explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

3098: Trojan Horse

2025-06-05T09:51:51Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 3098
| date = June 4, 2025
| title = Trojan Horse
| image = trojan_horse_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x196px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Ultimately, history would imperfectly record the story of the Foal of Troy.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created by a BABY BOT INSIDE A BOT. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
This comic presents a brief retelling of the {{w|Trojan_Horse|Trojan horse}} story, the climactic event of the legendary {{w|Trojan_War|Trojan war}}, one of the best-known epics of ancient Greece and Rome.

The joke, spelled out in the title text, is that the Trojan Horse story's origin is mundane. The gift to the Trojans by the (supposedly) departing Greek army, we are told, was a normal-sized, living, pregnant mare, which promptly dropped a foal. "History" expanded the tale until the live, normal-sized, pregnant mare became a colossal wooden statue that "dropped" a commando unit of some 40 Greek soldiers, who opened the gates of Troy to the main Greek force (who had sailed back under the cover of darkness), with disastrous consequences for Troy, transmuting (for the purpose of a pun) the "Foal of Troy" to the "Fall of Troy". Fall (πτώση) and Foal (πουλάρι) begin with the same letter in Greek and are spelled even more similarly in English. This would suggest that what actually happened was that the foal opened the gates, but it is unclear how and why a foal that hadn't even been born yet when its dam was given to Troy would have opened the gates of Troy or otherwise accounted for other aspects of the story of the Fall of Troy.

The debate in the comic, about the mission of the "Foal of Troy" and its impact on the city, reflects the debate in the Trojan Horse legend about the purpose of the horse statue and whether it was safe to accept it. The consequence of accepting the "Foal of Troy", a minor assault on the city's oat store, is accepted with indignation in the comic. In the legend, the potential consequences of accepting the horse statue were rejected or ignored until after it was too late. This is the etymology that caused the story to {{w|Trojan horse (computing)|lend its name to malware hidden as something innocuous}}.

It is unlikely that citizens of Asia Minor (modern Anatolia/Asiatic Turkey, where Troy is located) in the second millennium BCE would have been as ignorant about basic horse biology as they are shown to be in the comic. Their reputations are sacrificed for the sake of the joke. The Trojans incorrectly assume the foal being hungry is an attack on the food supply because it wants to eat oats, but in reality, babies of any form need nourishment in order to grow.{{citation needed}} This indicates that the foal has been alive for long enough for its teeth to develop, so it will gradually wean itself off of its mother's milk, which is indicated by the fact that the foal has only ''begun'' to ''show an interest'' in Troy's oats. It is unclear why the people in the comic would only be suspicious of ''the foal'''s hunger, considering that its dam (mother) would also need to eat, just not as much, and they do not seem to be concerned with this. Also, it should be noted that some people are willing to spend money to buy horses even though they are aware that the horses need to eat. It is also unclear how Troy is unaware that this is normal thing for mares to do, considering that horses were common in much of Asia by this time, especially cities with militaries because cavalries were widespread at one point, and this is how all horses (and, for that matter, all members of most mammal species) are created. The people of Troy might just not know much about horses, considering that they also consider the foal to be a ''secret'' payload even though pregnant mares show externally visible signs of pregnancy (such as abdominal drooping) five months before foaling (giving birth) on average. However, as mentioned before, this raises the question of why Troy either does not use horses for things such as cavalry and plow-pulling or why its people do not know how horses are formed in spite of this. Even if they were unaware of horses specifically, smaller animals coming out of bigger animals is usual for mammals, including humans, so a small horse coming out of a big horse shouldn't have surprised them.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
:[A horse is facing Cueball and Ponytail, who are standing in front of an entrance below a tower.]
:[In an inset panel, Cueball is talking to Megan and Hairy.]
:Cueball: When the Greeks departed, they left behind a horse as a gift.

:[Hairbun is standing behind a horse, with Cueball standing in front.]
:We took it as a gesture of peace, but it carried a secret payload.

:[A smaller horse is standing behind the horse from previous panel, which is looking behind at it.]
:One night, from within the horse, '''''another, smaller horse emerged!'''''

:[Close-up on Cueball.]
:Cueball: Our guards have been unable to determine the inner horse's objective, but it has begun to show an interest in our oats.
:Off-panel voice 1: An attack on Troy's food supply!
:Off-panel voice 2: How ''dare'' they!?

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairbun]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Food]]

3098: Trojan Horse

2025-06-05T09:31:34Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 3098
| date = June 4, 2025
| title = Trojan Horse
| image = trojan_horse_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x196px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Ultimately, history would imperfectly record the story of the Foal of Troy.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created by a BABY BOT INSIDE A BOT. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
This comic presents a brief retelling of the {{w|Trojan_Horse|Trojan horse}} story, the climactic event of the legendary {{w|Trojan_War|Trojan war}}, one of the best-known epics of ancient Greece and Rome.

The joke, spelled out in the title text, is that the Trojan Horse story's origin is mundane. The gift to the Trojans by the (supposedly) departing Greek army, we are told, was a normal-sized, living, pregnant mare, which promptly dropped a foal. "History" expanded the tale until the live, normal-sized, pregnant mare became a colossal wooden statue that "dropped" a commando unit of some 40 Greek soldiers, who opened the gates of Troy to the main Greek force (who had sailed back under the cover of darkness), with disastrous consequences for Troy, transmuting (for the purpose of a pun) the "Foal of Troy" to the "Fall of Troy". Fall (πτώση) and Foal (πουλάρι) begin with the same letter in Greek and are spelled even more similarly in English. This would suggest that what actually happened was that the foal opened the gates, but it is unclear how and why a foal that hadn't even been born yet when its dam was given to Troy would have opened the gates of Troy or otherwise accounted for other aspects of the story of the Fall of Troy.

The debate in the comic, about the mission of the "Foal of Troy" and its impact on the city, reflects the debate in the Trojan Horse legend about the purpose of the horse statue and whether it was safe to accept it. The consequence of accepting the "Foal of Troy", a minor assault on the city's oat store, is accepted with indignation in the comic. In the legend, the potential consequences of accepting the horse statue were rejected or ignored until after it was too late. This is the etymology that caused the story to {{w|Trojan horse (computing)|lend its name to malware hidden as something innocuous}}.

It is unlikely that citizens of Asia Minor (modern Anatolia/Asiatic Turkey, where Troy is located) in the second millennium BCE would have been as ignorant about basic horse biology as they are shown to be in the comic. Their reputations are sacrificed for the sake of the joke. The Trojans incorrectly assume the foal being hungry is an attack on the food supply because it wants to eat oats, but in reality, babies of any form need nourishment in order to grow.{{citation needed}} This indicates that the foal has been alive for long enough for its teeth to develop, so it will gradually wean itself off of its mother's milk, which is indicated by the fact that the foal has only ''begun'' to ''show an interest'' in Troy's oats. It is unclear why the people in the comic would only be suspicious of ''the foal'''s hunger, considering that its dam (mother) would also need to eat, just not as much, and they do not seem to be concerned with this. Also, it should be noted that some people are willing to spend money to buy horses even though they are aware that the horses need to eat. It is also unclear how Troy is unaware that this is normal thing for mares to do, considering that horses were common in much of Asia by this time, especially cities with militaries because cavalries were widespread at one point, and this is how all horses (and, for that matter, all members of most mammal species) are created. The people of Troy might just not know much about horses, considering that they also consider the foal to be a ''secret'' payload even though pregnant mares show externally visible signs of pregnancy (such as abdominal drooping) five months before foaling (giving birth) on average. However, as mentioned before, this raises the question of why Troy either does not use horses for things such as cavalry and plow-pulling or why its people do not know how horses are formed in spite of this. Even if they were unaware of horses specifically, smaller animals coming out of bigger animals is usual for mammals, including humans, so a small horse coming out of a big horse shouldn't have surprised them.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
:[A horse is facing Cueball and Ponytail, who are standing in front of an entrance below a tower.]
:[In an inset panel, Cueball is talking to Megan and Hairy.]
:Cueball: When the Greeks departed, they left behind a horse as a gift.

:[Hairbun is standing behind a horse, with Cueball standing in front.]
:We took it as a gesture of peace, but it carried a secret payload.

:[A smaller horse is standing behind the horse from previous panel.]
:One night, from within the horse, '''''another, smaller horse emerged!'''''

:[Close-up on Cueball.]
:Cueball: Our guards have been unable to determine the inner horse's objective, but it has begun to show an interest in our oats.
:Off-panel voice 1: An attack on Troy's food supply!
:Off-panel voice 2: How ''dare'' they!?

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairbun]]
[[Category:Animals]]

3097: Bridge Types

2025-06-03T14:25:21Z

Asdf: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 3097
| date = June 2, 2025
| title = Bridge Types
| image = bridge_types_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x581px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Pontoon bridges are just linear open-sided waterbeds.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was recently created by a RAINBOW BRIDGE. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
This comic shows, in a four-by-four grid of images, a series of bridge types. The first two rows of images are of authentic bridge types, whereas those in the last two rows are progressively more absurd. At first glance, the joke lies in the progression of bridge types from simple to realistically complex to totally bogus.

{| class="wikitable"
!Label
!style="width:7em;"|Status
!Type
!Notes
|-
|Plank
|Real
|{{w|Beam bridge}}
|A straightforward piece of solid material (in this case, made of solid wood, but there are {{w|Clapper bridge|other materials}}) is the most basic form of bridge, and generally the easiest to construct, but also the weakest. Consequently, such bridges are only suitable for small spans and light weights (such as a footbridge over a stream).
|-
|Rope
|Real
|{{w|Simple suspension bridge}}
|Rope bridges consist of several lengths of rope anchored on both sides of the span. Typically, one or more ropes will be intended to support the crossing load (possibly with boards or some other walkway between them), and additional ropes will act as handrails, reducing the risk of falling. These are typically only intended for foot traffic, due to their light construction and lack of rigidity. Because of the simple materials and relative ease of construction, they're often used as improvised bridges.
|-
|Truss
|Real
|{{w|Truss bridge}}
|A truss is a common type of framework consisting of supports connected in a series of triangles which provide support for a load. This design provides significant strength and rigidity with minimal material and weight. A truss bridge can either have the truss above the bridge platform (as in the drawing) or underneath it (also known as a deck truss). This is the first bridge type on this list which is commonly used for vehicle traffic.
|-
|Trestle
|Real
|{{w|Trestle bridge}}
|A trestle bridge is held up by supports reaching all the way to the ground beneath. Typically at least some of the supports will slope outward to give a larger base of support. Once common for railroads, these are less popular nowadays, but are still seen in certain areas and applications.
|-
|Arch
|Real
|{{w|Arch bridge}}
|Arches are one of the oldest kinds of bridges for carrying significant loads. They can be made out of rock or metal. Each span consists of an arch resting on supports. Simple arch bridges rest on both sides of a river or other gap, but longer bridges (as in the drawing) will have intermediate pillars to support multiple arches. The arches distribute the load, allowing a relatively small number of pillar to support weight across the entire deck of the bridge.
|-
|Suspended Arch
|Real
|{{w|Tied-arch bridge}}
|Tied arch bridges use a similar concept as arch bridges, but the arch is instead positioned overhead, with the deck supported by suspended cables. Such bridges may use a single arch (as in the drawing) or multiple arches in succession.
|-
|Draw
|Real
|{{w|Drawbridge}}
|Drawbridges are used to allow ships to pass through obstacles like bridges. They use a cable to pull up one or both sides of the bridge to create enough height clearance for vessels to pass through.
|-
|Suspension
|Real
|{{w|Suspension bridge}}
|A suspension bridge suspends its deck with cables or rods from a cable linked to a pillar and a point a certain distance from each pillar
|-
|Filler
|Real method of maintaining {{w|Grade (slope)|grade}}, not really a 'bridge'
|{{w|Embankment (earthworks)|Embankment}}, {{w|Causeway}} or even a {{w|Dam}}
|Serves the purpose of allowing travel across the gap, but by removing (or {{w|Culvert|mostly removing}}) passage through the gap itself. By filling the gap with hard, irregular material (most commonly rocks), support can be provided, while still allowing water to flow through the gaps. Due to the generally small size of the gaps, generally only slow-flowing water can reliably get through.
|-
|Budget Overrun
|Real (Absurd Name)
|{{w|Cable-stayed bridge}}
|Specifically, the pictured bridge is a {{w|cantilever spar cable-stayed bridge}}, similar in appearance to the {{w|Samuel Beckett Bridge}}. Many bridges in this category suffer severe cost overruns. Randall may be drawing upon his local knowledge of the {{w|Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Memorial Bridge|Zakim Bridge}} in downtown Boston's {{w|Big Dig}}, also strongly associated with cost overruns.
|-
|Jump
|Not Real
|N/A
|A "bridge" that looks like it belongs in a skatepark. Iconically featured in {{w|The Dukes of Hazzard}} TV show.
|-
|Halfhearted
|Real
|[https://www.archdaily.com/184921/moses-bridge-road-architecten Moses bridge]
|Such a bridge exists at the {{w|Fort de Roovere}} in Halsteren, Netherlands. The bridge in the comic might still require stairs.
|-
|Waterbed
|Not a bridge
|{{w|Waterbed}}
|Rather than a bridge, it is more like another version of a causeway (see 'Filler') using trapped water to maintain the upper surface.
Named for a 'mattress' type, which is usually a raised surface ''on top of'' a piece of bedframe, with an unusual approach to padding and comfort.
|-
|L'Engle
|Not Real
|[https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2018/03/192728/tesseract-definition-wrinkle-in-time-space-dimension Tesseract AWIT]
|References {{w|A Wrinkle In Time}} by Madeleine L'Engle. Characters cross great distances by "tessering", moving via a tesseract through a higher dimension which essentially brings the two ends of the journey together from the perspective of the traveler. The image shows the two ends of the gap being brought together, with the gap apparently crumpled in between them.
|-
|Fun
|Not Real
|
|It is a loop-de-loop, possible allusion to [[2935: Ocean Loop]].
|-
|Repurposed Elevator
|Real, but not as displayed
|Horizontal elevator / {{w|People mover|People mover}}
|There are various implementations of such designs, the best-known one is probably the {{w|Schmid Peoplemover|Schmid Peoplemover}}.
However, unlike a regular people mover, where the door stays upright, the image shows a regular elevator that has been rotated 90 degrees.
|-
|''(Title text)''
|Real
|{{w|Pontoon bridge}}
|Pontoon bridges are described as a series of fictitious "waterbed bridges", as shown above, but constructed without sides. This would mean that that the 'bed'-supporting water flows in one side and out the other, if there is any passage or tidal flow of water. It may technically mean that you cannot cross {{w|The Same River Twice|the same bridge twice}}.
Pontoons rely upon buoyancy, either of the whole deck or distinct floating elements, whereas an enclosed "waterbed" bridge would rely upon the strength of the membrane to keep the mass of water within it, and thus the deck above that mass.
|}

The title text humorously insists that a real {{w|pontoon bridge}} is a concatenation of fictitious "waterbed bridges", but without sides so that water flows in one side and out the other. It raises the idea that (arguable) real-world examples may yet exist for the later bridge types, emphasizing the absurdity of those bridges.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
:Bridge Types

:[A 4x4 matrix of 16 ways to cross the same rectangular hole in the ground]

:Plank [shows a plank laid over the hole]

:Rope [shows a rope bridge with rope guardrail]

:Truss [shows a truss bridge with a triangular truss above the bridge deck]

:Trestle [shows a trestle bridge]

:Arch [shows stone arches supporting a straight deck]

:Suspended Arch [shows a single arch, with the bridge deck suspended from it]

:Draw [shows a truss bridge, with one half opened like an unrealistic draw bridge]

:Suspension [shows the bridge deck suspended from a cable strung between two pillars and the shores]

:Filler [shows the hole filled with dirt and stones]

:Budget Overrun [shows a bridge deck suspended by cables from an artistically shaped pillar]

:Jump [shows two ramps at the edges of the hole, and a skateboarder jumping across the hole]

:Halfhearted [shows a ramp at each side of the hole that leads down to the bottom]

:Waterbed [shows the hole filled with water, two fish and an octopus, a wobbly covering, and two stick figures crossing]

:L'Engle [shows the hole warped such that the opposite shores meet]

:Fun [shows a loop-de-loop rollercoaster bridging the hole, and a skateboarder using it to get across]

:Repurposed Elevator [shows an elevator tower, rotated sideways as a whole, laid across the hole. 2 stick figures using the elevator are also rotated.]

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>

[[Category:Engineering]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]
[[Category:Animals]]

3097: Bridge Types

2025-06-03T10:29:00Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */

3096: Check Engine

2025-05-31T19:41:14Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 3096
| date = May 30, 2025
| title = Check Engine
| image = check_engine_2x.png
| imagesize = 331x383px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = They say it's probably safe to keep orbiting for a while, but if it stays on or starts flashing we might have to call someone.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created by THE SOLAR PIT CREW. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
{{w|Sunspot|Sunspots}} are temporary, relatively small, darker (because cooler) regions on the surface of Earth's Sun. The number of sunspots that can be observed varies over an approximately 11-year cycle. The current cycle is {{w|Solar_cycle_25|the 25th since reckoning began in 1755}}.

The joke in this comic is that the sunspot array shown has taken the form of a "{{w|Check engine light}}", found on the instrument panel of most automobiles. The illumination of this light means that the automobile's onboard computer has detected an engine malfunction, which should be checked out by an experienced mechanic. For such a signal to appear among the nuclear fires and plasma of the sun would most certainly be of concern to astronomers.

