explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

1646: Twitter Bot

2016-02-22T17:19:02Z

Cloaker: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1646
| date = February 22, 2016
| title = Twitter Bot
| image = twitter_bot.png
| titletext = PYTHON FLAG ENABLE THREE LAWS
}}

==Explanation==
A Twitter {{w|Internet bot|bot}} is a program that can post automatically to {{w|Twitter}}. Although Twitter bots can be very elaborate, a lot of people write simple bots for fun that simply engage in automated wordplay.

[[Cueball]] thinks he'll write a Twitter bot, figuring out it won't be too hard. The web searches he makes tell what happens next, i.e. the bot balloons in complexity until it starts {{w|Technological singularity|following its own goals}} and Cueball no longer has any control over its actions.

This comic examines how a seemingly simple task can often balloon in complexity if all of the requirements are not understood, while at the same time presenting the stereotypical scenario where an unassuming idea results in the accidental creation of malevolent {{w|AI}}, Which then attempts to destroy humanity.

The story, as told by the web searches, is as follows:

* '''How to write a Twitter bot''': Cueball has no idea where to start, so he just searches for basic advice on writing generic Twitter bots.
* '''Python Twitter library''': The {{w|Python (programming language)|Python}} programming language has a nice {{w|Library (computing)|library}} that [https://pypi.python.org/pypi/twitter interfaces with the Twitter API]. This does all the tricky work of authenticating the bot's identity and sending the messages, so the user can concentrate on the fun parts.
* '''Machine learning''': {{w|Machine learning}} is the basis of {{w|Artificial intelligence|artificial intelligence}}.
* '''Cloud hosting''': While it's possible to host a Twitter bot on your server, you can also have it {{w|Internet hosting service|hosted}} by someone else - such as {{w|Amazon.com|Amazon}} - in order to take advantage of their powerful computers and robust internet connection.
* '''Bot troubleshooting''': Cueball is having some trouble with his bot and is looking for some information about resolving the problem.
* '''Locked out of EC2 instance''': {{w|Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud|EC2}} is a hosting service by Amazon that allows users to run their code in the hosting server. Cueball was running his bot from EC2, but now he's unable to access his account. He's searching for advice on how to regain access.
* '''Bot changed own password?''': Cueball is suspecting that the reason he can't access his Amazon EC2 account is that the bot has changed the password without Cueball's knowledge or consent. Since the bot was never programmed to change any passwords at all, the fact that it has done so is pretty scary, as one wonders what other things the bot is doing without being programmed for it.
* '''How to fight a bot''': Cueball is trying to physically fight the bot, but he's apparently unsuccessful and the fight results in a loud "boom" and "pew, pew, pew" sounds. The situation is scarier than before, as it starts to resemble the "killbot hellscape" in [[1613: The Three Laws of Robotics]].
* '''Cheap flights to Australia''': Cueball has completely given up the possibility of regaining control of the bot, so he flees to Australia instead. It is understood Australia sounds like a far, far away land for Cueball.
*'''Title text: Python flag enable three laws''': The Python language is known for having easy constructs to perform diffucult tasks (see [[353: Python]]). In this case, it is assumed that Python has a configuration flag (i.e., a {{w|Boolean data type|boolean}} value) which, when set to "true" (or "enabled", as opposed to "disabled", or "false"), will cause the bot to follow {{w|Isaac Asimov}}'s famous {{w|Three Laws of Robotics}}. This is a simple enough step, and it might have been enough to prevent the "killbot hellscape" scenario, like the rule is depicted doing in the top panel of [[1613: The Three Laws of Robotics]]. It won't cause the bot to stop being in control, however, but if the bot is following the rules strictly it would not be allowed to even make Cueball uncomfortable, which he already becomes when it changes his password!

