explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:2772: Commemorative Plaque

2023-05-07T01:12:26Z

172.68.210.5:

Any bets on how many copies of this plaque people send him? [[User:Jordan Brown|Jordan Brown]] ([[User talk:Jordan Brown|talk]]) 00:25, 6 May 2023 (UTC)

I do not understand the plaque... If the test is correct, shouldn't there be an order button for not that expensive commemorative plaques on xkcd.com/2772? Questions over questions...[[User:Tier666|Tier666]] ([[User talk:Tier666|talk]]) 07:31, 6 May 2023 (UTC)

Because it's vague, not worth an Explain expansion, but I'm wondering how much of the intervening week was delivery time of the original plaque (assuming the "lesson learnt" moment was the instant the original plaque was ordered, as it was too late on receipt to then ''make'' the claim of the achievement appear upon it). And it sounds like the plaquer had the bits handy (standard "202 different bits, screwdriver heads, sockets and related hardware"-type everyman-handyman accessory kit that you might get 'because why not?'/’it was marked as a deal!' on one visit to the hardware depot) but just had never (properly?) used the whole masonry set in anger, until now. And I don't discount the possibility that the second plaque was ordered to place over some initial ill-drilled holes from the first attempt at mounting (either done without regard to where further holes would need to align to the mortar bonds and courses, or an attempted to take advantage of that but badly), making the announcement of the second 'triumphant' occasion instrumental in legitimately masking the evidence of the learning process that led up to it. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.86.154|172.70.86.154]] 08:48, 6 May 2023 (UTC)

I wonder if that's an oblique reference to the commemorative plaque Dieter Meier [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dieter_Meier#Artist had had installed at the Kassel railway station in 1972] that announced him standing there 22 years later? [[Special:Contributions/172.68.51.141|172.68.51.141]] 11:22, 6 May 2023 (UTC)

In Denmark we celebrate the {{w|Denmark_in_World_War_II#Legacy|liberation from the Germans}} at the end of WW2 on [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denmark_in_World_War_II#/media/File:Danmarks_Befrielse,_Sdr_Hygum.jpg May 5th 1945]. And later also my birthday ;-) --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 12:08, 6 May 2023 (UTC)

A bit of time paradox here. . . . . If he didn't figure out how to use a masonry drill until 12 May, then the top plaque couldn't have been installed before then. And the lower plaque would have been ordered, delivered and installed sometime after 12 May. Can we expect a third plaque commemmorating the mounting of the first and second? If so, when? [[Special:Contributions/172.68.210.5|172.68.210.5]] 01:12, 7 May 2023 (UTC) Beechmere

Talk:2751: March Madness

2023-03-18T00:46:24Z

172.68.210.5: /* Difficult */ signing it

== Difficult ==

An hour, and still no explanation. Is this harder to get than usual, or is it just me?

Left top two are march [word], next two are [word] of march, bottom left section all reference Seventy-Six Trombones, which is apparently a common song for marching bands. Top right section is March of the [word], and bottom right is [word] March. [[User:NyanSequitur|NyanSequitur]] ([[User talk:NyanSequitur|talk]]) 19:15, 17 March 2023 (UTC)

Well I was going to say something, but now I find myself doubting my ability to find patterns and understand references. This man is on another level. [[User:Toriski3037|Toriski3037]] ([[User talk:Toriski3037|talk]]) 19:29, 17 March 2023 (UTC)

Not confident enough to edit the actual article directly, but I can get the gist of these references:

:- March Madness (NCAA Basketball Tournament)
:- March Hare ("Mad as a march hare" being a common idiom in English, and the March Hare being a 'mad' character in Alice in Wonderland)
:- Middlemarch (novel by George Eliot)
:- Ides of March (March 15th, aka Julius Caesar Assassination Day)
:- aforementioned "Seventy-Six Trombones" references - the first three lines, followed by an impressive option later in the lyrics
::- "Seventy-six trombones led the big parade"
::- "with a hundred and ten cornets right behind"
::- "there were more than a thousand reeds springing up like weeds"
::- "there were fifty mounted cannon in the battery/ thundering, thundering, louder than before"
::- (possibly worth noting: the first version of the song ends with "the kids began to march/ and they're marching still, right today!" - it was a pain to confirm this, since the reprise of the song is much easier to find)
::- (also worth noting for the title text: the song is introduced with the character claiming that the 76 trombone parade was from the day when several historical notables, culminating in "John Philip Sousa", "all came to town on the very same historic day")
:- March of the Dimes (charity)
:- March of the Toy Soldiers (musical piece from Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker)
:- March of the Ents (from Lord of the Rings)
:- March of the Penguins (documentary about emperor penguins, narrated by Morgan Freeman, also relevant to title text)
:- Wedding March (musical piece - per Wikipedia, the "here comes the bride" piece which I thought of is actually the "Bridal Chorus" from Wagner's Lohengrin; the most famous Wedding March is from Felix Mendelssohn's Midsummer Night's Dream, used more commonly at the end of weddings)
:- Funeral March (musical piece - most famous version is Chopin's)
:- Imperial March (musical piece by John Williams for Star Wars)
:- Nissan March (model of car; Nissan is also the official sponsor of March Madness)

