explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:1490: Atoms

2015-02-24T02:20:04Z

199.27.128.186:

"My dad FORM the dog"? Typo in the actual comic or just the wiki?
[[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.240|199.27.128.240]] 05:47, 23 February 2015 (UTC)Anonymous
: The actual comment, the wiki just grabs what the website has listed.--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.24|108.162.216.24]] 05:56, 23 February 2015 (UTC)
:: Generally in cases like this, it's customary to add ''[sic]'' to indicate any typoes ''[sic]'' or grammarization ''[sic]'' mistakes in the original techs. ''[sic]''. [[User:KieferSkunk|KieferSkunk]] ([[User talk:KieferSkunk|talk]]) 19:55, 23 February 2015 (UTC) ''[sic]''
plutonium = radiation exposure, or pacemaker?
: Radiation exposure wouldn't give you plutonium, maybe the byproducts of its fission. I'm thinking that, whatever it is, it mutated Beret Guy in the womb, hence why he has this strange superpower.--[[User:Druid816|Druid816]] ([[User talk:Druid816|talk]]) 06:52, 23 February 2015 (UTC)
: Referencing Pink Floyd's 1970 album 'Atom Heart Mother' I think.--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.225.122|108.162.225.122]] 07:25, 23 February 2015 (UTC)
this guy sees by which elements are contained, not by which visible light?
--[[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.172|199.27.128.172]] 06:14, 23 February 2015 (UTC)

Are the elements actually representing their atomic symbols? Be, O, S, Z? Not sure what the metal-in-the-face comment is about.

--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.250.156|108.162.250.156]] 07:47, 23 February 2015 (UTC)

: A deliberate BeOS reference? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.4|141.101.99.4]] 14:12, 23 February 2015 (UTC)

: Metal in the face might be a comment on braces, and how uncomfortable people are about having noticable ones. --
[[Special:Contributions/141.101.104.41|141.101.104.41]] 08:37, 23 February 2015 (UTC)
::Are there braces that aren't very noticeable? I can see adults being a little uncomfortable, but they're ocmmon enough on kids that kids aren't going to be uncomfortable with them. {{unsigned ip|108.162.215.98}}
: (Dental) fillings are explicitly mentioned as a possible source of metal. --[[Special:Contributions/188.114.102.75|188.114.102.75]] 09:26, 23 February 2015 (UTC)
Perhaps the plutonium is coming from his mother smoking? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.102|141.101.99.102]] 08:51, 23 February 2015 (UTC)

Possibly a reference to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karen_Silkwood Silkwood]?
[[User:DaveHowe|DaveHowe]] ([[User talk:DaveHowe|talk]]) 20:36, 23 February 2015 (UTC)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unethical_human_experimentation_in_the_United_States#Plutonium_experiments [[User:Andries|Andries]] ([[User talk:Andries|talk]]) 09:02, 23 February 2015 (UTC)

I read it as both his mother and him beeing a robot or cyborg, which she never told him. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.75.77|141.101.75.77]] 09:30, 23 February 2015 (UTC)

: Yes, I rather thought it might be a Terminator 2 reference (based on the scene in which the T-1000 replaces John Connor's mother.) [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.4|141.101.99.4]] 14:12, 23 February 2015 (UTC)

:: The first thing I thought was Terminator, but in looking at their wiki there's no plutonium reference for their fuel cells, as far as I can tell (http://terminator.wikia.com/wiki/Fuel_cell). {{unsigned ip|108.162.215.98}}

: I also assumed it was a reference to some kind of nuclear powered cyborg. Being partially composed of electronic parts could also account for his unusually high levels of Zinc and could explain why he sees people as a list of their constituent particles. {{unsigned ip|173.245.55.29}}

-- did the radiation give him those superpowers? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.222.204|108.162.222.204]] 11:05, 23 February 2015 (UTC)

He can't distinguish Dad and Dog, so he wasn't a genious back then. So what if the Plutonium wasn't a super complex mysterium, just one of the most important things for an infant, her breasts (in this case maby big ons).
[[Special:Contributions/141.101.92.108|141.101.92.108]] 11:44, 23 February 2015 (UTC) Pietro

I agree with 141.101.80.53. Beret Guy is answering Megan's question about what is wrong with him, not being arrogant. Arrogant would be out of character for Beret Guy, but giving an unusual answer to a rhetorical question would be true to character. [[User:Mwburden|mwburden]] ([[User talk:Mwburden|talk]]) 12:42, 23 February 2015 (UTC)

Perhaps too oddball a theory, but maybe his mom was actually a spacecraft powered by plutonium (e.g. [[Wikipedia:Galileo (spacecraft)#Electrical_power | Galileo(spacecraft)]]), making his father a planet and the dog a moon.
[[Special:Contributions/173.245.56.182|173.245.56.182]] 12:43, 23 February 2015 (UTC)
:Wouldn't the dog need to be a dwarf planet? :) [[Special:Contributions/108.162.250.156|108.162.250.156]] 12:54, 23 February 2015 (UTC)
:What would that make him? [[User:Mikemk|Mikemk]] ([[User talk:Mikemk|talk]]) 21:48, 23 February 2015 (UTC)

When I read the alt text the first time around, I read it as platinum and figured Randall meant an IUD... perhaps that was a typo on his part as well (much like the "form" typo mentioned above)? Can't figured out another reasonable plutonium explanation. --[[User:Canned Soul|Canned Soul]] ([[User talk:Canned Soul|talk]]) 14:28, 23 February 2015 (UTC)
: If you Google "plutonium in IUDs" you get some interesting results. Perhaps early copper IUDs contained a small amount of incidental plutonium?[[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.191|108.162.216.191]] 19:26, 23 February 2015 (UTC)

I like the plutonium experiments reverence, but are strongly against the suggestion in the explanation that Pu is not found in nature: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plutonium#Occurrence Do NOT diss Oklo! Oklo is badass! [[User:Tier666|Tier666]] ([[User talk:Tier666|talk]]) 15:23, 23 February 2015 (UTC)

Putting in my own two bits, my first thought reading the title text was that she had a pacemaker. The fact that there were plutoniu pacemakers and the fact he mentioned that they were "in her middle" make me think "pacemaker". But I digress. As far as the "too much zinc", ??? [[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.186|199.27.128.186]] 02:20, 24 February 2015 (UTC)

Not sure if it's an inspiration, but this is an example of people not knowing what common human experiences they are missing (see: http://slatestarcodex.com/2014/03/17/what-universal-human-experiences-are-you-missing-without-realizing-it/). Also, "or she was the victim of unethical medical experimentation. Thus the probable reason for his abnormality." is ridiculous - no amount of medical experimentation will cause this. The probable reason for his abnormality is magic. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.241.17|108.162.241.17]] 15:35, 23 February 2015 (UTC)
:Agree: I removed "Thus the probable reason for his abnormality." {{unsigned ip|141.101.98.217}}

I believe that the "Too Much Zinc?" - is an answer to what might be wrong with him, not a retort to Megan's tone. In fact, zinc is linked to eyesight, see for instance https://www.nei.nih.gov/news/pressreleases/101201 and other sources, and this "zinc overdose" might be believed by white beret guy to relate to his "super-human" eyesight? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.80.53|141.101.80.53]]

The link to the UPPU club (You Pee Pu) appears to be broken. EDIT: fixed now, thanks whoever fixed it. {{unsigned ip|108.162.249.181}}

Did anyone else notice that this is the second comic in a row about elementary particles? I suspect a series coming up. [[User:Mikemk|Mikemk]] ([[User talk:Mikemk|talk]]) 21:48, 23 February 2015 (UTC)

Talk:1370: President

2014-05-22T03:48:01Z

199.27.128.186:

I believe Curly is Buns from Old Timers, the girl who was born on the web. [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/1058 the-talk]
[[Special:Contributions/173.245.56.89|173.245.56.89]] 12:28, 19 May 2014 (UTC)
:One is "buns" in the transcript and the other is "Curly"... interesting... --[[User:Jeff|Jeff]] ([[User talk:Jeff|talk]]) 16:19, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

The main joke in my oppinion is that the child correctly phrases the fact that every generation faces the "problem" that the next generation suddenly are adults too and runs the world. It is very embarrassing for pony tail. This is not discussed yet in the explain. [[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 17:17, 19 May 2014 (UTC)^

Perhaps [[137: Dreams]] is related to this one? --[[User:Alu42|Alu42]] ([[User talk:Alu42|talk]]) 17:50, 19 May 2014 (UTC)

I think the title text is overly optimistic. It's not that we're *all* going to be pouring over the rambling blog posts of a teenager: It's that the news media will. And if they have an axe to grind they will create meaning that suits their agenda where there is none.
:Better rambling blogs than Snapchats, methinks. [[Special:Contributions/103.22.201.225|103.22.201.225]] 04:34, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

