explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

1017: Backward in Time

2019-05-07T14:27:17Z

162.158.79.227: I came to this wiki looking for an explanation for this; therefore, I thought it might be good to add so that others can get an explanation for this.

{{comic
| number = 1017
| date = February 15, 2012
| title = Backward in Time
| image = backward_in_time.png
| titletext = People tell me I have too much time on my hands, but really the problem is that there's too much time, PERIOD.
}}

Clicking the image at xkcd.com links to [https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/pub?key=0Ak43bGxHGI1adDMtOHVWVXZrYzhKd2VtbFJJMmJPTEE&single=true&gid=1&output=html this spreadsheet], which [[Randall]] used to calculate the times and dates for the comic. It also has a lot of other percentages and dates, so take a look if you are interested.

==Explanation==
[[Cueball]]/Randall creates this formula which helps him wait for long stretches of time which goes increasingly faster into the past as more time goes by, which gives him the effect of looking like the time goes by quickly. Which assists in the waiting process.

As far as the actual math is concerned, the formula is an {{w|exponential function}} (i.e. the variable appears in the exponent). The effect that the function grows faster and faster as p grows, is due to T(p) being exponential. More precisely, when you repeatedly add some constant to the exponent, you will repeatedly multiply some (other) constant with the value of the function. Compare how "slow" a value grows by adding even high values (1, 1001, 2001, 3001, 4001, 5001…) and how fast it grows by multiplying even low values (1, 10, 100, 1000, 10000, 100000…)

Now, the function has to be adjusted so that, as Randall put it, "the time spent in each part of the past is loosely proportional to how well I know it." The most important adjustment is putting p to the power of three. That lowers the amount added to the exponent for low values (0.1³=0.001, 0.2³=0.008, i.e. only 7/1000 have been added for 10% workflow) and increases the amount for high values (0.8³=0.512, 0.9³=0.729, i.e. more than 1/5 has been added for 10% workflow). That means the recent past will pass even slower and the historic past even faster than it already does by choosing an exponential function.
The remaining adjustments are technical. The coefficient in front of p³ adjusts the constant by which the result will be multiplied while adding some constant to p, while it also roughly ensures that p=1 yields the lifetime of the universe. The 3 added to the product in the exponent further adjusts the actual values of the power without touching the slope (the multiplicative constant). In the parentheses, e³ is subtracted to put the time to 0 when p=0. Otherwise the function would start approx. 20 yrs and 1 month ago. For bigger p, this offset does not matter much. Imagine subtracting 20 yrs from the lifetime of the universe!

Finally, the result is subtracted from the current date for aesthetical reasons. The formula could tell you "20 yrs ago", or it could read "February 1992". Randall decided the latter would be better.

There is actually a mathematical error in this comic; the inverse function in grey writing off at the bottom right of the main formula involves a square root, when the actual inverse of Randall's main function would involve a cube root. In addition, this function does not contain the current date, meaning that T, in the inverse, refers to how long ago a point in time was, rather than the point in time itself. When the T in the inverse is 20, it means that the date referenced by T is 20 years ago.

The punchline "Swoosh!" is about how fast the last few percents of Cueball's download happen in "such a rush". For most humans waiting for a download to complete tends to become really boring and progress would instead seem to get slower and slower.

[[940|(Also, the workout website, Fitocracy has been mentioned previously in xkcd.)]]

Note that as of the time that this page was last cached, the comic was uploaded at {{#expr:100*(((ln(({{#time:U}}-1329195600)/31536000+e^3)-3)/20.3444)^.5)}}% progress.

==Transcript==
:When I have a boring task to get through — a three-hour lecture, a giant file download, or a long term point goal in fitocracy — I use this formula to convert the percentage completed (p) into a date:

:T=(Current Date) - (e^(20.3444*p^3+3) - e^3) years

:When the task is 0% done, it gives today's date, and as I make progress, I move further and further back in time

:(inverse given in lighter colors)
:Inverse: p = sqrt((ln(T+e^3)-3)/20.3444)

:[Line Graph explaining the correlation between completion percentages and temporal deltas.
:0% = now (Date of comic is 2012-02-14T00:00-0500, approx. 1329195600 UNIX)
:10% = September 2011
:20% = 2008
:30% = 1997
:40% = 1958
:50% = 1776
:60% = 405 AD
:70% = 22,000 years ago
:80% = 671,000 years ago
:90% = 55 million years ago
:100% = 13.8 billion years ago
:]

:It moves slowly through the first few years, then steadily accelerates. I tuned the formula so the time spent in each part of the past is loosely proportional to how well I know it. This means I hit familiar landmarks with each bit of progress, giving me a satisfying sense of movement.