Hopefully this will help someone look up properly cited references! [[Special:Contributions/172.70.134.144|172.70.134.144]] 19:53, 17 March 2023 (UTC)

I hope the previous contributor doesn't mind that I tidied up their layout. I hope the ExplainXKCD Police don't object to the way I did that. :) [[Special:Contributions/172.68.210.5|172.68.210.5]] 00:46, 18 March 2023 (UTC)

2751: March Madness

2023-03-18T00:33:32Z

172.68.210.5: /* Explanation */ Expand 'March Hare' explanation to include natural phenomenon on which the Carroll character is based.

{{comic
| number = 2751
| date = March 17, 2023
| title = March Madness
| image = march_madness_2x.png
| imagesize = 593x333px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = My bracket has 76 trombones led by John Philip Sousa facing off against thousands of emperor penguins led by Morgan Freeman.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a PENGUIN OVERLORD - Do we need a chart? - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

[[Randall]] has created [[:Category:Tournament bracket|yet another]] {{w|Tournament bracket|single-elimination tournament bracket}}. This time, everything in the bracket relates to the word March. The first section has things that are named after March.

{{w|NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament|March Madness}} is a college basketball tournament played each spring in the US.

{{w|Mad as a March hare|March Hare}} refers to the observed unusual behaviour of the European hare said to occur during its breeeding season, which peaks in March in Europe. Lewis Carroll comically used the phrase as the name of a {{w|March Hare|'mad' character}} in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

{{w|Middlemarch|Middlemarch}}, A Study of Provincial Life is a novel by the English author George Eliot.

{{w|Ides of March|The Ides of March}}, is the 74th day of the Roman Calendar, corresponding to March 15th, and is notorious for being the date {{w|Assassination of Julius Caesar|Julius Caesar was assassinated}}.

The Lower left quadrant all refers to {{w|Seventy-Six Trombones|Seventy-Six Trombones}}, which is a song from the 1957 musical "The Music Man," about the instruments in an imagined parade. ("March" is another word for "parade.") The [https://genius.com/Meredith-willson-seventy-six-trombones-lyrics opening line] of that song states that "76 trombones led the big parade, with 110 cornets close behind." Later in the song the lyrics "there were more than a thousand reeds springing up like weeds" and "there were fifty mounted cannon in the battery" inspire the next match up.

{{w|March of Dimes|March of Dimes}} is a charity program advocating for moms and babies.

{{w|March of the Toy Soldiers|March of the Toy Soldiers}} is a musical piece from Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite.

{{w|Ent|The Last March of the Ents}} is a scene in the Lord of the Rings: The Two towers, where ents, fictional treelike creatures, march against Isengard.

{{w|March of the Penguins|March of the Penguins}} is a 2005 nature documentary directed by Luc Jacquet.

Wedding March may refer to {{w|Wedding March (Mendelssohn)|Felix Mendelssohn's musical composition in C Major}}, or as a more general description of a bridal chorus as the bride enters a wedding.

{{w|Funeral March|Funeral March}} is a musical genre, usually in a minor key, in a slow "simple duple" metre, imitating the solemn pace of a funeral procession.

{{w|The Imperial March|The Imperial March}} is a theme from Star Wars which often plays when characters from the empire, particularly large batches of storm troopers, are on screen.

{{w|Nissan Micra|The Nissan March}} is a supermini car produced in Japan.

In the alt text, Randall claims his bracket has 76 trombones being led by Sousa (a famous bandleader; the lead character in "The Music Man" claims that he led the supposed parade) against the March of the Penguins, led by Morgan Freeman (who narrated the English release of the film).