The first wave of the internet generation will still be at a disadvantage. As early adopters, they will be competing with late adopters who won't have a record of their youthful indiscretions. This will make the internet generation appear more irresponsible by comparison, and likely result in them having worse chances to get positions of power, like the presidency. --[[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.66|199.27.128.66]] 22:37, 20 May 2014 (UTC)
:They will be (presumably) at least 40 when they seek higher political office (For example, ''President of the Incorporated Territory of the Former United States and Junior Representative to the People's Congress of Greater China''). Half the electorate will be even younger than them and will have had similar youthful indiscretions, so they won't really care. -- [[Special:Contributions/103.22.201.225|103.22.201.225]] 06:37, 21 May 2014 (UTC)
::Not quite, as the percentage of younger voters who actively participate in politics (specifically through voting) is significantly less than those of older age groups, who also tend to be more partisan in their ideology. Therefore, one can expect that the older portion of the political world wouldn't make any kind of warm welcome to candidates from the first wave of the internet generation. [[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.186|199.27.128.186]] 03:48, 22 May 2014 (UTC)

Explaining something to children (or vice versa like here) is a common feature in the comic. Recently is was [[1364: Like I'm Five]] where there is no actual children in the comic and also this year we had [[1352: Cosmologist on a Tire Swing]]. I was thinking if there was need for a Category: Children? Any thoughts? --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 12:27, 21 May 2014 (UTC)

Talk:1364: Like I'm Five

2014-05-06T04:39:49Z

199.27.128.186:

I bet this comic was at least partly inspired by Randall's writing for this week's what-if, in which he's answering a question posed by a 4 1/2 year old, and does indeed seem to be attempting to explain to someone of that age.[[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.186|199.27.128.186]] 04:39, 6 May 2014 (UTC)

Almost certainly a reference to [http://www.locusmag.com/Perspectives/2014/05/cory-doctorow-how-to-talk-to-your-children-about-mass-surveillance/ this]. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.44|108.162.219.44]] 05:58, 5 May 2014 (UTC)

I actually do something like this, though I never heard of the Reddit thing or the above page. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.218|108.162.237.218]] 06:46, 5 May 2014 (UTC)

The alt text leads into me imagining them both "being" 5 and start arguing in a very childish way. I think that's a part of the alt joke.
[[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.39|108.162.219.39]] 08:59, 5 May 2014 (UTC)

I read it as a pun on "parens". As in the equations being so complicated it's hard to tell which parentheses belong together. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.88.211|141.101.88.211]] 12:04, 5 May 2014 (UTC)
:But those parentheses are only in your mind. The thesis could very well be about Psychology or Latin. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.50.84|173.245.50.84]] 14:24, 5 May 2014 (UTC)

I did remove this statement: "possibly originating from an [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1171346/quotes?item=qt0381329 episode of Psych])". Maybe someone can give a better prove; the explain still needs some enhancements. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 19:31, 5 May 2014 (UTC)

Does this remind anyone else of [[547]]? Except that xkcd argued the opposite (that simplified explanations are beneficial). I'd assume that this means there is a happy middle ground between offering simple, accessible explanations and dumbing things down to the level needed for a 5 year old to understand. [[User:S|S]] ([[User talk:S|talk]]) 23:02, 5 May 2014 (UTC)

149: Sandwich

2014-03-18T04:40:42Z

199.27.128.186: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 149
| date = August 28, 2006
| title = Sandwich
| image = sandwich.png
| titletext = Proper User Policy apparently means Simon Says.
}}

==Explanation==
On a {{w|UNIX}} computer system, users can be assigned to all kinds of rights, for example rights to access to certain directories and files to execute certain commands. The ''{{w|sudo}}'' command overrides these policies by executing the command typed behind it as if the user were an administrator — the Super User, who can access much more of the system than a normal user.

[[Cueball]] is demanding a sandwich from a friend. Not being properly asked, the friend denies the request. Cueball then (ab)uses the sudo command on the friend, who then has no choice but to go and make the sandwich, because Cueball has all the rights.

On a real UNIX machine, to prohibit abuse of the command, the user must be in the ''sudoers'' group, and the user first must type their password before the command will be executed.

{{w|Simon Says}} is a children's game in which a leader gives various commands which must be followed if and only if ([[1033: Formal Logic|iff]]) the leader prefixes the command with “Simon says”. And though UNIX’s user rights management system, which one could refer to as proper user policy, is complex and powerful, people’s use of it often degenerates into merely prepending “sudo” to a failed command so that it will work. For example, sometimes a command to delete a file “rm -f /path/to/some-system-file” will fail because the user does not have enough permissions, but the user knows they really want to delete the file, so they simply repeat the command with “sudo”: “sudo rm -f /path/to/some-system-file”.

The title text compares the way the computer will run some commands if they are preceded with “sudo” to the way Simon Says players are supposed to follow orders if they are preceded with “Simon says”.

Alternatively, the title text might merely be referring to the similarity between Cueball ordering his friend around with “sudo” to the Simon Says game leader ordering other players around. Wikipedia suggests the “Simon” in the name of the game may be the powerful lord Simon de Montfort, or a corruption of Cicero, both of whom were influential politicians of their day.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is sitting on a couch, talking to a friend.]
:Cueball: Make me a sandwich.
:Friend: What? Make it yourself.
:Cueball: Sudo make me a sandwich.
:Friend: Okay.

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

Talk:1318: Actually

2014-01-17T20:28:01Z

199.27.128.186: The Queen is King

I started reading the comic from the topmost line "Actually, measurements suggest it's flat." It seemed that he was talking about the planet, but it's also a response to the curved-space line from before. Upon further reading, I can't tell if the discussion is about a planet or a universe, and it looks like you can go around the circle twice and assume both. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.50.72|173.245.50.72]] 05:13, 17 January 2014 (UTC)

: It is about the shape of the Earth. The Earth exists in a curved universe. The alt text is referring to the fact that by being more and more specific you can always get the last word in but it may alienate you from your peers. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.246.117|108.162.246.117]] 05:14, 17 January 2014 (UTC)

The transcript needs some way to show that Cueball is talking to the second Hairy in the end. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.71|108.162.216.71]] 08:25, 17 January 2014 (UTC)

: "show that Cueball is talking to the second Hairy in the end" -> Do you consider it done ? [[User:MGitsfullofsheep|MGitsfullofsheep]] ([[User talk:MGitsfullofsheep|talk]]) 08:50, 17 January 2014 (UTC)

Fixed factual error about sum of angles of a triangle in a closed geometry. An example of closed geometry is spherical geometry, where sum of angles of a triangle is π < A + B + C<3π http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spherical_trigonometry . Previous text wrongly stated that A+B+C would be smaller than π in closed geometry and greater in open geometry. [[User:MGitsfullofsheep|MGitsfullofsheep]] ([[User talk:MGitsfullofsheep|talk]]) 08:50, 17 January 2014 (UTC)

About the oblate configuration: why attribute it to centripetal force? Because centrifugal force is an "apparent" force? Well centripetal force from gravitational pull is actually balancing the centrifugal force caused by rotation of the earth. The whole "centrifugal force does not exist" thing is a misconception. It's an inertial force and writing the equilibrium equations for an object in the rotating reference frame (the one we experience everyday) at latitude phi you see: gravitational pull toward the center of the planet + centrifugal force away from the axis of rotation= mass*g(phi). This g(phi) is not the same in every spot of the earth, it changes in value and direction (does not always point exactly to the center of the earth) with latitude.{{unsigned ip|108.162.229.65}}
: I second this. The centripetal force would actually be the gravity of earth. Attributing the oblate shape of earth to this is just plain wrong, since it pulls inwards, not outwards. Actually all forces could be called "apparent" forces, since they're really just constructs to help you calculate the acceleration of a body. There's always a (local) reference frame where a particular force doesn't "exist". {{unsigned ip|173.245.53.131}}
:: Sure, there is always such frame, but gravitation is real force anyway because we can measure the higgs field by detecting higgs bosons. At least I think we can. Failing that, electromagnetic forces are real because we can measure electromagnetic field by detecting photons, this I'm sure of :-). -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 10:23, 17 January 2014 (UTC)
:::Come now. Do you really expect me to do coordinate substitution in my head while strapped to a centrifuge? [[User:Diszy|Diszy]] ([[User talk:Diszy|talk]]) 15:44, 17 January 2014 (UTC)
::::No, Mister Diszy, I expect you to die. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.117|108.162.238.117]] 20:14, 17 January 2014 (UTC)

I don't see why the explanation assumes the top claim is at the start and end. I think that part of the explanation is a stretch and that the "flat" claim is not meant to be given twice. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.246.117|108.162.246.117]] 17:38, 17 January 2014 (UTC)
:It's a loop. Technically there is no "start". Each line is a direct "more specific" response to the previous remark. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.117|108.162.238.117]] 20:17, 17 January 2014 (UTC)

I always suspected Freddie Mercury was a closet planetoligist. {{unsigned ip|127.0.0.1|20:26, 17 January 2014 (UTC)}}

Talk:1316: Inexplicable

2014-01-14T20:02:14Z

199.27.128.186: My computer was a nudist and I liked it.

