explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:3009: Number Shortage

2024-11-13T21:34:07Z

108.162.238.77:

I bet there's plenty of 9s left. They obviously didn't get a proper range of digits at Benford's Discount Number Store. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.195.113|172.69.195.113]] 05:53, 9 November 2024 (UTC)
:There are so many 9s because they get used the least on microwaves. [[User:N-eh|N-eh]] ([[User talk:N-eh|talk]]) 22:27, 10 November 2024 (UTC)
:I expect pricing psychology uses up most of the 9's that Benford stocks, using the first-in-last-out method.[[Special:Contributions/162.158.159.119|162.158.159.119]] 21:06, 11 November 2024 (UTC)

Is this not an error? "15 2s and 12 3s" uses up one 3. So shouldn't it next be 11 3s left, not 10? -- [[Special:Contributions/172.69.144.152|172.69.144.152]] 10:41, 9 November 2024 (UTC)
: No - they started with fifteen 2s and twelve 3s. They used two 2s saying '15 '''2'''s and 1'''2''' 3s' which leaves thirteen 2s. They used two 3s saying ...12 '''3'''s / No wait, 1'''3''' 2s...' which leaves ten 3s. However, by the next line they still have nine 3s (having used up one saying '... and 10 '''3'''s') - not eight, as the explanation previously said.[[Special:Contributions/172.70.160.134|172.70.160.134]] 17:06, 11 November 2024 (UTC)

the consequences of our actions /ref [[User:CalibansCreations|'''<span style="color:#ff0000;">Caliban</span>''']] ([[User talk:CalibansCreations|talk]]) 10:45, 9 November 2024 (UTC)

The above mentioned “error” is not an error. When she says there are 13 2s left, that uses up one 3. [[User:PedanticMan|PedanticMan]] ([[User talk:PedanticMan|talk]]) 11:13, 9 November 2024 (UTC)

: There's no pause, no "No wait" after "13 2s". Is she reevaluating numbers instantly realtime midsentence? Did she start the sentence planning to say one thing and instantly altered it partway through? I guess that's what Randall is going for. -- [[Special:Contributions/172.69.144.162|172.69.144.162]] 12:00, 9 November 2024 (UTC)
::That's what I assumed, and I already included it in the explanation. But I'm not sure if the title text is consistent with that interpretation. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 17:35, 9 November 2024 (UTC)
:::Title text is perhaps semi-consistent. Regardless of what was said/used beteen "ten minutes ago" and now, the statement (ten minutes ago) of "2 0s" used one zero. The statement (now) of "10 minutes ago" used another and ''technically'' used a third (but it could be considered recycled from the original statement being quoted).
:::Whichever way the counting works (and presuming that any quotable re-use principle doesn't allow just "Ns" to be requoted as "X Ns" in a way that preserves the N stock even whilst depleting Xs), we're certainly down to the stage where we can no longer say there are "0" of something, nor that the something involved is the 0s.
:::...to put it another way, a different TT might be "10 minutes ago we were down to only 2 ... oh darnit!". But that wouldn't have made itself quite so obvious (the Ns could have been 0, 1 or 2). I suppose having 3 0s ten minutes ago might only have led to the necessity of that logic being explained (then: "3 0s {0s=>2}"; now: "10 minutes {0s=>1} .. 3 0s {0s=>0}" "now?" " {0s=>0 ∴ unable to even begin to answer} "), however...
:::But, much like the TT question posed, wise use of "them”/etc might be useful in ''some'' (not-title text) circumstances. "I earlier said there were 9 9s, but now there are 7 of them. ...still 7. Yep, definitely 7 of them! (7s, on the other hand are now...)", vs. "there were 9 9s, but now there are 7 9s. 6 9s! 5 9s! <...> 1 9! <curses>" [[Special:Contributions/172.69.195.114|172.69.195.114]] 12:19, 10 November 2024 (UTC)
::I believe the title text is clear. There where still 2 like there was when she checked ten minutes ago. She can only say the sentence because she still had those two left. But after it is not possible to day there are 0 0 left. And thus the Idk. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 08:43, 11 November 2024 (UTC)
::: Presumably the scenario that resulted in this was: There were three 0s remaining; Person A said "How many 0s do we have left?" (reducing them to two); Person B then said "2". If, instead, someone had said "We have only 2 0s left", that would have reduced them to one, leaving insufficient to complete the sentence in the title text.[[Special:Contributions/172.70.86.141|172.70.86.141]] 17:21, 11 November 2024 (UTC)