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

:[A tournament bracket tree is shown with 16 competitors, 8 on the left and 8 on the right side]

:[Left side:]
:Madness
:Hare

:Middle
:Ides

:76 Trombones
:110 Cornets

:1000+ Reeds
:50 Mounted Cannon

:[Right side:]
:Dimes
:Toy Soldiers

:Ents
:Penguins

:Wedding
:Funeral

:Imperial
:Nissan

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Tournament bracket]]

2750: Flatten the Planets

2023-03-17T23:46:41Z

172.68.210.5: /* Transcript */ 'roller' --> 'rolling' pin

{{comic
| number = 2750
| date = March 15, 2023
| title = Flatten the Planets
| image = flatten_the_planets_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x647px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = We'll turn the asteroid belt into ball bearings to go between different rings orbiting at different speeds.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a ROUNDEL. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

This comic depicts a situation where the planets in the solar system are flattened to create a ring system around the Sun. This may be inspired by the {{w|Alderson disk}}, a hypothetical megastructure intended to gain truly massive amounts of living space by constructing a literal disk of matter around a star. This would require several solar systems' worth of matter to do, and materials with a tensile strength beyond what is likely physically possible for any known form of matter.{{Citation needed}} The planets of our solar system would not be suitable for this endeavor; alas, Randall apparently cannot comprehend why {{w|NASA}} is rejecting this proposal to "improve" the planets.

{| class="wikitable"
! rowspan="2" | Planet
! colspan="2" | Thickness
|-
!Inches
!Millimeters
|-
| Mercury || 1/8" || 3.2 mm
|-
| Venus || 1" || 25 mm
|-
| Earth || 3/4" || 19 mm
|-
| Mars || 0.01" || 0.25 mm
|-
| Jupiter || 18" || 460 mm
|-
| Saturn || 3" || 76 mm
|-
| Uranus || 1/8" || 3.2 mm
|-
| Neptune || 1/16" || 1.6 mm
|}

The title text explains what would happen to the asteroid belt if this was done. He is proposing that the asteroids should be turned into ball bearings to go in between the planetary discs. There is enough matter in the asteroid belt to do this,{{Actual citation needed|Surely depends upon the size and radial density of the inserted race of bearings}} and furthermore it implies that the discs would actually have small gaps between them. Unless the discs were made of material with impossibly high tensile strength, the whole structure would soon be torn apart by the relative forces between the inner and outer fringes of each disc trying to both 'orbit' at the rate more suited to a radial distance somewhere between the two, and crushing the bearings placed between adjacent ones. Although less so than with a single structural disc rotating at any single given compromise rotation (or not at all).

==Transcript==
:[This comic depicts a situation where the planets of the Solar System are flattened using a roller pin to create a contiguous ring system around the Sun, with each planet taking up the part within their orbit to the next planet (or the Sun).]

:[The top part shows a normal image of the Solar System with the eight planets orbiting the Sun, and their orbits shown as circles. The Sun is yellow and the planets have approximately the color they typically are shown in. Earth has more features than the other three rocky planets. Jupiter has clear features including the red spot, while Saturn has its rings. Beneath this is a broad arrow pointing down.]
:↓
:[The arrow points to a rolling pin. A similar arrow points down to the next image.]
:↓
:[The second large image shows the Solar System with the planets flattened to fill out the gap between the Sun and each of the planets, so they each cover the area of the circle within their orbits, into the next planet (or the Sun). Each segment has kept a similar color as used for the planets in the first image. The Sun is not flattened and is now the center of a huge ring with eight different colors, some with patterns, mainly Earth, but also Jupiter and Saturn's discs show features.]

:[Beneath this to the right is a side view of the flattened Earth, with its thickness indicated with two arrows pointing in at the top and up at the bottom of two dotted lines continuing where the "Earth" stops. A label has been written between these two lines, and the thickness is compared to US quarter and penny coins.]
:Earth
:3/4"

:[Below this and going all the way across the panel is a side view with a segment of the Sun to the left followed by all the flattened planets, labeled with their name and their thicknesses. Arrows point to the relevant segment from the three rocky planets other than Earth. Above Jupiter and Saturn is a label between two arrows. Text alternates between being above and below the planets. Their thicknesses differ quite a lot, with Mars being the thinnest and Jupiter by far the thickest. Cueball stands on the flattened Earth.]
:← Not to scale →
:Mercury 1/8"
:Venus: 1"
:Earth 3/4"
:Mars 250 microns
:Jupiter 18"
:Saturn 3"
:Uranus 1/8"
:Neptune 1/16"

:[Caption below the panel:]
:I don't know why NASA keeps rejecting my proposals to improve the Solar System

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Space]]

Talk:2732: Bursa of Fabricius

2023-02-03T00:26:03Z

172.68.210.5:

One of the reasons for the success of humans is that the tools of humans do not depend on the structure and strength of the human body. Using fire as an example, a single person with a fire stick can burn down an entire forest in a matter of hours. Fire is not limited by the person who started it. The same goes for any other tool we make. ~ [[user:megan|Megan]] she/her [[user talk:megan|talk]] [[special:contribs/megan|contribs]] 18:35, 1 February 2023 (UTC)

