explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:1501: Mysteries

2015-03-20T19:54:14Z

Shnatsel: Is the explainability rating inaccurate?

Here's a list of wikipedia links I compiled that will be useful for anyone wanting to update this page. http://www.reddit.com/r/xkcd/comments/2zog5d/xkcd_1501_mysteries/cpktray {{unsigned ip|‎141.101.106.155}}

And I've got a solar eclipse to see (explainable, but weird!) but I started to compile things. Haven't got any links sorted yet, and percentages are (badly) done by eye. If someone does it better, ignore it.


[[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.63|141.101.98.63]] 09:33, 20 March 2015 (UTC)

:(Whoops, pasted the flatfile format version by accident, in my rush, rather than the more Wikifriendly one that I discarded. Commenting it out until/unless I redo it. But you should still be able to see the details via the Talk Edit pages if you're bothered. Oh, and there was really too much cloud to see the eclipse for what it was. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.63|141.101.98.63]] 10:29, 20 March 2015 (UTC))

::I dropped the image into our CAD system and plotted the point co-ordinates. I've filled in the resulting percentages, which should be somewhere about right with a little rounding. --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 10:35, 20 March 2015 (UTC)

:::Exactly right. (Although I didn't read the zero/zero crossing point is supposed to be maybe 50% on both scales, but instead ±zero. Still, doesn't matter. And perhaps displays/sorts better.) And looks like I don't need to recover my formatted notes after all. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.63|141.101.98.63]] 11:19, 20 March 2015 (UTC)

[[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.176|199.27.128.176]] 09:49, 20 March 2015 (UTC) XKCD has explained the Voynich Manuscript before: http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/593:_Voynich_Manuscript

:XKCD has also 'explained' DB Cooper before ([[1400: D.B. Cooper]]) if that is worth mentioning. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.250.167|108.162.250.167]] 12:06, 20 March 2015 (UTC)

I have to wonder if Randall has ever seen http://keithledgerwood.com/post/79838944823/did-malaysian-airlines-370-disappear-using and if so, whether he simply doesn't believe it. Not to sabotage his 100%-100% example if he wants to keep it there, but I'd put it at only 50% weird and 10% unexplainable. [[Special:Contributions/199.27.133.27|199.27.133.27]] 14:02, 20 March 2015 (UTC)

;Carly Simon

The Carly Simon explanation includes the text "This sets up a paradox in which the song is and isn't about the vain person." This isn't correct. The song is definitely about the person. Carly is thus asserting that the subject's vanity will lead him to a correct interpretation of the song. Going to change the explanation. [[User:EverVigilant|EverVigilant]] ([[User talk:EverVigilant|talk]]) 14:51, 20 March 2015 (UTC)

I don't see why this is on Randall's chart. The Wikipedia article is all the explanation the world needs. And Warren Beatty's reaction to the song simply seals it for me. No Big Deal. Move On. ''– [[User:Tbc|tbc]] ([[User talk:Tbc|talk]]) 18:41, 20 March 2015 (UTC)''

;WOW signa

It now says "This is the strongest evidence to date of extraterrestrial radio signals.", which is technically incorrect. We observe radio signals from outer space all the time, they originate from young stars, Big Bang, active galaxies, and so on. This should probably be rephrased to something about extraterrestrial intelligence, but I'm not sure if it deserves to be called "evidence". [[User:Jolindbe|Jolindbe]] ([[User talk:Jolindbe|talk]]) 16:18, 20 March 2015 (UTC)

;Dyatlov Pass

Um, Wikipedia regards avalanche as most plausible explanation of the Dyatlov Pass incident, and it appears to be most widespread and down-to-earth explanation that doesn't involve the supernatural or secret soviet weapons test, things like that. Shouldn't we include mention of the avalance then, perhaps? I mean, with such high "explainability" rating it's pretty clear that Randall probably assumes avalanche, since if he assumed other, less widespread theory he probably would downgrade the "explainability" to account for the fact that it's more disputed version. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.89.222|141.101.89.222]] 18:13, 20 March 2015 (UTC)

