https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/api.php?action=feedcontributions&user=Andries&feedformat=atomexplain xkcd - User contributions [en]2024-03-29T02:01:01ZUser contributionsMediaWiki 1.30.0https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1635:_Birdsong&diff=1100471635: Birdsong2016-01-27T07:31:29Z<p>Andries: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1635<br />
| date = January 27, 2016<br />
| title = Birdsong<br />
| image = birdsong.png<br />
| titletext = Maybe if I put it in a box for a while with a speaker playing some pleasant pastoral music, I can reprogram it.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
The comic shows Cueball walking along with a bird singing in the background; Cueball is apparently enjoying the perfect morning and the birdsong. In the next panel, it become apparent that the bird is actually singing the words to the song Smooth [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ce1r05SSbwA] by Santana featuring Rob Thomas of Matchbox Twenty. The bird's singing begins to annoy Cueball, so he chases the bird with a net and attempts to catch it. The bird continues with its song.<br />
<br />
The comic is a title on the words 'bird' and 'song'. Birds, of course, don't actually sing: the sounds they make are territorial challenges, mating cries, etc. But in Western cultural traditions, particularly the pastoral one, imagining these sounds as 'song' is part of seeing nature as beautiful and harmonious. Ironically, the fact that this bird is really singing urban pop music, is perceived by Cueball to be an intrusion. Playing pastoral music to 'reprogram' the bird is of course an even more unnatural intervention - all with the purpose of restoring the pastoral naturalness of the morning.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
{{incomplete transcript}}<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Animals]]<br />
[[Category:Music]]<br />
[[Category:Programming]]</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1635:_Birdsong&diff=1100461635: Birdsong2016-01-27T07:25:30Z<p>Andries: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1635<br />
| date = January 27, 2016<br />
| title = Birdsong<br />
| image = birdsong.png<br />
| titletext = Maybe if I put it in a box for a while with a speaker playing some pleasant pastoral music, I can reprogram it.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
The comic shows Cueball walking along with a bird singing in the background; Cueball is apparently enjoying the perfect morning and the birdsong. In the next panel, it become apparent that the bird is actually singing the words to the song Smooth [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ce1r05SSbwA] by Santana featuring Rob Thomas of Matchbox Twenty. The bird's singing begins to annoy Cueball, so he chases the bird with a net and attempts to catch it. The title text and the comic itself appear to be a play on the words "bird" and "song."<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
{{incomplete transcript}}<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Animals]]<br />
[[Category:Music]]<br />
[[Category:Programming]]</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1490:_Atoms&diff=84944Talk:1490: Atoms2015-02-23T09:02:02Z<p>Andries: </p>
<hr />
<div>"My dad FORM the dog"? Typo in the actual comic or just the wiki?<br />
[[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.240|199.27.128.240]] 05:47, 23 February 2015 (UTC)Anonymous<br />
: The actual comment, the wiki just grabs what the website has listed.--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.24|108.162.216.24]] 05:56, 23 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
plutonium = radiation exposure, or pacemaker?<br />
: Radiation exposure wouldn't give you plutonium, maybe the byproducts of its fission. I'm thinking that, whatever it is, it mutated Beret Guy in the womb, hence why he has this strange superpower.--[[User:Druid816|Druid816]] ([[User talk:Druid816|talk]]) 06:52, 23 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
: Referencing Pink Floyd's 1970 album 'Atom Heart Mother' I think.--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.225.122|108.162.225.122]] 07:25, 23 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
this guy sees by which elements are contained, not by which visible light?<br />
--[[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.172|199.27.128.172]] 06:14, 23 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
Are the elements actually representing their atomic symbols? Be, O, S, Z? Not sure what the metal-in-the-face comment is about.<br />
--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.250.156|108.162.250.156]] 07:47, 23 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
: Metal in the face might be a comment on braces, and how uncomfortable people are about having noticable ones. --[[Special:Contributions/141.101.104.41|141.101.104.41]] 08:37, 23 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
Perhaps the plutonium is coming from his mother smoking? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.102|141.101.99.102]] 08:51, 23 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unethical_human_experimentation_in_the_United_States#Plutonium_experiments [[User:Andries|Andries]] ([[User talk:Andries|talk]]) 09:02, 23 February 2015 (UTC)</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1490:_Atoms&diff=849431490: Atoms2015-02-23T09:01:05Z<p>Andries: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1490<br />
| date = February 23, 2015<br />
| title = Atoms<br />
| image = atoms.png<br />
| titletext = When I was little I had trouble telling my dad apart form the dog. I always recognized my mom because she had a bunch of extra plutoniums in her middle. I never did ask her why ...<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
In this cartoon, Megan appears to be preparing some substance for chemical analysis. Beret guy seems to be able to tell what elements the substance is composed of just by eyeballing it. Megan finds this bizarre and asks him what is wrong with him. Beret guy responds by sharing that he suspects he contains too much zinc; missing Megan's point: what is weird is not Beret guy's zinc content, but his tendency to apparently see everyone as clouds of atoms.<br />
<br />
The cartoon continues the theme of Beret Guy's naïve misunderstandings of scientific terminology turning to be literally true: in another recent cartoon his ill-informed misinterpretation of the notion of energy in the vacuum resulted in him gaining significant superpowers.http://xkcd.com/1486/<br />
<br />
In the title text, the conceit is taken even further: Beret found his dad indistinguishable from a dog; and apparently could recognize his mother only because she contained plutonium - a very unusual occurrence that cannot possibly occur in nature -either she had a pacemaker, or she was the victim of unethical medical experimentation.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
{{incomplete transcript}}<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1490:_Atoms&diff=849421490: Atoms2015-02-23T08:59:11Z<p>Andries: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1490<br />
| date = February 23, 2015<br />
| title = Atoms<br />
| image = atoms.png<br />
| titletext = When I was little I had trouble telling my dad apart form the dog. I always recognized my mom because she had a bunch of extra plutoniums in her middle. I never did ask her why ...<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
In this cartoon, Megan appears to be preparing some substance for chemical analysis. Beret guy seems to be able to tell what elements the substance is composed of just by eyeballing it. Megan finds this bizarre and asks him what is wrong with him. Beret guy responds by sharing that he suspects he contains too much zinc; missing Megan's point: what is weird is not Beret guy's zinc content, but his tendency to apparently see everyone as clouds of atoms.<br />
<br />
The cartoon continues the theme of Beret'guy's naïve misunderstandings of scientific terminology turning to be literally true: in another recent cartoon his ill-informed misinterpretation of the notion of energy in the vacuum resulted in him gaining significant superpowers.<br />
<br />
In the title text, the conceit is taken even further: Beret found his dad indistinguishable from a dog; and apparently could recognize his mother only because she contained plutonium - a very unusual occurrence that cannot possibly occur in nature -either she had a pacemaker, or she was the victim of unethical medical experimentation.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
{{incomplete transcript}}<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1490:_Atoms&diff=849411490: Atoms2015-02-23T08:54:03Z<p>Andries: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1490<br />
| date = February 23, 2015<br />
| title = Atoms<br />
| image = atoms.png<br />
| titletext = When I was little I had trouble telling my dad apart form the dog. I always recognized my mom because she had a bunch of extra plutoniums in her middle. I never did ask her why ...<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