Apart from very old vehicles (with far more obvious status lights) and fairly new ones (with a full '{{w|glass cockpit}}' approach), it is common for various lit indicators on a dashboard to be formed by subtly translucent shapes in the base board, around the various active dials for vehicle/engine speeds and the like, that only become obvious when a light goes on behind them. The position and purpose of the lights regarding the current use of indicators, headlights, etc, may quickly become very familiar to a driver, even in a previously unfamiliar vehicle. Other warning lights may be less frequently seen, and may not be entirely obvious that they exist, until they light up or the vehicle's operating manual is read thoroughly enough. The Check Engine light is one that drivers will rarely see (and usually hope that they never have cause to, as it might mean a costly problem; or at least the inconvenience of paying someone to check, to possibly find that it's merely a sensor error), and a strange new light with a perhaps ambiguous shape or lettering is bound to worry an owner of a vehicle, especially as it gets older and various possible faults become more likely to occur.

The display system in use by the Sun, if not a full-on glass-cockpit display, seems to be an inverse of the backlit-symbol method, activating a "black patch" (perhaps akin to the method used in a {{w|liquid-crystal display}}) that has been waiting there just for such a time as it is needed. As with drivers' vehicles, this probably hints at there being a few more such messages, hidden and currently inactive, and could prompt some people to go looking for the long-unread manual to discover ''what else'' could eventually go wrong, as well as to find out as much as possible about what this current warning might entail.

The title text says that "they" (presumably the text of the Sun's owner's manual, continuing the analogy with motor vehicles) advise that it's probably safe for Earth to continue to orbit the Sun unless and until there is a change in the nature of the "check engine light" sunspot array. Such a change, on an instrument panel, signals that the matter needs immediate attention, lest something dramatic and expensive occur, such as an [https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/l8j0ip/eli5_what_is_a_seized_engine/ engine seizure], which can be spectacular and is irreparable. The solar equivalent of an engine seizure would be a {{w|Nova|nova}}, which would definitely be of concern to astronomers (and everyone else), and for which the prospect of "calling [[673: The Sun | someone]]" that can do anything useful (a cosmic tow truck to pull Earth to a safe distance?) seems remote.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
:[A pattern in the form of a "check engine" light (as displayed on a car's instrument panel) is shown on the surface of the Sun, in the bottom right quarter. The pattern has a pictogram of a motor on the top and the text "Check Engine" below it, both in orange inside a black square, matching the orange color of the Sun.]

:[Caption below the panel:]
:This new sunspot cluster has raised concern among astronomers

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Astronomy]]

3096: Check Engine

2025-05-31T18:16:13Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */ details

{{comic
| number = 3096
| date = May 30, 2025
| title = Check Engine
| image = check_engine_2x.png
| imagesize = 331x383px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = They say it's probably safe to keep orbiting for a while, but if it stays on or starts flashing we might have to call someone.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created by THE SOLAR PIT CREW. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
{{w|Sunspot|Sunspots}} are temporary, relatively small, darker (because cooler) regions on the surface of Earth's Sun. The number of sunspots that can be observed varies over an approximately 11-year cycle. The current cycle is {{w|Solar_cycle_25|the 25th since reckoning began in 1755}}.

The joke in this comic is that the sunspot array shown has taken the form of a "{{w|Check engine light}}", found on the instrument panel of most automobiles. The illumination of this light means that the automobile's onboard computer has detected an engine malfunction, which should be checked out by an experienced mechanic. For such a signal to appear among the nuclear fires and plasma of the sun would most certainly be of concern to astronomers.

Apart from very old vehicles (with far more obvious status lights) and fairly new ones (with a full '{{w|glass cockpit}}' approach), it is common for various lit indicators on a dashboard to be formed by subtly translucent shapes in the base board, around the various active dials for vehicle/engine speeds and the like, that only become obvious when a light goes on behind them. The position and purpose of the lights regarding the current use of indicators, headlights, etc, may quickly become very familiar to a driver, even in a previously unfamiliar vehicle. Other warning lights may be less frequently seen, and may not be entirely obvious that they exist, until they light up or the vehicle's operating manual is read thoroughly enough. The Check Engine light is one that drivers will rarely see (and usually hope that they never have cause to, as it might mean a costly problem; or at least the inconvenience of paying someone to check, to possibly find that it's merely a sensor error), and a strange new light with a perhaps ambiguous shape or lettering is bound to worry an owner of a vehicle, especially as it gets older and various possible faults become more likely to occur.

The display system in use by the Sun, if not a full-on glass-cockpit display, seems to be an inverse of the backlit-symbol method, activating a "black patch" (perhaps akin to the method used in a {{w|liquid-crystal display}}) that has been waiting there just for such a time as it is needed. As with drivers' vehicles, this probably hints at there being a few more such messages, hidden and currently inactive, and could prompt some people to go looking for the long-unread manual to discover ''what else'' could eventually go wrong, as well as to find out as much as possible about what this current warning might entail.

The title text says that "they" (presumably the text of the Sun's owner's manual, continuing the analogy with motor vehicles) advise that it's probably safe for Earth to continue to orbit the Sun unless and until there is a change in the nature of the "check engine light" sunspot array. Such a change, on an instrument panel, signals that the matter needs immediate attention, lest something dramatic and expensive occur, such as an [https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/l8j0ip/eli5_what_is_a_seized_engine/ engine seizure], which can be spectacular and is irreparable. The solar equivalent of an engine seizure would be a {{w|Nova|nova}}, which would definitely be of concern to astronomers (and everyone else), and for which the prospect of "calling [[673: The Sun | someone]]" that can do anything useful (a cosmic tow truck to pull Earth to a safe distance?) seems remote.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
:[The pattern of a "Check Engine" warning light (as displayed on a car's dashboard) is shown on the surface of the Sun, in the bottom right quarter. The pattern has a pictogram of a motor on the top and the text "Check Engine" below it, both shown in orange inside a black square, matching the orange color of the Sun.]

:[Caption below the panel:]
:This new sunspot cluster has raised concern among astronomers

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Astronomy]]

3096: Check Engine

2025-05-31T15:08:40Z

Asdf:

Talk:3096: Check Engine

2025-05-31T14:58:18Z

Asdf: Created blank page

3096

2025-05-31T14:57:14Z

Asdf: Redirected page to 3096: Check Engine

#REDIRECT [[3096: Check Engine]]

3096: Check Engine

2025-05-31T14:56:04Z

Asdf: Created blank page

File:check engine.png

2025-05-31T13:39:34Z

Asdf:

== Summary ==
https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/check_engine.png

== Licensing ==
{{XKCD file}}

File:check engine.png

2025-05-31T09:42:18Z

Asdf:

3095: Archaea

2025-05-29T09:50:15Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 3095
| date = May 28, 2025
| title = Archaea
| image = archaea_2x.png
| imagesize = 404x412px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Under the two-domain system, anyone who punches you is technically an Archaean pathogen.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created by an Archean pathogen. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
{{w|Archaea}} is one of the three main lineages (domains) of free-living lifeforms. The other two are {{w|Bacteria}} and {{w|Eukaryote|Eukaryota}}. Organisms within Archaea and Bacteria are {{w|Prokaryote|prokaryotes}}, and were treated as a single domain until the Archaea were split off in the 1970s.

The bacterial and eukaryotic domains each contain numerous species that cause human disease (are pathogens). However, to date, no species of Archaea has been unequivocally shown to be a human pathogen. Whether such pathogens exist, and why, even if they do, they are rare and have low impact, are [https://microbiologysociety.org/blog/why-dont-archaea-cause-disease.html matters of debate].

The joke in this comic is that one or more strains of Archaea, being cultivated in a laboratory, have overheard a conversation among three human scientists (represented by Cueball, Megan, and White Hat), have taken offense at Megan's disparaging comments, and have resolved to become human pathogens. The caption reports this as "bad news" for humanity. Most of the species of Archaea that were known at the time that the domain was recognized, and for some time thereafter, were {{w|Methanogen|methanogens}}, cells that require anaerobic conditions for life and emit methane as a byproduct, or {{w|Methanotroph|methanotrophs}}, cells that use methane (also anaerobically) as a carbon source ("food"). Methanogens and methanotrophs are common in the guts of humans and other animals, therefore have proximity to human cells and opportunity to infect them - hence (the inappropriate anthropomorphism aside) their indignance at Megan's comment, especially since neither group contains methane "breathers". Archaea are now known from many different environments, including aerobic ones, so do not have the limited metabolic options that one might assume that they do from Megan's statement.

"Archaea has" in the caption is unfortunate, as it denotes that a lineage (a branch of a phylogenetic tree) has become pathogenic. Pathogens are living cells, not lines on a page. "Archaeans have" would have been better.

The title text alludes to the hypothesis that the domain Eukaryota arose from within the domain Archaea, allowing for a two-domain classification system comprising Bacteria and Eukaryota-plus-Archaea. Therefore, a human attacker of another human can be considered both a pathogen and an archaeon (the term being understood to mean "Archaea plus Eukaryota"). The irony here is that, under the nomenclatural principle of priority, Eukaryota, being named first, has precedence over Archaea in any usage where "Archaea plus Eukaryota" is intended. The sentence, to be excruciatingly correct, should therefore read "technically a eukaryotic pathogen", which is trivial and would spoil the joke.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
:[Cueball, Megan, and White Hat are standing in a lab in front of a root-like phylogeny diagram. Behind them is a desk with a microscope on it.]
:Cueball: It's weird how, despite being one of the main branches of the tree of life, no Archaea species are known to cause disease in humans.
:Megan: Personally, I think it's because those gross methane breathers are too weird and incompetent to figure out how to hurt us even if they wanted to.
:Archaea sample: ''Hey!''

:[Caption below the panel:]
:Bad news: After overhearing a conversation in our lab, Archaea has finally started harming humans.
{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]
[[Category:Biology]]

3094: Mass Spec

2025-05-27T15:00:09Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 3094
| date = May 26, 2025
| title = Mass Spec
| image = mass_spec_2x.png
| imagesize = 407x253px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Patients at least found it to be an improvement over Millikan's incredibly messy and unpleasant oil drop suspension procedure.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created by HARVEY FLETCHER (UNCREDITED). Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
In the early 1920s, the domestic bathroom scale (initially a form of {{w|Spring_scale|spring scale}}) was introduced to customers in the United States of America. The device soon became popular, and has remained so to the present. Although means to ascertain the weight of the human body existed before the 1920s, they were not in common use, and were not thought necessary in routine physical / medical examinations.

The joke in this comic arises from the claim that, before the invention of the "modern" bathroom scale, human body weights needed to be obtained, not by earlier, less convenient, forms of scale technology, but by Rube Goldberg-esque implementations of {{w|Mass_spectrometry|mass spectrometry}}.

Mass spectrometry, a late 19th-century invention (thus, available only a few decades earlier than the bathroom scale), was developed to obtain the masses of atomic particles by ascertaining their mass-charge ratios. The basic steps, as represented in the comic, are ionization of the mass (rubbing the scalp with the balloon), separating the resulting particles on the basis of their mass and charge (the magnet), and observing the result on a detector (the bullseye). Since the ionization procedure for ''bona fide'' mass-spectroscopy assays involves turning the mass to be analyzed into a gas, the method would quickly be recognized as unsuited for obtaining human body weights, especially over the course of a dieting program, and become unpopular.

The title text compares the mass-spectroscopy-based method for obtaining human body weights with the method based on the {{w|Oil_drop_experiment|Milliken-Fletcher procedure}}, also available only a few years prior to bathroom scales, in which the mass to be analyzed takes the form of atomized oil droplets that are ionized by X-rays. Neither is suited for weight measurements over time scales of any length, but the cleanup procedures for a human body converted into ionized gas are certainly less onerous than those for a similar mass converted into an oil spray.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
:[Ponytail, wearing a lab coat, is giving a balloon to Cueball. Behind Cueball, there is a ramp on the ground, a magnet hanging from the ceiling, and a target on a poster on the wall.]
:Ponytail: Rub this balloon against your head, then go jump past that magnet toward the target on the wall.

:[Caption below the panel:]
:Before the bathroom scale was invented, the only way to weigh people was mass spectrometry.

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Physics]]

List of all comics

2025-05-27T07:03:31Z

Asdf: Fix date

{{List of comics}}

This is a list of comics from 3000 to {{LATESTCOMIC}}.

{| class="wikitable sortable plainlinks table-padding"
|-
!#
!Title
!Talk
!Image
!Date<onlyinclude>
{{comicsrow|3094|2025-05-26|Mass Spec|mass spec 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3093|2025-05-23|Drafting|drafting 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3092|2025-05-21|Baker's Units|bakers units 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3091|2025-05-19|Renormalization|renormalization 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3090|2025-05-16|Sail Physics|sail physics 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3089|2025-05-14|Modern|modern 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3088|2025-05-12|Deposition|deposition 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3087|2025-05-09|Pascal's Law|pascals law 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3086|2025-05-07|Globe Safety|globe safety 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3085|2025-05-05|About 20 Pounds|about 20 pounds 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3084|2025-05-02|Unstoppable Force and Immovable Object|unstoppable force and immovable object 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3083|2025-04-30|Jupiter Core|jupiter core 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3082|2025-04-28|Chess Position|chess position 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3081|2025-04-25|PhD Timeline|phd timeline 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3080|2025-04-23|Tennis Balls|tennis balls 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3079|2025-04-21|Air Fact|air fact 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3078|2025-04-18|Anchor Screws|anchor screws 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3077|2025-04-16|de Sitter|de sitter 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3076|2025-04-14|The Roads Both Taken|the roads both taken 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3075|2025-04-11|Anachronym Challenge|anachronym challenge 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3074|2025-04-09|Push Notifications|push notifications 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3073|2025-04-07|Tariffs|tariffs 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3072|2025-04-04|Stargazing 4|stargazing 4 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3071|2025-04-02|Decay Chain|decay chain 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3070|2025-03-31|Orogeny|orogeny 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3069|2025-03-28|Terror Bird|terror bird 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3068|2025-03-26|Rock Identification|rock identification 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3067|2025-03-24|SawStart|sawstart.png}}
{{comicsrow|3066|2025-03-21|Cosmic Distance Calibration|cosmic distance calibration 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3065|2025-03-19|Square Units|square units 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3064|2025-03-17|Lungfish|lungfish 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3063|2025-03-14|Planet Definitions|planet definitions 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3062|2025-03-12|Off By One|off by one 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3061|2025-03-10|Water Balloons|water balloons 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3060|2025-03-07|Omniroll|omniroll 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3059|2025-03-05|Water Damage|water damage 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3058|2025-03-03|Tall Structures|tall structures 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3057|2025-02-28|Excusing Yourself|excusing yourself 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3056|2025-02-26|RNA|rna 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3055|2025-02-24|Giants|giants 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3054|2025-02-21|Scream Cipher|scream cipher 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3053|2025-02-19|KM3NeT|km3net 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3052|2025-02-17|Archive Request|archive request 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3051|2025-02-14|Hardwood|hardwood 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3050|2025-02-12|Atom|atom 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3049|2025-02-10|Incoming Asteroid|incoming asteroid 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3048|2025-02-07|Suspension Bridge|suspension bridge 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3047|2025-02-05|Rotary Tool|rotary tool 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3046|2025-02-03|Stromatolites|stromatolites 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3045|2025-01-31|AlphaMove|alphamove 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3044|2025-01-29|Humidifier Review|humidifier review 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3043|2025-01-27|Muons|muons 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3042|2025-01-24|T. Rex Evolution|t rex evolution 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3041|2025-01-22|Unit Circle|unit circle 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3040|2025-01-20|Chemical Formulas|chemical formulas 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3039|2025-01-17|Human Altitude|human altitude 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3038|2025-01-15|Uncanceled Units|uncanceled units 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3037|2025-01-13|Radon|radon 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3036|2025-01-10|Chess Zoo|chess zoo 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3035|2025-01-08|Trimix|trimix 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3034|2025-01-06|Features of Adulthood|features of adulthood 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3033|2025-01-03|Origami Black Hole|origami black hole 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3032|2025-01-01|Skew-T Log-P|skew t log p 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3031|2024-12-30|Time Capsule Instructions|time capsule instructions 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3030|2024-12-27|Lasering Incidents|lasering incidents 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3029|2024-12-25|Sun Avoidance|sun avoidance 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3028|2024-12-23|D&D Roll|dnd roll 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3027|2024-12-20|Exclusion Principle|exclusion principle 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3026|2024-12-18|Linear Sort|linear sort 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3025|2024-12-16|Phase Change|phase change 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3024|2024-12-13|METAR|metar 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3023|2024-12-11|The Maritime Approximation|the maritime approximation 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3022|2024-12-09|Making Tea|making tea 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3021|2024-12-06|Seismologists|seismologists 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3020|2024-12-04|Infinite Armada Chess|infinite armada chess 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3019|2024-12-02|Advent Calendar Advent Calendar|advent calendar advent calendar 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3018|2024-11-29|Second Stage|second stage 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3017|2024-11-27|Neutrino Modem|neutrino modem 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3016|2024-11-25|Cold Air|cold air 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3015|2024-11-22|D&D Combinatorics|dnd combinatorics 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3014|2024-11-20|Arizona Chess|arizona chess 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3013|2024-11-18|Kedging Cannon|kedging cannon 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3012|2024-11-15|The Future of Orion|the future of orion 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3011|2024-11-13|Europa Clipper|europa clipper 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3010|2024-11-11|Geometriphylogenetics|geometriphylogenetics 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3009|2024-11-08|Number Shortage|number shortage 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3008|2024-11-06|Proterozoic Rocks|proterozoic rocks 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3007|2024-11-04|Probabilistic Uncertainty|probabilistic uncertainty 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3006|2024-11-01|Demons|demons 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3005|2024-10-30|Disposal|disposal 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3004|2024-10-28|Wells|wells 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3003|2024-10-25|Sandwich Helix|sandwich helix 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3002|2024-10-23|RNAWorld|rnaworld 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3001|2024-10-21|Temperature Scales|temperature scales 2x.png}}</onlyinclude>
|}

[[Category:Comics| 3001]]

List of all comics

2025-05-27T06:44:20Z

Asdf: Added 3094, I hope the bot can continue later

{{List of comics}}

This is a list of comics from 3000 to {{LATESTCOMIC}}.

