2972: Helium Synthesis - Revision history

Jkshapiro: /* Explanation */ The concept of likelihood doesn't really apply in this scenario.

2025-07-31T03:18:25Z

‎Explanation: The concept of likelihood doesn't really apply in this scenario.

172.71.151.39: /* Explanation */

2025-01-10T01:36:45Z

‎Explanation

172.70.206.88: /* Explanation */ helium is renewable— with a fusion reactor

2024-12-01T00:32:03Z

‎Explanation: helium is renewable— with a fusion reactor

Xurkitree10: /* Transcript */

2024-10-08T14:58:21Z

‎Transcript

WilliamBrennan: how I read it

2024-10-01T21:06:29Z

how I read it

172.69.94.66: /* Explanation */

2024-08-30T15:53:26Z

‎Explanation

172.70.160.136: Undo revision 349545 by 172.71.170.123 (talk) Three "only rechanging the BOT text" edits made to pages, with no special reasons.

2024-08-28T19:30:31Z

Undo revision 349545 by 172.71.170.123 (talk) Three "only rechanging the BOT text" edits made to pages, with no special reasons.

172.71.170.123: /* Explanation */

2024-08-28T19:20:34Z

‎Explanation

172.70.163.71: Looked like a clumsy attempt to be meta. (i.e. Randall's artistic licence.) Rephrased to make it more like "Beret Guy's powers", which happen despite even the in-universe surprise that they can.

2024-08-23T04:46:20Z

Looked like a clumsy attempt to be meta. (i.e. Randall's artistic licence.) Rephrased to make it more like "Beret Guy's powers", which happen despite even the in-universe surprise that they can.

172.71.155.48: /* Explanation */

2024-08-23T04:41:24Z

‎Explanation

@@ Line 17: / Line 17: @@
 Hairy assigns the team to figure out how to recreate Big Bang nucleosynthesis, which in real life is not actually possible for a contemporary business organization.{{cn}} Nonetheless, the team somehow builds a machine capable of it. They are successful, likely obliterating themselves and at least all the closest galaxies in the process. Alternatively, they may have created a separate universe containing the subsequent events, thus simply removing themselves from the scope of the comic.
-The final panels show the creation of a second Big Bang followed by the next 14 billion years of that new universe, culminating with the same characters in an identical meeting, presumably having arisen from the same series of post-Big Bang events as in the original universe. This suggests a {{w|cyclic universe}} in which events repeat themselves exactly (which {{w|chaos theory}} implies would be extremely unlikely.{{acn}}) They are facing the same predicament: helium shortages have become a problem, and they once again need a more reliable source. The implication is that this is a recurring cycle, a religious/philosophical concept called {{w|eternal return}} that occurs in many world religions (such as Hinduism's {{w|Yuga_cycle|Cycle of Yugas}} of creation and destruction), but centered here on the helium needs of a unnamed, resourceful company.
+The final panels show the creation of a second Big Bang followed by the next 14 billion years of that new universe, culminating with the same characters in an identical meeting, presumably having arisen from the same series of post-Big Bang events as in the original universe. This suggests a {{w|cyclic universe}} in which events repeat themselves exactly. They are facing the same predicament: helium shortages have become a problem, and they once again need a more reliable source. The implication is that this is a recurring cycle, a religious/philosophical concept called {{w|eternal return}} that occurs in many world religions (such as Hinduism's {{w|Yuga_cycle|Cycle of Yugas}} of creation and destruction), but centered here on the helium needs of a unnamed, resourceful company.
 Another possible interpretation is that the new Big Bang does not destroy the existing universe, but creates a new one connected in some way to the old, from which helium can be extracted. This new universe's inhabitants would eventually develop the same problem with a shortage of helium, causing them to create another new universe to get helium from it, ''ad infinitum''.

