explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:1471: Gut Fauna

2015-01-10T07:55:07Z

Squornshellous Beta:

Poor dog. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.246.231|108.162.246.231]] 06:25, 10 January 2015 (UTC)

I think this comic also contains a pun on [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macrobiotic_diet macrobiotics]. Esp. the wording "out of balance" seems to be a reference to esoteric speech. [[User:Knob creek|Knob creek]] ([[User talk:Knob creek|talk]]) 09:13, 9 January 2015 (UTC)

In fairy tales (most notably in little red riding hood), the wolf swallows whole its (human) victims. The comic depics an inversion of roles. Do you think it's worth adding this observation in the explanation? {{unsigned ip|188.114.99.18}}

:That's what I took it to mean too, the two options being he swallows the wolf or the wolf swallows him. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.159|141.101.98.159]] 12:35, 9 January 2015 (UTC)

Another pun might be on the name of a restaurant in Seattle: [[http://www.ethanstowellrestaurants.com/locations/how-to-cook-a-wolf/ How to Cook a Wolf]] [[User:Araucaria|Araucaria]] ([[User talk:Araucaria|talk]]) 15:53, 9 January 2015 (UTC)
:That's so extremely obscure that thinking it intended is difficult. - Equinox [[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.117|199.27.128.117]] 16:59, 9 January 2015 (UTC)

;Is a citation really needed?

I think that requiring a citation for the lethality of administering a wolf via the mouth or rectum may be going just a bit too far? Reference in the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1471:_Gut_Fauna&diff=82345&oldid=82344 Change history] [[User:Pmw57|Pmw57]] ([[User talk:Pmw57|talk]]) 10:25, 9 January 2015 (UTC)

: I assume that this is a humorous comment, similar to the citation needed tags in the What-if articles. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.237|141.101.98.237]] 12:04, 9 January 2015 (UTC)

::Good point, could be a joking reference to [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=285 xkcd #285] {{unsigned ip|173.245.52.138}}

I know an old lady who swallowed a... [[Special:Contributions/108.162.249.237|108.162.249.237]] 13:45, 9 January 2015 (UTC)
: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KiESiO6tLM8 --[[User:RenniePet|RenniePet]] ([[User talk:RenniePet|talk]]) 19:54, 9 January 2015 (UTC)

Is Ponytail ''actually'' a Doctor? If you take the lessone from what can be done in [https://xkcd.com/699/|699 - Trimester], and buy a labcoat... [[User:RedHillian|RedHillian]] ([[User talk:RedHillian|talk]]) 01:55, 10 January 2015 (UTC)

"animals are never found in the human digestive system; all known cases of animals in a human digestive system are causes of disease.)" Technically, couldn't it also be the result of one's choice of food? Admittedly a temporary state of affairs, but there are certainly dishes involving live food. [[User:Squornshellous Beta|Squornshellous Beta]] ([[User talk:Squornshellous Beta|talk]]) 07:55, 10 January 2015 (UTC)

Talk:1276: Angular Size

2013-10-11T12:08:07Z

Squornshellous Beta:

What is the meaning of "football field" in panel #2? --[[User:Kevang|Kevang]] ([[User talk:Kevang|talk]]) 04:50, 11 October 2013 (UTC)
:I was wondering the same thing. Probably misplaced text. [[User:Irino.|Irino.]] ([[User talk:Irino.|talk]]) 05:49, 11 October 2013 (UTC)
::It does seem to be misplaced, but if that's the only glitch, this is the only panel without a unique reference object. "20 football pitches long" isn't all that easy to grasp. [[User:Jameslucas|jameslucas]] ([[User talk:Jameslucas|" "]] / [[Special:Contributions/Jameslucas|+]]) 09:09, 11 October 2013 (UTC)
:::The image is fixed by Randall. I did an update here.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 11:28, 11 October 2013 (UTC)

