explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

2418: Metacarcinization

2021-01-29T20:26:43Z

108.162.237.64: /* Explanation */ Mentioned other examples of fixiation on one topic

{{comic
| number = 2418
| date = January 29, 2021
| title = Metacarcinization
| image = metacarcinization.png
| titletext = Scientists still don't know how marine biologists manage to so consistently bring up whalefall ecosystems, when relevant conversational openings are so few and far between.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a HEAVILY OPTIMIZED CRAB. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

The comic strip opens with a conversation between [[White Hat]] and [[Cueball]] as they are walking together. White Hat asks Cueball if he has seen a video of a crow sledding on a roof -- presumably [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6uXiAe7Oc-I this one], or one of its later viral reposts. In this case, the "crow" is a {{w|Western Jackdaw}}, a highly social member of the crow family (Corvidae). Cueball remarks that it's a cool example of {{w|tool use by animals}}, a sign of intelligence (which corvids, including crows, ravens, and [https://ocw.mit.edu/courses/brain-and-cognitive-sciences/9-20-animal-behavior-fall-2013/lecture-notes/MIT9_20F13_Lec4.pdf jackdaws], are famous for). He then points out that {{w|Tool use by sea otters|sea otters use tools}} too, namely using stones to crack open crab shells.

This in turn leads him to bring up the fact that the 'crab' body plan has evolved multiple times, a phenomenon known as {{w|carcinization}}, previously discussed in [[2314: Carcinization]]. In that strip, Cueball turned into a crab shortly after hearing about carcinization, so presumably White Hat will likewise be transformed momentarily. Then again, this is White Hat, so any transformation is likely to be delayed, mutated, or projected onto something else, perhaps one of his business ventures.

The caption is a joke that, much like natural life-forms have evolved into crab-like forms multiple independent times, so to do all of Cueball's (or Randall's) conversations evolve into a discussion of that evolutionary process.

In the title text, Randall jokes that marine biologists have a similar tendency to bring up {{w|Whale fall|whalefall}} (or "whale fall") ecosystems, which arise whenever a whale's carcass falls onto the deep ocean floor. Such occurrences are relatively rare, perhaps occurring once every few miles on whale migration routes, but they happen anyway, much like conversations about them. Another example of scientists having a tendency to bring up facts from their field of study can be found at [[1610: Fire Ants]], and Randall often brings up the fact that birds evolved from dinosaurs.

==Transcript==
:[White Hat and Cueball are walking together. White Hat has his smartphone out in his hand.
:White Hat: Have you seen this video of a crow sledding on a roof?
:Cueball: Yeah! It's always cool to see animals using tools.
:Cueball: Like how sea otters use rocks to open crab shells.
:Cueball: Hey, did you know the "crab" body plan has evolved multiple times?

:[Caption below the panel:]
:Regardless of the starting topic, any conversation with me eventually converges to carcinization.
{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Biology]]

2410: Apple Growers

2021-01-12T07:34:32Z

108.162.237.64: character categories

{{comic
| number = 2410
| date = January 12, 2021
| title = Apple Growers
| image = apple_growers.png
| titletext = Hopefully in a couple of weeks we'll be able to resume our apple-focused updates, because we have SO MUCH to say about Cosmic Crisp.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a DISTRACTED APPLE GROWER. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

On January 6, 2021, Trump supporters {{w|2021 storming of the United States Capitol|stormed the United States Capitol}} while Congress was in session, an event variously described as treason, insurrection, domestic terrorism, or a coup attempt. Nothing in modern American history resembles this; the {{w|Burning of Washington}}, by the British in {{w|the War of 1812}}, is sometimes raised in comparison. It is hard to overstate the significance of this event.

In its wake, corporations ranging from Marriott Hotels to Axe Body Spray have denounced Trump and his enablers.

Normal American life, already strained under the coronavirus pandemic, was dealt another blow by the insurrection, but various scheduled events continue to be carried out. This comic depicts one such event, a news conference hosted by the State Apple Growers (of an unspecified state). Their spokeswoman, Megan, announces that the apple growers would like Donald Trump to resign. This has nothing to do with apples. Ponytail questions Megan about this, but Megan concedes that the apple growers have not actually been doing apple-related work recently. She then gives a frazzled call for people to consume apples, while admitting that the growers are under great strain. Their failure to wear masks or other face coverings at the conference is further evidence of this.

==Transcript==
:[Beret Guy, Megan, and Cueball stand behind a podium with an image of an apple on the front of it]
:Megan: *ahem* The state apple-growers' association has decided to formally call on President Donald Trump to resign.
:[A wider shot shows Beret Guy, Megan, and Cueball on a stage. In the audience are three people, including Ponytail.]
:Ponytail: Weren't you meeting to update the standards for new apple varieties?
:Megan: Yes, but we talked it over and this is what we decided. We feel strongly that this is important.
:[There is a narrow shot of Megan behind the podium.]
:[voice from off-panel]: Did you discuss anything on your actual agenda?
:Megan: Thanks for the question! We did not.
:[Beret Guy, Megan, and Cueball stand behind a podium with an apple on it]
:[voice from off-panel]: Do you have any apple-related announcements at all?
:Megan: Uh, apples are great. Best fruit. Everyone should buy 1,000 of them. ''We're a little distracted right now, okay??''

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]

Talk:2410: Apple Growers

2021-01-12T06:13:18Z

108.162.237.64: tweak space

I think this is the first strip to refer to Trump by name. Can anyone confirm that? [[User:Captain Video|Captain Video]] ([[User talk:Captain Video|talk]]) 05:32, 12 January 2021 (UTC)

: Negatory. [[2137: Text Entry]] is one I remember. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.63.173|172.69.63.173]] 06:00, 12 January 2021 (UTC)
::The earliest I'm aware of is [[980: Money]] from 2011 (so before he'd held elective office). It's almost unfindable in the giant image. Trump is mentioned in the lower right corner of the "Billionaires" box, inside the very large "Billions" section. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 06:12, 12 January 2021 (UTC)

Talk:2410: Apple Growers

2021-01-12T06:12:11Z

108.162.237.64: mention 980:Money, probably the earliest

I think this is the first strip to refer to Trump by name. Can anyone confirm that? [[User:Captain Video|Captain Video]] ([[User talk:Captain Video|talk]]) 05:32, 12 January 2021 (UTC)

: Negatory. [[2137: Text Entry]] is one I remember. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.63.173|172.69.63.173]] 06:00, 12 January 2021 (UTC)
::The earliest I'm aware of is [[980:Money]] from 2011 (so before he'd held elective office). It's almost unfindable in the giant image. Trump is mentioned in the lower right corner of the "Billionaires" box, inside the very large "Billions" section. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 06:12, 12 January 2021 (UTC)

White Hat

2017-12-06T01:59:21Z

108.162.237.64: grammar edit

{{Infobox character
| image = white_hat.png
| caption = White hat as seen in [[973: MTV Generation]]
| first_appearance = [[260: The Glass Necklace]]
}}
'''White Hat''' is a [[stick figure]] character in [[xkcd]]. He is distinguished by his eponymous white hat which appears to be in the shape and style of a {{w|boater}}. His appearance is identical to that of [[Black Hat]] other than the color of their respective hats. Unlike Black Hat, however, White Hat doesn't necessarily represent the same character in each appearance.

Interestingly, the two characters have been depicted together only in [[1110: Click and Drag]], [[1000: 1000 Comics]], [[1708: Dehydration]], and [[1756: I'm With Her]] still without a real connection between them, although they actually speak in the same setting in [[1708]], the other three being [[:Category:Large drawings|large drawings comics]] where they do not meet. The same goes for the other white hat guy, [[Beret Guy]]. See more on how little these three interact in xkcd in the explanation for [[:Category:Characters with Hats|Characters with Hats]].

In early comics, White Hat appeared mostly as a rare secondary character. But starting with comic [[915: Connoisseur]], White Hat began appearing more often and developed more of a personality, often playing the role of a philosophically misguided person. In this way, he's a bit of a {{w|straw man}}, making logical fallacies to help advance [[Randall|Randall's]] point (see also [[973: MTV Generation]], [[1215: Insight]], [[1255: Columbus]] and [[1277: Ayn Random]]). Other times, he is simply an alternative to [[Cueball]] or one of the other main characters.

In [[603: Idiocracy]] a character with a white hat appears, but it is a rounded safari hat very unlike White Hat's usual boater. He also has a very different mindset so there is no reason to believe that he is White Hat at all, and the comic has been removed from the list of those with White Hat. The main reason for the initial misunderstanding is that White Hat had already appeared in his normal hat three times before that comic, and Safari Hat guy has never been shown again, except in [[1000: 1000 Comics]].

==See also==
*[[:Category:Comics featuring White Hat|Comics featuring White Hat]]

{{navbox-characters}}
[[Category:Characters]]
[[Category:Characters with Hats]]

Talk:1911: Defensive Profile

2017-11-07T20:43:28Z

108.162.237.64:

This reminds me of his "free speech" comic. In both, he implies that if people get mad at you for what you say, you must be the one in the wrong. He also implies that people who make that kind of statement "don't understand" why people take offense. That makes very little sense. If they say something like that, they must understand why some people dislike them. Quite possibly they even enjoy having that effect. [[User:Gmcgath|Gmcgath]] ([[User talk:Gmcgath|talk]]) 21:09, 3 November 2017 (UTC)

: That brings new meaning to "objective truth". In the modern world it certainly seems sometimes that relativism reigns supreme. Let's see... If we all get angry at Randall, is Randall wrong? [[Special:Contributions/198.41.238.40|198.41.238.40]] 07:05, 4 November 2017 (UTC)

: Huh. What a bizarre comment. The underlying idea that (some) people know exactly why what they are saying makes people angry and actually enjoy it. (These people are commonly called "assholes.") But I see no correlation in this and your interpretation of his freedom of speech comic. And your interpretation is very far off from what said comic said. It said that "if the best argument you have is that your comment is freedom of speech, it must be a bad argument." Freedom of speech lets you say what you want, but you still have to actually defend your argument. You don't get to just say "freedom of speech" and win the Internet. Nothing about anger making it wrong. [[User:Trlkly|Trlkly]] ([[User talk:Trlkly|talk]]) 08:54, 4 November 2017 (UTC)

: I don't have an account yet, but I just wanted to respond to Trlkly, actually the 1st Amendment/Freedom of Speech is the Right to NOT have the Government regulate your speech; this still actually leaves open a wide variety of ways in which your speech/conduct can be regulated by private persons and organizations. This is what is meant by 'Freedom of speech is not freedom from consequence', and *doesn't* in particular refer to needing to *backup* your arguments/speech with a valid reasoning; that's a separate point of concern. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.74.117|162.158.74.117]] 20:41, 6 November 2017 (UTC)Raenir Salazar.

