explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:1997: Business Update

2018-05-24T15:26:19Z

162.158.6.82:

"Our customers are experiencing rapid growth"

Literally?

[[Special:Contributions/162.158.38.184|162.158.38.184]] 18:23, 23 May 2018 (UTC)anon

:Probably. Also, excited for comic 2000! [[User:StillNotOriginal|StillNot]][[User talk:StillNotOriginal|Original]] 18:37, 23 May 2018 (UTC)

Panel 2 would suggest that they are making ice (in a fridge?) and that the thermostat glitch caused them to become liquid; additionally that the faucet in the kitchen sink has stopped running. {{unsigned|Richardelguru}}

The formatting seems odd. Is it just me? (Chrome on mobile) [[Special:Contributions/162.158.103.95|162.158.103.95]] 20:16, 23 May 2018 (UTC)

The title text sounds like some weird Only-in-Beret-Guy-Land variant on a Nigerian Prince scam. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.62.225|162.158.62.225]] 20:51, 23 May 2018 (UTC)

"Beret Guy claims she has made several appearances in their video conferences, which may be possible if someone has hacked their video feed to play footage from the 2002 movie."
Surely it's simpler than that. They're watching a video feed, and the plot of the Ring is that Samara appears in videos to tell people they're going to die. Their videoconference is cursed, not hacked. --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.38.130|162.158.38.130]] 23:42, 23 May 2018 (UTC)

:I get the vibe that her contributions are nothing sentient or original, she is literally the recording from the series, and that these "contributions" are still markedly better than whatever their normal meeting fare is.[[Special:Contributions/162.158.106.48|162.158.106.48]] 01:36, 24 May 2018 (UTC)

''The EU told me I'm the heir to some ancient European throne that makes me exempt from the GDPR''

I wonder if this is a reference to the claim that [https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/rr-06-20.pdf Native Americans don't have to pay tax] in US? [[User:Sikachu|Sikachu]] ([[User talk:Sikachu|talk]]) 00:28, 24 May 2018 (UTC)

I think when the comic talks about stocks, it's talking about shares and not pillories. Generally companies have a constant number of stocks, which only changes during some kind of financial restructuring like a split. The idea that they're producing them faster than ever before is therefore absurd. [[User:YM Industries|YM Industries]] ([[User talk:YM Industries|talk]]) 04:55, 24 May 2018 (UTC)

Currently the explanation is a bit hard to read. Because everything in the first 2 panels is mentioned as individual sentences within a single paragraph, it makes it hard to add further details on these items. My suggestion is to transform this into a bullet point list or a table. I'd do it myself but I'm new to explainxkcd and don't want to tread on anyone's toes. [[User:YM Industries|YM Industries]] ([[User talk:YM Industries|talk]]) 04:55, 24 May 2018 (UTC)

The sink cannot be flooding from the sewers (or, if so, that’s not what stopped); that would not count as ''original'' content. {{unsigned ip|162.158.75.136}}

Maybe that's just me, but I understand the last part of the title text ("but we should probably still try to fix that.") as related to "that makes me exempt from the GDPR", meaning the team wishes ''not'' to be exempt. That would be in accord with the twisted way of thinking of Beret Guy & Co.

Talk:1841: Who?

2017-06-16T03:54:37Z

162.158.6.82: Comment on dramatic tension in "I can't keep living this lie".

I like this one. It feels like acknowledging that you live in a silo, everyone knows this but you (which explains the quizzical looks), and even reminds me that -- should I go out on some public service and comment on trolls, all trolls have to do is delete/edit their posts to make their targets out to be the fools. [[User:Elvenivle|Elvenivle]] ([[User talk:Elvenivle|talk]]) 17:45, 24 May 2017 (UTC)

A lot of my conversations with old friends or distant relatives goes like this (at least inside my head). "I met X the other day, and he told me Y and Z aren't in speaking terms these days." Who the hell are all these NPCs and why do you [expletive] think that they are relevant to the my gameplay? [[User:Nialpxe|Nialpxe]] ([[User talk:Nialpxe|talk]]) 06:55, 25 May 2017 (UTC)

"I can't keep living this lie" would usually be the prelude to a really personally burning confession - like "I've been having an affair" or "I'm only pretending to have a job, I got fired months ago" or "I'm actually gay" - something that might truly shatter trust or transform relationships. Something that's very important to the life you're living. I found it comic that Cueball followed it with so minor a confession.

