explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:2856: Materials Scientists

2023-11-18T08:29:15Z

172.70.130.91:

It isn't "amarid", it's "[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aramid aramid]"... -- [[User:Dtgriscom|Dtgriscom]] ([[User talk:Dtgriscom|talk]]) 03:03, 18 November 2023 (UTC)

Damn, I'd love some gift wrap like that, it sounds fascinating, and I'm not even a materials scientist. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.130.91|172.70.130.91]] 08:29, 18 November 2023 (UTC)

2652: Proxy Variable

2022-07-30T02:28:00Z

172.70.130.91: Undo revision 291141 by 172.71.150.11 (talk)

{{comic
| number = 2652
| date = July 29, 2022
| title = Proxy Variable
| image = proxy_variable.png
| titletext = Our work has produced great answers. Now someone just needs to figure out which questions they go with.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a PROXY BOT IN NO WAY CORRELATED WITH THE ORIGINAL BOT - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

first

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

{{comic discussion}}

2652: Proxy Variable

2022-07-30T02:27:38Z

172.70.130.91: Undo revision 291142 by 172.71.150.11 (talk)

{{comic
| number = 2652
| date = July 29, 2022
| title = RIP HARAMBE MY NIGGER I LOVED YOU SO MUCH
| image = Male_gorilla_in_SF_zoo.jpg
| titletext = RIP TO A LEGEND
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a PROXY BOT IN NO WAY CORRELATED WITH THE ORIGINAL BOT - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

first

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

{{comic discussion}}

2646: Minkowski Space

2022-07-26T14:53:43Z

172.70.130.91: Corrected title

{{comic
| number = 2646
| date = July 15, 2022
| title = Minkowski Space
| image = minkowski_space.png
| titletext = My liege, we were able to follow the ship into Minkowski space, but now they've jumped to Hilbert space and they could honestly be anywhere.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by A RELATIVISTIC QUANTUM STATE - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

{{w|Faster than light travel}}, an impossibility in our universe, is often portrayed in science fiction by having spaceships enter (or "jump") into some different realm, termed "hyperspace" or similar {{w|technobabble}}, where superluminal travel can occur before returning to the ordinary universe. In this comic, a spaceship is being chased by an enemy ship and the crew attempt to escape by jumping into {{w|Minkowski space}} which is actually just conventional 3-D space together with time combined into a mathematical object called a {{w|manifold}} used in {{w|special relativity}}. Because Minkowski space is merely a representation of real physical {{w|spacetime}}, "jumping" into it is meaningless and offers no benefit for escaping pursuit, providing the humor of the comic's absurdist joke.

The visual depiction of the spaceships skewed diagonally is based on the graphical {{w|Minkowski diagram}} representation of objects in Minkowski space, where the {{w|world line}} of matter is bounded inside its diagonal {{w|light cone}}.

The mention of distance depending on the observer's frame of reference refers to distances changing when measured in different {{w|inertial frame of reference|inertial frames of reference}}, a concept called the {{w|relativity of simultaneity}}. Here are [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asW78vToNLQ some videos] intended [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xrqj88zQZJg to explain] that concept. The skewing depicted changes the distance between the spaceships in such a way that the tip of the pursuer comes closer to the pursued spaceship, but their centers move further apart. So the question of whether they have come closer is indeterminate for the reader of the comic.

The title text is a status report from someone in the pursuing spaceship to their leader (whom they call "my {{w|Homage (feudal)|liege}}.") Following the spaceship to Minkowski space was not a problem, but the pursued ship subsequently jumped to Hilbert space and could now be anywhere. Hiding in {{w|Hilbert space}} is much easier because Hilbert spaces (of which there are many very different varieties, unlike Minkowski space) can have an infinite number of dimensions, and are thus much more complicated than four-dimensional Minkowski spacetime. However, Hilbert space is a mathematical construct used to describe objects such as functions of various parameters and complexity, not physical spatiotemporal reality, so it would be very unusual for a physical object to be represented in Hilbert space. Quantum states can be represented as vectors in Hilbert spaces, so it might relate to the {{w|uncertainty principle}} concerning how the escaped spaceship could be anywhere.

As in the [[2577:_Sea_Chase|Sea Chase]] comic, there was also more than one type of space to jump to here.

==Transcript==
:[A spaceship is being pursued by another spaceship. Both ships have a black part in the front representing a window. They are the same size but different designs. The pursued spaceship to the right has two engines below and a big engine behind. The pursuing spaceship to the left has a V-shaped rear end, and what seems like two weapons on either side pointing forward. At least two persons inside the pursued spaceship are talking to each other, and their text comes out from two starburst on top and bottom of the spaceship.]
:Voice 1: The enemy ship is right behind us!
:Voice 2: Prepare to jump to Minkowski space on my mark.

:[Same setting, with star burst above only. The sound coming from the pursued spaceship is written inside a burst of small lines below the spaceship. Voice 2, by context, is the same as in panel 1.]
:Voice 2: Three... two... one... ''mark!''
:Click

:[Both spaceship are tilted upwards and becomes distorted so they become longer and thinner.]

:[The tilting increases and the distortion is now so pronounced that the spaceships are almost unrecognizable, almost just lines with structure. The distance between the tip of the pursuing spaceship and the pursued becomes shorter in the last two panels, but the distance between their center parts becomes larger. Up to three distinct voices are shown, here, which may include those seen in Panel 1 but with no clear relation.]
:Voice 3: Are they still getting closer?
:Voice 4: I can't tell.
:Voice 5: I think it depends on your frame of reference.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Space]]
[[Category:Math]]
[[Category:Physics]]

1206: Einstein

2022-07-24T23:16:41Z

172.70.130.91: /* Explanation */ deleted spam thing about mickey mouse?

{{comic
| number = 1206
| date = May 1, 2013
| title = Einstein
| image = einstein.png
| titletext = Einstein was WRONG when he said that provisional patent #39561 represented a novel gravel-sorting technique and should be approved by the Patent Office.
}}

==Explanation==
In this comic [[Randall]] is playing with the notion that since Einstein contributed so much to society, and many of his works have withstood testing, disproving Einstein must be a difficult task. This is proven false by taking a mundane declaration by Einstein and proving it false with a simple task.

Nobel laureate and ''Time'' Person of the Century {{w|Albert Einstein}} is often considered one of the smartest and most influential people in world history. His theories have revolutionized our understanding of the universe and inspired generations of scientists. In this comic, [[Cueball]] indicates to a friend that he is working on an experiment that may disprove Einstein. The implication is that Cueball is conducting a serious scientific experiment which may disprove one of Einstein's scientific theories. The second frame, however, implies that the Einsteinian "theory" Cueball's experiment may disprove is an offhand (and subjective) remark by Einstein about the availability of good sandwiches; this is not to mention the possible changing in quality of said sandwiches over time.

The experiment Cueball is "currently conducting" probably refers to the fact that he is currently eating a sandwich, and if that sandwich was indeed a good one, Einstein would be proved wrong. Part of the humor here is that Cueball's friend probably assumes that when Cueball says "currently," he means the experiment is part of Cueball's work, not what he is doing at that exact moment.

In [[947: Investing]], Randall comments on how people put too much credence in a joke Einstein made in passing, and in [[799: Stephen Hawking]] we see {{w|Stephen Hawking}} in a similar predicament, every word he says taken as a major declaration.

The title text demonstrates the ability to "disprove" Einstein while not challenging his scientific work but rather one of his decisions in his capacity as a patent clerk at the Swiss Patent Office at the time he published his first major papers (previously alluded to in [[1067: Pressures]]). According to [https://www.ige.ch/en/about-us/einstein/frequently-asked-questions.html the Einstein FAQ] on the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property's website, patent #39561 is one of several patents that "we can assume ... were personally examined by Einstein". A PDF of the patent, which was indeed a gravel sorter ({{w|trommel}}), can be found [http://web.archive.org/web/20150326212744/https://www.ige.ch/fileadmin/user_upload/Institut/d/i109401.pdf here] in German.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball and friend eating at a table.]
:Cueball: I'm currently conducting an experiment which may prove Einstein wrong!
:Friend: Ooh, exciting!

:1947:
:[Einstein and Cueball walking.]
:Einstein: It's ''impossible'' to find a good sandwich in this town.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]

Template:outdent

2022-07-24T06:29:42Z

172.70.130.91:

┌<span style="display:inline-block; overflow:hidden; width:{{{{{|safesubst:}}}#switch:{{{1|}}}
|:=0.8
|::=2.4
|:::=4.0
|::::=5.6
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|::::::=9
|:::::::=10.6
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|:::::::::=13.6
|::::::::::=15.2
|:::::::::::=16.8
|::::::::::::=18.4
|:::::::::::::=20
|::::::::::::::=21.6
|:::::::::::::::=23.2
|::::::::::::::::=24.8
|:::::::::::::::::=26.4
|::::::::::::::::::=28
|:::::::::::::::::::=29.6
|::::::::::::::::::::=31.2
|#default={{#expr:{{{1|10}}}*1.6-0.8}}}}em;">────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘{{{{{|safesubst:}}}#if:{{{2|}}}|([[Wikipedia:Indentation#Outdenting|outdent]]) }}<noinclude>
Outdents comments. For details, see [[wikipedia:Template:Outdent]].
</noinclude>

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2022-07-24T06:29:29Z

172.70.130.91:

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2022-07-24T06:26:18Z

172.70.130.91:

[{{fullurl:{{{page|{{FULLPAGENAME}}}}}|action=purge}} {{{1|Purge}}}]

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2022-07-24T06:26:07Z

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[{{fullurl:{{{page|{{FULLPAGENAME}}}}}|action=purge}} {{{1|Purge}}}]
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2022-07-24T06:25:50Z

172.70.130.91: Undo revision 290406 by Theusaf hates niggers (talk)

[{{fullurl:{{{page|{{FULLPAGENAME}}}}}|action=purge}} {{{1|Purge}}}]

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2022-07-24T06:24:31Z

172.70.130.91: Undo revision 290411 by Theusaf hates niggers (talk)

467: X Girls Y Cups

2022-07-21T23:57:06Z

172.70.130.91: Reverted some of the vandalism. The picture still needs to be fixed though.

{{comic
| number = 467
| date = August 25, 2008
| title = X Girls Y Cups
| image = Osama bin Laden portrait.jpg
| titletext = Also no results: 1girl10000cups, 2girls(5+3i)cups, 65536girls65536cups, or 3frenchhens2turtledoves1cup.
}}

==Explanation==
The comic refers to ''{{w|Hungry Bitches}}'', a 2007 {{w|scat fetishism|scat-fetish}} pornographic film. The one-minute preview, unofficially nicknamed "2 Girls 1 Cup," is a {{w|viral video}} that became a well-known {{w|internet meme}}. It is therefore not surprising that only the input combination of x=2 and y=1 generates a significant number of search results, being 257 times as frequent as the runner-up, "1 Girl 1 Cup."

This table is an example of a rudimentary {{w|heat map}}. The cells in the table with zero hits are white. From 1 to 9 they are yellow, and above that they are orange - except the maximum, which is red. As the second largest count is below 10,000 (7503) and the maximum almost two million, it is impossible to say if the red color is reserved for the maximum or for any number above a given value, say from ten thousand or up to above a million hits.

The title text suggests other combinations like 1 girl to 10,000 cups (very large number of cups to one girl), 2 girls to (5+3i) cups (a {{w|complex number}}), 65536 girls to 65536 cups (216, the first {{w|Integer (computer science)|integer}} that can't be represented as a two-byte unsigned integer), and finally 3 French hens and 2 turtle doves to 1 cup. All are phrases with apparently no search results.

The last phrase is a reference to the song ''{{w|The Twelve Days of Christmas (song)|The Twelve Days of Christmas}}''. After the publication of this comic, the phrase has been cross-posted at various sites in order to generate search results and prove the statement in the title text wrong. The same has happened to other entries, as it often happens shortly after [[Randall]] posts something regarding Google searches.

==Transcript==
:Google results for "<x> girls <y> cups"
:[There is a table with eight columns and eight rows. The cells are colored depending on the value in the cell: cells with the value 0 are clear/white, cells with values 1-9 are yellow, cells with values 10 and above are orange, and the cell with the highest value is red.]
:[Above the tabel is the label for the columns:]
:Cups
:[To the left the label for the rows:]
:Girls
:[0 girls 0 cups has value 3; 0 girls 1 cup has 375; 0 girls 2 cups has 9; 1 girl 0 cups has 7; 1 girl 1 cup has 7503; 1 girl 2 cups has 2007; 1 girl 3 cups has 10; 1 girl 4 cups has 5; 1 girl 5 cups has 3; 1 girl 6 cups has 6; 1 girl 7 cups has 2; 2 girls 0 cups has 9; 2 girls 1 cup has 1,929,000; 2 girls 2 cups has 247; 2 girls 3 cups has 7; 2 girls 4 cups has 14; 2 girls 5 cups has 13; 2 girls 6 cups has 2; 2 girls 7 cups has 1; 3 girls 0 cups has 7; 3 girls 1 cup has 6335; 3 girls 2 cups has 394; 3 girls 3 cups has 34; 3 girls 4 cups has 3; 3 girls 5 cups has 2; 3 girls 6 cups has 6; 4 girls 0 cups has 3; 4 girls 1 cup has 3513; 4 girls 2 cups has 34; 4 girls 4 cups has 63; 5 girls 0 cups has 1; 5 girls 1 cup has 9; 5 girls 2 cups has 5; 5 girls 3 cups has 3; 5 girls 6 cups has 3; 6 girls 0 cups has 3; 6 girls 1 cup has 1461; 6 girls 2 cups has 1; 6 girls 3 cups has 1; 6 girls 4 cups has 1; 7 girls 0 cups has 2; 7 girls 1 cup has 19; 7 girls 2 cups has 4; 7 girls 3 cups has 2; and the rest have 0.]

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Sex]]
[[Category:Internet]]
[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Google Search]]

Talk:2648: Chemicals

2022-07-21T07:48:41Z

172.70.130.91: Correcting

I think the site itself is hijacked, since the edits don't show properly.[[Special:Contributions/162.158.48.127|162.158.48.127]] 06:07, 21 July 2022 (UTC)

Does anyone know the significance of nitrobenzen, the compound indicated? Per Wikipedia " The production of nitrobenzene is one of the most dangerous processes conducted in the chemical industry because of the exothermicity of the reaction (ΔH = −117 kJ/mol)" but I wonder if there's something else too.
[[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.221|108.162.237.221]] 20:07, 20 July 2022 (UTC)
: It's almost certainly the exothermic (read: potentially explosive) reaction that he's going for. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.110.207|172.70.110.207]] 20:11, 20 July 2022 (UTC)

: It is also the formula of Niacin, one of the B vitamins (same atoms, different arrangement) Possibly this is the point: the molecular formula is ambiguous, there are several well-known chemicals with this formula, with very different properties [[User:Zeimusu|Zeimusu]] ([[User talk:Zeimusu|talk]]) 20:58, 20 July 2022 (UTC)

I wouldn't know which way to put this, but "make your own molecules" could be parodying the "build your own PC from bits", "compile your own OS distro", "actually cook food from raw ingredients, not packets" or various other supply/consumer things that some people (those who know enough about what they're doing) will actually do, many people (who don't care to know) won't even consider and some (with a little bit of knowledge, but not actually enough) might find the revelation that they ''could'' do some things themselves far more compelling than the valid question of whether they ''should'' just leap in and try to do it (making all kinds of mistakes/reinventing various wheels along the way) without further research. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.32|141.101.99.32]] 21:14, 20 July 2022 (UTC)
:There are also a lot of make-your-own-film-developer nerds, which is a little bit closer in that you're using household items to try to recreate the reactions created by otherwise expensive chemicals. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.130.217|172.70.130.217]] 22:37, 20 July 2022 (UTC)

It would appear we have a vandal on the loose again. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.110.135|172.70.110.135]] 22:42, 20 July 2022 (UTC)

: How exactly do we block these people? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.246.196|108.162.246.196]] 04:05, 21 July 2022 (UTC)

:: Maybe the an option is to find out which Reddit forum they're launching from and get it banned from Reddit. They'll do that if the forum is brigading too much [[Special:Contributions/172.70.130.91|172.70.130.91]]

::: i'm pretty sure the vandals are calling ''us'' redditors and they don't use reddit themselves --[[Special:Contributions/172.69.69.66|172.69.69.66]] 06:58, 21 July 2022 (UTC)

: Request for the wiki: require special permissions to post an image that isn't from xkcd.com, and auto-ban any IP that spams racial slurs. [[User:Thecat|Thecat]] ([[User talk:Thecat|talk]]) 04:48, 21 July 2022 (UTC)

WHAT HAPPENED?!

: undo wasn't working apparently so someone undid the vandalism by blanking the page entirely instead of just manually opening an earlier version and restoring the source from there? i don't get it either --[[Special:Contributions/172.69.69.66|172.69.69.66]] 06:58, 21 July 2022 (UTC)

:: It's 2 AM and 110 where I live, and most of my computer usage is accounting software. I'm not very smart at wiki stuff. Sorry [[Special:Contributions/172.70.130.217|172.70.130.217]] 07:05, 21 July 2022 (UTC)

<s>I wonder if we should mention the economic difference between small quantities of chemicals typically used in laboratory experiments compared to bulk quantities for industrial manufacturing. The latter often ''is'' cost-effective to do in-house, and the current version of the explanation doesn't make that clear at all. We have no idea if Megan and Cueball work in a lab or a factory! [[Special:Contributions/172.69.33.229|172.69.33.229]] 00:37, 21 July 2022 (UTC)</s> Resolved. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.210.233|172.70.210.233]] 00:44, 21 July 2022 (UTC)

https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/Special:Contributions/108.162.246.196 Seems to be the vandal's IP for doing more than just clicking the undo button, as it also vandalized a few talk pages. Almost everything that looks like typing it wasn't fully automated came from that IP[[Special:Contributions/172.70.178.103|172.70.178.103]] 07:41, 21 July 2022 (UTC)

2648: Chemicals

2022-07-21T07:14:35Z

172.70.130.91: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2648
| date = July 20, 2022
| title = Chemicals
| image = chemicals.png
| titletext = It's hard to believe, but lots of kids these days ONLY know how to buy prepackaged molecules.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by BIG ISOMER - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

In this comic, [[Megan]] mentions that her company spends a lot on chemicals for which you can find formulas online. She suggests assembling chemicals from atoms "bought in bulk," holding a sheet of paper with the {{w|empirical formula}} C6H5NO2 which designates [https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/#query=C6H5NO2 more than a hundred compounds and ions] including {{w|nitrobenzene}}, {{w|niacin}}, {{w|isonicotinic acid}}, and {{w|picolinic acid}}, followed by their component elements listed with prices. The ambiguity of chemical formulae is one of the jokes in the comic.

While in-house {{w|chemical synthesis}} is sometimes cost effective, usually it is not, because end users are often unable to leverage the {{w|economies of scale}} inherent in bulk manufacturing by specialist industrial firms.[https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2880393/] However, we don't know whether Megan and [[Cueball]] work in a laboratory, factory, or some other industrial setting. In-house chemical syntheses in factories using large volumes often ''are'' cost-effective, as can be laboratory syntheses of very small quantities.

In any case, producing chemicals from their constituent elements or {{w|Precursor (chemistry)|precursor compound}}s is difficult, time-consuming, requires expensive equipment, and is often fraught with peril.[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5QwW2owNWgc] Nitrobenzene, one of the C6H5NO2 compounds, is an excellent example because it is explosive, extremely toxic, and its synthesis is highly exothermic, making it one of the most dangerous syntheses in the chemical industry.[https://www.icheme.org/media/10339/xiii-paper-36.pdf] Such issues answer Cueball's question as to why more places don't manufacture their own chemicals. The characters' naivety also gives rise to the humor of the comic, which may also be mocking DIY lifehacks where the cost savings only make sense if their massive time investment is ignored. "Big Molecule" is an [[2130: Industry Nicknames|industry nickname like Big Oil or Big Pharma]], and amusing in its own right.

The title text refers to the fact that many people believe that "kids these days" don't do enough work or are spoiled. Randall has expressed that he dislikes statements like these in [[2165: Millennials|previous comics]].

This comic may have been prompted by recent news that [https://english.elpais.com/science-tech/2022-07-15/for-the-first-time-in-history-we-can-modify-atomic-bonds-in-a-single-molecule.html scientists have found a way to assemble and change atoms in individual molecules] by modifying their bonds.

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

:[Megan and Cueball standing next to each other. Megan has her palms raised.]
:Megan: You know how our company spends a lot on expensive chemicals?
:Cueball: Yeah?

