explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

2974: Storage Tanks

2024-08-20T09:10:27Z

172.70.86.231: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2974
| date = August 19, 2024
| title = Storage Tanks
| image = storage_tanks_2x.png
| imagesize = 321x251px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = We're considering installing a pressurization system to keep the tanks at constant pressure solely to deter them.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by SUBSTITUTE CALCULUS TEACHER MR. MUNROE - PlsplsplsplsPls help . Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

A common question in introductory {{w|calculus}} courses asks [https://www.haywardflowcontrol.com/media/contentmanager/content//downloads//VessTime.pdf how long it will take a tank to empty.] Assuming the tank is shaped like a cylinder, as appears to be the case in this comic, the amount of fluid left in the tank will follow a quadratic decay, as the rate of pressure decrease will be proportional to the instantaneous pressure at any given moment. Variations of this question may consider more complicated tank geometries too, in which case the pressure at the base will not be simply proportional to the volume of fluid remaining in the tank.

The joke in the comic is that calculus teachers will actually drill a hole in a storage tank to demonstrate this principle, to protect against which a factory might station a guard to keep a lookout for them. This does not usually happen because a practical demonstration is not actually a particularly useful way of teaching the math behind it. Also, sneaking a teacher and their entire class full of students into a facility without permission and damaging someone else's property in this way is illegal and, if caught, will get you charged with trespassing, destruction of property, and attempted robbery, and most teachers would not consider this a proportionate risk.

The title text jokingly alludes to the fact that by maintaining a constant pressure in the tank, the rate of flow would itself become constant, which would simplify the problem greatly and therefore make it much less interesting, or useful, as an example in a calculus course. If the pressure applied was higher than expected, it could also result in a nasty shock to the teacher drilling into it, as the liquid rushes out surprisingly fast.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[Two characters wearing helmets are standing on scaffolding next to two large tanks labeled "Tank #3" and "Tank #4", with the person on the left talking. Miss Lenhart has drilled a hole into the base of Tank #4 and caused the liquid inside to leak out of the tank, then she runs away with the drill in her hand.]
:Left person with helmet: As head of security, your primary task is to monitor the storage tanks and watch for calculus teachers trying to drill holes in their bases.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Characters with hats]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Miss Lenhart]]
[[Category:Math]]
[[Category:Physics]]

Talk:2969: Vice President First Names

2024-08-08T11:04:28Z

172.70.86.231:

I mentioned [[1122]] in the description. Are there any other comics about election trends/rules? Well, [[2383]], of course. [[Special:Contributions/172.71.182.150|172.71.182.150]] 14:33, 7 August 2024 (UTC)

In checking all names, surprised to see so many "né"s, but not overly surprised to see no "neé"s. (I mean, "Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton (née H. D. Rodham)" would have been one, of course, in a different trouserleg of time. But Harris stayed as "Harris", not taking/adding "Emhoff" from the person who may well become the first First Gentleman.) Interesting though. Had to resist adding "Dubya", "Ronnie" and "Rocky" nicknames, of course, as they were not the 'formal' nickname that the respective people prefered to go by. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.90.130|172.70.90.130]] 16:29, 7 August 2024 (UTC)
:Harris only actually met Emhoff in 2013, way after she started her political career - which I guess is why she didn't want to shake her 'brand' by switching her name up. The practise isn't nearly as automatic these days as it used to be. And re:other nicknames, I only mentioned Ike's cause as far as I know it's the case where it was embraced by his campaign the most. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.115.103|172.70.115.103]] 22:10, 7 August 2024 (UTC)

Going from the beginning you're pretty much limited to Johns and a Levi prior to the chart. There a few potential Hanks and Bills, and a possible Ted more commonly referred to as Teddy. I've never heard anyone refer to Tom Jefferson or Chet A. Arthur. [[User:RegularSizedGuy|RegularSizedGuy]] ([[User talk:RegularSizedGuy|talk]]) 16:42, 7 August 2024 (UTC)
:What about {{w|Hannibal Hamlin|Hann}}? And, {{w|Schuyler Colfax|'Sky'}} (Unless you decide to pronounce the latter more like "Schu". Because, if you did, those two together would fit them like a {{wiktionary|Handschuh#German|glove}}...) [[Special:Contributions/172.68.186.157|172.68.186.157]] 17:03, 7 August 2024 (UTC)