In this cartoon, Megan appears to be preparing some substance for chemical analysis. Beret guy seems to be able to tell what elements the substance is composed of just by eyeballing it. Megan finds this bizarre and asks him what is wrong with him. Beret guy responds by sharing that he suspects he contains too much zinc; missing Megan's point: what is weird is not Beret guy's zinc content, but his tendency to apparently see everyone as clouds of atoms.<br />
<br />
In the title text, the conceit is taken even further: Beret found his dad indistinguishable from a dog; and apparently could recognize his mother only because she contained plutonium - a very unusual occurrence that cannot possibly occur in nature -either she had a pacemaker, or she was the victim of unethical medical experimentation.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
{{incomplete transcript}}<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1490:_Atoms&diff=849401490: Atoms2015-02-23T08:52:00Z<p>Andries: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1490<br />
| date = February 23, 2015<br />
| title = Atoms<br />
| image = atoms.png<br />
| titletext = When I was little I had trouble telling my dad apart form the dog. I always recognized my mom because she had a bunch of extra plutoniums in her middle. I never did ask her why ...<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
In this cartoon, Megan appears to be preparing some substance for chemical analysis. Beret guy seems to be able to tell what elements the substance is composed of just by eyeballing it. Megan finds this bizarre and asks him what is wrong with him. Beret guy responds by sharing that he suspects he contains too much zinc; missing Megan's point: what is weird is not Beret guy's zinc content, but his tendency to apparently see everyone as clouds of atoms.<br />
<br />
In the title text, the conceit is taken even further: Beret found his dad indistinguishable from a dog; and apparently could recognize his mother only because she contained plutonium - a very unusual occurrence that cannot possibly occur in nature.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
{{incomplete transcript}}<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1486:_Vacuum&diff=844171486: Vacuum2015-02-13T10:07:07Z<p>Andries: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1486<br />
| date = February 13, 2015<br />
| title = Vacuum<br />
| image = vacuum.png<br />
| titletext = Do you think you could actually clean the living room at some point, though?<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
According to quantum mechanics there is tremendous energy density in space-time itself: this is known as: vacuum energy, zero point energy, vacuum foam, etc. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vacuum_energy]<br />
Of course, this energy is not literally available to be tapped.<br />
<br />
In the cartoon, Beret Guy appears to be making a silly mistake, confusing the metaphorical 'vacuum' referred to in calculations of the theoretical energy density of space time with the partial vacuum of a vacuum cleaner - a device commonly used to clean dust from households [citation needed].<br />
<br />
Cueball tries to correct him, but it turns out that Beret guy really is able to tap into this fundamental source of energy.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
[Beret guy is holding an upright vacuum cleaner upside-down by the handle, waving it around above his head]<br />
<br />
Cueball: What are you doing?<br />
<br />
[The vacuum cleaner is upright on the ground, and Beret guy is standing on its body, wiggling the handle]<br />
<br />
Beret: Trying to unlock the tremendous energy of the vacuum.<br />
<br />
Cueball: That's not what that -<br />
<br />
[Beret buy rides the vacuum cleaner as it begins to lift off, propelled upward by an unkown force]<br />
<br />
Beret: HA HA! IT WORKS!<br />
<br />
Cueball: I said that's -<br />
<br />
Beret: The universe is mine to command!!<br />
<br />
[Beret guy rides away on the vacuum cleaner]<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1486:_Vacuum&diff=844161486: Vacuum2015-02-13T10:00:52Z<p>Andries: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1486<br />
| date = February 13, 2015<br />
| title = Vacuum<br />
| image = vacuum.png<br />
| titletext = Do you think you could actually clean the living room at some point, though?<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
According to quantum mechanics there is tremendous energy density in space-time itself: this is known as: vacuum energy, zero point energy, vacuum foam, etc. [http://www.researchgate.net/post/Does_vacuum_energy_really_exist]<br />
Of course, this energy is not literally available to be tapped.<br />
<br />
In the cartoon, Beret Guy appears to be making a silly mistake, confusing the metaphorical 'vacuum' referred to in calculations of the theoretical energy density of space time with the partial vacuum of a vacuum cleaner - a device commonly used to clean dust from households [citation needed].<br />
<br />
Cueball tries to correct him, but it turns out that Beret guy really is able to tap into this fundamental source of energy.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
[Beret guy is holding an upright vacuum cleaner upside-down by the handle, waving it around above his head]<br />
<br />
Cueball: What are you doing?<br />
<br />
[The vacuum cleaner is upright on the ground, and Beret guy is standing on its body, wiggling the handle]<br />
<br />
Beret: Trying to unlock the tremendous energy of the vacuum.<br />
<br />
Cueball: That's not what that -<br />
<br />
[Beret buy rides the vacuum cleaner as it begins to lift off, propelled upward by an unkown force]<br />
<br />
Beret: HA HA! IT WORKS!<br />
<br />
Cueball: I said that's -<br />
<br />
Beret: The universe is mine to command!!<br />
<br />
[Beret guy rides away on the vacuum cleaner]<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1485:_Friendship&diff=84354Talk:1485: Friendship2015-02-11T15:16:38Z<p>Andries: </p>
<hr />
<div>In the article Randall wants to make us believe friendship is a rather new phenomenon or trend and its "early" occurences are something special,which may be true for bromance - at least for the term - but not for the concept. Sebastian --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.231.68|108.162.231.68]] 07:44, 11 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I'm afraid I'm not currently up to doing it, but I feel we need further details of, and definitely citations for, the articles that have been vandalised. Maybe we could even have graphs showing view, edit, and vandalism spikes. Davii [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.154|141.101.98.154]] 11:18, 11 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Why am I not surprised that this lead to Wiki-vandalism? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.109|108.162.216.109]] 12:25, 11 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
The explanation currently seems to suggest that this is the page for "Bromance", trying to bring it into line with "Friendship". But with the "Friendship page" being the ''target'' of the comic, "How to improve the Bromance page" titletext and the "Portmanteau of 'Friend' and 'Ship' (i.e. romantic linking)" bits, I read the comic as "If Bromance is being used for non-homosexual same-sex associations, then Friendship 'obviously' now means for homosexual same-sex (indeed, it appears male/male only!) relationships. This is similar to complaints (which I personally have sympathy for) about the word "Guesstimate" being an unnecessary neologistic portmanteau in common use, as someone using it often ''actually'' means "Estimate" in its normal state of the term and thus must imagine "Estimate" is something far more strict. (Or else they invoke th term when they actually mean "Guess" in the first place, either to make it sound 'better than a guess' or with the same 'shove-over' attitude applied to ''that'' word, e.g. guess is "only ever out of thin air" rather than often-as-not based upon a semi-educated hunch if not more.) So, anway, as it it currently stands, I don't agree with the way the explanation goes. But I can't actually say it's wrong either! We now return you to your regularly-scheduled programme. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.112|141.101.99.112]] 14:03, 11 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
:Completely off topic for the comment, but a guestimate is an estimate without the math, using intuitive averaging, and thus, more kin to a guess than an estimate.[[User:Seebert|Seebert]] ([[User talk:Seebert|talk]]) 14:45, 11 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
:Additionally, I meant to add that I'm surprised that Randall didn't "Bluetext" the word Ship, indicating a link to {{w|Shipping_(fandom)}}. But then the fictional Wiki editors he's emulating are notoriously inconsistent with what they do link and what they don't link (upon first appearance in an article), so it's accurate enough. ;) [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.112|141.101.99.112]] 14:10, 11 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
:(Although, to reply to myself, given the inclusion of the phrase "There is also something called 'friendshipping', or a 'BrOTP' (a portmanteau of the terms bromance and one true pairing).", there'd be some weird recursiveness that arises if all the competing claims for word-origin are true!) [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.112|141.101.99.112]] 14:16, 11 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
