explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

1636: XKCD Stack

2016-01-29T06:13:29Z

173.245.54.11: /* Explanation */ Basic explanation

{{comic
| number = 1636
| date = January 29, 2016
| title = XKCD Stack
| image = xkcd_stack.png
| titletext = This site requires Sun Java 6.0.0.1 (32-bit) or higher. You have Macromedia Java 7.3.8.1Â¾ (48-bit). Click here [link to java.com main page] to download an installer which will run fine but not really change anything.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Needs more detail.}}

In software engineering, a tech stack is the set of technology platforms and tools that a company or app uses. A common tech stack is LAMP, composed of a Linux operating system, an Apache web server, a MySQL database, and the PHP programming language. In this comic, the XKCD stack is introduced. The technologies comprising it are either non-existent, unreliable, or outdated.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}

{{comic discussion}}

Talk:1006: Sloppier Than Fiction

2016-01-28T21:19:14Z

173.245.54.11:

To me this is the lesson that sometimes we miss the most obvious thing: If you felt like you needed to do something that WASN'T technically cheating, perhaps what you shared WASN'T technically love. So if it was not love our beerded (at least I think it's a beer in his cup) friend lost, what was it? - e-inspired [[Special:Contributions/98.211.199.84|98.211.199.84]] 15:21, 27 February 2013 (UTC)

: The positive strings attached to that quasi-love? --[[User:Quicksilver|Quicksilver]] ([[User talk:Quicksilver|talk]]) 06:47, 17 August 2013 (UTC)

" Oh and FYI, if anyone ever says "It wasn't technically cheating"... it was cheating. " -> This is only true for the more orthodox kinds of relationships. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.29|108.162.229.29]] 02:07, 29 January 2014 (UTC)
Agreed. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.29|108.162.216.29]] 19:40, 26 February 2015 (UTC)

:The point they're trying to make - and the joke in the comic - is that if you ever have to justify something as "technically not cheating", you've overstepped a boundary, regardless of how orthodox your relationship is. More to the point, if your partner is upset by something you did, telling them it was technically ok isn't going to get you anywhere. The joke is that goatee guy did something that hurt his girlfriend's feelings, then summarily dismissed her opinion when she tried to talk about it. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.11|173.245.54.11]] 21:19, 28 January 2016 (UTC)

1618: Cold Medicine

2015-12-18T05:45:10Z

173.245.54.11: More specific.

{{comic
| number = 1618
| date = December 18, 2015
| title = Cold Medicine
| image = cold_medicine.png
| titletext = Seriously considering buying some illegal drugs to try to turn them back into cold medicine.
}}

==Explanation==

Cueball is evidently suffering from a cold and searching for a medicine to alleviate his symptoms. Cueball is unsatisfied with any of the unmonitored drugs available on the shelf, so he approaches the counter.

In the USA, cold medicines containing pseudoephedrine are kept behind the counter and IDs purchasing them are monitored, because pseudoephedrine can be used to make the illegal drug methamphetamine. However, it is also an extremely effective decongestant, much more so than the common substitute, phenylephrine. For this reason, Cueball requests this type of medicine.

The title text seems to be suggesting, humorously, purchasing meth in order to turn it back into pseudoephedrine. This would not be feasible or safe to do.

==Transcript==

:[Cueball is standing in a drug store, in the "Cold & Flu" isle.]
:Cueball: *Sniffle*

:[Cueball is standing alone, examining medicine bottles.]
:Cueball: *Cough* *Sniff*

:[Cueball continues examining more bottles.]
:Cueball: Ughhh...

:[Cueball is at the counter in a drug store. Ponytail is behind the counter.]
:Cueball: Just gimme one of every kind of cold medicine you need ID to buy.
:Ponytail: You'll go on the watchlist for—
:Cueball: Don't care.

