https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/api.php?action=feedcontributions&user=Someone+Else+37&feedformat=atomexplain xkcd - User contributions [en]2024-03-19T07:44:39ZUser contributionsMediaWiki 1.30.0https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:2395:_Covid_Precaution_Level&diff=202835Talk:2395: Covid Precaution Level2020-12-08T05:22:52Z<p>Someone Else 37: </p>
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The problem is precautions that ARE insufficient feel excessive to many people and precautions that are excessive FEEL insufficient to many others - and science seems to be unable to provide definitive answers to replace "feelings" with logic [[Special:Contributions/162.158.126.104|162.158.126.104]] 23:59, 7 December 2020 (UTC)<br />
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To save the person(s) effort who will ultimately write this into the explanation/transcript in a legible manner: There are 13 subdivisions in Insufficient, 14 subdivisions in Excessive, roughly (close enough to look deliberate, but sloppily so) 6 divisions shared, across a scale of 21 effective divisions. Enjoy! [[Special:Contributions/162.158.158.155|162.158.158.155]] 00:08, 8 December 2020 (UTC)<br />
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I wonder what is meant by the title text exactly, is the one kind of feedback you can get getting the disease? The way it is phrases it feels like "dying from covid" is the final feedback (you can only get it once and then it's too late). But just getting infected is already some feedback isn't it? <br />
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[[User:Flekkie|Flekkie]] ([[User talk:Flekkie|talk]]) 03:51, 8 December 2020 (UTC)<br />
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:The title text says ''definitive'' feedback, which I took to mean deaths. Numbers of those infected isn't inherently definitive as the precautions might affect how or if they recover. --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.255.152|162.158.255.152]] 05:01, 8 December 2020 (UTC)<br />
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:I interpreted the title text as referring to contracting COVID. The point of the precautions is to keep from contracting it: if you do contract it, that's definitive feedback that your precautions were insufficient; and once you're already infected, it's too late to do anything to prevent that infection. If COVID is like most other diseases (and I'm not sure if anyone knows for sure whether it is or not), then once you've had it once, you won't be able to contract it again, thanks your immune system having built up a resistance to it. --[[User:Someone Else 37|Someone Else 37]] ([[User talk:Someone Else 37|talk]]) 05:22, 8 December 2020 (UTC)</div>Someone Else 37https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:2091:_Million,_Billion,_Trillion&diff=167523Talk:2091: Million, Billion, Trillion2018-12-30T01:38:48Z<p>Someone Else 37: </p>
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I actually think we have ''too many names'' for large numbers. It's really only necessary to introduce a new name when you reach the ''square'' of the previous name. So, we'd still have tens and hundreds, but there's no need for "one thousand, one hundred" when you can just have "eleven hundred". We'd be better off just naming 10^4, 10^8, 10^16, 10^32, and that's already well beyond anything needed for normal usage, with only a handful of names. None of this "quattuordecillion" stuff that no-one can remember without sitting down and working it out. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.86.64|172.68.86.64]] 05:32, 28 December 2018 (UTC)<br />
: And what you get is a super-weird "double-log" scale! The British (and other nations') usage is correct. Anything above thousand is completely abstract for a human being and intuitively nonlinear (some nations - ancient Greeks and others - go as far as ten thousands, a myriad, but this is it). A thousand squared is already far beyond intuition so it is a good candidate for a new unit representing A BIG NUMBER, plus log scale is a good abstraction allowing for rapid expansion in magnitude. So taking Latin numerals and adding an -illion suffix (except the irregular million) for subsequent powers of 10^6 is a really convenient system. Of course, it goes only as far as ordinary Latin numbers go, then you need to invent something else, but at this point it's only for entertainment. For anything physical you probably would never need a number much larger than a googol. -- [[Special:Contributions/162.158.90.90|162.158.90.90]] 09:26, 28 December 2018 (UTC)<br />
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: I think we should refrain from saying one usage is correct over the other - that's just arrogant and mean. That said, the current explanation states that usage is different between American and British English, but my reading on Wikipedia (which is already hyperlinked in the explanation) states that in recent decades Britain has declared their use of short units and therefore British English is now the same as American English. The only regions where it appears there is still usage of the long system is in French and Spanish speaking regions, as well as some special cases around the world. Don't shoot the messenger - I'm just repeating what it states on the Wikipedia page. [[User:Ianrbibtitlht|Ianrbibtitlht]] ([[User talk:Ianrbibtitlht|talk]]) 10:15, 28 December 2018 (UTC)<br />
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:: Rereading the Wikipedia page, it was in 1974 that Britain declared their use of the short scale for large numbers. [[User:Ianrbibtitlht|Ianrbibtitlht]] ([[User talk:Ianrbibtitlht|talk]]) 10:19, 28 December 2018 (UTC)<br />
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::: Actually, Germany also uses the "long" (i.e. natural) scale to this day, and I remember how much trouble I had understanding the American system. As the second comment above states, the long scale is (prefix)-llion = 10^(prefix*6), or (prefix)-lliard''e'' = 10^(prefix*6+3); whereas in the short system, (prefix)-llion = 10^(prefix*3+3), which is rather less obvious, if you have any intuition for numbers (and a little Latin). [https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lange_und_kurze_Skala German Wikipedia] tells me that the long scale was invented 1484/1550 by French mathematicians, and the short one in the 17th century in Italy and France by some geniuses that thought when grouping the digits on paper by three instead of six, they should change the group names to make confusion complete. Also, they claim official usage of the short variant is in USA, Brazil, and English-language finance. The names for the systems, however, are from 1975, from yet another French mathematichan, Geneviève Guitel. --[[User:Khms|Khms]] ([[User talk:Khms|talk]]) 10:59, 28 December 2018 (UTC)<br />
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::: East Asian languages such as Japanese actually do use the power-4 scale, with the naming being ten, ten x ten = hundred, hundred x hundred = big'ousand, big'ousand x big'ousand = morebiggienoughty, morebiggienoughty x morebiggienoughty = superbiggienoughty, etc.<br />
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:::: Crore. Weird word unless you are in or from India. [[User:Snezzy|Snezzy]] ([[User talk:Snezzy|talk]]) 11:48, 28 December 2018 (UTC)<br />
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: The "named power-of-two power-of-ten" system you propose already exists, in the form of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/-yllion Donald Knuth's -yllion system]. 10^2 = hundred, 10^4 = myriad, 10^8 = myllion, 10^16 = byllion, 10^32 = tryllion, etc. 10^63 would be written as "ten hundred myriad myllion byllion tryllion", and the next power of 10, 10^64, is one quadryllion. 10^100 (i.e. googol) is one myriad tryllion quadryllion. It's quite efficient, as you point out, and were I to rewrite our number system from scratch, it's the system I would use. Unfortunately, nobody alive grew up with -yllions, so we're stuck with the inefficiency of named multiple-of-three powers-of-ten. Although apparently [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_numerals#Large_numbers some parts of East Asia at some points in time] used a similar system, with specific characters for the -yllions up to 10^4096. I find myself severely disappointed that those characters are now used to represent different (and much smaller) numbers. --[[User:Someone Else 37|Someone Else 37]] ([[User talk:Someone Else 37|talk]]) 01:38, 30 December 2018 (UTC)<br />
