explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

843: Misconceptions

2013-01-03T09:46:51Z

67.235.215.61: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 843
| date = January 5, 2011
| title = Misconceptions
| image = misconceptions.png
| titletext = "Grandpa, what was it like in the Before time?" "It was hell. People went around saying glass was a slow-flowing liquid. You folks these days don't know how good you have it."
}}

==Explanation==
{{w|List of common misconceptions}}
{{Incomplete}}
This is a reference to the situation people often find themselves in where they think they know something about a subject but then they are asked to provide deeper incite and find themselves faced with a lack of explanation. Also a reference to the notion made several times previously that Wikipedia is an unreliable source of information[citation needed. Also see logical fallacy ad populum.

==Transcript==
:[A teacher is standing in front of a board, holding a laptop computer and elocuting.]
:Teacher: Okay, middle school students, it's the first Tuesday in February.
:Teacher: This means that by law and custom, we must spend the morning reading through the Wikipedia article ''List of Common Misconceptions'', so you can spend the rest of your lives being a little less wrong.
:Teacher: The guests at every party you'll ever attend thank us in advance.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Wikipedia]]
[[Category:Physics]]

845: Modern History

2013-01-03T09:35:14Z

67.235.215.61: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 845
| date = January 10, 2011
| title = Modern History
| image = modern history.png
| titletext = During the week, I research my character by living in his house and raising his children.
}}

==Explanation==
War reenactment is a hobby in which people act out a battle from some previous time period. Real-time war reenactment is therefore following someone around in an actual battle and acting out everything they do.

Reference to Modern Warfare games only being modern for a certain period of time.

==Transcript==
:My Hobby:
:Soldier: Will you please stop imitating everything I do?
:Cueball: [Dressed as and following soldier] Will you please stop...
:My Hobby: real time war reenactment.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:My Hobby]]
[[Category:Songs]]

858: Milk

2013-01-03T09:15:16Z

67.235.215.61: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 858
| date = February 9, 2011
| title = Milk
| image = milk.png
| titletext = It's not hard when you have the same thought like 40 or 50 percent of the time.
}}

==Explanation==
Megan somehow knows that Cueball is pondering whether her breasts enables her to breastfeed him at any given moment. Possibly as a result of Megan making eye contact with Cueball and realizing that his eyes weren't in his laptop.

==Transcript==
:[Couple sitting opposed, Megan on couch reading book and Cueball a chair with a laptop.]
:Megan: The fact that I have breasts doesn't mean you could milk me now. I'd have to be lactating.
:[A beat passes.]
:Cueball (thinking): Oh my god. She's psychic!

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

859: (

2013-01-03T09:13:00Z

67.235.215.61: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 859
| date = February 11, 2011
| title = (
| image = (.png
| titletext = Brains aside, I wonder how many poorly-written xkcd.com-parsing scripts will break on this title (or ;;"'<nowiki />'{<<[' this mouseover text."
| imagesize =
}}

== Explanation ==
In programming, punctuation is often used to mark sections of code. Paired punctuation marks must always be matched up with a corresponding closing mark, otherwise a so-called {{w|Syntax error|syntax error}} occurs. The programming language {{w|Lisp_(programming_language)|Lisp}} (also featured in [[224: Lisp]]) is known for large numbers of nested/paired parentheses. Even in literary works intended only for human consumption, the absence of a matching closing parenthesis, (as appears in this paragraph) or other "balanced" punctuation sets creates a mental expectation of eventual closure and completion that remains unfulfilled even long after the unmatched mark is encountered.

There is also reference to [[312: With Apologies to Robert Frost]] which could contain the missing paren...

It can also be interpreted as a {{w|metaphor}}, which compares the reader with a Lisp {{w|Interpreter (Computing)|interpreter}}. The interpreter looks for the parenthesis until the end of the file, where it eventually halts, and prints out the error. The comic claims that if you read an unmatched parenthesis, you will look for it for the rest of the day too.

It also refers to this awkward feeling when you see something (like an unmatched[or hear and diminished 7th chord; parentheses, speeling error or a randomly-placed, comma.

===Title text===
The title text refers to the same issue as already highlighted in [[327: Exploits of a Mom]]: if your scripts trust external input, you sometimes will be surprised. At the time of this comic, there were quite a few websites that would grab the latest xkcd comic three times a week and publish them on their own site. This comic likely broke at least some of the websites because of either the unmatched brace or the extra unmatched markup that is in the title text.

==Transcript==
(An unmatched left parenthesis creates an unresolved tension that will stay with you all day.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Programming]]

871: Charity

2013-01-03T08:48:44Z

67.235.215.61: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 871
| date = March 11, 2011
| title = Charity
| image = charity.png
| imagesize =
| titletext = I usually respond to someone else doing something good by figuring out a reason that they're not really as good as they seem. But I've been realizing lately that there's an easier way to handle these situations, and it involves zero internet arguments.
}}

==Explanation==
"This is a pretty straightforward joke, especially for xkcd. Instead of 1 game and a $10 donation or just a $20 donation, [[Cueball]] opts for 2 of the $10 games." is what the layman would say but this is a reference to game theory of an unstable Nash-equilibrium. While the payout of society is greater for option A option B is a greater payout for the individual who is playing and thus would have more appeal to the particular player. So rather than compromising the good of the group with the good of the individual the "prisoner" chooses to pick the benefit which immediately benefits him.