{{comic discussion}}

Talk:965: Elements

2014-05-16T17:54:38Z

173.245.54.11:

Where did Mendeleev get the polonium from? Can he transmute elements or something? '''[[User:Davidy22|{{Color|purple|David}}y²²]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 08:26, 9 March 2013 (UTC)
:Did someone say transmute? {{unsigned ip|108.162.219.5}}
:If the water in Aang's body (or the water he's bending) came from the Lohontan valley region of Nevada, then his body can have as much as .2 picocuries per liter.[http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/radiation/fallon/polonium_faqs.pdf] this is not enough to kill you or even get you sick, but if Aang is bringing enough water into this epic battle Mendeleev could pull a lethal dose from that. The odds that this battle is taking place in Nevada are probably on a par with the actual Mendeleev meeting the fictional Aang. {{unsigned ip|170.170.59.139}}
Sodium bending would have been much more spectacular, due to the water.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.202|108.162.219.202]] 04:19, 3 January 2014 (UTC)

Mendeleev was the inventor of the original periodic chart which looks nothing like the modern one. The inventor of the Modern periodic chart was Glenn Seaborg. Kinda sorta. At least you would recognize Seaborg's chart as the modern one where if you saw Mendeleev's you would just go "WTF?". OTOH, both Seaborg and Mendeleev have elements named after them and you do not. --[[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.11|173.245.54.11]] 17:53, 16 May 2014 (UTC)

Talk:965: Elements

2014-05-16T17:53:58Z

173.245.54.11:

Where did Mendeleev get the polonium from? Can he transmute elements or something? '''[[User:Davidy22|{{Color|purple|David}}y²²]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 08:26, 9 March 2013 (UTC)
:Did someone say transmute? {{unsigned ip|108.162.219.5}}
:If the water in Aang's body (or the water he's bending) came from the Lohontan valley region of Nevada, then his body can have as much as .2 picocuries per liter.[http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/radiation/fallon/polonium_faqs.pdf] this is not enough to kill you or even get you sick, but if Aang is bringing enough water into this epic battle Mendeleev could pull a lethal dose from that. The odds that this battle is taking place in Nevada are probably on a par with the actual Mendeleev meeting the fictional Aang. {{unsigned ip|170.170.59.139}}
Sodium bending would have been much more spectacular, due to the water.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.202|108.162.219.202]] 04:19, 3 January 2014 (UTC)
Mendelev was the inventor of the original periodic chart which looks nothing like the modern one. The inventor of the Modern periodic chart was Glenn Seaborg. Kinda sorta. At least you would recognize Seaborg's chart as the modern one where if you saw Mendeleev's you would just go "WTF?". OTOH, both Seaborg and Mendeleev have elements named after them and you do not. --[[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.11|173.245.54.11]] 17:53, 16 May 2014 (UTC)

Talk:847: Stingray Nebula

2014-05-14T02:38:42Z

173.245.54.11:

I wish I may, I wish I might..oh darn, it's a satellite. Who knows where that's from?? :) ~JFreund{{unsigned|JFreund}}
The female teacher from the Archie comic strip?--[[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.11|173.245.54.11]] 02:38, 14 May 2014 (UTC)
Dwarfs are a pun referring both to dwarf stars and to Middle-Earth dwarves.--[[Special:Contributions/141.101.97.203|141.101.97.203]] 19:22, 29 March 2014 (UTC)

Talk:818: Illness

2014-05-12T17:02:01Z

173.245.54.11: Created page with "I would define prayer as the active concentration on someone/something with an intended outcome. I would define remote prayer as praying for/to someone/something that you hav..."

I would define prayer as the active concentration on someone/something with an intended outcome. I would define remote prayer as praying for/to someone/something that you have no direct or personal contact with with a very specific intended outcome.
When I found out that Randall's fiancee had cancer, I though about him and her hoping that it would work out positively. I assume (Yeah, yeah, I know) that others did as well. Randall's now-wife got better. Did we just prove that remote prayer works when done by geeks?!? Could we make a web site for concentrating geek positive thoughts to make people better? Could we make Stephen Hawking walk?!?--[[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.11|173.245.54.11]] 17:02, 12 May 2014 (UTC)

