explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:850: World According to Americans

2023-03-01T17:06:02Z

172.70.178.76: Rebuttal to unsigned comment

NB: Paupa (sic!) New Guinea [[User:Leob|Leob]] ([[User talk:Leob|talk]]) 20:10, 26 November 2012 (UTC)

:You're right, there's a typo in the comic! Good catch ;) --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 17:10, 27 November 2012 (UTC)

::The group did come from the geography bee, not the spelling bee. --[[User:Tepples|Tepples]] ([[User talk:Tepples|talk]]) 15:22, 9 September 2017 (UTC)

98% of American's would only be able to locate about 4 countries so this is way too generous ~JFreund
:"American's" [[User:Beanie|Beanie]] ([[User talk:Beanie|talk]]) 12:12, 28 April 2021 (UTC)

Made a typo with Phillipines. It's Philippines. @JFreund No stereotyping, please. I can list 51 or 52 countries and I'm not even in middle school. Add a bit more thinking and I've got to 58.[[User:Randomperson4000|Randomperson4000]] ([[User talk:Randomperson4000|talk]]) 01:59, 26 August 2014 (UTC)

@JFreund: That's not true... I'm a seventh grader who can't stand geography for the life of me, yet I can name a good twenty or so.
And as a very very simplified example, most fifth graders can easily name America (duh), Mexico, Canada, Russia, and England.
That is rather, for lack of a better term, racist of you. ~jazz14456

@jazz14456 Well for comparison I'm an seventh grader from europe(We call it year eight there) and I can name 64 off the top of my head, that's 320% more. Therefore the point of the comic and @JFreund 's point still stand. ~Samarthwiz

:Your brand of negativism, as well as the additional above, does nothing to advance any sort of constructive dialogue. Please check your misconceptions, generalizations, and inaccuracies about entire populations at the door. They're not welcome in communities of thinking people. [[User:Orazor|Orazor]] ([[User talk:Orazor|talk]]) 12:25, 21 July 2014 (UTC)

::While the petty point scoring is of no value, it is worth noting that Europeans have an advantage when it comes to the trite 'How many countries can you name' or 'How many countries have you visited' competitions. You can quite easily spend a day driving through Europe and visit (drive through) 5 countries. As an example: England, France, Belgium, Holland, Germany. The fact that an American can do this across different states, or may be able to name all 50 states in addition to however many countries, or have travelled far and wide within the states doesn't seem to carry any weight. --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 14:03, 18 November 2014 (UTC)

:::I wholeheartedly agree. They are regions with their own flags and laws and geography too only one slight criticism is that most of them call it America. So they want to be classed as an whole continent or two, a country that is more correctly called the USA and they want credit for knowing where Delaware or Rhode Island is. [[User:Weatherlawyer| I used Google News BEFORE it was clickbait]] ([[User talk:Weatherlawyer|talk]]) 18:48, 24 January 2015 (UTC)

::::I think it's sad that I'm an American in eighth grade and the only reason that I can name 87 (88 if you count Vatican City as its own country) is because I play Call of War and Conflict of Nations--[[Special:Contributions/173.245.52.73|173.245.52.73]] 20:54, 18 February 2018 (UTC)

::::: There really is no need to be smug just cause you're European. Only 64? I had known at least 80 when I was in eighth grade, as well as the climates, geography, religions, capitals, international organizations they were in, and a little bit of the economy of said country. And you're being smug just because you can name more countries than others? And let's not forget the individual states, many of which could pass as a country on their own... so add 50 to that total. You think you're so smart? Try me. [[User:Herobrine|Herobrine]] ([[User talk:Herobrine|talk]]) 13:27, 11 March 2018 (UTC)

BTW, the Robinson drawing in the comic is '''much''' too accurate to be pure freehand. He probably used tracing or grid point marks. -- [[User:Frankie|Frankie]] ([[User talk:Frankie|talk]]) 21:46, 25 March 2014 (UTC)

