explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:3097: Bridge Types

2025-06-03T13:24:44Z

162.158.187.69:

For budget overrun, see olympic stadium of Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

[[Special:Contributions/162.158.126.202|162.158.126.202]] 01:23, 3 June 2025 (UTC)

Very disappointed there's no bridge card game reference, but I guess that's not one of Randall's types of nerdiness :( [[Special:Contributions/172.71.254.203|172.71.254.203]] 01:45, 3 June 2025 (UTC)

I would like to note that cable stayed bridges, budget overrun here, are much cheaper than equivalent suspension bridges. It because they use less materials and can be built faster meaning less labor. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.58.51|172.69.58.51]] 01:50, 3 June 2025‎
:Tru dat in general, but I think that this is a reference to the {{w|Leonard_P._Zakim_Bunker_Hill_Memorial_Bridge|Zakim Bridge}} in downtown Boston, part of the {{w|Big_Dig|"Big Dig"}} project that became notorious for its budget overruns and related shenanigans. Given that Randall M. lives in Boston, that makes this panel something of an inside joke. [[Special:Contributions/172.71.147.224|172.71.147.224]] 03:15, 3 June 2025 (UTC)

The [[wikipedia:St. Louis Arch|St. Louis Arch]] is a repurposed-elevator-suspended-arch-but-without-the-base-and-wires bridge if you squint hard enough. The elevator is also fun. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.67.214|172.69.67.214]] 01:57, 3 June 2025 (UTC)

Nothing about a a [[wikipedia:Bridge circuit|bridge circuit]] or these [[Wikipedia:Bridges (disambiguation)|many]] [[wikipedia:other|other]] bridges either. Sigh. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.67.214|172.69.67.214]] 01:57, 3 June 2025 (UTC)
:And where, oh where, are Lloyd, Beau, Jeff, and Jordan? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.41.84|162.158.41.84]] 03:19, 3 June 2025 (UTC)

The L'Engle is a take off on a Wrinkle in time? But this one is in space? <small> -- [[User:162.158.91.124|162.158.91.124]] ([[User talk:162.158.91.124|talk]]) 02:26, 3 June 2025‎ <span style="color:grey; white-space:nowrap;">''(please sign your comments with <nowiki>~~</nowiki>~~)''</span></small>
:There's some space-warping in L'Engle's books. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.174.63|162.158.174.63]] 02:44, 3 June 2025 (UTC)

The "budget overrun" bridge doesn't really look like the Zakim bridge to me. It looks a lot like the Samuel Beckett Bridge in Dublin. I don't know what the budget of that bridge was, but according to wiki it cost 60 million euros, which sounds like a lot given that the bridge isn't all that long or wide. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.126.87|172.70.126.87]] 03:24, 3 June 2025 (UTC)
: Perhaps if Randall M. drew too close a likeness to the Zakim Bridge, he feared a visit from officials with lawyers and/or cement shoes. ("Only the paranoid survive ...") It seems, from a quick tour of the Internet, that words like "grandiose and overblown" are easily applied to cable-stayed bridge designs/aesthetics. I wasn't easily able to find information on budget overruns for these bridges, and see the commentator above who pointed out the lower costs overall of cable-stayed ''vs'' suspension bridges. But as a former resident of Greater Boston, I can report the pervasiveness of the Big Dig and its challenges, budgetary and otherwise, in local life and lore. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.22.108|172.68.22.108]] 04:32, 3 June 2025 (UTC)
::The cable-stayed bridge is the current darling of artists that accidentally went to engineering school, who are notorious for running over budget and behind schedule. [[User:RegularSizedGuy|RegularSizedGuy]] ([[User talk:RegularSizedGuy|talk]]) 04:40, 3 June 2025 (UTC)
: I can see the suggestion of the Beckett bridge, but in my eyes the obvious template would be [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erasmusbrug Rotterdam's Erasmus Bridge] [[User:Nachtvogel|Nachtvogel]] ([[User talk:Nachtvogel|talk]]) 06:00, 3 June 2025 (UTC)

I think the repurposed elevator should be considered a dig at Elon Musks The Boring Company, even though they tunnel rather then bridge
[[Special:Contributions/162.158.182.138|162.158.182.138]] 04:37, 3 June 2025 (UTC)

Added a bunch of explanations [[Special:Contributions/162.158.8.132|162.158.8.132]] 07:31, 3 June 2025 (UTC)