:[The following are panels detailing completion percentages, correlated time periods, and notable events from this time period.]

:7.308% December 18, 2011
:Around this time:
:Kim Jong-Il dies. US leaves Iraq.

:31.12% February 1995
:Around this time:
:Windows 95 debuts. OJ found not guilty.

:47.91% 1844
:Around this time:
:Rubber vulcanized, bicycle invented, wrench patented.

:70.33% 24,000 years ago
:Around this time:
:Caves painted, ceramic art made. Neanderthals extinct.

:90.42% 68 million years ago
:Around this time:
:First flowering plants. Chicxulub impact kills off most dinosaurs.

:100% 13.76 billion years ago
:Around this time:
:Universe begins. First stars ignite.

:Download complete.

:[Cueball watches a download progress on a laptop in amazement and happiness. Megan stands nearby and looks at Cueball with a bemused posture.]
:Cueball: Swoosh! Watching all that time blur past is such a rush!
:Megan: So... you've tried to make an extreme sport out of.. ''waiting''.
:Cueball: ''Swoosh!''

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Timelines]]
[[Category:Math]]

1645: Toasts

2019-04-04T01:49:49Z

162.158.79.227: /* The toasts */

{{comic
| number = 1645
| date = February 19, 2016
| title = Toasts
| image = toasts.png
| titletext = Platonic solids for my real friends and real solids for my platonic friends!
}}

==Explanation==
A {{w|Toast (honor)|toast}} is a ritual in which a drink is taken as an expression of honor or goodwill. The term may be applied to the person or thing so honored, the drink taken, or the verbal expression accompanying the drink. Thus, a person could be "the toast of the evening," for whom someone "proposes a toast" to congratulate and for whom a third person "toasts" in agreement.

The comic is based on the quote {{w|Champagne for My Real Friends, Real Pain for My Sham Friends}} which, though often attributed to the painter {{w|Francis Bacon (artist)|Francis Bacon}} or to {{w|Tom Waits}}, is a toast dating back to at least the nineteenth century. It is also the entire title of a [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7q9i6KYmzQ song], the {{w|From_Under_the_Cork_Tree#Track_listing|ninth track}} on {{w|From Under the Cork Tree}}, a 2005 album by {{w|Fall Out Boy}}.

The comic plays on a permutation structure between two words (a type of {{w|chiasmus}}), yielding puns with various effects. In this comic eight persons drink a '''toast''' for their "real friends" and then for some other type of "friends". For the real friend they wish them to have one specific thing. This something is a word (X-Y) that can be split up in two meanings (X and Y), where one of them are then put in front the word friend, to explain what type of friends they are now toasting (often a bad/false type of friend) and then these friends get a wish for having what the word that are left of the original word means: "X-Y for my real friends and real Y for my X friends"

The first example is a typical toast, in Champagne, where this word can be split in the two phonetically similar words Sham and Pain, and the sham friends then get pain. [[#The toasts|Below]] all examples (including the ninth from the title text) are listed with explanation for all words. In some cases the word may actually refer to a drink (like the first with champagne), so that the first word is not something wished for the real friends, but the drink that is in the glass (these have been mentioned below). But for other toasts there is no such drink in existence, and the first word is the thing the toaster wishes for the real friends.

