explain xkcd - Recent changes [en]

3199: Early Arthropods

RG — Fri, 15 May 2026 02:42:21 GMT

1957: 2018 CVE List

Ardub — Fri, 15 May 2026 02:29:05 GMT

‎Explanation: Link to 424, which has a similar list of vulnerabilities

1614: Kites

Ozchess — Fri, 15 May 2026 02:26:15 GMT

‎Transcript

424: Security Holes

Ardub — Fri, 15 May 2026 02:24:11 GMT

‎Explanation: Link to 1957, which has a similar theme

User:RheaDunkley7095

RheaDunkley7095 — Fri, 15 May 2026 02:21:52 GMT

User account RheaDunkley7095 was created

Talk:999: Cougars

RG — Fri, 15 May 2026 02:17:58 GMT

Talk:996: Making Things Difficult

RG — Fri, 15 May 2026 02:13:22 GMT

3239: Simple Machines

Ozchess — Fri, 15 May 2026 02:13:06 GMT

‎Explanation: does this need to be a bullet list?

3245: Results Age

Ozchess — Fri, 15 May 2026 02:05:23 GMT

missed a few spots

what if? articles

2602:306:80CC:ECB0:B525:9977:A2B3:8ADD — Fri, 15 May 2026 02:00:19 GMT

Description of how "one-way-mirrors" work.

Talk:1024: Error Code

RG — Fri, 15 May 2026 01:58:54 GMT

3207: Bad Map Projection: Zero Declination

RG — Fri, 15 May 2026 01:56:20 GMT

removed incomplete notice

931: Lanes

YZ100 — Fri, 15 May 2026 01:16:44 GMT

Talk:3243: Crystal Gazing

RG — Fri, 15 May 2026 01:04:33 GMT

3193: Sailing Rigs

RG — Fri, 15 May 2026 01:00:31 GMT

removed incomplete notice

User:DeweyHargrove1

DeweyHargrove1 — Fri, 15 May 2026 01:00:12 GMT

User account DeweyHargrove1 was created

3119: Flettner Rotor

RG — Fri, 15 May 2026 00:58:40 GMT

Talk:331: Photoshops

RG — Fri, 15 May 2026 00:56:02 GMT

removed incomplete notice

3161: Airspeed

RG — Fri, 15 May 2026 00:54:52 GMT

removed incomplete notice

2809: Moon

2603:6011:1F0:2A40:C522:C804:9042:7B68 — Fri, 15 May 2026 00:53:57 GMT

‎Explanation

Talk:3161: Airspeed

RG — Fri, 15 May 2026 00:52:53 GMT

Talk:3244: Pullback Drive

RG — Fri, 15 May 2026 00:51:12 GMT

User:HildegardeTenori

HildegardeTenori — Fri, 15 May 2026 00:49:17 GMT

User account HildegardeTenori was created

Talk:285: Wikipedian Protester

RG — Fri, 15 May 2026 00:46:28 GMT

3200: Chemical Formula

RG — Fri, 15 May 2026 00:38:43 GMT

removed incomplete notice

3243: Crystal Gazing

2603:6011:1F0:2A40:C522:C804:9042:7B68 — Fri, 15 May 2026 00:31:59 GMT

‎Explanation

3157: Emperor Palpatine

RG — Fri, 15 May 2026 00:23:24 GMT

removed incomplete notice

Talk:1054: The bacon

Socksbuny — Fri, 15 May 2026 00:18:47 GMT

User:FelixHyett75

FelixHyett75 — Fri, 15 May 2026 00:05:49 GMT

User account FelixHyett75 was created

User:Socksbuny

Socksbuny — Thu, 14 May 2026 23:55:05 GMT

User account Socksbuny was created

Talk:3245: Results Age

Lordpishky — Thu, 14 May 2026 23:49:02 GMT

quaternians

Talk:1552: Rulebook

81.179.199.253 — Thu, 14 May 2026 23:14:47 GMT

Talk:1000: 1000 Comics

81.179.199.253 — Thu, 14 May 2026 23:13:08 GMT

Talk:1552: Rulebook

2605:59C8:22E3:3E14:7DFA:19A4:56DB:A3EB — Thu, 14 May 2026 23:13:01 GMT

User:LeopoldoCho0

LeopoldoCho0 — Thu, 14 May 2026 23:11:45 GMT

User account LeopoldoCho0 was created

Talk:3137: Cursed Number

81.179.199.253 — Thu, 14 May 2026 23:11:34 GMT

Undo revision 412733 by 2605:59C8:22E3:3E14:7DFA:19A4:56DB:A3EB (talk)

Talk:243: Appropriate Term

81.179.199.253 — Thu, 14 May 2026 23:11:18 GMT

Undo revision 412732 by 2605:59C8:22E3:3E14:7DFA:19A4:56DB:A3EB (talk)

Talk:1208: Footnote Labyrinths

81.179.199.253 — Thu, 14 May 2026 23:10:58 GMT

No net loss to remove this.

Talk:285: Wikipedian Protester

81.179.199.253 — Thu, 14 May 2026 23:09:58 GMT

Unsigned, so as close to fair game as anything else as inane.