It appears that Cueball is buying the games on his mobile device.

==Transcript==
:Cueball: I'm going to buy this $10 game I want, and I'm donating $10 for malaria eradication.

:Megan: If you actually cared, you'd skip the game and donate all $20.
:Megan: What's more important? Games, or mosquito nets and medicine for kids?

:Later:
:Cueball: I think I'm going to buy these two $10 games I want.
:Friend: Cool; which ones?

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

877: Beauty

2013-01-03T08:29:33Z

67.235.215.61: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 877
| date = March 25, 2011
| title = Beauty
| image = beauty.png
| imagesize =
| titletext = The best hugs are probably from hagfish, which can extrude microscopic filaments that convert a huge volume of water around them to slime in seconds. Instant cozy blanket!
}}

==Explanation==
In this comic [[Ponytail]]'s statement in the first is proved wrong by [[Megan]]'s actions throughout the comic and the statement in the image text, to the point where she retracts and changes her statement.

Concerning the {{w|hagfish}} - "Their unusual feeding habits and slime-producing capabilities have led members of the scientific and popular media to dub the hagfish as the most 'disgusting' of all sea creatures."
In addition the hagfish is used by the commercial industry for many products as an exotic leather.

==Transcript==
:[Ponytail and Cueball are discussing science. They are interrupted by an off-panel shout.]
:Ponytail: The problem with scientists is that you take the wonder and beauty out of everything by trying to analyze it.
:Megan: Dude!

:[Megan runs across the panel, carrying a microscope and a slime mold.]
:Megan: My plasmoidal slime molds have heightened pigment production! Check out that yellow color! That actually makes them zinc-resistant. Amazing, huh?

:[The slime mold is proferred to the same human who was speaking earlier. The close up hides Megan's face.]
:Ponytail: It looks like dog barf.
:Megan: Hah, yeah! F. Septica is nicknamed "dog vomit slime mold." Cool, huh? Check out my slides!

:[Megan has set down the microscope on the floor of the panel, and the slime mold is jiggling.]
:Ponytail: Okay, never mind: What's wrong with scientists is that you ''do'' see wonder and beauty in everything.
:Ponytail: Oh God, it's ''moving!''
:Megan: It wants to hug you! So cute!

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

888: Heaven

2013-01-03T07:46:46Z

67.235.215.61: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 888
| date = April 20, 2011
| title = Heaven
| image = heaven.png
| imagesize =
| titletext = If you've never had sex, this is what it feels like. Complete with the brief feeling of satisfaction, followed by ennui, followed by getting bored and trying to make it happen again.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic is a reference to the video game Tetris, in which you use different shaped pieces to fill in lines to score points. The more lines you fill at a time results in more points.

In this comic, Heaven is when you get the perfect piece in Tetris that fills out all the empty space you have on the board. Especially since if if you look at the pieces that would optimally fit the situation is less than ideal.

In the title text, ennui means a feeling of utter weariness and discontent resulting from satiety or lack of interest.

Also see comic [[724: Hell]], which presents an opposing situation in which the game is impossible to play.

==Transcript==
:[The display is a tetris game. A large oddly shaped piece is falling towards the board. The piece fits into the gaps exactly to complete multiple rows at once. The next piece is simply a very long brick.]
:Top 0002187
:Score 0002186
:Level 5
:(The above are within the game; the next line is outside the game.)
:Heaven

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

889: Turtles

2013-01-03T07:43:17Z

67.235.215.61: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 889
| date = April 22, 2011
| title = Turtles
| image = turtles.png
| titletext = You're a turtle!
}}

==Explanation==
Turtles are laid back dudes, as also noted in {{w|Finding Nemo}}. While an offscreen character is panicking over deleting a file, the turtle is content with just being a turtle. Fifty years later it is still content with being a turtle. Perspective, man!

This is a reference to philosophy's meta-problem. We all have problems. Pessimistically the turtle is living in a singularity of existence of which no outside force can act upon the system to cause a state of unhappiness, although optimistically it is the protection of the shell in which the turtle only allows data which has potential of fulfilling desired outcome to be processed that allows it to live happily.

The title text is a reference to [[231: Cat Proximity]].

==Transcript==
:[There is a turtle.]
:Off-panel: Oh, crap, I deleted the file!

:[There is a turtle.]
:Turtle (thinking): I am a turtle.

:[There is a turtle.]
:Off-panel: No, wait, there it is.

:[There is a turtle.]
:Turtle (thinking): I am a turtle.

:[There is a turtle.]
:50 Years Later:
:Turtle (thinking): I am a turtle.

:Caption: Turtles have it figured out, man.

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

899: Number Line

2013-01-03T07:23:35Z

67.235.215.61: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 899
| date = May 16, 2011
| title = Number Line
| image = number line.png
| imagesize =
| titletext = The Wikipedia page "{{w|List of Numbers}}" opens with "This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it."
}}

==Explanation==
*Negative numbers just wanna be positive numbers or some joke of that nature.

*'''0.99'''.... is {{w|0.999...|provably equal to 1}} because there is no number between 0.99.... and 1. ([http://www.exploringbinary.com/binary-converter/ Binary 0.0000000000000000000000000001 = 0.0000000037252902984619140625])

*The {{w|Golden ratio}} is the length to width of rectangles that are most pleasing to the eye. The number which is about 1.61803, is the numeric value is called "phi", named for the Greek sculptor Phidias. The {{w|Parthenon}} is a perfect rectangle in size. The number of spirals on the head of [http://www.popmath.org.uk/rpamaths/rpampages/sunflower.html Sunflowers] are also said to exhibit the Golden mean/ratio.

