
Tiny objects smaller than 100 m down to space dust are excluded altogether as explained in the note below the headings. This is probably because their total surface area is impossible to estimate accurately, and also because any estimate would likely be too large to fit easily into the map.

===Non-Solar Bodies===
Between Earth and Titan is a tiny speck noted ''all human skin'', which is an interesting sort of solid surface. A rough estimate of the average {{w|body surface area}} and thus of the average area of all {{w|Human skin|humans skin}} can be made from these {{w|Body surface area#Average values|average values}} and from {{w|Population pyramid|population pyramids}} as this [http://populationpyramid.net/world/2015/ pyramid for 2015]. Average adults have a skin area of around 1.7-1.8 m2, but as a large part of the [https://www.census.gov/popclock/ human population] are children (with skin area down to about 0.25 m2 for infants) the total average will be smaller. By extrapolating the given values an average area of about 1.6 m2 can be found. This would make the area 7.2 billion × 1.6 m2 ≈ 11,500 km2. This is 60 times smaller than the smallest of the labeled moons {{w|Miranda (moon)|Miranda}} (of Uranus) with a surface area of 700,000 km2.

===Title Text===
The title text jokingly claims that this comic is not actually for information, but rather is something Randall thinks we should really do – that is, to stitch all the solar system's solid surfaces together, as the sub-sub heading says. To do this, we would need a giant spool of thread and then something he has to go get in Seattle… which presumably must be the {{w|Space Needle}}, a needle-like tower in Seattle, which should then be used in this grand project.

This could also have been a reference to the [http://articles.latimes.com/2011/nov/13/travel/la-tr-seattle-20111113 Seattle seamstresses] if it weren't for the fact that it's not.

====Skinning Planets and Surface Areas====
Since the land areas are on the surfaces of spheres, this would seem impossible as it would involve lots of deformation and be particularly challenging. It will also be very gruesome when he comes to the part of collecting (and stitching) all human skin together. The inclusion of this speck on the map is, however, also there to make it clear what the real intention is with the planets. Their surface is to be "skinned" of them, as you would have to do with the humans! Then it is all these "planet skins" that should be stitched together using the space needle. This also explains the ragged edges, and why the continents keep their correct size. It would make Randall into a planetary version of {{w|The Silence of the Lambs (film)|The Silence of the Lambs}} movies character ''{{w|Buffalo Bill (character)|Buffalo Bill}}'', a serial killer who tried to make a suit out of the skin from the women he killed.

Randall would also need quite a lot of space for the very large ocean. However, the whole supercontinent is just somewhere between 3-4 times larger than the area of the Earth. And the area of the entire image is less than 9 times the area of the earth. As the {{w|Sphere#Area|formula}} for calculation surface areas for {{w|sphere}}s (4*π*r2) goes with the radius (r) squared, the diameter of the planet needed for the experiment do not need to be larger than 3 times that of the earth. Although there are no objects in the Solar System with this particular size, it is still smaller than the {{w|gas giant}}s, the smallest of these have a radius of almost 4 times that of the earth. {{w|Exoplanet}}s with this range of diameters have certainly been found, however, already at {{w|Exoplanet#Super-Earths, mini-Neptunes, and gas dwarfs|1.7 times the earth radius}} most planets size to be of the {{w|Super-Earth}} type and turns in to the {{w|Gas dwarf#Gas dwarf|gas dwarf}} type of planets. So an ocean of the size needed are not easy to come by.

As has been explained above the earth's surface is included disregarding surface water (oceans) and the same is valid for other objects with surface water, as the Saturn moon Titan which has great lakes (or even oceans) of liquid {{w|methane}} on the surface or the Jupiter moon {{w|Europa (moon)|Europa}} which is covered in a deep ocean with a thick cap of ice. (Interestingly this moon is placed on the map very near to the continent of {{w|Europe}} - maybe for easy comparison of these two areas).

===Gas Giants===
The gas giants Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune have, however, not been included because they do not have any "solid surfaces"; even if they had a solid core (which is itself not clear), this would not comprise any "surface". The gas giants are believed to lack any well-defined surface at all, with the gases that make them up simply becoming thinner and thinner with increasing distance from the planets' centers, eventually becoming indistinguishable from the interplanetary medium. But if they were included via some sort of surface definition, the map of this comic would become a tiny speck amongst the map of the gas giants. Similarly, the surface of the {{w|Sun}} is also not considered a solid surface but hot {{w|Plasma (physics)|plasma}}; if it were included it would reduce even a map of the gas giants to a tiny speck.

===Other Comics===
The map is drawn in a similar style to the two maps of the Internet that Randall has created in the past:
*[[256: Online Communities]]
*[[802: Online Communities 2]]

===Data table===
Below is a table listing the object roughly in the order they would be read of the map (the same order as in the transcript.) But they can be sorted by each of the columns.

The data is taken when possible from the following table: {{w|List of gravitationally rounded objects of the Solar System}}, and surface area is given with three significant digits.

For {{w|4 Vesta|Vesta}} and {{w|Proteus (moon)|Proteus}} (the most likely candidate for the unlabeled area next to Triton) the area is calculated from their mean radius (i.e. they are not spherical). See also above in the explanation, also for calculating the area of all human skin.

The surface for a given object is also given as a ''Fraction of Earth's surface'', and from this the number of times the object could be placed on the Earth's surface is given as one divided by this fraction. For instance it can be seen that The Moon's surface can be placed more than 13 times on top of that of the Earth.

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+Surface area of mentioned objects
!Object
!Type
!Surface area (km2)
!Fraction of Earth's
!1/Fraction
|-
|{{w|Io (moon)|Io}}||Moon of Jupiter||data-sort-value="41900000"| 4.19×107||0.082||12.2
|-
|{{w|Callisto (moon)|Callisto}}||Moon of Jupiter||data-sort-value="73000000"| 7.30×107||0.143||7.00
|-
|{{w|Europa (moon)|Europa}}||Moon of Jupiter||data-sort-value="30900000"| 3.09×107||0.061||16.4
|-
|{{w|Ganymede (moon)|Ganymede}}||Moon of Jupiter||data-sort-value="87000000"| 8.70×107||0.171||5.80
|-
|{{w|Ceres (dwarf planet)|Ceres}}||Dwarf planet||data-sort-value="2800000"| 2.80×106||0.0055||180
|-
|{{w|4 Vesta|Vesta}}||Asteroid||data-sort-value="870000"| 8.70×105||0.0017||590
|-
|{{w|Asteroids}} (1 km+)||Asteroid||N/A||N/A||N/A
|-
|{{w|Proteus (moon)|Proteus}} (not labeled)||Moon of Neptune||data-sort-value="550000"| 5.50×105||0.00011||910
|-
|{{w|Triton (moon)|Triton}}||Moon of Neptune||data-sort-value="23000000"| 2.30×107||0.045||22.2
|-
|{{w|Asteroids}} (100 m+)||Asteroid||N/A||N/A||N/A
|-
|{{w|Oberon (moon)|Oberon}}||Moon of Uranus||data-sort-value="7290000"| 7.29×106||0.014||71.4
|-
|{{w|Miranda (moon)|Miranda}}||Moon of Uranus||data-sort-value="700000"| 7.00×105||0.0014||714
|-
|{{w|Ariel (moon)|Ariel}}||Moon of Uranus||data-sort-value="4210000"| 4.21×106||0.008||125
|-
|{{w|Umbriel (moon)|Umbriel}}||Moon of Uranus||data-sort-value="4300000"| 4.30×106||0.008||125
|-
|{{w|Titania (moon)|Titania}}||Moon of Uranus||data-sort-value="7820000"| 7.82×106||0.015||66.7
|-
|{{w|Earth}}||Planet||data-sort-value="510000000"| 5.10×108||1||1
|-
|{{w|Tethys (moon)|Tethys}}||Moon of Saturn||data-sort-value="4940000"| 3.574×106||0.007||143
|-
|{{w|Enceladus}}||Moon of Saturn||data-sort-value="799000"| 7.99×105||0.0016||625
|-
|{{w|Dione (moon)|Dione}}||Moon of Saturn||data-sort-value="3970000"| 3.97×106||0.0078||128
|-
|{{w|Iapetus (moon)|Iapetus}}||Moon of Saturn||data-sort-value="6700000"| 6.70×106||0.0132||75.8
|-
|All {{w|Human skin|humans skin}}||Human organ||data-sort-value="11500"| 1.15×104||0.000023||43400
|-
|{{w|Rhea (moon)|Rhea}}||Moon of Saturn||data-sort-value="7340000"| 7.34×106||0.0144||69.4
|-
|{{w|Titan (moon)|Titan}}||Moon of Saturn||data-sort-value="83000000"| 8.30×107||0.163||6.14
|-
|{{w|Mercury (planet)|Mercury}}||Planet||data-sort-value="75000000"| 7.50×107||0.147||6.80
|-
|{{w|Moon|The Moon}}||Moon of Earth||data-sort-value="37900000"| 3.79×107||0.074||13.5
|-
|Various small {{w|Natural satellite|moons}}, {{w|comet}}s, etc.||N/A||N/A||N/A||N/A
|-
|{{w|Mars}}||Planet||data-sort-value="140000000"| 1.40×108||0.2745||3.64
|-
|{{w|Makemake (dwarf planet)|Makemake}}||Dwarf planet||data-sort-value="6400000"| 6.40×106||0.013||76.8
|-
|{{w|Haumea (dwarf planet)|Haumea}}||Dwarf planet||data-sort-value="6800000"| 6.80×106||0.0133||75.2
|-
|{{w|Eris (dwarf planet)|Eris}}||Dwarf planet||data-sort-value="18000000"| 1.80×107||0.0353||28.3
|-
|{{w|Pluto}}||Dwarf planet||data-sort-value="17000000"| 1.70×107||0.0333||30.0
|-
|{{w|Charon (moon)|Charon}}||Moon of Pluto||data-sort-value="4580000"| 4.58×106||0.009||111
|-
|{{w|Venus}}||Planet||data-sort-value="460000000"| 4.60×108||0.901||1.10
|}

==Transcript==
:[At the top of a map is a heading, with two sub headings and a note in brackets:]
:'''Space'''
:Without the space
:The Solar System's solid surfaces stitched together
:(Excluding dust and small rocks)
:[Below the headings there is a map with several distinct areas. Each area is labelled with a name or a description. This label is noted inside the area, except for areas that are too small; here the label is written outside and a line indicates which area the label belongs to. Only exception is the largest area, on which the contours of the Earth's continents are drawn. Surrounding the map is wavy lines to indicate that this is either an island or one big super-continent placed in an even larger ocean.]
:[Here below are the labels given as they appear in "normal" reading order in as read from left to right in the three main rows as will be indicated:]
:[Row one, above the line defined by the general top of the Earth area:]
:Io
:Callisto
:Europa
:Ganymede
:Ceres
:Vesta
:Asteroids (1 km+)
:[Here – above the Asteroids area before the Triton area - is a small unlabelled area (the only other except Earth)]
:Triton
:Asteroids (100 m+)
:Oberon
:Miranda
:Ariel
:Umbriel
:Titania
:[Row two, the unlabelled Earth area's row, but here only given those that are directly written to the right of this area:]
:Tethys
:Enceladus
:Dione
:Iapetus
:All human skin
:Rhea
:Titan
:[Row three, all the remaining items that are mainly below the Earth area:]
:Mercury
:The Moon
:Various small moons, comets, etc
:Mars
:Makemake
:Haumea
:Eris
:Pluto
:Charon
:Venus

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Large drawings]]
[[Category:Maps]]
[[Category:Illustrations of scale]]
[[Category:Space]]
[[Category:Astronomy]]

1389: Surface Area

2023-11-09T00:25:53Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Other Moons, Asteroids, and Dwarf Planets */

{{comic
| number = 1389
| date = July 2, 2014
| title = Surface Area
| image = surface_area.png
| titletext = This isn't an informational illustration; this is a thing I think we should do. First, we'll need a gigantic spool of thread. Next, we'll need some kind of... hmm, time to head to Seattle.
}}
*A [http://xkcd.com/1389/large/ larger version] of this image can be found by clicking the image at xkcd - which can be reached easily from here as always, by clicking on the comic number above.
{{TOC}}

==Explanation==
This map shows the total {{w|surface area}}s of all {{w|terrestrial planet}}s, {{w|dwarf planet}}s, {{w|natural satellite|moons}}, {{w|asteroid}}s and {{w|minor planet}}s that are larger than 100 m in the {{w|Solar System}}. They have all been represented as regions of a single massive landmass - a {{w|supercontinent}} like {{w|Pangaea}} - which is clearly surrounded by some kind of ocean.
===Solid Surfaces Present in Comic===
====Earth====
On the area that signifies {{w|Earth}} the {{w|continents}} are drawn using a {{w|map projection}} that keeps the scale of the continents correct. (This is something that [[Randall]] cares about as can be seen in [[977: Map Projections]]). The parts of the surface of the Earth that are covered by oceans are also included in the surface area of the Earth (i.e. the map shows the Earth's {{w|Crust (geology)|crust}}). An extra layer of 3–4 km of water seems rather insignificant when comparing to the Earth's radius of 6,370 km.

====The Moon====
{{w|Moon|The Moon}} has been inlaid in this map next to {{w|Antarctica}} which thus makes a great comparison of how small the Moon is compared to the Earth (there is room for more than 13 lunar surfaces on the Earth). Similarly, it is clear that the planet {{w|Venus}} is almost as big as the Earth.

This is also the general idea of the map - to give an idea about how big the Earth is and how small many of the other known planets etc. are; both compared to Earth and to each other. The map drawn on the Earth is probably there mainly as a guide to size, because none of the features that are known on some of the other objects, especially The Moon (i.e. {{w|Impact crater|craters}} and "{{w|Lunar mare|seas}}") and on {{w|Mars}} (i.e. {{w|Olympus Mons}}), are included.

====Other Moons, Asteroids, and Dwarf Planets====
The objects mentioned by name on the map are all but one amongst those that have reached {{w|hydrostatic equilibrium}} and these are all included on this {{w|List of gravitationally rounded objects of the Solar System}}.

The one named object that is '''not''' on the above list is the asteroid {{w|4 Vesta|Vesta}}, which is included because it is the second largest object in the {{w|Asteroid belt}}. It is placed right next to the largest object in this belt, the dwarf planet {{w|Ceres (dwarf planet)|Ceres}}, which is no longer considered an asteroid. [[acn]] And next to these two are the rest of the asteroids in two areas (see below), which thus groups all asteroids together.

The only object from the above list, (that qualifies for having a solid surface in hydrostatic equilibrium), '''which is not included''' is the {{w|Saturn}} moon {{w|Mimas (moon)|Mimas}}, which is also clearly the smallest object on the list.

This moon should have been located amongst the other five smaller moons of Saturn between the Earth and {{w|Titan (moon)|Titan}} (the largest of Saturn's moons). Mimas has a surface area of 490,000 km2 which is somewhat smaller than the smallest included Saturn moon {{w|Enceladus}} with a surface area of 799,000 km2.

Generally the moons that belong to a given planet (for those with more than one moon large enough to be included), have been clustered together. Apart from the six (not seven...) moons of Saturn to the right of Earth, the four {{w|Galilean moons}} moons of {{w|Jupiter}} are located above the Earth, the five included moons from {{w|Uranus}} is located at the top to the far right.

The last planet to have many moons is {{w|Neptune}}, but only {{w|Triton (moon)|Triton}} is included. This is a fairly large moon, and the only of the 14 known moons of Neptune to be on the above list. However, there is one other moon, {{w|Proteus (moon)|Proteus}} which is notable for being as large as a body of its density can be without being pulled into a spherical shape by its own gravity. It has a length of 424 km in the longest direction, and a mean radius of 210 km. A rough calculation of its surface area from this mean radius gives an area of 550,000 km2, making the surface area slightly larger than Mimas. As there is an '''unlabeled area''' located right next to the other Neptune moon Triton, it is most likely that this small area '''should represent Proteus''', and that it is an error that it was not labeled.

As this is the smallest area, the cut-off of objects could have been at 500,000 km2, as Vesta is also larger than this, which would make room for Proteus, but explain the missing Mimas.

Two of the included objects also have moons that are large enough to be included: Earth, of course, and the dwarf planet {{w|Pluto}} with its moon {{w|Charon (moon)|Charon}}. In both cases these moons have been inlaid in the area of their mother planet.

Whereas the moons of the {{w|gas giant}}s and the asteroids have been located above and to the right of the Earth, the planets and dwarf planets have been included below earth (along with the two moons mentioned above). {{w|Mercury (planet)|Mercury}}, Mars and Venus all touching Earth, and then below them the four {{w|Trans-Neptunian object|Trans-Neptunian}} dwarf planets - the {{w|Plutoid}}s.

====Not Included Dwarf Planets====
On the list from above there are, however, also these {{w|List of gravitationally rounded objects of the Solar System#Most-likely additional dwarf planets|10 objects}} which have not been included with name on the map. These object are, however, only likely candidates for being dwarf planets (depending on whether they have reached hydrostatic equilibrium or not), and on the map they have thus been relegated to the sections without individual names. These object are thus probably grouped together (along with other relatively small objects like comets and smaller moons) in the area labeled ''Various small moons, comets, etc'', which is located at the bottom of the map between Mercury and Mars. The surface area for all of these object, when the surface area have been estimated, are larger than 1 million square kilometer, and thus larger than several of the named objects. So it is not the size that is the reason why such objects as {{w|90377 Sedna|Sedna}} and {{w|50000 Quaoar|Quaoar}} are not included with name, but probably the fact they are not investigated enough yet.

The remaining objects in the Solar System with a solid surface are the minor planets, which on the map has been labeled as asteroids even though these objects are grouped together in several other "belts" than the Asteroid belt. Here they have been assigned to two regions at the top of the map. Above the right part of the Earth area is the area ''Asteroids (1 km+)'' which include any object not already included larger than 1 km. (As these objects are no longer round it is the largest dimension, the length, that should be at least 1 km long). And finally the area ''Asteroids (100 m+)'' thus include any object not already included larger than 100 m.

Most of the rest of the objects that have been included in these three sections can likely be found on this {{w|List of Solar System objects by size}}.
====Very Small Objects====
Tiny objects smaller than 100 m down to space dust are excluded altogether as explained in the note below the headings. This is probably because their total surface area is impossible to estimate accurately, and also because any estimate would likely be too large to fit easily into the map.

===Non-Solar Bodies===
Between Earth and Titan is a tiny speck noted ''all human skin'', which is an interesting sort of solid surface. A rough estimate of the average {{w|body surface area}} and thus of the average area of all {{w|Human skin|humans skin}} can be made from these {{w|Body surface area#Average values|average values}} and from {{w|Population pyramid|population pyramids}} as this [http://populationpyramid.net/world/2015/ pyramid for 2015]. Average adults have a skin area of around 1.7-1.8 m2, but as a large part of the [https://www.census.gov/popclock/ human population] are children (with skin area down to about 0.25 m2 for infants) the total average will be smaller. By extrapolating the given values an average area of about 1.6 m2 can be found. This would make the area 7.2 billion × 1.6 m2 ≈ 11,500 km2. This is 60 times smaller than the smallest of the labeled moons {{w|Miranda (moon)|Miranda}} (of Uranus) with a surface area of 700,000 km2.

