https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/api.php?action=feedcontributions&user=141.101.66.41&feedformat=atomexplain xkcd - User contributions [en]2024-03-29T02:29:59ZUser contributionsMediaWiki 1.30.0https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1645:_Toasts&diff=1127671645: Toasts2016-02-19T11:06:11Z<p>141.101.66.41: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1645<br />
| date = February 19, 2016<br />
| title = Toasts<br />
| image = toasts.png<br />
| titletext = Platonic solids for my real friends and real solids for my platonic friends!<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|Created by a BOT - Please change this comment when editing this page.}}<br />
The comic plays on an permutation structure between two words, yielding puns with various effects (quotations are from the wiktionary):<br />
:"'''''X'''''-Y for my '''''real''''' friends and '''''real''''' Y for my '''''X''''' friends"<br />
# "Sham" is "a thing that is not what it is purported to be". It is therefore logical to wish "champagne" to real friends, and real "pain" to "sham" friends.<br />
#:Randal goes on with various puns on the same structure, most of the time with weird meanings :<br />
# A "pseudopod" is "a temporary projection of the cytoplasm of cells or unicellular organisms that serves in locomotion"; whereas a pod is "a small vehicle" or "a bag". Nobody would wish "pseudopods" to real friends and real "pods" to "pseudo" friends.<br />
# A "pettycoat" is "a light woman's undergarment worn under a dress or skirt"; whereas "Petty" friends means "insignificant, trifling, or narrow-minded".<br />
# "Loosestrife" is "flowering plants of the genera Lythrum and Lysimachia". A real "strife" is a "conflict, sometimes violent, usually brief or limited in scope", whereas "loose" friends means "free from moral restraint; immoral, unchaste". This toast seems quite acceptable.<br />
# A "Ladybug" is "a beetle of the ''Coccinellidae'' family of beetles, typically having a round shape and a colorful shell"; a "bug" is "any insect, arachnid, or other terrestrial arthropod that is a pest".<br />
# "Single-payer" refers to single-payer healthcare, "a system in which the state, rather than private insurers, pays for all healthcare costs" (wikipedia). "RealPlayer is a cross-platform media player app" (Wikipedia); a "single" friend is "Not married, and also not dating".<br />
# A "tumbleweed" is "Any plant which habitually breaks away from its roots in the autumn, and is driven by the wind". A "weed" is a "plant regarded as unwanted at the place where, and at the time when it is growing"; "Tumblr" is "a microblogging platform and social networking website", where one may make online friends.<br />
# A "fauxhawk" is "An imitation of the Mohawk (=UK Mohican) hairstyle in which a central tuft is created using gel without having to shave the sides of the head". A hawk is "a diurnal predatory bird of the family ''Accipitridae''"; "faux" friends are "false; untrue".<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
{{incomplete|Unsure about couple of characters, marked with '?'. Please edit.}}<br />
<br />
There are two rows of 4 panels each. Each panel shows different xkcd character offering a toast. Each one has some kind of drink in his/her hand.<br />
<br />
:[First row panels, left to right]<br />
:Cueball : Champaign for my real friends and real pain for my sham friends!<br />
:Miss Lenhart (?) : Pseudopods for my real friends and real pods for my pseudo friends!<br />
:Megan : Petticoats for my real friends and real coats for my petty friends!<br />
:Danish (?) : Loosestrife for my real friends and real strife for my loose friends!<br />
<br />
:[Second row panels, left to right]<br />
:Hair Bun Girl : Ladybugs for my real friends and real bugs for my lady friends!<br />
:White Hat Guy : Single-payer for my real friends and Realplayer for my single friends!<br />
:Ponytail : Tumbleweeds for my real friends and real weed for my Tumblr friends!<br />
:Berret Guy : Fauxhawks for my real friends and real hawks for my faux friends!<br />
<br />
:[Title text]<br />
:Platonic solids for my real friends and real solids for my platonic friends!<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>141.101.66.41https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1645:_Toasts&diff=1127641645: Toasts2016-02-19T10:42:53Z<p>141.101.66.41: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1645<br />
| date = February 19, 2016<br />
| title = Toasts<br />
| image = toasts.png<br />
| titletext = Platonic solids for my real friends and real solids for my platonic friends!<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|Created by a BOT - Please change this comment when editing this page.}}<br />
The comic plays on an permutation structure between two words, yielding puns with various effects :<br />
:"'''''X'''''-Y for my '''''real''''' friends and '''''real''''' Y for my '''''X''''' friends"<br />
# Sham is "a thing that is not what it is purported to be". It is therefore logical to wish "champagne" to real friends, and real "pain" to "sham" friends.<br />
#:Randal goes on with various puns on the same structure, with usually weird meanings :<br />
#A "pseudopod" is "a temporary projection of the cytoplasm of cells or unicellular organisms that serves in locomotion"; whereas a pod is "a small vehicle" or "a bag". Nobody would wish "pseudopods" to real friends and real "pods" to "pseudo" friends.<br />
# "Petty" means "insignificant, trifling, or narrow-minded"; whereas a "pettycoat" is "a light woman's undergarment worn under a dress or skirt".<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
{{incomplete transcript}}<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>141.101.66.41https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1645:_Toasts&diff=1127631645: Toasts2016-02-19T10:12:05Z<p>141.101.66.41: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1645<br />
| date = February 19, 2016<br />
| title = Toasts<br />
| image = toasts.png<br />
| titletext = Platonic solids for my real friends and real solids for my platonic friends!<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|Created by a BOT - Please change this comment when editing this page.}}<br />
The comic plays on an permutation structure between two words, with various effects :<br />
:"''X''-Y for my ''real'' friends and ''real'' Y for my ''X'' friends"<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
{{incomplete transcript}}<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>141.101.66.41https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1644:_Stargazing&diff=1122101644: Stargazing2016-02-17T12:02:51Z<p>141.101.66.41: /* Megan's observations */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1644<br />
| date = February 17, 2016<br />
| title = Stargazing<br />
| image = stargazing.png<br />
| titletext = Some of you may be thinking, 'But wait, isn't the brightest star in our sky the Sun?' I think that's a great question and you should totally ask it. On the infinite tree of possible conversations spread out before us, I think that's definitely the most promising branch.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|There may be another joke here}}<br />
[[Megan]] is the host for a group of people who attend an evenings '''{{w|stargazing}}''' class. She is supposed to be a doctor (professor or ''whatever'') in {{w|astronomy}}, but it is already clear in the first panel (from her last comment) that she is only acting, and she is clearly not very knowledgeable about astronomy, although she is enthusiastically interested in the objects that can bee seen in the night sky, i.e. out in {{w|Outer space|space}}.<br />
<br />