*Forbidden Region and Unexplored are both map jokes.

*{{w|e (mathematical constant)|e}}(Euler's number) is 2.71828... and π(pi) is 3.14159265...

*2.9299372 is a President's Day reference because it is the average of e and pi just as the American President's Day is always observed on the 3rd Monday of February (between {{w|George Washington}} and {{w|Abraham Lincoln}}'s birthdays). (For non-US residents, those were the 1st and 16th Presidents of the USA.)

*{{w|Gird}} Could be a reference to [http://www.strangehorizons.com/2000/20001120/secret_number.shtml Bleem] - a fictional integer between 3 and 4, also see [http://icarly.wikia.com/wiki/Derf iCarly's Derf] - a fictional integer between 5 and 6; and [http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=bleen George Carlin's Bleen] - a fictional integer between 6 and 7.

*Site of the Battle of 4.108 is not a reference to anything I think it is another map joke.

*You do see often on TV and in the media that "It has been 7 years..." or "In the last 7 years..." etc.

*8 is not the largest even prime. 2 is. I'm sure this is like the 0.99... entry above, Randall is trying to start internet battles over the subject. Here are all the prime numbers on the chart above: 2, 3, 5, 7

*The last entry seems to be a reference to {{w|Discrete Math}}, which rarely deals with numbers higher than 9. Randall again is trying to incite a internet flame war with Mathematicians who study other forms of math.

This whole comic is a satire of laymen views on numbers. From a mathematicians point of view certain numbers(Phi) have more depth than others, but to most people they all just look like numbers which is why there is a hint of reluctance as the description of phi trails off. But then again a lot of the stuff is just arbitrary nominclature of numerals with cymbols which are unrelated to there subject.

==Transcript==
:(( number line ranging from -1 to 10 ))
:(( arrow pointing left, towards negative numbers )) Negative "imitator" numbers (do not use)
:(( line right before the number one )) 0.99... (acutally 0.0000000372 less than 1)
:(( line at the golden ratio )) Φ - Parthenon; sunflowers; golden ratio; wait, come back, I have facts!
:(( line at a region between two and 2.2 )) forbidden region
:(( line at Euler's number )) e
:(( line a bit before 3 )) 2.9299372 (e and pi, observed)
:(( line at π )) π
:(( line at 3.5 with a ribbon as the numeral )) Gird - accepted as canon by orthodox mathematicians
:(( line a bit after 4 )) site of battle of 4.108
:(( blob between 4.5 and 6.5 labeled unexplored ))
:(( line at seven )) Number indicating a factoid is made up ("every 7 years...", "science says there are 7...", etc)
:(( line at eight )) Largest even prime
:(( line at 8.75 )) If you encounter a number higher than this, you"re not doing real math

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Math]]
[[Category:Wikipedia]]

909: Worst-Case Shopping

2013-01-03T06:59:30Z

67.235.215.61: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 909
| date = June 8, 2011
| title = Worst-Case Shopping
| image = worst case shopping.png
| titletext = Wait a minute. If I'm escaping from a submarine at 50 meters, then I'll *definitely* need a flashlight to find air pockets for gradual decompression on the way up. Time to start shopping professional dive lights.
}}

==Explanation==
In this comic, [[Cueball]] is dreaming up reasons he should get a flashlight that is water resistant up to 40 meters instead of 10 meters.

In the dream sequence over the first 2 and a half frames, Cueball appears to be diving to find a key underwater, which he spots using his flashlight when he is at 8 meters. His flashlight goes out at 10 meters because he bought the "Hi-Brite" model. The dream sequence also references a "radio shed", which were only really used in the past for {{w|ham radios}} or some other military style bases/compounds—which would align with his "warn the President" line.

This is a reference to advertizes tendency to play off of peoples insecurities to make money.

The title text takes Cueball's thought process to the next level(worse-case), because if he is getting a flashlight that works to 40 meters, he should probably be prepared for even deeper waters as well(even worse-case).

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is diving in very deep, dark blue water. He shines a flashlight at the sea floor.]
:Cueball: (thinks) Eight meters. There's the wreckage... Yes! I see the key!

:[As he swims further toward it, his flashlight starts to cut out.]
:Cueball: (thinks) Gotta grab it, surface, get in to the radio shed, and warn the President! Just a few more...
:Flashlight: BZZT FIZZ

:((This panel has no border like the others, and is divided in half diagonally by a thought bubble.))
:[The left half of it is a dark blue thought bubble with the diver inside it. On the right hand side are packaged flashlights hanging on a shelf. The one called Hi-Brite is $24.95 and is labeled "water resistant to 10 meters." The one called "FenStar G6" is $49.95 and says "water resistant to 40 meters."]
:Cueball: (thinks) Oh no.

:[Cueball and a friend stand in front of a flashlight display in a store. Cueball looks down at the packages with his hand on his chin in thought. The thought bubble from the previous panel leads from his head. The friend stands behind him.]
:Cueball: ...maybe I should spring for the deeper water resistance.
:Friend: Why on earth would you care about that?
:Cueball: Look, you never know.