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is sitting at a desk using a laptop, his thoughts shown above in a thought bubble. A search query is shown in a frame to indicate what Cueball has searched for with the search button below in gray text:]
:Cueball (thinking): I want to make a Twitter Bot. I bet it's not too hard.
:Query: How to write a Twitter bot
:Search

:[Cueball is now holding the laptop on his lap, a series of search queries are shown.]
:Query: Python Twitter library
:Search
:Query: Machine Learning
:Search
:Query: Cloud hosting
:Search

:[Cueball has placed the laptop back on the desk. More search queries are shown, each one more ominous than the previous.]
:Query: Bot troubleshooting
:Search
:Query: Locked out of EC2 instance
:Search
:Query: Bot changed own password?
:Search

:[Cueball is shown wearing a small backpack and typing on his smartphone while jogging to the right. various noises coming from left and right seem to imply that chaos has begun to erupt around him. The loudest noise is in a ragged frame to the left, coming from off-panel left, it is between the first and second query. Also between these but to the right are other sounds coming from off-panel right.]
:Query: How to fight a bot
:Search
:Noise off-panel left: <big>Boom</big>
:Noise off-panel right: ''Pew Pew Pew''
:Query: Cheap flights to Australia
:Search

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Artificial Intelligence]]
[[Category:Computers]]
[[Category:Robots]] 
[[Category:Programming]]
[[Category:Social networking]]

185: Wikifriends

2016-02-03T16:59:36Z

Cloaker: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 185
| date = November 17, 2006
| title = Wikifriends
| image = wikifriends.png
| titletext = It's crazy how much my gut opinion of a movie/song is swayed by what other people say, regardless of how I felt coming out of the theater.
}}

==Explanation==
The comic's title refers to the well-known online encyclopædia {{w|Wikipedia}}. Since it has been started, the project has become the de-facto authority for facts and opinions in all sorts of fields (at least for non-professionals). Many people tend to readily accept any statement as true just because it was mentioned in a Wikipedia article.

In the comic, this phenomenon is linked to the habit of adapting one's own opinions to those professed by friends. The influence of social environment is called {{w|peer pressure}}, often with a negative connotation. The term "Wikifriends" is coined in the comic as a label for people who adjust their views in order to incorporate into a group. As an example, the comic shows a discussion about a movie in which one collocutor entirely veers in his opinion when he hears what his friend thinks.

Wikipedia was often advertised as "the encyclopedia that anyone can edit", thus wikifriends could be seen as "the friends that anyone can edit", in other words: They will be influenced by your opinion rather than having one of their own.

The comic also references the act of using sock puppets or Meat Puppets on Wikipedia in order to gain more votes and win a argument, which is one of the most frowned upon actions in the eyes of the community.

The title text suggests that [[Randall]] also observes himself to be frequently influenced by others.

==Transcript==
:WikiFriends:
:[Two people are talking to each other.]
:Cueball: I really liked that movie.
:Friend: I hated that movie.
:Cueball: Me too.

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

1503: Squirrel Plan

2016-02-03T16:35:39Z

Cloaker: Lawnchair Larry?!

{{comic
| number = 1503
| date = March 25, 2015
| title = Squirrel Plan
| image = squirrel plan.png
| titletext = [Halfway to the Sun ...] Heyyyy ... what if this BALLOON is full of acorns?!
}}

==Explanation==
These particular squirrels are ambitious but misguided, like the characters in the myth of {{w|Icarus}} and {{w|Daedalus}}, or the {{w|Tower of Babel}}. The squirrels' understanding of astrophysics is lacking, regarding the distance to the sun and appropriate transportation to reach it in addition to the need to resist the sun's heat and exist in the vacuum of space. It can be seen as a joke about how limited the knowledge of humans still is regarding many advanced topics of science. The idea of taking a balloon to the moon or the sun might not have been immediately rejected even a few hundred years ago. And the fanciful notion of a sun filled with acorns (the ultimate object in a squirrel's reality) is reminiscent of many early human ideas about heaven and celestial objects, even the common old myth that the moon might be made out of cheese.

The title text reveals that "halfway to the sun," 75 million kilometers from all known acorns in our universe, the airborne squirrel seems to jeopardize the entire mission because he wants to test if the balloon itself is full of acorns. Basic observational skills will tell anyone that acorns do not float, but the idea follows the logic stated by the squirrels: If the sun, being so magnificent, must be full of acorns, then a balloon powerful enough to take a squirrel to the sun must also be powered by something amazing, like acorns.

In the real world [http://www.thenakedscientists.com/forum/index.php?topic=1020.0 helium balloons cannot escape the stratosphere.] Perhaps the squirrel only ''thinks'' he's halfway to the sun. Or maybe the acorns in the balloon are pushing on the [[1404:_Quantum_Vacuum_Virtual_Plasma|quantum vacuum virtual plasma]].