If anyone wants to see self-referentiality of numbers taken even further, here is a series of posts that I wrote on "self-describing numbers": https://atmos.warplight.dev/profile/1p8WCZnqqG6N3ZOsJxBgUTo/p1cNCw1OTsioTQBRk [[User:Fabian42|Fabian42]] ([[User talk:Fabian42|talk]]) 12:09, 9 November 2024 (UTC)

the first stage of grief is denial [[user talk:lettherebedarklight|youtu.be/miLcaqq2Zpk]] 12:19, 9 November 2024 (UTC)
: So you saw that the Harris banner is still up too, eh? There may be no shortage of absolute numbers, but numbers of <em>things</em>, yeah, there are shortages. Like, chances to act to avert disaster, like weren't taken in 2016, and we got lucky ... [[Special:Contributions/172.68.23.92|172.68.23.92]] 17:37, 9 November 2024 (UTC)
::Just heard on Not The Bee that Trump is planning to help the Democrats out by paying Kamala's campaign debt at a rate of $10/mention in speeches over the past 180 days. Should be plenty to pay off the $20 million.[[Special:Contributions/172.71.142.75|172.71.142.75]] 21:02, 10 November 2024 (UTC)
::: [https://www.dude-n-dude.com/2024/11/05/amoebas-lorica-experimentum-finita/ When logic and proportion][https://www.dude-n-dude.com/2024/11/03/ai-elect/ have fallen sloppy dead], {{w|It_Can%27t_Happen_Here|remember}} {{w|White_Rabbit_(song)|what the dormouse said}}.[[Special:Contributions/172.71.142.30|172.71.142.30]] 05:48, 11 November 2024 (UTC)

I'm pretty sure "15" uses up one 3 (3*5) and "12" uses up two 2's and one 3 (2*2*3) [[Special:Contributions/172.71.222.213|172.71.222.213]] 15:09, 9 November 2024 (UTC)
:No, I think the "3s" in the first statement uses one, and the ones place of "13" referring to the number of 2s left in the second statement uses another. [[User:Laneymarie96|Laneymarie96]] ([[User talk:Laneymarie96|talk]]) 03:13, 10 November 2024 (UTC)

"Well? How many numbers do we have left?"
"Oh great! There's one more!"
(Yes, I know this goes against the logic of the original comic)
[[User:Turquoise Hat|Turquoise Hat]] ([[User talk:Turquoise Hat|talk]]) 17:36, 9 November 2024 (UTC)

Why don't we try using Roman numerals while we wait for the shortage to get fixed? [[Special:Contributions/172.69.135.53|172.69.135.53]] 04:05, 10 November 2024 (UTC)
:We could always go back gto tally marks...wait also who says this is Miss Lenhart? {{unsigned ip|172.68.70.56|12:41, 11 November 2024}}
::No one says it is her, since we (explain xkcd users) have named a character that looks like [[Blondie]] but who seems to be a teacher [[Miss Lenhart]]. This is taken from a couple of comics where a teacher is named and another where her name is used. In this case she works at the Math Department, presumably at a university thus she is likely a teacher there, and looks like Blondie, hence it is Miss Lenhart. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 18:51, 11 November 2024 (UTC)

Seems very related to the {{w|Look-and-say sequence}}! [[Special:Contributions/172.71.170.93|172.71.170.93]] 21:48, 10 November 2024 (UTC)Bumpf

Instead of having to say "I don't know" in the title text, one could just say "none". [[Special:Contributions/172.70.110.170|172.70.110.170]] 19:46, 9 November 2024 (UTC)
:It's funnier to imagine that they forgot how to articulate "zero" as a concept. [[User:Psychoticpotato|P?sych??otic?pot??at???o ]] ([[User talk:Psychoticpotato|talk]]) 20:56, 9 November 2024 (UTC)
:By that logic, they could (partially) escape the "10 minutes ago 0s" issue by saying "ten minutes ago" and not depleting certain digits. Or, as it says "numbers", depleting 10s (but neither 1s nor 0s). But you have to consider if "one" is a "1" (also "a(n)", maybe), and if you can get away with "a couple of" or dozens, scores, grosses, ton(ne)s of, a "pony" or a "grand" or even a googol/googolplex. Then one (1s--) may won(1s--?)der what really ''are'' the uses to be strictly atone(1s--?)d for? Still, I've got 33×3 problems, but the number of 3²s aint one! (1s--). [[Special:Contributions/172.70.160.218|172.70.160.218]] 12:47, 10 November 2024 (UTC)