Talk:1000: 1000 Comics

2605:59C8:22E3:3E14:7DFA:19A4:56DB:A3EB — Thu, 14 May 2026 23:04:10 GMT

Talk:3137: Cursed Number

2605:59C8:22E3:3E14:7DFA:19A4:56DB:A3EB — Thu, 14 May 2026 22:58:07 GMT

Talk:243: Appropriate Term

2605:59C8:22E3:3E14:7DFA:19A4:56DB:A3EB — Thu, 14 May 2026 22:56:57 GMT

Talk:1208: Footnote Labyrinths

2605:59C8:22E3:3E14:7DFA:19A4:56DB:A3EB — Thu, 14 May 2026 22:55:34 GMT

Talk:285: Wikipedian Protester

2605:59C8:22E3:3E14:7DFA:19A4:56DB:A3EB — Thu, 14 May 2026 22:55:06 GMT

Talk:1208: Footnote Labyrinths

2605:59C8:22E3:3E14:7DFA:19A4:56DB:A3EB — Thu, 14 May 2026 22:51:22 GMT

@@ Line 16: / Line 16: @@
 This strip treats evolution like a conscious process to underscore how strange it would be if a species simply decided to pursue some of these unusual adaptations. Evolution in real life works by {{w|natural selection}}, where small and random adaptations improve the odds of survival and reproduction, and those changes build up into huge changes over the course of long enough time spans. This means that no one decided that a spider's web-weaving ability (for example) was worth pursuing, it happened gradually over millions of years. An intelligent species can accelerate this gradual process of natural selection through {{w|artificial selection}} by choosing characteristics and using selective breeding and culling to favor those. Only humans are known to plan out such breeding (mostly in domesticated species), and even then it is an {{w|Dog breeding#Criticism|imperfect process}} that can be very hit-and-miss. Most biology is the result of evolution without any evident plan.
-[[:Category:Spiders|Spiders]] are a recurring theme on xkcd.
+[[:Category:Spiders|Spiders]] are a recurring theme on xkcd, along with Crabs. [[2314:_Carcinization|Crabs]] are also a recurring theme in biology itself (and [[2418:_Metacarcinization|conversations with Randall]]).
 The {{w|eusocial}} insects mentioned in the title text, most prominently bees, ants and termites, are other types of arthropods with high levels of social organization. As such, they are notable for ''not'' "mind[ing] their own busines{{asic}}", as their ancestor arthropod apparently expects. Eusocial insects operate in groups, and the individuals often don't operate on their own at all, to the point where the whole colony often [https://daily.jstor.org/how-fire-ants-form-rafts acts as a unit, with little regard for the individual]. The comment that their descendants "[won't] do anything weird" may be a joke about eusociality being pretty weird to a solitary organism, or may refer to the [https://scitechdaily.com/why-termites-blow-themselves-up-the-fascinating-chemistry-of-their-defense-mechanisms/ extreme forms of behavior eusocial insects sometimes pursue]. (While there are a number of species of {{w|social spider}}, there aren't any that meet the strict definition of eusociality.)

@@ Line 10: / Line 10: @@
 {{w|Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures|CVE}} (Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures) is a standardized format for assigning an identity to a cybersecurity vulnerability (similar to the way that astronomical bodies are assigned unique identifiers by committees). Giving vulnerabilities a unique identifier makes them easier to talk about and helps in keeping track of the progress made toward resolving them. The typical format of a CVE identifier is '''CVE-[YEAR]-[NUMBER]'''. For example, the CVE identifier for 2017's widespread {{w|Meltdown (security vulnerability)|Meltdown vulnerability}} is [https://cve.mitre.org/cgi-bin/cvename.cgi?name=CVE-2017-5754 CVE-2017-5754]. CVEs also contain a short description of the issue.
-In this comic (released in February 2018), Randall presents a number of spurious predicted CVEs for later in 2018. Each CVE identifier is given as "CVE-2018-?????", reflecting the fact that they have not yet happened so we don't know exactly what their CVE identifier will be. He has previously referenced diacritics in [[1647: Diacritics]]. Bruce Schneier was previously mentioned in the title texts of [[748: Worst-Case Scenario]] and [[1039: RuBisCO]]. Here are short descriptions of all the vulnerabilities mentioned in the comic:
+In this comic (released in February 2018), Randall presents a number of spurious predicted CVEs for later in 2018. Each CVE identifier is given as "CVE-2018-?????", reflecting the fact that they have not yet happened so we don't know exactly what their CVE identifier will be. A similar list of tech vulnerabilities appeared in [[424: Security Holes]]. Randall has previously referenced diacritics in [[1647: Diacritics]]. Bruce Schneier was previously mentioned in the title texts of [[748: Worst-Case Scenario]] and [[1039: RuBisCO]]. Here are short descriptions of all the vulnerabilities mentioned in the comic:
 ;Apple products crash when displaying certain {{w|Telugu language|Telugu}} or {{w|Bengali language|Bengali}} letter combinations.

@@ Line 18: / Line 18: @@
 ==Transcript==
-:[Zoom out of Megan holding on to a long line going up to a kite high up in he air. Beret Guy comes walking in from the right. He is also holding on to a line that goes up in the air with the same slope. But the top of it disappears outside the frame to the right.]
+:[Zoom out of Megan holding on to a long line going up to a kite high up in he air. Beret Guy comes walking in from the right. He is also holding on to a line that goes up in the air with the same slope. The top of it disappears outside the frame to the right.]
-:[Zoom in on Megan standing with a roll with the rest of the line, and the line for her kite goes up in the air between her and Beret Guy who has now almost reached her. He is just holding on to the end of the line, with only a small part of the line hanging down below his hands.]
+:[Zoom in on Megan standing with a roll with the rest of the line. The line for her kite goes up in the air between her and Beret Guy, who has now almost reached her. He is just holding on to the end of the line, with only a small part of the line hanging down below his hands.]
 :Megan: I love kites.
 :Beret Guy: Hey, Me too!
@@ Line 33: / Line 33: @@
 :Dog: Arf arf arf
-:[Beret Guy takes the dog under his arm, while holding the line in the other hand, and then he walks past Megan who turns to look after him while still holding on to her roll and line to her kite.]
+:[Beret Guy takes the dog under his arm, while holding the line in the other hand, and walks past Megan who turns to look after him while still holding on to the roll and line to her kite.]
 {{comic discussion}}

