explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:3207: Bad Map Projection: Zero Declination

2026-02-24T21:30:22Z

Zaphod Beebledoc:

First! Can't believe I'm north! [[User:King Pando|King Pando]] ([[User talk:King Pando|talk]]) 03:34, 14 February 2026 (UTC)
:What do you mean that you're north? [[User:This isn't a good name|This isn't a good name]] ([[User talk:This isn't a good name|talk]]) 03:42, 14 February 2026 (UTC)
:You’re north, I’m fourth :) [[User:Logalex8369|Logalex8369]] ([[User talk:Logalex8369|talk]]) 04:53, 14 February 2026 (UTC)
:: Hi fourth! i'm John [[Special:Contributions/45.178.1.151|45.178.1.151]] 05:31, 14 February 2026 (UTC)
:::Hi John, I'm Dad. --'''''[[User:DollarStoreBa'al|DollarStoreBa'al]][[User Talk:DollarStoreBa'al|Converse]] (BLM) 11:32, 14 February 2026 (UTC)
::::Hi Dad, I’m hungry. [[User:Logalex8369|Logalex8369]] ([[User talk:Logalex8369|talk]]) 18:07, 14 February 2026 (UTC)
:::::Hi Hungry, I'm Sister! [[User:RadiantRainwing|K9Dragon23, or RainWingSquares (talk)]] ([[User talk:RadiantRainwing|talk]]) 22:19, 14 February 2026 (UTC)
::::::What the heck [[User:This isn't a good name|This isn't a good name]] ([[User talk:This isn't a good name|talk]]) 03:12, 18 February 2026 (UTC)
:::::::Hi What The Heck! I'm the unending march of time inexorably moving us towards death! --'''''[[User:DollarStoreBa'al|DollarStoreBa'al]][[User Talk:DollarStoreBa'al|Converse]] (BLM) 16:58, 18 February 2026 (UTC)
::::::::...alright! [[User:This isn't a good name|This isn't a good name]] ([[User talk:This isn't a good name|talk]]) 03:39, 19 February 2026 (UTC)
::::::::: Hi ...alright! Do you want a drink? --[[User:Zaphod Beebledoc|Zaphod Beebledoc]] ([[User talk:Zaphod Beebledoc|talk]]) 21:30, 24 February 2026 (UTC)

I can't figure out what the red arrows are. My best guess is that they indicate the direction that the map was distorted in that area. It would be good if somebody would explain. [[User:Jordan Brown|Jordan Brown]] ([[User talk:Jordan Brown|talk]]) 04:07, 14 February 2026 (UTC)
:I think you are right. here's a rough ([https://imgur.com/a/ESLZmYQ map comparison]) [[User:Sameldacamel34|Sameldacamel34]] ([[User talk:Sameldacamel34|talk]]) 05:41, 14 February 2026 (UTC)
: I thought it might be showing where things are drifting on the map with the current drift of the north pole. [[Special:Contributions/2A02:3103:4C:2400:E259:E2C3:5BDD:1111|2A02:3103:4C:2400:E259:E2C3:5BDD:1111]] 10:16, 14 February 2026 (UTC)

Wouldn't such a map actually be quite useful to anyone using only a compass to navigate?
[[Special:Contributions/2A06:C701:46AF:2C00:7577:585:1183:EFBD|2A06:C701:46AF:2C00:7577:585:1183:EFBD]] 07:37, 14 February 2026 (UTC)
: Not much. High-end compasses can be calibrated to compensate for declination. At least, this map would avoid having to recalibrate when changing area. [[User:Shirluban|Shirluban]] [[Special:Contributions/147.161.153.84|147.161.153.84]] 14:35, 16 February 2026 (UTC)
: Also, navigation using only a compass and a map typically involves angles with landmarks. That's why usual maps use the Mercator projection: it preserves angles. Since this map doesn't [citation needed], it might be problematic. [[User:Shirluban|Shirluban]] [[Special:Contributions/147.161.153.84|147.161.153.84]] 16:58, 16 February 2026 (UTC)

I'm confused by the cylindrical projection used for this. I would have expected him to use the geomagnetic dipole for the projection axis, but this would put Ellesmere Island at the top of the map, which is clearly incorrect. Instead he seems to have used the geometric axis for the projection (or maybe the axis between magnetic dip poles, which would be similar in 2025?). This joke would have been better 20 years ago when the dip pole was solidly in Canada. [[User:Quantum7|Quantum7]] ([[User talk:Quantum7|talk]]) 08:35, 14 February 2026 (UTC)

I've honestly seen worse "earnest" attempts at map projections. I might use this in the future just to see if anyone even notices.
[[Special:Contributions/2A00:FBC:F004:3364:B820:80FF:FEA3:938D|2A00:FBC:F004:3364:B820:80FF:FEA3:938D]]

I see the zero line goes more or less through the Rift Valley in East Africa. If the same thing happened a couple of million years ago, it's quite likely every individual in the genus Homo once lived within a couple of degrees of declination.[[Special:Contributions/2A03:E600:100:0:0:0:0:10|2A03:E600:100:0:0:0:0:10]] 14:53, 14 February 2026 (UTC)

I made a [https://awhogue.github.io/zero-declination/output/ map] for the title text. [https://github.com/awhogue/zero-declination Source code]. The answer is 2000. Not sure what the etiquette is for adding it to the explanation. [[User:Ahogue|Ahogue]] ([[User talk:Ahogue|talk]]) 21:08, 14 February 2026 (UTC)
: This is great. I am not sure about the etiquette either, but please go forward and add :-) --[[Special:Contributions/176.199.210.83|176.199.210.83]] 09:49, 16 February 2026 (UTC)

I would really love to see an animation that morphs back and forth between Mercator and this comic. I say Mercator because I suspect it's what the comic map is based on, the goal is to use whichever well-known projection is closest to the xkcd map. If I had any know-how in this field I might try to make that animation myself, but I'd have a really insane learning curve to do it and it's not worth it. --[[User:NeatNit|NeatNit]] ([[User talk:NeatNit|talk]]) 11:47, 16 February 2026 (UTC)

This is definitely the most practical map in the series, I'm sad because I know I'll probably never have a reason to use it. [[Special:Contributions/157.201.96.100|157.201.96.100]] 19:33, 24 February 2026 (UTC)

Talk:3205: Carbon Dating

2026-02-24T21:24:16Z

Zaphod Beebledoc:

F10st p0st! [[Special:Contributions/185.36.194.156|185.36.194.156]] 04:45, 10 February 2026 (UTC)

:First explanation! Hopefully it's fine... (also, nice TCMP reference.)--[[User:Utdtutyabthsc|Utdtutyabthsc]] ([[User talk:Utdtutyabthsc|talk]]) 06:00, 10 February 2026 (UTC)
::Oh, was that a deliberate reference? Why isn't it [[269|spelled the same way]]? What does "F10st" even mean? [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 06:58, 10 February 2026 (UTC)
::Go read the comment section for [[3135: Sea Level]] if you want to see more of this. [[User:RadiantRainwing|K9Dragon23, or RainWingSquares (talk)]] ([[User talk:RadiantRainwing|talk]]) 00:40, 12 February 2026 (UTC)
:::Semi-deliberate, but more spirit of the law than letter of the law since early internet trolling is (was?) a common theme here anyways lol; the 0 was a typo [[Special:Contributions/185.36.194.156|185.36.194.156]] 10:04, 10 February 2026 (UTC)
::::It is though getting a little tiresome and repeatable that someone has begun writing first post on all talk pages... Please stop it ;-) --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 13:19, 10 February 2026 (UTC)
:::::31Gth!!! [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33|82.13.184.33]] 14:54, 10 February 2026 (UTC)
::::How about next time we troll for 3rd post instead (game theory time) [[Special:Contributions/185.36.194.156|185.36.194.156]] 09:09, 11 February 2026 (UTC)

I'm all for carbon dating, but I wouldn't want one to marry my sister. [[Special:Contributions/24.123.140.66|24.123.140.66]] 13:52, 10 February 2026 (UTC)
:I also was expecting that kind of pun when I saw the title. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 15:10, 10 February 2026 (UTC)
: You'd rather she settled down with a nice silica-based lifeform? [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33|82.13.184.33]] 15:20, 10 February 2026 (UTC)
: I figured that carbon dating was the process by which paleontologists analyze prospective mates to determine their chronological compatibility. [[User:Jordan Brown|Jordan Brown]] ([[User talk:Jordan Brown|talk]]) 01:36, 11 February 2026 (UTC)
: That's a dating platform exclusively for archeologists and soda producers {{unsigned ip|195.65.24.115|06:51, 13 February 2026 (UTC)}}
: Waggles eyebrows and waves cigar. --[[User:Zaphod Beebledoc|Zaphod Beebledoc]] ([[User talk:Zaphod Beebledoc|talk]]) 21:24, 24 February 2026 (UTC)

Is the skeleton being studied a cosmologist? [[Special:Contributions/2605:A601:80AF:4000:2A74:9789:42F0:2275|2605:A601:80AF:4000:2A74:9789:42F0:2275]] 14:35, 10 February 2026 (UTC)

LAST C0MMENT! [[Special:Contributions/164.134.137.45|164.134.137.45]] 12:02, 11 February 2026 (UTC) (redbuns)

Ummm... if we are talking about cosmologists, shouldn't the tools be metal, since all non-hydrogen, non-helium elements are metals in astronomy? {{unsigned ip|18.117.72.81|14:29, 11 February 2026 (UTC)}}

Actually, if you cool down helium enough it becomes a liquid, and if you increase the pressure enough it becomes a solid. But it needs to be very cold and high pressure. [[Special:Contributions/185.220.101.37|185.220.101.37]] 23:30, 11 February 2026 (UTC)
:An episode of Mythbusters investigated [https://youtu.be/3tOTVJZ7YKk?si=t3Zei4Z_61h2QoCO&t=363 the "killer icicle" trope] and found it to have some merit. Now to freeze helium, and get it solid, and somehow wield it as a tool, requires quite a technology stack, doesn't it! [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 23:41, 11 February 2026 (UTC)
::Including, probably, some very good gloves! [[Special:Contributions/81.179.199.253|81.179.199.253]] 00:29, 12 February 2026 (UTC)

I believe "less effective helium ones" suggest use helium existence to determinate when the tool have been made. Out Universe create Helium ~3-20 min after the Big Bang (Based on Google). So as it suggest, it's less precise then the present of Carbon. (We can only difference it with presence of Hydrogen, which is the 1st element made after the Big Bang.--[[Special:Contributions/185.149.195.107|185.149.195.107]] 22:57, 12 February 2026 (UTC)

Talk:3204: Dinosaurs And Non-Dinosaurs

2026-02-24T21:20:44Z

Zaphod Beebledoc:

I don't think that's a stork. My guess would be that it's a heron.
The bird in the lower right also looks like some sort of shorebird, but I've got no clue. {{unsigned ip|99.26.146.61|19:45, 6 February 2026 (UTC)}}

:I changed egret to heron. If there is some distinguishing feature in the outline that makes it clear that this an egret, as compared to the more general heron, please document (either in explanation or comments). [[Special:Contributions/107.77.205.200|107.77.205.200]] 19:02, 7 February 2026 (UTC)

I feel like this comic should be in the explanation https://xkcd.com/1211/ [[Special:Contributions/2600:4041:2E5:B900:66D3:74AD:D92D:356B|2600:4041:2E5:B900:66D3:74AD:D92D:356B]] 20:36, 6 February 2026 (UTC)

