Talk:2307: Alive Or Not

Explain xkcd: It's 'cause you're dumb.
Revision as of 16:49, 18 May 2020 by Trlkly (talk | contribs) (misplaced animosity towards author due to lack of information)
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I'm pretty sure high-pressure fire hoses belong on this scale60sRefugee (talk) 21:47, 15 May 2020 (UTC)

What about wacky waving inflatable tube guy? 172.68.38.124 00:41, 16 May 2020 (UTC)

Funny, for once viruses are said to be alive. That's new... 141.101.107.138 22:01, 15 May 2020 (UTC)

Definitely new, and extremely angering! I could scream... 172.68.143.30 22:47, 15 May 2020 (UTC)
Jup. The nex disgusting piece of antiscience after Wednesday´s nonsense about handwashing helping against respirational diseases. I think Monroe has caught a bug from Potus Donald. --141.101.69.33 07:44, 16 May 2020 (UTC)
There was nothing unscientific about either one. The cold is spread in part by contact--it's why we cough into our elbows, not our hands now--it reduces spread. And whether or not viruses count as alive is debatable, not obviously wrong. They do have genetic material and reproduce, and you can kill them, making them inert in various ways. -->
But even if he had been incorrect, comparing someone to some other hated figure for some much smaller slight is just Godwin-lite. And, like the original, it contributes nothing of value to the conversation. In no way does it help determine who is correct. Trlkly (talk) 16:49, 18 May 2020 (UTC)

Do we want to bicker over the placement of the line (like "Why is it below viruses"), or the order things are placed in (like "Why are slime molds below plants")? GreatWyrmGold (talk) 22:06, 15 May 2020 (UTC)

Oh, go on. If you insist. You go first, unless you already have. ;) 162.158.154.31 22:46, 15 May 2020 (UTC)
Seconded, I'm most interested which criterion (even a numeric one, as the diagram is suggestive of) Randall used. 162.158.158.163 09:43, 16 May 2020 (UTC)

True fossils have remineralised so generally do not have DNA left. They are merely the shadow of a previous life.

So fossils are closer to "Rocks with Faces," well, for the ancient vertebrate fossils anyway? Nutster (talk) 15:36, 16 May 2020 (UTC)

Surprised no one has noticed the typo yet. It's 'archaea', not 'archea'

(Sign yourself(/ves), "True fossils" and "Surprised"?) I disagree. It's 'archæa'... 162.158.154.31 22:46, 15 May 2020 (UTC)

Poor English and a mistake. It should say... "...discussion about *whether* virus*es* are alive." Also the (covid for starters) is wrong. Covid19 is the disease caused by the virus (as mentioned in the line above) not the virus itself

I am disappointed that sponges are not mentioned as an example of weird animals. I mean, come on, way weirder than jellyfish. But it is good that viruses get the recognition they deserve.Jkrstrt (talk) 13:34, 16 May 2020 (UTC)

When looking at viruses, I consider them made of the things of life (proteins, lipids, nucleic acids), but are not actually alive as they have no metabolism and can not reproduce on their own; they need to co-opt the protein production facility of truly living cells in order to reproduce. Without a host, they just sit there (or maybe blow around on the wind). Also without metabolism, they can not starve to death, like bacteria and other single-cell organisms that get into the wrong environment. Nutster (talk) 15:36, 16 May 2020 (UTC)

Well, this raises the question where the sun (or any main sequence star) fall on this list. Is it just a really big thermonuclear fire?

This is not a COVID-19 comic. Just because it is biology-related, doesn't make it a COVID-19 comic. I have removed it from the category and its mention in the explanation.172.69.34.38 07:33, 17 May 2020 (UTC)

Of course it is. The whole idea about this comic is to spark the discussion if Virus (covid) is alive or not. I put it back. --Kynde (talk) 21:59, 17 May 2020 (UTC)
I fully disagree, this comic could have been published in previous years. This is only tangentially related to COVID-19, and is a general discussion about "life". Viruses are only barely mentioned in this comic. 172.69.34.38 23:26, 17 May 2020 (UTC)
Agree it shouldn't be classified as COVID-19, but then there's a bunch of others that should be removed from the category: 2278, 2283, 2289, 2292, 2293.141.101.107.78 08:34, 18 May 2020 (UTC)
I wouldn't consider this comic about COVID-19, either. Elektrizikekswerk (talk) 13:49, 18 May 2020 (UTC)

Somewhat disappointed that he didn't include any fictional items such as golems. For that matter, where to place Alexa? Cellocgw (talk) 10:51, 18 May 2020 (UTC)

I’m surprised this doesn’t include Schrödinger’s Cat at the origin. 162.158.91.77 14:53, 18 May 2020 (UTC)

Missed joke opportunity: which type of cloud? because one type of cloud has AI in it..