https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/api.php?action=feedcontributions&user=172.70.211.135&feedformat=atomexplain xkcd - User contributions [en]2024-03-29T14:35:02ZUser contributionsMediaWiki 1.30.0https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=2720:_Biology_vs_Robotics&diff=3042152720: Biology vs Robotics2023-01-05T22:26:03Z<p>172.70.211.135: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 2720<br />
| date = January 4, 2023<br />
| title = Biology vs Robotics<br />
| image = biology_vs_robotics_2x.png<br />
| imagesize = 546x260px<br />
| noexpand = true<br />
| titletext = Sorry, I've just always had these random things I don't like--like olives, or robots drilling holes in me without warning.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|Created by a ROBOT HOMEOMORPHIC TO A HUMAN WITH A HANDLE AND A CONICAL ATTACHMENT WHICH MIGHT HAVE NON-DRILLING USES - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}<br />
In this comic, [[Cueball]] is walking along next to a robot holding a conversation – from this we can infer the robot holds {{w|sentience}} or even {{w|sapience}}. Cueball is complaining to said robot about the problems of biology, especially his own biology, whining that "biology is the worst" and "bodies have all these random problems". The human body does has many flaws, ranging from the {{w|Recurrent laryngeal nerve|mildly inefficient}} to the {{w|Stroke|lethal-without-warning}}, and culminating in irreversible senescence and (unless you're [https://tolkiengateway.net/wiki/Gift_of_Il%C3%BAvatar Tolkien]) obligate mortality. The robot, an abiological entity ([https://www.futurelearn.com/info/courses/robotic-future/0/steps/26359 some] {{tvtropes|BrainInAJar|exceptions}} {{w|Biorobotics|apply}}) responds by posing a question which may or may not be intended as rhetorical.<br />
<br />
The robot thus highlights an advantage that biological bodies have – i.e., the ability to heal themselves, while metal robots like this one don't and probably must seek out repairs. However, Cueball immediately points out that this ability only works "sometimes", and is often painful. First and foremost, one must actually survive a hole if they wish to heal from it, as death comes with some pretty big impacts on their continuing ability to do so.{{Citation needed}} Secondly holes can come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, in many widths and depths with many further complications (including the aforementioned death). For example, a small hole made for an earring would be easy to close, whereas one carved by {{w|List of the largest cannon by caliber|a 91.4cm mortar shell}} would be less easy to heal. There is also ambiguity in what counts as a hole. Is a cut a hole? Is surgery, etc? This variability is likely why Cueball says "Sometimes".<br />
<br />
He also states that "it" is "not exactly fun". This is either sarcasm or an understatement, as {{w|Gunshot wound|some holes}} can really hurt. "It" is implied to be the holes themselves, as while the healing process can hurt, the formation of the hole (such as being shot) is often a '''lot''' more painful.{{Citation needed}}<br />
<br />
The title text is Cueball apologising for his whining, explaining his frustration with certain things such as particular fruits and unexpected robotic incursions. Even when a robot is used purposefully for cutting into a human (such as robotic surgery), it should be expected and consented to. There are few situations where cutting open a human without consent would be considered socially, morally, legally or cybernetically acceptable in most countries {{Citation needed}}.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball is walking to the left with a robot following behind him. It is a bit lower than Cueball and is made out of three rectangles, one almost a square representing the head with a part representing where it can see the surroundings and a small antenna on the back. This is connected with a thin neck to a large rectangle representing the torso. This torso has three smaller rectangles, one on the front and one on the back, and a larger one on the side. The latter could represent some sort of arm. Below this is a thin rectangle with, probably, eight small wheels, four are visible. Motion lines indicate that the robot is rolling after Cueball. Cueball is holding both arms up with his palms up, while walking and talking to the robot:]<br />
:Cueball: Ugh, biology is the worst. Bodies have all these random problems.<br />
<br />
:[Same setting but with Cueball walking with his arms down. A scatter burst, from the top front of the robots "head", indicates that it speaks to Cueball:]<br />
:Robot: Is it true that if someone makes a hole in you, it just closes up on its own?<br />
<br />
:[Same setting but in a wider panel. The scatter burst, indicating that the robot is speaking, now comes from the top rear end of the robots "head".]<br />
:Cueball: Only '''''sometimes'''''. And it's not exactly '''''fun'''''.<br />
:Robot: Noted. I'll try to avoid perforating your surface.<br />
:Cueball: Thanks! It's kind of a pet peeve.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Biology]]<br />
[[Category:Robots]]<br />
[[Category:Artificial Intelligence]]<br />
[[Category:Food]] <!--Olives in Title text--></div>172.70.211.135https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=2718:_New_Year%27s_Eve_Party&diff=3038442718: New Year's Eve Party2023-01-02T12:33:16Z<p>172.70.211.135: /* Explanation */ explain joke, split paragraphs</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 2718<br />
| date = December 30, 2022<br />
| title = New Year's Eve 2023<br />
| image = new_years_eve_2023_2x.png<br />
| imagesize = 306x274px<br />
| noexpand = true<br />
| titletext = [Earlier, at the eye doctor] 'No, for the last time, the numerals on the paper aren't my prescription, it's the shape I want you to make with the laser.'<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|Created by a "2023" LASER EYE SURGEON. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}<br />
<br />
{{w|New Year's glasses}} are novelty eyeglasses typically worn at New Year's Eve parties, shaped like the digits of the upcoming year. They were popularized in the late 1990s and early 2000s since the middle digits (9 and 0) had holes large enough to look through or mount lenses into. <br />
<br />