===The toasts===
*''Champagne'' sounds like a combination of the two words ''sham'' and ''pain''.
**{{w|Champagne}} is an expensive sparkling wine.
**[https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/sham Sham] means false.
**{{w|Pain}} is not so nice to hand out.
***So [[Cueball]] toast his real friends with Champagne and wishes real pain to his false friends.
*''Pseudopods'' can be divided into ''pseudo-'' and ''pods''.
**{{w|Pseudopods}} (which translate to "false feet") are temporary cytoplasm-filled parts of the cell wall that are able to change their form in order to move. They are used in some eukaryotic cells to move around or to eat. Most cells that do this are called {{w|Amoeba|amoeboids}}. The {{w|Amoeba (genus)|amoeba}} is a common example. There is no drink named Pseudopods!
**{{w|Pseudo-}} (lying, false) is used to mark something that superficially appears to be (or behaves like) one thing, but actually is another.
**{{w|Pods}} or {{w|pod}} is not clearly defined. It could refer to {{w|Glossary_of_plant_morphology#Fruit_types|seedpod}} – a dry dehiscent fruit containing many seeds. Pods, both malevolent and benignant, appear in many works of SF and Fantasy.
***So [[Blondie]] will give her real friends a special part/adaptation of the amoeba. (Doesn't everyone wish they had pseudopods?) But it at least seems better than her pseudo-friends who would receive real pods with intricate ways to kill them.
*''Petticoats'' sounds like a combination of the two words ''petty'' and ''coats''
**A {{w|petticoat}} or underskirt is an article of clothing; specifically an undergarment to be worn under a skirt or a dress. There is no drink named petticoats!
**[https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/petty Petty] means small (in rank of importance), insignificant or narrow-minded. See for instance {{w|petty crime}}.
**A {{w|Coat (clothing)|coat}} is a garment worn by both men and women, for warmth or fashion.
***So [[Megan]] will hand out undergarments for her real friends (a very personal gift) and coats for her less important/insignificant or narrow-minded friends (they seem to be the luckier ones here).
*''Loosestrife'' can be divided into ''loose'' and ''strife''.
**{{w|Loosestrife}} is a common name for plants within two different genera (which are not related): {{w|Lythrum}} (example: {{w|Lythrum salicaria|purple loosestrife}}) and {{w|Lysimachia}} (example: {{w|Lysimachia ciliata|Fringed Loosestrife}}). There is a patent for a [http://www.google.com.na/patents/CN1154814A?cl=en loosestrife drink] but it seems unlikely that this is in the glass.
**[https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/loose Loose] in this case means free from restraints, as the opposite of {{w|close friend}}. Loose can also refer to being sexually promiscuous, especially when used as an adjective for people.
**[http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/strife Strife] refers to bitter, sometimes violent, conflict or discord.
***So the "brunette" woman (i.e. similar hair but less dark than Megan) will give her real friends flowers and for her promiscuous friend she wishes they end up in a real violent conflict.
*''Ladybugs'' can be divided into ''lady'' and ''bugs''.
**{{w|Ladybugs}} (or Ladybird) are a family of insects common all over the world. They are [http://photobucket.com/images/cute%20ladybug considered cute]. There also exists a recipe for a [http://www.1001cocktails.com/recipes/mixed-drinks/104741/cocktail-ladybug.html ''ladybug'' cocktail].
**{{w|Lady}} is a civil term of respect for a woman, specifically the female equivalent to {{w|gentleman}} or {{w|lord}}, but in many contexts a term for any adult woman.
**{{w|Bugs}} in this case refer to {{w|insects}} or {{w|arachnids}}. It could also refer to the scientific classification {{w|Hemiptera}}, the "true bugs", which does not include ladybugs.
***[[Hairbun]] toasts her real friends in the ''ladybug'' cocktail - it could be a cocktail glass she is holding - (rather than giving the ladybugs for her real friends, even though they are [http://www.zazzle.com/cute+ladybug cute bugs] that most people are not afraid of). And then she will bestow real bugs ({{w|beetles}}, {{w|flies}} or {{w|spiders}}) to her lady friends. This is not necessarily all her female friends, it could be only those that are {{w|Lady#British_nobility|noble}} or at least think they are more important and thus would like to be called lady.
*''Single-payer'' can be divided into ''single,'' and payer, a word that rhymes with ''player''. In this case this word is then put together with real to form the word ''RealPlayer''.
**{{w|Single-payer}} refers to single-payer healthcare, a system in which the state, rather than private insurers, pays for all {{w|healthcare}} costs, a system used in several countries, but not so far in the US; it was initially considered but ultimately rejected when the {{w|Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act}}, also referred to as {{w|Obamacare}} by both detractors and supporters of the law, was discussed, passed by the US House and Senate, and signed into law by President {{w|Barack Obama}}. There is no drink named single-payer!
**{{w|Single person|Single}} refers to a person who is not in a relationship or is unmarried.
**{{w|RealPlayer}} is a cross-platform media player app, developed by RealNetworks. It is compatible with numerous container file formats of the multimedia realm. In the past it has been {{w|RealPlayer#Reviews_and_critiques|criticized}} for containing adware and spyware. This was back from 1999 and up to the 2004 version.
