explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:2145: Heists And Escapes

2019-05-05T06:23:28Z

162.158.89.157:

The real-life battle of Alesia was appparently the opposite of Winterfell, insofar as where the "rattling" happens. [[Special:Contributions/198.41.230.244|198.41.230.244]] 21:37, 3 May 2019 (UTC)
:I think that title text theory it's also a reference to the [[wikipedia:Tommy_Westphall#The_Tommy_Westphall_Universe_Hypothesis|Tommy Westphall universe hypothesis]]. --[[User:Valepert|valepert]] ([[User talk:Valepert|talk]]) 21:48, 3 May 2019 (UTC)

I'm pretty sure that "Kevin McCallister's Subconscious" is an Inception reference. [[User:LegionMammal978|LegionMammal978]] ([[User talk:LegionMammal978|talk]]) 22:44, 3 May 2019 (UTC)
: I've out of reflex hafe read that Kenny is dead, instead.[[User:Gunterkoenigsmann|Gunterkoenigsmann]] ([[User talk:Gunterkoenigsmann|talk]]) 05:08, 4 May 2019 (UTC)
:"Kevin McCallister" is the name of the lead character in the Home Alone movies, played by Macaulay Culkin.
:[[User:ProphetZarquon|ProphetZarquon]] ([[User talk:ProphetZarquon|talk]]) 17:21, 4 May 2019 (UTC)

I'm guessing that Randall also watches Game of Thrones. Also should we add a GoT or ASoIaF category? It's been referenced in several comics in the past. [[User:Herobrine|Herobrine]] ([[User talk:Herobrine|talk]]) 00:32, 4 May 2019 (UTC)
:Yes please?
:[[User:ProphetZarquon|ProphetZarquon]] ([[User talk:ProphetZarquon|talk]]) 17:16, 4 May 2019 (UTC)

inb4 crazy anti-semitic conspiracy theorist vandalises the page [[User:RandomIsocahedron|RandomIsocahedron]] ([[User talk:RandomIsocahedron|talk]]) 00:56, 4 May 2019 (UTC)
:For the most part he only vandalized comics related to space or science, there's no reason for him to vandalize this page. Besides he hasn't vandalized any pages recently either, I think he got tired of constantly having to type in a CAPTCHA to vandalize pages only to have it reverted almost instantly by us. [[User:Herobrine|Herobrine]] ([[User talk:Herobrine|talk]]) 01:50, 4 May 2019 (UTC)
::Can confirm, CAPTCHAs suck. {{unsigned ip|162.158.146.166}}

Dude, spoiler alert?! [[Special:Contributions/162.158.62.15|162.158.62.15]] 19:19, 4 May 2019 (UTC)

Anyone else get the feeling that Randall is taunting us explainxkcders with the last part of the title text on this one? [[Special:Contributions/172.68.133.54|172.68.133.54]] 21:43, 4 May 2019 (UTC)
:Maybe, but that kind of absurdist humour involving combining different stories is fairly common on xkcd. [[User:RandomIsocahedron|RandomIsocahedron]] ([[User talk:RandomIsocahedron|talk]]) 00:31, 5 May 2019 (UTC)

I would argue that the middle room at the battle of Winterfell is not necessarily the keep but just a reference to the castle of Winterfell as a whole.[[Special:Contributions/162.158.89.157|162.158.89.157]] 06:23, 5 May 2019 (UTC)