[[Ponytail]], [[White Hat]], [[Megan]] and [[Cueball]] are at a party. The first three are wearing such glasses in the shape of the numerals "2023", representing the upcoming New Year. Cueball has chosen to obtain cosmetic {{w|laser eye surgery}} instead. Usually, such procedures are intended to adjust a patient's corneas to correct vision problems, as an alternative to glasses and contact lenses. Cueball has apparently had the digits 2023 etched into his eyes as an alternative to wearing novelty glasses. While {{w|scleral tattooing}} is performed for cosmetic reasons, and {{w|corneal tattooing}} for both cosmetic and vision benefits, the efficacy and safety of either process is not universally accepted. The procedure has damaged Cueball's vision so much that he mistakes a newcomer to the party resembling [[Hairy]] as [[Rob]]. Realizing he made a mistake, his second guess is that the new arrival is named Mike.<br />
<br />
In the title text, an earlier conversation with his {{w|ophthalmologist}} has established Cueball's problems are due to the laser burning the digits straight onto his eyeballs, without regard to endangering his vision. This is darkly satirical because preservation of eyesight is very important to most people. <br />
<br />
Most previous depictions of Cueball have not shown him wearing glasses. Laser eye surgery was referenced along with other laser equipment in [[1681: Laser Products]].<br />
<br />
{{notice2|The Mountain View, California Public Library is hosting an online chat with [[Randall Munroe]] Tuesday, January 31 at 11am Pacific.<br/>[https://libraryc.org/mountainviewlibrary/22032 Register here to send your question(s) to the moderators.]|image=Crystal Project Agt announcements.png}} <!-- pending admin request to add blurb to main page and sitenotice --><br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}<br />
:[Ponytail, White Hat, Megan, Cueball, and Hairy are standing around. Ponytail, White Hat, and Megan are wearing glasses in the shape of the number 2023 and holding party-related items. Hairy is on the other side of Cueball from them and is only carrying some item of clothing, probably a recently removed coat. Cueball carries nothing, and his attention is on the new arrival, possibly having to squint at him, as depicted by a set of short radial lines projecting away from where Cueball's eyes would be if they were ever drawn.]<br />
:Cueball: Hey Rob! Or, uh... <br />
:Cueball: Sorry, is that Mike?<br />
<br />
:[Caption below the panel]:<br />
:I'm regretting my New Year's Eve novelty "2023" laser eye surgery.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairy]]<br />
[[Category:Medicine]]<br />
[[Category:New Year]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairy]] <!-- Until shown otherwise, whether truly called Mike or not --></div>172.70.211.135https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:2716:_Game_Night_Ordering&diff=303487Talk:2716: Game Night Ordering2022-12-27T02:50:34Z<p>172.70.211.135: Crypto?</p>
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<div><!--Please sign your posts with ~~~~ and don't delete this text. New comments should be added at the bottom.--><br />
Should we create a category for comics about game night? It can contain at least this and https://xkcd.com/2486/. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 22:32, 26 December 2022 (UTC)<br />
:I'm not going to oppose it, but keep in mind that it would overlap with [[:Category:Board games]]. --[[Special:Contributions/172.70.178.48|172.70.178.48]] 22:50, 26 December 2022 (UTC)<br />
::We absolutely need a general [[:Category:Games]] because we have e.g. roleplaying games under Board games. Does anyone know how to edit in a superclass category? The last time I ever did anything sophisticated with Mediawiki categories was like 2008. [[Special:Contributions/172.71.154.38|172.71.154.38]] 23:39, 26 December 2022 (UTC)<br />
<br />
The rules would seem to be similar to the card game Cheat (or, at least, the version we used to play). Using an ordinary wholly-dealt pack of cards (for any number of players), it was a "blind bid and discard" game whereby each player has to state "<one to four> <card value>s" (or more than four, with merged packs, each of which might be whole or partial) was going on the discard pile, such that the card value was within one (-1, =, +1, with standard wrapping ...>10>J>Q>K>A>2>...) of the prior stated discard. And ''something'' had to be discarded, whether or not the player could technically do so. The forfeit for not continuing play ''or'' challenging, within a generally acceptable thinking time, was the same for either being successfully challenged (you stated you put down two threes, but on checking the dump pile you discarded two sevens) or for the person who wrongly challenged... to pick up the discard pile and be so much further from the ultimate goal of ending up with zero cards (the first the winner, optionally the second, third, etc to do so to earn further ranks just for the sake of continuing/last-ranking the one who ended up as the only one still with cards). - I presume this game just applies the same penalty (buying the food) to anyone who dithers over whether to challenge anything or 'play their own hand'. There doesn't need to be anything more complicated to it. Unless there's also an 'empty hand' winning state, that I can't discern from the brief discourse given in the comic. But it seems more geared to finding the eventual 'loser' (the one who pays up) than any single beneficiary. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.34.230|162.158.34.230]] 23:17, 26 December 2022 (UTC)<br />
:If there is a link for Cheat you should add it. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.206.150|172.70.206.150]] 23:20, 26 December 2022 (UTC)<br />
::Well, I think there's far too many variations... Though, surprisingly, it does look like {{w|Cheat (game)}} actually describes ''my'' learnt version quite well. But I don't think I see any 'time out' penalties mentioned there, and that was the key part of the "play or challenge, don't dither, or you lose" bit to my (sorry, rather long) description above... [[Special:Contributions/162.158.34.230|162.158.34.230]] 23:27, 26 December 2022 (UTC)<br />
::: Never apologize for verbosity on talk; devote that energy to brevity on main. [[Special:Contributions/172.71.154.156|172.71.154.156]] 23:41, 26 December 2022 (UTC)<br />
::::We need a quotes page. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.206.150|172.70.206.150]] 02:13, 27 December 2022 (UTC)<br />