[http://xkcd.com/725/ Literally] haunted? [[Special:Contributions/173.245.53.152|173.245.53.152]] 08:22, 13 January 2014 (UTC)

I was wondering too if Randall was also taking a sideways swipe at the way many people today misuse the term "literally".[[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.30|108.162.216.30]] 22:42, 13 January 2014 (UTC)

I would say he trying to say that some errors that computers have are impossible to fathom. I've baffled our IT people on many an occasion and the solution is usual 'rebuild' which is the computer equivalent of an exorcism.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.231.228|108.162.231.228]] 10:18, 13 January 2014 (UTC)
:Definitely this. It is also much harder to figure out what the problem is with a computer when you weren't the one who has spent all their time using the computer. It is why I can't understand how IT people do their jobs. [[User:Daleb|Daleb]] ([[User talk:Daleb|talk]]) 13:14, 13 January 2014 (UTC)

Surprised nobody mentioned [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghost_in_the_machine Ghost in the machine] yet... --[[User:Koveras|Koveras]] ([[User talk:Koveras|talk]]) 10:28, 13 January 2014 (UTC)

I find the current explanation entertaining but... raises questions.

Is "This comic is inexplicable and represents a self-referencing joke about explainxkcd.com." serious?
:I think it's not and I deleted the sentence. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.50.84|173.245.50.84]] 14:39, 13 January 2014 (UTC)
:: If the comic is not a self-referencing joke about explainxkcd.com, then what conceivable combination of words WOULD constitute such a joke? (note: I am not the one who first made the (now deleted) point, but I agree with it.) [[Special:Contributions/108.162.231.214|108.162.231.214]] 08:46, 14 January 2014 (UTC)

"While it might [be] a reasonable conclusion [i.e. that it is 'haunted'] for a human, demons can't possess a computer." - this reads like "demons exist, but are incapable of possessing computer equipment", rather than "demons cannot possess a computer, because they don't even exist", which would be my ''preference'' (under the standard rules of not being able to ''prove'' the non-existence of the supernatral... and, believe me, I've had my fair share of totally baffling computer problems, in my time, and often anthropomorphise equipment, somewhat, ''at least'' to explain it to non-tech users... but then end up adopting the same attitude myself, of course).

"The title text suggests that Megan insists that Cueball resume possession of his laptop, as she is unsettled by the ghost; Cueball simply refuses, seeing an opportunity to make his problem hers." - I see that as more akin to the "cursed gem" type of story. One simply cannot palm the gem off on somebody else, but it must have a legitimately willing recipient (including a thief stealing it, often) in order for the curse itself to transfer itself. Now that the 'status' of the laptop is known he's not going to accept it back and take the 'curse of errors' back upon himself. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.223|141.101.99.223]] 14:08, 13 January 2014 (UTC)

:I just removed the sentence "While it might [be] a reasonable conclusion for a human, demons can't possess a computer." In the real world ghosts (the comic does not mention demons) don't exist and can't possess either humans or computers; in a fictional world, they might be able to do either or both (a la King's "Trucks"). -- [[Special:Contributions/108.162.212.217|108.162.212.217]] 15:24, 13 January 2014 (UTC)

::Are you completely sure of that? How do you look at news like [http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/catholic-church-trains-more-priests-to-perform-exorcisms-9046578.html|Catholic Church trains more priests to perform Exorcism]? -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 11:12, 14 January 2014 (UTC)

I think the joke is just that normally the smartass that knows more about computers than you is able to easilly fix it, but not in this case. [[User:Halfhat|Halfhat]] ([[User talk:Halfhat|talk]]) 16:13, 13 January 2014 (UTC)

So am I the only one who thinks that the caption(or whatever the hover over text is called) refers to Cueball trying to return the laptop to a retail store. I mean I can see a store like Best Buy refusing to take back a laptop because a customer insists that there is a ghost in it. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.83|108.162.216.83]] 18:25, 13 January 2014 (UTC)

:I agree. but until more people notice it, lets leave it. [[User:Imanton1|Imanton1]] ([[User talk:Imanton1|talk]]) 03:56, 14 January 2014 (UTC)

:I thought this too, except I thought it was more a comment on people's attachment to technology, "Demon-posessed or not, it's got all my kitten videos on it!".--[[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.230|141.101.98.230]] 08:28, 14 January 2014 (UTC)

Overthinking, maybe, but if the computer is haunted (read: possessed), then a valid solution IS to return (read: unpossess? dispossess?) it. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.57|108.162.216.57]] 23:36, 13 January 2014 (UTC)

My wife says, "it's a Turing test!"
[[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.199|108.162.219.199]] 02:24, 14 January 2014 (UTC)

Am I the only who have thought of a corrupted random access memory on this laptop? Last time when I had a RAM failure on one of my machines, for a non technical person it may have appeared haunted: e.g. not executing just specific applications, writing nonsensical error messages, crashing applications when a specific word was being used...you name it. Running memcheck revealed later that one RAM module had lots of corrupted bytes but the problem only appeared when one RAM module was getting hot. So as long as the machine was idling if behaved just fine. So no ghost for me, I guess. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.231.217|108.162.231.217]] 09:19, 14 January 2014 (UTC)

People, there is no implication that this is a new laptop. It cannot be returned to the store, ok? Megan does not want it in her possession, so she wants to give it back to Cueball but he will not accept it. The only reason she says "take it back" is because it this a straight line that allows Cueball to reply "No". [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.223|108.162.219.223]] 18:33, 14 January 2014 (UTC)

I once had a computer that was a nudist. After a couple of months it allowed me to get it dressed. I must say it taught me to be more accepting of the needs of electronic devices then and now. [[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.186|199.27.128.186]] 20:02, 14 January 2014 (UTC)

1311: 2014

2014-01-03T08:08:10Z

199.27.128.186:

{{comic
| number = 1311
| date = January 1, 2014
| title = 2014
| image = 2014.png
| titletext = Some future reader, who may see the term, without knowing the history of it, may imagine that it had reference to some antiquated bridge of the immortal Poet, thrown across the silver Avon, to facilitate his escape after some marauding excursion in a neighbouring park; and in some Gentleman's Magazine of the next century, it is not impossible, but that future antiquaries may occupy page after page in discussing so interesting a matter. We think it right, therefore, to put it on record in the Oriental Herald that the 'Shakesperian Rope Bridges' are of much less classic origin; that Mr Colin Shakespear, who, besides his dignity as Postmaster, now signs himself 'Superintendent General of Shakesperian Rope Bridges', is a person of much less genius than the Bard of Avon. --The Oriental Herald, 1825
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Needs information on how much has come true, also information in general. This is also the longest title text?|1311: 2014}}
The comic includes many predictions from the 1800s and early 1900s. Many of them are for the twenty-first century in general, and only three specifically mention 2014 (two of them as in "a century from now").

*It's desirable '''every thing printed should be preserved,''' for we '''cannot now tell how useful it may become''' two centuries hence.
:A good idea. Now, with Google Books, this can be done in an easier manner.

*I predict that a century hence the '''Canadian people''' will be '''the noblest specimens of humanity on the face of the earth''' (1863)
:Notably, there is a common joke nowadays that Canadians are always calm, mellow, polite peoples, even when insulting others.
The rest of the quote goes as follows: all that was good in the Celt, the Saxon, the Gaul and other races, combining to form neither English, Irish, nor Welsh, but Canadians, who would take their place among the churches of Christendom and the nations of the earth.
:This religious prediction probably wasn't believed even by its author. It's only a harangue.

*In the twenty-first century '''mankind will subsist entirely upon jellies.'''
:Concentrates, which are gelatine like, form a large part of our food sources.
:Absurd if taken literally, but if he's talking about processed foods in general then he's not too far from the mark.

*The twenty-first century baby is destined to be rocked and cradled by electricity, warmed and coddled by electricity, perhaps fathered and mothered by electricity. '''Probably the only thing he will be left to do unaided will be to make love.'''
:Probably an exaggeration even in its time
:But still valid to some degree, as many electronics are used in rearing children today. From incubators, warming blankets, walkie-talkies, etc to the TV.
:On the same coin, however, these are merely tools of assistance; the process of child-''rearing'' is still a human task by and large.

*To-day, in the city of New York, sixty-six different tongues are spoken. '''A century hence, there will probably be only one.''' (1907)
:False, but getting pretty close. The predominant language is of course English, and possibly one or two other prominent languages.

*I often think '''what interesting history we are making for the student of the twenty-first century.''' (William Carey Jones, 1908)
:''Pending''
:It's just meta.

*China may be a '''great shoe market''' a decade or a century from now (1914)
:While it is true in 2013/14, the context behind it was false, as the premise originally was that the business in the western world could export shoes to China, when currently, most of the shoes are actually manufactured in China itself and exported to western world.
Ironically though, the profits from the shoe selling go to overseas companies.

*'''We cannot settle the problem,''' and I venture the prophecy that perhaps '''a century from now this same question may be brought before some future society and discussed very much as it is tonight.''' (1914, on abortion)
:True - it is still heavily debated.

*By the twenty-first century I believe '''we shall all be telepaths.'''
:Absurd if taken literally... However if we disregard the actual meaning of ''telepath'' there is another point of view:
:Came true, in a way. Mobile phones allow near-instant communication over voice, text or even the internet. While we do not technically communicate through thought directly, in some way this technology can be considered telepathy.