Could it have a brief layman's explanation of how/why the top right *aren't* dinosaurs? Y'know beyond just "well, technically..." [[Special:Contributions/91.84.189.119|91.84.189.119]] 06:52, 7 February 2026 (UTC)
:They are not dinosaurs because dinosaurs are only a subgroup of prehistoric animals living on land. Others are flying or underwater reptiles (don’t know the real names of those), or just plain reptiles who have existed (as a group) for far longer. Dinos are technically named „land reptiles“, but are not reptiles. It’s a bit confusing and this is where my half knowledge ends [[Special:Contributions/2A00:1E:82C2:D401:F4A3:23F3:8A2D:63B1|2A00:1E:82C2:D401:F4A3:23F3:8A2D:63B1]] 09:33, 7 February 2026 (UTC)
::Saying “dinosaurs are not reptiles” isn’t true, but more importantly is a strange thing to say in a scientific context. If you are using “reptile” informally, then the definition of one is fuzzy anyways. If using it cladistically, then reptile pretty much means “sauropsid” which includes dinosaurs and thus birds, which are not informally/traditionally included, so you might as well use the less ambiguous term “sauropsid”. [[User:Terdragontra|Terdragontra]] ([[User talk:Terdragontra|talk]]) 15:46, 7 February 2026 (UTC)
:::Yeah, the common definition of reptiles doesn't match a single evolutionary group, as crocodiles are more closely related to dinosaurs, and thus birds, than they are to lizards. Turtles separated earlier, so are equally related to both of those groups. To answer the original point, dinosaurs are defined as all the animals descended from a certain common ancestor, which they only relatively recently realized includes birds, and not just some long extinct animals known only from fossils. There are aome other animals also known only from fossils in the same time period that the general public often mistakenly thinks are dinosaurs, but are not closely related to them, being closer to other groups of living animals.--[[Special:Contributions/2600:100A:B12D:723E:FCD9:2B70:1145:6A44|2600:100A:B12D:723E:FCD9:2B70:1145:6A44]] 07:26, 8 February 2026 (UTC)

Did anyone else think that "Pseudo-such" things were a made up thing for staplers? [[User:Kev|Kev]] ([[User talk:Kev|talk]]) 13:36, 7 February 2026 (UTC

I’m interested at the things somewhere on the boundaries. Some basal forms are sometimes included as dinosaurs and sometimes just outside the clade. And som nonbird dinosaurs are somewhat birdlike, and shoebills feel more dinosaury than the average bird (while hummingbirds feel less so). [[User:Terdragontra|Terdragontra]] ([[User talk:Terdragontra|talk]]) 15:48, 7 February 2026 (UTC)
: The bird which feels the most dinosaury to me is definitely the cassowary. I think Randall could have included it in the top-left quadrant. [[User:Martin|Martin]] ([[User talk:Martin|talk]]) 22:11, 8 February 2026 (UTC)

What bird is in the lower right of the Are dinosuars, but don't seem like dinousaurs box? Currently the explanation says "falcon" - not clear why somebody thought it was a falcon. Whatever ID we give, should have some explanation. The wings look not as long front to back as a falcon. It also lacks a falcons spread tail (which can be tucked in or course). Also lacks the hooked beak typical of a falcon.
The long narrow wings suggest a relatively long distance flyer. It lacks the split tail typical of a swallow or swift. The beak isn't long enough for an albatross or similar. Gulls typically have bigger beak and rounded head. A {{w|petrel}} is my current best guess. A tern, shearwater or skua also seem possible. [[Special:Contributions/107.77.205.200|107.77.205.200]] 19:36, 7 February 2026 (UTC)
:I would have gone with describing it as a generic gull. Which would be wrong, in its own way, but at least not as wrong as 'seagull' ;) [[Special:Contributions/81.179.199.253|81.179.199.253]] 20:46, 7 February 2026 (UTC)
: The short neck is falcony though. I just googled "birds of prey silhouettes" and falcon looks very plausible to me. [[User:Martin|Martin]] ([[User talk:Martin|talk]]) 22:16, 8 February 2026 (UTC)

There is a claim bicycles are not living creatures, but I think we may need a citation. Policeman MacCruiskeen. [[Special:Contributions/80.41.29.9|80.41.29.9]] 14:54, 8 February 2026 (UTC)

Continuing with the profile pedantry, in the objects which are neither dinosaurs nor look like dinosaurs, that is definitely not a pineapple. Pineapple leaves do not have a central stem, but rather all originate from the top of the pineapple. It more closely resembles a bonsai pine tree in a pot. {{unsigned ip|1.141.51.6|06:22, 9 February 2026 (UTC)}}
: It's a toilet brush put away the wrong way up. [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33|82.13.184.33]] 10:35, 9 February 2026 (UTC)
::I believe it is indeed a pineapple, but rather stylized. I searched up a large selection of silhouette and line-drawings of pineapples, and many of them looked much like this example. Randall may have cribbed a bit from the existing corpus of work, rather than a real-life fruit? I don't know. A pineapple seems like the zany kind of object that would land in one of these round-ups, rather than a bonsai or toilet-brush, don't you think? [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 09:23, 10 February 2026 (UTC)
:::I'd say an upside-down toilet brush is a lot zanier than a pineapple. [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33|82.13.184.33]] 16:10, 10 February 2026 (UTC)

This comic is basically just one big set-up for Randall's amusement that a stapler looks a bit like a crocodile, isn't it?[[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33|82.13.184.33]] 10:29, 9 February 2026 (UTC)
: Sounds legit...especially as I first thought it WERE a crocodile :-) {{unsigned ip|2a02:2455:1960:4000:9da4:59d7:1b5a:dcc3|12:37, 9 February 2026 (UTC)}}

The squirrel and stapler in the bottom right square reminded me of Squirrel Stapler lol [[User:Amateurautist|Amateurautist]] ([[User talk:Amateurautist|talk]]) 16:25, 9 February 2026 (UTC)
"Pot plant?" We can't see it well enough to be that specific, though I think it is shaped differently than a pot plant. "Potted."
Anyway, I saw a pineapple, not a pot(ted) plant. [[Special:Contributions/2607:FB91:5103:C3E:1873:B450:305A:44C9|2607:FB91:5103:C3E:1873:B450:305A:44C9]] 18:08, 9 February 2026 (UTC)
:In some parts of the English speaking world they call plants in pots "a pot plant" rather than using the term to refer to the reefer.[[Special:Contributions/57.140.28.52|57.140.28.52]] 17:42, 11 February 2026 (UTC)
:: On the planet [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Adventure_Game Arg], there is an aspidistra in a pot plant, on a short column, which in reality is a dragon. Doogy Rev! --[[User:Zaphod Beebledoc|Zaphod Beebledoc]] ([[User talk:Zaphod Beebledoc|talk]]) 21:20, 24 February 2026 (UTC)

If we are going to be pedantic, the flightless bird silhouette is of a false penguin, not a penguin, although admittedly today people call false penguins “penguins” because all the true penguins were exterminated about 180 years ago. [[User:John|John]] ([[User talk:John|talk]]) 04:46, 10 February 2026 (UTC)

We've linked to ''{{w|Jurassic Park}}'' as one of Randall's favorite films, but since it was first a most excellent Crichton novel, and then an entire media franchise, isn't it fair to say that Randall is a fan of the whole thing, rather than just the one film? Do we have an actual citation where he mentions it? [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 09:20, 10 February 2026 (UTC)

I don't think the category titles in the description should say "creatures". Nothing in the comic specifically claims these are groups of creatures, and the items in Quadrant IV include a bicycle, a stapler, and a plant or pineapple, which are clearly not creatures. [[Special:Contributions/136.226.19.189|136.226.19.189]] 17:57, 10 February 2026 (UTC)
:If you'd kindly consult a dictionary, you would see that this definition of "creature" is perfectly normal and understandable. While Randall doesn't use it directly, it may be too archaic for the audience here to understand. I wouldn't oppose changing our wording, but I just wanted to point out that it is, pedantically correct usage after all. [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 00:54, 11 February 2026 (UTC)
::I highly doubt that his intention was an ''archaic'' definition that has fallen out of favor. The more correct term in the present day would be "objects", not "creature". I say that we change it to objects. [[User:42.book.addict|tori :3]][[User talk:42.book.addict|talk to me!]] 00:58, 11 February 2026 (UTC)
:::I object. "Objects" objectively gives a sense of "non-creature", so "object" not "creature" would project a reach in itself.
:::There's 16 (or 17) drawings of truly "creatures", and 2 (or 3) drawings of truly "objects", depending upon what the maybe-pineapple is and whether you want to class the person by one of the words or not. Either of those words is going to be awkward (one less overhelmingly than the other), and neither is really the kind of common-parlance hypernym that wouldn't go without complaint. You need something like "entities", really.
:::So... we could always go for the even more descriptive (and suitably inclusive, in-context) "''silhouettes'' that [don't] seem like dinosaurs" and that "are [not]"? Even Cueball is a silhouette of a regular (circle-outline for head) Cueball. As a suggestion. [[Special:Contributions/81.179.199.253|81.179.199.253]] 01:29, 11 February 2026 (UTC)

So Linnaeus had information animal, vegetable, and mineral? [[User:Chrullrich|Chrullrich]] ([[User talk:Chrullrich|talk]]) 10:57, 12 February 2026 (UTC)
:He was very well acquainted, too, with matters mathematical. [[Special:Contributions/82.132.238.7|82.132.238.7]] 11:07, 12 February 2026 (UTC)

Talk:3203: Binary Star

2026-02-24T21:06:39Z

Zaphod Beebledoc:

here before the explanation [[User:Qwertyuiopfromdefly|Qwertyuiopfromdefly]] ([[User talk:Qwertyuiopfromdefly|talk]]) 04:47, 5 February 2026 (UTC)
: Me too [[Special:Contributions/115.70.50.73|115.70.50.73]]
:: It was me as well :::;) [[Special:Contributions/216.25.182.141|216.25.182.141]] 05:34, 5 February 2026 (UTC)
::: Here before the comments [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33|82.13.184.33]] 09:15, 5 February 2026 (UTC)
:::: Here After the comments [[Special:Contributions/66.210.7.66|66.210.7.66]] 17:22, 5 February 2026 (UTC)
::::: Here for the comments [[User:Wjbodin3|WJBodin3]] ([[User talk:Wjbodin3|talk]]) 02:09, 7 February 2026 (UTC)
Randall has been, uh, funnier… I thought I must be missing something, a clever joke or some astronomers insider, but no—that's really all there was to it. Well. {{unsigned ip|2a02:908:c30:5000:b86c:d747:e182:c327|07:54, 5 February 2026 (UTC)}}
:They can't all be blockbusters. I suspect he first came up with the "big asterisk" pun in the title text, and worked backwards from that to the main comic. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 16:54, 5 February 2026 (UTC)

Nice to see that Randall has graduated from the woes of [[1029]], and now can draw Morocco-style stars :-) --[[Special:Contributions/2001:A62:5F7:FB01:BF80:8165:D7C9:B014|2001:A62:5F7:FB01:BF80:8165:D7C9:B014]] 08:24, 5 February 2026 (UTC)

The idea of pointed stars alongside normal ones is probably a reference to the James Web Space Telescope. In its images, very bright stars have diffraction spikes, caused by the segmented hexagonal primary mirrors and the three-strut support of the secondary mirror. However, these form 8 spiked images not 5. The Hubble Space Telescope forms 4 spike images, however the effect was not so noticeable with Hubble. [[Special:Contributions/2A12:F41:145B:1300:C59:505F:B2DB:7572|2A12:F41:145B:1300:C59:505F:B2DB:7572]] 12:19, 5 February 2026 (UTC) dww-uk