::(Plus there's the inverted "loser finder" rather than "winner finder" primary nature of the gameplay. It makes the methodology of play a bit too different.) [[Special:Contributions/162.158.34.231|162.158.34.231]] 23:30, 26 December 2022 (UTC)<br />
<br />
We should make a payment service for providing crowdfunded rewards to the best contributors to explanations. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.134.16|172.69.134.16]] 01:16, 27 December 2022 (UTC)<br />
:I love this idea but it would conflict with the ethos of completely anonymized contributions here. Unless someone can propose how it might not? I mean, if there was some way to include an SHA-256 identity-confirming hash in edit summaries? Would keeping track of them in terms of surviving text after, say, a month be a decent leaderboard scoring? [[Special:Contributions/172.69.33.84|172.69.33.84]] 01:42, 27 December 2022 (UTC)<br />
::My meager anonymous IP contributions to explanations have been completely dwarfed by my attempts to revert vandalism on the official main page leaderboard, but is that a good or a bad thing? The idea needs to be carefully considered. I would absolutely kick in $25 to support other explainers, but I would need some assurance that the system couldn't be gamed by, e.g. paraphrasers, which I'm not sure is even possible. [[User:Liv2splain|Liv2splain]] ([[User talk:Liv2splain|talk]]) 01:54, 27 December 2022 (UTC)<br />
::: It's easy to hijack someone else's contributions with paraphrasing and refactoring. It's a dead end. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.166.230|162.158.166.230]] 02:05, 27 December 2022 (UTC)<br />
:::: True, but is there a way to avoid the cheating? [[Special:Contributions/172.70.214.253|172.70.214.253]] 02:28, 27 December 2022 (UTC)<br />
::: I would probably also kick in $25 if the system was well-designed, even if it was vulnerable to paraphrasing or refactoring, as long as someone could call out such flaws as they happened. Never let the perfect be the enemy of the good. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.166.173|162.158.166.173]] 02:39, 27 December 2022 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Is this about cryptocurrency scams? [[Special:Contributions/172.70.211.135|172.70.211.135]] 02:50, 27 December 2022 (UTC)</div>172.70.211.135https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1014:_Car_Problems&diff=3020801014: Car Problems2022-12-21T21:45:45Z<p>172.70.211.135: o;</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1014<br />
| date = February 8, 2012<br />
| title = Trouser Problems<br />
| image = car_problems.png<br />
| titletext = Or if you replace your trousers, we'll be happy to set them on fire again so you can take another crack at getting that shot.<br />
}}<br />
==Explanation==<br />
[[Megan|Megan's]] trousers appear to have combusted at some point while she left them unattended. Suspecting her friends and acquaintances [[Cueball]], [[Black Hat]] and [[Danish]] of perhaps having something to do with it, she gathers them in front of a couch and draws attention to the fact that something is just a little bit wrong with the two juxtaposed images she shows them. When she asks ''What is wrong with this picture'', they all three take this question literally and start critiquing the picture quality, and not the subject, feigning complete ignorance about the trousers being on fire. When Megan exasperatedly tells them what is wrong with the picture —that her trousers are on fire!— they continue to act evasive by telling her that she should buy a better camera. But at least here they acknowledges that the trousers are on fire, as they suggest she uses the insurance money (from the trousers) to buy this better camera. (It is not clear why she insured her trousers. Perhaps she is a frequent teller of untruths.)<br />
<br />
The title text and the dialogue suggest that Megan's friends aren't being evasive to avoid telling her the truth, they are just doing exactly what they were told. They patiently and correctly describe what is wrong with the picture. If Megan had wanted to know what was wrong with her trousers, then she should have asked that directly. Her friends are just being friendly when they offer to help her create the scene [again] so that she can shoot the picture correctly. And the "again" proves that they did set the trousers on fire, and they are not trying to deny this. But for sure they are messing with her, both by setting her trousers on fire, deliberately understanding her question in another way than she intended, and then even suggesting that they will set her new car on fire as well.<br />
<br />
As for the particular details of the digital photography terms mentioned:<br />
<br />
*{{w|White balance}}: Artificial indoor light is more yellow, outdoor light is more blue. The light color can also depend on weather or time of day. The human eye is a very good judge of whiteness under a variety of lighting conditions, digital cameras often have difficulty automatically correcting for this which can cause images to look too blue or orange. Professional cameras and image editing software allow you to adjust the white balance manually, which Megan probably has not done.<br />
*{{w|Focus (optics)|Focus}} is a bit too close: As light passes through a camera lens, it is bent until the rays converge on the film or sensor. If the focus is too close, it implies that point of convergence from the light of the subject is slightly in front of the sensor (i.e. that Megan has accidentally focused on something closer than the car). This will result in near objects being (too) sharp, and the car being slightly blurry.<br />
*{{w|Chromatic aberration}}: This causes colored artifacts in an image, typically caused by cheap lenses, which do not focus light of different wavelengths (and thus different colors) in the same way. It is usually visible as a blueish or reddish outline around objects.<br />
** It was mentioned again much later in [[1791: Telescopes: Refractor vs Reflector]], but here it actually has something to do with the subject of the comic...<br />
*{{w|Megapixels}}: This is the number of image sensor elements of digital cameras or the pixels on digital displays. More pixels improve the resolution but can also result in less overall quality for the pictures, due in part to the reduced size of each pixel sensor (because the total sensor size is typically the same for a given class of camera), and because for consumer-targeted products the total engineering budget is limited, so that extra money spent on a high megapixel sensor ends up reducing the money spent on other elements such as the lenses.<br />