More context for this prediction:
:‘And it’s my firm belief,’ said Gumbril Senior, adding notes to his epic, ‘that they [the birds] make use of some sort of telepathy, some kind of direct mind-to-mind communication between themselves. You can’t watch them without coming to that conclusion.’
:‘A charming conclusion,’ said Mrs Viveash.
:‘It’s a faculty,’ Gumbril Senior went on, ‘we all possess, I believe. All we animals.’ [...] ‘Why don’t we use it more? You may well ask. For the simple reason, my dear young lady, that half our existence is spent dealing with things that have no mind – things with which it is impossible to hold telepathetic communication. Hence the development of the five senses. I have eyes that preserve me from running into the lamppost, ears that warn me I’m in the neighbourhood of Niagara. And having made these instruments very efficient, I use them in holding converse with other beings having a mind. I let my telepathetic faculty lie idle, preferring to employ an elaborate and cumbrous arrangement of symbols in order to make my thought known to you through your senses. In certain individuals, however, the faculty is naturally so well-developed – like the musical, or the mathematical, or the chess-playing faculties in other people – that they cannot help entering into direct communication with other minds

*The physician of the twenty-first century… may even criticize the language of the times, and may find that '''some of our words have become as offensive to him as the term “lunatic” has become offensive to us.'''
:Just look at the word "gay"; in his time it's completely harmless, even a positive word, while today it's a moderate slur.
:And indeed, the word "lunatic" isn't considered offensive anymore, but merely derogatory.

*Historians of the twenty-first century will look back with well-placed scorn on the '''shallow-minded days''' of the early twentieth century '''when football games and petting parties were considered the most important elements of a college education.'''
:While media still encourages such images, colleges start to be much more career oriented. Also, due to incidents involving sex-themed frosh weeks, there was actually a greater emphasis to condemn sexual activities among college students

*'''In the year A.D. 2014''' journalists will be writing on the centenary of the great war - '''that is, if there has not been a greater war.'''
:2014 marks 100 years since the beginning of {{w|World War I}} (popularly called "The Great War" at the time), thus journalists will definitely write articles of this war. More than 9 million combatants were killed. However, unfortunately for the quote's author and for humanity in general, there was a greater war, {{w|World War II}}, which killed around 25 million soldiers and an even greater number of civilians.

The title text refers to a certain British officer, Mr. Colin Shakespeare, who experimented and promoted the use of rope suspension bridges in India, apparently for the ease of colonization and military operations.[http://books.google.com/books?id=aZRPAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA367] The reference to "River Avon" is about the river of Avon in Warwickshire, Stratford upon Avon being the town where Shakespeare (the playwright) was born and where he lived until his early twenties.{{w|River Avon (Warwickshire)}}

==Transcript==
:'''Notes from the past'''
:It's desirable '''every thing printed should be preserved,''' for we '''cannot now tell how useful it may become''' two centuries hence.
::Christopher Baldwin
:::1834

:I predict that a century hence the '''Canadian people''' will be '''the noblest specimens of humanity on the face of the earth'''
::Rev. John Bredin
:::1863

:In the twenty-first century '''mankind will subsist entirely upon jellies.'''
::''The Booklover''
:::1903

:The twenty-first century baby is destined to be rocked and cradled by electricity, warmed and coddled by electricity, perhaps fathered and mothered by electricity. '''Probably the only thing he will be left to do unaided will be to make love.'''
::Mrs. John Lane, ''The fortnightly''
:::1905

:To-day, in the city of New York, sixty-six different tongues are spoken. '''A century hence, there will probably be only one.'''
::''The American Historical Magazine''
:::1907

:I often think '''what interesting history we are making for the student of the twenty-first century.'''
::Willian Carey Jones
:::1908

:China may be a '''great shoe market''' a decade or a century from now.
::''Boot and Shoe Recorder''
:::1914

:'''We cannot settle the problem,''' and I venture the prophecy that perhaps '''a century from now this same question may be brought before some future society and discussed very much as it is tonight.'''
::Dr. Barton C. Hirst on the subject of '''abortion'''
:::1914

:By the twenty-first century I believe '''we shall all be telepaths.'''
::Gumbriel, character in ''Antic Hay''
:::1923

:The physician of the twenty-first century… may even criticize the language of the times, and may find that '''some of our words have become as offensive to him as the term “lunatic” has become offensive to us.'''
::Dr. C. Macae Campbell
:::1924

:Historians of the twenty-first century will look back with well-placed scorn on the '''shallow-minded days''' of the early twentieth century '''when football games and petting parties were considered the most important elements of a college education.'''
::Mary Eileen Ahern, ''Library Bureau''
:::1926

:'''In the year A.D. 2014''' journalists will be writing on the centenary of the great war - '''that is, if there has not been a greater war.'''
::F.J.M, ''The Journalist''
:::1934

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

1311: 2014

2014-01-03T08:06:52Z

199.27.128.186:

{{comic
| number = 1311
| date = January 1, 2014
| title = 2014
| image = 2014.png
| titletext = Some future reader, who may see the term, without knowing the history of it, may imagine that it had reference to some antiquated bridge of the immortal Poet, thrown across the silver Avon, to facilitate his escape after some marauding excursion in a neighbouring park; and in some Gentleman's Magazine of the next century, it is not impossible, but that future antiquaries may occupy page after page in discussing so interesting a matter. We think it right, therefore, to put it on record in the Oriental Herald that the 'Shakesperian Rope Bridges' are of much less classic origin; that Mr Colin Shakespear, who, besides his dignity as Postmaster, now signs himself 'Superintendent General of Shakesperian Rope Bridges', is a person of much less genius than the Bard of Avon. --The Oriental Herald, 1825
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Needs information on how much has come true, also information in general. This is also the longest title text?|1311: 2014}}
The comic includes many predictions from the 1800s and early 1900s. Many of them are for the twenty-first century in general, and only three specifically mention 2014 (two of them as in "a century from now").

*It's desirable '''every thing printed should be preserved,''' for we '''cannot now tell how useful it may become''' two centuries hence.
:A good idea. Now, with Google Books, this can be done in an easier manner.

*I predict that a century hence the '''Canadian people''' will be '''the noblest specimens of humanity on the face of the earth''' (1863)
:Notably, there is a common joke nowadays that Canadians are always calm, mellow, polite peoples, even when insulting others.
The rest of the quote goes as follows: all that was good in the Celt, the Saxon, the Gaul and other races, combining to form neither English, Irish, nor Welsh, but Canadians, who would take their place among the churches of Christendom and the nations of the earth.
:This religious prediction probably wasn't believed even by its author. It's only a harangue.

*In the twenty-first century '''mankind will subsist entirely upon jellies.'''
:Concentrates, which are gelatine like, form a large part of our food sources.
:Absurd

*The twenty-first century baby is destined to be rocked and cradled by electricity, warmed and coddled by electricity, perhaps fathered and mothered by electricity. '''Probably the only thing he will be left to do unaided will be to make love.'''
:Probably an exaggeration even in its time
:But still valid to some degree, as many electronics are used in rearing children today. From incubators, warming blankets, walkie-talkies, etc to the TV.
:On the same coin, however, these are merely tools of assistance; the process of child-''rearing'' is still a human task by and large.

*To-day, in the city of New York, sixty-six different tongues are spoken. '''A century hence, there will probably be only one.''' (1907)
:False, but getting pretty close. The predominant language is of course English, and possibly one or two other prominent languages.

*I often think '''what interesting history we are making for the student of the twenty-first century.''' (William Carey Jones, 1908)
:''Pending''
:It's just meta.

*China may be a '''great shoe market''' a decade or a century from now (1914)
:While it is true in 2013/14, the context behind it was false, as the premise originally was that the business in the western world could export shoes to China, when currently, most of the shoes are actually manufactured in China itself and exported to western world.
Ironically though, the profits from the shoe selling go to overseas companies.

*'''We cannot settle the problem,''' and I venture the prophecy that perhaps '''a century from now this same question may be brought before some future society and discussed very much as it is tonight.''' (1914, on abortion)
:True - it is still heavily debated.

*By the twenty-first century I believe '''we shall all be telepaths.'''
:Absurd if taken literally... However if we disregard the actual meaning of ''telepath'' there is another point of view:
:Came true, in a way. Mobile phones allow near-instant communication over voice, text or even the internet. While we do not technically communicate through thought directly, in some way this technology can be considered telepathy.

More context for this prediction:
:‘And it’s my firm belief,’ said Gumbril Senior, adding notes to his epic, ‘that they [the birds] make use of some sort of telepathy, some kind of direct mind-to-mind communication between themselves. You can’t watch them without coming to that conclusion.’
:‘A charming conclusion,’ said Mrs Viveash.
:‘It’s a faculty,’ Gumbril Senior went on, ‘we all possess, I believe. All we animals.’ [...] ‘Why don’t we use it more? You may well ask. For the simple reason, my dear young lady, that half our existence is spent dealing with things that have no mind – things with which it is impossible to hold telepathetic communication. Hence the development of the five senses. I have eyes that preserve me from running into the lamppost, ears that warn me I’m in the neighbourhood of Niagara. And having made these instruments very efficient, I use them in holding converse with other beings having a mind. I let my telepathetic faculty lie idle, preferring to employ an elaborate and cumbrous arrangement of symbols in order to make my thought known to you through your senses. In certain individuals, however, the faculty is naturally so well-developed – like the musical, or the mathematical, or the chess-playing faculties in other people – that they cannot help entering into direct communication with other minds

*The physician of the twenty-first century… may even criticize the language of the times, and may find that '''some of our words have become as offensive to him as the term “lunatic” has become offensive to us.'''
:Just look at the word "gay"; in his time it's completely harmless, even a positive word, while today it's a moderate slur.
:And indeed, the word "lunatic" isn't considered offensive anymore, but merely derogatory.