Chrome with the official Google Translate extension allows just this kind of view translation of a selection only. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.253.221|172.68.253.221]] 03:14, 4 November 2017 (UTC)

The first one works, somewhat. But the second one? What does "drama free zone" and "make people sad" have to do with one another? Drama (in this sense) is about anger, not sadness. And I don't think it's necessarily a horrible thing that you aren't good at dealing with people who get angry at you. Why assume everyone is a bad person? [[User:Trlkly|Trlkly]] ([[User talk:Trlkly|talk]]) 08:54, 4 November 2017 (UTC)

: I think that part refers to the "Geek Social Fallacies", one of which is that "addressing conflict" is the same as "cause drama" - failing to realize that addressing conflict is the way to SOLVE it, reducing drama in the long run. If a person thinks like that, telling them that you disagree/are offended by their comment would likely make them confused, angry and defensive, with no idea how to handle and overcome the conflict. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.88.68|162.158.88.68]] 21:16, 4 November 2017 (UTC)

: I disagree with the statement "Drama (in this sense) is about anger, not sadness." The term "drama" is invoked on social media for any emotional response the invoker feels is too large to be warranted by the situation. So being excessively (in the eyes of the person invoking) sad is equally "drama" as being excessively angry. The comic and explanation don't necessarily imply that it makes you a horrible person either, just that many people's attempts to avoid drama (which seems like a noble goal on the surface) are actually their inability to deal with problems they might have caused and are far less noble on close inspection. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 20:43, 7 November 2017 (UTC)

The last paragraph (relating to Donald Trump and Twitter) seems out of place. It doesn't serve to describe the comic, and fails to establish context. Thoughts on deleting it completely? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.69.211|162.158.69.211]] 18:32, 4 November 2017 (UTC)

: I agree. While I get that Randall doesn't support Trump - just look at [[1756: I'm With Her]]. That doesn't mean that he has to be shoehorned into the description for any comic that deals with anything even vaguely political [[User:Figvh|Figvh]] ([[User talk:Figvh|talk]]) 23:52, 4 November 2017 (UTC)

: I think it does not "fail to establish context"; the opposite actually. And therefore should be maintained. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.27.12|172.68.27.12]] 20:05, 5 November 2017 (UTC)

: I agree, this particular comic makes no reference to political views or current affairs. It is much more likely that this comment is based on personal experiences. The only links to Donald Trump are that this a comment about social media when there has been a recent news article relating to Trump and social media and that the topic is about defensiveness, which Trump is often accused of. Both are likely to be purely coincidental, given Trump has always been highly active on social media and the accusation of defensiveness could be applied to millions of people.

Talk:1896: Active Ingredients Only

2017-09-29T14:07:00Z

108.162.237.64:

Seems Randall has a cold again, like two years ago... :D --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 12:03, 29 September 2017 (UTC)

Why would taking a medication without binding agents be dangerous? Also, would something like a gelcap count as an inactive ingredient? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.62.153|162.158.62.153]] 13:28, 29 September 2017 (UTC)

: Binders hold the tablet together, so that instead of taking a powder and possibly missing some grains that fall away or stick to something you can take the whole tab and get exactly the intended amount of active ingredient. They are also used to make tabs with minuscule quantities of active ingredient larger so that instead of fumbling with an incredibly tiny tablet it is large enough to be easily held and seen.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 14:07, 29 September 2017 (UTC)

1193: Externalities

2017-07-11T21:10:53Z

108.162.237.64:

{{comic
| number = 1193
| date = April 1, 2013
| title = Externalities
| image = externalities.png
| titletext = Mouse over words and things to see where they come from.
}}
{{incomplete|While a good start with the explanation of Baidu, the article should give an explanation of the comic in its current state. The different versions during the competition should be it's own section. Also, update image to include text.}}
==Explanation==
This comic isn't a static image - even the title text changes depending on which part of the image you're hovering over. It presented a competition for students to see who could come closest to break a {{w|Skein (hash function)|Skein hash}} but also an aid appeal for the Wikimedia Foundation.

There are quite a few references in the comic to {{w|Baidu}}. Baidu is a large Chinese Internet services company that employs thousands, whose shares are publicly traded on world stock exchanges. It's the predominant Internet search provider of China, and is sometimes called the "Google of China". It offers parallels for the Chinese market of many of the services that Google provides and offers its own encyclopedic wiki with a restricted edit policy to serve as a replacement for Wikipedia. Wikipedia reports that Baidu's search engine handled 56% of Chinese internet search queries in Q4 2010. and that in October 2012, Baidu ranked 5th overall in the Alexa Internet rankings. Given that explanation for the Baidu references in #1193 is still solicited for explainxkcd, Baidu apparently is not well known yet among savvy XKCD readers.
Baidu Search results reputedly follow the censorship dictates of the Chinese authorities, causing it to return censored responses to searches for politically sensitive terms like "Tianamen Square massacre" or "Falun Gong" when executed by web browsers that are connected via Chinese ISPs. When you execute such searches via Baidu in the US, the top links returned for these topics do seem to reflect Chinese government sensibilities although the uncensored English language Wikipedia articles for these topics are listed high in the query results. Baidu's reputation for censorship provides background for Megan's reply "but nothing about Tianamen Square" in response to the "Come and find your future at Baidu" employment enticement of panel one and also provides the background to understand the "It takes great minds to stifle other great minds" slogan of the second panel.

__TOC__

The blank regions in the above image are dynamically generated from various sources.
*The university that is being recruited changes depending on which university is winning the hash finding competition in the fifth panel.
*The company doing the recruiting is randomly selected from a pool of companies. It was formerly the first NASDAQ-100 company mentioned on a varying Wikipedia page.
*The text in the second panel may vary: See [[1193: Externalities#Second Panel|this section]].
*The text in the third panel may vary: See [[1193: Externalities#Third Panel|this section]].
*The text in the fourth panel may vary: See [[1193: Externalities#Fourth Panel|this section]].
*The text in the fifth panel [[1193: Externalities#Fifth Panel|changes]], depending on which university is currently in third place in a hash finding competition. Clicking on the panel takes you to [http://almamater.xkcd.com/ a webpage] where people can enter their school's domain name and hash data, and ranks schools on how close their students can come to matching a Skein 1024 1024 hash value.
*The text in the top half of the sixth panel may vary. See [[1193: Externalities#Sixth Panel|this section]]. The second half of the panel is always the same.
*The last panel varies with the amount donated to the Wikimedia Foundation via [https://donate.wikimedia.org/?utm_medium=socialmedia&utm_campaign=xkcd_april1 this link]. For past images, see [[1193: Externalities#Seventh Panel|this section]].

===Hashing Competition===
For the two days until comic 1194 appeared, a competition was underway to see who could come closest to breaking a {{w|Skein (hash function)|Skein hash}}. The first text line of the first panel contains a link to http://almamater.xkcd.com. This page contained the text:

:Currently looking for Skein 1024 1024 input matching
<pre>5b4da95f5fa08280fc9879df44f418c8f9f12ba424b7757de02bbdfbae0d4c4fdf9317c80cc5fe04c6429073466cf29706b8c25999ddd2f6540d4475cc977b87f4757be023f19b8f4035d7722886b78869826de916a79cf9c94cc79cd4347d24b567aa3e2390a573a373a48a5e676640c79cc70197e1c5e7f902fb53ca1858b6</pre>

On this page, users were invited to enter "Your school's domain name" — presumably intended to be their college alma mater. (At least in the beginning, only a few top-level domains were accepted.) If the user entered an acceptable domain (by xkcd's rules, which apparently changed during the 48 hours of the competition), he could then enter data values one at a time. For each data value entered, xkcd returned a hash value and the number of bits by which it differed from the target value. The object was to achieve the lowest possible number of differing bits, ideally zero.

A ranking page showed the lowest value achieved for each domain name entered, but not the data that achieved it. The first name on the list was substituted in various panels, and the third-place school showed in panel five. No data values were reported by xkcd, but various results were posted by users of the xkcd forums and on other websites, leading to copycat submissions, so that occasionally large numbers of institutions would show the same moderately low value.

After the end of the contest, the data submission page vanished, replaced by the final list of rankings, which shows that Carnegie Mellon University achieved the best score with 384 bits incorrect out of 1024. The rankings only show a few hundred out of the several thousand domains submitted—presumably Randall chose to chop the copycat submissions off the end of the list, retaining only honestly obtained results.