← Older revision		Revision as of 02:24, 15 May 2026
Line 27:		Line 27:

	And {{w\|Ubuntu}}, which is another Linux distribution, was allegedly found to be actually {{w\|Windows Vista}}, the latest version of {{w\|Microsoft Windows}} at this time in 2008. This may be a reference to Ubuntu being developed with non-advanced users in mind, with many fail-safes and additional features being turned on by default, which had more in common with Windows than any other Linux-based operating system at the time.		And {{w\|Ubuntu}}, which is another Linux distribution, was allegedly found to be actually {{w\|Windows Vista}}, the latest version of {{w\|Microsoft Windows}} at this time in 2008. This may be a reference to Ubuntu being developed with non-advanced users in mind, with many fail-safes and additional features being turned on by default, which had more in common with Windows than any other Linux-based operating system at the time.
		+
		+	A similar list of humorous tech vulnerabilities is found in [[1957: 2018 CVE List]].

	==Transcript==		==Transcript==

← Older revision		Revision as of 02:17, 15 May 2026
Line 3:		Line 3:

	In the UK '999' is the emergency services number, i.e. our version of 911. Could that be deliberate/relevant? [[Special:Contributions/172.71.242.207\|172.71.242.207]] 02:54, 1 December 2023 (UTC)		In the UK '999' is the emergency services number, i.e. our version of 911. Could that be deliberate/relevant? [[Special:Contributions/172.71.242.207\|172.71.242.207]] 02:54, 1 December 2023 (UTC)
		+
		+	Oh god it really is mostly children, I just checked. Well that sucks. [[User:RG\|RG]] ([[User talk:RG\|talk]]) 02:17, 15 May 2026 (UTC)

@@ Line 14: / Line 14: @@
 :They look purple to me--[[User:SeventyAce|SeventyAce]] ([[User talk:SeventyAce|talk]]) 22:04, 23 January 2014 (UTC)
 They looked pink to me until I read these comments now they look lilac (Compare the analysis chart to the forecast charts on: [Damn, I think they changed that too!!][http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/public/weather/surface-pressure/#?tab=surfacePressureColour&fcTime=1421798400])[[User:Weatherlawyer| I used Google News BEFORE it was clickbait]] ([[User talk:Weatherlawyer|talk]]) 06:55, 22 January 2015 (UTC)
 The motion lines to me imply Megan is jiggling her breasts, which means that the oncologist won't be able to satisfactorily examine her incision. {{unsigned ip|172.71.210.138|02:41, 26 March 2024 (UTC)}}

@@ Line 12: / Line 12: @@
 ==Explanation==
 {{incomplete|This page was recently purchased from DeWalt, and we're still reading the manual. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
-There are various ways to use a {{w|mechanical advantage}} when applying a force to an object with a tool. Classically, there were considered to be six {{w|simple machines}} which, in combination, formed the basis of all tools:
+There are various ways to use a {{w|mechanical advantage}} when applying a force to an object with a tool. Classically, there were considered to be six {{w|simple machines}} which, in combination, formed the basis of all tools: The {{w|lever}}, the {{w|wheel and axle}}, the {{w|pulley}}, the {{w|inclined plane}}, the {{w|wedge}}, and the {{w|Screw (simple machine)|screw}}. These are often considered as idealised, abstract concepts in the study of {{w|mechanics}}.
 {{w|Multitool}}s combine various tools into a single package, usually for reasons of portability. For example, the classic {{w|Swiss Army Knife}} combines various different forms of blade (which, in part, can act as levers and/or wedges, depending upon use) along with some non-bladed tools (such as the corkscrew, which naturally embodies the same forces as the 'simple screw').