Talk:813: One-Liners

2014-05-12T16:13:13Z

173.245.54.11:

I dunno, "Bangarang, motherfucker!" seems a lot more quotable to me than most of the others. Actually, I think I'm going to try to use it in my daily life. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.55.210|173.245.55.210]] 15:54, 31 October 2013 (UTC)

* Well, that, and Skrillex. {{unsigned ip|108.162.218.101}}
I think the last frame is the most quotable as well. It's very similar to John McClain's one-liner from the Die Hard movies: "Yippie Ki-Yay, Mother Fucker". {{unsigned ip|173.245.56.85}}

Well, I'd gladly use the one in the title text daily; now that I've seen this comic, I probably will.--[[User:NSDCars5|NSDCars5]] ([[User talk:NSDCars5|talk]]) 11:14, 10 March 2014 (UTC)NSDCars5.

I have been saying "Bangarang, motherfucker" for 4 years now because of this cartoon. OK, I am lying, I have never said in my life, but I will this week. Next week at the latest. --[[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.11|173.245.54.11]] 16:13, 12 May 2014 (UTC)

Talk:786: Exoplanets

2014-05-11T04:53:43Z

173.245.54.11:

There is no indication that SG:A is the city-ship being referenced. Atlantis does not fly by Orion-drive and is in no way the first Sci-fi reference to City ships. They go back at least as far as "Cities in Flight" by James Blish and possibly further, although I've found no evidence of this. {{unsigned|99.111.149.90|12:04, 19 January 2013‎ (UTC)}}

Also note that this comic is no. 786, which is the amount of known exoplanets. {{unsigned|‎152.93.147.10|09:17, 21 February 2013‎ (UTC)}}
:But this was released 2 years earlier than [[1071: Exoplanets|that count]]; still it's interesting factiod... [[User:Markhurd|Mark Hurd]] ([[User talk:Markhurd|talk]]) 11:07, 13 April 2013 (UTC)

Footfall by Larry Niven is the best example of city-ships in line with Project Orion. Basically the bigger they are the better. Big metal plate with a city on top and nuclear bombs exploding underneath. And the project started in the 50s. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Orion_(nuclear_propulsion)]--[[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.11|173.245.54.11]] 04:53, 11 May 2014 (UTC)

1310: Goldbach Conjectures

2013-12-30T14:18:57Z

173.245.54.11: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1310
| date = December 30, 2013
| title = Goldbach Conjectures
| image = goldbach_conjectures.png
| titletext = The weak twin primes conjecture states that there are infinitely many pairs of primes. The strong twin primes conjecture states that every prime p has a twin prime (p+2), although (p+2) may not look prime at first. The tautological prime conjecture states that the tautological prime conjecture is true.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BOT}}

{{w|Goldbach's conjecture}}, {{w|Goldbach's weak conjecture}}, and the {{w|Twin prime|twin prime conjecture}} are unsolved problems in mathematics relating to {{w|prime numbers}} (numbers whose only {{w|divisors}} are 1 and itself).

A "strong" conjecture is typically a more restrictive form of the corresponding "weak" conjecture, with the "strong" conjecture typically implying the "weak" one, but not vice versa. For example, Goldbach's strong conjecture would imply Goldbach's weak conjecture, because any odd number greater than 5 can be expressed as 3 plus an even number greater than 2, which would itself be expressed as the sum of two prime numbers, resulting in a way to express the original odd number as the sum of three prime numbers (the two prime numbers that sum to the even number, and 3). The weak conjecture does not, however, imply the strong conjecture. This comic plays on the "strong" and "weak" naming of Goldbach's conjectures by extending it beyond the two famous ones to further degrees of strength or weakness.

Goldbach's weak conjecture has been claimed to have been proven true, while Goldbach's strong conjecture remains unsolved. The two even weaker "conjectures" are obviously true, with the "extremely weak" conjecture not making a formal mathematical statement at all. The two strongest "conjectures" are so strong that they are obviously false.

The title text refers to the twin prime conjecture, which states that there are an infinite number of pairs of primes that differ by 2.