Alright, it seems that ''somebody'' has removed my earlier comment protesting the ongoing genocide that Harris supports. Has this wiki fallen too? [[Special:Contributions/172.70.90.130|172.70.90.130]] 17:09, 7 August 2024 (UTC)
:A quick runthrough of article edits doesn't show anything of what you say, unless I've missed it as too subtle. But, I have to say, that the wording you use here is indicative of the problem being with your 'interpretation'. "Genocide" is a heavy allogation to make and such extraordinary claims would require extraordinary justification, not just talking points taken from the fast-and-loose fringes of public opinion. (Not to mention that if your political rivals were as wicked as that, then you'd be risking your life/freedom to oppose them. But, hey, you apparently have the free speech to say utter nonsense with!)[[Special:Contributions/172.70.86.173|172.70.86.173]] 17:33, 7 August 2024 (UTC)
::check twitter [[Special:Contributions/172.70.85.152|172.70.85.152]] 18:23, 7 August 2024 (UTC)
:::OK, I checked it. [[User:Laser813|Laser813]] ([[User talk:Laser813|talk]]) 19:20, 7 August 2024 (UTC)
::::I mostly haven't checked it ever since Elon "check-marked" it with that X and made it impossible to browse/lurk effectively just to see what arguments were currently happening. Probably too late to actually get myself an account, anyway. But those already there are welcome to it; even with possible diamonds in the rough, there's no sense of FOMO from me... [[Special:Contributions/172.70.86.231|172.70.86.231]] 11:04, 8 August 2024 (UTC)
::I think they're talking about the Talk, rather than the article - comment added at 16:20, and removed in the edit at 16:29 (possible it was just an edit conflict (as opposed to a conflict edit...), since the subsequent update was not small).[[Special:Contributions/172.68.186.128|172.68.186.128]] 09:39, 8 August 2024 (UTC)

Seems like an opportunity was missed to point out how many presidents on the list have exactly 6 letters in their first name...Kamala, Donald, Donald, Barack, George, George, Ronald, Gerald, Lyndon, Dwight. It may be worth mentioning? [[Special:Contributions/172.70.131.153|172.70.131.153]]

2965: Chili Tornado Quake

2024-08-01T08:08:41Z

172.70.86.231: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2965
| date = July 29, 2024
| title = Chili Tornado Quake
| image = chili_tornado_quake_2x.png
| imagesize = 302x252px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Buildings constructed from softer materials were damaged by chili pepper impacts to the storm's high Richter-Fujita-Scoville-Mohs hardness rating.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a SCALED CAROLINA REAPER-CATEGORY 5 HURRICANE - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
[[Cueball]], as a [[:Category:News anchor|news anchor]], is reporting on a tornado that struck a chili pepper processing plant during an earthquake, and he rates the event as 55,000 on the (fictional) Richter-Fujita-Scoville scale.

The Richter-Fujita-Scoville scale combines several unrelated scales:
* The '''{{w|Richter scale}}''' is a historic (but still well known) logarithmic scale for rating the intensity of {{w|earthquakes}} that typically range from about 3 to 9.5.
* The '''{{w|Fujita scale}}''' rates the intensity of damage caused by {{w|tornadoes}} which ranges from 0 to 5.
* The '''{{w|Scoville scale}}''' rates the spiciness of {{w|chili peppers}} from 0 (not at all spicy) all the way up into the millions.

The joke is that combining these scales is nonsensical and silly; the effects of each are not interrelated in any meaningful way.

It's likely the three base numbers are ''multiplied'', as with {{w|Foot-pound (energy)|similar}} compound-unit calculations, to give the single combined measure (although some nominal types are treated as {{w|Erdős–Bacon number|additive}}).
* Richter: Since the building is still there it is not a 9 on the Richter scale, suggesting a maximum around 8. The fracturing of the earth suggests a minimum of 6.
* Fujita: Given the image, this is not a 5 on the tornado scale, suggesting a maximum around 4. The severe damage to the building suggests a minimum of 3.
* Scoville: This would then leave the rest for the Scoville scale, which would give around 1700 on that scale as a minimum. The other two numbers could easily be smaller so that the Scoville number would be reaching above 3000. The chili peppers being processed could be poblano (Scoville number between about 1000 and 2000) or jalapeño (2500 to 10,000), among others.