===Title Text===
The title text jokingly claims that this comic is not actually for information, but rather is something Randall thinks we should really do – that is, to stitch all the solar system's solid surfaces together, as the sub-sub heading says. To do this, we would need a giant spool of thread and then something he has to go get in Seattle… which presumably must be the {{w|Space Needle}}, a needle-like tower in Seattle, which should then be used in this grand project.

This could also have been a reference to the [http://articles.latimes.com/2011/nov/13/travel/la-tr-seattle-20111113 Seattle seamstresses] if it weren't for the fact that it's not.

====Skinning Planets and Surface Areas====
Since the land areas are on the surfaces of spheres, this would seem impossible as it would involve lots of deformation and be particularly challenging. It will also be very gruesome when he comes to the part of collecting (and stitching) all human skin together. The inclusion of this speck on the map is, however, also there to make it clear what the real intention is with the planets. Their surface is to be "skinned" of them, as you would have to do with the humans! Then it is all these "planet skins" that should be stitched together using the space needle. This also explains the ragged edges, and why the continents keep their correct size. It would make Randall into a planetary version of {{w|The Silence of the Lambs (film)|The Silence of the Lambs}} movies character ''{{w|Buffalo Bill (character)|Buffalo Bill}}'', a serial killer who tried to make a suit out of the skin from the women he killed.

Randall would also need quite a lot of space for the very large ocean. However, the whole supercontinent is just somewhere between 3-4 times larger than the area of the Earth. And the area of the entire image is less than 9 times the area of the earth. As the {{w|Sphere#Area|formula}} for calculation surface areas for {{w|sphere}}s (4*π*r2) goes with the radius (r) squared, the diameter of the planet needed for the experiment do not need to be larger than 3 times that of the earth. Although there are no objects in the Solar System with this particular size, it is still smaller than the {{w|gas giant}}s, the smallest of these have a radius of almost 4 times that of the earth. {{w|Exoplanet}}s with this range of diameters have certainly been found, however, already at {{w|Exoplanet#Super-Earths, mini-Neptunes, and gas dwarfs|1.7 times the earth radius}} most planets size to be of the {{w|Super-Earth}} type and turns in to the {{w|Gas dwarf#Gas dwarf|gas dwarf}} type of planets. So an ocean of the size needed are not easy to come by.

As has been explained above the earth's surface is included disregarding surface water (oceans) and the same is valid for other objects with surface water, as the Saturn moon Titan which has great lakes (or even oceans) of liquid {{w|methane}} on the surface or the Jupiter moon {{w|Europa (moon)|Europa}} which is covered in a deep ocean with a thick cap of ice. (Interestingly this moon is placed on the map very near to the continent of {{w|Europe}} - maybe for easy comparison of these two areas).

===Gas Giants===
The gas giants Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune have, however, not been included because they do not have any "solid surfaces"; even if they had a solid core (which is itself not clear), this would not comprise any "surface". The gas giants are believed to lack any well-defined surface at all, with the gases that make them up simply becoming thinner and thinner with increasing distance from the planets' centers, eventually becoming indistinguishable from the interplanetary medium. But if they were included via some sort of surface definition, the map of this comic would become a tiny speck amongst the map of the gas giants. Similarly, the surface of the {{w|Sun}} is also not considered a solid surface but hot {{w|Plasma (physics)|plasma}}; if it were included it would reduce even a map of the gas giants to a tiny speck.

===Other Comics===
The map is drawn in a similar style to the two maps of the Internet that Randall has created in the past:
*[[256: Online Communities]]
*[[802: Online Communities 2]]

===Data table===
Below is a table listing the object roughly in the order they would be read of the map (the same order as in the transcript.) But they can be sorted by each of the columns.

The data is taken when possible from the following table: {{w|List of gravitationally rounded objects of the Solar System}}, and surface area is given with three significant digits.

For {{w|4 Vesta|Vesta}} and {{w|Proteus (moon)|Proteus}} (the most likely candidate for the unlabeled area next to Triton) the area is calculated from their mean radius (i.e. they are not spherical). See also above in the explanation, also for calculating the area of all human skin.

The surface for a given object is also given as a ''Fraction of Earth's surface'', and from this the number of times the object could be placed on the Earth's surface is given as one divided by this fraction. For instance it can be seen that The Moon's surface can be placed more than 13 times on top of that of the Earth.

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+Surface area of mentioned objects
!Object
!Type
!Surface area (km2)
!Fraction of Earth's
!1/Fraction
|-
|{{w|Io (moon)|Io}}||Moon of Jupiter||data-sort-value="41900000"| 4.19×107||0.082||12.2
|-
|{{w|Callisto (moon)|Callisto}}||Moon of Jupiter||data-sort-value="73000000"| 7.30×107||0.143||7.00
|-
|{{w|Europa (moon)|Europa}}||Moon of Jupiter||data-sort-value="30900000"| 3.09×107||0.061||16.4
|-
|{{w|Ganymede (moon)|Ganymede}}||Moon of Jupiter||data-sort-value="87000000"| 8.70×107||0.171||5.80
|-
|{{w|Ceres (dwarf planet)|Ceres}}||Dwarf planet||data-sort-value="2800000"| 2.80×106||0.0055||180
|-
|{{w|4 Vesta|Vesta}}||Asteroid||data-sort-value="870000"| 8.70×105||0.0017||590
|-
|{{w|Asteroids}} (1 km+)||Asteroid||N/A||N/A||N/A
|-
|{{w|Proteus (moon)|Proteus}} (not labeled)||Moon of Neptune||data-sort-value="550000"| 5.50×105||0.00011||910
|-
|{{w|Triton (moon)|Triton}}||Moon of Neptune||data-sort-value="23000000"| 2.30×107||0.045||22.2
|-
|{{w|Asteroids}} (100 m+)||Asteroid||N/A||N/A||N/A
|-
|{{w|Oberon (moon)|Oberon}}||Moon of Uranus||data-sort-value="7290000"| 7.29×106||0.014||71.4
|-
|{{w|Miranda (moon)|Miranda}}||Moon of Uranus||data-sort-value="700000"| 7.00×105||0.0014||714
|-
|{{w|Ariel (moon)|Ariel}}||Moon of Uranus||data-sort-value="4210000"| 4.21×106||0.008||125
|-
|{{w|Umbriel (moon)|Umbriel}}||Moon of Uranus||data-sort-value="4300000"| 4.30×106||0.008||125
|-
|{{w|Titania (moon)|Titania}}||Moon of Uranus||data-sort-value="7820000"| 7.82×106||0.015||66.7
|-
|{{w|Earth}}||Planet||data-sort-value="510000000"| 5.10×108||1||1
|-
|{{w|Tethys (moon)|Tethys}}||Moon of Saturn||data-sort-value="4940000"| 3.574×106||0.007||143
|-
|{{w|Enceladus}}||Moon of Saturn||data-sort-value="799000"| 7.99×105||0.0016||625
|-
|{{w|Dione (moon)|Dione}}||Moon of Saturn||data-sort-value="3970000"| 3.97×106||0.0078||128
|-
|{{w|Iapetus (moon)|Iapetus}}||Moon of Saturn||data-sort-value="6700000"| 6.70×106||0.0132||75.8
|-
|All {{w|Human skin|humans skin}}||Human organ||data-sort-value="11500"| 1.15×104||0.000023||43400
|-
|{{w|Rhea (moon)|Rhea}}||Moon of Saturn||data-sort-value="7340000"| 7.34×106||0.0144||69.4
|-
|{{w|Titan (moon)|Titan}}||Moon of Saturn||data-sort-value="83000000"| 8.30×107||0.163||6.14
|-
|{{w|Mercury (planet)|Mercury}}||Planet||data-sort-value="75000000"| 7.50×107||0.147||6.80
|-
|{{w|Moon|The Moon}}||Moon of Earth||data-sort-value="37900000"| 3.79×107||0.074||13.5
|-
|Various small {{w|Natural satellite|moons}}, {{w|comet}}s, etc.||N/A||N/A||N/A||N/A
|-
|{{w|Mars}}||Planet||data-sort-value="140000000"| 1.40×108||0.2745||3.64
|-
|{{w|Makemake (dwarf planet)|Makemake}}||Dwarf planet||data-sort-value="6400000"| 6.40×106||0.013||76.8
|-
|{{w|Haumea (dwarf planet)|Haumea}}||Dwarf planet||data-sort-value="6800000"| 6.80×106||0.0133||75.2
|-
|{{w|Eris (dwarf planet)|Eris}}||Dwarf planet||data-sort-value="18000000"| 1.80×107||0.0353||28.3
|-
|{{w|Pluto}}||Dwarf planet||data-sort-value="17000000"| 1.70×107||0.0333||30.0
|-
|{{w|Charon (moon)|Charon}}||Moon of Pluto||data-sort-value="4580000"| 4.58×106||0.009||111
|-
|{{w|Venus}}||Planet||data-sort-value="460000000"| 4.60×108||0.901||1.10
|}

==Transcript==
:[At the top of a map is a heading, with two sub headings and a note in brackets:]
:'''Space'''
:Without the space
:The Solar System's solid surfaces stitched together
:(Excluding dust and small rocks)
:[Below the headings there is a map with several distinct areas. Each area is labelled with a name or a description. This label is noted inside the area, except for areas that are too small; here the label is written outside and a line indicates which area the label belongs to. Only exception is the largest area, on which the contours of the Earth's continents are drawn. Surrounding the map is wavy lines to indicate that this is either an island or one big super-continent placed in an even larger ocean.]
:[Here below are the labels given as they appear in "normal" reading order in as read from left to right in the three main rows as will be indicated:]
:[Row one, above the line defined by the general top of the Earth area:]
:Io
:Callisto
:Europa
:Ganymede
:Ceres
:Vesta
:Asteroids (1 km+)
:[Here – above the Asteroids area before the Triton area - is a small unlabelled area (the only other except Earth)]
:Triton
:Asteroids (100 m+)
:Oberon
:Miranda
:Ariel
:Umbriel
:Titania
:[Row two, the unlabelled Earth area's row, but here only given those that are directly written to the right of this area:]
:Tethys
:Enceladus
:Dione
:Iapetus
:All human skin
:Rhea
:Titan
:[Row three, all the remaining items that are mainly below the Earth area:]
:Mercury
:The Moon
:Various small moons, comets, etc
:Mars
:Makemake
:Haumea
:Eris
:Pluto
:Charon
:Venus

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Large drawings]]
[[Category:Maps]]
[[Category:Illustrations of scale]]
[[Category:Space]]
[[Category:Astronomy]]

2407: Depth and Breadth

2023-11-08T20:27:22Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2407
| date = January 4, 2021
| title = Depth and Breadth
| image = depth_and_breadth2.png
| titletext = A death-first search is when you lose your keys and travel to the depths of hell to find them, and then if they're not there you start checking your coat pockets.
}}

==Explanation==
{{w|Tree (data structure)|Tree structure}}s are one of the most common data structures used in computer science. The common ways of enumerating items arranged in a tree is either {{w|Depth-first search|depth-first}}, or {{w|Breadth-first search|breadth-first}}, which are depicted accurately in the comic. Randall humorously combines the words, to produce "brepth-first", "deadth-first", "bread-first", and "death-first" search algorithms.

Depth-first search explores down a full branch of the tree before working back to a higher level. This type of tree structure was already discussed as inefficient for human needs in [[761: DFS]]. The "opposite" of this is breadth-first search, which explores each level of the tree at a time.

In the "brepth-first" algorithm, a depth-first and a breadth-first search are hybridized where the left-most node is visited more frequently than the right node, but the right node is still visited. This might be good for exploring data that is loosely but not strictly weighted to the left, or where data in deeper nodes needs some time to be loaded before it can be used. As implied by [[761: DFS]], this might be the best algorithm for a human to employ, where one can explore several topics briefly before deciding which one to explore more deeply, rather than blindly following the first rabbit hole to an absurd conclusion. Informed search algorithms like {{w|A* search algorithm|A* search}}, {{w|Beam search}}, and other {{w|Best-first search}} algorithms show this type of behavior by expanding the most ''promising'' node in the current set (under some appropriate metrics).

The nature of the "deadth-first" algorithm is unclear and inefficient, since it searches the same nodes multiple times before moving to an entirely different region of the tree. It might be useful in a context where examining nodes has some probability of returning a noisy or incorrect result, such as searching for small objects that may be overlooked.

It may also be how people with OCD search, but this would be very stereotypical.

The bread-first search is taken literally. Bread is searched for first. Since the computer user now has already met their want to find bread, the computer has no reason to explore the tree at all.{{Citation needed}}

The title text introduces a "death-first" search, in which the user explores what it is like to be dead, before considering anything else. Specifically, the title text refers to hell, which calls to mind the adventures of Dante Alighieri in {{w|Inferno (Dante)| his ''Inferno''}}, and is a less likely place for keys to be left than one's coat pockets {{Citation needed}}. In 2021 (the year this comic was published) there are commemorations for the 700th anniversary of Dante's Death. These are expected to take place among the living only, and not in Hell.{{Citation needed}} A much more pleasant death-first algorithm might be to skip hell and purgatory and search heaven first, perhaps multiple times (which in itself would be a use of the deadth-first approach).

==Transcript==
:[Five panels, each containing identical copies of a rooted tree graph, grayed out in the background. The tree has a height of 3 and 15 nodes.]
:[In all five panels, a black twisty arrow in the foreground indicates the order in which nodes are traversed. The arrow does not complete the entire traversal but cuts off at some point. Backtracking is indicated with a dotted line.]
:[In the descriptions below, node 1 is the root, nodes 2 and 3 are its child nodes, nodes 4 and 5 are 2's child nodes, nodes 6 and 7 are 3's child nodes, nodes 8 and 9 are 4's child nodes, and so on up to node 15.]
:[Backtracking is omitted from the descriptions below, as they increased confusion when read.]

:Depth-first search
:[The arrow visits nodes 1, 2, 4, 8, 9, 5, 10, 11.]

:Breadth-first search
:[The arrow visits nodes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7[''sic''], 6, 8.]

:Brepth-first search
:[The arrow visits nodes 1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 9, 3, 6, 10, 11.]

:Deadth-first search
:[The arrow visits nodes 1, 2, 4, 4, 2, 4, 3, 6, 12, 13, 12.]

:Bread-first search
:[The arrow starts at node 1, then immediately leaves the tree off to the right to point to a small loaf labeled "Bread".]

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Programming]]
[[Category:Food]]

761: DFS

2023-11-08T20:22:46Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* First step */

{{comic
| number = 761
| date = July 2, 2010
| title = DFS
| image = dfs.png
| titletext = A breadth-first search makes a lot of sense for dating in general, actually; it suggests dating a bunch of people casually before getting serious, rather than having a series of five-year relationships one after the other.
}}

==Explanation==
In this comic [[Hairy]] is preparing for his date with [[Ponytail]], and has just finished with a shower, as seen from the fact that he is wearing a towel around his waist.

He is also preparing mentally by thinking about which [[#Situations|situations]] he might encounter during the date. Since he cannot know for sure he is performing a "blind search" in his head. When doing a blind search in computing, there are two main tactics—{{w|depth-first search}} (DFS), and {{w|breadth-first search}} (BFS).

Hairy uses the '''DFS''' technique, as indicated in the comic title, which means going as far as you possibly can down one path before looking at other possibilities. This turns out to be a bad idea, as Hairy's searches takes him out on a tangent. Instead of preparing for his date, Hairy instead spent the whole time [[#Snake venom|doing research]] on {{w|snake venom}}, to the exclusion of even getting dressed in time for the arrival of his date. The way the last panel is the only panel and at the far right in the second row vs. four panels in the top row, indicates all the time he has used on DFS. And although he may realize his mistake, throwing up his arms, he has to tell [[Ponytail]] the fact he has found out that the {{w|inland taipan}}'s has the deadliest venom of any snake (see [[#Snake venom|more]] below).

By contrast, a breadth-first search will look only minimally into a topic before moving on to another; any new depth exposed by this minimal check will be added to a list of stuff to do later. This would have allowed Hairy to briefly check many more things within the time allotted, and probably still have been able to get dressed if, in dealing breadth-first in the first layer of concerns, he quickly identified (and prioritized/satisfied) the need to be properly dressed and ready to go out.

The relationship advice given in the title text on using breadth-first search may not be meant too seriously. However, one might be more sure about what kind of person one is looking for after already having dated a few people. But by then, the right one might have slipped by. It is by no means certain that you can return to one of the first persons you dated after having dated another dozen.

It is, however, not very useful, if you wish to have a stable family life, to "only" be with a person for five years. So DFS is for sure a bad way to find out who you wish to spend you life with. One might conclude that blind search is not a good way to find your significant other. But for most people, there is no other way to search.

DFS and BFS make another appearance in [[2407: Depth and Breadth]], together with variations based on them.

==Situations==
Hairy begins to think of several situations to prepares for.

===First step===
In the first panel there are four situations:
#Medical emergency
##This is the situation he continues with in the second step.
#Dancing
##He probably doesn't think he is good enough at dancing, or simply doesn’t like it.
##It could also be because he is uncertain what she expects, of if she wishes to dance with him at all.
#Food too expensive
##It probably means that he is expected to pay (at least for himself, but probably also for his date)
##This is a simple problem, if he does his search first. He just has to choose a restaurant he can afford.
#Bee eating contest (?)
##This situation is cut off, so it is hard to be certain what it says.
##The above is the best guess so far, though “Bee dating contest” is a reasonable second.
##It could be a joke on {{w|Spelling bee}} contests and "normal" {{w|Competitive eating|eating contest}}.

===Second step===
In the second panel there are also four situations continuing the first option from the first panel:
#Medical emergency
##Snakebite
###This is the situation he continues with in the third step.
##{{w|Lightning strike}}
###Very unlikely event to happen on any given date.
##Fall from chair
###This could happen, especially if he is clumsy when holding the chair for her...
##Tracheal bowling (?)
###This situation is cut off very much. The above is just a good guess.

===Third step===
In the third panel there are four types of snakes with questions marks as to whether they are dangerous. This is a continuation of the first option from the second panel:
#Medical emergency
##Snakebite
###Corn snake
###Garter snake
###Copperhead
###Coral snake (?)
####This situation is cut off very much. The above is just a good guess.

This third step takes him to his computer in the fourth panel where he does lots of research on [[#Snake venom|snake venom]].

===Snake venom===
{{w|Median lethal dose|LD50}}, or median lethal dose, is the dose of a toxin required to kill 50% of the population studied, usually expressed in milligrams of toxin per kilogram of body mass, and most often for {{w|rats}} or another type of {{w|guinea pig}}.