{| class="wikitable sortable plainlinks table-padding"
|-
!#
!Title
!Talk
!Image
!Date<onlyinclude>
{{comicsrow|3094|2025-05-27|Mass Spec|mass spec 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3093|2025-05-23|Drafting|drafting 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3092|2025-05-21|Baker's Units|bakers units 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3091|2025-05-19|Renormalization|renormalization 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3090|2025-05-16|Sail Physics|sail physics 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3089|2025-05-14|Modern|modern 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3088|2025-05-12|Deposition|deposition 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3087|2025-05-09|Pascal's Law|pascals law 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3086|2025-05-07|Globe Safety|globe safety 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3085|2025-05-05|About 20 Pounds|about 20 pounds 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3084|2025-05-02|Unstoppable Force and Immovable Object|unstoppable force and immovable object 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3083|2025-04-30|Jupiter Core|jupiter core 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3082|2025-04-28|Chess Position|chess position 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3081|2025-04-25|PhD Timeline|phd timeline 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3080|2025-04-23|Tennis Balls|tennis balls 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3079|2025-04-21|Air Fact|air fact 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3078|2025-04-18|Anchor Screws|anchor screws 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3077|2025-04-16|de Sitter|de sitter 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3076|2025-04-14|The Roads Both Taken|the roads both taken 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3075|2025-04-11|Anachronym Challenge|anachronym challenge 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3074|2025-04-09|Push Notifications|push notifications 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3073|2025-04-07|Tariffs|tariffs 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3072|2025-04-04|Stargazing 4|stargazing 4 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3071|2025-04-02|Decay Chain|decay chain 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3070|2025-03-31|Orogeny|orogeny 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3069|2025-03-28|Terror Bird|terror bird 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3068|2025-03-26|Rock Identification|rock identification 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3067|2025-03-24|SawStart|sawstart.png}}
{{comicsrow|3066|2025-03-21|Cosmic Distance Calibration|cosmic distance calibration 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3065|2025-03-19|Square Units|square units 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3064|2025-03-17|Lungfish|lungfish 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3063|2025-03-14|Planet Definitions|planet definitions 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3062|2025-03-12|Off By One|off by one 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3061|2025-03-10|Water Balloons|water balloons 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3060|2025-03-07|Omniroll|omniroll 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3059|2025-03-05|Water Damage|water damage 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3058|2025-03-03|Tall Structures|tall structures 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3057|2025-02-28|Excusing Yourself|excusing yourself 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3056|2025-02-26|RNA|rna 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3055|2025-02-24|Giants|giants 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3054|2025-02-21|Scream Cipher|scream cipher 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3053|2025-02-19|KM3NeT|km3net 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3052|2025-02-17|Archive Request|archive request 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3051|2025-02-14|Hardwood|hardwood 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3050|2025-02-12|Atom|atom 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3049|2025-02-10|Incoming Asteroid|incoming asteroid 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3048|2025-02-07|Suspension Bridge|suspension bridge 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3047|2025-02-05|Rotary Tool|rotary tool 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3046|2025-02-03|Stromatolites|stromatolites 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3045|2025-01-31|AlphaMove|alphamove 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3044|2025-01-29|Humidifier Review|humidifier review 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3043|2025-01-27|Muons|muons 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3042|2025-01-24|T. Rex Evolution|t rex evolution 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3041|2025-01-22|Unit Circle|unit circle 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3040|2025-01-20|Chemical Formulas|chemical formulas 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3039|2025-01-17|Human Altitude|human altitude 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3038|2025-01-15|Uncanceled Units|uncanceled units 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3037|2025-01-13|Radon|radon 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3036|2025-01-10|Chess Zoo|chess zoo 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3035|2025-01-08|Trimix|trimix 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3034|2025-01-06|Features of Adulthood|features of adulthood 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3033|2025-01-03|Origami Black Hole|origami black hole 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3032|2025-01-01|Skew-T Log-P|skew t log p 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3031|2024-12-30|Time Capsule Instructions|time capsule instructions 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3030|2024-12-27|Lasering Incidents|lasering incidents 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3029|2024-12-25|Sun Avoidance|sun avoidance 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3028|2024-12-23|D&D Roll|dnd roll 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3027|2024-12-20|Exclusion Principle|exclusion principle 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3026|2024-12-18|Linear Sort|linear sort 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3025|2024-12-16|Phase Change|phase change 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3024|2024-12-13|METAR|metar 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3023|2024-12-11|The Maritime Approximation|the maritime approximation 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3022|2024-12-09|Making Tea|making tea 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3021|2024-12-06|Seismologists|seismologists 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3020|2024-12-04|Infinite Armada Chess|infinite armada chess 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3019|2024-12-02|Advent Calendar Advent Calendar|advent calendar advent calendar 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3018|2024-11-29|Second Stage|second stage 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3017|2024-11-27|Neutrino Modem|neutrino modem 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3016|2024-11-25|Cold Air|cold air 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3015|2024-11-22|D&D Combinatorics|dnd combinatorics 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3014|2024-11-20|Arizona Chess|arizona chess 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3013|2024-11-18|Kedging Cannon|kedging cannon 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3012|2024-11-15|The Future of Orion|the future of orion 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3011|2024-11-13|Europa Clipper|europa clipper 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3010|2024-11-11|Geometriphylogenetics|geometriphylogenetics 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3009|2024-11-08|Number Shortage|number shortage 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3008|2024-11-06|Proterozoic Rocks|proterozoic rocks 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3007|2024-11-04|Probabilistic Uncertainty|probabilistic uncertainty 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3006|2024-11-01|Demons|demons 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3005|2024-10-30|Disposal|disposal 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3004|2024-10-28|Wells|wells 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3003|2024-10-25|Sandwich Helix|sandwich helix 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3002|2024-10-23|RNAWorld|rnaworld 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3001|2024-10-21|Temperature Scales|temperature scales 2x.png}}</onlyinclude>
|}

[[Category:Comics| 3001]]

List of all comics

2025-05-23T19:42:23Z

Asdf: 3076 and 3064 were missing

{{List of comics}}

This is a list of comics from 3000 to {{LATESTCOMIC}}.

{| class="wikitable sortable plainlinks table-padding"
|-
!#
!Title
!Talk
!Image
!Date<onlyinclude>
{{comicsrow|3093|2025-05-23|Drafting|drafting 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3092|2025-05-21|Baker's Units|bakers units 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3091|2025-05-19|Renormalization|renormalization 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3090|2025-05-16|Sail Physics|sail physics 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3089|2025-05-14|Modern|modern 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3088|2025-05-12|Deposition|deposition 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3087|2025-05-09|Pascal's Law|pascals law 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3086|2025-05-07|Globe Safety|globe safety 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3085|2025-05-05|About 20 Pounds|about 20 pounds 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3084|2025-05-02|Unstoppable Force and Immovable Object|unstoppable force and immovable object 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3083|2025-04-30|Jupiter Core|jupiter core 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3082|2025-04-28|Chess Position|chess position 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3081|2025-04-25|PhD Timeline|phd timeline 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3080|2025-04-23|Tennis Balls|tennis balls 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3079|2025-04-21|Air Fact|air fact 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3078|2025-04-18|Anchor Screws|anchor screws 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3077|2025-04-16|de Sitter|de sitter 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3076|2025-04-14|The Roads Both Taken|the roads both taken 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3075|2025-04-11|Anachronym Challenge|anachronym challenge 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3074|2025-04-09|Push Notifications|push notifications 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3073|2025-04-07|Tariffs|tariffs 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3072|2025-04-04|Stargazing 4|stargazing 4 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3071|2025-04-02|Decay Chain|decay chain 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3070|2025-03-31|Orogeny|orogeny 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3069|2025-03-28|Terror Bird|terror bird 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3068|2025-03-26|Rock Identification|rock identification 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3067|2025-03-24|SawStart|sawstart.png}}
{{comicsrow|3066|2025-03-21|Cosmic Distance Calibration|cosmic distance calibration 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3065|2025-03-19|Square Units|square units 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3064|2025-03-17|Lungfish|lungfish 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3063|2025-03-14|Planet Definitions|planet definitions 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3062|2025-03-12|Off By One|off by one 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3061|2025-03-10|Water Balloons|water balloons 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3060|2025-03-07|Omniroll|omniroll 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3059|2025-03-05|Water Damage|water damage 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3058|2025-03-03|Tall Structures|tall structures 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3057|2025-02-28|Excusing Yourself|excusing yourself 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3056|2025-02-26|RNA|rna 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3055|2025-02-24|Giants|giants 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3054|2025-02-21|Scream Cipher|scream cipher 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3053|2025-02-19|KM3NeT|km3net 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3052|2025-02-17|Archive Request|archive request 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3051|2025-02-14|Hardwood|hardwood 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3050|2025-02-12|Atom|atom 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3049|2025-02-10|Incoming Asteroid|incoming asteroid 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3048|2025-02-07|Suspension Bridge|suspension bridge 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3047|2025-02-05|Rotary Tool|rotary tool 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3046|2025-02-03|Stromatolites|stromatolites 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3045|2025-01-31|AlphaMove|alphamove 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3044|2025-01-29|Humidifier Review|humidifier review 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3043|2025-01-27|Muons|muons 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3042|2025-01-24|T. Rex Evolution|t rex evolution 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3041|2025-01-22|Unit Circle|unit circle 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3040|2025-01-20|Chemical Formulas|chemical formulas 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3039|2025-01-17|Human Altitude|human altitude 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3038|2025-01-15|Uncanceled Units|uncanceled units 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3037|2025-01-13|Radon|radon 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3036|2025-01-10|Chess Zoo|chess zoo 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3035|2025-01-08|Trimix|trimix 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3034|2025-01-06|Features of Adulthood|features of adulthood 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3033|2025-01-03|Origami Black Hole|origami black hole 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3032|2025-01-01|Skew-T Log-P|skew t log p 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3031|2024-12-30|Time Capsule Instructions|time capsule instructions 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3030|2024-12-27|Lasering Incidents|lasering incidents 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3029|2024-12-25|Sun Avoidance|sun avoidance 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3028|2024-12-23|D&D Roll|dnd roll 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3027|2024-12-20|Exclusion Principle|exclusion principle 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3026|2024-12-18|Linear Sort|linear sort 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3025|2024-12-16|Phase Change|phase change 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3024|2024-12-13|METAR|metar 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3023|2024-12-11|The Maritime Approximation|the maritime approximation 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3022|2024-12-09|Making Tea|making tea 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3021|2024-12-06|Seismologists|seismologists 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3020|2024-12-04|Infinite Armada Chess|infinite armada chess 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3019|2024-12-02|Advent Calendar Advent Calendar|advent calendar advent calendar 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3018|2024-11-29|Second Stage|second stage 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3017|2024-11-27|Neutrino Modem|neutrino modem 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3016|2024-11-25|Cold Air|cold air 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3015|2024-11-22|D&D Combinatorics|dnd combinatorics 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3014|2024-11-20|Arizona Chess|arizona chess 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3013|2024-11-18|Kedging Cannon|kedging cannon 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3012|2024-11-15|The Future of Orion|the future of orion 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3011|2024-11-13|Europa Clipper|europa clipper 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3010|2024-11-11|Geometriphylogenetics|geometriphylogenetics 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3009|2024-11-08|Number Shortage|number shortage 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3008|2024-11-06|Proterozoic Rocks|proterozoic rocks 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3007|2024-11-04|Probabilistic Uncertainty|probabilistic uncertainty 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3006|2024-11-01|Demons|demons 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3005|2024-10-30|Disposal|disposal 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3004|2024-10-28|Wells|wells 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3003|2024-10-25|Sandwich Helix|sandwich helix 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3002|2024-10-23|RNAWorld|rnaworld 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3001|2024-10-21|Temperature Scales|temperature scales 2x.png}}</onlyinclude>
|}

[[Category:Comics| 3001]]

3093: Drafting

2025-05-23T15:27:29Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */ typo

{{comic
| number = 3093
| date = May 23, 2025
| title = Drafting
| image = drafting_2x.png
| imagesize = 317x518px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = A 5% efficiency gain at the cost of a 99% efficiency loss
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created recently. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

{{w|Drafting}} is an aerodynamic technique where one moving object follows another one closely to reduce drag by using the first objects {{w|splitstream}}. It is used in various sports, most prominently {{w|cycling}}.

The comic explores the idea of using drafting for rockets and states that while it theoretically works, it isn't really recommended. The title text gives more details on this, claiming that there is an efficiency gain of 5% through drafting via the general mechanism, it also comes with a 99% loss (which isn't explained in detail).

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Needs image description. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
:[Caption below the panel:]
:Aerospace tip: Although the technique reduces atmospheric drag for many types of vehicles, you should ''never'' try to improve rocket launch efficiency through drafting.

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>
[[Category:Rockets]]
[[Category:Tips]]

3093: Drafting

2025-05-23T15:25:51Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */ still having technical difficulties

{{comic
| number = 3093
| date = May 23, 2025
| title = Drafting
| image = drafting_2x.png
| imagesize = 317x518px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = A 5% efficiency gain at the cost of a 99% efficiency loss
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created recently. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

{{w|Drafting}} is an aerodynamic technique where one moving object follows another one closely to reduce drag by using the first objects {{w|splitstream}}. It is used in various sports, most prominently {{w|cycling}}.

The comic explores the idea of using drafting for rockets and states that while it theoretically works, it isn't really recommended. The title text gives more details on this, claiming that there is an efficiency gain of 5% through drafting via the general mechanism, it also comes with a 99% loss (which isn't explained in detail).

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Needs image description. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
:[Caption below the panel:]
:Aerospace tip: Although the techique reduces atmospheric drag for many types of vehicles, you should ''never'' try to improve rocket launch efficiency through drafting.

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>
[[Category:Rockets]]
[[Category:Tips]]

List of all comics

2025-05-23T15:08:20Z

Asdf:

{{List of comics}}

This is a list of comics from 3000 to {{LATESTCOMIC}}.

{| class="wikitable sortable plainlinks table-padding"
|-
!#
!Title
!Talk
!Image
!Date<onlyinclude>
{{comicsrow|3093|2025-05-23|Drafting|drafting 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3092|2025-05-21|Baker's Units|bakers units 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3091|2025-05-19|Renormalization|renormalization 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3090|2025-05-16|Sail Physics|sail physics 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3089|2025-05-14|Modern|modern 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3088|2025-05-12|Deposition|deposition 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3087|2025-05-09|Pascal's Law|pascals law 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3086|2025-05-07|Globe Safety|globe safety 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3085|2025-05-05|About 20 Pounds|about 20 pounds 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3084|2025-05-02|Unstoppable Force and Immovable Object|unstoppable force and immovable object 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3083|2025-04-30|Jupiter Core|jupiter core 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3082|2025-04-28|Chess Position|chess position 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3081|2025-04-25|PhD Timeline|phd timeline 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3080|2025-04-23|Tennis Balls|tennis balls 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3079|2025-04-21|Air Fact|air fact 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3078|2025-04-18|Anchor Screws|anchor screws 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3077|2025-04-16|de Sitter|de sitter 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3075|2025-04-11|Anachronym Challenge|anachronym challenge 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3074|2025-04-09|Push Notifications|push notifications 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3073|2025-04-07|Tariffs|tariffs 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3072|2025-04-04|Stargazing 4|stargazing 4 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3071|2025-04-02|Decay Chain|decay chain 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3070|2025-03-31|Orogeny|orogeny 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3069|2025-03-28|Terror Bird|terror bird 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3068|2025-03-26|Rock Identification|rock identification 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3067|2025-03-24|SawStart|sawstart.png}}
{{comicsrow|3066|2025-03-21|Cosmic Distance Calibration|cosmic distance calibration 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3065|2025-03-19|Square Units|square units 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3063|2025-03-14|Planet Definitions|planet definitions 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3062|2025-03-12|Off By One|off by one 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3061|2025-03-10|Water Balloons|water balloons 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3060|2025-03-07|Omniroll|omniroll 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3059|2025-03-05|Water Damage|water damage 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3058|2025-03-03|Tall Structures|tall structures 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3057|2025-02-28|Excusing Yourself|excusing yourself 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3056|2025-02-26|RNA|rna 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3055|2025-02-24|Giants|giants 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3054|2025-02-21|Scream Cipher|scream cipher 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3053|2025-02-19|KM3NeT|km3net 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3052|2025-02-17|Archive Request|archive request 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3051|2025-02-14|Hardwood|hardwood 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3050|2025-02-12|Atom|atom 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3049|2025-02-10|Incoming Asteroid|incoming asteroid 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3048|2025-02-07|Suspension Bridge|suspension bridge 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3047|2025-02-05|Rotary Tool|rotary tool 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3046|2025-02-03|Stromatolites|stromatolites 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3045|2025-01-31|AlphaMove|alphamove 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3044|2025-01-29|Humidifier Review|humidifier review 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3043|2025-01-27|Muons|muons 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3042|2025-01-24|T. Rex Evolution|t rex evolution 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3041|2025-01-22|Unit Circle|unit circle 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3040|2025-01-20|Chemical Formulas|chemical formulas 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3039|2025-01-17|Human Altitude|human altitude 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3038|2025-01-15|Uncanceled Units|uncanceled units 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3037|2025-01-13|Radon|radon 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3036|2025-01-10|Chess Zoo|chess zoo 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3035|2025-01-08|Trimix|trimix 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3034|2025-01-06|Features of Adulthood|features of adulthood 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3033|2025-01-03|Origami Black Hole|origami black hole 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3032|2025-01-01|Skew-T Log-P|skew t log p 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3031|2024-12-30|Time Capsule Instructions|time capsule instructions 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3030|2024-12-27|Lasering Incidents|lasering incidents 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3029|2024-12-25|Sun Avoidance|sun avoidance 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3028|2024-12-23|D&D Roll|dnd roll 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3027|2024-12-20|Exclusion Principle|exclusion principle 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3026|2024-12-18|Linear Sort|linear sort 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3025|2024-12-16|Phase Change|phase change 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3024|2024-12-13|METAR|metar 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3023|2024-12-11|The Maritime Approximation|the maritime approximation 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3022|2024-12-09|Making Tea|making tea 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3021|2024-12-06|Seismologists|seismologists 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3020|2024-12-04|Infinite Armada Chess|infinite armada chess 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3019|2024-12-02|Advent Calendar Advent Calendar|advent calendar advent calendar 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3018|2024-11-29|Second Stage|second stage 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3017|2024-11-27|Neutrino Modem|neutrino modem 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3016|2024-11-25|Cold Air|cold air 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3015|2024-11-22|D&D Combinatorics|dnd combinatorics 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3014|2024-11-20|Arizona Chess|arizona chess 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3013|2024-11-18|Kedging Cannon|kedging cannon 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3012|2024-11-15|The Future of Orion|the future of orion 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3011|2024-11-13|Europa Clipper|europa clipper 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3010|2024-11-11|Geometriphylogenetics|geometriphylogenetics 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3009|2024-11-08|Number Shortage|number shortage 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3008|2024-11-06|Proterozoic Rocks|proterozoic rocks 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3007|2024-11-04|Probabilistic Uncertainty|probabilistic uncertainty 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3006|2024-11-01|Demons|demons 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3005|2024-10-30|Disposal|disposal 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3004|2024-10-28|Wells|wells 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3003|2024-10-25|Sandwich Helix|sandwich helix 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3002|2024-10-23|RNAWorld|rnaworld 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3001|2024-10-21|Temperature Scales|temperature scales 2x.png}}</onlyinclude>
|}

[[Category:Comics| 3001]]

List of all comics

2025-05-23T14:59:42Z

Asdf: 3093 and 3092

{{List of comics}}

This is a list of comics from 3000 to {{LATESTCOMIC}}.