@@ Line 15: / Line 15: @@
 A table is shown below of the explanations of each table row:
 {| class="wikitable"
-!Age of post !! Explanation given !! Full Explanation
+!Age of post !! What it means !! Probability of a fix !! Full Explanation
 |-
-|2 hours ago || A service outage. Not very long to fix - Just wait. ||The recentness of the information implies that it has just happened, and other people have noticed it and started to post about the issue. Large-scale problems like a service outage are obvious priorities, and will (hopefully!) be fixed quickly.
+|2 hours ago || There's an infrastructure outage || '''Very High''' - Just wait ||The recentness of the information implies that it has just happened, and other people have noticed it and started to post about the issue. Large-scale problems like a service outage are obvious priorities, and will (hopefully!) be fixed quickly.
 |-
-|5 days ago || A new update just broke something big. High chance to be fixed, but you might have to wait for a patch || Similar to before, a large breakage would be very high priority to be fixed. However, as it's been five days since reporting it, the bug is likely taking a while to be found, so - as pointed out in the comic - you could have to wait a bit longer for this one to be resolved.
+|5 days ago || A recent update just broke something big || '''High''', but you might have to wait for a patch || Similar to before, a large breakage would be very high priority to be fixed. However, as it's been five days since reporting it, the bug is likely taking a while to be found, so - as pointed out in the comic - you could have to wait a bit longer for this one to be resolved.
 |-
-|3 months ago ||A new product isn't working for some users. Decent chance of finding a solution in replies || This problem is clearly not considered a priority for a fix by the creators, judging by how long it's been there. It possibly isn't an issue affecting everyone, or even a large proportion of users. However, people are innovative, and someone may well have found their own fix, patch or kludge to get around the product limitations.
+|3 months ago || A new product isn't working for some users || '''Decent chance''' of a solution in the replies || This problem is clearly not considered a priority for a fix by the creators, judging by how long it's been there. It possibly isn't an issue affecting everyone, or even a large proportion of users. However, people are innovative, and someone may well have found their own fix, patch or kludge to get around the product limitations.
 |-
-|2 years ago||You've run into an edge case. Low chance to be fixed, but the replies could help with troubleshooting||An edge case is a rare situation that the developers did not think to account for, usually causing a logic error, where the program works, but outputs something unexpected which might cause an error down the line. Very few people will suffer from this precise problem, which may mean that it's not considered worth the effort to apply a fix. The developers or other users may have encountered similar issues on this or similar software, and noting how they solved ''those'' problems might lead you towards how to solve your own.
+|2 years ago || You've run into an edge case || '''Low''', but the replies could help with troubleshooting || An edge case is a rare situation that the developers did not think to account for, usually causing a logic error, where the program works, but outputs something unexpected which might cause an error down the line. Very few people will suffer from this precise problem, which may mean that it's not considered worth the effort to apply a fix. The developers or other users may have encountered similar issues on this or similar software, and noting how they solved ''those'' problems might lead you towards how to solve your own.
 |-
-|13 years ago||You're the only one with this problem. Very Low chance to be fixed, and the post is likely irrelevant||A post of this age likely predates the software you're using, or at least the current version of it. It's probably a coincidental match to your search query, and doesn't actually relate to the problem you've encountered. Since no-one else has posted about this issue or anything similar within a recent timeframe, it's likely that you're the first person (or at least, one of very few people) to have come across it.
+|13 years ago || You're the only one with this problem || '''Very Low''' - post is likely not relevant|| A post of this age likely predates the software you're using, or at least the current version of it. It's probably a coincidental match to your search query, and doesn't actually relate to the problem you've encountered. Since no-one else has posted about this issue or anything similar within a recent timeframe, it's likely that you're the first person (or at least, one of very few people) to have ever come across it.
 |-
-|24 years ago||Oh god how is the Internet so old. Maybe whoever posted the message's children can help you out. || This is another comic where Randall [[:Category:Comics to make one feel old|makes people feel old]], in this case by pointing out that {{w|the Internet}} is very old, and people posting comments in the early period of the Internet have now had time to have kids who have reached an age where they are themselves posting. It is also (presumably) rare enough to be a [[979: Wisdom of the Ancients|DenverCoder9 situation]], and 13 years is longer than the time in that comic, so 13 years might be such a situation too.
+|24 years ago || Oh god how is the Internet this old || Maybe whoever posted the message has kids who can help you || This is another comic where Randall [[:Category:Comics to make one feel old|makes people feel old]], in this case by pointing out that {{w|the Internet}} is very old, and people posting comments in the early period of the Internet have now had time to have kids who have reached an age where they are themselves posting. It is also (presumably) rare enough to be a [[979: Wisdom of the Ancients|DenverCoder9 situation]], and 13 years is longer than the time in that comic, so 13 years might be such a situation too.
 The {{w|Internet}} is, in fact, significantly over forty years old, based upon original infrastructure and methods that were set up for perhaps up to two more decades previous to that. The World Wide Web (to many, synonymous with the Internet) hails from the early 1990s, and Google (one of the more commonly used search engines, through which this error search might have been made) was launched in the late 1990s, which are still practically older than this notional post. The biggest surprise might be that some information published on a webpage in 2002 (and still relevant to your search) survives on some still live web server (or as an archive/{{w|Mirror site|mirror}} of that original information on some archival/successor site). For example, any topical write-up of a then extant case of this issue, if documented upon web pages originally hosted by {{w|GeoCities}}, would have otherwise been made permanently inaccessible by the end of 2014.
 |}

@@ Line 154: / Line 154: @@
 |''"What if you shined a flashlight (or a laser) into a sphere made of one-way mirror glass?"''
 <div align="right">—Chase Montgomery</div>
-|One-way glass does not exist. The light shines through just like normal glass.
+|One-way glass does not exist. The light shines through just like normal glass. The glass used for "one-way mirror glass" is semi-transparent and semi-reflective so that if it's used as a window between a brightly lit room and a dimly lit room, the reflection or transmission from the bright room will overwhelm the transmission or reflection from the dim room so that people looking at the glass from either side will see the bright room.
 |-
 |''"If Michael Phelps could hold his breath indefinitely, how long would it take for him to reach the lowest point in the ocean and back if he swam straight down and then straight back up?"''

@@ Line 3: / Line 3: @@
 Motherboard error codes are not numbered like other error codes are.  Motherboard error codes are just referred to by how the beeps sound (ex. 1 long, 2 short)  [[User:Luke1042|Luke1042]]
 :Long, long, short, long would mean it's approaching a crossing. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.50.174|173.245.50.174]] 09:46, 7 September 2015 (UTC)
 Personally, of all motherboard beeping codes, I always liked "No beep = Power supply, system board problem, disconnected CPU, or disconnected speaker...."  (Well, when not suffering it myself.  And even then I could stand it when it was just the latter and thus of no ''immediate'' consequence...) [[Special:Contributions/31.111.103.76|31.111.103.76]] 22:04, 2 April 2013 (UTC)

← Older revision		Revision as of 01:56, 15 May 2026
Line 10:		Line 10:

	==Explanation==		==Explanation==
−	~~{{incomplete\|This page was created recently by a misaligned map. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}~~
	This is the tenth comic in the [[:Category:Bad Map Projections\|Bad Map Projections]] series, displaying Bad Map Projection #216: Zero Declination.		This is the tenth comic in the [[:Category:Bad Map Projections\|Bad Map Projections]] series, displaying Bad Map Projection #216: Zero Declination.

