explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

2361: Voting

2020-09-21T22:45:25Z

108.162.219.96:

{{comic
| number = 2361
| date = September 18, 2020
| title = Voting
| image = voting.png
| titletext = 'Wait, our state has mail voting. The forms are literally on the kitchen table.' 'Not now, I'm busy researching which channels have sharks in them.'
}}
==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by SHARK-FILLED BROKEN GLASS. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

The run-up to the {{w|2020 United States elections}}, occurring on November 3, 2020 (less than 2 months from the time of the comic's publication), has been fraught with various overlapping worries about the legitimacy of the forthcoming result. The {{w|COVID-19 pandemic}} has created a new interest in {{w|postal voting|voting by mail}}, at a historically large scale. See {{w|Postal voting in the United States}} for more detail. Cueball, however, is in a very patriotic mood and makes a series of hyperbolic statements to Megan about the trials he would be willing to endure in order to vote in the upcoming elections, none of which would (hopefully), in reality, apply to his or anyone else's circumstance.

Crawling across broken glass might have actually been necessary at some polling sites of the {{w|2001 New York City mayoral election}} primary, which had been scheduled for September 11, 2001, and would have taken place had it not been postponed two weeks due to the {{w|September 11 attacks|terrorist attacks}} of that day. However, as Megan states, their polling sites, unlike those of the 2001 election, don't even feature any especially large windows or other such structures from which broken glass could be derived. The quote, goes back to an October 2019 Ted Cruz interview where he described Beto O'Rourke voters as being so passionately anti-Trump that they will "crawl over broken glass" to vote him out. The saying has since been picked up as an expression by Democrat voters to affirm their desire to vote President Trump out of office.

The Sun, currently a yellow dwarf star on the main sequence, will eventually expand into a red giant, then collapse down to a white dwarf when its fuel is exhausted; this will not happen for billions of years, as Megan points out. Because of this, waiting until the sun burns out would result in Cueball's vote not being counted at all, both because it would be after the official deadline for ballots to be cast and because there would no longer be anyone alive on Earth.

As Megan observes, hot coals would most likely not even be present at their polling stations, and although some states have been accused of trying to make voting inconvenient or unsafe, this comic has not yet led any states to prohibit wearing shoes at polling places.

According to Megan, her and Cueball's municipality does not even include a single shark-infested body of water that Cueball would be able to swim through in order to cast his vote. Cueball's solution to this problem is to simply swim back to their location after swimming in his shark-filled channel.

Megan tries in vain to convince Cueball that his proposed actions are unnecessary or even impossible in their area, but, unable to bring him back to reality, she closes the final panel by asking if he'd be willing to put off all of this dangerous stuff until after voting, perhaps so that he will be alive long enough to vote in the first place.

Broken glass, the extinction of humanity, hot coals, and sharks aside, though, Cueball faces the risk of contracting COVID-19 from being in such close proximity to so many other voters, as he seems to plan on voting in person (his words show his desire for activities only possible by way of physical action; in the title text, he also ignores Megan when she says that mail-in voting is available).

In the title text, Megan tells Cueball that he does not need to go to such lengths to vote, as their state has mail-in voting and already sent forms either to cast a ballot or to apply for mail-in ballots. Cueball ignores her and continues looking online for shark-filled channels to swim through. In doing so, he completely negates his professed desire to vote, as he is ignoring the easy path and going after paths that would end up making it impossible to cast his vote.

Randall is making the point that, despite apparent obstruction tactics and threats and attempts to de-legitimize the process, voting is very important (Cueball is using {{w|hyperbole}} to illustrate the importance), and relatively easy (as Megan keeps reminding him). He is also expressing an opinion that the increased danger of government worker corruption or system compromise harming the legitimacy of the voting process due to massive mail-in voting, appears less worrisome than the coronavirus issue from in-person voting, to him.

Randall lives in Massachusetts, a state with majority Democrat media, voters, and government.
==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

:[Cueball walks in from right, staring at his phone and talking to Megan.]
:Cueball: I will crawl across broken glass to vote this year if I have to.
:Megan: ...Why would there be broken glass?
:Megan: There aren't even any big windows at our polling place.

