explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:3059: Water Damage

2025-03-05T19:32:02Z

162.158.154.238:

I suppose that there'd be no way to make a 'no fault' claim on your policy. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.248|141.101.98.248]] 18:22, 5 March 2025 (UTC)

Will I have to buy a lithospheric humidifier if I live in a boat? [[Special:Contributions/172.71.190.58|172.71.190.58]] 18:54, 5 March 2025 (UTC)

So is this a series now? Should we make a tag? [[User:Mushrooms|Mushrooms]] ([[User talk:Mushrooms|talk]]) 18:56, 5 March 2025 (UTC)

[[File:Hatguyhasreproduced.jpg]] um guys, you might wanna check the new what if video [[User:CalibansCreations|'''<span style="color:#ff0000;">Caliban</span>''']] ([[User talk:CalibansCreations|talk]]) 19:04, 5 March 2025 (UTC)

What is going on with the templates? [[User:TomtheBuilder|TomtheBuilder]] ([[User talk:TomtheBuilder|talk]]) 19:28, 5 March 2025 (UTC)

He's on a real geology kick lately huh. Unfortunately zero of them are funny. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.154.238|162.158.154.238]] 19:32, 5 March 2025 (UTC)

Talk:2986: Every Scientific Field

2024-09-17T13:04:31Z

162.158.154.238: addendum

My reading of the comic is completely opposite to the current explanation. Rather than the large section being what 'a disproportionate amount of time is spent on', it's the small section, which is why we've heard of that stuff. To me, the large section represents the bulk of what is there to be studied, but is relatively poorly understood, so the point of the comic is emphasising how little we actually know about stuff in relation to what there is to be known. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.160.136|172.70.160.136]] 11:16, 17 September 2024 (UTC)
: I didn't like the word 'disproportionate' either, because to me it sounded like an accusation of too much time being spent in the wrong branch, which is not what Randall is saying. I reworded and fleshed out the description. Better now? [[Special:Contributions/172.70.111.167|172.70.111.167]] 11:38, 17 September 2024 (UTC)
: I disagree with "poorly understood" being the central issue, though, rather the branches the general public finds fascinating are often not the scientificially dominating ones. Wasps laying eggs in other insects isn't "poorly understood" at all. It's just that cute baby elephants or pandas draw huge crowds in zoos, whereas 'icky' wasps don't. And e.g. a gyroscope makes for great YouTube videos, but it's no longer a subject of fundamental physics research. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.154.238|162.158.154.238]] 13:04, 17 September 2024 (UTC)

2846: Daylight Saving Choice

2024-03-24T19:21:11Z

162.158.154.238:

{{comic
| number = 2846
| date = October 25, 2023
| title = Daylight Saving Choice
| image = daylight_saving_choice_2x.png
| imagesize = 231x386px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = I average out the spring and fall changes and just set my clocks 39 minutes ahead year-round.
}}

==Explanation==

{{w|Daylight saving time}} (DST) is a practice best known for changing the clock one hour ahead (though two hours offset have also being used, using a combination of a all-year DST and a seasonal DST ) for approximately half the year, typically from spring to autumn. Countries nearer the equator do not see significant changes in daylength between winter and summer and so have rarely had a reason to follow this practice. A {{w|Daylight saving time by country#Proposals to abolish seasonal changes|number of countries}} which used to follow this practice no longer do, and a few now follow year-round DST – however summer-only DST is {{w|File:DST Countries Map.png|still used}} in North America, Europe, and parts of South America, Oceania, Africa and Asia.

Within countries that still follow this practice, there are frequent arguments (mostly during the 2-3 days surrounding the clock change) over the pros and cons of it. [[Black Hat]] is suggesting that everyone should observe or ignore daylight saving time based on their personal opinion. While it might put an end to the arguments (although this itself is debatable) it would clearly cause disharmonious time. This would eventually break the population into at least three categories: those who do not follow daylight saving changes and choose to remain on "daylight" time year round; those who do not follow and choose to stay with "non-daylight" time year round; and those who readily switch to daylight saving time during the prescribed period (and might also include those who follow the suggestion provided in the title text). There would probably also be a further 'group' who choose to change their clocks on an arbitrary date and time that suits them. So, some people might think it's 8:00 while others think it's 9:00, or vice-versa, but the relative number of people who believe it is each time would shift throughout the year. This would lead to many scheduling errors, delays, and other mistakes, resulting in widespread inconvenience and harm.