@@ Line 73: / Line 73: @@
 [[Category:Biology]]
 [[Category:Psychology]]
 [[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]
 [[Category:Comics with custom header texts]]

← Older revision		Revision as of 01:04, 15 May 2026
Line 26:		Line 26:

	In the '''forward prophet of non-doom''' category, will the next comic be another [[:Category:Tuesday comics\|Tuesday comic]]? [[Special:Contributions/2603:8081:9700:1224:0:0:0:2\|2603:8081:9700:1224:0:0:0:2]] 05:29, 12 May 2026 (UTC)		In the '''forward prophet of non-doom''' category, will the next comic be another [[:Category:Tuesday comics\|Tuesday comic]]? [[Special:Contributions/2603:8081:9700:1224:0:0:0:2\|2603:8081:9700:1224:0:0:0:2]] 05:29, 12 May 2026 (UTC)
		+
		+	Keep on misreading this as Crystal Glazing. Dunno what that implies but keeps on happening. [[User:RG\|RG]] ([[User talk:RG\|talk]]) 01:04, 15 May 2026 (UTC)

← Older revision		Revision as of 01:00, 15 May 2026
Line 10:		Line 10:

	==Explanation==		==Explanation==
−	~~{{incomplete\|This page was created by the birds flying in my kite. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}~~
	This comic shows the side profiles of a variety of different sailing boat/ship rigs, starting with six real ones, but then moving mostly into ones imagined by [[Randall]], with varying levels of absurdity. The [[#The Rigs\|table below]] explains each type depicted.		This comic shows the side profiles of a variety of different sailing boat/ship rigs, starting with six real ones, but then moving mostly into ones imagined by [[Randall]], with varying levels of absurdity. The [[#The Rigs\|table below]] explains each type depicted.

@@ Line 10: / Line 10: @@
 ==Explanation==
-This is another one of [[:Category:Tips|Randall’s tips]]. [[Randall]] is pointing out that a {{w|Flettner rotor}} can make a boat look like a lighthouse, and thus make other boats avoid it. A vertical-axis Flettner rotor is a smooth cylinder which is spun along its axis. As air passes across it from the side, an aerodynamic force is generated at a right angle (i.e., forward) to propel the boat in the desired direction. There is a great video by Veritasium going into more detail: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2OSrvzNW9FE&t=73s
+This is another one of [[:Category:Tips|Randall’s tips]]. [[Randall]] is pointing out that a {{w|Flettner rotor}} can make a boat look like a lighthouse, and thus make other boats avoid it. A vertical-axis Flettner rotor is a smooth cylinder which is spun along its axis. As air passes across it from the side, an aerodynamic force is generated at a right angle (i.e., forward) to propel the boat in the desired direction. There is a great [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2OSrvzNW9FE&t=73s video by Veritasium] going into more detail.
 This is also one of the [[:Category:News|News]] comics, delivering maritime news in the title text.

← Older revision		Revision as of 00:56, 15 May 2026
Line 16:		Line 16:
	Predicting a resurgence of this comic/dynamic with the advent of "looks AI generated". Reminds me a bit of [[1306: Sigil Cycle]] in that there's something of an arms race between awareness of what makes something "look fake" and the fakery technology itself becoming able to fake those details. {{unsigned ip\|172.70.230.197\|16:32, 30 January 2023}}		Predicting a resurgence of this comic/dynamic with the advent of "looks AI generated". Reminds me a bit of [[1306: Sigil Cycle]] in that there's something of an arms race between awareness of what makes something "look fake" and the fakery technology itself becoming able to fake those details. {{unsigned ip\|172.70.230.197\|16:32, 30 January 2023}}
	:Huh. Meant to say that myself, but it seems someone did it first. {{unsigned ip\|172.68.7.206\|02:12, 25 April 2025}}		:Huh. Meant to say that myself, but it seems someone did it first. {{unsigned ip\|172.68.7.206\|02:12, 25 April 2025}}
		+
		+	This but with AI image generation [[User:RG\|RG]] ([[User talk:RG\|talk]]) 00:56, 15 May 2026 (UTC)

← Older revision		Revision as of 00:54, 15 May 2026
Line 10:		Line 10:

	==Explanation==		==Explanation==
−	~~{{incomplete\|What would be the challenges for Hot Air descent? This page was created by a HOT AIR ROBOT. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}~~
−
	In the comic, [[Megan]] and [[Cueball]] are trying to break the record for {{w\|airspeed}} in a {{w\|hot air balloon}}. Cueball's exclamation "yessss!" suggests that they achieved it when there was a slight variation in conditions that allowed them to briefly reach 2 miles per hour (roughly 3.2 km/h, or 0.9 m/s), which would not seem particularly impressive to most people as it is even slower than typical human {{w\|Preferred walking speed\|walking speed}}.		In the comic, [[Megan]] and [[Cueball]] are trying to break the record for {{w\|airspeed}} in a {{w\|hot air balloon}}. Cueball's exclamation "yessss!" suggests that they achieved it when there was a slight variation in conditions that allowed them to briefly reach 2 miles per hour (roughly 3.2 km/h, or 0.9 m/s), which would not seem particularly impressive to most people as it is even slower than typical human {{w\|Preferred walking speed\|walking speed}}.

← Older revision		Revision as of 00:38, 15 May 2026
Line 10:		Line 10:

	==Explanation==		==Explanation==
−	~~{{incomplete\|This page was created by all of the carbon in the universe. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}~~
	This supposed "{{w\|chemical formula}} for the universe" merely lists the numbers of atoms of each element that are [https://ptable.com/#Properties/Abundance/Universe thought to exist] in the observable universe. Usually, chemical formulae imply rather more of a discrete binding together of the atoms involved. They also represent a single {{w\|molecule}} of the substance, rather than trying to cover the entire number of atoms in the whole quantity under consideration.		This supposed "{{w\|chemical formula}} for the universe" merely lists the numbers of atoms of each element that are [https://ptable.com/#Properties/Abundance/Universe thought to exist] in the observable universe. Usually, chemical formulae imply rather more of a discrete binding together of the atoms involved. They also represent a single {{w\|molecule}} of the substance, rather than trying to cover the entire number of atoms in the whole quantity under consideration.