{| class="wikitable sortable plainlinks table-padding"
|-
!#
!Title
!Talk
!Image
!Date<onlyinclude>
{{comicsrow|3093|2025-05-23|Drafting|drafting 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3092|2025-05-21|Baker's Units|bakers units 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3091|2025-05-19|Renormalization|renormalization 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3090|2025-05-16|Sail Physics|sail physics 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3089|2025-05-14|Modern|modern 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3088|2025-05-12|Deposition|deposition 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3087|2025-05-09|Pascal's Law|pascals law 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3086|2025-05-07|Globe Safety|globe safety 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3085|2025-05-05|About 20 Pounds|about 20 pounds 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3084|2025-05-02|Unstoppable Force and Immovable Object|unstoppable force and immovable object 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3083|2025-04-30|Jupiter Core|jupiter core 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3082|2025-04-28|Chess Position|chess position 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3081|2025-04-25|PhD Timeline|phd timeline 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3080|2025-04-23|Tennis Balls|tennis balls 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3079|2025-04-21|Air Fact|air fact 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3078|2025-04-18|Anchor Screws|anchor screws 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3077|2025-04-16|de Sitter|de sitter 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3075|2025-04-11|Anachronym Challenge|anachronym challenge 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3074|2025-04-09|Push Notifications|push notifications 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3073|2025-04-07|Tariffs|tariffs 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3072|2025-04-04|Stargazing 4|stargazing 4 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3071|2025-04-02|Decay Chain|decay chain 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3070|2025-03-31|Orogeny|orogeny 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3069|2025-03-28|Terror Bird|terror bird 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3068|2025-03-26|Rock Identification|rock identification 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3067|2025-03-24|SawStart|sawstart.png}}
{{comicsrow|3066|2025-03-21|Cosmic Distance Calibration|cosmic distance calibration 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3065|2025-03-19|Square Units|square units 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3063|2025-03-14|Planet Definitions|planet definitions 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3062|2025-03-12|Off By One|off by one 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3061|2025-03-10|Water Balloons|water balloons 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3060|2025-03-07|Omniroll|omniroll 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3059|2025-03-05|Water Damage|water damage 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3058|2025-03-03|Tall Structures|tall structures 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3057|2025-02-28|Excusing Yourself|excusing yourself 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3056|2025-02-26|RNA|rna 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3055|2025-02-24|Giants|giants 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3054|2025-02-21|Scream Cipher|scream cipher 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3053|2025-02-19|KM3NeT|km3net 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3052|2025-02-17|Archive Request|archive request 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3051|2025-02-14|Hardwood|hardwood 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3050|2025-02-12|Atom|atom 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3049|2025-02-10|Incoming Asteroid|incoming asteroid 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3048|2025-02-07|Suspension Bridge|suspension bridge 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3047|2025-02-05|Rotary Tool|rotary tool 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3046|2025-02-03|Stromatolites|stromatolites 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3045|2025-01-31|AlphaMove|alphamove 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3044|2025-01-29|Humidifier Review|humidifier review 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3043|2025-01-27|Muons|muons 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3042|2025-01-24|T. Rex Evolution|t rex evolution 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3041|2025-01-22|Unit Circle|unit circle 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3040|2025-01-20|Chemical Formulas|chemical formulas 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3039|2025-01-17|Human Altitude|human altitude 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3038|2025-01-15|Uncanceled Units|uncanceled units 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3037|2025-01-13|Radon|radon 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3036|2025-01-10|Chess Zoo|chess zoo 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3035|2025-01-08|Trimix|trimix 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3034|2025-01-06|Features of Adulthood|features of adulthood 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3033|2025-01-03|Origami Black Hole|origami black hole 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3032|2025-01-01|Skew-T Log-P|skew t log p 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3031|2024-12-30|Time Capsule Instructions|time capsule instructions 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3030|2024-12-27|Lasering Incidents|lasering incidents 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3029|2024-12-25|Sun Avoidance|sun avoidance 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3028|2024-12-23|D&D Roll|dnd roll 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3027|2024-12-20|Exclusion Principle|exclusion principle 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3026|2024-12-18|Linear Sort|linear sort 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3025|2024-12-16|Phase Change|phase change 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3024|2024-12-13|METAR|metar 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3023|2024-12-11|The Maritime Approximation|the maritime approximation 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3022|2024-12-09|Making Tea|making tea 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3021|2024-12-06|Seismologists|seismologists 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3020|2024-12-04|Infinite Armada Chess|infinite armada chess 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3019|2024-12-02|Advent Calendar Advent Calendar|advent calendar advent calendar 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3018|2024-11-29|Second Stage|second stage 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3017|2024-11-27|Neutrino Modem|neutrino modem 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3016|2024-11-25|Cold Air|cold air 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3015|2024-11-22|D&D Combinatorics|dnd combinatorics 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3014|2024-11-20|Arizona Chess|arizona chess 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3013|2024-11-18|Kedging Cannon|kedging cannon 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3012|2024-11-15|The Future of Orion|the future of orion 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3011|2024-11-13|Europa Clipper|europa clipper 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3010|2024-11-11|Geometriphylogenetics|geometriphylogenetics 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3009|2024-11-08|Number Shortage|number shortage 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3008|2024-11-06|Proterozoic Rocks|proterozoic rocks 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3007|2024-11-04|Probabilistic Uncertainty|probabilistic uncertainty 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3006|2024-11-01|Demons|demons 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3005|2024-10-30|Disposal|disposal 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3004|2024-10-28|Wells|wells 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3003|2024-10-25|Sandwich Helix|sandwich helix 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3002|2024-10-23|RNAWorld|rnaworld 2x.png}}
{{comicsrow|3001|2024-10-21|Temperature Scales|temperature scales 2x.png}}</onlyinclude>
|}

[[Category:Comics| 3001]]

3092: Baker's Units

2025-05-22T08:36:43Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 3092
| date = May 21, 2025
| title = Baker's Units
| image = bakers_units_2x.png
| imagesize = 349x310px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = 169 is a baker's gross.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created by a baker's bot. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

A '{{w|Dozen#Baker's_dozen|baker's dozen}}' is an expression referring to the number 13, as opposed to the normal 'dozen', meaning 12. This stems from a tradition in medieval times whereby salespeople would include 13 items when selling a 'dozen'. This was due to them having to pay penalties (in some regions, draconian ones) when customers were sold one item short, or not enough weight. To avoid the customer complaints and the penalty, bakers added a safety margin that allowed them to still serve a dozen in a hurry: If a miscount happened the baker would have given out twelve rolls just as ordered; if no miscount happened the baker would just be short of one inexpensive item.

[[Randall]] proceeds to apply this principle to other things involving the number 12. A reader might anticipate this means simply applying a count of 13 of a thing, or adding one to the most prominent quantity. But it slowly becomes clear that, instead, Randall finds something about the thing that is comprised of 12 units, changes that to 13, and demonstrates the logical consequence.

The results gradually become more unexpected and silly:
* Imperial feet are 12 inches long; a 'baker's foot' would be 13 inches long.
* Noon is 12:00 o'clock ("twelve hundred hours/Juliett" in 24-hour {{w|24-hour clock#Military time|military parlance}}); 'baker's noon' would be 1 o'clock PM ("thirteen hundred hours", etc).
* Dodecahedra have 12 faces ("dodeca" = "twelve"). The best-known kind of {{w|dodecahedron}} is the regular dodecahedron, a {{w|Platonic solid}} whose faces are regular pentagons (the shape that most {{w|Dice#Polyhedral dice|d12}}s take the form of), but there are others such as the {{w|rhombic dodecahedron}} and {{w|Pyritohedron#Pyritohedron|pyritohedron}}. a 'baker's dodecahedron' would have thirteen faces, making it, in fact, a tridecahedron, with triangles, squares and pentagons (which are not Platonic solids and cannot be used as dice due to having multiple face types, rendering dice-based games unbalanced).
* Years have 12 months; a baker would celebrate 'baker's New Year's Eve' after an extra thirteenth month, on January 31 (and implying that their New Year would shift forward each year).
* Octaves are comprised of 12 half-steps (a half-step is the distance between adjacent notes, such as F and F#). A 'baker’s octave' would have 13 half-steps (corresponding to a minor ninth) and cause problems in musical composition, as octaves (of the baker’s variety) would be dissonant, instead of being consonant. However, Randall's musical notation actually shows a ''major'' ninth, with ''fourteen'' half-steps. If he wanted thirteen half-steps, Randall could have used D♭ instead of D, or drawn a bass clef instead of a treble clef.
* Trial juries in the Anglo-Saxon law tradition ({{w|Common Law}}) consist of 12 peers. The 'baker’s jury' would have 13 peers. This might be considered to make little practical difference, though it does mean that (in situations where a jury is allowed to present a majority verdict instead of requiring unanimity), the odd number of jurors would prevent exact ties. (Note that {{w|Trial by jury in Scotland|Scottish juries}}, in particular, start with the expectation of there being 15 jurors, and may well end up reduced to 13 or even 12.)
* The {{w|Flag of Europe}} has 12 stars forming a circle (as a symbol of harmony); unlike in the US flag, the stars do not represent member states. The flag was first adopted by the Council of Europe in 1955, when it already had 13 members - today there are over 40. The European Communities adopted the Flag of Europe in 1986 before the EC turned into the European Union. A 13th star could potentially be added to the baker's EU flag, to make a 'baker's EU flag', without major damage to the symbol. In the United States, thirteen stars in a circle is associated with the {{w|Betsy Ross flag}}, the first U.S. flag.
* Magnesium is the element with the ordinal number 12, with twelve protons. Aluminum is number 13, and is a very different material.{{Citation needed}} 'Baker's magnesium' actually has more applications in baking (namely, tinfoil, which is actually made of aluminum, not tin), but it does not have as much nutritional value.
* In the title text, a count of 144 (12x12) is a gross. Thus, 169 (13x13) would be a 'baker's gross', an addition of not just one but 25 units.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
:Baker's units
:[A formation comprising of 13 items] - Baker's dozen
:[A ruler divided into 13 parts] - Baker's foot
:1:00 PM - Baker's noon
:[A polyhedron with 13 faces] - Baker's dodecahedron
:January 31st - Baker's New Year's Eve
:[Two notes on a staff 13 half-steps apart] - Baker's octave
:[13 people standing in a row] - Baker's jury
:[A flag with 13 stars forming a circle] - Baker's EU flag
:Aluminum - Baker's magnesium

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>
[[Category:Food]]
[[Category:Music]]
[[Category:Chemistry]]
[[Category:Math]]

3092: Baker's Units

2025-05-22T08:11:35Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 3092
| date = May 21, 2025
| title = Baker's Units
| image = bakers_units_2x.png
| imagesize = 349x310px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = 169 is a baker's gross.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created by a baker's bot. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

A {{w|Dozen#Baker's_dozen|baker's dozen}} is 13 units of bakery goods, as opposed to the normal dozen meaning 12. That tradition began when salesmen in medieval times had to pay penalties (in some regions, draconian ones) when customers were sold one item short, or not enough weight. To avoid the customer complaints and the penalty, bakers added a safety margin that allowed them to still serve a dozen in a hurry: If a miscount happens the baker would have given out twelve rolls just as ordered; if no miscount happens the baker is just short of one inexpensive item).

Randall proceeds to apply this principle to other things. A reader might anticipate this means simply applying a count of 13 of a thing, or adding one to the most prominent quantity. But it slowly becomes clear that, instead, Randall finds something about the thing that is comprised of 12 units, changes that to 13, and demonstrates the logical consequence.

The results gradually become more unexpected and silly:
* Imperial feet are 12 inches long; a baker's foot would be 13 inches long.
* Noon is 12:00 o'clock ("twelve hundred hours/Juliett" in 24-hour {{w|24-hour clock#Military time|military parlance}}); baker's noon would be 1 o'clock PM ("thirteen hundred hours", etc).
* Dodecahedra have 12 faces ("dodeca" = "twelve"). The best-known kind of {{w|dodecahedron}} is the regular dodecahedron, a {{w|Platonic solid}} whose faces are regular pentagons (the shape that most {{w|Dice#Polyhedral dice|d12}}s take the form of), but there are others such as the {{w|rhombic dodecahedron}} and {{w|Pyritohedron#Pyritohedron|pyritohedron}}. Baker's ones are tridecahedra with triangles, squares and pentagons (which are not Platonic solids and cannot be used as dice due to having multiple face types, rendering dice-based games unbalanced).
* Years have 12 months; a baker would celebrate New Year's Eve after an extra thirteenth month, on January 31 (and implying that their New Year would shift forward each year).
* Octaves are comprised of 12 half-steps (a half-step is the distance between adjacent notes, such as F and F#). A baker’s octave would have 13 half-steps (corresponding to a minor ninth) and cause problems in musical composition, as octaves (of the baker’s variety) would be dissonant, instead of being consonant. However, Randall's musical notation actually shows a ''major'' ninth, with ''fourteen'' half-steps. If he wanted thirteen half-steps, Randall could have used D♭ instead of D, or drawn a bass clef instead of a treble clef.
* Trial juries in the Anglo-Saxon law tradition ({{w|Common Law}}) consist of 12 peers. The baker’s jury has 13 peers. This might be considered to make little practical difference, though it does mean that (in situations where a jury is allowed to present a majority verdict instead of requiring unanimity), the odd number of jurors would prevent exact ties. (Note that {{w|Trial by jury in Scotland|Scottish juries}}, in particular, start with the expectation of there being 15 jurors, and may well end up reduced to 13 or even 12.)
* The {{w|Flag of Europe}} has 12 stars forming a circle (as a symbol of harmony); unlike in the US flag, the stars do not represent member states. The flag was first adopted by the Council of Europe in 1955, when it already had 13 members - today there are over 40. The European Communities adopted the Flag of Europe in 1986 before the EC turned into the European Union. A 13th star could potentially be added to the baker's EU flag nevertheless without major damage to the symbol. In the United States, thirteen stars in a circle is associated with the {{w|Betsy Ross flag}}, the first U.S. flag.
* Magnesium is the element with the ordinal number 12, with twelve protons. Aluminum is number 13, and is a very different material.{{Citation needed}} "Baker's magnesium" actually has more applications in baking (namely, tinfoil, which is actually made of aluminum, not tin), but it does not have as much nutritional value.
* In the title text, a count of 144 (12x12) is a gross. Thus, 169 (13x13) would be a baker's gross, an addition of not just one but 25 units.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
:Baker's units
:[A formation comprising of 13 items] - Baker's dozen
:[A ruler divided into 13 parts] - Baker's foot
:1:00 PM - Baker's noon
:[A shape with 13 faces] - Baker's dedecahedron
:January 31st - Baker's New Year's Eve
:[Two notes on a staff 13 half-steps apart] - Baker's octave
:[13 people standing in a row] - Baker's jury
:[A flag with 13 stars forming a circle] - Baker's EU flag
:Aluminum - Baker's magnesium

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>
[[Category:Food]]
[[Category:Music]]
[[Category:Chemistry]]
[[Category:Math]]

3092: Baker's Units

2025-05-22T08:09:27Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 3092
| date = May 21, 2025
| title = Baker's Units
| image = bakers_units_2x.png
| imagesize = 349x310px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = 169 is a baker's gross.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created by a baker's bot. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

A {{w|Dozen#Baker's_dozen|baker's dozen}} is 13 units of bakery goods, as opposed to the normal dozen meaning 12. That tradition began when salesmen in medieval times had to pay penalties (in some regions, draconian ones) when customers were sold one item short, or not enough weight. To avoid the customer complaints and the penalty, bakers added a safety margin that allowed them to still serve a dozen in a hurry: If a miscount happens the baker would have given out twelve rolls just as ordered; if no miscount happens the baker is just short of one inexpensive item).

