explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:2491: Immune Factory

2021-07-20T23:02:17Z

108.162.229.200: unionisation may refer to fever

I don't feel qualified to start this description, but this page has relevant info to explain the pun in the last panel: [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strikebreaker Strikebreaker - Wikipedia] - [[User:Vaedez|Vaedez]] ([[User talk:Vaedez|talk]]) 03:36, 20 July 2021 (UTC)
:I've yet to visit your link, but I suspect I would have explained that self-same thing. Plus the "IMMUNION" thing being a parody of something I know happened in the UK (don't know about the US, but why not?) where the Bottle Washers And Associated Kitchen Trades Union stops being known by its proud old acronym of BWAAKTU and 'rebrands' as something that sounds like a team name from The Apprentice, becoming "Sinceriton" or "Dynamotion" or something that looks like it ''should'' be an aptonym with a valid backronym like "SINKU". [[Special:Contributions/162.158.159.48|162.158.159.48]] 04:58, 20 July 2021 (UTC)

When I read the comic, I inferred that this was his ''second'' dose - the first dose made his body build up defenses, in contrast with ''now'', when it's ramping up production and making him feel really bad. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.245.248|108.162.245.248]] 05:40, 20 July 2021 (UTC)
:I agree, I think the comic displays Hairy suffering the reactions to his second shot rather than the first. [[User:Bischoff|Bischoff]] ([[User talk:Bischoff|talk]]) 07:00, 20 July 2021 (UTC)
::Personally, my first dose (of AZ/Oxford, for reference) crept up on me and, after several hours, gave me a totally unanticipated (the way one thinks one is immortal, clearly going to be taking such stuff in one's stride, right?) whole-body set of muscular aches and pains and day or two of general dreadfulness, the depths of which seem to be reflected in Hairy's depiction almost to a tee.
::The second dose (when I was more prepared for the reaction/repurcussions, and now knew where I'd find an almost-expired pack of flu-tablets that I wish I remembered I'd had the first time when I didn't even want to crawl out of bed much, but had never even opened) was therefore pessimistically anticipated to be just as bad but actually only ''half'' my body seemed to ache for the duration (still worse than any winter cold/flu I could quantify from recent memory) and I bounced back much quicker. (This time having ''deliberately'' resisted taking the newly rediscovered standard medicine-aisle anti-inflammatories, painkillers and/or whatever that I only ever bought in 'just in case' long before Covid or its vaccines were ever an immediate issue.)
::Anecdotal, I know. And I post my inability to/restraint from self-medication just to frame the relative degree of effects felt (I ''would'' have popped the pills the first time round, if I knew I could have, and that's something I just don't like doing on principle, as I (over?)trust my body to get through most circumstances, short of those important enough to require such a vaccination). I'm not a masochist, just a bit more inclined to wait and see.
::Plus given it's assumed to be in the US it's probably going to be Pfizer/BioNTech or Moderna (not the same mechanism as AZ's primer). Or ''maybe'' Janssen (which is more so). That greatly adds uncertainty to the usual mix of everyone having their own individual response to nominally identical treatment. But this is my own personal datum point, lacking any others. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.122|141.101.98.122]] 10:37, 20 July 2021 (UTC)

When Cueball replies "common side effect" to Hairy remarking that his immune cells have "unionized", what side effect is that referring to exactly? The current text of this explanation page says "It is not clear whether [Hairy's statement of immune-cell unionization] corresponds to any actual part of the immune response", but Cueball's reply seems to imply that there ''is'' a correspondence. - [[User:Vaedez|Vaedez]] ([[User talk:Vaedez|talk]]) 09:34, 20 July 2021 (UTC)

I believe the "unionisation" and refering to it as a common side effect refers to fever. Fever being a reaction of the immune system to a threat, as well as a common side effect of many vaccines. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.200|108.162.229.200]] 23:02, 20 July 2021 (UTC)

