explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:996: Making Things Difficult

2014-01-23T22:04:01Z

SeventyAce:

Commenter VaguelyCreepy had a few notes on Mardi Gras beads that are probably good to keep close to this page:

:A few notes on the Mardi Gras beads:
# They come in all colors, so pink isn’t particularly unusualy, though it could still fit if the doctor specifically chose that color for that reason.
# New Orleans natives really frown on that kind of behavior, and you usually only see it from tourists who think Mardi Gras is some kind of excuse to do whatever you like. The entire thing is a celebration, but if you act like an ass, people are going to hate you for it, and you may very well get arrested. Also, the beads, as well as a variety of other memorabilia, are thrown to everyone, including the women who keep their tops on.

That's all. [[User:Lcarsos|lcarsos]] ([[User talk:Lcarsos|talk]]) 07:58, 24 August 2012 (UTC)

I'm removing the line, "In this case, the beads are pink, likely a reference to the Pink ribbon campaign related to Breast cancer awareness." The beads aren't pink, they're clearly purple. [[Special:Contributions/67.253.239.15|67.253.239.15]] 19:21, 20 July 2013 (UTC)
:I have an app which identifies them as pink (I'm colorblind, so I can't personally pass judgement). The pink beads would definitely make sense. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.202|108.162.219.202]] 06:33, 30 December 2013 (UTC)

:I'm no expert, but if you open the image in Paint, zoom and use the eye-dropper, the color is definitely purple to the eye. My sample was (R,G,B => 175,68,173). It is not uniform, but other samples were similar. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.223|108.162.219.223]] 22:49, 21 January 2014 (UTC)

:They look purple to me--[[User:SeventyAce|SeventyAce]] ([[User talk:SeventyAce|talk]]) 22:04, 23 January 2014 (UTC)

313: Insomnia

2014-01-23T21:57:28Z

SeventyAce: I don't think this is incomplete, taking the tag down

{{comic
| number = 313
| date = September 7, 2007
| title = Insomnia
| image = insomnia.png
| titletext = Crap, I have levitation class at 25:131. Better set the alarm to 'cinnamon'.
}}

==Explanation==
Simply put, the narrator's insomnia, combined with small bright lights in an otherwise pitch-black room, is causing him to hallucinate. Furthermore, the narrator is well aware he will be unable to distinguish the hallucinations from reality.

A clock can never read "72 minutes" as there are only 60 minutes in an hour. While a clock can read "13 hours" on a {{w|24-hour clock}} which is common on most {{w|Digital clock}}s, the thirteenth hour obviously does not occur immediately after the fourth hour.

The title text shows the narrator has indeed "succumbed" to his visions, and is assigning gibberish values -- an alarm clock with a "cinnamon" setting, the time of day "25 hours and 131 minutes" -- to an otherwise normal monologue.

==Transcript==
:[It is black, except a few blue and green lights, and red numbers from a clock.]
:[The clock shows 4:31]
:Lying awake at night I realize how many little lights there are in my room. The alarm clock is the brightest. Can't sleep I'm alone with those glowing red numbers
:[The clock now shows 4:32]
:Time slows
:Does time even exist here?
:Thoughts churning in on themselves
:[The clock now shows 4:33]
:The madness can't be far away
:Ah yes
:[The clock now shows 13:72]
:There it is.

==Trivia==
*The cinnamon setting could be a reference to this {{w|Cinnamon challenge}}. But almost certainly is not.

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

972: November

2014-01-23T21:52:04Z

SeventyAce: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 972
| date = November 2, 2011
| title = November
| image = november.png
| imagesize =
| titletext = November marks the birthday of Charles Schulz, pioneer of tongue awareness.
}}

==Explanation==

This comic is a homage to {{w|Charles Schulz}}, the creator of the comic {{w|Peanuts}}, who was born on November 26, 1922. [[:File:tongue awareness.jpg|Here's the comic in question]] by Schulz. xkcd's version has [[Black Hat]] as Linus, and [[Cueball]] as Lucy. In both comics, when you start thinking about your tongue, you can't stop thinking about it. This is similar to the way that if you start thinking about your breathing, you stop breathing unless you consciously think to breathe.
Black Hat says "enjoy the next four weeks" sarcastically, knowing Cueball will be uncomfortably aware of his tongue during that time.

[http://fuckyeahexistentialism.tumblr.com/post/852726235/im-aware-of-my-tongue-its-an-awful-feeling This link] also indicates that Schulz's comic is not completely about tongue awareness, instead has deeper meaning about one's existence in the world.

==Transcript==
:[Black Hat and Cueball sit in a room]
:Black Hat: Did you know November is Tongue Awareness Month?

:[Cueball is suddenly aware of his tongue]

:[Cueball continues to be aware of his tongue]

:[Cueball is *still* aware of his tongue]
:Cueball: I hate you.
:Black Hat: Enjoy the next four weeks.