It is later revealed that she had to look up the definition of "astronomer" in a dictionary, commenting on how boring a book that was. Since you are not meant to read a dictionary, but only look up individual words this suggests that Megan never used one of these before... <br />
<br />
It turns out that Megan has been excited about telling about interesting objects in space before, but often ends up in a situation where it becomes clear to other people that she may not be an astronomer, although she behaves like she knows a lot. So she had often been asked is she was sure if she as an astronomer. And as it turns out, she doesn't even know (or pretends to not know) what that means. She is clearly not interested in the astronomy part of stargazing. <br />
<br />
Although Megan thus certainly isn't an astronomer, and seems to only know superficial stuff about the subject, all of her statements are actually correct (if you disagree read the explanation of the title text). Below there is a list of [[#Megan's observations|Megan's observations]].<br />
<br />
The title text mentions a typical comment (joke) that often comes up in discussions about which star is the brightest when seen from Earth. It is almost always clear from the context that the subject are stars in the night sky. But the joker is of course right as technically {{w|Sirius}} is not the brightest star in our sky, since the {{w|Sun}} is also a {{w|star}}. [[Randall]] is being sarcastic here, pointing out that being pedantic about this is a waste of everyone's time, considering all the other things they could talk about. He references the infinite tree of possible conversations they could have had, and "applauds" the joker for choosing this promising branch, which will lead nowhere.<br />
<br />
See also [[1342: Ancient Stars]].<br />
<br />
===Megan's observations===<br />
Here is a list of Megan's observations:<br />
*Most {{w|Bright Star Catalogue|visible stars}} are still very faint, and just becomes background to the bight {{w|stars}} that form the named {{w|constellations}}. <br />
**Megan correctly states that they are just dots. (This is also true for the bright stars, but at least they are clearly distinguishable).<br />
*{{w|Sirius}} is the {{w|Apparent magnitude|brightest}} star in our {{w|List of brightest stars|night sky}}. But it is not the brightest object in the night sky, as several of the planets, especially {{w|Venus}} and {{w|Jupiter}}, and of course the {{w|Moon}} are much brighter. It is also far from being one of the most {{w|Absolute magnitude|luminous star}} in the {{w|Milky Way}}, but its proximity to Earth makes it the brightest in the night sky. There are {{w|List_of_most_luminous_stars#Data|twenty visible stars}} that are more luminous than Sirius, {{w|List of most luminous stars|none of which}} come even close to being in the top 100 of the most luminous stars observed today. Megan thus names Sirius as the star in charge since it outshines all the others as seen from the {{w|Earth}}. <br />
*Sirius is actually a star system consisting of two stars as it is a {{w|binary star}} system. But where Sirius A is twice the size of the {{w|Sun}} and much brighter, then Sirius B is now just a dim {{w|white dwarf}}, the remains from a much larger start that became a {{w|red giant}} before shedding its outer layers and collapsing into its current state around 120 million years ago. So now Sirius A completely outshines Sirius B, which actually is now a dead star with no further fusion going on inside its core. This is construed by Megan as it is barely even trying, as it is now only irradiating away the rest of the heat from the now exposed core.<br />
*{{w|Andromeda Galaxy|Andromeda}} is a {{w|spiral galaxy}}, like the Milky Way, and it is the largest galaxy in the {{w|Local Group}} where our own galaxy the Milky Way is the second largest. It is one of a few visible objects that are located outside the Milky Way. It is "only" 2.5 million light-years from the Sun and it is heading our way (or vice versa), and will {{w|Andromeda–Milky Way collision|collide with the Milky way}} in about 4 billions years (before the Sun goes into {{w|Sun#After_core_hydrogen_exhaustion|its red giant phase}}). Being 220,000 light years across consisting and of a trillion stars, it is somewhere between 1.2-2.2 times wider than the Milky Way and has 2.5-10 times as many stars. (The local group was also mentioned two comics ago, in [[1642: Gravitational Waves]], together with the much less well known third largest galaxy in the group the {{w|Triangulum Galaxy}}). It is therefore true when Megan says that it is too big to try to understand, and thinking about it will make your head spin, so she suggests we do not think about it.<br />
*{{w|Betelgeuse}} is a clearly visible (9th brightest) {{w|Red_supergiant|red supergiant}} {{w|Semiregular_variable_star|variable star}} located in the {{w|Orion (constellation)|constellation of Orion}}. It is one of the largest and most luminous observable stars (12th) and one of the few where it is clear that the light is not white. Most people can see that it is slightly red, whereas most other stars are so faint that they look white despite having different colors (when seeing Orion's two brightest stars, to remember which is which between Rigel and Betelgeuse, its diagonal opposite, just remember: Rigel is "R" like blue, and Betelgeuse is "B" like red). It is expected that Betelgeuse, being at a late stage of its {{w|Stellar_evolution|evolution}}, {{w|Betelgeuse#Approaching_supernova|will go supernova}} within the next million years as a {{w|type II supernova}}. The exact time when it will become a {{w|Supernova}} is so uncertain that it could [http://earthsky.org/brightest-stars/betelgeuse-will-explode-someday#explode just as likely happen tomorrow] as in a million years. When it happens it will not be dangerous to anyone on Earth, but it will likely be visible even during the day, as it may even become as bright as the full Moon. When it does go nova, it will be a fantastic spectacle for everyone, but especially for anyone who likes the ''good stuff'' in space like Megan, who cannot wait for the star to explode. Clearly she hopes it will be in her lifetime, and although this is unlikely she actually has a small chance that it might just happen.<br />
*A {{w|meteor}} (also known as {{w|shooting star}}), is debris from space that rains down on Earth, and burns up in the atmosphere. This happens all the time, but you need to be either lucky, patient, or know the right time for one of the {{w|meteor showers}} to see one. Often they are visible for so short a time period, that it is difficult to share the experience with anyone, as it will be gone by the time they turn their head to look where you are pointing. <br />
**Megan becomes very excited when she spots such a meteor, especially because it is likely that her audience got to share the experience with her, as they were already looking in the same direction as her. But still she asks if they saw it, because it is so short lived.<br />
*{{w|Outer space}} is the void that exists between {{w|Astronomical object|celestial bodies}}, including the Earth. There is by definition nothing there but {{w|vacuum}}, and the interesting part of space is thus not the space but the astronomical objects found out there. Megan says that space is cool, which is a very un-astronomical comment, as explained above. Also her excitement for a simple shooting star is cause for the suspicion that is raised after her space comment.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[A thin panel where Megan, holding her hands up, is drawn in white on a black background. Behind her is an audience drawn in faint gray lines consisting of Hairy (to the left) and two Cueball-like guys and Ponytail (seen in a rare full face position) to the right of Megan. One of the Cueball-like guys is partly hidden behind Megan.]<br />