Hey, sometimes a good simple pun is all what it takes. The second star should have been rendered with the Cosmic Sans font, though, for more impact amongst the typography fanbase. [[User:Ralfoide|Ralfoide]] ([[User talk:Ralfoide|talk]]) 19:24, 5 February 2026 (UTC)
: No - for that you want Impact. Not a Cosmic Impact though - those are dangerous. [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33|82.13.184.33]] 09:14, 6 February 2026 (UTC)

Found it ! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exoplanet#/media/File:Betapic_orbit_v2_reduced.gif Well, its on Wikipedia, it must be true. [[User:The Yeti|The Yeti]] ([[User talk:The Yeti|talk]]) 01:55, 7 February 2026 (UTC)

If an object is known to exist, and it can't plausibly have come to exist "naturally" / by chance, it's worth considering that it may have been engineered. Consider the Babel Fish, for example. [[User:BunsenH|BunsenH]] ([[User talk:BunsenH|talk]]) 04:47, 8 February 2026 (UTC)

: Wouldn't the caption below the image be "Space Space news Colon" --[[User:Zaphod Beebledoc|Zaphod Beebledoc]] ([[User talk:Zaphod Beebledoc|talk]]) 21:06, 24 February 2026 (UTC)

Talk:3202: Groundhog Day Meaning

2026-02-24T21:01:53Z

Zaphod Beebledoc:

I guess it's weirdest because it has two silly associations. But Talk Like a Pirate Day is arguably weirder than either of them. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 16:50, 2 February 2026 (UTC)
:Yellow pig day?[[User:Lordpishky|Lord Pishky]] ([[User talk:Lordpishky|talk]]) 00:15, 4 February 2026 (UTC)
:Arguably, Talk Like a Pirate Day isn't weird at all, since it means exactly what it sounds like. By contrast, Groundhog Day isn't clear what the groundhog is about, and of course the time loop is completely unrelated [[User:R128|R128]] ([[User talk:R128|talk]]) 18:19, 6 February 2026 (UTC)

Even Stargate SG-1 had a timeloop episode and dropped a Groundhog Day reference in.
:Even Stargate SG-1 had a timeloop episode and dropped a Groundhog Day reference in. --[[User:Zaphod Beebledoc|Zaphod Beebledoc]] ([[User talk:Zaphod Beebledoc|talk]]) 21:01, 24 February 2026 (UTC)

: Malikai: Once I've correctly deciphered the symbols on the altar, I will be able to master the time device.

: Jack O'Neill: Why, so you can be king of Groundhog Day?

Damn I miss that show. [[Special:Contributions/135.84.57.36|135.84.57.36]] 17:06, 2 February 2026 (UTC)

third [[Special:Contributions/164.58.172.158|164.58.172.158]] 17:12, 2 February 2026 (UTC)
:quarter [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33|82.13.184.33]] 09:42, 3 February 2026 (UTC)
:: fifth [[Special:Contributions/66.210.7.66|66.210.7.66]] 15:50, 4 February 2026 (UTC)
::: tritone [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33|82.13.184.33]] 16:55, 4 February 2026 (UTC)
::: The minor fall, the major lift [[Special:Contributions/24.177.125.170|24.177.125.170]] 01:41, 5 February 2026 (UTC)

It’s curious to see Black Hat being the one who is nonplussed here. Usually he’s the one shocking everyone else with surreal statements and antics. [[User:Pie Guy|Pie Guy]] ([[User talk:Pie Guy|talk]]) 17:28, 2 February 2026 (UTC)
:Yeah I was wondering about that too. Why [[Black Hat]] instead of a more normal character like [[Megan]]? Contrary to his usual behavior, Black Hat isn't doing anything evil here. [[User:DKMell|DKMell]] ([[User talk:DKMell|talk]]) 19:34, 2 February 2026 (UTC)
::I was thinking it might be because of comic [[2174]], where it heavily implies Black Hat comes from a different planet. Maybe he still doesn't have all of our holidays and cultures figured out yet? Sounds like a bit of a stretch, but I think it's a fun interpretation, and I'm going with it. [[User:Willintendo|Willintendo]] ([[User talk:Willintendo|talk]]) 20:24, 2 February 2026 (UTC)
:Yes, that legit freaked me out. I like Willintendo's interpretation, though.[[Special:Contributions/104.32.72.95|104.32.72.95]] 21:02, 2 February 2026 (UTC)
:I came here to say the same. Haven't seen him ni a while so using him instead of White Hat is just confusing, like Randall has decided not to use him as a Classhole anymore. Or maybe he is just messing with us, like when Black Hat got Rick to attend Danish party, [[524: Party]], but he did not sing. Just by letting him be in this comic, we being thinking way too much. ;-) --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 08:56, 3 February 2026 (UTC)

Help, I'm stuck in a time loop. But at least it's going to be sunny for the forseeable future. [[Special:Contributions/76.187.17.7|76.187.17.7]] 18:29, 2 February 2026 (UTC)

We should possibly mention Candlemas and the German traditions surrounding Badgers seeing shadows. [[Special:Contributions/80.41.29.9|80.41.29.9]] 18:34, 2 February 2026 (UTC)
:Badger badger badger badger? [[User:Lordpishky|Lord Pishky]] ([[User talk:Lordpishky|talk]]) 20:05, 2 February 2026 (UTC)
::Or serpents on Imbolc, for that matter [[User:Nekokami|Nekokami]] ([[User talk:Nekokami|talk]]) 02:12, 3 February 2026 (UTC)
:I agree: the earlier traditions regarding badgers are probably what the title text is referring to with "other mustelids" [[Special:Contributions/74.110.98.95|74.110.98.95]] 01:41, 3 February 2026 (UTC)

¿How is it that the whole body resets except the brain? Oftentimes, the loop resets after death. If death is from an head-injury, ¿how does the brain restore without loosing memories or function? {{unsigned ip|67.174.239.209|19:44, 2 February 2026 (UTC)}}
:No time travel story makes sense. It's just a story, not physics.[[User:Nitpicking|Nitpicking]] ([[User talk:Nitpicking|talk]]) 02:10, 3 February 2026 (UTC)
::From your handle, I would have thought this was exactly the kind of comment you'd approve of. [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33|82.13.184.33]] 10:02, 3 February 2026 (UTC)
:I think many sees the mind as outside the brain, so... It is clearly the same person waking up each morning, but he just has the memories from the day before. This is not a time travel movie. What ever he did the day before has no effect. He can just adjust what he does. There is a new movie using the exact same setting except it always ends with the death of the character: {{w|Boss Level}}. The director Joe Carnahan described it as "Groundhog Day as an action movie". --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 09:00, 3 February 2026 (UTC)
::There's also something like {{w|Edge of Tomorrow}}, in which the character's death is ''required'' to restart the time-loop for the loop-inflicted person.
::But, for them to work, there's either an assumption of mind-body dualism (i.e. (some) memories are somehow separate from the physical structures that might store them) or else there's some kind of a jolt of 'legacy memory reupload' that grants the person(s) undergoing the save-scummed restart process with the hint (or outright knowledge) of what had transpired upon the last cycle (or, cummulatively, ''all'' prior cycles).
::Some versions have everyone practically the same every single time, ''except'' for a lingering sense of deja vu. Or even some other entirely external artefact to hint that it's "not their first rodeo", that might not even belong to themselves but subtly changes the scenario that they're reacting to. [[Special:Contributions/81.179.199.253|81.179.199.253]] 22:28, 3 February 2026 (UTC)
:Outer Wilds had an intesting way of handling it, where information was sent back in time. But they never really explain how the information is captured, sent, and then "retrieved" to the person's mind. It's just sort of handwaved as alien technology. [[Special:Contributions/24.177.125.170|24.177.125.170]] 01:44, 5 February 2026 (UTC)

I'm sure i read this comic yesterday? [[Special:Contributions/89.242.150.153|89.242.150.153]] 20:18, 2 February 2026 (UTC)

The specific individual ground squirrel in Pennsylvania most people agreed to standardize on is now 139 years old. Even Wikipedia confirms the official Phil has been the same forecasting beast since 1887. Personally I'm a little unsure, I wonder if perhaps there may have been some substitutions along the way, however I cannot find any references to that happening... maybe I'm just too untrusting? [[User:Martin|Martin]] ([[User talk:Martin|talk]]) 21:25, 2 February 2026 (UTC)

I think there's one more hidden joke in the fact that it's Cueball explaining this to Black Hat and not the other way around. You'd expect misinformation from Black Hat but in fact what features in the comic is all true. [[Special:Contributions/2A02:8071:60F0:67A0:E9DD:54D9:E9C0:2426|2A02:8071:60F0:67A0:E9DD:54D9:E9C0:2426]] 07:00, 3 February 2026 (UTC)

The German weather lore is solely about the weather on candlemess. The batchers are a later addition. --[[Special:Contributions/2001:638:807:507:D0DD:20BF:E52B:CCC4|2001:638:807:507:D0DD:20BF:E52B:CCC4]] 13:22, 3 February 2026 (UTC)
:The badgers are the particularly German thing. The generic lore around Candlemas* (and even around animals and Candlemas more generally) is much more widespread.
:(*In fact, it likely predates Candlemas, and originates in more pagan lore.) [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33|82.13.184.33]] 14:15, 3 February 2026 (UTC)

That's OK, Ontario has https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wiarton_Willie :-) [[Special:Contributions/2607:F2C0:F00F:8C00:0:0:0:CB9|2607:F2C0:F00F:8C00:0:0:0:CB9]] 01:07, 8 February 2026 (UTC)

The bit I always find hilarious is that Groundhog Day is six weeks before the start of spring. There will ''always'' be six more weeks of winter, technically--[[Special:Contributions/98.155.0.182|98.155.0.182]] 06:36, 9 February 2026 (UTC)
:Yes, but the prediction is expressly a meteorological one, and so the calendar time will not necessarily stop an early warming trend. For the Celts, Spring begins on 1 February, so the equinox is simply a mnemonic to set your calendar by. Predicting the weather itself is a much more nuanced art! [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 07:52, 9 February 2026 (UTC)
::Meteorlogical spring (northern hemisphere) is 1/March. (Equinocal spring starts around 20/March, give or take yearly-drift, other systems may sit Spring half-half across that equinox, to end half-way to "midsummer".) Of course, weather+climate changes make for different expectations in different bits of the world. Even discounting the various flips necessary for the southern hemisphere. [[Special:Contributions/82.132.212.190|82.132.212.190]] 16:16, 9 February 2026 (UTC)

Random trivia: the last time Groundhog Day was on a Monday was in 2015! [[User:John|John]] ([[User talk:John|talk]]) 04:56, 10 February 2026 (UTC)
:Repeated trivia: The last Groundhog Day, like this one, was on a Thursday. And the one before that. And the one before that. And the one before that. And the one before that... [[User:Phil Connors|Phil Connors]] ([[User talk:Phil Connors|talk]]) 06:05, 4 February 1993 (UTC)