;Off the chart up and to the right

How the Universe came into existence (the physics and math behind "Why is there something rather than nothing?") is far weirder with less of an explanation than anything on Randall's chart – scientists' claims, which redefine "nothing," notwithstanding. And then how life started and evolved (the chemistry and biology – and quantum physics? – at the transition point between inanimate amino acids and cells and the subsequent arrival of ''homo sapiens'') is almost as strange as the Big Bang. ''– [[User:Tbc|tbc]] ([[User talk:Tbc|talk]]) 18:34, 20 March 2015 (UTC)''

== Inaccurate explainability rating ==

I've read the Russian wikipedia article on Dyatlov Pass Incident and not only it's incredibly weird (much more details than condensed English article), but also no plausible explanation is provided that would account for all the incredibly weird stuff going on. I have no idea how that could be awarded 96% explainability.

UVB-76, on the other hand, is a pretty easy to explain as one-time-pad encrypted military broadcast, with buzzing to occupy the frequency and discourage others from using it. How is that just 23% explainable, I have no idea. That's what I've found in Russian sources, anyway.

Also, the Toynbee Tiles mystery is pretty much solved if you trust "Duerr, Justin. Resurrect Dead: The Mystery of the Toynbee Tiles" as a source.

There are even more inconsistencies pointed out above. At first I've suspected that the scale is accidentally inverted, but D.B. Cooper story is pretty poorly explained, so it's more like the whole thing is just randomly messed up.
--[[User:Shnatsel|Shnatsel]] ([[User talk:Shnatsel|talk]]) 19:54, 20 March 2015 (UTC)

1501: Mysteries

2015-03-20T19:25:46Z

Shnatsel: Added a link to 1400: D.B. Cooper

{{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==

The X axis in this graph is weirdness. We assume that the far left is 0% (not that weird) and the far right is 100% (weird as hell).

The Y axis is explainability. We assume that the bottom is 100% (pretty clear) and the top is 0% (no explanation).

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.

{| class="wikitable sortable"
!Entry
!Weirdness
!Explainable
!Further Details
|-
|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.
|-
|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.
|-
|UVB-76
|40%
|23%
|{{w|UVB-76}} is a mysterious shortwave radio station, apparently originating from Russia, that has broadcast a monotonous buzz tone since 1982 with occasional other content.
|-
|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.
|-
|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.
|-
|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 appears to have originated from interstellar space [http://www.universetoday.com/93754/35-years-later-the-wow-signal-still-tantalizes/]. This is the strongest evidence to date of extraterrestrial radio signals.
|-
|Mary Celeste
|70%
|43%
|The ''{{w|Mary Celeste}}'' was a sailing ship found adrift, mysteriously abandoned yet otherwise undisturbed, in 1872. No explanation for these events has ever been determined. Its name has become a watchword for mysteriously abandoned ships.
|-
|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. No trace of him was never found. Previously referenced in [[1400: D.B. Cooper]].
|-
|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).
|-
|Lead Masks Case
|99%
|12%
|In 1966 two Brazilian electricians were found dead on a hill top. No injuries. {{w|Lead Masks Case|Both were wearing lead masks}}.
|-
|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 towards Antarctica. No trace has been found.
|-
|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]].
|-
|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.
|-
|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.
|-
|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.
|-
|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 available at [https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Zodiac_Killer_letters Wikisource]. Some of the letters are encoded, only some of which have been deciphered. The killings remain unsolved.
|-
|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]].
|-
|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 few clear clues as to what happened. An oft cited oddity is the word "Croatoan" carved into a fencepost.
|-
|Bigfoot
|60%
|98%
|{{w|Bigfoot}} is a supposed animal or hominid that reputedly inhabits the Pacific Northwest region of North America.
|-
|Loch Ness Monster
|64%
|100%
|The {{w|Loch Ness Monster}} is a supposed animal that reputedly inhabits Loch Ness, a lake in Scotland.
|-
|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 projectile vomit from vultures [http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/running-ponies/2014/12/01/the-great-kentucky-meat-shower-mystery-unwound-by-projectile-vulture-vomit/].
|-
|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.
|}

The title text refers to Randall staying up late to read Wikipedia articles, which is apparently not very unusual for him and 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]]

==Transcript==

{{comic discussion}}

1501: Mysteries

2015-03-20T19:23:12Z

Shnatsel: added a link to 593: Voynich manuscript

{{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==

The X axis in this graph is weirdness. We assume that the far left is 0% (not that weird) and the far right is 100% (weird as hell).