===First Panel===
In some cases, Megan's reply seems to correspond to the company.
{| class="wikitable table-padding"
|-
|
:Hey, [university] students!
:Have you applied to [company] yet?
:Megan: The recruiter hasn't emailed me back in over three minutes.
|-
|
:Hey, [university] students!
:Have you applied to [company] yet?
:Megan: The recruiter hasn't emailed me back in over an hour!
|-
|
:Hey, [university] students!
:Have you thought of a career at [company]?
:Megan: I'm not that good at math.
|-
|
:Hey, [university] students!
:Have you thought of a career at [company]?
:Megan: What do they even do?
|-
|
:Hey, [university] students!
:Have you thought of a career at [company]?
:Megan: I don't like monopolies.
|-
|
:Hey, [university] students!
:Have you thought of a career at [company]?
:Megan: Only in my darkest moments.
|-
|
:Hey, [university] students!
:Be part of the Apple experience!
:Megan: I'm not really a fan of turtlenecks.
|-
|
:Hey, [university] students!
:Come work at Microsoft!
:Megan: I only came to this tech talk for the xbox giveaway.
|-
|
:Hey, [university] students!
:Y U No Work Yahoo?
:Megan: I like working from home!
|-
|
:Hey, [university] students!
:Become a partner at Starbucks!
:Megan: But green's not my colour.
|-
|
:Hey, [university] students!
:Come work in the Amazon!
:Megan: I don't have to actually move to South America, do I?
|-
|
:Hey, [university] students!
:Have you thought of a career at [company]?
:Megan: Not after that presentation.
|-
|
:Hey, [university] students!
:Thought about working for Intel?
:Megan: I'm not that great at division.
|-
|
:Hey, [university] students!
:Dude, you should work at Dell!
:Megan: That catchphrase is so old.
|-
|
:Ahoy, carnegie melonites!
:Have you thought of a career at [company]?
:Megan: Not after that presentation.
|-
|
:Hey, [university] students!
:Have you looked for a job at Kraft Foods?
:Megan: I'm allergic to sugar
|-
|
:Hey, [university] students!
:How about working for Whole Foods?
:Megan: Could I afford the food if I did?
|-
|
:Hey, [university] students!
:Come work at EBay!
:Megan: Maybe if they made a good bid.
|-
|
:Hey, [university] students!
:Come work for Activision... er... Blizzard... er...
:Megan: Activision Blizzard?
|-
|
:Hey, [university] students! <nowiki>|</nowiki> Ahoy. Carnegie Melonites!
:Come find your future at Baidu!
:Megan: But nothing about Tiananmen Square.
|}

===Second Panel===
The text in the second panel is based on the company in the first panel:
{| class="wikitable table-padding"
|-
|
:When the Singularity happens, it will happen here.
:Ponytail: [Company] has outgrown us.
:Men: It is time.
|-
|
:Think of ways to make things smaller and smaller!
:Ponytail: I'm worried mine is too big.
:Men: Yeahhh
|-
|
:Think of ways to make things smaller and smaller!
:Ponytail: But will it blend?
:Men: Yeahhh
|-
|
:You'll be part of a dynamic research team envisioning the future.
:Ponytail: It probably looks cool.
:Men: Yeahhh
|-
|
:You'll be creating the future of commerce platforms!
:Ponytail: More recommendations.
:Men: Yep.
|-
|
:You'll be an insignificant cog in our giant machine
:Ponytail: We should improve Notepad
:Men: Nah
|-
|
:We can't tell you what you'll be working on.
:Ponytail: [Confidential]
:Men: [Redacted]
|-
|
:You'll be an insignificant cog in our giant machine
:Ponytail: Needs more Bob.
:Men: Nah
|-
|
:You'll help set the future of the company
:Ponytail: Wait. You hired a college grad as the CFO?
:Men: Yeahhh
|-
|
:At Qualcomm, we know you're born mobile.
:Ponytail: Born mobile!
:Men: Texting!
|-
|
:Short or tall, we've got a grande job for you!
:Ponytail: How many job openings are there?
:Men: Ele-venti or so.
|-
|
:You'll help direct the future of nutrition
:Ponytail: Microwaveable toast
:Men: Delicious
|-
|
:Help us find and provide the best healthy, local, and sustainable products.
:Ponytail: Hey guys, how about kale cookies?
:Men: Sounds great!
|-
|
:We're the Classmates.com to Facebook's Craigslist.
:Ponytail: Maybe we should use game theory.
:Men: Why Bother?
|-
|
:Whatever. Come create the future of gaming!
:Ponytail: Call of Duty 14.
:Men: That's genius!
|-
|
:It takes great minds to stifle other great minds.
:Ponytail: Let's block Canada
:Men: Sounds good.
|}

===Third Panel===
{| class="wikitable table-padding"
|-
|
:We're a convenient four hour drive from New York City (15,000 hours by Roomba)
|-
|
:Only a short commuter flight away!
|-
|
:Travel to us by Roomba, we're *that* close!
|-
|
:We're so close you can get to us by Roomba.
|-
|
:Free Roomba rides every morning while you have coffee.
|-
|
:Your Roomba comes in black & slate, or white & silver
|-
|
:Just a short Roomba ride up the coast, try not to fall off.
|-
|
:We know what everyday life is like for your generation:
|}

===Fourth Panel===
{| class="wikitable sortable plainlinks table-padding"
|-
|
:Our recruiting team is on the lookup for promising young [university] graduates.
|-
|
:We hired a new recruiting startup to help us hire [university] students.
|-
|
:We borrowed the botanical gardens' net to catch promising recruits.
|-
|
:We prefer to recruit from [university] students, of course.
|-
|
:Our recruiters are on the hunt for unaware [university] graduates.
|}

===Fifth Panel===
{| class="wikitable table-padding"
|-
|
:Or students from [university], if they're clever with their applications
|-
|
:Possibly [university] grads, if their form-filling startup works out.
|-
|
:Or [university] graduates, provided any of them manage to fill out the application correctly.
|-
|
:Or [university] graduates, if they manage to fill out the application correctly.
|}

The text in the form varies independently of the text at the top, sometimes related to the organization in 3rd place:

{| class="wikitable table-padding"
|-
!Organization
!Name
!Email
!Education
!(Explanation)
|-
|MIT
|Oliver Smoot
|pgp encrypted
|have you ever really looked at the fourier
|As an undergrad at MIT in 1948, Smoot was used to measure the Harvard Bridge during a fraternity prank. This led to the introduction of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smoot "smoot"] as a non-standard unit of length.
|-
|
|Wheeeee
|ford.com
|stealing lunches from startups
|-
|CMU
|leeroy jenkins
|me@car
|I can cut up melons
| Le(e)roy Jenkins is an internet meme originating from a 2006 'Let's Play' video of World of Warcraft
|-
|CMU
|pittsburgh
|me@car
|I can cut up melons
|-
|
|SEGMENTATION FAULT
|save trees
|Contra dancing.
|-
|Cambridge
|I'm applying
|cam.gov
|on going problems with birds
|-
|
|certainly
|elephant
|An excellent year in the Sahara
|-
|Stanford
|Stanford
|ford.com
|Stealing lunches from startups
|-
|Stanford
|Yes Please
|@twitter
|Are you Stanford?
|-
|
|Applying
|For a job
|I would like to work at you
|-
|St.Olaf
|Me olaf
|You Helga
|Hunting wooly mammoths
|-
|Ohio State
|Oh!
|IO
|O HAI O
| A joke on the pronunciation of Ohio.
|-
|
|FOLLOWBACK
|TOTALLY.EDU.US
|CONVENIENT US DOMAIN REDIRECTS
| .edu is a website suffix mostly used for (American) university websites.
|-
|
|Mancher
|Outlook
|Made a collage out of macaroni
|-
|Stanford
|Yes Please
|ford.com
|Are you Stanford?
|-
|Michigan
|ANN
|SOUTH DETROIT
|HUNT LIKE A WOLVERINE
|University of Michigan is in Ann Arbor; the mascot is the Wolverine
|-
|
|christopher
|POBox 12532
|p.s. ill find my frog
|PO Box 12532 is located at Pyramid Lake in Nevada.
|-
|Oxford
|Bond, James
|Righto
|We're better than Cambridge
|-
|
|Which one
|Forget it
|Riding the L all night long
|-
|Kit
|Kat
|Oh dear
|Something something sleep
|-
|Google
|My G+ handle?
|Any
|I'm feeling lucky
|G+ stands for Google+, Googles social network. I'm feeling lucky is the second option under the searchbar on Google.
|-
|UIC
|Which one
|Forget it
|Riding the L all night long
|-
|
|MY JOB NOW
|@
|SAVE DOCUMENT AND SEND
| Could be Randall saying most jobs are just sending e-mails (@).
|}

===Sixth Panel===
{| class="wikitable table-padding"
|-
|
:At [company], you'll work at a scale you won't find anywhere else
|-
|
:Explore the depths of expensive and undocumented tools!
|-
|
:At Apple, we believe in pushing the boundary of perfection.
|-
|
:At Microsoft, you just need to relax and embrace the machine
|-
|
:Yahoo management aren't just suits. We code too!
|-
|
:At [company], you'll have the opportinity to work on cutting-edge projects.
|-
|
:At Amazon, you'll be shaving the most cutting-edge of yaks.
|-
|
:You get to bid first on any auction, and use other experimental tools!
|-
|
:At QUALCOMM, Device driver code quality is job #1
|-
|
:Make use of our powerful in-house game creation tools.
|-
|
:We're even working on some experimental biotechnology
|}

===Seventh Panel===
{| class="wikitable table-padding"
|-
|[[File:externality-dog1.png]]
|-
|[[File:externality-dog2.png]]
|-
|[[File:externality-dog2A.png]]
|-
|[[File:externality-dog3.png]]
|-
|[[File:externality-dog4.png]]
|-
|[[File:externality-dog5.png]]
|-
|[[File:externality-dog6.png]]
|-
|[[File:externality-dog7.png]]
|-
|[[File:externality-dog8.png]]
|-
|[[File:externality-dog9.png]]
|-
|[[File:externality-dog10.png]]
|-
|[[File:externality-dog12.png]]
|-
|[[File:externality-dog13.png]]
|-
|[[File:externality-dog14.png]]
|}

==Title Text==
The title text documents the different sources of data in the comic. The different title texts are:

{| class="wikitable table-padding"
|-
!Comic region
!Title text
|-
|Most of the comic, during the competition.||Mouse over words and things to see where they come from.
|-
|Most of the comic, after the competition ended||This comic went up on April 1st, and the panels changed throughout the day in response to readers doing things like breaking hashes, edited a rapidly-shuffling set of target Wikipedia articles, and donating to Wikimedia Foundation. (The vandalism is over now and CMU won the hashing contest.)
|-
|The part of the first panel (text and drawing) which is not a link. There is no title text at all over the part where the link is active||Happy April 1st, Everyone!
|-
|Fifth panel.||[University] has the third best hash. See the full standings at http://almamater.xkcd.com/best.csv (University = uic after competition)
|-
|Last three panels (only within a frame that would just fit around all three of them).||The dog gains a pound for every $10 donated to the wikimedia foundation via this link. Currently at [amount donated] (Amount = $51135.33 after competition).
|}

==Transcript==
:[This was a dynamic image where the text changed during April 1st. The main title text also changed after the dynamic part was finished, and there are even different title text for different part of the comic. This transcript is of the final version of the comic, (no longer dynamic or changing), as displayed at present on xkcd, there are still four different title texts for specific panels. These four title text are for that reason included here in the transcript.]