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

921: Delivery Notification

2013-01-03T06:44:54Z

67.235.215.61: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 921
| date = July 6, 2011
| title = Delivery Notification
| image = delivery_notification.png
| imagesize =
| titletext = You can arrange a pickup of your sword in Rivendell between the hours of noon and 7:00 PM.
}}

==Explanation==
In the US, when the package delivery company called {{w|UPS}} knocks on your door or rings your doorbell and cannot reach you, they leave these annoying package notifications stuck to your door. It seems, as this comic hints at, the threshold for the UPS delivery person to put the notice on the door is unreasonably low. The delivery personnel do not wait very long before quickly driving away to their next delivery and leaving the yellow delivery notification in the first frame.

After missing the delivery, [[Cueball]] (which is directly referencing {{w|Lord of the Rings}}) asks the Elves to reforge the sword in order to go on the quest. In Lord of the Rings, {{w|Aragorn}} (accepting his role as the heir to the king of men) had the sword of {{w|Isildur}} called {{w|Narsil}} reforged(which symbolizes the reuniting of the race of man under one leader)

But, of course, when the elves come to deliver the new sword for the quest, the delivery person is not able to reach anyone in the house by knocking and has to leave another delivery notification.

In the title text, {{w|Rivendell}} is one of the home of the elves. The broken shards of Narsil lived in Rivendell with {{w|Elrond}} and his elves. The title text is a reference to the limited hours that you can pick up your packages from UPS.

==Transcript==
:[The first panel is a UPS InfoNotice(r). Most of the text on it is just scribbles, though the company logo and header is clear.]

:[A person opens their door to see the InfoNotice(r). From off panel, a second person reacts.]
:Person: ''What!'' I've been here all day!
:Off-panel person 2: Huh?
:Person: They have my laptop.

:[Now both people are visible. The first is making an expansive gesture of annoyance.]
:Person 2: So get it tomorrow.
:Person: I fly out in the morning and they don't open till noon!
:Person 2: Sucks.

:[The first person is at a laptop. The second is once again off-panel.]
:Person: It's ''right there''. I can see the UPS building on the map.
:Off-panel person 2: Ok...

:[Dramatic zoom to the person's upper torso and face, along with clenched fist.]
:Person: My laptop is there. It's ''mine''.
:Person: I'm going to get it.

:[Even more dramatic zoom! The person's featureless face fills the panel.]
:Off-panel person 2: They won't let you.
:Person: Who are they to keep from me what is mine?
:Off-panel person 2: Dude, they—

:[The person spins, raising a finger, most likely to indicate some sort of quest at hand.]
:Person: A quest is at hand!
:Off-panel person 2: Security's gonna throw you out.
:Person: I fear neither death nor pain. But I will not go unarmed.

:(Three inset panels overlap, in a montage format. The person narrates.)
:[Elves in long robes stand around a table, on which lies a broken sword.]
:Narrating person: Light the beacons and send word to the Elves. They must reforge the sword of my fathers.

:[An Elf beats the sword together on an anvil.]

:[An Elf rides a horse, silhouetted by the full moon.]
:Narrating person: Ere dawn, I will go forth to the Sorting Depot.

:(The montage ends and normal panels resume.)
:[The Elf knocks at the door, sword in scabbard held under arm.]
:<<Knock knock knock knock>>

:[The person opens the door, to find a second InfoNotice(r) stuck on top of the first. The Elf is gone.]

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:LOTR]]

926: Time Vulture

2013-01-03T06:35:52Z

67.235.215.61: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 926
| date = July 18, 2011
| title = Time Vulture
| image = time vulture.png
| titletext = In a way, all vultures are Time Vultures; some just have more patience than others.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic is about the fictional time vulture made up by Randall. A Time Vulture as explained in the 3rd frame is a type of vulture that can live for millennia and wait long enough for someone to die of natural causes. A vulture is a type of animal that preys on other animals (and humans) who are sick or dying.

Because the Time Vulture lives for so long, in its point of view, everyone says "But, I'm not about to die" right before they do. In our point of view it could be several years, but since the Time Vulture lives for so long, years are mere moments in its view.

In the image text, since all vultures wait for their prey to die, all vultures are Time Vultures, but time vultures are able to wait decades for their prey, whereas regular vultures do not have that kind of time.

This is a reference to Einsteins theory of relativity in that time is relative to the rate at which it is perceived to be passing.

==Transcript==
:[A bird with apparently fractal wings hovers above Cueball, standing with a friend.]
:Friend: Dude, you've got a Time Vulture.
:Cueball: Holy crap! What is it?

:Friend: They're predators that use aging to kill prey.
:Cueball: Huh? What do you mean?

:[The panel zooms in on the Friend's face. Cueball comments from off-panel.]
:Friend: They live for millenia and use little energy. They can slow down their internal clocks so time speeds past. To hunt, they lock on to some prey, and when it stops moving, they eat it.
:Cueball (off-panel): But what if the prey doesn't die?

:Friend: I don't think you quite understand.
:Cueball: I mean, ''I'm'' not about to die...
:Friend: From the vulture's viewpoint, everyone says that moments before they do.