The Y axis is explainability. We assume that the bottom is 100% (pretty clear) and the top is 0% (no explanation).

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.

{| class="wikitable sortable"
!Entry
!Weirdness
!Explainable
!Further Details
|-
|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.
|-
|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.
|-
|UVB-76
|40%
|23%
|{{w|UVB-76}} is a mysterious shortwave radio station, apparently originating from Russia, that has broadcast a monotonous buzz tone since 1982 with occasional other content.
|-
|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.
|-
|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.
|-
|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 appears to have originated from interstellar space [http://www.universetoday.com/93754/35-years-later-the-wow-signal-still-tantalizes/]. This is the strongest evidence to date of extraterrestrial radio signals.
|-
|Mary Celeste
|70%
|43%
|The ''{{w|Mary Celeste}}'' was a sailing ship found adrift, mysteriously abandoned yet otherwise undisturbed, in 1872. No explanation for these events has ever been determined. Its name has become a watchword for mysteriously abandoned ships.
|-
|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. No trace of him was never found. Previously referenced in [[1400: D.B. Cooper]].
|-
|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).
|-
|Lead Masks Case
|99%
|12%
|In 1966 two Brazilian electricians were found dead on a hill top. No injuries. {{w|Lead Masks Case|Both were wearing lead masks}}.
|-
|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 towards Antarctica. No trace has been found.
|-
|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]].
|-
|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.
|-
|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.
|-
|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.
|-
|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 available at [https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Zodiac_Killer_letters Wikisource]. Some of the letters are encoded, only some of which have been deciphered. The killings remain unsolved.
|-
|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]].
|-
|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 few clear clues as to what happened. An oft cited oddity is the word "Croatoan" carved into a fencepost.
|-
|Bigfoot
|60%
|98%
|{{w|Bigfoot}} is a supposed animal or hominid that reputedly inhabits the Pacific Northwest region of North America.
|-
|Loch Ness Monster
|64%
|100%
|The {{w|Loch Ness Monster}} is a supposed animal that reputedly inhabits Loch Ness, a lake in Scotland.
|-
|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 projectile vomit from vultures [http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/running-ponies/2014/12/01/the-great-kentucky-meat-shower-mystery-unwound-by-projectile-vulture-vomit/].
|-
|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.
|}

The title text refers to Randall staying up late to read Wikipedia articles, which is apparently not very unusual for him and has an obvious explanation (following up on an idea that eventually led to today's cartoon).

See also [[950: Mystery Solved]] where Randall "solves" Amelia Earhart, Lost Roanoke Colony, Jimmy Hoffa; [[593: Voynich Manuscript]]; and also {{w|Franklin's lost expedition}}.

==Transcript==

{{comic discussion}}

Talk:1456: On the Moon

2014-12-06T12:45:43Z

Shnatsel: /* Aide explanation */ new section

'''Transcript'''

I don't see why the transcript is incomplete, it looks pretty complete and all there to me... [[User:Official.xian|Official.xian]] ([[User talk:Official.xian|talk]]) 14:45, 5 December 2014 (UTC)
:Agreed, removed incomplete tag. --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 14:49, 5 December 2014 (UTC)

I wondered if the cartoon is about sex discrimination. After all, when people went to the moon, nobody even considered (as far as I know) letting a woman go on an Apollo flight. Megan might be saying "Land a ''man'' on the moon?" Or she might be tired of Cueball saying this and be obliquely suggesting NASA send him there on a one-way trip! [[User:Gade|Gade]] ([[User talk:Gade|talk]]) 15:25, 5 December 2014 (UTC)