:[Cueball raising a finger triumphantly.]
:Cueball: I will wait in line till the sun burns out.
:Megan: Ok, some places have lines, which is awful, but it's usually pretty quick here?
:Megan: Definitely not 5 billion years.

:[Cueball raising a fist.]
:Cueball: I will walk barefoot across hot coals to cast my ballot!
:Megan: Where would you even '''''find''''' coals?
:Megan: You can wear shoes to vote. This scenario makes no sense.

:[Cueball raising a finger, and walking back off-panel to the left]
:Cueball: I will swim across a shark-filled channel!
:Megan: That'll take you '''''way''''' outside our precinct.
:Cueball: '''''Then I'll swim back!'''''
:Megan: Can you do all this stuff '''''after''''' voting?

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Elections]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Sharks]]

2361: Voting

2020-09-21T22:45:06Z

108.162.219.96:

{{comic
| number = 2361
| date = September 18, 2020
| title = Voting
| image = voting.png
| titletext = 'Wait, our state has mail voting. The forms are literally on the kitchen table.' 'Not now, I'm busy researching which channels have sharks in them.'
}}
==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by SHARK-FILLED BROKEN GLASS. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

The run-up to the {{w|2020 United States elections}}, occurring on November 3, 2020 (less than 2 months from the time of the comic's publication), has been fraught with various overlapping worries about the legitimacy of the forthcoming result. The {{w|COVID-19 pandemic}} has created a new interest in {{w|postal voting|voting by mail}}, at a historically large scale. See {{w|Postal voting in the United States}} for more detail. Cueball, however, is in a very patriotic mood and makes a series of hyperbolic statements to Megan about the trials he would be willing to endure in order to vote in the upcoming elections, none of which would (hopefully), in reality, apply to his or anyone else's circumstance.

Crawling across broken glass might have actually been necessary at some polling sites of the {{w|2001 New York City mayoral election}} primary, which had been scheduled for September 11, 2001, and would have taken place had it not been postponed two weeks due to the {{w|September 11 attacks|terrorist attacks}} of that day. However, as Megan states, their polling sites, unlike those of the 2001 election, don't even feature any especially large windows or other such structures from which broken glass could be derived. The quote, goes back to an October 2019 Ted Cruz interview where he described Beto O'Rourke voters as being so passionately anti-Trump that they will "crawl over broken glass" to vote him out. The saying has since been picked up as an expression by Democrat voters to affirm their desire to vote President Trump out of office.

The Sun, currently a yellow dwarf star on the main sequence, will eventually expand into a red giant, then collapse down to a white dwarf when its fuel is exhausted; this will not happen for billions of years, as Megan points out. Because of this, waiting until the sun burns out would result in Cueball's vote not being counted at all, both because it would be after the official deadline for ballots to be cast and because there would no longer be anyone alive on Earth.

As Megan observes, hot coals would most likely not even be present at their polling stations, and although some states have been accused of trying to make voting inconvenient or unsafe, this comic has not yet led any states to prohibit wearing shoes at polling places.

According to Megan, her and Cueball's municipality does not even include a single shark-infested body of water that Cueball would be able to swim through in order to cast his vote. Cueball's solution to this problem is to simply swim back to their location after swimming in his shark-filled channel.

Megan tries in vain to convince Cueball that his proposed actions are unnecessary or even impossible in their area, but, unable to bring him back to reality, she closes the final panel by asking if he'd be willing to put off all of this dangerous stuff until after voting, perhaps so that he will be alive long enough to vote in the first place.

Broken glass, the extinction of humanity, hot coals, and sharks aside, though, Cueball faces the risk of contracting COVID-19 from being in such close proximity to so many other voters, as he seems to plan on voting in person (his words show his desire for activities only possible by way of physical action; in the title text, he also ignores Megan when she says that mail-in voting is available).

In the title text, Megan tells Cueball that he does not need to go to such lengths to vote, as their state has mail-in voting and already sent forms either to cast a ballot or to apply for mail-in ballots. Cueball ignores her and continues looking online for shark-filled channels to swim through. In doing so, he completely negates his professed desire to vote, as he is ignoring the easy path and going after paths that would end up making it impossible to cast his vote.