I haven't done any lookups or maths to check these, but give the size of these as "stars" in the sky, everything from panel 2 onwards seems to me to be an order of magnitude or two too large. [[User:Markhurd|Mark Hurd]] ([[User talk:Markhurd|talk]]) 05:17, 11 October 2013 (UTC)
: Not really. You see the stars and planets as points because their angular size is lower than your eyes' resolution. They have measurable (or, in case of really distant or small objects, computable) angular sizes. For stars etc. these angular sizes are really small - but Earth is quite big, so if you cut a portion of a sphere the radius of Earth corresponding to these small solid angles, you get sizable areas. I haven't checked Randall's math, but I'd rather believe his results. If it is non-intuitive for you consider the Sun and Moon example - when observed by naked eye, the Moon looks for you as being the size of a dime held up in your hand - and yet it's shadow during an eclipse covers quite an area of Earth's surface. It is true that sizes of some of these "footprints" are quite surprising compared to other ones. [[Special:Contributions/89.174.214.74|89.174.214.74]] 08:55, 11 October 2013 (UTC)

Does someone know how to use LaTeX formulas? And if so, can they translate my formula into something more pleasing to the eye? [[User:Irino.|Irino.]] ([[User talk:Irino.|talk]]) 05:49, 11 October 2013 (UTC)

According to the wikipedia page, the M25 is 117 miles long. That sounds more like "37 miles across" to me. [[User:Kaa-ching|Kaa-ching]] ([[User talk:Kaa-ching|talk]]) 08:46, 11 October 2013 (UTC)
: it originally stated 15 miles, someone has fixed it now. Thanks! [[User:Kaa-ching|Kaa-ching]] ([[User talk:Kaa-ching|talk]]) 11:35, 11 October 2013 (UTC)

Neither the sun or moon, nor Messier 25 (declination -19°) can ever culminate in the zenith over London. :-( Admittedly, Townsville, Australia would be sort of overwhelmed by M25. --[[Special:Contributions/129.13.72.198|129.13.72.198]] 11:27, 11 October 2013 (UTC)

Does anyone know why the exoplanet "HD 189733 b" is labled as "Permadeath" ? Same question for the other weird names in the same pannel (the "tilde on keyboard" one) ? [[User:Jahvascriptmaniac|Jahvascriptmaniac]] ([[User talk:Jahvascriptmaniac|talk]]) 11:32, 11 October 2013 (UTC)
: A reference to [[1253|Exoplanet Names]]. [[User:Squornshellous Beta|Squornshellous Beta]] ([[User talk:Squornshellous Beta|talk]]) 12:08, 11 October 2013 (UTC)

Talk:1115: Sky

2013-07-28T14:53:44Z

Squornshellous Beta:

As anyone who read [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ender%27s_Game_%28series%29 Ender's Game] know, "The enemy's gate is down". t must be noted that mentioned gate was in a zero-gravity environment so the usual definition of down being the direction gravitation is pulling us was not applicable. -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 08:09, 5 October 2012 (UTC)
The enemy's gate is down.

Furthermore, the last panel might be a reference to {{w|Nietzsche}}'s quote: "When you stare into the abyss, the abyss stares back at you".

Additionally, it might also allude to the law of gravity, as it operates in the realm of {{w|Cartoon physics}}. This interpretation would seem to match the 'perspective inversion' theme of the entire comic.[[Special:Contributions/123.237.156.4|123.237.156.4]] 08:14, 5 October 2012 (UTC)

I think the comment about a bottomless hole is misleading but I am not certain. the mass of the walls of the hole as well as surrounding matter would create a definite gravitational force, as would any gases or liquids that fill the hole. There would be a point (or possibly surface or line) depending on the composition and shape of whatever the bottomless hole is in as well as the contents and shape of the hole itself where the net gravitational force is zero, with all areas surrounding this point (surface or line) having gravitational forces pointing in the direction of the point/surface/line, unless the hole is in a body that extends in one direction off into infinity, in which case the mass of the entire system would be continually collapsing into a black hole as the mass of the body is infinite.

The comic also encapsulates a feeling about the sky. If you lie down in a flat area like the american southwest, all you can see is sky. All you can see is sky. All of the sudden, it feels like one little push could send you flying. You get the feeling that you are laying on a round, small surface, and are enveloped by a huge blue sky. In "Death comes for the Archbishop" There is a one line description of this feeling.