Talk:3196: Aurora Coolness

2026-02-24T19:58:41Z

Zaphod Beebledoc:

second - [[Special:Contributions/45.178.1.151|45.178.1.151]] 03:07, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:minute [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33|82.13.184.33]] 09:31, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
::hour [[User:CalibansCreations|'''Caliban''']] ([[User talk:CalibansCreations|talk]]) 10:24, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:::day [[Special:Contributions/93.36.184.86|93.36.184.86]] 14:06, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:::: What [[Special:Contributions/2605:59C8:160:DB08:657A:CBF1:9BDA:C5C|2605:59C8:160:DB08:657A:CBF1:9BDA:C5C]] 14:57, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
::::: The [[Special:Contributions/66.210.7.66|66.210.7.66]] 21:25, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:::::: Heck [[Special:Contributions/208.123.119.128|208.123.119.128]] 02:50, 21 January 2026 (UTC)
::::::: Why --'''''[[User:DollarStoreBa'al|DollarStoreBa'al]][[User Talk:DollarStoreBa'al|Converse]]''''' 14:02, 21 January 2026 (UTC)
:::::::: i'm sorry how did this happen [[Special:Contributions/45.178.1.151|45.178.1.151]] 18:28, 21 January 2026 (UTC)
::::::::: who --'''''[[User:DollarStoreBa'al|DollarStoreBa'al]][[User Talk:DollarStoreBa'al|Converse]]''''' 18:30, 21 January 2026 (UTC)
:::::::::: Who is on first. [[Special:Contributions/98.97.38.200|98.97.38.200]] 14:17, 22 January 2026 (UTC)
::::::::::: Naturally. [[Special:Contributions/82.132.246.68|82.132.246.68]] 18:24, 22 January 2026 (UTC)
:::::::::::: Me, but on a different device [[Special:Contributions/2607:FB90:8F03:67A2:61B6:B1AA:FD2A:7EB3|2607:FB90:8F03:67A2:61B6:B1AA:FD2A:7EB3]] 00:45, 24 January 2026 (UTC)
::::::::::::: Me, but on a different proxy [[Special:Contributions/35.77.106.171|35.77.106.171]] 09:02, 24 January 2026 (UTC)
:::::::::::::: what [[Special:Contributions/164.58.172.158|164.58.172.158]] 16:53, 4 February 2026 (UTC)
::::::::::::::: He's on second... --[[User:Zaphod Beebledoc|Zaphod Beebledoc]] ([[User talk:Zaphod Beebledoc|talk]]) 19:58, 24 February 2026 (UTC)

I picture people going out on a cold, clear winter night to stare at a shimmering, aurora-filled sky, and then returning to their warm homes to sip hot cups of soup from the microwave, blissfully unaware of how closely related the two events are ... or would be were it not for that thin, thin, layer of mostly diatomic and triatomic gases that is desperately parrying the Sun's murderous assault on our behalf. Yes, yes, I know, I know ...[[Special:Contributions/2605:59C8:160:DB08:657A:CBF1:9BDA:C5C|2605:59C8:160:DB08:657A:CBF1:9BDA:C5C]] 04:07, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:Makes you wonder why no-one's figured out how to reproduce that in a microwave, so we can enjoy an aurora every time we heat something. [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33|82.13.184.33]] 09:34, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
::"Aurora Borealis? At THIS time of year, at THIS time of day, in THIS part of the country, localized ENTIRELY within your kitchen?" [[Special:Contributions/168.8.230.51|168.8.230.51]] 13:57, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:::In order: Yes, yes, yes, no despite Randall's best efforts. [[User:GreatWyrmGold|GreatWyrmGold]] ([[User talk:GreatWyrmGold|talk]]) 14:19, 20 January 2026 (UTC)

The graph in 2914 isn't a function of time, it's a function of how close one is to the path of totality. [[Special:Contributions/137.25.230.78|137.25.230.78]] 05:39, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
: Fixed. [[Special:Contributions/2605:59C8:160:DB08:657A:CBF1:9BDA:C5C|2605:59C8:160:DB08:657A:CBF1:9BDA:C5C]] 06:38, 20 January 2026 (UTC)

New England was getting heavy snow in the days leading up to this comic, so it was probably too cloudy for any auroras to be visible. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 05:42, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
: "''probably too cloudy''" Far north coast of Maine, all I could see was sky-glow from the Walmart 7 miles away. We actually have a Dark Sky movement in this area (lotta old hippies) but Walmart didnt get that memo. --[[User:PRR|PRR]] ([[User talk:PRR|talk]]) 06:02, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
::Indeed. I live about 50km from London in a town with many street lights (and I don't drive). I've never seen an aurora.--[[Special:Contributions/2A00:23CC:D248:8901:8DF8:31D:D8B:3B99|2A00:23CC:D248:8901:8DF8:31D:D8B:3B99]] 09:09, 20 January 2026 (UTC)

I wish all those many people who apparently get notified about aurora forecasts, go outside and then AFTERWARDS post about it instead posted about it BEFORE… I keep seeing such posts when it's too late. :( [[User:Fabian42|Fabian42]] ([[User talk:Fabian42|talk]]) 06:53, 20 January 2026 (UTC)

I'm not sure if this is a UK-specific phenomenon, so it may not be familiar to many of you, but those who ''do'' do this ("do do" – snigger), ''stop it''. I refer to banging on about how spectacular the aurora is but not mentioning that it couldn't be seen with the naked eye. If you can only see it by pointing your camera at it, that's not seeing it. That's not worthy of BBC journalists saying the aurora was visible, because it ''wasn't''. That's a cute trick that your phone can do to translate invisible parts of the spectrum into visible light. You don't post UV-detector shots of patterns that birds can see and say "Wow, conditions were perfect for making these patterns visible on this lizard!" If it's not visible, it's not visible. [[User:Yorkshire Pudding|Yorkshire Pudding]] ([[User talk:Yorkshire Pudding|talk]]) 10:55, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:From my recollection of past info (that I won't repeat too specifically, as I kight be wrong and you probably don't want me saying it more exactly either way) you're also somewhere on the inner fringes of one of the main Yorkshire conurbations. Which means that your night-time views are blighted by 'cityshine' (as mine typically are, except it's more like a major regional town just over the hill) except upon the clearest of clear nights.
:I don't know what the urban equivalent is, but it's seemingly something like constant noctiluscent clouds (only illuminated by over-the-hill settlements, not the under-the-horizon Sun). Technically, I should get good aurora views, at this latitude, but have ''never'' seen (with my naked eye) anything that doesn't look like reflected light-pollution. Really clear skies and really good aurora seem to never have coincided, either it's the skies (lots of stars, or even shooting stars at the right times of year) or its an ambiguous glow that is probably anthropogenic. (Or, worse, it's so cloudy/etc, that I don't even get the neighbouring town's light.) [[Special:Contributions/82.132.239.241|82.132.239.241]] 16:25, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
I am sooo jealosu at Randall for er experiencien Aurora for hours. Aurora is in my top-3 of natural phenomeman that I want to see (have already seen a volcano erupt, have been in the path of a total eclipse twice - on overcast days) and yesterday, for about 10 minutes, I saw aurora for the first time. As in, I saw a glow that had a slightly greener glow than the light pollution would normally be, and I would not recognized it if my family who lives in darker territory didn't warn me. [[User:IIVQ|IIVQ]] ([[User talk:IIVQ|talk]]) 19:16, 20 January 2026 (UTC)

Talk:3196: Aurora Coolness

2026-02-24T19:58:19Z

Zaphod Beebledoc:

second - [[Special:Contributions/45.178.1.151|45.178.1.151]] 03:07, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:minute [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33|82.13.184.33]] 09:31, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
::hour [[User:CalibansCreations|'''Caliban''']] ([[User talk:CalibansCreations|talk]]) 10:24, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:::day [[Special:Contributions/93.36.184.86|93.36.184.86]] 14:06, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:::: What [[Special:Contributions/2605:59C8:160:DB08:657A:CBF1:9BDA:C5C|2605:59C8:160:DB08:657A:CBF1:9BDA:C5C]] 14:57, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
::::: The [[Special:Contributions/66.210.7.66|66.210.7.66]] 21:25, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:::::: Heck [[Special:Contributions/208.123.119.128|208.123.119.128]] 02:50, 21 January 2026 (UTC)
::::::: Why --'''''[[User:DollarStoreBa'al|DollarStoreBa'al]][[User Talk:DollarStoreBa'al|Converse]]''''' 14:02, 21 January 2026 (UTC)
:::::::: i'm sorry how did this happen [[Special:Contributions/45.178.1.151|45.178.1.151]] 18:28, 21 January 2026 (UTC)
::::::::: who --'''''[[User:DollarStoreBa'al|DollarStoreBa'al]][[User Talk:DollarStoreBa'al|Converse]]''''' 18:30, 21 January 2026 (UTC)
:::::::::: Who is on first. [[Special:Contributions/98.97.38.200|98.97.38.200]] 14:17, 22 January 2026 (UTC)
::::::::::: Naturally. [[Special:Contributions/82.132.246.68|82.132.246.68]] 18:24, 22 January 2026 (UTC)
:::::::::::: Me, but on a different device [[Special:Contributions/2607:FB90:8F03:67A2:61B6:B1AA:FD2A:7EB3|2607:FB90:8F03:67A2:61B6:B1AA:FD2A:7EB3]] 00:45, 24 January 2026 (UTC)
::::::::::::: Me, but on a different proxy [[Special:Contributions/35.77.106.171|35.77.106.171]] 09:02, 24 January 2026 (UTC)
:::::::::::::: what [[Special:Contributions/164.58.172.158|164.58.172.158]] 16:53, 4 February 2026 (UTC)
::::::::::::::: He's on second...

I picture people going out on a cold, clear winter night to stare at a shimmering, aurora-filled sky, and then returning to their warm homes to sip hot cups of soup from the microwave, blissfully unaware of how closely related the two events are ... or would be were it not for that thin, thin, layer of mostly diatomic and triatomic gases that is desperately parrying the Sun's murderous assault on our behalf. Yes, yes, I know, I know ...[[Special:Contributions/2605:59C8:160:DB08:657A:CBF1:9BDA:C5C|2605:59C8:160:DB08:657A:CBF1:9BDA:C5C]] 04:07, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:Makes you wonder why no-one's figured out how to reproduce that in a microwave, so we can enjoy an aurora every time we heat something. [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33|82.13.184.33]] 09:34, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
::"Aurora Borealis? At THIS time of year, at THIS time of day, in THIS part of the country, localized ENTIRELY within your kitchen?" [[Special:Contributions/168.8.230.51|168.8.230.51]] 13:57, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:::In order: Yes, yes, yes, no despite Randall's best efforts. [[User:GreatWyrmGold|GreatWyrmGold]] ([[User talk:GreatWyrmGold|talk]]) 14:19, 20 January 2026 (UTC)

The graph in 2914 isn't a function of time, it's a function of how close one is to the path of totality. [[Special:Contributions/137.25.230.78|137.25.230.78]] 05:39, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
: Fixed. [[Special:Contributions/2605:59C8:160:DB08:657A:CBF1:9BDA:C5C|2605:59C8:160:DB08:657A:CBF1:9BDA:C5C]] 06:38, 20 January 2026 (UTC)

New England was getting heavy snow in the days leading up to this comic, so it was probably too cloudy for any auroras to be visible. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 05:42, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
: "''probably too cloudy''" Far north coast of Maine, all I could see was sky-glow from the Walmart 7 miles away. We actually have a Dark Sky movement in this area (lotta old hippies) but Walmart didnt get that memo. --[[User:PRR|PRR]] ([[User talk:PRR|talk]]) 06:02, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
::Indeed. I live about 50km from London in a town with many street lights (and I don't drive). I've never seen an aurora.--[[Special:Contributions/2A00:23CC:D248:8901:8DF8:31D:D8B:3B99|2A00:23CC:D248:8901:8DF8:31D:D8B:3B99]] 09:09, 20 January 2026 (UTC)