Randall is making the point that, despite apparent obstruction tactics and threats and attempts to de-legitimize the process, voting is very important (Cueball is using {{w|hyperbole}} to illustrate the importance), and relatively easy (as Megan keeps reminding him). He is also expressing an opinion that the increased danger of government worker corruption or system compromise harming the legitimacy of the voting process due to massive mail-in voting, appears less worrisome than the coronavirus issue from in-person voting, to him.

Randall lives in Massachusetts, a state with majority Democrat media, voters, and government, albeit a [[w|Charlie Baker|moderate Republican governor]]

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

:[Cueball walks in from right, staring at his phone and talking to Megan.]
:Cueball: I will crawl across broken glass to vote this year if I have to.
:Megan: ...Why would there be broken glass?
:Megan: There aren't even any big windows at our polling place.

:[Cueball raising a finger triumphantly.]
:Cueball: I will wait in line till the sun burns out.
:Megan: Ok, some places have lines, which is awful, but it's usually pretty quick here?
:Megan: Definitely not 5 billion years.

:[Cueball raising a fist.]
:Cueball: I will walk barefoot across hot coals to cast my ballot!
:Megan: Where would you even '''''find''''' coals?
:Megan: You can wear shoes to vote. This scenario makes no sense.

:[Cueball raising a finger, and walking back off-panel to the left]
:Cueball: I will swim across a shark-filled channel!
:Megan: That'll take you '''''way''''' outside our precinct.
:Cueball: '''''Then I'll swim back!'''''
:Megan: Can you do all this stuff '''''after''''' voting?

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Elections]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Sharks]]

2360: Common Star Types

2020-09-20T13:25:20Z

108.162.219.96: Stheno, Euryale, and Medusa were all Gorgons, but ONLY Medusa had the petrifying appearance,

{{comic
| number = 2360
| date = September 16, 2020
| title = Common Star Types
| image = common_star_types.png
| titletext = This article is about Eta Carinae, a luminous blue hypergiant with anomalous Fe[ii] emission spectra. For the 1998 Brad Bird film, see The Iron Giant (film).
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by an INDIGO BANSHEE. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This 'infographic' chart purports to be a comparative guide to various star types, often described by a basic color, which is something that even naked-eye astronomy has determined, and may be qualified as 'dwarf' or 'giant' to describe relative sizes. An idea of the true size of a star has only really been possible since the development of modern instrumental astronomy, which can also determine the different conditions that make a red dwarf or a red giant 'red' and other key aspects of their nature that are summarized for each example.

In true xkcd tradition, this is taken beyond reality. The pantheon of stars illustrated extend the use of 'dwarf' and 'giant' as if describing mythical or fictional beings, drawing upon others from the fantasy ilk with hues and shades that may not be typically described, or even encountered, by astronomers. The aspect information provided for these 'star' types is based upon the respective mythologies.

{| class="wikitable"
!Star !! Description
|-
| {{w|Yellow dwarf star|Yellow Dwarf}} || A real star type. This is the type of star that {{w|Sun|our sun}} is, with a lifespan measured in billions of years. The title "dwarf" is a misnomer, as the Sun is actually larger than most stars, but it was once thought to be smaller than average as larger stars turn out to be more visible than smaller stars over a given distance.
|-
| {{w|Red giant|Red Giant}} || A real star type. When stars at about the Sun's size begin to run out of fusion fuel, they expand to become red giants, and the outer shells expand and cool. When our sun enters this phase in a few billion years, it will consume Mercury, Venus, and possibly the Earth.
|-
| {{w|White dwarf|White Dwarf}} || A real thing, though not a true star, but a remnant of one. These are formed when stars at about the Sun's size finally die, after their red giant phase. They are extremely dense and no longer undergo nuclear fusion. They are responsible for {{w|Type Ia supernova}}, a {{w|Cosmic Distance Ladder|standard candle}} of astronomy.
|-
| {{w|Red dwarf|Red Dwarf}} || A real star type. The most common, smallest, and coolest type of true star in the universe. ({{w|Brown dwarf|Brown dwarfs}} are smaller and cooler, but do not undergo hydrogen-|hydrogen fusion.) These can live for trillions of years; the first red dwarfs to form in the universe are still alive today and will be alive long after the Sun reaches its end.