*Randall considers this to be 'good at geography'?! They only named, like, 30 or so countries... There's 197!* [[Special:Contributions/173.245.56.184|173.245.56.184]]

It's probably sarcasm too that "Tibet" is incorrectly labelled on Xinjiang. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.223.47|108.162.223.47]] 01:20, 26 March 2014 (UTC)

"Aral sea (??Toane" is probably "Aral sea (gone)" {{unsigned ip|173.245.55.60}}
:This is a wiki. Edit it in yourself next time (done it for you this time).[[Special:Contributions/141.101.104.11|141.101.104.11]] 05:32, 1 August 2014 (UTC)

I added some comments/explanations. The distance between Afrcia and USA was measured by google maps. I tried out several spots. If someone finds a shorter distance, fell free to correct :) [[User:Elektrizikekswerk|Elektrizikekswerk]] ([[User talk:Elektrizikekswerk|talk]]) 08:01, 18 November 2014 (UTC)

The annotation regarding the poor labelling of Africa needs more/better explaining, especially what it means by it 'speaking volumes'. Although I've put that it lends weight to the 'Ignorant American' viewpoint, my feeling is that there is actually a more widespread ignorance amongst the rest of the world towards Africa (in general, not just geographically). While I could probably name a few more countries in Africa, I wouldn't be able to place them within the continent. I have an average knowledge of world geography, but the big hole in my knowledge would definately be Africa, and I suspect that the majority of people I know would say the same. I could come up with all sorts of theories as to why it is Africa I know so little about, but this comment is already too long! --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 13:49, 18 November 2014 (UTC)

: Done, I think. [[User:Elektrizikekswerk|Elektrizikekswerk]] ([[User talk:Elektrizikekswerk|talk]]) 17:47, 18 November 2014 (UTC)

I'm not sure if it's necessary to include all the other not yet mentioned/explained areas, such as Western/Eastern Europe and others. We ''could'' make lists of which countries belong to that regions similar to the "Various former soviet states"-area, but that would simply result in a list of all nations of the world. If you agree, we could remove the incomplete-tag, I think. If not... well... there are a lot of countries ;) On the other hand, I'm not quite sure, if the colors may have a special meaning... But I think most likely not. [[User:Elektrizikekswerk|Elektrizikekswerk]] ([[User talk:Elektrizikekswerk|talk]]) 17:47, 18 November 2014 (UTC)

: I've added a bit more detail on the title text. Personally I don't think we need to add all the labels, unless there is something specific on this comic which can be explained about that label. Like you say, it would turn into a list of countries with no relevant additional information. As far as colours go, I can't see any obvious pattern behind their assignment. I vote we remove the incomplete tag, in my view any other additions serve to enhance the article rather than to complete it. --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 09:23, 19 November 2014 (UTC)

The opening paragraph is inaccurate; the comic satirises portrayals of American geographical ignorance (X% of Americans can't locate Y on a map!) rather than jokey maps about cultural stereotypes.[[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.84|141.101.99.84]] 09:56, 13 October 2015 (UTC)

Please improve the explanation for India. It is not clear, and the mostly Hindu/Muslim regions seem to be referring to the countries India and Pakistan. I tried editing, but someone reverted it claiming that it was not Pakistan. {{[[Special:Contributions/162.158.154.229|162.158.154.229]] 08:48, 19 April 2017 (UTC)}}
: That was me. Pakistan is obviously included in the part labeled as "Afghanistan & Pakistan". If you compare the red area of India in the comic's map with an actual map of India (e.g. this one https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Political_map_of_India_EN.svg) you'll see that the red area actually _is_ India. Ofc, the border drawn in this comic is not 100% accurate, but that is true for almost all borders. [[User:Elektrizikekswerk|Elektrizikekswerk]] ([[User talk:Elektrizikekswerk|talk]]) 12:18, 14 July 2017 (UTC)

Well, as a neutral outsider I can point out that people from the USA are consistently showing their ignorance here of the difference between a continent and a country. "America" is a continent, the USA is a country. Same goes for Africa, it's not a country, it's a continent. The only continent that is also a country is Australia.