No, that only means that you are blinded by the alienation caused by the noxious media sites you visit. This strip is clearly about doing a 'real' manned moonlanding instead of that fake hollywood footage from 1969 that doesn't look anything like the photos taken last year from the chinese lander. --[[User:Loon|Loon]] ([[User talk:Loon|talk]]) 18:49, 5 December 2014 (UTC)
:Appropriate handle, considering that half-baked claims that the moon landings were faked have been debunked so many times over the past forty years. In fact, XKCD #[[1441]] (Turnabout) only works *because* we landed on the moon.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.94|108.162.216.94]] 00:31, 6 December 2014 (UTC)

Is there a reference for the claim "Unmanned hardened pre-cooled robotic probes either got crushed or fried before landing, or survived only a couple of hours at most."? [[User:Djbrasier|Djbrasier]] ([[User talk:Djbrasier|talk]]) 16:07, 5 December 2014 (UTC)
:Yes. The Venera probes. Citation provided. --Equinox [[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.117|199.27.128.117]] 17:18, 5 December 2014 (UTC)
:(Well, you got me an edit conflict, after checking, editing and reviewing,but here's what I wrote.)
:That's not the way I would phrase that claim, but it sounds like it's Venera 9 and its similar successors being talked about, with the "pre-cooling".
:A brief check of a book I have (no, I've never heard of The Internet) suggests that the complete list of landers that actually got to Venus are as follows:
::Venera 3 (descent probe, probably crashed, communications failed before approach)
::Venera 4 (descent probe, ran out of power before destroyed in the atmosphere)
::Venera 5 (descent probe, may have crushed at late stage of descent while still powered)
::Venera 6 (descent probe, as V5)
::Venera 7 (23 minutes of faint recordings from surface, probably landed on side after rough landing)
::Venera 8 (50 minutes on surface before going silent)
::Venera 9 (53 minutes, before radio contact with orbiter lost and not regained)
::Venera 10 (can't find timing details)
::Venera 11 (95 minutes, before contact with orbiter lost)
::Venera 12 (110 minutes)
::Venera 13 (a confirmed 127 minutes)
::Venera 14 (57 minutes, ditto; managed to "measure its own lens-cap" in the intended soil-compressibility experiment!)
::Vega 1 (no time information for Venus Lander component
::Vega 2 (56 minutes for on surface for Venus Lander component)
::Pioneer (an hour, for one of three landers on the mission)
:Knowing the surface environment (temperature and pressure) and the design specs it can be assumed that Venera 13's confirmed 127 minutes of operation is near the top-end of functionality and that those that merely went out of range would have had not much more survival time. Although by the time of the final Veneras the expected survival time was only 30 minutes, and yet they may have lasted at least twice as long, so who knows... (Also note the possible usage of "a couple of hours" in relation to [[1070]].)
[[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.247|141.101.98.247]] 17:48, 5 December 2014 (UTC)
::That looks like an XKCD comic in and of itself. {{unsigned ip|173.245.50.72}}

Man, for a minute I thought the second 'MAN' refers to a truck from the car company [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MAN_Truck_%26_Bus MAN]. They are rather heavy. 5 December 2014 {{unsigned ip|173.245.50.139}}

I thought "land" was a euphemism. Read it again and tell me what you think. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.215.153|108.162.215.153]] 03:26, 6 December 2014 (UTC)OctopodesC

Seems like "still lack a coherent vision" is a bit too editorial, especially given the launch and return of the Orion capsule. "Coherent vision" or its lack might be in the eye of the beholder... [[User:Taibhse|Taibhse]] ([[User talk:Taibhse|talk]]) 11:46, 6 December 2014 (UTC)

== Aide explanation ==

The "no return" part instantly reminded me of [http://www.mars-one.com/ Mars One], a project to land people on Mars and never return them back on Earth. The most prominent reason for the impossibility of return are (1) the amount of fuel that has to be carried to Mars to be able make it back is insane (Tsiolkovsky's equation).