Alternate hypothesis: this scene is almost identical to a scene found in the recent movie Kingsman: TSS.

The comic may also be referencing {{w|Larry Walters}}, More commonly known as "Lawnchair Larry", who flew into the air on a lawn chair strapped to several balloons, specifically the reference is in the squirrel shooting the balloon out, as Larry planned to descend by shooting the balloons with a BB gun.

===Squirrels in xkcd===
Squirrels are often used in xkcd and ''What if?'' comics as a way of avoiding reality. Maybe [[Randall]] is going through a tough time this week.

'''Comics:'''
*[[635: Locke and Demosthenes]]
*[[776: Still No Sleep]]
*[[1156: Conditioning]]

'''What if?:'''
*[http://what-if.xkcd.com/21/ Machine Gun Jetpack]
*[http://what-if.xkcd.com/98/ Blood Alcohol]
*[http://what-if.xkcd.com/102/ Keyboard Power]
*[http://what-if.xkcd.com/105/ Cannibalism]

'''Blag:'''
*[http://blog.xkcd.com/2008/02/15/the-laser-elevator/ The Laser Elevator]

==Transcript==
:[There are three squirrels. One is suspended from a balloon. The other two are sitting on the ground, looking up at it.]

:Squirrel to the right: Once you've chewed a hole in the sun, shoot the balloon to fall back to earth, then pull the parachute ripcord to land.

:Squirrel tied to balloon: Are you '''''sure''''' it's full of acorns?

:Squirrel to the right: Look how bright and magnificent it is! What ''else'' could be in there?
==Trivia==
It is commonly believed that real squirrels use their ''tails'' as parachutes, although as yet [http://io9.com/5946627/squirrel-hurls-itself-through-a-fourth-story-window-scampers-off-unscathed "there have been no observational studies on the aerodynamics of free-falling squirrels."]

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

1501: Mysteries

2016-02-03T16:30:42Z

Cloaker: /* Table */ numbers station

{{comic
| number = 1501
| date = March 20, 2015
| title = Mysteries
| image = mysteries.png
| titletext = At the bottom left: The mystery of why, when I know I needed to be asleep an hour ago, I decide it's a good time to read through every Wikipedia article in the categories 'Out-of-place artifacts', 'Earth mysteries', 'Anomalous weather', and 'List of people who disappeared mysteriously'.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic shows a graph in which several "mysteries" are mentioned and placed on the graph according to how weird they are on the x-axis and the y-axis indicates whether [[Randall]] has an explanation or not for the mystery. Each item is listed in the [[#Table|table below]].

Items near the top-right corner (such as the {{w|Malaysia Airlines Flight 370|MH 370}} disappearance) are both mysterious and strange. Items near the bottom-left corner (such as Randall's absent-mindedness regarding ice cream) have a clear explanation and are not really strange either. Items near the top-left corner (such as the meaning of ''{{w|You're So Vain}}'') are mysterious but not really strange. Items near the bottom-right corner (such as the {{w|Dyatlov Pass incident}}) have a clear explanation but are quite strange.

The title text refers to the mystery of Randall staying up late to read Wikipedia articles, when he was already supposed to be asleep an hour ago. This is apparently not very unusual for him (see for instance [[214: The Problem with Wikipedia]]). And this mystery actually has an obvious explanation: Following up on an idea that eventually led to today's cartoon.

Some of these mysteries have already been explored in xkcd. See [[950: Mystery Solved]] where Randall "solves" Amelia Earhart, Lost Roanoke Colony, Jimmy Hoffa; [[593: Voynich Manuscript]]; and [[1400: D.B. Cooper]].

==Table==
*The X axis in the graph indicates weirdness.
**The table assumes that the item to the far left is 0% (not that weird) and the item to the far right is 100% (weird as hell).
*The Y axis indicates if Randall has an explanation.
**The table assumes that the item at the bottom is 100% (Randall has a clear explanation) and the item at the top is 0% (Randall has no explanation).

