https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/api.php?action=feedcontributions&user=173.245.54.30&feedformat=atomexplain xkcd - User contributions [en]2024-03-19T06:18:07ZUser contributionsMediaWiki 1.30.0https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:345:_1337:_Part_5&diff=124362Talk:345: 1337: Part 52016-07-29T10:58:25Z<p>173.245.54.30: </p>
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<div>Does anyone know if such an IP address really exists, where you can point a streaming audio player at the right time to hear her "rock out"? [[User:Saibot84|Saibot84]] ([[User talk:Saibot84|talk]]) 05:33, 9 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
127.0.0.1 [[User:HitiadlfElaineR|HitiadlfElaineR]] ([[User talk:HitiadlfElaineR|talk]]) 08:36, 19 June 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
While this was a joke, I can find a more inspirational view. In this case, while Elaine Roberts is fictional, you (that is, the programmer who reads xkcd) can be excellent hackers. You have the potential to achieve exploits (not just cracking ones). You just have to work towards your goal. In other words, the reason why the IP address points to your home is because you have the 'spirit' of Elaine Roberts. [[User:Greyson|Greyson]] ([[User talk:Greyson|talk]]) 21:57, 20 January 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
Shouldn't we mention Dread Pirate Roberts a.k.a. Ross William Ulbricht, the Silkroad founder? {{unsigned ip|141.101.64.71}}<br />
<br />
Also, the joke is that the sentence from the Princess Bride _isn't_ exactly mimicked. Cary Elwes says "you'd make a wonderful Dread Pirate Roberts," where DPR is the full title. Elaine is told that she make a "great dread Pirate, Roberts," - Roberts being Elaine's surname. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.52.86|173.245.52.86]] 23:28, 6 November 2014 (UTC)<br />
* Rather pedantic bit of critique. The comma is just there so the joke makes sense as a line.- Pennpenn [[Special:Contributions/108.162.249.205|108.162.249.205]] 02:24, 20 January 2015 (UTC)<br />
It should also be mentioned that the "Dread Pirate Roberts" was the nickname of the guy who ran Silk Road.--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.150|108.162.219.150]] 18:07, 29 January 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
according to Wikipedia, he Silk Road wasn't started until years after this comic was published. Interestingly enough, the titular comic 1337 was, which coincidentally also happens to be titled "Hack."[[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.76|108.162.216.76]] 17:39, 12 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Someone needs to put a stop to all these incomplete tags that are really just demands for more and more information. I tried clearing out all the "Tell me more" incomplete tags, but someone reverted them, and then added MORE.<br />
<br />
[[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.30|173.245.54.30]] 23:05, 28 July 2016 (UTC)JWB<br />
:I reverted your changes. You removed every incomplete tag, including ones that were merited, within a time span that made it difficult to believe you were properly vetting the pages to make sure they were complete. The most telling part was your removal of the incomplete tag on [[1608]] without also removing the red text the tag was referring to, indicating that you weren't reading the messages on the tags either before judging that they were satisfied and removing them. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 00:54, 29 July 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I reviewed the reasons given for the incomplete tags, and removed all the ones that boiled down to "more". Most of these were just things like "Needs more details", "It would be cool if" and even "Explain this complicated scientific concept to me". Hoverboard is an example of the last category I cleared, which was essentially "Please recreate this super-detailed thing Randall did with documentation of every single detail." That's not a realistic standard for a complete explanation, and therefore the incomplete project would *never* be finished. <br />
<br />
657, for example, is a request that is both pointless and unfillable - you can't create a transcript for a chart. 1556 is "I don't like this explanation. 980 is "Reconstruct Randall's data".<br />
<br />
These requests are entirely pointless and irrational for an explanation of the comic. The goal here is to EXPLAIN the comic, not simply create a second version.<br />
[[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.30|173.245.54.30]] 10:58, 29 July 2016 (UTC)JWB</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:345:_1337:_Part_5&diff=124325Talk:345: 1337: Part 52016-07-28T23:10:32Z<p>173.245.54.30: </p>
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<div>Someone needs to put a stop to all these incomplete tags that are really just demands for more and more information. I tried clearing out all the "Tell me more" incomplete tags, but someone reverted them, and then added MORE.<br />
<br />
[[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.30|173.245.54.30]] 23:05, 28 July 2016 (UTC)JWB<br />
<br />
Does anyone know if such an IP address really exists, where you can point a streaming audio player at the right time to hear her "rock out"? [[User:Saibot84|Saibot84]] ([[User talk:Saibot84|talk]]) 05:33, 9 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
127.0.0.1 [[User:HitiadlfElaineR|HitiadlfElaineR]] ([[User talk:HitiadlfElaineR|talk]]) 08:36, 19 June 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
While this was a joke, I can find a more inspirational view. In this case, while Elaine Roberts is fictional, you (that is, the programmer who reads xkcd) can be excellent hackers. You have the potential to achieve exploits (not just cracking ones). You just have to work towards your goal. In other words, the reason why the IP address points to your home is because you have the 'spirit' of Elaine Roberts. [[User:Greyson|Greyson]] ([[User talk:Greyson|talk]]) 21:57, 20 January 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
Shouldn't we mention Dread Pirate Roberts a.k.a. Ross William Ulbricht, the Silkroad founder? {{unsigned ip|141.101.64.71}}<br />
<br />
Also, the joke is that the sentence from the Princess Bride _isn't_ exactly mimicked. Cary Elwes says "you'd make a wonderful Dread Pirate Roberts," where DPR is the full title. Elaine is told that she make a "great dread Pirate, Roberts," - Roberts being Elaine's surname. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.52.86|173.245.52.86]] 23:28, 6 November 2014 (UTC)<br />
* Rather pedantic bit of critique. The comma is just there so the joke makes sense as a line.- Pennpenn [[Special:Contributions/108.162.249.205|108.162.249.205]] 02:24, 20 January 2015 (UTC)<br />
It should also be mentioned that the "Dread Pirate Roberts" was the nickname of the guy who ran Silk Road.--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.150|108.162.219.150]] 18:07, 29 January 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
according to Wikipedia, he Silk Road wasn't started until years after this comic was published. Interestingly enough, the titular comic 1337 was, which coincidentally also happens to be titled "Hack."[[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.76|108.162.216.76]] 17:39, 12 March 2015 (UTC)</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:345:_1337:_Part_5&diff=124324Talk:345: 1337: Part 52016-07-28T23:05:49Z<p>173.245.54.30: </p>
<hr />
<div>Someone needs to put I stop to all these incomplete tags that are really just demands for more and more information. I tried clearing out all the "Tell me more" incomplete tags, but someone reverted them, and then added MORE.<br />
<br />
[[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.30|173.245.54.30]] 23:05, 28 July 2016 (UTC)JWB<br />
<br />
Does anyone know if such an IP address really exists, where you can point a streaming audio player at the right time to hear her "rock out"? [[User:Saibot84|Saibot84]] ([[User talk:Saibot84|talk]]) 05:33, 9 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
127.0.0.1 [[User:HitiadlfElaineR|HitiadlfElaineR]] ([[User talk:HitiadlfElaineR|talk]]) 08:36, 19 June 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
While this was a joke, I can find a more inspirational view. In this case, while Elaine Roberts is fictional, you (that is, the programmer who reads xkcd) can be excellent hackers. You have the potential to achieve exploits (not just cracking ones). You just have to work towards your goal. In other words, the reason why the IP address points to your home is because you have the 'spirit' of Elaine Roberts. [[User:Greyson|Greyson]] ([[User talk:Greyson|talk]]) 21:57, 20 January 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
Shouldn't we mention Dread Pirate Roberts a.k.a. Ross William Ulbricht, the Silkroad founder? {{unsigned ip|141.101.64.71}}<br />
<br />
Also, the joke is that the sentence from the Princess Bride _isn't_ exactly mimicked. Cary Elwes says "you'd make a wonderful Dread Pirate Roberts," where DPR is the full title. Elaine is told that she make a "great dread Pirate, Roberts," - Roberts being Elaine's surname. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.52.86|173.245.52.86]] 23:28, 6 November 2014 (UTC)<br />
* Rather pedantic bit of critique. The comma is just there so the joke makes sense as a line.- Pennpenn [[Special:Contributions/108.162.249.205|108.162.249.205]] 02:24, 20 January 2015 (UTC)<br />
It should also be mentioned that the "Dread Pirate Roberts" was the nickname of the guy who ran Silk Road.--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.150|108.162.219.150]] 18:07, 29 January 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
according to Wikipedia, he Silk Road wasn't started until years after this comic was published. Interestingly enough, the titular comic 1337 was, which coincidentally also happens to be titled "Hack."[[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.76|108.162.216.76]] 17:39, 12 March 2015 (UTC)</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=980:_Money/Prices_in_tables&diff=122170980: Money/Prices in tables2016-06-20T12:02:47Z<p>173.245.54.30: </p>
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<div>__NOTOC__<br />
*Here below are five sections with tables listing the prices of several items in [[980: Money]].<br />
*This is still work in progress.<br />
**[[980: Money/Prices in tables#Dollars|Dollars]]<br />
**[[980: Money/Prices in tables#Thousands|Thousands]]<br />
**[[980: Money/Prices in tables#Millions|Millions]]<br />
**[[980: Money/Prices in tables#Billions|Billions]]<br />
**[[980: Money/Prices in tables#Trillions|Trillions]]<br />
<br />
<br />
==Dollars==<br />
{| class="wikitable"<br />
! Category<br />
! Item<br />
! Price<br />
|-<br />
! rowspan="5"|Dollar bills<br />
|-<br />
| $1 Bill<br />
| $1<br />
|-<br />
| $10 Bill<br />
| $10<br />
|-<br />
| $500 Bill (William McKinley, discontinued)<br />
| $500<br />
|-<br />
| $1000 Bill (Grover Cleveland, discontinued)<br />
| $1000<br />
|-<br />
! rowspan="3"|Average US Restaurant Meals<br />
|-<br />
| Average single US restaurant meal<br />
| $35.65<br />
|-<br />
| Average meal at the 20 costliest San Francisco restaurants<br />
| $85.27<br />
|-<br />
! rowspan="4"|Game Consoles<br />
|-<br />
| PS3<br />
| $250<br />
|-<br />
| Xbox 360<br />
| $200<br />
|-<br />
| Wii<br />
| $150<br />
|-<br />
! rowspan="7"|Dinner for four<br />
|-<br />
| Homemade rice and pinto beans<br />
| $9.26 (With time cost of two hours of shopping, travel, prep and cleanup: $41.80)<br />
|-<br />
| Homemade chicken dinner<br />
| $13.78 (With time cost of two hours of shopping, travel, prep and cleanup: $46.32)<br />
|-<br />
| McDonalds<br />
| $27.89 (With time cost of 30 minutes travel: $36.03)<br />
|-<br />
| Arby’s<br />
| $34.00 (With time cost of 30 minutes travel: $42.13)<br />
|-<br />
| Chili’s<br />
| $69.64 (With time cost of 30 minutes travel: $77.78)<br />
|-<br />
| Outback Steakhouse<br />
| $109.82 (With time cost of 30 minutes travel: $117.96)<br />
|-<br />
! rowspan="4"|Daily income<br />
|-<br />
| Median household daily income<br />
| $136.28<br />
|-<br />
| Taxes<br />
| $32.16<br />
|-<br />
| After-tax<br />
| $104.12<br />
|-<br />
! rowspan="9"|Electronics<br />
|-<br />
| Kindle Fire<br />
| $199<br />
|-<br />
| Basic iPad<br />
| $499<br />
|-<br />
| iPad + 3G + a year of data<br />
| $869<br />
|-<br />
| Basic Macbook Air<br />
| $999<br />
|-<br />
| Netbook<br />
| $249.99<br />
|-<br />
| iPod Nano<br />
| $129<br />
|-<br />
| Mac Mini<br />
| $599<br />
|-<br />
| Comcast cable internet for a year ($59.99/month) || $719.88<br />
|-<br />
! rowspan="7"|Books<br />
|-<br />
| Paperback book<br />
| $6.80<br />
|-<br />
| Hardcover book<br />
| $32.27<br />
|-<br />
| Audio book<br />
| $50.42<br />
|-<br />
| [http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00I15SB16/ref=r_kdia_h_i_gl Kindle]<br />
| $79.00<br />
|-<br />
| New video game<br />
| $49.99<br />
|-<br />
| Kindle keyboard + 3G<br />
| $139<br />
|-<br />
! rowspan="6"|Loose change<br />
|-<br />
| Loose change per pound<br />
| $12.80<br />
|-<br />
| Loose change with no quarters<br />
| $5.40<br />
|-<br />
| One-gallon jug of loose change<br />
| $270<br />
|-<br />
| Loose change with no pennies<br />
| $17.40<br />
|-<br />
| Annual value of pennies received in change (at one daily cash purchase)<br />
| $7.30<br />
|-<br />
! rowspan="7"|Pet ownership (Based on ASPCA estimations)<br />
|-<br />
| Annual cost of rabbit ownership<br />
| $730<br />
|-<br />
| Annual cost of dog ownership<br />
| $695<br />
|-<br />
| Annual cost of cat ownership<br />
| $670<br />
|-<br />
| Annual cost of fish ownership<br />
| $35<br />
|-<br />
| Annual cost of bird ownership<br />
| $200<br />
|-<br />
| Annual cost of small mammal ownership<br />
| $300<br />
|-<br />
! rowspan="3"|Cell phone bill<br />
|-<br />
| Traditional cell phone average annual bill<br />
| $928.30<br />
|-<br />
| Smartphone average annual bill<br />
| $1,320<br />
|-<br />
! rowspan="5"|Worker/CEO comparison<br />
|-<br />
| 1965 production worker average hourly wage<br />
| $19.61<br />
|-<br />
| 2007 production worker average hourly wage<br />
| $19.71<br />
|-<br />
| Typical 1965 CEO pay for the same period<br />
| $490.31<br />
|-<br />
| Typical 2007 CEO pay for the same period<br />
| $5419.97<br />
|-<br />
! rowspan="8"|Miscellaneous<br />
|-<br />
| Men's suit<br />
| $400<br />
|-<br />
| Low-end bicycle<br />
| $190<br />
|-<br />
| Apples (one dozen) <br />
| $5.68<br />
|-<br />
| Oranges (one dozen)<br />
| $3.08<br />
|-<br />
| Dollar menu item<br />
| $1.00<br />
|-<br />
| Daily interest on average credit card debt<br />
| $5.63<br />
|-<br />
| Starbucks Coffee<br />
| $2.00<br />
|}<br />
<br />
==Thousands==<br />
<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><br />
===Typical household net worth by head of household’s age===<br />
{| class="wikitable"<br />
! 1984 !! Age !! 2009<br />
|-<br />
| $11,680 <br />
| <35 years<br />
| $3,710<br />
|-<br />
| $72,090<br />
| 35-44 years<br />
| $40,140<br />
|-<br />
| $115,060<br />
| 45-54 years<br />
| $103,040<br />
|-<br />
| $149,240<br />
| 55-64 years<br />
| $164,270<br />
|-<br />
| $122,100<br />
| >65 years<br />
| $172,820<br />
|}<br />
===Raising a child to age 17===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Life class !! Price<br />
|-<br />
| Upper income || $302,860<br />
|-<br />
| Middle income || $206,920<br />
|-<br />
| Lower income || $150,380<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Vacation package from New England===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Trip !! Price<br />
|-<br />
| All-inclusive one-week trip for two to St. Lucia resort (incl. flights) || $3,204<br />
|-<br />
| Twenty week-long Hawaiian vacations || $136,020<br />
|}<br />
===Typical trip from US West Coast===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Trip !! Price<br />
|-<br />
| Typical week-long Hawaii trip for two (incl. flights) || $6,801<br />
|}<br />
===School Prices===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! School !! Price<br />
|-<br />
| Estimated one-year Hogwarts cost (incl. tuition) || $43,000<br />
|-<br />
| Seven-year Hogwarts degree || $301,000<br />
|-<br />
| Average community college tuition || $10,340 (One year $2,580)<br />
|- <br />
| Average in-state university tuition || $28,920 (One year $7,230)<br />
|}<br />
===Income per capita===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Country !! Price<br />
|-<br />
| United States 2005 per capita income || $32,360<br />
|-<br />
| Switzerland 2005 per capita income || $29,910<br />
|-<br />
| Germany 2005 per capita income || $27,550<br />
|-<br />
| UK 2005 per capita income || $23,240<br />
|-<br />
| France 2005 per capita income || $16,400<br />
|-<br />
| China 2005 per capita income || $3,540<br />
|-<br />
| Brazil 2005 per capita income || $5,540<br />
|}<br />
===Houses===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Thing !! Price<br />
|-<br />
| Small rural house || $100,000<br />
|-<br />
| Typical new home || $224,910<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Health===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Thing !! Price<br />
|-<br />
| Average individual health insurance annual premium || $5,430<br />
|-<br />
| Typing F-U-N-D-S || $10,000<br />
|-<br />
| A daily pack of cigarettes for a year (NJ) || $3,050<br />
|-<br />
| Waist deep half-room ball pit || $2,400<br />
|-<br />
| All 30 bestselling game consoles (refurb, eBay) || $2,640<br />
|}<br />
===Annual costs of cars and houses===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Thing !! Price<br />
|-<br />
| Annual cost of car ownership || $3,650<br />
|-<br />
| Typical annual household spending || $5,650<br />
|-<br />
| Average household CC debt || $9,960<br />
|-<br />
| Annual cost to carry that debt || $2,090<br />
|}<br />
===Typical annual housing cost for various cities===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! City !! Price<br />
|-<br />
| NYC || $25,416<br />
|-<br />
| San Francisco || $21,888<br />
|-<br />
| Boston || $18,216<br />
|-<br />
| Los Angeles || $17,640<br />
|-<br />
| Washington DC || $16,380<br />
|-<br />
| Chicago || $13,664<br />
