1079: United Shapes - Revision history

81.179.199.253: /* Objects */ Correcting/expanding upon the 'Alabama Moai' statement.

2026-05-13T17:43:29Z

‎Objects: Correcting/expanding upon the 'Alabama Moai' statement.

82.132.231.121: /* Explanation */ Don't need that (then broken!) comprehensive list, if we have the (now fixed!) category-link.

2026-05-13T17:04:40Z

‎Explanation: Don't need that (then broken!) comprehensive list, if we have the (now fixed!) category-link.

Teddy1: /* Explanation */

2026-05-13T17:01:27Z

‎Explanation

Teddy1 at 16:37, 13 May 2026

2026-05-13T16:37:10Z

68.187.4.2 at 16:15, 13 May 2026

2026-05-13T16:15:12Z

68.187.4.2: /* Objects */

2026-05-13T16:14:06Z

‎Objects

68.187.4.2: /* Objects */

2026-05-13T16:09:16Z

‎Objects

68.187.4.2: /* Objects */

2026-05-13T16:05:05Z

‎Objects

68.187.4.2: /* Objects */

2026-05-13T16:02:38Z

‎Objects

68.187.4.2: /* Objects */

2026-05-13T16:00:52Z

‎Objects

@@ Line 39: / Line 39: @@
 |[[File:Alabama.png|200x200px]]
 |A moai head facing east.
-|{{w|Moai}} are Easter Island stone statues, large heads but no body.
+|{{w|Moai}} are Easter Island stone statues, which feature large heads supported by a minimalist body (some of which may have been left buried), and are not traditionally found in Alabama.
 |-
 ! {{w|Alaska}}

@@ Line 14: / Line 14: @@
 *Need to finish explaining all the states in [[#Objects]]. Some are missing an explanation.}}
-In this comic, each state of the United States of America has been filled-in with an object of similar shape. [[Maps]] are a common theme in xkcd, also appearing in [[85: Paths]], [[195: Map of the Internet]], [[407: Cheap GPS]], [[415: Restraining Order]], [[503: Terminology]], [[730: Circuit Diagram]], [[850: World According to Americans]],[[977: Map Projections]], 1196, 1398, 1449, 1500, 1688, 1732, 1759, 1784, 1799, 1852, 1986, 2029, 2082, 2103, 2127, 2242, 2256, 2489, 2528, 2577, 2613, 2617, 2665, 2670, 2742 , 2765, 2803, 2807, 2811, 2838, 2911, 2921, 2951, 2996, 2999, 3086, 3122, 3207, 3236. Several years later Randall made a new map of the US mainland [[1653: United States Map]], where he shuffled the positions of the states but filled out the outline. Also in this map Michigan has been split into two separate parts. (Here it is the mitten and the eagle). This comic could also be a reference to {{w|Giuseppe Arcimboldo}}'s portraits, which were composed of objects such as fruits, vegetables, flowers, books, and fish.
+In this comic, each state of the United States of America has been filled-in with an object of similar shape. [[:Category:Maps|Maps]] are a common theme in xkcd. Several years later Randall made a new map of the US mainland [[1653: United States Map]], where he shuffled the positions of the states but filled out the outline. Also in this map Michigan has been split into two separate parts. (Here it is the mitten and the eagle). This comic could also be a reference to {{w|Giuseppe Arcimboldo}}'s portraits, which were composed of objects such as fruits, vegetables, flowers, books, and fish.
 Very few, if any, of the shapes used are stereotypes of the state; they are merely objects that look like the state. Some of the objects are those which the states are widely known to resemble. For example, Michigan is represented by a mitten and an eagle, and a pot with handle takes the place of Oklahoma (with the panhandle region of the state filled with a literal handle). Others, however, are more creative. Few would have likely pictured Texas as a dog or Alaska as a bear with a jet pack and laser gun. There are several incredibly simple objects filling some states. Kentucky is filled by a cloud, which conceivably could have been used for any state, and Wyoming, one of the nearly rectangular states, is simply an envelope. There are three pairs of states that are related. Georgia and Missouri each contain an image of the other, drawing attention to their similar shapes, North and South Dakota are the top and bottom halves of a {{w|guitar amplifier}} {{w|speaker cabinet}}, and Alabama and Mississippi are {{w|moai}} facing in opposite directions.

