explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

1242: Scary Names

2013-07-27T07:25:46Z

The Simonator: Put in bit about superbug MRSA.

{{comic
| number = 1242
| date = July 24, 2013
| title = Scary Names
| image = scary_names.png
| titletext = Far off to the right of the chart is the Helvetica Scenario.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete}}
The chart shows that things toward the right are scary, while things toward the top sound scary, without necessarily being scary.

{| class="wikitable sortable"
! scope="col" class="unsortable"| Name
! scope="col" class="headerSortUp"| Apparent Scariness[[#cite_note-1|1]]
! scope="col"| True Scariness[[#cite_note-1|1]]
! scope="col" class="unsortable"|Description
|-
|{{Nowrap|[http://www.catb.org/~esr/jargon/html/C/Chernobyl-packet.html Chernobyl Packet]}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|k !}}95%}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|a !}}4%}}
|A network packet that induces a broadcast storm or network meltdown.
|-
|{{Nowrap|{{w|Calorimeter#Bomb calorimeters|Bomb Calorimeters}}}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|h !}}67%}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|b !}}28%}}
|A device for measuring heat of combustion of a reaction in a pressure vessel.
|-
|{{Nowrap|{{w|Sulfur mustard|Mustard Gas}}}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|f !}}47%}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|c !}}50%}}
|A chemical warfare agent which causes blisters and severe irritation on skin and lung tissue.
|-
|{{Nowrap|{{w|Kessler syndrome|Kessler Syndrome}}}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|k !}}87%}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|d !}}53%}}
|A hypothetical scenario where low Earth orbit objects collide, creating space debris which increases the risk of more collisions, leading to a cascade effect which could severely hinder space exploration and satellite technologies for many years.
|-
|{{Nowrap|{{w|Soil liquefaction|Soil Liquefaction}}}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|c !}}16%}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|e !}}54%}}
|A phenomenon where wet soil loses its strength, leading to potholes, road and terrain damage, and even building collapses, especially after earthquakes.
|-
|{{Nowrap|{{w|Grey goo|Grey Goo}}}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|b !}}5%}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|f !}}68%}}
|A hypothetical end-of-world scenario where self-replicating nanobots consume all matter.
|-
|{{Nowrap|{{w|Avian influenza virus|Bird Flu}}}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|h !}}57%}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|g !}}72%}}
|An illness caused by strains of influenza adapted for birds, which is generally very deadly in humans. Should the virus adapt for human to human trasmission, a pandemic can quickly result. Since birds can travel great distances quickly, it is generally already widespread and difficult to contain.
|-
|{{Nowrap|{{w|Demon core|Demon Core}}}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|j !}}90%}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|h !}}73%}}
|An incident where a subcritical mass of plutonium briefly went critical on two separate occasions at Los Alamos laboratory in 1945 and 1946. The second is more notable, where Louis Slotin held two halves of a beryllium neutron reflector apart with a flat head screwdriver which slipped, suddenly causing the contained plutonium core to become supercritical and delivering a fatal dose of radiation. In both instances the scientists performing the experiment died.
|-
|{{Nowrap|{{w|Criticality accident|Criticality Incident}}}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|d!}}22%}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|i !}}74%}}
|An uncontrolled nuclear reaction. This occurs when a system running at exact criticality experiences an increase of one dollar of criticality (a term devised by Louis Slotin, as seen above).
|-
|{{Nowrap|{{w|Antibiotic resistance|Superbug}}}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|e !}}39%}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|j !}}83%}}
|Antibiotic resistant bacteria. The growing use of antibiotics has caused some bacteria to evolve to become resistant to the antibiotics. A superbug refers to a scenario where a bacteria evolves to become resistant to all antibiotics, for example, MRSA.
|-
|{{Nowrap|{{w|Nuclear football|Nuclear Football}}}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|g !}}52%}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|k !}}94%}}
|An aluminium Zero Halliburton briefcase which is used by the President of the United States to authorise nuclear attack. A military aide carrying the football is always near the president.
|-
|{{Nowrap|{{w|Necrotizing fasciitis|Flesh-eating bacteria}}}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|m !}}100%}}
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|l !}}100%}}
|As the name suggests, bacteria that eats (or more accurately, releases toxins that destroy) your skin and muscle.
|-class="sortbottom"
|Helvetica Scenario (Title Text)
|{{Nowrap|{{Hs|z !}}N/A}}
|{{Hs|m !}}Literally Off-The-Chart
|This scenario is also in the title text of [[683: Science Montage]]: "...We have a Helvetica scenario!". The scenario is a fictional experiment, presented in Switzerland (Helvetica), assuming removing the nucleus (only the center of an atom) of a calcium molecule in skin, but still leaving the electron shell at its position, would cause a massive reaction or mutation.[[#cite_note-2|2]] The Helvetica scenario was made up by the BBC comedy show {{w|Look Around You}} in the pilot episode, which can be seen [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZPTM0PGQPE&feature=player_detailpage&t=389 here (at 6:29)].
|}

==Transcript==
No official transcript.

A scatter plot is drawn, x-axis "Scariness of thing name refers to", y-axis "Scariness of name". Items within the scatter plot are listed in the table above.