@ Sebastian - I think you totally misunderstand the intentions of the cartoon. I think the point is a very simple one. It is similar to Liz Feldman's argument that people should not call it 'gay marriage': it's marriage. "You know, because I had lunch this afternoon, not gay lunch. I parked my car; I didn’t gay park it" [[http://www.salon.com/2013/06/26/lets_end_gay_marriage/]} Or in this case: Call it friendship - marking the fact that it is between men as if that is in some way abnormal is a homophobic thing to do. [[User:Andries|Andries]] ([[User talk:Andries|talk]]) 15:14, 11 February 2015 (UTC)</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1485:_Friendship&diff=84353Talk:1485: Friendship2015-02-11T15:15:58Z<p>Andries: </p>
<hr />
<div>In the article Randall wants to make us believe friendship is a rather new phenomenon or trend and its "early" occurences are something special,which may be true for bromance - at least for the term - but not for the concept. Sebastian --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.231.68|108.162.231.68]] 07:44, 11 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I'm afraid I'm not currently up to doing it, but I feel we need further details of, and definitely citations for, the articles that have been vandalised. Maybe we could even have graphs showing view, edit, and vandalism spikes. Davii [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.154|141.101.98.154]] 11:18, 11 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Why am I not surprised that this lead to Wiki-vandalism? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.109|108.162.216.109]] 12:25, 11 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
The explanation currently seems to suggest that this is the page for "Bromance", trying to bring it into line with "Friendship". But with the "Friendship page" being the ''target'' of the comic, "How to improve the Bromance page" titletext and the "Portmanteau of 'Friend' and 'Ship' (i.e. romantic linking)" bits, I read the comic as "If Bromance is being used for non-homosexual same-sex associations, then Friendship 'obviously' now means for homosexual same-sex (indeed, it appears male/male only!) relationships. This is similar to complaints (which I personally have sympathy for) about the word "Guesstimate" being an unnecessary neologistic portmanteau in common use, as someone using it often ''actually'' means "Estimate" in its normal state of the term and thus must imagine "Estimate" is something far more strict. (Or else they invoke th term when they actually mean "Guess" in the first place, either to make it sound 'better than a guess' or with the same 'shove-over' attitude applied to ''that'' word, e.g. guess is "only ever out of thin air" rather than often-as-not based upon a semi-educated hunch if not more.) So, anway, as it it currently stands, I don't agree with the way the explanation goes. But I can't actually say it's wrong either! We now return you to your regularly-scheduled programme. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.112|141.101.99.112]] 14:03, 11 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
:Completely off topic for the comment, but a guestimate is an estimate without the math, using intuitive averaging, and thus, more kin to a guess than an estimate.[[User:Seebert|Seebert]] ([[User talk:Seebert|talk]]) 14:45, 11 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
:Additionally, I meant to add that I'm surprised that Randall didn't "Bluetext" the word Ship, indicating a link to {{w|Shipping_(fandom)}}. But then the fictional Wiki editors he's emulating are notoriously inconsistent with what they do link and what they don't link (upon first appearance in an article), so it's accurate enough. ;) [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.112|141.101.99.112]] 14:10, 11 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
:(Although, to reply to myself, given the inclusion of the phrase "There is also something called 'friendshipping', or a 'BrOTP' (a portmanteau of the terms bromance and one true pairing).", there'd be some weird recursiveness that arises if all the competing claims for word-origin are true!) [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.112|141.101.99.112]] 14:16, 11 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I think the point is a very simple one. It is similar to Liz Feldman's argument that people should not call it 'gay marriage': it's marriage. "You know, because I had lunch this afternoon, not gay lunch. I parked my car; I didn’t gay park it" [[http://www.salon.com/2013/06/26/lets_end_gay_marriage/]} Or in this case: Call it friendship - marking the fact that it is between men as if that is in some way abnormal is a homophobic thing to do. [[User:Andries|Andries]] ([[User talk:Andries|talk]]) 15:14, 11 February 2015 (UTC)</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1485:_Friendship&diff=84352Talk:1485: Friendship2015-02-11T15:14:29Z<p>Andries: </p>
<hr />
<div>In the article Randall wants to make us believe friendship is a rather new phenomenon or trend and its "early" occurences are something special,which may be true for bromance - at least for the term - but not for the concept. Sebastian --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.231.68|108.162.231.68]] 07:44, 11 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I'm afraid I'm not currently up to doing it, but I feel we need further details of, and definitely citations for, the articles that have been vandalised. Maybe we could even have graphs showing view, edit, and vandalism spikes. Davii [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.154|141.101.98.154]] 11:18, 11 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Why am I not surprised that this lead to Wiki-vandalism? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.109|108.162.216.109]] 12:25, 11 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
The explanation currently seems to suggest that this is the page for "Bromance", trying to bring it into line with "Friendship". But with the "Friendship page" being the ''target'' of the comic, "How to improve the Bromance page" titletext and the "Portmanteau of 'Friend' and 'Ship' (i.e. romantic linking)" bits, I read the comic as "If Bromance is being used for non-homosexual same-sex associations, then Friendship 'obviously' now means for homosexual same-sex (indeed, it appears male/male only!) relationships. This is similar to complaints (which I personally have sympathy for) about the word "Guesstimate" being an unnecessary neologistic portmanteau in common use, as someone using it often ''actually'' means "Estimate" in its normal state of the term and thus must imagine "Estimate" is something far more strict. (Or else they invoke th term when they actually mean "Guess" in the first place, either to make it sound 'better than a guess' or with the same 'shove-over' attitude applied to ''that'' word, e.g. guess is "only ever out of thin air" rather than often-as-not based upon a semi-educated hunch if not more.) So, anway, as it it currently stands, I don't agree with the way the explanation goes. But I can't actually say it's wrong either! We now return you to your regularly-scheduled programme. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.112|141.101.99.112]] 14:03, 11 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
:Completely off topic for the comment, but a guestimate is an estimate without the math, using intuitive averaging, and thus, more kin to a guess than an estimate.[[User:Seebert|Seebert]] ([[User talk:Seebert|talk]]) 14:45, 11 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
:Additionally, I meant to add that I'm surprised that Randall didn't "Bluetext" the word Ship, indicating a link to {{w|Shipping_(fandom)}}. But then the fictional Wiki editors he's emulating are notoriously inconsistent with what they do link and what they don't link (upon first appearance in an article), so it's accurate enough. ;) [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.112|141.101.99.112]] 14:10, 11 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
:(Although, to reply to myself, given the inclusion of the phrase "There is also something called 'friendshipping', or a 'BrOTP' (a portmanteau of the terms bromance and one true pairing).", there'd be some weird recursiveness that arises if all the competing claims for word-origin are true!) [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.112|141.101.99.112]] 14:16, 11 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
I think the point is a very simple one. It is similar to Liz Feldman's argument that people should not call it 'gay marriage': it's marriage. "You know, because I had lunch this afternoon, not gay lunch. I parked my car; I didn’t gay park it" Or in this case: Call it friendship - marking the fact that it is between men as if that is in some way abnormal is a homophobic thing to do. [[User:Andries|Andries]] ([[User talk:Andries|talk]]) 15:14, 11 February 2015 (UTC)</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1485:_Friendship&diff=843431485: Friendship2015-02-11T13:40:43Z<p>Andries: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1485<br />
| date = February 11, 2015<br />
| title = Friendship<br />
| image = friendship.png<br />