|-<br />
| Worcester || $12,456<br />
|-<br />
| Houston || $11,888<br />
|-<br />
| Minneapolis || $10,908<br />
|-<br />
| Detroit || $10,080<br />
|-<br />
| Salt Lake City || $9,108<br />
|-<br />
| Scranton || $8,604<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Prince William and Kate Middleton===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Thing !! Price<br />
|- <br />
| Prince William and Kate Middleton's wedding cake || $78,000<br />
|-<br />
| Kate Middleton's wedding dress || $350,000<br />
|- <br />
|Flower cost for Prince William and Kate Middleton's wedding || $800,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Value of an investment of $1,000/year===<br />
(NOT changing with inflation) for 30 years at 5% annual interest:<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Time !! Value of investment !! Real value<br />
|-<br />
| 1 year || $1,000 ||<br />
|- <br />
| 5 years || $5,526 ||<br />
|- <br />
| 10 years || $12,850 ||<br />
|-<br />
| 15 years || $21,580 ||<br />
|-<br />
| 20 years || $33,070 ||<br />
|- <br />
| 25 years || $47,730 ||<br />
|-<br />
| 30 years || $66,440 || $27,370<br />
|- <br />
| 30 years ($30,000 saved in mattress) || $30,000 || $12,360<br />
|- <br />
| 30 years ($1,000/yr at 4% real return (long-term stock + divident average) || $56,080 ||<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Total cost to buy and own selected vehicles for five years===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Car !! Price !! If gas were $10/gallon<br />
|-<br />
| Honda Insight || $27,874 ||<br />
|- <br />
| Toyota Prius || $38,771 || $48,990<br />
|-<br />
| Jeep Patriot || $35,425 || <br />
|-<br />
| Honda Fit || $28,745 || $45,233<br />
|-<br />
| BMW Z4 || $61,312 ||<br />
|-<br />
| Ford Explorer || $45,524 || $69,076<br />
|-<br />
| Toyota Camry || $34,679 || <br />
|-<br />
| smart fortwo || $29,629 || $45,058<br />
|-<br />
| Honda CR-V || $35,183 ||<br />
|-<br />
| Chevy Volt || $42,180 || $50,612<br />
|-<br />
| Hyundai Sonata || $34,644 ||<br />
|-<br />
| Ford F-150 || $48,734 || $77,111<br />
|-<br />
| Nissan Cube || $29,383 || <br />
|-<br />
| Porsche 911 || $91,590 ||<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Typical annual household income===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Percentile !! Income<br />
|-<br />
| Bottom 20% || $10,200<br />
|- <br />
| Second 20% || $24,800<br />
|- <br />
| Middle 20% || $44,400 <br />
|- <br />
| Fourth 20% || $76,100<br />
|- <br />
| Top 10% || $201,100<br />
|-<br />
| Top 1% || $822,000<br />
|-<br />
| Top 1/500th || $2,080,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Median US household income===<br />
{| class="wiktable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
| Median US household income || $51,570<br />
|-<br />
| After-tax || $39,170 <br />
|-<br />
| Taxes || $12,100<br />
|-<br />
| Cost per household served by US Rural Utilities Service program to expand broadband access || $359,790<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===If I had $1000000===<br />
Cost of the items the singer in "If I had $1000000" would buy in order to win your love: $263,330<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|- <br />
! Item !! Price<br />
|-<br />
| Furniture || $21,160<br />
|-<br />
| Plymouth Reliant || $3,000<br />
|-<br />
| Tree fort || $15,000<br />
|-<br />
| Llama || $2,120<br />
|-<br />
| Joseph Merrick's remains || N/A (Held in Royal London Hospital collection and not available for purchase)<br />
|-<br />
| House || $224,820<br />
|-<br />
| Tiny fridge || $99.08<br />
|-<br />
| Gourmet pre-wrapped sausages (2) || $34.48<br />
|- <br />
| Kraft Dinner (two double servings) || $3.06<br />
|-<br />
| Expensive ketchup || $10.75<br />
|-<br />
| Faux fur coat || $198.00<br />
|-<br />
| Limo ride to the store || $186.59<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Total lifetime income===<br />
Total lifetime income from ages 25-65 at $50,000/year after 25% taxes (including Social Security): $1,500,000<br />
===Miscellaneous===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Item !! Price<br />
|-<br />
| Cancer treatment including chemo || $117,260<br />
|-<br />
| Typical weekend Hawaii trip for two (incl. flights) || $2,863<br />
|-<br />
| Daily sales of [http://www.minecraft.net/ Minecraft] || $193,500<br />
|-<br />
| [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Opulence_Sundae Golden Opulence ice cream sundae] || $1,000<br />
|-<br />
| Average smartphone annual cost || $1,320<br />
|-<br />
| Average used car || $8,910<br />
|-<br />
| Average new car || $27,230<br />
|-<br />
| High-end bicycle || $1,500<br />
|-<br />
| One Starbucks latte per day || $1.820 <br />
|-<br />
| Initial seat on Virgin Galactic suborbital flight || $200,000<br />
|}<br />
</div><br />
<br />
==Millions==<br />
<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><br />
<br />
===Dr. Evil===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Thing !! Price<br />
|-<br />
| Amount Dr. Evil thought he was demanding from the 1997 world || $6,630,000<br />
|-<br />
| Amount he was actually demanding || $1,380,000<br />
|-<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===William and Kates wedding===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Thing !! Price<br />
|-<br />
| Flowers || $800,000<br />
|-<br />
| Security || $20,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Total cost || $800,000,000<br />
|}<br />
===$50000 salary for 40 years after 25% taxes===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Thing !! Price<br />
|-<br />
| 50,000 salary for 40 years after 25% taxes || $1,500,000<br />
|-<br />
| Lifetime cost to avoid changing your oil by abandoning your car and buying a new one whenever you hit 5.000 miles || $3,270,000<br />
|}<br />
===Qianlong Chinese vase===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Thing !! Price<br />
|-<br />
| Qianlong Chinese vase sold in 2010 || $83,710,000<br />
|-<br />
| Leonardo’s Codex Leicester (bought by Bill Gates) || $45,930,000<br />
|-<br />
| Estimated value of first-edition Gutenberg Bible || $34,610,000<br />
|-<br />
| Double Eagle coin (All destroyed uncirculated save a few stolen from the US Mint) || $9,330,000<br />
|-<br />
| Treskilling Yellow postage stamp (At $50 billion/lb possibly the world’s most expensive thing by weight) || $2,780,000<br />
|-<br />
| 1297 Magna Carta original coypy signed by Edvard I || $21,890,000<br />
|-<br />
| Painting from The Card Players series (rumor) || $250,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Willem de Kooning’s “Woman III” (2006 auction) || $168,780,000<br />
|-<br />
| Jackson Pollock’s “No. 5, 1948” (2006 auction) || $153,440,000<br />
|-<br />
| Airbus A380 || $264,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Mona Lisa assessed value || $730,660,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Prizes===<br />
{| class="wikitable"<br />
! Amount 1 !! Year 1 !! Show/Movie !! Amount Today<br />
|-<br />
| $64,000<br />
| 1955<br />
| The $64,000 Question<br />
| $528,310<br />
|-<br />
| £1,000,000<br />
| 1998<br />
| Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (UK)<br />
| $2,270,000<br />
|-<br />
| $1,000,000<br />
| 1999<br />
| Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (USA)<br />
| $1,330,000<br />
|-<br />
| $1,000,000<br />
| 1955<br />
| The Millionaire (TV Show)<br />
| $8,250,000<br />
|-<br />
| $1,000,000<br />
| 1931<br />
| The Millionaire (Movie)<br />
| $14,530,000<br />
|}<br />
===Bitcoins===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|- <br />
! Thing !! Price<br />
|-<br />
| Market value of all Bitcoins as of 11/2011 || $22,819,797<br />
|-<br />
| Market value of all Bitcoins as at July 2011 peak price || $210,000,000<br />
|}<br />
===Elections===<br />
{| class="wikitable"<br />
|- <br />
! Thing !! Price<br />
|-<br />
| 2012 presidential fundraising || $188,260,000<br />
|}<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|- <br />
! Person !! Funds raised<br />
|-<br />
| Herman Cain || $5,380,000<br />
|-<br />
| Jon Huntsman || $4,510,000<br />
|-<br />
| Michele Bachmann || $9,870,000<br />
|-<br />
| Ron Paul || $12,790,000<br />
|-<br />
| Rick Perry || $17,200,000<br />
|-<br />
| Mitt Romney || $32,610,000<br />
|-<br />
| Barack Obama || $88,420,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|- <br />
! Person !! Funds raised<br />
|-<br />
| 2008 presidential campaign fundraising ||$1,860,390,000<br />
|-<br />
| Excluding candidate Lee L. Mercer, Jr of Houston, who claimed, in his combined FEC filings, || $900,005,507 in fundraising and $900,006,431 in campaign spending.<br />
|-<br />
| Ron Paul || $32,480,000<br />
|-<br />
| John Edwards || $64,410,000<br />
|-<br />
| Rudy Giuliani || $66,520,000<br />
|-<br />
| Mitt Romney || $116,730,000<br />
|-<br />
| Barack Obama ||$799,670,000<br />
|-<br />
| John McCain || $394,280,000<br />
|-<br />
| Hilary Clinton || $259,050,000<br />
|-<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|- <br />
! Person !! Funds raised<br />
|-<br />
| 2004 presidential campaign fundraising || $1,006,810,000<br />
|-<br />
| Howard Dean || $61,620,000<br />
|-<br />
| Wesley Clark || $34,610,000<br />
|-<br />
| John Edwards || $39,310,000<br />
|-<br />
| John Kerry || $352,090,000<br />
|-<br />
| George W. Bush || $429,660,000<br />
|-<br />
| Other ||<br />
|}<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|- <br />
! Person !! Funds raised<br />
|-<br />
| 2000 presidential campaign fundraising || $805,120,000<br />
|-<br />
| Pat Buchanan || $37,440,000<br />
|-<br />
| John McCain || $75,180,000<br />
|-<br />
| Bill Bradley || $65,680,000<br />
|-<br />
| Steve Forbes || $11,440,000<br />
|-<br />
| Al Gore || $170,520,000<br />
|-<br />
| George W. Bush || $247,100,000<br />
|-<br />
| Other ||<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===2010 midterm elections fundraising===<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|- <br />
! Party !! Funds raised<br />
|-<br />
| Democrats || $815,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Republicans || $587,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===2011-2012 Campaign donations by industry===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|- <br />
! Party !! Funds donated<br />
|-<br />
| To Other ||<br />
|-<br />
| To Democrats || <br />
|-<br />
| To Republicans || <br />
|}<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|- <br />
! Party !! Funds donated<br />
|-<br />
| Finance industry || $122,900,000<br />
|-<br />
| Organized labor || $18,720,000<br />
|-<br />
| Energy industry || $26,680,000<br />
|-<br />
| Lawyers and general lobbyists || $57,590,000<br />
|-<br />
| Health industry || $42,727,000<br />
|-<br />
| Electronics and communication industry || $32,420,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Inaugurations===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|- <br />
! Thing !! Price<br />
|-<br />
| Barack Obama’s 2009 inauguration || $174,100,000<br />
|-<br />
| Festivities (private donors) || $46,400,000<br />
|-<br />
| Federal + state + local government (mainly security) || $127,700,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|- <br />
! Thing !! Price<br />
|-<br />
| George Bush’s 2005 inauguration || $178,600,000<br />
|-<br />
| Festivities (private donors) || $47,800,000<br />
|-<br />
| Federal + state + local government (mainly security) || $130,800,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Past presidential campaign fundraising===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|- <br />
! Campaign Year !! Funds raised<br />
|-<br />
| 1996 || $559,810,000<br />
|-<br />
| 1992 || $521,480,000<br />
|-<br />
| 1988 || $606,300,000<br />
|-<br />
| 1984 || $429,860,000<br />
|-<br />
| 1980 || $434,220,000<br />
|-<br />
| 1976 || $664,160,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===A billionare===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Item !! Price<br />
|-<br />
| A billionare || $1,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Darell Issa (R-CA) net worth || $304,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Jane Harman (D-CA) net worth || $294,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| John Kerry (D-MA) net worth || $239,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Mitt Romney net worth || $210,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Jon Huntsmann net worth || $40,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Average net worth of US senator || $13,400,000<br />
|-<br />
| Average net worth of US representative || $4,900,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Value of a solid gold toilet (626 lbs) by year===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Year !! Value<br />
|-<br />
| 1970 ||<br />
|-<br />
| 1980 ||<br />
|-<br />
| 1990 ||<br />
|-<br />
| 2000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| 2010 ||<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Value of a carry-on suitcase full of $100 bills (30,00 ct, 60lbs)===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Year !! Value<br />
|-<br />
| 1970 ||<br />
|-<br />
| 1980 ||<br />
|-<br />
| 1990 ||<br />
|-<br />
| 2000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| 2010 ||<br />
|}<br />
<br />
<br />
===Per US resident===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Item !! Value || Notes<br />
|-<br />
| $1 per US resident || $312,620,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| $1 per US household || $117,290,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| $10 from every US resident || $3,326,000,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| $10 from every US household || $1,179,180,000 ||<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Professional rapper net worth===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Rapper !! Net worth <br />
|-<br />
| 50 Cent || $100,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| 50 Cent (stage name) || $0.50<br />
|-<br />
| 50 Cent (adjusted for inflation) || $0.70<br />
|-<br />
| Birdman || $100,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Dr Dre || $125,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Jay-Z || $450,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Diddy || $475,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===J.K. Rowling===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Item !! Value !! Notes<br />
|-<br />
| J.K. Rowlinng || $1,000,000,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| J. K. Rowling had she become a rapper || $82,000 || Professional assessment by rapper/geek culture expert MC Frontalot<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Annual hurricane forecast R&D funding===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Item !! Price<br />
|-<br />
| Annual hurricane forecast R&D funding || $20,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Hurricane forecast improvement funding since 1989 || $440,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Economic savings--during Hurricane Irene alone--due to limiting evacuations made possible by recent forecast advances || $700,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Loss in NewsCorp value over hacking scandal===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Item !! Price<br />
|-<br />
| Loss in NewsCorp value over hacking scandal || $750,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Marginal cost to launch one shuttle===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Item !! Price<br />
|-<br />
| Marginal cost to launch one shuttle || $450,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Total shuttle program per launch || $450,000,000 <br />
|-<br />
| Burj Khalifa || $1,5210,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| New Yankee Stadium || $1,545,000,000<br />
|- <br />
| One B-2 bomber || $2,500,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Miscellaneous===<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Item !! Price<br />
|-<br />
|Most expensive production car (Bugatti Veyron) || $2,400,000<br />
|-<br />
| Amount needed to live comfortably off investments || $4,090,000<br />
|-<br />
| Most expensive car ever sold (1957 Ferrari 250) || $16,390,000<br />
|-<br />
| Minecraft sales by October 2011 || $56,780,000<br />
|-<br />
| Large city office building || $100,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Annual cost to run Wikipedia || $18,500,000<br />
|-<br />
| 30-second Super Bowl ad slot || $3,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| EPA value of a human life || $8,120,000<br />
|-<br />
| Six Million Dollar Man (2011 dollars) || $29,870,000<br />
|-<br />
| Dubai Fountain || $224,540,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| One F-22 raptor || $154,500,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| One velociraptor || $1,9300,000 || (25% of Jurassic Park production budget amortized over three velociraptors)<br />
|}<br />
<br />
</div><br />
<br />
==Billions==<br />
<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><br />
<br />
===Harry Potter movie franchise total revenue===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Item !! Value<br />
|- <br />
| Harry Potter movie franchise total revenue || $21,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Treasure found in a temple in India in 2011 || $22,000,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Box office revenue===<br />
Adjusted for monetary inflation but not ticket price inflation<br />
Hilighted [sic]: films that earned more than 2009's ''Avatar''<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Year !! Movie !! Revenue !! Highlighted<br />
|-<br />
| 2009 || ''Avatar'' || $783,510,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| 2008 || ''The Dark Knight'' || $547,520,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| 2003 || ''Shrek 3'' || $516,610,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| 1999 || ''The Phantom Menace'' || $572,000,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| 1997 || ''Titanic'' || $827,260,000 || Yes<br />
|-<br />
| 1994 || ''Lion King'' || $625,810,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| 1993 || ''Jurassic Park'' || $625,810,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| 1984 || ''Ghostbusters'' || $507,720,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| 1983 || ''Return of the Jedi'' || $686,710,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| 1982 || ''E.T.'' || $996,580,000 || Yes<br />