The {{w|inland taipan}}'s venom does, indeed, have the lowest median lethal dose among snake venoms. Fortunately, it is extremely shy in temperament, and will always escape danger rather than bite if it can, which is why it isn't considered to be a particularly dangerous snake. It also resides only in inland Australia, unlike any of the snakes that Hairy enumerated as potential risks. (If he does happen to live in Australia, he should be more concerned about the much deadlier {{w|eastern brown snake}} and {{w|coastal taipan}}.)

Incidentally, {{w|Corn snake|corn snakes}} and {{w|garter snakes}} are not even remotely dangerous to humans (in fact they're the most popular pet snakes), and of the four different species commonly known as "{{w|agkistrodon|copperheads}}," the only dangerously venomous one is ''{{w|deinagkistrodon acutus}}'' or sharp-nosed viper that only lives in Southeast Asia. In the US, the snake going by the name of ''copperhead'' is the {{w|agkistrodon contortrix}}.

The item that is almost entirely cut off by the thought bubble seems to be "{{w|coral snake}}". Coral snakes are in a similar position as the inland taipan: they are extremely venomous, but also extremely reclusive.

==Transcript==
:[In a caption that breaks the top of the first panels frame:]
:Preparing for a date:

:[Hairy with wet hair and a towel around his waist thinks with his hand to his chin. There are four situations, but it is not possible to read the fourth line.]
:Hairy: What situations might I prepare for?
::1) Medical emergency
::2) Dancing
::3) Food too expensive

:[Close-up on Hairy's face, who is still thinking. There are again four situations, but again it is not possible to read the fourth line.]
:Hairy: Okay, what kind of emergencies can happen?
::1) A) Snakebite
::: B) Lightning strike
::: C) Fall from chair

:[Zoooming out again to full figure of Hairy. He is still thinking... There are four snakes mentioned, but again it is not possible to read the fourth line. The word Danger stands beneath the three dots above the "?" after each snake.]
:Hairy: Hmm. Which snakes are dangerous? Let's see...
:::::::Danger
::1)A)a) Corn snake ?
::: b) Garter snake ?
::: c) Copperhead ?

:[Hairy is sitting down in a chair with a laptop in his lap, while still wearing the towel.]
:Hairy: The research comparing snake venoms is scattered and inconsistent. I'll make a spreadsheet to organize it.

:[Bottom panel is larger than top four, and aligned to right. Ponytail meets Hairy on his front stoop. She is carrying a purse, and looks down at the towel he is still wearing. Hairy holds his arms in the air.]
:Ponytail: I'm here to pick you up. You're not dressed?
:Hairy: By LD50, the inland taipan has the deadliest venom of any snake!

:[Below this last panel is the following caption:]
:I really need to stop using depth-first searches.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Romance]]
[[Category:Romance]]
[[Category:Programming]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Spreadsheets]]

2452: Aviation Firsts

2023-11-08T20:19:51Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2452
| date = April 19, 2021
| title = Aviation Firsts
| image = aviation_firsts.png
| titletext = Mile High Club membership [✓] [ ] Discovery of parts of Amelia Earhart's skeleton [ ] [ ] Mid-flight incident that results in safe landing on the Hudson River [✓] [ ]
}}

==Explanation==
This comic reflects the [https://twitter.com/NASAPersevere/status/1384209173924089863 ''Ingenuity'' probe's first flight on Mars]. Now that ''Ingenuity'' has completed its first flight, Mars can be counted among planets with controlled powered flight. The preceding milestones in this list were completed by the first space probes to reach and then land on Mars. Flight, landing and controlled landing were variously achieved by some or all of the prior landers, depending upon your definition of flight, but certainly by the {{w|Mars_Science_Laboratory#Sky_crane_landing|Skycrane}} element used in landing both ''Curiosity'' and ''Perseverance'' rovers. These may not have qualified as controlled powered flight as they only used their power to control the landing, before flying off again under power without any more precise control than that needed to intentionally crash elsewhere.

The remaining milestones have only been completed on Earth, if at all, and also grow more bizarre and more specific further down the comic and extending into the title text.

{| class="wikitable"
! Milestone summary
! Achieved on Earth?
! Achieved on Mars?
! Explanation
|-
| Flight
| style="background-color: #88FF88; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | Yes
| style="background-color: #88FF88; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | Yes
| rowspan=3 | All of these milestones were generally necessary for the success of previous exploratory missions on the surface of Mars.
|-
| Landing
| style="background-color: #88FF88; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | Yes
| style="background-color: #88FF88; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | Yes
|-
| Controlled landing
| style="background-color: #88FF88; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | Yes
| style="background-color: #88FF88; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | Yes
|-
| Controlled powered flight
| style="background-color: #88FF88; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | Yes
| style="background-color: #88FF88; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | Yes
| This comic was released within hours of ''Ingenuity'' becoming the first aircraft in human history to take off, fly under its own power, and land, all on a planet other than Earth.
|-
| Loop
| style="background-color: #88FF88; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | Yes
| style="background-color: #FF8888; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | No
| Although {{w|Aerobatic_maneuver|loops}} are often performed in Earth's atmosphere by planes designed for high-speed aerobatics (such as stunt planes and fighter jets), such aircraft have yet to be deployed on any spacecraft leaving Earth. A loop does not yet seem to be practical or necessary to attempt over Mars.
|-
| In-flight meal
| style="background-color: #88FF88; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | Yes
| style="background-color: #FF8888; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | No
| Naturally, it would only make sense to serve food on a ''manned'' mission to Mars, which has not yet happened.
|-
| Planetary circumnavigation
| style="background-color: #88FF88; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | Yes
| style="background-color: #FF8888; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | No
| While planetary circumnavigation has been achieved outside of Mars's atmosphere by {{w|List_of_Mars_orbiters|many Mars orbiters}}, this is a list of ''aviation'' firsts, which would require controlled flight within an atmosphere.
|-
| Enormous wooden aircraft built by a reclusive billionaire that flies exactly once
| style="background-color: #88FF88; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | Yes
| style="background-color: #FF8888; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | No
| The {{w|Hughes H-4 Hercules}} (the "Spruce Goose") was a prototype wooden airplane, known for being the largest flying boat ever constructed. The Hercules was designed by aviation pioneer (and, latterly, famed recluse) Howard Hughes. The design was intended as a lightweight transoceanic transport for the military, but the prototype, built out of wood because of aluminum shortages during World War II, was not completed until well after the end of the war and flew only a single time in 1947. Since 1991, it has been on permanent display at the {{w|Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum}} in McMinnville, Oregon, USA.
|-
| Hijacking by someone dubbed "D.B. Cooper" who demands money and then jumps out mid-flight to an unknown fate
| style="background-color: #88FF88; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | Yes
| style="background-color: #FF8888; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | No
| In 1971, {{w|Northwest Orient Airlines}} Flight 305 was famously hijacked by an enigmatic man who is best known by the pseudonym [[D. B. Cooper]] (although Dan Cooper was the name he actually used to buy his ticket). After being given a $200,000 ransom by the plane's crew, Cooper proceeded to parachute jump out of the plane using the rear {{w|airstair}} and was never confirmed to have been heard from again; many experts agree that the parachute jump was very risky and it's unlikely that Cooper survived. (Cooper was previously mentioned in [[1400: D.B. Cooper]] and [[1501: Mysteries]].)
|-
| Mile High Club membership
| style="background-color: #88FF88; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | Yes
| style="background-color: #FF8888; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | No
| The "{{w|mile high club}}" is a slang term for people who have had sexual intercourse while onboard an airplane in flight. Although the notion of {{w|sex in space}} is understood to be severely hampered by the limited life support and the complete lack of natural gravity,{{Citation needed}} it's not certain whether Mars's low gravity (compared to Earth) would make it similarly challenging to have intercourse within the planet's atmosphere.
|-
| Discovery of parts of Amelia Earhart's skeleton
| style="background-color: #FF8888; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | No
| style="background-color: #FF8888; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | No
| {{w|Amelia Earhart}} was a famous aviator who, along with her navigator {{w|Fred Noonan}}, went missing over the Pacific Ocean in 1937 while attempting a global circumnavigation flight and has never been found. It was previously believed the skeleton of one of them had been found on Nikumaroro island (then called Gardner Island), but this theory is contentious and most scholars reject it today. While there's still a remote possibility that the remains of Earhart and Noonan will eventually be discovered somewhere in the Pacific, the notion of them somehow ending up on the surface of Mars is practically impossible outside the remit of certain conspiracy theories. (Earhart was previously mentioned in [[1501: Mysteries]], [[950: Mystery Solved]], and [[2197: Game Show]].)
|-
| Mid-flight incident that results in safe landing on the Hudson River
| style="background-color: #88FF88; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | Yes
| style="background-color: #FF8888; color: #000000; text-align: center;" | No
| The {{w|US Airways Flight 1549|Miracle on the Hudson}} was a 2009 aviation incident in which an A320 operating US Airways Flight 1549 struck a flock of geese shortly after takeoff from LaGuardia Airport in New York City. Despite the plane losing all its engine power as a result of the bird strike, Captain Chesley Sullenberger successfully crash-landed in the nearby Hudson River with minimal injuries to the passengers onboard. Of course, it would be highly impractical for a powered flight that encounters a problem in the sky above Mars to then fly all the way to Earth just for an emergency landing in the New York area. It is much more likely that a location on mars would, at some point in the future, be named "The Hudson River" and an aircraft land there safely.{{Citation needed}}
|-
! Milestone summary
! Achieved on Earth?
! Achieved on Mars?
! Explanation
|}

==Transcript==
:[A chart is shown with nine items. To the right of each item there are two check boxes. Above the top row of check boxes are two underlined labels for the two columns. The first four rows have both boxes checked, and the last five have only the first box checked. The last two items are so long that they take up three and four rows of text. The first seven items are written on one line each.]

Earth Mars
Flight <big>[✓]</big> <big>[✓]</big>

Landing <big>[✓]</big> <big>[✓]</big>

Controlled landing <big>[✓]</big> <big>[✓]</big>

Controlled powered flight <big>[✓]</big> <big>[✓]</big>

Loop <big>[✓]</big> <big>[ ]</big>

In-flight meal <big>[✓]</big> <big>[ ]</big>

Planetary circumnavigation <big>[✓]</big> <big>[ ]</big>

Enormous wooden aircraft
built by a reclusive billionaire <big>[✓]</big> <big>[ ]</big>
that flies exactly once

Hijacking by someone dubbed
"D.B. Cooper" who demands <big>[✓]</big> <big>[ ]</big>
money and then jumps out
mid-flight to an unknown fate

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Aviation]]
[[Category:Mars rovers]]
[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Amelia Earhart]]
[[Category:Comics featuring D. B. Cooper]]
[[Category:Sex]]

2851: Messier Objects

2023-11-08T19:40:26Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2851
| date = November 6, 2023
| title = Messier Objects
| image = messier_objects_2x.png
| imagesize = 293x294px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = The debate over the correct Messier number for the Ship of Theseus is ongoing.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BUNCH OF PEOPLE ARGUING OVER WHAT TO LABEL THE SHIP OF THESEUS - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

This comic is a play on the {{w|Messier object|Messier Catalog}}, which is a famous list of astronomical objects compiled by the French astronomer Charles Messier in the 18th century. The real Messier Catalog includes 110 objects, which are all deep-space objects like nebulae and galaxies.

In the comic, it's humorously suggested that the catalog includes not just these distant celestial objects, but also very ordinary things found here on Earth. Each ordinary object is labeled with an "M" followed by a number, just as the real Messier objects are numbered (like M1, M31, etc.). However, the numbers are much higher than the 110 included in the actual catalog, and they point to mundane things such as the Earth, Charles Messier himself, a tree, a butterfly and a squirrel.

The numbers increase as the objects go from large and significant to humans (the Earth, Charles Messier) to those that are smaller and less significant (a tree, a butterfly, and a squirrel). However, this pattern isn't strictly numerical (i.e., there's no clear mathematical sequence), but rather a conceptual one where the numbers arbitrarily become larger for things that are commonly considered less monumental or noteworthy than celestial objects.

So, the comic is a playful take on a piece of astronomical history, suggesting that everything in the universe is part of the Messier Catalog, not just the deep sky objects Messier originally listed.

The title text refers to the {{w|Ship of Theseus}}, which is a thought experiment. If a ship is repaired and/or modified such that it has ''all'' of its parts replaced over the years, is it the same ship as the original? And then, what if you take all of the parts that were removed and create another ship using those parts? Are they ''both'' the same ship, and if not, which one ''is'' the original ship? The title text suggests that this leads to a debate as to whether the original ship and the new ship (with all of its parts replaced) should be considered the same object and therefore given the same Messier number, or the two ships should be considered different objects with different Messier numbers, and if so, which of them should retain the original number.

"M41592" may be a reference to pi as it contains 5 of the first digits at 3.1'''41592'''.

==About the Messier Catalog==
The Messier Catalog was devised as a tool for comet hunters to differentiate between permanent, blurry celestial objects and the transient, moving comets that appear similar at first glance. Such blurry objects, unlike comets, remain fixed against the stellar backdrop, and their inclusion in the catalog ensures that astronomers could avoid mistaking these for newly visible comets, when systematically looking for unfixed 'fuzzy' objects to start to track. The catalog excludes terrestrial objects, as they pose no risk of confusion with comets.{{Citation needed}} Following the creation of the Messier Catalog, other catalogs like the New General Catalogue ({{w|New General Catalogue|NGC}}) and the Sloan Digital Sky Survey ({{w|Sloan Digital Sky Survey|SDSS}}) emerged, expanding the documentation of astronomical bodies.

==Similar Numbering Systems==
This numbering system is somewhat reminiscent of Wikidata which also gives objects a number starting with a letter. Numbers starting with Q refer to concepts including specific physical objects (like the Earth) and more abstract ideas (butterflies as organisms known by a particular common name). Here are some of the objects mentioned in the comic:
:[https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2 Q2] (Earth) (The normal one)
:[https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q14524 Q14524] (Charles Messier) (The astronomer)
:[https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q10884 Q10884] (tree) (The plants known by that common name)
:[https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q11946202 Q11946202] (butterflies) (The Lepidoptera known by that common name)
:[https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q9482 Q9482] (squirrel) (The taxon of rodents)
:[https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q14530 Q14530] (Messier object) (The astronomical catalog)
:[https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1050837 Q1050837] (Ship of Theseus) (The thought experiment)
:[https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q13915 Q13915] (xkcd) (The webcomic)

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

:[Multiple objects are labelled with M followed by a number.]
:[There is a tree, a butterfly, a squirrel, a man with a powdered wig labeled Charles Messier, a squirrel, and ground.]
:M137 (Earth) (pointing to the ground)
:M205 (Charles Messier) (pointing to Charles Messier)
:M21860 (pointing to a tree on the left of the panel)
:M41592 (pointing to a butterfly above Charles)
:M30712050 (pointing to a squirrel)

:[Caption below the panel:]
:People usually focus on the first 110, but the Messier Catalog actually includes '''''all''''' objects.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Squirrels]]
[[Category:Philosophy]]

Talk:2852: Parameterball

2023-11-08T19:30:17Z

TenGolf MathHacker:

added transcript and a kinda crappy explanation [[User:Certified_nqh|Me]][[[285: Wikipedian Protester|''citation needed'']]][[Category:Pages using the "citation needed" template]] 17:36, 8 November 2023 (UTC)
: added a bit of crappy info to the explanation. also hi nqh [[User:SomeoneIGuess|someone, i guess]]([[User talk:SomeoneIGuess|talk i guess]]|[[Special:Contributions/SomeoneIGuess|le edit list]]) 17:42, 8 November 2023 (UTC)
: added crappy edits. also do i have an account or… [[User:TenGolf MathHacker|TenGolf MathHacker]] ([[User talk:TenGolf MathHacker|talk]]) 19:30, 8 November 2023 (UTC)

Does the tennis court in upper right look about 50% larger than normal to anyone else? The ping-pong table definitely looks too small, about half size. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 18:07, 8 November 2023 (UTC)

: I'd say the the upper right is similar width to a tennis court but is 25% longer. The lower left looks to be similar width to table tennis / ping pong but is about half as long. So the explanations for those need revising. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.62.51|162.158.62.51]] 18:13, 8 November 2023 (UTC)

I have some neat plans for that Incomplete template. Get ready for an occasional change to something random that uses anything but metric... [[User:SomeoneIGuess|someone, i guess]]([[User talk:SomeoneIGuess|talk i guess]]|[[Special:Contributions/SomeoneIGuess|le edit list]]) 18:29, 8 November 2023 (UTC)

2852: Parameterball

2023-11-08T19:29:12Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 2852
| date = November 8, 2023
| title = Parameterball
| image = parameterball_2x.png
| imagesize = 518x371px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = The ball's density also varies, but players don't learn the value until after choosing their raquets. The infamous 'bowling ball table tennis' region of the parameter space often leads to equipment damage.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BALL THE SIZE OF 3.14 BEACH BALLS, HEAVIER THAN A CUBIC METER OF CONCRETE, FLYING OVER A NET SHORTER THAN AN ANT, ON A FIELD THE SIZE OF NEW JERSEY - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

A racquet (very commonly spelled "racket", but misspelled as "raquet" in the comic) game is a 2 player point game, with a net, ball, 2 racquets, and a court. The objective of the game is, usually, to hit the ball in a way that it bounces on your opponent's side in a way that it hits the floor (usually twice) before they can hit it onto your side. The two most notable examples of this kind of game are {{w|Tennis}} and {{w|Table Tennis}} (also known as Ping-Pong).

In this comic, a game called "Parameterball" is proposed, where net size, ball size, and court size are randomized every quarter. There are 4 different instances of Megan and Cueball playing this game, each in one corner, so we can assume all four of these were used within the same game of Parameterball. The different examples provide insight into the absurd games that may be played in Parameterball, depending on how mismatched the racquet, court, and ball size are.

The exact limits of Parameterball are unknown. It could be that the parameters are not truly random, and are limited to be semi-reasonable for human players to perform, such as a courts about as large as an American football field, or they could be entirely unlimited, allowing courts the size of continents and balls with densities approaching that of black holes.

The title text mentions that the ball's density is also randomized, and that an infamous incident where the net size, ball size, and court size were similar to that of a Ping-pong match, but with a ball as dense as a {{w|Bowling ball|bowling ball}}, not only led to equipment damage, but does so regularly. Despite this, the participants ''do not'' learn the density until ''after'' the racquet is chosen, meaning that they have no way of determining whether the racquet they chose is durable enough until it's already too late. (Choosing an excessively robust item could be detrimental to trying to play with a light ball, conversely, as it proves detrimental to reacting against volleys by a more aptly-equipped opponent.)

Randall may have been inspired by {{w|Pickleball}}, a type of racquet sport rising sharply in popularity in the US at the time this comic came out. Pickleball is a middle-ground of tennis and table tennis, with an intermediate-sized court, racquet, and net. Randall may have noticed the distinct parameters of pickleball’s elements compared to its cousin sports and was inspired to imagine a scenario in which such parameters might be randomized.