1422: My Phone is Dying

2014-09-17T11:01:41Z

108.162.229.200: /* Transcript */ typo

{{comic
| number = 1422
| date = September 17, 2014
| title = My Phone is Dying
| image = my_phone_is_dying.png
| titletext = When it explodes, it will cast off its outer layers, leaving behind nothing but a slowly fading PalmPilot, calculator, or two-way pager.
}}

==Explanation==
Beret Guy's phone is about to "die". Cueball assumes this just means that the battery is running out and it needs to be recharged, but the phone in question appears to "die" in a way analogous to the {{w|Stellar_evolution|life and death}} of a star: expending its fuel while heating up and expanding before ultimately losing its outer layers and becoming a white dwarf or similar "lesser" star.

Stars constantly undergo fusion reactions. The pressure generated by these reactions counteracts gravity, preventing it from collapsing the star during its main lifespan. As the hydrogen mostly fuses into helium in the core, the core gradually becomes more dense and the region of fusion gradually moves away from the center. Then, the star grows in size, reaching the stage of a Red Giant. When most of the "fuel" for fusion has been consumed, gravity will collapse the star into a white dwarf while the outer layers are shed. For stars much more massive than the Sun, there will be a {{w|Supernova|supernova}} explosion caused by a violent collapse, which is [https://what-if.xkcd.com/73/ very powerful]. Heavier stars have shorter lifespans while producing more energy; Beret Guy probably references this when he refuses the charger.

Both a supernova explosion and the collapse of red giants into white dwarfs shed their outer layers, which is referenced in the title text. Once extra mass is added to the dying star, analogous to "charging", the process only accelerates. The phone seems to have a certain mass because [[Beret Guy]] expects it to go (super)nova. Charging the phone may lead to a {{w|Nova|type 1a nova}}.

The comic also plays on the release of two new {{w|IPhone|iPhone models}} with {{w|IPhone_6|bigger}} screens, planned for 2 days after the release of the comic.

The comic could be also explained by characteristics of Li-ion batteries, battery type used in 99.9% of cellphones. At the end of their useful life, battery grows a bit. In case of severe physical or thermal damage or multiple electrical failures, battery can indeed overheat, leading to run-away thermal reaction inside. That would result in battery growing and eventually exploding. Connecting charger to battery failing this way would probably make the process faster. (http://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/safety_concerns_with_li_ion).

==Transcript==
[Beret Guy walks on-panel, carrying a smartphone]
: Beret Guy: My phone's about to die.
[The phone is now slightly larger, about the length of Beret Guy's arm]
: Cueball: Where'd you get a big iPhone? I didn't think they were out yet.
: Beret Guy: It's my regular one. It's just dying.
[The phone increases in size again. Beret Guy now holds it in both hands]
: Beret Guy: As it consumes its battery, it heats up and expands. Soon it will swell to enormous size, engulfing us both.
[The phone is now the size of Beret Guy's torso. Cueball is pointing off-panel]
: Beret Guy: Then it will collapse in a violent explosion!
: Cueball: …do you want to borrow my charger?
: Beret Guy: That would only make it run out ''faster''!
{{comic discussion}}

1415: Ballooning

2014-09-01T09:59:51Z

108.162.229.200: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1415
| date = September 1, 2014
| title = Ballooning
| image = ballooning.png
| titletext = Time to dance in front of Mary Jane! If I'm lucky, she'll turn out not to practice pre-copulatory sexual cannibalism!
}}

==Explanation==
{{w|Spider-Man}} is a fictional superhero in comic books published by Marvel Comics, and has been the star of a number of television shows and film. The {{w|Spider-Man theme song}}, first used for the 1967 cartoon show, includes the words, "Spider-Man, Spider-Man, does whatever a spider can". However, at other points, the theme song explains some things Spider-Man can do that a real spider obviously couldn't, such as crime-fighting. Randall is pointing out that while the abilities attributed to Spider-Man make a good superhero story, they are not real abilities of a spider.