**It is specifically '''not''' the word ''{{w|Single-player video game|single-player}}'' that is used! This word could refer to video games that only one player can play at a time, or when choosing to play single-player in a game where more could have played. ''RealPayer'' is '''not''' a word in use.
***[[White Hat]] thus wishes that his real friends have access to state-funded health care, and all his single friends will get RealPlayer. Since [[White Hat]] is normally benevolent, if naïve, he may imagine that RealPlayer will help his single friends enjoy Internet media, when they are home alone. Maybe he wishes to impress these singles with a free app as a present in the hope that he {{w|Get Lucky (Daft Punk song)|gets lucky}}. If it has been [[Hairy]] this would have seemed very likely… see [[1178: Pickup Artists]]. White Hat has not previously displayed these tendencies too clearly. As mentioned there have been some issues with RealPlayer in the past, but it has stayed on the market for more than a decade. However, since it has {{w|RealPlayer#Current_Status|recently been changed}} into ''RealTimes'' it may not be so cool a gift anyway. Also White Hat might wish to give away the old spy ware version of RealPlayer. But as opposed to most of the special type of friends, ''single-friends'' is not in itself a negative type of friend, especially not if you are yourself single. So no direct reason to make bad wished for single friends as opposed to sham friends.
*''Tumbleweeds'' sounds like a combination of the two words ''tumblr'' and ''weed''.
**{{w|Tumbleweed}} is a structural part of the above-ground anatomy of a number of species of plants, a {{w|Diaspore (botany)|diaspore}} (of seeds) that, once it is mature and dry, detaches from its root or stem, and tumbles away in the wind. The tumbleweed's {{w|Tumbleweed#Symbolism|association}} with the Western film genre has led to a highly symbolic meaning in visual media. But there is also a [http://www.idrink.com/v.html?id=33698 ''Tumbleweed'' cocktail].
**{{w|tumblr}} is a microblogging platform and social networking website
**A {{w|weed}} is any plant considered undesirable in a particular situation, but in this case it refers to {{w|Cannabis (drug)|Cannabis}}, also known as marijuana and by many other names (including weed), and would be used (again in this comic) as a {{w|psychoactive drug}}, i.e. to {{w|getting high|get high}}.
***[[Ponytail]] toast her real friends in the ''Tumbleweed'' cocktail (rather than giving them a western movie symbol, that will spread seeds all over their house), but with her friends on her favorite blogsite ''tumblr'' she will share her expensive weed.
*''Fauxhawks'' can be divided into ''faux'' and ''hawks''
**{{w|Mohawk_hairstyle#Fauxhawk_variants |Fauxhawks}} copies the style of a {{w|Mohawk hairstyle}}, but without shaving the sides of the head and not extending past the peak of the cranium. But there is also a [https://untappd.com/b/starving-artist-brewing-co-fauxhawks/1105627 ''Fauxhawks'' beer].
**{{w|Faux}} is a French word for "false".
**{{w|Hawks}} is a common name for some small to medium-sized diurnal birds of prey, widely distributed and varying greatly in size.
***[[Beret Guy]] thus wishes to cut his real friends hair in a very special way, maybe to his liking and thought of as a favor, but not necessarily liked by all his friends, cause although Beret Guy is weird, it seems that those around him are not. His false friends can have a predatory bird (maybe coming after them), but rather knowing Beret Guys love of all things, just as a present of something he likes, like animals. Alternatively he toast in the beer with that name - could be a fancy beer glass he is holding.
*'''Title text:'''
*''Platonic solids'' can be divided into ''platonic'' and ''solids''
**{{w|Platonic solids}}: In three-dimensional space, a platonic solid is a regular, convex polyhedron. It is constructed by congruent regular polygonal faces with the same number of faces meeting at each vertex. Five solids meet those criteria, and each is named after its number of faces: Tetrahedron (a.k.a. "Regular triangle-based pyramid"), Hexahedron ("Cube"), Octahedron (can be considered the union of two square-based pyramids, base-to-base), Dodecahedron and Icosahedron. There is no drink named platonic solids!
**[https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/platonic Platonic] means ''not sexual in nature'' as in {{w|platonic love}}, which is a type of love that is celibate and non-sexual. Platonic friends are friends who will never have sex with each other.
**{{w|Solid}} is one of the three fundamental states of matter (the others being liquid and gas). ''Doing someone a solid'' can also mean ''doing someone a favor''
***[[Randall]], must be speaking the title text and he wishes his real friends to have material in regular, convex polyhedron shape where as his {{w|platonic friends}} can get any other kind of solid material, alternatively a solid favor. Platonic friends are not necessarily bad to have so maybe it should be a positive toast for those as well. On the other hand, sometimes it is one friend that has decided it should be a platonic friendship. In this case the other may regret this and not wish good things for this friend.
***'''Solids'' can also refer to solid human excrement.
**''Platonic'' can also refer to {{w|Platonic ideal}}s, which are models that real-life objects and processes implement only imperfectly.
***So while Randall wants his Platonic friends to have solid objects in the imperfect shapes that can exist in real life, he wants his "real friends" to have impossibly perfect hard copies of the regular tetrahedron, cube, octahedron, dodecahedron and icosahedron.