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I said this earlier, and I'm going to say it again - the split between use of the short scale and the long scale is NOT a U.S. thing, nor an Atlantic Ocean thing! Just navigate to the hyperlinked page on Wikipedia, and scroll down to the graphic map showing who uses which system to see this very clearly. The majority of the globe uses the short scale except for the following regions: Europe other than Britain, Iran, some countries in Africa, and some countries in Latin America and South America, as well as French speaking regions in otherwise short-scale countries. Notable non-U.S. short-scale countries include Russia and Australia, along with Eastern South America and most of Africa. It's frustrating when people insist on making something about those U.S.A. people that has nothing to do with us. [[User:Ianrbibtitlht|Ianrbibtitlht]] ([[User talk:Ianrbibtitlht|talk]]) 14:51, 28 December 2018 (UTC)<br />
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: Even the line containing the "In Britian" hyperlink does NOT say what the linked page actually states - that Britain uses the short-scale now, although they used the long-scale quite some time ago (before 1974). [[User:Ianrbibtitlht|Ianrbibtitlht]] ([[User talk:Ianrbibtitlht|talk]]) 14:58, 28 December 2018 (UTC)<br />
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The line that includes "Though people in Britain often use the American definition as of the past few decades" is a bit misleading. In fact, the government of Great Britain announced, proclaimed, and declared that they will officially use the short-scale scheme in 1974. If you live there and are still using the long-scale system, then per your countries leadership you are wrong! The short-scale system is YOUR definition, not the American definition. Interestingly, we didn't invent the short-scale system because it was brought to the Americas by Europeans before the United States of America was even founded! We just continued to use it because it's all we knew until Randall came along and pointed out how screwed up the rest of the world is! [[User:Ianrbibtitlht|Ianrbibtitlht]] ([[User talk:Ianrbibtitlht|talk]]) 15:46, 28 December 2018 (UTC)<br />
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Long live scientific / exponential notation! 16:19, 28 December 2018 (UTC)~<br />
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Set the first tick on the y-axis to have value 0, and set the last tick to have value 5. Then, the y-values of all the y-axis ticks are 0, 1.0053, 1.9973, 3.0127, 3.9947, and 5, approximately as expected. (The x-axis is at y-value -0.9903.) Now, setting the x-axis as the base-10 logarithm, the points' coordinates are as follows: (6, 0.5388); (7, 2.4800); (8, 3.7672); (9, 1.8009); (10, 3.3622); (11, 4.2860); (12, 3.2495); (13, 4.1125); (14, 4.5939). [[User:LegionMammal978|LegionMammal978]] ([[User talk:LegionMammal978|talk]]) 16:24, 28 December 2018 (UTC)<br />
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I'd even say that 999,999,999 (especially when worded in full) seems like a way bigger number than 1 billion, despite being one less. --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.28|108.162.229.28]] 16:42, 28 December 2018 (UTC)<br />
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The graph reminded me of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synesthesia#Number_form number-form synaesthesia], which I have. My number shape (and most people's) is different though, and much more curly. [[User:Cosmogoblin|Cosmogoblin]] ([[User talk:Cosmogoblin|talk]]) 17:20, 28 December 2018 (UTC)</div>Someone Else 37https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1582:_Picture_a_Grassy_Field&diff=102411Talk:1582: Picture a Grassy Field2015-09-25T07:39:04Z<p>Someone Else 37: Added a comment referencing an older xkcd with a similar premise.</p>
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<div>Yikes! It's like an sql-injection for your imagination. [[User:Nique|Nique]] ([[User talk:Nique|talk]]) 05:28, 25 September 2015 (UTC)<br />
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Maybe someone should send DiCaprio to hunt for these creatures... [[User:Elektrizikekswerk|Elektrizikekswerk]] ([[User talk:Elektrizikekswerk|talk]]) 05:50, 25 September 2015 (UTC)<br />
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Reminds me of [[248|#248]]. --[[User:Someone Else 37|Someone Else 37]] ([[User talk:Someone Else 37|talk]]) 07:39, 25 September 2015 (UTC)</div>Someone Else 37https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:902:_Darmok_and_Jalad&diff=68264Talk:902: Darmok and Jalad2014-05-29T00:47:26Z<p>Someone Else 37: Added question about the comic, but didn't figure it was worthy of an Incomplete tag.</p>
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<div>I've always been kind of lukewarm about this comic. I get it, but it doesn't hit any point incredibly well like some of the other comics do. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 01:58, 17 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
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As someone who doesn't know much about Star Trek, why the "wiiiiiink" from Dathon? --[[User:Someone Else 37|Someone Else 37]] ([[User talk:Someone Else 37|talk]]) 00:47, 29 May 2014 (UTC)</div>Someone Else 37https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1365:_Inflation&diff=66908Talk:1365: Inflation2014-05-07T22:12:03Z<p>Someone Else 37: Added a reply and a holographic note</p>
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<div>Space Jam! - [[Special:Contributions/108.162.225.147|108.162.225.147]] 04:51, 7 May 2014 (UTC)<br />
[[Special:Contributions/173.245.63.186|173.245.63.186]] 04:54, 7 May 2014 (UTC)<br />
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http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0117705/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_1<br />
[[Special:Contributions/173.245.63.186|173.245.63.186]] 04:54, 7 May 2014 (UTC)<br />
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I got "basketball" and "Space Jam", but I didn't get why it said Spalding on it. From reading the explanation, I'm guessing it's a brand. Thanks, because I never would have made the connection. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.218|108.162.237.218]] 05:29, 7 May 2014 (UTC)<br />
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<strike>Why did Randall choose a basketball? A rugby ball or an american football would fit the shape better</strike> [[User:Condor70|Condor70]] ([[User talk:Condor70|talk]]) 06:12, 7 May 2014 (UTC)<br />
:Because of the curving lines like a basketball on the image. [[User:Fizzle|Fizzle]] ([[User talk:Fizzle|talk]]) 06:17, 7 May 2014 (UTC)<br />
::Added the reasoning for choosing a basketball to represent the universe [[User:Condor70|Condor70]] ([[User talk:Condor70|talk]]) 08:46, 7 May 2014 (UTC)<br />
::I have never heard of the Basketball version - in DK I have mainly heard of it like a balloon. The link is to a book - could someone find a link to a short article where this analogy is used? Also I agree that if you do not know a basketballs lines you would never think of that from the image - as it much more looks like an American football due to the shape. Of course the Space Jam/Michael Jordan title text makes it clear that it is a basketball. [[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 13:11, 7 May 2014 (UTC)<br />
:::The only other reference I could find is [http://csep10.phys.utk.edu/astr162/lect/cosmology/inflation.html]. I remember the analogy from a Discovery Channel program.[[User:Condor70|Condor70]] ([[User talk:Condor70|talk]]) 15:31, 7 May 2014 (UTC)<br />
:This is no basketball! The lines on a basketball are different. On a basketball every line intersects exactly 4 times with other lines.<br />
::Looks like a basketball (example [http://tf3dm.com/imgd/l20568-official-nba-spalding-basketball-86751.jpeg]). Remember that the Mollweide projection distorts the lines.[[User:Condor70|Condor70]] ([[User talk:Condor70|talk]]) 15:31, 7 May 2014 (UTC)<br />
:::Person two comments above is correct. Take either the east or west hemisphere (according to the orientation of the globe as presented in this comic) and then rotate it 90 degrees (on the globe, not on the silly eliptical projection) and ''then'' you have the basketball I grew up with. Has it changed in the last 20 years? Condor70's linked image doesn't show enough of the ball's surface to be conclusive on this point. Images on Wikipedia seem to indicate the rib/seam pattern may vary by ball manufacturer; the “official” NBA/Spalding ball image there doesn't show enough of the ball's surface either. — Vid the Kid [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.77|108.162.216.77]] 17:07, 7 May 2014 (UTC)<br />