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

972: November

2014-01-23T21:51:11Z

SeventyAce: /* Explanation */ Removing incomplete tag after explaining "enjoy the next four weeks"

{{comic
| number = 972
| date = November 2, 2011
| title = November
| image = november.png
| imagesize =
| titletext = November marks the birthday of Charles Schulz, pioneer of tongue awareness.
}}

==Explanation==

This comic is a homage to {{w|Charles Schulz}}, the creator of the comic {{w|Peanuts}}, who was born on November 26, 1922. [[:File:tongue awareness.jpg|Here's the comic in question]] by Schulz. xkcd's version has [[Black Hat]] as Linus, and [[Cueball]] as Lucy. In both comics, when you start thinking about your tongue, you can't stop thinking about it. This is similar to the way that if you start thinking about your breathing, you stop breathing unless you consciously think to breathe.

[http://fuckyeahexistentialism.tumblr.com/post/852726235/im-aware-of-my-tongue-its-an-awful-feeling This link] also indicates that Schulz's comic is not completely about tongue awareness, instead has deeper meaning about one's existence in the world.

Black Hat says "enjoy the next four weeks" sarcastically, knowing Cueball will be uncomfortably aware of his tongue during that time.

==Transcript==
:[Black Hat and Cueball sit in a room]
:Black Hat: Did you know November is Tongue Awareness Month?

:[Cueball is suddenly aware of his tongue]

:[Cueball continues to be aware of his tongue]

:[Cueball is *still* aware of his tongue]
:Cueball: I hate you.
:Black Hat: Enjoy the next four weeks.

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

959: Caroling

2014-01-23T21:40:22Z

SeventyAce: /* Explanation */ removing incomplete tag, it seemed to completely miss the point of the comic

{{comic
| number = 959
| date = October 3, 2011
| title = Caroling
| image = caroling.png
| titletext = For a thousand generations we vowed never to forget how his soldiers feasted on our brother Stephen.
}}

==Explanation==
Here are the lyrics for the first verse of the Christmas Carol, "{{w|Good King Wenceslas}}"

:''Good King Wenceslas looked out, on the Feast of Stephen,''
:''When the snow lay round about, deep and crisp and even;''
:''Brightly shone the moon that night, tho' the frost was cruel,''
:''When a poor man came in sight, gath'ring winter fuel.''

While not a king, {{w|Wenceslaus I, Duke of Bohemia}} is considered a martyr and a saint. Far from being responsible for any massacre, he protected his subjects from external dominance, and is still a national hero to the Czech people. [[Black Hat]] is supplying {{w|disinformation}} to unsuspecting carolers in order to silence them.

The title text references "the {{w|St. Stephen's Day|Feast of Stephen}}" which is also known as the "Feast of St. Stephen" or "St. Stephen's Day", which is a holiday celebrated on 26 or 27 December, depending on the Western or Eastern church respectively. It is not actually a feast that involved eating a person named Stephen, instead a celebration of the Saint named Stephen.

==Transcript==
:[Three people stand together singing Christmas carols.]
:Carolers (in unison): Good king Wenceslas looked out on the—

:[Black Hat leans out of an above ground window.]
:Black Hat: King Wenceslas massacred my people.

:[The carolers stand in silence.]

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]
[[Category:Music]]

114: Computational Linguists

2014-01-19T18:47:10Z

SeventyAce: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 114
| date = June 12, 2006
| title = Computational Linguists
| image = computational linguists.png
| titletext = Chomskyists, generative linguists, and Ryan North, your days are numbered.
}}

==Explanation==
Here [[Black Hat]] is criticising computational linguistics, which overlaps between various field like theoretical linguistics, artificial intelligence, etc. Linguistics itself is still a hotly debated subject, as is seen by the various conflicting theories on the origin of languages like the forms of {{w|Proto-Indo-European}} language.

The joke in the comic is that Black Hat, instead of trying to poke fun at angsty emo kids, decides to poke fun at computational linguists for their attempts to model natural languages on computers using the various contradictory theories that are floating around nowadays. The title text is a reference to some of the people who contributed to language theory.

{{w|Noam Chomsky}} is an influential American psychologist and linguist who, based on cross-cultural studies, proposed a still-disputed theory that the human brain is unique from that of other species in that it includes a fundamental Language Acquisition Device (LAD) that is pre-programmed with basic rules of grammar and syntax: thus, language is innate to humans.

{{w|Generative Linguistics}} is a term within linguistics that is used in several ways, some of which are contradictory. This may be why it is chosen as a target by [[Black Hat]].

{{w|Ryan North}} is the author of the webcomic {{w|Dinosaur Comics}}, and has a degree in computational linguistics.

==Transcript==
:[Black Hat is standing next to a large badge which says FUCK Computational Lingustics]
:Black Hat: And the dumbest thing about emo kids is that... I... You know, I'm sick of easy targets. Anyone can make fun of emo kids. You know who's had it too easy? Computational Linguists. "Ooh, look at me! My field is so ill-defined, I can subscribe to any of dozens of contradictory models and still be taken seriously!"