@@ Line 14: / Line 14: @@
 *Need to finish explaining all the states in [[#Objects]]. Some are missing an explanation.}}
-In this comic, each state of the United States of America has been filled-in with an object of similar shape. [[Maps]] are a common theme in xkcd, also appearing in [[85:Paths]], [[195:Map of the Internet]], [[407:Cheap GPS]], [[415:Restraining Order]], [[503:Terminology]], [[730:Circuit Diagram]], [[850:World According to Americans]],[[977:Map Projections]], 1196, 1398, 1449, 1500, 1688, 1732, 1759, 1784, 1799, 1852, 1986, 2029, 2082, 2103, 2127, 2242, 2256, 2489, 2528, 2577, 2613, 2617, 2665, 2670, 2742 , 2765, 2803, 2807, 2811, 2838, 2911, 2921, 2951, 2996, 2999, 3086, 3122, 3207, 3236. Several years later Randall made a new map of the US mainland [[1653: United States Map]], where he shuffled the positions of the states but filled out the outline. Also in this map Michigan has been split into two separate parts. (Here it is the mitten and the eagle). This comic could also be a reference to {{w|Giuseppe Arcimboldo}}'s portraits, which were composed of objects such as fruits, vegetables, flowers, books, and fish.
+In this comic, each state of the United States of America has been filled-in with an object of similar shape. [[Maps]] are a common theme in xkcd, also appearing in [[85: Paths]], [[195: Map of the Internet]], [[407: Cheap GPS]], [[415: Restraining Order]], [[503: Terminology]], [[730: Circuit Diagram]], [[850: World According to Americans]],[[977: Map Projections]], 1196, 1398, 1449, 1500, 1688, 1732, 1759, 1784, 1799, 1852, 1986, 2029, 2082, 2103, 2127, 2242, 2256, 2489, 2528, 2577, 2613, 2617, 2665, 2670, 2742 , 2765, 2803, 2807, 2811, 2838, 2911, 2921, 2951, 2996, 2999, 3086, 3122, 3207, 3236. Several years later Randall made a new map of the US mainland [[1653: United States Map]], where he shuffled the positions of the states but filled out the outline. Also in this map Michigan has been split into two separate parts. (Here it is the mitten and the eagle). This comic could also be a reference to {{w|Giuseppe Arcimboldo}}'s portraits, which were composed of objects such as fruits, vegetables, flowers, books, and fish.
 Very few, if any, of the shapes used are stereotypes of the state; they are merely objects that look like the state. Some of the objects are those which the states are widely known to resemble. For example, Michigan is represented by a mitten and an eagle, and a pot with handle takes the place of Oklahoma (with the panhandle region of the state filled with a literal handle). Others, however, are more creative. Few would have likely pictured Texas as a dog or Alaska as a bear with a jet pack and laser gun. There are several incredibly simple objects filling some states. Kentucky is filled by a cloud, which conceivably could have been used for any state, and Wyoming, one of the nearly rectangular states, is simply an envelope. There are three pairs of states that are related. Georgia and Missouri each contain an image of the other, drawing attention to their similar shapes, North and South Dakota are the top and bottom halves of a {{w|guitar amplifier}} {{w|speaker cabinet}}, and Alabama and Mississippi are {{w|moai}} facing in opposite directions.

@@ Line 14: / Line 14: @@
 *Need to finish explaining all the states in [[#Objects]]. Some are missing an explanation.}}
-In this comic, each state of the United States of America has been filled-in with an object of similar shape. Maps are a common theme in xkcd, also referenced in Several years later Randall made a new map of the US mainland [[1653: United States Map]], where he shuffled the positions of the states but filled out the outline. Also in this map Michigan has been split into two separate parts. (Here it is the mitten and the eagle). This comic could also be a reference to {{w|Giuseppe Arcimboldo}}'s portraits, which were composed of objects such as fruits, vegetables, flowers, books, and fish.
+In this comic, each state of the United States of America has been filled-in with an object of similar shape. [[Maps]] are a common theme in xkcd, also appearing in [[85:Paths]], [[195:Map of the Internet]], [[407:Cheap GPS]], [[415:Restraining Order]], [[503:Terminology]], [[730:Circuit Diagram]], [[850:World According to Americans]],[[977:Map Projections]], 1196, 1398, 1449, 1500, 1688, 1732, 1759, 1784, 1799, 1852, 1986, 2029, 2082, 2103, 2127, 2242, 2256, 2489, 2528, 2577, 2613, 2617, 2665, 2670, 2742 , 2765, 2803, 2807, 2811, 2838, 2911, 2921, 2951, 2996, 2999, 3086, 3122, 3207, 3236. Several years later Randall made a new map of the US mainland [[1653: United States Map]], where he shuffled the positions of the states but filled out the outline. Also in this map Michigan has been split into two separate parts. (Here it is the mitten and the eagle). This comic could also be a reference to {{w|Giuseppe Arcimboldo}}'s portraits, which were composed of objects such as fruits, vegetables, flowers, books, and fish.
 Very few, if any, of the shapes used are stereotypes of the state; they are merely objects that look like the state. Some of the objects are those which the states are widely known to resemble. For example, Michigan is represented by a mitten and an eagle, and a pot with handle takes the place of Oklahoma (with the panhandle region of the state filled with a literal handle). Others, however, are more creative. Few would have likely pictured Texas as a dog or Alaska as a bear with a jet pack and laser gun. There are several incredibly simple objects filling some states. Kentucky is filled by a cloud, which conceivably could have been used for any state, and Wyoming, one of the nearly rectangular states, is simply an envelope. There are three pairs of states that are related. Georgia and Missouri each contain an image of the other, drawing attention to their similar shapes, North and South Dakota are the top and bottom halves of a {{w|guitar amplifier}} {{w|speaker cabinet}}, and Alabama and Mississippi are {{w|moai}} facing in opposite directions.