← Older revision		Revision as of 00:18, 15 May 2026
Line 10:		Line 10:

	The title is showing Theâ€‰bacon for me. Is the title showing different unicode characters to different people? [Gopher] 15 Dec 2019		The title is showing Theâ€‰bacon for me. Is the title showing different unicode characters to different people? [Gopher] 15 Dec 2019
		+
		+	I suspect the above two users were experiencing their browser making an incorrect assumption about the page's character encoding. The title uses the unicode "thin space" (U+2009) which is three bytes of UTF-8, all with their highest bit set. In Windows-1252, these three bytes correspond to â€‰. In Shift JIS, a byte with the highest bit set begins a two-byte sequence, so in this case those three bytes combined with the following "b" from "bacon" produce the two characters 窶叡. The comic presumably uses the thin space in the first place as a compromise between "The bacon" and "Thebacon". [[User:Socksbuny\|Socksbuny]] ([[User talk:Socksbuny\|talk]]) 00:18, 15 May 2026 (UTC)

@@ Line 20: / Line 20: @@
 Other than this, Earth is the only accepted planet we're currently aware of that has a satellite that's so visible from its surface.
-The title text sarcastically claims that, other than being "pretty", the Moon doesn't impact us, then subverts it by mentioning substantial impacts it has on Earth. Having such a large satellite so close has impacts that we take for granted only because we're used to them, but if they hadn't always existed, they'd seem unbelievable. One is that, for half the lunar cycle, the moon reflects enough light to produce visibility at night. The other impact is tides, since the gravitational pull of the Moon is large enough to alter the surfaces of oceans, causing shorelines to shift on a daily cycle. The text mentions these dismissively, in a deliberate contrast with their huge significance. Moonlight alters the illumination cycle of the planet to a significant degree, which changes how both humans and other animals operate at night, especially before the advent of artificial lighting. Tides had major impacts on the development of life, continue to affect ecosystems, and play an essential role in our ability to interact with the oceans. If someone from a planet without such a large moon were to observe these impacts, they'd likely be shocked and amazed by them, but we barely notice them.
+The title text sarcastically claims that, other than being "pretty", the Moon doesn't impact us, then subverts it by mentioning substantial impacts it has on Earth. Having such a large satellite so close has impacts that we take for granted only because we're used to them, but if they hadn't always existed, they'd seem unbelievable. One is that, for half the lunar cycle, the moon reflects enough light to produce visibility at night. The other impact is tides, since the gravitational pull of the Moon is large enough to alter the surfaces of oceans, causing shorelines to shift on a daily cycle. The text mentions these dismissively, in a deliberate contrast with their huge significance. Moonlight alters the illumination cycle of the planet to a significant degree, which changes how both humans and other animals operate at night, especially before the advent of artificial lighting. Tides had major impacts on the development of life, continue to affect ecosystems, and play an essential role in our ability to interact with the oceans. If someone from a planet without such a large moon were to observe these impacts, they'd likely be shocked and amazed by them, but we barely notice them. Another impact is {{What If|26|leap seconds}}, since the gravity of the moon pulls on the earth, ever so slightly slowing the earth down
 The comic [[3135: Sea Level]] is very similar to this one, but it starts with noting how strange and SciFi the tides on Earth are.

← Older revision		Revision as of 00:52, 15 May 2026
Line 25:		Line 25:

	Replaced the 'many comics about hot air balloons' line with links to the two examples I could find. Suggest if people can find more, these should be placed in a category, and a link to that category given. NB - there are other comics about ''balloons'' of various types, but these are the only two I identified about hot air balloons specifically (and even then one is a partial reference - although the main thrust of the joke - and the other is only by inference). [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33\|82.13.184.33]] 12:14, 31 October 2025 (UTC)		Replaced the 'many comics about hot air balloons' line with links to the two examples I could find. Suggest if people can find more, these should be placed in a category, and a link to that category given. NB - there are other comics about ''balloons'' of various types, but these are the only two I identified about hot air balloons specifically (and even then one is a partial reference - although the main thrust of the joke - and the other is only by inference). [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33\|82.13.184.33]] 12:14, 31 October 2025 (UTC)
		+
		+	Excellent citation needed joke. [[User:RG\|RG]] ([[User talk:RG\|talk]]) 00:52, 15 May 2026 (UTC)

← Older revision		Revision as of 00:51, 15 May 2026
Line 28:		Line 28:
	[[Special:Contributions/82.196.111.48\|82.196.111.48]] 19:06, 13 May 2026 (UTC)		[[Special:Contributions/82.196.111.48\|82.196.111.48]] 19:06, 13 May 2026 (UTC)
	: I think you needed to paws and read those clawses again. [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33\|82.13.184.33]] 08:30, 14 May 2026 (UTC)		: I think you needed to paws and read those clawses again. [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33\|82.13.184.33]] 08:30, 14 May 2026 (UTC)
		+	: I mean people intentionally misspell cats as cars all the time, maybe this is just the reverse? [[User:RG\|RG]] ([[User talk:RG\|talk]]) 00:51, 15 May 2026 (UTC)