@@ Line 15: / Line 15: @@
 Hairbun suggests investigating the origin of helium. Cueball's research reveals that most helium in the universe came from {{w|Big Bang nucleosynthesis}}, which occurred shortly after the {{w|Big Bang}} when the first elements were formed. It appears to have overlooked the fact that 99% of the helium on Earth has been produced from the slow {{w|radioactive decay}} of the {{w|decay chain}}s of naturally occurring {{w|uranium-238}} and {{w|thorium-232}} (which in turn came from {{w|r-process}} {{w|Supernova nucleosynthesis|nucleosynthesis}} scattered from merging {{w|neutron star}}s;[https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/13873/] see [[2826: Gold]]) emitting {{w|alpha particles}} that are identical to temporarily ionized helium, with only the remaining one percent originating from the Big Bang.
-Hairy assigns the team to figure out how to recreate Big Bang nucleosynthesis, which in real life is not actually possible for a contemporary business organization.{{cn}} Nonetheless, the team somehow builds a machine capable of it. They are successful, likely obliterating themselves and at least all the closest galaxies in the process.
+Hairy assigns the team to figure out how to recreate Big Bang nucleosynthesis, which in real life is not actually possible for a contemporary business organization.{{cn}} Nonetheless, the team somehow builds a machine capable of it. They are successful, likely obliterating themselves and at least all the closest galaxies in the process. Alternatively, they may have created a separate universe containing the subsequent events, thus simply removing themselves from the scope of the comic.
 The final panels show the creation of a second Big Bang followed by the next 14 billion years of that new universe, culminating with the same characters in an identical meeting, presumably having arisen from the same series of post-Big Bang events as in the original universe. This suggests a {{w|cyclic universe}} in which events repeat themselves exactly (which {{w|chaos theory}} implies would be extremely unlikely.{{acn}}) They are facing the same predicament: helium shortages have become a problem, and they once again need a more reliable source. The implication is that this is a recurring cycle, a religious/philosophical concept called {{w|eternal return}} that occurs in many world religions (such as Hinduism's {{w|Yuga_cycle|Cycle of Yugas}} of creation and destruction), but centered here on the helium needs of a unnamed, resourceful company.

@@ Line 11: / Line 11: @@
 ==Explanation==
-This comic explores the challenges of obtaining {{w|helium}}. [[Hairy]] is leading a company meeting with [[Megan]], [[Cueball]], and [[Hairbun]], who are discussing the recurring problem of {{w|helium shortage}}s, a real-world issue due to helium's limited availability on Earth. Helium is a non-renewable resource primarily extracted from {{w|natural gas}} deposits and its scarcity can affect industries such as medical imaging, semiconductor manufacturing, scientific research, and party balloon supplies.[https://www.marketplace.org/2023/01/19/heliums-been-rising-in-price-and-its-bringing-businesses-down/] See also [[2766: Helium Reserve]].
+This comic explores the challenges of obtaining {{w|helium}}. [[Hairy]] is leading a company meeting with [[Megan]], [[Cueball]], and [[Hairbun]], who are discussing the recurring problem of {{w|helium shortage}}s, a real-world issue due to helium's limited availability on Earth. Helium is, for practical purposes, a non-renewable resource primarily extracted from {{w|natural gas}} deposits and its scarcity can affect industries such as medical imaging, semiconductor manufacturing, scientific research, and party balloon supplies.[https://www.marketplace.org/2023/01/19/heliums-been-rising-in-price-and-its-bringing-businesses-down/] See also [[2766: Helium Reserve]].  In theory, it is a renewable resource, in that a nearly unlimited amount could be produced by nuclear fusion or harvested from the sun.  However, the technology to do so has not been invented.
 Hairbun suggests investigating the origin of helium. Cueball's research reveals that most helium in the universe came from {{w|Big Bang nucleosynthesis}}, which occurred shortly after the {{w|Big Bang}} when the first elements were formed. It appears to have overlooked the fact that 99% of the helium on Earth has been produced from the slow {{w|radioactive decay}} of the {{w|decay chain}}s of naturally occurring {{w|uranium-238}} and {{w|thorium-232}} (which in turn came from {{w|r-process}} {{w|Supernova nucleosynthesis|nucleosynthesis}} scattered from merging {{w|neutron star}}s;[https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/13873/] see [[2826: Gold]]) emitting {{w|alpha particles}} that are identical to temporarily ionized helium, with only the remaining one percent originating from the Big Bang.

@@ Line 24: / Line 24: @@
 ==Transcript==
 :[Hairy sits on an office chair at the head of a conference table and has his hands on the table, with Cueball and Megan also at the table.]
 :Hairy: These helium shortages every few years are such a pain.