|-<br />
| 1980 || ''The Empire Strikes Back || $778,530,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| 1977 || ''Star Wars'' || $1,681,000,000 || Yes<br />
|-<br />
| 1975 || ''Jaws'' || $1,067,510,000 || Yes<br />
|-<br />
| 1973 || ''The Exorcist'' || $1,019,000,000 || Yes<br />
|-<br />
| 1965 || ''The Sound of Music'' || $1,144,920,000 || Yes<br />
|-<br />
| 1962 || ''101 Dalmatians'' || $1,131,310,000 || Yes<br />
|-<br />
| 1960 || ''Ben-Hur'' || $561,090,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| 1957 || ''The Ten Commandments'' || $532,570,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| 1943 || ''Bambi'' || $1,391,000,000 || Yes<br />
|-<br />
| 1942 || ''Fantasia'' || $1,146,000,000 || Yes<br />
|-<br />
| 1940 || ''Gone with the Wind'' || $3,157,000,000 || Yes<br />
|-<br />
| 1938 || ''Snow White'' || $2,841,700,000 || Yes<br />
|}<br />
<br />
<br />
===Charity===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Area !! Amount given<br />
|-<br />
| US annual charitable giving || $294,850,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| To religious organizations || $102,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| To educational organizations || $42,240,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| To foundations || $33,450,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| To human services || $26,850,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| To societal benefit organizations || $24,570,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| To health organizations || $23,140,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| To international affairs || $15,980,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| To arts and culture || $13,460,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| To animals and environment || $6,750,000,000<br />
|}<br />
====Type of giving:====<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Type !! Amount given<br />
|-<br />
| Individual giving || $214,650,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Foundation grantmaking || $41,560,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Bequests || $23,140,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Corporate giving || $15,500,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Gates Foundation total giving since 1994===<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Area !! Amount given<br />
|-<br />
| Gates Foundation total giving since 1994 || $25,360,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Global health || ~12B<br />
|-<br />
| US || ~4B<br />
|-<br />
| Developments || ~3B<br />
|-<br />
| Grants || ~1B<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Book publishing industry revenue===<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Genre !! Revenue<br />
|-<br />
| Book publishing industry revenue || $28,320,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Romance || $1,380,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Trade books || $14,130,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| K-12 || $5,570,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Professional || $3,750,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Higher education || $4,560,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Video game industry revenue===<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Area !! Revenue<br />
|-<br />
| Video game industry revenue || $48,900,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| United States || $18,830,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Harvard University revenue===<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Area !! Revenue<br />
|-<br />
| Tuition, donations, and fees || $1,425,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Investments || $7,900,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
In other words, if Harvard completely eliminated tuition, it would mean roughly a 15% budget cut.<br />
<br />
===Education===<br />
<br />
===Education foundations===<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Foundation !! Amount given<br />
|-<br />
| Gates Foundation || $36,700,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| INGKA Foundation || $36,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Howard Hughes Medical Institute || $14,800,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Ford Foundation || $13,800,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation || $6,100,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Endowments of the 63 wealthiest universities===<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! University !! Endowments<br />
|-<br />
| Endowments of the 63 wealthiest universities || $277,570,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Harvard || $32,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Yale || $19,400,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Princeton || $17,100,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| U of Texas || $16,610,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Stanford || $16,500,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| MIT || $9,900,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Columbia || $7,800,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| U of Michigan || $7,800,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Texas A&M || $7,030,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Northwestern || $7,030,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Corporate revenue===<br />
<br />
===US health care spending===<br />
<br />
===Total annual tax breaks to the five largest oil companies===<br />
<br />
===The Economic Vortex===<br />
<br />
===Billionaires===<br />
<br />
===Corporations===<br />
by market capitalization (combined value of all stock)<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Company !! Value<br />
|-<br />
| Saudi Aramco (State-owned company--estimated market value) || $2,940,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Apple || $358,310,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| ExxonMobil || $357,910,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| PetroChina || $280,160,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| IBM || $211,640,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Microsoft || $211,340,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Bank of China || $208,810,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| China Mobile || $201,510,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Royal Dutch Shell || $199,780,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Nestle || $193,700,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Chevron || $188,030,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Facebook 2011 valuation || $70,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| AT&T attempted T-Mobile purchase || $39,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Facebook 2010 valuation || $33,450,000,000<br />
|- <br />
| Zynga 2011 valuation || $14,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| LivingSocial 2011 valuation || $2,980,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===US household income===<br />
<br />
===Cost to buy the world a coke===<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Item !! Cost<br />
|-<br />
| Cost to buy the world a coke (2011 wholesale prices) || $2,240,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Coca-Cola's annual marketing budget || $2,980,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Cost to teach the world to sing (four half-hour lessons at $30 each) || $840,000,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===State government spending===<br />
<br />
[map without amounts]<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
| Total US states' debt || $46,000,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===US foreign military aid===<br />
<br />
====US foreign military aid====<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Area !! Amount <br />
|-<br />
| Total || $11,010,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Afghanistan || $5,800,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Israel || $2,410,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Egypt || $1,320,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Other || $5,800,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
====US foreign humanitarian and economic aid====<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Area !! Amount<br />
|-<br />
| Total || $11,010,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Iraq and Afghanistan || $5,370,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| West Bank and Ghana || $1,050,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Africa (total) || $8,850,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Other || $19,130,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Ft. Knox gold reserves===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Item !! Value<br />
|-<br />
| Ft. Knox gold reserves (November 2011 prices) || $245,900,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Unclaimed US treasury bonds || $16,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| All the tea in China || $4,210,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Corporate tax deduction===<br />
<br />
(Note: some of the corporate deductions are very technical, and even with the help of a technical accountant, I had trouble making sense of them. The text below is my best attempt at an English interpretation of the legalese.)<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Area !! Deductions<br />
|-<br />
| Corporate tax deduction || $125,180,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Reduced tax on first $10 million of corporate income || $3,240,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Delay of taxes on 'income' made from defaulting on a debt (Temporary stimulus measure) || $21,390,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Temporary change to equipment depreciation rules allowing more (and sooner) deductions on the purchase of new equipment || $24,390,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Clean energy, space, science, and tech R&D || $13,900,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Miscellaneous rules for international corporate finance || $6,800,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Foreign corporation income financing rules || $13,680,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Individual tax deductions===<br />
<br />
===Federal spending===<br />
<br />
===Disasters===<br />
<br />
===Cost of electricity===<br />
<br />
===BP oil spill claims fund===<br />
<br />
===New York CIty===<br />
<br />
===Megaprojects===<br />
<br />
===Federal budget===<br />
<br />
===Budget options===<br />
<br />
===Stimulus spending===<br />
<br />
===US Spending on Wars===<br />
<br />
===Bailouts===<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
</div><br />
<br />
==Trillions==<br />
<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><br />
<br />
===Size of derivatives markets by year===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Year !! Size of market<br />
|-<br />
| 1988 || $3,090,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| 1995 || $26,690,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| 2001 || $86,390,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| 2005 || $227,260,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| 2009 || $439,000,000,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
====Size of credit default swap market by year (included in derivatives)====<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Year !! Size of market<br />
|-<br />
| 2001 || $1,150,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| 2005 || $19,350,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| 2007 || $66,280,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| 2009 || $31,350,000,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
<br />
===US household net worth===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Item !! Worth<br />
|-<br />
| US household || $58,740,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Poorer half || $1,470,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Richer half || $57,270,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Richest 1% || $19,620,000,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Total debt in the US===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Item !! Worth<br />
|-<br />
| Total debt in the US || $36,580,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| State and local government || $2,500,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Household || $13,560,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Federal government || $9,510,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Business || $10,980,000,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===World GDP===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Area !! GDP<br />
|-<br />
| World || $62,900,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| North America || $17,850,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| United States || $14,530,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| South America || $3,070,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| EU || $16,240,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Europe (incl. Russia and Turkey) || $20,130,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Africa || $1,610,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Asia || $17,530,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Oceania || $1,310,000,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Total public debt===<br />
(Note: US figures are from 2011, while the other totals use 2010 debt in 2011 dollars, which is likely an underestimate.)<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Area !! Debt !! Notes<br />
|-<br />
| EU (total) || $13,340,000,000,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| United States || $10,200,000,000,000 || (Plus internal government borrowing of 4,740,000,000,000)<br />
|-<br />
| Japan || $8,630,000,000,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| Germany || $2,480,000,000,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| Italy || $2,140,000,000,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| India || $2,140,000,000,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| China || $1,907,000,000,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| France || $1,767,000,000,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| United Kingdom || $1,654,000,000,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| Brazil || $1,281,000,000,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| Canada || $1,130,000,000,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| Spain || $834,210,000,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| Mexico || $584,860,000,000 ||<br />
|-<br />
| Greece || $460,180,000,000 ||<br />
|}<br />
<br />
<br />
===Energy reserves===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Type of energy !! World total proven [type] reserves !! US Reserves<br />
|-<br />
| Oil || $131,960,000,000,000 (November 2011 prices) || $20,580,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Coal || $72,850,000,000,000 (2011 central Appalachian prices) || $20,020,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Natural gas || $21,470,000,000,000 (2011 NYMEX prices) || $930,470,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Value of 10 years of electricity generated if the surface of Texas was converted to:===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Thing !! Value<br />
|-<br />
| Solar power plants || $89,240,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Wind turbines || $7,950,000,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===All US real estate===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Type !! Value<br />
|-<br />
| All || $28,380,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Home || $23,010,000,000,000<br />
|-<br />
| Commercial (includes stores, apartments, industrial, etc.) || $5,370,000,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Value of all gold ever mined===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Item !! Value<br />
|-<br />
| Value of all gold ever mined (late 2011 prices) || $9,120,000,000,000<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===GDP by year===<br />
{|class=wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
! Year !! GDP (total economic activity) the world (minus US) !! GDP (total economic productivity) of the US (minus government) !! US federal government<br />
|-<br />
| 1920 || || ||<br />
|-<br />
| 1930 || || ||<br />
|-<br />
| 1940 || || ||<br />
|-<br />
| 1950 || || ||<br />
|-<br />
| 1960 || || ||<br />
|-<br />
| 1970 || || ||<br />
|-<br />
| 1980 || || ||<br />
|-<br />
| 1990 || || ||<br />
|-<br />
| 2000 || || ||<br />
|-<br />
| 2010 || || ||<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Estimated total economic production of the human race (so far)===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
| Estimated total economic production of the human race (so far) (roughly three-fifths of it since 1980) || $2,396,950,000,000,000<br />
|}<br />
</div><br />
{{DEFAULTSORT:0980}}</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1608:_Hoverboard&diff=1221231608: Hoverboard2016-06-18T02:32:45Z<p>173.245.54.30: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1608<br />
| date = November 24, 2015<br />
| title = Hoverboard<br />
| image = hoverboard.png<br />
<!--DO NOT ADD the title text: Return to the play area. This is not shown in the comic. See trivia--><br />
}}<br />
{{TOC}} <br />
*To experience the interactivity of this game, visit the {{xkcd|1608|original comic}}.<br />
==Explanation==<br />
The "comic" is actually a {{w|browser game}} made to celebrate the release of [[Randall|Randall's]] new book, ''[[Thing Explainer]]'', which was released on the same day as this comic: ''Tuesday'' November 24, 2015. The comic thus appeared on a Tuesday, replacing that week's normal Wednesday release to coincide with the release day.<br />
<br />
