https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/api.php?action=feedcontributions&feedformat=atom&user=209.68.4.185 2026-07-05T17:18:07Z User contributions MediaWiki 1.30.0 https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=387:_Advanced_Technology&diff=28734 2013-02-22T12:33:30Z

<p>209.68.4.185: /* Transcript */</p> <hr /> <div>{{comic<br /> | number = 387<br /> | date = February 22, 2008<br /> | title = Advanced Technology<br /> | image = advanced_technology.png<br /> | titletext = We are sexy, sexy Von Neumann machines.<br /> }}<br /> <br /> ==Explanation==<br /> Despite how advanced technology is, we (in early 2013) still have yet to create a machine that replicates itself, an accomplishment to which only biological organisms can lay a claim.<br /> <br /> A {{w|Self-replicating_machine|Von Neumann machine}} refers to what is usually called &quot;Von Neumann probe&quot; or &quot;Self replicating machine&quot;, a machine that is capable of building a fully functional copy of itself.<br /> <br /> {{Incomplete}}<br /> <br /> Your point about *mystery* vs. *beauty* is so interesting! Thank you for brniingg that up. But I think the same argument applies. Understanding the world through science opens up even bigger mysteries, like how does particle entanglement work? That's the strangest thing Or imagining the instant of the big bang. Do you think there's a way to comfort the people you describe, those who appreciate the mystery of the world, by letting them know that even bigger mysteries can be found through learning about the world through experiment?</div>

209.68.4.185