@@ Line 13: / Line 13: @@
 {{incomplete|
 *Need to finish explaining all the states in [[#Objects]]. Some are missing an explanation.}}
 In this comic, each state of the United States of America has been filled-in with an object of similar shape. Several years later Randall made a new map of the US mainland [[1653: United States Map]], where he shuffled the positions of the states but filled out the outline. Also in this map Michigan has been split into two separate parts. (Here it is the mitten and the eagle). This comic could also be a reference to {{w|Giuseppe Arcimboldo}}'s portraits, which were composed of objects such as fruits, vegetables, flowers, books, and fish.
 Very few, if any, of the shapes used are stereotypes of the state; they are merely objects that look like the state. Some of the objects are those which the states are widely known to resemble. For example, Michigan is represented by a mitten and an eagle, and a pot with handle takes the place of Oklahoma (with the panhandle region of the state filled with a literal handle). Others, however, are more creative. Few would have likely pictured Texas as a dog or Alaska as a bear with a jet pack and laser gun. There are several incredibly simple objects filling some states. Kentucky is filled by a cloud, which conceivably could have been used for any state, and Wyoming, one of the nearly rectangular states, is simply an envelope. There are three pairs of states that are related. Georgia and Missouri each contain an image of the other, drawing attention to their similar shapes, North and South Dakota are the top and bottom halves of a {{w|guitar amplifier}} {{w|speaker cabinet}}, and Alabama and Mississippi are {{w|moai}} facing in opposite directions.

@@ Line 218: / Line 218: @@
 |[[File:Oregon1079.png|200x200px]]
 |A locomotive.
-|Possibly a reference to the {{w|Oregon Trail}}.
+|Possibly a reference to the {{w|Oregon Trail}}, or the {{w|Transcontinental Railroad}}, or just the large amount of trains out west.
+|
 |-
@@ Line 249: / Line 249: @@
 |[[File:Texas1079.png|200x200px]]
 |A dog sitting in a bowl.
 |This may be a reference to a Texan stereotype in which many residents are dog-owners.
 |-
 ! {{w|Utah}}
@@ Line 269: / Line 269: @@
 |[[File:Washington1079.png|200x200px]]
 |A whale.
-| The {{w|Puget Sound}}, which is in Washington, is well known for its whale watching scene.
+| The {{w|Puget Sound}}, which is in Washington, is well known for its whale watching scene, which could be why Washington is a whale.
 |-
 ! {{w|Washington DC}}

@@ Line 187: / Line 187: @@
 ! {{w|New Mexico}}
 |[[File:NewMexico1079.png|200x200px]]
-|A liquid container labeled for something of unusual and silly danger.
+|A liquid container labeled for something of unusual and silly danger, with and {{w|NFPA 704}} of 4,4,4 and radioactivity.
 |This may be a reference to the many nuclear tests conducted In New Mexico during the {{w|Cold War}}. See the [[#Transcript|Transcript section]] to read the labels on the container.
 |-

@@ Line 98: / Line 98: @@
 |[[File:Illinois1079.png|200x200px]]
 |A gangster with a guitar case, upside down.
-|In fiction it is common to depict {{w|Prohibition}}-era gangsters and mobsters smuggling a {{w|Thompson submachine gun}} (also called a "Tommy gun" or "Chicago typewriter") in musical instrument cases.
+|In fiction it is common to depict {{w|Prohibition}}-era gangsters and mobsters smuggling a {{w|Thompson submachine gun}} (also called a "Tommy gun" or "Chicago typewriter") in musical instrument cases. Also, Chicago is notorious for gangsters, including {{W|Al Capone}}.
 |-
 ! {{w|Indiana}}

@@ Line 68: / Line 68: @@
 |[[File:Connecticut1079.png|200x200px]]
 |A train conductor's hat.
-| Connecticut is known for its [https://portal.ct.gov/dot/travel-gateway/public-transportation/ctrail?language=en_US extensive rail system] and its many residents who build {{w|Rail transport modelling|Model train systems}}.
+| Connecticut is known for its [https://portal.ct.gov/dot/travel-gateway/public-transportation/ctrail?language=en_US extensive rail system] and its many residents who build {{w|Rail transport modelling|Model train systems}}, which may be why this is a conductor’s hat.
 |-
 ! {{w|Delaware}}
 |[[File:Delaware1079.png|200x200px]]
 |A {{w|meerkat}}.
-|There is no obvious relationship between Delaware and meerkats. Meerkats have appeared in xkcd before, notably in [[115: Meerkat]].
+|There is no obvious relationship between Delaware and meerkats, other than that they are shaped pretty much the same. Meerkats have appeared in xkcd before, notably in [[115: Meerkat]].
 |-
 ! {{w|Florida}}