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Should the image not be updated to the current one on XKCD? Then this image could be saved on XKCD and linked to from the explanation on the error. [[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 13:09, 7 May 2014 (UTC)<br />
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What's a basketball? (explain like i'm five &lt;duck>) [[User:Ralfoide|Ralfoide]] ([[User talk:Ralfoide|talk]]) 14:19, 7 May 2014 (UTC)<br />
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Megan is not looking at the "actual image captured by the BICEP2 instrument", because BICEP2 has only a 20 degree field of view (targed at the "Southern Hole") http://www.caltech.edu/content/building-bicep2-conversation-jamie-bock {{unsigned ip|173.245.54.73}}<br />
:Correct. The image is from the WMAP.[[User:Condor70|Condor70]] ([[User talk:Condor70|talk]]) 15:32, 7 May 2014 (UTC)<br />
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When I look at the comic at xkcd.com, the bottom image is reversed and 'SPALDING' is backwards (and so thus hard to make out). Is this true for anyone else? --[[User:Dangerkeith3000|Dangerkeith3000]] ([[User talk:Dangerkeith3000|talk]]) 15:53, 7 May 2014 (UTC)<br />
: Noted above, I think. Haven't checked out any explanation but I'm betting someone pointed out "but, it'd have to backwards, as viewed from inside", thus Randall reversed it. A pity, because you're right about it being not as readable. (I'm ''used'' to mirror-writing... but combined with the rest of the image noisiness (unflipped) the reversed version comes out more like "Spajjing" or even "Soajjing", to me, the right-way-round one not suffering from inconveniently-placed splodges ruining the effect.) [[Special:Contributions/141.101.89.211|141.101.89.211]] 16:43, 7 May 2014 (UTC)<br />
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"''The concept of an expanding universe is often explained by comparing it with a basketball''"<br />
: "Often" ??? I get that a basketball is used in the comic, to allow for the Space Jam joke. But in all the explanations of an expanding universe I've ever seen, nobody has ever used a basketball. It's always been a balloon. Which makes a great deal more sense since a balloon, unlike a basketball, is something folks typically see actually expand. Claiming a basketball is "often" used seems forced here, an attempt to wedge in a unneeded justification for the Comcast's punchline. [[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.84|199.27.128.84]] 17:01, 7 May 2014 (UTC)<br />
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If I understand the basketball analogy correctly you can neiter be inside nor outside the ball, so why would it matter if the logo is reversed or not? You can't actually see the entire ball from anywhere in the universe. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.53.62|173.245.53.62]] 17:09, 7 May 2014 (UTC)<br />
:True, but then you'd see the logo edge-on, which would make it impossible to read and ruin the joke. --[[User:Someone Else 37|Someone Else 37]] ([[User talk:Someone Else 37|talk]]) 22:12, 7 May 2014 (UTC)<br />
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This could also be a joke on the {{w|Holographic Principle}}, where everything inside a volume (such as the universe or the interior of a basketball) can be encoded into a surface surrounding that volume. Here, Randall seems to propose that WMAP has seen through the universe to its surface, and revealed its true nature. --[[User:Someone Else 37|Someone Else 37]] ([[User talk:Someone Else 37|talk]]) 22:12, 7 May 2014 (UTC)</div>Someone Else 37https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1059:_Bel-Air&diff=65984Talk:1059: Bel-Air2014-04-24T03:29:34Z<p>Someone Else 37: </p>
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<div>Doggerel verse? Mixed with rap? What is this blasphemy? '''[[User:Davidy22|<span title="I want you."><u><font color="purple" size="2px">David</font><font color="green" size="3px">y</font></u><sup><font color="indigo" size="1px">22</font></sup></span>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 13:46, 8 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
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It seems that the 'click' was precisely timed so that Cueball could avoid hearing 'philadelphia' rhyme with 'adele for you'. I strongly support this decision. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.223|108.162.219.223]] 06:10, 23 January 2014 (UTC)<br />
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:Agreed, added to explanation. --[[User:Someone Else 37|Someone Else 37]] ([[User talk:Someone Else 37|talk]]) 03:29, 24 April 2014 (UTC)</div>Someone Else 37https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1059:_Bel-Air&diff=659831059: Bel-Air2014-04-24T03:28:36Z<p>Someone Else 37: /* Explanation */ Added an observation from a comment, my own opinion, and a couple grammar fixes</p>
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<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1059<br />
| date = May 23, 2012<br />
| title = Bel-Air<br />
| image = bel air.png<br />
| titletext = Aaron Sorkin has been tapped to write the TV movie about the aging prince's eventual election to Pat Toomey's Senate seat, currently titled either 'FRESHman Senator' or 'Mr. Smith Goes to Washington'.<br />
}}<br />
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==Explanation==<br />
This comic is a take on the 90s TV series {{w|Fresh Prince of Bel-Air}} and its much parodied and repeated theme song. Consequently, the song coming out of [[Cueball]]'s TV right now is a take on that song. The joke is that {{w|Will Smith}} has somehow gone from being a successful rap star to an ambitious politician. {{w|Doggerel}} is a derogatory term for verse considered of little literary value or a comic verse of irregular measure, or in this case, rap music. Obviously, the song is updated with a reference to {{w|Adele (singer)|Adele}}, who was, of course, not performing during the series' run, seeing as she was two years old at its start.<br />
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In the last panel, Cueball is annoyed about this stupid show and he switches to another channel or turns the TV off. The timing of the "click" indicates that he became annoyed when the song turned into a political advertisement and/or he did not want to hear "some Adele for ya" be rhymed with the name of the city {{w|Philadelphia}}.<br />
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The title text refers to {{w|Mr. Smith Goes to Washington}}, a 1939 Academy Award-winning movie about an idealistic young man who is corrupted by politics, perhaps as Will Smith might be in this comic. The two characters/character and actor is a coincidence that Randall plays on. {{w|Aaron Sorkin}} is the writer behind the comedy drama {{w|The American President}} and the creator of political television drama {{w|The West Wing}}.<br />
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==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball sits on an easy chair in front of a TV.]<br />
:TV: Well, my posh Bel Air life took a turn for the worse.<br />
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:TV: It's a story best related in a doggerel verse.<br />
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:TV: So kick back, relax, lemme put on some Adele for ya,<br />
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:[Cueball raises the remote and points at the screen.]<br />
:TV: While I tell you why I'm running for mayor of Phila-<br />
:''CLICK''<br />
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{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Songs]]</div>Someone Else 37https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=89:_Gravitational_Mass&diff=6589889: Gravitational Mass2014-04-23T02:43:36Z<p>Someone Else 37: /* Explanation */ Added Einstein reference</p>
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<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 89<br />
| date = April 14, 2006<br />
| title = Gravitational Mass<br />
| image = gravitational_mass.jpg<br />
| titletext = She's so fat the attraction goes up as the CUBE of the distance instead of the square<br />
}}<br />
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==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|This comic is so Einstein – Yo' momma is just a funny additional joke here. See "Principle of relativity" by Einstein. Furthermore some language issues have to be solved.}}<br />
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A well known joke format goes: "Yo' momma's so fat, when she X, she Y." For example: "Yo' momma's so fat, when she sits around the house, she sits ''around'' the house!" Variations play with the format, for example: "Yo' momma's so fat, she fell in the grand Canyon and got stuck!" A "Yo Mama" joke also appears in comic [[681:_Gravity_Wells#Cut_outs|681: Gravity Wells]] to the right of Jupiter.<br />