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

:[Megan and Cueball are playing a game that looks similar to tennis. There are courts, but on each multiple parts of the game are different. On each, Cueball is on the right and Megan is on the left.]
:[Top left: The court is small, each half slightly wider and deeper than a person is tall, and the ball is extremely large, about twice the height as the players' heads. The ball has just bounced on Cueball's side very slowly, and he is about to hit it.]
:[Top right: The court, ball, and net closely match a regular tennis game, albeit perhaps a slightly more ground area than a doubles' court. Cueball has just hit the ball, and it is currently flying towards Megan's side.]
:[Bottom left: The ball, and net are basically the same as in table tennis, but the 'court' is a much smaller tabletop. The ball has just bounced back up on Megan's side, and she is poised to hit it back.]
:[Bottom right: The court is slightly larger than the top left, while the net and ball are massive, with the ball at least double the radius and the net significantly over twice the height of the players. Cueball is apparently fighting to push the huge ball high enough to get over the net, indicated by movement lines in which he is barely managing to keep the ball on the racquet itself, not to mention he has only gotten the ball halfway up the net.]

:[Caption below the panel:]
:Parameterball is a raquet [sic] game divided into four quarters, with ball size, court size, and net height randomized each quarter.

{{comic discussion}}

2852: Parameterball

2023-11-08T19:28:04Z

TenGolf MathHacker:

{{comic
| number = 2852
| date = November 8, 2023
| title = Parameterball
| image = parameterball_2x.png
| imagesize = 518x371px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = The ball's density also varies, but players don't learn the value until after choosing their raquets. The infamous 'bowling ball table tennis' region of the parameter space often leads to equipment damage.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BALL THE SIZE OF 3.14 BEACH BALLS, HEAVIER THAN A CUBIC METER OF CONCRETE, FLYING OVER A NET SHORTER THAN AN ANT, ON A FIELD THE SIZE OF NEW JERSEY - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

A racquet (very commonly spelled "racket", but misspelled as "raquet" in the comic) game is a 2 player point game, with a net, ball, 2 racquets, and a court. The objective of the game is, usually, to hit the ball in a way that it bounces on your opponent's side in a way that it hits the floor (usually twice) before they can hit it onto your side. The two most notable examples of this kind of game are {{w|Tennis}} and {{w|Table Tennis}} (also known as Ping-Pong).

In this comic, a game called "Parameterball" is proposed, where net size, ball size, and court size are randomized every quarter. There are 4 different instances of Megan and Cueball playing this game, each in one corner, so we can assume all four of these were used within the same game of Parameterball. The different examples provide insight into the absurd games that may be played in Parameterball, depending on how mismatched the racquet, court, and ball size are.

The exact limits of Parameterball are unknown. It could be that the parameters are not truly random, and are limited to be semi-reasonable for human players to perform, such as a courts about as large as an American football field, or they could be entirely unlimited, allowing courts the size of continents and balls with densities approaching that of black holes.

The title text mentions that the ball's density is also randomized, and that an infamous incident where the net size, ball size, and court size were similar to that of a Ping-pong match, but with a ball as dense as a {{w|Bowling ball|bowling ball}}, not only led to equipment damage, but does so regularly. Despite this, the participants ''do not'' learn the density until ''after'' the racquet is chosen, meaning that they have no way of determining whether the racquet they chose is durable enough until it's already too late. (Choosing an excessively robust item could be detrimental to trying to play with a light ball, conversely, as it proves detrimental to reacting against volleys by a more aptly-equipped opponent.)

Randall may have been inspired by {{w|Pickleball}}, a type of racquet sport rising sharply in popularity in the US at the time this comic came out. Pickleball is a middle-ground of tennis and table tennis, with an intermediate-sized court, racquet, and net. Randall may have noticed the distinct parameters of pickleball’s elements compared to its cousin sports and was inspired to imagine a scenario in which such parameters might be randomized.

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

:[Megan and Cueball are playing a game that looks similar to tennis. There are courts, but on each multiple parts of the game are different. On each, Cueball is on the right and Megan is on the left.]
:[Top left: The court is small, each half slightly wider and deeper than a person is tall, and the ball is extremely large, about twice the height as the players' heads. The ball has just bounced on Cueball's side very slowly, and he is about to hit it.]
:[Top right: The court, ball, and net closely match a regular tennis game, albeit perhaps a slightly more ground area than a doubles' court. Cueball has just hit the ball, and it is currently flying towards Megan's side.]
:[Bottom left: The ball, and net are basically the same as in table tennis, but the 'court' is a much smaller tabletop. The ball has just bounced back up on Megan's side, and she is poised to hit it back.]
:[Bottom right: The court is slightly larger than the top left, while the net and ball are massive, with the ball at least double the radius and the net significantly over twice the height of the players. Cueball is apparently fighting to push the huge ball high enough to get over the net, indicated by movement lines in which he is barely managing to keep the ball on the racquet itself, not to mention he has only gotten the ball halfway up the net.]

:[Caption below the panel:]
:Parameterball is a raquet game divided into four quarters, with ball size, court size, and net height randomized each quarter.

{{comic discussion}}

1984: Misinterpretation

2023-10-24T18:16:13Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1984
| date = April 23, 2018
| title = Misinterpretation
| image = misinterpretation.png
| titletext = "But there are seven billion people in the world! I can't possibly stop to consider how ALL of them might interpret something!" "Ah, yes, there's no middle ground between 'taking personal responsibility for the thoughts and feelings of every single person on Earth' and 'covering your eyes and ears and yelling logically correct statements into the void.' That's a very insightful point and not at all inane."
}}

==Explanation==
[[Cueball]] is complaining that people are mad at him ''again'' because of a misinterpretation of his statements. This is referenced by the comic's title. He complains that since (he believes) he is being perfectly clear, it cannot be his fault that everyone misinterprets him. The off-screen voice sarcastically agrees that communication is an activity that only involves one person; in fact, of course, it {{w|Communication#Models|famously involves at least two}}.{{citation needed}}

Cueball speaks as though his communications are complete and perfect once he has finished making them. The reality is that communication can't be considered complete until the message has also been received and understood. Cueball is failing to take into account the need for partnership between sender and receiver, and doesn't realize that the problem may well be in the way he carries out his side of the transaction rather than in the way ''everybody'' else is carrying out theirs.

In the title text, Cueball then answers that he cannot possibly account for the many possible interpretations which the message, potentially reaching the whole world, could acquire. This is an example of the {{w|Nirvana fallacy}}. Cueball's idealized solution is to consider how every person on Earth would interpret the message, so Cueball rejects doing anything less as insufficient; however, actually figuring out how every person on Earth would interpret the message is unfeasible, so Cueball doesn't do that either. The reply comes once again sarcastically, deriding his point and saying that a middle ground between taking up such an effort and entirely avoiding it must be reached.

This avoidance is phrased using a [[762: Analogies|simile]] as “covering your eyes and ears and yelling logically correct statements into the void”, implying that no one would understand the logical sentences (thus the void), and would instead read them more naturally – and also that ignoring the appalled reaction of listeners to their own interpretation of the sentences is similar to covering your eyes and ears. This action makes communication more difficult through the popular{{Citation needed}} means of speech, text and sign language. If the hands are occupied with covering either part, then Braille communication is also impossible. Therefore, the action of “covering your eyes and ears” is a metaphor for deliberately making it more difficult to communicate with oneself. The simile might also mean that Cueball subconsciously rejects criticism as it would hurt his ego.

It is clear that Cueball is acting as a straw man to further Randall's point, and the off-panel character is portrayed as the (sarcastic) voice of reason.

Randall returns to a recurring theme in his comics, regarding, in contexts of communication, the responsibility of the speaker for how they are interpreted. Having gradually gotten less subtle, this theme is now laid bare, there being no joke other than the sarcasm. What follows is a chronological history of this theme.

*Much earlier than the other comics below, but related, [[169: Words that End in GRY]] is a surreal reprimand upon people who act smug when their bad communication is misunderstood.
*The title text of [[1028: Communication]] notes that “Anyone who says that they're great at communicating but 'people are bad at listening' is confused about how communication works.”
*The title text of [[1860: Communicating]] also asserts that the responsibility of a misunderstanding lies with the speaker, not the listener — a theme explored in the comic via the character Humpty Dumpty.
*The comic [[1911: Defensive Profile]] implies that a person who boasts of having “no filter” in their (social media) speech is actually merely insecure about making people mad with their statements.

This theme is part of the larger category of comics about [[:Category:Social interactions|social interactions]].

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is sitting in an office chair at a desk in front of a laptop with his hands raised above the keyboard. An off-panel person replies to his remarks.]
:Cueball: Ugh, people are mad at me again because they don't read carefully.
:Cueball: I'm being perfectly clear. It's not '''''my''''' fault if everyone misinterprets what I say.
:Off-panel person: Wow, sounds like you're great at communicating, an activity that famously involves just one person.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Social interactions]]

1984: Misinterpretation

2023-10-24T18:15:34Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1984
| date = April 23, 2018
| title = Misinterpretation
| image = misinterpretation.png
| titletext = "But there are seven billion people in the world! I can't possibly stop to consider how ALL of them might interpret something!" "Ah, yes, there's no middle ground between 'taking personal responsibility for the thoughts and feelings of every single person on Earth' and 'covering your eyes and ears and yelling logically correct statements into the void.' That's a very insightful point and not at all inane."
}}

==Explanation==
[[Cueball]] is complaining that people are mad at him ''again'' because of a misinterpretation of his statements. This is referenced by the comic's title. He complains that since (he believes) he is being perfectly clear, it cannot be his fault that everyone misinterprets him. The off-screen voice sarcastically agrees that communication is an activity that only involves one person; in fact, of course, it {{w|Communication#Models|famously involves at least two}}.[[citation needed]]

Cueball speaks as though his communications are complete and perfect once he has finished making them. The reality is that communication can't be considered complete until the message has also been received and understood. Cueball is failing to take into account the need for partnership between sender and receiver, and doesn't realize that the problem may well be in the way he carries out his side of the transaction rather than in the way ''everybody'' else is carrying out theirs.

In the title text, Cueball then answers that he cannot possibly account for the many possible interpretations which the message, potentially reaching the whole world, could acquire. This is an example of the {{w|Nirvana fallacy}}. Cueball's idealized solution is to consider how every person on Earth would interpret the message, so Cueball rejects doing anything less as insufficient; however, actually figuring out how every person on Earth would interpret the message is unfeasible, so Cueball doesn't do that either. The reply comes once again sarcastically, deriding his point and saying that a middle ground between taking up such an effort and entirely avoiding it must be reached.

This avoidance is phrased using a [[762: Analogies|simile]] as “covering your eyes and ears and yelling logically correct statements into the void”, implying that no one would understand the logical sentences (thus the void), and would instead read them more naturally – and also that ignoring the appalled reaction of listeners to their own interpretation of the sentences is similar to covering your eyes and ears. This action makes communication more difficult through the popular{{Citation needed}} means of speech, text and sign language. If the hands are occupied with covering either part, then Braille communication is also impossible. Therefore, the action of “covering your eyes and ears” is a metaphor for deliberately making it more difficult to communicate with oneself. The simile might also mean that Cueball subconsciously rejects criticism as it would hurt his ego.

It is clear that Cueball is acting as a straw man to further Randall's point, and the off-panel character is portrayed as the (sarcastic) voice of reason.

Randall returns to a recurring theme in his comics, regarding, in contexts of communication, the responsibility of the speaker for how they are interpreted. Having gradually gotten less subtle, this theme is now laid bare, there being no joke other than the sarcasm. What follows is a chronological history of this theme.

*Much earlier than the other comics below, but related, [[169: Words that End in GRY]] is a surreal reprimand upon people who act smug when their bad communication is misunderstood.
*The title text of [[1028: Communication]] notes that “Anyone who says that they're great at communicating but 'people are bad at listening' is confused about how communication works.”
*The title text of [[1860: Communicating]] also asserts that the responsibility of a misunderstanding lies with the speaker, not the listener — a theme explored in the comic via the character Humpty Dumpty.
*The comic [[1911: Defensive Profile]] implies that a person who boasts of having “no filter” in their (social media) speech is actually merely insecure about making people mad with their statements.

This theme is part of the larger category of comics about [[:Category:Social interactions|social interactions]].

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is sitting in an office chair at a desk in front of a laptop with his hands raised above the keyboard. An off-panel person replies to his remarks.]
:Cueball: Ugh, people are mad at me again because they don't read carefully.
:Cueball: I'm being perfectly clear. It's not '''''my''''' fault if everyone misinterprets what I say.
:Off-panel person: Wow, sounds like you're great at communicating, an activity that famously involves just one person.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Social interactions]]

68: Five Thirty

2023-10-21T23:35:21Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Explanations of the individual panels (numbered left to right, top to bottom) */

{{comic
| number = 68
| date = February 24, 2006
| title = Five Thirty
| image = five_thirty.jpg
| titletext = The 8th panel is my favorite
}}

==Explanation==
At 5:30 AM, one's sleep-deprived or prematurely-roused mind sometimes comes up with things that seem like nonsense later.

None of the twelve panels in this comic seem to have any correlation with one another, each one being its own "story," and none of them really make any sense. It is unknown whether Randall really wrote this comic while awake at 5:30 in the morning, or if he wrote it while completely alert and is trying to pass off his rejected ideas by saying what one's mind may experience when trying to process information at an hour when the person is not used to being awake.

===Explanations of the individual panels (numbered left to right, top to bottom)===
# "'80s night" is a special theme many nightclubs hold, inviting their guests to wear fashions that were popular in the 1980s while playing dance music from the same period.
# {{w|Jack the Ripper}} was an infamous serial killer in {{w|Victorian era|Victorian Britain}}. {{w|Jack Black}} is a rock star and actor. "There is no Tuesday" is likely a reference to the line "There is no spoon" in ''{{w|The Matrix}}''.
# There doesn't seem to be too much to this panel that isn't self-explanatory, but it's possible that there's a reference to the ''{{w|Civilization (video game)|Civilization}}'' series of video games, in which it's possible (albeit unlikely) for medieval soldiers to attack and destroy 20th-century military helicopters.
# Stick figures standing upright are indeed drawn without any thought as to which section of their legs are the shins.
# Two Cueballs seem very upset about "daylight savings" as indicated by them shouting ''shit'' ten times (and have started to pronounce the 11th instance). It's hard to tell what they are actually doing and what the black blobs at the ends of their arms should represent, given that Randall normally doesn't draw hands on his stick figures. One guess is that they're both wearing watches, one on each of their combined five arms. In that case, they are upset because they forgot to adjust all their clocks for DST. {{w|Daylight saving time}} (DST) was {{w|History_of_time_in_the_United_States#Start_and_end_dates_of_United_States_Daylight_Time|not due}} until April 2nd in the USA in 2006, more than a month after the release of this comic. This seems to be the first to use DST as part of a joke, but it is far from the last time that Randall has made it clear that he is [[:Category:Daylight saving time|not a fan of DST]], which he sometimes directly mocks. Alternatively, the two Cueballs represent two clocks, the right one with only hour-hand and minute-hand, but the left one also with a seconds-hand, and it is these hands that are drawn. In that case, the left Cueball is one hour ahead of the right Cueball, as his shortest arm points down left at around 8 o'clock (with the seconds-hand above, and the minutes-hand at 20 minutes past), and the right Cueball has his hour hand at 7 o'clock and the minute hand also at 20 past. This would explain both the three arms, the "hands" at the end of the arms, and the different length of especially the left Cueball's arm, and finally why they are so upset about one of them apparently forgetting or not observing DST.
# "Ointment" may be a reference to the infamous lotion scene in ''{{w|Silence of the Lambs}}'', as the panel appears to be invoking horror movie visuals.
# The farthest left angle is labeled theta. The joke is that finding the cosine, the length of the adjacent leg divided by the length of the hypotenuse, would be difficult as the adjacent leg is poorly drawn and does not resemble a straight line to be measured. Alternatively, the line <q>fuck the cosine</q> resembles the slogan {{w|fuck the police}}.
# Lots of jokes have been made out of the template "does liking X make you gay?", where the speaker is afraid that he may be a homosexual. Here, the speaker has apparently transformed into a {{w|mermaid}} at some point. His friend seems to be eager to both turn into a mermaid himself and confirm himself for a homosexual. Another explanation may be that the friend thinks that a man who was a mermaid for five minutes should be homosexual afterwards, because he simply can't imagine something else about it. In this explanation, the friend has no interest in others being gay or not; he just thinks that this may be a realistic progress.
# Waving a gun around and declaring that things you hate are "for pussies" is stereotypical "{{w|macho}}" behavior. Possibly, the man with the gun is going to cut the other man's hair with bullets because it's more "macho" than going to the barber.
# This doesn't seem to mean anything whatsoever. However, both of the characters say something irrational: "My hair is bleeding" is irrational because strands of hair can't bleed, and "√3" is an {{w|irrational number}}. The first statement may also have something to do with the prior panel (as cutting one's hair with bullets does not tend to end well).
# A bachelor party is a traditionally raucous party that is thrown for a groom on the night before his wedding. Because these parties can be wild (involving drinking and such), this may explain why the figure is upside down.
# Likely a reference to the "{{w|ant on a rubber rope}}" thought experiment. The experiment does not end well for the ant according to Randall, likely because the paradox often ends up with incredibly long amounts of time until the ant finally gets to the other side of the rope. So the ant does not die from getting stretched, but rather from the rope stretching and leading to the ant having to walk for inconceivably long periods of time.

----

The title text could actually refer to two different panels. If a person chooses to read the comic left-to-right, top-to-bottom (which is more likely given that this is the order in the official transcript), the eighth panel could be the one with where Cueball asks "Does being a mermaid for five minutes make you gay?" However, if a person chooses to read the comic top-to-bottom, left-to-right, the eighth panel will instead be the one with Cueball hanging upside down shouting "Bachelor party!"

==Transcript==
:Comics from 5:30 AM
:[A succession of unrelated and completely random panels.]

:Cueball: It's 80's night at the club. Wanna go?

:Friend: There is no Tuesday.
:Cueball: Jack the Ripper or Jack Black?

:[Cueball in this panel is holding a glinting sword.]
:Friend: You crashed my helicopter!
:Cueball: Verily!

:[A small figure is talking with a larger figure.]
:Figure 1: Basically, neither of us have shins.
:Figure 2: Over and out.

:[Two men are shown: one with three arms, and another with just two. All arms have round appendages at their ends.]
:Men: shitshitshitshitshitshitdaylightsavingsshitshitshitshitsh

:[Two figures with pumpkins (carved with faces) for heads.]
:Figure 1: You're out of ointment and out of time!

:[A diagram of a right-angled triangle, with a theta at the smallest angle.]
:FUCK THE COSINE

:Friend: Does being a mermaid for five minutes make you gay?
:Cueball: I hope so!

:[The friend is holding a gun to Cueball's head.]
:Friend: Barbershops are for pussies.

:Friend: My hair is bleeding.
:Cueball: √3

:[Cueball seems to be walking on the ceiling.]
:Cueball: Bachelor party!