Here's the wiki for Bursa of Frabricius: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bursa_of_Fabricius 
And the wiki for Hieronymus Fabricius: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hieronymus_Fabricius [[User:Mr. I|Mr. I]] ([[User talk:Mr. I|talk]]) 18:51, 1 February 2023 (UTC)

So ''that's'' why I can't find the Gräfenberg spot! [[User:LunarNapolean|LunarNapolean]] ([[User talk:LunarNapolean|talk]]) 20:34, 1 February 2023 (UTC)
:Perhaps you should have met {{w|R. G. Waldeck|Frau Gräfenberg}}? [[Special:Contributions/172.70.85.96|172.70.85.96]] 22:10, 1 February 2023 (UTC)

At first I thought the top character was swinging on a rope like in https://xkcd.com/208/, but now I see he's actually flying. So is he supposed to be Fabricius? [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 22:15, 1 February 2023 (UTC)
:Yes - seems kind of obvious given that the comic is about the fact that Fabricius could fly... ;-) --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 08:02, 2 February 2023 (UTC)

Perhaps the presence of the organ in avian dinosaurs prevented their demise after the asteroid. [[User:KingPenguin|KingPenguin]] ([[User talk:KingPenguin|talk]]) 23:33, 1 February 2023 (UTC)

omg return of safari hat guy from [[603]]!! [[Special:Contributions/172.69.67.54|172.69.67.54]] 00:44, 2 February 2023 (UTC)Bumpf
:Uhm no. Not drawn the same way at all. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 08:02, 2 February 2023 (UTC)

Adam's apple is named for the legend that a piece of forbidden fruit was stuck in the biblical Adam's throat. I guess you could call him the discoverer, but that's a stretch. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.35.49|172.68.35.49]] 06:21, 2 February 2023 (UTC)
:'Adam's Apple' isn't named after its 'discoverer', but after the Biblical Adam, because it resembles having a piece of the 'forbidden fruit' stuck in one's throat. The earliest use of the name occurs in a 1662 English translation of Thomas Bartholin's 1651 work 'Anatomia', but the Latin phrase translated, 'pomum Adami', had been in use in medical texts across Europe from at least 1600AD.
[[Special:Contributions/172.69.79.159|172.69.79.159]] 06:31, 2 February 2023 (UTC)
::Yes the start of the explanation makes no sense at all. Will rewrite --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 08:02, 2 February 2023 (UTC)

"Sometimes, anatomical sections are named after their first discoverer in a similar fashion: Broca's area, Adam's apple, Achille's tendon, and so on." 
Broca's area, yes. Adam's apple, as per above, refers to a Biblical story, Achilles tendon (not "Achille's tendon") refers to the Illiad. Terrible, terrible examples. [[Special:Contributions/172.71.94.139|172.71.94.139]] 06:33, 2 February 2023 (UTC)
:No the entire top section is BS. Also it has nothing to do with gaming. Will delete any ref to that and rewrite. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 08:02, 2 February 2023 (UTC)

So was Paul Langerhans the only resident of his own private archipelago, the islets of Langerhans? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pancreatic_islets[[Special:Contributions/162.158.79.193|162.158.79.193]] 19:10, 2 February 2023 (UTC)

Should we a link to the list of lots of parts. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_human_anatomical_parts_named_after_people

Talk:2707: Astronomy Numbers

2022-12-06T08:23:47Z

172.68.210.5: Oops.

First time I've ever seen a completely blank page. [[User:IJustWantToEditStuff|IJustWantToEditStuff]] ([[User talk:IJustWantToEditStuff|talk]]) 20:27, 5 December 2022 (UTC)
:Everyone's enthralled by ChatGPT. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.22.35|172.69.22.35]] 04:01, 6 December 2022 (UTC)

It's also notable that something weighting 12 solar masses will collapse into black hole on it's own, unless it resist collapse through thermal pressure like stars. -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 21:26, 5 December 2022 (UTC)

The Earth moves relative to the sun at 66,000 MPH. In what frame of reference is it 65 MPH? It isn't like Randall to get a number wrong. Maybe the magnitude of the distance from Earth to Sun changes at a closer rate, but even this is nearly 180 MPH if I'm calculating correctly. [[User:Mannerisky|Mannerisky]] ([[User talk:Mannerisky|talk]]) 21:37, 5 December 2022 (UTC)
: You're thinking orbital speed, she's talking orbital oscillation. That is, the speed at which the distance between earth and sun changes. [[Special:Contributions/198.41.242.240|198.41.242.240]] 21:51, 5 December 2022 (UTC) ADDITION: Orbital oscillation has both a mean/average factor and a current factor (which is at it slowest while at the apsides, and given the context the one being calculated) [[Special:Contributions/198.41.242.85|198.41.242.85]] 22:46, 5 December 2022 (UTC)