"The sky was as full of motion and change as the desert beneath it was monotonous and still, — and there was so much sky, more than at sea, more than anywhere else in the world. The plain was there, under one's feet, but what one saw when one looked about was that brilliant blue world of stinging air and moving cloud. Even the mountains were mere ant-hills under it. Elsewhere the sky is the roof of the world; but here the earth was the floor of the sky. The landscape one longed for when one was away, the thing all about one, the world one actually lived in, was the sky, the sky! --Death Comes to the Archbishop, Book VII, Ch. 4" [ http://www.en.wikibooks.org/wiki/American_Literature/20th_Century/Willa_Cather link title]

This comic seeks to describe that feeling of "The earth being the floor of the sky"
--[[Special:Contributions/71.81.151.163|71.81.151.163]] 00:41, 10 October 2012 (UTC)

Shouldn't his beret be shown on the ground? [[User:Xyz|Xyz]] ([[User talk:Xyz|talk]]) 19:34, 22 May 2013 (UTC)
:[[291|Staples]]. [[User:Squornshellous Beta|Squornshellous Beta]] ([[User talk:Squornshellous Beta|talk]]) 14:53, 28 July 2013 (UTC)

624: Branding

2013-07-27T14:22:19Z

Squornshellous Beta: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 624
| date = August 17, 2009
| title = Branding
| image = branding.png
| titletext = Actually, 'RSS&M' is kinda catchy.
}}

==Explanation==
This strip shows four advertisements that appear to [[Cueball]] as he browses the internet without Adblock. ({{w|Adblock Plus|Adblock}} is a browser extension for Firefox which prevents advertisements from being displayed.) All four ads are for adult-themed websites.

The first advertises a website that brands itself as the "{{w|Facebook}} of sex". Because Facebook is ubiquitous, this is probably a good branding idea. Facebook is known to most users and connotes an easy-to-use platform where it's very easy to find people, chat with them, share pictures, etc. For someone looking for sex, this would probably seem like a good site to use. There are, in fact, sites that use this branding in their advertisements and/or their user interface which is likely what inspired [[Randall]] to write this comic. Cueball sighs and moves on, probably having seen this kind of ad many times already.

The second brands itself as "Twitter for 18+ singles!". It is a similar but (seemingly) invented ad which again plays on the ubiquity and popularity of {{w|Twitter}}. Twitter being a (generally) public chat forum which limits posts to 140 characters is still popular enough to get some attention and make someone think about going to the site, although sending messages to the world in 140 characters or less might be somewhat less of a versatile platform than Facebook for chatting with other singles, but still perhaps viable. Cueball notes that it is becoming more and more popular to brand adult sites by comparing them to popular non-adult sites.

This third takes a turn for the unusual, branding itself as "We're like Google Reader for S&M!". {{w|Google Reader}} is a now-defunct platform that allows users to aggregate web feeds such as RSS feeds into one place for convenience. The service is notably less well-known and popular than Facebook or Twitter, and given that it doesn't directly link you with other people, doesn't have the same connotation of allowing you to connect with others. Perhaps it would be a site that allowed you to aggretate various fan fictions or other written works (Fifty Shades of Grey?) relating to S&M. However, Cueball is still surprised such a site would exist.

The final ad brands itself as "the new GitHub for lesbians!". {{w|GitHub}} is a website that allows developers to collaborate on software projects using the {{w|Git (software)|Git}} revision control system. The concept is absurd — GitHub has a specialized audience and it's barely a social network at all; the potential for adult content is not immediately apparent. Cueball shows his surprise and confusion at this last ad.

RSS is a technology involved in Google Reader. RSS&M is a portmanteau of RSS and S&M.

==Transcript==
:Browsing without adblock
:[Cueball is sitting at a computer.]
:[Pop-up window with red background.]
:The Facebook of SEX! Click now!
:Cueball: Sigh.
:*Close*
:
:[Pop-up window with green background.]
:Twitter for 18+ singles! Join today!
:Cueball: Does every porn site have to brand itself like this?
:*Close*
:
:[Pop-up window with blue background.]
:We're like Google Reader for S&M!
:Cueball: ''Really?''
:*Close*
:
:[Pop-up window with orange background.]
:Try the new GitHub for lesbians!
:Cueball: Ok, wait, what?

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Internet]]
[[Category:Portmanteau]]
[[Category:Sex]]
[[Category:Social networking]]

569: Borders

2013-07-27T13:09:45Z

Squornshellous Beta: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 569
| date = April 15, 2009
| title = Borders
| image = borders.png
| titletext = Eventually a UN is set up. And then a lone rebel runs down the line of flags in front of it, runs back to his base, and gets a kajillion points.
}}

==Explanation==
Capture the flag (CTF) is a common way of playing games where the objective is to capture the opponent's flag, while protecting your own team's flag. This comic describes a CTF server where peace has been established, and no one is trying to capture each other's flags, therefore making the game pointless.