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[[Black Hat]] launches into a long description about the relativity of gravity and inertia that presumably will eventually lead to a Yo' Momma joke along the lines of "she's fat and not that attractive", but then gets bored or loses momentum and cuts to the chase.<br />
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The title text is a play on the law of gravitational attraction, which diminishes as the square of the distance. So if the distance between two objects doubles, the attraction is reduced to a quarter. And if the distance is halved, the attraction quadruples. Black Hat is saying that the attraction goes up as the cube, so if the distance is halved, the attraction increases eight-fold. This implies that "your momma is so fat, she can warp space-time". However, everyone, no matter how thin, can warp space time; contrary to Black Hat's explanation and as per Albert Einstein's theory of {{w|general relativity}}, the reason that objects have equal gravitational and inertial mass is that anything with mass causes a warping of space-time that causes all other objects (as well as things without any rest mass, such as photons) to experience the same gravitational acceleration.<br />
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==Transcript==<br />
:Black Hat: Gravitational mass is identical to inertial mass. That is, the amount of inertia something has and the amount of gravity it has are effectively the same. What's interesting is that there doesn't seem to be any reason this should be true. One could imagine an extremely large object with lots of resistance to force and no gravity (or vice versa), but this is never observed.<br />
:Black Hat: You know what? I'm just gonna skip the rest of the buildup and say it: Yo mama's fat.<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]<br />
[[Category:Physics]]<br />
[[Category:Your Mom]]</div>Someone Else 37https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=229:_Graffiti&diff=65820229: Graffiti2014-04-22T03:39:51Z<p>Someone Else 37: /* Explanation */ Explained the existentialism in the comic</p>
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<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 229<br />
| date = February 28, 2007<br />
| title = Graffiti<br />
| image = graffiti.png<br />
| titletext = FOR AN INTRIGUING TIME CALL<br />
}}<br />
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==Explanation==<br />
The humor in this comic comes from the irony of a deep philosophical musing on the nature of individuals sharing a private space in a public place, unknown to one another and separated by time. The graffiti text is juxtaposed with more common bathroom stall scrawlings - insults, slurs, and "[Name] was here."<br />
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This comic makes use of the existential idea of "finding meaning where you look for it", a recurring theme in xkcd. The caption implies that a bathroom stall isn't a place where Randall would like to find meaning in life, so he shouldn't look for it there.<br />
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The title text parodies one of the archetypical pieces of graffiti: "For a good time, call [phone number]", which indicates that the person reachable at that number is available for prostitution, casual sex, and/or phone sex. However, 'good' has been replaced with 'intriguing' time, implying that instead of sex the writer is offering witty and insightful conversation.<br />
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==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball sits on a toilet in a bathroom. The stall sidewall next to him is covered in graffiti: 'you suck', 'Mike sucks cock', 'CUNT', 'dane was here' struck through and 'dane is a fag' written under it, a crude pictogram of a penis, and various other unreadable scribbles.]<br />
:[One block of graffiti is salient:]<br />
::This graffiti is<br />
::fleeting human contact<br />
::both of us lost,<br />
::but for a moment<br />
::we're lost together.<br />
::I wonder who you are.<br />
<br />
:I think I look for meaning in the wrong places sometimes.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]<br />
[[Category:Philosophy]]</div>Someone Else 37https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1352:_Cosmologist_on_a_Tire_Swing&diff=648521352: Cosmologist on a Tire Swing2014-04-08T00:15:44Z<p>Someone Else 37: /* Explanation */ Added info on Cyclic Model, misc grammar fixes</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1352<br />
| date = April 7, 2014<br />
| title = Cosmologist on a Tire Swing<br />
| image = cosmologist_on_a_tire_swing.png<br />
| titletext = No matter how fast I swing, I can never travel outside this loop! Maybe space outside it doesn't exist! But I bet it does. This tire came from somewhere.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
Simply put, the tire swing is a symbolic representation of our universe. Scientific observations tell us that both space and time began with the {{w|Big Bang}} ~13.8 billion years ago. We don't know if there was such a thing as "before" the universe, or what that might be.<br />
<br />
The first 6 panels reference ongoing speculation about where the universe came from and why it even exists in the first place. The last 2 panels relate to recent observations of the {{w|accelerating universe}} in which galaxies are now receding from each other at higher and higher speeds, due to {{w|dark energy}}. <br />
<br />
The swing itself is likely a reference to the {{w|Cyclic Model}}, where the universe expands from a Big Bang, then contracts back in on itself under its own gravity for a Big Crunch, before bouncing outward again in another Big Bang, and repeating the whole process.<br />
<br />
The title text references questions about the {{w|shape of the universe}} and what could lie "outside" of it. We can't see outside of the {{w|observable universe}}, but it's likely that the universe is bigger than the observable universe. The setting of trees interspersed with many small pools resembles the {{w|Wood between the Worlds}}, a meta-verse described in C.S. Lewis's ''{{w|The Magician's Nephew}}''; each pool leads into a different universe — one of these is ours and another is Narnia. Even though nobody can leave our own universe, [[Randall]] bets that such unknown worlds do exist.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:Girl: What was before the big bang?<br />
:Cueball: I think time began with the big bang. So it doesn't make sense to ask what came before it.<br />
:Cosmologist (off panel): ''Look out''<br />
<br />
:Cosmologist: ''WHEEEE'' Hi I'm a cosmologist on a tire swing!<br />
<br />
:Cosmologist: We don't know whether time<br />
<br />
:Cosmologist: started at the big bang.<br />
<br />
:Cosmologist: It might have!<br />
<br />
:Cosmologist: Or maybe not! We don't know!<br />
:Cueball: Oh. OK!<br />
<br />
:Girl: ...Your tire swing looks fun!<br />
:Cosmologist: I can't stop!<br />
<br />
:Girl: Won't the swing stop on its own?<br />
:Cosmologist: I thought it would, but it seems to be accelerating.<br />
:Girl: Cosmology sounds pretty confusing.<br />
:Cosmologist: ''WHEEEEE!''<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Astronomy]]<br />
[[Category:Science]]</div>Someone Else 37https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:514:_Simultaneous&diff=63663Talk:514: Simultaneous2014-03-31T03:10:14Z<p>Someone Else 37: Documented a change I made to the article</p>
<hr />
<div>When reading "one of whom is moving at close to the speed of light compared to the other" in the explanation I'm reminded of the (non-)joke "What's the difference between a duck? One of its legs is not the same." Because of frames of reference ''both'' of them are moving at close to the speed of light compared with the respective other. Which doesn't affect the disagreement about the simultaneity of observed events, of course. That still potentially/inevitably happens. [[Special:Contributions/31.111.87.233|31.111.87.233]] 13:36, 28 May 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Fixed. I also removed the acceleration bit, as it's not relevant here and made the sentence too wordy and confusing. --[[User:Someone Else 37|Someone Else 37]] ([[User talk:Someone Else 37|talk]]) 03:10, 31 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
You don't have to move close to the speed of light to create this effect, you just need to go close to the speed of light to make a noticeable difference.<br />
<br />