:[The basic title text for the entire comic is: "This comic went up on April 1st, and the panels changed throughout the day in response to readers doing things like breaking hashes, edited a rapidly-shuffling set of target Wikipedia articles, and donating to Wikimedia Foundation. (The vandalism is over now and CMU won the hashing contest.)" The other three title text are only active over certain panels.]

:[The first panel with the caption and Megan below has it's own title text. A part of that panel is a link, and in the section where this link is active there is no title text at all. The title text for the rest of the first panel is: "Happy April 1st, everyone!"]

:[A panel with only text is above the first drawing. There is a link on the top part of the text to <nowiki>http://almamater.xkcd.com/</nowiki> (the link is now broken).]
:Ahoy, carnegie melonites!
:
:Come find your future at Baidu.

:[Below, not in a frame, is Megan.]
:Megan: But nothing about Tiananmen Square.

:[Caption floating above the frame of the next panel:]
:It takes great minds to stifle other great minds.
:[Ponytail sits at a desk, hand to her chin, with two Cueball-like guys with their hands on the table.]
:Ponytail: Let's block Canada
:Cueball-like guys: Sounds good.

:[Ponytail crouches on a moving Roomba (labeled) with a steaming mug of coffee in one hand and a smartphone in the other. Above her is a caption. The Roomba makes a noice]
:We're a convenient four hour drive from New York City (15,000 hours by Roomba.)
:''Whirrrrrrr''
:Roomba

:[Ponytail and Hairy corners Cueball as he walks out of a door, and a black haired ponytailed girl is moving towards him wielding a giant butterfly net. There is a caption above them:]
:Our recruiters are on the hunt for unaware CMU graduates

:[The fifth panel has it's own title text only active within (or very close to) the frame. It is: "uic has the third best hash. See the full standings at <nowiki>http://almamater.xkcd.com/best.csv</nowiki>" (The link is now broken)]

:[There is a caption above a website application. There is three fields to be filled, with each their caption and text:]
:or uic graduates, provied any of them manage to fill out the application correctly.
::Name which one
::Email forget it
::Education Riding the L all night long

:[Caption floating above the frame of the next panel:]
:At Baidu, Inc., you'll have the opportunity to work on cutting-edge projects.
:[Cueball sits at a computer.]
:Cueball: What does "make dog" do?
:Off-screen voice: Experimental dog generator. Don't click on it; the default size isn't set, so-
:'''*click*'''

:[The last three panels has their own title text, only active within a frame that could contain all three panel. Outside that "frame" (all the way around) is the other title text. Within the title text is: "The dog gains a pound for every $10 donated to the Wikimedia Foundation via this link. Currently at $51135.33."]

:[Small insert panel, going in above the next larger panel: Cueball stares at the screen.]
:''Kzzzt''
:''*bip*''
:Off-screen voice: Uh oh.

:[A giant dog looks down at the desk where the computer once was, now only the wires are left. Cueball, leaning way back in his office chair, holding his hand to his mouth, stares up at it.]

:[Again a smaller insert panel above the large one with the dog. A graphic showing two sliders and a dog (similar to the one in the previous panel). Next to the dog with arrows pointing to it are a thermometer graphic and an equation. Below is an e-mail type text and finally a caption. There are arrows over and under "God" and "dogs" between the g and d's.]
:d(x)=R
:careers@baidu, Inc.
:'''Play God with dogs.'''TM

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:April fools' comics]]
[[Category:Dynamic comics]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairy]]
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]
[[Category:Wikipedia]]
[[Category:Science]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Roomba]]
[[Category:Butterfly net]]

1786: Trash

2017-01-16T22:25:14Z

108.162.237.64: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1786
| date = January 16, 2017
| title = Trash
| image = trash.png
| titletext = Plus, time's all weird in there, so most of it probably broke down and decomposed hundreds of years ago. Which reminds me, I've been meaning to get in touch with Yucca Mountain to see if they're interested in a partnership.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Does it need more on the title text regarding nuclear waste.}}
[[Black Hat]] is, once again, thoroughly confusing [[Cueball]], (like for instance in [[908: The Cloud]] and others). This time, when inquired about a chute extruding from his wardrobe, Black Hat explains that it is a {{w|Chute_(gravity)#Building_chute|garbage chute}} into another dimension. Apparently these kind of portals appear on about half of all the furniture that Black Hat buys, and he is kinda annoyed about it. (This sounds more like something [[Beret Guy]] would encounter, although he would for sure have reacted very differently than Black Hat). It would be interesting to know whether all the portals leads into the same alternative world/dimension, but it seems Black Hat is not interested in visiting these worlds, but is just annoyed about his broken furniture.

Cueball assumes that this is a reference to ''{{w|The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe}}'' the first book in {{w|The Chronicles of Narnia}} by {{w|C. S. Lewis}}. In the books the characters use different portals to get into {{w|Narnia}}, and in the first book the children find the portal inside an old wardrobe, and they use it at least three times to travel into Narnia. Narnia is a children's book and is a magical world so Cueball is appalled to learn that Black Hat dumps his trash in Narnia.

Black Hat confirms that it is Narnia, and explains how this is a great time-saver for him, as he can easily get rid of his trash. But as it seems he never enters this portal himself, it could be a portal into any of the many different worlds in different dimensions that are mentioned in the Narnia books. Only three of them are ever visited though, but in the book {{w|The Magician's Nephew}} (a prequel to the first book), it is revealed that there is a way station in between all these different worlds, a forest with many lakes where each lake leads into a different world. This forest was referenced in [[1352: Cosmologist on a Tire Swing]].

If it is Narnia, then the huge cat he refers to is {{w|Aslan}}, a Magical lion that represents God in Narnia. In his Lion form he sometimes walks around in Narnia and he watches over Narnia, but not all the time. It is revealed in the last book that he is also the guardian of the other worlds, where he has different names and take on different appearances, so he is actually a representation of God, but always a benevolent God.

Aslan, or any other large cat or inhabitants of such a different world, would probably be really pissed that someone is throwing their trash there. He would probably try to stop this by any means necessary, even if that means coming up through a trash chute into another dimension. But, because lions are a type of cat (feline), apparently he can be repelled with an ordinary spray bottle, usually used on small house cats. It would be unlikely to work on a lion, especially if the lion was a representation of God, the same God as in Black Hat's world.

In the title text the fact that time passes much faster in Narnia than on Earth is mentioned. (Time does not pass at a constant rate compared to Earth time.) This could also be the case even if Black Hat's world would be a different one than Narnia. So everything that is actually pushed to the other side of the portal would be disposed of very efficiently as within just a few Earth minutes, the trash could completely decompose. This would then explain how Black Hat can keep pushing more stuff into the other world. Anything getting over the border will vanish before he comes with his next trash bag.

In the title text {{w|Yucca Mountain}} is mentioned. This is a reference to {{w|Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository}}, a proposed nuclear waste repository that has been abandoned at present time. Black Hat wants to contact those that wish to make such a repository and let them dispose of their radioactive waste through his "magical" portal, likely to make a profit for himself. If throwing trash into Narnia is terrible, what then about radioactive waste... Of course in Earth time it would then soon have decayed to back ground levels... This is thus another jab at all the worlds environmental problems, in relation to all the comics about [[:Category:Climate change|climate change]]! This comic could be a take on humans {{w|Marine_debris|dumping waste}} in the "endless" oceans, more specifically {{w|Ocean disposal of radioactive waste}}, which is a huge problem today.

The portal to Narnia was previously featured in [[665: Prudence]] and [[969: Delta-P]], and the different passage of time was mentioned in [[821: Five-Minute Comics: Part 3]]).

==Transcript==
:[Cueball looking at garbage chute attached to wardrobe. A Black Hat answers him from off panel.]
:Cueball: What's this thing on your wardrobe?
:Black Hat (off-panel): Garbage chute.

:[In a frame-less panel Cueball has turned away from the wardrobe (now off-panel) and he walks towards Black Hat.]
:Cueball: Into a wardrobe?
:Black hat: There's some sort of portal to a magical land in there. Half the furniture I get has them-it's kinda a pain.

:[Cueball stops walking closer to Black Hat.]
:Cueball: You dump your trash in ''Narnia''?
:Black Hat: Yeah, it's a real time-saver.
:Black Hat: There's a huge cat in there, but I have a spray bottle I use when he tries to come up through the chute.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]
[[Category:Fiction]]
[[Category:Animals]]

Talk:272: Linux User at Best Buy

2017-01-13T13:25:05Z

108.162.237.64:

Not that Macs or Linux are invulnerable to malware. (Anyone else remember the {{w|Morris worm|Internet Worm}}, which would surely have ripped through Linux machines if not encountered on Unix, already, in pre-Linux days. Other exploits ''have'' been discovered, and had to be fixed.) Having said that, both types of machine ''tend'' to be safer from an OS security model point of view, from being a minority target that is largely overlooked ''and'' from the end-users being generally more savvy against liveware component attacks. However with the targetted growing flood of new users, that may well be changing. The latter two points, at least, although I'm sure ''some'' of the distros "boot as root" as well.