In the title text it is mentioned that buildings constructed from softer materials were damaged by chili pepper impacts [due] to the storm's high Richter-Fujita-Scoville-Mohs hardness rating. The {{w|Mohs scale}} is a scale for mineral hardness which ranges from 1 (e.g. talc) to 10 (diamond), with lower numbers being softer and higher numbers being harder. Chili peppers are strong in a spicy sense, but very soft on the Mohs scale, so if it was only the chilies that hit other buildings it would only be very soft material that would take any damage. Of course there would also be building material hitting nearby houses, thus they would do more damage than the chili, by an amount that would depend upon the relative hardness of the processing plant structure to that of other buildings. The former is frangible enough to have become dislodged from its structure, but may be just as brittle as it is ultimately abrasive, or is composed of thoroughly resilient pieces of material previously held in place by mortar or some other binding of insufficient adhesion or mechanical strength. From either point or failure (or both!), the wind-whipped cloud of debris might then indeed be able to scour more generally well-built structures nearby, even ones actually designed to withstand and absorb such winds/earth movements in their own right.

A number, where the hardness of the materials hitting nearby buildings was taken into consideration, could have been given, adding a fourth number to consider in the scale, but no such number is provided.

Similar comics:
* [[2950: Situation]] - several unlikely scenarios, all at once
* [[1531: The BDLPSWDKS Effect]] - also a hybrid multi-disciplinary amalgam of measurements
* [[1794: Fire]] - featuring a multiple-alarm fire in an alarm factory

===Discussion: Is the title text missing a word?===
The title text might be missing the word "due," or it might not be a typo; both scenarios are possible, but the meaning changes.

Since it's impossible to say which scenario is correct, here are the implications of both.

====Scenario 1: No missing word====
The sentence as written means that '''the chili peppers impacted the ''magnitude'' of the scale'''. In other words, buildings made of soft materials were damaged because the Richter-Fujita-Scoville-Mohs hardness rating was higher than it otherwise would have been as a result of the chili peppers. This suggests that spicier peppers are more likely to damage soft buildings.

The text has a somewhat awkward and unusual phrasing, if this was the intended meaning. If it was intended, Randall is presumably making a pun on the word impact, using it in an unusual way. Discussion about impacts from disasters usually talk about physical impacts, not impacts to abstract measurement systems, so the joke may be about this secondary kind of impact.

====Scenario 2: Missing word====
"Buildings constructed from softer materials were damaged by chili pepper impacts '''due''' to the storm's high Richter-Fujita-Scoville-Mohs hardness rating."

The sentence with "due" means that soft buildings were damaged by chili peppers, since the storm's hardness rating was high enough. This seems more straightforward: harder peppers successfully effacing soft building materials.

==Transcript==
:[Close-up of Cueball, a news anchor, next to an image with a headline above it to the left of him. The image shows of black tornado descending from sky-cover above. It is striking a building that has been damaged near where the tornado hits. Two large chilies can be seen flying through the air in the foreground, with pieces of the building and more chilies flying off further away. Straight beneath the building and going up in the middle of it there is a crack, that divides into three inside the building. The ground is also higher to the right of the point where the crack enters the building. Cueball is speaking which is shown above the image and him.]
:Headline: Breaking news
:Cueball: A tornado that struck a chili pepper processing plant during an earthquake was rated 55,000 on the Richter-Fujita-Scoville scale.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:News anchor]]
[[Category:Tornadoes]]
[[Category:Food]]
[[Category:Earthquakes]]

2964: Olympic Sports

2024-07-29T09:17:49Z

172.70.86.231: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2964
| date = July 26, 2024
| title = Olympic Sports
| image = olympic_sports_2x.png
| imagesize = 553x328px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Thankfully for everyone involved, the Winter Olympics officials spotted me and managed to stop me before I got to the ski jump.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by A VERY CONCERNED OLYMPIC OFFICIAL - Provide an explanation of each sport for the convenience of those unfamiliar with some or all listed sports. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

This comic was officially published on the day of the opening ceremony of the {{w|2024 Summer Olympics|2024 Paris (Summer) Olympics}}, though it actually appeared early the following day.

In this comic, [[Randall]], who has no athletic training, imagines himself participating in various Olympic events, with his degrees of failure measured in terms of their humor potential.