The title text refers to the line of flags common in front of UN buildings, where the flags of all the teams has been gathered. One could then quickly capture all the flags and reach a very high score. A {{Wiktionary|kajillion}} is slang for "an unspecified large number" of something.

LIATE is an acronym sometimes used when integrating "by parts". The preferred part to integrate is "Logarithmic, Inverse-trig, Algebraic, Trig, Exponential. Yarbis is a Turkish name, but may be an error for Yarbus, a Russian psychologist who investigated how the eyes scan faces and other things (thus the borders were set according by looking around).

==Transcript==
:[Two people stand on a hill overlooking a great city. Between them and the city stands an embassy flying a red flag.]
:Three years ago, the kingdom of Liate overthrew their old order and established a constitutional monarchy. Our leaders signed a treaty with their queen, and our borders were set by the Yabris Accords.
:Many said war would be unending, that peace would always be a dream deferred. But today, our flag flies proudly over our embassy in their kingdom, and they walk our lands without fear.
:So come, traveller. Lay down your grudges and join us in brotherhood. It is time not to fight, but to live.
:[Cueball sitting at computer.]
:Cueball: This is the worst capture-the-flag server ever.

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

392: Making Rules

2013-07-27T10:17:01Z

Squornshellous Beta: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 392
| date = March 5, 2008
| title = Making Rules
| image = making_rules.png
| titletext = I never understood why someone would expect me to accept their rules right after they'd punched me. I'm sure it's all very symbolic or something.
}}

==Explanation==
"Punch Buggy" is a game played by two people with a view of traffic (often, but not here, during a car ride). For each Volkswagen Beetle that passes nearby, the first player to see it is entitled to punch the other player, while calling "Punch Buggy" followed by the colour of the spotted Beetle. Traditionally the other player is permitted to return the punch, unless the first player also calls "no punch back".

Implicit in this game is the idea that you can make rules just be declaring them (e.g. "no punch back") even if those rules are ridiculously unfair. When the man in the comic realizes this, he decides to make the game stakes more desirable than just the right to punch someone, and (seemingly successfully) uses the same principle to secure the right to sleep with the other man's girlfriend.

==Transcript==
:[Two men are sitting. A yellow buggy passes by.]
:Cueball: Punch buggy yellow. No punch back!
:Friend: ''Punch''
:Cueball: I said no punch back!
:Friend: You can do that?
:Friend: This changes everything.
:Soon...
:[A blue buggy passes by.]
:Friend: Sleep with your girlfriend buggy blue!
:Cueball: Hey!
:Friend: No complaining back!
:Cueball: Aww...

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

313: Insomnia

2013-07-27T09:19:03Z

Squornshellous Beta: /* Transcript */

{{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==
{{incomplete}}
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}} wich 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==
:[Digital clock reads "4:31".]
:Laying awake at night
:I realize how many little lights there are in my room.
:The alarm clock is the brightest.
:[Digital clock now reads "4:32".]
:Can't sleep
:I'm alone with those glowing red numbers
:Time slows
:Does time even exist here?
:[Clock reads "4:33".]
:Thoughts churning in on themselves
:The madness can't be far away
:[Clock suddenly reads "13:72".]
:Ah, yes
:There it is.

==Trivia==
*The cinnamon setting could be a reference to this {{w|Cinnamon challenge}}.

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

313: Insomnia

2013-07-27T09:18:07Z

Squornshellous Beta: /* Transcript */

{{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==
{{incomplete}}
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}} wich 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==
:[Digital clock reads "4:31".]
:Laying awake at night
:I realize how many little lights there are in my room.
:The alarm clock is the brightest.
:[Digital clock now reads "4:32".]
:Can't sleep
:Alone with those glowing red numbers
:Time slows
:Does time even exist here?
:[Clock reads "4:33".]
:Thoughts churning in on themselves
:The madness can't be far away
:[Clock suddenly reads "13:72".]
:Ah yes
:There it is.

==Trivia==
*The cinnamon setting could be a reference to this {{w|Cinnamon challenge}}.