The joke here is that, while most options in life can be left to individual choice, clock time is only fully useful if everyone involved agrees on what it means, which is also the reason countries began standardizing the time by regions, instead of people using the local time of their town. There may also be a humourous reference to the confusion already often caused around this time when countries do not all begin or end DST on the same date, for example in scheduling calls or online meetings between Europe and North America in the week after publication of this comic.

There are known incidents in which an actual application of Black Hat's proposal
[https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/opinion/the-conversation/sdut-daylight-saving-time-sunday-2015mar07-htmlstory.html rendered a terrorist plot void]. One of them is a [https://darwinawards.com/darwin/darwin1999-38.html 1999 Darwin Award Winner]

This comic was posted 4 days before the end of 2023’s daylight saving time in most European countries, and 11 days before the end of 2023's daylight saving time in most of North America. If the proposal is actually instituted at this time, those in the Northern Hemisphere who do not like the fuss of changing their clocks would ''remain'' on DST (as {{w|Sunshine Protection Act|has been actually proposed}}), yet those who are happy with it will fall back to non-DST over the winter months. Presumably, unless anyone changes their minds over the 'winter' period, everyone would actually be back in sync for future 'summer's.

However, the rule (as spoken by Black Hat – not known for being imprecise, or ''unintentionally'' misleading) does not restrict people to merely choosing whether the daylight offset is personally used during DST periods. It instead seems to ''impel'' them to undertake (or not) the statutary changes according to personal convictions, perhaps contrary to what their convictions actually desire. It is left open-ended ("From now on...") if people from ''both'' mindsets can arbitrarily change their minds in the future. If they can, and act accordingly, this time next year there could be people on three different 'summertime' offsets: zero (change now, but not change later), +1 (steadfast change/no change) and +2 (don't change now, but shift forward in spring). Beyond next year's "fall back" date, there could be people on -1 (fall back, don't spring on, fall back ''further'') and each full year beyond may add additionally positive/negative extremes of offset by those who periodically change their inclinations to only obey ''one'' of the relative imperatives, and a potential {{w|Galton board|standard distribution}} of everyone else between. All this could just be a badly worded explanation of the policy, or even in the wording of the legislation behind it, but the presence of Black Hat at the lectern probably indicates that he fully expects and ''intends'' such a boding and expanding chaos.

The title text suggests splitting the difference by using a constant offset which is the average of the daylight saving offset across days of the year. This will create additional problems, primarily because offsets of 39 minutes are unusual (most offsets are by hours and even the least common ones are offset by the multiples of a quarter of an hour), as well as being of not much use, as only a fraction of the daylight will be saved in this way. We also do not know if in this system Randall would change his clock for the leap year to account for the additional day.

==Transcript==
:[Black Hat is speaking at a lectern, flanked by Ponytail and Hairy.]
:Black Hat: From now on, everyone who likes daylight saving time should change their clocks, and everyone who doesn't, shouldn't.

:[Caption below the panel:]
:The government finally decides to put an end to all the arguments.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Daylight saving time]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairy]]
[[Category:Compromise]]

Talk:2880: Sheet Bend

2024-01-14T13:26:02Z

162.158.154.238:

Why is this called a "sheet" bend? [[User:SystemParadox|SystemParadox]] ([[User talk:SystemParadox|talk]]) 21:17, 12 January 2024 (UTC)
:I don't know the full answer but it's a sailing thing: the 'sheet' is the rope you pull in or let out to control the position of the sail. I guess bend describes the category of knot. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.90.48|172.70.90.48]] 21:23, 12 January 2024 (UTC)
::NO NO NO. The sheet is the sail. [[User:JohnB|JohnB]] ([[User talk:JohnB|talk]]) 21:36, 12 January 2024 (UTC)
:::It is the rope - {{w|Sheet (sailing)}}. "In sailing, a sheet is a line (rope, cable or chain) used to control the movable corner(s) (clews) of a sail." [[Special:Contributions/172.71.242.5|172.71.242.5]] 21:56, 12 January 2024 (UTC)
::::Huh. Dueling Wikipedia articles. The Sheet_bend article has a definition section that says the term "sheet bend" derives from its use bending ropes to sails (sheets). But the Sheet_(sailing) article says a sheet is a line used to control the movable corner(s) of a sail. [[User:JohnB|JohnB]] ([[User talk:JohnB|talk]]) 23:08, 12 January 2024 (UTC)
::The sheet bend is named for its ability to to secure a sail, or sheet. You fold over the corner of the sail and that's one of your "ropes". The sheet bend is generally used as a knot for tying a large, inflexible rope (or rope-like object) to a smaller, more flexible rope.[[Special:Contributions/172.69.70.22|172.69.70.22]] 22:30, 12 January 2024 (UTC)
::I would take the Ashley Book of Knots as authoritative. Sheet Bend is the first knot in the book, and is always (in modern terms) rope-to-rope, not to sail. It is one of the basic knots. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Ashley_Book_of_Knots https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheet_bend
::{{unsigned|PRR|04:04, 13 January 2024}} 
:I added a link to the wikipedia entry, it explains the name. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 21:25, 12 January 2024 (UTC)
:Presumably the "different loads" title text is a pun between electrical load and mechanical stress on the knot? [[User:Jim-at-home|Jim-at-home]] ([[User talk:Jim-at-home|talk]]) 21:56, 12 January 2024 (UTC)