Talk:1891: Obsolete Technology

2017-09-19T18:13:19Z

162.158.89.157: Starfish Prime resulted in nuclear fireworks

Wasn't DOS still running behind Win95, and integrated into the OS similarly to the Linux shell? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.59.154|162.158.59.154]] 14:48, 18 September 2017 (UTC)
:Even worse than that. DOS was not "integrated" into Win95 or Win98, but Win95 and Win98 were built to run atop DOS. Windows NT did away with that dependency on DOS.--[[Special:Contributions/141.101.105.102|141.101.105.102]] 22:48, 18 September 2017 (UTC)
::Win Me were also built to run atop DOS. Win NT were considered server system, only later Win 2000 and Win XP brought NT-based Windows to home machines. -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 23:38, 18 September 2017 (UTC)
::Not quite. Windows NT was a concurrent line with the more mainstream 95/98/ME line (I think ME also was on top of DOS, but I never used it so I'm not sure). At the same timeline as those versions of Windows was Windows NT 4.0 and Windows 2000 (NT 5.0), and maybe NT 3.5 earlier than that. Windows 95 was originally supposed to only be a temporary stepping stone from DOS with Windows 3.11 to bring people over to NT, so they kept DOS as the underlying foundation of Windows (which was a good thing because power programs and high end games still used DOS, to avoid the resource suck that is Windows. Not being in Windows frees up processing power). But so many people liked and adopted 95 that they came out with a "sequel", 98. This two-lines idiocy ended rather with Windows XP in the early 2000s, which combined the two lines, having elements of the NT line - like the NTFS system for larger hard drives, literally "NT File System", which is still in use today - with elements of the 95 line - like removing and relaxing the restrictions that blocked certain programs and games from running in Windows NT in favour of greater system stability (my NT 4.0 computer crashed the least of every Windows I've ever run). [[User:NiceGuy1|NiceGuy1]] ([[User talk:NiceGuy1|talk]]) 04:27, 19 September 2017 (UTC)

This reminds me of this Raganwald article on Blub: [http://weblog.raganwald.com/2006/10/are-we-blub-programmers.html Are we blub programmers?] Adequate doesn't mean best for the job; this comic presents the other side of the coin, don't upgrade just for upgrade's sake. --[[User:Jgt|Jgt]] ([[User talk:Jgt|talk]]) 14:51, 18 September 2017 (UTC)

The computer doesn't look like an early PC from the MS-DOS era. Reminds me more of the previous generation: à so-called mini-computer or a terminal connected to a mainframe.
Zetfr 15:32, 18 September 2017 (UTC)

:You are right, but I think we should make allowances to the look as this is stated to be an 'industrial' computer. Sebastian --[[Special:Contributions/172.68.110.52|172.68.110.52]] 16:24, 18 September 2017 (UTC)

https://www.cpsc.gov/Safety-Education/Safety-Education-Centers/Fireworks has a link to the 2016 Fireworks Annual Report, which has some useful statistics on page 2, the executive summary.
--[[User:Ozmandias42|Ozmandias42]] ([[User talk:Ozmandias42|talk]]) 20:08, 18 September 2017 (UTC)

I just finished working on upgrading an industrial control system. In the plant's control rooms, the interfaces and terminals were relatively new, running Windows 7 Ultimate. However, the DBMs in the server room that managed the control network were running MS-DOS 6.22, and they still worked just fine. The client was only upgrading the system because the OEM no longer provided support or replacement components.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.11|108.162.238.11]] 21:44, 18 September 2017 (UTC)

What bothers me about old technology is that security updates stop while the rest of the world gains an ever-increasing exploit advantage over people connecting to the same Internet. Along with the risks to them, it's worse when compromised devices act as workhorses to leverage "millions of papercuts" against the rest of the system. [[User:Elvenivle|Elvenivle]] ([[User talk:Elvenivle|talk]]) 00:27, 19 September 2017 (UTC)

Hm, while it makes sense to stick to a DOS based system if nothing newer is required, the comparative of fireworks/nuclear weapons is incorrect. Upgrading those MSDOS systems to something newer (which could be just freedos) would perhaps incur on huge unnecessary expenses at most, while "upgrading" fireworks to nuclear energy would not only would make them far more expensive, it would make them far, far more dangerous and deadly. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.69.123|162.158.69.123]] 00:32, 19 September 2017 (UTC)

:What surprises me is that anything for which MS-DOS includes drivers would still be physically running after this long... in the comic scenario, they went 20 years without needing to replace key components? That said, for a lot of the older industrial systems, running something LIKE Dos, such as FREEDOS, or various custom boot environments which use DOS command formats, would probably make perfect sense. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.58.47|172.68.58.47]]

Neutrino beams would also mostly go straight through (without interacting with) any sort of detector you might wish to use to intercept the signal.[[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.233|141.101.99.233]] 07:39, 19 September 2017 (UTC)

141.101.99.233, there are neutrino detectors, and they have been used to detect artificially generated neutrinos. For an example from 1999, http://www.nytimes.com/1999/06/29/science/team-detects-neutrino-fired-through-earth-s-crust.html and more recently for communications at http://physicsworld.com/cws/article/news/2012/mar/19/neutrino-based-communication-is-a-first . The problem is partially the cost, but market traders would pay a lot to get a small speedup in communications from, say, NYC to London. The bigger problem is the bandwidth and latency. The experiment in the second link has a bandwidth of less than 1 bit per second. You can send a lot of data around the world in less than a second.