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

935: Missed Connections

2013-01-03T06:21:40Z

67.235.215.61: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 935
| date = August 8, 2011
| title = Missed Connections
| image = missed_connections.png
| imagesize =
| titletext = The Street View van isn't going to find out anything Google won't already know from reading my email.
}}

==Explanation==
Missed Connections is a page on Craigslist in which people who saw each other briefly and want to reconnect attempt to find each other again. If I was to hazard a guess, I would imagine it works .0001% of the time. In the case of missed connections, one person describes themselves "Me" and describes the other person "You" in order that the second person would recognize themself and try to reconnect.

The first one is a goofy joke as far as I can tell, although there have been many {{w|Wienermobile #Mishaps and other incedents| Wienermobile incidents}} in the past.

Oddly enough, the second entry could possibly be a reference to [http://fairlyoddparents.wikia.com/wiki/Wishing_Well this] episode of {{w|The Fairly OddParents}}.

The third one is a reference to networking. UDP stands for User Datagram Protcol. UDP packets don't use handshaking to verify they have contacted the correct host, so they can get lost or confused. The Cisco router location is just a reference to a block of IP addresses. Cisco is a company that makes networking equipment. This is a play on a missed connection for someone who was lost and asked for directions.

The fourth one seems to be a joke as well. For those outside of the US (or those inside as well), Nancy Pelosi is a member of the US House of Representatives. The (D-CA) is a common notation for politicians which notates party (D for Democrat) and state (CA for California).

The fifth seems to be a reference to Randall's upcoming nuptials?

The sixth is a reference to how the Google Street view van was not only recording photos of the street in 360 degrees, it was also collecting data from unencrypted Wi-Fi networks. The comic takes this to the next level, that the Google Street View van also scans what we have in our pockets and does a retinal scan. In this case, the social security number referenced is [http://www.ssa.gov/history/ssn/misused.html the most used SSN of all time.]

The last suggested the Babe Ruth, the American baseball slugger of 1914-1935 is actually a Time Lord. Time Lord is a reference to the popular sci-fi series "Doctor Who" in which The Doctor, who is a Time Lord, uses a TARDIS, which is a time travel machine. Possibly because he was a baseball player "ahead of his time".

==Transcript==
:[The page is set up like the missed connections area of Craigslist, with a list of messages from an individual to a person they weren't able to communicate with at the time.]
:Personals > Missed Connections

:You: Clinging to hood of your stolen wienermobile, trying to reach into engine to unstick throttle
:Me: Screaming, diving out of the way

:You: Vaguely human silhouette
:Me: At bottom of wishing well with harpoon gun

:You: Confused UDP packet
:Me: Cisco router in 45.170/16 block

:You: Baddest fuckin' Juggalo at Violent J's party
:Me: Nancy Pelosi (D-Ca)

:You: Getting married to me
:Me: Also getting married, but distracted by my phone

:You: Cute boy on corner of 4th & Main, 5'11, 169lbs, social security number 078-05-1120, pockets contained $2.09 in change, keys, and a condom. Retinal scan attached
:Me: Driving street view van

:You: George Herman "Babe" Ruth
:Me: Fellow Time Lord. Saw your tardis on third moon of

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics with color]]

937: TornadoGuard

2013-01-03T06:14:10Z

67.235.215.61: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 937
| date = August 12, 2011
| title = TornadoGuard
| image = tornadoguard.png
| titletext = The bug report was marked 'could not reproduce'.
}}

==Explanation==
This is a comic with a take on an application store - the most common app stores are for iPhones and Android devices. The creator of this app is "DroidCoder2187", which implies that the app may be for Android devices by a third party company which may or may not be reliable.

App stores take all the reviews and average the ratings for the overall [[1098|star rating]]. In this comic, we see why this is sometimes a bad idea. In this case, there are three 5 star reviews about the stability and user interface features of the app, left by users who actually never experienced its core functionality (simply because they never had a tornado since they got it); however, the only review related to whether the app really works is given the same weight as the others. Also see future comic [[1098: Star Ratings]].

The image text is funny because it is a note from the developer's bug report, which said they could not reproduce the error. Of course, they could only reproduce such a failure if there were a tornado coming towards their area. This is a fairly rare situation, especially in certain areas of the world. This lack of suitable testing conditions explains why the actual tornado-prediction portion of their code appears to be faulty.

==Trivia==
*The "could not reproduce" reason was also dealt with in [[583: CNR]].

==Transcript==
:[The comic is a single panel which resembles a reviews page for a mobile phone application]

:Application name: Tornado Guard
:Author: DroidCoder2187
:Description: Plays a loud alert sound when there is a tornado warning for your area.
:Rating: 4 out of 5 stars. (Based on 4 reviews)
:User Reviews:
:Reviewer 1: ''Rated 5 stars'' Good UI! Many alert choices.
:Reviewer 2: ''Rated 5 stars'' Running great, no crashes
:Reviewer 3: ''Rated 5 stars'' I like how you can set multiple locations
:Reviewer 4: ''Rated 1 star'' App did not warn me about tornado.