A sail is never, and was never, properly called a "sheet", since at least the 13th century. The Wikipedia explanation of the name is misleading. According to https://www.etymonline.com/word/sheet, it's "shortened from Old English sceatline "sheet-line," from sceata "lower part of sail," originally "piece of cloth," from same Proto-Germanic source as sheet (n.1)." [[User:Jlearman|Jlearman]] ([[User talk:Jlearman|talk]]) 17:44, 13 January 2024 (UTC)
: When i took a sailing class as a kid they used the word “sheet”, I think it was the lines connected to the sails used for adjusting them? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.245.82|108.162.245.82]] 19:46, 13 January 2024 (UTC)

“silver being joined to silver and gold being joined to gold within the insulating white cable” is not the conventional way to join cables.
Unless you are joining one cable to itself (like a Möbius strip), you have ''two'' cables with insulation.
And usually you use non-cursed connectors, where you first remove the insulation at the end of the cable and then crimp or solder the conductors to metal parts of the connector; or solder the conductors and then add a different type of insulation for protection; or use screw terminals;...
Only with insulation displacement connectors you keep using all the insulation of the two cables.
And finally, conductors are usually copper ''or'' aluminum, and very rarely silver ''and'' gold. --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.94.141|162.158.94.141]] 08:45, 13 January 2024 (UTC)
:I think the gold and silver is just color coded for the reader. Not that they are meant to indicate that the conductors are made from this material. Apart from that you comment sounds like you know what you are talking about. So please improve the explanation if you can. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 10:58, 13 January 2024 (UTC)

::: I changed it to gold- and silver-colored. It was obvious to me that it was the colours used in the comic that were being referenced, but fixed for the avoidance of doubt. The join being made within the one cable was clearly an error though. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.85.161|172.70.85.161]] 22:13, 13 January 2024 (UTC)

:: cables often have the signal parts copper-colored (described gold atm) and they are obviously copper, and the outer ground more the color of steel or something, not sure what metal it is, but it’s easy to solder like copper or silver is, not aluminum which is very hard to solder. usually gold and silver are used at the contacts of a connector, not inside a wire, i don’t know who would ever make that mistake. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.245.83|108.162.245.83]] 19:49, 13 January 2024 (UTC)
:::"''more the color of steel or something, not sure what metal it is, but it’s easy to solder like copper or silver''" Traditionally tinned copper. Tinned not just for identification, or easier soldering, but because early rubber insulation actively rotted copper and tinning slowed the damage. Many sorts of damage, why much copper today is silvery. [[User:PRR|PRR]] ([[User talk:PRR|talk]]) 04:16, 14 January 2024 (UTC)
::: Not wishing to spoil it, but the series finale of {{w|Cabin Pressure (radio series)|a certain radio comedy}} reveals... ah well, that's the spoiler (in the article, if you read that far down... rather than just listen to it if you haven't heard about it already but now think you like the premise). [[Special:Contributions/172.69.79.188|172.69.79.188]] 21:01, 13 January 2024 (UTC)

Okay I looked at the wikipedia article and the knot depicted in the comic looks like a right handed one. I still don't know why it's called right handed, or why the left handed one is insecure.[[Special:Contributions/198.41.236.207|198.41.236.207]] 11:46, 13 January 2024 (UTC)