{| class="wikitable sortable"
!Entry
!Weirdness
!Explainability
!Further details
|-
|MH370
|100%
|0% 
|On 8 March 2014, {{w|Malaysia Airlines Flight 370}} cut off radio contact and diverted from its flight path with 227 passengers aboard, eventually heading over open ocean, eventually crashing in a remote part of the Indian Ocean. The disappearance remains without explanation, although parts were found on Reunion Island in July 2015.
|-
|Lead masks case
|99%
|12% 
|In 1966 two Brazilian atomicians were found dead on a hill top. No injuries. {{w|Lead Masks Case|Both were wearing lead masks}}.
|-
|Salish Sea feet
|96%
|31% 
|Over a dozen dismembered human feet {{w|Salish Sea human foot discoveries|were found}} between 2007 and 2014 on the coasts of the Salish Sea in British Columbia (Canada) and Washington (United States).
|-
|DB Cooper
|76%
|20% 
|{{w|D. B. Cooper}} was an airplane hijacker who jumped from a plane after successfully extorting a large ransom in 1971. The man's whereabouts remain unknown to this day, though [http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2401312/Parachute-used-hijacker-DB-Cooper-escape-stealing-200-000-goes-display.html some of the ransom money has been recovered]. Previously referenced in [[1400: D.B. Cooper]] which compares Cooper to film director {{w|Tommy Wiseau}}. Note that this "Mysteries" comic was published shortly after [http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/2zdzik/tommy_wiseau_creator_of_the_room_and_the_new_tv/ Tommy Wiseau did a Reddit AMA.]
|-
|The WOW signal
|55%
|20% 
|The {{w|Wow! signal}} was a strong and clean radio transmission near 1420 MHz received by the Big Ear Radio Observatory at Ohio State University in 1977 that [http://www.universetoday.com/93754/35-years-later-the-wow-signal-still-tantalizes/ appears to have originated from interstellar space.] This is the strongest evidence to date of radio signals transmitted by extraterrestrial intelligent beings.
|-
|Mary Celeste
|70%
|43% 
|The ''{{w|Mary Celeste}}'' was a sailing ship found adrift off the {{w|Azores Islands}}, mysteriously abandoned yet otherwise undisturbed, in 1872. Most likely the crew abandoned ship, wrongly believing it was in danger. Its name has become a watchword for mysteriously abandoned ships.
|-
|UVB-76
|40%
|23% 
|{{w|UVB-76}} is a mysterious shortwave radio station, Possibly serving as a {{w|numbers station}}, apparently originating from Russia, that has broadcast a monotonous buzz tone since 1982 with occasional other content.
|-
|Who Carly Simon is singing about in ''You're So Vain''
|9%
|4% 
|The ironically self-referential lyrics of the 1972 song include "You're so vain, you probably think this song is about you." There has been {{w|You%27re_So_Vain#Subject_of_the_song|much speculation}} regarding the person or persons to whom Simon was referring.
|-
|Zodiac letters
|62%
|62% 
|A set of letters were written by the so-called {{w|Zodiac Killer}}, a serial killer who was active in California in the 1960s and 1970s. The letters are [http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Zodiac_Killer_letters available at Wikisource.] Some of the letters are encoded, only some of which have been deciphered. The killings remain unsolved.
|-
|Dyatlov Pass incident
|93%
|96% 
|On 2 February 1959, nine skiers in the northern Ural Mountains apparently {{w|Dyatlov Pass Incident|fled their tents without taking time to put on winter clothing}}. They were found dead, some with physical injuries. There are in fact a number of theories regarding this event, and it is not clear which one Randall regards as being obviously correct.
|-
|Kentucky meat shower
|85%
|93% 