| titletext = The only other Wikipedia vandalism that I would feel zero remorse about is editing the article on active US militia groups to replace "militia" with "fanclub".<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
A bromance is a modern slang term for the non-romantic relationship between two heterosexual males. It is a portmanteau of the words bro, implying a male friend (like "brother"), and romance.<br />
<br />
Although current in popular media, some commentators have criticized the implicit homophobia in the term, suggesting that it denotes cultural discomfort at relationships of emotional closeness between men. [http://www.xojane.com/entertainment/for-the-love-of-god-please-stop-saying-bromance]<br />
<br />
In this comic, Randall is implying the Wikipedia page for the word "bromance" should more accurately represent what most bromances actually are: friendships. This could be a joke to reference the fact that some males prefer to not call friendships as such, for fear of looking unmasculine, or being confused as a gay couple. The comic makes light of the fact that the word bromance and friendship are interchangeable, and should be treated as such.<br />
<br />
The comic later contains parts of the edited article, mocking the use of "bromance" in popular culture, implying that "friendships" can be used just as easily to describe platonic male relationships.<br />
<br />
Despite supposedly vandalizing the "bromance" article, the article is titled "friendship", giving an appearance similar to [[1031: s/keyboard/leopard/|word-replacement browser extensions]]. <br />
<br />
The title text implies Randall does not agree with Wikipedia vandalism, except in the case of bromance/friendship, and also militia/fanclub, possibly to make light of the harsh sounding word in a negative light.<br />
<br />
In the wake of this comic, several Wikipedia pages were vandalized, among them {{w|Bromance}}, {{w|Militia organizations in the United States}} and {{w|Militia (United States)}}. So far, Bromance was already protected by an administrator against further attempts.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
{{incomplete transcript}}<br />
<br />
[A Wikipedia style layout is shown for an article titled Friendship]<br />
<br />
:'''Friendship'''<br />
:A Friendship is a close non-romantic relationship between two (or more) men, a form of <span style="color: #0645AD">affectional</span> or <span style="color: #0645AD">homosocial</span> intimacy.<sup><span style="color: #0645AD">[1]</span></sup><br />
: Contents [<span style="color: #0645AD">Hide</span>] <br />
:<span style="color: #0645AD">1 Etymology</span><br />
:<span style="color: #0645AD">2 Characteristics</span> <br />
:<span style="color: #0645AD">3 Portrayal of friendship</span> <br />
::<span style="color: #0645AD">3.1 Celebrity and fictional friendships</span> <br />
::<span style="color: #0645AD">3.2 Historical and political friendships</span> <br />
::<span style="color: #0645AD">3.3 Gay-straight friendships</span><br />
:<span style="color: #0645AD">4 See also</span><br />
:<span style="color: #0645AD">5 References</span><br />
<br />
:'''Etymology'''<br />
:''Friendship'' is a <span style="color: #0645AD">portmanteau</span> of the words ''friend'' and ''ship''. Editor <span style="color: #0645AD">Dave Carnie</span> coined the term in the skateboard magazine ''<span style="color: #0645AD">Big Brother</span>'' in the 1990s to refer to the sort of relationships that develop between skaters who spend<br />
<br />
:'''Portrayal of Friendship''' <br />
:'''Celebrity and Fictional Friendships'''<br />
:A number of celebrities have engaged in friendships with fellow celebrities. Examples include <span style="color: #0645AD">Ben Affleck</span> and <span style="color: #0645AD">Matt Damon</span>, described as "perhaps ''the'' pioneering friendship in showbiz history"<sup><span style="color: #0645AD">[9]</span></sup> which led to a hit <span style="color: #0645AD">off-broadway</span> play<br />
<br />
:Friendship on television has also become more commonplace, with some critics tracing its origins back to shows such as ''<span style="color: #0645AD">The Odd Couple</span>''.<sup><span style="color: #0645AD">[14]</span></sup> In October 2008, ''<span style="color: #0645AD">TV Guide</span>'' placed <span style="color: #0645AD">Gregory House</span> (<span style="color: #0645AD">Hugh Laurie</span>) and <span style="color: #0645AD">James</span> <br />
<br />
:The Japanese and <span style="color: #0645AD">Korean music industry</span> actively encourages friendship among male celebrities (particularly members of <span style="color: #0645AD">boy bands</span>) as part of the <span style="color: #0645AD">fan service</span> to please the audience.<sup><span style="color: #0645AD">[19][20]</span></sup><br />
:In fiction, what had once been called <span style="color: #0645AD">buddy films</span> have to a degree been rebranded as friendship films, although<br />
<br />
:'''Historical and political friendships''' <br />
:Politically, the relationship between <span style="color: #0645AD">Bill Clinton</span> and <span style="color: #0645AD">Al Gore</span> has been called a precursor to the friendship.<sup><span style="color: #0645AD">[6]</span></sup> The relationship between <span style="color: #0645AD">George W Bush</span> and former press<br />
<br />
:'''How to improve the "Bromance" Wikipedia article'''<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1485:_Friendship&diff=843421485: Friendship2015-02-11T13:40:01Z<p>Andries: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1485<br />
| date = February 11, 2015<br />
| title = Friendship<br />
| image = friendship.png<br />
| titletext = The only other Wikipedia vandalism that I would feel zero remorse about is editing the article on active US militia groups to replace "militia" with "fanclub".<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
A bromance is a modern slang term for the non-romantic relationship between two heterosexual males. It is a portmanteau of the words bro, implying a male friend (like "brother"), and romance.<br />
<br />
Although current in popular media, come commentators have criticized the implicit homophobia in the term, suggesting that it denotes cultural discomfort at relationships of emotional closeness between men. <br />
<br />
In this comic, Randall is implying the Wikipedia page for the word "bromance" should more accurately represent what most bromances actually are: friendships. This could be a joke to reference the fact that some males prefer to not call friendships as such, for fear of looking unmasculine, or being confused as a gay couple. The comic makes light of the fact that the word bromance and friendship are interchangeable, and should be treated as such.<br />
<br />
The comic later contains parts of the edited article, mocking the use of "bromance" in popular culture, implying that "friendships" can be used just as easily to describe platonic male relationships.<br />
<br />
Despite supposedly vandalizing the "bromance" article, the article is titled "friendship", giving an appearance similar to [[1031: s/keyboard/leopard/|word-replacement browser extensions]]. <br />
<br />
The title text implies Randall does not agree with Wikipedia vandalism, except in the case of bromance/friendship, and also militia/fanclub, possibly to make light of the harsh sounding word in a negative light.<br />
<br />
In the wake of this comic, several Wikipedia pages were vandalized, among them {{w|Bromance}}, {{w|Militia organizations in the United States}} and {{w|Militia (United States)}}. So far, Bromance was already protected by an administrator against further attempts.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
{{incomplete transcript}}<br />
<br />
[A Wikipedia style layout is shown for an article titled Friendship]<br />
<br />
:'''Friendship'''<br />
:A Friendship is a close non-romantic relationship between two (or more) men, a form of <span style="color: #0645AD">affectional</span> or <span style="color: #0645AD">homosocial</span> intimacy.<sup><span style="color: #0645AD">[1]</span></sup><br />
: Contents [<span style="color: #0645AD">Hide</span>] <br />
:<span style="color: #0645AD">1 Etymology</span><br />
:<span style="color: #0645AD">2 Characteristics</span> <br />
:<span style="color: #0645AD">3 Portrayal of friendship</span> <br />
::<span style="color: #0645AD">3.1 Celebrity and fictional friendships</span> <br />
::<span style="color: #0645AD">3.2 Historical and political friendships</span> <br />
::<span style="color: #0645AD">3.3 Gay-straight friendships</span><br />
:<span style="color: #0645AD">4 See also</span><br />
:<span style="color: #0645AD">5 References</span><br />
<br />
:'''Etymology'''<br />
:''Friendship'' is a <span style="color: #0645AD">portmanteau</span> of the words ''friend'' and ''ship''. Editor <span style="color: #0645AD">Dave Carnie</span> coined the term in the skateboard magazine ''<span style="color: #0645AD">Big Brother</span>'' in the 1990s to refer to the sort of relationships that develop between skaters who spend<br />
<br />
:'''Portrayal of Friendship''' <br />
:'''Celebrity and Fictional Friendships'''<br />
:A number of celebrities have engaged in friendships with fellow celebrities. Examples include <span style="color: #0645AD">Ben Affleck</span> and <span style="color: #0645AD">Matt Damon</span>, described as "perhaps ''the'' pioneering friendship in showbiz history"<sup><span style="color: #0645AD">[9]</span></sup> which led to a hit <span style="color: #0645AD">off-broadway</span> play<br />
