https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/api.php?action=feedcontributions&feedformat=atom&user=2A00%3A79E0%3A2820%3A8%3A9966%3A10CC%3ABAF3%3A62Eexplain xkcd - User contributions [en]2026-06-04T14:05:58ZUser contributionsMediaWiki 1.30.0https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:3254:_Detector&diff=414239Talk:3254: Detector2026-06-04T09:13:25Z<p>2A00:79E0:2820:8:9966:10CC:BAF3:62E: </p>
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The deluxe edition of the machine probably has "Detected/Not detected" lights for each of those items. I would guess its cost would be significantly higher. [[Special:Contributions/47.248.235.170|47.248.235.170]] 21:39, 3 June 2026 (UTC)Pat<br />
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To whoever wrote the initial transcript: the title text should not be included. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 21:57, 3 June 2026 (UTC)<br />
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It doesn't even detect a vacuum? Useless thing, showing not even a vacuous truth. [[Special:Contributions/2A02:590:1402:2E01:102F:245D:DD57:1937|2A02:590:1402:2E01:102F:245D:DD57:1937]] 22:15, 3 June 2026 (UTC)<br />
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It also has zero false positive [[User:Rtanenbaum|Rtanenbaum]] ([[User talk:Rtanenbaum|talk]]) 23:17, 3 June 2026 (UTC)<br />
:Not necessarily. We are told that it never says "No" when it should be saying "Yes", which suggests that there will be no false negatives. If were trust that assertion.<br />
:But we aren't given any assurance at all (even a simple nodding statement with no provability behind it) that the machine will not continue to say "Detected" even if it {{w|False vacuum#Existential threat|somehow really shouldn't}}. Should it do so, it would be be a false positive. Even though various other existential problems might be more important to anyone around who might care about it, at that point. [[Special:Contributions/81.179.199.253|81.179.199.253]] 23:45, 3 June 2026 (UTC)<br />
:My point is that there is no circumstance that the machine would exist where all of the items it detects are no longer present i.e. the case of a false positive just cannot happen. [[User:Rtanenbaum|Rtanenbaum]] ([[User talk:Rtanenbaum|talk]]) 03:03, 4 June 2026 (UTC)<br />
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Failing to detect states would be a particularly worrying prospect for people in the USA. --[[Special:Contributions/2A10:D586:3E93:0:CC7B:253E:A0AA:2FA9|2A10:D586:3E93:0:CC7B:253E:A0AA:2FA9]] 08:00, 4 June 2026 (UTC)<br />
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I would claim the assertion about false negatives is incorrect. It's impossible for a true negative to be displayed by the machine, so it's enough for a single malfunction that ever makes the machine display a negative to get a 100% false negative rate. [[Special:Contributions/2A00:79E0:2820:8:9966:10CC:BAF3:62E|2A00:79E0:2820:8:9966:10CC:BAF3:62E]] 09:13, 4 June 2026 (UTC)</div>2A00:79E0:2820:8:9966:10CC:BAF3:62E