Editing 247: Factoring the Time
Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.
The edit can be undone.
Please check the comparison below to verify that this is what you want to do, and then save the changes below to finish undoing the edit.
Latest revision | Your text | ||
Line 6: | Line 6: | ||
| titletext = I occasionally do this with mile markers on the highway. | | titletext = I occasionally do this with mile markers on the highway. | ||
}} | }} | ||
+ | |||
==Explanation== | ==Explanation== | ||
− | + | {{incomplete|Bad layout.}} | |
+ | The man at the desk is bored and so decides to prime factorize the time as shown on the clock. Annoyed, the man on the computer decides to switch the clock from 12-hour time (2:53 pm) to 24-hour time (14:53). This proves to be a much tougher job to factorize before the time changes, as the time now shown is a four digit number rather than a three digit number. The man at the desk has been at it for almost 2 hours (1:00 - 2:53). This is also a play on the phrase "Factoring the time", meaning taking the time required to do something or the current time into account when making a decision. There is a [http://www.apple.com/downloads/dashboard/status/xkcdtimefactorisation.html widget for OS X] to display the current time and its prime factors. | ||
− | + | It's likely the man at the computer switched the clock because he's been hard at work this whole time, and he's irritated that the man at the desk has been doing this pointless task for the last hour and 53 minutes. | |
− | + | The title text refers to doing something similar with mile marker signs, hopefully not while driving as this could be considered distracted driving. | |
− | + | Also, 1,453 is a prime number. | |
==Transcript== | ==Transcript== | ||
− | :[One man is sitting at a computer. Cueball sits at a separate desk. There is a clock | + | :[One man is sitting at a computer. Cueball sits at a separate desk. There is a clock which reads 2:53.] |
:Cueball: 253 is 11x23 | :Cueball: 253 is 11x23 | ||
:Man at computer: What? | :Man at computer: What? | ||
:Cueball: I'm factoring the time. | :Cueball: I'm factoring the time. | ||
− | |||
− | |||
:Cueball: I have nothing to do, so I'm trying to calculate the prime factors of the time each minute before it changes. | :Cueball: I have nothing to do, so I'm trying to calculate the prime factors of the time each minute before it changes. | ||
:Cueball: It was easy when I started at 1:00, but with each hour the number gets bigger | :Cueball: It was easy when I started at 1:00, but with each hour the number gets bigger | ||
:Cueball: I wonder how long I can keep up. | :Cueball: I wonder how long I can keep up. | ||
− | + | :[Man at desk reaches back and touches the clock.] | |
− | :[ | ||
:''BEEP'' | :''BEEP'' | ||
− | |||
:[Clock now reads 14:53.] | :[Clock now reads 14:53.] | ||
:Cueball: Hey! | :Cueball: Hey! | ||
Line 35: | Line 33: | ||
{{comic discussion}} | {{comic discussion}} | ||
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]] | [[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]] | ||
− | [[Category: | + | [[Category:Math]] |
− |