Any amount of movement would cause this difference in perception, it would just be so small you would not notice it. In fact very accurate clocks have demonstrated this simply by flying one in a jet around the world while the other sat still.<br />
<br />
Even if you walked around the world there would still be some effect. So there is no need to assume the there was any near speed of light sex, just a disparity in the amount of movement made by the two partners. [[Special:Contributions/184.66.160.91|184.66.160.91]] 19:37, 7 July 2013 (UTC)</div>Someone Else 37https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=514:_Simultaneous&diff=63661514: Simultaneous2014-03-31T02:52:17Z<p>Someone Else 37: /* Explanation */ Clarified a statement about relative motion, removed the bit about non-acceleration</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 514<br />
| date = December 8, 2008<br />
| title = Simultaneous<br />
| image = simultaneous.png<br />
| titletext = I'm leaving you for your twin. He's more mature than you by now.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
[[Cueball]] and [[Megan]] are talking about the sex they just had. Cueball is remarking on how they both achieved orgasm simultaneously, but Megan disagrees.<br />
<br />
This comic is a play on Einstein's Theory of Special Relativity. One piece of the theory deals with two observers who are moving at close to the speed of light relative to each other. According to Einstein, events that appear simultaneous to one observer will appear to happen at different times to the other.<br />
<br />
So when one partner is moving and the other isn't, it's possible that they experience their orgasm at different times relative to each other. That would require one partner to be moving really fast in one direction, which would make him or her either a really bad partner, or a really good one.<br />
<br />
The title text is reference to the twin paradox, which arises from another piece of Special Relativity. In theory, if you stick one twin on a spaceship at near lightspeed and keep the other back on earth, the former will only experience a few years while the latter will age decades. Megan (or Cueball if he rolls that way) expresses a preference for the older twin, who will be more "mature", meaning both older and less combative about simultaneity.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball and Megan in bed.]<br />
:Cueball: Mmm, simultaneous orgasms.<br />
:Megan: That wasn't simultaneous.<br />
:Cueball: Huh? It totally was!<br />
:A common disagreement when one of you is doing all the moving.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Sex]]<br />
[[Category:Physics]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]</div>Someone Else 37https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:505:_A_Bunch_of_Rocks&diff=62232Talk:505: A Bunch of Rocks2014-03-09T05:12:53Z<p>Someone Else 37: Added a comment about why Randall may not have chosen the most efficient universe simulator</p>
<hr />
<div>;Weird thing with lines in it<br />
probably has something to do with relativity -- two objects moving, arriving at different points at the same time, or maybe a diagram of spacetime. [[Special:Contributions/66.202.132.250|66.202.132.250]] 16:44, 10 June 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
It's a [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feynman_diagram Feynman Diagram] [[Special:Contributions/206.174.12.203|206.174.12.203]] 19:24, 10 June 2013 (UTC) Toby Ovod-Everett<br />
<br />
:I did add the incomplete tag because this comic and also the explain is still really complex. More important: People without a proper physics background never will understand. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 21:01, 10 June 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
There is a short story called "SOLE SOLUTION" by Eric Frank Russell which is quite similar to the one in the story. Just in case that matters.{{unsigned|Maob}}<br />
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Re Rule 34 - the point is that this comic _is_ cellular automaton porn (as are the YouTube videos of Minecraft calculators and the like). Rule 34 works, bitches! {{unsigned ip|141.101.98.241}}<br />
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Not sure what's incomplete about the explain. <small>[[User:MrGameZone|0100011101100001011011010110010101011010011011110110111001100101]] ([[User talk:MrGameZone|talk page]])</small> 22:56, 11 February 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Yo ''calculus'' is the latin word for pebble! I learned this and had to come straight to this page! ahhh connections! [[Special:Contributions/173.245.50.88|173.245.50.88]] Sawyer Biddle<br />
<br />
As it turns out, Rule 110 seems to be a ''really bad'' way to simulate a universe- you would be much better off using a {{w|Tag_system|Cyclic tag system}}, since Rule 110 takes dozens of generations and potentially hundreds of cells to simulate one step in such a system, or a more sophisticated cellular automaton, such as {{w|Wireworld.}} --[[User:Someone Else 37|Someone Else 37]] ([[User talk:Someone Else 37|talk]]) 05:12, 9 March 2014 (UTC)</div>Someone Else 37https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1337:_Hack&diff=62230Talk:1337: Hack2014-03-09T04:50:22Z<p>Someone Else 37: Added a comment noting that Randall has used one of the ideas used here before</p>
<hr />
<div>Taking the number with the title, we have a 1337 Hack. Has to be related. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 08:28, 3 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
:: I concur, I don't think 1337 and Hack are just a coincidence [[Special:Contributions/108.162.250.223|108.162.250.223]] 10:36, 3 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
::This isn't the first time that Randall has posted comics whose numbers are related to their content- [[1000]] comes to mind, and I don't think that [[1190: Time]] is a {{w|Time_pyramid|coincidence,}} either. --[[User:Someone Else 37|Someone Else 37]] ([[User talk:Someone Else 37|talk]]) 04:50, 9 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
.... ok ... I bet that if the probe destroyed {{w|Star_Trek:_The_Motion_Picture|three of the Klingons' new K't'inga-class warships and the monitoring station en route}}, they would rethink the "we can no longer communicate with it" ... (seriously, probe from time of Voyagers returns to Earth and we are not able to communicate to it ... Roddenberry got surprisingly close). -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 10:42, 3 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
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I wonder if it comes close enough to Earth so that it has enough delta-v left to deorbit like that, and where it would end up. Maybe someone could model it in KSP or something... [[Special:Contributions/173.245.48.84|173.245.48.84]] 11:37, 3 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:It's not orbiting the Earth, so it doesn't need any delta-V to de-orbit. Consider: meteors hit the atmosphere (or the ground) all the time with no delta-V at all. All it needs is enough delta-V to re-aim so that it hits the planet, which if you start far enough away is probably very very little. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.48.61|173.245.48.61]] 18:00, 3 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Thank you, Randall, for making this possible. I will now forever lay claim to this comic as per this log: http://pastebin.com/bpexL7zL<br />
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You rock, dude. Keep on it. :) {{unsigned ip|108.162.218.5}}<br />
<br />
I added the transcription - feel free to adjust the names of "Guy", "Girl1", and "Girl2" as I can't recall any "Randall appropriate" names. I've grouped all panel elements into groups, which I believe is correct. It's my first transcript. ;) [[User:Jarod997|Jarod997]] ([[User talk:Jarod997|talk]]) 14:00, 3 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
:Wow, um, and if someone could "pretty" up the transcript so it shows a bit more nicely on the "front" page, it would be appreciated. [[User:Jarod997|Jarod997]] ([[User talk:Jarod997|talk]]) 14:07, 3 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
::Hmmm, I ''did'' have the explanation broken up by panel, which I thought made it more readable, no? [[User:Jarod997|Jarod997]] ([[User talk:Jarod997|talk]]) 22:01, 3 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