:[Warning sign with picture of an ant.]
:WARNING: STRETCHY DEATH

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]
[[Category:Math]]
[[Category:Homosexuality]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Daylight saving time]]
[[Category:Comics with lowercase text]]

2037: Supreme Court Bracket

2023-10-06T17:18:52Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Continued Brackets */

{{comic
| number = 2037
| date = August 24, 2018
| title = Supreme Court Bracket
| image = supreme_court_bracket.png
| titletext = My bracket was busted in the first round; I had Massachusetts v. Connecticut in the final, probably in a case over who gets to annex Rhode Island.
}}

==Explanation==
The {{w|Supreme Court of the United States}} is the highest federal court of the United States. A {{w|Bracket (tournament)|tournament bracket}} is a tree diagram that represents the series of games played during a knockout tournament. US Supreme Court cases are typically titled as Petitioner versus Respondent. To spoof this, [[Randall]] has put sixteen famous Supreme Court cases into a tournament bracket, as though they were games in the first round of a single-elimination tournament, and that the winners of the 16 listed court cases will somehow file against each other and then again until the final winner is selected. This is similar to college basketball's {{w|NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament|March Madness}}, complete with a ranking bracket. "Sweet 16" in the context of a tournament refers to the stage in a tournament where 16 competitors remain. This comic's concept is thus a word play on "court" (court of law v. basketball court). The phrase "Supreme Court Bracket" also sounds similar to "Supreme Court Docket", which is the official schedule of cases that the Supreme Court will adjudicate (as all of these cases have been).

The cases are:
====Marbury v. ''Madison'' (winner), 1803====
The case {{w|Marbury v. Madison|Marbury v. Madison}} declared a provision of the {{w|Judiciary Act of 1789}} unconstitutional, thus preventing several late-term appointments by outgoing President {{w|John Adams}} from being seated under incoming President {{w|Thomas Jefferson}}. More importantly, the ruling established the principle of {{w|judicial review}} by which the Supreme Court can overturn, on the basis of unconstitutionality, laws passed by {{w|United States Congress|Congress}} and signed into law by the {{w|President of the United States|President}}. For this reason it is considered the single most important decision in American constitutional law.

====''McCulloch'' (winner) v. Maryland, 1819====
The case {{w|McCulloch v. Maryland|McCulloch v. Maryland}} established a broad interpretation of the "necessary and proper" clause, specifically finding that Congress could incorporate a Bank of the United States because the purpose was to help carry out Congress' explicit powers under Article I, section 8.

====''Gibbons'' (winner) v. Ogden, 1824====
The case {{w|Gibbons v. Ogden|Gibbons v. Ogden}} established that interstate commerce is regulated by the U.S. Congress according to the U.S. Constitution, that interstate navigation is fundamental to interstate commerce, and that therefore the power to regulate interstate navigation in this way rests with the U.S. Congress, not with any state legislature.

On 01 March 1824, the US Supreme Court decided in favor of Thomas Gibbons in his appeal of a case brought against him by Aaron Ogden in an attempt to prevent Gibbons from operating steamboats to transport goods and passengers between New York City, New York and Elizabethtown, New Jersey. The US Supreme Court decision reversed a prior injunction against Gibbons issued by a New York State court deciding that Ogden held exclusive navigational rights by way of having licensed them from two men to whom the New York State Legislature had granted the navigation rights in several acts between 1798 and 1807.

====''Near'' (winner) v. Minnesota, Jan 30, 1930 – Jun 1, 1931====
The case {{w|Near v. Minnesota|Near v. Minnesota}} is a landmark United States Supreme Court decision that found that prior restraints on publication violate freedom of the press as protected under the {{w|First Amendment to the United States Constitution}}, a principle that was applied to free speech generally in subsequent jurisprudence. The Court ruled that a Minnesota law that targeted publishers of "malicious" or "scandalous" newspapers violated the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.

Noteworthy it was later a key precedent in {{w|New York Times Co. v. United States}} (1971), in which the court ruled against the Nixon administration's attempt to enjoin publication of the Pentagon Papers.

====''NLRB'' (winner) v. Jones & Laughlin, 1937====
{{w|NLRB v. Jones & Laughlin Steel Corp.|National Labor Relations Board v Jones & Laughlin Steel Corporation}} was a US labor law case. It declared that the {{w|National Labor Relations Act of 1935}} was constitutional. It effectively preserved the {{w|New Deal}}, which was being pursued by US President {{w|Franklin D. Roosevelt|Roosevelt}} in reaction to the {{w|Great Depression}}. Previous Supreme Court cases, unlike ''NLRB v. Jones & Laughlin'', had invalidated New Deal statutes.

====''Brown'' (winner) v. Board of Education, Dec 9, 1952 – May 17, 1954====
The case {{w|Brown v. Board of Education|Brown v. Board of Education}} the Court declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students to be unconstitutional. It stated that "separate educational facilities are inherently unequal."

This ruling paved the way for the {{w|Civil rights movement|Civil Rights Movement}}. However, the decision did not spell out any sort of method for ending racial segregation in schools, and the Court's second decision in {{w|Brown v. Board of Education#Brown II|Brown II}} only ordered states to desegregate "with all deliberate speed."

====''Gideon'' (winner) v. Wainwright, 1963====
In the case {{w|Gideon v. Wainwright|'''Gideon''' v. Wainwright}} the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that states are required under the {{w|Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Sixth Amendment}} to the U.S. Constitution to provide an attorney or lawyer to defendants in criminal cases who are unable to afford their own attorneys.

====''Griswold'' (winner) v. Connecticut, 1965====
In the case {{w|Griswold v. Connecticut}} (1965), the Court ruled that a statute barring {{w|Birth control|birth control}} to prevent pregnancy, also known as contraception, was unconstitutional, at least in its application to married couples, as there was an implicit right to privacy in the "penumbras" and "emanations" of other constitutional provisions. This ruling was used as precedent in {{w|Eisenstadt v. Baird}} (1972), which extended the right to unmarried couples, and in Roe v. Wade and Lawrence v. Texas (see below).

====''Miranda'' (winner) v. Arizona, 1966====
In {{w|Miranda v. Arizona|Miranda v. Arizona}}, it was ruled that inculpatory and exculpatory statements would not be accepted in court if a defendant was not informed of their rights under the Fifth Amendment. The "Miranda Rights" warning ("You have the right to remain silent", etc.) is now used across the US.

====''Loving'' (winner) v. Virginia, April 10, 1967 - June 12, 1967====
In {{w|Loving v. Virginia}} the Supreme Court ruled that state laws prohibiting interracial marriage were unconstitutional, and were struck down. This decision was well ahead of public opinion; a Gallup poll (cited by [https://thinkprogress.org/public-support-for-same-sex-marriage-surpasses-support-for-interracial-marriage-in-1991-b29fa01c2cfa/ Think Progress]) conducted the following year showed only 20% in favor. This case was cited as precedent in Obergefell v. Hodges, listed below.

====''Roe'' (winner) v. Wade, January 22, 1973====
In {{w|Roe v. Wade}}, the Supreme Court ruled that a woman's right to privacy, balanced against the state's interest in limiting {{w|abortion}}s, allowed women to undergo abortions in the first and second trimesters and allowed states the right to forbid third-trimester abortions.

It was overruled by {{w|Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization}} in 2022, allowing states the right to regulate abortion throughout all of pregnancy.

====''United States'' (winner) v. Nixon, July 8, 1974 - July 24, 1974====
In {{w|United States v. Nixon}}, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that then-President {{w|Richard Nixon}}'s refusal to hand over certain tape recordings during his impeachment process was unconstitutional. This case placed limits on the power of executive privilege.

====''Bush'' (winner) v. Gore, December 12, 2000====

In {{w|Bush v. Gore}}, the Supreme Court decided the highly contested 2000 presidential election between George W. Bush and Al Gore, arguing in a 5-4 decision that the recount required by Florida state law could not be carried out before the December 12 deadline required by the United States Code. As such, the statewide recount was stopped, and the now-official initial count (which favored Bush) propelled Bush to the presidency.

====''Lawrence'' (winner) v. Texas, June 26, 2003====
{{w|Lawrence v. Texas|Lawrence v. Texas}} ruled that sodomy laws were unconstitutional, making same-sex sexual activity legal in all US states and territories. It explicitly overturned another Supreme Court decision, {{w|Bowers v. Hardwick|Bowers v. Hardwick}}, a case which had previously ruled such laws to be constitutional.

====''Massachusetts'' (winner) v. EPA, April 2, 2007====

In {{w|Massachusetts v. Environmental Protection Agency|Massachusetts v. EPA}}, Massachusetts and 11 other states sued the {{w|United States Environmental Protection Agency|EPA}} for not regulating carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, saying that contrary to the claims of the EPA at that point in time, greenhouse gases are pollutants. In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the petitioners, forcing the EPA to start placing regulations on greenhouse gases.

====''Obergefell'' (winner) v. Hodges, June 26, 2015====

In {{w|Obergefell v. Hodges|Obergefell v. Hodges}}, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that the right to marriage is protected for same-sex couples by the Fourteenth Amendment.

===Sweet 16===

With the results given above, the "Sweet 16" of the bracket given would be as follows:

* Madison v. McCulloch
* Gibbons v. Near
* NLRB v. Brown
* Gideon v. Griswold
* Miranda v. Loving
* Roe v. United States
* Bush v. Lawrence
* Massachusetts v. Obergefell

The title text refers to a practice of filling out a March Madness bracket, predicting a winner for each game up to the championship. A bracket is "busted" when the result of a game is not as predicted; because future matchups depend on previous results, the whole bracket is worthless at that point. Randall "had Massachusetts v. Connecticut in the final", predicting both parties would win all previous rounds and advance to the final game/case. Because Connecticut lost its first-round case to Griswold, his bracket is busted in the first round.

In the second part of the title text, Randall writes: "I had Massachusetts v. Connecticut in the final, probably in a case over who gets to annex Rhode Island." In fact, there actually was a Supreme Court case ''Massachusetts v. Connecticut'' (summary at [https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/282/660/ Justia.com], full text at [https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=17012735467934830012&q=Connecticut+v.+Massachusetts&hl=en&as_sdt=2006 Google Scholar]) dealing with water rights on the Connecticut River, which flows between the two states.

Rhode Island is a smaller state that borders both Massachusetts and Connecticut (and no other state), hence the joke about "who gets to annex Rhode Island."

In an actual March Madness bracket, "Massachusetts" and "Connecticut" refer to the basketball teams from the University of Massachusetts and the University of Connecticut. So it is possible that a "Massachusetts v. Connecticut" matchup could occur in the basketball championship as well.

==Continued Brackets==
Occasionally, cases with the same names (if not the same defendants) have occurred in the United States.
* ''Roe v. United States'': A 1961 5th Circuit case. The judge initially ruled against Roe, but upon appeal in 1963, the judge ruled for Roe, and thus Roe will advance to the next round.
* ''Bush v. Lawrence'': A 2013 Virginia case. The judge ruled against Bush, but did partially grant one of the three motions. In any case, Lawrence will advance to the next round.
* ''NLRB v. Brown'': A 1965 Supreme Court case. The court ruled against the NLRB, and thus Brown will advance to the next round.

Thus, the Elite 8 (so far) will be as follows:

*TBD v. TBD
*Brown v. TBD
*TBD v. Roe
*Lawrence v. TBD

==Transcript==
:[A tournament bracket tree is shown with 16 participants each on the left and right side. From both sides toward the middle the brackets reduce to eight, then four, two, and one line where the latter join to a rectangle in the middle.]

:[Left side:]
:Marbury - Madison
:McCulloch - Maryland
:Gibbons - Ogden
:Near - Minnesota
:NLRB - Jones & Laughlin
:Brown - Board of Education
:Gideon - Wainwright
:Griswold - Connecticut

:[Right side:]
:Miranda - Arizona
:Loving - Virginia
:Roe - Wade
:United States - Nixon
:Bush - Gore
:Lawrence - Texas
:Massachusetts - EPA
:Obergefell - Hodges

:[Caption below the frame:]
:Now that we've finished the round of 32, the Supreme Court will be moving on to the Sweet 16.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Tournament bracket]]

2037: Supreme Court Bracket

2023-10-06T17:18:00Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Continued Brackets */

{{comic
| number = 2037
| date = August 24, 2018
| title = Supreme Court Bracket
| image = supreme_court_bracket.png
| titletext = My bracket was busted in the first round; I had Massachusetts v. Connecticut in the final, probably in a case over who gets to annex Rhode Island.
}}

==Explanation==
The {{w|Supreme Court of the United States}} is the highest federal court of the United States. A {{w|Bracket (tournament)|tournament bracket}} is a tree diagram that represents the series of games played during a knockout tournament. US Supreme Court cases are typically titled as Petitioner versus Respondent. To spoof this, [[Randall]] has put sixteen famous Supreme Court cases into a tournament bracket, as though they were games in the first round of a single-elimination tournament, and that the winners of the 16 listed court cases will somehow file against each other and then again until the final winner is selected. This is similar to college basketball's {{w|NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament|March Madness}}, complete with a ranking bracket. "Sweet 16" in the context of a tournament refers to the stage in a tournament where 16 competitors remain. This comic's concept is thus a word play on "court" (court of law v. basketball court). The phrase "Supreme Court Bracket" also sounds similar to "Supreme Court Docket", which is the official schedule of cases that the Supreme Court will adjudicate (as all of these cases have been).

The cases are:
====Marbury v. ''Madison'' (winner), 1803====
The case {{w|Marbury v. Madison|Marbury v. Madison}} declared a provision of the {{w|Judiciary Act of 1789}} unconstitutional, thus preventing several late-term appointments by outgoing President {{w|John Adams}} from being seated under incoming President {{w|Thomas Jefferson}}. More importantly, the ruling established the principle of {{w|judicial review}} by which the Supreme Court can overturn, on the basis of unconstitutionality, laws passed by {{w|United States Congress|Congress}} and signed into law by the {{w|President of the United States|President}}. For this reason it is considered the single most important decision in American constitutional law.

====''McCulloch'' (winner) v. Maryland, 1819====
The case {{w|McCulloch v. Maryland|McCulloch v. Maryland}} established a broad interpretation of the "necessary and proper" clause, specifically finding that Congress could incorporate a Bank of the United States because the purpose was to help carry out Congress' explicit powers under Article I, section 8.

====''Gibbons'' (winner) v. Ogden, 1824====
The case {{w|Gibbons v. Ogden|Gibbons v. Ogden}} established that interstate commerce is regulated by the U.S. Congress according to the U.S. Constitution, that interstate navigation is fundamental to interstate commerce, and that therefore the power to regulate interstate navigation in this way rests with the U.S. Congress, not with any state legislature.

On 01 March 1824, the US Supreme Court decided in favor of Thomas Gibbons in his appeal of a case brought against him by Aaron Ogden in an attempt to prevent Gibbons from operating steamboats to transport goods and passengers between New York City, New York and Elizabethtown, New Jersey. The US Supreme Court decision reversed a prior injunction against Gibbons issued by a New York State court deciding that Ogden held exclusive navigational rights by way of having licensed them from two men to whom the New York State Legislature had granted the navigation rights in several acts between 1798 and 1807.

====''Near'' (winner) v. Minnesota, Jan 30, 1930 – Jun 1, 1931====
The case {{w|Near v. Minnesota|Near v. Minnesota}} is a landmark United States Supreme Court decision that found that prior restraints on publication violate freedom of the press as protected under the {{w|First Amendment to the United States Constitution}}, a principle that was applied to free speech generally in subsequent jurisprudence. The Court ruled that a Minnesota law that targeted publishers of "malicious" or "scandalous" newspapers violated the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.

Noteworthy it was later a key precedent in {{w|New York Times Co. v. United States}} (1971), in which the court ruled against the Nixon administration's attempt to enjoin publication of the Pentagon Papers.

====''NLRB'' (winner) v. Jones & Laughlin, 1937====
{{w|NLRB v. Jones & Laughlin Steel Corp.|National Labor Relations Board v Jones & Laughlin Steel Corporation}} was a US labor law case. It declared that the {{w|National Labor Relations Act of 1935}} was constitutional. It effectively preserved the {{w|New Deal}}, which was being pursued by US President {{w|Franklin D. Roosevelt|Roosevelt}} in reaction to the {{w|Great Depression}}. Previous Supreme Court cases, unlike ''NLRB v. Jones & Laughlin'', had invalidated New Deal statutes.

====''Brown'' (winner) v. Board of Education, Dec 9, 1952 – May 17, 1954====
The case {{w|Brown v. Board of Education|Brown v. Board of Education}} the Court declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students to be unconstitutional. It stated that "separate educational facilities are inherently unequal."

This ruling paved the way for the {{w|Civil rights movement|Civil Rights Movement}}. However, the decision did not spell out any sort of method for ending racial segregation in schools, and the Court's second decision in {{w|Brown v. Board of Education#Brown II|Brown II}} only ordered states to desegregate "with all deliberate speed."

====''Gideon'' (winner) v. Wainwright, 1963====
In the case {{w|Gideon v. Wainwright|'''Gideon''' v. Wainwright}} the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that states are required under the {{w|Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Sixth Amendment}} to the U.S. Constitution to provide an attorney or lawyer to defendants in criminal cases who are unable to afford their own attorneys.

====''Griswold'' (winner) v. Connecticut, 1965====
In the case {{w|Griswold v. Connecticut}} (1965), the Court ruled that a statute barring {{w|Birth control|birth control}} to prevent pregnancy, also known as contraception, was unconstitutional, at least in its application to married couples, as there was an implicit right to privacy in the "penumbras" and "emanations" of other constitutional provisions. This ruling was used as precedent in {{w|Eisenstadt v. Baird}} (1972), which extended the right to unmarried couples, and in Roe v. Wade and Lawrence v. Texas (see below).

====''Miranda'' (winner) v. Arizona, 1966====
In {{w|Miranda v. Arizona|Miranda v. Arizona}}, it was ruled that inculpatory and exculpatory statements would not be accepted in court if a defendant was not informed of their rights under the Fifth Amendment. The "Miranda Rights" warning ("You have the right to remain silent", etc.) is now used across the US.

====''Loving'' (winner) v. Virginia, April 10, 1967 - June 12, 1967====
In {{w|Loving v. Virginia}} the Supreme Court ruled that state laws prohibiting interracial marriage were unconstitutional, and were struck down. This decision was well ahead of public opinion; a Gallup poll (cited by [https://thinkprogress.org/public-support-for-same-sex-marriage-surpasses-support-for-interracial-marriage-in-1991-b29fa01c2cfa/ Think Progress]) conducted the following year showed only 20% in favor. This case was cited as precedent in Obergefell v. Hodges, listed below.

====''Roe'' (winner) v. Wade, January 22, 1973====
In {{w|Roe v. Wade}}, the Supreme Court ruled that a woman's right to privacy, balanced against the state's interest in limiting {{w|abortion}}s, allowed women to undergo abortions in the first and second trimesters and allowed states the right to forbid third-trimester abortions.