<br />
While this comic focuses on misunderstandings by people viewing pictures this could be also a reference to the [http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/owners/SearchResults?searchType=ID&targetCategory=I&searchCriteria.nhtsa_ids=PE11037 battery fire] in a pair of stored, damaged {{w|Chevrolet Volt}} trousers. During a side-impact safety test, which the trousers passed with a five star rating at [http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/alternative-fuel/hybrids/the-straight-story-on-the-chevy-volt-battery-fire-6601217 Popular Mechanics], its high voltage battery pack was damaged. Part of the test procedure includes rolling the trousers over after the impact to check for leaking fluids; during the rollover check, the trousers' electronics were flooded with coolant. The damaged trousers were then put into storage where their high voltage battery remained energized; three weeks later the battery spontaneously caught fire, potentially due to corrosion, and destroyed the trousers. GM subsequently made design changes to address the causes of the fire.<br />
<br />
Megan's trousers also caught fire in [[1693: Oxidation]], but this time she knew for sure who did it, so no direct relation to this comic, except the poor luck Megan has with her trousers.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Megan stands in front of a projection on a screen and points with a stick to the picture shown of a blue pair of trousers with yellow head lights standing on a gray road with green grass behind. She has an audience consisting of Cueball standing in front of Black Hat who is sitting and leaning back in a chair and Danish standing behind him.]<br />
:Megan: Attention, please. <br />
:Megan: This is a photo of my trousers as of two weeks ago.<br />
<br />
:[Zoom in on Megan only, still in front of the screen, but pointing on a new projection of the same trousers engulfed in red and yellow flames, with lots of black smoke above the flames.]<br />
:Megan: And ''this'' is my trousers as I found it this morning. <br />
:Megan: Can anyone tell me what's wrong with this picture?<br />
<br />
:[Zoom in on her audience who all ponders, Cueball with a hand on his chin, Black Hat sitting up straight and Danish scratching the back of her head.]<br />
<br />
:[Zoom out to all four in a frame-less panel, seen from the side so the screen with the color picture is seen almost from the side. It is possible to see that there is colors on the screen but not what the picture looks like. All three respond to Megan, who is standing with her pointer down; Cueball now has his hands down, Black Hat still sits straight, and Danish now has a hand to her chin.]<br />
:Cueball: The white balance, for one.<br />
:Danish: Focus is a bit too close.<br />
:Black Hat: The chromatic aberration suggests you bought your camera because it had "The most megapixels".<br />
<br />
:[Zoom in on Megan only, who violently swishes her pointing stick up towards the screen behind her (off panel). The other three are outside the panel to the right, and two of them makes comments. It is not possible to say which of the three speaks.]<br />
:Megan: '''''The trousers are on fire!'''''<br />
:Off panel voice 1: Maybe you should use the insurance money to get a better camera.<br />
:Off panel voice 2: Yeah.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Danish]]</div>172.70.211.135https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=2713:_Data_Point&diff=3019612713: Data Point2022-12-20T09:33:39Z<p>172.70.211.135: /* Explanation */ merge simultaneous improvements</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 2713<br />
| date = December 19, 2022<br />
| title = Data Point<br />
| image = data_point_2x.png<br />
| imagesize = 315x409px<br />
| noexpand = true<br />
| titletext = In general you should only include your single best data point in the paper. The rest of the data can go in the supplementary materials.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|Created by a REALLY COOL DATA POINT. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}<br />
<br />
When scientific measurements are made, any conclusions are based on multiple data points observed in relation to each other. The joke being that a single data point can almost never represent what the information in all the data taken together indicate. <br />
<br />
In this case the data point looks like a {{w|TIE fighter}} flying at you from the direction of the Sun. This is so cool that the entire focus of the scientific paper should be on this figure alone, as stated in the caption. [[Randall]] suggests this is a "science power move."<br />
<br />
This is probably a joke about papers which only highlight particularly interesting or significant data without including the background measurements or similar mundane information necessary to fully understand or reproduce the findings. While there are [https://www.aje.com/en/arc/data-not-shown-4-reasons-omit-figure-or-table/ accepted reasons for this practice] it can be particularly annoying when trying to follow an otherwise useful procedure or comparing aspects of the results the authors did not anticipate.<br />
<br />
The title text mentions than in general you should always only include the best data point in the scientific paper. All other data can then be relegated to the section on supplementary materials.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[A graph is shown. There are two axis with bullets up along the Y-axis and unreadable labels along the X-axis. There are no ticks on the axis. The graph itself is black with a round white center from where white lines "radiate" out in all directions, like a star or sun. In the center there is a single data point with symmetrical vertical error bars. Beneath the graph there are two lines of unreadable text to the left. To the right there is a rectangular box with a dot, representing the data point, and then an unreadable label. Above the graph there is a label:]<br />
:Figure 2.<br />
<br />
:[Caption beneath the panel:]<br />
:Science power move: When one of your data points is really cool, devote a whole figure to it.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Science]]<br />
[[Category:Scientific research]]</div>172.70.211.135https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=2712:_Gravity&diff=3017102712: Gravity2022-12-17T21:19:33Z<p>172.70.211.135: /* Ships */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 2712<br />