The title refers to a {{w|hoverboard}} (which resembles a hovering skateboard without wheels) which has been most [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1ZdMOMUgXE prominently featured] in the movie {{w|Back to the Future Part II}}, which took place in the future, until a little more than a month before this comic was released. {{w|Marty McFly}} traveled to the future in this second installment, more precisely to [https://www.facebook.com/October212015BTTF 2015-10-21], and this comic were released just over one month later 2015-11-24. Hoverboards are just one of many things predicted in Back to the Future Part II, that [http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-33785285 h][https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4HI137m7XA4 a][https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SLwNGBB_Yb0 v] [http://www.wired.com/2016/03/hendo-2-hoverboard/ e] come to pass before reaching the date from the movie, but are more uncommon in our world, along with other inventions like [http://www.terrafugia.com/ flying] [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-1pXbW5wVg cars] and [http://www.soundandvision.com/content/wear-your-music-thinkgeeks-soundtrack-shirt#jo8J1DassbWxlptj.97 musical clothing]. Randall is known to have had [[:Category:Electric skateboard|electric skateboards]], which is also thematically related, although another type of hoverboard would be mentioned just five weeks later in [[1623: 2016 Conversation Guide]].<br />
<br />
With Randall's enjoyment with movies and time travels it is very likely that this game is also a tribute to the {{w|Back to the Future}} movies. But the release day of the game has been used to promote his new book (as is clear with the text in the start screen of the game), and this explains why it was not released on the Back to the Future date. Apart from the date of release and the text about the book, the game does not seem to have any direct relation to the book, there are, however, several scenes in the game that could be seen as [[#Reference to Thing Explainer|reference to ''Thing Explainer'']]. Instead the main part of the game is all the references to several movies and other stuff and that has often been featured in xkcd as well as many of the other comics.<br />
<br />
===The game feature===<br />
The game features an {{w|animated}} [[Cueball]] riding on a hoverboard which can take up [[#Animation|several different positions]]. The controls are the left, up, and right arrows as written on the start screen until you begin the game, then the text disappears. But there are alternatives as explained in the [[#Controls|Controls]] section. The player can jump repeatedly mid-jump to reach increasing heights, and can move left and right both while jumping and descending (see more under controls).<br />
<br />
The player begins in a line-drawing maze (called the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a9/All_play_area_hanging_all_coins.PNG Play Area]) with 17 gold coins located throughout and a "deposit" terminal. The ostensible goal of the game is to collect as many coins as possible and return them to the deposit in the fastest possible time, which returns [[#Messages in Play Area|text messages]] describing the result. Players consumed with obtaining the best possible time result for collecting the coins may not realize there is anything more to the game.<br />
<br />
The best way to enjoy this comic is to {{xkcd|1608|play the game!}} If you didn't do that already, '''reading any below''' will spoil you from truly enjoying the comic, and maybe make some interesting discoveries yourself! So here is a '''spoiler alert''' if you read on.<br />
<br />
Beyond the maze on either side (just far enough that players who remain within the maze will not see) are [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/8b/1680_Play_Area_Full_Size_Coins_Hoverboard_and_View.png tall walls seemingly designed to contain the player]. However, the walls have a finite height and, combined with the ability to multi-jump, the player can leave the purported "play area" either to the sides or above the initial maze. This returns a flashing red [[#Messages in Play Area|error message]]: "'''[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/ae/Return_to_the_play_area.PNG Return to the Play Area]'''".<br />
<br />
But if the player overcomes the desire to comply and return to the play area, and disregard this message he can take hoverboard Cueball outside beyond the tall walls surrounding the initial play area. And here he will discover an entire world that can be explored left and right (and above), including numerous points of interest and {{w|Easter egg (media)|Easter eggs}} similar in style to comic [[1110: Click and Drag]]. There are also many more [[#Coins|coins]] to collect, 169 coins all in all, so 152 more than those from the play area.<br />
<br />
Although this game is reminiscent of Click and Drag, this was the first time an actual game, where the user moves an object in front of the drawing, has been released on xkcd. In previous "games" this has not been the case. In Click and Drag the user "only" moves the drawing into the view section. And in for instance the two previous [[:Category:April fools' comics|April fools' comics]], [[1350: Lorenz]] and [[1506: xkcloud]], the user does not move anything, but only supplies choices, text and drawings. However, already on the next {{w|April Fools' Day}} a new game, [[1663: Garden]], were released where the users also actively moved items around on the screen and could make items disappear (like taking coins in this game.)<br />
<br />
===The main themes===<br />
There are many themes and references throughout the game, but the two main themes are '''{{w|Star Wars}}''' and '''{{w|The Lord of the Rings}}'''. Below there is a [[#List of details and references|table]] listing all references to both of these movies and much more. For instance there are 19 references to SW and 6 to LOTR.<br />
<br />
The largest part of the game is located on the '''right side''' of the play area and is mainly a world dominated by references to ''Star Wars''. Most noticeable is a recreation of [https://youtu.be/yHfLyMAHrQE?t=112 the opening scene] in the {{w|Star Wars (film)|first film}}, where {{w|Princess Leia|Princess Leia's}} space ship ''{{w|Tantive IV}}'' also known as ''[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/82/1608_1015x1078y_Entire_Rebel_Blockade_Runner_zoom_out.png The Rebel Blockade Runner]'' is flying over [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/33/1608_1015x1073y_Ponytail_in_the_dunes_zoom_out.png the desert] planet {{w|Tatooine}}. Here it is followed by the {{w|Star Destroyer}}, ''[http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Devastator Devastator]''. The [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/04/1608_1015x1078y_Entire_Rebbel_Blockade_Runner_zoom_out_to_torpedoes_and_ground.png desert ground with these two space ships] above is the first you find to the right. Although in the game they are located inside the atmosphere, not as in the movie out in space, a fact that is [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/1d/1608_1049x1090y_Atmosphere_worry_and_car_room_at_bottom_of_hull.png commented on] by [[Megan]] who looks out from an opening in the bottom of the Destroyers hull. <br />
:Megan: Is this ship designed to fly in the atmosphere like this? <br />
<br />
Both ships are high above the ground level, but there are three [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/76/1608_1014x1076y_Entire_wires_from_ground_to_Runner.png wires from the ground] that connect (and thus guide you) up to ''The Runner'' and from there [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/87/1608_1023x1085y_Entire_torpedoes_rain_from_Runner_to_Destroyer.png 100+ torpedoes], which are fired [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/f1/1608_1018x1079y_Top_rear_end_of_the_Rebel_Blockade_Runner.png down on the Runner] coming [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/5f/1608_1034x1091y_Torpedo_canon_below_Destroyer.png from the Destroyer] above, gives away the location of the Destroyer itself. The Destroyer is so high up in the air, that you would not be likely to find it by chance without these leads (or at least some of the several other hints from people on the ground [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/f2/1608_1010x1073y_Cliff_with_rock_and_cactus.png looking up and reacting] or like [[White Hat]] looking from the tip of the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/21/1608_0995x1079y_Entire_Washington_monument_extra_zoom_out.png Washington Monument] and reacting [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6f/1608_0995x1083y_Tip_of_Washington_monument.png by saying]: "Uh, what the heck is ''that?!''.").<br />
<br />
One of the main points (The Joke) of the entire game is the extreme size of [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/cd/1608_Entire_Star_Destroyer.png such a Destroyer]. It takes up more space than the rest of the game (and most of the coins is located there). Inside the Destroyer there are many many rooms, long corridors and deep shafts, even a [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/58/1608_Entire_Cave.png huge cave] with trees and animals. At [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c7/1608_Vader_twice_and_emperor_on_and_near_bridge.png the bridge] we meet both {{w|Darth Vader}} and the Emperor himself, {{w|Palpatine}}. There are many other jokes related both to Star Wars and other movies and xkcd comics inside the Destroyer. For instance Darth Vader discusses Steven's mom from {{w|Steven Universe}} and [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/39/1608_1031x1095y_Steven_Universe_family_and_ice_cream_prediction.png Steven himself], with family can be found in a different part of the Destroyer.<br />
:Darth Vader: But Steven's ''mother'' is a crystal gem...<br />
There are also interesting things and references along the ground beneath the Destroyer, some of these are also Star Wars related like [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c9/1608_1038x1073y_Wedding_and_picnic.png the wedding scene] where {{w|Jabba the Hutt}} is mentioned. <br />
<br />
To the '''left side''' is an entirely different world, although much smaller (shorter) than the one to the right. Here the main theme is ''The Lord of the Rings'' mainly with the presence of a [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6a/Entire_Volcano_zoom_out.png volcano] where for instance [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/77/1608_0952x1087y_Ring_of_power_and_lave_floor_at_the_right_crater_top.png Megan tries to throw] in {{w|One Ring|''rings'' of power}}, as in [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FXpF3SUFaDw the scene] from the {{w|The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King|last LOTR film}} where {{w|Frodo Baggins|Frodo}} fails and {{w|Gollum}} attacks inside the volcano {{w|Mount Doom}}, thus making it clear that the volcano in the game represents this volcano. Both Frodo, {{w|Sauron}} and {{w|Gandalf}} are mentioned in the game. The first two by name in the text. Two {{w|Eagle (Middle-earth)|great eagles}} are [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/cb/1608_0956x1088y_Eagles_over_right_crater_top.png talking about Frodo] and {{w|J. R. R. Tolkien|Tolkien}}, Sauron's name is [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/66/1608_0964x1078y_Megan_reading_for_children_about_Saurons_ring.png read up by Megan from a book], and [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a5/1608_0944x1083y_Rock_with_Gandalf_in_Lava_lake.png Gandalf is drawn as a wizard figure] in the crater and also his name is used in the [[#Messages in Play Area|message]] you receive if you collect [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/f7/169_coins_fastest_way.PNG all possible coins]. <br />
<br />
The two worlds do conflict though, as an {{w|X-wing fighter}} is [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/44/1608_0982x1077y_Gas_station_with_x-wing.png parked at a gas station] to the left in LOTR world, and Gandalf's famous quote ''You shall not pass!'' from his fight against the {{w|Balrog}} is modified by [[Cueball]] who is [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/ad/1608_1026x1093y_Shall_not_not_pass_room_and_parachutes_at_one_of_two_ledges_at_bottom_of_hull.png ''not'' trying to block your path] to a coin inside a room in the Destroyer. This conflict could very well be a reference to the fact that {{w|Andy Serkis}} who played {{w|Gollum}} in LOTR, now plays the {{w|Supreme Leader Snoke}} in the new Star Wars movie, and [http://vignette3.wikia.nocookie.net/villains/images/6/64/Supremeleader.png/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/270?cb=20151223201852 his appearance] as Snoke is not that much different from Gollum's. Snoke also delivers a line in the movie (about "bringing someone to me") that reminds allot of Gollum when he talks about "the ring coming to me". Of course Randall would not have know this last part at the time this comic were released. But he would likely be aware of Andy Serkis involvement.<br />
<br />
Other themes are related to other movies, like a [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/film/star-wars-the-force-awakens/star-trek-fans-rivalry-george-lucas-roddenberry/ naughty reference] to {{w|Star Trek}} from inside [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/bc/1608_1012x1078y_Bridge_on_the_Rebel_Blockade_Runner.png the bridge] of the Rebel Blockade Runner where a long-haired woman (maybe [[Danish]] since she obviously does this to annoy Star Wars fans and [[Hairbun]] behind her, which could represent Princess Leia with her [https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/1b/Princess_Leia%27s_characteristic_hairstyle.jpg special hair style]) delivers the following line taken from the Star Trek universe: <br />
:Long haired woman: Captain's log, stardate November 24th, 2015...<br />
:Hairbun: ''Augh!'' No!<br />
<br />
Also references to video games are seen, best shown with the maze towards the back end of the Destroyer which are an almost [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e2/1608_Comparing_Prince_of_Persia_maze_with_real_level_1.png complete depiction] of ''[http://cdn.wikimg.net/strategywiki/images/a/a2/Princeofpersia_dos_level1.png Level 1]'' of the computer game ''{{w|Prince of Persia}}'' down to the three coins being in the place of three items to take in that game, and at least two of the opposing sword fighters in the correct places as well. <br />
<br />
The comic/game and book were released only 3 weeks before the 7th Star Wars movie ''{{w|Star Wars: The Force Awakens}}'' was released on December 14, 2015. And this movie had already been referenced by Randall 7½ weeks earlier in [[1585: Similarities]], when another movie ({{w|The Martian (film)|The Martian}}) were released. It was a reference in the title text to the new robot ''BB-8'' that are featured in the Force Awakens. That the Star Wars section is thus so much larger than the LOTR section could be a hint to the fact that it is now 12 years ago that the last of those films were released, and although {{w|the Hobbit}} has been released as {{w|The Hobbit (film series)|three films}} over the previous three Christmases it was Star Wars that dominated the Christmas a month after this comics release.<br />
<br />
===Reference to Thing Explainer===<br />
Some of the scenes in this game is references to pictures in the new book that it celebrates. Here are some examples:<br />
*The original comic, that was the cause of ''[[Thing Explainer]]'' in the first place, [[1133: Up Goer Five]] is also included in the book. And these are thus both referenced in this game by the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e2/1608_0976x1079y_Space_capsule_with_parachutes.png space capsule] used for reentry by the astronauts that flew to the moon using the {{w|Saturn V|Saturn Five}} rocket. This capsule is floating down over the plateau before the volcano to the left. <br />
*In ''Sky Toucher'', the last entry explaining a sky scraper, there are several references to the game, one of these being the space capsule just mentioned above. Other references:<br />
**Ponytail throwing a paper plane out, which she also does [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/20/1608_1077x1107y_Tarkin_on_the_bridge_and_Ponytail_with_paper_plane.png below the bridge] of the Destroyer. (This is also a reference to ''Click and Drag'' where [http://imgs.xkcd.com/clickdrag/6n2w.png Cueball does the same], here even from a skyscraper).<br />
**Cueball is setting up a kite and Ponytail is crawling up in the line. In the comic a small girl looking like Megan [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/ae/1608_0970x1077y_Kite_and_weird_bug.png also has a kite]. Being up in a kite is also referenced in both [[235: Kite]] and in the title text of [[1614: Kites]] (from just a few weeks after the release of this comic.)<br />
**There is a floor in the middle of the building with trees, just like there is a cave inside the Destroyer [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/75/1608_1053x1093y_Lake_with_tree_birds_and_puma_on_rock_at_exit_in_the_bottom_left_side_of_the_cave.png with a tree "inside"].<br />
**Cueball is holding a fishing rod out over the side of the building letting the hook hand in the air. The same [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/58/1608_1014x1078y_Three_wires_and_reaching_up_to_anchors_in_Runner.png can be seen] under the Rebel Blockage Runner.<br />
**Megan is using a skateboard in a strange ellipsoid-shaped room. This can be a reference both to where Megan is seen on a [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/89/1608_1038x1095y_Hamsterball_and_stilts_room.png skate board inside a hamster ball] and to the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/7b/1608_1078x1111y_Globe_of_Death_at_the_top_of_the_Destroyer.png globe of death] at the top of the bridge on the Destroyer.<br />
**There is a car in the top section of the tower (long away from the parking cellar in the basement). There are two [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/1d/1608_1049x1090y_Atmosphere_worry_and_car_room_at_bottom_of_hull.png cars inside] the Destroyer, [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d4/1608_1048x1099y_Cueball_on_hood_of_car_room_and_a_giant_step_with_coins_at_top_of_hull.png one of them] deep inside with no easy access to the outside.<br />
**Two people are standing on a cloud, one of them (Megan) jumps out from it. This is similar to the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/92/1608_0993x1112y_Top_of_floating_rock_island_with_base_jumpers.png two base jumpers] on the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/5c/1608_0994x1110y_Entire_floating_rock_island_zoom_out.png rock island].<br />
*In the ''Red world space car'' explaining (about the {{w|Curiosity Rover}} on {{w|Mars}}) there are two references to the scenes around the Rebel Blockade Runner:<br />