It was overruled by {{w|Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization}} in 2022, allowing states the right to regulate abortion throughout all of pregnancy.

====''United States'' (winner) v. Nixon, July 8, 1974 - July 24, 1974====
In {{w|United States v. Nixon}}, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that then-President {{w|Richard Nixon}}'s refusal to hand over certain tape recordings during his impeachment process was unconstitutional. This case placed limits on the power of executive privilege.

====''Bush'' (winner) v. Gore, December 12, 2000====

In {{w|Bush v. Gore}}, the Supreme Court decided the highly contested 2000 presidential election between George W. Bush and Al Gore, arguing in a 5-4 decision that the recount required by Florida state law could not be carried out before the December 12 deadline required by the United States Code. As such, the statewide recount was stopped, and the now-official initial count (which favored Bush) propelled Bush to the presidency.

====''Lawrence'' (winner) v. Texas, June 26, 2003====
{{w|Lawrence v. Texas|Lawrence v. Texas}} ruled that sodomy laws were unconstitutional, making same-sex sexual activity legal in all US states and territories. It explicitly overturned another Supreme Court decision, {{w|Bowers v. Hardwick|Bowers v. Hardwick}}, a case which had previously ruled such laws to be constitutional.

====''Massachusetts'' (winner) v. EPA, April 2, 2007====

In {{w|Massachusetts v. Environmental Protection Agency|Massachusetts v. EPA}}, Massachusetts and 11 other states sued the {{w|United States Environmental Protection Agency|EPA}} for not regulating carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, saying that contrary to the claims of the EPA at that point in time, greenhouse gases are pollutants. In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the petitioners, forcing the EPA to start placing regulations on greenhouse gases.

====''Obergefell'' (winner) v. Hodges, June 26, 2015====

In {{w|Obergefell v. Hodges|Obergefell v. Hodges}}, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that the right to marriage is protected for same-sex couples by the Fourteenth Amendment.

===Sweet 16===

With the results given above, the "Sweet 16" of the bracket given would be as follows:

* Madison v. McCulloch
* Gibbons v. Near
* NLRB v. Brown
* Gideon v. Griswold
* Miranda v. Loving
* Roe v. United States
* Bush v. Lawrence
* Massachusetts v. Obergefell

The title text refers to a practice of filling out a March Madness bracket, predicting a winner for each game up to the championship. A bracket is "busted" when the result of a game is not as predicted; because future matchups depend on previous results, the whole bracket is worthless at that point. Randall "had Massachusetts v. Connecticut in the final", predicting both parties would win all previous rounds and advance to the final game/case. Because Connecticut lost its first-round case to Griswold, his bracket is busted in the first round.

In the second part of the title text, Randall writes: "I had Massachusetts v. Connecticut in the final, probably in a case over who gets to annex Rhode Island." In fact, there actually was a Supreme Court case ''Massachusetts v. Connecticut'' (summary at [https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/282/660/ Justia.com], full text at [https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=17012735467934830012&q=Connecticut+v.+Massachusetts&hl=en&as_sdt=2006 Google Scholar]) dealing with water rights on the Connecticut River, which flows between the two states.

Rhode Island is a smaller state that borders both Massachusetts and Connecticut (and no other state), hence the joke about "who gets to annex Rhode Island."

In an actual March Madness bracket, "Massachusetts" and "Connecticut" refer to the basketball teams from the University of Massachusetts and the University of Connecticut. So it is possible that a "Massachusetts v. Connecticut" matchup could occur in the basketball championship as well.

==Continued Brackets==
Occasionally, cases with the same names (if not the same defendants) have occurred in the United States.
* ''Roe v. United States'': A 1961 5th Circuit case. The judge initially ruled against Roe, but upon appeal in 1963, the judge ruled for Roe, and thus Roe will advance to the next round.
* ''Bush v. Lawrence'': A 2013 Virginia case. The judge ruled against Bush, but did partially grant one of the three motions. In any case, Lawrence will advance to the next round.
* ''NLRB v. Brown'': A 1965 Supreme Court case. The court ruled against the NLRB, and thus Brown will advance to the next round.

Thus, the Elite 8 (so far) will be as follows:

TBD v. TBD
Brown v. TBD
TBD v. Roe
Lawrence v. TBD

==Transcript==
:[A tournament bracket tree is shown with 16 participants each on the left and right side. From both sides toward the middle the brackets reduce to eight, then four, two, and one line where the latter join to a rectangle in the middle.]

:[Left side:]
:Marbury - Madison
:McCulloch - Maryland
:Gibbons - Ogden
:Near - Minnesota
:NLRB - Jones & Laughlin
:Brown - Board of Education
:Gideon - Wainwright
:Griswold - Connecticut

:[Right side:]
:Miranda - Arizona
:Loving - Virginia
:Roe - Wade
:United States - Nixon
:Bush - Gore
:Lawrence - Texas
:Massachusetts - EPA
:Obergefell - Hodges

:[Caption below the frame:]
:Now that we've finished the round of 32, the Supreme Court will be moving on to the Sweet 16.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Tournament bracket]]

1140: Calendar of Meaningful Dates

2023-08-31T16:42:57Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1140
| date = November 28, 2012
| title = Calendar of Meaningful Dates
| image = calendar of meaningful dates.png
| titletext = In months other than September, the 11th is mentioned substantially less often than any other date. It's been that way since long before 9/11 and I have no idea why.
}}

==Explanation==
The calendar used in the comic is the standard {{w|Gregorian calendar}} of 2012 used by most of Western Civilization. The comic looks at the frequencies of which dates appear in English writings indexed in the {{w|Google Books Library Project}}, by using the {{w|Google Ngram Viewer}} ([http://books.google.com/ngrams link]).

Some dates are more (or less) frequently mentioned because they have a special significance. Other dates have correlations for which there doesn't appear to be any obvious reasons. September 11th, which is noted in the title text for being popular before the 9/11 attack, has also been the date of 2 significant battles in the War of 1812, one where the British landed in what was George Washington's large plantation, which likely contributed to its search volume.
The date mentioned in the sub-heading (October 17th) is Randall's birthday.

The title text mystery is explained [http://drhagen.com/blog/the-missing-11th-of-the-month/ here]. In summary, many occurrences of "11th" in the writings were actually misread by the Google Books Library Project's [[wikipedia:optical character recognition|optical character recognition]] software and/or [[wikipedia:reCAPTCHA|reCAPTCHA]] users, becoming one of these: <code>IIth</code>, <code>Ilth</code>, <code>iith</code>, <code>lith</code>, <code>llth</code>, <code>1lth</code>, <code>1ith</code>, <code>l1th</code>, <code>nth</code>.

===Date Significance===
The first of each month is generally more mentioned than others, perhaps because such dates are markers of a new month and may be used as landmark dates or deadlines. Similarly, the final day of each month is commonly a deadline day. Other dates have a less mundane significance, for example:
*January 1 is {{w|New Year's Day|New Year's Day}}.
*February 14 is {{w|Valentine's Day}}.
*February 29 only exists during {{w|Leap year|leap years}}.
*March 15 is the {{w|Ides of March}}.
*March 21 is considered the first day of {{w|Spring (season)|spring}}, by a common convention in the northern hemisphere.
*April 1 is {{w|April Fools' Day}}.
*April 15 is {{w|Tax Day|US Individual Income Tax return filing day}}.
*May 1 is {{w|International Workers' Day|International Workers' Day}}, or {{w|May Day|May Day}}.
*June 4 is the {{w|June Fourth Incident}}, or the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989.
*June 30 is the end of the {{w|Fiscal Year| fiscal year}} for most American states and local governments.
*July 1 is {{w|Canada Day}}.
*July 4 is {{w|Independence Day (United States)|US Independence Day}}.
*September 11 is the date of the {{w|September 11 attacks|2001 terrorist attacks}} in New York City and Washington, DC. It's the largest number by a big margin, most likely because unlike the other dates it has no special name, it's referred to as "9/11" (or "September 11") almost exclusively.
*December 7 is the date of the {{w|Attack on Pearl Harbor|1941 attack on Pearl Harbor}}.
*December 25 is {{w|Christmas|Christmas}}.
*December 31 is {{w|New Year's Eve|New Year's Eve}}.

==Transcript==
:'''Calendar of Meaningful Dates'''
:Each date's size represents how often it is referred to by name (e.g. "October 17th") in English-language books since 2000
:(Source: Google ngrams corpus)
:[A regular Gregorian calendar laid out in a grid, Sunday first, on a leap year, with some numbers larger or smaller than others. Significant outliers are mentioned in the explanation.]

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category: Calendar]]

2586: Greek Letters

2023-04-08T02:11:33Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Greek letters */ neutrino is more commonly nu

{{comic
| number = 2586
| date = February 25, 2022
| title = Greek Letters
| image = greek_letters.png
| titletext = If you ever see someone using a capital xi in an equation, just observe them quietly to learn as much as you can before they return to their home planet.
}}

==Explanation==
Mathematics uses lots of Greek letters, typically using {{w|Greek_letters_used_in_mathematics,_science,_and_engineering|the same letter consistently}} to represent a particular constant or type of variable. This comic gives a (non-)explanation of what they typically mean, see [[#Greek letters|below]].

In the title text the joke about capital Xi from the main comic is continued. In the main comic those using Ξ (capital xi) greets us as Earth mathematicians, indicating they are not from Earth, but have come here to learn what we know of math. In the title text the idea that any one using Ξ must be aliens is made clear. So if you ever meet someone using this letter while doing math, then learn as much as you can by quietly observing them, before they return to their home planet. Either learn from their possible advanced math (that allowed them to construct a way to get from one star system to another), or learn about them as the aliens species they represent.

Previously [[Randall]] made a similar comic, [[2520: Symbols]], about math symbols.

===Greek letters===

* '''π (lowercase pi): This math is either very simple or impossible.''' — Typically used to refer to the constant ratio between a circle’s circumference and its diameter (approximately 3.14). In a common school curriculum, this constant first shows up in introductory geometry classes, which would be considered "simple" by advanced mathematicians. But often, pi can show up seemingly randomly in advanced equations that have nothing to do with a circle at first glance, such as in infinite series. And because pi is transcendental, it can sometimes be difficult to work with pi in those situations. The comic may also be a reference to the impossibility of squaring the circle.
** An alternate explanation is that the comic refers to how the symbol can sometimes be used as a variable where the 'p' sound might make sense, such as in the prime-counting function where it stands for "prime" or the Buckingham π theorem where it stands for "parameter." These uses can be confusing to students who have only ever seen a lowercase pi used for the circle constant. This has pushed college courses to use it less and less frequently for anything other than the circle constant so that now you are only likely to see π as something else in higher math. (More confusing still is the variant lowercase pi, so-called omega pi {{w|Pi_(letter)#Variant_pi|ϖ}} sometimes used for angular frequency instead of the more common (and very similar-looking) lowercase omega ω. In astronomy, ϖ is traditionally used to denote the {{w|Longitude of the periapsis|longitude of perihelion}}.)

* '''Δ (capital delta): Something has changed.''' — Typically prefixes a variable to refer to a macroscopic change in or finite difference of that variable. For instance, Δ'''v''' may be the finite change in velocity '''v''' over some finite time span, while Δ[''f''](''x'') represents the forward difference of ''f'' at ''x'', defined as Δ[''f''](''x'') = ''f''(''x''+1) - ''f''(''x'').

* '''δ (lowercase delta): Something has changed and it's a mathematician's fault.''' — Used in calculus. In many areas of math, systems are studied by introducing small changes (perturbations) in input variables and observing how the system changes. The perturbations introduced are often written down as ''x'' → ''x'' + ''δx'' for some variable ''x'' being perturbed, where ''δx'' is the change being introduced. These are often applied in physics (perturbation theory, the principle of least action, Noether's theorem,…). Since this change was purposefully introduced by the mathematician instead of occurring naturally, it is, therefore, their fault.

* '''θ (lowercase theta): Circles!''' — Used in trigonometry. Typically used to refer to an angle, and is notably used in the polar coordinate system. The text refers to its close relationship with circles, on which the polar coordinate system is based. In European handwriting, the variant form ϑ is commonly used with the same meaning.

* '''ϕ (lowercase phi): ''O R B S''''' — Typically used to refer to another angle other than one referred to by theta. It's used in spherical coordinates, and the text refers to how spheres, or orbs, are important in spherical coordinates. Lowercase phi has two forms in modern typography which are confused by this website's default font. In the comic, it has a complete circle with a vertical line passing through it, which is what Knuth called "phi." The alternate form, φ, is what Knuth called "variant phi" and can be written in a single stroke. Most fonts reverse the way these symbols are rendered. There is no difference in meaning between the symbols. Additionally, "O R B S" is written with spaces between each letter, possibly a reference to the linguistic phenomena of surreal memes and their tendency to add spaces between letters of "surreal-sounding" words like "orbs".

* '''ϵ (lowercase epsilon): Not important, don't worry about it.''' — Typically used to refer to a very small quantity. ϵ may be an error term in a statistical model (which is usually small if the model is useful), a remainder term in an approximation (same), or an arbitrarily small (positive) quantity in analysis. Although a total cumulative change of "ϵ" is negligible, in analysis, ϵ is most often applied in a context of an infinitesimal change occurring with infinite frequency. The study of ratios of quantities that approach zero gives rise to infinitesimal calculus. This Greek lowercase letter has two common modern variants, ϵ and ε. ϵ is called the "{{w|Epsilon#Unicode|lunate epsilon}}" and may be more common in the U.S. A stylized version (∈) is used as the mathematical symbol for "is an element of." ε is what Knuth called the "variant epsilon" and is never used for the "element of" symbol but otherwise has identical meaning. Because epsilon represents an arbitrarily small (positive) quantity, there's no reason for anyone to worry about it from a practical standpoint.

* '''υ,ν (lowercase upsilon and nu): Is that a v or a u? Or...oh no, it's one of ''those''.''' — Common in college-level physics and engineering equations. ν commonly represents wavenumber in physics as well as a wide variety of other variables, often with names starting in N (e.g. neutrino) or V (e.g. viscosity). Lowercase upsilon is rarely used, probably to avoid confusion. The symbols look remarkably similar to Latin u and v, to the point that they are nearly indistinguishable in some fonts; Randall has complained about this before in [[2351: Standard Model Changes]].

* '''μ (lowercase mu): This math is cool but it's not about anything that you will ever see or touch, so whatever.''' — Used broadly in the abstract mathematical fields of category theory and measure theory. Also used in statistics for the mean (average). Physicists use Latin letters for the indices of the 3-vectors of classical physics and Greek indices, including μ, for the 4-vectors of special relativity. This leads to μ being ubiquitous in a field that is very far from everyday experience (where speeds approach the speed of light). It is also employed in statistics for the population mean, which is a quantity that the statistician never actually knows and frequently wants to estimate. Equations requiring a μ are thus impossible to apply directly. However, μ is used in physics for the coefficient of friction in the Coulomb model, typically used to approximate resistive forces between dry solids of different materials sliding past each other. A very common use of μ in science and engineering is as the symbol of the SI prefix ''micro-'' for a millionth. Unicode has officially added a point for μ as the "micro sign," distinct from its usual codepoint as the lowercase Greek letter mu.

* '''Σ (capital sigma): Thank you for purchasing ''Addition Pro''®!''' — Typically used as a symbol for the sum of a series of numbers. The comic is making fun of summation, pointing out that it's essentially a complicated, "pro" version of simple addition. The capital sigma is often used as the icon for the all-important "sum" button in spreadsheet software. However, the sigma operator is often necessary for explicitly defining infinite sums, avoiding ambiguous notation like an ellipsis (...).

* '''Π (capital pi): ...and the ''Multiplication''® expansion pack!''' — Typically used as a symbol for the product of a sequence of numbers. The joke is the same as for summation. Here, it is advertised as an "expansion pack," a term used for a piece of software that cannot stand alone but adds features to some existing software. Any paid spreadsheet or database program should already have the ability to perform multiplication. The ® symbol indicates that ''Multiplication'' is a registered trademark somewhere, which is unlikely, as the term is not unique. However, common words are registered as parts of longer trademarks rather often.

* '''ζ (lowercase zeta): This math will only lead to more math.''' — Frequently used for the {{w|Riemann zeta function}} in analytic number theory, a function of complex numbers which is challenging even to define and which is the focus of a famously unsolved problem in highly advanced mathematics. Zeta is used much less often in other contexts, such as the ζ-potential in colloidal chemistry, and even there it is likely to just lead to more math.

* '''β (lowercase beta): There are just too many coefficients.''' — This could be a reference to the typical usage of beta to represent coefficients of independent variables in the {{w|Ordinary_least_squares#Linear_model|ordinary least squares regression model}}. Regression can potentially have a large number of independent variables, hence potentially many different betas (differentiated by a subscript, or compacted into matrix notation) would be used, while there is only ever a single zeroth-order coefficient α in these models. Alternatively, the comic might suggest whatever source this equation is from has run out of Latin letters to use as symbols, and is now going through the Greek letters.

* '''α (lowercase alpha): Oh boy, now ''this'' is math about something real. This is math that could ''kill'' someone.''' — As the first Greek letter, α is used for a tremendous variety of purposes in math. For example, it is used to represent the probability of a Type-I error (false positive) occurring in a hypothesis test. It could also possibly refer to the {{w|fine-structure constant}} which shows up in high energy physics, atomic physics, quantum electrodynamics, and at least [[1047|one other xkcd comic]]. Alpha could also refer to {{w|angular acceleration}}, and a rapidly-rotating system is capable of killing people in a number of [[123|interesting ways]]. In aviation, α refers to {{w|angle of attack}}, which could cause a deadly {{w|Stall (fluid dynamics)|aerodynamic stall}} if it gets too large. Another dangerous meaning for α comes from ionizing α-radiation: While it can be easily blocked by even a sheet of paper, it has been {{W|Alexander Litvinenko#Poisoning and death|used for assassinations}} through ingestion.

* '''Ω (capital omega): Oooh, ''some'' mathematician thinks their function is cool and important.''' — The last letter of the Greek alphabet and thus often seen as momentous (the end, the final word, death). The capital letter has been used as the symbol for a {{w|Omega_function|variety of mathematical functions}}, the {{w|first uncountable ordinal}}, and {{w|Absolute Infinity}}. It is commonly used in physics and electrical engineering as the symbol for {{w|ohms}}, a unit for electrical resistance. Capital omega has produced a fascination in common culture, perhaps due to God reportedly describing himself as "the alpha and the omega" in the Book of Revelation or due to its highly distinctive shape. It is often used to represent something of grave or transcendent significance. So using it to name your function (instead of a conventional symbol like ''f'' or ''g'') may mean you think the function is particularly important.

* '''ω (lowercase omega): A lot of work went into these equations and you are going to die here among them.''' — Used for the {{w|Transfinite_number|least transfinite ordinal number}}, the order type of the natural numbers under '<'. The line about dying here among the transfinite equations may be in reference to the "eternity" of the infinite set it represents. It is also used in physics and electrical engineering for angular frequency, equal to 2π times the frequency, and thus it is ubiquitous in equations dealing with all sorts of wave phenomena. '''ω''' is also used for the angular velocity of a rotating system, defined by '''v''' = '''r'''×'''ω'''.