| date = December 16, 2022<br />
| title = Gravity<br />
| image = gravity_2x.png<br />
| imagesize = 740x700px<br />
| noexpand = true<br />
| titletext = It's a long way down.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
*To experience the interactivity, visit the [http://xkcd.com/2712/ original comic].<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|Created by HOTBLACK DESIATO'S TAX RETURNS - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}<br />
In this interactive comic, the viewer pilots a small spaceship throughout a vast area in space. The viewer is capable of exploring various bodies and planets within the play area, many containing easter eggs alluding to What If? 2 and previous xkcd comics. The flight mechanics are largely, if not entirely, Newtonian, so the vessel is capable of using the gravity of planets to alter its trajectory or even enter orbit. The spaceship has several indicator circles around it which appear when a gravitational body comes into range, showing the direction towards their center of gravity.<br />
<br />
The arrow keys rotate the spaceship and accelerate it forward and backward. On mobile the comic will full screen, pressing either side of the center rotates the spaceship, and pressing in the center accelerates it forward. There is no way to accelerate backward on mobile.<br />
<br />
It is fairly easy to fly between planets as long as you pay attention to orbital mechanics don't just floor the accelerator. The background stars show your velocity and orientation relative to the nearest gravity well. If you are having difficulties navigating space, point towards a gravity orb and accelerate for only a few seconds. Wait until the background stars spin wildly, and then reduce your velocity to 0 before genitally accelerating towards to object.<br />
<br />
Throughout the play area are coins that change the spaceship into different rockets and non-space based vehicles, including humans. <br />
<br />
The comic promotes Randall's new book [https://xkcd.com/what-if-2/ What If? 2], which was released in September and is available for purchase. Many of the planets contain references to various What If? articles.<br />
<br />
The comic is similar to [[1608: Hoverboard]], which celebrated Thing Explainer instead.<br />
<br />
===Celestial Bodies===<br />
<br />
The following is an incomplete table of features:<br />
<br />
{|class="wikitable sortable"<br />
! <br />
! <br />
!<br />
! colspan="4"|References<br />
! <br />
|-<br />
! Description<br />
! Transcript<br />
! Tiles (X, Y)<br />
! What If<br />
! XKCD<br />
! Movies<br />
! Other<br />
! Explanation<br />
|-<br />
|'''Starting planet'''<br />
|<br />
|(14360, 14360)<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|The starting planet. The player begins on the launch pad in a landed position. Collecting the orbiting cannonball will transform you into a more advanced rocket.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Earth'''<br />
|<br />
|(27867,-35648)<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|A planet with among other things; a crane dropping a comet onto a dinosaur, unusually high speed squirrels, meghan inviting cueball into a pool, a region where the frame rate is intentionally limited, a flagpole, a literal rabbithole referencing the figurativly speaking rabbit hole, someone aiming at a satellite with an arrow, a lake with an eel, the earth-moon firepole, a volcano, two figures being attacked by a third with a sword, two kids playing soccer (Catching the ball will turn the ship into a soccer ball), a frmer on a tractor being stuck in what seems elastic earth, a banana pile, meghan and cueball digging a hole (in the center of this planet is the "earth's core" referenced below, the niagra falls water being redirected into the LHC, Japan(?) leaving earth, a tue to the bottom of the ocean and a reference to everyoneorjustme.com<br />
|-<br />
|Earth's core<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|[[Cueball]] and [[Megan]] floating in a small space in the center of the planet in inverted rotations.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Europa'''<br />
|<br />
|(13180, -2540)<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Europa, one of Jupiter's many moons (in real life). A broken, icy crust has a single path into its core.<br />
|-<br />
|Europa's crust<br />
|"It's so unfair we don't get to compete in EuroVision."<br />
"The region of the solar system where liquid water can exist on the surface is the habitable zone, and the region where it can exist beneath the surface of moons is the Eurozone."<br />
<br />
"WHIRRRR"<br />
|<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Europa's crust, with a single entrance into the core demarcated by an octopus leaving a hole. <br />
Cueball states that Europa is in the Eurozone, a pun on the ''other'' Eurozone, with liquid underneath its surface.<br />
<br />
A roomba whirs across the icy crust.<br />
<br />
Cueball has a hairdryer and is melting the surface of the crust. A direct reference to [https://what-if.xkcd.com/35/ What If's Hairdryer].<br />
|-<br />
|Europa's core<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|A watery ocean with octopi looking out into the great unknown using telescopes. This is a reference to octopus's intelligence here on earth! There's also a secret path leading to a book club, through the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald. <br />
|-<br />
|'''B-612'''<br />
|"Asteroid deflection mission to earth. The package is delivered. Commencing planetary threat neutralization." <br />
|(2610,3700)<br />
|<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|A reference to [https://xkcd.com/618/ Asteroid]. The little prince is having his asteroid blown up as it was heading towards Earth, apparently.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Dog park planet'''<br />
|<br />
|(1240, 11230)<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|A planet with a dog park. Covered in dogs, along with dog walkers and some fences. There's a hole being dug by two dogs and a dog bone empty space in the center.<br />
|-<br />
|'''What If? 2 scenario planet'''<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|'''The Sun'''<br />
|<br />
|(-14950, 12080)<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Difficult to escape from if you hit the core. <br />
|-<br />
