Editing 1727: Number of Computers
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==Explanation== | ==Explanation== | ||
− | This comic shows a {{w|semi-log plot}} with two red lines. The first line shows the increasing rate that {{w|computers}} have been created since the first came around in the 1940s. The graph shows this to occur around 1946. ({{w|Computer#First_computing_device| | + | {{incomplete|Rough draft, needs better phrasing and transcript}} |
+ | This comic shows a {{w|semi-log plot}} with two red lines. The first line shows the increasing rate that {{w|computers}} have been created since the first came around in the 1940s. The graph shows this to occur around 1946. (The {{w|Computer#First_computing_device|precise date can be discussed}}, because when is a machine actually a computer? But it was {{w|Computer#Digital_computers|around that time}} that the concept began to be used on real working machines). After the first computer the number of computers created is shown to increase in a straight line, thus indicating {{w|exponential growth}}. At the time of the comics release (in 2016) the curve has passed above the 10 billion computers mark, and its projection into the 2020s predicts the numbers of computers to keep rising exponentially for at least 10 years to come. | ||
− | The other | + | The other graph represents all the computers destroyed by throwing them into {{w|Jupiter}}. So far this has only worked for the computers on two [[:Category:Space probes|space probes]], those on the {{w|Galileo (spacecraft)|Galileo orbiter}} and its {{w|Galileo Probe|probe}}, the latter's mission was to fly into Jupiter so it went first, the orbiter went only after it had completed its mission. That constitutes the first two steps on the graph. |
− | Recently the {{w|Juno (spacecraft)|Juno space probe}} entered into orbit (as only the second after Galileo) | + | Recently the {{w|Juno (spacecraft)|Juno space probe}} entered into orbit (as only the second after Galileo) and that was celebrated with [[1703: Juno]] on xkcd. Juno's main mission has hardly begun yet, as, at the time of this comics release, it is not even in its final orbit. But once its mission is completed it will also crash into Jupiter thus destroying a third computer. This is shown as the third step, but this section is shown with a dotted line, as the destruction may still fail, if {{w|NASA}} loose contact with the probe before giving it the order to {{w|deorbit}} into Jupiter. |
− | Space probes sent to Jupiter are typically scheduled to deorbit and fall into Jupiter's atmosphere. There | + | Space probes sent to Jupiter are typically scheduled to deorbit and fall into Jupiter's atmosphere. There are multiple reasons for this, including avoiding contaminating Europa with Earth pathogens, never mind the huge [[681|gravity well]] that would have to be overcome for such a probe to return to Earth. |
− | The caption below the comic humorously implies that NASA's reasons for causing the probes to deorbit | + | The caption below the comic humorously implies that NASA's reasons for causing the probes to deorbit is merely to destroy computers for the sake of destroying computers (and failing horribly, given they have destroyed three computers out of >100 billion). |
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==Transcript== | ==Transcript== | ||
− | :[A graph with two red lines. The X-axis is a time-line with eight ticks with every second tick labeled below the axis, ranging from around 1940 to 2030. The Y-axis is a logarithmic count ranging from | + | :[A graph with two red lines. The X-axis is a time-line with eight ticks with every second tick labeled below the axis, ranging from around 1940 to 2030. The Y-axis is a logarithmic count ranging from one to 100 billion. There are 12 ticks with the first and then every third tick after that larger than the two ticks in between. All the large ticks are labeled, but only the first two of the small ticks are similarly labeled. Labels are written to the left of the axis. All labels on both axes are written in gray. The first red line is a straight line (thus exponentially growing), starting close to the bottom left corner eventually reaching the upper right edge of the graph. The other red line begins around 1990 and has three straight steps. Each step is labeled with gray text, the last part of the line (after the present 2016), is dotted. Both of the red lines have an arrow pointing to them with a label above the arrow.] |
:Left red line: Number of computers created | :Left red line: Number of computers created | ||
:Right red line: Number of computers destroyed by hurling them into Jupiter | :Right red line: Number of computers destroyed by hurling them into Jupiter | ||
− | :Labels on right red line | + | :Labels on right red line:<font color="gray"> |
− | + | ::Galileo probe | |
− | :: | + | ::Galileo orbiter |
− | :: | + | ::Juno (scheduled)</font> |
− | :Y-axis | + | :Y-axis: <font color="gray"> |
− | + | ::1 billion | |
− | :: | + | ::1 million |
− | :: | + | ::1,000 |
− | :: | + | ::100 |
− | :: | + | ::10 |
− | :: | + | ::1</font> |
:X-axis: <font color="gray">1960 1980 2000 2020</font> | :X-axis: <font color="gray">1960 1980 2000 2020</font> | ||