Randall proceeds to apply this principle to other things. A reader might anticipate this means simply applying a count of 13 of a thing, or adding one to the most prominent quantity. But it slowly becomes clear that, instead, Randall finds something about the thing that is comprised of 12 units, changes that to 13, and demonstrates the logical consequence.

The results gradually become more unexpected and silly:
* Imperial feet are 12 inches long; a baker's foot would be 13 inches long.
* Noon is 12:00 o'clock ("twelve hundred hours/Juliett" in 24-hour {{w|24-hour clock#Military time|military parlance}}); baker's noon would be 1 o'clock PM ("thirteen hundred hours", etc).
* Dodecahedra have 12 faces ("dodeca" = "twelve"). The best-known kind of {{w|dodecahedron}} is the regular dodecahedron, a {{w|Platonic solid}} whose faces are regular pentagons (the shape that most {{w|Dice#Polyhedral dice|d12}}s take the form of), but there are others such as the {{w|rhombic dodecahedron}} and {{w|Pyritohedron#Pyritohedron|pyritohedron}}. Baker's ones are tridecahedra with triangles, squares and pentagons (which are not Platonic solids and cannot be used as dice due to having multiple face types, rendering dice-based games unbalanced).
* Years have 12 months; a baker would celebrate New Year's Eve after an extra thirteenth month, on January 31 (and implying that their New Year would shift forward each year).
* Octaves are comprised of 12 half-steps (a half-step is the distance between adjacent notes, such as F and F#). A baker’s octave would have 13 half-steps (corresponding to a minor ninth) and cause problems in musical composition, as octaves (of the baker’s variety) would be dissonant, instead of being consonant. However, Randall's musical notation actually shows a ''major'' ninth, with ''fourteen'' half-steps. If he wanted thirteen half-steps, Randall could have used D♭ instead of D, or drawn a bass clef instead of a treble clef.
* Trial juries in the Anglo-Saxon law tradition ({{w|Common Law}}) consist of 12 peers. The baker’s jury has 13 peers. This might be considered to make little practical difference, though it does mean that (in situations where a jury is allowed to present a majority verdict instead of requiring unanimity), the odd number of jurors would prevent exact ties. (Note that {{w|Trial by jury in Scotland|Scottish juries}}, in particular, start with the expectation of there being 15 jurors, and may well end up reduced to 13 or even 12.)
* The {{w|Flag of Europe}} has 12 stars forming a circle (as a symbol of harmony); unlike in the US flag, the stars do not represent member states. The flag was first adopted by the Council of Europe in 1955, when it already had 13 members - today there are over 40. The European Communities adopted the Flag of Europe in 1986 before the EC turned into the European Union. A 13th star could potentially be added to the baker's EU flag nevertheless without major damage to the symbol. In the United States, thirteen stars in a circle is associated with the {{w|Betsy Ross flag}}, the first U.S. flag.
* Magnesium is the element with the ordinal number 12, with twelve protons. Aluminum is number 13, and is a very different material.{{Citation needed}} "Baker's magnesium" actually has more applications in baking (namely, tinfoil, which is actually made of aluminum, not tin), but it does not have as much nutritional value.
* In the title text, a count of 144 (12x12) is a gross. Thus, 169 (13x13) would be a baker's gross, an addition of not just one but 25 units.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
:Baker's units
:[A formation comprising 13 items] - Baker's dozen
:[A ruler divided into 13 parts] - Baker's foot
:1:00 PM - Baker's noon
:[A shape with 13 faces] - Baker's dedecahedron
:January 31st - Baker's New Year's Eve
:[Two notes on a staff 13 half-steps apart] - Baker's octave
:[13 people standing in a row] - Baker's jury
:[A flag with 13 stars forming a circle] - Baker's EU flag
:Aluminum - Baker's magnesium

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>
[[Category:Food]]
[[Category:Music]]
[[Category:Chemistry]]
[[Category:Math]]

3092: Baker's Units

2025-05-22T07:59:39Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 3092
| date = May 21, 2025
| title = Baker's Units
| image = bakers_units_2x.png
| imagesize = 349x310px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = 169 is a baker's gross.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created by a baker's bot. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

A {{w|Dozen#Baker's_dozen|baker's dozen}} is 13 units of bakery goods, as opposed to the normal dozen meaning 12. That tradition began when salesmen in medieval times had to pay penalties (in some regions, draconian ones) when customers were sold one item short, or not enough weight. To avoid the customer complaints and the penalty, bakers added a safety margin that allowed them to still serve a dozen in a hurry: If a miscount happens the baker would have given out twelve rolls just as ordered; if no miscount happens the baker is just short of one inexpensive item).

Randall proceeds to apply this principle to other things. A reader might anticipate this means simply applying a count of 13 of a thing, or adding one to the most prominent quantity. But it slowly becomes clear that, instead, Randall finds something about the thing that is comprised of 12 units, changes that to 13, and demonstrates the logical consequence.

The results gradually become more unexpected and silly:
* Imperial feet are 12 inches long; a baker's foot would be 13 inches long.
* Noon is 12:00 o'clock ("twelve hundred hours/Juliett" in 24-hour {{w|24-hour clock#Military time|military parlance}}); baker's noon would be 1 o'clock PM ("thirteen hundred hours", etc).
* Dodecahedra have 12 faces ("dodeca" = "twelve"). The best-known kind of {{w|dodecahedron}} is the regular dodecahedron, a {{w|Platonic solid}} whose faces are regular pentagons (the shape that most {{w|Dice#Polyhedral dice|d12}}s take the form of), but there are others such as the {{w|rhombic dodecahedron}} and {{w|Pyritohedron#Pyritohedron|pyritohedron}}. Baker's ones are tridecahedra with triangles, squares and pentagons (which are not Platonic solids and cannot be used as dice due to having multiple face types, rendering dice-based games unbalanced).
* Years have 12 months; a baker would celebrate New Year's Eve after an extra thirteenth month, on January 31 (and implying that their New Year would shift forward each year).
* Octaves are comprised of 12 half-steps (a half-step is the distance between adjacent notes, such as F and F#). A baker’s octave would have 13 half-steps (corresponding to a minor ninth) and cause problems in musical composition, as octaves (of the baker’s variety) would be dissonant, instead of being consonant. However, Randall's musical notation actually shows a ''major'' ninth, with ''fourteen'' half-steps. If he wanted thirteen half-steps, Randall could have used D♭ instead of D, or drawn a bass clef instead of a treble clef.
* Trial juries in the Anglo-Saxon law tradition ({{w|Common Law}}) consist of 12 peers. The baker’s jury has 13 peers. This might be considered to make little practical difference, though it does mean that (in situations where a jury is allowed to present a majority verdict instead of requiring unanimity), the odd number of jurors would prevent exact ties. (Note that {{w|Trial by jury in Scotland|Scottish juries}}, in particular, start with the expectation of there being 15 jurors, and may well end up reduced to 13 or even 12.)
* The {{w|Flag of Europe}} has 12 stars forming a circle (as a symbol of harmony); unlike in the US flag, the stars do not represent member states. The flag was first adopted by the Council of Europe in 1955, when it already had 13 members - today there are over 40. The European Communities adopted the Flag of Europe in 1986 before the EC turned into the European Union. A 13th star could potentially be added to the baker's EU flag nevertheless without major damage to the symbol. In the United States, thirteen stars in a circle is associated with the {{w|Betsy Ross flag}}, the first U.S. flag.
* Magnesium is the element with the ordinal number 12, with twelve protons. Aluminum is number 13, and is a very different material.{{Citation needed}} "Baker's magnesium" actually has more applications in baking (namely, tinfoil, which is actually made of aluminum, not tin), but it does not have as much nutritional value.
* In the title text, a count of 144 (12x12) is a gross. Thus, 169 (13x13) would be a baker's gross, an addition of not just one but 25 units.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
:Baker's units
:[An assortment of 13 items] - Baker's dozen
:[A ruler divided into 13 parts] - Baker's foot
:1:00 PM - Baker's noon
:[A shape with 13 faces] - Baker's dedecahedron
:January 31st - Baker's New Year's Eve
:[Two notes on a staff 13 half-steps apart] - Baker's octave
:[13 people standing] - Baker's jury
:[A flag with 13 stars in a circle] - Baker's EU flag
:Aluminum - Baker's magnesium

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>
[[Category:Food]]
[[Category:Music]]
[[Category:Chemistry]]
[[Category:Math]]

3092: Baker's Units

2025-05-22T07:40:17Z

Asdf: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 3092
| date = May 21, 2025
| title = Baker's Units
| image = bakers_units_2x.png
| imagesize = 349x310px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = 169 is a baker's gross.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created by a baker's bot. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

A {{w|Dozen#Baker's_dozen|baker's dozen}} is 13 units of bakery goods, as opposed to the normal dozen meaning 12. That tradition began when salesmen in medieval times had to pay penalties (in some regions, draconian ones) when customers were sold one item short, or not enough weight. To avoid the customer complaints and the penalty, bakers added a safety margin that allowed them to still serve a dozen in a hurry: If a miscount happens the baker would have given out twelve rolls just as ordered; if no miscount happens the baker is just short of one inexpensive item).

Randall proceeds to apply this principle to other things. A reader might anticipate this means simply applying a count of 13 of a thing, or adding one to the most prominent quantity. But it slowly becomes clear that, instead, Randall finds something about the thing that is comprised of 12 units, changes that to 13, and demonstrates the logical consequence.

The results gradually become more unexpected and silly:
* Imperial feet are 12 inches long; a baker's foot would be 13 inches long.
* Noon is 12:00 o'clock ("twelve hundred hours/Juliett" in 24-hour {{w|24-hour clock#Military time|military parlance}}); baker's noon would be 1 o'clock PM ("thirteen hundred hours", etc).
* Dodecahedra have 12 faces ("dodeca" = "twelve"). The best-known kind of {{w|dodecahedron}} is the regular dodecahedron, a {{w|Platonic solid}} whose faces are regular pentagons (the shape that most {{w|Dice#Polyhedral dice|d12}}s take the form of), but there are others such as the {{w|rhombic dodecahedron}} and {{w|Pyritohedron#Pyritohedron|pyritohedron}}. Baker's ones are tridecahedra with triangles, squares and pentagons (which are not Platonic solids and cannot be used as dice due to having multiple face types, rendering dice-based games unbalanced).
* Years have 12 months; a baker would celebrate New Year's Eve after an extra thirteenth month, on January 31 (and implying that their New Year would shift forward each year).
* Octaves are comprised of 12 half-steps (a half-step is the distance between adjacent notes, such as F and F#). A baker’s octave would have 13 half-steps (corresponding to a minor ninth) and cause problems in musical composition, as octaves (of the baker’s variety) would be dissonant, instead of being consonant. However, Randall's musical notation actually shows a ''major'' ninth, with ''fourteen'' half-steps. If he wanted thirteen half-steps, Randall could have used D♭ instead of D, or drawn a bass clef instead of a treble clef.
* Trial juries in the Anglo-Saxon law tradition ({{w|Common Law}}) consist of 12 peers. The baker’s jury has 13 peers. This might be considered to make little practical difference, though it does mean that (in situations where a jury is allowed to present a majority verdict instead of requiring unanimity), the odd number of jurors would prevent exact ties. (Note that {{w|Trial by jury in Scotland|Scottish juries}}, in particular, start with the expectation of there being 15 jurors, and may well end up reduced to 13 or even 12.)
* The {{w|Flag of Europe}} has 12 stars forming a circle (as a symbol of harmony); unlike in the US flag, the stars do not represent member states. The flag was first adopted by the Council of Europe in 1955, when it already had 13 members - today there are over 40. The European Communities adopted the Flag of Europe in 1986 before the EC turned into the European Union. A 13th star could potentially be added to the baker's EU flag nevertheless without major damage to the symbol. In the United States, thirteen stars in a circle is associated with the {{w|Betsy Ross flag}}, the first U.S. flag.
* Magnesium is the element with the ordinal number 12, with twelve protons. Aluminum is number 13, and is a very different material.{{Citation needed}} "Baker's magnesium" actually has more applications in baking (namely, tinfoil, which is actually made of aluminum, not tin), but it does not have as much nutritional value.
* In the title text, a count of 144 (12x12) is a gross. Thus, 169 (13x13) would be a baker's gross, an addition of not just one but 25 units.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>
[[Category:Food]]
[[Category:Music]]
[[Category:Chemistry]]
[[Category:Math]]

3088: Deposition

2025-05-13T21:53:51Z

Asdf: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 3088
| date = May 12, 2025
| title = Deposition
| image = deposition_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x272px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = P.S. If you have time travel, come to my birthday party Saturday!
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created by BEDROCK INSPECTOR NO 4. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
A {{w|continental margin}} is the place on the edge of a continent where the {{w|continental crust}} is underwater, covered by relatively shallow coastal waters. The scene is ambiguous, but it is feasible that Ponytail is stood on the back-shore {{w|littoral zone}} ''next'' to the rivermouth, such that she is actually {{tvtropes|LamePunReaction|a stone's throw}} away from the sea. As such, the stones she throws off to the right end up embedded directly into the soft shoreline/sediments without having to risk further erosion from all the other stones and gravel also sitting in the riverbed or being tumbled down it.

The continental margin is said to be {{w|passive margin|passive}}, which means that it is not currently undergoing {{w|subduction}}, where the oceanic crust slips under the continental crust, or a {{w|strike-slip fault}}, where one slides along the other, both of which can mechanically or thermally transform any seafloor material. Absent such occurrences, this causes piles of {{w|sediment}} to {{w|River delta#Formation|accumulate}} on the {{w|continental shelf}} with a minimum of additional geological disturbance.

This rock's eventual resting place in the sediment seems destined to be compressed by further overlying sedimentation and solidify over geologic timescales into {{w|shale}} or other similar sedimentary rock types, presuming that the future movement of further sediment and relative local changes of sea-level and shoreline keep adding more material. As shown, 100 million years later the sea level has gone down (and/or the bedrock has risen), re-exposing the strata, and recent erosion/quarrying has caused it to become a cliff face that eventually re-exposes the original rock that Ponytail threw into the river, apparently just at the right time and place to be discovered or uncovered by [[2990: Late Cenozoic|aliens/far-future-earthlings]].

These beings appear to be digging with relatively primitive hand-tools that are strangely anthropocentric and relatively inefficient, given the apparent use of antigravity personal conveyors with mechanical manipulators, and have found a rock. Whether or not they fully comprehend it, this seems to be one of those left with a still visible carved message by Ponytail, saying "This bedrock inspected by No. 5". This is a parody of a typical {{w|quality control}} label left attached to (or hidden within) clothing, to reassure any purchaser and/or help identify which manufacturing and inspection path any newly discovered {{w|product defect}} had passed through.

In the title text, Ponytail suggests that the aliens/future-earth-based-lifeforms may have access to {{w|time travel}} technology, and invites them to her birthday party (next) Saturday, which suggests that the "inspected by" message is just one of several different speculative statements engraved on any particular stone. The invitational one does not seem to give an indication ''which'' Saturday is meant so, even if the finders would be able to time travel, it might still not be trivial for them to attend the birthday party. This also presupposes that the future discoverers understand the concept of the seven-day week cycle and have no trouble reading the invite, both remaining legible and not requiring impractical levels of translation from 'ancient English'.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

:[Cueball approaches Ponytail, chiselling a rock on a shoreline next to a river with shallow rolling hills in the background]
:Cueball: What are you doing?
:Ponytail: This river empties onto a passive continental margin.

:[Cueball and Ponytail stand talking, Ponytail holding several flat rocks, in an otherwise empty and frameless panel]
:Ponytail: If I chisel notes onto these rocks and throw them into the sea, they might be incorporated into some shale cliff in the distant future.

:[Silhouetted scene of Ponytail as she throws multiple rocks off frame to the right, Cueball watching from behind her]
:[From off-panel, sound effect of a rock hitting water:] PLOP

:[Two 'bug-eyed aliens', sitting in personal 'hover-saucers' look rightwards at an exposed rock-face. A pick and shovel are left stuck in the ground, and one of the 'saucers' sports a mechanical arm currently holding a loose fragment of rock. There are three question marks above the alien on the left and two question marks next to the alien on the right]
:[Panel label:] 100 million years later...
:[Text originating from the held rock fragment:] This bedrock inspected by No. 5

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Geology]]
[[Category:Aliens]]
[[Category:Time travel]]

3088: Deposition

2025-05-13T19:07:23Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 3088
| date = May 12, 2025
| title = Deposition
| image = deposition_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x272px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = P.S. If you have time travel, come to my birthday party Saturday!
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created by BEDROCK INSPECTOR NO 4. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
A {{w|continental margin}} is the place on the edge of a continent where the {{w|continental crust}} is underwater, covered by relatively shallow coastal waters. A stone thrown into the river by [[Ponytail]] will {{w|Hjulström curve|potentially}} be {{w|Fluvial sediment processes|washed down the river}} during periods of sufficient flow of water, until it reaches coastal waters, making it a 'fluvial erratic' (see also {{w|glacial erratic}}). Though not much more than with similar stones ''not'' thrown into the river, which would probably also be eventually dragged into the main channel, the next time there are risen water levels, and gradually transported downstream (sometimes beached, sometimes being nudged down by the main flow) not notably far apart from ones given a head start by Ponytail.

The continental margin is said to be {{w|passive margin|passive}}, which means that it is not currently undergoing {{w|subduction}}, where the oceanic crust slips under the continental crust, or a {{w|strike-slip fault}}, where one slides along the other, both of which can mechanically or thermally transform any seafloor material. Absent such occurrences, this causes piles of {{w|sediment}} to {{w|River delta#Formation|accumulate}} on the {{w|continental shelf}} with a minimum of additional geological disturbance.

This rock's eventual resting place in the sediment seems destined to be compressed by further overlying sedimentation and solidify over geologic timescales into {{w|shale}} or other similar sedimentary rock types. As shown, 100 million years later the sea level has gone down (and/or the bedrock has risen), exposing the shale, and recent erosion/quarrying has caused it to become a cliff face that eventually re-exposes the original rock that Ponytail threw into the river, apparently just at the right time and place to be discovered or uncovered by [[2990: Late Cenozoic|aliens/far-future-earthlings]].