<br />
:Friendship on television has also become more commonplace, with some critics tracing its origins back to shows such as ''<span style="color: #0645AD">The Odd Couple</span>''.<sup><span style="color: #0645AD">[14]</span></sup> In October 2008, ''<span style="color: #0645AD">TV Guide</span>'' placed <span style="color: #0645AD">Gregory House</span> (<span style="color: #0645AD">Hugh Laurie</span>) and <span style="color: #0645AD">James</span> <br />
<br />
:The Japanese and <span style="color: #0645AD">Korean music industry</span> actively encourages friendship among male celebrities (particularly members of <span style="color: #0645AD">boy bands</span>) as part of the <span style="color: #0645AD">fan service</span> to please the audience.<sup><span style="color: #0645AD">[19][20]</span></sup><br />
:In fiction, what had once been called <span style="color: #0645AD">buddy films</span> have to a degree been rebranded as friendship films, although<br />
<br />
:'''Historical and political friendships''' <br />
:Politically, the relationship between <span style="color: #0645AD">Bill Clinton</span> and <span style="color: #0645AD">Al Gore</span> has been called a precursor to the friendship.<sup><span style="color: #0645AD">[6]</span></sup> The relationship between <span style="color: #0645AD">George W Bush</span> and former press<br />
<br />
:'''How to improve the "Bromance" Wikipedia article'''<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1483:_Quotative_Like&diff=84175Talk:1483: Quotative Like2015-02-06T13:24:33Z<p>Andries: </p>
<hr />
<div>That second panel is, like, depressing. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.249.185|108.162.249.185]] 05:19, 6 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I found [http://www.bostonglobe.com/ideas/2015/01/25/linguists-are-like-get-used/ruUQoV0XUTLDjx72JojnBI/story.html the article]. [[User:Piderman|Piderman]] ([[User talk:Piderman|talk]]) 05:53, 6 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
:Cool, added it. Thanks. [[User:PinkAmpersand|PinkAmpersand]] ([[User talk:PinkAmpersand|talk]])<br />
God also introduced a new concept "light" and was quicker implementing it (God did not need to wait for the next generation or kill people) throughout the world. And light sounds similar to (like) like. Sebastian --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.231.68|108.162.231.68]] 08:58, 6 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Are there any other examples of actual living people who are not celebrities being name-checked in xkcd? [[User:Andries|Andries]] ([[User talk:Andries|talk]]) 13:23, 6 February 2015 (UTC)</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1483:_Quotative_Like&diff=84174Talk:1483: Quotative Like2015-02-06T13:23:44Z<p>Andries: </p>
<hr />
<div>That second panel is, like, depressing. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.249.185|108.162.249.185]] 05:19, 6 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I found [http://www.bostonglobe.com/ideas/2015/01/25/linguists-are-like-get-used/ruUQoV0XUTLDjx72JojnBI/story.html the article]. [[User:Piderman|Piderman]] ([[User talk:Piderman|talk]]) 05:53, 6 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
:Cool, added it. Thanks. [[User:PinkAmpersand|PinkAmpersand]] ([[User talk:PinkAmpersand|talk]])<br />
God also introduced a new concept "light" and was quicker implementing it (God did not need to wait for the next generation or kill people) throughout the world. And light sounds similar to (like) like. Sebastian --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.231.68|108.162.231.68]] 08:58, 6 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
Are there any other examples of actual living people who are not celebrities being name-checked in xkcd? [[User:Andries|Andries]] ([[User talk:Andries|talk]]) 13:23, 6 February 2015 (UTC)</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1482:_NowPlaying&diff=84019Talk:1482: NowPlaying2015-02-04T07:42:43Z<p>Andries: </p>
<hr />
<div>So what song is it? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.242.10|108.162.242.10]] 06:11, 4 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
I believe it is the Main Theme from Jurassic Park. --[[User:Duhsn|Duhsn]] ([[User talk:Duhsn|talk]]) 06:13, 4 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
E major, is a chord, not a note...[[Special:Contributions/108.162.249.169|108.162.249.169]] 06:36, 4 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
You can listen to the sequence of notes here: http://onlinesequencer.net/65475 <br />
(All notes the same length, and just guessing which octave each should be in...) [[Special:Contributions/108.162.249.169|108.162.249.169]] 06:36, 4 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
Just because I want to get it stuck in your head :D, Added a bit to the beginning and end and changed octaves. http://onlinesequencer.net/65487 --[[User:Duhsn|Duhsn]] ([[User talk:Duhsn|talk]]) 07:40, 4 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
The image on this page is NOT the same one as on the actual xkcd page. The original comic does not contain the reference to E Major. [[User:Andries|Andries]] ([[User talk:Andries|talk]]) 07:42, 4 February 2015 (UTC)Andries</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1482:_NowPlaying&diff=840181482: NowPlaying2015-02-04T07:41:26Z<p>Andries: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div><noinclude>:<small>''The correct title of this page is '''1482: #NowPlaying'''. It appears incorrectly here because of {{w|mw:Manual:Page title|technical restrictions}}.''</small></noinclude><br />
{{comic<br />
| number = 1482<br />
| date = February 4, 2015<br />
| title = #NowPlaying<br />
| image = nowplaying.png<br />
| titletext = If you click on the post, it takes you to search results for the note on various online music stores.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
There are a variety of applications that post a user's music-listening habits on their preferred social network. In this comic, Randall takes that notion to its extreme, envisioning a program that does this note-by-note, rather than just song-by-song. As notes are much shorter than songs, this would lead to the flooding of friends' notification streams. In the example, the software is sharing the notes Brian is listening to; and his friends Mike and Caitlin appear to be becoming concerned about his choice of music<br />
<br />
But it is not possible to identify a piece of music on the basis of the names of the notes being played. Depending on the relative timing and the octave of the notes, the described notes could be part of any one of a large number of different tunes. In addition, except if the notes being played are extremely long, it is highly likely that the service is only reporting a small number of all the notes being played in a given minute. So such a service would be pointless; and the notion that someone could become concerned about you based on a list of notes is even more ridiculous.<br />
<br />
<br />
The comic's title alludes to the fact that you can "play a song" but can also "play a note." It may also allude to the visual similarities between the hash/pound/number sign (#) and the sharp sign (♯).<br />
<br />
Of note: Some of the tweets are out of order. Brian is now Listening TO A is timestamped at 3:29, with Caitlin on the next line timestamped st 3:28, with the next note likewise at 3:28.<br />
<br />
Here are some synthesized versions of the notes in the order they appear in the comic. [https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/1079661/65467.ogg OGG] [https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/1079661/65467.mid MIDI] They appear to be the beginning of "I'll Be There For You" by The Rembrandts, the title music of the TV series "Friends".<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:Brian is now listening to: E Major<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: A<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM\<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: B<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: D<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: C Sharp<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
: Mike What the hell<br />
: Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: B<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: A<br />
:Today - 3:29 PM<br />
<br />
:Caitlin Can someone Call him?<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: A<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: E<br />
:Today - 3:29 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: A<br />
<br />
My new social music service notifies your<br/>friends about what notes you're listening to.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1482:_NowPlaying&diff=840161482: NowPlaying2015-02-04T07:36:18Z<p>Andries: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div><noinclude>:<small>''The correct title of this page is '''1482: #NowPlaying'''. It appears incorrectly here because of {{w|mw:Manual:Page title|technical restrictions}}.''</small></noinclude><br />
{{comic<br />
| number = 1482<br />
| date = February 4, 2015<br />
| title = #NowPlaying<br />
| image = nowplaying.png<br />