:The problem with averaging star ratings

{{comic discussion}}

944: Hurricane Names

2013-01-03T06:08:13Z

67.235.215.61: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 944
| date = August 29, 2011
| title = Hurricane Names
| image = hurricane_names.png
| imagesize =
| titletext = After exhausting the OED, we started numbering them. When overlapping hurricanes formed at all points on the Earth's surface, and our scheme was foiled by Cantor diagonalization, we just decided to name them all "Steve". Your local forecast tomorrow is "Steve". Good luck.
}}

==Explanation==
Like many people, Randall wonders what happens when the {{w|National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration|NOAA}} runs out of letters in the alphabet during hurricane season. Technically, the letters 'Q','U','X','Y',and 'Z' are not used because of the infrequency of names beginning with these letters. The NOAA does not use the next year's list; instead they use the Greek alphabet. This happened only once; in 2005 the final hurricane was named Hurricane Zeta(also see later comic [[1126: Epsilon and Zeta]]). Given that zeta is only the sixth letter out of 24 in the Greek alphabet, there has been no practical speculation of exhausting the English and Greek alphabets. However, Randall (and probably many others) wonder what would come after the Greek letters. NOAA's website on hurricane naming systems doesn't state a recourse for the Greek alphabet, so using the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) and numbering hurricanes are not canonical conventions.

While on the subject of nearly impossible amounts of hurricanes, Randall segues into infinite sets. A brief explanation by a non-mathematician is as follows: Some infinite sets are composed of countable terms with a definite sequence. For example, the set of all natural numbers {0,1,2,3,4,...} is countably infinite. It was then considered whether or not the set of all rational numbers (or fractions) is countable. If all fractions are listed in a table, the diagonals are a countably infinite set that will contain all rational numbers. The set of all real numbers (decimals, rational and irrational), however, is uncountable. Eric Cantor's proof of the diagonal argument (Cantor diagonalization) states that the diagonal sets of decimal places will represent decimals not on the list; therefore, the set of real numbers is an uncountable infinity. If hurricanes appeared at every location on Earth's surface, it would be natural (no pun intended) to try to number them. However, hurricanes at every infinitely precise point would be uncountably infinite, thereby foiling Randall's attempt to name them.
At this point, the meteorologists decide to name all the hurricanes "Steve", which is popular on the internet as an arbitrary name. (Ironically, this makes "Steve" no longer arbitrary.) On April 13, 2011, Internet personality Chuggaconroy uploaded a Pikmin walkthrough that popularized "Steve" as a "random" name.

==Transcript==
:[A weather reporter sits behind a desk with an image of the Gulf of Mexico and surrounding land masses displayed to his left. 9 hurricane symbols are scattered across the map, primarily over Cuba.]
:Reporter: After the latest wave of hurricanes, not only have we run through the year's list of 21 names, but we've also used up the backup list of Greek letters. All subsequent storms will be named using random dictionary words.
:Reporter: The newly-formed system in the gulf has been designated "Hurricane Eggbeater", and we once again pray this is the final storm of this horrible, horrible season.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Hurricanes]]

961: Eternal Flame

2013-01-03T05:45:03Z

67.235.215.61: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 961
| date = October 6, 2011
| title = Eternal Flame
| image = eternal_flame.gif
| titletext = There's always the hope that if you sit and watch for long enough, the beachball will vanish and the thing it interrupted will return.
}}

==Explanation==
{{w|Steve Jobs}} died on October 5, 2011, the day before this comic was posted. He was the {{w|CEO}} and one of the founders of {{w|Apple, Inc}}. He was the head of Apple for the introduction of {{w|OS X}}, the operating system used on all modern {{w|Macintosh}}es. For OS X, when a program ties up enough system resources, an animated cusor, affectionately referred to as "the beachball," appears and spins, seemingly endlessly. The image text refers to the fact that on the Mac, the application sometimes recovers and the system comes back; other times, however, the damage is irrevocable, a {{w|Kernel Panic}} happens and the system needs a restart.

R.I.P. Steve Jobs.

This particular image is a reference to the JFK memorial(citation needed) which has a flame that burns eternally.

==Transcript==
:[Two people before a memorial with an eternally spinning wait cursor. They contemplate silently on an influential life. Goodbye, Steve.]

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Steve Jobs]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Comics with animation]]

1002: Game AIs

2013-01-03T04:39:55Z

67.235.215.61: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1002
| date = January 11, 2012
| title = Game AIs
| image = game_ais.png
| imagesize =
| titletext = The top computer champion at Seven Minutes in Heaven is a Honda-built Realdoll, but to date it has been unable to outperform the human Seven Minutes in Heaven champion, Ken Jennings.
}}

==Explanation==
To understand the comic, you have to understand what the games are, so let's go (but first, the years in parenthesis in the comic are the year that the game was mastered by a computer):

* '''Tic-Tac-Toe''' - (via {{w|Tic Tac Toe|wikipedia}}) Tic-tac-toe, also called noughts and crosses (in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India and the rest of the British Commonwealth countries), is a pencil-and-paper game for two players, X and O, who take turns marking the spaces in a 3×3 grid.

* '''Nim''' - (via {{w|Nim|wikipedia}}) a mathematical game of strategy in which two players take turns removing objects from distinct heaps. On each turn, a player must remove at least one object, and may remove any number of objects provided they all come from the same heap.

* '''Ghosts''' - (via {{w|Ghost (game)|wikipedia}} and [http://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/2290/ghosts Board Game Geek]) a spoken word game in which players take turns adding letters to a growing word fragment, trying not to be the one to complete a valid word.

* '''Connect Four''' - (via {{w|Connect Four|wikipedia}}) (also known as Captain's Mistress, Four Up, Plot Four, Find Four, Fourplay, Four in a Row and Four in a Line) is a two-player game in which the players first choose a color and then take turns dropping their colored discs from the top into a seven-column, six-row vertically-suspended grid.

