https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/api.php?action=feedcontributions&user=162.158.63.76&feedformat=atomexplain xkcd - User contributions [en]2024-03-28T21:38:00ZUser contributionsMediaWiki 1.30.0https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:2905:_Supergroup&diff=337142Talk:2905: Supergroup2024-03-12T07:10:27Z<p>162.158.63.76: </p>
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== Title text ==<br />
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Isn't the sum in the title text wrong? It should be ''99 Luftballoons'' (or the English cover ''99 Red Balloons'') + ''101 Dalmatians'' + ''I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)'' = 700 balloons, dalmatians and miles (not 1,200).--[[Special:Contributions/141.101.69.103|141.101.69.103]]<br />
:Maybe it's about Vanessa Carlton's "A Thousand Miles"? [[Special:Contributions/172.69.65.245|172.69.65.245]] 22:13, 11 March 2024 (UTC)<br />
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"cover" implies that the combined song already exists and was performed by some other group. I would expect that this supergroup would have created the medley themselves, to fit their particular genre. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 22:23, 11 March 2024 (UTC)<br />
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"101 Dalmations" isn't a well known song AFAIK. It was written as the title song of the Disney movie, but wasn't actually used. Wikipedia says it got released on other albums. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 22:38, 11 March 2024 (UTC)<br />
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== Comic ==<br />
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I don't know all the bands, but it looks like they are: 21 Pilots, 5 Seconds of Summer, 4 Non Blondes, 2 Live Crew, 100 GEC, 3 Doors Down, 9 Inch Nails, 1 Republic, 1 Direction, 30 Seconds to Mars.<br />
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== Missed Opportunity ==<br />
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I am surprised there were no references to orthosymplectic or superunitary groups.<br />
:That's what I originally thought the joke would be about. This is much more mundane. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 22:34, 11 March 2024 (UTC)<br />
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== extras ==<br />
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throw in:<br />
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- {{w|23 Skidoo (band)|23 Skidoo}}<br />
- {{w|400 Blows (British band)|400 Blows}}<br />
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--[[Special:Contributions/162.158.63.76|162.158.63.76]] 07:10, 12 March 2024 (UTC)</div>162.158.63.76https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1226:_Balloon_Internet&diff=1750671226: Balloon Internet2019-06-09T22:37:07Z<p>162.158.63.76: /* Transcript */ fixed spelling error</p>
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<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1226<br />
| date = June 17, 2013<br />
| title = Balloon Internet<br />
| image = balloon_internet.png<br />
| titletext = I run a business selling rural internet access. My infrastructure consists of a bunch of Verizon wifi hotspots that I sign up for and then cancel at the end of the 14-day return period.<br />
}}<br />
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==Explanation==<br />
The comic references Google's new {{w|Project Loon}}, a balloon powered Internet service which was officially announced June 14, 2013 and was in proof-of-concept testing stages by that time. A test above New Zealand, involving about 30 balloons and about 50 users, was successfully conducted on June 16. The project, taglined "Internet for Everyone", is intended to eventually provide Internet access to people in rural areas and in disaster areas that have limited or no access to land-based Internet services.<br />
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[[Randall]] is poking fun at the tagline "Internet for Everyone" — meant to mean anyone could have Internet access regardless of location — by instead literally bringing the Internet to [[Cueball]], who retired in a deserted area, away from all technology, to read a standard paper book. In the comic, one of the balloons sneaks up on Cueball before speaking and startling Cueball, effectively becoming a nuisance, interrupting Cueball's reading of a book and leaving Cueball wondering what has happened. In Randall's world, the tagline could be restated as "Internet for Everyone — whether they want it or not".<br />
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The title text describes Randall's own plan to provide rural internet. He will operate in a region where Verizon {{w|Wi-Fi}} infrastructure already exists, and take advantage of their 14-day return policy to effectively obtain internet access for free, which he will then sell under his own brand.<br />
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==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball sits on a hill reading a book.]<br />
:[Cueball remains engrossed in the book. A balloon with a box at the end of the string begins to descend behind him.]<br />
:[Cueball continues reading. The balloon is getting lower.]<br />
:[The balloon's box is now right behind Cueball's ear.]<br />
:Balloon box: ''Internet''.<br />
:Cueball: Augh!<br />
:[Cueball throws the book in surprise.]<br />
:[The balloon ascends rapidly, while the startled Cueball looks up.]<br />
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{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Internet]]</div>162.158.63.76https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1902:_State_Borders&diff=146632Talk:1902: State Borders2017-10-14T03:34:16Z<p>162.158.63.76: </p>
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Let's be honest- it should ''all'' be Canada. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.74.123|162.158.74.123]] 12:24, 13 October 2017 (UTC)<br />
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Could Arizona, New Mexico be a reference to Trump? Like, make the border straighter so it's easier to build a wall? [[User:Herobrine|Herobrine]] ([[User talk:Herobrine|talk]]) 12:35, 13 October 2017 (UTC)<br />
:More likely the joke is that conceding territory to Mexico is about the last thing Trump would do [[User:AnotherAnonymous|AnotherAnonymous]] ([[User talk:AnotherAnonymous|talk]]) 13:04, 13 October 2017 (UTC)<br />
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My first thought is to wonder if it would be possible to arrange the map such that all internal borders are "straight lines" that span the entire country, to satisfy as many criteria as possible:<br />
* The number of states remains unchanged<br />