| titletext = If you click on the post, it takes you to search results for the note on various online music stores.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
There are a variety of applications that post a user's music-listening habits on their preferred social network. In this comic, Randall takes that notion to its extreme, envisioning a program that does this note-by-note, rather than just song-by-song. As notes are much shorter than songs, this would lead to the flooding of friends' notification streams. In the example, the software is sharing the notes Brian is listening to; and his friends Mike and Caitlin appear to be becoming concerned about his choice of music<br />
<br />
But it is not possible to identify a piece of music on the basis of the names of the notes being played. Depending on the relative timing and the octave of the notes, the described notes could be part of any one of a large number of different tunes. In addition, except if the notes being played are extremely long, it is highly likely that the service is only reporting a small number of all the notes being played in a given minute. So such a service would be pointless; and the notion that someone could become concerned about you based on a list of notes is even more ridiculous.<br />
<br />
In addition, some of the information being shared is clearly problematic: the first note appears to say that Brian is listening to the note E Major. There is no such thing. E major can be a scale; or it could be any one of a number of different chords. It certainly cannot refer to the key the tune is in, because the tune contains a D, which does not occur in E major.<br />
<br />
The comic's title alludes to the fact that you can "play a song" but can also "play a note." It may also allude to the visual similarities between the hash/pound/number sign (#) and the sharp sign (♯).<br />
<br />
Of note: Some of the tweets are out of order. Brian is now Listening TO A is timestamped at 3:29, with Caitlin on the next line timestamped st 3:28, with the next note likewise at 3:28.<br />
<br />
Here are some synthesized versions of the notes in the order they appear in the comic. [https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/1079661/65467.ogg OGG] [https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/1079661/65467.mid MIDI] They appear to be the beginning of "I'll Be There For You" by The Rembrandts, the title music of the TV series "Friends".<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:Brian is now listening to: E Major<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: A<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM\<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: B<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: D<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: C Sharp<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
: Mike What the hell<br />
: Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: B<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: A<br />
:Today - 3:29 PM<br />
<br />
:Caitlin Can someone Call him?<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: A<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: E<br />
:Today - 3:29 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: A<br />
<br />
My new social music service notifies your<br/>friends about what notes you're listening to.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1482:_NowPlaying&diff=840131482: NowPlaying2015-02-04T07:28:45Z<p>Andries: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div><noinclude>:<small>''The correct title of this page is '''1482: #NowPlaying'''. It appears incorrectly here because of {{w|mw:Manual:Page title|technical restrictions}}.''</small></noinclude><br />
{{comic<br />
| number = 1482<br />
| date = February 4, 2015<br />
| title = #NowPlaying<br />
| image = nowplaying.png<br />
| titletext = If you click on the post, it takes you to search results for the note on various online music stores.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
<br />
The comic imagines a social music service that shares what notes people are listening to. In the example, the software is sharing the notes Brian is listening to; and his friends Mike and Caitlin appear to be becoming concerned about his choice of music<br />
<br />
But it is not possible to identify a piece of music on the basis of the names of the notes being played. Depending on the relative timing and the octave of the notes, the described notes could be part of any one of a large number of different tunes. In addition, except if the notes being played are extremely long, it is highly likely that the service is only reporting a small number of all the notes being played in a given minute. So such a service would be pointless; and the notion that someone could become concerned about you based on a list of notes is even more ridiculous.<br />
<br />
In addition, some of the information being shared is clearly problematic: the first note appears to say that Brian is listening to the note E Major. There is no such thing. E major can be a scale; or it could be any one of a number of different chords.<br />
<br />
Of note: Some of the tweets are out of order. Brian is now Listening TO A is timestamped at 3:29, with Caitlin on the next line timestamped st 3:28, with the next note likewise at 3:28.<br />
<br />
Here are some synthesized versions of the notes in the order they appear in the comic. [https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/1079661/65467.ogg OGG] [https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/1079661/65467.mid MIDI] They appear to be the beginning of "I'll Be There For You" by The Rembrandts, the title music of the TV series "Friends".<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:Brian is now listening to: E Major<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: A<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM\<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: B<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: D<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: C Sharp<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
: Mike What the hell<br />
: Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: B<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: A<br />
:Today - 3:29 PM<br />
<br />
:Caitlin Can someone Call him?<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: A<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: E<br />
:Today - 3:29 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: A<br />
<br />
My new social music service notifies your<br/>friends about what notes you're listening to.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1482:_NowPlaying&diff=840121482: NowPlaying2015-02-04T07:26:31Z<p>Andries: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div><noinclude>:<small>''The correct title of this page is '''1482: #NowPlaying'''. It appears incorrectly here because of {{w|mw:Manual:Page title|technical restrictions}}.''</small></noinclude><br />
{{comic<br />
| number = 1482<br />
| date = February 4, 2015<br />
| title = #NowPlaying<br />
| image = nowplaying.png<br />
| titletext = If you click on the post, it takes you to search results for the note on various online music stores.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
<br />
The comic imagines a social music service that shares what notes people are listening to. In the example, the software is sharing the notes Brian is listening to; and his friends Mike and Caitlin appear to be becoming concerned about his choice of music<br />
<br />
But it is not possible to identify a piece of music on the basis of the names of the notes being played. Depending on the relative timing and the octave of the notes, the described notes could be part of any one of a large number of different tunes. In addition, except if the notes being played are extremely long, it is highly likely that the service is only reporting a small number of all the notes being played in a given minute. So such a service would be pointless; and the notion that someone could become concerned about you based on a list of notes is even more ridiculous.<br />
<br />
<br />
Of note: Some of the tweets are out of order. Brian is now Listening TO A is timestamped at 3:29, with Caitlin on the next line timestamped st 3:28, with the next note likewise at 3:28.<br />
<br />
Here are some synthesized versions of the notes in the order they appear in the comic. [https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/1079661/65467.ogg OGG] [https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/1079661/65467.mid MIDI] They appear to be the beginning of "I'll Be There For You" by The Rembrandts, the title music of the TV series "Friends".<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:Brian is now listening to: E Major<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: A<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM\<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: B<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: D<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: C Sharp<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
: Mike What the hell<br />
: Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: B<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: A<br />
:Today - 3:29 PM<br />
<br />