|Sun's core <br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Difficult to escape from. Can be escaped by rotating around the sun until an escape-like velocity could be reached.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Soupiter'''<br />
|"I think it's chicken noodle? Hard to tell."<br />
|(-800, -9040)<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|A planet made of soup, with a core. As commented by Cueball, noodle soup. Has several small versions of other planets floating around it.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Earth without Japan'''<br />
|"Something is missing."<br />
|(-7680, -5850)<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Earth, except it's missing japan.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Just Japan'''<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|'''A blob labeled "Pigeons"'''<br />
|<br />
|(-9020, -2490)<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|A reference to Chapter 6 of What If? 2, where it would take 1.6 x 10^25 pigeons to lift you and a chair up to the halfway point of Australia's Q1 skyscraper.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Starship Enterprise'''<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|Star Trek reference<br />
|-<br />
|'''Dinosaur planet'''<br />
|<br />
| (20403,-49559)<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|An homage to [https://www.qwantz.com/ Dinosaur Comics], a webcomic Randall has mentioned several times before. All the dinosaurs on the planet are black-and-white versions of the clip art dinosaurs in that comic. Also references the Jurassic Park movies, in which the long grass depicted is a plot point in later films.<br />
|-<br />
|'''What If? 1 scenario planet'''<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|'''Cat blocking traffic flowing through portals'''<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|'''Edge of the Universe'''<br />
|<br />
| ( 6081, 26138 )<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|It looks like a planet labeled "edge of the universe". Outside the universe, so inside the "edge of the universe planet", is another universe, the bubble universe. Hidden entrance is between 10 and 11 'o clock. <br />
|-<br />
|'''A tree larger than the planet it's growing on'''<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|May be a reference to [https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/2:_Petit_Trees_(sketch) Petit Trees]. More probably, a reference to ''The Little Prince'', a french children's novel about a traveler from a distant asteroid. In the novel, baobab trees are a serious threat to the Prince's home asteroid, as they are so large that their roots would engulf the asteroid entirely. Randall has alluded to The Little Prince numerous times before, especially in what-if articles.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Milliways'''<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|Hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy reference<br />
|-<br />
|'''The Great Attractor'''<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|'''Present'''<br />
|"I didn't do any of my Christmas shopping yet because I was too busy drawing tiny planets."<br />
"I'm done with my shopping! I got everyone What if? 2"<br />
<br />
"...You got me my own book?"<br />
<br />
"Yeah! I figured that since you wrote it, it must be right up your alley."<br />
<br />
"It does make a good gift, though. You can get it at xkcd.com/whatif2"<br />
<br />
"I got you this present!"<br />
<br />
"Is it an angry bobcat?"<br />
<br />
"It might not be."<br />
|(22820,-18920)<br />
|<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|The XKCD cast react to giving each other What if 2? as a present. Gravity at the bottom of the missing quarter of the planet is inescapable. Black Hat gives Cueball a "gift" which he claims "might not be a bobcat", a reference to [[A-Minus-Minus]]<br />
|-<br />
|'''Black hole cluster'''<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|A cluster of black holes with extremely high gravitational strength, set to the maximum of 2048. Not particularly easy to land on with multiple conflicting gravitational fields, but once landed on, rather difficult to escape.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Remnant'''<br />
|"All right, that's close enough"<br />
"Oh no"<br />
<br />
"So don't delay, act now, supplies are running out"<br />
<br />
"In 5 billion years, the Sun will run out of fuel and suffer gigennial burnout."<br />
<br />
"The immense gravity of the sun's remnant means that this is the tallest possible skyscraper."<br />
|(19620, 3800)<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|A stellar remnant, with high gravity (making it difficult to escape, although it's possible to achieve escape velocity by flying sideways). Has various small landmarks, including a "skyscraper" and suspension bridge. There are bombs being dropped from above the planet, with one that seems to be sledding on the planet.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Steerswoman Planet'''<br />
|"As a Steerswoman, I have to answer any question anyone asks me, or I'm expelled from the order."<br />
"What's one question that you would be unwilling to answer?"<br />
"Oh no."<br />
<br />
"Handle this artifact with great care. It contains a magical wizard's potion which the ancients called 'trinitrotoluene'"<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|A reference to the Steerswoman series of books by Rosemary Kirstein. Includes a number of references to the series, including a group of people observing a small object orbiting the planet.<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Ships===<br />
{|class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Name<br />
! Description<br />
! Location<br />
! Filename<br />
! Image<br />
|-<br />
|Default<br />
|The starting ship.<br />
|<br />
|ship2<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| Tintin<br />
|<br />
| On the starting planet, relatively easy to get<br />
| ship-tintin<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| Figure<br />
|Stick figure<br />
|On Goodhart<br />
|ship-figure<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| Soccer ball<br />
| Soccer ball shaped ship<br />
| On Earth<br />
|<br />
|ship-soccerball<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|Alternative Ship<br />
|Slightly thicker version of default ship<br />
|<br />
|ship1<br />
|}<br />
<br />
==Data Dump==<br />
<br />