{{w|Red Dwarf}} is also a science fiction TV series being produced in UK since 1988, named after the eponymous mining ship. This ship is ''small'' (compared to a star) and {{w|Cat_(Red_Dwarf)|one of the characters}} is indeed very ''cool'' (as in a cool cat), but ''dim''-witted (the star of the series is none to bright either). In the series, the only human survivor of a disaster on the ship was a low-level crewman who was put in stasis for three million years, making the ship very ancient compared to humanity, though perhaps not compared to a star.
|-
| Green Elf || An invention of Randall's, and a reference to the elves of {{w|Tolkien's legendarium}}. Tolkien's elves are immortal but slowly diminish over time, and leave Middle Earth, (where ''The Lord of the Rings'' is set) emigrating to the West as magic fades.
|-
| {{w|Blue giant|Blue Giant}} || A real star type. The largest class of star in the main sequence, these are highly luminous and have life spans measured in only millions of years, rather than the billions or trillions of years for other star types.
|-
| Teal Sphynx || An invention of Randall's; likely a form of the Greek {{w|Sphinx#Riddle_of_the_Sphinx|sphinx}}, which presents riddles to hapless travelers. One can only imagine what stellar riddles would be like. {{Original research}} May be a reference to {{w|Teal Swan}}.
|-
| Gray Wizard || An invention of Randall's, and also a reference to ''Lord of the Rings''. {{w|Gandalf the Grey}}, a wizard, is a protagonist and the main mentor figure in ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings'', guiding and assisting the journeys within the books, often in mysterious ways that could be described as "{{wiktionary|mercurial#Adjective|mercurial}}". Gandalf later falls in battle and returns as Gandalf the White, much as stars (up to ~10 solar masses) will evolve into white dwarfs, but this evolution is not shown on this chart. Interestingly, the Elvish word for "wizard" is ''i<u>star</u>'' (plural: ''istari'').
|-
| Indigo Banshee || An invention of Randall's, and a reference to {{w|banshees}}, a type of Irish spirit or ghost which wails loudly at a person's death. {{w|Indigo}} may also be considered a particularly {{wiktionary|loud#Adjective|loud color}}. May or may not be a reference to {{w|Indigo children}}, a pseudoscientific term used by some to describe children with unusual personalities or learning abilities.
|-
| Beige Gorgon || An invention of Randall's, and a reference to {{w|Medusa}} in {{w|Greek Mythology}}, who was one of the three Gorgons. "Dangerous to observe at optical wavelengths" refers to the property of Medusa in which anyone who gazes upon her face will turn to stone. However, seeing Medusa's reflection is safe, so [[1791: Telescopes: Refractor vs Reflector|most astronomers should be fine.]] This is probably why its color is known, unlike Medusa's, whose observers have a high mortality rate. The choice of the color "beige" for this kind of "star" may be a reference to {{w|cosmic latte}}, the "average color" of the universe.

In reality, the star {{w|Algol}} and other nearby stars in the constellation of Perseus were historically referred to as the "Gorgonea", representing Medusa's head after Perseus cut it off. Medusa is also the namesake of {{w|Medusa Nebula|a nebula}}, {{w|NGC 4194|a pair of colliding galaxies}}, and {{w|149 Medusa|an asteroid}}. No observers of any of these celestial bodies have been petrified.{{Citation needed}}
|}

The title text is in the style of a Wikipedia page's hatnote / reference note. A page might have a title that is too easily landed upon by a search term that might also be expected to lead to one under a quite different subject, such as the {{w|Red Dwarf|case-sensitive example}} of "This article is about the British comedy franchise. For the type of star, see {{w|Red dwarf}}." In this case, it was written as if the page {{w|Iron Giant}} redirected to {{w|Eta Carinae}}, a large {{w|luminous blue variable}} star which has a relatively high level of {{w|Iron(II)|ferrous ions}}. Although there is a vaguely plausible reason for the star to to be called an "iron giant", astronomers do not commonly use that particular name (the alternative of "{{w|iron star}}" is used for an article about hypothesized class of stellar-mass object, though the description allows that there is a separate usage that relates to Eta Carinae) and you are currently only redirected straight upon ''{{w|The Iron Giant}}'', that first movie directed by Brad Bird. This note [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Eta_Carinae&oldid=978789727 was added] to Wikipedia, but quickly removed.