**Curiosity toasts a marshmallow over a fire as does Megan and Cueball over the exhaust pipe at [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/f1/1608_1018x1079y_Top_rear_end_of_the_Rebel_Blockade_Runner.png the rear of the Runner].<br />
**When Curiosity is set down on Mars by the {{w|Mars Science Laboratory}} (MSL), lowered down in wires below the MSL, the wires were released once the rover was down and then it flies away. In the book Megan is hanging from one of these wires when it flies away. This is similar to [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/76/1608_1014x1076y_Entire_wires_from_ground_to_Runner.png Megan hanging in one of the anchor lines] going from the ground up to the Runner.<br />
*In ''The USS Laws of the Land'' about the ship called {{w|USS Constitution}} (named after {{w|United States Constitution}} which is explained in the entry just before this one), there are two references to this comic:<br />
**There is both a giant octopus arm (marked as ''not real'') and a very large octopus under the ship. The shape of the octopus is the same as the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/b5/1608_1038x1094y_Giant_octopus_in_Destroyer.png silhouette of a giant octopus] inside the Destroyer. <br />
***Octopuses like this is often used in xkcd, and they are also included in the explanation about ''Writing sticks'' (as the source of ink for the pens), as a motive in ''Picture taker'' and in ''Tree of life''. As an example from another xkcd comic with octopuses see for instance [[435: Purity]].<br />
**There is also a bowling alley in the hull of the ship - a reference to the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/53/1608_0987x1075y_Hamsterball_bowling.png hamster ball bowling] in the left part of the world.<br />
***Bowling is also used two other places in the book, namely on the suspension of the longest bridge in ''Tall roads'' and an bowling alley is used for measuring length in ''How to count things''. <br />
*Ants are used three times in the book. A zoom in on an ant is used to indicate size in ''Earth's past'' about geological ages of the Earth, and under the ''Tree'' in that explanation there is an ant colony where one ant is much bigger than the others; an ant queen, a clear reference to the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d2/1608_1078x1095y_Ant_Queen_in_Destroyer.png ant queen] in the Destroyer. They are of course also in the ''Tree of life''.<br />
*Basketball is shown twice in this comic ([http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a4/1608_0936x1084y_Basketball_on_the_volcano.png left of volcano] and [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/1d/1608_1067x1104y_Basket_ball_on_top_of_Destroyer.png on top of Destroyer]). In the book the size of different ''Playing Fields'' is one of the stories, and it included the field for basketball (i.e. ''circle ball'').<br />
*The [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d0/1608_1046x1074y_Huge_foot.png huge foot] before the pyramid look like the foot used in the explanation for ''How to count things'' to describe the wight "one kilo" using a picture labeled ''one foot'' (i.e. not the length one foot, as the length is given in meters). A similar experience to the one in [[526: Converting to Metric]].<br />
*The [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d2/1608_1084x1090y_Giant_light_bulb_room.png giant light bulb] towards the bottom rear end of the Destroyer is a reference to the entry on {{w|tungsten}} in the explanation for ''The pieces everything is made of'' (i.e. the {{w|periodic table}}). In the book a {{w|Incandescent_light_bulb|light bulb}} is shown and then an arrow points to the {{w|Incandescent_light_bulb#Filament|filament}} which is made of tungsten in the typical {{w|Thomas Edison|Edison}} light bulbs.<br />
*In the explanation for ''Box that cleans food holders'' (Dishwasher) Ponytail yells ''Wheee!'' as she slides through a pipe inside the machine on her stomach (bottom left). This is similar to her position and movement in the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c6/1608_Entire_Corridor_peristalsis_and_colon.png colon like structure] inside the Destroyer and Cueball also sliding in this colon yells ''Wheee!''<br />
*In the explanation for ''Bending computer'' Ponytail comes racing on her bike with a laptop on top of the handlebars. She is also seen [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/cd/1608_0958x1083y_Ponytail_racing_down_the_steep_slope_on_a_bike.png racing a bike down the slope of the volcano].<br />
<br />
===Reference to other comics===<br />
There are also many references to other xkcd comics, like the room at the front end of the Destroyer [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a7/1608_1004x1095y_Very_front_with_playpen_balls_pit_at_top_of_hull.png ball pit] filled with '''[[:Category:Playpen balls|playpen balls]]''', and two adults playing in it, like in [[150: Grownups]]. Also [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/2e/1608_0980x1075y_Entire_well_zoom_out.png the well] in the left part of the world with [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/82/1608_0980x1073y_Well_bottom.png a girl and a coin] at the bottom is likely a reference to the movie ''The Ring'', which has been referenced before in xkcd. Wells have also come up in xkcd in the early '''[[:Category:Well|Well series]]'''.<br />
<br />
There have been many comics with electric skateboards as mentioned, which do not appear in this comic, but there is one example of a normal '''skateboard'''. This is [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/89/1608_1038x1095y_Hamsterball_and_stilts_room.png used by Megan] in a room in the Destroyer, while she is inside a {{w|hamster ball}}. There is also [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/53/1608_0987x1075y_Hamsterball_bowling.png another hamster ball], with a kid (looking like Megan) inside. It is used in a more than human sized {{w|ten pin bowling}} game to the left. '''Hamster balls''' is another item that has been [[:Category:Hamster Ball|prominently featured]] in xkcd.<br />
<br />
In the weeks before, and especially the weeks after there were also other comics that had a subject which could reefer back to Hoverboard in some ways. Maybe these comics were either influenced by the game, or the other way around so that relevant items were added to the game because of these other comics:<br />
*[[1600: MarketWatch]] - the {{w|Washington Monument}} (an obelisk) is part of the skyline depicted, and this monument is the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/21/1608_0995x1079y_Entire_Washington_monument_extra_zoom_out.png first that is encountered] in the picture when going left from the play area, plus a [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/dc/1608_0994x1074y_Base_of_Washington_monument.png comment at the base] of the monument to make sure we know it is the Washington monument, and another [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6f/1608_0995x1083y_Tip_of_Washington_monument.png comment at the top] of the monument referring to the {{w|Washington_Monument#Aluminum_apex|aluminum apex}} that constitutes the very tip of the monument, which was very expensive at the time it was installed in 1884, when aluminum was a rare metal as valuable as silver. Today it would not make anyone rich from the metal alone, although the tip would be worth a lot for other historical reasons, but this is not what Cueball's comment is about.<br />
::Cueball to Megan at the bottom: Honestly, it doesn't even look that much like Washington.<br />
::Cueball to White Hat at the tip: Look at that- solid aluminum! We´re gonna be rich! <br />
*[[1610: Fire Ants]] - in this game there is a [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d2/1608_1078x1095y_Ant_Queen_in_Destroyer.png giant ant queen] inside the Destroyer talking with Cueball about laying eggs.<br />
**See also [[1641: Hot Dogs]] where Cueball has a similar style conversation, with the same ''Eww'' ending as with the ant queen:<br />
::Cueball: What's up?<br />
::Ant queen: The usual. Poopin' out ants.<br />
::Cueball: Eww.<br />
*[[1611: Baking Soda and Vinegar]] - this is about super volcanoes, vs. [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6a/Entire_Volcano_zoom_out.png the Volcano], Mount Doom in the game as indicated by Megan [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/77/1608_0952x1087y_Ring_of_power_and_lave_floor_at_the_right_crater_top.png throwing rings into the lava]: <br />
::Megan at the edge of the volcano crater: One of these is probably a ring of power or whatever.<br />
*[[1614: Kites]] - Megan is seen with a kite, and in this comics a small girl looking like Megan [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/ae/1608_0970x1077y_Kite_and_weird_bug.png also has a kite] to the left towards Mount Doom.<br />
*[[1620: Christmas Settings]] - another Star Wars reference to {{w|lightsaber}} noises in the title text. Lightsabers are featured twice in this comic, with [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/bc/1608_1012x1078y_Bridge_on_the_Rebel_Blockade_Runner.png Ponytail practicing] on the Rebel Blockade Runner, and with a [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/20/1608_1006x1095y_Pinata_and_Cueball_with_lightsaber_at_top_of_hull.png kid about to hit a Piñata] in the Destroyer.<br />
*[[1623: 2016 Conversation Guide]] - a direct hoverboard reference, and complaint that they are not real yet (only [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/01/1608_1048x1095y_Two_hoverboards_room.png in this game]).<br />
*[[1630: Quadcopter]] - in this comic three quadcopters act together to abduct Cueball. Thus making them sentient, like the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/7c/1608_0950x1084y_Quadcopters_over_lava_lake_right.png quadcopter who is speaking to another] over the lava lake in the Mount Doom crater to the left.<br />
::Right quadcopter: Remember: There's no such thing as good volcano footage taken by a quadcopter that survived. <br />
*[[1632: Palindrome]] - a reference to the famous palindrome about the Panama canal: "''A Man, A Plan, A Canal: Panama''", and thus also to the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/0d/1608_1026x1073y_Ruins_with_Cueball_singing_of_Spiders_and_Panama.png song that Cueball sings] at the ruin to the right, where the first four lines is mashup of the palindrome and {{w|Spider-Man_(theme_song)|the Spider-Man theme song}} (see this [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUtziaZlDeE video]):<br />
::Cueball singing: <br />
:::Spider-man <br />
::::Spider-plan<br />
:::Spider-canal<br />
::::Spider-Panama<br />
:::Gates let in<br />
::::Spider boats<br />
:::Flood the locks<br />
::::Spiders float<br />
:::''Look out!''<br />
:::Spiders in both oceans.<br />
<br />
===Characters===<br />
Almost all main [[:Category:Characters|characters]] in the xkcd gallery are used more than once, especially there are three characters that are used several times. Number one is of course [[Cueball]] (with close to 90 appearances) who is already shown at the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6c/1608_1000x1074y_The_Play_Area.png starting point]. He is also the first character seen when walking both [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c0/1608_1004x1074y_Cueball_outside_play_area.png right] and [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/dc/1608_0994x1074y_Base_of_Washington_monument.png left] (where he speaks the first line to the left).<br />
<br />
Then follows [[Megan]] with at least 40 appearances, she is even shown twice in the same location three times, one of these three even occurs within one of the [http://xkcd.com/1608/1090:-1088+s.png small images]. She is also shown with Cueball in his first appearance to the left, and she is the first to speak a line to the right [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/f2/1608_1010x1073y_Cliff_with_rock_and_cactus.png here]. <br />
<br />
Also [[Ponytail]] is well represented with 26 appearances (for instance [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/2d/1608_0947x1073y_Antenna_cave_in_lair.png here)]. <br />
<br />
[[Hairy]] (with different hair styles) is used 7 times (for instance [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/54/1608_Actual_Bridge_with_Vader_and_Tarkin.png here]) and [[Hairbun]] is used 5 times (for instance [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e4/1608_1054x1099y_Corridor_peristalsis_and_two_coin_rooms_at_top_of_hull.png here)]. <br />
<br />
Two of the main characters are used twice: [[Beret Guy]] ([http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/4f/1608_0990x1074y_If_loving_you_is_wrong_I_dont_want_to.png here] and [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/21/1608_1020x1083y_Torpedoes_two_steps_above_Runner_with_Beret_Guy.png here]) and [[White Hat]] ([http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6f/1608_0995x1083y_Tip_of_Washington_monument.png here] and [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d9/1608_1093x1074y_White_Hat_hiding_in_the_grass.png here]).<br />
<br />
The only exception is that the main villain of xkcd [[Black Hat]] who is very hard to find. He is only [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/68/1608_1069x1093y_Deer_and_exit_below_lamp_coin_and_Black_Hat_in_the_bottom_right_side_of_the_cave.png shown once] in the comic where he very uncharacteristically just sits and snores at the right wall in the cave inside the Destroyer (is it really him...?). The only other hint that he is not forgotten is that his hat can be seen [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/bc/1608_1073x1074y_Ponytail_and_bird_black_hat_on_a_stick_and_Cueball_whistling.png on a stick] under the Destroyer after the three large T-like structures. And this is not that kind of stick characters Randall usually draws. But at least we now know where Danish has hidden it from him this time (see [[405: Journal 3]]). Given that his hat is stuck there, he could also be any of the Cueballs close by…<br />
<br />
There are also several characters that are not recognizable as either any of the standard xkcd characters or in any other way (see for instance a few of the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a6/1037x1073y_Wedding.png wedding guests]). But there are possibly some of the minor characters are used like [[Danish]] at the bridge in the Blockade Runner ([http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/bc/1608_1012x1078y_Bridge_on_the_Rebel_Blockade_Runner.png here]) and [[Miss Lenhart]] discovering a bug before the volcano ([http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/ae/1608_0970x1077y_Kite_and_weird_bug.png here]). But neither of these can be confirmed, they just looks like them and has some similarities, like “Danish” teasing the Star Wars fan and Lenhart in some kind of teacher mode.<br />
<br />
Several places in the comic it is clear from the size and the behavior that some of the characters are kids, see for instance the Miss Lenhart image mentioned above, where two kids looking like Megan and Hairy stand behind her, but they would in principle not be the Megan or the Hairy despite appearance, as the named characters are adults.<br />
<br />
There are also many fictive people from different movies, books and TV-shows; for instance Darth Vader ([http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/fa/1608_1077x1109y_Darth_Vaders_talks_about_Steven_Universe_on_the_bridge_Megan_adjust_antenna.png here]), Gandalf ([http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a5/1608_0944x1083y_Rock_with_Gandalf_in_Lava_lake.png here]) and Steven Universe ([http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/39/1608_1031x1095y_Steven_Universe_family_and_ice_cream_prediction.png here]) all three mentioned above, and at least one real person: {{w|Elon Musk|Elon Musk}} who has a [[#Secret passages and hidden places|hidden lair]] under the Volcano (see [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/73/1608_0945x1074y_Elon_Musks_cave_in_lair.png here]).<br />
<br />
Furthermore, there are many animals (like [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/b0/1608_1067x1094y_Gazebo_puma_deer_Cueball_with_bow_and_talk_of_Palpatine_in_the_middle_of_the_cave.png the puma and the deer]) in the cave, some even rather big like this [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/b5/1608_1038x1094y_Giant_octopus_in_Destroyer.png octopus] or even gigantic like this [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d2/1608_1078x1095y_Ant_Queen_in_Destroyer.png ant queen] (all three from inside the Destroyer). There are also a couple of small Star Wars robots, one in a corridor in each space ship ([http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/df/1608_1034x1091y_Photon_canon_Tetris_piece_and_mini_robot_at_bottom_of_hull.png here from the Destroyer]).<br />
<br />
===Extra Hoverboard pages===<br />
*Since this comic is so big and complicated extra pages have been created to include much more information than is wished for on this main page (which is already of considerable size).<br />
*These pages are listed here for convenience, but they are also listed in the relevant sections below:<br />