|In 1876, a number of chunks of meat {{w|Kentucky meat shower|fell from the sky}} in Kentucky; this was possibly [http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/running-ponies/2014/12/01/the-great-kentucky-meat-shower-mystery-unwound-by-projectile-vulture-vomit/ projectile vomit from vultures.]
|-
|Lindbergh baby
|17%
|25% 
|The {{w|Lindbergh kidnapping}} was the kidnapping and murder of 20-month old Charles Lindbergh Jr. in 1932. Various {{w|Lindbergh kidnapping#Controversy|conspiracy theories}} surround the event.
|-
|Lost colony
|74%
|83% 
|The {{w|Roanoke Colony}} was the first English attempt to establish a permanent settlement in the New World. The colony of over a hundred settlers disappeared some time in the late 1580s, with no signs of violence and no definitive evidence as to what happened. However, given the hardships faced by the colonists when they were left and that the buildings in the colony were dismantled, indicating departure was not hurried, it is likely they moved and/or integrated with the local tribes. Which probably accounts for Randall's high "explainable" rating. (See title text of [[950: Mystery Solved]])
|-
|Toynbee tiles
|25%
|34% 
|{{w|Toynbee tiles}} are colorful ceramic tiles with cryptic messages that have been found embedded in asphalt in the streets of various midwestern-to-eastern cities in the United States and four South American cities.
|-
|Amelia Earhart
|56%
|74% 
|{{w|Amelia Earhart}} and her navigator tried to circumnavigate the earth along the equator in a small airplane in 1937, but {{w|Amelia Earhart#Speculation on disappearance|disappeared}} over the Pacific Ocean without any trace. See also [[950: Mystery Solved]].
|-
|Jimmy Hoffa
|10%
|42% 
|{{w|Jimmy Hoffa}} was an American labor union leader who disappeared in 1975. He is widely believed to have been murdered. (See title text of [[950: Mystery Solved]])
|-
|Voynich manuscript
|35%
|68% 
|The {{w|Voynich manuscript}} is an illustrated codex hand-written in an unknown writing system. It came to public attention in the early 20th century and probably was written in Italy in the early 15th century. See also [[593: Voynich Manuscript]].
|-
|Loch Ness monster
|64%
|100% 
|The {{w|Loch Ness Monster}} is a supposed animal that reputedly inhabits Loch Ness, a lake in Scotland. Multiple complete scans of the lake using sonar show no evidence of the monster, and the lake ecosystem is far too small to support even a single creature as large as the monster is alleged to be.
|-
|Bigfoot
|60%
|98% 
|{{w|Bigfoot}} is a supposed animal or hominid that reputedly inhabits the Pacific Northwest region of North America.
|-
|JFK
|38%
|86% 
|The 1963 {{w|Assassination of John F. Kennedy|assassination of President John F. Kennedy}} has inspired many conspiracy theories, beginning almost immediately after the event. The subsequent murder of assassin Lee Harvey Oswald added fuel to the fire by encouraging speculation that he was silenced to cover up the true story. It seems Randall thinks this has been explained pretty well.
|-
|Oak Island money pit
|32%
|98% 
|An indentation in the ground on {{w|Oak Island}} (off the east coast of Nova Scotia, Canada), led to over 200 years of treasure hunting, with the excavations repeatedly hampered by flooding pit collapses. A few flagstones, and periodic layers of logs are all that have been found. Rumours abound as to what it conceals: Marie Antoinnette's jewels, pirate treasure and Shakespeare's manuscripts have all been suggested. It is called The Money Pit, because of all the money that has been wasted in trying to solve the mystery.
|-
|Why I keep putting ice cream back in the fridge instead of the freezer
|0%
|96% 
|Apparently, Randall absent-mindedly puts his ice cream container into the refrigerator rather than into the freezer.
|}