1830: ISS Solar Transit 2

2017-04-29T06:58:27Z

162.158.6.82: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1830
| date = April 28, 2017
| title = ISS Solar Transit 2
| image = iss_solar_transit_2.png
| titletext = Most people don't realize it, but they actually launch a new space station every few weeks because this keeps happening.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Pretty sure we're finished, couldn't find anything wrong. Can someone PLEASE double check this one more time? Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

This Friday comic is a continuation of the Monday comic from the same week, [[1828: ISS Solar Transit]], where [[Cueball]] was preparing his camera in order to try an capture the transit of the {{w|International Space Station}} (ISS) across the {{w|Sun}}. The comic is also made in the same special way using split panels. As a noted in the first comic in the [[:Category:ISS Solar Transit|ISS series]] the {{w|white balance}} is still not set properly, because the sun looks orange instead of white/yellow.

However, instead of transiting across the face of the sun, the ISS crashes into the Sun. In reality, of course, this can never happen, because the ISS orbits Earth at an altitude of between 330 and 435 km, while the Earth orbits the Sun at an altitude of about 149.60 million kilometers or 1 {{w|astronomical unit}}. This means the minimum distance between the ISS and the Sun is only slightly less than 1 AU. Also, due to {{w|parallax}}, only people in a very localized region on earth are able to see the ISS "hit" the sun. For all others the ISS would travel past the sun.

Additionally, even if the ISS would somehow impact the sun, it would not make a noticeable splash, due to being incredibly tiny compared to the sun. It would get vaporized before reaching it. (See the [[what if?]] ''{{what if|89|Tungsten Countertop}}''). And it would make no "Fwoosh" sound to be heard on Earth, primarily because there's a lot of empty space between Earth and the Sun, and sound cannot propagate in empty space.

The title text plays on the event in the comic, by saying that a new space station is being launched every few week as the event in the comic keeps happening, so a continuation of ISSs gets destroyed by crashing into the Sun on a regular basis. This is clearly implausible, as it has taken many years to build up the ISS, and there are at least three astronauts on board that would get killed a couple of times a month.

It's possible that the comic is a play on conspiracy theories about space exploration, such as the moon landing being faked. In these situations, while the government may be trying to cover up or show something different from what actually happened, amateur photographers/astronomers/radio enthusiasts (such as Cueball in this comic) who observe the event independently of government or commercial sources can see what really happened. In this case, the conspiracy theory would be that the ISS actually does crash into the sun every few weeks, but we're made to believe that it orbits the earth without crashing, while Cueball is able to observe what really happens with his camera.

==Transcript==
:[Every panel is split into two half height panels above each other.]

:[The first top panel shows an image of an orange sun on a black background with a white dot labeled in light-blue letter at the top right corner. The dot is in a light-blue cross-hair and a light-blue dotted trail is behind it as indicating movement towards the sun.]
:ISS

:[In the bottom panel Cueball is kneeling in front of a small platform while operating a camera with a very long objective while holding a smartphone. The camera is angled sharply upward toward the sky as it is attached to a tripod standing on the platform.]
:Cueball: Perfect! Transit in three... two...

:[The upper image is the same but the dot has halved the distance to the sun.]
:ISS

:[Cueball sits in the panel below.]
:Cueball: ...one...

:[In the upper panel the dotted line enters the Sun and the white dot has plunged into the sun making a flare "splash" out from the surface of the Sun. This makes a sound written in orange letters.]
:''Fwoosh''

:[Cueball sits silent in the panel below.]