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Olympic sports ranked by how funny it would be if a regular person competed
! How funny !! Sport !! Reason !! Depiction
|-
|rowspan=5| Not that funny || {{w|Rowing}} - One or more people row a boat to a destination.|| The person would struggle to row effectively, falling out of cadence and fouling the oars of the other rowers in their boat. However, if Randall competed in the single sculls, such coordination would not be an issue, and he would likely just be much slower than the other competitors. ||
|-
| {{w|Fencing}} - Two contestants attempt to land hits on each other with a long fencing weapon.|| They might fail to land any hits, but it wouldn't be overly humorous. ||
|-
| {{w|Weightlifting}} || They might just fail to lift the weights. ||
|-
| {{w|Golf}} - Contestants attempt to hit, with golf clubs, a golf ball into one or more holes in as small a number of hits as possible.|| They would likely miss the ball or hit poorly. || The illustration depicts Randall missing the hole at very close range.
|-
| {{w|Archery}} - Using a bow and arrow, contestants attempt to hit a target with as much accuracy as possible.|| Arrows might miss the target, but it's not particularly amusing. || Randall misses all his shots on the target.
|-
|rowspan=5| Pretty funny || {{w|Swimming}} - Contestants swim to a destination or complete lengths as fast as possible.|| They might struggle to stay afloat (particularly in open water swimming, where they would be buffeted by other contestants) or [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Moussambani swim awkwardly]. They are also likely to have a markedly different physique to the other competitors, which would have a comic effect. ||
|-
| {{w|Long jump}} - Contestants, with a running start, attempt to jump as far as possible.|| They would likely make a very short jump, or perhaps foul every jump. ||
|-
| {{w|Pole vault}} - Using a bendable pole, contestants attempt to propel (vault) themselves over a bar.|| They would miss the plant and end up dropping the pole and running under the bar. If they did manage to get some lift, but failed to get enough to reach the mat, it would probably be concerning, rather than funny. ||
|-
| {{w|Diving}} - Contestants attempt to fulfil multiple criteria while diving into water.|| Awkward or painful-looking dives could ensue. Potential for injury would be high. ||
|-
| {{w|Hurdles}} - Contestants run on a track with hurdles positioned at various places.|| They might trip and fall over the hurdles, or just knock them all over as they fail to clear them. || Randall repeatedly and painfully runs into the hurdles, unable to jump over any of them. He appears to be holding a hand on his head, possibly covering his eyes or due to having hurt his head.
|-
|rowspan=5| Incredibly funny || {{w|Figure skating}} [The only Winter Olympic discipline featured in the comic]|| They might slip and fall continually on the ice. ||
|-
| {{w|Horizontal bar}} - A horizontal bar is used to perform gymnastics.|| They might fail to perform any flips or fall off the bar. In all likelihood, having been lifted to the bar, they would simply hang helplessly beneath it, managing minimal swings backwards and forwards. ||
|-
| {{w|Equestrian sports}} - Various activities involving the use of horses.|| They might struggle to control the horse or fall off. || Randall is completely unable to control his horse. He is in the process of falling off and is flailing his arms.
|-
| {{w|Freestyle BMX}} - Contestants ride BMX bikes and perform various tricks, and are then judged by trick quality.|| They might crash or fail to perform tricks. ||
|-
| {{w|Pommel horse}} - Using a gymnastic device somewhat similar to a horse, gymnasts perform various tricks.|| They might awkwardly flop around or fall off. || Randall is attempting to perform a routine but clearly is not very graceful, balanced or typically dynamic, as made apparent by the rather basic agitrons surrounding him. However, he seems to be unaware of this, excitedly demanding that people look at what he presumably thinks is an impressive feat of athleticism.
|}

The title text may be a reference to ski jumper {{w|Vinko Bogataj}}, whose spectacular crash at a (non-Olympic) ski flying event in 1970 in Oberstdorf, (then) West Germany became emblematic of the expression "the agony of defeat" in the opening narration of the popular US television program "{{w|Wide World of Sports (American TV program)|Wide World of Sports}}". Alternatively the reference may be to {{w|Eddie the Eagle}}, whose poor performance at the {{w|1988 Winter Olympics}} led to the introduction of the top 50 or 30% qualifying rule.

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

:[Header above three panels:]
:Olympic Sports ranked by how funny it would be if I, a regular person without athletic training, snuck onto the team to compete:
:[Three panels are shown with a header, a bullet list with five listed sports in each, and one or two depictions of sports.]

:Not that funny
:Rowing
:Fencing
:Weightlifting
:Golf
:Archery
:[Cueball putts a ball with a golf club and misses the hole.]
:[Cueball is aiming with a bow. Three arrows are on the ground at various distances from the target.]