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]
[[Category:Language]]

114: Computational Linguists

2014-01-19T18:46:51Z

SeventyAce: Removing tag I put here earlier saying there's no transcript because it turns out there is a transcript. Derp

{{comic
| number = 114
| date = June 12, 2006
| title = Computational Linguists
| image = computational linguists.png
| titletext = Chomskyists, generative linguists, and Ryan North, your days are numbered.
}}

==Explanation==
Here [[Black Hat]] is criticising computational linguistics, which overlaps between various field like theoretical linguistics, artificial intelligence, etc. Linguistics itself is still a hotly debated subject, as is seen by the various conflicting theories on the origin of languages like the forms of {{w|Proto-Indo-European}} language.

The joke in the comic is that Black Hat, instead of trying to poke fun at angsty emo kids, decides to poke fun at computational linguists for their attempts to model natural languages on computers using the various contradictory theories that are floating around nowadays. The title text is a reference to some of the people who contributed to language theory.

{{w|Noam Chomsky}} is an influential American psychologist and linguist who, based on cross-cultural studies, proposed a still-disputed theory that the human brain is unique from that of other species in that it includes a fundamental Language Acquisition Device (LAD) that is pre-programmed with basic rules of grammar and syntax: thus, language is innate to humans.

{{w|Generative Linguistics}} is a term within linguistics that is used in several ways, some of which are contradictory. This may be why it is chosen as a target by [[Black Hat]]

{{w|Ryan North}} is the author of the webcomic {{w|Dinosaur Comics}}, and has a degree in computational linguistics.

==Transcript==
:[Black Hat is standing next to a large badge which says FUCK Computational Lingustics]
:Black Hat: And the dumbest thing about emo kids is that... I... You know, I'm sick of easy targets. Anyone can make fun of emo kids. You know who's had it too easy? Computational Linguists. "Ooh, look at me! My field is so ill-defined, I can subscribe to any of dozens of contradictory models and still be taken seriously!"

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]
[[Category:Language]]

145: Parody Week: Dinosaur Comics

2014-01-19T14:38:10Z

SeventyAce: Doesn't look incomplete to me

{{comic
| number = 145
| date = August 18, 2006
| title = Parody Week: Dinosaur Comics
| image = dinosaur_comics.png
| titletext = Guys: while I was writing this, I accidentally swallowed a table-size slab of drywall. I know! Wacky.
}}

==Explanation==
[http://qwantz.com/index.php Dinosaur Comics] ({{w|Dinosaur Comics|wikipedia article}}) is a webcomic by Ryan North. The artwork never changes, save a few rare exceptions, and only the dialogue is different. [[Randall]] traced the comic's usual artwork (though the drawing of the house about to be squashed in panel 4 is a more rudimentary rendition).

For those who don't read it, [http://www.qwantz.com/index.php?comic=1387 here's] a typical strip, and [http://www.qwantz.com/index.php?comic=2079 here's] the strip referenced by the parody.

Randall makes several shots at recurring themes in Dinosaur Comics. T-Rex (the green dinosaur) is bold and enthusiastic, discussing various topics, a favorite of which appears to be linguistics. Dromiceiomimus, the white dinosaur in the third panel, usually responds calmly to T-Rex's discussions. Utahraptor, the orange dinosaur, typically contradicts T-Rex, but Randall subverts this pattern and has him agree. The comic suggests that the perpetual disagreement stems from a 'rift' in the author's mind, which would be healed if only he lived in a world where there were a land bridge between Asia and North America.

Just like xkcd, Dinosaur Comics also has title texts. Ryan's title texts tend to be bizarre non-sequiturs, and the title text in the parody seems to be a riff on this.

This comic is a part of the Parody Week, just joking about other webcomics.
*[[Parody Week: Achewood]]
*[[Parody Week: Megatokyo]]
*[[Parody Week: TFD and Natalie Dee]]
*[[Parody Week: A Softer World]]
*'''Parody Week: Dinosaur Comics'''

==Transcript==
:T-Rex: THINGS I AM UPPITY ABOUT: "They" as a third-person singular gender-free pronoun.
:T-Rex: I'm all for it!
:Dromiceiomimus: But isn't that terrible grammar?
:T-Rex: Only by recent convention! It's been in use that way for centuries, and its use is widely accepted! ALSO: this lets us avoid ridiculous constructs like "he/she", "s/he", "xe" or "hirs"!
:Utahraptor: T-Rex, I... agree.
:T-Rex: What?
:Utahraptor: That sounds good to me!
:Utahraptor: Normally I'd jump in with an objection, but I think your point makes sense.
:T-Rex: Could it be that the rift in our author's mind has finally healed? Is he no longer locked in perpetual war with the self-doubt that lurks in his subc-
:Narrator: '''IN A WORLD WHERE THERE IS STILL A LAND BRIDGE BETWEEN ASIA AND NORTH AMERICA FOR SOME REASON:'''
:T-Rex: -onscious?
:Narrator: '''ALSO HOW ABOUT IN THIS WORLD EVERYONE IS BICURIOUS'''

==Trivia==
*The topic of gender-neutral pronouns has been [http://www.qwantz.com/index.php?comic=2079 specifically covered] in Dinosaur Comics, five years after this parody.

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