* '''Gomoku''' - (via {{w|Gomoku|wikipedia}}) an abstract strategy board game. Also called Gobang or Five in a Row, it is traditionally played with go pieces (black and white stones) on a go board (19x19 intersections); however, because once placed, pieces are not moved or removed from the board, gomoku may also be played as a paper and pencil game. This game is known in several countries under different names.

:Black plays first, and players alternate in placing a stone of their color on an empty intersection. The winner is the first player to get an unbroken row of five stones horizontally, vertically, or diagonally.

* '''Scrabble''' - (via {{w|Scrabble|wikipedia}}) a word game in which two to four players score points by forming words from individual lettered tiles on a gameboard marked with a 15-by-15 grid.

* '''Counterstrike''' - (via [http://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/3055/counterstrike Board Game Geek]) is probably this {{w|backgammon}} variant.

* '''Beer pong''' - (via {{w|Beer pong|wikipedia}}) also known as Beirut, is a drinking game in which players throw a ping pong ball across a table with the intent of landing the ball in a cup of beer on the other end.
:[http://hacknmod.com/hack/beer-pong-robot-precision-air-pressure/ Here's the video] of the University of Illinois robot mentioned in the comic.

* '''Reversi''' - (via {{w|Reversi|wikipedia}}) (also marketed by Pressman under the trade name Othello) is a board game involving abstract strategy and played by two players on a board with 8 rows and 8 columns and a set of distinct pieces for each side. Pieces typically are disks with a light and a dark face, each face belonging to one player. The player's goal is to have a majority of their colored pieces showing at the end of the game, turning over as many of their opponent's pieces as possible.

* '''Chess''' - (via {{w|chess|wikipedia}}) Chess is a two-player board game played on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. Each player begins the game with sixteen pieces: one king, one queen, two rooks, two knights, two bishops, and eight pawns, each of these types of pieces moving differently.

* '''Jeopardy!''' - (via {{w|Jeopardy|wikipedia}}) an American quiz show featuring trivia in history, literature, the arts, pop culture, science, sports, geography, wordplay, and more. The show has a unique answer-and-question format in which contestants are presented with clues in the form of answers, and must phrase their responses in question form.
:Ken Jennings, mentioned in the title text is a famous Jeopardy champion.

* '''Starcraft''' - (via {{w|Starcraft|wikipedia}}) a military science fiction real-time strategy video game... the game revolves around three species fighting for dominance in a distant part of the Milky Way galaxy known as the Koprulu Sector: the Terrans, humans exiled from Earth skilled at adapting to any situation; the Zerg, a race of insectoid aliens in pursuit of genetic perfection, obsessed with assimilating other races; and the Protoss, a humanoid species with advanced technology and psionic abilities, attempting to preserve their civilization and strict philosophical way of living from the Zerg.

* '''Poker''' - (via {{w|Poker|wikipedia}}) a family of card games involving betting and individualistic play whereby the winner is determined by the ranks and combinations of their cards, some of which remain hidden until the end of the game.

* '''Arimaa''' - (via {{w|Arimaa|wikipedia}}) a two-player abstract strategy board game that can be played using the same equipment as chess. Arimaa was designed to be more difficult for artificial intelligences to play than chess. Arimaa was invented by Omar Syed, an Indian American computer engineer trained in artificial intelligence. Syed was inspired by Garry Kasparov's defeat at the hands of the chess computer Deep Blue to design a new game which could be played with a standard chess set, would be difficult for computers to play well, but would have rules simple enough for his then four-year-old son Aamir to understand.

* '''Go''' - (via {{w|Go (game)|wikipedia}}) an ancient board game for two players that originated in China more than 2,000 years ago. The game is noted for being rich in strategy despite its relatively simple rules. The game is played by two players who alternately place black and white stones on the vacant intersections (called "points") of a grid of 19×19 lines (beginners often play on smaller 9×9 and 13×13 boards). The object of the game is to use one's stones to surround a larger portion of the board than the opponent.

* '''Snakes and Ladders''' - (via {{w|Snakes and Ladders|wikipedia}}) (or Chutes and Ladders) an ancient Indian board game regarded today as a worldwide classic. It is played between two or more players on a game board having numbered, gridded squares. A number of "ladders" and "snakes" (or "chutes") are pictured on the board, each connecting two specific board squares. The object of the game is to navigate one's game piece from the start (bottom square) to the finish (top square), helped or hindered by ladders and snakes, respectively. As a {{w|Race game| simple race game}}, this game occupies a limbo in which none of the categories in the chart are appropriate because it is a game of almost pure chance which is equally likely for either a computer or a human to win at.

* '''Mao''' - (via {{w|Mao (game)|wikipedia}}) (or Mau) a card game of the Shedding family, in which the aim is to get rid of all of the cards in hand without breaking certain unspoken rules. The game is from a subset of the Stops family, and is similar in structure to the card game Uno or Crazy Eights.

:The game forbids its players from explaining the rules, and new players are often told only "the only rule you may be told is this one." The ultimate goal of the game is to be the first player to get rid of all the cards in their hand.

* '''Seven Minutes in Heaven''' - (via {{w|Seven Minutes in Heaven|wikipedia}}) a teenagers' party game first recorded as being played in Cincinnati in the early 1950s. Two people are selected to go into a closet or other dark enclosed space and do whatever they like for seven minutes. Sexual activities are allowed; however kissing and making out are more common.