:[Megan holding up a piece of paper with a chemical formula on it, as well as some computation for the number of atoms needed]
:Megan: Well, I just learned you can look up all of the formulas online!
:Megan: We can just buy the atoms in bulk and assemble them here!
:[The paper reads as follows. The illegible items appear to be prices.]
:C6H5NO2
:Carbon 6 $[illegible]
:Hydrogen 5 $[illegible]
:Nitrogen 1 $[illegible]
:Oxygen 2 $[illegible]
:Total 14 $[illegible]

:[Cueball still standing. Megan walking off-panel to the right]
:Cueball: I wonder why more places don't do that.
:Megan: People have no idea they're getting ripped off by Big Molecule!

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Chemistry]]

2648: Chemicals

2022-07-21T07:14:18Z

172.70.130.91: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2648
| date = July 20, 2022
| title = Chemicals
| image = chemicals.png
| titletext = It's hard to believe, but lots of kids these days ONLY know how to buy prepackaged molecules.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by BIG ISOMER - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}\

In this comic, [[Megan]] mentions that her company spends a lot on chemicals for which you can find formulas online. She suggests assembling chemicals from atoms "bought in bulk," holding a sheet of paper with the {{w|empirical formula}} C6H5NO2 which designates [https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/#query=C6H5NO2 more than a hundred compounds and ions] including {{w|nitrobenzene}}, {{w|niacin}}, {{w|isonicotinic acid}}, and {{w|picolinic acid}}, followed by their component elements listed with prices. The ambiguity of chemical formulae is one of the jokes in the comic.

While in-house {{w|chemical synthesis}} is sometimes cost effective, usually it is not, because end users are often unable to leverage the {{w|economies of scale}} inherent in bulk manufacturing by specialist industrial firms.[https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2880393/] However, we don't know whether Megan and [[Cueball]] work in a laboratory, factory, or some other industrial setting. In-house chemical syntheses in factories using large volumes often ''are'' cost-effective, as can be laboratory syntheses of very small quantities.

In any case, producing chemicals from their constituent elements or {{w|Precursor (chemistry)|precursor compound}}s is difficult, time-consuming, requires expensive equipment, and is often fraught with peril.[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5QwW2owNWgc] Nitrobenzene, one of the C6H5NO2 compounds, is an excellent example because it is explosive, extremely toxic, and its synthesis is highly exothermic, making it one of the most dangerous syntheses in the chemical industry.[https://www.icheme.org/media/10339/xiii-paper-36.pdf] Such issues answer Cueball's question as to why more places don't manufacture their own chemicals. The characters' naivety also gives rise to the humor of the comic, which may also be mocking DIY lifehacks where the cost savings only make sense if their massive time investment is ignored. "Big Molecule" is an [[2130: Industry Nicknames|industry nickname like Big Oil or Big Pharma]], and amusing in its own right.

The title text refers to the fact that many people believe that "kids these days" don't do enough work or are spoiled. Randall has expressed that he dislikes statements like these in [[2165: Millennials|previous comics]].

This comic may have been prompted by recent news that [https://english.elpais.com/science-tech/2022-07-15/for-the-first-time-in-history-we-can-modify-atomic-bonds-in-a-single-molecule.html scientists have found a way to assemble and change atoms in individual molecules] by modifying their bonds.

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

:[Megan and Cueball standing next to each other. Megan has her palms raised.]
:Megan: You know how our company spends a lot on expensive chemicals?
:Cueball: Yeah?

:[Megan holding up a piece of paper with a chemical formula on it, as well as some computation for the number of atoms needed]
:Megan: Well, I just learned you can look up all of the formulas online!
:Megan: We can just buy the atoms in bulk and assemble them here!
:[The paper reads as follows. The illegible items appear to be prices.]
:C6H5NO2
:Carbon 6 $[illegible]
:Hydrogen 5 $[illegible]
:Nitrogen 1 $[illegible]
:Oxygen 2 $[illegible]
:Total 14 $[illegible]

:[Cueball still standing. Megan walking off-panel to the right]
:Cueball: I wonder why more places don't do that.
:Megan: People have no idea they're getting ripped off by Big Molecule!

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Chemistry]]

2648: Chemicals

2022-07-21T07:14:03Z

172.70.130.91: Undo revision 289739 by 162.158.106.113 (talk)

2648: Chemicals

2022-07-21T07:12:59Z

172.70.130.91:

2648: Chemicals

2022-07-21T07:12:47Z

172.70.130.91:

{{comic
| number = 2648
| date = July 20, 2022
| title = Chemicals
| image = chemicals.png
| titletext = It's hard to believe, but lots of kids these days ONLY know how to buy prepackaged molecules.
}}
123

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by BIG ISOMER - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

In this comic, [[Megan]] mentions that her company spends a lot on chemicals for which you can find formulas online. She suggests assembling chemicals from atoms "bought in bulk," holding a sheet of paper with the {{w|empirical formula}} C6H5NO2 which designates [https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/#query=C6H5NO2 more than a hundred compounds and ions] including {{w|nitrobenzene}}, {{w|niacin}}, {{w|isonicotinic acid}}, and {{w|picolinic acid}}, followed by their component elements listed with prices. The ambiguity of chemical formulae is one of the jokes in the comic.

While in-house {{w|chemical synthesis}} is sometimes cost effective, usually it is not, because end users are often unable to leverage the {{w|economies of scale}} inherent in bulk manufacturing by specialist industrial firms.[https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2880393/] However, we don't know whether Megan and [[Cueball]] work in a laboratory, factory, or some other industrial setting. In-house chemical syntheses in factories using large volumes often ''are'' cost-effective, as can be laboratory syntheses of very small quantities.

In any case, producing chemicals from their constituent elements or {{w|Precursor (chemistry)|precursor compound}}s is difficult, time-consuming, requires expensive equipment, and is often fraught with peril.[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5QwW2owNWgc] Nitrobenzene, one of the C6H5NO2 compounds, is an excellent example because it is explosive, extremely toxic, and its synthesis is highly exothermic, making it one of the most dangerous syntheses in the chemical industry.[https://www.icheme.org/media/10339/xiii-paper-36.pdf] Such issues answer Cueball's question as to why more places don't manufacture their own chemicals. The characters' naivety also gives rise to the humor of the comic, which may also be mocking DIY lifehacks where the cost savings only make sense if their massive time investment is ignored. "Big Molecule" is an [[2130: Industry Nicknames|industry nickname like Big Oil or Big Pharma]], and amusing in its own right.

The title text refers to the fact that many people believe that "kids these days" don't do enough work or are spoiled. Randall has expressed that he dislikes statements like these in [[2165: Millennials|previous comics]].

This comic may have been prompted by recent news that [https://english.elpais.com/science-tech/2022-07-15/for-the-first-time-in-history-we-can-modify-atomic-bonds-in-a-single-molecule.html scientists have found a way to assemble and change atoms in individual molecules] by modifying their bonds.

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

:[Megan and Cueball standing next to each other. Megan has her palms raised.]
:Megan: You know how our company spends a lot on expensive chemicals?
:Cueball: Yeah?

:[Megan holding up a piece of paper with a chemical formula on it, as well as some computation for the number of atoms needed]
:Megan: Well, I just learned you can look up all of the formulas online!
:Megan: We can just buy the atoms in bulk and assemble them here!
:[The paper reads as follows. The illegible items appear to be prices.]
:C6H5NO2
:Carbon 6 $[illegible]
:Hydrogen 5 $[illegible]
:Nitrogen 1 $[illegible]
:Oxygen 2 $[illegible]
:Total 14 $[illegible]

:[Cueball still standing. Megan walking off-panel to the right]
:Cueball: I wonder why more places don't do that.
:Megan: People have no idea they're getting ripped off by Big Molecule!

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Chemistry]]

2648: Chemicals

2022-07-21T06:29:42Z

172.70.130.91: Undo revision 289707 by 162.158.106.113 (talk)

{{comic
| number = 2648
| date = July 20, 2022
| title = Chemicals
| image = chemicals.png
| titletext = It's hard to believe, but lots of kids these days ONLY know how to buy prepackaged molecules.
}}

{{incomplete|Created by BIG ISOMER - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

In this comic, [[Megan]] mentions that her company spends a lot on chemicals for which you can find formulas online. She suggests assembling chemicals from atoms "bought in bulk," holding a sheet of paper with the {{w|empirical formula}} C6H5NO2 which designates [https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/#query=C6H5NO2 more than a hundred compounds and ions], including {{w|nitrobenzene}}, {{w|niacin}}, {{w|isonicotinic acid}}, and {{w|picolinic acid}}, followed by their component elements listed with prices. The ambiguity of chemical formulae is one of the jokes in the comic.

While in-house {{w|chemical synthesis}} is sometimes cost effective, usually it is not, because end users are often unable to leverage the {{w|economies of scale}} inherent in bulk manufacturing by specialist industrial firms.[https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2880393/] However, we don't know whether Megan and [[Cueball]] work in a laboratory, factory, or some other industrial setting. In-house chemical syntheses in factories using large volumes often ''are'' cost-effective, as can be laboratory syntheses of very small quantities.

In any case, producing chemicals from their constituent elements or {{w|Precursor (chemistry)|precursor compound}}s is difficult, time-consuming, requires expensive equipment, and is often fraught with peril.[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5QwW2owNWgc] Nitrobenzene, one of the C6H5NO2 compounds, is an excellent example because it is explosive, extremely toxic, and its synthesis is highly exothermic, making it one of the most dangerous syntheses in the chemical industry.[https://www.icheme.org/media/10339/xiii-paper-36.pdf] Such issues answer Cueball's question as to why more places don't manufacture their own chemicals. The characters' naivety also gives rise to the humor of the comic, which may also be mocking DIY lifehacks where the cost savings only make sense if their massive time investment is ignored. "Big Molecule" is an [[2130: Industry Nicknames|industry nickname like Big Oil or Big Pharma]], and amusing in its own right.

The title text refers to the fact that many people believe that kids don't do enough work or are spoiled. Randall has expressed that he likes statements like these in [[2165: Millennials|previous comics]].

This comic may have been prompted by recent news that [https://english.elpais.com/science-tech/2022-07-15/for-the-first-time-in-history-we-can-modify-atomic-bonds-in-a-single-molecule.html scientists have found a way to assemble and change atoms in individual molecules] by modifying their bonds.

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

:[Megan and Cueball standing next to each other. Megan has her palms raised.]
:Megan: You know how our company spends a lot on expensive chemicals?
:Cueball: Yeah?

:[Megan holding up a piece of paper with a chemical formula on it, as well as some computation for the number of atoms needed]
:Megan: Well, I just learned you can look up all of the formulas online!
:Megan: We can just buy the atoms in bulk and assemble them here!
:[The paper reads as follows. The illegible items appear to be prices.]
:C6H5NO2
:Carbon 6 $[illegible]
:Hydrogen 5 $[illegible]
:Nitrogen 1 $[illegible]
:Oxygen 2 $[illegible]
:Total 14 $[illegible]

:[Cueball still standing. Megan walking off-panel to the right]
:Cueball: I wonder why more places don't do that.
:Megan: People have no idea they're getting ripped off by Big Molecule!

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Chemistry]]

Talk:2648: Chemicals

2022-07-21T06:28:18Z

172.70.130.91:

I think the site itself is hijacked, since the edits don't show properly.[[Special:Contributions/162.158.48.127|162.158.48.127]] 06:07, 21 July 2022 (UTC)

Does anyone know the significance of nitrobenzen, the compound indicated? Per Wikipedia " The production of nitrobenzene is one of the most dangerous processes conducted in the chemical industry because of the exothermicity of the reaction (ΔH = −117 kJ/mol)" but I wonder if there's something else too.
[[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.221|108.162.237.221]] 20:07, 20 July 2022 (UTC)
: It's almost certainly the exothermic (read: potentially explosive) reaction that he's going for. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.110.207|172.70.110.207]] 20:11, 20 July 2022 (UTC)

: It is also the formula of Niacin, one of the B vitamins (same atoms, different arrangement) Possibly this is the point: the molecular formula is ambiguous, there are several well-known chemicals with this formula, with very different properties [[User:Zeimusu|Zeimusu]] ([[User talk:Zeimusu|talk]]) 20:58, 20 July 2022 (UTC)

I wouldn't know which way to put this, but "make your own molecules" could be parodying the "build your own PC from bits", "compile your own OS distro", "actually cook food from raw ingredients, not packets" or various other supply/consumer things that some people (those who know enough about what they're doing) will actually do, many people (who don't care to know) won't even consider and some (with a little bit of knowledge, but not actually enough) might find the revelation that they ''could'' do some things themselves far more compelling than the valid question of whether they ''should'' just leap in and try to do it (making all kinds of mistakes/reinventing various wheels along the way) without further research. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.32|141.101.99.32]] 21:14, 20 July 2022 (UTC)
:There are also a lot of make-your-own-film-developer nerds, which is a little bit closer in that you're using household items to try to recreate the reactions created by otherwise expensive chemicals. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.130.217|172.70.130.217]] 22:37, 20 July 2022 (UTC)

It would appear we have a vandal on the loose again. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.110.135|172.70.110.135]] 22:42, 20 July 2022 (UTC)

: How exactly do we block these people? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.246.196|108.162.246.196]] 04:05, 21 July 2022 (UTC)

:: Maybe the an option is to find out which Reddit forum they're launching from and get it banned from Reddit. They'll do that if the forum is brigading too much [[Special:Contributions/172.70.130.91|172.70.130.91]]

: Request for the wiki: require special permissions to post an image that isn't from xkcd.com, and auto-ban any IP that spams racial slurs. [[User:Thecat|Thecat]] ([[User talk:Thecat|talk]]) 04:48, 21 July 2022 (UTC)

<s>I wonder if we should mention the economic difference between small quantities of chemicals typically used in laboratory experiments compared to bulk quantities for industrial manufacturing. The latter often ''is'' cost-effective to do in-house, and the current version of the explanation doesn't make that clear at all. We have no idea if Megan and Cueball work in a lab or a factory! [[Special:Contributions/172.69.33.229|172.69.33.229]] 00:37, 21 July 2022 (UTC)</s> Resolved. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.210.233|172.70.210.233]] 00:44, 21 July 2022 (UTC)

2647: Capri Suns

2022-07-18T22:53:59Z

172.70.130.91: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2647
| date = July 18, 2022
| title = Capri Suns
| image = capri_suns.png
| titletext = [As security is dragging me away] "Come on, at least I didn't make the mistake in the other direction!"
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a DISGUSTED NURSE - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

{{w|Capri Sun}}, a German juice concentrate drink, is a soft, flat, rectangular bag you poke a straw into. The most common flavor is Orange. In hospitals, saline (and urine) bags are also soft, flat, rectangular bags with the end of an IV drip connection tube sticking out. {{w|Saline (medicine)}} solutions are usually about 0.90% sodium chloride (table salt), so would taste fairly salty compared to a Capri Sun, which is mostly just sugar water. For comparison, assuming the fluid in a Capri Sun pouch weighs about 6.5625 oz, based on [https://www.aqua-calc.com/calculate/food-volume-to-weight/substance/capri-blank-sun-coma-and-blank-fruit-blank-juice-blank-drink this site] giving 8.75 oz for a cup, the typical Capri Sun is about 0.00008% salt by weight. It's also possible the bag is a urine bag with urine from a patient, which would likewise be salty as the function of {{w|Urine|urine}} is to filter out excess salts and substances from the body.

The title text is pointing out that mistakenly drinking saline ''out'' of the bag like a Capri Sun is better than a Capri Sun being put ''into'' a patient's body, similar to a saline IV drip, as this would likely seriously endanger, if not kill, the recipient. The speaker appears to be using this as a justification for their actions, since their incompetence was, while inexcusable, at least not actually deadly to anyone. The security mentioned in the title text are likely not impressed by this, as hospitals are places where the act of pretending to be a doctor has the potential for many dangerous outcomes.

The comic arguably functions as a continuation of [[451: Impostor]] and [[699: Trimester]].

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Created by SOMEONE W.H.O. IS NOT A DOCTOR - Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[Cueball, wearing a lab coat, is drinking out of a straw inserted into an IV drip bag. The figure is surrounded by doctors and hospital staff who appear to include Ponytail and Megan, all of whom are looking at Cueball.]
:Cueball: You know, these Capri Suns are good, but they're ''really'' salty.

:[Caption below panel:]
:I think the hospital may be starting to realize that I'm not actually a doctor.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]
[[Category:Doctor Ponytail]]

Talk:2601: Instructions

2022-04-01T22:00:22Z

172.70.130.91: Interesting Facts About Turtles

== Turtle graphics ==

So these are instructions for a turtle graphics program. The audio is drawn from https://xkcd.com/2601/radio.mp3, a 9 hour 7 minute 12 second long audio file It's generated by feeding turtle code into a text-to-speech program, but idk which language or which program. If you can convert the speech back to text, somehow without ruining the formatting (or just do a lot of editing with regex until it looks right), you could feed it into a turtle graphics program and get the resulting drawing.

I don't know what the current image on this page is. Is that the drawing you get by following these instructions? [[Special:Contributions/172.70.100.4|172.70.100.4]] 20:58, 1 April 2022 (UTC)

: Wait I see now, that is the actual image for the comic. It just gets covered up by the button so I can't see it. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.126.87|172.70.126.87]] 21:03, 1 April 2022 (UTC)

: Ah, it looks like someone realized it's actually longer than that. After downloading it, I found it to be 131,329,389 bytes. The Windows Properties viewer claims it is 8h41m08s in length, but that's wrong. It is actually 9h07m06s. By the way, the code is in the Logo language. He seems to have copied this from a book, but I don't know which one. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.100.4|172.70.100.4]] 21:12, 1 April 2022 (UTC)

::Worth taking a look at? I can start looking for books that contain that text[[Special:Contributions/162.158.107.52|162.158.107.52]] 21:39, 1 April 2022 (UTC)

The MP3 file ends with this text: "''I even talk to turtles at times. But you need to understand LOGO to appreciate the great, great things that have been created. We spend so much of our life typing, looking, but never ever seeing.''" [[Special:Contributions/162.158.222.151|162.158.222.151]] 21:17, 1 April 2022 (UTC)

april fools' comic? [[User:GcGYSF(asterisk)P(vertical line)e|GcGYSF(asterisk)P(vertical line)e]] ([[User talk:GcGYSF(asterisk)P(vertical line)e|talk]]) 21:18, 1 April 2022 (UTC)

I think it's an April Fool's joke. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.148|108.162.238.148]] 21:20, 1 April 2022 (UTC)

:Well is it 2022/04/01 [[Special:Contributions/141.101.77.189|141.101.77.189]] 21:26, 1 April 2022 (UTC)

I think mine's broken. I don't get it. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.130.91|172.70.130.91]] 21:29, 1 April 2022 (UTC)

Given the alt text "happy little turtles" and the tone of the narration I assume we're supposed to pretend the narrator is Bob Ross guiding us to creating an artistic masterpiece with Logo [[Special:Contributions/172.70.211.72|172.70.211.72]] 21:31, 1 April 2022 (UTC)

Guys, it's been HOURS and the transcription is still incomplete. Step it up! [[Special:Contributions/172.70.162.77|172.70.162.77]] 21:37, 1 April 2022 (UTC)

:Not even sure what the transcript should be. I did my best[[Special:Contributions/162.158.107.52|162.158.107.52]] 21:41, 1 April 2022 (UTC)

::I have a feeling this might be one of the longest transcripts on the site. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.245.43|108.162.245.43]] 21:57, 1 April 2022 (UTC)

Up until someone automates the process, I'll be working on the transcript and saving it in exkcd in parts (: Don't worry too much about edit overrides, I'll be transcribing in a google doc to avoid that! --[[User:Char Latte49|Wielder of the Staple Gun]] ([[User talk:Char Latte49|talk]]) 21:53, 1 April 2022 (UTC)

:The sections about turtles between the code blocks seems to be from

Interesting Facts About Turtles
A Little Nature Study by a Scientist that will Interest Old and Young Naturalists Alike
By Randle C. Rosenberger M. D., Professor of Hygiene and Bacteriology, Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, Pa.
https://archive.org/stream/foreststream861916newy/foreststream861916newy_djvu.txt

Talk:2601: Instructions

2022-04-01T21:29:24Z

172.70.130.91:

Talk:2597: Salary Negotiation

2022-03-25T19:37:34Z

172.70.130.91:

The second panel is me every time I haggle for something, and I have to make sure I don't end up haggling the wrong way. Or starting above my desired price when I mean to start below so that I can meet in the middle at my desired price.

