explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

2222: Terminator: Dark Fate

2019-12-25T21:19:11Z

162.158.150.118: /* Explanation */ – grammar

{{comic
| number = 2222
| date = October 30, 2019
| title = Terminator: Dark Fate
| image = terminator_dark_fate.png
| titletext = I was sent here to stop the robot that was sent here to protect the human who was sent here to protect the human who was sent here to destroy the robot that was sent here to vacuum the floor.
}}
==Explanation==
[[Cueball]] is on his way to see the new ''[[:Category:Terminator|Terminator]]'' movie; ''{{w|Terminator: Dark Fate}}'', when Cueball's future self comes back to stop him, trying to convince him that, as always, he will be disappointed by sequels. (This was, for instance, the main joke in the last part of [[566: Matrix Revisited]]).

Future Cueball (who we shall call Cueball-2) almost succeeds convincing present-day Cueball (who we shall call Cueball-1) not to go see the movie in spite of good reviews and the fact that the original star {{w|Linda Hamilton}} is back after several movies without her. Due to the nature of time travel, ''Terminator: Dark Fate'' actually negates any movie that came after the first two (''The Terminator'' and ''Terminator 2: Judgment Day''). However, they are interrupted by a second Future Cueball, Cueball-3, who states that in his timeline he hadn't seen it but wished he had, making present-day Cueball exclaim that they should all go see it together.

Cueballs 1, 2, and 3 are interrupted again by the appearance of two more Cueballs, presumably Cueball-1 and Cueball-2 who have seen the movie, regretted it, and travel back in time to stop themselves from seeing it. In the next panel another 5 Cueballs appear, however their reasons for coming back have degraded, with the last one stating that he came back simply because the theater sold out of tickets because all the time travelling Cueballs purchased all of them.

A common trope in science fiction is to [https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong Set Right What Once Went Wrong], where characters travel in time in order to stop a particular event from happening so as to prevent an undesirable timeline. The {{w|Terminator (franchise)|''Terminator'' series}} film series is famous for this time travel trope. The initial 3 films feature a time traveling robot sent from the dystopian future to kill a particular human, with the future resistance in turn sending a protector to ensure the human's survival. However, the series has never been consistent on even the most broad rules of how time travel affects the timeline, with each movie exploring different possibilities. This is another point of spoof for the comic, featuring multiple recursive time loops until it becomes a jumbled mess.

The final pane also invokes the "killing Hitler" trope. {{w|Adolf Hitler}} was the leader of Nazi Germany during World War II, and it has been a common plot idea to "go back in time to kill Hitler" such as in [[1063: Kill Hitler]], by presuming that the world would be better if World War II never happened. Other works have postulated that the world would be ''worse'' if World War II never happened, as there were many inventions and societal progress that were directly or indirectly a result of the war. This is a similar scenario to the comic above, in which Cueballs decide whether they would be better off seeing or not seeing the movie. In any case, this Cueball is over 70 years too late to kill Hitler, as Hitler himself committed suicide in 1945, shortly before the end of WWII.

The title text is what is said by the next Cueball-11 (the 10th time-traveler), with each link in the chain relating to the Terminator movies. Except at the end where the initial "dangerous robot" turns out to being a robot sent to vacuum the floor. Robotic vacuums, such as the {{w|Roomba}}, are a [[:Category:Roomba|recurring theme]] on xkcd.

The title text split up:
#A robot was sent to clean the floor.
#A human was sent to destroy the robot (this happens in ''{{w|The Terminator}}'')
#A human was sent to protect the previous human (in ''The Terminator'' a human was sent back to protect another human, though the protectee was not a time traveler)
#A robot was sent to protect the previous human (this happens in ''{{w|Terminator 2: Judgment Day}}'')
#Cueball-11 was sent to stop the previous robot
Thus Cueball-11 tries to stop the person that needs to destroy the Roomba by stopping his protector's protector.

This was the second time travel comic in less than a week, as the one two comics before this one, [[2220: Imagine Going Back in Time]], also had Cueball travel back to visit his past self.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is walking to the right. Another Cueball, Cueball-2, appears behind him in a bubble of energy that appears with a loud sound. The bubble floats in the air behind the walking Cueball, with Cueball-2 inside holding his arms out to the side and having his legs bend.]
:''Zap!''

:[Cueball-2 from the sphere is standing to the left of Cueball, pointing at him. Cueball has stopped and is looking back over his shoulder]
:Cueball-2: I've traveled back in time to stop you from seeing ''Terminator: Dark Fate''!