The Repurposed Elevator is actually a real thing! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schmid_Peoplemover It's not as strange as you think. It's a space effective, but too expensive solution to the problem of not making cramped railway crossroads more cramped. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.172.112|162.158.172.112]] 07:39, 3 June 2025 (UTC)
: I've added it to the list. Feel free to do such changes yourself if you know something that can contribute. --[[Special:Contributions/172.71.183.12|172.71.183.12]] 08:07, 3 June 2025 (UTC)

For the "Google Earth Bridge" remark, [https://www.fastcompany.com/90186315/the-strange-art-of-the-melting-bridges-of-google-earth this article] might work as a citation. [[User:Conster|Conster]] ([[User talk:Conster|talk]]) 07:57, 3 June 2025 (UTC)

There seem to be stick figures on each bridge, except for the Arch. Is that on phone? Maybe he's saying nobody uses arch (Linux)? Or does anyone has any other idea as to why? [[Special:Contributions/172.69.128.184|172.69.128.184]] 08:21, 3 June 2025 (UTC)

Is there a reason for the trestle bridge to have a raised deck? They were iconically used for railways, where that would not work. --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.110.59|162.158.110.59]] 09:56, 3 June 2025 (UTC)

The jump in particular feels a lot like polybridge and I love it [[Special:Contributions/172.71.167.160|172.71.167.160]] 11:27, 3 June 2025 (UTC)

== Suspended arch - tied-arch vs. through arch ==

The "suspended arch" bridge may or may not be a tied-arch bridge. Something has to stop the ends of the arch sliding outwards when there's a large load in the middle, but you can't tell what that something is from the image.

If that something is the bridge deck, being connected to the ends of the arch and under tension, than it's a tied-arch bridge (the deck ties the ends of the arch together). If that something is the arch foundations, and the deck is not under tension, then it's not a tied-arch bridge; it's just a simple through-arch bridge.

For more info on (real) bridges, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DX_zkaK5PaI| Practical Engineering] --DW [[Special:Contributions/162.158.187.69|162.158.187.69]] 13:24, 3 June 2025 (UTC)

Talk:Syndication

2020-04-30T02:31:12Z

162.158.187.69: Archive hunt

Where is this coming from? was this actually online in 2007? Between comics 242 and 243? --[[User:Lupo|Lupo]] ([[User talk:Lupo|talk]]) 08:08, 18 November 2019 (UTC)

Can we discuss the jokes in this comic, like Belgium jokingly being considered a swear word?[[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.196|108.162.216.196]] 20:12, 22 November 2019 (UTC)
:I think we should. :) You are free to start a list of the items, to explain them, or a discussion here in the discussion page.

Alright, nobody has touched this for quite a while now, so I might as well. I kinda expected this page to be finished, but it is amazingly not so. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.47.234|172.68.47.234]] 09:50, 27 December 2019 (UTC)
:Hello, it is I again. I have something on my mind. I believe this comic never really was a thing. I will lay out everything I know. The link to the original comic at the top is broken and returns a 404 error. I cannot for the life of me find anything on this comic on Google other than a lone post on the xkcd forums, which could just as well have been posted in either 2007 or 2019, but I can't check because the forums are down. As well, it is odd that this explain xkcd page only came into existence 12 years after the comic was purportedly posted. Taking all of this into account, I have reason to believe that this entire thing has been a fabrication, i.e. that this was made in 2019 by a fan. I'd try to gather more concrete evidence for this, but that's where I run into a dead end. I have no idea how to proceed. I know of exactly one person who could settle this conclusively, which is Randall Munroe himself, but I imagine he has more important things to do. If any of you could prove/disprove my theory, that would be great. In the meantime, sure, I'll just assume this comic did actually get published in 2007. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.34.168|172.69.34.168]] 10:34, 27 December 2019 (UTC)
::The link does work, it just has an extra '/' at the end. I agree though that there's still something a bit different about the comic to others published at a similar time. The image looks like it's been copied out of a newspaper (although this might be deliberate) and having such a lengthy section of text outside of the comic is unusual. Google claims that the forum post dates from 1st April 2007, but in the absence of any other reference on the main site my guess is that this only appeared on the forums. [[User:A(l)Chemist|AlChemist]] ([[User talk:A(l)Chemist|talk]]) 20:55, 31 December 2019 (UTC)
:::Someone may try to find it on a wayback machine or something like that? Never used any of those archives and don't really know how they work... --[[User:Lupo|Lupo]] ([[User talk:Lupo|talk]]) 08:07, 6 February 2020 (UTC)
::::It's on the Wayback Machine, as early as April 9, 2007, but the link is just to the image - no text or anything (https://web.archive.org/web/20070409101227/https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/xkcd_ufs.jpg/). [[Special:Contributions/162.158.187.69|162.158.187.69]] 02:01, 30 April 2020 (UTC)
::::Follow-up - here's the link to the XKCD forum post: https://web.archive.org/web/20070408135356/http://forums.xkcd.com/viewtopic.php?t=3701. Unfortunately, the link to the actual comic as posted on xkcd is extremely elusive. Many references to the comic are in the (now offline) XKCD fora - one of the few others I could find lists different lead-in text: https://forums.penny-arcade.com/discussion/17980/a-visit-to-the-pranktologist-april-fools-day-thread/p13. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.187.69|162.158.187.69]] 02:31, 30 April 2020 (UTC)