==Transcript==
:[There are two rows of 4 panels each. Each panel shows a different person offering a toast. Each one has some kind of drink in one hand which they hold up.]

:[First row panels:]
:[Cueball holding up a wine glass to the right:]
:Cueball: Champaign for my real friends and real pain for my sham friends!

:[Blondie holding up a regular glass to the left:]
:Blondie: Pseudopods for my real friends and real pods for my pseudo-friends!

:[Megan holding up a drinks glass to the right:]
:Megan: Petticoats for my real friends and real coats for my petty friends.

:[A "brunette" woman (i.e. similar hair but less dark than Megan) holding up a normal glass with a small umbrella in it to the right:]
:Brunette woman: Loosestrife for my real friends and real strife for my loose friends!

:[Second row panels:]
:[Hairbun holding up a wine glass to the left:]
:Hairbun: Ladybugs for my real friends and real bugs for my lady friends!

:[White Hat holding up a regular glass to the right:]
:White Hat: Single-payer for my real friends and RealPlayer for my single friends.

:[Ponytail holding up a regular glass to the right:]
:Ponytail: Tumbleweeds for my real friends and real weed for my Tumblr friends!

:[Beret Guy holding up a wine glass to the left:]
:Beret Guy: Fauxhawks for my real friends and real hawks for my faux friends!

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Blondie]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairbun]]
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]]
[[Category:Language]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Food]]
[[Category:Music]]
[[Category:Social networking]]

Talk:1921: The Moon and the Great Wall

2017-11-30T03:30:26Z

162.158.79.227:

https://www.nasa.gov/vision/space/workinginspace/great_wall.html

gives something like an authoritative explanation togeter with photos taken from the ISS.

Summary: the great wall can't really be seen from space. But you may be able to spot its shape if the conditions are right. Such as light from the right direction (see the shadow), or snow accumulating on one side of the wall but not the other.

Jyrki Lahtonen

"The statement in the comic, however, is actually true." - It might be, but the part about the Great Wall in it is somewhat irrelevant - it is equally true also from anywhere else in the world. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.210.88|162.158.210.88]] 09:49, 27 November 2017 (UTC)
Yeah it's simply a reversal of the myth. "The Great Wall of China" could be replaced with "anywhere on Earth". But that would be less funny. [[User:Jdluk|Jdluk]] ([[User talk:Jdluk|talk]]) 10:27, 27 November 2017 (UTC)

The Great Wall is 13,000+ miles long, but only 35 feet wide. It's the narrowness that make it impossible to see from space. If we use thread (approx 1/100th of an inch wide) as an analogue, the GWC can be represent by a piece of thread 732 ft long (1.5 inches equals one mile), viewed from 5.5 feet away (equivalent to the 100 miles "edge of space"), or 1222 ft (22,000 miles geosynchronious orbit) or 2.5 miles (238,855 miles orbit of the moon) [[User:JamesCurran|JamesCurran]] ([[User talk:JamesCurran|talk]]) 15:07, 27 November 2017 (UTC)

: 732 feet long viewed from 5.5 feet away doesn't sound credible. And the "edge of space" is 100 kilometres up, not 100 miles. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K%C3%A1rm%C3%A1n_line [[Special:Contributions/198.41.238.40|198.41.238.40]] 03:50, 29 November 2017 (UTC)
:: What part of that don't you find credible? Are you questioning my math? And I guess, the definition of "Edge of Space" has been revised since I first did the calculations when I was in college. [[User:JamesCurran|JamesCurran]] ([[User talk:JamesCurran|talk]]) 17:26, 29 November 2017 (UTC)

: "The wall is a maximum 9.1 m (29 ft 10 in) wide ... The apparent width of the Great Wall from the Moon is the same as that of a human hair viewed from 3 km (2 mi) away." - Wikipedia. [[Special:Contributions/198.41.238.40|198.41.238.40]] 03:59, 29 November 2017 (UTC)