And finally
* '''Calvinball''' - (via {{w|Calvinball|wikipedia}}) is a reference to the comic strip {{w|Calvin and Hobbes}} by {{w|Bill Watterson}}.

:Calvinball is a game played by Calvin and Hobbes as a rebellion against organized team sports; according to Hobbes, "No sport is less organized than Calvinball!" Calvinball was first introduced to the readers at the end of a 1990 storyline involving Calvin reluctantly joining recess baseball. It quickly became a staple of the comic afterwards.

:The only hint at the true creation of the game ironically comes from the last Calvinball strip, in which a game of football quickly devolves into a game of Calvinball. Calvin remarks that "sooner or later, all our games turn into Calvinball," suggesting a similar scenario that directly led to the creation of the sport. Calvin and Hobbes usually play by themselves, although in one storyline Rosalyn (Calvin's baby-sitter) plays in return for Calvin doing his homework, and plays very well once she realizes that the rules are made up on the spot.

:The only consistent rule states that Calvinball may never be played with the same rules twice. Scoring is also arbitrary, with Hobbes at times reporting scores of "Q to 12" and "oogy to boogy." The only recognizable sports Calvinball resembles are the ones it emulates (i.e., a cross between croquet, polo, badminton, capture the flag, and volleyball.)

==Transcript==
Difficulty of Various Games for Computers

[A diagram. The left column describes various levels of skill for the most capable computers in decreasing performance against humans. The right side lists games in each particular section, in increasing game difficulty. There are labels denoting the hard and easy ends of the diagram.]

Easy
{| border="1"
| rowspan="6" | Solved - Computers can play perfectly
| rowspan="4" | Solved for all possible positions
| Tic-Tac-Toe
|-
| NIM
|-
| Ghost(1989)
|-
| Connect Four(1995)
|-
| rowspan="2" | Solved for starting positions
| Gomoku
|-
| Checkers(2007)
|-
| rowspan="6" colspan="2" | Computers can beat top humans
| Scrabble
|-
| CounterStrike
|-
| Beer Pong (UIUC robot)
|-
| Reversi
|-
| Chess
* February 10, 1996 - First win by computer against top human
* November 21, 2005 - Last win by human against top computer
|-
| Jeopardy
|-
| colspan="2" rowspan="4" | Computers still lose to top humans
(but focused R&D could change this)
| Starcraft
|-
| Poker
|-
| Arimaa
|-
| Go
|-
| colspan="2" rowspan="4" | Computers may ''never'' outplay humans
| Snakes and Ladders
|-
| Mao
|-
| Seven Minutes in Heaven
|-
| Calvinball
|-
|}
Hard

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

1061: EST

2013-01-03T01:11:12Z

67.235.215.61:

{{Incomplete}}
{{comic
| number = 1061
| date = May 28, 2012
| title = EST
| image = est.png
| titletext = The month names are the same, except that the fourth month only has the name 'April' in even-numbered years, and is otherwise unnamed.
}}
==Analysis==
This comic is a reference to the paradox in complexity theory that if you attempt to simplify a system of problems by creating a new system of evaluation for the problems you have instead made the problem more complex than it was originally.
==Explanation==
The year 1958 is relevant because January 1, 1958 is the epoch (time zero) in International Atomic Time (TAI), which is part of the basis for Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). (The main difference is that TAI doesn’t have leap seconds).

"24 hours 4 minutes" because the period of rotation of the Earth is 24 hours MINUS four minutes.

EST = Eastern Standard Time (USA) or England Standard Time (UK); there's no easy way to disambiguate this since it is a common time zone for English speakers in the USA and UK.

"Run clocks backward" a possible reference to the leap second.

"0.9144" because 1 yard = 0.9144 meters

"triple 4 hours after every full moon" = add on an additional 12 hours every full moon, to make the time between full moons exactly 30 "days" (in real life it's 29.5 days).

The one obvious reference is to Narnian time, which is a reference to the fictitious world of Narnia in CS Lewis's The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. In Narnia, time passes much more quickly than in the real world. You could be in Narnia for several days and only a few minutes would have passed in the real world.

==Transcript==
:XKCD Presents
:'''EARTH STANDARD TIME'''
:(EST)
:A Universal Calendar for a Universal Planet
:EST is...
:Simple * Clearly Defined * Unambiguous
:Free of Historical Baggage * Compatible with Old Units
:Precisely Synced with the Solar Cycle * Free of Leap Years
:Intermittently Amenable to Date Math

:UNITS
:Second: 1 S.I. Second
:Minute: 60 seconds
:Hour: 60 minutes
:Day: 1444 minutes (24 hours 4 minutes)

:Month: 30 Days
:Year: 12 months

:RULES
:For 4 hours after every full moon, run clocks backward.
:The non-prime-numbered minutes of the first full non-reversed hour after a solstice or equinox happen twice.

:[Epoch]
:00:00:00 EST, January 1, 1970 = 00:00:00 GMT, January 1, 1970 (Julian calendar)
:[Time Zones]
:The two EST time zones are
:''EST'' and ''EST (United Kingdom)''. These are the same except that the UK second is 0.944 standard seconds.

:Daylight saving: Countries may enter DST, but no time may pass there.
:Narnian Time: Synchronized.
:Year Zero: EST ''does'' have a year 0. (However, there is no 1958.)

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