This comic depicts Cueball as a far more realistic Spider-Man, behaving and thinking much more closely to a real spider than the Spider-Man from the comics. Cueball is shown {{w|Ballooning (spider)|ballooning}}, a trait used by spiders to move between locations, rather than swinging on web cords as in the comics and films. As he is floating, he sees a good spot to land, eat some bugs and make an egg sac. Again this contrasts the real life of a spider with Spider-Man, who would doubtless be rushing to fight crime or save a pretty girl.

Only female spiders create an egg sac. Male spiders spin a sperm web in order to transfer their sperm from their {{w|epigastric furrow}} into their {{w|pedipalp}}s (reproductive organ located on the front two appendages, in the position where a scorpion would have pincers), which will then be used to transfer the sperm into the female during copulation. Cueball/Spider-Man, being nominally male, should in fact be looking for a place to create a sperm web, not an egg sac.

The title text refers to the mating ritual of some spiders, in which the male performs a dance to court the female. Mary-Jane is the love interest throughout the Spider-Man stories, and so Cueball is planning to court her by dancing in front of her. In doing so he hopes that he is lucky, and she doesn't eat him before copulating with him, as {{w|sexual cannibalism}} is a trait associated with spiders.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is shown floating on the wind, attached to a large balloon. The balloon is made of spider silk.]
:Cueball: Ooh, that looks like a good spot to land, eat some bugs, and make an egg sac!
:Caption: ♫ ''Spider-Man, Spider-Man, does whatever a spider can'' ♪
{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]

1395: Power Cord

2014-07-16T08:46:44Z

108.162.229.200: /* Transcript */ typo

{{comic
| number = 1395
| date = July 16, 2014
| title = Power Cord
| image = power_cord.png
| titletext = In this situation, gzip /dev/inside to deflate, then pipe the compressed air to /dev/input to clean your keyboard. Avert your eyes when you do.
}}

==Explanation==
In this comic, we see [[Beret Guy]] walking in from the left, as [[Cueball]] is sitting on a couch, typing on a laptop on his lap, with its power cord unplugged. Instead of connecting it to the wall socket, Beret Guy picks it up and blows air into the loose end of the cord, as if inflating a balloon--and the laptop inflates. It then floats away, making Cueball grab for it as Beret Guy casually walks away.

While it is not possible to inflate a laptop like this, nor (probably) to inflate ''anything'' by blowing down a power cord, Beret Guy has previously demonstrated supernatural abilities with power cords, such as in [[1293: Job Interview]]. It is also notable that Beret Guy has managed to breathe helium (or another lighter-than-air gas) into the laptop, to make it float.

The title text involves two puns on {{w|Unix shell}} commands. The first pun is on “deflation”; {{w|DEFLATE}} is a basic data compression algorithm used by the gzip utility. Using gzip to deflate (compress) the fictitious device /dev/inside is implied to deflate (remove air from) the inside of the computer. The second pun is on “{{w|Pipeline (Unix)|piping}}”, the act of using the output of one operation as the input to another. As the output of deflating (removing air from) the computer would be air, a ''physical'' pipe could be used to direct the air somewhere useful. The suggestion is to direct the air to /dev/input (the input device, i.e. the keyboard) to clean it, similar to "compressed air" dusting cans. As this might cause a spray of unpleasant detritus (compare [[237: Keyboards are Disgusting]]), the reader is advised to avert their eyes.

==Transcript==
:[Beret Guy enters to find Cueball typing on a laptop. Cueball's power cord is unplugged from the wall.]
:Cueball typing: Type type

:[Beret Guy picks up the power cord]
:Cueball typing: Type type

:[Beret Guy blows into the plug end of the cord blowing up the laptop]
:Beret Guy: '''Pbbbbt'''
:Laptop: '''Foomp'''

:[Beret Guy walks away, leaving Cueball to retrieve his laptop, which is floating away.]

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]]