[[Randall]]'s weak twin prime conjecture states that there are an infinite number of pairs of primes. This is clearly true. Per {{w|Euclid's theorem}}, there are an infinite number of primes. Unlike the actual twin prime conjecture (which specifies a distance of two), this conjecture does not specify a required distance. Thus, any pair from the infinite set of primes suffices. An example is 5 and 13.

His strong twin prime conjecture states that every prime is 2 less than another prime (although it might not look like a prime at first). An obvious counter-example is 7 and 9. 9 "might not look like a prime". It should be noted that this conjecture is equivalent to the Very Strong Goldbach conjecture described in the comic.

The tautological prime conjecture states that it itself is true, while making no statement about primes. It is not, despite its name, a tautology. An example of a tautology would be "all primes are prime".

==Transcript==
:'''Goldbach Conjectures'''
:'''Extremely weak'''
:Numbers just ''keep going''
:'''Very weak'''
:Every number greater than 7 is the sum of two other numbers
:'''Weak'''
:Every odd number greater than 5 is the sum of three primes
:'''Strong'''
:Every even number greater than 2 is the sum of two primes
:'''Very strong'''
:Every odd number is prime
:'''Extremely strong'''
:There are no numbers above 7

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Math]]

503: Terminology

2013-12-11T19:59:55Z

173.245.54.11: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 503
| date = November 12, 2008
| title = Terminology
| image = terminology.png
| titletext = Also, is it just me, or do Japan and New Zealand look suspiciously similar? Has anyone seen them at a party together?
}}

==Explanation==
{{Incomplete|Where is the X?}}
This comic shows a map of the world. The X in the center, labeled "ME", indicats [[Randall]]'s location in the U.S., and two arrows point west and east from it. The map uses a format, popular in America, which places the American continents centrally, therefore splitting Asia, (parodied by [http://weknowmemes.com/tag/you-cut-asia-in-half/ "you-cut-asia-in-half"]). The comic then shows Europe with the title "The West" as it is commonly referred to, despite being located to the east of Randall, and vice versa for Asia. Randall is therefore annoyed with the common terms "The West" and "The East" referring to locations east and west of him respectively.

The east and west are defined in geographical term as a reference from zero {{w|Longitude}} also known as the {{w|Prime meridian}} which runs though Greenwich, London, United Kingdom. {{w|Western Hemisphere}} and {{w|Eastern Hemisphere}} are derrived from that reference of centering a map around the {{w|Prime meridian}}.

The term "The East" and "The West" has then later been expanded or (mis-)appropriated to include references to trade and political alliances.

The fact that zero longitude is running though London is an artifact of that the British was primary force in exploring the world at the time of drawing the modern maps of the world, and hence most maps was created by the British, with England being the center. The east and west should simply be viewed as a reference to map coordinates and not as relative to where you are as suggested by the comic. In short America-centered map does not redefine "East" or "West" anymore than [http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__2Vhj2G5F68/TJEIpsuqUCI/AAAAAAAAAG0/r4qa6dHGkbM/s1600/blog.gif Australian up-side-down] {{w|Reversed map}} maps redefining what is North or South.

The convention of orienting maps with north at the top and west at the left was started by the greek geographer {{w|Ptolemy}}. In his work {{w|Geography (Ptolemy)}} he introduces the first coordinate system with latitudes and longitude. Randall shows some other possible map orientations in [[977: Map Projections]].

The title text comments on the similarity in shape of New Zealand and Japan, and suggests that one may in fact be the other in disguise. The similarities are partly explained by both forming as volcanic island chains.