I wish all those many people who apparently get notified about aurora forecasts, go outside and then AFTERWARDS post about it instead posted about it BEFORE… I keep seeing such posts when it's too late. :( [[User:Fabian42|Fabian42]] ([[User talk:Fabian42|talk]]) 06:53, 20 January 2026 (UTC)

I'm not sure if this is a UK-specific phenomenon, so it may not be familiar to many of you, but those who ''do'' do this ("do do" – snigger), ''stop it''. I refer to banging on about how spectacular the aurora is but not mentioning that it couldn't be seen with the naked eye. If you can only see it by pointing your camera at it, that's not seeing it. That's not worthy of BBC journalists saying the aurora was visible, because it ''wasn't''. That's a cute trick that your phone can do to translate invisible parts of the spectrum into visible light. You don't post UV-detector shots of patterns that birds can see and say "Wow, conditions were perfect for making these patterns visible on this lizard!" If it's not visible, it's not visible. [[User:Yorkshire Pudding|Yorkshire Pudding]] ([[User talk:Yorkshire Pudding|talk]]) 10:55, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:From my recollection of past info (that I won't repeat too specifically, as I kight be wrong and you probably don't want me saying it more exactly either way) you're also somewhere on the inner fringes of one of the main Yorkshire conurbations. Which means that your night-time views are blighted by 'cityshine' (as mine typically are, except it's more like a major regional town just over the hill) except upon the clearest of clear nights.
:I don't know what the urban equivalent is, but it's seemingly something like constant noctiluscent clouds (only illuminated by over-the-hill settlements, not the under-the-horizon Sun). Technically, I should get good aurora views, at this latitude, but have ''never'' seen (with my naked eye) anything that doesn't look like reflected light-pollution. Really clear skies and really good aurora seem to never have coincided, either it's the skies (lots of stars, or even shooting stars at the right times of year) or its an ambiguous glow that is probably anthropogenic. (Or, worse, it's so cloudy/etc, that I don't even get the neighbouring town's light.) [[Special:Contributions/82.132.239.241|82.132.239.241]] 16:25, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
I am sooo jealosu at Randall for er experiencien Aurora for hours. Aurora is in my top-3 of natural phenomeman that I want to see (have already seen a volcano erupt, have been in the path of a total eclipse twice - on overcast days) and yesterday, for about 10 minutes, I saw aurora for the first time. As in, I saw a glow that had a slightly greener glow than the light pollution would normally be, and I would not recognized it if my family who lives in darker territory didn't warn me. [[User:IIVQ|IIVQ]] ([[User talk:IIVQ|talk]]) 19:16, 20 January 2026 (UTC)

Talk:3195: International Station

2026-02-24T19:53:56Z

Zaphod Beebledoc:

Sometimes I wonder if some of these comics aren't just for the sake of seeing whatever explain xkcd users come up with [[Special:Contributions/2A01:CB19:FAB:3100:D027:1047:976:8EE2|2A01:CB19:FAB:3100:D027:1047:976:8EE2]] 22:25, 18 January 2026 (UTC)

Holy refresh pull exclamation mark! tilde tilde tilde tilde --'''''[[User:DollarStoreBa'al|DollarStoreBa'al]][[User Talk:DollarStoreBa'al|Converse]]''''' 14:55, 16 January 2026 (UTC)

Should the "not-earth" "space" be changed to something like "the void between astronomical bodies"? I'm not sure if, say, the surface of the Moon or Mars or {{w|A Taste of Armageddon|Eminiar VII}} count as being "in space". [[User:BunsenH|BunsenH]] ([[User talk:BunsenH|talk]]) 15:27, 16 January 2026 (UTC)
: I think "space" gets used pretty frequently for "not-Earth". Consider that NASA is the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and launches probes to other astronomical bodies. People talk about the Moon landing as being part of the "space program". "Spacemen from Mars" is a reasonably common phrase. [[Special:Contributions/163.116.254.45|163.116.254.45]] 19:38, 19 January 2026 (UTC)
:: Try getting to (or from) the Moon (or Mars) ''without'' using using space at all. I challenge you. (If you can do it, there's probably a Nobel Prize in it for you. Or just a life of far more mundane wealth-accumulation. Possibly in an entirely undetectable but criminal sense.) [[Special:Contributions/92.23.11.33|92.23.11.33]] 20:11, 19 January 2026 (UTC)
:Let us not forget {{w|https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/space#Verb|the verb form of "space"}} but I am unsure how to work it in here! [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 23:16, 19 January 2026 (UTC)
::I believe that you intended to write <code><nowiki>{{wiktionary|space#Verb|the verb form of "space"}}</nowiki></code>, as in '{{wiktionary|space#Verb|the verb form of "space"}}', for a start. [[Special:Contributions/92.23.11.33|92.23.11.33]] 00:24, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:What would the 'space' between alternate universes be known as? [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Tholian_Web The Tholian Web] --[[User:Zaphod Beebledoc|Zaphod Beebledoc]] ([[User talk:Zaphod Beebledoc|talk]]) 19:51, 24 February 2026 (UTC)

I initially interpreted the cartoon as showing the people and objects floating within something gloopy, and the wrench as a bone, and that the joke was about an "internal space station". Here we are, inside a gelatinous cube, or possibly a [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Immunity_Syndrome_(Star_Trek:_The_Original_Series) gigantic space amoeba]... [[User:BunsenH|BunsenH]] ([[User talk:BunsenH|talk]]) 15:43, 16 January 2026 (UTC)

'''New Category: Weightless''' There are a few strips that take place demonstrating micro-gravity, right? Is that worthy of a category? The 'space' tag could be used for comics ''about'' space or comics ''in'' space (or, I guess, comics on planets?). [[Special:Contributions/191.101.157.82|191.101.157.82]] 17:08, 16 January 2026 (UTC)

I think the ISS was originally called start quote Alpha end quote period tilde tilde tilde tilde [[Special:Contributions/134.173.108.120|134.173.108.120]] 18:23, 16 January 2026 (UTC)

I'm early! [[Special:Contributions/2603:7083:8700:E02:FE51:837E:B6F:327|2603:7083:8700:E02:FE51:837E:B6F:327]] 18:24, 16 January 2026 (UTC)

It took me a moment to get it, but when I did this xkcd made me capitals LOL which doesn't happen often [[Special:Contributions/2401:D005:D402:7A00:7FE1:F042:B839:91B8|2401:D005:D402:7A00:7FE1:F042:B839:91B8]] 21:23, 16 January 2026 (UTC)
:You forgot tilde tilde tilde tilde tilde tilde tilde tilde --'''''[[User:DollarStoreBa'al|DollarStoreBa'al]][[User Talk:DollarStoreBa'al|Converse]]''''' 21:31, 16 January 2026 (UTC)

At least it's not the International Ampersand En Bee Ess Pee Semicolon Station ellipsis tilde tilde tilde tilde [[Special:Contributions/174.142.148.226|174.142.148.226]] 21:42, 16 January 2026 (UTC)
:Speaking of Ampersand Aa Em Pee Semicolon, that's a real life example of this effect actually happening. It was at the end of the alphabet where they would say "X, Y, Z, and, per sé, 'and'". Tilde tilde tilde tilde. Not sure if that is relevant enough to the comic though. [[User:Tharkon|Tharkon]] ([[User talk:Tharkon|talk]]) 02:26, 17 January 2026 (UTC)

Dear Bot, don't get this Irishperson started on apostrophes. [[Special:Contributions/205.175.118.102|205.175.118.102]] 22:57, 16 January 2026 (UTC)

From John Littlewood's "A Mathematician's Miscellany": A minute I wrote (about 1917) for the Ballistic Office ended with the sentence 'Thus a should be made as small as possible'. This did not appear in the printed minute. But P. J. Grigg said, 'what is that?' A speck in a blank space at the end proved to be the tiniest a I have ever seen (the printers must have scoured London for it).[[User:Lordpishky|Lord Pishky]] ([[User talk:Lordpishky|talk]]) 03:59, 17 January 2026 (UTC)

International Space Space Space Station? [[User:Inexplicable|Inexplicable]] ([[User talk:Inexplicable|talk]]) 07:17, 17 January 2026 (UTC)
:International Space Space Space Space Space Space Space Station? [[User:Logalex8369|Logalex8369]] ([[User talk:Logalex8369|talk]]) 17:22, 19 January 2026 (UTC)

These comments make me want to see if you could have "tildetildetildetilde"(the actual characters) as your account name. [[User:These Are Not The Comments You Are Looking For|These Are Not The Comments You Are Looking For]] ([[User talk:These Are Not The Comments You Are Looking For|talk]]) 02:18, 18 January 2026 (UTC)
:Nope, typing ~~<nowiki />~~ gives an invalid username error. [[Special:Contributions/2A04:4E41:6405:35F:0:0:EB9C:B35F|2A04:4E41:6405:35F:0:0:EB9C:B35F]] 05:49, 18 January 2026 (UTC)

This one reminds me of 3143 a bit too much. [[User:Explainyourself|Explainyourself]] ([[User talk:Explainyourself|talk]]) 03:45, 18 January 2026 (UTC)

Am I the only one that interpreted it as "originally it was not supposed to be a space station but rather a 'regular' (ie. terrestrial) station, but because of a transcribing mistake they put it in space, hence the random floating stuff" {{unsigned|Baruch|10:04, 19 January 2026 (UTC)}} [[User:Baruch|Baruch]] ([[User talk:Baruch|talk]]) 09:31, 21 January 2026 (UTC)

:That is a good insight! I think the wording is open to this kind of interpretation. (Interestingly, the "random floating stuff" does not include a sketch of the station interior itself, or any structure, ''per se''.) [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 18:50, 19 January 2026 (UTC)

The main page has been vandalized with a floating picture of Osama Bin Laden. {{unsigned ip|65.35.147.191|15:39, 19 January 2026}}
:I just dealt with that. If I have to deal with it again, then I will. [[Special:Contributions/82.132.244.8|82.132.244.8]] 16:01, 19 January 2026 (UTC)

Hi, the headlines regarding ISS crew issues began on 8 January, not 15 January. [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 00:39, 20 January 2026 (UTC)