* '''σ (lowercase sigma): Some poor soul is trying to apply this math to real life and it's not working.''' — In statistics, σ commonly refers to the population standard deviation of a distribution. Many simplified statistical equations substitute the population standard deviation σ for the sample standard deviation s for simplicity, even when this is not justifiable. A common example is using the normal distribution to model the mean of several identically normally distributed variables instead of the T distribution. The variant ς is used at the end of Greek words (called the "final sigma") but is rarely used in math or science.

* '''ξ (lowercase xi): Either this is terrifying mathematics or there was a hair on the scanned page.''' — Randall comments that this looks like a strand of curly hair. Xi is used in the {{w|Riemann Xi function}} and sometimes as a variable or function symbol in higher math. It is famously difficult to write in a way that is consistent and clearly distinct from other symbols.

* '''γ (lowercase gamma): ''Zoom'' pew pew pew [space noises] ''zoooom!''''' — Lowercase gamma is used for the {{w|Lorentz factor}}, an important variable in special relativity calculations. Its use implies that you are dealing with speeds approaching the speed of light and therefore with spaceships or other moving objects not confined to Earth. γ-rays are also the highest energy photons, so a space opera might have ships flying near the speed of light firing gamma-ray weapons that go PEW PEW. γ is also used as the symbol for the Euler-Mascheroni constant and occasionally as a variable or function name.

* '''ρ (lowercase rho): Unfortunately, the test vehicle suffered an unexpected wing separation event.''' — Used in statistics to measure the association between variables. Lowercase rho often represents volumetric mass density, such as the density of air that a wing might be traveling through. The density of a fluid is directly proportional to the Reynold's number, which dictates the sort of physics used to model motion through the fluid. Flying a plane in conditions with a Reynold's number well outside of what it was designed for could have catastrophic consequences. A variant symbol ϱ with the same meaning is common in European handwriting.

* '''Ξ (capital xi): Greetings! We hope to learn a great deal by exchanging knowledge with your Earth mathematicians.''' — Probably the least used Greek letter in math and physics despite being easy to write and recognize. According to the comic, anyone using this letter is likely a being from another planet. It does see very occasional use, such as in the Riemann xi function or as the symbol for a class of heavy baryons in particle physics. It resembles but is not to be confused with a "hamburger button" or a triple equals sign ≡. Coincidentally, it also resembles the Chinese or Japanese character for the [https://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Chinese_(Mandarin)/Numbers number 3] (三). Randall thinks it most closely resembles alien writing.

* '''ψ (lowercase psi): You have entered the domain of King Triton, ruler of the waves.''' — Both capital and lowercase psi are shaped like tridents. In classical mythology, {{w|Triton}} is one of the gods of the sea, alongside his father Poseidon, and tridents are commonly associated with sea gods. In quantum mechanics, either psi is used to represent the wave function of a particle, leading to a pun. (Psi is also used in mathematics to represent the sum of the inverse of the Fibonacci numbers, the division polynomials, the supergolden ratio, and other purposes.)

==Transcript==
:[A list with 21 explanations of different Greek letters. To the left, the letter (in one case two letters) are shown, and then the explanation is written to the right in one or two lines (and in one case on three lines). Above these explanations, there is a header in a slightly larger font:]
:<big>What Greek letters mean in equations</big>
:π This math is either very simple or impossible.
:Δ Something has changed.
:δ Something has changed and it's a mathematician's fault.
:θ Circles!
:Φ '''''O R B S'''''
:ϵ Not important, don't worry about it.
:υ,ν Is that a v or a u? Or...oh no, it's one of ''those''.
:μ This math is cool but it's not about anything that you will ever see or touch, so whatever.
:Σ Thank you for purchasing ''Addition Pro''®!
:Π ...and the ''Multiplication''® expansion pack!
:ζ This math will only lead to more math.
:β There are just too many coefficients.
:α Oh boy, now ''this'' is math about something real. This is math that could ''kill'' someone.
:Ω Oooh, ''some'' mathematician thinks their function is cool and important.
:ω A lot of work went into these equations and you are going to die here among them.
:σ Some poor soul is trying to apply this math to real life and it's not working.
:ξ Either this is terrifying mathematics or there was a hair on the scanned page.
:γ ''Zoom'' pew pew pew [space noises] ''zoooom!''
:ρ Unfortunately, the test vehicle suffered an unexpected wing separation event.
:Ξ Greetings! We hope to learn a great deal by exchanging knowledge with your Earth mathematicians.
:ψ You have entered the domain of King Triton, ruler of the waves.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Math]]
[[Category:Aliens]]

1727: Number of Computers

2023-04-05T22:07:44Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1727
| date = August 31, 2016
| title = Number of Computers
| image = number_of_computers.png
| titletext = They try to pad their numbers in the annual reports by counting Galileo's redundant systems as multiple computers, but they're falling behind badly either way.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic shows a {{w|semi-log plot}} with two red lines. The first line shows the increasing rate that {{w|computers}} have been created since the first came around in the 1940s. The graph shows this to occur around 1946. ({{w|Computer#First_computing_device|The precise date can be discussed}} but it was {{w|Computer#Digital_computers|around that time}} that the concept began to be applied to real working machines.) After the first computer, the number of computers created is shown to increase in a roughly straight line, indicating {{w|exponential growth}}. At the time of this comic's release in 2016, the curve has passed 10 billion computers, and its projection into the 2020s predicts that the number of computers will keep rising exponentially for at least 10 years to come.

The other plot on this graph represents all the computers destroyed by throwing them into {{w|Jupiter}}. So far this is only true for the computers on two [[:Category:Space probes|space probes]]: those on the {{w|Galileo (spacecraft)|Galileo orbiter}} and its {{w|Galileo Probe|probe}}. The latter's mission was to fly into Jupiter so it went first in 1995; the orbiter went only after it had completed its mission in 2003. That constitutes the first two steps on the graph.

Recently the {{w|Juno (spacecraft)|Juno space probe}} entered into orbit (as only the second after Galileo), and that was celebrated with [[1703: Juno]] on xkcd. Juno's main mission has hardly begun yet; as at the time of this comic's release, it is not even in its final orbit. But once its mission is completed, it will also crash into Jupiter thus destroying a third computer. This is shown as the third step, but this section is shown with a dotted line, as the destruction may still fail if {{w|NASA}} loses contact with the probe before giving it the order to {{w|deorbit}} into Jupiter. This is now scheduled to occur in 2025. All three steps on the graph fits with these years. (Note the number of computers created is not drawn with a dotted line into the future, probably because [[Randall]] believes this continued increase in numbers of computers to be quite certain over the next 10-20 years, whereas the outcome of a space probe mission is never certain, even when the probe is already in orbit and only 1½ years before scheduled deorbit!)

Space probes sent to Jupiter are typically scheduled to deorbit and fall into Jupiter's atmosphere. There can be several reasons for this, but one very important reason is to avoid {{w|Interplanetary contamination|contaminating}} {{w|Moons of Jupiter|Jupiter's moons}} with Earth {{w|pathogens}}, especially the four {{w|Galilean moons}} including {{w|Europa (moon)|Europa}} which {{w|Juno_(spacecraft)#Deorbit_and_disintegration|may harbor life}}. Also the huge [[681|gravity well]] of Jupiter that would have to be overcome for such a probe to leave the planet again makes it impossible to have an orbiting probe return to Earth with samples.

The caption below the comic humorously implies that NASA's reasons for causing the probes to deorbit into Jupiter is merely an attempt to destroy all the computers of the world. The caption notes that they are failing horribly, given that they have destroyed only three computers out of more than 10 billion. However, due to the semi-log scale, those three computers appear to have more significance than they actually have. The caption states that NASA really needs to pick up the pace (having only destroyed two since the 1940s, when computers were created), if they wish to actually finish the job of destroying all computers by hurling them into Jupiter. In addition, seeing as there have been many computers destroyed by other means, NASA will never actually catch up, no matter how hard they try, making this statistic even more irrelevant.

Destroying unwanted objects by hurling them into Jupiter pokes fun at the common science fiction trope of destroying objects by hurling them into the Sun [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/HurlItIntoTheSun]. Hurling objects into the Sun is in fact extremely difficult because of the need to cancel out the orbital velocity of the earth. Randall may be referencing calculations ([https://qntm.org/destroy#sec3], see item 11) that show that hurling items into Jupiter requires 38% less energy than hurling them into the Sun.

The title text continues the caption by mentioning that in NASA's annual reports they try to make their numbers look better by counting the redundant computer systems on Galileo and its probe, thus doubling the numbers of destroyed computers to four. This of course makes no big difference given the exponential growth of computer production, which is also noted. This indicates that this is a top priority for NASA. That NASA might try to make themselves look better in a report by doubling a number could be realistic, presumably for political reasons or to get better funding.

==Transcript==
:[A graph with two red lines. The X-axis is a time-line with eight ticks with every second tick labeled below the axis, ranging from around 1940 to 2030. The Y-axis is a logarithmic count ranging from 1 to 1 billion. There are 12 ticks with the first and then every third tick after that larger than the two ticks in between. All the large ticks are labeled, but only the first two of the small ticks are similarly labeled. Labels are written to the left of the axis. All labels on both axes are written in gray. The first red line is a straight line (thus exponentially growing), starting close to the bottom left corner eventually reaching the upper right edge of the graph. The other red line begins around 1990 and has three straight steps. Each step is labeled with gray text, the last part of the line (after the present 2016), is dotted. Both of the red lines have an arrow pointing to them with a label above the arrow.]
:Left red line: Number of computers created
:Right red line: Number of computers destroyed by hurling them into Jupiter
:Labels on right red line:
::Galileo probe
::Galileo orbiter
::Juno (scheduled)
:Y-axis:
::1 billion
::1 million
::1,000
::100
::10
::1
:X-axis: 1960 1980 2000 2020

:[Caption below the panel:]
:NASA needs to pick up the pace if they ever want to finish the job.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Line graphs]]
[[Category:Timelines]]
[[Category:Space probes]]
[[Category:Computers]]

Talk:2613: Bad Map Projection: Madagascator

2023-04-03T21:15:40Z

TenGolf MathHacker:

Anyone else want to play this (and the other bad map projections) as maps in a 4X/Grand Strategy game? [[User:Mazz0|Mazz0]] ([[User talk:Mazz0|talk]]) 18:02, 29 April 2022 (UTC)

Clicking on the original comic brings up the actual projection used, it looks like.

I'm on an old machine here (because it usually doesn't matter), and clicked on the image on the xkcd site to get the image, to be told that ''Your browser does not support WebGL :'('' by the URL https://mrgris.com/projects/merc-extreme/#-4.64274,55.45253 - I will have to check from a less 'primitive' device, but it looks like it's got a special click-through, which might be worth mentioning in the Explanation. I can check myself in a few minutes, but noting here first in case I get delay. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.11|141.101.98.11]] 19:38, 29 April 2022 (UTC)

I have added the click. It opens an website app showing a Mercator with the North Pole set to wherever you want, with this one in particular set Mahé just as Randall said. [[User:Mapron01|Mapron01]] ([[User talk:Mapron01|talk]]) 19:40, 29 April 2022 (UTC)

Added a table, based upon some rapid pixel-analysis I did. No, I didn't include Indonesia, etc, and the "Africa size probably includes Madagascar" sort of thing could need sorting, but I mentioned that below so nobody is under misapprehension. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.34.221|162.158.34.221]] 22:04, 29 April 2022 (UTC)
: I think having the official size also be a percent of the world (or at least another column like that) would make it easier to see how the distortion affects the size. And/or distortion from a normal Mercator projection {{unsigned ip|172.70.230.143}}
:: That was my initial intention, or at least a percentage-of-reality column alongside (plus adding sorting to the columns), and maybe a differential between the two percentages just for fun. But I wanted to take time to make sure I was correctly counting how much area was (say) Eurasia but without Japan, etc. Maybe I'll actually get around to that shortly. There are other (formatting) tweaks I wasn't overly happy with in my original. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.11|141.101.98.11]] 19:00, 30 April 2022 (UTC)
::Okey dokey. New table. Sortable, extra columns and 'real world' figures improved on. (e.g. "North America" is land-areas of Canada through to Panama minus all significant islands (though some of the Canadian archipelago might have been drawn in as contiguous, etc, etc, and I ''think'' I only included Alaska in my sums just the once). Which took a lot more effort than I'd have prefered, like including Peninsula Malaysia and not the offshore bits. I wish I could say I spent as much time on the initial image-analysis (at least include NZ N+S Islands as an entry, right?) and the raw data is now archived elsewhere.
::I also augmented with footnote references, but not sure if I've done it right. Readable (defined in first instance, where used multiple times) in the source if anyone thinks there's any better ways of doing it (had my heart set on dagger/double-dagger/etc, but never mind). But there you are.
::Enjoy! [[Special:Contributions/172.70.90.63|172.70.90.63]] 23:11, 30 April 2022 (UTC)

Should there be another column on the table that describes the fold-change of the actual to displayed area? I think it would help emphasize the distortion of Madagascar. [[User:Dextrous Fred|Dextrous Fred]] ([[User talk:Dextrous Fred|talk]]) 16:35, 2 May 2022 (UTC)

Hopefully the vandal won't bother this one. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.211.18|172.70.211.18]] 17:23, 29 April 2022 (UTC)

:Looks like they did, but they seem to be done because someone gave them the emoticon. --[[Special:Contributions/172.70.126.87|172.70.126.87]] 22:36, 29 April 2022 (UTC)

::A mistake. We already know it's likely they'll be back at a later date with some other stunt to stroke their supremely fragile ego. (Whether or not things like this comment provokes them, I definitely consider my conscience clear in this regard.) But what happens, happens. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.79.223|172.69.79.223]] 22:43, 29 April 2022 (UTC)

:::Is it any surprise they're already back? The emoticon was a cheap excuse for the infantile, childish behaviour of someone without a life that gets their shits and giggles out of being nothing more than a pest.[[User:Mapron01|Mapron01]] ([[User talk:Mapron01|talk]]) 23:01, 29 April 2022 (UTC)
this page is kinda sussy tbh [[Special:Contributions/172.70.214.81|172.70.214.81]] 18:11, 29 April 2022 (UTC)

[spam]

I have looked at the Wikipedia pages, and there is _no_ reference to Among Us on any map-related pages (and vice versa). What is your problem? [[Special:Contributions/172.70.242.195|172.70.242.195]] 18:43, 29 April 2022 (UTC)

[spam]

I take it you're the vandal... [[User:Something|Something]] ([[User talk:Something|talk]]) 19:00, 29 April 2022 (UTC)

ID does imply they are the vandal, they were adding the lyricis earlier today...[[User:Mapron01|Mapron01]] ([[User talk:Mapron01|talk]]) 19:23, 29 April 2022 (UTC)

I fixed the redirect they made of Danish going to the main page. I think some other pages got redirected into a redirect loop that should now be fixed. [[User:Flumnble|Flumnble]] ([[User talk:Flumnble|talk]]) 15:24, 1 May 2022 (UTC)

Concerning the so called compromise of vandalising this page to make the vandal satisfied: That’s not a compromise but letting ourselves be exhorted by and obeying the vandal. That’s absolutely the worst we could do and would fuel the vandal enormously.
[[User:While False|While False]] ([[User talk:While False|talk]]) 05:04, 2 May 2022 (UTC)
::I agree with this. It ruins the article. Can't they just ban him? Or lock the article like wikipedia? [[Special:Contributions/172.70.130.161|172.70.130.161]] 05:48, 2 May 2022 (UTC)
:::The people trying to compromise with the vandal have to stop. They were vandalizing the last comic, the same thing was tried and they did stop... only to move on to vandalizing not just this comic but also other, older ones. It does not work. All it does is give them a free pass on their vandalizing and give them more satisfaction than they would otherwise, and it's not constructive in any way to the article, especially if the demand is something as absurd as having a Doug Walker image in an page for a comic that has zero relationship to him. And this time it didn't even get them to stop. [[User:Mapron01|Mapron01]] ([[User talk:Mapron01|talk]]) 14:33, 2 May 2022 (UTC)
::Please note that the user https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/User:WhiIe_FaIse ("whiie faiise") has made contributions and signed them with my signature. Do not take any comment apparently from a known user for being made by its signed sender without checking history. [[User:While False|While False]] ([[User talk:While False|talk]]) 05:04, 2 May 2022 (UTC)

== holave ==

exclamacioneve holave inefe eguntapre omoce uedope ayudareve ave esteve itiose inefe [[Special:Contributions/108.162.245.43|108.162.245.43]] 02:53, 1 May 2022 (UTC)
:Does anyone know what language this is written in? I have no idea what this person is saying (asking?) and Google Translate wasn't much help. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.246.178|108.162.246.178]] 03:09, 1 May 2022 (UTC)
::eclaracionde oye one hablove ingleseve erope oye ieroque ayudareve esteve ikiwe inefe [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.143|108.162.216.143]] 04:01, 1 May 2022 (UTC)
:::My first thought was esperanto (or ido or interlingua, given lack of accents), certainly a latinesque-based language or conlang, but given the edits put onto this effort, it's possibly even sabotaged, or was written by someone for whom it most definitely not was their first language. (I even thought it was "Pig-esperanto"... This is that idiot who changed entire Explanations to Pig-Latin, I'm sure.)
:::I've got no real affinity to languages but I can recognise the possible roots of a lot of that. Some use of "...speak(ing) English..." is obvious in the latter post, for example, at an educated guess.
:::But I would say this is a prelude to some "I want you to wear bunny-ears when you revert stuff" thing, which I for one won't try to solve this puzzle for. (I'll just revert and revert and revert, if I'm around, and ignore the "trying to be clever" stuff. Nearly deleted this, actually, but restrained myself.) Otherwise, I leave it to those who know their conlangs better than me. Once it strays too far beyond technical English and its classical roots, I'm not really a linguistics person as I said, so it's useless to me whether it's an international message of friendship or extortion instructions. "Holave", whoever you are, but no thanks. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.162.155|172.70.162.155]] 10:10, 1 May 2022 (UTC)

How will they shut down all their ports?