I still use MS-DOS. Unless there's an easier way to get a list of all the files in a folder in text file format. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.155.62|162.158.155.62]] 09:25, 19 September 2017 (UTC)
: Is that a joke? Is that a real question? In Windows 10; Win Key, type "command line", press enter to open Command Line. Type "CD <Address>" and press enter, where address is desired address. You can also right-click the address bar of any File Explorer location and choose Copy Address As Text, and just paste it into the address bar. Then type "dir > list.txt". DONE. If you want to trim out the extra information so that it's literally just a list of files with no extra information, like if you want to plug it into a program to process those files, use "dir /b > list.txt". Windows 10 doesn't have DOS. It still supports all the usual basic command line stuff. The ''hardest part'' about doing this in Windows 10 ''is having to install Windows 10''. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.2.106|162.158.2.106]] 11:21, 19 September 2017 (UTC)

Chernobyl and Fukushima were nuclear reactor meltdowns, not nuclear explosions. Also I think three citation needed-jokes in one explanation is too much and not fun anymore. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.238.29|162.158.238.29]] 09:38, 19 September 2017 (UTC)
:I wholeheartedly agree. I've become tired of the general overuse of that joke in explainxkcd. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.79.143|162.158.79.143]] 13:55, 19 September 2017 (UTC)
:I agree. I am usually a fan of well placed "citation needed" jokes, but not only are these three to rapidly following each other, they also don't fit the usual joke as the statements they acompany can - in my oppinion - be reasonably challenged. Would nuclear fireworks really necasarily cause larger, immediately lethal explosions? Couldn't one build a tiny nuke suitable for a firework? (And with that statement I will probably find myself on a no-fly list)[[Special:Contributions/162.158.89.199|162.158.89.199]] 13:56, 19 September 2017 (UTC)

"Real-world fax detractors would rather replace it with other electronic communication systems, not neutronic ones." Wouldn't neuTRONic systems use neuTRONs? Would these be neutrinic, neutrinoic? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.79.143|162.158.79.143]] 13:55, 19 September 2017 (UTC)

"Would nuclear fireworks really necasarily cause larger, immediately lethal explosions?" asked 162.158.89.199. No. Starfish Prime, described in "A Very Scary Light Show: Exploding H-Bombs In Space" at http://www.npr.org/sections/krulwich/2010/07/01/128170775/a-very-scary-light-show-exploding-h-bombs-in-space .

54: Science

2017-04-10T06:16:42Z

162.158.89.157: /* Official T-shirt explanation */

{{comic
| number = 54
| date = January 18, 2006
| title = Science
| image = science.jpg
| titletext = Bonus points if you can identify the science in question
}}

==Explanation==
The solid line represents the theoretical {{w|blackbody radiation|radiation for a blackbody}} at 2.73 K according to {{w|Planck's Law}} (derived as early as 1900 by {{w|Max Planck}}). The formula, almost as written in the graph, can be found {{w|Black-body radiation#Planck's law of black-body radiation|here}}. The only changes are that on Wikipedia, the frequency f is represented by the Greek letter ν (nu) and the temperature T is included as an independent variable, so I(f) becomes I(v,T). However, I(v,T) still represents the {{w|Radiance#Spectral radiance|spectral radiance}} (similar to energy density). In this formula, h is the Planck constant, c is the speed of light in a vacuum and k is the Boltzmann constant. The frequency (f or v) along the X-axis is measured in {{w|GHz}} (Giga (or billion) Herz). The curve peaks at 160.4 GHz. There is no scale or unit on the {{w|energy density}} on the Y-axis.