:Caitlin Can someone Call him?<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: A<br />
:Today - 3:28 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: E<br />
:Today - 3:29 PM<br />
<br />
:Brian is now listening to: A<br />
<br />
My new social music service notifies your<br/>friends about what notes you're listening to.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1480:_Super_Bowl&diff=837551480: Super Bowl2015-01-30T06:49:34Z<p>Andries: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1480<br />
| date = January 30, 2015<br />
| title = Super Bowl<br />
| image = super_bowl.png<br />
| titletext = My hobby: Pretending to miss the sarcasm when people show off their lack of interest in football by talking about 'sportsball' and acting excited to find someone else who's interested, then acting confused when they try to clarify.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
<br />
In this comic, Cueball explains that even though he does not care about sports and is tempted to be scornful about others' obsession with it, he understands that people feel vulnerable about stuff they care about. Since other people tolerate his interest in odd things like meteorology and the Philae Lander, he recognizes that he should show the same consideration to them - implicitly an invaction of Kant's categorical imperative, which, although it makes no reference to the Superbowl, specifies the general maxim Cueball is following here. <br />
<br />
In the last frame, he suggests that the value of friendship trumps the discomfort of watching human activities that seem uninteresting to him - and that the snacks also help ameliorate his discomfort.<br />
<br />
The title text continues the 'my hobby' trope: here, Cueball creates discomfort for people who scornfully refer to football as 'sportball' by calling their bluff and pretending t to be interested in this imaginary sport. A person who does not even know that sportball is imaginary is clearly even more uninterested in sport than someone who just scorns football. Feigning interest in this imaginary sport exposes their snobbishness. This hobby does not embody a commitment to Kant's categorical imperative, since the pleasure Cueball takes in it presumably arrives from the discomfort caused by his feigned confusion.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
{{incomplete transcript}}<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1480:_Super_Bowl&diff=837541480: Super Bowl2015-01-30T06:48:53Z<p>Andries: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1480<br />
| date = January 30, 2015<br />
| title = Super Bowl<br />
| image = super_bowl.png<br />
| titletext = My hobby: Pretending to miss the sarcasm when people show off their lack of interest in football by talking about 'sportsball' and acting excited to find someone else who's interested, then acting confused when they try to clarify.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
<br />
In this comic, cueball explains that even though he does not care about sports and is tempted to be scornful about others' obsession with it, he understands that people feel vulnerable about stuff they care about. Since other people tolerate his interest in odd things like meteorology and the Philae Lander, he recognizes that he should show the same consideration to them - implicitly an invaction of Kant's categorical imperative, which, although it makes not reference to the Superbowl, specifies the general maxim Cueball is following here. <br />
<br />
In the last frame, he suggests that the value of friendship trumps the discomfort of watching human activities that seem uninteresting to him - and that the snacks also help ameliorate his discomfort.<br />
<br />
The title text continues the 'my hobby' trope: here, Cueball creates discomfort for people who scornfully refer to football as 'sportball' by calling their bluff and pretending t to be interested in this imaginary sport. A person who does not even know that sportball is imaginary is clearly even more uninterested in sport than someone who just scorns football. Feigning interest in this imaginary sport exposes their snobbishness. This hobby does not embody a commitment to Kant's categorical imperative, since the pleasure Cueball takes in it presumably arrives from the discomfort caused by his feigned confusion.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
{{incomplete transcript}}<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1480:_Super_Bowl&diff=837521480: Super Bowl2015-01-30T06:43:25Z<p>Andries: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1480<br />
| date = January 30, 2015<br />
| title = Super Bowl<br />
| image = super_bowl.png<br />
| titletext = My hobby: Pretending to miss the sarcasm when people show off their lack of interest in football by talking about 'sportsball' and acting excited to find someone else who's interested, then acting confused when they try to clarify.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
<br />
In this comic, cueball explains that even though he does not care about sports and is tempted to be scornful about others' obsession with it, he understands that people feel vulnerable about stuff they care about. Since other people tolerate his interest in odd things like meteorology and the Philae Lander, he recognizes that he should show the same consideration to them - implicitly an invaction of Kant's categorical imperative, which, although it makes not reference to the Superbowl, specifies the general maxim Cueball is following here. <br />
<br />
In the last frame, he suggests that the value of friendship trumps the discomfort of watching human activities that seem uninteresting to him - and that the snacks also help ameliorate his discomfort.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
{{incomplete transcript}}<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1480:_Super_Bowl&diff=837511480: Super Bowl2015-01-30T06:39:36Z<p>Andries: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1480<br />
| date = January 30, 2015<br />
| title = Super Bowl<br />
| image = super_bowl.png<br />
| titletext = My hobby: Pretending to miss the sarcasm when people show off their lack of interest in football by talking about 'sportsball' and acting excited to find someone else who's interested, then acting confused when they try to clarify.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|Created by a BOT - Please change this comment when editing this page.}}<br />
<br />
In this comic, cueball explains that even though he does not care about sports and is tempted to be scornful about others' obsession with it, he understands that people feel vulnerable about stuff they care about. Since other people tolerate his interest in odd things like meteorology and the Philae Lander, he recognizes that he should show the same consideration to them - implicitly an invaction of Kant's categorical imperative, which, although it makes not reference to the Superbowl, specifies the general maxim Cueball is following here. <br />
<br />
In the last frame, he suggests that the value of friendship trumps the discomfort of watching human activities that seem uninteresting to him - and that the snacks also help ameliorate his discomfort.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
{{incomplete transcript}}<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1429:_Data&diff=766751429: Data2014-10-03T18:42:28Z<p>Andries: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1429<br />
| date = October 3, 2014<br />
| title = Data<br />
| image = data.png<br />
| titletext = If you want to have more fun at the expense of language pedants, try developing an hypercorrection habit.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
"Kirk vs. Picard" is a debate that many ''{{w|Star Trek}}'' fans engage in- specifically which was a better captain of the {{w|Starship Enterprise|starship ''Enterprise''}} on the TV show. Captain {{w|James T. Kirk}} and {{w|Jean-Luc Picard}} each were captains of the ship (Kirk was captain of USS Enterprise 1701 in {{w|Star Trek: The Original Series|The Original Series}}, while Picard was captain of USS Enterprise 1701-D in {{w|Star Trek: The Next Generation|The Next Generation}}), but fans argue over who was the "best". Most third-place candidates are pretty distant and a more multi-faceted debate. Cueball seems to be looking at results of polling for this ''third'' most popular character.<br />
<br />
The humor in this comic stems from the fact that the Latin word "data" is a plural form of the word "datum". Due to very few uses for the singular form and general lack of knowledge of Latin among modern population, many people do not think about it and assume "data" to be singular. Under the overwhelming dominance of this misconception, referring to data as singular is becoming increasingly (but not universally) accepted as grammatically correct - the Wall Street Journal, for instance, recently announced that it is moving away from saying data 'are', while New York Times manual of style allows for both variants depending on usage scenario, and USA Today is consistently using "data" as a plural ("data are"). Naturally, the purists insist on the form that is correct from the Latin grammar point of view and see "data is" as an example of a subject-verb agreement error. This type of error is present in the beginning of the sentence that Cueball is citing ("According to this polling data", while grammatically correct variant would be "According to these polling data").<br />