==Transcript==
:[Map of world with North America centered. An "x" is placed near east coast. Asia is labeled "The East" and Europe "The West."]
:"The East" <- West x (me) East -> "The West"
:This always bugged me.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Language]]
[[Category:Geography]]

519: 11th Grade

2013-11-07T21:25:10Z

173.245.54.11: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 519
| date = December 19, 2008
| title = 11th Grade
| image = 11th_grade.png
| titletext = And the ten minutes striking up a conversation with that strange kid in homeroom sometimes matters more than every other part of high school combined.
}}

==Explanation==
This strip is a comparison about the time spent in 11th grade doing various things, and how important those things are to one's future. The first two bars on the chart are 900 hours of class, which is about 180 hours short of how many hours kids spend in school each year (most likely to show the lunch hour), and 400 hours of homework, or an average of about 2.2 hours per school day. Conversely, idly messing around in {{w|Perl}} (a programming language) for only one weekend is shown to have a much larger impact on one's future. This is likely due to the skills one can pick up in even just a single weekend in contrast to the often redundant, trivial or generalist information that schools tend to convey.

The title-text is a further exaggeration, claiming that the social skills and new perspectives practiced and gained by taking a risk and talking to the unpopular kid far more important than all four years of a high school education. While it may have felt this way for Randall, and while it was probably a healthy experience, it obviously cannot compare to the myriad of practical things he learned, nor (for sake of example) the trigonometry and calculus he learned that allowed him to begin his career in robotic engineering.

==Transcript==
:11th-grade activities:
:[Bar graph y axis: Usefulness to career success.]
:900 hours of classes [small bar.]
:400 hours of homework [smaller bar.]
:One weekend messing with Perl [huge bar.]
{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Programming]]

766: Green Flash

2013-11-07T16:38:36Z

173.245.54.11: /* Explanation */ American comic; American spelling.

{{comic
| number = 766
| date = July 14, 2010
| title = Green Flash
| image = green_flash.png
| titletext = The exact cause of the phenomenon is unknown, but it's thought to be linked to atmospheric refraction and you getting a really cool car.
}}

==Explanation==
{{w|Green flash}} refers to an optical phenomenon which occurs at twilight (early {{w|sunrise|dawn}} or late {{w|sunset|dusk}}), and which causes the sun to briefly flash a green color.

In the comic, [[Black Hat]] attempts to distract [[Cueball]] with the sunset, so that he may knock Cueball out with the bottle in his hand and steal his new {{w|Tesla Roadster}}.

==Transcript==
:[Black Hat and Cueball are standing on the beach, watching the sun set. Black Hat is holding something, perhaps a cosh, in his left hand.]
:Black Hat: Did you know that if you stare at the sun just as it sets, you can see a green flash? And feel a sharp blow to the head, and hear the faint hum of me driving away in your new Tesla Roadster?

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]

758: Raptor Fences

2013-11-07T16:28:00Z

173.245.54.11: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 758
| date = June 25, 2010
| title = Raptor Fences
| image = raptor_fences.png
| titletext = If at least one person has a nightmare about being swarmed by hundreds of mouse-sized dromaeosaurids, my work will have been done.
}}

==Explanation==
In the film ''{{w|Jurassic Park}},'' the protagonists are menaced by carnivorous dinosaurs, including very large {{w|velociraptors}} (actual velociraptors were only about knee-high). {{W|Primordial Dwarfism}} is an extreme form of dwarfism that can manifest in all stages of life, including fetal. The disease is caused by a genetic mutation inherited from both parents.

The on-image caption suggests that the fear of being hunted by dinosaurs can be reduced by genetically engineering them to be many, many times smaller than they should be.

However, the title-text suggests that this very same fear might well be ''increased,'' for at least some people, through exactly the same mechanism.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball checks a computer terminal while a friend is running off in the opposite direction.]
:Cueball: The raptor fences are down. They're loose.
:Friend: I'll get a broom and dustpan.

:Jurassic Park got a lot less scary when the researchers discovered they could activate the gene for extreme dwarfism.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Biology]]
[[Category:Velociraptors]]
[[Category:Jurassic Park]]

519: 11th Grade

2013-11-07T16:10:24Z

173.245.54.11: /* Explanation */ Expanded the explanation.