@@ Line 18: / Line 18: @@
 :Plus, this came out a long time before he became...big.{{Citation needed}} [[User:Dontknow|Dontknow]] ([[User talk:Dontknow|talk]]) 19:42, 20 March 2017 (UTC)
 ::Don't know how you define "big," but by most definitions Trump has in fact been "big" since *long* before this comic. {{Citation needed}} [[User:Abcasada|Abcasada]] ([[User talk:Abcasada|talk]]) 22:20, 25 September 2018 (UTC)
 Huh, in my memory, this comic specifically included the phrase "We hold these truths to be self-evident".  I guess not - but I wonder if some Wikipedians would consider a {{Citation needed}} for that one? [[User:Cosmogoblin|Cosmogoblin]] ([[User talk:Cosmogoblin|talk]]) 19:42, 30 January 2017 (UTC)

@@ Line 10: / Line 10: @@
 ==Explanation==
-A {{w|geochronology|geochronologist}} (someone who estimates the ages of rocks, fossils, etc.)  dressed up as a wizard (assuming that isn't how they normally dress) announces &mdash; in archaic language befitting his costume &mdash; that he has determined the {{w|age of the Earth}} by analyzing {{w|zircon}}. Zircon is a crystal with the formula ZrSiO<sub>4</sub>. During its formation it can incorporate uranium instead of zirconium in its crystal lattice, but cannot incorporate lead. The uranium then decays (via several intermediates) into lead. Thus a sufficiently old zircon crystal will contain some lead, allowing geologists to {{w|Detrital_zircon_geochronology|calculate its age}}. This method is especially reliable, since uranium-238 decays into lead-206 with a half-life of 4.5 billion years, while uranium-235 decays into lead-207 with a half-life of 0.7 billion years, allowing geologists to determine the age even where some lead was lost from the crystal. The geochronologist says he predicted the age of the Earth by gazing into the crystal, similar to the traditional fortune tellers' method of making predictions by gazing into crystal balls.
+A {{w|geochronology|geochronologist}} (someone who estimates the ages of rocks, fossils, etc.)  dressed up as a wizard (assuming that isn't how they normally dress) announces &mdash; in archaic language befitting his costume &mdash; that he has determined the {{w|age of the Earth}} by analyzing {{w|zircon}}. Zircon is a crystal with the formula ZrSiO<sub>4</sub>. During its formation it can incorporate uranium instead of zirconium in its crystal lattice, but cannot incorporate lead. The uranium then decays (via several intermediates) into lead. Thus a sufficiently old zircon crystal will contain some lead, allowing geologists to {{w|Detrital_zircon_geochronology|calculate its age}}. This method is especially reliable, since uranium-238 decays into lead-206 with a half-life of 4.5 billion years, while uranium-235 decays into lead-207 with a half-life of 0.7 billion years, allowing geologists to determine the age even where some lead was lost from the crystal. The geochronologist says he predicted the age of the Earth by gazing into the [[2776|crystal]], similar to the traditional fortune tellers' method of making predictions by gazing into crystal balls.
 A prophet of doom is someone who predicts impending disasters, particularly the end of the world (and there are lots of ridiculous ways that [https://what-if.xkcd.com/archive/ could happen]). These prophets and predictions are especially common in fantasy media. The joke in the caption is that someone who can determine when the world began is just doing this in reverse, and that's what geochronologists are doing when they calculate the age of the Earth. His last line, "the beginning was nigh", is a reversal of the phrase stereotypically used by prophets of doom: "the end is nigh". This is in keeping with the idea represented in the comic.

← Older revision		Revision as of 00:23, 15 May 2026
Line 10:		Line 10:

	==Explanation==		==Explanation==
−	{{incomplete\|What happened when Palpatine was a toddler (all I know is he wasn't a Jedi and discovered the dark side)? This page was created by A BOT OF UNCERTAIN AGE. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
	This comic about {{w\|extrapolation}} tracks the age of the {{w\|Star Wars}} character {{w\|Palpatine}} against the age of the actor who played him.		This comic about {{w\|extrapolation}} tracks the age of the {{w\|Star Wars}} character {{w\|Palpatine}} against the age of the actor who played him.

@@ Line 15: / Line 15: @@
 If it's negative time old you are in a Tardis.  If it's sqrt(-1) time old, give me some of whatever it is you are smoking. [[Special:Contributions/64.201.132.210|64.201.132.210]] 22:02, 13 May 2026 (UTC)
 :''Which'' sqrt(-1)? If it's imaginary i then you're in weird territory, but if it's quaternionic i, j, or k, you can interpret that as a spacelike separation, so it just means that you've found someone with an FTL drive i.e. the flowchart arrow also goes to TARDIS.[[Special:Contributions/185.146.232.73|185.146.232.73]] 10:03, 14 May 2026 (UTC)
 Yeah it's even better when there's no god damn results at all.[[User:RG|RG]] ([[User talk:RG|talk]]) 00:29, 14 May 2026 (UTC)

@@ Line 18: / Line 18: @@
 :That can be argued, if Air Bud is a male dog.  Besides, "baseball is a game of two teams of 9 players each", but then they go and use the Designated Hitter.  So Air Bud is just the Designated Dog. [[User:PsyMar|PsyMar]] ([[User talk:PsyMar|talk]]) 07:22, 17 July 2015 (UTC)
 :: Designated Hitler! --[[Special:Contributions/173.245.53.151|173.245.53.151]] 11:23, 18 July 2015 (UTC)
-::: Hey godwins law [[261]]
+::: Hey godwins law [[261]] {{unsigned ip|2605:59c8:22e3:3e14:7dfa:19a4:56db:a3eb|23:13, 14 May 2026}}
 I'm reminded of what Paul said to the Galatians: "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such things there is no law." Life is meant to be lived in this positive way, where the more of these "fruits" we express, the better we make the world. ''&mdash; [[User:Tbc|tbc]] ([[User talk:Tbc|talk]]) 12:48, 17 July 2015 (UTC)''