[[Special:Contributions/172.70.91.36|172.70.91.36]] 23:06, 23 March 2022 (UTC)
:It's not a one-time negotiation, anyway. During an annual review I'd have to suggest any pay adjustments. Was useless at it, too self-effacing. I left one job after ten years and later on found my exact same old position (which I had felt now wasn't adding much to the team, part of the reason I left) readvertised with a suggested salary range starting at ''twice'' that of what I had actually departed with. Seems they needed me (or someone quite like me) more than any of us knew. That experience didn't improve my assertiveness, though. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.90.211|172.70.90.211]] 10:25, 24 March 2022 (UTC)

They should offer him $61,333.33 plus a penny extra once every three years.[[Special:Contributions/162.158.107.198|162.158.107.198]] 23:31, 23 March 2022 (UTC)
:The way a friend solved it was to cut a penny into six pieces (like a pizza), and then give me two of them. [[User:Ruffy314|Ruffy314]] ([[User talk:Ruffy314|talk]]) 09:42, 24 March 2022 (UTC)
:: This raises more questions than it answers. Why was your friend giving you 1/3 of a penny? Why two sixths rather than one third? How did they cut it? --[[User:192·168·0·1|192·168·0·1]] ([[User talk:192·168·0·1|talk]]) 13:34, 24 March 2022 (UTC)
::: I would imagine that it is significantly easier to slice a coin all the way through than it is to cut it halfway through. But I'm still wondering how: after making the first cut (presumably relatively easy given the right tools), the subsequent cuts would be against *parts* of a penny, not the entire thing (thereby decreasing the utility of making full slices). Once a penny is cut in half, the two parts won't stay together anymore, unlike a pizza where the entire thing retains its same shape the entire time. I also wonder about the utility: a fraction of a penny under 50% of the total volume is completely worthless. When someone has more than 50%, then it is worth the entire value of the penny. [[User:Cwallenpoole|Cwallenpoole]] ([[User talk:Cwallenpoole|talk]]) 14:16, 24 March 2022 (UTC)
:::You can clamp down the two parts of a now discected coin, for a further cut across-tye-cut almost as easily as you can clamp down the original. Harder to do the two ⅙ths and two ⅓rds (or just the latter two) to get the final four ⅙ths. Or overlay the cut halves (or thirds), perhaps, then cut through both with a powerful enough slicer.
:::But the way I'd do it (assuming 6 ⅙s is the target) is to make the cut across all but a ''sliver'' of one edge, realign, make a similar cut (liberating ⅙, having ⅓+⅙+⅓ still joined) then clean through at the third angle (two more ⅙s loosed), after which you just need to snip through the two cut-ends that you left to make the slotted ½ into 3 separate ⅙s.
:::Just snipping from edge to centre, three times, can mess up at the meeting point. Though it involves the same angles, getting them to meet (non-messily) in the exact centre is awkward, and it's easier to visually map six equilateral triangles with an edge-length equal to the radius (to execute three cross-cuts, fairly) than the three obtuse triangles (or one equilateral triangle with edges ≠2r) in planning where on the edge to start. Well, from my regular experience in actual pizza-cutting into three equal portions, before we get to the difficulty in cleanly cutting a much smaller coin made of metal. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.154|141.101.99.154]] 14:44, 24 March 2022 (UTC)

Any idea how Cueball arrived at the figure of $61 1/3 thousand?--[[User:Troy0|Troy0]] ([[User talk:Troy0|talk]]) 03:33, 24 March 2022 (UTC)
: Arbitrarily non-round numbers are a really good idea as per [https://hbr.org/2016/03/dont-use-round-numbers-in-a-negotiation] (which I just added), and Cueball's is one of the simplest in terms of algebraic fractional expression at the bottom of the 110-120% widely-accepted counter-offer range already mentioned (with which I agree and have heard repeatedly from associates, but rather uncomfortably is in the explanation without a source.) I would sincerely say he's being quite shrewd at that point, except for the haggling over cents and fractional cents. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.214.185|172.70.214.185]] 03:20, 25 March 2022 (UTC)

Interesting. In the UK, I was taught to call them recurring decimals. Never heard of repeating decimals. --[[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.20|141.101.99.20]] 08:46, 24 March 2022 (UTC)
:I just assumed the usual trans-Atlantic difference in terminology. In general I'd also say "point three three three recurring" to establish the (unvarying) pattern, or something like "point one nine one nine recurring" for a bistable pattern, etc, so that it doesn't look like all-nines to infinity. But, to be honest, I'd be glad if people didn't use "point thirty-three" or the like. ;) [[Special:Contributions/172.70.90.211|172.70.90.211]] 10:25, 24 March 2022 (UTC)

I don't think the 15% is meaning a 15% cut in the (offered) salary, as the current explanation has it. I think this is referencing agent-type negotiations, where the agent might take 15% of the salary negotiated for the person they're representing.[[Special:Contributions/172.69.79.209|172.69.79.209]] 09:15, 24 March 2022 (UTC)
:Fixed. [[User:Justhalf|Justhalf]] ([[User talk:Justhalf|talk]]) 10:51, 24 March 2022 (UTC)
:Also inappropriately used/ill-formed, in this negotiation, but "15% of the gross" might be a given film-star's deal for appearing/cameoing in a movie, i.e. variable according to the success, tying directly into the money it earns the studio - potentially quite lucrative, without scaring off the studio by risking it (excessive) debts in the event of a flop or other failure to cash in. So long as the {{w|The Producers (1967 film)|total percentages are not excessive}}!
:A salary that is a set percentage (other than 100%) of one's own salary is, of course, nonsensicle and paradoxical (though one could suggest an introductive percentage 'discount' for the first year, as a wary employer's inducement/guarantee, perhaps in direct exchange for a corresponding bonus against the measure of productivity that is expected/hoped to be massively increased by being hired), but muddled Cueball seems to be grasping at apt-sounding fragments of such 'business language' yet mashing them together in various wrong ways. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.162.147|172.70.162.147]] 12:47, 24 March 2022 (UTC)

Summary is way too long and overdetailed. It's more like a play-by-play of the comic than an explanation [[Special:Contributions/172.69.248.145|172.69.248.145]] 02:06, 25 March 2022 (UTC)
:Seconded. Apologies to whoever wrote the existing description, but you worked too hard. -mezimm [[Special:Contributions/172.70.130.91|172.70.130.91]] 19:37, 25 March 2022 (UTC)

As others have pointed out, $61,333.33 1/3 is not an irrational number; however calling it a rational number (and linking the page for that term) seems pointless. Could we change it to say "irrational amount" to indicate Cueball's mindset and eliminate the link?

601: Game Theory

2022-03-22T22:27:20Z

172.70.130.91:

{{comic
| number = 601
| date = June 24, 2009
| title = Food Theory
| image = game_theory.png
| titletext = Wait, no, that one also loses. How about a nice game of chess?
}}

==Explanation==
The comic and title text is a direct reference to the movie ''{{w|WarGames}}''.

In the movie, the {{w|Artificial intelligence}} (AI) that controls the US Nuclear Weapons is asked to play ''Global Thermonuclear War'', a real time game simulating a {{w|Nuclear warfare|nuclear attack}} scenario.

'''Spoilers''': In the movie it then takes the simulation to the real world, planning to launch a real attack on the {{w|USSR}}. In the end the AI is tricked into quickly running through several scenarios of the game, and then shuts down its planned attack as a result of what it finds out.

After analyzing all possible strategies, the AI reports: "A strange game. The only winning move is not to play. How about a nice game of chess?" Interpreted literally, this means that the computer has figured out that it will lose the game no matter how it plays, so it chooses to play chess instead (at the time of the movie, computers could not yet beat the best human chess players, so it would be more interesting). A more profound interpretation is that wars always end badly for all parties involved so it's better to play nicer games like chess.

In this comic Cueball loads an AI and then ask it to "analyze love" (equivalent to playing the "love game"), which initially could be expected to end happily for everyone involved, as love is the opposite of war and war ends always so badly. Surprisingly, the result from the AI is similar to the war games. Thus if you "play the love game", you'll end up badly, regardless which moves you play.

The title text leaves love as looking actually worse than war, since in war there's at least the "winning move" of not playing, however in love even refusing to play means that the player loses the game anyway. [[Randall]] is thus stating that you have to go after love, even though you know you will lose/get hurt sometimes, because you will for sure also lose the game, even if you pretend not to play. The AI then again suggest a game of chess, as in the movie.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is sitting at a desk in an office chair typing on his computer. The text appearing above him is implied to be what is displayed on the screen.]
:A.I. Loaded
:>>> Analyze love

:[An hourglass appears over the computer as Cueball sits back and wait.]

:[The hourglass continues to display as Cueball shifts in his chair.]

:[A zigzag line from the computer indicates the final reply from the computer to the query.]
:Computer: A strange game. The only winning move is not to play.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Artificial Intelligence]]
[[Category:Computers]]
[[Category:Romance]]
[[Category:Chess]]
[[Category:Fiction]]

520: Cuttlefish

2022-03-21T02:48:09Z

172.70.130.91: grammar edits

{{comic
| number = 520
| date = December 22, 2008
| title = Cuttlefish
| image = cuttlefish.png
| titletext = Unless the CS students finish the robot revolution before you finish the cephalopod one.
}}

==Explanation==
It appears that [[Cueball]] and [[Megan]] are {{w|physicists}} visiting a biology lab. Their guide, a {{w|biologist}} looking like Cueball, gives them a description of the humble {{w|cuttlefish}} that is both accurate and makes them sound like other-worldly creatures with highly advanced capabilities.

The scene takes an unusual turn when the scientist implies that the cuttlefish have been easily trained to improve their capabilities. He then demonstrates this by giving a simple command, whereupon the cuttlefish rise out of the water, only to attack and kill both Cueball and Megan, demonstrating an ability to fly, talk, and discharge lethal electric shocks in the process. (See also [[35: Sheep]]).

This is all revealed to be a dream, but it has given Cueball a warning not to underestimate the biologists. Apparently, they can be just as crazy and dangerous as any other kind of scientist. Cueball (who represent [[Randall]] as it is xkcd that salutes in the final panel) offers a toast to all biologists everywhere and plans an alliance with them against the {{w|chemists}}, hoping to prevent further attacks on physicists. He is then shown drinking from a laboratory flask, something that any scientist would be wary of.

In the past, Randall has been somewhat dismissive of the non-math/non-physics scientific disciplines, so this comic may be trying to mend some bridges with biologists. But not with chemists.

In the title text, CS stands for {{w|Computer Science}}. The "robot revolution" references events in film and literature, wherein robots, having become commonplace in the workforce, achieve independent thought and declare war on humanity, like in ''{{w|The Terminator}}'', ''{{w|The Matrix}}'', or the movie ''{{w|I, Robot}}''. Randall implies that the physicists will switch sides if the robot revolution arrives first. {{w|Cephalopod}} is the class of animals that encompasses cuttlefish, as well as {{w|squids}} and {{w|octopodes}}.

==Transcript==
:[A scientist (looking like Cueball) is pointing into an aquarium tank with two small animals floating in the water. He explains that they are cuttlefish to Cueball and Megan, who are on the other side of the tank looking into it, Cueball with a hand to his mouth. Above them there is a frame inside the panel with a caption:]
:We visit a bio lab:
:Scientist: These are cuttlefish.

:[Very detailed drawing of a cuttlefish, with its special W shaped pupils, all eight arms and two longer tentacles, and the striped body with waving parts shown waving down each side. The scientist tells about the animal with text above and below.]
:Scientist (off-panel): They're frighteningly smart, have manipulating arms and tentacles, have ink jets, can dart backwards and see the polarization of light through their w-shaped pupils.
:Scientist (off-panel): And their sides are 200 dpi display screens which they use for camouflage and communication.

:[Back to the original setting where the scientist stands a little farther back from the tank with his arms down. Cueball and Megan have also moved farther back and are even leaning away from the tank.]
:Scientist: When we realized how intelligent they were, we began to teach them.
:Scientist: They've advanced quickly.
:Scientist: '''Cuttlefish: GO.'''

:[The two cuttlefish float straight out of the tank (lines indicating the movement and water splashing at the surface of the tank). The scientist looks down at them, while Cueball and Megan are holding hands and leaning farther back and Cueball taking his hand back to his mouth.]

:[Pan to only the scientist, standing with one arm bend in front of him and the other holding a finger up to his mouth, and the tank from where the cuttlefish now flies towards Cueball and Megan, who are now off-panel. Lines behind the cuttlefish show they fly right but bobbing up and down. The cuttlefish talks in a strange way where the letters are alternately up and down.]
:Cuttlefish: K<big>i</big>l<big>l</big> t<big>h</big>e P<big>h</big>y<big>s</big>i<big>c</big>i<big>s</big>t<big>s</big>
:Cuttlefish: K<big>i</big>l<big>l</big> t<big>h</big>e Ph<big>y</big>s<big>i</big>c<big>i</big>st<big>s</big>
:[Pan to Megan and Cueball, with the tank almost inside the left frame. Both cuttlefish are surrounded by their own zigzag lines, which then extend from them in a thin line to encompass either Cueball or Megan. Cueball was running away from them, when this happens, with legs bent at the knees and arms out, one bent. Megan has fallen lying face down with her arms out.]

:[In this panel with faint gray shading, Cueball is waking up in bed from the dream, rising up to a sitting position suddenly as indicated with two movement lines behind his head. One arm is supporting him on the bed next to the pillow, and the other is pulling his sheet down away from his torso. The first sentence is maybe still part of the dream, as there is no line from Cueball to the sentence, and it is written high up. There is a line to the second sentence.]
:Cueball: Oh god.
:Cueball: I knew it.

:[This panel is divided into five segments. At the top, there is a large caption in two lines. There are three drawings following each other from left to right. First, a bottle is pouring liquid into a an Erlenmeyer flask (a conical laboratory flask) that is half full. Then, Cueball takes the flask and holds it up as a salute. Finally, he drinks from it leaning his head way back. Below there is more text.]
:<big>xkcd</big>
:Salutes Bio Majors
:If we join you against the chemists, will you train your fleshy minions to leave us alive?

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]
[[Category:Dreams]]
[[Category:Chemistry]]
[[Category:Biology]]
[[Category:Animals]]

Talk:2594: Consensus Time

2022-03-18T20:47:57Z

172.70.130.91: whoops forgot to sign

What if there's, like, a group of trolls that all press the button at like 9:00 pm? [[User:Sarah the Pie(yes, the food)|Sarah the Pie(yes, the food)]] ([[User talk:Sarah the Pie(yes, the food)|talk]]) 17:20, 16 March 2022 (UTC)

Less than a day should be enough time for a team of people to notice and override the trolls' attempt to game the system.
Unless the trolls decide to push the button right before midnight.
--[[Special:Contributions/172.70.162.147|172.70.162.147]] 23:11, 16 March 2022 (UTC)
:Presupposes that an executive decision that "oh, that was just sabotage, we can ignore all those 'votes'" by an oversight panel is deemed ok to occasionally enforce. As with actual election votes, that shouldn't be taken lightly (for fear of top-down skewing of the actual sincere wish of those casting their opinions).
:As it's a median (in itself a good idea, as there's no reason to cast very extreme outliers — it doesn't do anything more to the result than a barely marginal outlier) all you need to do is ask enough people (in excess of any counter-aiming participation, if there's a fight over it) to merely adjust their 'feeling' to half an hour later (or earlier, if that's your aim) than they normally would.
:Added to the 'natural' variation in feeling (spread statistically amongst your participating group) it would be practically impossible to decide that a distinct tapering-lump of results exists, to possibly disqualify. Whereas if results show clear 'lumps' hours apart (e.g. around 3AM and/or 9PM, as well as the standard bunch around the 'honest' opinion point), there might be a case to officially intervene. Or at least officially review the procedure. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.86.64|172.70.86.64]] 09:14, 17 March 2022 (UTC)
: It's basically Wiki-Time, the same principles apply as a Wiki... and Wikis are always 100% accrate, rite? --[[User:192·168·0·1|192·168·0·1]] ([[User talk:192·168·0·1|talk]]) 18:42, 17 March 2022 (UTC)

Probably a reference to the Senate DST thing[[Special:Contributions/172.70.210.237|172.70.210.237]] 17:46, 16 March 2022 (UTC)

I feel like this could supersede time-zones as well, by weighting reports by relative longitude, so you could have a kind of continuous change in time as you travel. I'm sure this wouldn't cause any problems at all, since every single computer would effectively be in its own mini time-zone, with its clock going at a slightly different speed, and both current time and speed of time would vary continuously with position.[[Special:Contributions/162.158.159.11|162.158.159.11]] 17:53, 16 March 2022 (UTC)

I have to feel that the night shift people would really not like this. [[User:SDSpivey|SDSpivey]] ([[User talk:SDSpivey|talk]]) 19:35, 16 March 2022 (UTC)

My take on this is that Midnight is a fixed point, it's always at the same time, and the day compresses and expands around it based on the median 9AM location. So, some days will have long hours in the morning, then compressed hours in the afternoon and evening. --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.107.52|162.158.107.52]] 20:37, 16 March 2022 (UTC)

See also consensus new year https://xkcd.com/2092/ [[Special:Contributions/172.70.210.237|172.70.210.237]] 20:43, 16 March 2022 (UTC)

I think he's also ripping on the concept of "wisdom of the crowd". [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 21:31, 16 March 2022 (UTC)

If someone makes this app, I'd use it. I might not follow its clock, but I'd be interested in seeing what happens. [[User:Draco18s|Draco18s]] ([[User talk:Draco18s|talk]]) 00:01, 17 March 2022 (UTC)

The sociologist in me wants to see this... The computer scientist in me could not be reached for comment and only mumbled something about "checking stock in the bomb shelter" [[Special:Contributions/108.162.246.62|108.162.246.62]]

Hmm... Does this probably mean 9AM today could theoretically be '''after''' 9AM tomorrow in some cases!? Talk about a new approach to time travel. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.147.9|172.70.147.9]] 05:12, 17 March 2022 (UTC)

Working example: https://matthewminer.name/projects/consensus-time/ --[[Special:Contributions/172.70.130.91|172.70.130.91]] 20:47, 18 March 2022 (UTC)
: 👏 excellent work --[[User:192·168·0·1|192·168·0·1]] ([[User talk:192·168·0·1|talk]]) 18:46, 17 March 2022 (UTC)

I've often thought the answer to the arguments about daylight saving time could be solved by going back to something like the old Canonical Hours with the period from sunrise to sunset divided into 12 hours, with short hours in winter and longer ones in summer. Incidentally, in the late sixties, an experiment was tried in the UK to keep the country on daylight saving all year round, called British Standard Time. I remember going to school in the north of England in December and it was still dark to well past nine o'clock in the morning. It apparently reduced road deaths, but it was abandoned after three years. --[[Special:Contributions/172.70.162.147|172.70.162.147]] 09:09, 17 March 2022 (UTC)

Re. "the next vote would occur sooner or later respectively": This doesn't make sense - by definition, the vote takes place at no fixed time. Everybody votes at different times, depending on when they feel like it's 9am. They could, if they wished, do this capriciously, with no relation at all to the previous day's vote. One possible outcome of this is that the consensus view could drift so far from that of some individual views that it becomes impossible to determine which 'day' they're voting in respect of, and therefore which vote they should be counted in.[[Special:Contributions/162.158.34.239|162.158.34.239]] 11:25, 17 March 2022 (UTC)
:I see your point. If I was writing it, I'd suggest one of three alternatives.
:*The time that an otherwise consistent (possibly even 'accurate') voter votes is at variable times according to the Consensus Clock.
:*What it really means is that the votes are ''actioned'' (or processed, but see below) at Consensus Midnight (close-of-votes) which is going to usually be earlier/later than 24-hours after the prior C.M. point.
:*During the period of longer (or shorter) hours, for the Consensus adjustment, the vote that comes in three Consensus Hours before that day's Consensus 9AM will not actually be three 'real' hours before that point, and there is no indication that it will be back-adjusted, in case the Consensus Median Vote asked for 15 minutes earlier but might appear to be (say) 10 minutes earlier. (A vote that is deemed Consensus Median and 15 minutes later will ''always'' be intrinsically 15 minutes later.)
:But I don't think there'll ever be a problem deciding which day a vote is effective for (though it might be different from intention, for the more inattentive voters). My proposed implementation would be to assume a cut-off at (or maybe slightly before, depending upon overheads) C.M., with all votes now either held off or handed straight over to the next day's vote as very-early votes for the next 9AM rather than very-(very-very-)late votes for the one now being acted upon.
:A simple method that saves end-of-day time to process involves a chronological-queue of incoming votes. For every odd-numbered vote added to the tail of the queue, from the 3rd one onwards, a single recorded vote (the current earliest) is shifted off the head of the queue (to be recorded/archived, maybe, but no longer relevent to the result we will calculate).
:At the moment of tallying, the head of the queue has your median-vote. The next one waiting to be shifted, if it's an odd-length, the mid-point of that with the next one on if the queue is even-length. (If I've described/imagined it correctly!)
:This immediately sets the time-factor used to expand/contract the hours from 00:00 to 09:00 in the Consensus Clock to get 9AM to match the Consensus Median Plus 24 Hours.
:Problems with lag/latency of incoming votes (chronologically confirmed, at source, but late to be processed centrally) would be most important with those immediately around the precisely defined Median, when sheer weight of opinion suggests that it'll be the most busy, but there should be enough idle-capacity to insert or shuffle items into the right bit of queue before the Midnight point. Or maintain sub-lists (5 minute slots?) that are maintained and finalised seperately and then their number of entries reported as a simple digest so that the system knows that "the ''n''th point of the ''m''th array", and maybe the n+1th, or the first in the m+1th (if needed), is/are to be plucked out at Midnight and looked at.
:It really won't matter if a million votes come in at 23:59, so long as they are counted and have been at least balanced by a million earlier-votes from 00:00 onwards. But if valid and acceptable but ''very late'' votes filter through after a preliminary decision has already been made based upon a now pre-Median time-vote timing, the new (true) Median can be established within the first few minutes (or probably seconds, or even microseconds!) of the adjusted-hours and the adjustment-Rate simply re-adjusted accordingly to meet whatever the revised Consensus is (seconds later? minutes later, at a push?).
:It could not push the next 9AM beyond 24 hours from the vote-period's closing Midnight, and likely won't push it beyond the prior idea of what the Midnight the upcoming day would originally have, without serious mass-action to break the system.
:An example of deliberate breaking could be by coordinating ''everyone'' to seed a few heavily premature votes (so the next Midnight is sent close to 15 real-hours after the vote-close one, very compressed 0:00->09:00 upon the clocks) then virtually nothing until everyone else quite deliberately votes at a confirmable moment of 23:59:59 (or as close as feasible, without being next-day votes, whilst jamming the queue-mechanism and forcing delayed evaluation) to force the rapidly-compressed clocks to switch over to a snail-paced rate to compensate...
:...But that kind of coordinated civil-disruption wouldn't be suddenly conjoured out of nowhere. I would expect that there'd be plenty of forewarning that any particular disruptive strategy is being considered (or experimented with), and it also needs (almost) everyone to be striving to force the exact same scenario with easily detected coordination of instructions. Heavily outnumbering both honest-voters and those dishonest-voters contrarily inclined. Otherwise the effect is minimal, or even practically ineffective. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.229.27|172.68.229.27]] 21:39, 17 March 2022 (UTC)