<br />
The second error in the same sentence is due to the fact that {{w|Data (Star Trek)|Data}} are a character from <i>Star Trek: The Next Generation</i>. Since it is a character's name, when used to refer to the character, "Data" should be treated as singular.<br />
<br />
By reversing the verb agreement in both cases, you are basically going out of your way to annoy any grammatically obsessed people.<br />
<br />
A third grammatical error in the comic is the disagreement between the word "character" and "are" before the character name "Data".<br />
Consider for example the correct sentence "Matter is many atoms." vs. the incorrect sentence "Matter are many atoms."<br />
<br />
The title text suggests the mocking of language pedants/amateur grammar Nazis by {{w|Hypercorrection|hyper-correcting}} your use of language. The example given is "an hypercorrection habit", following from 'an honour' (/ˈɒnəɹ/) and 'an hour' (/ˈaʊəɹ/) in English. These two are correct as they are French derived, and so the 'h' is silent and the words start with a vowel sound, thus leading to the use of 'an'. The word "hyper-correction" (/ˌhaɪ.pəɹ.kəˈɹɛk.ʃən/) starts with a standard consonant 'h' sound and so must be preceded with 'a', not 'an'. Contrast 'an umbrella' and 'a uniform'. This comic also complements [[326: Effect an Effect]], which discusses the trolling of amateur grammar Nazis.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball reading off a smart phone to someone off the panel]<br />
:Cueball: According to this polling data, after Kirk and Picard, the most popular <em>Star Trek</em> character are Data.<br />
:Off-panel character: <em>Augh!</em><br />
:Annoy grammar pedants on all sides by making "data" singular <em>except</em> when referring to the android.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1429:_Data&diff=766591429: Data2014-10-03T12:00:51Z<p>Andries: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1429<br />
| date = October 3, 2014<br />
| title = Data<br />
| image = data.png<br />
| titletext = If you want to have more fun at the expense of language pedants, try developing an hypercorrection habit.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|Explain the two sides of the data singular/plural debate. }}<br />
"Kirk vs. Picard" is a debate that many ''{{w|Star Trek}}'' fans engage in- specifically which was a better captain of the {{w|Starship Enterprise|starship ''Enterprise''}} on the TV show. Captain {{w|James T. Kirk}} and {{w|Jean-Luc Picard}} each were captains of the ship (Kirk was captain of USS Enterprise 1701 in {{w|Star Trek: The Original Series|The Original Series}}, while Picard was captain of USS Enterprise 1701-D in {{w|Star Trek: The Next Generation|The Next Generation}}), but fans argue over who was the "best". With such a neck-and-neck race, most third-place candidates are pretty distant and a more multi-faceted debate, so for the sake of example the article Cueball seems to be looking up is polling for the ''third'' most popular character.<br />
<br />
The humor in this comic stems from the fact that the word "data" was originally plural (the singular form of "data" was "datum".) Since there are very few uses for the singular form, many people do not use it and assume data to be singular as well. Increasingly, referring to data as singular is being accepted as grammatically correct - the Wall Street Journal, for instance, recently announced that is is moving away from saying data 'are'. But purists and sticklers still insist on the old form and see 'data is' as an example of a subject-verb agreement error.<br />
<br />
{{w|Data (Star Trek)|Data}} is a character from <i>Star Trek: The Next Generation.</i> Since it is a character's name, when used to refer to the character, "Data" should be treated as singular.<br />
<br />
By reversing the subject-verb agreement in both cases, you are basically going out of your way to annoy any grammatically obsessed people.<br />
<br />
The title text suggests the mocking of language pedants/amateur grammar Nazis by {{w|Hypercorrection|hyper-correcting}} your use of language. The example given is "an hypercorrection habit", following from 'an honour' (/ˈɒnə/) and 'an hour' (/ˈaʊə(ɹ)/) in English. These two are correct as they are French derived, and so the 'h' is silent and the words start with a vowel sound, and thus the use of 'an'. "Hyper-correction" (/ˌhaɪ.pə.kəˈɹɛk.ʃən/) starts with a standard consonant 'h' sound and so must be preceded with 'a', not 'an'. Contrast 'an umbrella' and 'a uniform'. This comic also complements [[326: Effect an Effect]], which discusses the trolling of amateur grammar Nazis.<br />
<br />
Whether intended or not, this comic may annoy grammar pedants for another reason: Even if "Data" was not a name, the correct sentence would use the word "is" rather than "are" because the subject of the sentence is the word "character", and not "data". Consider for example the correct (though somewhat awkward) sentence "Matter is many atoms." vs. the incorrect sentence "Matter are many atoms."<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball reading off a smart phone to someone off the panel]<br />
:Cueball: According to this polling data, after Kirk and Picard, the most popular <em>Star Trek</em> character are Data.<br />
:Off-panel character: <em>Augh!</em><br />
:Annoy grammar pedants on all sides by making "data" singular <em>except</em> when referring to the android.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>Andrieshttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1429:_Data&diff=766581429: Data2014-10-03T11:45:07Z<p>Andries: 'Data is' is actually acceptable usage these days.</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1429<br />
| date = October 3, 2014<br />
| title = Data<br />
| image = data.png<br />
| titletext = If you want to have more fun at the expense of language pedants, try developing an hypercorrection habit.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|Explain the two sides of the data singular/plural debate. }}<br />
"Kirk vs. Picard" is a debate that many ''{{w|Star Trek}}'' fans engage in- specifically which was a better captain of the {{w|Starship Enterprise|starship ''Enterprise''}} on the TV show. Captain {{w|James T. Kirk}} and {{w|Jean-Luc Picard}} each were captains of the ship (Kirk was captain of USS Enterprise 1701 in {{w|Star Trek: The Original Series|The Original Series}}, while Picard was captain of USS Enterprise 1701-D in {{w|Star Trek: The Next Generation|The Next Generation}}), but fans argue over who was the "best". With such a neck-and-neck race, most third-place candidates are pretty distant and a more multi-faceted debate, so for the sake of example the article Cueball seems to be looking up is polling for the ''third'' most popular character.<br />
<br />
The humor in this comic stems from the fact that, according to grammar purists, the word "data" was originally plural (the singular form of "data" was "datum".) Since there are very few uses for the singular form, many people do not use it and assume data to be singular as well. Increasingly, referring to data as singular is being accepted as grammatically correct - the Wall Street Journal, for instance, recently announced that is is moving away from saying data 'are'. But purists and sticklers still insist on the old form and see 'data is' as an example of a subject-verb agreement error.<br />
<br />
{{w|Data (Star Trek)|Data}} is a character from <i>Star Trek: The Next Generation.</i> Since it is a character's name, when used to refer to the character, "Data" should be treated as singular.<br />
<br />
By reversing the subject-verb agreement in both cases, you are basically going out of your way to annoy any grammatically obsessed people.<br />
<br />
The title text suggests the mocking of language pedants/amateur grammar Nazis by {{w|Hypercorrection|hyper-correcting}} your use of language. The example given is "an hypercorrection habit", following from 'an honour' (/ˈɒnə/) and 'an hour' (/ˈaʊə(ɹ)/) in English. These two are correct as they are French derived, and so the 'h' is silent and the words start with a vowel sound, and thus the use of 'an'. "Hyper-correction" (/ˌhaɪ.pə.kəˈɹɛk.ʃən/) starts with a standard consonant 'h' sound and so must be preceded with 'a', not 'an'. Contrast 'an umbrella' and 'a uniform'. This comic also complements [[326: Effect an Effect]], which discusses the trolling of amateur grammar Nazis.<br />
<br />
Whether intended or not, this comic may annoy grammar pedants for another reason: Even if "Data" was not a name, the correct sentence would use the word "is" rather than "are" because the subject of the sentence is the word "character", and not "data". Consider for example the correct (though somewhat awkward) sentence "Matter is many atoms." vs. the incorrect sentence "Matter are many atoms."<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball reading off a smart phone to someone off the panel]<br />
:Cueball: According to this polling data, after Kirk and Picard, the most popular <em>Star Trek</em> character are Data.<br />
:Off-panel character: <em>Augh!</em><br />
:Annoy grammar pedants on all sides by making "data" singular <em>except</em> when referring to the android.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>Andries