*Historians of the twenty-first century will look back with well-placed scorn on the '''shallow-minded days''' of the early twentieth century '''when football games and petting parties were considered the most important elements of a college education.'''
:While media still encourages such images, colleges start to be much more career oriented. Also, due to incidents involving sex-themed frosh weeks, there was actually a greater emphasis to condemn sexual activities among college students

*'''In the year A.D. 2014''' journalists will be writing on the centenary of the great war - '''that is, if there has not been a greater war.'''
:2014 marks 100 years since the beginning of {{w|World War I}} (popularly called "The Great War" at the time), thus journalists will definitely write articles of this war. More than 9 million combatants were killed. However, unfortunately for the quote's author and for humanity in general, there was a greater war, {{w|World War II}}, which killed around 25 million soldiers and an even greater number of civilians.

The title text refers to a certain British officer, Mr. Colin Shakespeare, who experimented and promoted the use of rope suspension bridges in India, apparently for the ease of colonization and military operations.[http://books.google.com/books?id=aZRPAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA367] The reference to "River Avon" is about the river of Avon in Warwickshire, Stratford upon Avon being the town where Shakespeare (the playwright) was born and where he lived until his early twenties.{{w|River Avon (Warwickshire)}}

==Transcript==
:'''Notes from the past'''
:It's desirable '''every thing printed should be preserved,''' for we '''cannot now tell how useful it may become''' two centuries hence.
::Christopher Baldwin
:::1834

:I predict that a century hence the '''Canadian people''' will be '''the noblest specimens of humanity on the face of the earth'''
::Rev. John Bredin
:::1863

:In the twenty-first century '''mankind will subsist entirely upon jellies.'''
::''The Booklover''
:::1903

:The twenty-first century baby is destined to be rocked and cradled by electricity, warmed and coddled by electricity, perhaps fathered and mothered by electricity. '''Probably the only thing he will be left to do unaided will be to make love.'''
::Mrs. John Lane, ''The fortnightly''
:::1905

:To-day, in the city of New York, sixty-six different tongues are spoken. '''A century hence, there will probably be only one.'''
::''The American Historical Magazine''
:::1907

:I often think '''what interesting history we are making for the student of the twenty-first century.'''
::Willian Carey Jones
:::1908

:China may be a '''great shoe market''' a decade or a century from now.
::''Boot and Shoe Recorder''
:::1914

:'''We cannot settle the problem,''' and I venture the prophecy that perhaps '''a century from now this same question may be brought before some future society and discussed very much as it is tonight.'''
::Dr. Barton C. Hirst on the subject of '''abortion'''
:::1914

:By the twenty-first century I believe '''we shall all be telepaths.'''
::Gumbriel, character in ''Antic Hay''
:::1923

:The physician of the twenty-first century… may even criticize the language of the times, and may find that '''some of our words have become as offensive to him as the term “lunatic” has become offensive to us.'''
::Dr. C. Macae Campbell
:::1924

:Historians of the twenty-first century will look back with well-placed scorn on the '''shallow-minded days''' of the early twentieth century '''when football games and petting parties were considered the most important elements of a college education.'''
::Mary Eileen Ahern, ''Library Bureau''
:::1926

:'''In the year A.D. 2014''' journalists will be writing on the centenary of the great war - '''that is, if there has not been a greater war.'''
::F.J.M, ''The Journalist''
:::1934

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

1311: 2014

2014-01-03T08:01:31Z

199.27.128.186: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1311
| date = January 1, 2014
| title = 2014
| image = 2014.png
| titletext = Some future reader, who may see the term, without knowing the history of it, may imagine that it had reference to some antiquated bridge of the immortal Poet, thrown across the silver Avon, to facilitate his escape after some marauding excursion in a neighbouring park; and in some Gentleman's Magazine of the next century, it is not impossible, but that future antiquaries may occupy page after page in discussing so interesting a matter. We think it right, therefore, to put it on record in the Oriental Herald that the 'Shakesperian Rope Bridges' are of much less classic origin; that Mr Colin Shakespear, who, besides his dignity as Postmaster, now signs himself 'Superintendent General of Shakesperian Rope Bridges', is a person of much less genius than the Bard of Avon. --The Oriental Herald, 1825
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Needs information on how much has come true, also information in general. This is also the longest title text?|1311: 2014}}
The comic includes many predictions from the 1800s and early 1900s. Many of them are for the twenty-first century in general, and only three specifically mention 2014 (two of them as in "a century from now").

*It's desirable '''every thing printed should be preserved,''' for we '''cannot now tell how useful it may become''' two centuries hence.
:A good idea. Now, with Google Books, this can be done in an easier manner.

*I predict that a century hence the '''Canadian people''' will be '''the noblest specimens of humanity on the face of the earth''' (1863)
:Notably, there is a common joke nowadays that Canadians are always calm, mellow, polite peoples, even when insulting others.
The rest of the quote goes as follows: all that was good in the Celt, the Saxon, the Gaul and other races, combining to form neither English, Irish, nor Welsh, but Canadians, who would take their place among the churches of Christendom and the nations of the earth.
:This religious prediction probably wasn't believed even by its author. It's only a harangue.

*In the twenty-first century '''mankind will subsist entirely upon jellies.'''
:Concentrates, which are gelatine like, form a large part of our food sources.
:Absurd

*The twenty-first century baby is destined to be rocked and cradled by electricity, warmed and coddled by electricity, perhaps fathered and mothered by electricity. '''Probably the only thing he will be left to do unaided will be to make love.'''
:Probably an exaggeration even in its time
:But still valid to some degree, as many electronics are used in rearing children today. From incubators, warming blankets, walkie-talkies, etc to the TV.
:On the same coin, however, these are merely tools of assistance; the process of child-''rearing'' is still a human task by and large.

*To-day, in the city of New York, sixty-six different tongues are spoken. '''A century hence, there will probably be only one.''' (1907)
:False, but getting pretty close. The predominant language is of course English, and possibly one or two other prominent languages.

*I often think '''what interesting history we are making for the student of the twenty-first century.''' (William Carey Jones, 1908)
:''Pending''
:It's just meta.

*China may be a '''great shoe market''' a decade or a century from now (1914)
:While it is true in 2013/14, the context behind it was false, as the premise originally was that the business in the western world could export shoes to China, when currently, most of the shoes are actually manufactured in China itself and exported to western world.
Ironically though, the profits from the shoe selling go to overseas companies.

*'''We cannot settle the problem,''' and I venture the prophecy that perhaps '''a century from now this same question may be brought before some future society and discussed very much as it is tonight.''' (1914, on abortion)
:True - it is still heavily debated.

*By the twenty-first century I believe '''we shall all be telepaths.'''
:Absurd if taken literally... However if we disregard the actual meaning of ''telepath'' there is another point of view:
:Came true, in a way. Mobile phones allow near-instant communication over voice, text or even the internet. While we do not technically communicate through thought directly, in some way this technology can be considered telepathy.

More context for this prediction:
:‘And it’s my firm belief,’ said Gumbril Senior, adding notes to his epic, ‘that they [the birds] make use of some sort of telepathy, some kind of direct mind-to-mind communication between themselves. You can’t watch them without coming to that conclusion.’
:‘A charming conclusion,’ said Mrs Viveash.
:‘It’s a faculty,’ Gumbril Senior went on, ‘we all possess, I believe. All we animals.’ [...] ‘Why don’t we use it more? You may well ask. For the simple reason, my dear young lady, that half our existence is spent dealing with things that have no mind – things with which it is impossible to hold telepathetic communication. Hence the development of the five senses. I have eyes that preserve me from running into the lamppost, ears that warn me I’m in the neighbourhood of Niagara. And having made these instruments very efficient, I use them in holding converse with other beings having a mind. I let my telepathetic faculty lie idle, preferring to employ an elaborate and cumbrous arrangement of symbols in order to make my thought known to you through your senses. In certain individuals, however, the faculty is naturally so well-developed – like the musical, or the mathematical, or the chess-playing faculties in other people – that they cannot help entering into direct communication with other minds

*The physician of the twenty-first century… may even criticize the language of the times, and may find that '''some of our words have become as offensive to him as the term “lunatic” has become offensive to us.'''
:True

*Historians of the twenty-first century will look back with well-placed scorn on the '''shallow-minded days''' of the early twentieth century '''when football games and petting parties were considered the most important elements of a college education.'''
:While media still encourages such images, colleges start to be much more career oriented. Also, due to incidents involving sex-themed frosh weeks, there was actually a greater emphasis to condemn sexual activities among college students

*'''In the year A.D. 2014''' journalists will be writing on the centenary of the great war - '''that is, if there has not been a greater war.'''
:2014 marks 100 years since the beginning of {{w|World War I}} (popularly called "The Great War" at the time), thus journalists will definitely write articles of this war. More than 9 million combatants were killed. However, unfortunately for the quote's author and for humanity in general, there was a greater war, {{w|World War II}}, which killed around 25 million soldiers and an even greater number of civilians.