:Pretty funny
:Swimming
:Long jump
:Pole vault
:Diving
:Hurdles
:[Cueball runs stomach-first into a hurdle, while holding a hand on his head. Another hurdle behind him has fallen down.]
:Cueball: [Bonk] Ow! [Bonk] Ow!

:Incredibly funny
:Figure skating
:Horizontal bar
:Equestrian
:BMX freestyle
:Pommel horse
:[Cueball tries to balance himself on a pommel horse. His both hands and one leg are down, while the other leg is slightly raised.]
:Cueball: Look! Look!
:[A horse rider wearing a black helmet is struggling to maintain balance on the running horse, with both hands and one leg raised.]
:Horse rider with black helmet: AAAAA!

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Sport]]

Talk:1940: The Food Size Cycle

2024-07-16T11:35:29Z

172.70.86.231: :)

Does panini have a different meaning in the USA? In the UK, it basically means a sandwich made in a flattish rectangular roll, usually toasted (sometimes also the roll itself). They can be quite large; not necessarily smaller than sandwiches in general.[[Special:Contributions/141.101.76.16|141.101.76.16]] 16:44, 10 January 2018 (UTC)
:From my experience its the flatishness off panini that make them more comfortable to eat, but who knows maybe we're on the end of the panini cycle. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.74.9|162.158.74.9]] 23:43, 10 January 2018 (UTC)
:I think you're inadverently proving Randall's point. :) First I ever heard of paninis must have been something like 15 years ago, and the buns were slightly longer than my (admittedly large) hand, putting their length about the same as standard sandwich bread, but a smaller width making them smaller than a sandwich. I do note that if I see panini rolls in the grocery store, they're still that small size. Sounds to me like this size arms race is well underway for paninis where you live (I like never order them, but I suspect here too). [[User:NiceGuy1|NiceGuy1]] ([[User talk:NiceGuy1|talk]]) 04:15, 12 January 2018 (UTC)
:: I'm pretty sure that when they first appeared widely over here they were already substantially larger than that. Perhaps we just imported already outsized ones from the US? Also, at that point, sandwiches generally hadn't undergone much inflation over here, so panini(s) and sandwiches have probably gone through a parallel expansion. The grocery stores here do also sell hand-sized panini rolls, but those are a relatively recent introduction, and they just match the general size of the rest of their roll selection.[[Special:Contributions/141.101.76.16|141.101.76.16]] 10:10, 12 January 2018 (UTC)