I wonder if the people who make comments like the one above also insist on referring to the UK as the UKGBNI(United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland). While the de facto name of the country established in 1776 is the Unite States of America, Its people are known as Americans. This is distinguished from other people of the 1 (or 2) continents called The Americas or North and South America.(North Americans, and South Americans) While referring to the USA as the USA, the US or the States is one way you distinguish the country from its neighbors, it's not the only way.
[[Special:Contributions/172.70.178.76|172.70.178.76]] 17:06, 1 March 2023 (UTC)

1357: Free Speech

2023-01-24T21:30:04Z

172.70.178.76: /* Trivia */

{{comic
| number = 1357
| date = April 18, 2014
| title = Free Speech
| image = free_speech.png
| titletext = I can't remember where I heard this, but someone once said that defending a position by citing free speech is sort of the ultimate concession; you're saying that the most compelling thing you can say for your position is that it's not literally illegal to express.
}}

==Explanation==
Both on the Internet and in the physical world, people with unpopular or poorly thought out opinions may complain that their freedom of speech is being restricted because others express their distaste for those opinions. As a defense, these individuals may invoke the {{w|First Amendment to the United States Constitution}}, which provides, among other things, {{w|freedom of speech}} for any entity or person under legal jurisdiction of the U.S. More specifically, it states that "Congress shall make no law [...] abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press". Originally intended as a restriction on the powers of U.S. federal government, which the Constitution defines, structures, and delimits, over time the First Amendment, as well as several others, were "incorporated" via the {{w|Fourteenth_Amendment_to_the_United_States_Constitution|Fourteenth Amendment}} to apply to state and local governments as well. This protection of free speech, however, does not extend to illegal activities (for example, the concept of a "clear and present danger"), and it does not compel others to listen to or acknowledge the speech. The intended targets of the speech may simply choose to stop listening, or to speak louder in protest.

An example of this is the incident involving the TV program ''{{w|Duck Dynasty}}'' in December 2013, in which television network {{w|A+E Networks}} [http://insidetv.ew.com/2013/12/18/duck-dynasty-robertson-phil/?hpt=hp_t2 suspended the host after he made homophobic remarks], causing some to comment that his rights had been infringed upon. Similarly in April 2014 [http://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-echochambers-26895858 controversy erupted when Brendan Eich was forced to resign] as CEO of {{w|Mozilla Corporation|Mozilla}} because it was revealed he had donated money to anti-gay marriage efforts in California. In actuality, the First Amendment was never meant to provide immunity from any and all consequences.

[[Cueball]], representing [[Randall]], is addressing those who use the freedom of speech argument as a defense against societal censorship. He states that one’s legal right to take a stance on an issue does not require others to listen to said stance. In addition, he also states that this right does not require a commercial or social entity—such as a TV network, a website, or its community—to support a person in spreading their message, even if it had supported you in the past. If someone says something which others find unjustified or offensive, they should be ready to accept the consequences of others' responses.

The title text points out that regardless of how free speech works, anyone appealing to it as a defense for their argument or opinion is not being persuasive in any case. If the only thing that someone can say in support of an argument is effectively that it is not ''illegal'', then {{w|Damning with faint praise|they are severely undermining it}} by essentially admitting that they don't have any better defense for it.

It should be noted that the first panel of this comic conflates, under certain schools of thought about justice and rights, a right such as {{rw|free_speech|free speech}} and the legal protections of such. Many viewpoints consider rights to be granted by the government; others consider rights to be innate regardless of what the government does. The former is frequently reflected throughout governments in Europe while the latter is more common throughout the Americas. According to the former, the first panel is technically correct by definition, because the right of free speech is granted by the government's laws and, as such, can only affect the government's influence: thus, the 1st Amendment grants the right to free speech, which by definition cannot be restricted by congress. According to the latter, the first panel is strictly nonfactual because the 1st Amendment only recognizes that the right of free speech exists and, rather than delimiting the right, it instead proscribes the government's actions. However, between these two school of thought, the remaining panels aren't affected by whether or not the first panel is factual by definition.