The title text refers to a certain British officer, Mr. Colin Shakespeare, who experimented and promoted the use of rope suspension bridges in India, apparently for the ease of colonization and military operations.[http://books.google.com/books?id=aZRPAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA367] The reference to "River Avon" is about the river of Avon in Warwickshire, Stratford upon Avon being the town where Shakespeare (the playwright) was born and where he lived until his early twenties.{{w|River Avon (Warwickshire)}}

==Transcript==
:'''Notes from the past'''
:It's desirable '''every thing printed should be preserved,''' for we '''cannot now tell how useful it may become''' two centuries hence.
::Christopher Baldwin
:::1834

:I predict that a century hence the '''Canadian people''' will be '''the noblest specimens of humanity on the face of the earth'''
::Rev. John Bredin
:::1863

:In the twenty-first century '''mankind will subsist entirely upon jellies.'''
::''The Booklover''
:::1903

:The twenty-first century baby is destined to be rocked and cradled by electricity, warmed and coddled by electricity, perhaps fathered and mothered by electricity. '''Probably the only thing he will be left to do unaided will be to make love.'''
::Mrs. John Lane, ''The fortnightly''
:::1905

:To-day, in the city of New York, sixty-six different tongues are spoken. '''A century hence, there will probably be only one.'''
::''The American Historical Magazine''
:::1907

:I often think '''what interesting history we are making for the student of the twenty-first century.'''
::Willian Carey Jones
:::1908

:China may be a '''great shoe market''' a decade or a century from now.
::''Boot and Shoe Recorder''
:::1914

:'''We cannot settle the problem,''' and I venture the prophecy that perhaps '''a century from now this same question may be brought before some future society and discussed very much as it is tonight.'''
::Dr. Barton C. Hirst on the subject of '''abortion'''
:::1914

:By the twenty-first century I believe '''we shall all be telepaths.'''
::Gumbriel, character in ''Antic Hay''
:::1923

:The physician of the twenty-first century… may even criticize the language of the times, and may find that '''some of our words have become as offensive to him as the term “lunatic” has become offensive to us.'''
::Dr. C. Macae Campbell
:::1924

:Historians of the twenty-first century will look back with well-placed scorn on the '''shallow-minded days''' of the early twentieth century '''when football games and petting parties were considered the most important elements of a college education.'''
::Mary Eileen Ahern, ''Library Bureau''
:::1926

:'''In the year A.D. 2014''' journalists will be writing on the centenary of the great war - '''that is, if there has not been a greater war.'''
::F.J.M, ''The Journalist''
:::1934

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

633: Blockbuster Mining

2014-01-02T16:13:05Z

199.27.128.186: added comment about novel vs adaptation.

{{comic
| number = 633
| date = September 7, 2009
| title = Blockbuster Mining
| image = blockbuster mining.png
| titletext = The 2007 Bridge To Terebithia trailer put me off too much to see that particular movie, but I am cautiously optimistic about Where The Wild Things Are.
}}

==Explanation==
[[Cueball]] has acquired the {{w|intellectual property}} rights to produce a movie, but is unsure of how to make it appealing to a wide audience. An off-screen character suggests hiring {{w|Michael Bay}}, a director and producer well known (and occasionally criticized) for his style of film adaptation. Cueball is unsure that the IP would be a good fit for a summer blockbuster, but is dismissed.

The following panels depict violent and gritty scenes from a spy thriller, starring an unknown and brutal female spy. In the last panel, she is revealed to be {{w|Harriet the Spy}}, the 11 year old protagonist of a bestselling children's book written by Louise Fitzhugh, as well as other spinoff books written by various other authors.

The comic references Hollywood's search for new stories to adapt to film, and how poor (not to mention {{w|Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters|violent}}) some of these adaptations can be. There is additional humor in the fact that the original novel is about school-child concerns such as friends and is not violent.

==Transcript==
:Cueball: We've acquired some new rights, but I'm not sure it's in the spirit to make it a blockbuster-
:Voice: Do it anyway. Take $100 million, hire Michael Bay.
:Cueball: But--
:Voice: ''NEXT!''

:[Panel is inverted, white on black background.]
:Harriet: They said if I were captured I should take my own life.
:Harriet: But I'd just as soon take yours.
:[Harriet is pointing two handguns at two men with machine guns.]

:''BOOM''
:[Harriet explodes off a cliff, carrying a rectangular object and a gun. In the background is a helicopter, some mountains, and the sea.]

:[Panel is inverted, white and red on black background.]
:Man: Stop! I'll talk!
:Harriet: No, I know everything, this is just for fun.
:[Harriet is holding a bloody pipe. Man is tied to a chair. There is blood pooling on the ground under the chair.]

:[Crosshairs follow a man.]
:Harriet: I'll be watching.

:[The panel is inverted colour, white on black.]
:Harriet
:the
:[in red] ''SPY''
:[A bloody spiral notebook, with blood streaks leading from it.]

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

633: Blockbuster Mining

2014-01-02T07:24:36Z

199.27.128.186:

{{comic
| number = 633
| date = September 7, 2009
| title = Blockbuster Mining
| image = blockbuster mining.png
| titletext = The 2007 Bridge To Terebithia trailer put me off too much to see that particular movie, but I am cautiously optimistic about Where The Wild Things Are.
}}

==Explanation==
[[Cueball]] has acquired the {{w|intellectual property}} rights to produce a movie, but is unsure of how to make it appealing to a wide audience. An off-screen character suggests hiring {{w|Michael Bay}}, a director and producer well known (and occasionally criticized) for his style of film adaptation. Cueball is unsure that the IP would be a good fit for a summer blockbuster, but is dismissed.

The following panels depict violent and gritty scenes from a spy thriller, starring an unknown and brutal female spy. In the last panel, she is revealed to be {{w|Harriet the Spy}}, the 11 year old protagonist of a bestselling children's book written by Louise Fitzhugh, as well as other spinoff books written by various other authors.

The comic references Hollywood's search for new stories to adapt to film, and how poor (not to mention {{w|Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters|violent}}) some of these adaptations can be.

==Transcript==
:Cueball: We've acquired some new rights, but I'm not sure it's in the spirit to make it a blockbuster-
:Voice: Do it anyway. Take $100 million, hire Michael Bay.
:Cueball: But--
:Voice: ''NEXT!''

:[Panel is inverted, white on black background.]
:Harriet: They said if I were captured I should take my own life.
:Harriet: But I'd just as soon take yours.
:[Harriet is pointing two handguns at two men with machine guns.]

:''BOOM''
:[Harriet explodes off a cliff, carrying a rectangular object and a gun. In the background is a helicopter, some mountains, and the sea.]

:[Panel is inverted, white and red on black background.]
:Man: Stop! I'll talk!
:Harriet: No, I know everything, this is just for fun.
:[Harriet is holding a bloody pipe. Man is tied to a chair. There is blood pooling on the ground under the chair.]

:[Crosshairs follow a man.]
:Harriet: I'll be watching.

:[The panel is inverted colour, white on black.]
:Harriet
:the
:[in red] ''SPY''
:[A bloody spiral notebook, with blood streaks leading from it.]

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

1309: Infinite Scrolling

2013-12-28T04:27:59Z

199.27.128.186:

{{comic
| number = 1309
| date = December 27, 2013
| title = Infinite Scrolling
| image = infinite_scrolling.png
| titletext = Maybe we should give up on the whole idea of a 'back' button. 'Show me that thing I was looking at a moment ago' might just be too complicated an idea for the modern web.
}}

==Explanation==
Infinite scrolling is a technique in web design where a large data set is displayed as a seemingly infinite list, but in reality only the visible part of the list (and the surrounding data) is rendered. This is done to work around memory limitations of old browsers and mobile devices or to save on data transfer size.

The problem with this technique is that if you navigate from this page to a different page and go back the location of the scrolled data set is often lost and the top of the data set is displayed again. Also it is usually not possible to point a URL directly to a certain section of the infinite list (a practice known as {{w|deep linking}}).
For these reasons, many prefer {{w|pagination}}, the method traditionally used in books, over infinite scrolling.

In this comic [[Megan]] is handling the book as if it were a device with a touchscreen where the book is displayed as an infinite scrolling text. Touching a link would navigate away from the list and the current reading position would be lost.

In the title text it is an ironic suggestion that the "back" button is now useless. The back-button is supposed to give you this functionality but due to the failure to implement continuous scrolling sites and deep-linking correctly they are typically useless when the user is reading infinite-scrolling data (or worse, flat-out counterproductive, giving you the wrong page).

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is standing behind Megan, who is turning the pages of a book.]
:Cueball: Why are you turning the pages like that?
:Megan: If I touch the wrong thing, I'll lose my place and have to start over.
:If books worked like infinite-scrolling webpages.
{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Internet]]

346: Diet Coke+Mentos

2013-12-18T22:29:50Z

199.27.128.186:

{{comic
| number = 346
| date = November 19, 2007
| title = Diet Coke+Mentos
| image = diet_coke_mentos.png
| titletext = The cola+Mentos trick is up there with corn starch+water (vibrating platter optional) in scientific coolness out of common kitchen supplies.
}}

==Explanation==

This is an irony using the popular meme of mixing [[wikipedia:Diet Coke and Mentos eruption|Mentos into a bottle of soda]]. There was a period of time in 2007 when a large portion of videos depicting this phenomenon floated around the Internet.