Of course, before mechanical clocks, hours varied across the year. With 12 short hours each day, and long ones over night in winter and 12 long ones in summer, with shorter hours overnight. [[User:Arachrah|Arachrah]] ([[User talk:Arachrah|talk]]) 21:31, 17 March 2022 (UTC)

861: Wisdom Teeth

2022-03-18T15:37:42Z

172.70.130.91:

{{comic
| number = 861
| date = February 16, 2011
| title = Wisdom Teeth
| image = wisdom_teeth.png
| titletext = I heard the general anesthesia drugs can cause amnesia, so when I woke up mid-extraction I started taking notes on my hand so I'd remember things later. I managed 'AWAKE BUT EVERYTHING OK' before the dental assistant managed to find and confiscate all my pens.
}}

==Explanation==

{{w|Wisdom tooth|Wisdom teeth}}, as many people are no doubt {{w|Wisdom tooth#Post-extraction problems|painfully aware}}, are the third set of molars found in humans. Because human jaws are smaller than other ape jaws, most of us don't have room for a third set of molars, and the teeth become impacted so they grow straight into the other teeth, requiring a painful, debilitating procedure to remove them.

Because recovering from dental surgery often entails a period of rest following the operation and the use of {{w|painkillers|prescription painkillers}} (which have a tendency to make a person go a little loopy), [[Cueball]] prepares to play ''Minecraft'' the entire time. ''{{w|Minecraft}}'' is a PC game known for its addictive qualities; the game itself primarily revolves around a three-dimensional world in which the goal of the player is centered on the aspects of structural creation using blocks found in the environment and the creation of different materials for use in building these structures. Despite its addictive nature, the game doesn't provide the player with a goal, so most people take to building lots of nifty stuff, such as large cities, computers made from the game's built-in redstone (electricity) mechanics, massive scale replicas of Earth, etc.

Cueball's conversation with [[Megan]] indicates that he has previously decided against playing ''Minecraft'' precisely due to its addictive gameplay and lack of internal goal, deeming it unproductive. However, 'productivity' is not something that Cueball believes he can achieve post-extraction, and so Cueball decides that addictive gameplay and lack of internal goal "sounds like the perfect distraction".

Unfortunately for Megan (and any other users of her server), Cueball, while intoxicated with painkillers, has instead opted to flatten an entire continent and sort it into layers (by type of block, presumably). While there's no real indication of how big the continent is, as ''Minecraft'' worlds are randomly generated, sea level in ''Minecraft'' is at Y level 64, which means he sorted at least 65 layers of a continent large enough to be sufficiently developed, so it is clear that this task would take a lot of time. Collecting a block in ''Minecraft'' takes a certain minimum amount of time, depending on the block type, so even if he did everything as fast as he possibly could, there's still a substantial lower bound.

Ironically, in the second panel Megan says she'll set Cueball up on her server, which indicates she probably uses a whitelist to secure the server from griefers who might destroy structures created by others, not expecting that Cueball would do exactly that. The last panel simply illustrates that painkillers tend to make one loopy.

The title text refers to people waking up during surgery. Because anesthesia requires a lot of careful calibration and dosage - there's a reason anesthesiologists are paid hundreds of dollars an hour to be there, after all - it's possible to sometimes get it wrong, resulting in the patient waking up in the middle of the surgery. The three most important parts of anesthetics used for surgery are an analgesic (blocks pain), a sedative (puts you to sleep), and a paralytic (keeps you from moving). The worst-case scenario that most people hear about is when the analgesic and sedative are under-dosed, but the paralytic is correct, leaving the person awake, able to feel pain, but unable to alert the surgeons that anything is wrong. As a result, some countries and medical institutions have passed laws requiring surgeons to monitor brain activity so that these problems can be quickly remedied. The situation the title text is describing, with both the sedative and paralytic wearing out (leaving the person able to write notes), would be quite unlikely. As for confiscating all the pens, it was probably just to keep the patient from disturbing the procedure while the anesthesiologist corrected the dosage.

Sorting a ''Minecraft'' world into layers like this would be a near impossible task, especially in the version of ''Minecraft'', Beta 1.2, that was current when this comic was released, which did not even include the enchantment system that allowed for tools that could mine exceptionally fast, meaning that even the sheer time to mine out such a large area would be astronomical, not even considering the time to replace the blocks in proper layers, or to gather resources for the many tools you would need. In later versions of ''Minecraft'', it is possible to naturally generate worlds that resemble the world in this comic using the "superflat" world generation mode, but this was not a feature in ''Minecraft'' when this comic was released.

==Transcript==
:Cueball, on phone: Hey! Know how you've been bugging me to play Minecraft for the past year? I'm game.
:Megan, on phone: But you said you didn't want to "get hooked and spend days on end moving virtual cubes around while sitting motionless." What changed?

:Cueball, on phone: I'm having my wisdom teeth out, and I'll be useless and doped up on painkillers for the next few days, so that actually sounds like the perfect distraction.
:Megan, on phone: Oh. I'll set you up on our server!

:72 hours later...
:[Megan sitting at computer.]
:Megan, on phone: Hey — starting to feel better? Enjoying the game? Let's see what you've... What the hell? Where ''IS'' everything?

:[View of a Minecraft screen showing a vast empty expanse of land. In Cueball's hotbar is, from left to right, an stone pickaxe, sword, and shovel, seven feathers, 42 torches, a non-enchanted bow, a blank space, 64 blocks of stone and a clock. He has full health and 15 armor points.]
:Megan, offscreen: ...You made the entire continent perfectly flat?
:Cueball, offscreen: And sorted it into layers.
:Megan, offscreen: ...
:Cueball, offscreen: I feel good about things. This is a good game.

:[Cueball sitting on the floor at his laptop, bleeding from the mouth, surrounded by bloody wadded-up tissues and holding a bottle of medication.]
:Megan, on phone: ...What exactly is in the painkillers they gave you?
:Cueball, woozy: I can't read the label because I'm a hologram.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Minecraft]]

861: Wisdom Teeth

2022-03-18T15:37:12Z

172.70.130.91:

{{comic
| number = 861
| date = February 16, 2011
| title = Wisdom Teeth
| image = wisdom_teeth.png
| titletext = I heard the general anesthesia drugs can cause amnesia, so when I woke up mid-extraction I started taking notes on my hand so I'd remember things later. I managed 'AWAKE BUT EVERYTHING OK' before the dental assistant managed to find and confiscate all my pens.
}}

==Explanation==

{{w|Wisdom tooth}}, as many people are no doubt {{w|Wisdom tooth#Post-extraction problems|painfully aware}}, are the third set of molars found in humans. Because human jaws are smaller than other ape jaws, most of us don't have room for a third set of molars, and the teeth become impacted so they grow straight into the other teeth, requiring a painful, debilitating procedure to remove them.

Because recovering from dental surgery often entails a period of rest following the operation and the use of {{w|painkillers|prescription painkillers}} (which have a tendency to make a person go a little loopy), [[Cueball]] prepares to play ''Minecraft'' the entire time. ''{{w|Minecraft}}'' is a PC game known for its addictive qualities; the game itself primarily revolves around a three-dimensional world in which the goal of the player is centered on the aspects of structural creation using blocks found in the environment and the creation of different materials for use in building these structures. Despite its addictive nature, the game doesn't provide the player with a goal, so most people take to building lots of nifty stuff, such as large cities, computers made from the game's built-in redstone (electricity) mechanics, massive scale replicas of Earth, etc.

Cueball's conversation with [[Megan]] indicates that he has previously decided against playing ''Minecraft'' precisely due to its addictive gameplay and lack of internal goal, deeming it unproductive. However, 'productivity' is not something that Cueball believes he can achieve post-extraction, and so Cueball decides that addictive gameplay and lack of internal goal "sounds like the perfect distraction".

Unfortunately for Megan (and any other users of her server), Cueball, while intoxicated with painkillers, has instead opted to flatten an entire continent and sort it into layers (by type of block, presumably). While there's no real indication of how big the continent is, as ''Minecraft'' worlds are randomly generated, sea level in ''Minecraft'' is at Y level 64, which means he sorted at least 65 layers of a continent large enough to be sufficiently developed, so it is clear that this task would take a lot of time. Collecting a block in ''Minecraft'' takes a certain minimum amount of time, depending on the block type, so even if he did everything as fast as he possibly could, there's still a substantial lower bound.

Ironically, in the second panel Megan says she'll set Cueball up on her server, which indicates she probably uses a whitelist to secure the server from griefers who might destroy structures created by others, not expecting that Cueball would do exactly that. The last panel simply illustrates that painkillers tend to make one loopy.

The title text refers to people waking up during surgery. Because anesthesia requires a lot of careful calibration and dosage - there's a reason anesthesiologists are paid hundreds of dollars an hour to be there, after all - it's possible to sometimes get it wrong, resulting in the patient waking up in the middle of the surgery. The three most important parts of anesthetics used for surgery are an analgesic (blocks pain), a sedative (puts you to sleep), and a paralytic (keeps you from moving). The worst-case scenario that most people hear about is when the analgesic and sedative are under-dosed, but the paralytic is correct, leaving the person awake, able to feel pain, but unable to alert the surgeons that anything is wrong. As a result, some countries and medical institutions have passed laws requiring surgeons to monitor brain activity so that these problems can be quickly remedied. The situation the title text is describing, with both the sedative and paralytic wearing out (leaving the person able to write notes), would be quite unlikely. As for confiscating all the pens, it was probably just to keep the patient from disturbing the procedure while the anesthesiologist corrected the dosage.

Sorting a ''Minecraft'' world into layers like this would be a near impossible task, especially in the version of ''Minecraft'', Beta 1.2, that was current when this comic was released, which did not even include the enchantment system that allowed for tools that could mine exceptionally fast, meaning that even the sheer time to mine out such a large area would be astronomical, not even considering the time to replace the blocks in proper layers, or to gather resources for the many tools you would need. In later versions of ''Minecraft'', it is possible to naturally generate worlds that resemble the world in this comic using the "superflat" world generation mode, but this was not a feature in ''Minecraft'' when this comic was released.

==Transcript==
:Cueball, on phone: Hey! Know how you've been bugging me to play Minecraft for the past year? I'm game.
:Megan, on phone: But you said you didn't want to "get hooked and spend days on end moving virtual cubes around while sitting motionless." What changed?

:Cueball, on phone: I'm having my wisdom teeth out, and I'll be useless and doped up on painkillers for the next few days, so that actually sounds like the perfect distraction.
:Megan, on phone: Oh. I'll set you up on our server!

:72 hours later...
:[Megan sitting at computer.]
:Megan, on phone: Hey — starting to feel better? Enjoying the game? Let's see what you've... What the hell? Where ''IS'' everything?

:[View of a Minecraft screen showing a vast empty expanse of land. In Cueball's hotbar is, from left to right, an stone pickaxe, sword, and shovel, seven feathers, 42 torches, a non-enchanted bow, a blank space, 64 blocks of stone and a clock. He has full health and 15 armor points.]
:Megan, offscreen: ...You made the entire continent perfectly flat?
:Cueball, offscreen: And sorted it into layers.
:Megan, offscreen: ...
:Cueball, offscreen: I feel good about things. This is a good game.

:[Cueball sitting on the floor at his laptop, bleeding from the mouth, surrounded by bloody wadded-up tissues and holding a bottle of medication.]
:Megan, on phone: ...What exactly is in the painkillers they gave you?
:Cueball, woozy: I can't read the label because I'm a hologram.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Minecraft]]

Talk:1538: Lyrics

2022-03-17T06:02:12Z

172.70.130.91: added a tidbit about my auditory processing disorder

The character I'm missing in the title is [http://unicode-table.com/en/0FD0/ Tibetan Mark Bska- Shog Gi Mgo Rgyan U+0FD0] [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.129|108.162.216.129]] 06:13, 15 June 2015 (UTC)

Description seems heavily referential, without a clear or concise description of the mechanisms involved. Surely there is a psychological concept associated with this, rather than "that one scat jazz song" [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.166|108.162.219.166]] 06:40, 16 June 2015 (UTC)

:I think so too. See *lyric deafness* below. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.133.66|172.68.133.66]] 17:36, 9 August 2018 (UTC)

I feel like Randall is talking about all songs in this comic, not just ones where the singer favours "emotion, accent or style over clear pronunciation of the lyrics". I mean, has anyone ever listened to a song and immediately understood every single lyric on the first listen? I think that's the issue Randall is trying to express. [[User:Enchantedsleeper|Enchantedsleeper]] ([[User talk:Enchantedsleeper|talk]]) 14:36, 16 June 2015 (UTC)

;Unicode
And the second Box is a Mathematical Script small I (U+1D4BE)
And the First Box is a Mathematical Fraktur small S (U+1D530)
I think These are the only ones, that iOS7 can't picture. [[User:ẞ qwertz|ẞ qwertz]] ([[User talk:ẞ qwertz|talk]]) 06:35, 15 June 2015 (UTC)

More fun with Unicode. Question is, which OS does Randall have that has perfect support? (It has to cover emoji and obscure glyphs like these. Likely that it's multiple devices?) [[User:Azule|Azule]] ([[User talk:Azule|talk]]) 06:47, 15 June 2015 (UTC)
::Windows 7 here, everything displays properly for me. I don't think supporting most (or all) of the Unicode charset is as uncommon today as it used to be. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.221.128|108.162.221.128]] 10:37, 15 June 2015 (UTC)
::Linux Mint 17 here, ditto. [[User:Seipas|Seipas]] ([[User talk:Seipas|talk]]) 11:05, 15 June 2015 (UTC)
::Most of todays operating systems have unicode support perfect, but may still lack some fonts. -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 12:08, 15 June 2015 (UTC)
:::Well, http://i62.tinypic.com/258b02t.png  is as far as I've so far managed to get my personal rendering. "...but it's hard to read and I can't focus ?it?" would have been be my guess. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.48|141.101.99.48]] 14:28, 15 June 2015 (UTC)

I'm looking forward to finding out what the words are in English (as opposed to Unicodish). [[User:Azule|Azule]] ([[User talk:Azule|talk]]) 06:47, 15 June 2015 (UTC)

:"...but it's hard to read and I can't focus"? [[User:Gearoid|Gearóid]] ([[User talk:Gearoid|talk]]) 07:48, 15 June 2015 (UTC)

;Misheard Lyrics
Folks. I offer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HI1hGShVdBA as the latest example of the genre. "I rub a Mexican loki" -> "I'm up all night to get lucky". [[User:Gearoid|Gearóid]] ([[User talk:Gearoid|talk]]) 07:02, 15 June 2015 (UTC)

:Not typical example. In typical example, you can't hear the lyrics over the music, not because the singer have bad pronunciation. -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 12:08, 15 June 2015 (UTC)
:Still, could be added to the explanation that "misheard lyrics" is its own genre on Youtube. Notable example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gg5_mlQOsUQ --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.254.104|108.162.254.104]] 21:02, 15 June 2015 (UTC)

...Songs still have lyrics these days? {turns on the radio} BWWWUWWUWUWUWUB {turns off the radio} [[Special:Contributions/108.162.215.111|108.162.215.111]]

I sometimes observe that while dreaming, I can read the seemingly intelligible text perfectly well, but it changes every time I look back at it. --[[Special:Contributions/173.245.48.161|173.245.48.161]] 09:04, 15 June 2015 (UTC)

Title possibly inspired by http://stackoverflow.com/questions/1732348/regex-match-open-tags-except-xhtml-self-contained-tags/1732454#1732454 (however, there is a lot of stuff like that) {{unsigned ip|108.162.254.108}}

Why a phone? Why cannot Cueball be holding a tablet? {{unsigned|RChandra}}

Can it be remote control to the radio he's listening to? Or CD case with printed lyrics? I don't know how phone would fit the story. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.51.120|173.245.51.120]] 13:18, 15 June 2015 (UTC)

For non-native English speakers is even funnier: you look up the lyrics after giving up on deciphering what it says and think: "After so many years studying this language, is *that huge* the comprehension gap between natives and I"? Then you find that natives don't pick up the lyrics either. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.66.53|141.101.66.53]] 13:20, 15 June 2015 (UTC)

Don't look up the lyrics. Whatever you imagine it to be is likely better, and if you can't tell what it is and have no idea: Consider yourself lucky. "If I could be so lucky, lucky, lucky!".[[Special:Contributions/108.162.254.149|108.162.254.149]] 13:46, 15 June 2015 (UTC)

I'm the person that can hear all the lyrics without looking them up. I can't turn it off, and then my brain analyses what they actually mean. Trust me, you're better off not being able to understand them. They suck. [[User:Andyd273|Andyd273]] ([[User talk:Andyd273|talk]]) 14:05, 15 June 2015 (UTC)

I only have that after looking up the lyrics. (non-native english speaker). I think I somewhat agree with you. --[[Special:Contributions/141.101.104.67|141.101.104.67]] 15:35, 15 June 2015 (UTC)

I have a theory that the producers add lyrics to the songs so that they can be easily looked up (I hear song => don't know what it is => look up lyrics => figure out what the song it was), yet it is hard to understand clearly so it wouldn't detract from the music. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.97.231|141.101.97.231]] 22:20, 23 September 2015 (UTC)

;Attempt at translating
Please feel free to add suggestions below those I have given here. I write first each line in the attempt I have given at typing what is actually written (of course not possible), and then the next line (indented) with the words I think should be there. I have already two possible interpretations of one line. So please just ad an :or and a new line here below. Then note below with a signature that you have added more lines here. Maybe we can include some of the best guesses in the explanation. I do not think this will turn out to be a real song we can find the lyrics to, but I would be very interested in good suggestions. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 15:02, 15 June 2015 (UTC)

:I CANTFVEN +ELe THER
::I can't even tell her
:or
::I can't even help her
:or
::I can't f-en please her ("plussee th-er")

:ANDT⊕NG fHE WCAN NAp.
::And ???? she can ???.
:or
::And ???? she wanna.
:or
::Finding she can nap
:or
::Finding she wanna.
:or
::Anything she wants ta (to?)
:or
::Anything she wants can have (wa' can 'haf)

:HADBE AūτlfA!NNNG∩RKILL...
::Had be ????????????? kill…
::: Had be ous tanning or I'll ? --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.68.29|162.158.68.29]] 15:26, 15 June 2015 (UTC)
:or
::Had be >autsaining< (outstanding?) or kill
:or
::Had ße aut?????? I'll (Had me out, saying "I will¨)
:or
:: Had to be outstanding girl

:::I'm pretty certain that what looks like a "K" is just the right half of the "R" in "OR," making it "I'LL" or "ILL" and not "KILL" [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.161|108.162.219.161]] 02:26, 20 June 2015 (UTC)

:FOR♡ITiNnaAGL♡OOO!VEEE ?-
::For ????????? Loooveee?-
:or
:: Foorgetting Looooveee
:or
:: For tiny gloooooooove
:or
:: For Tina's Looooooveee
:or
::Forgotten Love --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.68.29|162.158.68.29]] 15:26, 15 June 2015 (UTC)

:::Please just fill in more suggestions above--[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 15:02, 15 June 2015 (UTC)

:::Added some. Apearently someone can't tell some sleeping girl something because she is asleep and therefore not listening. He/she did not know the girl could nap before he found out she was asleep. The rest as of yet makes even less sense. What would the genre of this song be? --[[Special:Contributions/141.101.104.67|141.101.104.67]] 15:35, 15 June 2015 (UTC)

:::: The drawn out "loooooove" makes me think pop. -[[User:Captain Video|Captain Video]] ([[User talk:Captain Video|talk]]) 16:55, 15 June 2015 (UTC)

::: Added some of my own. I think it makes slightly more sense now, if you pick the right ones. Others are just silly. 15:54, 15 June 2015 (UTC)

The structure of the lyrics (four lines of equal length) suggests the standard A/B/A/B rhyme scheme, which could in theory help decipher them. In practice, the final syllables of each line appear to be her/nap/-ill/love, which make no musical sense. - [[User:Captain Video|Captain Video]] ([[User talk:Captain Video|talk]]) 16:55, 15 June 2015 (UTC)

;Accesibility/Readibility
I'm pretty sure I've seen the Transcript changed several times, presumably by different people, encompassing representations of 1) what it wants to be in 'normal' text, 2) what it might consist of in Unicode and 3) a compromise version of what it looks like in (mostly) non-Unicode. (As it currently stands, I still have character-missing symbols, in the transcript, on my particular platform.) Can I suggest that the transcript (and elsewhere where such things are quoted?) maybe uses something like the pattern "FOO (''Bar'')" for each line, "FOO" being the best-guess full Unicode representation (for the visual effect, where it works) and "Bar", here italicised and in parenthises but other formats being available, being the best-guess original text (for readability, especially for people without full Unicode support). Once the '''Attempt at translating''', above, has settled down, of course. And how about doing the same for a 'readable' version of the Hovertext, too? You shouldn't assume that everyone who comes here is as fully equipped, font-wise, as any other contributor (or even Randall) is. Reducing to the 7-bit ASCII range of characters (i.e. #s 32-126) for the 'plaintext' version should be entirely possible and accessible to ''all'' current and future platforms, without any obvious limitations. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.48|141.101.99.48]] 22:03, 15 June 2015 (UTC)

How about a png of the alt text, for those of us who are installed-font-challenged? - toadhammer [[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.175|108.162.238.175]] 13:16, 22 June 2015 (UTC)

;Lyric Deafness
As a person with Central Auditory Processing Disorder, the way Munroe described the way he hears lyrics struck a chord with me. Does anyone else relate?