That's simply false. The Great Wall of China is another structure on the surface of a celestial body that can be seen with the naked eye from the Great Wall of China. --[[Special:Contributions/172.68.54.34|172.68.54.34]] 19:05, 27 November 2017 (UTC)

: definition of celestial body: "A natural object which is located OUTSIDE OF EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE, such as the Moon, the Sun, an asteroid, planet, or star."
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/celestial_body
http://www.dictionary.com/browse/celestial?s=t [[Special:Contributions/172.68.65.168|172.68.65.168]] 21:04, 27 November 2017 (UTC)

:: As opposed to terrestrial body, which is, well, the earth XD [[Special:Contributions/172.68.2.22|172.68.2.22]]
::: Actually, there are four terrestrial bodies in our solar system alone: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrestrial_planet https://www.space.com/17028-terrestrial-planets.html [[Special:Contributions/141.101.104.239|141.101.104.239]] 15:27, 28 November 2017 (UTC)
:: Could be possibly correct if they were referring to the Celestial Empire (China). Can't tell with mixed case. Probably unlikely.[[Special:Contributions/162.158.79.227|162.158.79.227]] 03:30, 30 November 2017 (UTC)

Those merlons are way too small. They are not going to protect Megan & Ponytail from incoming arrows. --[[Special:Contributions/172.68.54.34|172.68.54.34]] 19:08, 27 November 2017 (UTC)
: Depends how high the wall is... Perhaps in order to reach the top of the wall archers might need to be so close that the merlons are actually sufficient. [[User:NiceGuy1|NiceGuy1]] ([[User talk:NiceGuy1|talk]]) 05:19, 28 November 2017 (UTC)

1611: Baking Soda and Vinegar

2017-11-28T03:19:49Z

162.158.79.227: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1611
| date = December 2, 2015
| title = Baking Soda and Vinegar
| image = baking_soda_and_vinegar.png
| titletext = Sure, it may not meet science fair standards, but I want credit for getting my baking soda and vinegar mountain added to the Decade Volcanoes list.
}}

==Explanation==
In popular fiction (and maybe in part in fact) the "{{w|Sodium bicarbonate|Baking Soda}} and {{w|Vinegar}}" {{w|volcano}} is often a staple image of the science nerd at the science fair (see [https://sciencebob.com/the-erupting-volcano/ example here]), unless all the science nerds are doing ''real'' imaginative science and the student(s) with the volcano exhibit are dragging out the old hackneyed stereotype. It may also be age-dependent, this being something that is relatively advanced science for the lower grades but rather a childish experiment in the hands of older students.

As [[Ponytail]] is probably about to point out, the 'volcano' exhibit doesn't (usually) actually demonstrate anything about volcanic activity, it is just simple chemistry - involving the reaction of acetic acid in vinegar and sodium bicarbonate in baking soda to give sodium acetate and bubbles of carbon dioxide - dressed up to look more impressive, often with dye or other additives to make the 'eruption' look more realistic, but it often fails to replicate important features of every volcanic eruption such as the flow of lava, associated seismic events or the collapse of part of the volcanic crater. In most soda volcano projects people don't even explain what's happening.

[[Science Girl]] has made a little more of her volcano, however, as it seems to go beyond simple chemistry. The model replicates many of the dangers (aside from the pure lava) of a volcano, and appears to have been given scaled-down vehicles (not visible in the comic) trying (and failing) to escape the dangers of the resultant mud-flows (a.k.a. {{w|lahar|lahars}} in professional terminology) being modeled. Ponytail contradicts her early reaction by also not liking the more realistic model, although it is the carnage she dislikes, not that it has more correct details of the eruption itself.

Even more, this is not an isolated 'model volcano' but a vinegar-powered representation of a geological 'hot spot', such as with the islands of Hawaii, in which the spot moves with respect to the Earth's crust (or vice-versa) and generates a new volcano some way off. Despite this model being supported on a table, it appears that the 'project' extends some way beyond that and has somehow contrived further eruptions away from the table, the room and probably even the building.

The 'project' seems to be turning into a very thorough model of a much larger geological process (a {{w|Supervolcano}} like {{w|Yellowstone Caldera|the one}} under {{w|Yellowstone National Park|Yellowstone}}) and destined to produce a ''very real'' {{w|volcanic winter}}. Where a magma-powered volcano could produce vast clouds of dust, preventing the sun's energy from warming the Earth, in this case it's the airborne salt (probably sodium acetate) from the chemical reaction that appears to be in danger of causing crop failure. There's no mention of the corresponding environmental effects of the vast amounts of carbon dioxide (and/or aqueous carbonic acid) necessarily released in proportion to the ejected salt (presumably itself not left in solution).