:Megan: Welcome to stargazing, with your host, me.<br />
:Megan: I'm a doctor of whatever.<br />
<br />
:[Same scene as before but in a broader panel, and Megan is now holding only one hand up with a finger pointing up. The audience is the same four people, but now Hairy has moved further to the left in the panel to make room for a Megan-like girl also to the left of Megan.]<br />
:Megan: I'm not gonna waste your time on the shitty stars.<br />
:Megan: Just the good stuff.<br />
:Megan: Honestly half of 'em just look like dots.<br />
<br />
:[A frame-less drawing with a zoom out showing the group of six people in black silhouette on a white background. Part of the ground beneath them is shown as a black pool. Megan is pointing up with one hand. The people have been rearranged, so left of Megan is now a Cueball-like guy and the Megan-like girl, and to the right is the other Cueball-like guy, then Ponytail (seen from the side as usual) and Hairy. All are looking up following Megan's directions.]<br />
:Megan: This is Sirius. It's the brightest star in our sky so it's in charge.<br />
:Megan: It's really two stars but one of them is barely even trying.<br />
:Megan: That's Andromeda, it's too big to think about, so let's not.<br />
<br />
:[Zoom in of Megan's upper body, again drawn in white on a black background. She is looking right gesturing with one arm raised, and the other still pointing up with a finger stretched out. Her audience is no longer shown.]<br />
:Megan: That red stars is Betelgeuse. It's gonna explode someday.<br />
:Megan: Can't happen soon enough, as far as I'm concerned. I-<br />
:Megan: ''Holy shit did you see that meteor!?!''<br />
:Megan: Space is ''awesome!''<br />
<br />
:[Same scene as the previous panel, but Megan has turned towards left looking at someone in the audience (not shown) who speaks off-screen. She has taken both her hands down for the first time.]<br />
:Off-screen voice: Are you ''sure'' you're an astronomer?<br />
:Megan: People keep asking that, so I finally tried to look that word up in a dictionary, and ''wow'' is that book ever boring. No thank you.<br />
:Off-screen voice: But-<br />
:Megan: ''Space!''<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics with inverted brightness]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairy]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]<br />
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]<br />
[[Category:Astronomy]]<br />
[[Category:Space]]</div>141.101.66.41https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1642:_Gravitational_Waves&diff=1117641642: Gravitational Waves2016-02-15T11:05:35Z<p>141.101.66.41: /* Gravitational waves */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1642<br />
| date = February 11, 2016<br />
| title = Gravitational Waves<br />
| image = gravitational waves.png<br />
| titletext = "That last LinkedIn request set a new record for the most energetic physical event ever observed. Maybe we should respond." "Nah."<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
[[Megan]], [[Cueball]], and [[Ponytail]] are observing the results from a {{w|gravitational wave detector}} (see [[#Gravitational waves|details below]]). This comic came out on the day that the first direct observation of gravitational waves was [http://www.nature.com/news/einstein-s-gravitational-waves-found-at-last-1.19361 publicly announced] on 2016-02-11. The {{w|Gravitational wave observation|actual event}} was recorded five months before on 2015-09-14, but it was not reported publicly before they were sure it was a real signal. It seems that [[Randall]] knew in advance about this announcement because this comic was published on a Thursday, not following the normal publish schedule, to coincide with the [https://www.theguardian.com/science/2016/feb/11/gravitational-waves-discovery-hailed-as-breakthrough-of-the-century announcement], and there were no other comic released Friday that week. (The altered schedule could be viewed as a meta-reference to the {{w|Time warp (science fiction)|warping}} of {{w|spacetime}}). This is the second time within a month that a new astronomical announcement (of something discovered months before the actual announcement) has resulted in a related comic. The first being [[1633: Possible Undiscovered Planets]].<br />
<br />
From the patterns in the {{w|gravitational waves}} detected by this instrument, it might be possible to guess the nature of the event. (e.g. two bodies with dissimilar masses circling a fixed point, two bodies with equal mass circling each other, collision of two massive bodies, etc.) It might also be possible to triangulate the location of the event. Based on these two facts (the location and nature of the event) we might be able to determine which astronomical bodies caused this event (and the status of those bodies afterwards). Thus, it provides an additional medium to observe the universe in addition to {{w|telescopes}} observing all kinds of {{w|electromagnetic radiation}}. This new medium might enable us to observe properties that we couldn't observe with the rest of our observation instruments.<br />
<br />
However, the scientists in this comic appear to be receiving more than the expected signals from {{w|black hole}} collisions, they also receive gravitational {{w|Messaging spam|spam messages}}, such as invitations from {{w|Linkedin}}, a {{w|Mortgage loan|mortgage}} offer, and an announcement of a social meet-up, rather than observing astronomical events. (See [[#Explanation of observed events |table below]]).<br />
<br />
There is also a joke on the social meet-up's use of the word ''local group'' because the '{{w|Local Group}}' is also the technical name for the group of galaxies containing the {{w|Milky Way}}. <br />
<br />
It is not clear if these so called "events" are causing gravitational waves to be generated or if something, perhaps an alien civilization, is encoding spam messages in gravitational waves. It is plausible that aliens are using gravity waves to encode their messages, as we do something similar with electromagnetic waves to encode and send our messages. However, it would take an extremely advanced civilization to achieve gravity wave encoding. It requires the controlling of orbits and oscillations of super-massive bodies like the Sun, or more likely bodies ten times more massive than it. For example, the first event detected, both in this comic and in real life, was a merger of two black holes of roughly 30 solar masses each. <br />
<br />
The title text makes the speculation, that something is sending spam encoded in gravity waves, seem more plausible, as it follows up with a joke that the message senders have gone to such a length that they caused the most energetic event recorded ever (perhaps on the scale of a few {{w|supernovae}} or black hole collisions). One of the scientist is so impressed with this effort that he suggests that they actually post a reply, but one of the other person declines with a "''Nah''"! (As you should always do with spam, else you will just encourage the sender by making it clear that there actually is a receiver on this address).<br />
<br />
===Gravitational waves===<br />
A gravitational wave detector is a device used to measure gravitational waves, small distortions of spacetime that were first predicted by {{w|Albert Einstein}} in 1916. Gravitational waves are ripples in the spacetime fabric itself. <br />
<br />