==Transcript==
:Cueball: Public Service Announcement: The '''Right to Free Speech''' means the government can't arrest you for what you say.

:Cueball: It doesn't mean that anyone '''''else''''' has to listen to your bullshit, or host you while you share it.

:Cueball: The 1st Amendment doesn't shield you from criticism or consequences.

:Cueball: If you're yelled at, boycotted, have your show canceled, or get banned from an Internet community, your free speech rights aren't being violated.

:Cueball: It's just that the people listening think you're an asshole,

:[A picture of a partially open door is displayed.]
:Cueball: And they're showing you the door.

==Trivia==
*One famous example of this is {{w|Schenck_v._United_States|Schenck v. United States}}, where the expression "{{w|shouting fire in a crowded theater}}" gave rise. The ruling went along with war hysteria to justify the conviction of peaceful protesters and had nothing to do with creating a dangerous situation or giving false information. Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes said in the ruling, "The most stringent protection of free speech would not protect a man in falsely shouting fire in a theatre and causing a panic." He later drastically revised his views and became a strong supporter of free speech.
*The {{w|Speakers' Corner}} at Hyde Park in London is another example, everybody can hold a speech but there is no guarantee for a big auditorium.
*As currently construed by the courts, the First Amendment to the U. S. Constitution is not limited to preventing the government from arresting people. For example, the [http://www.scotusblog.com/2016/01/argument-preview-the-first-amendment-public-employment-and-misperceived-political-association/ SCOTUS Blog] notes that the government may not penalize employees, with some exceptions, on the basis of their political views.
*This comic is featured in the Wait But Why post “Idea Labs and Echo Chambers”.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Politics]]

Talk:2711: Optimal Bowling

2022-12-16T16:09:37Z

172.70.178.76: where

Who cares about rules? I mean, I'm pretty sure your score won't count according to rules if you bowl from establishment uphill from bowling alley. -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 05:36, 15 December 2022 (UTC)

If the ball has a diameter of 8.5 inches (multiplied by 2.54 and Pi makes about 67.8cm circumference) the rpm is also limited by the speed of light of the surface (reached at about 6.4x10^9rpm).

Please elaborate on how widespread the aforementioned destruction would be. [[Special:Contributions/172.71.154.38|172.71.154.38]] 10:50, 15 December 2022 (UTC)
: See What-If #1 (https://what-if.xkcd.com/1/) for reference. [[User:Elektrizikekswerk|Elektrizikekswerk]] ([[User talk:Elektrizikekswerk|talk]]) 11:01, 15 December 2022 (UTC)

Randall is clearly overestimating the mass range at which "equipment damage" would occur. Even 10^3 kilos is a //car//. I'm pretty sure that throwing a bowling ball the mass of a car would do a lot of equipment damage. I believe the 10^10 to 10^20 range should be "widespread destruction" (already a category above) and between that and the Schwarzchild mass should be something like "all life on Earth destroyed" because 10^20 kilos is plenty large enough for a global killer asteroid (admittedly its velocity would be much smaller... but still, I don't see how you have 1% of the Moon's mass in bowling ball without wiping out all life on Earth). [[Special:Contributions/172.70.85.175|172.70.85.175]] 11:20, 15 December 2022 (UTC)
: That's the joke :) The humour is in the understatement [[User:Xseo|Xseo]] ([[User talk:Xseo|talk]]) 11:51, 15 December 2022 (UTC)
::If the bowling ball is made from material on Earth having 1 % of the Moons mass concentrated in one city but without any speed should not have any wide impact on Earth. Probably alot for those in the city. the gravity changes locally, and surrounding area. But not massive destruction. If 1% of Moons mass was added to Earth I also do not think it would make much difference, as long as it was placed softly on Earth. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 12:26, 15 December 2022 (UTC)