==Trivia==
*The ISS travels across the face of the sun in 0.47 seconds ([https://spacemath.gsfc.nasa.gov/weekly/5Page61.pdf calculation]).
**If we assume that Cueball is counting seconds, then the depicted speed of the ISS between panels 1 and 2 is too slow.
*This could be seen as a joke on {{w|Pink Floyd|Pink Floyd's}} ''{{w|Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun}}''.
*Some comedy movies (e.g. {{w|Hot Shots! Part Deux}}) feature an aircraft passing behind the sun.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:ISS Solar Transit]]
[[Category:Comics sharing name|ISS Solar Transit 02]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Space]]

1830: ISS Solar Transit 2

2017-04-29T06:57:40Z

162.158.6.82: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1830
| date = April 28, 2017
| title = ISS Solar Transit 2
| image = iss_solar_transit_2.png
| titletext = Most people don't realize it, but they actually launch a new space station every few weeks because this keeps happening.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Pretty sure we're finished, couldn't find anything wrong. Can someone PLEASE double check this one more time?fob Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

This Friday comic is a continuation of the Monday comic from the same week, [[1828: ISS Solar Transit]], where [[Cueball]] was preparing his camera in order to try an capture the transit of the {{w|International Space Station}} (ISS) across the {{w|Sun}}. The comic is also made in the same special way using split panels. As a noted in the first comic in the [[:Category:ISS Solar Transit|ISS series]] the {{w|white balance}} is still not set properly, because the sun looks orange instead of white/yellow.

However, instead of transiting across the face of the sun, the ISS crashes into the Sun. In reality, of course, this can never happen, because the ISS orbits Earth at an altitude of between 330 and 435 km, while the Earth orbits the Sun at an altitude of about 149.60 million kilometers or 1 {{w|astronomical unit}}. This means the minimum distance between the ISS and the Sun is only slightly less than 1 AU. Also, due to {{w|parallax}}, only people in a very localized region on earth are able to see the ISS "hit" the sun. For all others the ISS would travel past the sun.

Additionally, even if the ISS would somehow impact the sun, it would not make a noticeable splash, due to being incredibly tiny compared to the sun. It would get vaporized before reaching it. (See the [[what if?]] ''{{what if|89|Tungsten Countertop}}''). And it would make no "Fwoosh" sound to be heard on Earth, primarily because there's a lot of empty space between Earth and the Sun, and sound cannot propagate in empty space.

The title text plays on the event in the comic, by saying that a new space station is being launched every few week as the event in the comic keeps happening, so a continuation of ISSs gets destroyed by crashing into the Sun on a regular basis. This is clearly implausible, as it has taken many years to build up the ISS, and there are at least three astronauts on board that would get killed a couple of times a month.

It's possible that the comic is a play on conspiracy theories about space exploration, such as the moon landing being faked. In these situations, while the government may be trying to cover up or show something different from what actually happened, amateur photographers/astronomers/radio enthusiasts (such as Cueball in this comic) who observe the event independently of government or commercial sources can see what really happened. In this case, the conspiracy theory would be that the ISS actually does crash into the sun every few weeks, but we're made to believe that it orbits the earth without crashing, while Cueball is able to observe what really happens with his camera.

==Transcript==
:[Every panel is split into two half height panels above each other.]

:[The first top panel shows an image of an orange sun on a black background with a white dot labeled in light-blue letter at the top right corner. The dot is in a light-blue cross-hair and a light-blue dotted trail is behind it as indicating movement towards the sun.]
:ISS

:[In the bottom panel Cueball is kneeling in front of a small platform while operating a camera with a very long objective while holding a smartphone. The camera is angled sharply upward toward the sky as it is attached to a tripod standing on the platform.]
:Cueball: Perfect! Transit in three... two...

:[The upper image is the same but the dot has halved the distance to the sun.]
:ISS

:[Cueball sits in the panel below.]
:Cueball: ...one...

:[In the upper panel the dotted line enters the Sun and the white dot has plunged into the sun making a flare "splash" out from the surface of the Sun. This makes a sound written in orange letters.]
:''Fwoosh''

:[Cueball sits silent in the panel below.]

==Trivia==
*The ISS travels across the face of the sun in 0.47 seconds ([https://spacemath.gsfc.nasa.gov/weekly/5Page61.pdf calculation]).
**If we assume that Cueball is counting seconds, then the depicted speed of the ISS between panels 1 and 2 is too slow.
*This could be seen as a joke on {{w|Pink Floyd|Pink Floyd's}} ''{{w|Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun}}''.
*Some comedy movies (e.g. {{w|Hot Shots! Part Deux}}) feature an aircraft passing behind the sun.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:ISS Solar Transit]]
[[Category:Comics sharing name|ISS Solar Transit 02]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Space]]