Hi, "SEAOFBLUE" or whatever the editor objects to is a red herring. The main point is the ''early return''. The medical issue is the stated reason for that return, but the Wikipedia entry describes the return, and definitely does not provide any medical details. Nobody has. The main point is the early return process. [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 00:42, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:Whatever. Just doesn't need twenty words (no, I didn't count them) in the link to the external resource about it. [[Special:Contributions/92.23.11.33|92.23.11.33]] 00:50, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:And, note, the comic with the ISS-related joke did not come out on Friday 9th, Monday 12th or Wednesday 14th, also. Leaving it more dissassociated from the 8/Jan/2026 announcement than the actual 15/Jan/2026 return. I can't say how long the idea had been stewing in Randall's head, before publishing, but he's usually quicker than a week to respond to obviously topical events. So if that's what he's done, I think we're on shakier ground trying to link it to the initial news item than its possible inspiration being the successful one. If one needs the connection.
:That's entirely leaving aside from the possibility that he deliberately waited until they were all safely back on Earth (and the emergency, whatever its nature, hadn't worsened) before doing something too funny, just in case it went sour. But then the link to the return is even more definite. [[Special:Contributions/92.23.11.33|92.23.11.33]] 01:00, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
::We could still be thorough and say the news cycle was 8–15 January. And where is it written that wikilinks should not have all the words in them? Why is 4 words better than 9? Why is "to Earth" dangling outside of the phrase? There isn't even any punctuation or a... grammatical reason to chop it up this way. Where is it written? Where did we arrive at consensus? Why argue with IPv4 that only has 4 days of contribs? [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 03:39, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:::As an IPv4 myself (and proud of it... and also IPv6s leave far less room in the explanation if I ever want to ''explain'' why I revert something they do, unless I snip the default reversion info down - which I might as well do, TBH), please don't make the mistake of thinking only 4 days of any given address is only 4 days of presence here. These things are dynamic (what's more, only fairly recently have they not been the Cloudflare gateway IPs that bunched contributors up into a different set of dynamic IP groups), and theoretically there are 232 potential IP addresses that we could bounce around (ok, so remove the RFC 1918 subnet masks and some other technically unlikely parts of the range, like multicast... see [[195: Map of the Internet]] for an idea of the possible proportion of 0.0.0.0/0 that might be end-IPs).
:::For links, yes be economical. I hate {{w|Hyperlink#Link behavior in web browsers|so much text being put into a link that the effective context of what that link is cannot be easily determined by eye, and which leaves large bits of blue (with or without underline, depending upon additional CSS/etc) initially, then typically that purplish shade (again with or without underline) if I find that I've visited it, so that I'm forced to hover over the link to get more idea of what I'm clicking}} upon. If you can't be usefully focussed with what text the {{w|Hyperlink#Link behavior in web browsers|link}} is tied to, you've probably not even made sure the link is the most apt one possible.
:::And try to hit the middle-ground. Don't just link to '{{tvtropes|SelfDemonstratingArticle|here}}', nor go beyond more than the basic necessary number of words when the possibly {{tvtropes|SesquipedalianLoquaciousness|Sesquipedalian Loquaciousness}} of the target page title is not something you're deliberately quoting. This is basic online-etiquette, people, which was already something that pre-HTML hyperlinking systems encouraged even before Web 1.0 came on the scene. [[Special:Contributions/82.132.239.241|82.132.239.241]] 04:57, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
::::''{{w|De gustibus non est disputandum}}'' [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 07:56, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
::I would say, if we are speculating about what went on in Randall's mind, that no matter how long it was "in the can", that publishing this comic at that time would be contingent on the safe return of the crew. [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 03:48, 20 January 2026 (UTC)

The Hubble Telescope suffered from the same transcription issue - and we don't have Roscosmos to blame for that. --[[Special:Contributions/2A09:BAC2:637A:1250:0:0:1D3:76|2A09:BAC2:637A:1250:0:0:1D3:76]] 01:14, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:I think it is high time that I make a pilgrimage to the "{{w|Vatican Observatory|Vatican Space Observatory}}" on "{{w|Mount Graham International Observatory|Mount Space Graham}}", and discuss their "transcription errors", as well. [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 03:45, 20 January 2026 (UTC)

Talk:3195: International Station

2026-02-24T19:51:51Z

Zaphod Beebledoc:

Sometimes I wonder if some of these comics aren't just for the sake of seeing whatever explain xkcd users come up with [[Special:Contributions/2A01:CB19:FAB:3100:D027:1047:976:8EE2|2A01:CB19:FAB:3100:D027:1047:976:8EE2]] 22:25, 18 January 2026 (UTC)

Holy refresh pull exclamation mark! tilde tilde tilde tilde --'''''[[User:DollarStoreBa'al|DollarStoreBa'al]][[User Talk:DollarStoreBa'al|Converse]]''''' 14:55, 16 January 2026 (UTC)

Should the "not-earth" "space" be changed to something like "the void between astronomical bodies"? I'm not sure if, say, the surface of the Moon or Mars or {{w|A Taste of Armageddon|Eminiar VII}} count as being "in space". [[User:BunsenH|BunsenH]] ([[User talk:BunsenH|talk]]) 15:27, 16 January 2026 (UTC)
: I think "space" gets used pretty frequently for "not-Earth". Consider that NASA is the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and launches probes to other astronomical bodies. People talk about the Moon landing as being part of the "space program". "Spacemen from Mars" is a reasonably common phrase. [[Special:Contributions/163.116.254.45|163.116.254.45]] 19:38, 19 January 2026 (UTC)
:: Try getting to (or from) the Moon (or Mars) ''without'' using using space at all. I challenge you. (If you can do it, there's probably a Nobel Prize in it for you. Or just a life of far more mundane wealth-accumulation. Possibly in an entirely undetectable but criminal sense.) [[Special:Contributions/92.23.11.33|92.23.11.33]] 20:11, 19 January 2026 (UTC)
:Let us not forget {{w|https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/space#Verb|the verb form of "space"}} but I am unsure how to work it in here! [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 23:16, 19 January 2026 (UTC)
::I believe that you intended to write <code><nowiki>{{wiktionary|space#Verb|the verb form of "space"}}</nowiki></code>, as in '{{wiktionary|space#Verb|the verb form of "space"}}', for a start. [[Special:Contributions/92.23.11.33|92.23.11.33]] 00:24, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:What would the 'space' between alternate universes be known as? [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Tholian_Web] --[[User:Zaphod Beebledoc|Zaphod Beebledoc]] ([[User talk:Zaphod Beebledoc|talk]]) 19:51, 24 February 2026 (UTC)

I initially interpreted the cartoon as showing the people and objects floating within something gloopy, and the wrench as a bone, and that the joke was about an "internal space station". Here we are, inside a gelatinous cube, or possibly a [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Immunity_Syndrome_(Star_Trek:_The_Original_Series) gigantic space amoeba]... [[User:BunsenH|BunsenH]] ([[User talk:BunsenH|talk]]) 15:43, 16 January 2026 (UTC)

'''New Category: Weightless''' There are a few strips that take place demonstrating micro-gravity, right? Is that worthy of a category? The 'space' tag could be used for comics ''about'' space or comics ''in'' space (or, I guess, comics on planets?). [[Special:Contributions/191.101.157.82|191.101.157.82]] 17:08, 16 January 2026 (UTC)

I think the ISS was originally called start quote Alpha end quote period tilde tilde tilde tilde [[Special:Contributions/134.173.108.120|134.173.108.120]] 18:23, 16 January 2026 (UTC)

I'm early! [[Special:Contributions/2603:7083:8700:E02:FE51:837E:B6F:327|2603:7083:8700:E02:FE51:837E:B6F:327]] 18:24, 16 January 2026 (UTC)

It took me a moment to get it, but when I did this xkcd made me capitals LOL which doesn't happen often [[Special:Contributions/2401:D005:D402:7A00:7FE1:F042:B839:91B8|2401:D005:D402:7A00:7FE1:F042:B839:91B8]] 21:23, 16 January 2026 (UTC)
:You forgot tilde tilde tilde tilde tilde tilde tilde tilde --'''''[[User:DollarStoreBa'al|DollarStoreBa'al]][[User Talk:DollarStoreBa'al|Converse]]''''' 21:31, 16 January 2026 (UTC)

At least it's not the International Ampersand En Bee Ess Pee Semicolon Station ellipsis tilde tilde tilde tilde [[Special:Contributions/174.142.148.226|174.142.148.226]] 21:42, 16 January 2026 (UTC)
:Speaking of Ampersand Aa Em Pee Semicolon, that's a real life example of this effect actually happening. It was at the end of the alphabet where they would say "X, Y, Z, and, per sé, 'and'". Tilde tilde tilde tilde. Not sure if that is relevant enough to the comic though. [[User:Tharkon|Tharkon]] ([[User talk:Tharkon|talk]]) 02:26, 17 January 2026 (UTC)

Dear Bot, don't get this Irishperson started on apostrophes. [[Special:Contributions/205.175.118.102|205.175.118.102]] 22:57, 16 January 2026 (UTC)

From John Littlewood's "A Mathematician's Miscellany": A minute I wrote (about 1917) for the Ballistic Office ended with the sentence 'Thus a should be made as small as possible'. This did not appear in the printed minute. But P. J. Grigg said, 'what is that?' A speck in a blank space at the end proved to be the tiniest a I have ever seen (the printers must have scoured London for it).[[User:Lordpishky|Lord Pishky]] ([[User talk:Lordpishky|talk]]) 03:59, 17 January 2026 (UTC)

International Space Space Space Station? [[User:Inexplicable|Inexplicable]] ([[User talk:Inexplicable|talk]]) 07:17, 17 January 2026 (UTC)
:International Space Space Space Space Space Space Space Station? [[User:Logalex8369|Logalex8369]] ([[User talk:Logalex8369|talk]]) 17:22, 19 January 2026 (UTC)

These comments make me want to see if you could have "tildetildetildetilde"(the actual characters) as your account name. [[User:These Are Not The Comments You Are Looking For|These Are Not The Comments You Are Looking For]] ([[User talk:These Are Not The Comments You Are Looking For|talk]]) 02:18, 18 January 2026 (UTC)
:Nope, typing ~~<nowiki />~~ gives an invalid username error. [[Special:Contributions/2A04:4E41:6405:35F:0:0:EB9C:B35F|2A04:4E41:6405:35F:0:0:EB9C:B35F]] 05:49, 18 January 2026 (UTC)

This one reminds me of 3143 a bit too much. [[User:Explainyourself|Explainyourself]] ([[User talk:Explainyourself|talk]]) 03:45, 18 January 2026 (UTC)

Am I the only one that interpreted it as "originally it was not supposed to be a space station but rather a 'regular' (ie. terrestrial) station, but because of a transcribing mistake they put it in space, hence the random floating stuff" {{unsigned|Baruch|10:04, 19 January 2026 (UTC)}} [[User:Baruch|Baruch]] ([[User talk:Baruch|talk]]) 09:31, 21 January 2026 (UTC)

:That is a good insight! I think the wording is open to this kind of interpretation. (Interestingly, the "random floating stuff" does not include a sketch of the station interior itself, or any structure, ''per se''.) [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 18:50, 19 January 2026 (UTC)

The main page has been vandalized with a floating picture of Osama Bin Laden. {{unsigned ip|65.35.147.191|15:39, 19 January 2026}}
:I just dealt with that. If I have to deal with it again, then I will. [[Special:Contributions/82.132.244.8|82.132.244.8]] 16:01, 19 January 2026 (UTC)

Hi, the headlines regarding ISS crew issues began on 8 January, not 15 January. [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 00:39, 20 January 2026 (UTC)