:[Cueball-2 is looking at Cueball who has turned around and holds his arm a bit out to the sides.]
:Cueball: But it looks so good! Reviews are actually decent! Mackenzie Davis! '''''Linda Hamilton is back!'''''

:[Cueball-2 is holding both arms up, hands held down as Cueball stands normally.]
:Cueball-2: I know, but you always think this, and you're always disappointed.
:Cueball: I ''guess''...

:[Zoom out as another Cueball, Cueball-3, appears to the left in a similar bubble of energy and noise as in the first panel, his arms are out to the sides and his legs are bent. Cueball-2 is holding a hand in front of his mouth, while Cueball throws his arms out to the side.]
:''Zap!''
:Cueball-3: Hi, I'm from the future where you didn't watch it and I realize I still kind of want to see it.
:Cueball: Let's go together!

:[Another bubble appears from the right of the three Cueballs, the one in the middle (Cueball-2) holding his arms out. This new bubble contains two Cueballs. The first, Cueball-4, throws up his arms over his head, while Cueball-5 has one arm out in front of him. Both have their legs bent.]
:Cueball-4: No! We're both of you from the future! We're here to stop you!

:[In a large panel five more individually energy bubbles with five Cueballs appear. Two of the bubbles float over the now five Cueballs on the ground. The other three are a bit lower and in a line to the right. Cueball-6 to 10 are in different poses, all with their legs bent, all the way to sitting on the knees in one case and most of them throw their arms out to the side. All look down at the five regardless of their bubble's position. Their text is alternating between being up and down, so the text goes over or below the other text, making it hard to decide which comes first. This may be intentional. But here they are in the order of Cueballs as they come from left to right:]
:Cueball-6: I'm here to stop '''''you!'''''
:Cueball-7: I'm here to stop the robot sent to stop you!
:Cueball-8: I'm here to protect you from...you? I lost track.
:Cueball-9: I'm here to kill Hitler. Did I get the right year?
:Cueball-10: I'm here to get tickets because in like 20 minutes you people buy them all.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hitler]]
[[Category:Terminator]]
[[Category:Time travel]]
[[Category:Roomba]]
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]

2241: Brussels Sprouts Mandela Effect

2019-12-16T18:31:15Z

162.158.150.118: /* Transcript */ Debold Cueball’s “Cool” as it is not in boldface in the original.

{{comic
| number = 2241
| date = December 13, 2019
| title = Brussels Sprouts Mandela Effect
| image = brussels_sprouts_mandela_effect.png
| titletext = I love Brussels Sprouts Mandela Effect; I saw them open for Correct Horse Battery Staple.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a TASTY BRUSSELS SPROUT. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
{{w|Brussels sprouts}} are a leafy vegetable from the cabbage family which were cultivated in Brussels, in what is now Belgium, in the 13th century, giving them their name. Many adults and children [https://www.camdenliving.com/blog/why-do-we-hate-brussel-sprout dislike Brussels sprouts], perhaps because of their bitterness.

[[Cueball]] was one of these people who, thought, he had a dislike for Brussels sprouts, but after trying them recently he had a change of heart and likes them now. He feels "misled" by the public dislike for Brussels sprouts. [[Megan]] chimes in and notes that it is not just him. Farmers have developed a newer {{w|cultivar}} of Brussels sprouts around 2000, [https://www.volkskrant.nl/nieuws-achtergrond/nieuw-zoete-spruitjes~b6803ee03/?referer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.explainxkcd.com%2Fwiki%2Findex.php%2FTalk%3A2241%3A_Brussels_Sprouts_Mandela_Effect 20 years] before this comic was released, which taste less bitter than the "original" cultivar of Brussels sprouts that Cueball grew up eating (a [https://npr.org/773457637 source] is provided in the comic as a foot note to Megan's statement).

It seems that others have also started to like Brussels sprouts, which Megan calls a real {{w|False_memory#Mandela_Effect|Mandela Effect}}, hence the title ''Brussels Sprouts Mandela Effect''. Megan explains that now the whole world have a "false" shared memory of Brussels sprouts tasting bad, and it is like we have all switched to the parallel universe where they taste good. This idea was earlier used in [[1268: Alternate Universe]] regarding the weird idea of eating lobsters.

{{w|false memory|False memories}} may arise via suggestibility, activation of associated information, the incorporation of misinformation, and source misattribution, and {{w|False_memory#Commonly_held_false_memories|they can be shared}}, sometimes widely, when one of these triggers happens to many people in a population.