Talk:Syndication

2020-04-30T02:01:39Z

162.158.187.69: WayBack Machine

1011: Baby Names

2020-04-19T17:35:01Z

162.158.187.69: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1011
| date = February 1, 2012
| title = Baby Names
| image = baby names.png
| titletext = I've been trying for a couple years now but I haven't been able to come up with a name dumber than 'Renesmee'.
}}

==Explanation==

This comic is a list of comically terrible baby names invented by Randall. It may relate to his other comics about why he shouldn't be allowed to have access to babies.

This is a list of the names with a short description:
* Ponzi - An Italian surname, most often associated with "{{w|Ponzi scheme}}".
* Eeemily - A corruption of "Emily". May also be a marketing plug for the {{w|Asus Eee}} brand.
* Fire Fire - Even a single "Fire" would be odd as a name, at least in the American dialects. It would also not be a good idea to call your child's name in a crowded place.
* Chipotla - A frequent mispronounciation of {{w|Chipotle|chipotle}} chili or the popular {{w|Chipotle Mexican Grill}} restaurant chain. Many people would readily attempt to correct you when you called your child's name.
* Astamouthe - Could be pronounced "Ass to mouth".
* Eggsperm - A child is conceived by combining an egg and a sperm, this child's name is conceived by combining the names of the two things.
* [sound of record scratch] - This cannot be spelled or reliably pronounced{{Citation needed}}. Likely a reference to any movie where a record scratch plays and the protagonist says "that's me".
* Parsley - {{w|Parsley}} is an herb and is not commonly used as a name unlike other herbs like {{w|Rosemary}} and {{w|Sage}}.
* Hot'n'Juicy Ann - "Ann" is a normal name. Prefacing it with the sexual "Hot'n'Juicy" would not be appropriate for a child's name.
* Ovari - Female reproductive organ, {{w|Ovary|misspelled}}.
* Friendly - Odd enough on its own, but when referring to her possessions it would create confusion with the restaurant {{w|Friendly's}}. Can also be humorous in introductions - "Hi I'm Friendly and I hate you."
* Sean (pronounced "seen") - While this isn't an incorrect pronunciation, the more common pronunciation would be "Shawn". Very likely a reference to the name of the actor Sean Bean (whose name is pronounced Shawn Been), which uses the exact same pairing of letters for two pronunciations.
* Joyst - Corruption of "Joyce". May also refer to the term "joist", which is a beam used in construction to support ceilings or floors, or the first part of the word "joystick", a video game controller.

A further analysis of baby names is presented by Randall in the [[Blag]] post "[http://blog.xkcd.com/2014/01/31/the-baby-name-wizard/ The Baby Name Wizard]".

Renesmee (from the title text) is the name of {{w|Renesmee Cullen#Renesmee Cullen|Renesmee Cullen}}, who is the baby born in the book and movie {{w|Breaking Dawn}} to parents Edward and Bella. Edward and Bella get "Renesmee" from an amalgamation of the names of Bella's mother, Renée, and Edward's adoptive mother, Esme. [[Randall]]'s point is that all those names are terrible, but (arguably) not nearly as terrible as the name Renesmee.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball sits at a desk, thinking with his hand on his chin, his other hand holding a pen over a piece of paper. Megan stands behind him, looking over his shoulder, also with her hand on her chin.]

:[Above the drawing is the list they are writing by hand.]

:Names for daughter

:# Ponzi
:# Eeemily
:# Fire Fire
:# Chipotla
:# Astamouthe
:# Eggsperm
:# [sound of record scratch]
:# Parsley
:# Hot'n'Juicy Ann
:# Ovari
:# Friendly
:# Sean (pronounced "seen")
:# Joyst

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]