**[[1608: Hoverboard/Transcript]] - The full transcript of the entire comic, as if you played the game can be found here. It is linked from the [[#Transcript|Transcript]] section.<br />
**[[1608: Hoverboard/The whole image]] - A collection of different compilations of the whole Image. It is linked from the [[#Whole Image|Whole Image]] section.<br />
**[[1608: Hoverboard/Images of secret passages]] - Images with an overview of the secret passages in the game. It is linked from the [[#Secret passages and hidden places|Secret passages and hidden places]] section.<br />
**[[1608: Hoverboard/All image links]] It is linked from the [[#All images|All images]] section.<br />
**[[1608: Hoverboard/Images coins]] It is linked from the [[#Coins|Coins]] section.<br />
**[[1608: Hoverboard/Screen-shots]] It can be linked from several sections, but among others from the [[#Messages in Play Area|Messages in Play Area]] section.<br />
**[[1608: Hoverboard/Images of individual scenes]] It will be linked from the [[#List of details and references|List of details and references]] section which will be using these images in the explanation.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[This transcript only covers the starting page as shown on xkcd: {{xkcd|1608}}. A full transcript of the entire comic can be found on this [[1608: Hoverboard/Transcript|page]].]<br />
<!-- There is also an official transcript here: https://xkcd.com/1608/info.0.json on xkcd. But on Explain xkcd these xkcd transcripts are not used. This transcript covers what is on the first image you see when opening the comic on xkcd --><br />
<br />
:[Cueball is shown on a hoverboard in the center of the comic. Around him is a simple maze with 12 yellow coins. Another Cueball without hoverboard is shown standing on one of the platforms to the right. The bottom half of the window is black. Right of where Cueball stands is a ramp. Behind the ramp is a terminal. There is lots of space left of the maze, outside the maze. Text is only written in white below in the black area. The first part of the text is written below Cueball on hoverboard. Then there is an arrow pointing to the terminal and a label. Finally there is a line of text at the bottom of the black area.]<br />
<br />
:[Under Cueball:]<br />
:My new book,<br />
:''Thing Explainer,''<br />
:comes out today!<br />
:To celebrate, here's<br />
:a small game.<br />
<br />
:[Under the arrow below the terminal.]<br />
:Deposit coins here<br />
<br />
:[At the bottom:]<br />
:Use the arrow keys to move<br />
<br />
:['''For the full transcript of the entire comic as it could be played see [[1608: Hoverboard/Transcript]].''']<br />
:['''For a transcript only of the text for the scenes with text in the comic see the [[#Table with references|table]] below.''']<br />
<br />
==Trivia==<br />
*There is as usual [[:Category:No title text|no title text]] for these interactive comics. But there is actually one listed in the [http://xkcd.com/1608/info.0.json info page] on xkcd. But this text: "Return to the play area", is never shown as a normal title text. But it will erroneously be shown in the unofficial mobile versions of the site. <br />
**This is actually the [[#Messages in Play Area|text that is shown blinking red]] at the bottom of the screen when leaving the Play Area.<br />
<br />
==Viewers==<br />
*{{xkcd|1608|1608: Hoverboard}} (native game, use arrows)<br />
<br />
'''''Warning:''' apart from using one of the a full maps below there are also other [[#Cheats and Exploits|cheating possibilities]] where people (or the game) have implemented ways to explore the game world more easily!. The best way to enjoy this comic, however, is to play the game, explore the comic's world the way you're supposed to, get lost in the caves or in the sky, be startled by unexpected things or happy when finding some people or a coin after lengthy exploration through a repetitive landscape. If you didn't do that already, '''reading any below will spoil you from truly enjoying the comic.''''' So go back to the link above and try that out first.<br />
<br />
*Though you can download the full view, the easiest way to browse it is through a {{w|Zooming user interface}}:<br />
**[http://1101b.com/xkcd1608/ Fully zoomable map w/ toggleable coins and passages]. '''[Recommended]''' - includes all of the game, zoom-able and with toggle-able passages and coins. Courtesy of [https://www.reddit.com/user/lanzaa lanzaa] on this [https://www.reddit.com/r/xkcd/comments/3u4sy1/xkcd_1608_hoverboard/cxbyn86 reddit thread]<br />
**[http://codepen.io/KyleDavidE/full/605dc87b614ff6b2bd716f4c6f640203/ Quickly hacked overview]. Missing the rock island in the sky. Courtesy of [https://www.reddit.com/user/kyledavide kyledavide] on the same [https://www.reddit.com/r/xkcd/comments/3u4sy1/xkcd_1608_hoverboard/cxbyn86 reddit thread].<br />
*Below are several examples of full pictures:<br />
**[http://paste.click/DsPuSL Full-size-png-map]. '''Do not open this directly in the browser!''' It might take a few minutes to download. Full resolution picture of the entire game (also without coins) - courtesy of [https://www.reddit.com/user/0x90-0x90 0x90-0x90] on the same reddit [https://www.reddit.com/r/xkcd/comments/3u4sy1/xkcd_1608_hoverboard/cxbyn86 thread].<br />
**[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/92/thumb_1608.jpg Incomplete compilation] of the entire game area (note the missing pinnacle of the Washington Monument. It also missed the floating island above the monument).<br />
**[https://i.imgur.com/uYryxss.png Full png-map]. Simple picture of the entire game without coins - courtesy of [https://www.reddit.com/user/luke_in_the_sky luke_in_the_sky] on the same reddit [https://www.reddit.com/r/xkcd/comments/3u4sy1/xkcd_1608_hoverboard/cxbyn86 thread].<br />
**[https://i.imgur.com/rNU9ZgN.png Full png-map green for non existing tiles]. Here's the transparent spaces in green - also courtesy of [https://www.reddit.com/user/luke_in_the_sky luke_in_the_sky] on the another [https://www.reddit.com/r/xkcd/comments/3u4sy1/xkcd_1608_hoverboard/cxc1245 reddit thread].<br />
**[https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/content_link/6wIRprxQ7rh3EQGEPer7zCdiaCDeXFM3m2tW9aDd3ECJu9Kgz4s5LPLjjHnJN6SR/file Black areas that you can walk through in red]. This includes the walls and ceilings or other surfaces that you can stand on or hit into. So not only the secret passages are in red.<br />
*See also under the [[#Whole Image|Whole Image]].<br />
**And see also the collection of different versions of [[1608: Hoverboard/The whole image|the whole image]]!<br />
<br />
===Standalone application===<br />
*Standalone cross-platform open source remake of hoverboard is available, with some extra features:<br />
** Off-line play<br />
** Arbitrary game window size<br />
** Persistent games state on exit<br />
** Ability to save up to 10 locations and teleport to them at will<br />
** Explorable world map<br />
* Links:<br />
** [https://github.com/AMDmi3/hoverboard-sdl Project on GitHub]<br />
** [https://github.com/AMDmi3/hoverboard-sdl/releases Downloads] (Windows binaries available)<br />
<br />
===Metroid XK===<br />
*Satirical crossover with the classic game Super Metroid. Explore the world as Samus in search of powerups and secrets, while encountering danger at every turn.<br />
[[File:1608_MetroidXK.png]]<br />
* [http://forums.xkcd.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=113083&start=120#p3913102 more information]<br />
* [http://www.xeloh.com/Releases#MetroidXK download]<br />
<br />
==Messages in Play Area==<br />
*Different amounts of coins collected in the play area, will give different messages in yellow on the black part at the bottom of the screen when delivered to the coin collector.<br />
*Below is a table with examples of what may be written depending on the number of coins. The time (and the amount when there is a range with similar rating) is just chosen at random (although in a realistic range). To get above 17 you of course have to leave the play area and come back again... <br />
**In Chrome and Firefox there is not message for those above 9 coins, except 17, 42 and 169. But in Internet Explorer there is still a message for those cases: "Undefined".<br />
**See [[1608: Hoverboard/Screen-shots#Coin collecting messages|screen-shots]] or click on the links from the number of coins in the table below:<br />
<br />
:{| class="wikitable"<br />
!# coins<br />
!Text when depositing this number of coins<br />
"X" is the number of coins collected<br />
|-<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e3/0_coins.PNG 0 coins]<br />
|style="background-color:black;"| <font color="yellow">'''You got 0 coins in 1 second'''<br>You successfully avoided all the coins.</font><br />
|-<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/00/1_coin.PNG 1 coin]<br />
|style="background-color:black;"| <font color="yellow">'''You got a single coin in 1 second'''<br>It's a start.</font><br />
|-<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/83/2_coins.PNG 2]-[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/05/4_coins.PNG 4 coins]<br />
|style="background-color:black;"| <font color="yellow">'''You got X coins in 3 seconds'''<br>Not bad!</font> <br />
|-<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/fc/5_coins.PNG 5]-[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/30/9_coins.PNG 9 coins]<br />
|style="background-color:black;"| <font color="yellow">'''You got X coins in 12 seconds'''<br>Terrific!</font><br />
|-<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/74/10_coins.PNG 10]-[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/55/16_coins.PNG 16 coins]<br />
|style="background-color:black;"| <font color="yellow">'''You got X coins in 10 seconds'''</font><br />
|-<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/7e/17_coins.PNG 17 coins]<br />
|style="background-color:black;"| <font color="yellow">'''You got 17 coins in 15 seconds'''<br>You found all the coins! Great job!</font><br />
|-<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/bd/18_coins.PNG 18-41 coins]<br />
|style="background-color:black;"| <font color="yellow">'''You got X coins in 430 seconds'''</font><br />
|-<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/1c/42_coins.PNG 42 coins]<br />
|style="background-color:black;"| <font color="yellow">'''You got 42 coins in 460 seconds'''<br>No answers here.</font><br />
|-<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d8/45_coins.PNG 43-168 coins]<br />
|style="background-color:black;"| <font color="yellow">'''You got X coins in 460 seconds'''</font><br />
|-<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/f7/169_coins_fastest_way.PNG All 169 coins]<br />
|style="background-color:black;"| <font color="yellow">'''You got 169 coins in 1457 seconds'''<br>Are you Gandalf?</font><br />
|}<br />
<br />
*Once you leave the area you get a [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/ae/Return_to_the_play_area.PNG flashing warning message] in red letters at the bottom of the screen:<br />
:{| class="wikitable"<br />
|style="background-color:black;"| <font color="red">'''Return to the play area'''</font><br />
|}<br />
*This message flashes three times over 1.2 seconds (the message only disappears for about 150 ms each time)<br />
*Then there is a pause for about 1.3 seconds and then this repeats for a total of 5 repetitions, a total of 15 flashes in just about 11.3 second seconds. <br />
*The message will stop immediately if you re-enter the play area during this period. <br />
*If you re-enter later it will flash once you leave again.<br />
*For the program the play area is anything within and below the walls just outside the maze you start in. <br />
**More precisely you first leave the play area if you pass over the middle part at the top of the walls<br />
**Or if you make one jump from standing on top of the walls.<br />
<br />
==Animation==<br />
*There have before been several interactive comics and also a few with animations. But these animations have typical been something along the lines of flashing text or changing lights.<br />
**This comic is the first with a character that is specifically changing position in animation style.<br />
**Apart from this there are also flashing text when leaving the play-area and text that appears and disappears when handing in coins at the terminal as described above under [[#Messages in Play Area|Messages in Play Area]].<br />
**This also happens with the text written to begin with explaining how to play the game: ''Use the arrow keys to move'' which disappears when touching the keys.<br />
*Here are two images showing two kinds of animation of the hoverboard Cueball. <br />
**The first image shows the eight standard animation that can easily be seen. They are<br />
***Standing still facing right (starting position)<br />
***Standing still facing left<br />
***Moving left along flat ground (lifting arms)<br />
***Moving right along flat ground (lifting arms)<br />
***Jumping while facing left looking up with hoverboard pointing down<br />
***Jumping while facing right looking up with hoverboard pointing down<br />
***Falling while facing left looking down with hoverboard pointing up<br />
***Falling while facing right looking down with hoverboard pointing up<br />
[[File:1608 Hoverboard Cueball standard animation.png]]<br />
*But there are several in between drawings of the hoverboard Cueball turning from left to right and even more from right to left. <br />
**The second image shows eight in between animations (together with four from above)-<br />
**Not all possible positions are necessarily caught in this collage here, but there is only a limited amount of them and none of them last for more than a split second.<br />
**They have been sorted so it could look like Cueball has just turned to the right standing still, then jumping while turning right, then turning right while in jump, to finish the turn while falling. <br />
**Image 2, 3, 5 and the last are the same used in the image of standard animations<br />
[[File:1608 Hoverboard Cueball turning animation.png]]<br />
<br />
==Whole Image==<br />
[[File:1608 full tiny.png|none|frame|Whole Image zoomed very much out, without coins. The part visible at the beginning is marked red.]]<br />
*See also a collection of different versions of [[1608: Hoverboard/The whole image|the whole image]]!<br />
<br />
==Secret passages and hidden places==<br />
There are many places where you can disappear behind black areas, as not all of these are solid. Some of these places even hide secret passages or hidden rooms.<br />
<br />
One notable hidden area is {{w|Elon Musk|Elon Musk's}} volcano lair, which is located beneath the lava in the crater of Mount Doom. It can be difficult to find your way in here even if you know it is there. (For more details, see [[1608: Hoverboard/Images of secret passages|secret passages]].)<br />
<br />
Another hidden place is the floating rock island that floats high above the {{w|Washington Monument}}, which is located just outside the left edge of the play area. This island is almost impossible to find by chance, as it takes around 30 seconds of repeatedly pressing the Up Arrow key to reach it from the top of the Monument. (The [[#Viewers|maps]] can help you if you're having trouble finding it.)<br />
<br />
As there are two coins on the floating rock island and four coins in the lair below the lava, it is very hard to find all the coins. There are even several coins that are hard to find because they just float in the air nowhere near any drawn things, or at least no things you can see before seeing the coin. They may hang in the air a few jumps above the ground, or in one case more than a seconds drop below the Destroyer. So getting all coins without help from a map would truly make you a [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/f7/169_coins_fastest_way.PNG Gandalf-like wizard]. (See more regarding [[#Coins|coins]] below.)<br />
<br />
==Boundaries==<br />
The larger game world is physically bounded in the left, right, and down directions, with invisible walls to each side and the ground binding you from going any further down than the deepest depression or hidden caves... In the upward direction, there is in principle also an invisible wall, but while jumping up Cueball on his hoverboard will appear to continue upwards as long as you press to jump, in addition, the longer the up arrow is pressed repeatedly, the longer it will take for [[Cueball]] to fall down again once the button is released. So although there are no new things above, you can keep jumping as high as you like and will then fall proportionally longer to get back to where you started out. Until maps were created it could be possible that there could be some hidden unexplored parts, but the [[#Viewers|maps]] created already within the first few days covers the entire game.<br />
<br />
To the far right is a platform at the top of a high pole. This platform turns out to be a nest (like a stork nest). Above the three eggs are ten coins (the most collected in one place outside the play area, and these are closer together).<br />
<br />
To the far left is a blond haired woman with a hair bun looking right. In front of her are four coins on a row. She tells about the Destroyer (should you have gone this way without finding it yet).<br />
:Woman: In the sky, beyond the mountain, I saw a starship.<br />
<br />
Regarding the highest part you find the highest straight rise up in the air to something other than white, under the Rock Island just left of and very high above the Washington monument. Standing on the large rock on top of this floating rock island you are standing almost as high up as possible. There is a coin here one step down from the top of this large rock. This is the highest located coin in the game. Going over the edge also represents the largest possible drop in the game. However this is not the highest point where you can stand, as the very top of the bridge on the Destroyer is just a tat higher. But there is no coin there. Also this is not close enough to the end of the Destroyer that you can jump down to the ground, so the drop from the rock is by far the longest possible.<br />
<br />
The deepest part of the lair should have been the lowest point, but as this lair's entrance is up in the volcano crater, it does not reach down to become the lowest part of the image. There is also a deep well (half way left to the Volcano) with a girl at the bottom, that goes just as deep. But the deepest part where you can stand is in the ocean below the Destroyer where a rouge wave is talking to Cueball:<br />
:Wave: I know rogue waves seem implausible, but we're a straightforward consequence of the equations of fluid dynamics.<br />
:Cueball: ...But you can talk?<br />
:Wave: The equations are really complicated.<br />