For further edification: A 10^3 kg bowling ball traveling at 10^3 m/s is approximately equivalent to a shell fired from the main battery gun of a battleship. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.159.74|162.158.159.74]] 11:40, 15 December 2022 (UTC)
: Or maybe a cannonball...?[[Special:Contributions/172.70.162.46|172.70.162.46]] 12:56, 16 December 2022 (UTC)

The aim graph is wrong, isn't it? I have never practiced bowling, but I am pretty sure I have seen videos explaining that you need to aim on the side, and the spin will bring the ball to strike the pin group with an angle, not head on. [[Special:Contributions/172.71.134.132|172.71.134.132]] 12:26, 15 December 2022 (UTC)
:It's not clear what the target is in the aim graph. If it's straight down the middle towards the headpin, you're right. But maybe it's aiming towards that optimal curve angle. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 14:50, 15 December 2022 (UTC)
:: on that note, what is assumed for the other 3 parameters as 1 is changed along the graph? 0? average? optimal? [[Special:Contributions/172.71.22.160|172.71.22.160]] 15:04, 15 December 2022 (UTC)Bumpf
:considering the whole graph covers everything up to and including facing away from the lane, it could be that the spike "at" 0 degrees encompasses a lot of fine grain control. After all being 5 degrees off center wouldn't show up much in a 360 degree span, but could make a decent difference on where the ball hits within a lane.[[Special:Contributions/172.70.134.96|172.70.134.96]] 15:59, 15 December 2022 (UTC)

Is there an extra gag in the fact all the numbers are on a logarithmic scale, or is that just so he can get to the absurdist values? [[Special:Contributions/172.68.174.164|172.68.174.164]] 16:52, 15 December 2022 (UTC)

I would like to know precisely how anybody scores a strike when their ball has 0 RPM!? Y'all playing on ice rinks!? --[[Special:Contributions/172.69.79.185|172.69.79.185]] 00:49, 16 December 2022 (UTC)
:I think "spin" is referring to horizontal spin (along the vertical axis), since "speed" is a separate graph. No spin then just means no curve. [[Special:Contributions/172.71.182.49|172.71.182.49]] 08:19, 16 December 2022 (UTC)

At the beginning it references "Ten Pin Bowling" by which I presume the author of that section was referring to "Duck Pin Bowling" which is the major form in the United States. There is also "Candle Pin Bowling" which is a different class of Ten Pin, but with very differently shaped pins and smaller balls without finger holes and mostly limited to small areas of the Northeast. Some of the physics is enough different that the curves would vary if they weren't so absurdly scaled already, in that sense the graphs are as applicable to Candle Pin as they are to Duck Pin. Of course, this is all in the extreme detail that's not really relevant to readers understanding, so I'm not sure if it needs to be explained. [[User:MAP|MAP]] ([[User talk:MAP|talk]]) 05:12, 16 December 2022 (UTC)
*No, I really meant {{w|ten-pin bowling}}. {{w|Duckpin bowling}} is a variation played regularly in only a few states, and {{w|candlepin bowling}} is yet another variation played in only a few states. But the kind of bowling most widely played in the U.S. is ten-pin bowling. See the respective Wikipedia articles linked in the preceding sentences. --[[Special:Contributions/172.71.254.94|172.71.254.94]] 08:17, 16 December 2022 (UTC)

I'm surprised Randall didn't include a graph on ball size effect on your chances ;-) --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.129.138|162.158.129.138]] 09:51, 16 December 2022 (UTC)

The hovertext excludes setting up pins in a non-standard bowling area. (such as with kids bowling pins in your living room) One wonders if this is intentional.