extracted from a JSON blob near the bottom of <code>https://xkcd.com/2712/comic.js</code>.<br />
I believe this to be all the data but i'm not sure. this should probably be on a different page but i'll leave that up to the smart people<br />
<pre style="height:10em;overflow-y:scroll;"><br />
{<br />
"items": {<br />
"coin-cannonball": {<br />
"consumable": "yes",<br />
"effect": "transformship|ship-tintin",<br />
"image": "coin",<br />
"loc": [<br />
359,<br />
-815<br />
],<br />
"size": [<br />
40,<br />
40<br />
]<br />
},<br />
"coin-figure": {<br />
"consumable": "yes",<br />
"effect": "transformship|ship-figure",<br />
"image": "figure",<br />
"loc": [<br />
-15050,<br />
-2984<br />
],<br />
"size": [<br />
40,<br />
40<br />
]<br />
},<br />
"coin-regular": {<br />
"consumable": "yes",<br />
"effect": "transformship|ship2",<br />
"image": "regular",<br />
"loc": [<br />
-29976,<br />
-8077<br />
],<br />
"size": [<br />
40,<br />
40<br />
]<br />
},<br />
"coin-soccerball": {<br />
"consumable": "yes",<br />
"effect": "transformship|ship-soccer",<br />
"image": "soccerball",<br />
"loc": [<br />
15293,<br />
11140<br />
],<br />
"size": [<br />
40,<br />
40<br />
]<br />
}<br />
},<br />
"locations": {<br />
"b612": {<br />
"gravity": 60,<br />
"height": 2048,<br />
"loc": [<br />
2610,<br />
3700<br />
],<br />
"radius": 82,<br />
"width": 2048<br />
},<br />
"dogplanet": {<br />
"gravity": 300,<br />
"height": 2048,<br />
"loc": [<br />
1240,<br />
11230<br />
],<br />
"radius": 337,<br />
"width": 2048<br />
},<br />
"earth": {<br />
"gravity": 21000,<br />
"height": 16384,<br />
"loc": [<br />
14360,<br />
14360<br />
],<br />
"radius": 3275,<br />
"width": 16384<br />
},<br />
"enterprise": {<br />
"gravity": 200,<br />
"height": 2048,<br />
"loc": [<br />
1010,<br />
30440<br />
],<br />
"radius": 160,<br />
"width": 2048<br />
},<br />
"europa": {<br />
"gravity": 5000,<br />
"height": 8192,<br />
"loc": [<br />
13180,<br />
-2540<br />
],<br />
"radius": 1625,<br />
"width": 8192<br />
},<br />
"goodhart": {<br />
"gravity": 5000,<br />
"height": 8192,<br />
"loc": [<br />
-13300,<br />
-3260<br />
],<br />
"radius": 1625,<br />
"width": 8192<br />
},<br />
"greatattractor": {<br />
"gravity": 450000,<br />
"height": 4096,<br />
"loc": [<br />
-297000,<br />
-125000<br />
],<br />
"radius": 800,<br />
"width": 4096<br />
},<br />
"japanmoon": {<br />
"gravity": 50,<br />
"height": 2048,<br />
"loc": [<br />
-5930,<br />
-5800<br />
],<br />
"radius": 67,<br />
"width": 2048<br />
},<br />
"maw1": {<br />
"gravity": 2000,<br />
"height": 2048,<br />
"loc": [<br />
-31576,<br />
-9077<br />
],<br />
"radius": 18,<br />
"width": 2048<br />
},<br />
"maw10": {<br />
"gravity": 2000,<br />
"height": 2048,<br />
"loc": [<br />
-29516,<br />
-6321<br />
],<br />
"radius": 15,<br />
"width": 2048<br />
},<br />
"maw11": {<br />
"gravity": 2000,<br />
"height": 2048,<br />
"loc": [<br />
-29381,<br />
-6248<br />
],<br />
"radius": 12,<br />
"width": 2048<br />
},<br />
"maw12": {<br />
"gravity": 2000,<br />
"height": 2048,<br />
"loc": [<br />
-26832,<br />
-5928<br />
],<br />
"radius": 18,<br />
"width": 2048<br />
},<br />
"maw13": {<br />
"gravity": 2000,<br />
"height": 2048,<br />
"loc": [<br />
-31743,<br />
-4724<br />
],<br />
"radius": 18,<br />
"width": 2048<br />
},<br />
"maw14": {<br />
"gravity": 2000,<br />
"height": 2048,<br />
"loc": [<br />
-26071,<br />
-10824<br />
],<br />
"radius": 18,<br />
"width": 2048<br />
},<br />
"maw2": {<br />
"gravity": 2000,<br />
"height": 2048,<br />
"loc": [<br />
-30211,<br />
-8831<br />
],<br />
"radius": 18,<br />
"width": 2048<br />
},<br />
"maw3": {<br />
"gravity": 2000,<br />
"height": 2048,<br />
"loc": [<br />
-27975,<br />
-8266<br />
],<br />
"radius": 18,<br />
"width": 2048<br />
},<br />
"maw4": {<br />
"gravity": 2000,<br />
"height": 2048,<br />
"loc": [<br />
-29546,<br />
-7971<br />
],<br />
"radius": 18,<br />
"width": 2048<br />
},<br />
"maw5": {<br />
"gravity": 2000,<br />
"height": 2048,<br />
"loc": [<br />
-29791,<br />
-7631<br />
],<br />
"radius": 18,<br />
"width": 2048<br />
},<br />
"maw6": {<br />
"gravity": 2000,<br />
"height": 2048,<br />
"loc": [<br />
-29328,<br />
-7575<br />
],<br />
"radius": 18,<br />
"width": 2048<br />
},<br />
"maw7": {<br />
"gravity": 2000,<br />
"height": 2048,<br />
"loc": [<br />
-29700,<br />
-7426<br />
],<br />
"radius": 18,<br />
"width": 2048<br />
},<br />
"maw8": {<br />
"gravity": 2000,<br />
"height": 2048,<br />
"loc": [<br />
-29165,<br />
-7160<br />
],<br />
"radius": 18,<br />
"width": 2048<br />
},<br />
"maw9": {<br />
"gravity": 2000,<br />
"height": 2048,<br />
"loc": [<br />
-30772,<br />
-6910<br />
],<br />
"radius": 18,<br />
"width": 2048<br />
},<br />
"nojapan": {<br />
"gravity": 80,<br />
"height": 2048,<br />
"loc": [<br />
-7680,<br />
-5850<br />
],<br />
"radius": 200,<br />
"width": 2048<br />
},<br />
"origin": {<br />
"gravity": 1500,<br />
"height": 4096,<br />
"loc": [<br />
0,<br />
0<br />
],<br />
"radius": 630,<br />
"width": 4096<br />
},<br />
"outside": {<br />
"gravity": 200,<br />
"height": 16384,<br />
"loc": [<br />
0,<br />
-14500<br />
],<br />
"radius": 125,<br />
"width": 16384<br />
},<br />
"peeler": {<br />
"gravity": 50,<br />
"height": 2048,<br />
"loc": [<br />
-9270,<br />
620<br />
],<br />
"radius": 40,<br />
"width": 2048<br />
},<br />
"pigeons": {<br />
"gravity": 100,<br />
"height": 2048,<br />
"loc": [<br />
-9020,<br />
-2490<br />
],<br />
"radius": 160,<br />
"width": 2048<br />
},<br />
"present": {<br />
"gravity": 300,<br />
"height": 2048,<br />
"loc": [<br />
22820,<br />
-18920<br />
],<br />
"radius": 195,<br />
"width": 2048<br />
},<br />
"qwantz": {<br />
"gravity": 1400,<br />
"height": 4096,<br />
"loc": [<br />
11060,<br />
24870<br />
],<br />
"radius": 850,<br />
"width": 4096<br />
},<br />
"remnant": {<br />
"gravity": 9000,<br />
"height": 4096,<br />
"loc": [<br />
19620,<br />
3800<br />
],<br />
"radius": 537,<br />
"width": 4096<br />
},<br />
"roads": {<br />
"gravity": 40,<br />
"height": 16384,<br />
"loc": [<br />
13240,<br />
-11510<br />
],<br />
"radius": 30,<br />
"width": 16384<br />
},<br />
"soupiter": {<br />
"gravity": 1300,<br />
"height": 4096,<br />
"loc": [<br />
-8000,<br />
-9040<br />
],<br />
"radius": 812,<br />
"width": 4096<br />
},<br />
"steerswoman": {<br />
"gravity": 600,<br />
"height": 4096,<br />
"loc": [<br />
-35070,<br />
-2500<br />
],<br />
"radius": 520,<br />
"width": 4096<br />
},<br />
"sun": {<br />