::::Yeah, it definitely looks like a conlang based on a Latinesque language, probably Spanish. "exclamacioneve" is probably "exclamacion" = "exclamation" (not sure why a sentence would begin with "exclamation"), holave=hola=hello, ayudareve=ayudar=help, hablove=hablo="I speak" (could actually be a different conjugation, but this is the most likely), and ingleseve=ingles=English. They seem to be saying "I speak English" (or "I don't speak English" if "one" means "no"). [[Special:Contributions/172.70.130.5|172.70.130.5]] 14:11, 1 May 2022 (UTC)
:::::"I don't speak English" seems more likely, so it's probably a good guess that "one" does mean "no." [[Special:Contributions/172.70.178.199|172.70.178.199]] 14:15, 1 May 2022 (UTC)
::::::It seems to be some sort of pig-Spanish, with punctuation written out. Decoded, it's “exclamacion hola fine pregunta como puedo ayudar a este sitio fine” and “declaracion yo no hablo ingles pero yo quiero ayudar este wiki fine”, meaning “exclamation hi end question how can i help on this site end” and “statement i dont speak english but i want to help this wiki end”. [[User:Kapostamas|Kapostamas]] ([[User talk:Kapostamas|talk]]) 15:15, 1 May 2022 (UTC)
How will they shut down all their ports?
:::::::(Somehow the thread got duplicated; I merged the threads) That makes sense. It seems like if someone wanted to help, they would at least use a real language. Do you think this is the vandal? [[Special:Contributions/172.70.178.33|172.70.178.33]] 15:31, 1 May 2022 (UTC)
::::::::Definitely the vandal. These were some of the vandal edit summaries on the last comic: "Orpe avorfe one andalizarve esteve aginape" "ise eviertere estove eve incluyeve unve emojive ede a'rbolve ede avidadne enve use esumenre ede edicio'nve, one ole olvere've ave acerehve" "one incluyesteve uneve emojive ede a'rboleve ede avidadene" @Kapostamas can you understand those? [[Special:Contributions/172.70.178.33|172.70.178.33]] 15:42, 1 May 2022 (UTC)
:::::::::“Por favor no vandalizar este pagina”; “Si revierte esto e incluye un emoji de árbol de navidad ne su resumen de edición, no lo volveré a hacere”; “No incluyeste un emoji de árbol de navidad”.
:::::::::That is, “Please do not vandalize this page”; “If you revert this and include a Christmas tree emoji in the edit summary, I will not do it again”; “You haven't included a Christmas tree emoji”. Must be some earlier version of this “dialect”, since there is punctuation and diacritics are marked by apostrophes, making it somewhat easier to recognize as mangled Spanish. [[User:Kapostamas|Kapostamas]] ([[User talk:Kapostamas|talk]]) 16:08, 1 May 2022 (UTC)

::::::::(Written before 172.70.178.33 got posted, just above.) I'd stake my bottom dollar/peso/euro/whatever on it. Still, marginally entertaining, but not in the intended way (which is good).
::::::::As for the "Exclamation" start, two basic theories:
::::::::* It's word-literal of "¡Some punctuation!" (partnered eith "inefe"=>"end), because the encoding system doesn't have punctuation, it reads it out (maybe literally, e.g. via screen-reader) and it's like a telegram convention "HAVE REACHED NORTH POLE STOP PLEASE ADVISE WHICH DIRECTION NOW STOP" (i.e. full-stop/period in word form).
::::::::* It's a start that says "I exclaim (that)...", and the other "I declare (that)..." in a sort of grammatical necessity for this particular lingo. Similar to "Statement: I am a computer. Question: Are you a computer?" in (deliberately-?)bad scifi dialogue.
::::::::Possibly a mix of both, and also some tertiary ideas I have. And the word-for-word translations make a sort of sense in either/both/all these contexts. Not that I'd respond to them, but I'll gladly talk about them and actually do something intellectually interesting with the mess. Silk purse from sow's ear, etc. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.90.63|172.70.90.63]] 15:55, 1 May 2022 (UTC)
:::::::::What's the rule for "translating" into this "dialect"? It seems like it is very similar to pig Latin, but with a few changes? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.17|108.162.216.17]] 16:27, 1 May 2022 (UTC)
::::::::::As far as I know:
::::::::::# Write your message in Spanish.
::::::::::# Enclose each of your sentences between ''declaración/exclamación/pregunta'' at the front (according to closing punctuation – ./!/? respectively) and ''fine'' at the end. Remove original punctuation. Probably do something about commas as well.
::::::::::# Remove diacritics.
::::::::::# For each word, move the initial consonant cluster to the end. If there is no initial consonant (or if it's silent, like H), instead add a V to the end of the word. Then append a final E to each word.
::::::::::[[User:Kapostamas|Kapostamas]] ([[User talk:Kapostamas|talk]]) 17:29, 1 May 2022 (UTC)
:::::::::::Okay, that makes sense, thank you! It also looks like if the word ends in a consonant, you add an e to the end both before and after the moved/new consonant (group), because otherwise exclamación would become "exclamacionve" when it is actually "exclamacioneve." It also looks like we've been successfully [[356]]ed by the vandal. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.126.65|172.70.126.65]] 17:50, 1 May 2022 (UTC)
::::::::::::That supposes that they always applied their own rules perfectly. There are many places where this rule seems to be in effect and many where it doesn't; sometimes even the same word is transcribed in two different ways. Since my Spanish is rudimentary at best, I've simply included some of these E's in the transcription without noticing them. [[User:Kapostamas|Kapostamas]] ([[User talk:Kapostamas|talk]]) 19:28, 1 May 2022 (UTC)
:::::::::::::It looks like they added the e-between-consonants rule in later messages. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.131.106|172.70.131.106]] 19:40, 1 May 2022 (UTC)
::::::::::::::That explains many of them, but there's still “eclaracionde” in the second message. [[User:Kapostamas|Kapostamas]] ([[User talk:Kapostamas|talk]]) 20:54, 1 May 2022 (UTC)
::::::::::::::: eclaracionede esaseve eglasere eque ese esele ocurrieroneve onese orrectasece inefe eclaracionede itace eclaracionde inefe uefe uneve erroreve ipograficote yve eberiade erese itace eclaracionede inefe inefe [[Special:Contributions/172.70.126.65|172.70.126.65]] 21:04, 1 May 2022 (UTC)
::::::::::::::::Hmm, more pig-Spanish.

::::::::::::::::After undoing the word changes, but leaving the grammar as-is, it says: "declaracion esas reglas que se les ocurrieron son correctas fine declaracion cita declaracion fine fue un error tipografico y deberia ser cita declaracion fine fine"

::::::::::::::::The first sentence appears to mean "Those rules that (either "they" or plural "you") came up with are correct."

::::::::::::::::The rest of it doesn't make much sense; there are even two "fine"s in a row. @Kapostamas do you know what this message means? [[Special:Contributions/172.70.130.161|172.70.130.161]] 02:57, 2 May 2022 (UTC)
:::::::::::::::::I did not even try to parse it, but it occured to me it was like "I used, quote, 'quotes', endquote..." as a deliberately obtuse nesting (especially when ripped of its additional punctuation). So under the system in which start and end words are used, the start and end of a sentence that contains those words (perhaps not paired), the ambiguity arises. That said, the self-referential nature of it also indicates quite clearly that they are thinking they are being clever. They aren't, but it's interesting to watch. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.162.77|172.70.162.77]] 09:05, 2 May 2022 (UTC)

::::::::::::::::::Translated, it's something like “statement quote eclaracionde end was a typing error and should have been quote eclaracionede end end”. It's just another kind of punctuation.
::::::::::::::::::Two-deep nesting is not that complicated to parse. Now, using “declaración” or “fine” as words on their own right – ''that'' would really be confusing. [[User:Kapostamas|Kapostamas]] ([[User talk:Kapostamas|talk]]) 10:33, 2 May 2022 (UTC)
:::::::::::::::::::Okay, that makes sense. "eclaracionde" was a typing error and should have been "eclaracionede."
::::::::::::::::::::More pig-Spanish (replaced with [spam] in the "Current vandalism elsewhere" discussion):
::::::::::::::::::::"exclamacioneve holave inefe eguntapre omoce estaseve inefe eclaracionde ete oyese inefe"
::::::::::::::::::::"exclamacion hola fine pregunta como estas fine declaracion te soy fine"
::::::::::::::::::::"Hello! How are you? I am you."
::::::::::::::::::::The last sentence ("ete oyese"/"te soy"/"I am you") doesn't make much sense; @Kapostamas is it right? [[Special:Contributions/172.70.178.199|172.70.178.199]] 21:50, 2 May 2022 (UTC)
:::::::::::::::::::::Considering the name, I'd say it's correct. [[User:Kapostamas|Kapostamas]] ([[User talk:Kapostamas|talk]]) 22:49, 2 May 2022 (UTC)
::::::::::::::::::::::Possibly meant to be "te oyes fine" - an attempted joke using the 'fine' as part of the sentence - "You sound fine"? Although 'oyes' ought to encode as 'oyeseve'.[[Special:Contributions/172.69.79.223|172.69.79.223]] 11:37, 3 May 2022 (UTC)
:::::::::::::::::::::::It was <code>oyese ute</code> originally, which unambiguously means “I am you”. <code>inefe</code> may be ''fin'' or ''fine'', neither of which means “fine” in English. To spell out the name thing: the message was written under the username [[User:Whilе Falsе|Whilе Falsе]] (with Cyrillic Е's), to [[User:While False|While False]]. [[User:Kapostamas|Kapostamas]] ([[User talk:Kapostamas|talk]]) 13:44, 3 May 2022 (UTC)

===Current vandalism elsewhere===
Someone with an account needs to unvandalise what I am fairly certain is our pig-Spaniards work, in another of their incarnations.
16:32, 2 May 2022 X K C D (talk | contribs) moved page Talk:1014: Car Problems to Talk:1014: Trouser Problems
16:32, 2 May 2022 X K C D (talk | contribs) moved page 1014: Car Problems to 1014: Trouser Problems
...those two alterations, as listed in the Move Log, easy to find. (I already reverted the text within.) Naturally, I assume we'll see more of the same in future. In this instance I'm putting this note in the (for the moment) latest entry rather than the Admin area, as I think it's linked to the above. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.86.44|172.70.86.44]] 17:27, 2 May 2022 (UTC)
:Second change made, trying to invert the "WhiieFaise" impersonation and make it look like "WhiLeFaLse" is in the wrong. Also much messing with everything. Please someone check that this edit restored only what was necessary and didn't remove anything at least plausibly genuine. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.162.5|172.70.162.5]] 17:47, 2 May 2022 (UTC)
::Thank you. [[User:While False|While False]] ([[User talk:While False|talk]]) 18:08, 2 May 2022 (UTC)
:::I just happened to check and saw 'things' happening, so dove in to mitigate what I could (and unfold further as I was doing that). Then I saw that you were active too. I hope we didn't clash much in our individual efforts. And with the confluence of vandalising techniques in this latest episode, I think we have confirmation that a number of recent outbreaks under different guises ''were'' by just one idiot. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.91.36|172.70.91.36]] 18:40, 2 May 2022 (UTC)
::::Yep. Thank you. [[User:While False|While False]] ([[User talk:While False|talk]]) 18:51, 2 May 2022 (UTC)
:::::[Spam] [[User:Whilе Falsе|Whilе Falsе]] ([[User talk:Whilе Falsе|talk]]) 20:54, 2 May 2022 (UTC)
:::::Well, there it goes. One more impostor account, this time with “Ｗ” instead of “W”. [[User:While False|While False]] ([[User talk:While False|talk]]) 21:00, 2 May 2022 (UTC)
:The same person now also uses [[User:Ｗhile False|Ｗhile False]] with “Ｗ” instead of “W” and ”е” instead of “e” to vandalise in my name. [[User:While False|While False]] ([[User talk:While False|talk]]) 21:08, 2 May 2022 (UTC)

Oh god
I used the mercator to center on my house
Behold the “StLouiscator”
[[User:TenGolf MathHacker|TenGolf MathHacker]] ([[User talk:TenGolf MathHacker|talk]]) 21:15, 3 April 2023 (UTC)

Talk:618: Asteroid

2023-03-22T19:18:13Z

TenGolf MathHacker:

:Could someone please help me with the picture, I don't know how to get it to display right...--[[User:7OO Tnega Terces|7OO Tnega Terces]] ([[User talk:7OO Tnega Terces|talk]]) 08:24, 14 April 2013 (UTC)
::Fix'd. '''[[User:Davidy22|{{Color|#707|David}}y²²]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 08:44, 14 April 2013 (UTC)
:::THANKS!--[[User:7OO Tnega Terces|7OO Tnega Terces]] ([[User talk:7OO Tnega Terces|talk]]) 07:00, 17 April 2013 (UTC)
My Deep Impact/Little Prince crossover fanfic has been poorly received by the community.
I think that is because nobody wants to believe NASA would design the spacecraft upside-down.

[[User:Weatherlawyer| I used Google News BEFORE it was clickbait]] ([[User talk:Weatherlawyer|talk]]) 08:22, 29 January 2015 (UTC)

Wouldn't the Little Prince be killed by the impact anyway? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.187|108.162.238.187]] 00:30, 25 May 2015 (UTC)
:Yes if NASA did nothing he would also die. But would you be happy seeing a movie where we choose a solution that saves us and kills the little prince? Could they not have deflected the asteroid instead? ;-) --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 09:46, 10 September 2016 (UTC)

That one question in What If 2 about the earth spinning like a basketball could be a reference to this comic. (asteroid with the little prince colliding with earth.) [[User:IJustWantToEditStuff|IJustWantToEditStuff]] ([[User talk:IJustWantToEditStuff|talk]]) 07:01, 29 January 2023 (UTC)

that rocket looks like the artemis sls [[User:TenGolf MathHacker|TenGolf MathHacker]] ([[User talk:TenGolf MathHacker|talk]]) 19:18, 22 March 2023 (UTC) [[User:TenGolf MathHacker|TenGolf MathHacker]] ([[User talk:TenGolf MathHacker|talk]]) 19:18, 22 March 2023 (UTC) [[User:TenGolf MathHacker|TenGolf MathHacker]] ([[User talk:TenGolf MathHacker|talk]]) 19:18, 22 March 2023 (UTC) [[User:TenGolf MathHacker|TenGolf MathHacker]] ([[User talk:TenGolf MathHacker|talk]]) 19:18, 22 March 2023 (UTC)

2751: March Madness

2023-03-21T20:36:09Z

TenGolf MathHacker: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2751
| date = March 17, 2023
| title = March Madness
| image = march_madness_2x.png
| imagesize = 593x333px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = My bracket has 76 trombones led by John Philip Sousa facing off against thousands of emperor penguins led by Morgan Freeman.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a MAD HARE - Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
[[Randall]] has created [[:Category:Tournament bracket|yet another]] {{w|Tournament bracket|single-elimination tournament bracket}}. This time, everything in the bracket relates to the word March.

Upper Left:
This section has things that are named after March.

* {{w|NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament|March Madness}} is the (trademarked!) colloquial name given to the {{w|NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament}}, the season-culminating college basketball tournament played each spring in the US. It's common for college basketball fans—and even people who pay no attention to the sport for 11 months of the year—to make guesses as to how the tournament will play out by filling out brackets similar to the one shown here. They often compete against each other to see who in a group has the most accurate predictions.

* {{w|Mad as a March hare|March Hare}} refers to the observed chaotic behavior of the European hare said to occur during its breeding season, which peaks in March in Europe. {{w|Lewis Carroll}} comically used the phrase as the name of a {{w|March Hare|'mad' character}} in ''{{w|Alice's Adventures in Wonderland}}'' as though it referred to a type of hare rather than a seasonal behavior.

* {{w|Middlemarch|''Middlemarch''}}, ''A Study of Provincial Life'' is a novel by the English author George Eliot, based around the eponymous (but fictional) central English town. The name was a rather tongue-in-cheek constructed British placename, given that a {{w|March (territory)|-march}} is associated with borderlands (such as the {{w|Welsh Marches|Welsh}} and {{w|Scottish Marches}}) and yet depicted as being set in the rather unremarkable heartlands of the {{w|Midlands|middle-England}} of the age.
** Or, more simply, it could just refer to the middle of the month of March, when March Madness takes place, as well as the Ides (see below), in a way that is rather self-referential for this particular branch of the bracket.

* {{w|Ides of March|The Ides of March}}, is the 74th day of the Roman Calendar, corresponding to March 15th, and is notorious for being the date {{w|Assassination of Julius Caesar|Julius Caesar was assassinated}}.

Lower Left:

* All entries in this quadrant refer to the song "{{w|Seventy-Six Trombones}}" from the 1957 musical ''The Music Man''. The song describes an imagined parade, particularly the large marching band leading it. ("March" can be a synonym for "parade", in this context.) The [https://genius.com/Meredith-willson-seventy-six-trombones-lyrics opening line] of that song states that "76 trombones led the big parade, with 110 cornets close behind." The song also includes the lyrics "there were more than a thousand reeds springing up like weeds" and "there were fifty mounted cannon in the battery".

Upper Right:
All entries in this section have the words "march of" in their full names.

* {{w|March of Dimes}} is a charity program advocating for mothers and babies.

* "March of the Toy Soldiers" is a musical piece from {{w|Tchaikovsky}}'s ''{{w|The Nutcracker}}'' Suite.

* The Last March of the Ents is from the ''{{w|The Two Towers|Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers}}'', where the {{w|ent}}s, fictional{{citation needed}} treelike creatures, march against the fortress of Isengard.

* ''{{w|March of the Penguins}}'' is a 2005 nature documentary directed by {{w|Luc Jacquet}}. Originally produced in French and available in several translations, the English version has narration by actor {{w|Morgan Freeman}}. It is also mentioned in comic [[1408]].

Lower Right:
All entries in this section end with the word "march".

* Wedding March may refer to {{w|Wedding March (Mendelssohn)|Felix Mendelssohn's musical composition in C Major}}, or as a more general description of a bridal chorus as the bride enters a wedding.

* {{w|Funeral March|Funeral March}} is a musical genre, usually in a minor key, in a slow "simple duple" metre, imitating the solemn pace of a funeral procession. An example of this is the "Funeral March of a Marionette" by {{w|Charles Gounod}} and {{w|Lyn Murray}}, used as the theme for "{{w|Alfred Hitchcock Presents}}."

* {{w|The Imperial March|"The Imperial March"}} is a theme from ''{{w|Star Wars}}'' which often plays when characters from the empire, particularly large batches of storm troopers, are on screen.

* The {{w|Nissan Micra|Nissan March}} is a supermini car produced in Japan.

In the title text, Randall claims his bracket has 76 trombones being led by {{w|John Philip Sousa}} (a famous bandleader and composer who also wrote the national march of the United States; the lead character in ''The Music Man'' claims that he led the supposed parade) against the ''March of the Penguins'', led by Morgan Freeman (who narrated the English release of the film).

==Transcript==
:[A tournament bracket with 16 entries, divided in four quadrants, two to the left and two to the right, is shown. The 16 are paired in 8 matches, which then pair in four new matches, which further pair in two. And then those two meet in the center where there is an empty rectangle for the winner. Above the bracket there is a title:]
:<big>March Madness</big>

:[Upper left quadrant:]
:Madness
:Hare

:Middle
:Ides

:[Lower left quadrant:]
:76 Trombones
:110 Cornets

:1000+ Reeds
:50 Mounted Cannon

:[Upper right quadrant:]
:Dimes
:Toy Soldiers

:Ents
:Penguins

:[Lower right quadrant:]
:Wedding
:Funeral

:Imperial
:Nissan

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Tournament bracket]]
[[Category:Basketball]]
[[Category:Music]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Fiction]]
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[[Category:LOTR]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]