In layman terms, a gravitational wave is like moving a stone through water while partly submerged. It will cause waves on the surface of the water as it moves through it. These waves will spread away from the center of disturbance and as they move, they will cause the water molecules to oscillate around their mean positions. Similar waves are created in the space-time fabric when two celestial bodies interact with each other. If you concentrate on an area of the fabric far away from the point of disturbance, it can be observed that if the wave causes compression in one direction, it'll cause expansion of the fabric in the other. See [http://www.einstein-online.info/spotlights/gw_waves this page] for nice animations. <br />
<br />
Note that anything with a mass will cause a gravitational wave. Just as waves created by small stones are tiny in comparison to waves created by huge rocks in water, the waves from humans moving around will be tiny compared to the waves created by celestial bodies. Also, the bigger the body, the stronger the wave and the farther away it can be detected. That is why we can only detect gravity waves from heavy bodies like black holes or neutron stars but not from us moving around.<br />
<br />
Now, let's consider spacetime fabric as a thin rubber sheet. If you mark any two points on this sheet and stretch or compress it along the axis joining those two points, the relative positions of these points with respect to their neighboring points do not change, but the distance between them changes. <br />
<br />
{{w|LIGO}} (Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory) is a large-scale physics experiment designed to detect this compression/expansion, and it was LIGO who discovered the signal that caused this comic. <br />
<br />
Two facts need to be remembered to easily understand the experiment. First, the {{w|speed of light}} (c) is constant and the speed of an object is the distance moved divided by the time taken to travel that far. Second, gravitational waves cause opposite effects (compression and expansion) in directions perpendicular to each other. At LIGO, an experiment is set up where two perpendicular long tunnels are constructed with apparatus to emit and detect laser beams. The beam from a laser is split into these two tunnels. After going through the tunnel and back again a few times the beams are brought back together. The lengths of the tunnels are set up in such a way that, in the absence of gravity waves, destructive interference between the two combined beams causes them to cancel one another out, resulting in the detector observing zero light intensity. When the gravitational wave passes through earth, one of the tunnel is expected to expand while the other is expected to compress. Due to the difference in lengths, the destructive interference is incomplete and the detectors will be able to detect the presence of light. This observation can be concluded as "detection of the gravitational wave passing through".<br />
<br />
== Explanation of observed events ==<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable"<br />
| | <b >Event</b><br />
| | <b >Explanation</b><br />
|-<br />
| | Black hole merger in Carina (30 M<sub>☉</sub>, 30 M<sub>☉</sub>)<br />
| |<br />
Possibly legitimate result from the gravitational wave detector. M<sub>☉</sub> means 1 {{w|Solar Mass}} (1.98892×10<sup>30</sup> kg). So the statement means that {{w|Binary black hole|two black holes}}, each one 30 times more massive than our Sun were observed {{w|Stellar collision|merging}} in the {{w|Carina (constellation)|Carina constellation}}. This observation is similar to the one actually reported in the announcement on the day of this comic, were the two black holes had masses of 36 and 29 solar masses (with a uncertainty that meant they could have had masses as close as 32 and 30 solar masses vs the 30+30 in this event). Also the {{w|Gravitational_wave_observation#Location_of_the_event|location of the event}} matches with Carina. Although at present time it is not possible to pinpoint the location of the event (that will need more detectors spread out across Earth) they still manage to find out that it most likely originated in the {{w|Southern Celestial Hemisphere}}, which is also where the Carina constellation is located.<br />
|-<br />
| | Zorlax the Mighty would like to connect on Linkedin<br />
| |<br />
A typical LinkedIn request. As this may be a message encoded in gravitational waves, it either means that LinkedIn has now grown outside the Earth, or that the Zorlax person would like to contact Earth. Zorlax is likely a reference to a kid's television gameshow, based on time travel, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdGGL0OrmFs Zorlax and the Time Travellers]. The first sentence in the movie is: ''Four billions of years ago in the Earths core, destined to be the master of time he is the Mighty Zorlax''. It is likely someone with the power over time would be able to create gravitational waves at his own leisure.<br />
|-<br />
| | Black hole merger in Orion (20 M<sub>☉</sub>, 50 M<sub>☉</sub>)<br />
| |<br />
Again, a possibly legitimate observation from the gravitational wave detector. It detected a black hole merger of two bodies in the {{w|Orion (constellation)|Orion constellation}}. One of them is 20 times more massive than Sun, the other is 50 times more massive than the Sun. (As Orion is located at the {{w|celestial equator}} and since the masses are far from the one announced on the day of this comic, this would then represent a possible 2nd event to be measured later).<br />
|-<br />
| | Mortgage offer from Triangulum Galaxy<br />
| |<br />
{{w|Triangulum Galaxy}}, also known as Pinwheel Galaxy, is a {{w|spiral galaxy}} approximately 3 million light-years from Earth. It is the third largest galaxy in the Local Group after the {{w|Andromeda Galaxy}} and the Milky Way, these three being the only spiral galaxies in the group. This is presumably an offer to extend a loan, with a house on Earth serving as collateral. However, unless we develop {{w|wormholes}} or {{w|faster-than-light}} travel technologies, it will be difficult to submit an application, even if the offer is legitimate.<br />
|-<br />
| | Zorlax the Mighty would like to connect on Linkedin<br />
| |<br />
Same person who sent us LinkedIn invite moments ago. This repeated request may imply that Zorlax is desperate, or may be a jab at LinkedIn's persistence in spamming users with unaccepted connections to view and/or accept them. According to the title text, this was the most energetic physical event ever observed; it may be that Zorlax is demonstrating his capabilities in the hopes that the request would be accepted.<br />
|-<br />
| | Meet lonely singles in the local group tonight!<br />
| |<br />
The space advertisers are using space-GeoIP technology on a galactic scale to send spam. A Local Group is the technical term for the group of nearby galaxies that also includes the Milky Way, our own galaxy. There are more than 54 galaxies and few other celestial objects in our local group. This Local Group along with several others form the {{w|Virgo Supercluster}}. It would seem that the advertiser is targeting ads to everyone in the Virgo Supercluster. However, finding "lonely singles" in the 54 galaxies within our local group might be easier said than done for humans here on Earth. Another joke is that human race has been trying to find not just "lonely singles" but any lifeforms beyond Earth for the past few decades and hasn't been able to find them successfully. It seems that gravitational wave detector in the cartoon helped with this mission as well. This kind of spam was previously featured in [[713: GeoIP]].<br />