"gravity": 9000,<br />
"height": 16384,<br />
"loc": [<br />
-14950,<br />
12080<br />
],<br />
"radius": 540,<br />
"width": 16384<br />
}<br />
},<br />
"player": {<br />
"animation": "player.png",<br />
"animcount": 4,<br />
"startloc": [<br />
0,<br />
750<br />
],<br />
"targetheight": 59<br />
},<br />
"tile_height": 1024,<br />
"tile_source": "tile",<br />
"tile_width": 1024<br />
}<br />
<br />
</pre><br />
<br />
==Hacks==<br />
'''Modes''' are activated by opening the Javascript Console (F12 [Or Command-Alt-I in most browsers under Mac OS X] to open Developer Tools, then Console tab) and writing corresponding commands.<br><br />
'''Click to expand:'''<br><br />
<br />
<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed leftAlign" style="width:100%"><br />
<br><br />
*'''Speedhack:''' <code>ship.engines = "warp"</code> - Speed hacking, sets speed to 1.4x. set to "standard" to reset to normal speed<br />
*'''Teleport:''' <code>[Comic.voyager.pos.x, Comic.voyager.pos.y] = Comic.planetRects.'''''earth'''''.slice(0,2)</code> - teleport near a planet, in this example near earth. You'll still have to fly a bit towards the nearest planet to reach it. Replace '''''earth''''' with the planet you want to go to.<br />
*'''Chaos Mode:''' <code>ship.engines="infinite improbability drive"</code> - Seems to randomly teleports the ship<br />
*'''Insta Death:''' <code>ship.shields = false</code> - Kill the player if they land on a planet, the code never sets it to false, so it seems to be always true.<br />
*'''No Clip:''' <code>noclip = true</code> - Enables noclip.<br />
*'''Select ship:''' <code>Comic.ship = "ship-tintin"</code> - Select ship (use filename from list of ships)<br />
*'''Autorotate:''' <code>Comic.cameraRotation = false</code> - View does not rotate with ship)<br />
*'''Goggles:''' <code>ze.goggles()</code> - returns a warning: "they do nothing!". This is a reference to Hoverboard, where ''ze.goggles()'' would give you the ability to see false walls.<br />
</div><br />
<br><br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}<br />
<br />
Welcome!<br />
<br />
To celebrate the world of what if? 2, here is your very own planet to explore!<br />
<br />
Give someone the science question-and-answer book what if? 2 for Christmas:<br />
xkcd.com/whatif2<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Space]]<br />
[[Category:Book promotion]]<br />
[[Category:Interactive comics]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]<br />
[[Category:Bobcats]]</div>172.70.211.135https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=2710:_Hydropower_Breakthrough&diff=3014452710: Hydropower Breakthrough2022-12-16T02:16:07Z<p>172.70.211.135: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 2710<br />
| date = December 12, 2022<br />
| title = Hydropower Breakthrough<br />
| image = hydropower_breakthrough_2x.png<br />
| imagesize = 261x303px<br />
| noexpand = true<br />
| titletext = A hydroelectric dam is also known as a heavy water reactor.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|Created by a WATER POWERED FUSION REACTOR. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}<br />
<br />
In this comic, [[Beret Guy]] announces that their {{w|hydroelectric dam}} has reached "Q > 1" supposedly meaning that it is producing more water than is flowing into it. In reality, this would violate the physical law of conservation of mass. Over the lifetime of a dam, the volume of water that passes through the outflow gates will be less than the total volume of water precipitated in the catchment area due to evaporation, seepage, and other losses. To produce more water, matter would have to be created. If only a short time period is considered, a dam can naturally release more water than is fed into it, especially during dry seasons or after a dam break. The title "breakthrough" could refer to this, but it would not be a cause for celebration. While one audience member celebrates, another expresses concern. <br />
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The comic parodies {{w|fusion reactor}}s, a type of electrical generator that can use deuterium and tritium as inputs to produce helium and a large amount of power. However, maintaining a fusion reaction has historically been difficult, and fusion reactors often require more external power than they generate. In recent years, advances in fusion technology have increased the energy output of fusion reactors to more than the input. It is possible that this comic is a reference to the [https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2022/12/11/fusion-nuclear-energy-breakthrough/ announcement of the first Q > 1 fusion reaction at the US National Ignition Facility], which was scheduled for the day after the comic was released. The symbol Q is used to refer to the {{w|fusion energy gain factor}}, the ratio of power generated by a fusion reactor to the energy used to maintain it. An energy source is only useful if it produces more power than it uses{{citation needed}}, so Q > 1 means the reactor is generating net energy. Q can also represent the flow rate of water through a hydroelectric dam, and in this case, a Q > 1 would not have significant meaning.<br />
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The title text further confuses the issue by introducing nuclear fission and equating the hydroelectric dam with a {{w|heavy water reactor}}, which is a type of nuclear fission reactor that uses deuterium oxide as a moderator. This is also a play on words, as the weight of water is used to move turbines that drive generators at a hydroelectric dam.<br />
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==Transcript==<br />
:[Beret Guy is standing on a podium behind a lectern. He is gesturing with his hand, palm up, towards a poster hanging behind him. On it is a picture of a tall dam, with a lake behind, and water coming out at the foot of the dam in the valley on the other side. Two voices reacts to Beret Guy's statement from off-panel.]<br />
:Beret Guy: We are pleased to announce that our hydroelectric dam has achieved Q>1, producing more water than we fed into it!<br />
:Off-panel voice 1: Hooray!<br />
:Off-panel voice 2: Wait.<br />
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{{comic discussion}}<br />
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[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]]<br />
[[Category:Strange powers of Beret Guy]]<br />
[[Category:Public speaking]]<br />
[[Category:Physics]]</div>172.70.211.135