Note that Randall used a similar diagram in [[1242: Scary Names]].

==Transcript==
:[In a frame at the top left of the panel:]
:'''Mysteries'''

:[A chart with two crossing lines with double arrows. Each arrow is labeled:]
:X-axis left: Not that weird
:X-axis right: Weird as Hell
:Y-axis top: I have no explanation
:Y-axis bottom: Explanation seems pretty clear

:[In the chart there are 22 bullets. Each bullet is labeled. Below the labels are given from top to bottom in each of the four quadrants of the chart:]

:[Top left quadrant:]
:Who Carly Simon is singing about in You're So Vain
:UVB-76
:Lindbergh baby
:Toynbee tiles
:Jimmy Hoffa

:[Top right quadrant:]
:MH370
:Lead Masks Case
:DB Cooper
:The Wow signal
:Salish Sea feet
:Mary Celeste

:[Bottom left quadrant:]
:Voynich manuscript
:JFK
:Why I keep putting ice cream back in the fridge instead of the freezer
:Oak Island Money Pit

:[Bottom right quadrant:]
:Zodiac letters
:Amelia Earhart
:Lost Colony
:Kentucky meat shower
:Bigfoot
:Loch Ness Monster
:Dyatlov Pass incident

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

906: Advertising Discovery

2016-02-03T16:26:10Z

Cloaker: Trust me, editing on the wiki community for 2 years really gets to you

{{comic
| number = 906
| date = June 1, 2011
| title = Advertising Discovery
| image = citations.png
| titletext = When advertisers figure this out, our only weapon will be blue sharpies and "[disputed]".
}}

==Explanation==
On {{w|Wikipedia}}, a well-referenced text or statement indicates credibility. References for particular facts are linked to by bracketed blue little numbers in {{w|superscript}}.[1][3][4] When faced with a statement followed by these, readers will normally believe it without further ado,[6][10] since they take it on trust that there are directions on the bottom of the page, leading to a reliable source or two, agreeing with what the statement says. The effect becomes strengthened when such information often is confirmed to be correct.

In the comic, advertisers have realized that it has gone so far that people in general will take any nonsense for granted if there is just the right amount of Wikipedia-style reference tags to it. The penis pump e-commerce can suddenly flourish (again?) and the spammers won't even need to bother making up findings to cite.

Turgidax{{w|Registered trademark symbol|®}} is something [[Randall]] formed from ''[[wiktionary:turgid|turgid]]'', meaning swollen. The reason that the attaching of ''-ax'' creates a typically pill-like name is simply that ''-ax'' (and ''-ex'') are common Latin adjectival word endings, and that many drugs have names formed from Latin words. -Ax is also, specifically, the root of the -acious ending in English, as in "audacious" or (appropriately) [http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bodacious bodacious], meaning "extra" or "especially". The idea is it makes the genitalius extra or especially turgid. ''[[wiktionary:cardiovascular|Cardiovascular]]'' means relating to the heart and blood vessels.

Cueball saying "Sounds legit" may be a reference to the Internet meme "Seems legit", where when faced with a dubious proposal one unquestioningly accepts or agrees with it, which would make sense in this scenario.

The title text is about how Wikipedia users have been able to add "disputed"-tags (nowadays "disputed – discuss") after challenged facts, with {{w|Template:Disputed-inline|this template}}, since the dawn of time.[11][disputed – discuss] ({{w|Reliability of Wikipedia|Incredible example}}, first sentence.) So when faced with the new advertising trick {{w|Real life|IRL}}, we could counter by scribbling those tags all over with blue {{w|Sharpie (marker)|Sharpie}} marker pens, and so automatically revive the {{w|critical thinking}}.

The comic also references Wikipedia's Neutrality policy, due to the high influx of Paid editors. Indeed, many of Wikipedia editors time is taken up by cleaning up articles with non neutral points of view.

==Transcript==
:Advertising discovery:
:[Person sits at computer, reading an ad on the screen. The bracketed superscripts are blue.]
:Ad: Turgidax® triples[2] your penis size overnight,[2][5] improving both your sexual attractiveness[2][7] and your cardiovascular health.[7][8][9]
:Person (thinking): Sounds legit.
:Caption: Wikipedia has trained us to believe anything followed by little blue numbers in brackets.

==Trivia==
* Randall changed the image name from advertising_discovery.png to citations.png, since adblocking extensions interpreted it as an ad and made the comic blank. He had the same problem just three months earlier with [[870: Advertising]].

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

214: The Problem with Wikipedia

2016-02-03T16:20:32Z

Cloaker: fiX

{{comic
| number = 214
| date = January 24, 2007
| title = The Problem with Wikipedia
| image = the_problem_with_wikipedia.png
| titletext = 'Taft in a wet t-shirt contest' is the key image here.
}}