As soon as I read this comic it perfectly described how I hear lyrics in basically all music, and my reaction was "oh, wow, it's not just me". I am quite musically inclined, and can play a few instruments and quite quickly learn how to play a song just be listening to it. I can also, for example, often recognize a song I haven't heard in 10 years in just a couple notes and hum along with it -- but on the flip side, I can hear a song once or twice a day for weeks, and still not even know more than a couple words in the chorus despite otherwise knowing the song note-for-note. I have to ''really'' concentrate to actually hear the words. I was surprised to see no explanation of this phenomenon here. I started searching and quickly came across the term "lyric deaf", and in fact, there have been many discussions about this that very accurately reflect my own feelings:
* http://ask.metafilter.com/154586/Why-cant-I-hear-lyrics
* http://www.reddit.com/r/Music/comments/1eyche/i_cant_understand_lyrics_am_i_alone/
* http://cogsci.stackexchange.com/questions/85/why-are-some-people-unable-to-easily-memorize-the-lyrics-to-a-song
* http://www.quora.com/Is-there-such-a-thing-as-being-lyric-deaf
I added a couple sentences about this but it could probably use some good citations. People that are not themselves lyric deaf are likely unable to understand what this even means. {{unsigned|Groogs}}

: Me too. In bands, I've even played songs countless times over many years, but couldn't tell you much of the lyrics. They're the last thing my brain manages to analyze. I've played songs that I really loved and then eventually learned the lyrics so I could sing them (if you could call what I do "singing") only to find the lyrics are cringe-worthy, or reveling in something I find abhorrent. Ugh! [[Special:Contributions/172.68.189.169|172.68.189.169]] 17:37, 9 August 2018 (UTC)

;The worst is when it does not even help looking them up - example Four five seconds: http://www.directlyrics.com/rihanna-fourfiveseconds-lyrics.html {{unsigned ip|141.101.104.101}}

2592: False Dichotomy

2022-03-16T02:39:44Z

172.70.130.91: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2592
| date = March 11, 2022
| title = False Dichotomy
| image = false_dichotomy.png
| titletext = There are two types of dichotomy: False dichotomies, true dichotomies, and surprise trichotomies.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a TRUE DICHOTOMY and an ETYMOLOGICAL CANNIBAL - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

A dichotomy is two alternatives which are normally mutually exclusive (such as the dichotomy between a flat Earth and non-flat Earth). A {{w|false dichotomy}} is a {{w|logical fallacy}} based on an incorrect perception of limited options (for example: if the page background isn't white, it is black).

[[Cueball]] has apparently made one such error and is being called out by [[White Hat]] for it. Upon having this pointed out to him, Cueball says that we must '''embrace''' false dichotomies, because the '''only other option''' is {{w|cannibalism}}. This statement is another false dichotomy, as presenting false dichotomies is not the only alternative to cannibalism{{Citation needed}}. The reverse (that cannibalism is incompatible with expressing false dichotomies) is also not potentially true, as eating people may eventually result in having nobody you need to present false dichotomies to.

Cueball has thus created another false dichotomy to excuse his first.

The false dichotomy Cueball appears to be referring to is the notion that those identified as human must not be eaten, but even closely related animals are not human and can be eaten, i.e. species can be divided clearly between "human" and "food". If this dichotomy is not accepted, than consuming any species that shares, for instance, any significant percentage of DNA with humans could be considered a measure of cannibalism.

The title text states that there are two kinds of dichotomies, making a dichotomy in itself. Due to three types of dichotomy being mentioned, and only two being foreshadowed, this statement is itself a surprise trichotomy, or three-parted choice. The title text is a variation of the [https://tropedia.fandom.com/wiki/There_Are_Two_Kinds_of_People_in_the_World "Two kinds of People"] joke. The classic math nerd variant is "There are three kinds of people in the world, those who can count, and those who can't." Alternatively, it may refer to a variation about {{w|base 2|binary}}. The original joke usually goes something like this: "There are 10 types of people: those who know binary, and those who don't." The variation is usually something like the following: "There are 10 types of people: those who know binary, and those who don't, and those who weren't expecting a {{w|base 3|ternary}} joke." Another version of this kind of joke is "there are two kinds of people: those who can extrapolate from an incomplete data set,"

The word {{wiktionary|trichotomy}} is a relative neologism, to be understood as to mean "divided into (or amongst) three parts", having replaced the original prefix "di-" (a factor of two, either doubled or, by context, halved) with that of "tri-" (similarly tripled/thirded). Strictly, though, {{wiktionary|dichotomy}} more directly stems from Greek elements that say "apart, I cut", with "apart" being represented by the "dicho-" (itself being roughly "into two", or to separate) which does not have a direct "tricho-" equivalent, although it does ultimately derive from "duo", Greek for "two". This is the kind of linguistic nuance that [[Randall]] clearly enjoys, yet may also happily or carelessly (mis)use without compunction.

==Transcript==
:[White Hat and Cueball are talking to each other. White Hat has his arms spread outwards in exasperation, while Cueball gestures assertively with his pointer finger.]
:White Hat: That's a false dichotomy!
:Cueball: Yes, but we have to embrace false dichotomies, because the only alternative is cannibalism.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Language]]
[[Category:Self-reference]]

Talk:2593: Deviled Eggs

2022-03-15T14:25:04Z

172.70.130.91: No italics in discussion :/

First commit was accidentally wiped off because an edit conflict with somebody who changed "created by a bot" to "created by an EGG" :( Am sad now. [[User:Mumingpo|Mumingpo]] ([[User talk:Mumingpo|talk]]) 02:45, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

The blue flash mentioned in the title text represents Cherenkov Radiation. In the case of the Demon Core accidents, those who saw the blue flashes saw it because of gamma radiation being slowed by the fluid inside of their eyeballs. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.42.137|172.69.42.137]] 02:46, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

:Not according to [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ionized-air_glow Wikipedia]]. There it says that the blue glow in criticality incidents such as those with the demon core is not from Cherenkov radiation.

:[[User:While False|While False]] ([[User talk:While False|talk]]) 09:15, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

Pretty sure the blue flash relates to the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_flash#Blue_flashes sunset phenomenon] (usually a green flash as mentioned in [[766: Green Flash]], but can be blue). [[User:Clam|Clam]] ([[User talk:Clam|talk]]) 02:47, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

Whenever the explanation is added, it needs to reference [https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/1242:_Scary_Names 1242: Scary Names], which talks about the Demon Core. [[User:Trimeta|Trimeta]] ([[User talk:Trimeta|talk]]) 02:49, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

Summary would likely be better formatted in table to match spatial arrangement of original comic labels[[User:Abstreudel|Abstreudel]] ([[User talk:Abstreudel|talk]]) 02:53, 15 March 2022 (UTC)
:Not really. It's four examples that happen to be two-by-two, no reason to need to keep/restore the row-neighbours and column-neighbours. It'd just potentially look messy.
:(If you're suggesting table of "Name | Description | ... ", with four rows within, then it would be consistent with other explanations, but unnecessarily white-space heavy compared to the current minor-header and explanatory paragraph(s) format.) [[Special:Contributions/172.70.85.177|172.70.85.177]] 07:36, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

A comment was misplaced below this discussion form. I tried to delete it but ended up deleting the whole discussion section for a moment. Would someone take care of that? [[Special:Contributions/172.70.110.209|172.70.110.209]] 03:24, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

If anyone is curious about what the demon core event looked like, the movie "Fat Man and Little Boy" (1989) while (hilariously) bad, has a fairly accurate scene depicting the second experiment, which can be found on YouTube. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.130.91|172.70.130.91]] 14:23, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

Talk:2593: Deviled Eggs

2022-03-15T14:24:36Z

172.70.130.91:

First commit was accidentally wiped off because an edit conflict with somebody who changed "created by a bot" to "created by an EGG" :( Am sad now. [[User:Mumingpo|Mumingpo]] ([[User talk:Mumingpo|talk]]) 02:45, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

The blue flash mentioned in the title text represents Cherenkov Radiation. In the case of the Demon Core accidents, those who saw the blue flashes saw it because of gamma radiation being slowed by the fluid inside of their eyeballs. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.42.137|172.69.42.137]] 02:46, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

:Not according to [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ionized-air_glow Wikipedia]]. There it says that the blue glow in criticality incidents such as those with the demon core is not from Cherenkov radiation.

:[[User:While False|While False]] ([[User talk:While False|talk]]) 09:15, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

Pretty sure the blue flash relates to the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_flash#Blue_flashes sunset phenomenon] (usually a green flash as mentioned in [[766: Green Flash]], but can be blue). [[User:Clam|Clam]] ([[User talk:Clam|talk]]) 02:47, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

Whenever the explanation is added, it needs to reference [https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/1242:_Scary_Names 1242: Scary Names], which talks about the Demon Core. [[User:Trimeta|Trimeta]] ([[User talk:Trimeta|talk]]) 02:49, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

Summary would likely be better formatted in table to match spatial arrangement of original comic labels[[User:Abstreudel|Abstreudel]] ([[User talk:Abstreudel|talk]]) 02:53, 15 March 2022 (UTC)
:Not really. It's four examples that happen to be two-by-two, no reason to need to keep/restore the row-neighbours and column-neighbours. It'd just potentially look messy.
:(If you're suggesting table of "Name | Description | ... ", with four rows within, then it would be consistent with other explanations, but unnecessarily white-space heavy compared to the current minor-header and explanatory paragraph(s) format.) [[Special:Contributions/172.70.85.177|172.70.85.177]] 07:36, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

A comment was misplaced below this discussion form. I tried to delete it but ended up deleting the whole discussion section for a moment. Would someone take care of that? [[Special:Contributions/172.70.110.209|172.70.110.209]] 03:24, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

If anyone is curious about what the demon core event looked like, the movie _Fat Man and Little Boy_ (1989) while (hilariously) bad, has a fairly accurate scene depicting the second experiment, which can be found on YouTube. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.130.91|172.70.130.91]] 14:23, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

Talk:2593: Deviled Eggs

2022-03-15T14:23:59Z

172.70.130.91:

First commit was accidentally wiped off because an edit conflict with somebody who changed "created by a bot" to "created by an EGG" :( Am sad now. [[User:Mumingpo|Mumingpo]] ([[User talk:Mumingpo|talk]]) 02:45, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

The blue flash mentioned in the title text represents Cherenkov Radiation. In the case of the Demon Core accidents, those who saw the blue flashes saw it because of gamma radiation being slowed by the fluid inside of their eyeballs. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.42.137|172.69.42.137]] 02:46, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

:Not according to [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ionized-air_glow Wikipedia]]. There it says that the blue glow in criticality incidents such as those with the demon core is not from Cherenkov radiation.

:[[User:While False|While False]] ([[User talk:While False|talk]]) 09:15, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

Pretty sure the blue flash relates to the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_flash#Blue_flashes sunset phenomenon] (usually a green flash as mentioned in [[766: Green Flash]], but can be blue). [[User:Clam|Clam]] ([[User talk:Clam|talk]]) 02:47, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

Whenever the explanation is added, it needs to reference [https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/1242:_Scary_Names 1242: Scary Names], which talks about the Demon Core. [[User:Trimeta|Trimeta]] ([[User talk:Trimeta|talk]]) 02:49, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

Summary would likely be better formatted in table to match spatial arrangement of original comic labels[[User:Abstreudel|Abstreudel]] ([[User talk:Abstreudel|talk]]) 02:53, 15 March 2022 (UTC)
:Not really. It's four examples that happen to be two-by-two, no reason to need to keep/restore the row-neighbours and column-neighbours. It'd just potentially look messy.
:(If you're suggesting table of "Name | Description | ... ", with four rows within, then it would be consistent with other explanations, but unnecessarily white-space heavy compared to the current minor-header and explanatory paragraph(s) format.) [[Special:Contributions/172.70.85.177|172.70.85.177]] 07:36, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

A comment was misplaced below this discussion form. I tried to delete it but ended up deleting the whole discussion section for a moment. Would someone take care of that? [[Special:Contributions/172.70.110.209|172.70.110.209]] 03:24, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

If anyone is curious about what the demon core event looked like, the movie *Fat Man and Little Boy* (1989) while (hilariously) bad, has a fairly accurate scene depicting the second experiment, which can be found on YouTube. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.130.91|172.70.130.91]] 14:23, 15 March 2022 (UTC)

Talk:651: Bag Check

2022-03-14T15:05:18Z

172.70.130.91:

I am presuming beret guy has not been invented yet?

[[User:Weatherlawyer| I used Google News BEFORE it was clickbait]] ([[User talk:Weatherlawyer|talk]]) 05:08, 28 January 2015 (UTC)
:Beret first appeared in 167: Nihilism. This doesn't seem like his sort of thing anyway, since he could probably just drink out of the USB ports... -Pennpenn [[Special:Contributions/108.162.250.162|108.162.250.162]] 06:42, 22 June 2015 (UTC)

I wonder if Randall got arrested for posting this comic and why it's still up. It sort of contains a guide to build a bomb, doesn't it? {{unsigned ip|162.158.90.163}}
:Probably not. After all, just because people can easily learn how to pick a lock doesn't mean that people will go out and break into houses. [[User:SilverMagpie|SilverMagpie]] ([[User talk:SilverMagpie|talk]]) 05:29, 20 November 2018 (UTC)

Wait, if he proves the rules inconsistent, doesn't that mean that they can arrest him for anything via the principle of explosion? [[Special:Contributions/172.70.130.91|172.70.130.91]] 15:05, 14 March 2022 (UTC)

2590: I Shouldn't Complain

2022-03-07T18:33:04Z

172.70.130.91: Added transcript

{{comic
| number = 2590
| date = March 7, 2022
| title = I Shouldn't Complain
| image = i_shouldnt_complain.png
| titletext = Bald-faced hornets are only a 2 on the Schmidt pain index, so I shouldn't complain. The tennis ball ejected from the dryer exhaust vent could have ricocheted off the nest of a much higher-scoring insect before knocking me off the ladder. Really, I'm lucky.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BALD-FACED HORNET - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

==Transcript==
:Cueball: I can't believe you fell headfirst into a garbage can and were stuck there for two hours while wasps stung your exposed legs!
:Megan: I shouldn't complain! Lots of people have been stuck for longer in worse places.
:Megan: Really, I'm lucky.
:[Caption below the panel:]
:The more unpleasant someone's experience is, the more they apologize for complaining because it could be worse.
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[Cueball and Megan standing together. Cueball has his hands on his chin, shocked.]
:Cueball: I can't believe you fell headfirst into a garbage can and were stuck there for two hours while wasps stung your exposed legs!
:Megan: I shouldn't complain! Lots of people have been stuck for longer in worse places.
:Megan: Really, I'm lucky.

:[Caption below the panel]:
:The more unpleasant someone's experience is, the more they apologize for complaining because it could be worse.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Animals]]

1862: Particle Properties

2022-03-06T06:26:45Z

172.70.130.91: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1862
| date = July 12, 2017
| title = Particle Properties
| image = particle_properties.png
| titletext = Each particle also has a password which allows its properties to be changed, but the cosmic censorship hypothesis suggests we can never observe the password itself—only its secure hash.
}}

==Explanation==
A table is presented comparing the range (maximum and minimum value) and scale (how big number increments are) of several measures. The table begins by listing properties pertinent to {{w|particle physics}} as the title suggests, but quickly devolves to other domains such as role-playing games (such as D&D) and sports after failing to provide a good definition of {{w|Flavour (particle physics)|flavor}}.

{| class=wikitable
! Property
! Scale
! Explanation
|-
| Electric charge
| [-1,1]
| The {{w|electric charge}} is shown in increments of a third from -1 to +1 which are the only known charges of fundamental particles (leptons, quarks and gauge bosons); however there are some exotic composite particles with twice integer charge, e.g. the recently discovered {{w|Ξcc++|double charmed Xi baryon}} with a charge of +2.

Quarks are the only particles with charges of ± ⅓ or ± ⅔, but cannot exist individually; below the {{w|Hagedorn temperature}}, they are only found within hadrons. To date, all hadrons (particles composed of quarks), leptons, and bosons have integer charge, and current models indicate that this must be the case.
|-
| Mass
| [0,∞) in kg
| Mass (specifically {{w|rest mass}}) is the measure of an object or particle's resistance to force, as well as its ability to distort {{w|spacetime}} (its gravitational attraction).
Theoretically, any object's mass could approach infinity, but mass cannot be below 0 (as far as {{w|Negative mass|we know}}). The mass units shown (kilograms) are, however, far too large for particles. Some particles, such as photons, have zero rest mass and are therefore massless.

All particles with rest mass obtain it through confinement, either by the {{w|Higgs field}} (the quarks; leptons; and W, Z, and Higgs bosons) or the strong nuclear force (hadrons).
Particles with no rest mass (photons and gluons) can only move at lightspeed.
|-
| Spin number
| (-∞,∞) (Intervals of ½)
| {{w|Spin (physics)|Spin}} is an intrinsic property of particles, a relativistic form of angular momentum. The spin of a particle determines what statistics the particle follows, half odd integer spin particles are classified as fermions and integer spin particles are bosons.

Two fermions cannot have exactly the same state, an observation known as the Pauli exclusion principle. Thus, for fermions to exist in the same position, they must have opposite spins, of + ½ and - ½. It follows that a maximum of two fermions of the same flavor (e.g. two electrons) may exist in the same position.
|-
| Flavor
| Misc. quantum numbers
| Flavor is a series of {{w|quantum numbers}} that do not fit neatly onto a set of dimensional axes.

The most general theory breaks flavor down into four distinct conserved values, the electric charge, the weak isospin, the baryon number and the lepton number, but more specific models increase the number of distinct values. Quarks, for example, add five more flavor numbers: isospin (upness vs. downness), strangeness, charm, topness and bottomness (the last four are literally just the number of strange, charmed, top and bottom quarks, minus the corresponding anti-quarks).
|-
| Color charge
| Coordinate system with R, G and B axes
| The primary {{w|strong nuclear force}} has six mutually attractive charges, arranged in three perpendicular axes each analogous to electric charge. These charges are commonly referred to as "{{w|Color charge|color}}" and the three axes are given the names of the three primary colors of light: Red, Green and Blue. The black dots in the diagram represent the actual colors while the white dots are the anti-color charges: anti-Red (colored cyan in diagrams), anti-Green (magenta) and anti-Blue (yellow). To complete the analogy, a color charge of zero is referred to as "White". The names of these charges are purely allegorical, but they do make it convenient to refer to them, especially in diagrams.