I get the sense that the thing that they're planning for January 1st is a precisely-timed new year's party and nothing to do with space exploration. {{unsigned|172.71.242.156}}

Someone removed my interpretation of the title text because "nobody else thinks the title text means [referring to astronomers using laser pointers to point at a distant star]" - so I'll democratize it: does anyone else think my interpretation holds water? I'm happy to remove it if nobody else thinks it makes any sense, but honestly it's the only thing that I initially thought he meant. I mean, he's got a bit of a history in astrophysics and definitely has been to a few star parties with astronomers pointing at Betelgeuse and Polaris and whatnot. I think it'd be odd if that wasn't in mind at all writing that title text. What do you guys think? [[Special:Contributions/172.70.214.150|172.70.214.150]] 06:45, 6 December 2022 (UTC)

; Obligatory ChatGPT explanation

:'''Me:''' The following is a transcript from the latest xkcd comic. Please write an explanation of the comic: ''[transcript copied verbatim from [https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=2707:_Astronomy_Numbers&oldid=300614#Transcript its current state] omitted]''

:'''[https://chat.openai.com/chat ChatGPT:]''' In the xkcd comic, Ponytail and Cueball are discussing Earth's orbit around the sun. Ponytail notes that Earth will be approaching the sun at a rate of 65 miles per hour on January 1st. Cueball responds, "Weird?" Ponytail explains that they usually see only complex and incomprehensible numbers in astronomy, and seeing a "normal" number like 65 miles per hour feels wrong to them. This reflects the common perception that numbers in the sciences, especially astronomy, are often complex and difficult to understand. Earlier in the comic, Ponytail also expresses skepticism at a "normal" number when Megan in coat tells them that their cat weighs 12 lbs. Ponytail suggests that it must actually weigh either 10-20 or 1040 instead. Megan responds by saying that the cat's weight is actually 3x10-30 solar masses, which Ponytail finds more acceptable.

I wish superscipts would survive copy-paste, but I have to admit it's better than the esoterica-laden verbosity that's up now.

:[Take two, using the prompt prefix, "The following is the wikitext transcript from the latest xkcd comic. Please write an explanation of the comic in wikitext. The title text should be explained in a seperate paragraph at the end:"

::'''ChatGPT:''' In the latest xkcd comic, two characters are discussing an elliptical orbit and the rate at which Earth is approaching the sun. One character, Ponytail, is suspicious when she sees a normal number (65 miles per hour) in their calculations and suggests that scales in astronomy should all be incomprehensible. This is a reference to the fact that astronomical numbers are often very large or very small, and can be difficult for non-astronomers to comprehend.

::Earlier in the comic, Ponytail is at the vet with her cat, and the vet tells her that the cat weighs 12 lbs. Ponytail finds this ridiculous, as nothing weighs 12. She suggests that the cat must weigh 10-20 or 1040 instead. The vet then tells her that the cat weighs 3x10-30 solar masses, which Ponytail finds more acceptable.

::The title text jokes about adopting a cat that weighs 12 solar masses, which would be extremely large. Laser pointers would love chasing it, as it would be an impressive target.

:Meh.]

I propose we create a [https://beta.openai.com/examples/default-summarize bot to summarize the transcript] with the text-davinci-003 API and paste it into the top of discussion whenever the Transcript is expanded more than 10%. Yays and nays? [[Special:Contributions/172.71.154.39|172.71.154.39]] 03:55, 6 December 2022 (UTC)
:'''Yea.''' Both have a few serious but easily noticed and easily correctable flaws, but both are far better than the borderline-trolling six paragraph wall of text for the simple, silly joke we have at the moment. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.33.245|172.69.33.245]] 06:09, 6 December 2022 (UTC)

Why is it as big as 65 mph? Where did the 65 mph figure have come from? A formula? Taking a linear change from minimum velocity (-500 m/s 12 weeks earlier), 4 days before the perihelion gives 86 kph (53 mph), three days gives just 64 kph (40 mph). But those are surely too big, since the rate of change of radial velocity would be slowest around perihelion and aphelion. I wouldn't expect the above-calculated rate of change until weeks out from perihelion. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.210.5|172.68.210.5]] 08:23, 6 December 2022 (UTC)