{{comic
| number = 519
| date = December 19, 2008
| title = 11th Grade
| image = 11th_grade.png
| titletext = And the ten minutes striking up a conversation with that strange kid in homeroom sometimes matters more than every other part of high school combined.
}}

==Explanation==
This strip is a comparison about the time spent in 11th grade doing various things, and how important those things are to one's future. The first two bars in the bar graph are 900 hours of class, which is about 180 hours short of how many hours kids spend in school each year, and 400 hours of homework, or an average of about 2.222 hours per school day. Conversely, idly messing around in {{w|Perl}} (a programming language) for only one weekend is shown to have a much larger impact on one's future. This is likely due to the skills one can pick up in even just a single weekend dealing with what some consider to be an elegant, easy-to-use programming language.

The title-text is a further exaggeration, claiming that the social skills and new perspectives practiced and gained by taking a risk and talking to the unpopular kid far more important than all four years of a high school education. While it may have felt this way for Randall, and while it was probably a healthy experience, it obviously cannot compare to the myriad of practical things he learned, nor (for sake of example) the trigonometry and calculus he learned that allowed him to begin his career in robotic engineering.

==Transcript==
:11th-grade activities:
:[Bar graph y axis: Usefulness to career success.]
:900 hours of classes [small bar.]
:400 hours of homework [smaller bar.]
:One weekend messing with Perl [huge bar.]
{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Charts]]

Talk:757: Toot

2013-11-07T16:00:43Z

173.245.54.11: Created page with "The YouTube link in the explanation is a sarcastic video, that makes anyone who views it laugh out loud at how "seriously" the three men in tuxedos are acting as they blare ou..."

The YouTube link in the explanation is a sarcastic video, that makes anyone who views it laugh out loud at how "seriously" the three men in tuxedos are acting as they blare out awful sounds with those horns. Calling the vuvuzela a "highly sophisticated" instrument based on that video is misleading at the least. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.11|173.245.54.11]] 16:00, 7 November 2013 (UTC)

757: Toot

2013-11-07T15:57:47Z

173.245.54.11: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 757
| date = June 23, 2010
| title = Toot
| image = toot.png
| titletext = This is also one of only five identified situations in which a vuvuzela is actually appropriate.
}}

==Explanation==
“Toot my own horn” is an idiom meaning to brag. However, [[Black Hat]] takes this literally and toots (blows) an air horn. An air horn is a horn attached to a can of compressed air.

The {{w|Vuvuzela}} is a [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wf2P8SnOwLo noise-generating instrument], mainly used for making noise at football matches in South Africa. This comic was published during the {{w|2010 FIFA World Cup}} in South Africa, and the constant buzzing from vuvuzelas throughout the matches attracted attention and controversy.

==Transcript==
:Cueball: I don't mean to toot my own horn, but I ''was'' first in my class at Caltech.

:[Cueball falls backward as Black Hat sounds an air horn in his face.]
:Black Hat: Really? I don't mean to toot my own horn, but
:'''''BRAAAAAAP!'''''

:[A picture of an air horn.]
:Air horns: Worth carrying around your entire life for those few perfect moments.
{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]
[[Category:Language]]
[[Category:Sarcasm]]

717: Furtive

2013-11-06T20:10:57Z

173.245.54.11: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number =717
| date =March 22, 2010
| title =Furtive
| image =furtive.png
| titletext =...go go gadget video camera. Go go gadget cup.
}}

==Explanation==
The person in the comic is Inspector Gadget from the {{w|Inspector Gadget|animated series of the same name}}. Gadget was a cyborg detective that had access to a wide variety of gadgets which he would activate with the words "Go go gadget [insert item here]." The gadgets would usually spawn from his hat, such as his trademark personal helicopter ("go go gadget copter!"). One of the running gags of the series was that Gadget was completely clueless during his missions, and unbeknownst to him, relied heavily on the assistance of his niece Penny, her computer book, and her dog, Brain.

In this strip, Inspector Gadget (wearing his trademark hat and trench coat) looks around furtively before saying the words "Go go gadget two lesbians doing it." The fantasy of lesbians having sex is a common turn-on for straight men. The command, given in the last panel of the comic, also serves to identify the person speaking. Identification along with the punchline is a common comedy trope.