Is it generally known that "panini" is the plural form of the Italian word "panino"? We don't say "burritos" or "taquitos" for one example, so why "panini"? [[User:Gearoid|Gearóid]] ([[User talk:Gearoid|talk]]) 07:46, 11 January 2018 (UTC)
: But we do say 'a biscotti'. Probably because when selling them you would advertise in the plural, and those not familiar with Italian linguistics would not know how to construct a singular from it, and so would simply use the word as it stands. As a result, of course, panini and biscotti are, through use, now correct ''english'' singulars.[[Special:Contributions/141.101.76.16|141.101.76.16]] 09:34, 11 January 2018 (UTC)
: perhaps because of its unfortunate similarity to other English words, and the fortunate immaturity of the human race.[[Special:Contributions/162.158.74.9|162.158.74.9]] 00:37, 12 January 2018 (UTC)
:As a non-Italian speaker, I can say I was unaware "panini" was a plural word (though I feel vaguely familiar with the concept that Italian pluralizes words with an i like that). That'll be why, of course, most people are likewise unaware, and it has caught on. Especially considering that we'll often see "panini" itself pluralized, as "paninis". Reminds me of when I see things like "NASA Association", the final A of the acronym already means Association. "Scuba Apparatus", the A already stands for Apparatus. Etc. [[User:NiceGuy1|NiceGuy1]] ([[User talk:NiceGuy1|talk]]) 04:38, 12 January 2018 (UTC)
: Expanding on the theme, there are rivers in the U.K. routinely referred to as the "River Avon", ignoring the fact that "Avon" already means "River"... [[User:Gearoid|Gearóid]] ([[User talk:Gearoid|talk]]) 07:29, 12 January 2018 (UTC)
: We may not say "a burritos" or "a taquitos", but we do say "a tamale" and there is no such word in Spanish. The singular in Spanish is "tamal"; "tamale" is a backformation from the Spanish plural "tamales". [[Special:Contributions/172.68.34.106|172.68.34.106]] 02:06, 13 January 2018 (UTC)
:In English, words ending in "i" often lack an explicit plural form, since many words which end in a "s" or "sh" sound use an "i" ending when pluralized. Illiteracy has lessened this somewhat in recent decades: The correct plural for octopus is octopi & the correct plural for virus is virii. Saying "octopuses" & "viruses" are modernisms which have become so prevalent that they are now widely accepted, but grammatically they are incorrect.[[User:ProphetZarquon|ProphetZarquon]] ([[User talk:ProphetZarquon|talk]]) 19:51, 24 January 2018 (UTC)
::The correct plural for ''octopus'' is not ''octopi'', because ''octopus'' is not a Latin word, it is a Greek one. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.154.163|162.158.154.163]] 15:21, 31 January 2018 (UTC)Jack Rudd
:::''Octopuses'' (the most commonly used), ''octopi'' (a misguided Latinisation), and ''octopodes'' (a Greekification) are all acceptable English plurals for ''octopus''. You can't really apply rules to determine whether things are "correct" in language; the only meaningful way in which something can be said to be "correct" is through common usage / understanding. If enough of us decided the plural of ''octopus'' was ''octoplops'', then that would be correct.[[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.244|141.101.98.244]] 16:36, 31 January 2018 (UTC)
:::It's not a Latin word or a Greek word, it's an English word. As such it follows english language rules which dictate that because of its ending, its plural should end in "i" rather than "s". It may or may not ALSO occur in those other languages, but that has no bearing whatsoever on its english pluralization. By way of comparison, consider the English word "Hinterland" and the German word "Hinterland" - they're spelled the same, they mean the same thing, but the correct plural of the English word is "Hinterlands" whereas the correct plural of the German word is "Hinterlande" or "Hinterlander"; each is correct in its own language but incorrect in the other. Similarly, "octopodes" may be correct in Greek but is not correct in English. Additionally, I would like to call out the overt fallaciousness of the implication that people have Latin in mind when they use a plural ending in "i". I guarantee you that nobody who says "Octopi" does do because they think the word derives from Latin; I would bet money that the vast majority of them have not considered the word's origin at all. 08:20, 12 March 2020 (UTC) {{unsigned ip|162.158.78.160}}
::::Well Hinterland does per definition not have any plural. At least in German. ([[https://www.duden.de/rechtschreibung/Hinterland According to the most common German dictionary]]). If I (native German speaker) had to use a plural of it, it would be Hinterländer, but usually I would avoid using a plural of that word. I cannot think of a context where it would be needed. But other examples work as well: Kindergarten in German would in plural be Kindergärten (a in Kidnergarten pronounced as the "u" in "luck", while ä in Kindergärten pronounced as "a" in "have"). English doesn't try to reproduce this slight change in sound for building plural, but instead would go with kindergartens I guess. ("Walking through the city I saw various schools and kindergartens.") - Regarding your second point: I'd say octopi because I learnt latin in school, and in the o-declination the singular word ending in -us will end in -i in plural. So your guarantee regarding "nobody" is worthless. --[[User:Lupo|Lupo]] ([[User talk:Lupo|talk]]) 08:46, 12 March 2020 (UTC)
:::::I suppose that's what I get for using wiktionary instead of a proper German-to-English dictionary. As for Latin, I'm at least confident that none of the people in my town who say "octopi" are thinking of Latin, because the highschools in my town don't teach latin. I don't even think my college offered it as a course. They offered Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Hebrew, Italian, Japanese, Korean, and Spanish, but not Latin [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.197|173.245.54.197]] 15:56, 12 March 2020 (UTC)

Ah, but what about the slider effect? Mini versions of (in this case burgers) to be served in a collective? --[[User:Thomcat|Thomcat]] ([[User talk:Thomcat|talk]]) 17:01, 10 January 2018 (UTC)

Related, perhaps, is the sizing issue. Some places sell medium, large, and extra large drinks. Note no small.
[[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.154|108.162.216.154]] 20:29, 10 January 2018 (UTC) Gene Wirchenko <genew@telus.net>
: And the 'regular' is what used to be the 'large'; the 'small', if it exists, is what used to be the 'regular' - to try to make you feel like you're short-changing yourself if you buy a normal sized one.[[Special:Contributions/141.101.76.16|141.101.76.16]] 09:27, 11 January 2018 (UTC)