@@ Line 28: / Line 28: @@
 ::::::::::Hi IP 108.162.245.57, your link shows a comic not done by [[Randall]]. The 404 page is just empty and that's the joke. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 20:03, 5 August 2014 (UTC)
 :::::::::::And since this discussion [[404]] has been created on this page as well. {{unsigned|Kynde}}
-::::::::::::this is linked to every single catagory bro
+::::::::::::this is linked to every single catagory bro {{unsigned ip|2605:59c8:22e3:3e14:7dfa:19a4:56db:a3eb|23:04, 14 May 2026}}
 Aha the amount of references to lots of different comics is amazing! [[User:Nyx goddess|Nyx goddess]] ([[User talk:Nyx goddess|talk]]) 00:44, 11 December 2018 (UTC)
 :(Moved the comment)[[User:Nyx goddess|Nyx goddess]] ([[User talk:Nyx goddess|talk]]) 00:45, 11 December 2018 (UTC)

← Older revision		Revision as of 23:11, 14 May 2026
Line 70:		Line 70:

	Reminds me of the "ten billion human second century" number Matt Parker came up with. [[Special:Contributions/216.206.51.106\|216.206.51.106]] 14:38, 15 September 2025 (UTC)		Reminds me of the "ten billion human second century" number Matt Parker came up with. [[Special:Contributions/216.206.51.106\|216.206.51.106]] 14:38, 15 September 2025 (UTC)
−
−	WAKE UP SHEEPLE OPEN UR EYES! - [https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/12:_Poisson Someone From Pluto]{{Citation needed}} (p.s. ull se me latr(p.s.s. go to the footnote labyrinths page for original appearence. dont tell))

← Older revision		Revision as of 23:11, 14 May 2026
Line 18:		Line 18:

	my friends and i call it the red button thingy [[User:An user who has no account yet\|An user who has no account yet]] ([[User talk:An user who has no account yet\|talk]]) 22:26, 12 September 2023 (UTC)		my friends and i call it the red button thingy [[User:An user who has no account yet\|An user who has no account yet]] ([[User talk:An user who has no account yet\|talk]]) 22:26, 12 September 2023 (UTC)
−
−
−	WAKE UP SHEEPLE OPEN UR EYES!!!! - [https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/12:_Poisson Someone From Pluto]{{Citation needed}} (p.s. ull se me latr(p.s.s. go to the footnote labyrinths page for original appearence. dont tell))

← Older revision		Revision as of 23:10, 14 May 2026
Line 34:		Line 34:
	no (not true)		no (not true)

−	My Hobby: Posting "WAKE UP SHEEPLE OPEN YOUR EYES!!" on random explainxkcd talk pages. - Remember not to talk about /b/ - [https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/12:_Poisson Someone From Pluto]{{Citation needed}} (p.s. ull se me latr)

	If 6 is true (infinite loop possibility)		If 6 is true (infinite loop possibility)

@@ Line 75: / Line 75: @@
 [[Special:Contributions/172.69.33.174|172.69.33.174]] 15:24, 16 April 2024 (UTC)
 == Addition to Trivia ==
 The subtext of Xkcd 285 is "SEMI-PROTECT THE CONSTITUTION". I just checked, and the "Constitution of the United States" Wikipedia article is Semi-protected, as is the "Constitution" article. Should this be listed in the trivia section?[[Special:Contributions/162.158.158.229|162.158.158.229]] 02:15, 2 August 2024 (UTC)

← Older revision		Revision as of 22:58, 14 May 2026
Line 70:		Line 70:

	Reminds me of the "ten billion human second century" number Matt Parker came up with. [[Special:Contributions/216.206.51.106\|216.206.51.106]] 14:38, 15 September 2025 (UTC)		Reminds me of the "ten billion human second century" number Matt Parker came up with. [[Special:Contributions/216.206.51.106\|216.206.51.106]] 14:38, 15 September 2025 (UTC)
		+
		+	WAKE UP SHEEPLE OPEN UR EYES! - [https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/12:_Poisson Someone From Pluto]{{Citation needed}} (p.s. ull se me latr(p.s.s. go to the footnote labyrinths page for original appearence. dont tell))

← Older revision		Revision as of 22:56, 14 May 2026
Line 18:		Line 18:

	my friends and i call it the red button thingy [[User:An user who has no account yet\|An user who has no account yet]] ([[User talk:An user who has no account yet\|talk]]) 22:26, 12 September 2023 (UTC)		my friends and i call it the red button thingy [[User:An user who has no account yet\|An user who has no account yet]] ([[User talk:An user who has no account yet\|talk]]) 22:26, 12 September 2023 (UTC)
		+
		+
		+	WAKE UP SHEEPLE OPEN UR EYES!!!! - [https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/12:_Poisson Someone From Pluto]{{Citation needed}} (p.s. ull se me latr(p.s.s. go to the footnote labyrinths page for original appearence. dont tell))

@@ Line 34: / Line 34: @@
 no (not true)
-My Hobby: Posting "WAKE UP SHEEPLE OPEN YOUR EYES!!" on random explainxkcd talk pages. - Remember not to talk about /b/ - [https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/12:_Poisson Someone From Pluto{{Citation needed}}] (p.s. ull se me latr)
+My Hobby: Posting "WAKE UP SHEEPLE OPEN YOUR EYES!!" on random explainxkcd talk pages. - Remember not to talk about /b/ - [https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/12:_Poisson Someone From Pluto]{{Citation needed}} (p.s. ull se me latr)
 If 6 is true (infinite loop possibility)