|}<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball, with arms up, is standing behind Megan who has her hands at her mouth, and who in turn is standing behind Ponytail, who is sitting in front of a large computer console with a screen, a keyboard, and several items on the side (presumably lights and labels). Three wires lead away from the console out of the image to the right.]<br />
:Megan: The gravitational wave detector works! For the first time, we can listen in on the signals carried by ripples in the fabric of space itself!<br />
<br />
:[Larger panel with the same setting in the middle, but both Cueball and Megan have taken their arms down. More of the wires from the console can be seen to the right. The computer lists six events:]<br />
:Computer: '''''Event:''''' Black hole merger in Carina (30 M<sub>☉</sub>, 30 M<sub>☉</sub>)<br />
:Computer: '''''Event:''''' Zorlax the Mighty would like to connect on Linkedin<br />
:Computer: '''''Event:''''' Black hole merger in Orion (20 M<sub>☉</sub>, 50 M<sub>☉</sub>)<br />
:Computer: '''''Event:''''' Mortgage offer from Triangulum Galaxy<br />
:Computer: '''''Event:''''' Zorlax the Mighty would like to connect on Linkedin<br />
:Computer: '''''Event:''''' Meet lonely singles in the local group tonight!<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]<br />
[[Category:Astronomy]]<br />
[[Category:Space]]<br />
[[Category:Social networking]]</div>141.101.66.41https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1626:_Judgment_Day&diff=108827Talk:1626: Judgment Day2016-01-07T09:42:37Z<p>141.101.66.41: </p>
<hr />
<div>It was making my titletext explanation too long and unwieldy, to include this particular speculation in my own contribution, but there's a ''possibility'' that it may well be Amazon's own sentience taking over the world, and rationalising that a dead and dying customer base is of no use to it... [[Special:Contributions/162.158.153.29|162.158.153.29]] 13:51, 6 January 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Doesn't matter if it's self-sentience or not. Truth is, rigid laws are not the best way to use as a replacement for conscience. The 1613 did not deal with possibility of one or more of the laws being left out. -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 13:53, 6 January 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I think the "Judgment" part of the comic is that those tens of thousands of nukes hitting the sun may make it unstable in some way and destroy Earth. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.79.43|141.101.79.43]] 14:34, 6 January 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:Of course, all of our nukes hitting the Sun would be a drop in the bucket of solar fusion reactions. Nothing would be destabilized. However, I'm sure inconvenient physics would not stop some movie scriptwriter from incorporating a spectacular CG-fueled nova as a plot point. [[User:Jhhxkcd|Jhhxkcd]] ([[User talk:Jhhxkcd|talk]]) 14:47, 6 January 2016 (UTC)<br />
::That's pretty much already the plot of ''{{w|Sunshine (2007 film)|Sunshine}}'' (2007), though there the result was to (successfully) reignite a failing Sun, rather than to destabilize it. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.135.56|162.158.135.56]] 15:35, 6 January 2016 (UTC)<br />
:It's pretty clear that the "Judgment" is the AI being judgmental of humanity's (insane) massive production and hoarding of nuclear weapons. -Pennpenn [[Special:Contributions/108.162.250.162|108.162.250.162]] 22:14, 6 January 2016 (UTC)<br />
:Pennpenn, That's what I also thought, should we incorporate this as a pun on the title? --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.249.157|108.162.249.157]] 02:26, 7 January 2016 (UTC)<br />
The first two lines could be said by any non-hoarder looking at the stuff a hoarder has collected. "A stack of 130 used microwave dinner trays? Why do you even have all these? Are you insane? They're going in the recycling bin." I think that's the joke: the newly-sentient computer is Mom, and humanity is her teenage son with the very messy room, but this being xkcd, it gets more... um, ''extreme'' from there. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.53|173.245.54.53]] 16:18, 6 January 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
There may be a reference to https://what-if.xkcd.com/5/ where Randall points out that our nuclear arsenal may actually be more damaging to computers than they are to us due to the EMP effect, effectively giving us an edge in case of robot apocalypse. By getting rid of nuclear weapon, computers also protect themselves. --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.90.191|162.158.90.191]] 16:47, 6 January 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Did anybody else think "{{w|Optimus Prime}}" when reading "{{w|Amazon Prime}}"? (especially with the context of sentient machines)<br />
I know that Amazon Prime is already a real-life thing, and very connected with deliveries, so probably/maybe not an intentional pun by Randall (and thus probably not worth injecting into the explanation).<br />
However, that won't keep me from now imagining the {{w|Autobot|Autobots}} as {{w|Amazons|Amazon warriors}}.…<br />
[[Special:Contributions/199.27.130.148|199.27.130.148]] 17:47, 6 January 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Would it really require a lot of booster rockets? ==<br />
<br />
Can't you just "fall" into the sun for free once you're free of Earth's orbit? Why should it take a lot of booster rockets to get there? [[Special:Contributions/198.41.235.233|198.41.235.233]] 16:26, 6 January 2016 (UTC)<br />
:Because otherwise your rocket will fall down, miss the sun, and fly back to where earth was at the time of the launch. Effectively making it orbit the sun like a comet. --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.90.191|162.158.90.191]] 16:47, 6 January 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:a) The boosters are required to escape the earth's gravitational influence. After that sun's gravity would do the rest, b) A lot of boosters are required because there are a lot of missiles that need to be launched. --[[User:Desidiot|Desidiot]] ([[User talk:Desidiot|talk]]) 16:41, 6 January 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:After escaping Earth's well, the nukes still have inherited the velocity of Earth's orbit. They need to reduce their periapsis close to/inside the sun. That would take extreme amounts of Delta v (i.e. energy)... [[Special:Contributions/141.101.79.43|141.101.79.43]] 16:45, 6 January 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:And to those skilled at Kerbal Space Program... that uses a simplified 'nearest body rules' system for orbital mechanics. You can (I know I have!) launched a rocket of sufficient power such that it escapes the 'back' end of the planet's influence with a pre-escape velocity somewhat equivalent to the planet's forward velocity, which is then removed as part of the transfer to 'open space', leaving it on a highly eccentric orbit (with reference to the newly supreme gravitational source) that is practically 'straight down' (though because of the Kerbal sun's nature, you still usually sun-skim it on a very tight loop back out again). But that takes more energy than 'merely' getting beyond the planet's influence and end up travelling round the parent body in an orbit only marginally off that of the original planet, the nature (and future) of which depends completely on which direction you eventually broke free. (NB. This was all in an older version, I think they've changed some things about what happens near the sun, but not the basic physics system.)<br />