When I first saw the explanation, I thought the move "Hackers" was the subject of [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/130:_Julia_Stiles comic 130], rather than "Ghostwriters". Has anyone actually seen both? I get the impression Ghostwriters falls under the category of "so bad it's good", whereas Hackers is more of a cult classic. Maybe it's worth mentioning this emerging xkcd theme somewhere in the explanation. Thoughts? --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.16|108.162.219.16]] 14:43, 3 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
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"Hackers" is so bad it is good. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.246.117|108.162.246.117]] 17:10, 3 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
What, no rooftop pool comments? {{unsigned ip|108.162.215.33}}<br />
<br />
I was going to make a comment about the pool on the roof. I couldn't remember if they ended up in a roof pool later on in the movie, or if i'm thinking of another movie. I haven't seen Hackers in so long. [[User:Andyd273|Andyd273]] ([[User talk:Andyd273|talk]]) 17:46, 3 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
: They do. Crash and Burn's (Dade and Kate's) first interaction is her showing him around the school, which ends with her (somewhat reluctantly) telling him there's a pool on the roof of the school. He goes up and the door locks behind him; several other students are already up there, suggesting this is a standard hazing ritual. (side note: according to IMDB, this was a common prank at the school where they filmed.) Dade retaliates by, among other things, causing the school's sprinklers to go off during class; when she tries to confront him, he responds, "Pool on the roof must have a leak." The final scene shows the two conversing in a rooftop pool, which turns into frolicking as the credits roll. [[User:Fryhole|Fryhole]] ([[User talk:Fryhole|talk]]) 19:29, 3 March 2014 (UTC) <br />
<br />
Regarding the pool: <br />
IIRC, the movie ends with the two main characters (who use the aliases "Acid Burn" and "Crash Override") going on a date at a swimming pool on a roof (the scene shot as in frame 13). Meanwhile, their friends hack the lights on some office buildings so that they display the words "CRASH AND BURN". The shot showing this is also very similar to the last three frames. [[User:Cactus|Cactus]] ([[User talk:Cactus|talk]]) 18:09, 3 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I added an explanation for the storyline. It's probably not the only way you could understand this comic, but this one seems most plausible to me. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.231.123|108.162.231.123]] 20:18, 3 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
The explanation states that Crash is the one who did the hack and tells Burn to make a wish at the appropriate time, but the conversation between the two in the comic shows the reverse. {{unsigned ip|108.162.249.204}}<br />
<br />
Guys! Part of this comic seems reality and part seems fantasy. Can someone please clear up about the divide? Would it really be (have been) possible to reconnect with this mission? Did someone apart from NASA attempt this? Doesn't anybody else think that this would be good to know??? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.58|108.162.219.58]] 03:09, 4 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I've removed the "Transcript Incomplete" tag - if you feel this is in error or something else needs to be added, please comment or edit the transcript.[[User:Jarod997|Jarod997]] ([[User talk:Jarod997|talk]]) 14:10, 4 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I've removed the "Article Incomplete" tag - if you feel there is still something lacking in the explanation (which I just tweaked up a bit), please comment or fix the article. Enjoy. :) [[User:Jarod997|Jarod997]] ([[User talk:Jarod997|talk]]) 14:10, 4 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
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I'm asking around for people who want to make 1337 happen, if you can help join #xkcd-1337 on irc.foonetic.net [[Special:Contributions/108.162.218.77|108.162.218.77]] 23:03, 4 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Might be a red herring, but the date this was release 3-3-2014 - the individual numbers of 2014 add up to 7. 3-3-7 (1337) but the 1 is missing of course. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.70.97|141.101.70.97]] 09:19, 5 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
... Thinking about it - it must be a coincidence, as XKCD numbers are sequential - therefore the fact that #1337 falls on 3rd March 2014 is lucky, or would have required some serious forethought! [[Special:Contributions/141.101.70.97|141.101.70.97]] 09:28, 5 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
Is it just me or does the guy in the pool look like a de-hatted black hat guy? --[[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.9|141.101.98.9]] 13:43, 5 March 2014 (UTC)</div>Someone Else 37https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=567:_Urgent_Mission&diff=62061567: Urgent Mission2014-03-07T04:15:08Z<p>Someone Else 37: /* Explanation */ Tiny spelling fix</p>
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<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 567<br />
| date = April 10, 2009<br />
| title = Urgent Mission<br />
| image = urgent_mission.png<br />
| titletext = Sure, we could stop dictators and pandemics, but we could also make the signs on every damn diagram make sense.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{w|Benjamin Franklin}} was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. Aside from uniting most of his country against Britain's heavy-handed rule, he was also an author, printer, musician, politician, postmaster, inventor, scientist, and diplomat. Some of his legacies include bifocals, the Franklin stove, an odometer for a horse-drawn carriage, the almanac and abolitionist ideals. He has since been honored with the use of his image on the $100 bill. For the purposes of this comic, Franklin also created the {{w|lightning rod}} and discovered the fundamentals of electricity, such as positive and negative charges, as well as the principle of conservation of charge.<br />
<br />
When Franklin first wrote down his notes for electricity, he defined a positive charge as one left on a glass rod by rubbing it with silk, and a negative change as one left on rubber by rubbing it with fur. Without realizing it, this meant that he had assigned a negative value to the charge on the electron, later identified as the fundamental carrier of electrical charge.<br />
<br />
In an electrical circuit, we envisage the charge to be flowing from positive to negative. This is analogous to energy flowing from a region of high temperature to one of low temperature, or a fluid moving from an area of high pressure to one of low pressure. However, because an electron is negatively charged, the actual flow of electrons is in the opposite direction, from negative to positive. This reversal of the natural expectation has caused unnecessary confusion to many fledgling engineers.<br />
<br />
Time-travelling [[Cueball]] believes that reversing this decision has a higher priority than, say, avoiding the robot apocalypse. Rubbing a glass rod with silk removes electrons from the rod, and defining the resulting charge of the rod as negative would have thus assigned positive charge to electrons. Nothing, could ever be the same.<br />
<br />
This would mean that protons would have been assigned a negative charge, and a different name would have been used for the positron. Negatronic brains, anyone? Of course it is too late to change now. But a time traveler...<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball steps out of rift. Benjamin Franklin is sitting at his desk with quill and parchment.]<br />
:Cueball: Benjamin Franklin?<br />
:Franklin: Yes?<br />
:Cueball: I bring a message from the future! I don't have much time.<br />
:Franklin: What is it?<br />
:Cueball: The convention you're setting for electric charge is backward. The one left on glass by silk should be the negative charge.<br />
:We were going to use the time machine to prevent the robot apocalypse, but the guy who built it was an electrical engineer.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]<br />
[[Category:Physics]]</div>Someone Else 37https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1328:_Update&diff=59752Talk:1328: Update2014-02-11T04:23:06Z<p>Someone Else 37: Added a comment complaining about Windoze</p>
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<div>Note that 1.) web browsers usually can remember opened tabs (and even scroll position) and reopen them automatically on start, and/or ask if reopen those tabs if browser was not closed cleanly 2.) MS Windows tries to reopen apps closed during "upgrade reboot" --[[User:JakubNarebski|JakubNarebski]] ([[User talk:JakubNarebski|talk]]) 07:48, 10 February 2014 (UTC)<br />