The color of a particle not confined by the strong force must be White, either as the sum of a color and its anti-color (as in a meson), as the sum of RGB or anti-RGB (as in a baryon), or as a sum of those sums (As in tetra-, penta- or hexaquarks). The attraction of the strong nuclear force is so strong that attempting to separate two quarks from each other creates enough energy to create two new quarks, which then bind to the original quarks. This property is known as "confinement" and means that color charge can never be observed directly.

Randall is incorrect in stating "Quarks only", since {{w|gluon}}s (the particle that carries the color force) are themselves colored. However, the colors of gluons are much more complicated, with a total of eight distinct superpositions of every possible color-anticolor pair. The fact that gluons are subject to the force they mediate also means that the strong force has a defined radius of effect, unlike the electromagnetic force, whose gauge bosons (the photon) are uncharged.

This is the last entry currently used to describe particles by particle physicists.
|-
| Mood
| 5 emojis on a number line ranging from angry to joyful
| Particles are not considered to have mood, even in the allegorical way they have color or flavor, but Randall implies that there is a quantized 5 point scale (from "angry" to "ecstatic") which would have some effect on the properties of the particle. This would be more appropriate for measuring customer satisfaction. Charts such as this are also sometimes used in medicine to indicate levels of pain, and in some psychiatric treatments as a quick way to track changes in the patient's condition.

In grammar, {{w|Grammatical particles|particles}} are a nebulous class of words, usually defined by a lack of declension or conjugation (such as prepositions in English). Some languages use particles instead of or in addition to "standard" declension/conjugation, much like auxiliary verbs are used in English. These particles may well carry "{{w|Grammatical mood|mood}}" as an attribute, as well as tense and aspect.
|-
| Alignment
| 3x3 grid with varying shades (columns Good-Evil, rows Lawful-Chaotic)
| A reference to the tabletop RPG ''{{w|Dungeons & Dragons}}'', where characters have an {{w|Alignment (Dungeons & Dragons)|alignment}} that is either Good, Neutral, or Evil (describing whether they have a propensity to help or harm others) and either Lawful, Neutral, or Chaotic (describing how much they care about organizations, social norms, and the status quo). Common examples of these alignments include Darth Vader (Lawful Evil), Superman (Lawful Good), Robin Hood (Chaotic Good), and the Joker (Chaotic Evil). This may be a reference to the now defunct names of the two heaviest known quarks ("truth" and "beauty").
|-
| Hit points
| [0,∞)
| Games (videogames, board games, CCGs, RPGs, etc.) often have values for players and other entities that represent {{w|Health (video game)|health}} (also called hit points or HP). Generally there is not necessarily a limit on this value, but it does not often go below 0 as the zero value is considered "dead" (or some equivalent).
|-
| Rating
| 5-star scale
| The five-star rating system is often used to rate films, TV shows, restaurants, and hotels. Randall has previously criticized this system in [[937: TornadoGuard]] and [[1098: Star Ratings]].

Interestingly, unlike the "Heat" rating with the chili peppers below, this scale doesn't have a creatively labeled number line, merely a rating (3.5, in this case). Considering [[1098]], could Randall be subtly self-deprecating here?
|-
| String type
| Bytestring-Charstring
| In computer science, this denotes what type of data is stored subsequent set of elements or a {{w|String_(computing)|string}}. This is likely a pun on {{w|String_(physics)|string}} types that appear in {{w|string theory}} and particle physics, and may also be a reference to {{w|Python (programming language)|Python}}, in which the difference between a byte string and a (Unicode) character string is a cause of difficulties for some programmers.
|-
| Batting average
| [0,100] in %
| In {{w|baseball}}, a player's {{w|batting average}} is calculated by dividing their hits by their at-bats. Instead of using the percent sign (%), it is usually presented as a number between 0 and 1 (inclusive) expressed as three decimal places with no leading zero: [.000, 1.000]. It is pronounced as though it is multiplied by 1,000: A batter with a batting average of .342 (which is very good) is said to be "batting three forty-two." A perfect batting average (unattainable except in very small samples) gives rise to the expression "batting a thousand." The 0-100 scale would be a better match for the batting average statistic in {{w|cricket}}, although percents would still not be used.
|-
| Proof
| [0,200]
| This refers to {{w|alcohol proof}}, which is the measure of the amount of ethanol in a beverage by volume. In the United States, 100 proof correspond to 50% alcohol, so the proof of a beverage is two times the percentage of ethanol, so the maximum value is 200.
|-
| Heat
| No jalapeño icons - 3 jalapeño icons, increasing
| Spicy dishes are sometimes measured by the intensity of the spicy flavor, usually ranging from values like "mild" to "hot". The gray jalapeño likely represents negligible or no spicy taste in the food. However, as an objective scale it is largely meaningless, since there is no reliable consistency in how these ratings are applied - what may be considered a 3-chilli dish in one establishment may only be a 1-chilli dish in another (as restaurants rarely if ever intend their dishes to be rated on the {{w|Scoville scale}}). The scale being unlimited may be a reference to the practice of some restaurants where a fourth or fifth chilli may be added to exaggerate the heat of their dishes.
|-
| Street value
| [0,∞) in $
| The value of an illegal good or a legal/controlled good when bought or sold by illegal means usually by or to the end user.
|-
| Entropy
| ''This already has like 20 different confusing meanings, so it probably means something here, too.''
| The term "entropy", which {{w|History of entropy|began}} as a {{w|Entropy (classical thermodynamics)|thermodynamic measure}}, has since been adopted {{w|Entropy in thermodynamics and information theory|by analogy}} into {{w|Entropy (disambiguation)|multiple seemingly unrelated domains}}. The table doesn't seem to know what domain it is in, but (possibly in a desperate attempt to hide this) deems it safe to assume the unknown domain uses the term "entropy" for ''something''! Entropy is often described as a measure of disorder or chaos so this may be another reference to the D&D alignment axis above.
|}

The title text says that in addition each particle has a password, but only hash of the password can be observed. This is a computer science reference. In computer science, properties (e.g. of an object or program) often can be changed with a single command. In physics as we observe it, properties can locally change with the environment. There are several {{w|Time-variation_of_fundamental_constants|experiments}}, whether physical constants are really time-const. Password hashing is the practice of hiding the password itself by storing only an irreversible representation of the password. Since the password itself is not stored, the password cannot ever be viewed by the user or a hacker (outside of the login page). This method is considered to be safest way of storing passwords. Password hashing using some {{w|key derivation function}} makes it impossible to steal passwords even if the server that stores hashes is cracked, unless the hash function is also broken, which should be a task which cannot be completed in any feasible time for sufficiently strong passwords. The title-text claims this is predicted by the {{w|cosmic censorship hypothesis}}, which in reality claims that a {{w|gravitational singularity}} must always be obscured by an event horizon (i.e.: there can't be a {{w|naked singularity}}). There is also a hint of quantum mechanics in the statement, as observation is one of the central concepts of the field, and {{w|Heisenberg's uncertainty principle}} actually states that it is impossible to observe (measure) some property of a particle with arbitrary precision when another one is known (e.g.: you can't determine the momentum and position of a particle). This makes the title text a mix of several domains, as was the above table.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon. Is table alone the best solution? Layout is still not standard.}}
:<big>Particle Properties in Physics</big>
{| class=wikitable
! Property
! Type/scale
|-
| Electric charge
| [Scale with -1, 0 and +1 labeled and markings dividing the units in thirds. The endpoints are both dots.]
|-
| Mass
| [Scale with 0, 1kg and 2kg labeled and markings dividing the units into thirds. The endpoints are a dot on the zero end and an arrow on the other end.]
|-
| Spin number
| [Scale with -1, -½, 0, ½ and 1 labeled and no additional markings. The endpoints are both arrows, pointing out.]
|-
| Flavor
| (Misc. quantum numbers)
|-
| Color charge
| [Coordinate system of three axes labeled R, G and B clockwise from the 10 o'clock position. Endpoints are arrow-dots on all ends, with black dots for the labeled ends and white dots for the unlabeled ends.] (Quarks only)
|-
| Mood
| [Scale labeled with 5 emoticons, from angry to happy, and markings dividing the units in thirds. Endpoints are both arrows, pointing out.]
|-
| Alignment
| [3x3 grid with varying shades] Good-Evil, Lawful-Chaotic
|-
| Hit points
| [Scale starting from 0, markings but no labels other than zero. Endpoints are a dot at zero end and an arrow at the other end.]
|-
| Rating
| [Star rating of 3.5/5 stars.]
|-
| String type
| Bytestring-Charstring
|-
| Batting average
| [Scale from 0% to 100%. Endpoints are dot at 0% end and arrow-dot at 100% end.]
|-
| Proof
| [Scale from 0 to 200. Endpoints are dot at 0 end and arrow-dot at 200 end.]
|-
| Heat
| [Scale labeled with pepper icons, from 0 (a grayed-out pepper) to 3 black peppers. Endpoints are a dot at zero end and an arrow at the other end.]
|-
| Street value
| [Scale with $0, $100 and $200 labeled. Endpoints are a dot at zero end and an arrow at the other end.]
|-
| Entropy
| (This already has like 20 different confusing meanings, so it probably means something here, too.)
|}

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Physics]]
[[Category:Baseball]]

1862: Particle Properties

2022-03-06T06:21:53Z

172.70.130.91: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1862
| date = July 12, 2017
| title = Particle Properties
| image = particle_properties.png
| titletext = Each particle also has a password which allows its properties to be changed, but the cosmic censorship hypothesis suggests we can never observe the password itself—only its secure hash.
}}

==Explanation==
A table is presented comparing the range (maximum and minimum value) and scale (how big number increments are) of several measures. The table begins by listing properties pertinent to {{w|particle physics}} as the title suggests, but quickly devolves to other domains such as role-playing games (such as D&D) and sports after failing to provide a good definition of {{w|Flavour (particle physics)|flavor}}.

{| class=wikitable
! Property
! Scale
! Explanation
|-
| Electric charge
| [-1,1]
| The {{w|electric charge}} is shown in increments of a third from -1 to +1 which are the only known charges of fundamental particles (leptons, quarks and gauge bosons); however there are some exotic composite particles with twice integer charge, e.g. the recently discovered {{w|Ξcc++|double charmed Xi baryon}} with a charge of +2.

Quarks are the only particles with charges of ± ⅓ or ± ⅔, but cannot exist individually; below the {{w|Hagedorn temperature}}, they are only found within hadrons. To date, all hadrons (particles composed of quarks), leptons, and bosons have integer charge, and current models indicate that this must be the case.
|-
| Mass
| [0,∞) in kg
| Mass (specifically {{w|rest mass}}) is the measure of an object or particle's resistance to force, as well as its ability to distort {{w|spacetime}} (its gravitational attraction).
Theoretically, any object's mass could approach infinity, but mass cannot be below 0 (as far as we {{w Negative Mass|know}}). The mass units shown (kilograms) are, however, far too large for particles. Some particles, such as photons, have zero rest mass and are therefore massless.

All particles with rest mass obtain it through confinement, either by the {{w|Higgs field}} (the quarks; leptons; and W, Z, and Higgs bosons) or the strong nuclear force (hadrons).
Particles with no rest mass (photons and gluons) can only move at lightspeed.
|-
| Spin number
| (-∞,∞) (Intervals of ½)
| {{w|Spin (physics)|Spin}} is an intrinsic property of particles, a relativistic form of angular momentum. The spin of a particle determines what statistics the particle follows, half odd integer spin particles are classified as fermions and integer spin particles are bosons.

Two fermions cannot have exactly the same state, an observation known as the Pauli exclusion principle. Thus, for fermions to exist in the same position, they must have opposite spins, of + ½ and - ½. It follows that a maximum of two fermions of the same flavor (e.g. two electrons) may exist in the same position.
|-
| Flavor
| Misc. quantum numbers
| Flavor is a series of {{w|quantum numbers}} that do not fit neatly onto a set of dimensional axes.

The most general theory breaks flavor down into four distinct conserved values, the electric charge, the weak isospin, the baryon number and the lepton number, but more specific models increase the number of distinct values. Quarks, for example, add five more flavor numbers: isospin (upness vs. downness), strangeness, charm, topness and bottomness (the last four are literally just the number of strange, charmed, top and bottom quarks, minus the corresponding anti-quarks).
|-
| Color charge
| Coordinate system with R, G and B axes
| The primary {{w|strong nuclear force}} has six mutually attractive charges, arranged in three perpendicular axes each analogous to electric charge. These charges are commonly referred to as "{{w|Color charge|color}}" and the three axes are given the names of the three primary colors of light: Red, Green and Blue. The black dots in the diagram represent the actual colors while the white dots are the anti-color charges: anti-Red (colored cyan in diagrams), anti-Green (magenta) and anti-Blue (yellow). To complete the analogy, a color charge of zero is referred to as "White". The names of these charges are purely allegorical, but they do make it convenient to refer to them, especially in diagrams.

The color of a particle not confined by the strong force must be White, either as the sum of a color and its anti-color (as in a meson), as the sum of RGB or anti-RGB (as in a baryon), or as a sum of those sums (As in tetra-, penta- or hexaquarks). The attraction of the strong nuclear force is so strong that attempting to separate two quarks from each other creates enough energy to create two new quarks, which then bind to the original quarks. This property is known as "confinement" and means that color charge can never be observed directly.

Randall is incorrect in stating "Quarks only", since {{w|gluon}}s (the particle that carries the color force) are themselves colored. However, the colors of gluons are much more complicated, with a total of eight distinct superpositions of every possible color-anticolor pair. The fact that gluons are subject to the force they mediate also means that the strong force has a defined radius of effect, unlike the electromagnetic force, whose gauge bosons (the photon) are uncharged.

This is the last entry currently used to describe particles by particle physicists.
|-
| Mood
| 5 emojis on a number line ranging from angry to joyful
| Particles are not considered to have mood, even in the allegorical way they have color or flavor, but Randall implies that there is a quantized 5 point scale (from "angry" to "ecstatic") which would have some effect on the properties of the particle. This would be more appropriate for measuring customer satisfaction. Charts such as this are also sometimes used in medicine to indicate levels of pain, and in some psychiatric treatments as a quick way to track changes in the patient's condition.

In grammar, {{w|Grammatical particles|particles}} are a nebulous class of words, usually defined by a lack of declension or conjugation (such as prepositions in English). Some languages use particles instead of or in addition to "standard" declension/conjugation, much like auxiliary verbs are used in English. These particles may well carry "{{w|Grammatical mood|mood}}" as an attribute, as well as tense and aspect.
|-
| Alignment
| 3x3 grid with varying shades (columns Good-Evil, rows Lawful-Chaotic)
| A reference to the tabletop RPG ''{{w|Dungeons & Dragons}}'', where characters have an {{w|Alignment (Dungeons & Dragons)|alignment}} that is either Good, Neutral, or Evil (describing whether they have a propensity to help or harm others) and either Lawful, Neutral, or Chaotic (describing how much they care about organizations, social norms, and the status quo). Common examples of these alignments include Darth Vader (Lawful Evil), Superman (Lawful Good), Robin Hood (Chaotic Good), and the Joker (Chaotic Evil). This may be a reference to the now defunct names of the two heaviest known quarks ("truth" and "beauty").
|-
| Hit points
| [0,∞)
| Games (videogames, board games, CCGs, RPGs, etc.) often have values for players and other entities that represent {{w|Health (video game)|health}} (also called hit points or HP). Generally there is not necessarily a limit on this value, but it does not often go below 0 as the zero value is considered "dead" (or some equivalent).
|-
| Rating
| 5-star scale
| The five-star rating system is often used to rate films, TV shows, restaurants, and hotels. Randall has previously criticized this system in [[937: TornadoGuard]] and [[1098: Star Ratings]].

Interestingly, unlike the "Heat" rating with the chili peppers below, this scale doesn't have a creatively labeled number line, merely a rating (3.5, in this case). Considering [[1098]], could Randall be subtly self-deprecating here?
|-
| String type
| Bytestring-Charstring
| In computer science, this denotes what type of data is stored subsequent set of elements or a {{w|String_(computing)|string}}. This is likely a pun on {{w|String_(physics)|string}} types that appear in {{w|string theory}} and particle physics, and may also be a reference to {{w|Python (programming language)|Python}}, in which the difference between a byte string and a (Unicode) character string is a cause of difficulties for some programmers.
|-
| Batting average
| [0,100] in %
| In {{w|baseball}}, a player's {{w|batting average}} is calculated by dividing their hits by their at-bats. Instead of using the percent sign (%), it is usually presented as a number between 0 and 1 (inclusive) expressed as three decimal places with no leading zero: [.000, 1.000]. It is pronounced as though it is multiplied by 1,000: A batter with a batting average of .342 (which is very good) is said to be "batting three forty-two." A perfect batting average (unattainable except in very small samples) gives rise to the expression "batting a thousand." The 0-100 scale would be a better match for the batting average statistic in {{w|cricket}}, although percents would still not be used.
|-
| Proof
| [0,200]
| This refers to {{w|alcohol proof}}, which is the measure of the amount of ethanol in a beverage by volume. In the United States, 100 proof correspond to 50% alcohol, so the proof of a beverage is two times the percentage of ethanol, so the maximum value is 200.
|-
| Heat
| No jalapeño icons - 3 jalapeño icons, increasing
| Spicy dishes are sometimes measured by the intensity of the spicy flavor, usually ranging from values like "mild" to "hot". The gray jalapeño likely represents negligible or no spicy taste in the food. However, as an objective scale it is largely meaningless, since there is no reliable consistency in how these ratings are applied - what may be considered a 3-chilli dish in one establishment may only be a 1-chilli dish in another (as restaurants rarely if ever intend their dishes to be rated on the {{w|Scoville scale}}). The scale being unlimited may be a reference to the practice of some restaurants where a fourth or fifth chilli may be added to exaggerate the heat of their dishes.
|-
| Street value
| [0,∞) in $
| The value of an illegal good or a legal/controlled good when bought or sold by illegal means usually by or to the end user.
|-
| Entropy
| ''This already has like 20 different confusing meanings, so it probably means something here, too.''
| The term "entropy", which {{w|History of entropy|began}} as a {{w|Entropy (classical thermodynamics)|thermodynamic measure}}, has since been adopted {{w|Entropy in thermodynamics and information theory|by analogy}} into {{w|Entropy (disambiguation)|multiple seemingly unrelated domains}}. The table doesn't seem to know what domain it is in, but (possibly in a desperate attempt to hide this) deems it safe to assume the unknown domain uses the term "entropy" for ''something''! Entropy is often described as a measure of disorder or chaos so this may be another reference to the D&D alignment axis above.
|}

The title text says that in addition each particle has a password, but only hash of the password can be observed. This is a computer science reference. In computer science, properties (e.g. of an object or program) often can be changed with a single command. In physics as we observe it, properties can locally change with the environment. There are several {{w|Time-variation_of_fundamental_constants|experiments}}, whether physical constants are really time-const. Password hashing is the practice of hiding the password itself by storing only an irreversible representation of the password. Since the password itself is not stored, the password cannot ever be viewed by the user or a hacker (outside of the login page). This method is considered to be safest way of storing passwords. Password hashing using some {{w|key derivation function}} makes it impossible to steal passwords even if the server that stores hashes is cracked, unless the hash function is also broken, which should be a task which cannot be completed in any feasible time for sufficiently strong passwords. The title-text claims this is predicted by the {{w|cosmic censorship hypothesis}}, which in reality claims that a {{w|gravitational singularity}} must always be obscured by an event horizon (i.e.: there can't be a {{w|naked singularity}}). There is also a hint of quantum mechanics in the statement, as observation is one of the central concepts of the field, and {{w|Heisenberg's uncertainty principle}} actually states that it is impossible to observe (measure) some property of a particle with arbitrary precision when another one is known (e.g.: you can't determine the momentum and position of a particle). This makes the title text a mix of several domains, as was the above table.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon. Is table alone the best solution? Layout is still not standard.}}
:<big>Particle Properties in Physics</big>
{| class=wikitable
! Property
! Type/scale
|-
| Electric charge
| [Scale with -1, 0 and +1 labeled and markings dividing the units in thirds. The endpoints are both dots.]
|-
| Mass
| [Scale with 0, 1kg and 2kg labeled and markings dividing the units into thirds. The endpoints are a dot on the zero end and an arrow on the other end.]
|-
| Spin number
| [Scale with -1, -½, 0, ½ and 1 labeled and no additional markings. The endpoints are both arrows, pointing out.]
|-
| Flavor
| (Misc. quantum numbers)
|-
| Color charge
| [Coordinate system of three axes labeled R, G and B clockwise from the 10 o'clock position. Endpoints are arrow-dots on all ends, with black dots for the labeled ends and white dots for the unlabeled ends.] (Quarks only)
|-
| Mood
| [Scale labeled with 5 emoticons, from angry to happy, and markings dividing the units in thirds. Endpoints are both arrows, pointing out.]
|-
| Alignment
| [3x3 grid with varying shades] Good-Evil, Lawful-Chaotic
|-
| Hit points
| [Scale starting from 0, markings but no labels other than zero. Endpoints are a dot at zero end and an arrow at the other end.]
|-
| Rating
| [Star rating of 3.5/5 stars.]
|-
| String type
| Bytestring-Charstring
|-
| Batting average
| [Scale from 0% to 100%. Endpoints are dot at 0% end and arrow-dot at 100% end.]
|-
| Proof
| [Scale from 0 to 200. Endpoints are dot at 0 end and arrow-dot at 200 end.]
|-
| Heat
| [Scale labeled with pepper icons, from 0 (a grayed-out pepper) to 3 black peppers. Endpoints are a dot at zero end and an arrow at the other end.]
|-
| Street value
| [Scale with $0, $100 and $200 labeled. Endpoints are a dot at zero end and an arrow at the other end.]
|-
| Entropy
| (This already has like 20 different confusing meanings, so it probably means something here, too.)
|}

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Physics]]
[[Category:Baseball]]

1862: Particle Properties

2022-03-06T06:20:21Z

172.70.130.91: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1862
| date = July 12, 2017
| title = Particle Properties
| image = particle_properties.png
| titletext = Each particle also has a password which allows its properties to be changed, but the cosmic censorship hypothesis suggests we can never observe the password itself—only its secure hash.
}}

==Explanation==
A table is presented comparing the range (maximum and minimum value) and scale (how big number increments are) of several measures. The table begins by listing properties pertinent to {{w|particle physics}} as the title suggests, but quickly devolves to other domains such as role-playing games (such as D&D) and sports after failing to provide a good definition of {{w|Flavour (particle physics)|flavor}}.