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

255: Subjectivity

2013-07-27T08:32:26Z

Squornshellous Beta: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 255
| date = April 30, 2007
| title = Subjectivity
| image = subjectivity.png
| titletext = Or maybe the slide is like Aslan, and gets taller as I do (except without the feeling of discomfort when I reach my teens and suddenly get the Christ stuff)
}}

==Explanation==
Parodies the experience of finding that things you saw a child are much smaller than you'd perceived them to be: [[Cueball]] is convinced that this will be the case with his childhood slide, only to find that it is indeed quite large. (However, in his mind's eye it's roughly four times his height, while in real life it's only about double.)

The title text references {{w|Aslan}}, a character from ''{{w|The Chronicles of Narnia}}''. Aslan is often regarded as a Christ figure, but since ''Narnia'' is a children's series many readers don't realize this until long after they've read the books – another instance of how perspective changes with age, and of the comic's title, "subjectivity".

==Transcript==
:[Tall slide, seen from the ground.]
:When I was a kid, my school playground had a really tall slide that always made me nervous.
:[Tall slide, seen from the side.]
:We moved away, but the slide stuck in my memory, becoming a skyscraping monster.
:[Car and a sign pointing to school zone.]
:Years later, I was passing through my old town and remembered the playground.
:I drove to the school to see the slide that my inner six-year-old thought was so towering.
:[Huge slide, Cueball beside it.]
:AND IT WAS HUGE!
:I KNEW IT!

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

233: A New CAPTCHA Approach

2013-07-27T07:44:06Z

Squornshellous Beta: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 233
| date = March 9, 2007
| title = A New CAPTCHA Approach
| image = a new captcha approach.png
| titletext = They'd use that Futurama episode with Fry's dog, but even spambots cry at that.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete}}
A CAPTCHA is a verification system to stop automatic submissions to web forms by asking the user to do something which a computer program could not do, such as type a distorted word into a box.

In the comic, author has a new CAPTCHA, in which it references a sad event in a children's movie ({{w|The Land Before Time}}), and asks the subject if they cried. If the subject is human, than they most likely will have cried, and will answer yes. If they are a computer program, however, they will answer no, as computer programs cannot cry, and since the design of the CAPTCHA prohibits the computer program from lying.

The title text references to the {{w|Futurama}} episode {{w|Jurassic Bark}}. It claims that this episode is so sad that even {{w|spambot}}s cry after seeing it.

==Transcript==
:To complete your web registration, please prove that you're human:
:When Littlefoot's mother died in the original 'Land Before Time', did you feel sad?
:[radio button.] Yes
:[radio button.] No
:(Bots: no lying)

{{comic discussion}}

182: Nash

2013-07-26T11:27:34Z

Squornshellous Beta: "lady's man" corrected to "ladies' man".

{{comic
| number = 182
| date = November 10, 2006
| title = Nash
| image = nash.png
| titletext = Maybe someday science will get over its giant collective crush on Richard Feynman. But I doubt it!
}}

==Explanation==
The first panel references a scene in the movie [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0268978/ A Beautiful Mind] in which Dr. {{w|John Forbes Nash, Jr.}} comes up with his famous concept of {{w|Nash equilibrium}} when he realizes that they get suboptimal results if all the guys go after the same hot girl. The second panel deconstructs the idea by having Dr. Nash point out that staying away from the hot girl does not actually constitute a stable Nash equilibrium. The third panel has physicist Dr. {{w|Richard Feynman}} render the entire discussion moot by taking all the girls while the mathematicians ponder optimal strategies. That panel, and the title text, refer both to the great respect many scientists and/or geeks had for him, and to his reputation as something of a ladies' man.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball and Dr. Nash stand talking to each other. Cueball is pointing off-panel.]
:Cueball: Hey, Dr. Nash, I think those gals over there are eyeing us. This is like your Nash Equilibrium, right? One of them is hot, but we should each flirt with one of her less-desirable friends. Otherwise we risk coming on too strong to the hot one and just driving the group off.
:Dr. Nash: Well, that's not really the sort of situation I wrote about. Once we're with the ugly ones, there's no incentive for one of us not to try to switch to the hot one. It's not a stable equilibrium.

:First Man: Crap, forget it. Looks like all three are leaving with one guy.
:[Dr. Nash shakes his fist.]
:Dr. Nash: Dammit, Feynman!
{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]