Hi, "SEAOFBLUE" or whatever the editor objects to is a red herring. The main point is the ''early return''. The medical issue is the stated reason for that return, but the Wikipedia entry describes the return, and definitely does not provide any medical details. Nobody has. The main point is the early return process. [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 00:42, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:Whatever. Just doesn't need twenty words (no, I didn't count them) in the link to the external resource about it. [[Special:Contributions/92.23.11.33|92.23.11.33]] 00:50, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:And, note, the comic with the ISS-related joke did not come out on Friday 9th, Monday 12th or Wednesday 14th, also. Leaving it more dissassociated from the 8/Jan/2026 announcement than the actual 15/Jan/2026 return. I can't say how long the idea had been stewing in Randall's head, before publishing, but he's usually quicker than a week to respond to obviously topical events. So if that's what he's done, I think we're on shakier ground trying to link it to the initial news item than its possible inspiration being the successful one. If one needs the connection.
:That's entirely leaving aside from the possibility that he deliberately waited until they were all safely back on Earth (and the emergency, whatever its nature, hadn't worsened) before doing something too funny, just in case it went sour. But then the link to the return is even more definite. [[Special:Contributions/92.23.11.33|92.23.11.33]] 01:00, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
::We could still be thorough and say the news cycle was 8–15 January. And where is it written that wikilinks should not have all the words in them? Why is 4 words better than 9? Why is "to Earth" dangling outside of the phrase? There isn't even any punctuation or a... grammatical reason to chop it up this way. Where is it written? Where did we arrive at consensus? Why argue with IPv4 that only has 4 days of contribs? [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 03:39, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:::As an IPv4 myself (and proud of it... and also IPv6s leave far less room in the explanation if I ever want to ''explain'' why I revert something they do, unless I snip the default reversion info down - which I might as well do, TBH), please don't make the mistake of thinking only 4 days of any given address is only 4 days of presence here. These things are dynamic (what's more, only fairly recently have they not been the Cloudflare gateway IPs that bunched contributors up into a different set of dynamic IP groups), and theoretically there are 232 potential IP addresses that we could bounce around (ok, so remove the RFC 1918 subnet masks and some other technically unlikely parts of the range, like multicast... see [[195: Map of the Internet]] for an idea of the possible proportion of 0.0.0.0/0 that might be end-IPs).
:::For links, yes be economical. I hate {{w|Hyperlink#Link behavior in web browsers|so much text being put into a link that the effective context of what that link is cannot be easily determined by eye, and which leaves large bits of blue (with or without underline, depending upon additional CSS/etc) initially, then typically that purplish shade (again with or without underline) if I find that I've visited it, so that I'm forced to hover over the link to get more idea of what I'm clicking}} upon. If you can't be usefully focussed with what text the {{w|Hyperlink#Link behavior in web browsers|link}} is tied to, you've probably not even made sure the link is the most apt one possible.
:::And try to hit the middle-ground. Don't just link to '{{tvtropes|SelfDemonstratingArticle|here}}', nor go beyond more than the basic necessary number of words when the possibly {{tvtropes|SesquipedalianLoquaciousness|Sesquipedalian Loquaciousness}} of the target page title is not something you're deliberately quoting. This is basic online-etiquette, people, which was already something that pre-HTML hyperlinking systems encouraged even before Web 1.0 came on the scene. [[Special:Contributions/82.132.239.241|82.132.239.241]] 04:57, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
::::''{{w|De gustibus non est disputandum}}'' [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 07:56, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
::I would say, if we are speculating about what went on in Randall's mind, that no matter how long it was "in the can", that publishing this comic at that time would be contingent on the safe return of the crew. [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 03:48, 20 January 2026 (UTC)

The Hubble Telescope suffered from the same transcription issue - and we don't have Roscosmos to blame for that. --[[Special:Contributions/2A09:BAC2:637A:1250:0:0:1D3:76|2A09:BAC2:637A:1250:0:0:1D3:76]] 01:14, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:I think it is high time that I make a pilgrimage to the "{{w|Vatican Observatory|Vatican Space Observatory}}" on "{{w|Mount Graham International Observatory|Mount Space Graham}}", and discuss their "transcription errors", as well. [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 03:45, 20 January 2026 (UTC)

Talk:3194: 16 Part Epoxy

2026-02-23T03:19:59Z

Zaphod Beebledoc:

Woah, just reloaded it and new comic! Sick... I should probably read it now. [[User:Willintendo|Willintendo]] ([[User talk:Willintendo|talk]]) 20:02, 14 January 2026 (UTC)
:Explain first; read later! [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33|82.13.184.33]] 10:18, 15 January 2026 (UTC)

Paint bucket fill tool strikes again. --[[User:Lycheefoxpup|Lycheefoxpup]] ([[User talk:Lycheefoxpup|talk]]) 20:18, 14 January 2026 (UTC)

TABLES! TABLES! TABLES! WOOOOOO!!!!!! --'''''[[User:DollarStoreBaal44|DollarStoreBa'al]][[User Talk:DollarStoreBaal44|Converse]]''''' 20:21, 14 January 2026 (UTC)
:Table created. However, I am a teenager and do not work in construction, so the explanations may need some work. --'''''[[User:DollarStoreBaal44|DollarStoreBa'al]][[User Talk:DollarStoreBaal44|Converse]]''''' 20:56, 14 January 2026 (UTC)
::Every item in this table is real. Ask me how I know. [[Special:Contributions/64.201.132.210|64.201.132.210]] 21:34, 14 January 2026 (UTC)
:::How does the placebo work? Does it just kinda mind control you?--'''''[[User:DollarStoreBaal44|DollarStoreBa'al]][[User Talk:DollarStoreBaal44|Converse]]''''' 21:42, 14 January 2026 (UTC)
:Robert'); DROP TABLE Epoxy;--
:Did it work? [[Special:Contributions/2001:1998:3500:42C:0:0:0:534|2001:1998:3500:42C:0:0:0:534]] 23:27, 14 January 2026 (UTC)
Thought for placebo adhesive: Water between two microscope slides. It'll stick real good, but it's not really glue, more... fancy pressure physics. [[Special:Contributions/142.165.161.48|142.165.161.48]] 22:28, 14 January 2026 (UTC)

"Duck" tape, not "duct". Come on Randall, you know better than that. [[User:Yorkshire Pudding|Yorkshire Pudding]] ([[User talk:Yorkshire Pudding|talk]]) 00:08, 15 January 2026 (UTC)
:Both spellings are used. One is trademarked. [[Special:Contributions/76.187.17.7|76.187.17.7]] 03:46, 15 January 2026 (UTC)
:Read this: https://archive.is/Fq5Js [[User:Viliml|Viliml]] ([[User talk:Viliml|talk]]) 09:36, 15 January 2026 (UTC)
::But "duct" ''screams'' folk etymology. "Duck" sounded unlikely so people though it must be "duct"...but it's a huge leap to think that a tape that some people tended to use for a/c ducts would actually be ''named'' "duct tape". Both the tape and the word "duct" are too general purpose for that. Is it known as that? Yes? Does it make sense though? Not for a second. [[User:Yorkshire Pudding|Yorkshire Pudding]] ([[User talk:Yorkshire Pudding|talk]]) 10:38, 15 January 2026 (UTC)
:::To be fair, it is more commonly used for taping ducts than it is used for taping ducks [[Special:Contributions/2A01:CB1C:12EF:7900:953B:FFB2:21E3:47EC|2A01:CB1C:12EF:7900:953B:FFB2:21E3:47EC]] 12:43, 15 January 2026 (UTC)
::::Taping ducks would be quackers, though one could attempt it... --[[User:Zaphod Beebledoc|Zaphod Beebledoc]] ([[User talk:Zaphod Beebledoc|talk]]) 03:19, 23 February 2026 (UTC)
:::Actually, it was originally named duck tape, as it was made using something called "duck fabric." This had etymology unrelated to the animal duck, from a Dutch word "doek." There were some similar tapes seeing some use with that name beforehand, but it became common as during WWII, a kind of it was adopted by the military for sealing ammunition crates, and it's availability led to soldiers widely using it for other purposes. After the war, it was then sold to civilian markets. Common use on air ducts led to it being made in the same gray color, and being labeled "duct tape." Many had forgotten the original name when in the 70's someone decided to call it that again while advertising it with a cartoon duck picture.--[[Special:Contributions/2600:100A:B10C:6B2E:EC47:CF99:9B14:1C81|2600:100A:B10C:6B2E:EC47:CF99:9B14:1C81]] 08:00, 16 January 2026 (UTC)
:::To add on to that point, the most popular use for pipe cleaners (other than elementary school craft projects) is to clean pipes, so it's not ''that'' much of a stretch. --'''''[[User:DollarStoreBaal44|DollarStoreBa'al]][[User Talk:DollarStoreBaal44|Converse]]'''''
:::: This is also the etymology of ''Duck Dynasty'' who were originally '''duct hunters''': that is, they were federal agents who snuck into the ductwork of large facilities, and hunted evil spies throughout the ducts. Eventually they found that the ductwork caused so much ricochet for their shotgun blasts—and frequently foiled by duct decoys—that they decided to take the duct hunting outdoors. [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 09:03, 20 January 2026 (UTC)
:Ducks? Thanks. Oh sorry, wrong webcomic. [[Special:Contributions/2A02:2455:1960:4000:F1E8:367:E9A3:2FC7|2A02:2455:1960:4000:F1E8:367:E9A3:2FC7]] 10:43, 16 January 2026 (UTC)

Now I'm wondering what the properties of a powdered bar magnet would even be, if each individual piece continued to be magnetic. [[Special:Contributions/2405:201:E010:1029:2C1E:1669:FA92:85DE|2405:201:E010:1029:2C1E:1669:FA92:85DE]] 00:44, 15 January 2026 (UTC)
:A magnetic powder stops being diamagnetic. All the north poles clamp onto a south pole, so the magnetic fields essentially all cancel. You end up with "lump of magnetic powder", not "one big magnet" or "powder you can disperse in a liquid." [[User:Nitpicking|Nitpicking]] ([[User talk:Nitpicking|talk]]) 03:32, 15 January 2026 (UTC)
:: But all the little pieces of magnets are still full magnets with a north and a south pole. Magnetic monopoles have, so far, not been observed in practice. --[[User:Coconut Galaxy|Coconut Galaxy]] ([[User talk:Coconut Galaxy|talk]]) 06:32, 15 January 2026 (UTC)
:::Want to know something weirder? I was shopping today for a toner cartridge, and found that they still manufacture (for the same printer I own) {{w|Magnetic ink character recognition#MICR_reader|MICR ink and toner}}. A little disappointed to find out, it’s just magnetizable iron oxide, but more exciting than normal toner! [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 09:09, 20 January 2026 (UTC)

So, the 2-poly(etc) seems to me to suggest that instead of being "-vinyl-ethyl-vinyl-ethyly-" polimerisation, with the links between both 'ethyl-like' backbone subcomponents being from opposite ends of the respective subunit carbon-pairing, it'd more likely now be considered as a polymethyl-group with a methyl (or methylene) group as the now unused onward '1-'site, hanging free of the new polychain. I'd have to check the bond-geometries, though to see if it would even work. (Ignoring the obvious problem with the made up name.) [[Special:Contributions/92.23.2.208|92.23.2.208]] 01:44, 15 January 2026 (UTC)
: Ph.D. chemist and AI to the rescue - the 2 makes no sense here, and poly-2-vinyl neither, as substitution pattern 2=1 here. [[Special:Contributions/2A02:2455:1960:4000:F1E8:367:E9A3:2FC7|2A02:2455:1960:4000:F1E8:367:E9A3:2FC7]] 10:47, 16 January 2026 (UTC)

I feel like the Polyethylvinylesteracetate is a joke about how polymer names are often long and gibberish-sounding. [[User:Potatocakethrow|Potatocakethrow]] ([[User talk:Potatocakethrow|talk]])

Rosin is also used soldering, which might be relevant to adhesives. Soldering is used to join pipes, among other things. [[User:Nitpicking|Nitpicking]] ([[User talk:Nitpicking|talk]]) 03:32, 15 January 2026 (UTC)
:>"Rosin is also used soldering, ...to join pipes" Plumbing (pipes) soldering more often uses "acid flux" (Zinc Chloride and similar), not rosin which is used in electronics and jewelry. --[[User:PRR|PRR]] ([[User talk:PRR|talk]]) 05:48, 15 January 2026 (UTC)

While it's less common in glues than other animal products (such as skin, bones, or cheese), blood-based glues are (or historically were) a thing. Citation: https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/engineering/blood-glue
Gorillas would not be a suitable source of this blood, though. {{unsigned ip|178.251.89.99|07:09, 15 January 2026}}