[[Cueball]] wants to show an incredible phenomenon to his friend, because it's "the coolest thing", but it turns out instead of fizzling Diet Coke everywhere, the friend's father magically shows up (presumably from the dead or from abandonment). Cueball's "Ta-daa!" pose in panel 3 shows that he expected this exact outcome instead of carbonation nucleating out from microcraters in the candy.

The title text shows that Randall considers (or at least then considered) this trick to be one of the two coolest tricks you can perform with normal kitchen supplies. The other is using corn starch and water to make a non-Newtonian fluid that reacts wildly with vibrations and impact.

==Transcript==
:Friend: This is the coolest thing. You just drop the mentos in the Diet Coke...
:Cueball: Uh huh.
:Friend: Give it a moment...
:[Diet Coke starts to fizzle.]
:[Someone teleports into frame in a magic puff.]
:Cueball: D-Dad?
:Dad: I'm back, son. We can be a family again.

==Trivia==
*An alternate take appears in [[1053|1053: Ten Thousand]].
*The "corn starch+water" trick from the title text is illustrated here at [http://what-if.xkcd.com/36/ what-if].

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

Talk:1047: Approximations

2013-12-18T19:21:01Z

199.27.128.186: /* So, still incomplete? */ new section

They're actually quite accurate. I've used these in calculations, and they seem to give close enough answers. '''[[User:Davidy22|Davidy22]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 14:03, 8 January 2013 (UTC)

I only see a use for the liters in a gallon one. The rest are for trolling or simple amusement. The cosine identity bit our math team in the butt at a competition. It was painful. --[[User:Quicksilver|Quicksilver]] ([[User talk:Quicksilver|talk]]) 05:27, 17 August 2013 (UTC)

Annoyingly this explanation does not cover 42 properly, it does not say that Douglas Adams got the number 42 from Lewis Carroll, who is more relevant to the page because he was a mathematician named Charles Lutwidge Dodgson. He was obsessed with the number forty-two. The original plate illustrations of Alice in Wonderland drawn by him numbered forty-two. Rule Forty-Two in Alice in Wonderland is "All persons more than a mile high to leave the court", There is also a Code of Honour in the preface of The Hunting of the Snark, an extremely long poem written by him when he was 42 years old, in which rule forty-two is "No one shall speak to the Man at the Helm". The queens in Alice Through the Looking Glass the White Queen announces her age as "one hundred and one, five months and a day", which - if the best possible date is assumed for the action of Through the Looking-Glass - gives a total of 37,044 days. With the further (textually unconfirmed) assumption that both Queens were born on the same day their combined age becomes 74,088 days, which is 42 x 42 x 42. --[[Special:Contributions/139.216.242.254|139.216.242.254]] 02:43, 29 August 2013 (UTC)

:: This explanation covers 42 adequately, and would probably be made slightly worse if such information were added. The very widely known cultural reference is to Adams's interpretation, not Dodgson's original obsession. Adding it would be akin to introducing the MPLM into the explanation for the hijacking of Renaissance artists' names by the TMNT. I definitely concede that it does not cover 42 exhaustively, but I think it can be considered complete and in working order without such an addition. If it really irks you, be bold and add it! --[[User:Quicksilver|Quicksilver]] ([[User talk:Quicksilver|talk]]) 00:37, 30 August 2013 (UTC)

"sqrt(2) is not even algebraic in the quotient field of Z[pi]" is not correct. Q is part of the quotient field of Z[pi] and sqrt(2) is algebraic of it. The needed facts are that pi is not algebraic, but the formula implies it is in Q(sqrt(2)). --DrMath 06:47, 7 September 2013 (UTC)

13/15 is a better approximation to sqrt(3)/2 than is e/pi. Continued fraction approximations are great! --DrMath 07:23, 7 September 2013 (UTC)

How could he forget 1 gallon ≈ 0.1337 ft³?! [[Special:Contributions/67.188.195.182|67.188.195.182]] 00:51, 8 September 2013 (UTC)

Worth mentioning that Wolfram Alpha now officially recognizes the [http://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=e%5E-%28%281%2B8%5E%281%2F%28e-1%29%29%29%5E%281%2Fpi%29%29 White House switchboard constant] and the [http://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=%287%5E%28e-1%2Fe%29-9%29*pi%5E2 Jenny constant]. [[Special:Contributions/86.164.243.91|86.164.243.91]] 18:28, 8 October 2013 (UTC)

Maybe we should add the [Extension:LaTeXSVG LaTeX extension] to make it easier to transcribe these equations. -- [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.220|108.162.219.220]] 23:02, 16 December 2013 (UTC)

;Protip - Does anyone see the correct equation?
Maybe this is just an other Wolfram Alpha error, like we recently have had here: [[1292: Pi vs. Tau]]. All equations still look invalid to me.
*''√2 = 3/5 + π/(7-π)'': is impossible because √2 is an irrational number and no equation can match.
*''cos(π/7) + cos(3π/7) + cos(5π/7) = 1/2'': could only match if ''cos(x) + cos(3x) + cos(5x) = 1/2'' would be valid, because ''π/7'' is also an irrational number.
*''γ = e/34 + e/5 or γ = e/54 + e/5'': would mean that a sum of two irrational numbers do fit to the Gamma Constant. Impossible.
*''√5 = 13 + 4π / 24 - 4π'': √5 and π are irrational numbers, there is no way to match them in any equation like this.
*''Σ 1/nn = ln(3)e'': doesn't make any sense either.
Maybe [[:Category:Comics featuring Miss Lenhart|Miss Lenhart]] can help.
--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 21:41, 17 December 2013 (UTC)

== So, still incomplete? ==

Where's our (in)complete judge? [[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.186|199.27.128.186]] 19:21, 18 December 2013 (UTC)

1049: Bookshelf

2013-12-16T21:53:24Z

199.27.128.186:

{{comic
| number = 1049
| date = April 30, 2012
| title = Bookshelf
| image = Bookshelf.png
| imagesize =
| titletext = I had a hard time with Ayn Rand because I found myself enthusiastically agreeing with the first 90% of every sentence, but getting lost at 'therefore, be a huge asshole to everyone.'
}}

==Explanation==
This is a play off the typical "hidden door" in which you pull down the right book and suddenly a wall of books turns into a hidden door. It is most used in spy movies or books. In this case, the book is ''Atlas Shrugged'' and instead of a secret passage, the wall swings around and takes you to a message "You have terrible taste".

{{w|Atlas Shrugged}} is a {{w|dystopian novel}} by {{w|Ayn Rand}}. Randall is suggesting that this extremely polarizing libertarian tract is a bad book.

The title text is a general criticism Randal has with Rand, since most of Rand's characters are fiercely independent and rather tactless.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball stands in front of a bookshelf]
:Cueball: Ooo, ''Atlas Shrugged''
:[Cueball yanks out book only for a click to be heard]
:[The entire setup begins to rumble, while the bookcase and a surrounding platform takes both it and Cueball behind the wall]
:[The tiny, dark room behind the wall has one thing painted on it]
:Wall: You have terrible taste.
:[The whole piece of kit moves back to its original position. Cueball stands there mildly stunned.]

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

1058: Old-Timers

2013-12-15T08:47:44Z

199.27.128.186:

{{comic
| number = 1058
| date = May 21, 2012
| title = Old-Timers
| image = old_timers.png
| imagesize =
| titletext = You were on the internet before I was born? Well, so was I.
}}

== Explanation ==
Ok, definitions you need to understand this one.

A {{w|Bulletin Board System}}, or BBS, is an online service based on microcomputers running appropriate software. They were the precursors to modern day online forums.

The {{w|J. Craig Venter Institute}} (JCVI) is a non-profit genomics research institute founded by J. Craig Venter, Ph.D. in October 2006. So, assuming the comic takes place when the comic was written, the girl on the right is at most 5 1/2 years old.

Objectively, the girl is just as bad as her conversational partner; simply being the most significant advancement in test tube babies in over two decades doesn't prove anything about your personal knowledge or experience. She has NOT "been there" because she was provably not a sapient being at the time. ''Subjectively'', however, her reputation alone is more than enough to stun and thus "defeat" anyone who actually understands her special heritage.

The title text is another common retort from "old timers" that they have been doing X since before the younger person was born. In this case, the girl was "on the Internet" before she was born, at least in the form of her parents' genetic sequences.

==Transcript==
:[A man with a neck beard types away at his computer screen.]
:Neckbeard: (typing) Whatever, noob. I've been on the internet since the BBS days.
:Screen: ''Wrong.''

:''type type''

:[A girl with buns on her head kneels on her chair, typing at a laptop on a table.]
:Buns: (typing) Before I was born, a lab took egg and sperm samples from my parents and sequenced the DNA.
:''type type''

:[Neckbeard sits at his desk, reading his screen.]
:Buns: (from the screen) They emailed the genome to the Venter Institute, where they synthesized the genome and implanted it into sperm and eggs which became me.
:[Buns still typing on the laptop.]
:Buns: So, no. - You've '''''looked''''' at the internet. - I've '''''been''''' there.
:''type type''

{{comic discussion}}

1058: Old-Timers

2013-12-15T08:46:16Z

199.27.128.186:

{{comic
| number = 1058
| date = May 21, 2012
| title = Old-Timers
| image = old_timers.png
| imagesize =
| titletext = You were on the internet before I was born? Well, so was I.
}}

== Explanation ==
Ok, definitions you need to understand this one.