A note I nearly added in the bit about short-circuits (or, as I added, 'un'circuiting) is that the electrical behaviour of the knot is different according to which 'end' slips. If the left-side cable 'slips through' enough, then its gold and silver bits of sheath could contact (would short-circuit any current driven at that side). If the right-side cable slips out, it is in no danger of doing so for a right-driven current (it would just disconnect). That ignores the cross-talking that could occur (on one conducting line at a time, so may not matter if there's no external ground-return element, except as far as not being a proper connection any more), or ''both'' ends slipping (where one of the LHS sheaths ''might'' shuffle into a position to bridge the two RHS sheaths). But, as tied, the LHS silver (being bent in and out of the page around its crossing counterpart wire) seems unlikely to be pressed against both gold and silver, should it trivially untwine/slip through. Actual studies with actual knots might be useful. I thought I had a spare length of unterminated Cat5, nearby, but apparently (k)not... that, with some coloured permanent marker-pen marks made upon it, would probably have made a decent analogue for visual analysis of failure conditions. Maybe I'll de-plug an old cable (I've got a number of damaged USB cables I could chop, but their being thinner would change the scale and dynamics of the knot, meaning I might as well just use a scrap of twisted-pair internally-sheathed strands). – But I thought you'd like my mind's-eye analysis of the knot behaviour, before I get around to trying anything practical to this end. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.7|141.101.99.7]] 17:08, 13 January 2024 (UTC) (<- ex Cub-/Boy-/Venture-Scout, but never got any Knot ''Un''tying badge... that brief stint with escapology aside... ;) )

This comic contained material familiar to a hobby engineer that was cast critically and derogatorily (e.g. “sheety” bend) throughout the explanation. I edited a lot of it. I’ve seen this happen repeatedly in other explanations. I don’t edit most of them. [[Special:Contributions/172.71.150.155|172.71.150.155]] 18:41, 13 January 2024 (UTC) 

"this is a scenario commonly encountered by hobby engineers from the last millenium"
"commonly"? Can any hobbyist engineers from the last millennium attest? Also, this sounds ageist - is it ageist? [[Special:Contributions/172.70.86.166|172.70.86.166]] 21:56, 13 January 2024 (UTC)
:Well, I definitely did electrics/electronics pre-millenium. I'm not at all unhappy with the idea with the possibility of an occasional 'bodge job' connection having happened (e.g. tying a cable in a simple knot, in suitable cases, to add mechanical resistance to any further tendency for a cable to be tugged out of a grommit-hole and the core conducting wires being tugged out of whatever terminal/patch-block they need to be connected to - or, more likely, pulling the core copper strands beyond their tensile limits).
:Although (while I respected the ''idea'' of this being based upon a repair-bodge), I don't see this as a "this wire was damaged, this is how the two ends are reconnected", but rather as a deliberate cable termination method (like adding moulded plugs/etc) which could then be mated end-to-end with another similarly terminated cable. (Like using a gender-changer 'double-socket' between two phono-ended lengths of cable, or using a {{w|File:BNC Tee connector, with Ethernet cable connected-92166.jpg|BNC T-connector just to join two lengths of networking cable}} but without the need for the extra connector ''and'' adding intrinsic tensile resistance - though actually not as much as the BNC 'bayonet' version already does...)
:If I was writing this from scratch, I'd actually remove all the 'repair' aspect of it, TBH. It looks more like a deliberate patch-type cable (1x2core) manufactured to be directly and hermaphroditically compatible with any other such cable, tied together without the need for tools (screwdrivers, crimpers, punch-downs, etc) ''and'' untied as and when required (at least as easily as any similar rope-knot can be undone, which isn't always a given if mishandled and overtightened).
:I'd also be looking at various knots and working out which (if any) could support ''more'' than two contact-patches/sleavings per cable, for three-core or more-core connections between any two such cables. The geometry of the knots would define roughly where (and how long) the external contact-sleaves would need to be (presumably identical for both cables) such that they made appropriate connections between the two halves (cross-overs could be allowed, but that'd have to be down to the IEEE specifications of how to detect/interpret RX/TX assymetry at the end devices, etc). But then I'd also be writing a vastly more complicated alternate explanation. Perhaps just remove the bodge-job implications, someone? Clearly it's not an end-user bodge. Though it could be a manufacturer/industry bodge (such as using an 8P8C connector for essentially 6P4C purposes). [[Special:Contributions/172.69.79.138|172.69.79.138]] 00:53, 14 January 2024 (UTC)
I use the reader app in inverted color mode, so I could not for the life of me figure out what all the discussion about silver and gold was about. Also, can I just comment on how the conductive sleeves are magically flexible? I wonder if they are braided. Even then, this would severely limit how tight the knot could be pulled. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.154.238|162.158.154.238]] 13:26, 14 January 2024 (UTC)