← Older revision		Revision as of 21:06, 1 October 2024
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	The final panels show the creation of a second Big Bang followed by the next 14 billion years of that new universe, culminating with the same characters in an identical meeting, presumably having arisen from the same series of post-Big Bang events as in the original universe. This suggests a {{w\|cyclic universe}} in which events repeat themselves exactly (which {{w\|chaos theory}} implies would be extremely unlikely.{{acn}}) They are facing the same predicament: helium shortages have become a problem, and they once again need a more reliable source. The implication is that this is a recurring cycle, a religious/philosophical concept called {{w\|eternal return}} that occurs in many world religions (such as Hinduism's {{w\|Yuga_cycle\|Cycle of Yugas}} of creation and destruction), but centered here on the helium needs of a unnamed, resourceful company.		The final panels show the creation of a second Big Bang followed by the next 14 billion years of that new universe, culminating with the same characters in an identical meeting, presumably having arisen from the same series of post-Big Bang events as in the original universe. This suggests a {{w\|cyclic universe}} in which events repeat themselves exactly (which {{w\|chaos theory}} implies would be extremely unlikely.{{acn}}) They are facing the same predicament: helium shortages have become a problem, and they once again need a more reliable source. The implication is that this is a recurring cycle, a religious/philosophical concept called {{w\|eternal return}} that occurs in many world religions (such as Hinduism's {{w\|Yuga_cycle\|Cycle of Yugas}} of creation and destruction), but centered here on the helium needs of a unnamed, resourceful company.
		+
		+	Another possible interpretation is that the new Big Bang does not destroy the existing universe, but creates a new one connected in some way to the old, from which helium can be extracted. This new universe's inhabitants would eventually develop the same problem with a shortage of helium, causing them to create another new universe to get helium from it, ''ad infinitum''.

	The title text is a wordplay on the concepts of {{w\|cosmic inflation}} and {{w\|monetary inflation}}. In economics, monetary inflation is the rate at which the cost of goods and services increases over time (one can also think of this as the value of money falling). If the interest rate on a debt is less than inflation, then the relative cost of the debt decreases over time. Cosmic inflation is a theory in cosmology that describes the rapid expansion of the universe just after the Big Bang. The joke imagines the original company as having incurred a significant debt (perhaps as a result of the costs of building the Big Bang machine), which has now been inherited by its subsidiary. Somehow, thanks to the effect of cosmic inflation, this debt was diluted (perhaps physically across the ever-expanding vastness of space), reducing it to almost nothing. See also [[2688: Bubble Universes]].		The title text is a wordplay on the concepts of {{w\|cosmic inflation}} and {{w\|monetary inflation}}. In economics, monetary inflation is the rate at which the cost of goods and services increases over time (one can also think of this as the value of money falling). If the interest rate on a debt is less than inflation, then the relative cost of the debt decreases over time. Cosmic inflation is a theory in cosmology that describes the rapid expansion of the universe just after the Big Bang. The joke imagines the original company as having incurred a significant debt (perhaps as a result of the costs of building the Big Bang machine), which has now been inherited by its subsidiary. Somehow, thanks to the effect of cosmic inflation, this debt was diluted (perhaps physically across the ever-expanding vastness of space), reducing it to almost nothing. See also [[2688: Bubble Universes]].

← Older revision		Revision as of 15:53, 30 August 2024
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	==Explanation==		==Explanation==
−	~~{{incomplete\|Created by a BIG BANG NUCLEOSYNTHESIZER WITH A [[2766: Helium Reserve\|VERY HIGH PITCHED VOICE]] - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}~~
−
	This comic explores the challenges of obtaining {{w\|helium}}. [[Hairy]] is leading a company meeting with [[Megan]], [[Cueball]], and [[Hairbun]], who are discussing the recurring problem of {{w\|helium shortage}}s, a real-world issue due to helium's limited availability on Earth. Helium is a non-renewable resource primarily extracted from {{w\|natural gas}} deposits and its scarcity can affect industries such as medical imaging, semiconductor manufacturing, scientific research, and party balloon supplies.[https://www.marketplace.org/2023/01/19/heliums-been-rising-in-price-and-its-bringing-businesses-down/] See also [[2766: Helium Reserve]].		This comic explores the challenges of obtaining {{w\|helium}}. [[Hairy]] is leading a company meeting with [[Megan]], [[Cueball]], and [[Hairbun]], who are discussing the recurring problem of {{w\|helium shortage}}s, a real-world issue due to helium's limited availability on Earth. Helium is a non-renewable resource primarily extracted from {{w\|natural gas}} deposits and its scarcity can affect industries such as medical imaging, semiconductor manufacturing, scientific research, and party balloon supplies.[https://www.marketplace.org/2023/01/19/heliums-been-rising-in-price-and-its-bringing-businesses-down/] See also [[2766: Helium Reserve]].