==Transcript==
[A chart, with circles representing stars of different colors and sizes. At the top:]
:Common star types

[A small yellow star.]
:Yellow dwarf
:Warm, stable, slowly-growing

[An even smaller white star.]
:White dwarf
:Small, hot, dim

[A very large red-orange star squishing the previous two stars into the corners of the chart.]
:Red giant
::Huge, cool, luminous

[A small red star.]
:Red dwarf
::Small, cool, ancient, dim

[An olive green, medium-sized star.]
:Green elf
::Old, diminishes into the west

[A fairly large pale blue star.]
:Blue giant
::Large, hot, short-lived

[A blue-green, medium-sized star.]
:Teal sphynx
::Cryptic, eternal

[A small silver-colored star.]
:Gray wizard
::Wise, powerful, mercurial

[A tiny blue star.]
:Indigo banshee
::Bright, portentous, extremely loud

[A beige, medium-sized star.]
:Beige gorgon
::Dangerous to observe at optical wavelengths.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Fiction]]
[[Category:LOTR]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Wikipedia]]

Talk:2313: Wrong Times Table

2020-05-30T00:33:21Z

108.162.219.96:

Such an illogical table. Smaller numbers multiply to larger answers than larger numbers? Even numbers multiply to odd numbers?! How?!?! What sort of illiterate alien declared this to be the multiplication table?! [[Special:Contributions/108.162.221.101|108.162.221.101]] 20:54, 29 May 2020 (UTC)

This is easily one of the worst XKCD comics, period. Not funny, nor clever. Just seems like noise. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.68.183|172.69.68.183]] 20:57, 29 May 2020 (UTC)
:I suspect Randall may have just been feeling random, perhaps after several months of mostly Coronavirus-related comics. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 21:13, 29 May 2020 (UTC)
::That's fair, I'm being a bit harsh, but this just comes across as exceptionally meaningless and contrived, so much so that I felt the need to come here and comment immediately for the first time ever [[Special:Contributions/172.69.71.56|172.69.71.56]] 21:18, 29 May 2020 (UTC)
:I relate to certain mathematical facts not sounding right, like how 54 intuitively feels like it's divisible by 4. Nonsensical, but makes sense anyway. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.62.233|162.158.62.233]] 21:42, 29 May 2020 (UTC)

This seems like the multiplication equivalent of looking at a word and thinking it is spelled incorrectly. Sometimes I look at a simple word like "fish" and think: "That can't be right." Sometimes multiplication can feel that way, particularly 7's because those were tricky for some reason. The alt text confirms fishiness with 7's [[Special:Contributions/108.162.246.173|108.162.246.173]] 21:09, 29 May 2020 (UTC)
:Is it weird that I ''don't'' get this? I have this sense of "that is obviously wrong" when it comes to multiplication of small numbers like these, even with sevens and eights. If I read that 7 * 8 = 54, my brain screams "NOOOOOOOOO IT IS 56 YOU IDIOT!". [[Special:Contributions/108.162.221.101|108.162.221.101]] 21:14, 29 May 2020 (UTC)

Well, 2,2 that's actually 2^3=8. 2,3 is addition instead of multiplication. 1,2 is division instead of multiplication. 1,1 is subtraction. 10,10 seems to be a visual gag, though most of the 10s row is either multiplication by 11 or 12... There's some logic to some of these, but it's different for each row, column, or cell. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.74.167|162.158.74.167]] 21:13, 29 May 2020 (UTC)
:Yeah, there is something going on. It looks like a lot of it is remembering the correct answer to a different problem. By my count 55 squares are the correct answer to a square next to it and 31 have a correct answer for somewhere else on the grid. Also, 2*2, 4*4 and 5*5 are double the correct answer.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.245.76|108.162.245.76]] 21:41, 29 May 2020 (UTC)

It's almost disappointing that he didn't hide one or two asymmetries in there just to throw us off! [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.114|108.162.216.114]] 22:04, 29 May 2020 (UTC)