The theory is that the blackbody in question was in fact the universe at the point when it had cooled down enough {{w|Decoupling (cosmology)|to allow photons to escape}}, {{w|Chronology of the universe|0.38 million years}} into the universe's {{w|Big Bang|13.8 billion years}} history. The photons that reach us today are the ones that have been travelling to us at lightspeed since then. As the light from astronomical objects suffers from {{w|redshift}} due to the expansion of the universe, and this shift becomes more pronounced with distance from the observer, this light displays in the infrared range.

The title text praises viewers who can identify where this equation and corresponding graph come from (without consulting this wiki, of course).

===Official T-shirt explanation===
This comic was made into a T-shirt. [http://store-xkcd-com.myshopify.com/products/science-works xkcd stores].

On the xkcd store there is both an '''explanation for the title:'''

Science: We finally figured out that you could separate fact from superstition by a completely radical method: observation. You can try things, measure them, and see how they work! {{w|Bitch (insult)|Bitches}}.


And specifically an '''explanation for the graph:'''

The graph on the back of the shirt is data from the {{w|COBE|COBE mission}} which looked at the background microwave glow of the universe and found that it fit perfectly with the idea that the universe used to be really hot everywhere. This strongly reinforced the Big Bang theory and was one of the most dramatic examples of an experiment agreeing with a theory in history -- the data points fit perfectly, with error bars too small to draw on the graph. It's one of the most triumphant scientific results in history.


The above is a direct copy paste, with errors. The current wiki page of the COBE mission can be found at {{w|Cosmic Background Explorer|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosmic_Background_Explorer}}

==Transcript==
:[A graph with a curve that begins at zero, then peaks at a given frequency, indicated via a thin vertical line, and then fades down towards zero. It is possible to see the data point, which the curve fits perfectly. The Y-axis is labeled. Along the X-axis the zero point and the frequency where the peak has its maximum are labeled and close to the arrow the unit of this axis is written.]
:Y-axis: Energy Density
:Along the X-axis:
::0
::160.4
::GHz
:[Above the graph to the right is the following formula, with the last inner parentheses only included to make the formula clear, since in the drawing the fractions are written above and below horizontal lines:]
:I(f) = (2hf3/c2)(1/(ehf/kT-1))
:[Below the graph is written the following:]
:'''Science.'''
:It works, bitches.

==Trivia==
*This was the 48th comic originally posted to [[LiveJournal]].
**The previous was [[50: Penny Arcade]].
**The next was [[51: Malaria]].
*This comic kept its original title: "Science"
**It is part of the last six comics on LiveJournal which all had a title without the word "Drawing" in it.
**Five of these had exactly the same title on both sites.
**Only 11 comics have the same title on both sites.
**Apart from the [[:Category:First day on LiveJournal|thirteen first comics]] posted to LiveJournal, there were only three other comics without the word "Drawing" in the title before these last six.
*Original [[Randall]] quote: "Bonus points if you can identify the science in question."
**Only difference between this and the title text on xkcd is the last period: "."
**It was rare that these two texts were so similar.
*This comic was one of the last 11 comics posted on LiveJournal.
**These 11 comics were [[:Category:Posted on LiveJournal after xkcd|posted both on LiveJournal and xkcd]] after the [[xkcd]] site opened on the 1st of January 2006.
**The first six comics were posted on both sites on the same day. But not this one.
*For some reason this comic was first posted a week later on xkcd (25 January 2006), on the day that [[53: Hobby]] was released on LiveJournal.
**On the day 54: Science was released on LiveJournal (18 January 2006), another comic ([[51: Malaria]]) was released on xkcd.
**[[51: Malaria]] also became the next comic released on LiveJournal, but this meant that three comics in a row were posted a release day earlier on xkcd than on LiveJournal.
**Only with the last comic released on LiveJournal, [[55: Useless]], did the two sites release the same comic on the same day again.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics posted on livejournal| 48]]
[[Category:Posted on LiveJournal after xkcd]]
[[Category:Line graphs]]
[[Category:Math]]
[[Category:Physics]]
[[Category:Science]]