The alt-text seems backwards: The way Randall's presented it, it looks like he's asserting that thick crusts get thinner, then the cycle repeats. This matches anecdotal evidence based upon the style favored by my local pizza shops over the years, but more research is needed. Thin crusts also tend to be cheaper to make, so... [[User:ProphetZarquon|ProphetZarquon]] ([[User talk:ProphetZarquon|talk]]) 21:08, 10 January 2018 (UTC)
: I don't think so - 'deep-dish' is listed first, as the one on the original track; 'thin crust' is then the one on the replacement track. The original pizzas, as imported from Italy, would have been thin crust. These then got thicker until they begat deep dish, and, indeed, beyond, with the ridiculous proliferation of stuffed and sandwich crusts. Then, as some people lost patience with this, there was a trend to re-introduce the thin crust (the replacement track).[[Special:Contributions/141.101.76.16|141.101.76.16]] 09:25, 11 January 2018 (UTC)
: Some original pizza from Italy had thick crust. My uncle, an immigrant to the US from Bari, Italy, made extremely thick crust pizza at his restaurant in the 1960s, almost a pizza bread. Pizza Hut initially advertised their 'deep dish' as 'Sicilian Pan Pizza'. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.75.166|162.158.75.166]] 21:54, 11 January 2018 (UTC)
:Thick crust is listed first, giving it precedence. To get thinner or thicker would be a logical progression which can loop back without significant alteration, whereas a replacement track would imply calzones, or taco-pizza, or some other such alternative to traditional pizza. By the simple fact that he listed thick crust first, reading it in English implies a progression from thick to thin. Also, see 75.166's reference to Sicilian pizza: I'm pretty sure thin crust is a modernism; Pizza crust is not unleavened, it is meant to rise. [[User:ProphetZarquon|ProphetZarquon]] ([[User talk:ProphetZarquon|talk]]) 19:38, 24 January 2018 (UTC)

Portion inflation makes dietary information misleading. One would be hard pressed to find a muffin of the size used in nutrition information guides.
Recipe books show similar inflation, recipes as printed make larger amounts of food, but they are listed as feeding fewer people than they used to. [https://www.webmd.com/diet/features/7-expert-tricks-calorie-portion-control]
Analagous inflation can also be seen in clothes sizes. What used to be a size 8 is now labeled a size 4. Regular becomes "slim cut." [[Special:Contributions/172.68.189.127|172.68.189.127]] 00:01, 11 January 2018 (UTC)

Is the ratio between subsequent food size bifurcations consistent with the first Feigenbaum constant? [https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feigenbaum_constants] [[User:Docstout|Docstout]] ([[User talk:Docstout|talk]]) 01:15, 11 January 2018 (UTC)

Does this remind anyone of a Hertzsprung–Russell diagram? [[User:Capncanuck|Capncanuck]] ([[User talk:Capncanuck|talk]]) 02:51, 11 January 2018 (UTC)
:Yes. It reminds me of a Hertzsprung-Russell diagram, but being inversed. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.88.188|162.158.88.188]] 13:42, 26 January 2018 (UTC)
:That's what I thought too, except its mirror reversed along the diagonal08:20, 12 March 2020 (UTC) {{unsigned ip|162.158.78.160}}

BTW, I find it amusing that this comic came out the next day after a report on [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shrinkflation shrinkflation] of Mondelez chocolates in Europe hit the news here ... --kavol, [[Special:Contributions/141.101.96.197|141.101.96.197]] 07:57, 11 January 2018 (UTC)