I get the idea that this is the sort of table you'd get if you tried to train an Adversarial AI from scratch to determine x*y purely by stocastic guessing and comparing to a co-evolving 'scorer' that also starts off naively but supports each answer according to the 'rightness' it thinks it has ''except'' for the real answer which is always hard-coded to be down-scored. (Also noting that DA reportedly came by his choice of 42 by asking people which numbers were 'funnier' than others, which can be said to be a similar kind of process but without the arrayed "original multiplication" element.) [[Special:Contributions/162.158.158.179|162.158.158.179]] 22:13, 29 May 2020 (UTC)

As someone who often confuses 7*8 as 54, I found the alt text very humorous. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.34.118|172.69.34.118]] 22:29, 29 May 2020 (UTC)

I'm disappointed to see that 6*9 isn't equal to 42. [[User:Probably not Douglas Hofstadter|Probably not Douglas Hofstadter]] ([[User talk:Probably not Douglas Hofstadter|talk]]) 23:01, 29 May 2020 (UTC)

This is just a collection of equations with the wrong answers. I'm not sure who finds this funny. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.96|108.162.219.96]] 00:33, 30 May 2020 (UTC)

Talk:664: Academia vs. Business

2016-12-01T15:46:30Z

108.162.219.96:

I'm not convinced the problem solved in the comic panels is the fast inverse square root in the title text, as the academia panel implies that it impacts queuing theory, and I'm not sure what fast inv sqrt has to do with queuing theory. {{unsigned|204.89.186.1}}
:Agreed. Fast inv sqrt is clearly referenced in the title text, but the problem in the comic is something else. [[User:Alpha|Alpha]] ([[User talk:Alpha|talk]]) 01:18, 2 March 2013 (UTC)
::I think the example of fast inverse square is more about the bizarrely elegant simplicity of the solution, rather than something related to the solved problem in the comic. (If the above comments are about text that has since been changed, my apologies.)[[User:Tryc|Tryc]] ([[User talk:Tryc|talk]]) 20:57, 3 July 2013 (UTC)
::: Actually 0x5f3759df is the mnagic number used in the fast inverse square root. Ref [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fast_inverse_square_root#The_.22magic_number.22 Wikipedia] [[User:edokan|edokan]] 15:54, 23.08.2013 GMT+2

If this ever happened to me, I would quietly release the solution under the GNU license. My getting fired (possibly) is totally worth the public technological progress highly into the future. [[User:Greyson|Greyson]] ([[User talk:Greyson|talk]]) 13:29, 14 March 2013 (UTC)

The explanation is an interesting contrast to my interpretation. The meaning I got was that in academia, this discovery, like any new discovery, is interesting; but in business, this discovery has little practical application (apart from finishing what he was doing) so his boss didn't think twice about it. Maybe I'm too cynical.--[[Special:Contributions/18.215.1.155|18.215.1.155]] 01:23, 13 May 2013 (UTC)

Seeing the presence of cans... possibly alcoholic. Might it be possible that the Ballmer Peak was successfully invoked to reach his solution? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.96|108.162.219.96]] 15:46, 1 December 2016 (UTC)

Derailing the topic entirely, the old woman in the "Academia" panel seems to be a somewhat recurring character, complete with a semi-consistent personality. I propose "Bunhead" for future references. Anonymous17:39, 4 December 2013 (UTC)
:I counter-propose 'MsBun'. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.223|108.162.219.223]] 00:49, 7 January 2014 (UTC)

Oh, my goodness, "TruthInTelevision"? This isn't TvTropes![[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.120|108.162.237.120]] 20:53, 19 January 2014 (UTC)

Can anyone remember an episode of Click (or any BBC computer programme) ever giving such in depth explanation of the graphics problem?
I recall one showing the difference in game presentations then and "now" from around about the time the article claims information hit the mainstream but it was no more than 'advertising without naming names' a la Beeb.[[User:Weatherlawyer|Weatherlawyer]] ([[User talk:Weatherlawyer|talk]]) 07:59, 4 January 2015 (UTC)

688: Self-Description

2015-08-31T19:38:00Z

108.162.219.96:

{{comic
| number = 688
| date = January 13, 2010
| title = Self-Description
| image = self_description.png
| titletext = The contents of any one panel are dependent on the contents of every panel including itself. The graph of panel dependencies is complete and bidirectional, and each node has a loop. The mouseover text has two hundred and forty-two characters.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic is {{w|Self-reference|self-referential}}, because every graph is dependent on the whole comic. If you were to change anything in the comic, you would change the ink distribution, and would therefore have to update all three graphs. This would result in further changes that would have to be considered.