It is especially troubling that the child even mentions that her model volcano is an offshoot of a baking soda ''super''volcano. Supervolcanoes are massive volcanoes, far larger than even those on the list of {{w|Decade Volcanoes}} (mentioned in the title text), whose eruption would likely trigger species-level extinction events comparable to the dinosaur extinction. Humanity can only hope the child is exaggerating in her description, but the symptoms witnessed by the adult looking out the window suggest otherwise. {{w|Campi Flegrei}} is actually a real life example of her project.

When someone (presumably the dark haired woman) says she wants to stop learning, Science Girl grimly states that "Soon, we all will", alluding to their impending doom.

[[Randall]] has mentioned supervolcanoes before in [[1053: Ten Thousand]] (title text) and [[1159: Countdown]], making it a recurring interest of his. The volcano [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6a/Entire_Volcano_zoom_out.png Mount Doom] was depicted to the far left in the game [[1608: Hoverboard]] released a week before this comic. It may not be a supervolcano, but quite potent anyway... Later this comic was directly referenced in the sixth panel of [[1714: Volcano Types]], where it is up to the reader to decide it this is Science Girl's model people or what happens outside on her supervolcano.

In the title text the student expects extra credit for getting her model volcano added to the Decade Volcanoes list, a list maintained by {{w|International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior}} of the world's most dangerous volcanoes (currently 16). It is either an absurd notion or a very troubling achievement that a science fair project could achieve the threat level posed by the likes of {{w|Mount Vesuvius}} (which destroyed ancient Pompeii in Italy, and threatens modern-day Naples in the same manner), {{w|Mount Rainier}} (whose lahars could potentially destroy parts of Seattle) or {{w|Mauna Loa}} (which could create a massive landslide, triggering a major tsunami that would threaten all of Hawaii). But if the volcano erupting outside is scaled down to match the scale of her original model volcano, at least that means that it was only a "local" volcano event and not a supervolcano event that she created, so it would only doom the local area.

==Transcript==
:[Ponytail is standing behind Science Girl who has one hand up. They are looking at a table with a model volcano.]
:Science Girl: My science project is a baking soda and vinegar volcano!

:[A larger frame that includes Megan who stands to the right. Ponytail is a little further back and Science Girl has taken her hand down. The baking soda volcano erupts in a small upwards explosion.]
:Ponytail: Why do people make these? It isn't really even a science project. It doesn't teach anything about-
:Volcano: '''''Foom!'''''

:[Smaller frame again. Ponytail has moved closer to the table, Science Girl moves around the table to the right, pointing at the volcano while Megan walks closer. The "lava" flows down the volcano on both sides.]
:Science Girl: See how the baking soda and vinegar mix with mud and ice to form deadly flowing lahars?

:[Zoom in on Science Girls head close to the stream of lava going down the lower part of the volcano's right slope.]
:Science Girl: You can see the tiny cars trying to flee.
:Science Girl: Whoops! Too slow.

:[Zoom in on Ponytail.]
:Ponytail: Um. This is a bit grim.
:Science Girl (off panel): Learning!

:[Science Girl stand to the right of the table looking at the now still volcano. Shaky lines surround a sound effect written over the top of this slim frame:]
: ''Rumble''

:[Back to showing all three as before. Science Girl lift a finger in the air.]
:Science Girl: And now we're learning that this volcano is an offshoot of a vinegar hotspot rising from deep within the earth.
:Science Girl: ''Annnd...''

:[Science Girl turns away from the table looking right as a loud noise can be heard off-panel, depicted in white text on a wavy black bubble:]
:<big>''Boooom''</big>

:[Megan has walked over to a window to the right. It has the blinds drawn down. She opens a hole in the blinds by pulling down in the middle. It is dark outside. The other two are outside the frame to the left.]
:Science Girl (off panel): The baking soda supervolcano erupts, injecting clouds of salt into the stratosphere.
:Megan: Why is it getting dark outside?
:Science Girl (off panel): Learning is fun!