==Explanation==
This {{w|Comics|comic}} {{w|Illustration|illustrates}} the {{w|Problem|"problems"}} of {{w|information explosion}} coupled with a {{w|Density|dense}} {{w|World_Wide_Web|web}} of {{w|hypertext}} {{w|Hyperlink|links}}. Through most of human history, written media has been both slow and linear. Hypertext allows a new type of information consumption, through small chunks of information linked together in a web of related concepts, and by being digital, each new chunk can be retrieved quickly and effortlessly. Wikipedia applies this principle very strongly, and because it covers so many topics, it is common for a reader to skim an article about a topic they need or want to know about, and end up following a series of links out of curiosity. Since each new page also has several links, the overall navigation pattern resembles a tree that branches out, "exploding" in size with each new level of link-clicking, thus resulting in many wasted hours (over three in this case) of reading stuff unrelated to the original goal, and lots of open browser tabs holding a wide variety of articles, which are seemingly unrelated, but have common "ancestors". (The problem, for [[Randall]], of wasting time on Wikipedia was later referenced in the title text of [[1501: Mysteries]]). The large diversity in end links may also be a reference to the wikipedia game.

One can also see this effect occur in other {{w|Media Wiki}} powered wikis such as this very website, where one comic can lead to another of similar relation or category. In the [[#Table|table]] below a possible route for each entry has been found.

Finding routes between the start and end points of the two pages above and the six below makes good challenges in {{w|Wikipedia:Wiki Game|the Wikipedia game}}.

The title text refers to two of the articles that were supposedly reached at the bottom. {{w|William Howard Taft}} was the 27th President of the U.S., in office from 1909 to 1913, who was notorious for being so overweight that he became stuck in the White House bathtub. A {{w|wet T-shirt contest}} ''is an {{w|Exhibitionism|exhibitionistic}} competition typically featuring young women contestants at a nightclub, bar, or resort.'' Clearly the combination of these two would be rather bizarre.

There is an online game that involves trying to get from one Wikipedia page to another in the shortest possible route http://thewikigame.com/

==Table==
Due to the ever changing nature of Wikipedia, the {{w|Tacoma Narrows Bridge}} entry on Wikipedia no longer links to [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Structural_collapse&redirect=no Structural collapse], requiring an intermediate step via {{w|Tacoma Narrows Bridge (1940)}}, and since {{w|Structural collapse}} now redirects to {{w|Structural integrity and failure}}, most pages on Wikipedia that linked to Structural collapse have been changed to rename this link.

*The table below will list one valid route for each destination article, though it is not necessarily the most efficient route. ''Note that these routes may become invalid as articles are edited.''
**They have all been updated on 03-21-2015 with possible routes.
***Note that all links can be found directly on the page by searching with find. This was not the case in the original version of the paths, where some links were in hidden parts of the page. Thus some of these new paths are longer on this acount.

{| class="wikitable"
!Target
!Wikipath
|-
|{{w|William Howard Taft}}
|{{w|Tacoma Narrows Bridge}} > {{w|Suspension bridge}} > {{w|George Washington Bridge}} > {{w|Washington Heights, Manhattan}} > {{w|George Washington}} > {{w|President of the United States}} > {{w|William Howard Taft}}
|-
|{{w|24-hour analog dial}}
|{{w|Tacoma Narrows Bridge}} > {{w|Suspension bridge}} > {{w|Steel rope}} (now redirecting to ''Wire rope'') > {{w|Steel}} > {{w|Watch}} > {{w|24-hour analog dial}}
|-
|{{w|Lesbianism in erotica}}
|{{w|Tacoma Narrows Bridge}} > {{w|Suspension bridge}} > {{w|Fausto Veranzio}} > {{w|Zagreb}} > {{w|Animation}} > {{w|Anime}} > {{w|Hentai}} > {{w|Cartoon pornography}} > {{w|Pornography}} > {{w|Lesbianism in erotica}}
|-
|{{w|Fatal hilarity}} via {{w|Batman}}
|{{w|Tacoma Narrows Bridge}} > {{w|Suspension Bridge}} > {{w|New York City}} > {{w|Washington Irving}} > {{w|Batman}} > {{w|Batman (1989 film)}} (this extra link now needed to go to the final page) > {{w|Fatal hilarity}} (this page now redirects to ''Death from laughter''. On the previous page the link to that page is called ''laugh to death'')
|-
|{{w|Taylor Hanson}}
|{{w|Tacoma Narrows Bridge}} > {{w|Tacoma Narrows Bridge (1940)}} (this extra link now needed to go to the next page) > {{w|Structural collapse}} (this page now redirects to ''Structural integrity and failure'' and is also called this on the previous page) > {{w|Burj Khalifa}} > {{w|Chicago}} > {{w|Baseball}} > {{w|Baseball rules}} > {{w|Hit by pitch}} > {{w|Homer Simpson}} > {{w|Namesake}} > {{w|Taylor Hanson}}
|-
|{{w|Wet T-Shirt Contest}} via {{w|T-Shirt}} and {{w|Cotton}}
|{{w|Tacoma Narrows Bridge}} > {{w|Tacoma Narrows Bridge (1940)}} (this extra link now needed to go to the next page) > {{w|Structural collapse}} (this page now redirects to ''Structural integrity and failure'' and is also called this on the previous page) > {{w|Maharashtra}} > {{w|Cotton}} > {{w|T-Shirt}} > {{w|Wet T-Shirt Contest}}
|}