The speed of Linux also tends to be more from being more finely-honed by the last generation or two of geeks. Less clutter (at least with the distros ''I'' like, YMMV with some of the more "user friendly" ones) and the somewhat intimate knowledge of the system that the user tends to get and is able to act upon if anything displeases them (although, again, that may be changing). These days (and those days, I'm pretty sure) you ''can'' get mainstream AV programs for Linux (and Mac) and while I'm not going to say they're ''necessary'' for Linux, they're available and primed to help you out of various messes you ''could'' encounter. [[Special:Contributions/178.98.31.27|178.98.31.27]] 08:07, 20 June 2013 (UTC)

:Approximately 15 ago I did deactivate the firewall at my main (Linux) internet gateway for some tests only for a few minutes. I WILL NEVER DO THAT AGAIN! I only remember the root access was done by a user name r00t and my log files at "/var/log" had been deleted. When I did figure out that attack I immediately disconnected it from the internet, but I also had to do a complete new install to that system. Linux is only secure when you know how to secure it.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 22:01, 5 August 2013 (UTC)

Most linux virus scanners are to scan e-mails for windoze viruses. [[Special:Contributions/184.66.160.91|184.66.160.91]] 04:09, 27 August 2013 (UTC)

Is the motorbike backflip and speedaway a reference to something? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.133|141.101.98.133]] 14:03, 17 August 2016 (UTC)

What Linux distros do you guys use (if you do use one)? #ubuntuforlife #makingalinuxOSmyself :D --[[User:JayRulesXKCD|JayRulesXKCD]] ([[User talk:JayRulesXKCD|talk]]) 16:36, 14 September 2016 (UTC)

Arch Linux. Although I'm new to Linux, I already love it!--[[Special:Contributions/162.158.69.39|162.158.69.39]] 19:07, 5 December 2016 (UTC)

Whooooo! good job, Randall![[Special:Contributions/108.162.246.108|108.162.246.108]] 21:12, 18 October 2016 (UTC)

Haha i use linux... on a VM----

Talk:1348: Before the Internet

2014-03-28T07:15:35Z

108.162.237.64:

I'm pretty sure that Randall doesn't make this mistake, but "Before the Internet" and "Before the Web" are two very different things in a way that old fogeys like myself (and him) tend to mutter on about when anyone younger than maybe 40 make the mistake of conflating the two.
If that's Exploit Mom, she'd probably be too young to ''really'' know times pre-Internet in the truest sense. (Although "before the layperson ''knew'' about the Internet" could be placed somewhere in the mid-to-late '90s, which ''is'' after the early '90s inception of the Web.)
Enough pedantry. Someone needs to make a more useful comment than the above, and quickly! [[Special:Contributions/141.101.89.211|141.101.89.211]] 06:00, 28 March 2014 (UTC)
:The person asking the question is a child-character. The adult-character then followed up with a clarification question "[Do you mean] not having a phone or computer to distract you?". Though, in your "truest sense", "before the Internet" and "the first decade or so of the Internet" would be mostly the same. The Internet didn't have much of an impact on or value to society until after it reached a certain size.[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Network_effect] [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 07:15, 28 March 2014 (UTC)

Talk:884: Rogers St.

2014-03-27T05:50:01Z

108.162.237.64:

In the UK, "Rogers" is also a verb. Added to this, "Mr Rogers" does not carry the same cultural references.
All in all Mr Rogers sounds like a great name for a UK Porn Star. {{unsigned ip|188.29.119.251}}
:Oh wow, I didn't know that. Not only is "rogers" a verb, but it's a verb which means to have sexual intercourse.{{unsigned ip|98.203.241.55}}
::To be honest ''most'' verbs mean "to have sexual intercourse", given the chance. Google it! *fnar fnar* (And most nouns mean naughty bits of the body. In fact, I've just been listening to a radio programme about (Doctor) David Livingston, explorer of Africa. There arose the question of "Is it ''really'' true that he took his wife up the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zambezi Zambezi]?" Momentary mental boggle ensues.) [[Special:Contributions/178.99.81.144|178.99.81.144]] 18:58, 30 April 2013 (UTC)
Wait, does this mean Randall had a child with Mrs. Roberts? {{unsigned ip|199.27.128.145}}

The character's hair is reminiscent of Ron Jeremy [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 05:50, 27 March 2014 (UTC)

Talk:10: Pi Equals

2014-03-14T23:47:58Z

108.162.237.64:

Interestingly, 7108914 does not occur in the [http://www.geom.uiuc.edu/~huberty/math5337/groupe/digits.html first 100,000 digits of pi]. However, 71089 does occur at roughly around the 2,500 digit mark. --[[User:DanB|DanB]] ([[User talk:DanB|talk]]) 18:17, 6 August 2012‎ (UTC)
:7108914 position [http://www.angio.net/pi/bigpi.cgi 13,709,690] counting from the first digit after the decimal point. The 3. is not included. --[[User:whitecat|whitecat]] ([[User talk:whitecat|talk]]) 10:43, 7 August 2012‎ (UTC)

There is a children's book called "Help, I'm a prisoner in a toothpaste factory". {{unsigned ip|86.30.117.77|17:13, 7 January 2013‎ (UTC)}}

or it's reference of the Mac OS 6 and 7 [http://www.mackido.com/EasterEggs/BlueMeanies.html "BlueMeanies" easter egg] "Help! Help! We're being held prisoner in a system software factory!". {{unsigned ip|46.126.181.133| 08:59, 7 January 2013‎ (UTC)}}

In my profession - simplifications of π is equal perfection, I can throw a recurring function at it, but it will just give me more pages of numbers. Remember that pi will ultimately equal 22/7, and you'll be alright. - [[User:E-inspired|E-inspired]] ([[User talk:E-inspired|talk]]) 09:17, 3 March 2013 (UTC)

We still have to find "helpimtrappedinauniversefactory" @pi, even when Randall also does not know.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 20:48, 23 June 2013 (UTC)

You know, we could convert "helpimtrappedinauniversefactory" to the ASCII numbers and then use one of those algorithms that searches pi for a particular string of numbers... [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.36|108.162.219.36]] 22:40, 13 November 2013 (UTC)
:While the string 72697680 (HELP) appears multiple times throughout the first 200,000,000 digits of pi (not counting the 3.), none of the resulting ASCII strings makes sense. The closest (7269768022774869990317421141) is at position 31,961,494 with the resulting string as "HELP�M0E". Note that it is the number "0" and not the letter "O". The string "104101108112" ("help") does not occur in the first 200,000,000 digits. -[[Special:Contributions/108.162.250.114|108.162.250.114]] 08:15, 30 December 2013 (UTC)

Umm... "Of course, because pi never ends and never repeats, if you assign each number pair a letter from the alphabet and look through the digits of pi, somewhere within it is the entire work of Shakespeare, or any other piece of information that could be expressed with human language. So, ironically, somewhere in pi, there actually is the phrase stated in the comic, in a sense." This isn't guaranteed. Just because it's infinite and non-repeating doesn't mean that every possible pattern exists within it. 0.1010010001000010000010000001... is infinite and non-repeating, but it most certainly doesn't contain Shakespeare. It would only be guaranteed if the series was perfectly random over an infinite amount of time. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 23:47, 14 March 2014 (UTC)

Talk:53: Hobby

2014-03-13T20:08:54Z

108.162.237.64:

There was a later comic that referenced this one, and it should be mentioned in the Trivia. I don't know which one it was. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 20:05, 13 March 2014 (UTC)
:Found it. It was #188. I'll let Wiki Magic take it from here. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 20:08, 13 March 2014 (UTC)

Talk:53: Hobby

2014-03-13T20:05:45Z

108.162.237.64: Created page with "There was a later comic that referenced this one, and it should be mentioned in the Trivia. I don't know which one it was. ~~~~"

Talk:1341: Types of Editors

2014-03-12T17:16:01Z

108.162.237.64:

Title text and last frame are a reference to the book [http://machineofdeath.net/ "Machine of Death"], a collection of short stories in which a machine can tell a person a word, that is in some way related to how they will die. {{unsigned ip|173.245.53.198}}

Incidentally, Munroe himself wrote a story in that anthology. Apparently, it was titled "?" Has anyone read it?[[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.108|199.27.128.108]] 08:14, 12 March 2014 (UTC)

SPOILER ALERT In the machine of death story from Randal the protagonist struggles with the fact the machine can predict death, it does not fit his world picture. He decides the only way to win is not to play so he never reads his slip of paper and goes to work starting fires to form an huge question mark. In the end he decides to stay in one place to ether die there from hunger and thirst or any other way. He hopes the slip of paper says "murder" instead of anything else as in the machine murdered him. /SPOILER ALERT
{{unsigned ip|62.177.168.231}}

There are also {{w|WYSIWYM}} editors: "what you see is what you mean", where editor marks the content according to its meaning (e.g. section title), but not necessarily exactly as it would appear in presentation. The main advantage of this system is the total separation of presentation and content. Examples include LyX, FrameMaker, WYMeditor, CodeMirror. --[[User:JakubNarebski|JakubNarebski]] ([[User talk:JakubNarebski|talk]]) 08:44, 12 March 2014 (UTC)

And let's not forget WYGIWYG (wiggywig), "What you get is what you get" A joking reference to the imperfection of certain well-known word processors. At this moment, someone out there is writing a machineofdeath-mode for Emacs. [[User:Jim E|Jim E]] ([[User talk:Jim E|talk]]) 16:07, 12 March 2014 (UTC)

Anyone know that "horse" reference? It sounds familiar but I can't place it. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.9|108.162.216.9]] 16:34, 12 March 2014 (UTC)

What about Death Note? Sounds a bit like WYSIHYD is a nerfed version of the Death Note. --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.215.8|108.162.215.8]] 17:12, 12 March 2014 (UTC)
:It's just a correlation. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 17:16, 12 March 2014 (UTC)

Talk:1340: Unique Date

2014-03-10T17:14:32Z

108.162.237.64:

My first thought was that he makes fun of people that consider dates like the 12.12.12 as important. As any other date they occur only once and are thus not more special. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.254.66|108.162.254.66]] 04:37, 10 March 2014 (UTC)

:Good point, I have added something about that. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.246.117|108.162.246.117]] 04:49, 10 March 2014 (UTC)

Possibly related to the upcoming Pi Day. Also, next year's Pi Day will be 03-14-(20)15, which a few images going around on the Internet have made an annoyingly big deal about. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 06:24, 10 March 2014 (UTC)

So - Maybe I suck at searching (I do), but I can't find any information about us being limited to 4 digits in our calendar system...?[[Special:Contributions/173.245.53.107|173.245.53.107]] 08:38, 10 March 2014 (UTC)

:Most of the computer software that handles dates would have problems with more (or less) then four digits. Why bother with variable year length when you can just take the first four characters of "2014-03-10" and it works for the next 8 thousand years? [[Special:Contributions/103.22.200.103|103.22.200.103]] 09:42, 10 March 2014 (UTC)
:Also, most digital displays are limited to four digits for the year. [[Special:Contributions/103.22.200.103|103.22.200.103]] 09:43, 10 March 2014 (UTC)

::And I don't think we actually start address that sooner that in September 9999. It will be Y2K over again! .... not sure where will people of 9999 get {{w|Fortran}} and {{w|Cobol}} programmers, though. Maybe we should freeze some before we run out of them. :-) -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 10:20, 10 March 2014 (UTC)

:I'm with you. I suppose there may be places where leading zeros are used (somewhere in software where memory space has been set aside, I suppose) but I can't think of '''any''' common system where one has to use five digits when using a four digit number.
:When we get to December 31, 9999 (assuming he Gregorian calendar is still in use (BIG assumption)) the next day will simply be January 1, 10000 because, as you said, the Gregorian calendar isn't limited to four-digit years. And, as I say, anyone who think there is some problem with writing years as four digit numbers is simply demonstrating that they are not someone to take seriously. [[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.84|199.27.128.84]] 16:32, 10 March 2014 (UTC)

After visiting the website for the "Long Now Foundation", I find I'm left wondering - why, oh why, would they stop at using a five digit year? why not six? eight? ten? sixteen? thirty-two? [[User:Brettpeirce|Brettpeirce]] ([[User talk:Brettpeirce|talk]]) 12:06, 10 March 2014 (UTC)

I think the point in the comic title is that writing years always with 5 digits is as significant as the zero to the left it will take to do so for most of the next 8000 years. [[User:FlavianusEP|FlavianusEP]] ([[User talk:FlavianusEP|talk]]) 12:25, 10 March 2014 (UTC)

My first thought was that the comic was about date formats and yyyy-mm-dd being better than yy-mm-dd or dd.mm.yy. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.53.138|173.245.53.138]] 12:40, 10 March 2014 (UTC)

;Dynamic?

Wanna bet that this comic always shows the current date?--[[User:Henke37|Henke37]] ([[User talk:Henke37|talk]]) 10:23, 10 March 2014 (UTC)

:Haha, that's a great observation! I wish it were so, I'll check again tomorrow. If it's not, someone email Mr. Munroe to make it so, great idea. {{unsigned|Adityarajbhatt}}

:It's 00:07 (11th of March) right now in China where I am currently located and it still shows 10th of March...just for the record [[Special:Contributions/108.162.225.191|108.162.225.191]] 16:13, 10 March 2014 (UTC)

It's funny that Randall seems to have never heard of [http://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc2550 RFC 2550], which goes than the Long Now Foundation in expanding the representable date range. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.53.161|173.245.53.161]] 15:05, 10 March 2014 (UTC)

:Technically, there will be another 2014-03-10; on October 3rd. - [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.65|108.162.219.65]] 16:01, 10 March 2014 (UTC)
::It would actually be 2014-10-03 "under our system" as stated in the comic. Technically. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 17:14, 10 March 2014 (UTC)

Talk:912: Manual Override

2014-03-10T06:31:44Z

108.162.237.64:

I think that the joke here is actually that the pilot is attempting a manual override (I.E. overriding the automatic pilot and switch to manual control) by typing in 'manual override'(which is also the title, in fact), and the parser instead opens the manual under the 'manual' command for the 'override' program (as explained in this page), not that the manual is too long to be read in that specific situation (while that is a valid argument). [[Special:Contributions/93.144.215.90|93.144.215.90]] 12:36, 14 April 2013 (UTC)
:Agreed. [[User:Wotpsycho|Wotpsycho]] ([[User talk:Wotpsycho|talk]]) 02:50, 17 May 2013 (UTC)
:Yup. Sounds right. [[Special:Contributions/183.87.213.90|183.87.213.90]] 04:32, 8 June 2013 (UTC)Manan

The info page is overriding the man(ual) page as a source of information, even the name? --[[User:Qwach|Qwach]] ([[User talk:Qwach|talk]]) 23:06, 31 August 2013 (UTC)
:"man override" is giving the (gnu) manual page for the override command. Yes? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.223|108.162.219.223]] 06:39, 21 January 2014 (UTC)

There is no "man override" on UNIX like systems. And "GNU Info Override" brings up "bash: GNU: command not found...", while "info Override" shows up a full page off standard information, a small line at the bottom indicates that even here this page doesn't exist. Much more funny is: How to close this "Info Window"... There is no intuitive navigation on that window. CTRL+C helped. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 23:25, 9 March 2014 (UTC)

:I always though that info was designed by people who tried vim and emacs and considered them too easy. Luckily, there are other programs for reading info pages, like pinfo. -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 00:23, 10 March 2014 (UTC)

Anyone else feel like the comic is going a bit out of its way to make sure people get the joke? The title is the command, and the title text basically repeats the last line of the comic (albeit in the form of a command). [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 06:31, 10 March 2014 (UTC)

Talk:1340: Unique Date

2014-03-10T06:24:07Z

108.162.237.64:

Talk:1337: Hack

2014-03-03T08:28:41Z

108.162.237.64: Created page with "Taking the number with the title, we have a 1337 Hack. Has to be related. ~~~~"

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)

Talk:1330: Kola Borehole

2014-02-15T19:37:34Z

108.162.237.64:

Reminds me of the title text in #[[1218]]: Doors of Durin. [[User:Whimsye|Whimsye]] ([[User talk:Whimsye|talk]]) 06:21, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

Surely this is a Dwarf Fortress reference. The Soviets breached the Happy Fun Stuff! [[Special:Contributions/108.162.250.5|108.162.250.5]] 06:42, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

:Well, DF ''has'' that connotation, but both the [[wikipedia:Kola_Superdeep_Borehole|real thing]] and the [[wikipedia:Well_to_Hell_hoax|hoax]] are older than Toady's game, so perhaps not so much a reference to DF (although Black Hat does propose a typically DF-player solution... I hope he's prepared for [http://dwarffortresswiki.org/index.php/FPS FPS Hell] from the flowing liquids). Randall ''[[1223|knows]]'' about DF, of course.
:(BTW, from that (first, factual event) page: "In 1983, the drill passed 12,000 m (39,000 ft), and drilling was stopped for about a year to celebrate the event." ...Russians!) [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.176|141.101.98.176]] 08:18, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

Lakes and Oceans #[[1040]] also mentions the Kola Borehole.[[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.70|199.27.128.70]] 09:03, 14 February 2014 (UTC)Nix

If Hell would be a physical place, I don't think {{w|Lucifer}} would still be ruling there. In next war between Heaven and Hell, the winners will be anime and/or computer games nerds. Both Heaven and Hell will lose. :-) -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 11:06, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

One may recall from the ''Divine Comedy'' that Dante's imagery of Hell is a negative-mountain-shaped abyss that starts widest at the surface of our allegorical planet and ends at a point far below the surface where Satan resides. The deeper you go, the narrower the abyss gets, like a cone, and the more heinous the sinners. On the other side of the planet there is a mountain made from all that earth God removed to dig the Inferno. The Saints (all those who are saved by faith from the other fate) progress up the mountain through Purgatory to reach Paradise. ''— [[User:Tbc|tbc]] ([[User talk:Tbc|talk]]) 14:01, 14 February 2014 (UTC)''

I remember reading about this in Dial the Truth ministries: http://www.av1611.org/hell.html
Either way, in the war between Earth and Hell, I shall be in Heaven. [[User:Greyson|Greyson]] ([[User talk:Greyson|talk]]) 14:51, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

In Dante's Inferno, Hell is depicted as being a cold place since it is far from the warmth of the Creator. The modern hot version of hell is a byproduct of the fire and brimstone of the reformation period. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.210.254|108.162.210.254]] 16:47, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

About the kola superdeep borehole being welded-shut - that seems to be actualy true. The wikipedia page on the borehole has a picture of it being welded shut, and the reference about the bore hole project being abandonded, an article in russian[http://www.rg.ru/2008/10/15/skvazhina.html], says that it was welded shut in 1995. Could someone update that? --[[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.8|141.101.99.8]] 21:07, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

When he says that she probably won't be on his side, I took it to mean that he'll be on his own side during the war, fighting against both Hell and Earth. Since she's nice, she probably wouldn't join him. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 19:37, 15 February 2014 (UTC)

Talk:1329: Standing

2014-02-13T02:55:19Z

108.162.237.64:

I was bold, and made a start on the page. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.6|141.101.98.6]] 10:08, 12 February 2014 (UTC)

Note that the part which is really bad about "sitting" work is being in same position all day. I'm sure standing all day would be just as unhealthy (and more tiring), while the deer would be even more tiring and probably lower productivity. Even walking is not as ideal if you walk on treadmill, because it's too flat. So, real solution is having desk which would automatically (so you don't forget) change height periodically, forcing you to spend part of work sitting, part standing and part searching for repairman to fix the desk after it will get stuck again. -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 10:41, 12 February 2014 (UTC)
:The research conclusion is simple: The more you sit the earlier you die. True, there are no conclusions on those who stand most of the day. I mix sitting and standing at work. My adjustable height desk works fine. ''— [[User:Tbc|tbc]] ([[User talk:Tbc|talk]]) 13:20, 12 February 2014 (UTC)''