:Yes, browsers can remember the last tabs you have open, but may require the user to enable that option as it's off by default (with Chrome anyway - as was my experience). I usually leave it off because I don't necessarily want the last 5 tabs I had open to open automatically the next time I want to start my browser to do something completely different. If (my) Chrome browser crashes however (or otherwise does not close cleanly), it will ask me if I want to restore my previous session, which may include multiple tabs and browsing positions. =8o) [[User:Jarod997|Jarod997]] ([[User talk:Jarod997|talk]]) 14:12, 10 February 2014 (UTC)<br />
:Windows does not reopen apps that it closed before an upgrade (at best it has an option to reopen Explorer windows in the same state if the user enables it.) As for Chrome saving tabs, it can be often flaky especially when using multiple windows combined with multiple profiles. This is moot since in Real Life™ users generally don't trust these features, when they are even aware of them. [[User:Ralfoide|Ralfoide]] ([[User talk:Ralfoide|talk]]) 15:19, 10 February 2014 (UTC) <br />
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@Jakub, thanks for bringing it up. I knew about it, but for the sake of brevity decided to leave it out. Hooray for my first explanation btw! --[[User:Akha|Akha]] ([[User talk:Akha|talk]]) 08:33, 10 February 2014 (UTC)<br />
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While one interpretation is that users would push back even a critical update, the cynical me read it the other way around: that most updates labelled as critical and notified with "!"s and yellow triangles are actually not that urgent and naturally the user desensibilizes. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.53.201|173.245.53.201]] 11:16, 10 February 2014 (UTC)<br />
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:Note also that browsers are ones of VERY FEW application who can reopen exactly what you had open before restart, and even them usually fail to preserve form content. Also, physical problem is not likely to occur just after the patch was created: only problem which would really need immediate patching would be security problem related to virus just spreading, in which case it would probably be too late when the window appear anyway. So, in all cases, pressing "remind me later" and finishing your work as soon as possible is the most logical course of action regarding critical update. -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 11:18, 10 February 2014 (UTC)<br />
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It's a sad day when non-kernel updates require a reboot. [[User:Chrisp6825|Chrisp6825]] ([[User talk:Chrisp6825|talk]]) 13:13, 10 February 2014 (UTC)<br />
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I think the comic has less to do with the time a reboot takes, and more to do with losing the user's current state [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.46|173.245.54.46]] 16:27, 10 February 2014 (UTC)<br />
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I agree with the last comment. It's not about the time it takes to reboot. It's about the current state of things. If you have a bunch of apps running in different virtual desktops, then a lot of these won't be configured exactly as they were before rebooting. By the way, updates for OS X are exactly the same, with the exception that they're not downloaded automatically. {{unsigned ip|108.162.219.57}}<br />
<br />
My initial interpretation was that Cueball doesn't want to reboot his laptop because rebooting increases the risk of a random electrical fire. --[[User:Rael|Rael]] ([[User talk:Rael|talk]]) 21:58, 10 February 2014 (UTC)<br />
:Well that's why we have this twiki.... 'cause you're dumb. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.74|108.162.229.74]] 02:18, 11 February 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
If I was faced with such an update notification, I would probably have it download and install itself, but not reboot until tonight when I'm going to shut down anyway. I find it really annoying when Windoze does things like complain about updates and run virus scans right after booting up, which just makes loading up whatever software I want to use (i.e. web browsers) take even longer. I would much rather have it use my CPU time while I was, say, Web browsing or maybe programming (but not compiling... hmm...), or, better yet, asleep. Also, Linux. --[[User:Someone Else 37|Someone Else 37]] ([[User talk:Someone Else 37|talk]]) 04:23, 11 February 2014 (UTC)</div>Someone Else 37https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:316:_Loud_Sex&diff=57800Talk:316: Loud Sex2014-01-15T22:16:15Z<p>Someone Else 37: Added a comment about my interpretations of the comic</p>
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<div>It is still strange: On sexual comics we got many technical discussions and here (a sexual background is also given) we can imagine some "aberrant sexual behavior"? How that single neighbor girl should come to this? Or will that dish brake and fall onto this two people in the bed on the left? I would just say this is only a technical comic, with some sidesteps. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 23:10, 4 June 2013 (UTC)<br />
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:Pardon? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.223|108.162.219.223]] 20:32, 23 December 2013 (UTC)<br />
::Is sex more important than science? Maybe, but while everybody knows how to perform sex, they do not understand how to do this science.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 17:08, 24 December 2013 (UTC)<br />
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I had interpreted the "aberrant behavior" of the other mehtioned types of reflectors as referring to the way they would focus the sound- a parabolic dish would focus sound into a parallel beam, annoying the entire hallway (but not any one person as much- compare sunlight coming through a window to the same light, routed through a magnifying glass, where the glass is the ellipsoidal dish); while a spherical dish would focus the sound right back on Cueball himself.<br />
<br />
Also, I dobut the threshold of pain could actually be reached here, since it would be hard for the intensity of the sound focused in the neighbor's room to exceed that of the sound in Cueball's own room- and I'd be surprised if Cueball's friend produced enough sound to make her own head hurt. My guess is that the neighbor had just been startled awake.<br />
<br />
--[[User:Someone Else 37|Someone Else 37]] ([[User talk:Someone Else 37|talk]]) 22:16, 15 January 2014 (UTC)</div>Someone Else 37https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:468:_Fetishes&diff=57644Talk:468: Fetishes2014-01-14T04:17:16Z<p>Someone Else 37: Explained Russel's Paradox</p>
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<div>I should point out that [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russell%27s_paradox] is "The set of all sets that do not contain themselves"- if it does not contain itself, then it must contain itself; but since it now contains itself, it cannot. Although this doesn't seem to have an obvious parallel in the comic, Russell probably should've known better than to create a comprehensive list of anything. --[[User:Someone Else 37|Someone Else 37]] ([[User talk:Someone Else 37|talk]]) 04:17, 14 January 2014 (UTC)</div>Someone Else 37https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=769:_War&diff=56676769: War2014-01-05T05:29:47Z<p>Someone Else 37: /* Explanation */ A couple spelling and grammarish fixes</p>
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<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 769<br />
| date = July 21, 2010<br />
| title = War<br />
| image = war.png<br />
| titletext =They offered to make me a green beret, but I liked my regular one. Although it gets kind of squashed under my helmet.<br />
}}<br />
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==Explanation==<br />
Today's comic seems to be a parable about the perils of love during wartime. Our protagonist is seen here leaning against his pack behind a low wall, surely a good hiding spot for any gentleman with a rifle and scope. Judging by the letter he's in the midst of writing, he has a complex relationship with Cordelia. On the one hand, she's attractive. On the other hand, she's a sniper, as evidenced by the shots fired mid-missive. Cordelia's fire works against her, though, as her volley of shots has revealed her own position atop the maintenance shed. We can presume that in a matter of minutes, this love affair will go sour as the love letter is wrapped around a live grenade and "delivered," so to speak. War is indeed hell.<br />