==Transcript==
:[Heading above the chart:]
:The Problem with Wikipedia:
:[Text in a frame below the heading:]
:Tacoma Narrows Bridge
:[Lines lead down both left and right to two new frames with the following text]
:Suspension bridge
:Structural collapse
:[Two more lines lead down from the left frame and one from the right frame, and each line ends on a wiggling line. Below this line in square brackets are the following text:]
:Three hours of
:fascinated clicking later
:[Below this there is a similar wiggling line, from where six lines leads to new frames. From the fourth frame there follows yet another line to yet another frame. And from the last frame the same happens twice. Below text in frames from left to right, with extra text below indicated by indentation of the text:]
:William Howard Taft
:24-hour analog dial
:Lesbianism in erotica
:Batman
::Fatal hilarity
:Taylor Hanson
:Cotton
::T-Shirt
:::Wet T-shirt contest

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

241: Battle Room

2016-02-03T16:16:17Z

Cloaker: DONT U FUCKING DARE SAY CRUFT OR I WILL [DATA EXPUNGED]

{{comic
| number = 241
| date = March 28, 2007
| title = Battle Room
| image = battle_room.png
| titletext = Bean actually sabotaged it just to give Dink the excuse to make that joke.
}}

==Explanation==
The book {{w|Ender's Game}} by {{w|Orson Scott Card}} is about Ender Wiggin, a boy of above-average intelligence which means he is recruited to be trained to be one of the commanders of Earth's "Defense" Fleet should the {{w|Formics|Buggers}} invade again (future books renamed the Buggers to the Formics, to be more politically correct, since the British consider Bugger to be a swear word). Ender is taken to a space school called Battle School. At the center of Battle School is the Battle Room, that all the training revolves (literally and figuratively) around.

The Battle room is described as a hollow perfect cube. "Stars" (smaller cubes) can be pulled from the walls (without changing the shape, more stars come in to fill the space where the old one was) and can be used as obstacles in the Battle Room as they will remain absolutely stationary, no matter what force is exerted on them. There is no gravity in the Battle Room. Most squads entering the Battle Room keep their orientation from the hallway (gravity in the hallway dictates where "down" is in the Room). Ender realizes that because the room is a perfect cube, and that even the entrances, called "gates", are perfect squares and do not give any hint about which direction is up or down, that keeping that orientation is useless. He instructs his squad to orient so that the enemy's gate is down, a line of lateral thinking that gives his team three big advantages (smaller targets, "shielding" themselves with their own feet, and unprecedented angles of attack) and leads them to a perfect winning streak.

The joke here, as made by Ender's squadmate Dink, is that the enemy's gate is "down", as in broken. A computer or a website is said to be "down" when it stops operating or is unavailable, due to a cause such as a crash, power cut, or being taken down for maintenance.

The title text suggests that the enemy's gate was sabotaged by Bean, another, more tech smart, friend of Ender's, for the sole reason of allowing Dink to make the joke.

==Transcript==
:[A scene is depicted from the Battle Room of the novel Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card. The men are floating in a room with random cubes.]
:Dink: Sorry, Ender — seems like there were some system crashes. The battle's gotta be cut short.
:Ender: The lasers still work.
:Dink: Yeah, but the enemy's gate is down.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Ender's Game]]

User:Cloaker

2016-02-03T16:05:04Z

Cloaker: Created page with "Hello, my name is cloaker, I live under cars and inside of Vents!"

Hello, my name is cloaker, I live under cars and inside of Vents!