Is this phenomenon specific to the US? I don't really recognize it here in the Netherlands, but the US has a reputation of having giant versions of everything: food, cars, people (width mostly) & so on. Maybe specific to a "big is beautiful" cultural attitude? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.111.187|162.158.111.187]] 15:22, 11 January 2018 (UTC)
:This happens, albeit to a considerably lesser extend, in the UK. Here, the phenomenon is restricted primarily to American fast food restaurants. I've eaten in America and was able to get 6 meals from the left-over food from a single-portion meal at Pinky's Pupu Bar & Grill in Kailua, Hawai`i. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.105.96|141.101.105.96]] 21:31, 11 January 2018 (UTC)
: Living in Canada, I find it amusing to note that my Netherlands-born-and-raised mother often complains about large portion sizes, about how anything she might order is way more food than she can eat (and in fact has this weird effect on her that a large amount of food makes the food unappetizing to her). As far as I know, this is a North American phenomenon, but moreso in the States. For example, if I go to McDonald's and order a trio, and tell them to Supersize it, that means change the Regular drink and Regular fries to Larges. In the States, apparently "Supersize" is its own size, this changes them to a size above Large that doesn't even exist here. [[User:NiceGuy1|NiceGuy1]] ([[User talk:NiceGuy1|talk]]) 04:38, 12 January 2018 (UTC)
: Common in the Netherlands also: https://huisvlijt.com/2016/11/krimpflatie-minder-product-zelfde-prijs.html, https://forum.fok.nl/topic/2255412. Though some of the examples seem to be normal inflation combined with downsizing. --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.222.4|162.158.222.4]] 09:29, 12 January 2018 (UTC)

Is it just me, or did this look like a reference to BitCoin to you when you first read it. Big block size, forks, the creation of new coins... I think Randall was really just making fun of BitCoin, because it seems like an otherwise boring topic --vikarjramun
: I think it might just be you. :) I suspect it's that you've read and heard more about BitCoin than I have. All I know about BitCoin is that it's an online-only virtual currency almost exclusively used for criminal activity (ransoms for ransomware, selling off stolen pictures hacked from celebrities, etc), and that their price has gotten ridiculous (like a ransomware I heard about asking only 3 BitCoins, amounted to about $2,000 at the time. Idiots outpriced themselves, the only people who'd pay that are companies big enough to have backup solutions which make it unnecessary). I don't know any of these phrases in relation to BitCoin, and out of context here they have no logical connection (except creating being self-explanatory), they clearly require the context. :) [[User:NiceGuy1|NiceGuy1]] ([[User talk:NiceGuy1|talk]]) 05:29, 16 January 2018 (UTC)

i would fund his study 🥹 [[Special:Contributions/172.70.86.231|172.70.86.231]] 11:35, 16 July 2024 (UTC)

2958: Hatchery

2024-07-12T22:44:01Z

172.70.86.231: /* Explanation */ Unless you read from the bottom up, it really starts with the "shooting fish" pun/allusion. Might be better to move it higher, but right now content to reword it to indicate the relative priority of awareness.

{{comic
| number = 2958
| date = July 12, 2024
| title = Hatchery
| image = hatchery_2x.png
| imagesize = 239x336px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Anadromous fish are more vulnerable in rivers, since the lack of salt means you can quickly crack passwords using rainbow trout tables.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BOT EXECUTING REMOTE COD - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
{{w|Remote code execution}} is a type of {{w|software exploit}} that takes advantage of a bug to allow a remote user of a computer application to make it run code that it was not intended to execute. For example, a webserver with such a bug might allow a user of a web page to make it run a program that deletes system files or displays private information.

The joke arising from this comic is that if you remove the "e" from "code", you get "remote cod execution". This refers to killing ("executing") codfish remotely, using an exploit in a network application that allows you to view the hatchery.

The title text contains a pun on {{w|rainbow tables}}, referring to {{w|rainbow trout}}, one type of which ({{w|steelhead}}) is {{w|anadromous fish|anadromous}} (migrating up rivers to spawn -- {{w|salmon}} are another well known example). Rainbow tables are used when trying to crack hashed passwords; it's simply a file with many possible passwords and their corresponding hash values, which can be compared against retrieved hashed passwords. To prevent such comparisons, most modern password systems use "{{w|salt (cryptography)|salt}}", an extra random string that gets appended to the password before hashing so the same password will potentially have many different hashes, and it becomes infeasible to store all of them in a file. An additional pun is that rivers contain fresh water, so there's no salt (the chemical kind) and the fish are therefore more vulnerable.

The comic dialogue itself starts the whole chain of puns off by using the phrase "shooting fish in a barrel", which is figuratively used to mean that the task is a "piece of cake", but here becomes clear that he is literally {{w|Capital punishment|executing}} fish.

{{w|Fish (Unix shell)|fish}} is also the name of a {{w|UNIX shell}}. Shells are popular targets for computer hackers as they are capable of running arbitrary commands.

==Transcript==
:[Black Hat is sitting at a computer desk, with Cueball behind him.]
:Black Hat: Shooting fish in a barrel.
:Computer: Blam!
:A new fish hatchery exploit allows remote cod execution.
{{comic discussion}}