Talk:1939: 2016 Election Map

2018-01-08T17:04:36Z

162.158.75.76: /* Why now? */

== Why now? ==

So why are we getting this map now instead of a year ago? Has something significant to this area just happened in the U.S.A.? (I am a Canadian so might well have missed something.)
[[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.154|108.162.216.154]] 16:42, 8 January 2018 (UTC)

I'm from the midwest in the US and I'm really confused as well... I also don't find anything particularly funny or poignant in this. So yeah, color me confused in the US. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.75.76|162.158.75.76]] 16:52, 8 January 2018 (UTC) Sam

I think the idea is that this map, while interesting as an object, still sort of fails as a map - it doesn't provide the sort of easily digestible information that a map of this variety is supposed to show. Conceptually, I don't think it's that different than #1138 (Heatmap) - the map more or less shows population density and fails to easily communicate party alignment. As to why it's showing up in the first year of 2018, my best guess is that mid-term elections are this year...? [[Special:Contributions/172.69.69.238|172.69.69.238]]

My friend I showed the comic to thinks it could be a general political commentary on the uselessness of these kinds of maps. 1. the map is a year old: useless. 2. there are no numbers: useless. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.75.76|162.158.75.76]] 17:04, 8 January 2018 (UTC) Sam.

Talk:1939: 2016 Election Map

2018-01-08T16:52:12Z

162.158.75.76:

Talk:1781: Artifacts

2017-01-05T10:22:06Z

162.158.75.76: /* Artifacts versus artifacts (artefacts?) */

Wouldnt data entirely made of outliners just be ..regular measurements that just yields different results?[[User:West|#GoWest-West]] ([[User talk:West|talk]]) 13:59, 4 January 2017 (UTC)

One possibility for the alt-text scenario:
Consider an n-dimensional dataset consisting of n points. Arbitrarily assign total orders to the data points and the dimensions. For the most part, every measurement is drawn from a standard Gaussian with mean 0 stdev 1, except the ith dimension of the ith point has a value of n.

The graph that Cueball is showing looks like the graph from the EM drive paper. Maybe Randall is poking fun at the EM drive with this comic? [[User:Cgplover|Cgplover]] ([[User talk:Cgplover|talk]]) 14:15, 4 January 2017 (UTC)

It does look like the Full Resonance tuner sweep graph [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.238|108.162.237.238]] 15:12, 4 January 2017 (UTC)

Why the emphasis on HAVE in the alttext instead of, say, ENTIRELY?
: I see no issue with this. The speaker is clearly focusing on the probability of the situation. If anything, I'd say that this emphasis is intended to underline the competence, or lack thereof, of the researcher, which is in line with the mocking tone previously given. Not emphasizing HAVE would more indicate the speaker is accepting of the results, but is still surprised by them. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.2.10|162.158.2.10]] 15:40, 4 January 2017 (UTC)

Is there also a suggestion that Indiana Jones didn't properly handle artifacts he dealt with?
: Depends... Does dropping the Holy Grail down a crevice count as "not properly"? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.2.10|162.158.2.10]] 15:40, 4 January 2017 (UTC)
::I also think that that could be a reference to him holding an artifact while running from that giant boulder. Could be. IDK. --[[User:JayRulesXKCD|JayRulesXKCD]] ([[User talk:JayRulesXKCD|talk]]) 15:58, 4 January 2017 (UTC)

I have the feeling that I've seen this comic before. Is there another comic where Cueball gives a presentation and is then dissed by his audience? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.89.223|162.158.89.223]] 15:36, 4 January 2017 (UTC)
:I think you are referring to the one where he is talking about emoticons and parentheses (for example, :)), then gets kicked out of the convention center. --[[User:JayRulesXKCD|JayRulesXKCD]] ([[User talk:JayRulesXKCD|talk]]) 16:35, 4 January 2017 (UTC)

:Yeah, check out [https://xkcd.com/410 #410: Math Paper] and [https://xkcd.com/323 #323 Ballmer Peak], see if those ring a bell. And as Jay mentions, there is also [https://xkcd.com/541 TED Talk].[[Special:Contributions/108.162.215.100|108.162.215.100]] 20:02, 4 January 2017 (UTC)

To me, the point of the comic is the mistake in the first sentence. "Data" is plural and so the correct wording would have been "the data clearly prove that...". The last sentence points out the error -- there are lots of items on the poster and he didn't handle them correctly -- as a plural -- in the initial statement. The capitalization of HAVE also seems to be a clue that "plural" is the theme ("it has" versus "they have"). [[User:Ibid|Ibid]] ([[User talk:Ibid|talk]]) 16:19, 4 January 2017 (UTC)
:I'm pretty sure that argument has been addressed in a previous comic, or at least something similar. Linguistic drift changes the way words are used, and as long as the listener understands the speaker, there isn't really a reason to correct it. Also, it's more of a collective term than plural, which in American English use singular parts of speech. Plus, I'm of the camp that believes that loanwords should be treated as part of the language they are joining, rather than the one they are from. English is complicated enough with its Germanic, Greek, Latin, and ''specifically'' French components all contradicting each other on how they should be spelled and pronounced. --[[User:KingStarscream|KingStarscream]] ([[User talk:KingStarscream|talk]]) 16:50, 4 January 2017 (UTC)
:As far as the ''point'' of the comic being about him using the word incorrectly, that doesn't seem likely considering that the heckler talks about the data chart in the alt text as well. Using a word incorrectly wouldn't be considered an artifact, though the supposition about how it should be used can be in a way. As for the capitalization, it's for emphasis and sarcasm. --[[User:KingStarscream|KingStarscream]] ([[User talk:KingStarscream|talk]]) 17:03, 4 January 2017 (UTC)
:I don't think it's even ''relevant'' to quip on grammar in this explanation. Besides that, "data" here refers to the singular object of "collection of data", and as such I would think "the data ''proves''" is most correct. --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.245.226|108.162.245.226]] 19:48, 4 January 2017 (UTC)
:Working in a field that uses lots of data and often uses the word "data" in formal publications, I concur with others that it is commonly and acceptably used as a "group noun" which is treated as singular. While datum is sometimes used as a technical term (I most often see it referencing a fixed line or plane used as a reference in geometry or Computer Aided Design), it is almost never used as the singular for "data." Whenever it begins to be tempting to treat it as plural and an editorial argument breaks out, I often recommend changing to "data point" or "data set" or similar for clarity. My point is that a grammatical debate here is pedantic, moot, and unrelated to the comic. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.208|108.162.237.208]] 19:59, 4 January 2017 (UTC)
:Also we already know that Randall Munroe pokes fun at grammar pedants for this exact word from his comic "Data". [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.208|108.162.237.208]] 20:23, 4 January 2017 (UTC)

== Artifacts versus artifacts (artefacts?) ==

When I first read this I thought it was referencing image compression artifacts. Like he has a chunk of visual aid onscreen but it's all blocky and blurry and stuff. All the statistics stuff mentioned here didn't even cross my mind. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.241.52|108.162.241.52]] 23:01, 4 January 2017 (UTC)

To whoever edited the title, topic OP here: artefact is the Brit spelling, artifact the North American one. As for me, I'm a Canada-Brit dual citizen who uses S's a lot ("stigmatised") but will miss the occasional Brittier spelling. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.75.76|162.158.75.76]] 10:22, 5 January 2017 (UTC)

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Talk:1939: 2016 Election Map

Talk:1939: 2016 Election Map

Talk:1781: Artifacts