The Mandela Effect, however, is a pseudoscience explanation for a false memory shared by multiple people. It states that the false memory is actually a real memory of people who had lived in a parallel world where the memory was true. This is why Megan calls this a real Mandela effect, because in this situation it is the world we live in that has actually changed, not our memories that are wrong. Now the Brussels sprouts taste different than we remembered, it is not our memories that are wrong.

In the last panel, [[Ponytail]] then tricks Cueball into thinking that {{w|licorice}}, [https://www.nbcnews.com/healthmain/why-do-so-many-us-hate-black-licorice-few-theories-963738 another widely disliked food], is good tasting. At this point Megan realizes that this must be a trap. (Also note that in many countries, for instance many in Europe, many people love licorice, so contrary to Brussels sprouts it is not so commonplace for people to hate licorice!)

That Ponytail is up to no good is shown to be true when she additionally claims that {{w|Silica_gel|silica gel}} packets are actually edible and taste delicious. This is very false! {{w|Silica_gel#Desiccant|Silica gel packets}} are typically used as a desiccant, to keep electronics and other moisture sensitive items dry. They are typically marked "[https://www.123rf.com/photo_72752039_single-silica-gel-packet-isolated-on-white-background-.html Do Not Eat]" to warn people that they are not edible. Although not toxic, and even {{w|Silica_gel#Food_additive|allowed in some form in food}}, silica gel has a sand-like texture and no flavor or nutritional value, can {{w|Silica_gel#Hazards|cause irritation}} if digested in the raw form, and the packets may contain {{w|Silica_gel#Humidity_indicator_(blue/orange_silica_gel)|potentially toxic additives}}.

Cueball, having been prepped by both his own experience and Megan's facts are totally ready to believe Ponytail, even to the extend that he seems to feel cheated by the makers of silica gel packets, who he must now think has written ''Do Not Eat'' just to keep that delicious gel for them selves. Hopefully Megan can convince him not to find and eat them. Ponytail is often not nice to Cueball, although in other comics it is more like she talks him down, see [[:Category:Code Quality|Code Quality]], not directly trying to harm him.

The title text suggests that "Brussels Sprouts Mandela Effect" is a music band, who once were the {{w|opening act}} for the presumably better known band "Correct Horse Battery Staple". This latter group is a reference to [[936: Password Strength]]. It hints at the "{{tvtropes|AGoodNameForARockBand|good name for a musical band}}" trope, which Randall before tried to replace by a dot tumblr dot com trope in [[1025: Tumblr]]. Indirectly he also suggest that ''Brussels Sprouts Mandela Effect'' would be a great long password that is now easy to remember (as long as you remember [https://www.reddit.com/r/MandelaEffect/comments/6meq1a/brussel_sprouts_right/ there is S] at the end of {{w|Brussels}}).

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is standing between Ponytail and Megan talking to them.]
:Cueball: I always thought of Brussels sprouts as terrible, but they're actually really good! I can't believe I let everyone mislead me!

:[In a frame-less panel Megan replies. Below her is a footnote with a citation to back up her statement.]
:Megan: It's not just you! Farmers developed a less-bitter cultivar like 15 years ago.*
:*npr.org/773457637

:[Back to all three as Megan continues to explain while holding her arms away from her.]
:Megan: Now the whole world is having this revelation, one person at a time. It's like a real Mandela effect. We secretly switched to the parallel universe where Brussels sprouts taste good.
:Cueball: ''Cool.''

:[Ponytail lifts a finger as Cueball and Megan turns to look at her.]
:Ponytail: Also, licorice is good now.
:Cueball: Whoa, really?
:Megan: This is a trap.
:Ponytail: And those silica gel packets that say "Do not eat"? '''''Delicious.'''''
:Cueball: ''I knew it.''

==Trivia==
* The URL given was [https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/archive/5/5d/20191216154116%21brussels_sprouts_mandela_effect.png originally] given [https://npr.org/773457633 npr.org/77345763'''3'''] but this was an error!
**The actual URL is number 77345763'''7''' which was later corrected by an updated comic.
**Here is the [https://text.npr.org/s.php?sId=773457637 plain HTML version] and here the [https://npr.org/773457637 full site].
*As always when Randall offers his opinion on some sort of food, it may lead to [[388:_Fuck_Grapefruit#Controversy|controversy]] and lots of discussion in the [[Talk:2241:_Brussels_Sprouts_Mandela_Effect|talk page]].