{| class=wikitable
! Property
! Scale
! Explanation
|-
| Electric charge
| [-1,1]
| The {{w|electric charge}} is shown in increments of a third from -1 to +1 which are the only known charges of fundamental particles (leptons, quarks and gauge bosons); however there are some exotic composite particles with twice integer charge, e.g. the recently discovered {{w|Ξcc++|double charmed Xi baryon}} with a charge of +2.

Quarks are the only particles with charges of ± ⅓ or ± ⅔, but cannot exist individually; below the {{w|Hagedorn temperature}}, they are only found within hadrons. To date, all hadrons (particles composed of quarks), leptons, and bosons have integer charge, and current models indicate that this must be the case.
|-
| Mass
| [0,∞) in kg
| Mass (specifically {{w|rest mass}}) is the measure of an object or particle's resistance to force, as well as its ability to distort {{w|spacetime}} (its gravitational attraction).
Theoretically, any object's mass could approach infinity, but mass cannot be below 0 (as far as we {{w|know}}). The mass units shown (kilograms) are, however, far too large for particles. Some particles, such as photons, have zero rest mass and are therefore massless.

All particles with rest mass obtain it through confinement, either by the {{w|Higgs field}} (the quarks; leptons; and W, Z, and Higgs bosons) or the strong nuclear force (hadrons).
Particles with no rest mass (photons and gluons) can only move at lightspeed.
|-
| Spin number
| (-∞,∞) (Intervals of ½)
| {{w|Spin (physics)|Spin}} is an intrinsic property of particles, a relativistic form of angular momentum. The spin of a particle determines what statistics the particle follows, half odd integer spin particles are classified as fermions and integer spin particles are bosons.

Two fermions cannot have exactly the same state, an observation known as the Pauli exclusion principle. Thus, for fermions to exist in the same position, they must have opposite spins, of + ½ and - ½. It follows that a maximum of two fermions of the same flavor (e.g. two electrons) may exist in the same position.
|-
| Flavor
| Misc. quantum numbers
| Flavor is a series of {{w|quantum numbers}} that do not fit neatly onto a set of dimensional axes.

The most general theory breaks flavor down into four distinct conserved values, the electric charge, the weak isospin, the baryon number and the lepton number, but more specific models increase the number of distinct values. Quarks, for example, add five more flavor numbers: isospin (upness vs. downness), strangeness, charm, topness and bottomness (the last four are literally just the number of strange, charmed, top and bottom quarks, minus the corresponding anti-quarks).
|-
| Color charge
| Coordinate system with R, G and B axes
| The primary {{w|strong nuclear force}} has six mutually attractive charges, arranged in three perpendicular axes each analogous to electric charge. These charges are commonly referred to as "{{w|Color charge|color}}" and the three axes are given the names of the three primary colors of light: Red, Green and Blue. The black dots in the diagram represent the actual colors while the white dots are the anti-color charges: anti-Red (colored cyan in diagrams), anti-Green (magenta) and anti-Blue (yellow). To complete the analogy, a color charge of zero is referred to as "White". The names of these charges are purely allegorical, but they do make it convenient to refer to them, especially in diagrams.

The color of a particle not confined by the strong force must be White, either as the sum of a color and its anti-color (as in a meson), as the sum of RGB or anti-RGB (as in a baryon), or as a sum of those sums (As in tetra-, penta- or hexaquarks). The attraction of the strong nuclear force is so strong that attempting to separate two quarks from each other creates enough energy to create two new quarks, which then bind to the original quarks. This property is known as "confinement" and means that color charge can never be observed directly.

Randall is incorrect in stating "Quarks only", since {{w|gluon}}s (the particle that carries the color force) are themselves colored. However, the colors of gluons are much more complicated, with a total of eight distinct superpositions of every possible color-anticolor pair. The fact that gluons are subject to the force they mediate also means that the strong force has a defined radius of effect, unlike the electromagnetic force, whose gauge bosons (the photon) are uncharged.

This is the last entry currently used to describe particles by particle physicists.
|-
| Mood
| 5 emojis on a number line ranging from angry to joyful
| Particles are not considered to have mood, even in the allegorical way they have color or flavor, but Randall implies that there is a quantized 5 point scale (from "angry" to "ecstatic") which would have some effect on the properties of the particle. This would be more appropriate for measuring customer satisfaction. Charts such as this are also sometimes used in medicine to indicate levels of pain, and in some psychiatric treatments as a quick way to track changes in the patient's condition.

In grammar, {{w|Grammatical particles|particles}} are a nebulous class of words, usually defined by a lack of declension or conjugation (such as prepositions in English). Some languages use particles instead of or in addition to "standard" declension/conjugation, much like auxiliary verbs are used in English. These particles may well carry "{{w|Grammatical mood|mood}}" as an attribute, as well as tense and aspect.
|-
| Alignment
| 3x3 grid with varying shades (columns Good-Evil, rows Lawful-Chaotic)
| A reference to the tabletop RPG ''{{w|Dungeons & Dragons}}'', where characters have an {{w|Alignment (Dungeons & Dragons)|alignment}} that is either Good, Neutral, or Evil (describing whether they have a propensity to help or harm others) and either Lawful, Neutral, or Chaotic (describing how much they care about organizations, social norms, and the status quo). Common examples of these alignments include Darth Vader (Lawful Evil), Superman (Lawful Good), Robin Hood (Chaotic Good), and the Joker (Chaotic Evil). This may be a reference to the now defunct names of the two heaviest known quarks ("truth" and "beauty").
|-
| Hit points
| [0,∞)
| Games (videogames, board games, CCGs, RPGs, etc.) often have values for players and other entities that represent {{w|Health (video game)|health}} (also called hit points or HP). Generally there is not necessarily a limit on this value, but it does not often go below 0 as the zero value is considered "dead" (or some equivalent).
|-
| Rating
| 5-star scale
| The five-star rating system is often used to rate films, TV shows, restaurants, and hotels. Randall has previously criticized this system in [[937: TornadoGuard]] and [[1098: Star Ratings]].

Interestingly, unlike the "Heat" rating with the chili peppers below, this scale doesn't have a creatively labeled number line, merely a rating (3.5, in this case). Considering [[1098]], could Randall be subtly self-deprecating here?
|-
| String type
| Bytestring-Charstring
| In computer science, this denotes what type of data is stored subsequent set of elements or a {{w|String_(computing)|string}}. This is likely a pun on {{w|String_(physics)|string}} types that appear in {{w|string theory}} and particle physics, and may also be a reference to {{w|Python (programming language)|Python}}, in which the difference between a byte string and a (Unicode) character string is a cause of difficulties for some programmers.
|-
| Batting average
| [0,100] in %
| In {{w|baseball}}, a player's {{w|batting average}} is calculated by dividing their hits by their at-bats. Instead of using the percent sign (%), it is usually presented as a number between 0 and 1 (inclusive) expressed as three decimal places with no leading zero: [.000, 1.000]. It is pronounced as though it is multiplied by 1,000: A batter with a batting average of .342 (which is very good) is said to be "batting three forty-two." A perfect batting average (unattainable except in very small samples) gives rise to the expression "batting a thousand." The 0-100 scale would be a better match for the batting average statistic in {{w|cricket}}, although percents would still not be used.
|-
| Proof
| [0,200]
| This refers to {{w|alcohol proof}}, which is the measure of the amount of ethanol in a beverage by volume. In the United States, 100 proof correspond to 50% alcohol, so the proof of a beverage is two times the percentage of ethanol, so the maximum value is 200.
|-
| Heat
| No jalapeño icons - 3 jalapeño icons, increasing
| Spicy dishes are sometimes measured by the intensity of the spicy flavor, usually ranging from values like "mild" to "hot". The gray jalapeño likely represents negligible or no spicy taste in the food. However, as an objective scale it is largely meaningless, since there is no reliable consistency in how these ratings are applied - what may be considered a 3-chilli dish in one establishment may only be a 1-chilli dish in another (as restaurants rarely if ever intend their dishes to be rated on the {{w|Scoville scale}}). The scale being unlimited may be a reference to the practice of some restaurants where a fourth or fifth chilli may be added to exaggerate the heat of their dishes.
|-
| Street value
| [0,∞) in $
| The value of an illegal good or a legal/controlled good when bought or sold by illegal means usually by or to the end user.
|-
| Entropy
| ''This already has like 20 different confusing meanings, so it probably means something here, too.''
| The term "entropy", which {{w|History of entropy|began}} as a {{w|Entropy (classical thermodynamics)|thermodynamic measure}}, has since been adopted {{w|Entropy in thermodynamics and information theory|by analogy}} into {{w|Entropy (disambiguation)|multiple seemingly unrelated domains}}. The table doesn't seem to know what domain it is in, but (possibly in a desperate attempt to hide this) deems it safe to assume the unknown domain uses the term "entropy" for ''something''! Entropy is often described as a measure of disorder or chaos so this may be another reference to the D&D alignment axis above.
|}

The title text says that in addition each particle has a password, but only hash of the password can be observed. This is a computer science reference. In computer science, properties (e.g. of an object or program) often can be changed with a single command. In physics as we observe it, properties can locally change with the environment. There are several {{w|Time-variation_of_fundamental_constants|experiments}}, whether physical constants are really time-const. Password hashing is the practice of hiding the password itself by storing only an irreversible representation of the password. Since the password itself is not stored, the password cannot ever be viewed by the user or a hacker (outside of the login page). This method is considered to be safest way of storing passwords. Password hashing using some {{w|key derivation function}} makes it impossible to steal passwords even if the server that stores hashes is cracked, unless the hash function is also broken, which should be a task which cannot be completed in any feasible time for sufficiently strong passwords. The title-text claims this is predicted by the {{w|cosmic censorship hypothesis}}, which in reality claims that a {{w|gravitational singularity}} must always be obscured by an event horizon (i.e.: there can't be a {{w|naked singularity}}). There is also a hint of quantum mechanics in the statement, as observation is one of the central concepts of the field, and {{w|Heisenberg's uncertainty principle}} actually states that it is impossible to observe (measure) some property of a particle with arbitrary precision when another one is known (e.g.: you can't determine the momentum and position of a particle). This makes the title text a mix of several domains, as was the above table.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon. Is table alone the best solution? Layout is still not standard.}}
:<big>Particle Properties in Physics</big>
{| class=wikitable
! Property
! Type/scale
|-
| Electric charge
| [Scale with -1, 0 and +1 labeled and markings dividing the units in thirds. The endpoints are both dots.]
|-
| Mass
| [Scale with 0, 1kg and 2kg labeled and markings dividing the units into thirds. The endpoints are a dot on the zero end and an arrow on the other end.]
|-
| Spin number
| [Scale with -1, -½, 0, ½ and 1 labeled and no additional markings. The endpoints are both arrows, pointing out.]
|-
| Flavor
| (Misc. quantum numbers)
|-
| Color charge
| [Coordinate system of three axes labeled R, G and B clockwise from the 10 o'clock position. Endpoints are arrow-dots on all ends, with black dots for the labeled ends and white dots for the unlabeled ends.] (Quarks only)
|-
| Mood
| [Scale labeled with 5 emoticons, from angry to happy, and markings dividing the units in thirds. Endpoints are both arrows, pointing out.]
|-
| Alignment
| [3x3 grid with varying shades] Good-Evil, Lawful-Chaotic
|-
| Hit points
| [Scale starting from 0, markings but no labels other than zero. Endpoints are a dot at zero end and an arrow at the other end.]
|-
| Rating
| [Star rating of 3.5/5 stars.]
|-
| String type
| Bytestring-Charstring
|-
| Batting average
| [Scale from 0% to 100%. Endpoints are dot at 0% end and arrow-dot at 100% end.]
|-
| Proof
| [Scale from 0 to 200. Endpoints are dot at 0 end and arrow-dot at 200 end.]
|-
| Heat
| [Scale labeled with pepper icons, from 0 (a grayed-out pepper) to 3 black peppers. Endpoints are a dot at zero end and an arrow at the other end.]
|-
| Street value
| [Scale with $0, $100 and $200 labeled. Endpoints are a dot at zero end and an arrow at the other end.]
|-
| Entropy
| (This already has like 20 different confusing meanings, so it probably means something here, too.)
|}

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Physics]]
[[Category:Baseball]]

647: Scary

2022-02-22T16:43:32Z

172.70.130.91: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 647
| date = October 9, 2009
| title = Scary
| image = scary.png
| titletext = I'm teaching every 8-year-old relative to say this, and every 14-year-old to do the same thing with Toy Story. Also, Pokemon hit the US over a decade ago and kids born after Aladdin came out will turn 18 next year.
}}

==Explanation==
[[Rob]] is telling his eight-year-old nephew a ghost story, employing such clichéd devices as a flashlight-lit face and stock ghost story endings. The boy is unimpressed, so Rob challenges him to come up with a scarier story. Rob's nephew merely states that he was born after {{w|9/11}}, and yet he is already mentally developed enough to hold a conversation with an adult. This proves effective, as in the final panel Rob assumes the fetal position, gripped by existential dread.

No hidden meaning here, but this sure is scary for many adults. What's being implied here is that time seems to be moving really quickly and we're getting older faster than we think. Events that seem like they "just happened" have happened long enough ago for a whole other person to come into existence, grow up, and learn to carry on a conversation. Every time we get reminded of this fact, it can be scary, as you then realize that you are now closer to your death...

9/11 was a terrorist attack in the United States in 2001, on September 11th. Major events such as the assassination of {{w|Assassination of John F. Kennedy|Kennedy}}, the Moon Landing of {{w|Apollo 11}} or 9/11 are easily memorable. It is often said that "everyone remembers where they were when they first heard...". In consequence, these events act as milestones in our memory. They are recalled more vividly, and seem more recent. Today this is maybe also topping the {{w|Attack on Pearl Harbor}} which happened in 1941.

The title text mentions that [[Randall]] is teaching his 8 year old relatives to say the same as in the comic — presumably to the annoyance of his older relatives who will be reminded of the fast passage of time. He does not stop here, but teaches the 14 year old's to say they are born after {{w|Toy Story}} — a major block buster hit from {{w|Pixar}} which came out in 1995. A movie many people will remember fondly and feel just came out the other day... He continues with these scary thoughts by mentioning that {{w|Pokémon}} (1996) came out over a decade ago and that kids born after the big {{w|Disney}} hit movie {{w|Aladdin_(1992_Disney_film)|Aladdin}} from 1992 will turn 18 next year (i.e. in 2010 a year after this comic was published).

[[Randall]] has both before and after this comic tried to [[:Category:Comics_to_make_one_feel_old|make people feel old]] several times.

==Transcript==
:[Rob and his nephew (also drawn like a Cueball, but smaller) are sitting on the ground facing each other. Rob is holding a flash-light up to his face and leans back on the other arm, while crossing his legs. The nephew is sitting forward resting one arm on his lifted knees and leaning back on his other arm.]
:Rob: But they ''never found the ghost's head!''
:Nephew: Lame story, Uncle Rob.
:Rob: And you could do scarier?
:Nephew: Sure.

:[Rob has removed the flash-light from his face and the nephew leans more back and has shifted a leg down so only one knee supports the arm which are now more straight.]
:Rob: Try me.
:Nephew: 9/11 happened before I was born, yet I'm old enough to have this conversation with you.

:[Rob has dropped the flash-light. The nephew has taken the other arm down on the ground. Beat panel.]

:[Rob has curled his legs up to his chin and wrapped his arms around them while the nephew relaxes eve more,]

==Trivia==
*Since 2017-11-05, the time between 9/11 and this comic has been smaller than the time between this comic and the present.
*Since 2019-09-11, some babies born after 9/11 are old enough to vote

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Rob]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]] 
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]] 
[[Category:Comics to make one feel old]]

2584: Headline Words

2022-02-22T14:21:36Z

172.70.130.91: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2584
| date = February 21, 2022
| title = Headline Words
| image = headline_words.png
| titletext = Roundly-condemned headlinese initiative shuttered indefinitely.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a HEADLINE-GENERATING MARKOV CHAIN - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
[[White Hat]], [[Megan]], [[Cueball]] and [[Ponytail]] seems to be planning a party. Megan mentions that the party was planned to be at [[Rob|Rob's]] place, but that this might not be a good idea, since he has cats, and some of the participants in the party are allergic to cats. This is a valid reason{{fact}}. Seems likely that Megan is one of those that are allergic. Usually Rob is drawn as Cueball, but it is not necessarily Rob that is present, it could just be a discussion among some of the friends that are supposed to come to the party.

Cueball then replies to this in a very confusing way, strange enough to prompt Megan to ask him to stop. He continues though, although the gist of his second line is that he will stop speaking like this now.

That this is indeed the case and what he is actually trying to do is explained in the comics caption. It states that Cueball's project was to speak in weird headline words. And that the project did not last for long.

News headlines are often very dramatic explanations of minor events; so are the things Cueball says here. Furthermore, some newspapers write their headlines in a stylized way which relies heavily on shorter words (such as "nixed" for "rejected") or by using cliches (such as "tension mounts"), a style colloquially known as {{w|Headlinese}}.

See [[#Headlines explained|below]] for explanation of his headlines.

The title text continues with a final headline statement from Cueball, telling that project was stopped permanently.

===Headlines explained===
Here each of the three headlines will be explained. Several of the words used are {{w|Headline#Commonly_used_short_words|listed}} in the wiki article on Headlinese.

;Wow, major snub for widely-touted top spot as lavish gala bid nixed.
According to the list of words Snub means reject, tout means put forward, bid means attempt and nix also means reject. A lavish gala is an expensive/impressive festive celebration i.e. a party.
Literally it could be translated to:
:Wow, big rejection of the most put forward favorite venue for the party attempt rejected.

;Ill-advised scheme mulled as tension mounts amid growing backlash.
Through the same process, this could be translated to
:Not very thought through idea (speaking in Headlinese) re-thought about because of Megan's critisism.

;Roundly-condemned headlinese initiative shuttered indefinitely.
:Because no one likes the way Cueball is speaking, he is going to stop speaking in Headlinese.

==Transcript==
:[White Hat, Megan, Cueball, and Ponytail stand in a row, with White Hat and Megan facing toward the right and Cueball and Ponytail facing toward the left.]
:Megan: Maybe Rob shouldn't host the party. He has cats and some of us are allergic.
:Cueball: Wow, major snub for widely-touted top spot as lavish gala bid nixed.
:Megan: Why are you talking so weird? Please stop.
:Cueball: Ill-advised scheme mulled as tension mounts amid growing backlash.