PS: The argument of "we are not built" is flawed. Humans are built to be mostly dead in thirty, forty if they are lucky. The reason cavemen were healthier that we are is not because of healthy exercise. It's because if he developed back pain problems, something eated him soon. -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 10:48, 12 February 2014 (UTC)

:Humans were living 70 or 80 years several millennia ago. True, most died by age 40 from a variety of hazards modern humans don't face. The theoretical maximum age hasn't changed. It's been stuck at 120 for millennia. ''— [[User:Tbc|tbc]] ([[User talk:Tbc|talk]]) 13:20, 12 February 2014 (UTC)''
::"Theoretical maximum" and "observed median" are probably different numbers. The second one seems like it would be more relevant to the discussion of general health trends over time.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.59|108.162.216.59]] 15:58, 12 February 2014 (UTC)

Anyone notice that it's a part of the My Hobby series? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.30|108.162.219.30]] 11:46, 12 February 2014 (UTC)
:Somebody has - it is now part of that category as seen at the bottom of the page. [[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 13:31, 12 February 2014 (UTC)

"In the comic, Cueball tells Megan that standing desks are still not the apex of innovation"
Where exactly "in the comic" does he do this? [[Special:Contributions/173.245.53.196|173.245.53.196]] 19:23, 12 February 2014 (UTC)
:Presumably that's what "one-upping" entails. We can't see the whole discussion in one frame, so we have to fill in the details. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 02:55, 13 February 2014 (UTC)

Talk:1014: Car Problems

2014-02-08T14:53:45Z

108.162.237.64:

From what I can see of the picture, it ''is'' a little over-saturated. The colors look a little too pastelly too. At least decent cameras are cheaper than they used to be. '''[[User:Davidy22|Davidy22]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 13:11, 18 February 2013 (UTC)

Does this seem like it might be political commentary? A subtle dig at certain legislative bodies which, when confronted with an urgent problem like "the economy is burning," choose to dicker about the quality of the photograph? Just a thought... [[Special:Contributions/174.253.193.137|174.253.193.137]] 05:10, 13 September 2013 (UTC)

I feel like the explanation is incomplete, but I don't know what the standard is here. What is "chromatic aberration", "white balance", and what is the significance of "the most megapixels"? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 04:54, 8 February 2014 (UTC)
:Also. "The title text reveals what she was looking for; one of them really did set her car on fire." How? It seems ambiguous. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 14:53, 8 February 2014 (UTC)

Talk:1014: Car Problems

2014-02-08T04:54:33Z

108.162.237.64:

explain xkcd talk:Explanation Completion Project

2014-02-01T14:39:35Z

108.162.237.64:

:"That's twice this thing has failed now. Do we just not have a big enough following for this to work, or is this not a good idea? If it fails again, I'll probably discontinue this" 
No, it's totally working, we just need a judge to check each page at midnight to actually remove the incomplete tag, because NONE of us are comfortable doing it ourselves [[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.66|199.27.128.66]] 21:18, 15 November 2013 (UTC)
:I can totally do that. I'm checking all these anyways at the changeover. It'll just take a wee bit longer to read them. '''[[User:Davidy22|{{Color|#707|David}}y²²]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 00:24, 16 November 2013 (UTC)

Um, it's been stuck on 503: Terminology for three days. Is something wrong? [[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.66|199.27.128.66]] 18:51, 12 December 2013 (UTC)
:Yeah, I had final exams and this slipped my mind. My bad, switch'd. '''[[User:Davidy22|{{Color|#707|David}}y²²]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 23:08, 12 December 2013 (UTC)

::Can we do 256 soon? I've nearly got it done, but there's a few bits, like "The Lonely Island", "The Wet Sea" and "Chasm" which I'm really not sure if I'm missing something obvious. I can probably have the framework fully in place soon. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.149|141.101.98.149]] 05:13, 16 December 2013 (UTC)
:::I'm loath to do it so soon after chucking Online Communities 2 at people. I'll do it in a few days. '''[[User:Davidy22|{{Color|#707|David}}y²²]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 15:36, 16 December 2013 (UTC)
::::<s>When ready, it's actually just a small bit more work to be completely done, which would be a rather good thing for one of the large images. =) [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.235|141.101.99.235]] 05:42, 9 January 2014 (UTC)</s>
::::Finished it today. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.235|141.101.99.235]] 12:06, 17 January 2014 (UTC)

[[843]] should be the Incomplete Explanation of the Day for February 4th. It's just appropriate. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 00:45, 1 February 2014 (UTC)
:I don't know where this is coming from, but sure. Why not? '''[[User:Davidy22|{{Color|#707|David}}y²²]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 01:55, 1 February 2014 (UTC)
::Oh, sorry. February 4th will be the first Tuesday of the month, and that's the specific day of the month that that particular comic references. Since that comic's page still had the incomplete tag, I thought it would be a fun sort of meta-humor. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 14:39, 1 February 2014 (UTC)

Talk:843: Misconceptions

2014-02-01T00:49:10Z

108.162.237.64:

:''Note:'' The [[xkcd forums]] contain a great [http://forums.xkcd.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=67352 discussion] of this comic.

When I took Calculus-based Physics in college (2003), my professor taught us that glass was an "extremely viscous fluid." When was glass reclassified as an amorphous solid?
 [[User:Smperron|Smperron]] ([[User talk:Smperron|talk]])
Your professor was simply incorrect. Glass never was, and has never been, an "extremely viscous fluid". Molten glass is a "molecular liquid" where the viscosity depends on temperature. [[Special:Contributions/75.103.23.206|75.103.23.206]] 22:14, 13 December 2012 (UTC)
 "Extremely viscous fluid" is just another way to describe an amorphous solid (as opposed to the crystallic solid). There is no sharp cut-off between these states. Just at some point it starts feeling solid enough, so it gets called a solid. See the Pitch Drop Experiment [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pitch_drop_experiment] for an example (though glass is obviously harder than pitch). [[Special:Contributions/108.162.246.11|108.162.246.11]] 19:21, 16 January 2014 (UTC)

I had a chemistry professor in 2011 tell me that glass flowed, even citing old buildings with thicker glass on the bottom. I tried to argue against it, but I was interrupting a lecture. I discussed it with some students later, though. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 00:49, 1 February 2014 (UTC)

explain xkcd talk:Explanation Completion Project

2014-02-01T00:45:14Z

108.162.237.64:

Talk:1324: Weather

2014-01-31T23:10:10Z

108.162.237.64: The "preview" showed my edit formatted differently from what it actually produced after I saved the page.

So, how 'bout that local sports team eh? --[[User:Buggz|Buggz]] ([[User talk:Buggz|talk]]) 07:28, 31 January 2014 (UTC)

The same gag is made in the movie Groundhog Day:

'''Mrs. Lancaster''': There's talk of a blizzard.

'''Phil Connors''': We may catch a break and that blizzard's gonna blow right by us. All of this moisture coming up out of the south by midday is probably gonna push on to the east of us and at high altitudes it's gonna crystallize and probably give us what we call snow. Probably will be some accumulation but here in Punxsutawney our high is gonna get up to about 30 today, teens tonight. Chance of precipitation about 20% today, 20% tomorrow. Did you want to talk about the weather or were you just making chit chat?

[[User:Condor70|Condor70]] ([[User talk:Condor70|talk]]) 09:58, 31 January 2014 (UTC)

But because February 2 is this Sunday, today is the appropriate day for this comic. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.221.35|108.162.221.35]] 14:39, 31 January 2014 (UTC)

Does Minnesota have anything to do with the actual comic? --[[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.187|199.27.128.187]] 21:36, 31 January 2014 (UTC)

Article: "In title text, a clerk instead makes small talk about Derinkuyu Underground Cities"
Title Text: "store clerks aren't like 'hey, how 'bout those Derinkuyu underground cities!'" (emphasis mine) [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 23:08, 31 January 2014 (UTC)

Talk:1324: Weather

2014-01-31T23:08:24Z

108.162.237.64:

So, how 'bout that local sports team eh? --[[User:Buggz|Buggz]] ([[User talk:Buggz|talk]]) 07:28, 31 January 2014 (UTC)

The same gag is made in the movie Groundhog Day:

'''Mrs. Lancaster''': There's talk of a blizzard.

'''Phil Connors''': We may catch a break and that blizzard's gonna blow right by us. All of this moisture coming up out of the south by midday is probably gonna push on to the east of us and at high altitudes it's gonna crystallize and probably give us what we call snow. Probably will be some accumulation but here in Punxsutawney our high is gonna get up to about 30 today, teens tonight. Chance of precipitation about 20% today, 20% tomorrow. Did you want to talk about the weather or were you just making chit chat?