These beings appear to be digging with relatively primitive hand-tools that are anachronistic, given the apparent use of antigravity personal conveyors with mechanical manipulators, and have found a rock. Whether or not they fully comprehend it, this seems to be one of those left with a still visible carved message by Ponytail, saying "This bedrock inspected by No. 5". This is a parody of a typical {{w|quality control}} label left attached to (or hidden within) clothing, to reassure any purchaser and/or help identify which manufacturing and inspection path any newly discovered {{w|product defect}} had passed through.

In the title text, Ponytail suggests that the aliens/future-earth-based-lifeforms may have access to {{w|time travel}} technology, and invites them to her birthday party (next) Saturday, which suggests that the "inspected by" message is just one of several different speculative statements engraved on any particular stone. The invitational one does not seem to give an indication ''which'' Saturday is meant so, even if the finders would be able to time travel, it might still not be trivial for them to attend the birthday party. This also presupposes that the future discoverers have no trouble reading the invite, both remaining legible and not requiring impractical levels of translation from 'ancient English'.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

:[Cueball approaches Ponytail, chiselling a rock on a shoreline next to a river with shallow rolling hills in the background]
:Cueball: What are you doing?
:Ponytail: This river empties onto a passive continental margin.

:[Cueball and Ponytail stand talking, Ponytail holding several flat rocks, in an otherwise empty and frameless panel]
:Ponytail: If I chisel notes onto these rocks and throw them into the sea, they might be incorporated into some shale cliff in the distant future.

:[Silhouetted scene of Ponytail as she throws multiple rocks off frame to the right, Cueball watching from behind her]
:[From off-panel, sound effect of a rock hitting water:] PLOP

:[Two 'bug-eyed aliens', sitting in personal 'hover-saucers' look rightwards at an exposed rock-face. A pick and shovel are left stuck in the ground, and one of the 'saucers' sports a mechanical arm currently holding a loose fragment of rock. There are three question marks above the alien on the left and two question marks next to the alien on the right]
:[Panel label:] 100 million years later...
:[Text originating from the held rock fragment:] This bedrock inspected by No. 5

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Geology]]
[[Category:Aliens]]
[[Category:Time travel]]

3086: Globe Safety

2025-05-08T14:50:39Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */ ce

{{comic
| number = 3086
| date = May 7, 2025
| title = Globe Safety
| image = globe_safety_2x.png
| imagesize = 255x448px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Frankly, given their extreme gravitational fields and general instability, even 12-inch globes should probably be banned.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created by an EARTH MASS BOT THE SIZE OF A REGULAR BOT. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
The {{w|Schwarzschild radius}} of a given object is the radius of the {{w|event horizon}} of a {{w|black hole}} with the mass of that object. The Schwarzschild radius of the Earth is about 0.35 inches (roughly 8.9 mm), meaning if you could hypothetically compress the Earth into a ball that small it would collapse into a black hole (among other effects). This would be bad.{{Citation needed}}

{{w|Globes}}, in this context, are miniature recreations of planet Earth, used to show its features without any of the [[977: Map Projections|typical problems of a flat map]]. [[Randall]] claims that safety standards are in place to ensure that globes are not manufactured at below, or close to, the Schwarzschild radius of the Earth. The suggestion is that any globe of the Earth shares the same mass as the Earth and hence the same Schwarzschild radius. This would indicate that globes are made by creating a literal 1:1 replica of Earth and then compressing it until it has the required size. This would, of course, give the most perfect maps; however, for each globe like this put on Earth, the Earth's mass would increase by its original amount.

The title text suggests that globes up to 12 inches (30.48 cm) should be banned, due to their extreme density and gravitational field. Since they would have the same mass as the Earth, they would exert massive catastrophic gravitational forces on the Earth itself (as well as its satellites, other planets, etc.). However, this would be true for Earth-mass globes of any size, so the 12 inch cut-off would be no less arbitrary than the 4 inch one.

==Transcript==
:[A standard globe of the Earth is shown. It stands on a typical stand which holds it by two arms at the poles, so it can turn around like the Earth does. The Earth is turned so it shows Australia at the bottom and most of Asia, including the entire India to the left. Only the very tip of Alaska can be seen of the Americas. Above the globe there is a double ended arrow that goes to two small lines that align with the edges of the globe (indicating the diameter). The arrow has been split in the middle and two lines of text are written in the gap. Above this text there is another line of text.]
:Remember:
:4 inches minimum

:[Beneath the globe there are two small drawings. The left shows the Earth and to the left of the Earth there is a double ended arrow ending at two lines that indicated the diameter of the Earth going from top to bottom. The distance of this is written in inches to the left. From the Earth an arrow points to another drawing, this time the typical depiction of a black hole, with a "hat" like shape. A triangular warning sign is shown a the top right of the black hole with an exclamation mark inside.]
:7/10"

:[Caption below the panel:]
:The Earth's Schwarzschild radius is about 0.35 inches, which is why safety regulations require desktop globes to be at least 4 inches in diameter.

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>

[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Maps]]

3086: Globe Safety

2025-05-08T14:46:11Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 3086
| date = May 7, 2025
| title = Globe Safety
| image = globe_safety_2x.png
| imagesize = 255x448px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Frankly, given their extreme gravitational fields and general instability, even 12-inch globes should probably be banned.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created by an EARTH MASS BOT THE SIZE OF A REGULAR BOT. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
The {{w|Schwarzschild radius}} of a given object is the radius of the {{w|event horizon}} of a {{w|black hole}} with the mass of that object. The Schwarzschild radius of the Earth is about 0.35 inches (roughly 8.9 mm), meaning if you could hypothetically compress the Earth into a ball that small it would collapse into a black hole (among other effects). This would be bad.{{Citation needed}}

{{w|Globes}}, in this context, are miniature recreations of planet Earth, used to show its features without any of the [[977: Map Projections|typical problems of a flat map]]. [[Randall]] claims that safety standards are in place to ensure that globes are not manufactured at below, or close to, the Schwarzschild radius of the Earth. The suggestion is that any globe of the Earth shares the same mass as the Earth and hence the same Schwarzschild radius. This would indicate that globes are made by creating a literal 1:1 replica of Earth and then compressing it until it has the required size. This would, of course, give the most perfect maps; however, for each globe like this put on Earth, the Earth's mass would increase by its original amount.

The title text suggests that globes up to 12 inches (30.48 cm) should be banned, due to their extreme density and gravitational field. Since they would have the same mass as the Earth, they would exert massive catastrophic gravitational forces on the Earth itself (as well as its satellites, other planets, etc.). However, this would be true for Earth-mass globes of any size, so the 12 inch cut-off would be no less arbitrary than the 4 inch one.

==Transcript==
:[A standard globe of the Earth is shown. It stands on a typical stand which holds it by two arms at the poles, so it can turn around like the Earth does. The Earth is turned so it shows Australia at the bottom and most of Asia, including the entire India to the left. Only the very tip of Alaska can bee seen of the Americas. Above the globe there is a double arrow that goes to two small lines that align with the edges of the globe (indicating the diameter). The arrow has been split in the middle and two lines of text is written in the gab. Above this text there is another line of text.]
:Remember:
:4 inches minimum

:[Beneath the globe there are two small drawings. The left shows the Earth and to the left of the Earth there is a double arrow ending at two lines that indicated the diameter of the Earth going from top to bottom. The distance of this is written in inches to the left. From the Earth an arrow points to another drawing, this time the typical depiction of a black hole, with the "hat" shape. A triangular warning sign is shown a the top right of the black hole with an exclamation mark inside.]
:7/10"

:[Caption below the panel:]
:The Earth's Schwarzschild radius is about 0.35 inches, which is why safety regulations require desktop globes to be at least 4 inches in diameter.

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>

[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Maps]]

3086: Globe Safety

2025-05-08T14:40:51Z

Asdf: /* Explanation */ Wikipedia says 8.87×10^−3 m

{{comic
| number = 3086
| date = May 7, 2025
| title = Globe Safety
| image = globe_safety_2x.png
| imagesize = 255x448px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Frankly, given their extreme gravitational fields and general instability, even 12-inch globes should probably be banned.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created by an EARTH MASS BOT THE SIZE OF A REGULAR BOT. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
The {{w|Schwarzschild radius}} of a given object is the radius of the {{w|event horizon}} of a {{w|black hole}} with the mass of that object. The Schwarzschild radius of the Earth is about 0.35 inches (roughly 8.9 mm), meaning if you could hypothetically compress the Earth into a ball that small it would collapse into a black hole (among other effects). This would be bad.{{Citation needed}}

{{w|Globes}}, in this context, are miniature recreations of planet Earth, used to show its features without any of the [[977: Map Projections|typical problems of a flat map]]. [[Randall]] claims that safety standards are in place to ensure that globes are not manufactured at below, or close to, the Schwarzschild radius of the Earth. The suggestion is that any globe of the Earth shares the same mass as the Earth and hence the same Schwarzschild radius. This would indicate that globes are made by creating a literal 1:1 replica of Earth and then compressing it until it has the required size. This would, of course, give the most perfect maps; however, for each globe like this put on Earth, the Earth's mass would increase by its original amount.

The title text suggests that globes up to 12 inches (30.48 cm) should be banned, due to their extreme density and gravitational field. Since they would have the same mass as the Earth, they would exert massive catastrophic gravitational forces on the Earth itself (as well as its satellites, other planets, etc.). However, this would be true for Earth-mass globes of any size, so the 12 inch cut-off would be no less arbitrary than the 4 inch one.

==Transcript==
:[A standard globe of the Earth is shown. It stands on a typical stand which holds it by two arms at the poles, so it can turn around like the Earth does. The Earth is turned so it shows Australia at the bottom and most of Asia, including the entire India to the left. Only the very tip of Alaska can bee seen of the Americas. Above the globe there is a double arrow that goes to two small lines that align with the edges of the globe (indicating the diameter). The arrow has been split in the middle and two lines of text is written in the gab. Above this text there is another line of text.]
:Remember:
:4 inches minimum

:[Beneath the globe there are two small drawings. The left shows the Earth and to the left of the Earth there is a double arrow ending at two lines that indicated the diameter of the Earth going from top to bottom. The distance of this is written in inches to the left. From the Earth an arrow points to another drawing, this time the typical depiction of a black hole, with the "hat" shape. A warning sign is shown a the top right of the black hole with an exclamation mark inside.]
:7/10"
[Caption Below the Panel:]
The Earth's Schwarzschild radius is about 0.35 inches, which is why safety regulations require desktop globes to be at least 4 inches in diameter.

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>

[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Maps]]

3085: About 20 Pounds

2025-05-06T18:52:15Z

Asdf: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 3085
| date = May 5, 2025
| title = About 20 Pounds
| image = about_20_pounds_2x.png
| imagesize = 666x278px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = In addition to gravity, burritos interact through the strong, weak, and electromagnetic forces, which is believed to be a major contributor to their popularity.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a £20 20-LB PARTICLE. Are any categories missing? Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

The nature of {{w|dark matter}} is a significant unsolved problem in physics. In an effort to solve the problem, [[Cueball]] and [[Ponytail]] appear to have used occult methods to conjure a supernatural {{w|oracle}} (something which would present its own challenges to our understanding of the physical world) in order to demand an answer from it. There may be a pun here, in that they are using 'dark magic' to communicate with something from the 'dark realm' on the assumption that it will know about dark matter. However, the word 'dark' in this context simply means that we do not know how to observe it; dark matter is not evil or satanic{{cn}} (though [[Randall]] may consider it [[:Category:Comics with cursed items|cursed]]).

In general, not all forces interact with all particles; indeed, {{w|gravity}} is the only force that is (believed to) interact with everything. If a force doesn't interact with a particle, then its existence cannot be observed via disturbances in that force. In particular, something that doesn't interact with electromagnetism cannot be 'seen', as photons will pass through it completely unaffected.

Even {{w|neutrino}}s -- famous for interacting with ''almost'' nothing -- still in fact interact via the {{w|weak force}}, allowing them to be detected with sufficiently large tanks of dense material (as most atoms do in fact interact with the weak force, however weakly). A particle that interacts with ''nothing'' except gravity, could only be detected by a gravitational telescope.

However, even if a particle does interact via a given force, an interaction is only possible if energy is conserved. If dark matter is entirely due to a single kind of particle, and the fundamental mass of that particle is ''twenty pounds'' (approximately 9kg) -- an absolutely ludicrous amount of energy for particle physics -- then any interaction would (roughly speaking) have to involve an equally ludicrous amount of other particles being in exactly the right place and time, a coincidence that could easily reach "never in the history of the universe" levels. (By comparison, the {{w|top quark}}, otherwise the heaviest single particle with a mass over a hundred times that of the proton, is still nevertheless around a tenth of a trillionth of a trillionth of a pound.)

Under more normal circumstances, we might still hope to observe the properties of the particle via creating it ourselves under controlled laboratory conditions. But again, there is no reasonable way to focus the energy required into a single particle interaction -- the LHC, for example, peaks at about ten thousand times the mass of the proton, a solid billion times less energy than required -- so that's out too.

Finally, despite all this, twenty pounds is also much too ''small'' to be detectable via gravitational interaction -- its {{w|Perturbation_(astronomy)|influence on the orbits of planets}}, say, or the strength of its {{w|gravitational lensing}} effect, will be entirely negligible. Thus, in the scenario posed by the comic, there is essentially no plausible way to observe more about dark matter while on Earth.

The oracle proceeds to break expectations by suggesting that Ponytail and Cueball go out for {{w|burrito}}s, something generally considered less than scientific. When faced with the apparent futility of continuing to try to investigate dark matter, the oracle predicts going out for burritos is precisely as productive as any other approach (i.e. "not at all").

When the title text observes that burritos interact through the strong, weak, and electro-magnetic forces in addition to gravity, or all four known {{w|fundamental interaction}}s, it presumably means that they can be seen, smelt, tasted, and their texture sensed, as well as producing digestive effects, and that all of these effects generally tend to be pleasant, hence contributing to their popularity.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball and Ponytail are standing in front of a pentacle with lit candles at the corners. A black sphere, the oracle, is floating above the middle of the pentacle.]
:Ponytail: Dear oracle,
:Ponytail: What is the nature of dark matter?
:Oracle: It's about 20 pounds.

:[Close up of oracle]
:Off-panel: What?
:Oracle: Dark matter is a particle. It weighs about 20 pounds.
:Oracle: It only interacts through gravity.

:[Same view as first panel]
:Cueball: Only gravity, huh?
:Cueball: So none of our experiments are really going to tell us any more about it, then.
:Oracle: Afraid not.

:[Same view as first and third panels, except Cueball lifted his forearm.]
:Cueball: So what do we do?
:Oracle: You should go out for burritos.
:Ponytail: How will that help?
:Oracle: Well
:Oracle: Burritos are pretty good.

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Physics]]
[[Category:Food]]
</noinclude>

3085: About 20 Pounds

2025-05-06T16:23:24Z

Asdf: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 3085
| date = May 5, 2025
| title = About 20 Pounds
| image = about_20_pounds_2x.png
| imagesize = 666x278px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = In addition to gravity, burritos interact through the strong, weak, and electromagnetic forces, which is believed to be a major contributor to their popularity.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a £20 PARTICLE. Are there any missing categories? Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

The nature of {{w|dark matter}} is a significant unsolved problem in physics. In an effort to solve the problem, [[Cueball]] and [[Ponytail]] appear to have used occult methods to conjure a supernatural {{w|oracle}} (something which would present its own challenges to our understanding of the physical world) in order to demand an answer from it. There may be a pun here, in that they are using 'dark magic' to communicate with something from the 'dark realm' on the assumption that it will know about dark matter. However, the word 'dark' in this context simply means that we do not know how to observe it; dark matter is not evil or satanic{{cn}} (though [[Randall]] may consider it [[:Category:Comics with cursed items|cursed]]).

In general, not all forces interact with all particles; indeed, {{w|gravity}} is the only force that is (believed to) interact with everything. If a force doesn't interact with a particle, then its existence cannot be observed via disturbances in that force. In particular, something that doesn't interact with electromagnetism cannot be 'seen', as photons will pass through it completely unaffected.

Even {{w|neutrino}}s -- famous for interacting with ''almost'' nothing -- still in fact interact via the {{w|weak force}}, allowing them to be detected with sufficiently large tanks of dense material (as most atoms do in fact interact with the weak force, however weakly). A particle that interacts with ''nothing'' except gravity, could only be detected by a gravitational telescope.

However, even if a particle does interact via a given force, an interaction is only possible if energy is conserved. If dark matter is entirely due to a single kind of particle, and the fundamental mass of that particle is ''twenty pounds'' -- an absolutely ludicrous amount of energy for particle physics -- then any interaction would (roughly speaking) have to involve an equally ludicrous amount of other particles being in exactly the right place and time, a coincidence that could easily reach "never in the history of the universe" levels. (By comparison, the {{w|top quark}}, otherwise the heaviest single particle with a mass over a hundred times that of the proton, is still nevertheless around a tenth of a trillionth of a trillionth of a pound.)

Under more normal circumstances, we might still hope to observe the properties of the particle via creating it ourselves under controlled laboratory conditions. But again, there is no reasonable way to focus the energy required into a single particle interaction -- the LHC, for example, peaks at about ten thousand times the mass of the proton, a solid billion times less energy than required -- so that's out too.

Finally, despite all this, twenty pounds is also much too ''small'' to be detectable via gravitational interaction -- its {{w|Perturbation_(astronomy)|influence on the orbits of planets}}, say, or the strength of its {{w|gravitational lensing}} effect, will be entirely negligible. Thus, in the scenario posed by the comic, there is essentially no plausible way to observe more about dark matter while on Earth.