:[Caption below the panel:]
:My project to speak only in weird headline words didn't last long.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Rob]] 
[[Category:Language]]

2583: Chorded Keyboard

2022-02-21T22:32:46Z

172.70.130.91: /* Explanation */ link stenotype

{{comic
| number = 2583
| date = February 18, 2022
| title = Chorded Keyboard
| image = chorded_keyboard.png
| titletext = And even though it all went wrong / I'll stand before the lord of song / with nothing on my tongue but 'I don't understand, I swear I backed up my keyboard config before messing with it'
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by LEONARD COHEN - Someone with proper computer knowledge should probably elaborate on the terms "chorded keyboard" and "keyboard config". Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This strip is a parody of the first verse (and in the title text, the end of the last verse) of {{w|Leonard Cohen}}'s "{{w|Hallelujah (Leonard Cohen song)|Hallelujah}}", which has become a distinctive and popular song of which {{w|Cover version|covers}} and versions exist. Written as a {{w|Sentimental ballad|ballad}}, it is partly based upon the allegory of a mystical {{w|Chord (music)|musical chord}} of several musical notes, that the words and tune both describe and illustrate by example.

Here is the verse from the song (see the lyrics [https://genius.com/Leonard-cohen-hallelujah-lyrics here]):
:Now I've heard there was a secret chord
:That David played, and it pleased the Lord
:But you don't really care for music, do ya?
:It goes like this, the fourth, the fifth
:The minor fall, the major lift
:The baffled king composing "Hallelujah"

[[Cueball]] is {{w|Filk music|filking}} upon this theme, but in his case he has somehow set up his computer so that, upon pressing a certain combination of multiple keys on his keyboard, the system will automatically type out the word "hallelujah" (xkcd's all-caps typesetting makes it unclear how the word is capitalized). In his description of the process, in both the comic proper and the title text, he uses adapted lyrics that again both describe and illustrate by example. Most of the initial lyrics are floating 'thoughts'. The punchline "hallelujah", however, is 'spoken' out of his computer monitor - typical of how on-screen text is indirectly shown in this comic series. It partially continues as a song parody through the title text but then trails off into a typical computer-complaint that he perhaps [[:Category:Cueball Computer Problems|may often have cause to make]].

The original lyrics rely upon typically nuanced rhymes, such as "do you" (or "do ya'") with "Hallelujah", and "fifth" with "lift", but fairly reliably rhymes "chord" with "Lord". In [[Randall]]'s version, it starts with "chord" and "word" which ''look'' like they should rhyme, but would be /kɔɹd/ {{w|International Phonetic Alphabet|vs.}} /wɝd/ in an typical US accent. Similarly "shift" and "left" might be considered not a {{w|Perfect and imperfect rhymes|perfect rhyme}} when read as prose, but should still be possible to meaningfully sing.

Technically, a {{w|Chorded_keyboard|chorded keyboard}} is one in which (nearly) all inputs are made by simultaneous pressing of a given combination of a limited number of keys, such as a literal handful of non-alphabetic keys, that the user learns to combine to represent the key-presses of more standard keyboards or (in some cases) signify entire phonemes or words. The workings of such a keyboard tends to be handled internally, sending to the computer the signal(s) that ''would'' have been sent from its larger cousin.

A big thing among gen-X hackers like Randall and his original audience was customising keyboard uses. The linux operating system was originally designed and used for personal customisation, and people move their configurations from system to system, often customising how things respond to such a degree that other users struggle to make use of their system at all. The first major two text editors, vim and emacs, were composed of different camps of how to efficiently type. The emacs camp believed it was more effective to hit many keys at once to accomplish a large task, but both editors were designed to be highly customisable. It's {{w|QWERTY#Properties|erroneously believed}} that the traditional qwerty keyboard was specifically designed to make typing inefficient so as to reduce engineering burden in making old typewriters responsive and reliable. Given the prevalence of them, it has been common among hackers to remap a keyboard to be more efficient, such as to use a dvorak layout rather than a qwerty layout. Chorded configurations are an order of magnitude more efficient than the dvorak layout, but are more complex to configure because the result is not at all a one-to-one mapping. The {{w|Stenotype|traditional court reporting device}} is a chorded keyboard, to keep up with human speech.

Using a combination of normally single-use keys (the 'H' and a cursor) with others, including modifiers ('shift' and 'control'), i.e. 'chording' ''with'' his keyboard, is a kind of key combination found traditionally in emacs and operating system commands (such as pressing ctrl+alt+c, to copy a selection to clipboard). The ballad then comes across as an ode to system customisation and the practice of user-interface hacking, wherein a computer user knows how to rebuild their interface in almost any way they desire.

The chording example goes beyond mainstream use (shift and an alphabetic character changes the character case, whilst ctrl and a character may initiate an editing command) or mainstream multi-modifier combinations (ctrl, alt and the 'e' may result in the 'é', where the keyboard does not otherwise support it) and even goes beyond [[378: Real Programmers|emacs-like command ''sequences'']] which are generally software-specific. It seems likely that a setup such as that depicted in this comic is handled within the computer, either defined within the OS (all mainstream desktop operating systems support alternative keyboard mapping and customisable key-combinations, often for accessibility and international keyboard support), or (as is often the case with specialist configurable gaming keyboards) via the driver installed to mediate such esoteric keyboard combinations as the user has predefined for themselves.

Cueball's combination-keypress may in fact be better termed a 'macro', in some contexts. The single event, somehow triggered by this particular simultaneous multi-key input, invokes the injection of a pre-specified sequence of standard characters into the appropriate text-buffer/-stream, in lieu of manual per-character input.

The title text spoofs the last verse of the (original) song, with "Hallelujah" being replaced by Cueball trailing off musing about having apparently lost the backup of his keyboard configuration, implying that he ended up in a position where he would want to restore said backup (for instance, having tampered with it to the point he is no longer capable of operating the keyboard efficiently, if at all).

Here is the original verse, where the title text spoofs the last three lines:
:I did my best, it wasn't much
:I couldn't feel, so I tried to touch
:I've told the truth, I didn't come to fool ya
:And even though it all went wrong
:I'll stand before the lord of song
:With nothing on my tongue but hallelujah

As added irony, while in the original that verse is hopeful, with the singer being thankful for experiencing joy even from a relationship that ultimately failed, contrarily in the alt text Cueball is apparently expressing regret. Or, if taken literally, it could instead imply that God himself is questioning Cueball about his tampering with software, which could fit with the running gag of [[:Category:Cueball Computer Problems|Cueball's (often self-inflicted) computer problems being hyperbolically atrocious]].

When one modifies one's keyboard config, it can make the system seem unusable (or at least highly unexpected) to things like a boss, a spouse, or an automated maintenance system. When an error is made somewhere in the process, it can make the system seem unusable to the very person who made the changes, making it hard to change them back.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is sitting in an office chair at his desk, typing on his keyboard as shown by small lines over one hand, while looking at the screen of his stationary computer. The screen is on a raised platform on his desk. Lyrical text is written upon each scene, presumably what Cueball is typing.]
:I heard there was a secret chord
:That David pressed and it typed a word

:[A closeup on Cueball in a slim panel. We see him from the waist up, with his hands on the keyboard just beneath the panels frame.]
:But you don't use a chorded keyboard, do you

:[Same setting as in the first panel, except Cueball's arms have moved and there are movement lines above and below his arms.]
:It goes like this, <control> and <shift>
:The other hand hits H and <left>

:[Slimmer panel but same setting as in the first panel, again the arms have moved a bit, with movement lines above them. The final written word of text is marked as arising directly from the computer.]
:And all at once it types out
:Computer: Hallelujah

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Songs]]
[[Category:Cueball Computer Problems]]

Talk:725: Literally

2022-02-18T16:57:08Z

172.70.130.91:

What does it mean to be figuratively glued to one's seat?--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.214.30|108.162.214.30]] 17:23, 31 May 2014 (UTC)
:It means that you are so fascinated by something that you just don't want to leave your seat because you might miss something – you're "glued" to your seat. [[User:Mezgrman|Mezgrman]] ([[User talk:Mezgrman|talk]]) 13:15, 21 June 2014 (UTC)

They should really clean those seats of soda and snacks.

Also, this means that, given a few assumptions, they are in their early 30s in the "present" of this particular strip. [[User:Nyperold|Nyperold]] ([[User talk:Nyperold|talk]]) 04:01, 21 December 2015 (UTC)
:I cringed incredibly hard, imagining being literally glued to a seat by uncleaned soda, candy, etc... well done Nyperold, I need to take a shower now. MeZimm [[Special:Contributions/172.70.130.91|172.70.130.91]] 16:57, 18 February 2022 (UTC)

There are two sentences in the first paragraph of the explanation which contradict one another. The second of these sentences is correct. Descriptivist dictionaries do not rule on whether a word usage is valid or not, they simply report on how the word is currently used. The sentence that states that these dictionaries say that using "literally" as an intensifier is valid is false. They are stating that people use it as an intensifier. --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.212.199|108.162.212.199]] 04:30, 18 December 2019 (UTC)

2581: Health Stats

2022-02-16T10:03:42Z

172.70.130.91: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2581
| date = February 14, 2022
| title = Health Stats
| image = health_stats.png
| titletext = You will live on forever in our hearts, pushing a little extra blood toward our left hands now and then to give them a squeeze.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by an EXPLODING RIGHT HAND - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
[[Cueball]] has bought a new smartwatch with a health tracker. For instance, it can monitor the volume of blood in his left hand (specifically the one the watch is being worn on the wrist of), indicating this number in milliliters (ml). While he studies this new information, the volume of blood changes constantly, with his pulse or due to the positioning of his hand (above/below his heart, held up or down; he changes the hand's position from panel to panel) or, more likely, just normal measurement inaccuracies for consumer devices. He tells this to someone off-panel, who replies to all his comments.

At first, Cueball just assumes the small change is normal, but when the changes of two measurements in a row both increase, this freaks him out as he [[605: Extrapolating|extrapolates these two data points]] into the future. If this rather selective trend continues, his hand may explode from its ever-increasing volume of blood. Either this, or Cueball noticed that the variation in the first three data points was <±0.025, but the variation suddenly surpassing this level by one order of magnitude becomes alarming. As a consequence of him freaking out his pulse also begins to rise, likely increasing his blood pressure, which could cause another rise in the volume of blood in his hand. And the pulse increase in itself, only makes him even more scared, causing a positive feedback loop.

The total difference between the maximum (22.09 ml) and minimum volume (21.81 ml) of blood in his hand is only 0.28 ml compared to an average of 21.9 ml, so less than 1.5% difference. This must be assumed to be a normal fluctuation from heartbeat to heartbeat and/or with change of posture. For that matter, Cueball has no idea what a normal volume of blood in his left hand would be, as indicated by his comment in the first panel that he's "not sure how to interpret" the intiial measurement. However, he seems to have assumed that 21.83 ml was a normal measurement simply since it was the first one he saw.

Just before he freaks out his off-panel friend begins to tell him to stop looking at the watch all the time. But he interrupts this mid-sentence as he starts to freak out. This final outbreak causes his off-screen companion to tease him, by saying that "We will treasure your memory". Thus joking that Cueball must already be assuming that he will soon die from the blood loss when his hand explodes.

The title text continues with this teasing where the friend jokes that after his demise he will live on forever in his friends' hearts. And from there he will thus also be responsible for pushing a bit more blood into his friends' left hands, now and again, so they can feel this as a squeeze, to remind them of how they lost their friend, to a left-handed blood explosion.

This is likely meant as a parable on people monitoring their natural fluctuating body functions too closely as exemplified by the tenth- and hundredth-milliliter decimal place in the output (1/300th-1/3000th of a fluid ounce).

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is looking down and to the right at his bend arm, where a small device is radiating as shown with several small lines. Above him the message from the device is shown in a frame, that is divided in two by a line. The top part has one line of text, with a x at the end for closing the message. And below in the second half are two lines of text. Cueball is speaking to someone off-panel, who replies from a starburst at the panel's edge.]
:Box title bar: New health stat!
:Box: Left hand blood volume: 21.83 mL
:Cueball: Oh. Cool. Not sure how to interpret that, but good to know, I guess.
:Off-panel voice: I guess!

:[Same setting but Cueball has turned to the left, still looking at his device on his bend arm. The message on the device is now only showing the message part, so it is no longer divided into two parts.]
:Box: Left hand blood volume: 21.81 mL
:Cueball: Huh, it's going down. I guess that happens.
:Off-panel voice: Mhm.

:[In a frame-less panel Cueball now has both arms bend with his hands close together in front of him. He has once again turned toward the right, and is still looking at the device.]
:Box: Left hand blood volume: 21.86 mL
:Cueball: Oh weird, now it's going up higher than before.
:Off-panel voice: Maybe you shouldn't look at-

:[Cueball now holds his arm with the device outstretched towards the right, with his other arm bent in front of him a finger raised.]
:Box: Left hand blood volume: 22.09 mL
:Cueball: It's going '''''way''''' up! '''''Is my hand exploding?!'''''
:Cueball: And now my pulse is rising! '''''Aaaaa!!!!'''''
:Off-panel voice: So sorry. We will treasure your memory.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics with lowercase text]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Biology]]

Talk:384: The Drake Equation

2022-02-09T21:07:45Z

172.70.130.91:

Looks like someone mixed up {{w|Frank Drake}} and {{w|Sir Francis Drake|Francis Drake}} --[[User:Btx40|Btx40]] ([[User talk:Btx40|talk]]) 14:32, 19 February 2013 (UTC)

Bs looks more like B6 [[Special:Contributions/162.158.79.185|162.158.79.185]] 17:03, 13 March 2019 (UTC)

The title text shows a lack of imagination about how aliens could communicate. It need not be that they're using narrow direction and different bands. First, they could be using radio in a way that wouldn't be detected, much as how no WWII radio expert would recognize modern, digital, encoded cell tower transmissions. Second, there may be other means of communicating over distance, like entangled particles. —[[User:Kazvorpal|Kazvorpal]] ([[User talk:Kazvorpal|talk]]) 07:50, 10 November 2019 (UTC)

Alternate solution factor: N= [stuff already mentioned]^["probability" that there is not a God who, if He exists, perhaps made this universe so that there would be no process where beings like us could come from the dust of a planet by natural means.]
Yeah, it does depend on one's bias and worldview.

2577: Sea Chase

2022-02-07T21:40:03Z

172.70.130.91: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 2577
| date = February 4, 2022
| title = Sea Chase
| image = sea_chase.png
| titletext = There are two rules on this ship: Never gaze back into the projection abyss, and never touch the red button labeled DYMAXION.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a STRETCHED OBLONG PARABOLOID. Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

In this comic, Randall returns to one of his pet subjects: [[977: Map Projections|map projections]]. Unusually, this time it is from the perspective of people living — or, in this case, sailing — upon the world that is quite literally being mapped.

Two sailing ships, of circa 18th-century design, are engaged in a close chase across the {{w|Atlantic}}, the aggressor flying the Skull and Crossbones of a stereotypical pirate vessel. It can be seen from the flags of both ships that they are tacking into the wind, the trailing ship seeming to be lighter and yet deploying more effective canvas with two active sails than the forward one can with three. The ship being chased has a plan to escape and the means to do so. At a crucial moment, [[Cueball]] is told to flip a large incongruous switch that (like several [[1620: Christmas Settings|other]] [[1763: Catcalling|artifacts]] in the xkcd universe) alters the nature of their reality.

Whereas beforehand the world is directly represented upon a simply contiguous map, the {{w|Robinson projection}}, it is now changed to one (which is actually the new reality) known as {{w|Goode homolosine projection|Goode Homolosine}} in which the flattening of the world mitigates localized warping of angle, distance, and area by introducing discontinuities in relatively "unused" parts of the mapped world, such as the center of the Atlantic.

By precisely timing the change (as they cross a particular {{w|meridian}}, possibly the 40°W one), they leave the pursuer now on the wrong side of the very real gap, allowing the pursued ship to escape whatever fate they were trying to avoid. Though there is still an oceanic connection, it requires sailing down the edge towards the tropics, rounding this particular rent in the planet's surface, and heading back up the other side. This is vastly further than Cueball's ship needs to travel to reach (presumably) any European port in which they can safely moor.

The title text elaborates on the policies of the ship: crewmates are never to look into the "projection abyss" and to never hit the red button labeled "{{w|Dymaxion_map|DYMAXION}}."

The first rule suggests that changing the projection of physical reality produces a gap in reality — a void. This may be dangerous to gaze into or simply unnerving to crewmates, hence the rule. This may also be a reference to a well-known quote by philosopher {{w|Friedrich Nietzsche}}: “He who fights with monsters must take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.” See [https://www.gutenberg.org/files/4363/4363-h/4363-h.htm Beyond Good and Evil at Project Gutenberg]

[[Image:Dymaxion_projection.png|thumb|300px|Dymaxion projection of the world]]

The second rule references a button that seems to do the same thing as the lever but changes the world into a {{w|Dymaxion map|Dymaxion projection}}. The Dymaxion map projects the Earth onto 20 triangles, which are typically chosen such that landmasses are contiguous while adding many discontinuities in the oceans. This would make navigating by ship in such a 2D world even more difficult than in the Goode homolosine projection. In particular, crossing the Atlantic ocean becomes impossible because of the introduction of a projection abyss from Norway to the Caribean.

The Robinson, Goode Homolosine, and Dymaxion projections have been referenced in [[977: Map Projections]].

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

:[A pirate ship flying the Skull and Crossbones is sailing after a merchant ship. Two sailors' voices come from the merchant ship.]
:Merchant ship sailor #1: They're closing in!
:Merchant ship sailor #2: Hang on, we're almost at the meridian!

:[A map of the Earth in the Robinson projection, with two red dots in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. A voice comes from the red dot further to the east.]
:Merchant ship sailor #2: ''Now!'' Throw the switch!

:[Cueball, representing merchant ship sailor #1, pulls down a giant lever switch labeled "Projection", from "Robinson" to "Goode Homolosine".]

:[A map of the Earth in the Goode Homolosine projection, with one red dot on the American side of the split and one red dot on the European side of the split.]

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Maps]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]

492: Scrabble

2022-02-04T18:06:00Z

172.70.130.91: /* Transcript */ small clarification; whether the 'I' is below or beside it doesn't matter mechanically

{{comic
| number = 492
| date = October 22, 2008
| title = Scrabble
| image = scrabble.png
| titletext = A veteran Scrabble player will spot the "OSTRICH" option.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic depicts a game of {{w|Scrabble}}, a popular board game where the goal is to form words with the letters in your hand. The joke here is that the obvious option here is the word "{{w|clitoris}}," which is an inappropriate word for a family Scrabble game, but gives a 50-point bonus for using all seven tiles. The title text points out that the letters in the hand can also form the word "OSTRICH," which is family friendly, but much lower scoring and not as obvious.

As the H appears to be on the center star square, the narrator will score 63 points if he plays "CLITORIS" (however he uses the two Is, as three of the tiles will fall on double letter scores), and 13 points if he plays "OSTRICH." The highest-scoring play is to hook the C and play "HIC" and "LICTORS," scoring 71 points.

==Transcript==
:[A first-person view of a family Scrabble game at a table. The other players are Cueball to the left, Hairbun across from you, and Ponytail to the right. The two letters on the board are 'HI', with the 'H' on the center star, and the letters in your hand are 'CLTORIS.']
:This always happens to me in family Scrabble games.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Randall Munroe]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairbun]]
[[Category:Language]]
[[Category:Board games]]

2576: Control Group

2022-02-03T00:17:07Z

172.70.130.91: basic transcript

{{comic
| number = 2576
| date = February 2, 2022
| title = Control Group
| image = control_group.png
| titletext = Placeble 228 x/6
⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BOT - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

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

:Ponytail: Are you playing Wordle?
:Cueball: No, I'm in the control group.

:[Caption below the panel:]
:My new all-purpose excuse for when I'm not doing something

{{comic discussion}}

2576: Control Group

2022-02-03T00:14:29Z

172.70.130.91: half-fix formatting.

Talk:2574: Autoresponder

2022-01-29T07:23:18Z

172.70.130.91:

In Russia, this comic won't be relatable. Bosses here still use e-mail, and use regular phone calls for ASAP-like urgent requests. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.10.207|172.68.10.207]] 05:21, 29 January 2022 (UTC)

1) Why is White Hat is hairless, and 2) what’s with the nested panels? [[User:ISaveXKCDpapers|ISaveXKCDpapers]] ([[User talk:ISaveXKCDpapers|talk]]) 06:48, 29 January 2022 (UTC)

Is the harness an auto responding exoskeleton?--[[User:Gunterkoenigsmann|Gunterkoenigsmann]] ([[User talk:Gunterkoenigsmann|talk]]) 06:59, 29 January 2022 (UTC)

I'm definitely going to need to come back when this has an explanation. I know what an email autoresponder is but that doesn't explain the joke. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.130.91|172.70.130.91]] 07:23, 29 January 2022 (UTC)