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category: Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category: Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category: Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category: Food]]

Talk:2233: Aurora Meaning

2019-11-28T15:41:06Z

162.158.150.118: OTTish slang explanation

Hey guys. As you can tell by the edit logs, I'm removing a spam comment that was made in bad faith. I'm new here so please let me know what the actual procedure is for, ya know, spam deletion and logging.
Have an outstanding day, --[[User:OtterlyAmazin|OtterlyAmazin]] ([[User talk:OtterlyAmazin|talk]]) 03:46, 26 November 2019 (UTC)
:Great you removed [https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk%3A2233%3A_Aurora_Meaning&type=revision&diff=183613&oldid=183612 this text]. I guess if this account keeps doing such things it should be banned. Sadly we seem to have lost all contact to any admin of the page...? So I'm not sure how we could do anything. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 08:01, 26 November 2019 (UTC)

Nobody talks about the visible shadow of the two lower texts? You can clearly see a layer of grey letters, not identical to the topmost layer, benath. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.141.52|172.68.141.52]] 05:57, 26 November 2019 (UTC)
:I have no idea what you are talking about. I see no shadows on neither xkcd or the image uploaded here? Maybe it is your device that is making the shadows... --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 08:01, 26 November 2019 (UTC)
::On the words Satelite and Exciting in the southern hemisphere it is most visible (but also on others) that there are greyish letters right next to the black ones, kinda like shadows. Maybe Randall copy pasted and changed it. Similar things of remains of erased parts have been visible before. (If someone thinks it is important, I can try to look it up, but I am not exactly sure where it was) --[[User:Lupo|Lupo]] ([[User talk:Lupo|talk]]) 08:38, 26 November 2019 (UTC)
::: You're right. It's most visible on the right side of the loop in the 'S' at the end of 'Satellites' in the southern hemisphere, but you can also see it on the lower tip of 'C' and the upper tip of 'G' in 'Exciting'. However, I downloaded the image and used an image editor to up the contrast, and it turns out the grey letters are the exact same as the black ones, just in slightly different places and shapes. Presumably Randal didn't like his first attempt at lettering the comic and erased it and rewrote it. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.126.136|162.158.126.136]] 05:58, 27 November 2019 (UTC)

That is known as "mustard". This term originated in the OTT, of course[[Special:Contributions/172.69.63.191|172.69.63.191]] 16:34, 27 November 2019 (UTC)
:What does this comment even mean? I have no idea what "OTT" means and what the term "mustard" refers to in either the comic or any previous comments! Can the OP or anyone else shed some light on it? [[User:Ianrbibtitlht|Ianrbibtitlht]] ([[User talk:Ianrbibtitlht|talk]]) 17:48, 27 November 2019 (UTC)
::The OTT (short for the One True Thread) is the unofficial nickname for the xkcd fora thread for Time (also known over there as the One True Comic (OTT for short). Mustard arose when some mistakes in colouration were made during Time's run that appeared as outlines is a faintly mustard-like colour. Hope that's of any help. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.150.118|162.158.150.118]] 15:41, 28 November 2019 (UTC)

Do we have any indication how much energy we're talking to see the aurora at the equator? or how that would physically work? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.159.38|162.158.159.38]] 08:17, 26 November 2019 (UTC)

There has been an equatorial aurora exactly once in human history. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starfish_Prime Starfish Prime] was an orbital nuclear detonation that, among other things, disabled multiple satellites and created a temporary artificial aurora 16° north. That is also likely what the sub-tropical band is referring to. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.150.88|162.158.150.88]] 09:12, 26 November 2019 (UTC)

What should "Subpolar latitudes" include for the southern hemisphere? Southern Africa? Southern Australia? Since I'm in the northern hemisphere, I don't know what's appropriate for the other half of the world. [[User:Ianrbibtitlht|Ianrbibtitlht]] ([[User talk:Ianrbibtitlht|talk]]) 22:46, 26 November 2019 (UTC)
:Most of the subpolar latitudes of the southern hemisphere are ocean. Southern Australia is still subtropical. The southernmost parts of Chile and Argentina (Terra del Fuego) would qualify.

== Saturn's out of place H3+ Aurorae and Ring Decay ==

Wondering if this might have been inspired by James O’Donoghue discovery of decay of Saturn's rings.
“I thought it could be some new band of aurora which had never been seen before or something entirely new. Those were the two options now, and both were amazing.”
Read more: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/saturns-rings-are-slowly-disappearing-180972856/#dL7Me0SVImIcFSRq.99