The oracle proceeds to break expectations by suggesting that Ponytail and Cueball go out for {{w|burrito}}s, something generally considered less then scientific. However, given the apparent futility of continuing to try to investigate dark matter, going out for burritos is precisely as productive as any other approach (i.e. "not at all").

When the title text observes that burritos interact through the strong, weak, and electro-magnetic forces, it presumably means that they can be seen, smelt, tasted, and their texture sensed, as well as producing digestive effects, and that all of these effects generally tend to be pleasant, hence contributing to their popularity.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball and Ponytail are standing in front of a pentacle with lit candles at the corners. A black sphere, the oracle, is floating above the middle of the pentacle.]
:Ponytail: Dear oracle,
:Ponytail: What is the nature of dark matter?
:Oracle: It's about 20 pounds.

:[Close up of oracle]
:Off-panel: What?
:Oracle: Dark matter is a particle. It weighs about 20 pounds.
:Oracle: It only interacts through gravity.

:[Same view as first panel]
:Cueball: Only gravity, huh?
:Cueball: So none of our experiments are really going to tell us any more about it, then.
:Oracle: Afraid not.

:[Same view as first and third panels, except Cueball lifted his forearm.]
:Cueball: So what do we do?
:Oracle: You should go out for burritos.
:Ponytail: How will that help?
:Oracle: Well,
:Oracle: Burritos are pretty good.

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Physics]]
[[Category:Food]]
</noinclude>

3085: About 20 Pounds

2025-05-06T16:21:25Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 3085
| date = May 5, 2025
| title = About 20 Pounds
| image = about_20_pounds_2x.png
| imagesize = 666x278px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = In addition to gravity, burritos interact through the strong, weak, and electromagnetic forces, which is believed to be a major contributor to their popularity.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|The categories for this comic are missing. Add any relevant category. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

The nature of {{w|dark matter}} is a significant unsolved problem in physics. In an effort to solve the problem, [[Cueball]] and [[Ponytail]] appear to have used occult methods to conjure a supernatural {{w|oracle}} (something which would present its own challenges to our understanding of the physical world) in order to demand an answer from it. There may be a pun here, in that they are using 'dark magic' to communicate with something from the 'dark realm' on the assumption that it will know about dark matter. However, the word 'dark' in this context simply means that we do not know how to observe it; dark matter is not evil or satanic{{cn}} (though [[Randall]] may consider it [[:Category:Comics with cursed items|cursed]]).

In general, not all forces interact with all particles; indeed, {{w|gravity}} is the only force that is (believed to) interact with everything. If a force doesn't interact with a particle, then its existence cannot be observed via disturbances in that force. In particular, something that doesn't interact with electromagnetism cannot be 'seen', as photons will pass through it completely unaffected.

Even {{w|neutrino}}s -- famous for interacting with ''almost'' nothing -- still in fact interact via the {{w|weak force}}, allowing them to be detected with sufficiently large tanks of dense material (as most atoms do in fact interact with the weak force, however weakly). A particle that interacts with ''nothing'' except gravity, could only be detected by a gravitational telescope.

However, even if a particle does interact via a given force, an interaction is only possible if energy is conserved. If dark matter is entirely due to a single kind of particle, and the fundamental mass of that particle is ''twenty pounds'' -- an absolutely ludicrous amount of energy for particle physics -- then any interaction would (roughly speaking) have to involve an equally ludicrous amount of other particles being in exactly the right place and time, a coincidence that could easily reach "never in the history of the universe" levels. (By comparison, the {{w|top quark}}, otherwise the heaviest single particle with a mass over a hundred times that of the proton, is still nevertheless around a tenth of a trillionth of a trillionth of a pound.)

Under more normal circumstances, we might still hope to observe the properties of the particle via creating it ourselves under controlled laboratory conditions. But again, there is no reasonable way to focus the energy required into a single particle interaction -- the LHC, for example, peaks at about ten thousand times the mass of the proton, a solid billion times less energy than required -- so that's out too.

Finally, despite all this, twenty pounds is also much too ''small'' to be detectable via gravitational interaction -- its {{w|Perturbation_(astronomy)|influence on the orbits of planets}}, say, or the strength of its {{w|gravitational lensing}} effect, will be entirely negligible. Thus, in the scenario posed by the comic, there is essentially no plausible way to observe more about dark matter while on Earth.

The oracle proceeds to break expectations by suggesting that Ponytail and Cueball go out for {{w|burrito}}s, something generally considered less then scientific. However, given the apparent futility of continuing to try to investigate dark matter, going out for burritos is precisely as productive as any other approach (i.e. "not at all").

When the title text observes that burritos interact through the strong, weak, and electro-magnetic forces, it presumably means that they can be seen, smelt, tasted, and their texture sensed, as well as producing digestive effects, and that all of these effects generally tend to be pleasant, hence contributing to their popularity.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball and Ponytail are standing in front of a pentacle with lit candles at the corners. A black sphere, the oracle, is floating above the middle of the pentacle.]
:Ponytail: Dear oracle,
:Ponytail: What is the nature of dark matter?
:Oracle: It's about 20 pounds.

:[Close up of oracle]
:Off-panel: What?
:Oracle: Dark matter is a particle. It weighs about 20 pounds.
:Oracle: It only interacts through gravity.

:[Same view as first panel]
:Cueball: Only gravity, huh?
:Cueball: So none of our experiments are really going to tell us any more about it, then.
:Oracle: Afraid not.

:[Same view as first and third panels, except Cueball lifted his forearm.]
:Cueball: So what do we do?
:Oracle: You should go out for burritos.
:Ponytail: How will that help?
:Oracle: Well,
:Oracle: Burritos are pretty good.

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Physics]]
[[Category:Food]]
</noinclude>

3083: Jupiter Core

2025-04-30T17:09:59Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 3083
| date = April 30, 2025
| title = Jupiter Core
| image = jupiter_core_2x.png
| imagesize = 581x443px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Juno mission data suggests that Jupiter actually contains Matryoshka doll-style nested copies of every other planet in the Solar System.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created recently by AN ADMIN IN THE CENTER OF JUPITER. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

{{w|Jupiter}} is the largest planet in the {{w|Solar System}}, the fifth planet from the Sun, and the closest-in {{w|gas giant}}. The core of the planet is hidden by an enormous gaseous atmosphere, and this comic lists a number of theories about the structure of the core. The first two are theories that are or have been held by reputable scientists, while the rest are ridiculous ideas from Randall's mind.

{|class="wikitable" style="margin:auto"
|-
!Number Jupiter!!Caption of Jupiter!!Explanation
|-
|1||Diffuse mix of heavy elements and metallic hydrogen||Data from {{w|Juno (spacecraft)|Juno}}, a spacecraft orbiting Jupiter since 2016, supports this structure.
|-
|2||Rocky core with metallic, hydrogen mantle||This was one of the leading proposals prior to the Juno mission.
|-
|3||Valuable treasure|| Indecipherable objects that may be gemstones or precious metals, surrounded by dollar signs. May be a reference to the occasionally proposed idea that gas giant cores might be composed of diamond, famously used in Arthur C. Clarke's ''{{w|2010: Odyssey Two}}''.
|-
|4||Emergency backup Earth||This would be a copy of the Earth that can be put into place once we finish destroying our planet. In popular science Jupiter is often described as a "protector" of Earth since its large gravitational field attracts asteroids that could otherwise hit Earth. This could be Randall's take on this claim in that it has a backup Earth in case everything else fails.
|-
|5||Regular planet pretending to be a gas giant to avoid attention||The joke here is that there is secretly a regular planet hiding inside Jupiter that is shy and does not want attention, so it pretends to be a gas giant. Of course, planets are not shy in real life, as they do not have feelings.{{citation needed}}
|-
|6||Hard ball from avocado|| An avocado pit is the seed of the avocado.
|-
|7||Baby Jupiter, still gestating||Jupiter is so big because it's pregnant, and the core is a fetal planet.
|-
|8||No core; flat Earth conspiracists are wrong about Earth but right about Jupiter||{{w|Modern_flat_Earth_beliefs|Flat Earth}} is a debunked{{cn}} claim that the Earth is not actually spherical, but flat. This version of Jupiter proposes that while Earth may not be flat, Jupiter is, so it doesn't actually have a core. Both Earth-based astronomy and flyby missions disprove this.
|-
|9||Matryoshka doll (title text)||Since Jupiter is the largest planet of the solar system, it could contain all other planets nested inside one another. The order from largest to smallest would be Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Earth, Venus, Mars, and Mercury. Jupiter is in fact larger, by both mass and volume, than all other Solar System planets combined.
|}

==Transcript==
{{Incomplete|better phrasing needed}}

:Current leading theories for what's in the center of Jupiter:

:[Variations of Jupiter, except for the last are shown with about 1/8 of the planet chopped off to show the core.]

:[Jupiter with liquid material at its core]
:Diffuse mix of heavy elements and metallic hydrogen

:[Jupiter with a rocky core]
:Rocky core with metallic, hydrogen mantle

:[Jupiter with a pile of coins for a core, with multiple dollar signs shown]
:Valuable treasure

:[Jupiter with Earth for a core]
:Emergency backup Earth

:[Hollow Jupiter with a rocky planet in the middle]
:Regular planet pretending to be a gas giant to avoid attention

:[Jupiter with a smooth ball for a core]
:Hard ball from avocado

:[Jupiter with a small version of Jupiter for a core]
:Baby Jupiter, still gestating

:[Jupiter as a flat circle, with nothing chopped off]
:No core; flat Earth conspiracists are wrong about Earth but right about Jupiter

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Food]]
[[Category:Conspiracy theory]]

3083: Jupiter Core

2025-04-30T16:21:51Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 3083
| date = April 30, 2025
| title = Jupiter Core
| image = jupiter_core_2x.png
| imagesize = 581x443px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Juno mission data suggests that Jupiter actually contains Matryoshka doll-style nested copies of every other planet in the Solar System.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created recently by a BOT IN THE CENTER OF JUPITER. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

{{w|Jupiter}} is the largest planet in the {{w|Solar System}}; the fifth planet from the Sun and the first {{w|gas giant}}. The core of the planet is surrounded by an enormous gaseous atmosphere, and this comic lists a number of theories about the structure of the core. The first two are theories that are or have been held by reputable scientists, the rest are ridiculous ideas from Randall's mind.

{|class="wikitable" style="margin:auto"
|-
!Number Jupiter!!Caption of Jupiter!!Explanation
|-
|1||Diffuse mix of heavy elements and metallic hydrogen||The {{w|Juno mission}} data supports this structure
|-
|2||Rocky core with metallic, hydrogen mantle||This was one of the leading proposals prior to the Juno mission
|-
|3||Valuable treasure|| obviously valuable treasure
|-
|4||Emergency backup Earth||This would be a copy of the Earth that can be put into place once we finish destroying the planet. In popular science Jupiter is often described as a "protector" of Earth since its large gravitational field attracts asteroids that could otherwise hit Earth. This could be Randall's take on this claim in that it has a backup Earth for just in case everything fails.
|-
|5||Regular planet pretending to be a gas giant to avoid attention||The joke here is that there is secretly a regular planet hiding inside Jupiter that is shy and does not want attention, so it pretends to be a gas giant. Of course, planets are not shy in real life, as they do not have feelings.{{citation needed}}
|-
|6||Hard ball from avocado|| Avocado pits are the seed of an avocado
|-
|7||Baby Jupiter, still gestating||Jupiter is so big because it's pregnant, and the core is a fetal planet
|-
|8||No core; flat Earth conspiracists are wrong about Earth but right about Jupiter||{{w|Modern_flat_Earth_beliefs |Flat Earth}} is a debunked claim{{cn}} that the Earth is not actually spherical, but flat. This version of Jupiter proposes that while Earth may not be flat, Jupiter is, so it doesn't actually have a core. Both Earth-based astronomy and flyby missions disprove this.
|-
|9||Matryoshka Doll (title text) ||Since Jupiter is the largest planet of the solar system, it could contain all other planets nested in each other. The order from largest to smallest would be: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Earth, Venus, Mars, Mercury, and the innermost could still be Pluto (depending on one's [[3063: Planet Definitions|definition of a planet]]).
|}

==Transcript==
{{Incomplete|better phrasing needed}}

:Current leading theories for what's in the center of Jupiter:

:[Variations of Jupiter, except for the last are shown with about 1/8 of the planet chopped off to show the core.]

:[Jupiter with liquid material at its core]
:Diffuse mix of heavy elements and metallic hydrogen

:[Jupiter with a rocky core]
:Rocky core with metallic, hydrogen mantle

:[Jupiter with a pile of coins for a core, with multiple dollar signs shown]
:Valuable treasure

:[Jupiter with Earth for a core]
:Emergency backup Earth

:[Hollow Jupiter with a rocky planet in the middle]
:Regular planet pretending to be a gas giant to avoid attention

:[Jupiter with a smooth ball for a core]
:Hard ball from avocado

:[Jupiter with a small version of Jupiter for a core]
:Baby Jupiter, still gestating

:[Jupiter as a flat circle, with nothing chopped off]
:No core; flat Earth conspiracists are wrong about Earth but right about Jupiter

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Food]]

3083: Jupiter Core

2025-04-30T16:19:40Z

Asdf: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 3083
| date = April 30, 2025
| title = Jupiter Core
| image = jupiter_core_2x.png
| imagesize = 581x443px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Juno mission data suggests that Jupiter actually contains Matryoshka doll-style nested copies of every other planet in the Solar System.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created recently by a BOT IN THE CENTER OF JUPITER. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

{{w|Jupiter}} is the largest planet in the {{w|Solar System}}; the fifth planet from the Sun and the first {{w|gas giant}}. The core of the planet is surrounded by an enormous gaseous atmosphere, and this comic lists a number of theories about the structure of the core. The first two are theories that are or have been held by reputable scientists, the rest are ridiculous ideas from Randall's mind.

{|class="wikitable" style="margin:auto"
|-
!Number Jupiter!!Caption of Jupiter!!Explanation
|-
|1||Diffuse mix of heavy elements and metallic hydrogen||The {{w|Juno mission}} data supports this structure
|-
|2||Rocky core with metallic, hydrogen mantle||This was one of the leading proposals prior to the Juno mission
|-
|3||Valuable treasure|| obviously valuable treasure
|-
|4||Emergency backup Earth||This would be a copy of the Earth that can be put into place once we finish destroying the planet. In popular science Jupiter is often described as a "protector" of Earth since its large gravitational field attracts asteroids that could otherwise hit Earth. This could be Randall's take on this claim in that it has a backup Earth for just in case everything fails.
|-
|5||Regular planet pretending to be a gas giant to avoid attention||The joke here is that there is secretly a regular planet hiding inside Jupiter that is shy and does not want attention, so it pretends to be a gas giant. Of course, planets are not shy in real life, as they do not have feelings.{{citation needed}}
|-
|6||Hard ball from avocado|| Avocado pits are the seed of an avocado
|-
|7||Baby Jupiter, still gestating||Jupiter is so big because it's pregnant, and the core is a fetal planet
|-
|8||No core; flat Earth conspiracists are wrong about Earth but right about Jupiter||{{w|Modern_flat_Earth_beliefs |Flat Earth}} is a debunked claim{{cn}} that the Earth is not actually spherical, but flat. This version of Jupiter proposes that while Earth may not be flat, Jupiter is, so it doesn't actually have a core. Both Earth-based astronomy and flyby missions disprove this.
|-
|9||Matryoshka Doll (title text) ||Since Jupiter is the largest planet of the solar system, it could contain all other planets nested in each other. The order from largest to smallest would be: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Earth, Venus, Mars, Mercury, and the innermost could still be Pluto (depending on one's [[3063: Planet Definitions|definition of a planet]]).
|}

==Transcript==
{{Incomplete|better phrasing needed}}

:Current leading theories for what's in the center of Jupiter.

:[Variations of Jupiter, except for the last are shown with about 1/8 of the planet chopped off to show the core.]

:[Jupiter]
:Diffuse mix of heavy elements and metallic hydrogen

:[Jupiter with a rocky core]
:Rocky core with metallic, hydrogen mantle

:[Jupiter with a pile of coins for a core]
:Valuable treasure

:[Jupiter with Earth for a core]
:Emergency backup Earth

:[Hollow Jupiter with a rocky planet in the middle]
:Regular planet pretending to be a gas giant to avoid attention

:[Jupiter with a smooth ball for a core]
:Hard ball from avocado

:[Jupiter with a small version of Jupiter for a core]
:Baby Jupiter, still gestating

:[Jupiter as a flat circle, with nothing chopped off]
:No core; flat Earth conspiracists are wrong about Earth but right about Jupiter

{{comic discussion}}

3080: Tennis Balls

2025-04-24T18:29:23Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */ more details

{{comic/sandbox 
| number = 3080
| date = April 23, 2025
| title = Tennis Balls
| image = tennis_balls_2x.png
| imagesize = 411x574px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = After initial tests created a series of large holes in the wall of the lab, the higher-power Scanning Tunneling Tennis Ball Microscope project was quickly shut down.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by BLACK HAT'S TENNIS BALL HEADCANNON. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

A {{w|scanning electron microscope}} produces images of a sample by scanning the surface with a focused beam of electrons, and interpreting the different signals that are generated in response. Since [[Megan]] and [[Cueball]] find electrons too small to work with, they have created a macroscopic version using tennis balls instead. The tennis ball launcher uses a similar mechanism to a scanning electron microscope: it fires tennis balls, instead of electrons, over a wide range of heights, and detects objects obstructing the stream (in this case a person) by the noises generated on impact. However, this would mostly be 'useful' in scanning things at a macroscopic level, so is not really a microscope. {{w|Computational microscopy}} can be used to increase the resolution of an image beyond the size of the sampling medium by extensively analyzing details of interactions, and a tennis ball microscope could potentially be used to tune such algorithms at an observable scale -- the joke of striking a human, as well as the manual single-ball operation, imply that Randal did not intend this use.