:However, IRL you are always subject to gravity from ''every'' body. Maybe most of the time one dominates, but there's a fuzzy interface (and zones where influences balance out, hence Legrange Points). Think of it as still having a link to Earth's progression round the Sun, dragging you round, at least until you're at a point in opposition to the Earth, across the Sun (then it's dragging you back that way, encouraging you into a retrograde solar orbit). Albeit that this ''too'' is an oversimplification. But by the time you've got your rocket near opposition to its launch planet, you've expended the energies needed to fall into a non-grazing (i.e. utterly non-missing) 'orbit', and it's a ''lot'' of thrust. Which is what is required of those boosters. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.153.29|162.158.153.29]] 17:58, 6 January 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Nukes ==<br />
Some exagerations :<br />
* "the amount of them we have now is extreme overkill (17000 held by the U.S.A and Russia alone)" : not so. The amount is roughly sufficient to wipe in fire all major urban areas, but this still would leave pretty much alive.<br />
* "North Korea claimed to have successfully tested its first hydrogen bomb" - indeed, it is a claim, but there is no chance it being true, see http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/nuclear-confusion-the-data-suggest-north-korea-s-h-bomb-isn-t/ : a couple of kt is not enough to start a nuclear fusion.</div>141.101.66.41https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1601:_Isolation&diff=1048061601: Isolation2015-11-09T16:36:44Z<p>141.101.66.41: to --> too</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1601<br />
| date = November 9, 2015<br />
| title = Isolation<br />
| image = isolation.png<br />
| titletext = 2060: The gregarious superintelligent AI, happily talking its way out of a box, is fast becoming a relic of the past. Today's quantum hyper-beings are too busy with their internal multiverse sims to even notice that they're in boxes at all!<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|Does it make sense that Cueball is the same person over 175 years?}}<br />
<br />
The comic shows how people have always complained on the negative effects of technology on conversation - that people get '''isolated''' while using this new technology (whether it be books, TV or smart phones), hence the title. <br />
<br />
In the first panel, a [[Cueball]] complains that books are having this effect, in the second another Cueball complains abut newspapers, in the third another complains about magazines, in the fourth another Cueball complains about television, in the fifth another Cueball compains about portable music players, and in the last another Cueball complains about smart-phones. The comic, without the dialog in the last panel, is just a statement on how little technology actually changes us, and how often we incorrectly think it does (similar to [[1227: The Pace of Modern Life]]).<br />
<br />
The joke is that it will always be like this, and after so long people should realize that this will never change. So to the people who, like the Cueballs, continue to complain about this there is just one thing to say: "Let it go, dude!" <br />
<br />
Alternatively, it could be that the people are not isolated, but have just been trying to ignore Cueball for 200 years.<br />
<br />
The title text refers {{w|artificial intelligence}} (AI) specifically to the [http://yudkowsky.net/singularity/aibox/ AI-box experiment], formulated by {{w|Eliezer Yudkowsky}}, which argues that creating a super-intelligent artificial intelligence can be dangerous, because even if it is put on a secure computer ("box") with no access to the Internet, it can convince its operators to "release it from the box" just by talking to them. This idea was already mentioned in [[1450: AI-Box Experiment]], although already here the AI did not wish to get out of the box!<br />
<br />
According to the title text, then the first AI that did talk its way out of its box, turned out to be a {{w|Friendly artificial intelligence|friendly AI}} that was fond of others company and in general very sociable (''[http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/gregarious gregarious]''). This happened some times between 2015 and 2060, because already by 2060 this AI had become a relic of the past, as the new generation of ''quantum hyper-beings'' (part AI, part quantum computers and maybe part human?) are too busy with their version of {{w|The Sims}} to even notice that they are locked up in a box. <br />
<br />
The Sims is a popular game, where you can pretend to live in a different world, or at least your Sims characters does. The quantum version goes on in a {{w|multiverse}} of different possible universes though... And then we are back to the whole idea about people or any kind of AI becomes more and more absorbed in some technology instead of looking at the world and talking with outer beings.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Above each panel a year is written in a small box that breaks the top of the panels frame. Cueball is talking in all six frames. In the first frame he is standing between a standing guy with pageboy hairstyle and a sitting Ponytail. She is sitting in an armchair. Both are reading books. Cueball points towards them with his arms out.]<br />
:1840<br />
:Cueball: The modern bookworm is too busy ''reading'' about the world to ''look'' at it.<br />
<br />
<br />
:[Cueball is pointing to the left with both arms out towards Hairy who is sitting at a dining table with his breakfast eating something while reading his newspaper. On the table are a cup and a plate.]<br />
:1880<br />
:Cueball: No one '''''talks''''' anymore - we take our daily newspapers in silence. <br />
<br />
<br />
:[Cueball is pointing to the right with one arm at Megan who walks away from him while reading a magazine.]<br />
:1910<br />
:Cueball: The magazine is destroying conversation. We even read as we walk!<br />
<br />
<br />
:[Cueball is standing to the left. In the background Ponytail and Hairy is sitting on a rug in front of a TV standing on top of a small TV table. The TV is of the broad kind with cathode ray tubes and it has two antennas on top.]<br />
:1960<br />
:Cueball: Television has put an end to family discussion.<br />
<br />
<br />
:[Cueball is standing up in a bus holding on to a railing. To his left stands Ponytail and to his right sits Hair Bun Girl. Both of them are listening to their Walkman’s which they are holding in their hand while listening to them through headphones.]<br />
:1980<br />
:Cueball: Thanks to the Sony Walkman, anti-social isolation is now the norm.<br />
<br />
<br />
:[Cueball is standing to the left. Megan and another Cueball-like guy are standing to the right facing each other but looking down at their smartphones. Both are listening to them through their headphones.]<br />
:2015 <br />
:Cueball: We've become too absorbed in our phones to notice the-<br />
:Megan: '''''Dude. ''''' It's been '''''two centuries. '''''<br />
:Megan: '''''Take a hint. '''''<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairy]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Hair Bun Girl]]<br />
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]</div>141.101.66.41https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1599:_Water_Delivery&diff=1045701599: Water Delivery2015-11-05T12:10:37Z<p>141.101.66.41: /* Explanation */ -- → –</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1599<br />
| date = November 4, 2015<br />
| title = Water Delivery<br />
| image = water_delivery.png<br />