When standing under this wave you cannot get any lower. There are coins in all three locations, but as the coin is above the top of the high wave, it may be that it is the coin in the well that is the deepest. The coin under the lava is not at the bottom of the room so that is not so low.<br />
<br />
Taking a route that takes the hoverboard through all the extremes mentioned above, that is the lowest, highest, left and rightmost coins and solid positions within the game can be done in about 9 minutes and 30 seconds. See a picture here of the coin delivery after such a trip that [[1608: Hoverboard/Screen-shots#Reaching all the boundaries|reached all the boundaries]].<br />
<br />
==All images==<br />
*Coordinates for the images are given in (X, Y) coordinates with the starting point at [http://xkcd.com/1608/1000:-1074+s.png (1000, 1074)]. <br />
*In total there are 3440 images on xkcd that can be accessed via links of this format: http://xkcd.com/1608/1000:-1074+s.png [This link is for the (1000, 1074) starting point image.]<br />
**'''Here is a page with a table of all the links to images: [[1608: Hoverboard/All image links|All image links]].'''<br />
**'''Note:''' This is a large page which may take some time to load.<br />
*The individual images are so small, and cut of at "random" so they do often go straight down through a person, and you can rarely see both a person and the (full) text belonging to them in the same image.<br />
**See for instance this [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a6/1037x1073y_Wedding.png wedding scene] to the right under the Destroyer, which only makes sense when these four images are put together (as they are in the link): <br />
***[http://xkcd.com/1608/1037:-1073+s.png (1037, 1073)]<br />
***[http://xkcd.com/1608/1037:-1074+s.png (1037, 1074)]<br />
***[http://xkcd.com/1608/1038:-1073+s.png (1038, 1073)]<br />
***[http://xkcd.com/1608/1038:-1074+s.png (1038, 1074)]<br />
**It will thus not make sense to make a transcript of all individual images, but instead, only of a complete setting (or maybe a part of a setting.)<br />
*Maximum possible number of images in the x-direction is 180.<br />
**Going left will decrease X down to 928 (so 82 pictures left of the starting point in X-direction)<br />
**Going right will increase X up to 1107 (so 107 pictures left of the starting point in X-direction)<br />
*Total number of (possible) images in the y-direction is 44. <br />
**Going down will decrease Y down to 1069 (so 5 pictures down from the starting point in Y-direction)<br />
**Going up will increase Y up to 1112 (so 38 pictures up from the starting point in Y-direction)<br />
***The "(possible)" is included because the number of possible active Y-images depends on the X-coordinate, as there are several non-existing images that are not just totally white (i.e. blank images), but which does not even have a number/or active link on xkcd. <br />
***But the top active image over the floating island and over the top of the bridge section of the Destroyer all have Y coordinate 1112. There are only 20 active images at this Y-coordinate.<br />
***The same by the way also goes for the x coordinate. Above X=1076 there are also many non existing images with not active link.<br />
* All possible images are thus spread over a 180 x 44 grid, with a possible 7920 images. But 4480 of these images are non existing on xkcd, but you can travel through them in the game, as they are just shown as completely blank/white empty air in the game.<br />
**If you try to load one of the completely blank images like [http://xkcd.com/1608/1000:-1077+s.png (1000, 1077)], three images above the starting point, you will get an error message. There are only 76 (vs 180) images at this Y-coordinate.<br />
***Note there are several completely empty/white images that are active, but those can be loaded on xkcd like the one below the missing picture mentioned above: [http://xkcd.com/1608/1000:-1076+s.png (1000, 1076)].<br />
**There are no blank images in completely black areas, like inside structures or under ground. And below Y = 1077 all 180 possible Y-images exist for all X-coordinates, from Y = 1069 to 1076. <br />
***For instance the image below the starting point is completely black [http://xkcd.com/1608/1000:-1073+s.png (1000, 1073)], and so are the next three below. <br />
***The bottom images at Y = 1069 has a white border at the bottom: [http://xkcd.com/1608/1000:-1069+s.png (1000, 1069)]. <br />
***All the images at Y = 1069 are the same except the one at the very right edge because at this edge there is also a white border to the right [http://xkcd.com/1608/1107:-1069+s.png (1107, 1069)] (this is not the case to the far left at [http://xkcd.com/1608/928:-1069+s.png (928, 1069)]).<br />
***You will never see the images at Y = 1069 in the game. Actually you will neither see anything of the images with Y = 1070 or 1071. And there is nothing that is not completely black for Y = 1069 to 1072. First from Y = 1073 are there active images which includes white. <br />
***This picture with the wave at [http://xkcd.com/1608/1022:-1073+s.png (1022, 1073)] gives the lowest point where the hoverboard Cueball can actually stand. <br />
***Since you will sink into the water here, you are almost standing on the top of the Y = 1072 image: [http://xkcd.com/1608/1022:-1072+s.png (1022, 1072)], which is of course completely black. <br />
***In places where you can stand in a low position on Y = 1073 images you will actually see some part of the images with Y = 1072, not that it makes any difference since they are all black.<br />
*Here is a list of the places where there are most images at a given X coordinate:<br />
**At X = 1078, right under the highest point of the Destroyers bridge [http://xkcd.com/1608/1078:-1112+s.png (1078, 1112)] there are 36 active images. Thus even here 8 images are missing between the bottom active image below the Destroyer and the first active near the ground level at Y=1076. (Y = 1077 to 1084 are missing).<br />
**These missing Y coordinates are active in other places, for instance under the torpedo rain at X = 1020 where all Y images are active up until 1100 - 32 images. But since the last 12 images above this are missing it is still 4 less than under the bridge.<br />
**Under the floating island, where there are active images at the top Y = 1112, like [http://xkcd.com/1608/990:-1112+s.png (990, 1112)], there is also the Washington monument below which goes high up, but still there are only 20 active Y images, as there are no active images between 1084 and 1109 (24 missing in between).<br />
**Over the volcano's edges the highest images directly connecting to solid ground is found at Y = 1087. One image above this is also active making the height here going up to 1088, thus also making it 20 active Y images. The only '''not''' completely white image over the volcano at Y = 1088 is the one with the eagles [http://xkcd.com/1608/956:-1088+s.png (956, 1088)].<br />
<br />
==Dimensions== <br />
{{incomplete|Here should be an overview of how large the picture is (physical distances and time to traverse it. Speed of hoverboard etc.) Could be based on know monuments sizes.}}<br />
*It takes 1 minute 52 s to reach from the starting point to the left edge<br />
<br />
==List of details and references==<br />
{{incomplete|The table with all the items should be filled out with explanations etc. and the diameter should be calculated from real data (with references). Or with the new version of the table another column should be added with the use in gigaliter for each substance in the US to compare. Anyone who is up for calculating how long it would take to fill the pool with US saliva?}}<br />
*On this page [[1608: Hoverboard/Images of individual scenes]], images covering all individual scenes (in full size and with coins) has been saved and uploaded to be used for reference in the [[#Table with references|table]] below from where they are linked directly.<br />
**There are also several overviews in smaller resolution<br />
**Almost all these images have been made using this [http://1101b.com/xkcd1608/ Fully zoomable map w/ toggleable coins and passages] which includes all of the game, zoom-able and with toggle-able passages and coins. <br />
***Courtesy of [https://www.reddit.com/user/lanzaa lanzaa] on this [https://www.reddit.com/r/xkcd/comments/3u4sy1/xkcd_1608_hoverboard/cxbyn86 reddit thread]<br />
<br />
===Explanation of the table===<br />
*The contents of the comic are documented in the [[#Table with references|table]] below.<br />
**It first goes through the entire image from left to right along the ground<br />
***I.e. going up the volcano and down in the lair, down the well and up to the top of the Washington Monument. Only exception so far is that it here goes to the rocky island in the sky. Then it continues right along the ground, only following the wires up to the bottom of the Rebel Runner and then after going over the pyramid it ends up at the far right<br />
**Then it goes back to the Rebel Runner, and after that follows the torpedoes up to the Star Destroyer-<br />
**Finally it goes through the Star Destroyer from tip to rear in four sections, taking everything within each section top to bottom, before moving on to the next section.<br />
**The table can be sorted on all columns, so the above is only valid until any sorting takes place.<br />
*In the table are the following columns:<br />
**Descriptions of the scene depicted in the overview links.<br />
***If the scene is a zoomed out overview that covers the images below this scene's description has been written in '''bold text'''.<br />
***This can be used as a guide to where in the image the scenes are located.<br />
***That is, until any sorting begins.<br />
**Transcript.<br />
***Any text has only been transcribed once. If some scenes overlap, the text has only been written in the first or the one where the text is most central.<br />
***Also any overview that has been zoomed out never has any transcript - these have been listed as (N/A)<br />
***Scenes with no text has written (None) in the transcript. <br />
***The use of parenthesis for those with no transcript makes it possible to sort on the transcript to get all the scenes with text to the top.<br />
**Overview links.<br />
***There can be more than one, even many, but the first will always be the overview.<br />
***If there are secret passages or other situations where it will be interesting to see why the hoverboard can disappear beneath the surface (like in the ocean) then two versions of the images have been included. <br />
***The second version is called ''Hidden passages in red'' as it has these passages changed to appear in red instead of black.<br />
**Tile images on xkcd.<br />
***For those images that are zoomed to 100% (i.e. not the zoomed out overviews) there is also a link to the defining image tile on xkcd.<br />
***In cases where there are more than one interesting image tile in one scene (maybe because there is actually two or more distinct scenes), there can be one more link in the ''Other'' tile column.<br />
**References.<br />
***Three things are referenced many times, and each has their own column so the table can be sorted on these<br />
****SW: Star Wars<br />
****LOTR: The Lord of the Rings<br />
****TE: Thing Explainer<br />
***Other. There is also a column for "other" types of references so they can also be sorted, without drowning in the three recurring types of references.<br />
****These have some further sorting by starting with Comics: or Movies: etc.<br />
**Explanations is in the last column.<br />
***So far lots of scenes still miss explanations, and some are not complete. <br />
***Red text has been used to make this clear. <br />
***If updating this and making a good enough explanation delete the red text.<br />
<br />
===Table with references===<br />
*See [[#Explanation of the table|explanation of the table]] above.<br />
**Hint: Open the overview links in a new window and return to this one for the next image and for reading the text.<br />
*Abbreviations:<br />
**'''SW''': Star Wars<br />
**'''LOTR''': The Lord of the Rings<br />
**'''TE''': Thing Explainer<br />
{|class="wikitable sortable"<br />
! <br />
! <br />
! <br />
! colspan="2"|Tiles (X, Y)<br />
! colspan="4"|References<br />
! <br />
|-<br />
! Description<br />
! Transcript<br />
! Overview links<br />
! Defining<br />
! Other<br />
! S<br>W<br />
! L<br>O<br>T<br>R<br />
! T<br>E<br />
! Other<br />
! Explanation<br />
|-<br />
|'''Everything Left of play area.'''<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d4/1608_Everything_Left_of_play_area.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e4/1608_Everything_Left_of_play_area_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|Section of the image revealed when going left of the starting point.<br />
|-<br />
|Entire Volcano plateau.<br />
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:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d5/1608_Entire_Volcano_plateau_zoom_out_extra.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/3d/1608_Entire_Volcano_plateau_zoom_out_extra_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|About halfway from the Play Area to the volcanos slope, there is a steep plateau. This is the part left of this plateau.<br />
|-<br />
|Woman at the left end of world looking right.<br />
|<br />
:Woman: In the sky,<br />
:Woman: beyond the mountain,<br />
:Woman: I saw a starship.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/63/1608_0928x1082y_At_the_end_of_all_things.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/928:-1082+s.png (928, 1082)]<br />
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|Y<br />
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|The woman at the left end of the world tells about the Star Destroyer in the right part of the world. There are four coins in front of her to anyone coming this far.<br />
|-<br />
|Coin and boulders.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/63/1608_0933x1083y_Coin_and_boulders.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/933:-1083+s.png (933, 1083)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/935:-1083+s.png (935, 1083)]<br />
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|A single coin hangs in the air above the rocky ground with giant boulders.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Entire Volcano.'''<br />
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:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6a/Entire_Volcano_zoom_out.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/01/1608_Entire_Volcano_zoom_out_red.png Hidden&nbsp;passages&nbsp;in&nbsp;red]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|Y<br />
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|Comic: [[1611: Baking Soda and Vinegar]]<br />
|The comic released a week after this one is about a super volcano made in a science fair experiment. As can be seen there is a lair beneath the lava lake. The entrance is revealed by the other link that turns the hidden passages to red. It is for sure possible to get stuck in the lava lake, as everything becomes black in the game when going beneath the surface.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Left Volcano Top.'''<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/4e/1608_0943x1087y_Left_Volcano_Top_zoom_out.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|A zoom out of the left rim of the volcanic crater.<br />
|-<br />
|Basketball on the volcano.<br />
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:Ponytail: OK, as soon as it erupts, go for the dunk. Our sweet moves will be preserved for all eternity!<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a4/1608_0936x1084y_Basketball_on_the_volcano.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/936:-1084+s.png (936, 1084)]<br />
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|Y<br />
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|This is a reference to {{w|Pompeii}} a Roman town-city near modern Naples, which has become famous when it was discovered that it had been preserved in the ash when it was mostly destroyed and buried under 4 to 6 m (13 to 20 ft.) of volcanic ash in the eruption of {{w|Mount Vesuvius}} in AD 79. When it was {{w|Pompeii#Rediscovery|found again}} it turned out that people had been surprised by the ash, and thus buried alive. During the excavation, plaster was used to fill in the voids in the ash layers that once held human bodies. This allowed one to see the exact position the person was in when he or she died. This is what Ponytail wishes for her and Megan, when the volcano they are standing on erupts, a rather morbid wish. She wants their sweet basketball moves to be preserved for eternity. In ''Playing Fields'' in TE basketball is mentioned. It is also played on top of the Destroyer close to the bridge. In this case the coin is on top of the basket, but too large to go into the hoop.<br />
|-<br />
|Old man walking up the volcano.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/5d/1608_0937x1085y_Old_man_walking_up_the_volcano.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/937:-1085+s.png (937, 1085)]<br />
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|Is it an old man who just walks up a mountain, or a young man using a walking stick? It makes quite a difference to how this scene is viewed.<br />
|-<br />
|Duck at the left crater top.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/41/1608_0940x1087y_Duck_at_the_left_crater_top.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/940:-1087+s.png (940, 1087)]<br />
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|A duck is sitting at the top of the crater. There are several birds in this comic. Another duck looking the other way is found on top of the flag pole near the base of the Washington Monument.<br />
|-<br />
|Megan’s treasure hoard.<br />
|<br />
:Megan: Gooooold!<br />
:Megan: Goold!<br />
:Bags: $ $<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/43/1608_0941x1084y_Megans_treassure_hoarde.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/941:-1084+s.png (941, 1084)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/941:-1083+s.png (941, 1083)]<br />