In the title text, Gadget requests further gadgets: A video camera, to record the action, and a cup. The cup is either a reference to the well-known, scatological pornographic video {{w|2 Girls, 1 Cup}}, or else something to ejaculate into.

==Transcript==
:[A man in a trench coat and hat stands mid-frame.]

:[The man turns his head, looking to his right.]

:[The man stands alone in a wide expanse.]

:[The man finally speaks.]
:Man: Go go gadget two lesbians doing it.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Sex]]

669: Experiment

2013-11-06T14:39:29Z

173.245.54.11: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 669
| date = November 30, 2009
| title = Experiment
| image = experiment.png
| titletext = The other two are still lost on the infinite plane of uniform density.
}}

==Explanation==
Problems in the study of {{w|kinematics}} often idealize the environment of the problem for the sake of simplicity. Specifically, it is assumed that objects are moving in a {{w|vacuum}} and that there is no {{w|friction}}. Then the complicated effects of air resistance and surface frictions can be ignored, and the more basic principles of momentum and energy can be explored. In more advanced physics, it is often easier or necessary to ignore friction if the process being studied is very complicated. So it could be said that "physics professors like working in a frictionless vacuum".

In the comic, [[Black Hat]] and [[Danish]] have interpreted that statement to mean that physics professors like doing their work while they are in a frictionless vacuum, instead of liking to work with problems which are set in a frictionless vacuum. Apparently, they have drugged a physics professor and put him in a glass dome (with his laptop so he can work) which they can evacuate and make frictionless. The professor wakes up confused from the drugs, and as the air is pumped out to make a vacuum, his words fade to silence because sound waves requires a substance such as air to travel through. As he starts to panic, he tries to run, presumably for the door we see in the last panels. However, without friction on the floor, he cannot exert any force to move forward, and his feet skate uselessly on the ground until he loses balance and falls. At this point he is probably suffering from {{w|asphyxiation}}. Black Hat and Danish are observing from outside the dome, and decide that physics professors have lied about liking to work in frictionless vacuums.

The title text refers to another common idealization, of an infinite {{w|plane}} of uniform {{w|density}}. An infinite plane extends forever in two dimensions, which makes calculations easier because surface-related properties are identical everywhere. "Uniform density" could refer to the mass density of the plane, or more likely an {{w|electric charge}} density, which makes a common problem in basic {{w|electromagnetism}} involving calculating the {{w|electric field}}. The "other two physicists" that Black Hat and Danish are experimenting on are lost on the infinite plane, since there are no edges or landmarks anywhere to give them direction.

It should be noted that, although a vacuum can be approximated using a {{w|vacuum pump}}, {{w|frictionless plane|frictionless surfaces}} and infinite planes are only imaginary constructs and do not exist in our universe, to our knowledge.

==Transcript==
:[Darkness.]

:[Cueball is standing next to a laptop, looking groggy.]
:Cueball: Ugh...
:Cueball: What happened?

:Cueball: Where am I?
:''FWOOOOOOSH''
:Cueball: Help! Someone help me—
:[Cueball's speech fades out into nothing.]

:[Cueball holds his hands to his mouth.]

:[Cueball looks shocked.]

:[Cueball tries to run, but has no traction against the ground.]

:[Cueball falls over.]

:[Cueball lies prone.]

:[Black Hat and Danish are watching this scene from outside the room. He is holding a clipboard.]

:Black Hat: Huh. Looks like physics professors don't like working in frictionless vacuums after all.
:Danish: They're such liars.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Danish]]
[[Category:Physics]]

Talk:562: Parking

2013-11-05T18:16:07Z

173.245.54.11: Created page with "Still waiting (read: hoping) to see a story about this in real life. Complete with the cheerful-but-circumspect bystanders. ~~~~"

Still waiting (read: hoping) to see a story about this in real life. Complete with the cheerful-but-circumspect bystanders. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.11|173.245.54.11]] 18:16, 5 November 2013 (UTC)