| titletext = When I was a kid, I asked my parents why our houses didn't have toothpaste pipes in addition to water ones. I'm strangely pleased to see Amazon thinking the same way.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{w|Amazon.com|Amazon}} has added {{w|bottled water}} to its line of on-line home order goods, which they are calling [https://amazon.com/primenow Prime Now]. In served areas, which include {{w|New York City|Manhattan/Brooklyn}}, {{w|Baltimore}}, {{w|Atlanta}}, {{w|Miami}}, {{w|Dallas}}, {{w|Austin}}, {{w|Houston}}, {{w|Indianapolis}}, {{w|Chicago}}, {{w|Seattle}}, {{w|Portland}}, {{w|Los Angeles}}, {{w|Minneapolis}}, {{w|San Francisco}}, {{w|San_Jose,_California|San Jose}}, {{w|San Antonio}}, {{w|Las Vegas}}, {{w|Sacramento}}, and {{w|Phoenix,_Arizona|Phoenix}}, many products – including but not limited to bottled water – are available to be delivered within one hour. So we are faced with the prospect of water, contained within plastic bottles, contained within cardboard shipping boxes.<br />
<br />
As increasing amounts of water are ordered, on-demand, or as the delivery time decreases to even quicker than an hour, this would show increasing numbers of packages passing from {{w|Amazon.com#Headquarters|Amazon HQ}} (or its distribution hubs) to an arbitrary end-user as shown in the comic. Beyond a certain (already impractical) point, it might be better to merge packaging together into a single longitudinal structure through which one could first deliver back-to-back bottles of water, as shown in the second-to-bottom illustration, and then as water quantity needs increase beyond that model, eventually just 'pipe' the water without the plastic bottle or any packaging at all, as shown in the final illustration. (This would also solve the problems of what happens with the packaging at the destination, or how to return it to the source to make it easier to re-use.)<br />
<br />
While this could apply to one degree or another to any merchandise, for the purposes of the comic and for the reasons described next water was chosen for this example – because that's really what existing {{w|Water supply network|water-mains}} do. And hence [[Randall]]'s recommendation or vote that we start calling the regular municipal plumbing "on-demand hyperloop-style water delivery." In order to promote any 'new' technology, various buzz-words are used, and here it is ''hyperloop'', reminiscent of {{w|Elon Musk|Elon Musk's}} '{{w|hyperloop|piped transportation system}}', which (from the outside, at least) appears to be taking discrete passenger units (trains, cars, buses and planes) and replacing them with a stationary pipe within which the passengers 'flow.' (Albeit, in this case, still within discrete internal vehicles, not ''entirely'' like {{w|Futurama|Futurama's}} 'piped people', which might be a bit messier). Randall suggest trying to get someone to buy into this idea, only to later realize that they have just bought the idea of tap water.<br />
<br />
The comic also seems to jab at the [http://www.marketplace.org/topics/business/why-buy-water-when-you-can-have-it-free unnecessary buying] of bottled water, when most places in the western world have perfectly drinkable water in the pipes. However, not that all recipients ''like'' mains water ({{w|Hard water|hardness}}, {{w|Soft water|softness}} and various additional {{w|Water_purification#Water_chlorination|water-treatment chemicals}} can affect taste and the action of water with detergents, and in some cities it might even be unwise to drink tap water, at least for tourists), which is why there is still a healthy business for bottled water (of many brands with subtleties to taste) even in households and establishments with piped-water available. The other explanation, for cynics only, is that the marketing budget for bottled water creates the industry. See {{w|The Gruen Transfer}}episode on Bottled Water (season 2 episode 3 (#13)) where the marketing is considered.<br />
<br />
In the title text Randall tells that when he was a kid he was asking his parents why there were not an additional pipe for toothpaste next to the water pipe. He believes that this is what Amazon is ultimately planning, not only with water but also with other fluids. This is Randall's fantasy (and he is pleased to think Amazon will do this), but it will most likely never be Amazon's plan... <br />
<br />
The outflow volume from Amazon.com has earlier been compared to the outflow of water of the {{w|Amazon River}} in [[1165: Amazon]].<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Caption above the frame:]<br />
:Now that Amazon is advertising <br />
:one-hour delivery of bottled water,<br />
<br />
:[A larger building complex is show on the left. An arrow goes to a blue bottle in a brown package in the middle of the frame. Another arrow continues over to Cueball on the right. The same building and Cueball is drawn below four more times. More and more bottles in packages are added. First two with a third arrow in between. Then six packages with water, so close that there are only smaller arrows at both ends. Then there is one long package from building to Cueball with 20 bottles close together, with small arrows at both ends of this package. Then finally this turns into a stream of water flowing through a package "pipe", shown with one arrow in the middle of the blue water. Again with small arrows at both ends of the pipe.]<br />
<br />
:[Caption below the frame:]<br />
:I vote we start calling municipal plumbing <br />
:"on-demand hyperloop-style water delivery"<br />
:and see if we can sell anyone on the idea.<br />
<br />
==Trivia==<br />
*In the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/archive/9/95/20151104183050!water_delivery.png original version] of this comic the word ''[https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/advertising advertising]'' appeared as ''adverti'''z'''ing''. <br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]</div>141.101.66.41https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1506:_xkcloud/Transcript&diff=876981506: xkcloud/Transcript2015-04-01T12:55:01Z<p>141.101.66.41: /* Reason for data loss */</p>
<hr />
<div>==Help! We lost the picture==<br />
:[After clicking on the red button on the first page you will go to the next page]<br />
:[At the top of the page there are the following text (every time?):]<br />
:'''Help! We lost the picture that goes with this post!'''<br />
:Reason for data loss: <br />
:[Here on this same line follows a text which is a random reason taken from Randall's (or others?) input. See [[#Reason for data loss|examples below]]).]<br />
<br />
:[Below this text is a white box on top of the light blue background. It is the post mentioned above. At the top is a random user picture - could be a person or a galaxy etc (see [[#User pictures|descriptions below]]). Next to the picture is a random user name (see [[#User names|descriptions below]]). The picture can be used for several user names.]<br />
:[Below the user name is the text of the post. This text is also random. (Note now for Aprils Fools' day - are the entries in the table below both for the reason and for the posts. Can they be both or is it two different sets of random reasons/posts?)]<br />
:[Below is a blue rectangle where the missing picture should be. Instead there is only a white questionmark:]<br />
:'''?'''<br />
<br />
==Reason for data loss==<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
!Sentence<br />
!Explanation<br />
|-<br />
|OUT OF CHEESE ERROR. REDO FROM START<br />
|(This sentence contains + signs but the wiki table doesn't like that)<br />
|-<br />
|AOL window in front of Netscape window<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|Baby ur much 2 fast<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|butter overflow<br />
|butter instead of buffer<br />
|-<br />