The third panel features a {{w|Droste effect}}, an image infinitely contained within itself.

The title text refers to the comic's own self-reference, but it is also self-referencing because of the character count in it.

"The graph of panel dependencies is complete and bidirectional, and every node has a loop." This means that if we draw a dot corresponding to each panel, and then we draw arrows connecting the dots to indicate dependencies, the resulting {{w|graph}} is {{w|complete graph|complete}} (meaning that all the points are connected to one another) and bidirectional (meaning that if point A has an arrow to point B, then point B also has an arrow to point A). "Every node has a loop" means that each point also has an arrow connecting to itself.

This is an observation of the interdependent relationship between description and creation that pertains to all things perceived by humans, including the concept of "Self".

Self-reference was used very early for instance in [[33: Self-reference]], but never so famously as here. See [[:Category:Self-reference|other self-references here]].

==Transcript==
From left to right:

:[There is a pie chart, mostly white with a black slice. The white is labeled "Fraction of this image which is white." The black is labeled "Fraction of this image which is black."]

:[There is a bar graph labeled "Amount of black ink by panel." Bar 1 is of medium height, bar 2 highest, bar 3 the lowest.]

:[There is a scatterplot labeled "Location of black ink in this image." It is the first {{w|Quadrant (plane geometry)|quadrant}} of a {{w|Cartesian coordinate system|cartesian plane}} with the zeroes marked. The graph is the whole comic scaled proportionally to fit the axes, also showing the {{w|Droste effect}}, a type of visual {{w|recursion}}.]

==Trivia==

*This is one of the [[:Category:Footer comics|five footer comics]] linked at the bottom part of the {{xkcd}} website.

*This is one of the comics available as signed prints at the xkcd store

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Math]]
[[Category:Footer comics]]
[[Category:Self-reference]]

1053: Ten Thousand

2015-01-19T19:50:09Z

108.162.219.96: Fix typo

{{comic
| number = 1053
| date = May 9, 2012
| title = Ten Thousand
| image = ten_thousand.png
| titletext = Saying 'what kind of an idiot doesn't know about the Yellowstone supervolcano' is so much more boring than telling someone about the Yellowstone supervolcano for the first time.
}}

==Explanation==
This is certainly a great approach to take with someone that doesn't know an apparent common fact, rather than taking the "idiot" approach. For all those who haven't yet seen the {{w|Diet Coke and Mentos eruption}}: here is a [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LjbJELjLgZg Mythbusters video], and here is a [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQHPYelqr0E music video] (Pork and Beans by Weezer) with excessive eruptions. The Diet Coke and Mentos eruption has also been mentioned in a previous strip [[346: Diet Coke+Mentos]].

The approximate rate of 10,000 people per day hearing about something for the first time is estimated by the birth rate of 4,000,000 people per year divided by 365 days per year, assuming that the birth rate is constant and that indeed ''everyone'' learns or gets the fact, which is a little bit unrealistic. The target age of thirty years is irrelevant in this calculation; the 10,000 number is simply equal to the number of newborns per day, or equivalently, the number of people who reach a given age each day.

The title text provides another, perhaps more emphatic example of how explaining a fact to a person for the first time is much more entertaining than just expressing annoyance about that missing knowledge. Here is a [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PxDGiVQNg8 good video] about the {{w|Yellowstone supervolcano}}.

==Transcript==
:I try not to make fun of people for admitting they don't know things.
:Because for each thing "everyone" knows by the time they're adults", every day there are, on average, 10,000 people in the US hearing about it for the first time.
:Fraction who have heard of it at birth = 0%
:Fraction who have heard of it by 30 ≈ 100%
:US birth rate ≈ 4,000,000/year
:Number hearing about it for the first time ≈ 10,000/day

:If I make fun of people, I train them not to tell me when they have those moments. And I miss out on the fun.
:Megan: "Diet Coke and Mentos thing"? What's that?
:Cueball: Oh man! Come on, we're going to the grocery store.
:Megan: Why?
:Cueball: You're one of today's lucky 10,000.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Math]]