A {{w|Bulletin Board System}}, or BBS, is an online service based on microcomputers running appropriate software. They were the precursors to modern day online forums.

The {{w|J. Craig Venter Institute}} (JCVI) is a non-profit genomics research institute founded by J. Craig Venter, Ph.D. in October 2006. So, assuming the comic takes place when the comic was written, the girl on the right is at most 5 1/2 years old.

Objectively, the girl is just as bad as her conversational partner; simply being the most significant advancement in test tube babies in over two decades doesn't prove anything about your personal knowledge or experience. Subjectively, her reputation alone is more than enough to stun and thus "defeat" anyone who actually understands her special heritage.

The title text is another common retort from "old timers" that they have been doing X since before the younger person was born. In this case, the girl was "on the Internet" before she was born, at least in the form of her parents' genetic sequences.

==Transcript==
:[A man with a neck beard types away at his computer screen.]
:Neckbeard: (typing) Whatever, noob. I've been on the internet since the BBS days.
:Screen: ''Wrong.''

:''type type''

:[A girl with buns on her head kneels on her chair, typing at a laptop on a table.]
:Buns: (typing) Before I was born, a lab took egg and sperm samples from my parents and sequenced the DNA.
:''type type''

:[Neckbeard sits at his desk, reading his screen.]
:Buns: (from the screen) They emailed the genome to the Venter Institute, where they synthesized the genome and implanted it into sperm and eggs which became me.
:[Buns still typing on the laptop.]
:Buns: So, no. - You've '''''looked''''' at the internet. - I've '''''been''''' there.
:''type type''

{{comic discussion}}

Talk:1285: Third Way

2013-11-01T19:00:02Z

199.27.128.186:

ONE SPACE AFTER A PERIOD. '''[[User:Davidy22|{{Color|#707|David}}y²²]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 04:38, 1 November 2013 (UTC)
:MY VOTE TOO!!! --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 18:36, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

Writing plaintext, I always do two spaces after a sentence ending period.
This is probably because I did in fact start typing on a real typewriter.
In an environment where automatic formatting will take place, like a web page or wiki text, I use the newline.
I have had people in this wiki collapse my multiple line forms to one of the others.
(I was disappointed.)
--[[User:Divad27182|Divad27182]] ([[User talk:Divad27182|talk]]) 04:48, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

I prefer double spacing, but I used single spacing in writing the explanation, just to make people happy. Perhaps I should have used new lines. [[User:Concomitant|Concomitant]] ([[User talk:Concomitant|talk]]) 05:10, 1 November 2013 (UTC)
: I'm a double-spacer too. Am I wrong? I can't break myself of the habit, I even do it in tweets! --[[User:Jeff|Jeff]] ([[User talk:Jeff|talk]]) 16:43, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

The 'third way' is a little underappreciated here: it divides the text into self contained logical units, and makes text processing tools (grep, diff etc.) much more usable.
Proper text rendering engines (TeX, HTML, etc.) already make this assumption and group sentences accordingly.
If only I realized this earlier, it would have made my thesis revisions much more easier.
In fact, up to this moment, I thought I was that lone guy in the comic.
EDIT: this comment in xkcd forums makes my point clear: http://forums.xkcd.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=106217#p3489055
--[[Special:Contributions/141.101.96.11|141.101.96.11]] 05:42, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

:As a programmer, I find nothing weird in adapting your style to language. Writing two spaces in HTML or TeX is useless, as they won't render as two spaces anyway. (While using for this purpose nonbreakable spaces, which would render, is a crime.) -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 10:48, 1 November 2013 (UTC)
::It would also render incorrectly if the period was close to the end of a line. If the markup is [last word of sentence][period][nbsp][space][next sentence], the last word of the first sentence could end up on the next line unnecessarily. But if it's [last word of sentence][period][space][nbsp][next sentence], the next line of text would start with a space, which is much worse.--[[User:Rael|Rael]] ([[User talk:Rael|talk]]) 15:16, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

I always just find and replace double space with single space. If formatting suffers, someone did a bad job.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.231.228|108.162.231.228]] 06:33, 1 November 2013 (UTC) Synthetica

So, why did double spacing after a period ever exist? It doesn't seem necessary. [[User:PheagleAdler|PheagleAdler]] ([[User talk:PheagleAdler|talk]]) 07:31, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

even though i learned typing on a typewriter, to this day i had never heard of the double space thing. maybe it's a US only thing, like the stupid french with spaces BEFORE punctuation marks. [[User:Peter|Peter]] ([[User talk:Peter|talk]]) 07:54, 1 November 2013 (UTC)
:I've always taken the double-space thing as a US thing. Some editors like emacs default to it, which is really annoying. That said, as a frenchman, the "space before punctuation" is normal to me and it is part of the ''codified'' typography -- and I think this is actually an important distinction to make. Is this double-space vs single-space something codified somehow? As a last word, I need to be nitpicky: the exact French typography rule is "a space before punctuation made of two parts (namely colon, semi-colon, exclamation/question mark) and no space before punctuation made of a single part (dots, commas.)" It's a very deterministic rule that is easy to apply (whether one agrees to it or not.) [[User:Ralfoide|Ralfoide]] ([[User talk:Ralfoide|talk]]) 16:40, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

As a german typographer I have to say I’m ''shocked''! ''Two'' spaces per period? A space ''before'' punctuation?! My scientific opinion: you all are completely crazy ;-) (Just kidding, but seriously, two spaces? In Germany, the first possibility to do that safely is your last will …) [[User:Quoti|Quoti]] ([[User talk:Quoti|talk]]) 10:34, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

The doubled spaces appear in my browser's tooltips. (Maybe someone should add some non breaking spaces to the quotation of the tooltip text?) --[[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.236|141.101.98.236]] 10:45, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

As a(n automatic) two-spacer person (just you watch, I'll use 'em here, despite it obviously not being rendered), it's just what I learnt, back in the '70s, here in the UK. I've no idea ''why'' I learnt it. However, it may stem from the same root as the 'rule' in handwriting (not biros, but nibbed pens dipped in ink... wow, I feel old, but it ''was'' at primary school) that we use a gap as big as our our (very little) little-fingers to separate sentences. I imagine differentiating full-stops (US: periods) from commas in the messy medium of ink might be a valuable visual indicator as to what a given smudge might ''actually'' be. So, anyway, double-spacing. On the other hand I should report that, "I've dropped the habit it of appropriate punctuation prior to quotes," I say, "despite being the way I learnt it." And instead I will drop "<- Commas from that sort of position," you see, "even through I'll keep the ones that are semantic pauses." You see how my standards are slipping? Anyway, good comic. We now return you to your regularly-scheduled programme.  [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.214|141.101.98.214]] 14:44, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

:I'm in the same boat this this bloke. I don't get the typewriter tie in. I seem to recall being taught to use a finger gage correct gap of whitespace to leave between the end of one sentence and the beginning of the next. This was in an American small town southern school in the early 1980s. I assume it was for readability. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.236.25|108.162.236.25]] 16:16, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

The "third way" is used for articles on the [http://www.bbc.co.uk/news BBC News] website :-) --[[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.233|141.101.99.233]] 14:52, 1 November 2013 (UTC)
:Actually, they put each sentence into a paragraph of its own, which is yet different. (In HTML: <code>... .</code> vs. <code>... . </code>) --[[User:Das-g|Das-g]] ([[User talk:Das-g|talk]]) 16:07, 1 November 2013 (UTC)
:That's what I came here to say, that the Third Way is common-place on the web today, it is the tabloid style. This headline article http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-24775846 off the BBC right now only has full-stops (periods in en-US) before paragraph breaks, apart from quotations (ie what the BBC did not write). [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.229|141.101.98.229]] 16:11, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

There's a FOURTH way! I receive a "Weekly Update from Senator Tim Scott" HTML formatted email about once a week (unsurprisingly) which, in lieu of spaces between words, uses a carriage return and a linefeed. This alleviates the question of how many spaces between sentences completely! It also renders as oneverylongword in my email client. Ie: <blockquote>Thankyouforsubscribingtomye-newsletter.</blockquote> [[Special:Contributions/108.162.236.25|108.162.236.25]] 16:16, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

I think the finger space was to help kids create clear separation while developing their proficiency at penmanship.
I think the 2x space is a fall out from the fixed width formatting of typewriters to help assist the reader (or proof reader) with the start and end of a sentence.
Double spacing has almost become OCD for me. I can't help it. Of course I also leave paragraph marks on while I type as well. I wonder if the French would require a space before a double quote, "The author ponders. "

I think we could improve old school cryptography if we just used carriage returns and ignored the 'new' line.
I might be able to accept and adopt the single space rule if I can make my spaces default to twice the point size of every other character in the style.
[[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.186|199.27.128.186]] 19:00, 1 November 2013 (UTC)