1415: Ballooning

2014-09-01T18:46:42Z

Shnatsel: +{{Citation needed}}

{{comic
| number = 1415
| date = September 1, 2014
| title = Ballooning
| image = ballooning.png
| titletext = Time to dance in front of Mary Jane! If I'm lucky, she'll turn out not to practice pre-copulatory sexual cannibalism!
}}

==Explanation==
{{w|Spider-Man}} is a fictional superhero in comic books published by Marvel Comics, and has been the star of a number of television shows and film. The {{w|Spider-Man theme song}}, first used for the 1967 cartoon show, includes the words, "Spider-Man, Spider-Man, does whatever a spider can". However, at other points, the theme song explains some things Spider-Man can do that a real spider obviously couldn't, such as crime-fighting. Randall is pointing out that while the abilities attributed to Spider-Man make a good superhero story{{Citation needed}}, they are not real abilities of a spider.

This comic depicts [[Cueball]] as a far more realistic Spider-Man, behaving and thinking much more closely to a real spider than the Spider-Man from the comics. Cueball is shown {{w|Ballooning (spider)|ballooning}}, a trait used by spiders to move between locations, rather than swinging on web cords as in the comics and films. As he is floating, he sees a good spot to land, eat some bugs and make an egg sac. Again this contrasts the real life of a spider with Spider-Man, who would doubtless be rushing to fight crime or save a pretty girl.

Only female spiders create an egg sac. Male spiders spin a sperm web in order to transfer their sperm from their {{w|epigastric furrow}} into their {{w|pedipalp}}s (reproductive organ located on the front two appendages, in the position where a scorpion would have pincers), which will then be used to transfer the sperm into the female during copulation. Cueball/Spider-Man, being nominally male, should in fact be looking for a place to create a sperm web, not an egg sac.

The title text refers to the mating ritual of some spiders, in which the male performs a dance to court the female. Mary-Jane is the love interest throughout the Spider-Man stories, and so Cueball is planning to court her by dancing in front of her. In doing so he hopes that he is lucky, and she doesn't eat him before copulating with him, as {{w|sexual cannibalism}} is a trait associated with spiders.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is shown floating on the wind, attached to a large balloon. The balloon is made of spider silk.]
:Cueball: Ooh, that looks like a good spot to land, eat some bugs, and make an egg sac!
:♫ ''Spider-Man, Spider-Man, does whatever a spider can'' ♪
{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]

1382: Rocket Packs

2014-06-17T09:42:09Z

Shnatsel: + {{Citation needed}}

{{comic
| number = 1382
| date = June 16, 2014
| title = Rocket Packs
| image = rocket_packs.png
| titletext = Every year: 'It's <year>--I want my jetpack [and also my free medical care covering all my jetpack-related injuries]!'
}}

==Explanation==
For a long time, many people have speculated that in the future, everyone would travel around with rockets strapped to their backs.{{Citation needed}} However, this has not come to pass.

In this comic, Randall is pointing out that the problem with personal rocket packs is not how to attach a rocket to someone's back, but other practical considerations. One might be how to keep the hot exhaust from burning the user's {{w|Calf_(anatomy)|calves}}. (Many {{w|jet pack}} designs actually do have ways to deal with this, such as moving the rockets farther from the user, but there are many other practical issues which have made this an impractical form of travel given current technology).

The title text starts with the trope [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/IWantMyJetPack "I want my jetpack"]. It continues with pointing out that if people did start using rocket packs, there would also be more injuries, raising health care costs. That's something that people usually don't consider when imagining a future where these devices are commonplace.

So this year when the comics was published the demand was:
:'' 'It's 2014--I want my jetpack [and also my free medical care covering all my jetpack-related injuries]!' ''

==Transcript==
:[Text above the frame]
:Rocket packs are easy.
:[In the frame: Cueball is lying face down on the ground with his Rocket Packs on his back and his calves severely burned]
:Cueball: Ow.
:[Text below the frame]
:The hard part is inventing the calf shields.

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