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As to the title text, the green berets are worn only by Special Forces soldiers. It takes a lot of training to become a green beret, and as evidenced by our protagonist's clever use of decoys to outwit a sniper, he may be qualified for the honor. It sounds, however, as he didn't understand the proposition, preferring his regular beret instead. Further evidence for his idiocy is given immediately thereafter, as he confesses that he wears a beret under his helmet. Then again, he does not have a choice, since [[291: Dignified|he has stapled the beret on his head.]]<br />
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The comic starts off with the commonly known stereotype of a soldier in war writing a letter to his sweetheart (Cordelia), presumably at home. After the gunshots interrupt his writing, we come to know that Cordelia is actually fighting on the opposite side - it is left open whether they are in an actual relationship or the soldier just writes love letters to his enemies. He explains to her that he can now locate her after she shot a decoy set up by him, closing with the phrase "War is hell", often used in the stereotypical situation described above and now having a much darker tint. The title text gives the reader some kind of closure - the soldier is revealed to be [[Beret Guy]], from whom this kind of behavior doesn't seem so weird after all.<br />
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"Cordelia" is likely a reference to [http://atoracle.wikidot.com/en-cordelia-rosalind Cordelia Rosalind]—the sniper from the {{w|Miniature wargaming|miniature game}} "{{w|Anima: Beyond Fantasy#Anima: Tactics|Anima: Tactics}}".<br />
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==Transcript==<br />
:[A soldier is on the ground behind a low wall, writing a letter.]<br />
:My Dearest Cordelia,<br />
:it has been far too long since I last gazed<br />
:upon your lithe and supple body through my<br />
:telescopic sights, and I fear you may have<br />
:found a superior vantage poin—<br />
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:''BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!''<br />
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:—a splendid effort, my love, but your shots<br />
:find only a decoy, and reveal your position atop<br />
:the maintenance shed.<br />
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:I pray this missive and my grenades find you well.<br />
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:War is hell.<br />
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{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]]<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]</div>Someone Else 37https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=User:Someone_Else_37&diff=56555User:Someone Else 372014-01-03T20:20:38Z<p>Someone Else 37: Created page</p>
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<div>Page created because I don't like having the red link show up whenever I post a comment on talk pages.<br />
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Also, has anyone else noticed that the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_pyramid Time Pyramid in Wemding, Germany] will take [[1190]] years to construct?<br />
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{{comic discussion}}</div>Someone Else 37https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1312:_Haskell&diff=56550Talk:1312: Haskell2014-01-03T19:52:51Z<p>Someone Else 37: Added some Haskell sourcecode</p>
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<div>"Thus, it is possible to have a variable representing the entire infinite list of Fibonacci numbers."<br />
Except that Haskell has no variables- nothing is mutable, as they say. You could certainly write a function that generates an infinite list of Fibonacci numbers when called (and lazily evaluated later), but it won't be bound to a variable. If it was, then the list would take up an infinite amount of memory, and lazy evaluation would be pointless.<br />
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I will, however, leave the above word "variable" in the explanation, because I can't come up with a concise way of explaining the above.<br />
--[[User:Someone Else 37|Someone Else 37]] ([[User talk:Someone Else 37|talk]]) 09:07, 3 January 2014 (UTC)<br />
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:"Expression?" I don't know Haskel, but that's what I would call it in another functional language. --[[User:Rael|Rael]] ([[User talk:Rael|talk]]) 16:31, 3 January 2014 (UTC)<br />
::That's a little imprecise, as it doesn't capture the idea of binding a value to a single symbol. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.231.13|108.162.231.13]] 17:03, 3 January 2014 (UTC)<br />
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:The sentence you quote is entirely correct... but might itself require further explanation!<br />
:*Haskell variables aren't mutable, but they are nonetheless referred to as "variables". It's an appeal to the (earlier, after all) use of the word in maths, rather than in imperative programming languages. (No shortage of variables in algebra, geometry, calculus, topology... And no mutation involved.) One might equally say "symbol", "constant", or indeed "symbolic constant".<br />
:*One can bind the fibonaccis to a variable (... constant, 0-place definition, etc) quite happily. In fact, that's the idiomatic way to do it, as it avoids the degenerate complexity of a naive recursive function. It's still evaluated lazily, all the same. (Meaning that it will take an infinite amount of memory... if you run it for an infinite amount of time, and never "consume" the result in any way.)<br />
:*Equally, one can regard such top-level symbol definitions as functions with no arguments, if that's more helpful. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.231.13|108.162.231.13]] 16:42, 3 January 2014 (UTC)<br />
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:::Shows what I know about Haskell jargon, even if I do know something about the language. I see what you're saying, though.<br />
:::In any case, here's some Haskell code that does indeed generate an infinite list of Fibonacci numbers. It's not fast, and there's almost certainly more efficient ways to do it, but it's simple enough that people unacquainted with the language should be able to figure it out.<br />
<nowiki>fibonaccis :: [Integer] --Indicates that the function returns a list of arbitrary-length integers<br />
fibonaccis = map fib [0..] --Converts the infinite list [0,1,2,3,4...] into a list of Fibonaccis<br />
where fib n --Defines a helper function that returns the nth Fibonacci number<br />
|n == 0 = 1 --The zeroth and first Fibonaccis are 1<br />
|n == 1 = 1<br />
|otherwise = (fib (n - 1)) + (fib (n - 2)) --And the rest are the sum of the previous two.</nowiki><br />
:::--[[User:Someone Else 37|Someone Else 37]] ([[User talk:Someone Else 37|talk]]) 19:52, 3 January 2014 (UTC)<br />
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Does anyone have a clue what the Incomplete flag refers to? This seems like a pretty good explanation to me. --[[User:Mynotoar|Mynotoar]] ([[User talk:Mynotoar|talk]]) 11:22, 3 January 2014 (UTC)<br />
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Example programs written in Haskell are: pandoc, universal markup converter; git-annex, tool to manage large files in git DVCS. --[[User:JakubNarebski|JakubNarebski]] ([[User talk:JakubNarebski|talk]]) 11:37, 3 January 2014 (UTC)</div>Someone Else 37https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1312:_Haskell&diff=56494Talk:1312: Haskell2014-01-03T09:07:20Z<p>Someone Else 37: Created page with ""Thus, it is possible to have a variable representing the entire infinite list of Fibonacci numbers." Except that Haskell has no variables- nothing is mutable, as they say. Yo..."</p>
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<div>"Thus, it is possible to have a variable representing the entire infinite list of Fibonacci numbers."<br />
Except that Haskell has no variables- nothing is mutable, as they say. You could certainly write a function that generates an infinite list of Fibonacci numbers when called (and lazily evaluated later), but it won't be bound to a variable. If it was, then the list would take up an infinite amount of memory, and lazy evaluation would be pointless.<br />
<br />
I will, however, leave the above word "variable" in the explanation, because I can't come up with a concise way of explaining the above.<br />
--[[User:Someone Else 37|Someone Else 37]] ([[User talk:Someone Else 37|talk]]) 09:07, 3 January 2014 (UTC)</div>Someone Else 37