The traditional song "Rosin the Bow" may be less well known than "The Devil Went Down to Georgia", but rosin is in the title. [[Special:Contributions/87.75.47.93|87.75.47.93]] 10:46, 15 January 2026 (UTC)

The main page has been vandalized with pornography {{unsigned ip|65.35.147.191|15:13, 15 January 2026‎ (UTC)}}
:I've asked Kynde to block the vandal but I don't know how long it will take (or if its even possible) --'''''[[User:DollarStoreBa'al|DollarStoreBa'al]][[User Talk:DollarStoreBa'al|Converse]]''''' 14:46, 16 January 2026 (UTC)
:Firstly, this discussion page is for a specific comic and has nearly nothing to do with main page, especially after a couple of days. Secondly, the vandal activity is so obvious that I think everyone notices (that is the very point) and so it's probably not necessary to comment on every instance of it. Thanks. [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 08:45, 22 January 2026 (UTC)

How would you even squeeze that thing [[User:Yaokuan ITB|Yaokuan ITB]] ([[User talk:Yaokuan ITB|talk]]) 18:09, 15 January 2026 (UTC)
:Really hard. [[Special:Contributions/47.141.37.161|47.141.37.161]] 08:16, 16 January 2026 (UTC)
::Is that what she said? [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 08:45, 22 January 2026 (UTC)

sodium bicarbonate can be used on cyanoacrylate glues as an accelerant and hardener. Pergaps salt can play a similar role in some epoxy mixes? [[Special:Contributions/131.255.152.112|131.255.152.112]] 18:27, 15 January 2026 (UTC)

Has anyone else noticed the coloring error on the stuff that cracks after a few days? Some of it is leaking out the back of the syringe in a way that doesn't look intentional. [[Special:Contributions/66.42.178.247|66.42.178.247]] 13:35, 16 January 2026 (UTC)
:Woah, you're so right. That ought'a be put in a trivia section. [[User:Willintendo|Willintendo]] ([[User talk:Willintendo|talk]]) 17:35, 16 January 2026 (UTC)
:It looks like it has some exposure to the surrounding air. If Randall is clever enough he might eventually change it to cracked white to better match the background [[User:IAmADroid|IAmADroid]] ([[User talk:IAmADroid|talk]]) 04:32, 17 January 2026 (UTC)

i think the Filler refers to just extra stuff of some sort to essentially pad out the material and make it cheaper, as opposed to actual being useful [[Special:Contributions/129.64.0.36|129.64.0.36]] 06:14, 21 January 2026 (UTC)idk

Talk:3191: Superstition

2026-02-22T23:12:20Z

Zaphod Beebledoc:

Does the comic look grainy/low-res to anyone else? [[Special:Contributions/2600:1006:B347:C663:D55A:314:CB4F:43F6|2600:1006:B347:C663:D55A:314:CB4F:43F6]]
:yeah its not just you [[Special:Contributions/2A06:5906:1412:4100:1C9B:B7E4:7419:FD67|2A06:5906:1412:4100:1C9B:B7E4:7419:FD67]] 20:04, 7 January 2026 (UTC)
:not me [[Special:Contributions/2A00:23EE:1878:2422:583A:77B9:1416:97D1|2A00:23EE:1878:2422:583A:77B9:1416:97D1]]
:did you say rabbit rabbit? [[Special:Contributions/2A01:E0A:1D1:7CE0:964F:C262:A580:DE9|2A01:E0A:1D1:7CE0:964F:C262:A580:DE9]] 20:45, 7 January 2026 (UTC)
:The mobile version of the comic seams to have lower then usual resolution of the image, the normal version has larger resolution. [[User:Maofgf|Maofgf]] ([[User talk:Maofgf|talk]]) 21:10, 7 January 2026 (UTC)
:Omg it does. I thought it was just a side effect of my new laptop's tiny screen but it's only this comic (other ones appear fine). [[Special:Contributions/2A02:C7C:6D8A:6800:74EC:66A3:2E17:78BC|2A02:C7C:6D8A:6800:74EC:66A3:2E17:78BC]] 21:16, 7 January 2026 (UTC)
:I actually prefer the 2× version without antialiasing, it prevents the blurry look. But the 1× version has not enough resolution for that font to look good. There are also different antialiasing methods, for example the one used by Windows hurts my eyes, so I put a lot of effort into disabling it on my work laptop, but the one used on my Linux computer is fine (where it would ironically be trivially easy to disable it). [[User:Fabian42|Fabian42]] ([[User talk:Fabian42|talk]]) 00:02, 8 January 2026 (UTC)
:The image on xkcd looks a lot better than the one here. My guess is that it's been replaced since it was first posted. If someone who knows how could retrigger the image pull, that would likely fix the one here. [[Special:Contributions/206.193.5.5|206.193.5.5]] 00:29, 8 January 2026 (UTC)
: Seems to be a problem with the wiki. I've re-uploaded the current version from xkcd.com, <del>and it's lost its anti-alising after the upload</del> --[[User:Coconut Galaxy|Coconut Galaxy]] ([[User talk:Coconut Galaxy|talk]]) 07:06, 8 January 2026 (UTC)
:: Addendum: <del>Wiki turns the 8-bit PNG from xkcd.com into a 24-bit PNG, while paradoxically forgetting about shades of gray. --[[User:Coconut Galaxy|Coconut Galaxy]] ([[User talk:Coconut Galaxy|talk]]) 07:13, 8 January 2026 (UTC)</del> Nevermind the wiki cache is just being dumb. Should eventually look right. When? Nobody knows. --[[User:Coconut Galaxy|Coconut Galaxy]] ([[User talk:Coconut Galaxy|talk]]) 07:20, 8 January 2026 (UTC)
::: It's updated! --[[User:Coconut Galaxy|Coconut Galaxy]] ([[User talk:Coconut Galaxy|talk]]) 13:35, 8 January 2026 (UTC)

I wasn't the first to comment - is that bad luck? [[Special:Contributions/2401:D005:D402:7A00:F107:D318:6C4C:DCA3|2401:D005:D402:7A00:F107:D318:6C4C:DCA3]] 21:33, 7 January 2026 (UTC)
:I thought the lack of anti-aliasing was just a random event but now I know it's all your fault! [[Special:Contributions/64.201.132.210|64.201.132.210]] 22:28, 7 January 2026 (UTC)

The default header image is coming up blank for me. Is this the first comic for it to be so? [[Special:Contributions/206.193.5.5|206.193.5.5]] 00:32, 8 January 2026 (UTC)
:Uh that is long time ago this happened last! Almost always been some promotion of books the last many years! It is the first time in more than a year that the [[Header text]] has been changed. No changes seemes to have occured in 2025. This will be the longest stretch ever. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 07:39, 8 January 2026 (UTC)
::I found that it changed before this comic came up so I have added a [[3190:_Tensegrity#Trivia|trivia]] on this on the previous comic and have updated the header text page! Thanks for making this notice. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 08:29, 8 January 2026 (UTC)

Is the Rabbits thing common outside the USA?
I'm in the UK (London) and have never heard of it. --[[User:MarcusRowland|MarcusRowland]] ([[User talk:MarcusRowland|talk]]) 13:01, 8 January 2026 (UTC)
:I'm in the US and never heard of it. We do have rabbits around our house. Eastern cottontail bunnies. But they've never mentioned it to me. [[Special:Contributions/173.188.195.95|173.188.195.95]] 14:17, 8 January 2026 (UTC)
::Wel, of course not. For one reason or another, they'll only ever say "People people people"... ;) [[Special:Contributions/82.132.238.55|82.132.238.55]] 16:59, 8 January 2026 (UTC)
:I'm in the UK and have come across the 'white rabbits' variant a few times. I've never heard 'rabbit rabbit [rabbit]'. [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33|82.13.184.33]] 14:34, 8 January 2026 (UTC) 
::That's more rabbit than Sainsbury's
:I'm in Canada and I've never heard of any rabbit-related superstitions. [[User:PDesbeginner|PDesbeginner]] ([[User talk:PDesbeginner|talk]]) 15:30, 8 January 2026 (UTC)
::Anyone from Wonderland care to comment? [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33|82.13.184.33]] 16:38, 8 January 2026 (UTC)
::Anyone using YouTube in 2050 care to comment? [[Special:Contributions/185.36.194.156|185.36.194.156]] 09:38, 9 January 2026 (UTC)
:Chinese folklore says a rabbit lives on the moon (based on the aggregated shade of moon craters), and he makes herbal medicine all the time. Several cultural traditions (not superstitions but auspiciousness-linked), especially those revolving around the Mid-Autumn festival (which celebrates a full moon), therefore do involve rabbits. An example is the "Rabbit Master" (tù'éryé), which is a clay figurine of a humanoid rabbit. [[Special:Contributions/185.36.194.156|185.36.194.156]] 09:38, 9 January 2026 (UTC)
:It's something Cockneys tend to [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTvxqsIl9qE say quite a lot]. [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33|82.13.184.33]] 11:12, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

Is it just me, or do some of the {{template|incomplete}} tags show the 'construction image' (that is fully resolves to <code>https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e1/Ambox_warning_blue_construction.svg/60px-Ambox_warning_blue_construction.svg.png</code>) while some of them show an image-not-there 'redlink' (which is <code>https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Special:Upload&wpDestFile=Ambox_warning_blue_construction.svg</code>). As far as I can tell, ''both'' are valid answers to the <code>image=Ambox warning blue construction.svg</code> of the Incomplete template, but only if some pages can ultimately find the target and yet others cannot. But I might have missed some slightly different implementation. (For the record, ''right this moment'', [[3191: Superstition]] redlinks, [[3190: Tensegrity]] has the image, [[3189: Conic Sections]] redlinks, [[3188: Anyone Else Here]] has image, [[3187: High Altitude Cooking Instructions]] has image, so does [[3186: Truly Universal Outlet]], [[3185: Sauropods]] does not, [[3184: Funny Numbers]] does, [[3183: Pole Vault Pole]] does not, [[3182: Telescope Types]] does, [[3181: Jumping Frog Radius]] does, and [[3180: Apples]] does not have the Incomplete tag, so I'll stop there but there'll be some earlier ones still hanging around. - and ''removing'' 'old' Incomplete templates isn't really a solution. whatever your personal thoughts about that in general.) [[Special:Contributions/92.23.2.208|92.23.2.208]] 20:54, 8 January 2026 (UTC)
:Addendum: [[3191: Superstition]] ''doesn't'' redlink any more and gives the construction image as expected, but [[3189: Conic Sections]] still does. (I already tried purge-refreshing the pages, maybe it only just - partially - kicked in?) Not going to try and relist them all, however. [[Special:Contributions/92.23.2.208|92.23.2.208]] 20:58, 8 January 2026 (UTC)

Melissa Joan Hart is among the notable celebrities who have popularized "Rabbit, Rabbit!" for many years now in social media, such as: [https://www.facebook.com/MelissaJoanHart/photos/a.169462736540/10156866219791541/?type=3 on Facebook] and [https://www.instagram.com/p/CW8J_SClBy1/ on Instagram]. [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 01:13, 10 January 2026 (UTC)

While blaming yourself is never healthy, consider the following two situations. In the first one, your uncle died because you forgot to say 'rabbit rabbit'. It was your mistake, but hopefully you'll be more careful in the future. In the second one, your uncle died because of chaotic forces beyond your control. At any moment in the future, the grim reaper may come for another loving one or even yourself, and there's nothing you or anyone else can do to stop it. In this context, it's evident why some people would prefer the first explanation. [[Special:Contributions/91.186.218.129|91.186.218.129]] 06:50, 3 February 2026 (UTC)