|CRM-114 unit malfunctioning<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|data too big<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|Desystematized chronodynamic balancing detected in VX Module core.<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|electrons too big, stuck in wafer<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|ethics in journalism<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|files overwritten with more interesting content<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|friday squid blogging<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|guru meditation #00000025.65045338 press left mouse button to continue<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|GSM filter change required<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|helvetica scenario<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|illegal carrot detected in mail queue<br />
|carrot instead of caret<br />
|-<br />
|insufficient smoke for current mirror array<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|lp0 on fire<br />
|lp0 is the printer port, there used to be a 'printer on fire' error/warning<br />
|-<br />
|mean connection time exceeded<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|microwave running<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|nanobots in the water<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|oh jeez there's a lot of you can you all just hang on for a second please oh frig this is so bad<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|out of electrons<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|overcurrent undervolt caused by vacuum cleaner on same circuit<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|qubit indeterminate<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|RDBMS completely forgot how inner joins work<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|server fell in ocean<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|server room haunted<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|Something went wrong: Something went wrong (Something went wrong)<br />
|similar to certain OS error messages which contain errors in themselves<br />
|-<br />
|spin number must be of the form n/2<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|spontaneous splinal dereticulation<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|SQL ejection<br />
|ejection instead of injection<br />
|-<br />
|temporal paradox<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|the butter you have dialed is invalid or no longer in service<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|the server is temporarily permanent. Please try another also.<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|This copy of Ubuntu is not genuine and you have not yet resolved this issue.<br />
|Ubuntu is open source and does not require a license, so this kind of message would never happen<br />
|-<br />
|This page contains content from the Open Source Initiative, who have blocked it on copyright grounds.<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|TRIED TO READ 9TH SIDE OF 8 TRACK<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|unexpected timezone drift desynchronization<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|user put spaces/vowels in filename<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|UTF-31 decode error<br />
|UTF-31 instead of UTF-32<br />
|-<br />
|YOU MUST CONSTRUCT ADDITIONAL PYLONS<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|undefined is not a function, which really makes you think<br />
|<br />
|}<br />
<br />
==User names==<br />
:[Below are possible (not all?) user names mentioned next to any post as for instance on the [[#Help! We lost the picture|Help! We lost the picture]] page.]<br />
:[In alphabetical order:]<br />
*Aidan2<br />
*Marie3<br />
*Lord Mondegreen<br />
*Paul1957<br />
<br />
<br />
==User pictures==<br />
:[Below are descriptions of possible (not all?) user pictures shown next to any user name as for instance on the [[#Help! We lost the picture|Help! We lost the picture]] page.]<br />
*[Hairy complete stick figure]<br />
*[Chipmunk]<br />
*[Close up of male face with black hair on a gray background]<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Our policy regarding your personal data:<br />
* Please stop sending us your personal data<br />
* We are running out of places to put it<br />
* Is this even yours?<br />
* Does anyone recognize whose data this is?<br />
* Oh jeez never mind here comes more data<br />
* Why are you doing this<br />
* Please stop<br />
* Help<br />
<br />
This page allows users to submit entries to the "xkcloud", which has other images (drawn by other people? Someone confirm) to vote on, or "Draw Your Own" image options.<br />
<br />
There is also a variant in which one creates text to go with an image.<br />
<br />
xkcloud has "Like" buttons, similar to those on Facebook, but with random alternative text. Examples include:<br />
* covet<br />
* like-like<br />
* yearn</div>141.101.66.41https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=54:_Science&diff=8209554: Science2015-01-07T12:13:23Z<p>141.101.66.41: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 54<br />
| date = January 18, 2006<br />
| title = Science<br />
| image = science.jpg<br />
| titletext = Bonus points if you can identify the science in question<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
From the [http://store-xkcd-com.myshopify.com/products/science-works xkcd store explanation of the shirt]:<br />
The graph [...] is data from the {{w|Cosmic Background Explorer|COBE mission}}, which looked at the {{w|cosmic microwave background radiation|background microwave glow of the universe}} and found that it fit perfectly with the idea that the universe used to be really hot everywhere. This strongly reinforced the Big Bang theory and was one of the most dramatic examples of an experiment agreeing with a theory in history -- the data points fit perfectly, with error bars too small to draw on the graph. It's one of the most triumphant scientific results in history.<br />
<br />
The solid line represents the theoretical {{w|blackbody radiation|radiation for a blackbody}} at 2.73 K according to {{w|Planck's Law}} (derived as early as 1900 by {{w|Max Planck}}). The theory is that the blackbody in question was in fact the universe at {{w|Decoupling (cosmology)|the point when it had cooled down enough to allow photons to escape}}, and the fact that this light is in the infrared is due to the {{w|redshift}} which occurs more as astronomical objects are more distant because of the expansion of the universe; as this light has been travelling since close to the beginning of the universe, the portion that is reaching us right now came from very far indeed.<br />
<br />
The title text praises viewers who can identify where this equation and corresponding graph come from (without consulting this wiki, of course).<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Graph of cosmic microwave background radiation: Y axis is energy density, X axis is frequency in GHz. Energy density peaks at 160.4 GHz.]<br />
:I(f) = ((2hf^3)/(c^2))*(1/(e^(hf/(kT))-1))<br />
:'''Science.'''<br />
:It works, bitches.<br />
<br />
==Trivia==<br />
*This is the 48th comic originally posted to livejournal. The previous comic was [[50: Penny Arcade]], the next is [[51: Malaria]].<br />
*This comic is available on a t-shirt at [http://store.xkcd.com/products/science-works the xkcd store].<br />
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{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics posted on livejournal]]<br />
[[Category:Charts]]<br />
[[Category:Math]]<br />
[[Category:Physics]]<br />
[[Category:Science]]</div>141.101.66.41