So, is this comic related to the Google incident? Google seems to be suffering from money '''shortage''' after being fined in large '''number'''s. [[User:CategoryGeneral|CategoryGeneral]] ([[User talk:CategoryGeneral|talk]]) 01:51, 10 November 2024 (UTC)
: ...no? Big leap in logic here. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.22.243|172.69.22.243]] 04:06, 10 November 2024 (UTC)

This one needs a nerd snipe warning! Anyone else get sniped with this one? [[User:Fephisto|Fephisto]] ([[User talk:Fephisto|talk]]) 14:02, 11 November 2024 (UTC)
:I'll let you know. I have only fifteen vowels left. No, nine. Or is it six? No, two. Grrrrr! [[Special:Contributions/172.70.160.135|172.70.160.135]] 15:39, 11 Nvmbr 2024 (TC)
::t's not hard t rtclt wtht vwls, tbh -[[User:Psychoticpotato|P?sych??otic?pot??at???o ]] ([[User talk:Psychoticpotato|talk]]) 17:44, 11 November 2024 (UTC)

It's surprising they didn't run out of 0s and 1s well before the rest. I mean, we all know what those Computer Science types are like when you turn your back for a moment...[[Special:Contributions/172.70.162.204|172.70.162.204]] 17:34, 11 November 2024 (UTC)

I don't have time for a response - TenGolf [[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.77|108.162.238.77]] 21:34, 13 November 2024 (UTC)

Talk:692: Dirty Harry

2017-05-06T17:03:05Z

108.162.238.77:

There's "instantly" twice in a sentence. Because I'm not a native english speaker, I don't know if this is acceptable, and for the same reason I'll not edit it. {{unsigned ip|108.162.212.196}}
:You were correct, it isn't. Actually that whole sentence bothers me, but I suppose it gets the point across well enough. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.221.50|108.162.221.50]] 07:23, 25 January 2014 (UTC)
*Technically even directed-energy weapons would run out of shots eventually, since they tend to have batteries, and batteries don't last forever. I suppose you could get around this by using solar power or something, but you would need solar panels larger than the gun itself, most likely. [[User:Jake|Jake]] ([[User talk:Jake|talk]]) 15:27, 11 May 2015 (UTC)
::It's not that it would have an unlimited amount of shots, it's that they wouldn't be limited in the same way that conventional existing firearms are. Most guns you can find out how many bullets are in them, even with made up firearms you can make an educated guess, based on the size of various things about the gun. With an energy weapon you could hypothetically have a gun with five shots or five hundred shots in the same size battery, depending on whatever factors your sci-fi bothers with (although pretty much all guns in media have [plot] number of shots regardless). -Pennpenn [[Special:Contributions/108.162.250.162|108.162.250.162]] 06:49, 20 July 2015 (UTC)
::Plus, rather than firing individual bullets, it would shoot a steady beam. That way there's nothing to count. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.77|108.162.238.77]] 17:03, 6 May 2017 (UTC)
Nice try, title text; clearly you have yet to meet The Borg. Bonus points for shields annoying Rainman by adapting to plot velocity instead of total count. [[User:Elvenivle|Elvenivle]] ([[User talk:Elvenivle|talk]]) 03:46, 1 December 2015 (UTC)

Talk:1830: ISS Solar Transit 2

2017-04-29T17:15:59Z

108.162.238.77:

Gees Randal, that's actually really dark.

Attempted explaining. It is not real, ... I hope {{[[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.250|108.162.229.250]] 05:03, 28 April 2017 (UTC)}}

costs would be astronomical. I see what you did there and I approve. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.92.118|162.158.92.118]] 07:23, 28 April 2017 (UTC)

:astronomical, good joke [[Special:Contributions/141.101.105.216|141.101.105.216]] 09:35, 28 April 2017 (UTC)
: +1 [[User:Elektrizikekswerk|Elektrizikekswerk]] ([[User talk:Elektrizikekswerk|talk]]) 11:28, 28 April 2017 (UTC)

:Yeah, I was amused by that too. But looks like someone removed it. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.154.109|162.158.154.109]] 17:06, 28 April 2017 (UTC)