** …and they all get to keep their capitals (probably quite difficult)<br />
*** …or (and?) each state manages to keep either its current population, land area, or coastline length<br />
* Or all internal borders are parallels or meridians<br />
* Or all states have the same land area<br />
** …or population; or population density<br />
* Or if you're allowing more (or fewer) states than the present layout, what's the greatest number of states possible such that they all contain at least one complete city?<br />
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Which of those criteria would be the most interesting challenge? And which could you construct an algorithm to solve?<br />
I really should refrain from trying to build those algorithms, because I'm supposed to be working --[[User:Angel|Angel]] ([[User talk:Angel|talk]]) 13:28, 13 October 2017 (UTC)<br />
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There are some great videos on YouTube about weird State boundaries. There are some REALLY weird oddities out there. Take for instance the "Give to Canada" piece - that's the Northwest Angle in Minnesota. It's really an accident that it ever ended up in the USA at all, and doesn't make any sense! [[User:Martini|Martini]] ([[User talk:Martini|talk]]) 13:40, 13 October 2017 (UTC)Martini<br />
:I wouldn't call the NW Angle an accident as much as a slightly illogical solution in order to maintain the terms of the original border agreement in the face of the Mississippi River's inconveniently located headwaters. My recollection is that it said roughly: the border goes west of <this> point until reaching the Mississippi river [which all parties assumed continued that far north]. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.40|108.162.216.40]] 14:13, 13 October 2017 (UTC)<br />
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I believe Randall's overall point is that though a large part of the individual United States have straight boundaries, especially in the West, or other features that are aesthetically pleasing, as in the S Carolina/Georgia/Florida coastline, there are a good number of internal inconsistencies. Many of these (most of the untagged "fixes") can be attributed to the concept that "Rivers make good logical boundaries", but even then, if you look closer, there are some really puzzling bits: <br />
* The "Give To Canada" bit of Minnesota is almost all Indian Reservation land, so that kind of makes sense...<br />
* The "Fix this thing" in Missouri is even stranger than it initially looks - while the notch in Arkansas is caused by the Mississippi River, there is a large bight of land in the middle of the Missouri-owned bit that is actually Kentucky (yes, there's an island of Kentucky that is separate from the main Kentucky state and entirely surrounded by Missouri)<br />
* Not edited, but equally odd is the dip Florida cuts into Georgia near the east coast - there's no apparent town or natural features there to cause that irregularity <br />
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I don't happen to think the Arizona/New Mexico bits are political commentary, just "the entire rest of the state is a box, make this a straight line, too." cleanup. I mean yes, it would make wall-building easier, theoretically, but the Chinese showed the world centuries ago that straight lines are not needed to build a big fricking wall. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.131|108.162.238.131]] 14:23, 13 October 2017 (UTC)<br />
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- While I agree it probably isn't conscious political commentary, its interesting that there are not places the border increases; always concessions, never gains. May take into account its easier to give than take territory? --[[User:Jgt|Jgt]] ([[User talk:Jgt|talk]]) 19:32, 13 October 2017 (UTC)--[[User:Jgt|Jgt]] ([[User talk:Jgt|talk]]) 19:33, 13 October 2017 (UTC)<br />
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I'm surprised Randall didn't suggest cleaning up Point Roberts as well [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Point_Roberts,_Washington]. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.107.174|141.101.107.174]] 14:33, 13 October 2017 (UTC)<br />
: Presumably the graphic designers are okay with that, since it maintains the 49th Parallel as a nice, tidy border. [[User:Wwoods|Wwoods]] ([[User talk:Wwoods|talk]]) 20:18, 13 October 2017 (UTC)<br />
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I'm shocked he didn't support fixing the Idaho/Wisconsin/Montana/Oregon border. That top part should be either given to Montana, or split between Washington and Oregon... I wonder if he left out certain things in order to avoid offending certain groups of people. Like suggesting that Rhode Island and Connecticut should probably be one state, or that Vermont and New Hampshire should be as well. [[User:Kashim|Kashim]] ([[User talk:Kashim|talk]]) 17:03, 13 October 2017 (UTC)<br />
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Some of the suggestions are ironic, for example Michigan's upper peninsula actually used to be part of the Wisconsin territory, but it was ceded to Michigan in exchange for the port of Toledo being ceded to Ohio. "why does Florida get Alabama's coastline" is actually because Alabama got part of Florida's coastline so it wouldn't be landlocked. The bit of Nevada that he wants to fix it so Nevada has territory along the Colorado River [[Special:Contributions/162.158.75.250|162.158.75.250]] 17:18, 13 October 2017 (UTC)<br />
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Nobody seems to have noticed that Delaware's curved northern border has been flattened (removing Wilmington). [[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.83|108.162.238.83]] 21:31, 13 October 2017 (UTC)<br />
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One significant thing about this map is that, under this map, Hillary Clinton may have won the 2016 election. Citations needed, but I've seen it said that if the Upper Peninsula were moved from Michigan to Wisconsin and the Florida Panhandle were moved to Alabama, Clinton would have won Michigan and Florida, giving her an Electoral College majority. I don't think the Upper Peninsula has enough population to cost Michigan an electoral vote, and I think Florida would lose two electoral votes, putting Clinton exactly at the 270 needed to win. Perhaps the changes around Colorado and Nevada would make a difference, although there were also five faithless Clinton electors who might have voted for her if it would have made a difference. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.4|108.162.219.4]] 01:45, 14 October 2017 (UTC)<br />
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Good curve! The curve is called the Georgia Bight, or less euphoniously, the South Atlantic Bight. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.63.76|162.158.63.76]] 03:34, 14 October 2017 (UTC)</div>162.158.63.76