Megan and Cueball have detected a person using their device, by the fact that it generated two yells during the scan, possibly from impacting the person's face or at least upper half and, er, somewhere further down. They intend to repeat the experiment to determine the person's height, by working out the angle of the tennis balls that generate the yells. Combined with the velocity and time to impact, this should give them enough information to work out the height above ground at impact and the distance from the launcher. The joke is that this height measurement could probably have been completed with a visual assessment, and with far more accuracy than using tennis balls to approximate their height. Most humans work with large-scale objects in their day-to-day lives and hence do not see using a microscope, although the lens in the eye operates on the same principal as the objective lens in an optical one. This method is also likely to be problematic, as the person would likely duck or run away in response to being bombarded with tennis balls, affecting future measurements. This is known as the {{w|Observer effect (physics)|Observer Effect}} as well as a normal {{w|Sampling_(signal_processing)#Practical_considerations|consideration of sampling}}. (It may also be why the 'scanning' is done from the top down, as early low-hitting projectiles might reduce the height that later projectiles can detect.)

The title text is a reference to {{w|scanning tunneling microscope}}s, which take advantage of the {{w|quantum tunnelling}} effect. In this case, the tennis balls were actually tunneling through the wall, creating holes in the process, which is not what tunneling electrons would do. Tunneling is a non-intuitive quantum phenomenon whereby particles may "teleport" across a barrier they would otherwise bounce off of, but it requires a number of particles of extremely low mass to exploit quantum effects, with a comparatively thin barrier, to be observable. It would not be reasonable to produce this effect at tennis ball scale with any typical building wall, but naively attempting to do so by launching tennis balls at a sufficiently high velocity (the required speed dependant upon whether they are aimed at the likes of plasterboard, brick or concrete) could lead to damaging the wall instead.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball fires eight tennis ball at decreasing heights using a tennis ball machine, which makes four "thunk" noises. Megan is standing behind him. The tennis ball machine has a container for tennis balls at the top, which is connected to a tube where the balls are launched. Behind the machine is a handle that Cueball holds with both hands to control the machine, and at the bottom is a stand with two legs.]

:[Cueball has stopped firing tennis balls and is resting his hand on the handle of the machine. Ten noises come from the right side of the panel:]
:Bonk
:Bonk
:Bonk
:Bonk
:Bonk
:OW!
:Bonk
:OW!
:Bonk
:Bonk
:[Megan has her hand to her chin.]
:Megan: Ok, there's definitely a person over there. Let's do one more pass to try to measure their height.

:[Caption below the panel:]
:Electrons are small and hard to work with, so some scientists have developed a scanning tennis ball microscope instead.

==Trivia==

{{w|Electron_tomography#Atomic_Electron_Tomography_(AET)|Atomic electron tomography}} uses electrons to precisely identify and map the individual atoms of a sample and is leading to extensive novel materials research.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Physics]]

3080: Tennis Balls

2025-04-23T23:53:13Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 3080
| date = April 23, 2025
| title = Tennis Balls
| image = tennis_balls_2x.png
| imagesize = 411x574px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = After initial tests created a series of large holes in the wall of the lab, the higher-power Scanning Tunneling Tennis Ball Microscope project was quickly shut down.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a SCANNING WIKI BOT. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

A {{w|scanning electron microscope}} produces images of a sample by scanning the surface with a focused beam of electrons. Since Megan and Cueball find electrons too small to work with, they are using tennis balls instead.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball fires eight tennis ball at varying heights using a tennis ball machine, making four "thunk" noises. Megan is standing behind him.]

:[Ten noises come from the right side of the panel. From top to bottom: "Bonk", "Bonk", "Bonk", "Bonk", "Bonk", "OW!", "Bonk", "OW!", "Bonk", "Bonk". Megan has her hand to her chin.]
:Megan: Ok, there's definitely a person over there. Let's do one more pass to try to measure their height.

:[Caption below the panel:]
:Electrons are small and hard to work with, so some scientists have developed a scanning tennis ball microscope instead.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Physics]]

3080: Tennis Balls

2025-04-23T23:41:45Z

Asdf: /* Explanation */

3079: Air Fact

2025-04-21T15:22:05Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 3079
| date = April 21, 2025
| title = Air Fact
| image = air_fact_2x.png
| imagesize = 250x394px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = 'Wow, that must be why you swallow so many of them per year!' 'No, that's spiders. You swallow WAY more ants.'
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created recently. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

==Transcript==
:[Megan, with her palm out, is talking to Cueball.]
:Megan: Did you know that every cubic meter of air contains over 10,000 microscopic ants?
:Cueball: Wow, really?
:Cueball: I had no idea.

:[Caption below the panel:]
:The fact that taking air samples is hard presents microbiologists with a constant temptation.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Biology]]
[[Category:Ants]]
[[Category:Spiders]]

3079: Air Fact

2025-04-21T15:18:00Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */

Anchor Bolts

2025-04-19T09:44:21Z

Asdf: Redirected page to 3078: Anchor Bolts

#REDIRECT [[3078: Anchor Bolts]]

Anchor Screws

2025-04-19T09:20:49Z

Asdf: Redirected page to 3078: Anchor Bolts

#REDIRECT [[3078: Anchor Bolts]]

3078: Anchor Bolts

2025-04-19T08:54:39Z

Asdf: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 3078
| date = April 18, 2025
| title = Anchor Bolts
| image = anchor_screws_2x.png
| imagesize = 381x326px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = The biggest expense was installing the mantle ducts to keep the carbonate-silicate cycle operating.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|The comic was renamed! Finish the [[#Trivia]] section, explaining why "screw" is less correct than "bolt".}}

The comic displays a subduction zone. Tectonic plates are plates that divide the Earth's crust. They slowly move across the Earth's surface at the rate of a few centimeters per year, although the rate is nonuniform across plates. When they collide, the denser plate gets dragged under the less dense plate, in a process called subduction. Earthquakes are common at subduction zones, and subduction can also trigger volcanic activity. Earthquakes and volcanic eruptions are typically bad for humanity, and thus ways to prevent them happening would reduce economic risks in those areas. An "anti-subduction anchor bolt" would effectively stop the process of subduction and the movement of plate tectonics as a whole.

A round head bolt is screwed in through both the oceanic lithosphere and the continental crust from the bottom up, with a plain washer on either side, and a wing nut tightened at the surface. Washers are present to prevent the bolt and the wing nut from sinking into the crust. There are several concerns not addressed in the comic with such a design. The implication that the bolt is being screwed in from the mantle side would imply that a very large bolt head was operated from inside the mantle. As of the time of posting of the comic, humans have not drilled a hole through a continental crust, still less deployed large vehicles in the mantle. In addition, the presence of wing nuts, fasteners that are designed to be able to be screwed in by hand, implies work done by a larger being that has appendages able to use the wing nut. The bolt itself would be a technological challenge, as well. The temperature of Earth's mantle is around 1000°C near the surface, temperatures at which most commercial stainless steel used to manufacture bolts would experience noticeable strength losses. As such, materials capable of withstanding higher temperatures would need to be utilized. The bolt itself would need to have a length of around 50 km as well. Moreover, as subduction zones move parallel to each other, the construction would have to withstand high shear forces, something that the bolt is rather unsuited to compared to other tools such as rivets. On top of that, ways to alleviate stress must be sought out as if the bolt fails, it could produce a highly amplified earthquake.

The title text references the {{w|Carbonate–silicate_cycle|Carbonate-silicate geochemical cycle}}. Briefly, subduction and subsequent heating of the global crust restores carbon dioxide and silicate rocks to the planetary surface, countering the effects of carbonate deposition and silicate rock weathering. Anchor bolts sufficient to stop plate tectonics would also stop the carbonate-silicate cycle, leading to unexpected, and likely unwelcome, changes in the surface geosphere and biosphere. To restore the cycle by an unknown mechanism, "mantle ducts" have been installed as part of the planet-wide plate anchoring system. It is stated that the mantle duct installation was the "most expensive" part of the project, implying greater intellectual and technical challenges than the already-massive ones associated with anchor-bolt design and deployment.

At the time this explanation page was set up, the title of the comic was "Anchor Screws". At some subsequent time, the title was changed to "Anchor Bolts". The fastener illustrated is indeed a {{w|Bolt_(fastener)|bolt}}, not a screw.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Needs image description. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
:[Caption below the panel:]
:Good news: Geophysicists are ''finally'' installing Earth's required anti-subduction anchor bolts.

==Trivia==
In the [https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/archive/0/00/20250419063115%21anchor_screws_2x.png original version of the comic], the caption said "anti-subduction anchor '''screws'''" instead of "anti-subduction anchor '''bolts'''". The title of the comic was also changed, from "Anchor Screws" to "Anchor Bolts". The original comic image and title can be seen on an [https://web.archive.org/web/20250419024242/https://xkcd.com/3078/ archived version] of the [https://xkcd.com xkcd.com] site.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Subduction]]
[[Category:Geology]]
[[Category:Comics edited after their publication]]

3078: Anchor Bolts

2025-04-19T08:53:08Z

Asdf: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 3078
| date = April 18, 2025
| title = Anchor Bolts
| image = anchor_screws_2x.png
| imagesize = 381x326px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = The biggest expense was installing the mantle ducts to keep the carbonate-silicate cycle operating.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|The comic was renamed! Finish the [[#Trivia]] section, explaining why "screw" is less correct than "bolt".}}

The comic displays a subduction zone. Tectonic plates are plates that divide the Earth's crust. They slowly move across the Earth's surface at the rate of a few centimeters per year, although the rate is nonuniform across plates. When they collide, the denser plate gets dragged under the less dense plate, in a process called subduction. Earthquakes are common at subduction zones, and subduction can also trigger volcanic activity. Earthquakes and volcanic eruptions are typically bad for humanity, and thus ways to prevent them happening would reduce economic risks in those areas. An "anti-subduction anchor bolt" would effectively stop the process of subduction and the movement of plate tectonics as a whole.

A round head bolt is screwed in through both the oceanic lithosphere and the continental crust from the bottom up, with a plain washer on either side, and a wing nut tightened at the surface. Washers are present to prevent the bolt and the wing nut from sinking into the crust. There are several concerns not addressed in the comic with such a design. The implication that the bolt is being screwed in from the mantle side would imply that a very large bolt head was operated from inside the mantle. As of the time of posting of the comic, humans have not drilled a hole through a continental crust, still less deployed large vehicles in the mantle. In addition, the presence of wing nuts, fasteners that are designed to be able to be screwed in by hand, implies work done by a larger being that has appendages able to use the wing nut. The bolt itself would be a technological challenge, as well. The temperature of Earth's mantle is around 1000°C near the surface, temperatures at which most commercial stainless steel used to manufacture bolts would experience noticeable strength losses. As such, materials capable of withstanding higher temperatures would need to be utilized. The bolt itself would need to have a length of around 50 km as well. Moreover, as subduction zones move parallel to each other, the construction would have to withstand high shear forces, something that the bolt is rather unsuited to compared to other tools such as rivets. On top of that, ways to alleviate stress must be sought out as if the bolt fails, it could produce a highly amplified earthquake.

The title text references the {{w|Carbonate–silicate_cycle|Carbonate-silicate geochemical cycle}}. Briefly, subduction and subsequent heating of the global crust restores carbon dioxide and silicate rocks to the planetary surface, countering the effects of carbonate deposition and silicate rock weathering. Anchor bolts sufficient to stop plate tectonics would also stop the carbonate-silicate cycle, leading to unexpected, and likely unwelcome, changes in the surface geosphere and biosphere. To restore the cycle by an unknown mechanism, "mantle ducts" have been installed as part of the planet-wide plate anchoring system. It is stated that the mantle duct installation was the "most expensive" part of the project, implying greater intellectual and technical challenges than the already-massive ones associated with anchor-bolt design and deployment.

At the time this explanation page was set up, the title of the comic was "Anchor Screws". At some subsequent time, the title was changed to "Anchor Bolts". The fastener illustrated is indeed a {{w|Bolt_(fastener)|bolt}}, not a screw.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

==Trivia==
In the [https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/archive/0/00/20250419063115%21anchor_screws_2x.png original version of the comic], the caption said "anti-subduction anchor '''screws'''" instead of "anti-subduction anchor '''bolts'''". The title of the comic was also changed, from "Anchor Screws" to "Anchor Bolts". The original comic image and title can be seen on an [https://web.archive.org/web/20250419024242/https://xkcd.com/3078/ archived version] of the [https://xkcd.com xkcd.com] site.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Subduction]]
[[Category:Geology]]
[[Category:Comics edited after their publication]]

3078

2025-04-19T08:40:51Z

Asdf: Comic's name changed

#REDIRECT [[3078: Anchor Bolts]]

3078: Anchor Bolts

2025-04-19T08:37:07Z

Asdf: Asdf moved page 3078: Anchor Screws to 3078: Anchor Bolts: Comic name changed on xkcd.com

{{comic
| number = 3078
| date = April 18, 2025
| title = Anchor Screws
| image = anchor_screws_2x.png
| imagesize = 381x326px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = The biggest expense was installing the mantle ducts to keep the carbonate-silicate cycle operating.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by an AUTOMATIC SUBLIMATOR. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

The comic displays a subduction zone. Tectonic plates are plates that divide the Earth's crust. They slowly move across the Earth's surface at the rate of a few centimeters per year, although the rate is nonuniform across plates. When they collide, the denser plate gets dragged under the less dense plate, in a process called subduction. Earthquakes are common at subduction zones, and subduction can also trigger volcanic activity. Earthquakes and volcanic eruptions are typically bad for humanity and thus ways to prevent them happening would reduce economic risks in those areas. An "anti-subduction anchor screw" would effectively stop the process of subduction and the movement of plate tectonics as a whole.

A round head screw is screwed in through both the oceanic lithosphere and the continental crust from the bottom up, with a plain washer on either side, and a wing nut tightened at the surface. Washers are present to prevent the screw and the wing nut from sinking into the crust. There are several concerns not addressed in the comic with such a design. The implication that the screw is being screwed in from the mantle side would imply that a very large screw head was operated from inside the mantle. As of the time of posting of the comic, humans have not drilled a hole through a continental crust, still less deployed large vehicles in the mantle. In addition, the presence of wing nuts, fasteners that are designed to be able to be screwed in by hand, implies work done by a larger being that has appendages able to use the wing nut. The screw itself would be a technological challenge, as well. The temperature of Earth's mantle is around 1000°C, temperatures at which most commercial stainless steel used to manufacture screws would experience noticeable strength losses. As such, materials capable of withstanding higher temperatures would need to be utilized. The screw itself would need to have a length of around 50 km as well. In addition, as subduction zones move parallel to each other, the construction would have to withstand high shear forces, something that the screw is rather unsuited to compared to other tools such as rivets. In addition, ways to alleviate stress must be sought out as if the screw fails, it could produce a highly amplified earthquake.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Subduction]]

3078: Anchor Screws

2025-04-19T08:37:07Z

Asdf: Asdf moved page 3078: Anchor Screws to 3078: Anchor Bolts: Comic name changed on xkcd.com

#REDIRECT [[3078: Anchor Bolts]]

Talk:3078: Anchor Bolts

2025-04-19T08:37:07Z

Asdf: Asdf moved page Talk:3078: Anchor Screws to Talk:3078: Anchor Bolts: Comic name changed on xkcd.com

As a kid, I was ALWAYS worried about how plate tectonics would change the continent's layout in a few hundred million years' time, along with how the Sun will die (and maybe consume the Earth if we don't move it) in five billion years. Young me would be SO glad we are finally fixing the first issue. [[User:MinersHavenM43|MinersHavenM43]] ([[User talk:MinersHavenM43|talk]]) 03:28, 19 April 2025 (UTC)
: Was young you a Superman fan, and did you ever wonder what really happened on Krypton? Scientists and engineers, funded and enabled by a Trump-style politician and his promise to "Stop The Earthquakes NOW!", actually overcame (temporarily) the materials issues and solved the stress equations (see below), and installed a (temporarily) successful planetary plate-anchoring system. Jor-El objected to the project, he and any who supported him were de-funded as a result, and he spent his remaining time ensuring that he could get his son the [deleted] outa there before the accumulated strain ruptured the anchors and blew the planet apart. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.41.45|162.158.41.45]] 04:09, 19 April 2025 (UTC)
:Did you also worried about the collision with Andromeda galaxy? -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 05:15, 19 April 2025 (UTC)

Would an anti-subduction screw really work? The tectonic plates are slow, but they are quite heavy, so they have a fair bit of momentum. Indeed, enough to overcome the not inconsiderable friction already present due to the weight of the uplifted portion of the upper plate. Such a screw would therefore need to exert quite a bit of additional pressure to bring the motion to a halt; Exactly how much I shall leave as an exercise for the reader (because I have no clue where to even start trying to work it out), but my guess is that you're gonna need some seriously high tensile strength material for these, even if they are placed at very short intervals along the plate boundary. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.84.172|172.68.84.172]] 03:52, 19 April 2025 (UTC)

:The screw material could easily be some sort of unobtanium, it would still not work. With the forces involved, the result would be the stone would break around the screws, IMHO. -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 05:16, 19 April 2025 (UTC)

Looks like somebody got to Randall M. and pointed out that what he drew is a {{w|Bolt_(fastener)|bolt}}, not a screw. The title and caption of the comic have been edited accordingly. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.41.3|162.158.41.3]] 05:38, 19 April 2025 (UTC)

This is silly. The global cooperation and engineering required to make this work (I'm assuming unobtanium as a given) far surpasses that required to decarbonise commerce and fix climate change, which project is not going well, to say the least. [[User:Neil UK|Neil UK]] ([[User talk:Neil UK|talk]]) 08:32, 19 April 2025 (UTC)