Have to disagree on the Pink Floyd joke. I don't see it. [[User:Xseo|Xseo]] ([[User talk:Xseo|talk]]) 11:43, 28 April 2017 (UTC)

The diameter of the sun is 864,575.9 mi. In the first panel the ISS is about that far away. Second panel is about halfway, so 432,287.95 miles. According to [http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2010-07/how-close-could-person-get-sun-and-survive Popular Science], the ISS could probably make it to just over a million miles away before burning up (seeing as how the shuttle could make it ~1.3 million and I think the ISS has more protection), the "fwoosh" should be in the first panel. And in any matter, the sound effect should be a "sploosh" sound with the splashing visuals. [[User:OldCorps|OldCorps]] ([[User talk:OldCorps|talk]]) 13:22, 28 April 2017 (UTC)

If the impact were to really happen as shown, then one of two things must be true, either:
1) The ISS is really really large (eyeballing it as about 4x the size of the Earth vs. the size of the Sun as shown) or
2) The Sun is really smaller than we think and as close as the ISS's orbit.
In either case, the ISS would be likely to survive entry into the Sun's surface. If the former is true, this also makes replacing it twice a month all the more impressive. Go NASA!.[[User:Harodotus|Harodotus]] ([[User talk:Harodotus|talk]]) 16:48, 28 April 2017 (UTC)

:Obviously, the Sun is really smaller and as close as the ISS's orbit and it orbits Earth which is flat and in the center of Universe as Bible says. What else would you expect from the conspiracy theory? -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 22:12, 28 April 2017 (UTC)

Anyone want to try explaining limb darkening (as drawn in the comic)? [[Special:Contributions/198.41.238.40|198.41.238.40]] 18:28, 28 April 2017 (UTC)

Is there a reason Randall has done two IIS Solar Transit comics this week? Are these transits rare and one is happening around now or something? --[[User:Pascal|Pascal]] ([[User talk:Pascal|talk]]) 01:14, 29 April 2017 (UTC)

Please recalculate the speed of ISS with an orbital distance of 1 AU. Then the fwoosh could be realistic to be in the third panel and to be as large as depicted? Sebastian --[[Special:Contributions/172.68.110.82|172.68.110.82]] 07:26, 29 April 2017 (UTC)

This explanation spends an awful lot of time telling how the comic is unrealistic, and not as much time actually EXPLAINING the comic's humor. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.77|108.162.238.77]] 17:15, 29 April 2017 (UTC)

Maybe we should put the astronomical joke back? It's not too bad. <[[Special:Contributions/162.158.46.46|162.158.46.46]] 08:46, 29 April 2017 (UTC)>

1780: Appliance Repair

2017-01-02T23:48:46Z

108.162.238.77: It's not complete.

{{comic
| number = 1780
| date = January 2, 2017
| title = Appliance Repair
| image = appliance_repair.png
| titletext = [holding up a three-phase motor] As you can see here, the problem is that the humidifier I took this from is broken.
}}

This explanation is incomplete: The title-text needs an explanation.

==Explanation==
Cueball is apparently running an appliance repair service. Although, he isn't doing much in the repairs aspect, as he is diagnosing problems with the appliances that he himself caused. Megan and White Hat (supposedly) call him over to have him fix a humidifier that isn't working. As most repairmen/handymen do, he takes apart the machine to find the root of the problem. However, it appears that Cueball does not know how to fix the machine, as he states the reason it isn't working is because he took it apart.

What Cueball is doing would be akin to a (really shady) doctor conducting an autopsy when you had the flu and saying the main problem with you right now is that you are dead. And your heart is not pumping because it came from a dead person.

Maybe the fact that Cueball is holding a three-phase motor (as shown in the title text) is part of the problem, because three-phase motors won't work on residential power. Residential humidifiers use [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Single-phase_electric_power single-phase voltage] (unless the humidifier in the comic is part of an industrial process, which is not very likely by looking at its size), while three-phase equipment uses [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three-phase_electric_power three-phase voltage].{{Citation needed}}

==Transcript==
[Megan and White Hat are standing in front of Cueball with a broken machine behind him. The machine is revealed to be a humidifier that was destroyed by Cueball.]

Cueball [facing Megan and White Hat, standing in the middle of a mess and holding a screwdriver]: After disassembling and inspecting the humidifier, I've determined that the main problem with it is that someone took it apart.

Title Text: [holding up a three-phase motor] As you can see here, the problem is that the humidifier I took this from is broken.

{{comic discussion}}