[[User:Condor70|Condor70]] ([[User talk:Condor70|talk]]) 09:58, 31 January 2014 (UTC)

But because February 2 is this Sunday, today is the appropriate day for this comic. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.221.35|108.162.221.35]] 14:39, 31 January 2014 (UTC)

Does Minnesota have anything to do with the actual comic? --[[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.187|199.27.128.187]] 21:36, 31 January 2014 (UTC)

Article: "In title text, a clerk instead makes small talk about Derinkuyu Underground Cities"
 Title Text: "store clerks aren't like 'hey, how 'bout those Derinkuyu underground cities!'" (emphasis mine) [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 23:08, 31 January 2014 (UTC)

Talk:740: The Tell-Tale Beat

2014-01-29T21:26:46Z

108.162.237.64:

He had a chance to refer to Usher the musician instead. Oh well. I still laughed. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 21:24, 29 January 2014 (UTC)

There is a computer monitor, desk, bookshelf, fireplace, and many other things drawn in great detail. But the characters are still stick figures. And they are shaded! [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 21:26, 29 January 2014 (UTC)

Talk:740: The Tell-Tale Beat

2014-01-29T21:24:19Z

108.162.237.64: Created page with "He had a chance to refer to Usher the musician instead. Oh well. I still laughed. ~~~~"

He had a chance to refer to Usher the musician instead. Oh well. I still laughed. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 21:24, 29 January 2014 (UTC)

Talk:1322: Winter

2014-01-29T05:26:47Z

108.162.237.64:

There is a reason we have correct and precise words for just about every item. "Flappy planes" could refer to birds, or it could refer to the impractical early attempt at a flying machine known as an ornithopter; and in the same manner "stick towers" could also refer to telephone poles or the piers from an old-time wooden railroad trestle.[[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.30|173.245.54.30]] 17:41, 28 January 2014 (UTC)
I feel like he's referencing a song but I can't make the things fit anything. --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.53|108.162.219.53]] 06:05, 27 January 2014 (UTC)
:I thought this may be a shot at media's coverage of the "polar vortex"[[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.31|108.162.219.31]] 14:44, 27 January 2014 (UTC)

Amusingly, I feel, the German for gloves is "Handschuh" (plural "Handschuhe)" as in
hand shoe(s). [[Special:Contributions/173.245.49.72|173.245.49.72]] 09:05, 27 January 2014 (UTC)

I still think that's whitehat, he is again making an argument that is getting beaten [[User:Halfhat|Halfhat]] ([[User talk:Halfhat|talk]]) 09:05, 27 January 2014 (UTC)

How does the title text build up on the romeo&juliet's rose idea? --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.74|108.162.229.74]] 12:59, 27 January 2014 (UTC)

:Maybe "build up" is the wrong phrase. It certainly continues on the same train of thought. [[User:Smperron|Smperron]] ([[User talk:Smperron|talk]]) 15:48, 27 January 2014 (UTC)

"Monosyllabic" doesn't quite seem like a fitting description of "water", "flappy", or "towers", especially in contrast to "pond", "birds", and "trees". --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.207|108.162.238.207]] 13:26, 27 January 2014 (UTC)

I've added [Birds chirping] to the transcript, but I can't really see what else is missing. I'm open to suggestions. [[User:Jarod997|Jarod997]] ([[User talk:Jarod997|talk]]) 14:36, 27 January 2014 (UTC)
:This was something I was trying to grasp when I added the "Birds Chirping" - to what detail do we describe the events going on in any given panel? A transcript is supposed to be a [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transcript_(law) written record of the spoken word] and while some actions do bear significant meaning to the "record" of the strip as a whole, the question remains - to what detail? [[User:Jarod997|Jarod997]] ([[User talk:Jarod997|talk]]) 20:55, 27 January 2014 (UTC)
::To the musical notes that appear in the upper right corner of the relevant panels. [[User:Sciepsilon|Sciepsilon]] ([[User talk:Sciepsilon|talk]]) 05:39, 28 January 2014 (UTC)
:::Yes, I agree - the musical notes should be transcribed (or notated, lol). But should we be transcribing physical acts, such as characters walking on/off panel, setting up the scene, etc. It would seem that we're moving from Transcript to Script. In any case, I'm going to move this discussion to the [[explain_xkcd:Community_portal/Coordination|Coordination]] page as I can't seem to find any real guideline on this.[[User:Jarod997|Jarod997]] ([[User talk:Jarod997|talk]]) 13:52, 28 January 2014 (UTC)

It almost scans right for "These Are a Few of My Favorite Things" and a lot of the lines could be taken as references to that song. [[User:Djbrasier|Djbrasier]] ([[User talk:Djbrasier|talk]]) 17:09, 27 January 2014 (UTC)

The stickman with the antennated headwool is right. [[User:Sten|'''STEN''']] ([[User talk:Sten|talk]]) 21:49, 27 January 2014 (UTC)

Might "little flappers" refer to fruit bats, instead of birds, since flappy planes is already used for birds? Most of the replacements so far were logical, and since birds mainly generate lift using Bernoulli's Principle (like planes), wouldn't bats more more accurate when only refering to "flappers"? [[User:Athang|Athang]] ([[User talk:Athang|talk]]) 23:09, 27 January 2014 (UTC)

It feels like there is some special significance to the last panel. Either the birds' chirping indicates offense at being called flappy planes, indicating that somebody does in fact care, or they are continuing to chirp happilly because they don't care. Or it could just be that Cueball/White Hat sees Beret Guy's point, as seems to be the consensus. [[User:Sciepsilon|Sciepsilon]] ([[User talk:Sciepsilon|talk]]) 05:39, 28 January 2014 (UTC)

Is "spacelight" meant to be "the illumination from space" i.e. "sunlight", or "the lamp in space" i.e. "sun"? I thought the latter. {{unsigned ip|173.245.49.67}}
::I don't think it matters that much, as long as white hat is warm enough. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.86|108.162.229.86]] 19:41, 28 January 2014 (UTC)

I have referenced Feynman's "Difference between knowing the name of something and knowing something" to the explanation as the reference would be obvious to someone like Munroe. [[User:Tardyon|Tardyon]] ([[User talk:Tardyon|talk]]) 22:25, 28 January 2014 (UTC)

"Floor water" was referenced in the latest What-If. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 05:26, 29 January 2014 (UTC)

Talk:1321: Cold

2014-01-25T04:16:37Z

108.162.237.64:

I really hate when articles on science get a POV tag. Science isn't politics (hint: evolution and gravity aren't POV either). Related to the comic, I just had a similar rant on Facebook in the last week or two where I linked to [http://www.skepticalscience.com/print.php?r=54 this article] when someone said it was too cold for Global Warming. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 12:24, 24 January 2014 (UTC)

I really hate it when people think the global warming scam is science, when it really is nothing more than politics masquerading as science. The IPCC has been proven to be a bunch of liars, and really there's nothing left but a bunch of whining left-wing lunatics who are desperately clinging to their hope of continuing to use this lie to raise energy prices/taxes. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.17|108.162.219.17]] 12:55, 24 January 2014 (UTC)
:Well you're wrong, and apparently delusionally paranoid about what the political left wants, but the bigger question is why is this in a wiki discussion page? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.249.117|108.162.249.117]] 13:21, 24 January 2014 (UTC)

Although it doesn't directly mention it, this is partly related to people's confusion over the difference between 'weather' and 'climate' - the former being what the conditions are at a given moment in time, and the latter referring to long-term trends.[[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.228|141.101.98.228]] 14:52, 24 January 2014 (UTC)

I think the one with whit wolly hat is whitehat [[User:Halfhat|Halfhat]] ([[User talk:Halfhat|talk]]) 16:10, 24 January 2014 (UTC)

Randall has cherry picked data for his conclusion and the graph in the comic. The full history is available from the NWS. The one for my home town can be found here http://www.erh.noaa.gov/iln/climo/below0.php The 1970's were unusually cold, which makes the present seem warmer by comparison. --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.210.254|108.162.210.254]] 16:33, 24 January 2014 (UTC)

Apparently Randall hasn’t seen this:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f5/All_palaeotemps.png

To quote Michael Z. Williamson:
29 years in the last century is not an "average" of the last 300 million years.

Any finding based on that "average" is complete bullshit. You may as well use 1300-1305 hours on Apr 23 as your "average." You'll be about as accurate, and save time over actual data collection. {{unsigned ip|173.245.55.67}}

The claim that 0 Fahrenheit / -17 Celsius is ''really fucking cold'' is supported by [[526: Converting to Metric]]. [[User:Fryhole|Fryhole]] ([[User talk:Fryhole|talk]]) 00:41, 25 January 2014 (UTC)
:We've been getting some ball-chilling winter with the cold fronts suddenly appearing in Florida, which is a drastic change from the sweaty weather just last week. I've added "fuckfuckfuckcold" to my personal lexicon. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 04:16, 25 January 2014 (UTC)

Talk:164: Playing Devil's Advocate to Win

2014-01-24T17:48:24Z

108.162.237.64:

I'm sure that no matter what scientific evidence about global warming is, the political issue lost contact with science long ago. I mean, do we really need global warming to prove that burning all fossil fuels and deforesting most of planet is bad? Also, our ability to endanger species doesn't seem limited to global warming. And the so-called solutions to global warming? This is not about science. It's a fight between people who are getting rich on oil and people who are getting rich on projects labelled as ecological. And both sides are manipulating science data - one to deny the global warming, one to make it even worse that it is. ... I don't believe anyone have working solution to global warming which doesn't involve at least 3 billions dead humans. -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 23:14, 23 May 2013 (UTC)

We have a global warming since the last twenty thousand years. And we are still at a cold period (on long term meanings). A real global warming would bring us back to the conditions of the dinosaur ages.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 21:15, 28 July 2013 (UTC)
:Correct. And it would be catastrophic on a global scale. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.64|108.162.237.64]] 17:48, 24 January 2014 (UTC)

They have totally messed with old temperature data. They "adjust" old thermometers to make them fit the data they want. [[Special:Contributions/184.66.160.91|184.66.160.91]] 03:30, 27 August 2013 (UTC)

You don't want to hear this, but my take is:
1. Global warming is probably real.
2. Global warming is probably exacerbated by human activity.
3. There is no possible way of averting global warming by reducing the output of greenhouse gases from human activity. WILL NOT HAPPEN.
Oh well! As Cueball says, it should be a wild ride. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.223|108.162.219.223]] 01:13, 17 January 2014 (UTC)

Note: "if we keep people from understanding just a little longer" ... as if someone need to actively do something to prevent majority of people of understanding hard to explain scientific topic. Most people still didn't accepted the fact that debts are supposed to be paid, and that's simple arithmetics. -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 10:11, 24 January 2014 (UTC)

Talk:1321: Cold

2014-01-24T12:24:39Z

108.162.237.64: Created page with "I really hate when articles on science get a POV tag. Science isn't politics (hint: evolution and gravity aren't POV either). Related to the comic, I just had a similar rant..."