==References==
<div style="padding:10px 10px 10px 0;border-radius: 3px;margin-right:1em;margin-bottom:1em;">
#[[#ref_note-1|^]] Note: Values in the chart are given as a percentage of the values of "Flesh-eating bacteria", which is the upper-right-most entry in the chart.
#[[#ref_note-2|^]] [http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=The%20Helvetica%20Scenario Helvetica Scenario at Urban Dictionary].
</div>

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Charts]]

309: Shopping Teams

2013-06-03T08:17:59Z

The Simonator: /* Explanation */ Comic 705 is after 309, changed last line to reflect this.

{{comic
| number = 309
| date = August 29, 2007
| title = Shopping Teams
| image = shopping_teams.png
| titletext = I am never going out to buy an air conditioner with my sysadmin again.
}}

==Explanation==
In this comic, Randall is comparing the ways different people look at choosing between similar products. In the first example, which Randall considers "bad", two "non-nerds" look at two products (which are two boxes without a description of any kind,) and instantly decide which one they want. In the second example, which is considered good, one of the two is a nerd and one is a non-nerd. The non-nerd instantly picks one of the products but the nerd evaluates the two and decides that the other one is better because it's a better deal. In both the first two cases, the pair are able to easily come to a decision.

However, in the third example, two nerds are comparing the two boxes, and both of them overanalyse the various merits and drawbacks of each of the two boxes, to the point that they are still there two hours later, unable to reach a clear agreement on which of the two boxes they wish to buy. One comments that their definition of value is unclear, suggesting the discussion has gone on for so long that they are reevaluating their definitions over something so trivial. Some might perceive this as typical "nerd" behaviour, overanalysing a problem which is in actual fact quite trivial, such as the decision whether to buy one box or another virtually identical box. A woman who has been watching the two nerds comparing the two products attempts to put this into perspective by pointing out that an unclear definition of value is not their problem. The implication is that their problem is they are unable to reach an agreement on something that makes so little difference at the end of the day.

The title text suggests that Randall entered a similar situation attempting to buy an air conditioner with his sysadmin, short for {{w|System administrator}}. The sysadmin is a person in an organisation employed to manage the computer system or network, a role which requires technical skills and intelligence. The suggestion here is that a computer programmer like Randall, put together with a sysadmin, would spend as much attention to detail as the two nerds in the comic, labouring over which of two trivially similar products to buy.

Randall deals with sysadmins again in [[705: Devotion to Duty]].

==Transcript==
:[Each team is looking at a counter with two cubes on it.]
:Bad: Two non-nerds
:Cueball: Let's get that one.
:Friend: okay.
:Good: non-nerd + nerd
:Woman: Let's get that one.
:Cueball: Wait, I think that one might be a better deal.
:Woman: Okay, that one.
:Very Bad: Two Nerds
:Cueball: How about that one?
:Friend: i think the other one might be the better deal...
:Cueball: Hmm, I'm not sure...'
:Two Hours Later

:[Nerds are sitting in front of laptops with papers strewn about in front of display counter.]
:Cueball: I think our main problem is our unclear definition of value.
:Woman: That is not your main problem!

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

93: Jeremy Irons

2012-08-20T17:04:55Z

The Simonator: Created page with "{{comic | number = 93 | date = April 24, 2006 | title = Jeremy Irons | image = jeremy_irons.jpg | imagesize = | titletext = Movies that I know word-for-word, ..."

{{comic
| number = 93
| date = April 24, 2006
| title = Jeremy Irons
| image = jeremy_irons.jpg
| imagesize =
| titletext = Movies that I know word-for-word, part one
}}

==Explanation==
Jeremy Irons is a classically-trained English actor, known for his rich and sonorous voice. He also played Simon Peter Gruber in Die Hard III. Look him up on Youtube if you're not familiar with him, if his voice doesn't send rivulets of something shameful running down your thigh then check your pulse.

In this comic, Cueball wants to become rich enough to pay Jeremy irons to deliver all his lines in conversations, and who can blame him?

[[Category:Comics|0093]]

89: Gravitational Mass

2012-08-20T16:53:12Z

The Simonator: I think that covers all the points.

{{comic
| number = 89
| date = April 14, 2006
| title = Gravitational Mass
| image = gravitational_mass.jpg
| imagesize =
| titletext = She's so fat the attraction goes up as the CUBE of the distance instead of the square
}}

==Explanation==
A well known joke format goes thusly: "Yo' momma's so fat, when she X, she Y."
For example: "Yo' momma's so fat, when she sits around the house, she sits ''around'' the house!
Variations play with the format, for example: "Yo' momma's so fat, she fell in the grand Canyon and got stuck!"

In this comic, Black hat launches into a long description about the relativity of gravity and inertia that presumably will eventually lead to a Yo' Momma joke, but then gets bored or loses momentum and cuts to the chase.

The title text is a play on the law of gravitational attraction, which diminishes as the square of the distance. So if the distance between two objects doubles, the attraction is reduced to a quarter. And if the distance is halved, the attraction quadruples.
Black hat is saying that the attraction goes up as the cube, so if the distance is halved, the attraction increases eight-fold.
In other words, your momma is so fat, she can warp space-time.