:[We see Science Girl standing close to the table, of which only the right leg can be seen. She holds up a tablet with a graph showing a rising trend. The other two are both out of the frame.]
:Science Girl: Sunlight dims. The earth cools. Summer frosts form. Crops die. We check the markets. Grain prices are rising.
:Megan (off panel): I want to stop learning now.
:Science Girl: Soon, we all will.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Science Girl]]
[[Category:Science]]
[[Category:Geography]]

29: Hitler

2017-01-20T16:23:05Z

162.158.79.227: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 29
| date = November 11, 2005
| title = Hitler
| image = hitler.jpg
| titletext = So he's saying that God thought Hitler's art was so bad that the Holocaust was an acceptable alternative. It's no secret that the hat guy is closely based on Aram, from Men in Hats.
}}

==Explanation==
[[Cueball]] speaks to an early version of [[Black Hat]] (with more of a top hat than his later "boater" hat style) about the {{w|Holocaust}} and {{w|Adolf Hitler}}. Hitler was the leader of {{w|Nazi}} Germany beginning 1933 and starting {{w|World War II}} in 1939 by attacking Poland. During that war the Germans (under Hitler's leadership) killed millions of people; most of them were Jews, but other ethnic groups, homosexuals, and the mentally disabled were all targeted as well. This has come to be known as the Holocaust.

Black Hat's comment that Hitler wanted to be a painter, but did not get into art school is historically accurate. He applied to the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts twice. In any event, Cueball implies in the second frame that had Hitler been accepted into art school, the course of history might have changed and the Holocaust might never have occurred. Black Hat suggests that perhaps God intentionally prevented Hitler from becoming an artist because God is an "art lover" and {{w|Paintings_by_Adolf_Hitler|Hitler's art was terrible.}}

As with other early comics, the title text explains the comic for us: this implies that God would have preferred the Holocaust to have occurred rather than allow Hitler to make some bad paintings. Such a comment that God could be so callous would surely be offensive to many people. Cueball's reaction to this shocking statement is relatively mild and suggests that Black Hat has made such controversial statements before. He will make a similarly controversial and Nazi-related statement again in [[984: Space Launch System]].

The title text also informs the reader that Black Hat is based on a character named Aram from a now-defunct comic strip entitled [http://www.meninhats.com/ ''Men in Hats'']. In the original quote when this comic were posted on [[LiveJournal]] (see [[#Trivia|Trivia]]) [[Randall]] directed the user to a specific ''Men in Hats'' comic about [http://meninhats.com/d/20040225.html parenting]. Like Black Hat, Aram seems to have frequently made judgmental, insulting or controversial comments in a very emotionless manner. Aram wore a grey (perhaps intended to be black) suit with a red bowtie and a black top hat with white strip above the brim. Black Hat's hat clearly evolved from the top hat design later in xkcd.

This may be the comic where Black Hat truly comes into existence for the first time. He appears earlier in [[12: Poisson]], but that was actually first released more than a month later. Then there is also [[24: Godel, Escher, Kurt Halsey]], released a good month earlier. But here Black Hat does not really resemble his later appearances.

==Transcript==
:[Black Hat and Cueball are talking together in the same position in all four panels.]
:Cueball: Learning about the Holocaust has really shaken my belief in God.

:Black Hat: You know, as a young man, Hitler was rejected from art school.
:Cueball: Yeah... shame he didn't get in

:Black Hat: Well, have you seen any of his paintings? They're <u>awful</u>. Defy all rules of composition.
:Cueball: What are you suggesting?

:Black Hat: Maybe there <u>is</u> a god, but he's a real art lover.
:Cueball: This is why I don't go out in public with you.

==Trivia==
*This was the 31st comic originally posted to [[LiveJournal]].
**The previous was [[34: Flowers]].
**The next was [[28: Elefino]].
*Original title: "Friday's Drawing - Hitler"
*Original quote from [[Randall]]: "Yes, it's entirely possible that those two are [http://meninhats.com/d/20040225.html Aram and Gamal]."
**The link is to a specific comic from the comic ''Men in Hats''.
*This comic was posted on [[xkcd]] when the web site opened on Sunday the 1st of January 2006.
**It was posted along [[:Category:First day on xkcd|with all 41 comics]] posted before that on LiveJournal as well as a few others.
**The latter explaining why the numbers of these 41 LiveJournal comics ranges from 1-44.
*One of the original drawings drawn on [[:Category:Checkered paper|checkered paper]].

{{Comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics posted on livejournal| 31]]
[[Category:First day on xkcd]]
[[Category:Checkered paper]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hitler]]
[[Category:Religion]]