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|In the side of the crater there is a small cave where Megan has found a treasury hoard and she is celebrating all the gold she has found, including two coins.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Entire Lava lake.'''<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/b1/1608_0946x1083y_Entire_Lava_lake_zoom_out.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/09/1608_0946x1083y_Entire_Lava_lake_zoom_out_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/f4/1608_0942x1081y_Lava_lake_left.png Zoom in left part]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/82/1608_0942x1081y_Lava_lake_left_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/02/1608_0943x1083y_Left_Lava_lake_zoom_out.png Entire left part]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/75/1608_0943x1083y_Left_Lava_lake_zoom_out_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d6/1608_0946x1080y_Lava_lake_Upper_shaft_red.png Shaft in lake in red]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/94/1608_0947x1081y_Lava_lake_center.png Zoom in central part]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/25/1608_0947x1081y_Lava_lake_center_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/f7/1608_0949x1083y_Right_Lava_lake_zoom_out.png Entire Right part]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/ba/1608_0949x1083y_Right_Lava_lake_zoom_out_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/3f/1608_0944x1076y_Lava_lake_very_bottom_of_shaft_and_shaft_in_lair.png Shaft into lair below]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c0/1608_0944x1076y_Lava_lake_very_bottom_of_shaft_and_shaft_in_lair_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|These images only cover the part beneath the surface where there is actually still lava, as can be seen in the images where ''Hidden passages in red''. Only the top of the lair below is shown here. From the hidden passage it is here possible to see how to enter this lair. In the images that shows the hidden part the two loose boulders that float (or are outcrops) in the right part of the lake can be seen as well as the two other holes in the lava lakes floor, which all explain why it is easy to get stuck in the lake once you go below the surface and move around. Since everything is black, you do not even know if the game still works and many people may have given up, maybe reloading after not being able to get on with the game. There is no place in the lake where you can get really stuck, as long as you just push upwards while changing direction from left to right, you are bound to get out sooner or later.<br />
|-<br />
|Rock with Gandalf in Lava lake.<br />
|<br />
:Megan: If you breathe out through you nose a little as you jump in, it can keep you from getting lava in you nasal passages.<br />
:Cueball: Artex!<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a5/1608_0944x1083y_Rock_with_Gandalf_in_Lava_lake.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/fa/1608_0944x1083y_Rock_with_Gandalf_in_Lava_lake_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/944:-1083+s.png (944, 1083)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|Film: {{w|The Neverending Story}}<br />
|The wizard on the rock represents Gandalf from LOTR. What Megan tells Cueball works fine with water, not so much with lava. The horse Artax (pronounced Artex in the film) [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y688upqmRXo drowns in the swamp of sadness] while Atreyu tries to save it and yells its name. Drowning in a swamp sucks, but doing so in lava will make death swifter. Both situations, however, indicate that you can actually go into the lava. If playing for the first time and becoming uncertain what would happen if the hoverboard touched the lava, the player might actually not even try to go into the lava, thus for certain would miss finding the lair beneath the lava.<br />
|-<br />
|Quadcopters over lava lake right.<br />
|<br />
:Right quadcopter: Remember: There's no such thing as good volcano footage taken by a quadcopter that survived.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/7c/1608_0950x1084y_Quadcopters_over_lava_lake_right.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/b2/1608_0950x1084y_Quadcopters_over_lava_lake_right_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/950:-1084+s.png (950, 1084)]<br />
|<br />
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|Comics: [[1630: Quadcopter]] and in general those about [[:Category:Robots|Robots]] and [[:Category:Artificial Intelligence|AI]]<br />
|The comic was released shortly after this one, and is about AI quadcopters that abduct Cueball. One of these {{w|quadcopters}} tells the other that no one will think much of their volcano footage if they actually survive. I.e. they have to get too close to the bubbling surface to survive before they actually obtain the footage wished for. It sounds like it tries to instill courage in them to perform this deadly task. There is a coin below the left copter.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Entire Lava lair.'''<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/69/1608_0946x1075y_Entire_Lava_lair_zoom_out.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e0/1608_0946x1075y_Entire_Lava_lair_zoom_out_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|Overview<br />
|<br />
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|<br />
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|The three rooms of the volcanic lair (and the entrance haft in the image with hidden passages in red).<br />
|-<br />
|Trending on twitter cave in lair and Lava lake bottom shaft.<br />
|<br />
:Cueball: What news of the world above? Please, tell me- what's hot and viral? ''What's trending on Twitter?!!''<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6e/1608_0944x1079y_Trending_on_twitter_cave_in_lair_and_Lava_lake_bottom_shaft.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/2a/1608_0944x1079y_Trending_on_twitter_cave_in_lair_and_Lava_lake_bottom_shaft_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/944:-1079+s.png (944, 1079)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/945:-1079+s.png (945, 1079)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Comics with [[:Category:Social networking|Social networking]]<br />
|Cueball has been stuck below the lava for some times without access to the internet, and he now craves news from the world above. But it is not really news stories he craves but only the hot and viral videos and what is trending on {{w|Twitter}}. To be addicted to social networks and viral videos is probably a real infliction and it is a pain for Cueball to not be able to get on-line. Two coins are behind him.<br />
|-<br />
|Elon Musk’s cave in lair.<br />
|<br />
:Left Cueball: I always assumed Elon Musk's volcano lair would be like... Tropical. And ...Well, ''pleasant''.<br />
:Elon Musk in the high chair: Back to your desks, swine!<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/73/1608_0945x1074y_Elon_Musks_cave_in_lair.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/945:-1074+s.png (945, 1074)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/946:-1074+s.png (946, 1074)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Comics with [[:Category:Comics featuring Elon Musk|Elon Musk]]<br />
|It turns out that this is {{w|Elon Musk's}} lair. Having a secret lair with a hidden entrance is an often uses trope in films. Often it would be the villain (like in a {{w|James Bond}} film) that has such a place, but also heroes, like {{w|Batman}}, uses such hiding places. The joke here is that Cueball has assumed that Elon Musk, a very rich and enterprising man, that could be one of these megalomaniacs that might end up being a super villain, would have a bit more class over his secret lair. It also turns out that Elon sits in the cave and shouts at his workers to get back to work, even calling them names. There is also a coin here.<br />
|-<br />
|Ground symbol in lair.<br />
|<br />
:Ponytail: So ''this'' is where it is.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/2d/1608_0947x1073y_Antenna_cave_in_lair.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/947:-1073+s.png (947, 1073)]<br />
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|The antenna looking item hanging from the ceiling is the embodiment of the {{w|Ground_%28electricity%29#Electronics|Earth ground symbol}} commonly used in circuit diagrams for electronics. So this is where the Earth is grounded in "real life" and finally Ponytail has found it. To protect themselves i their long search for this Ponytail and Megan seem to be wearing {{w|Antistatic_wrist_strap|antistatic wrist straps}}. <br />
|-<br />
|'''Right Volcano Top'''<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/70/1608_0953x1087y_Right_Volcano_Top_zoom_out.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/b8/1608_0953x1087y_Right_Volcano_Top_zoom_out_extra.png Extra zoom out]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/75/1608_0953x1087y_Right_Volcano_Top_zoom_out_extra_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|A zoom out of the right rim of the volcanic crater. In the extra zoom out the eagles can be seen as well, they are high enough to be missed entirely when moving along the crater surface.<br />
|-<br />
|Ring of power and lave floor at the right crater top.<br />
|<br />
:Megan: One of these is probably a ring of power or whatever.<br />
:Girl with hair bun: Let's play a game where the lava is the floor of a house.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/77/1608_0952x1087y_Ring_of_power_and_lave_floor_at_the_right_crater_top.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/952:-1087+s.png (952, 1087)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/953:-1087+s.png (953, 1087)]<br />
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|Y<br />
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|Megan tells Cueball that one of the many rings she throws into the crater is probably a {{w|One Ring|''ring'' of power}}, a reference to [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FXpF3SUFaDw the scene] from the {{w|The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King|last LOTR film}} where {{w|Frodo Baggins|Frodo}} fails and {{w|Gollum}} attacks inside the volcano {{w|Mount Doom}}, thus making it clear that the volcano in the game represents this volcano. From her last comment, ''or whatever'', it seems she doesn't care too much, which make it clear, from the LOTR universe, that neither of these rings in the one ring. It would not have be this easy throwing them into the lava if it had been. There seems to be 16 rings, which is less than the other rings that are ruled by the one ring, the 9 for the humans, the 7 for the dwarfs and the 3 for the elves (19 plus the one ring 20 rings in total). <br><br>The two girls are playing a dangerous game, the exact opposite of the normal version of the children’s game {{w|Hot lava (game)|Hot lava}}, where they pretend the floor in the house is made out of lava, and that you die if you touch it. However, in this version of the game they pretend to play that the lava is the floor in a house, and they may then just walk out into the lava pool, where they would die.<br />
|-<br />
|Megan sliding down slope on snow sleigh.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/15/1608_0956x1085y_Megan_sliding_down_slope_on_snow_sleigh.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/956:-1085+s.png (956, 1085)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/956:-1086+s.png (956, 1086)]<br />
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|Megan is sliding fast down the crater side. She will hit a jump near the coin, and would probably fly a considerable distance given the speed she seems to have.<br />
|-<br />
|Eagles over right crater top.<br />
|<br />
:Left eagle: Tolkien said Frodo left the cloak somewhere over here.<br />
:Right eagle: Can't ''he'' just fix it?<br />
:Left eagle: He doesn't want to rewrite that chapter.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/cb/1608_0956x1088y_Eagles_over_right_crater_top.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/956:-1088+s.png (956, 1088)]<br />
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|Y<br />
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|<font color="red">Did Frodo loose his cloak in the books? Is this a reference to any real plot holes (not just using eagles) about the cloack being lost somewhere but then back later? If you can dismiss this, then make a note below. If there is something please explain</font> Two of the {{w|Eagle (Middle-earth)|great eagles}} from LOTR flies above the right crater top. In this situation the eagles are being used to find {{w|Frodo|Frodo's}} cloak, with one eagle complaining that "he", meaning {{w|J. R. R. Tolkien}} the author of LOTR, should just fix the issue without the eagles. This is a reference to the eagles use in LOTR as a {{w|Deus ex machina|deus ex machina}} and the [http://periannath.com/feature/why-doesnt-frodo-just-ride-an-eagle-to-mount-doom/ supposed plot hole] of the eagles not [http://tolkiengateway.net/wiki/Eagles#Flying_the_Ring_to_Mount_Doom flying the ring to mordor]. However, this was of course not possible before Sauron and his ringwraiths were defeated. <br />
|-<br />
|Ponytail racing down the steep slope on a bike.<br />
|<br />
:Ponytail: 114 mph!<br />
:Ponytail: Suck it, previous downhill volcano record-holder!<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/cd/1608_0958x1083y_Ponytail_racing_down_the_steep_slope_on_a_bike.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/958:-1083+s.png (958, 1083)]<br />
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|Ponytail is trying to break the world record for downhill race on a bike on a volcano. The {{w|Cycling_records#History_of_downhill_records|record}} at the time of this comic was from 2002 and was 107&nbsp;mph (172&nbsp;km/h) easily beaten by the 114&nbsp;mph (183&nbsp;km/h) that Ponytail reaches as she mocks the previous record holder. There were two different records, one for prototype bike by {{w|Éric Barone}} (the 107&nbsp;mph) and one for serial production bicycle (102.5&nbsp;mph set in 2011 by Markus Stöckl). She beat them both and it looks like a very ordinary bike she rides. The all-time record for downhill racing is not using the ashy slopes on volcanos but from racing on snow, and here the record is not in danger from Ponytail as it is a staggering 138&nbsp;mph (222&nbsp;km/h) again with a lesser record for serial produced bikes of 130&nbsp;mph (210&nbsp;km/h). She will soon hit a rock outcrop so hopefully she has very good brakes...<br />
|-<br />
|Tell my wife why you left me there, and Megan and Cueball with a device<br />
|<br />
:Right Cueball: If I don't make it back...<br />
:Right Cueball: ...Tell my wife...<br />
:Right Cueball: ...Where I am...<br />
:Right Cueball: ...And why you left me there…<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/ce/1608_0960x1081y_Tell_my_wife_why_you_left_me_there.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/960:-1081+s.png (960, 1081)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/961:-1081+s.png (961, 1081)]<br />
|<br />
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|''If I don't make it back'' is a common [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/IfIDoNotReturn trope] in films and books used when the speaker is about to make a noble sacrifice. The speaker will then usually tell the other to go tell his wife that he died bravely or that his friends should remember him. There is even a [https://vimeo.com/58319575 song] with the same title by {{w|Tracy Lawrence}}. In Cueball's case, both him and his companion are attempting to scale a dangerous mountain and neither are inclined to sacrifice their own lives for the other. Cueball appears to be struggling, climbing on all fours while his friend is standing. Subverting the trope, he attempts to guilt trip his friend into helping him. <br />
<br />
<br><br>Also here are Megan with some kind of device and Cueball on top of a large boulder. Maybe they are investigating the environment on the volcanic slope. Cueball has just discovered the coin hanging above them.<br />
|-<br />
|It becomes a V7 if the volcano erupts and Ponytail and Cueball on the slope<br />
|<br />
:Megan: This is currently a V2, but it becomes a V7 if the volcano erupts.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/75/1608_0962x1080y_It_becomes_a_V7_if_the_volcano_erupts.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/962:-1080+s.png (962, 1080)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/963:-1079+s.png (963, 1079)]<br />
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|<font color="red">Explanation needs to be checked by someone who actually knows about the v-scale and bouldering. Does the sentence even make sense in anyway if there is an eruption?</font> Megan and Cueball climbs a very steep part of the mountain slope. Megan refers to the way the difficulty of {{w|bouldering}}, is graded using the {{w|Grade (bouldering)|V scale}}. She exclaims that at the moment the climb is only a V2, but if the volcano erupts this would increase to V7. Since the grade has something to do with how steep and difficult the climb is, the eruption would only make a difference if it immediately shifts the slope they are on to a higher angle. But of course if lava comes down the side, it would also become more difficult, but that is not a usual factor in the V-scale.<br><br>There are also two other people climbing this part of the slope, and at the top there is a burning three stump showing how active this volcano is. The eruption could seem likely.<br />
|-<br />
|Megan reading for children about Sauron’s ring.<br />
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:Megan: ”The time has come” the Walrus said, and put on a Sauron's ring…<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/66/1608_0964x1078y_Megan_reading_for_children_about_Saurons_ring.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/964:-1078+s.png (964, 1078)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/964:-1079+s.png (964, 1079)]<br />
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|Y<br />
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|The line "”The time has come” the Walrus said, to talk of many things" is from the poem {{w|The Walrus and the Carpenter}} by {{w|Lewis Carroll}}'s book {{w|Through the Looking-Glass}}, the sequel to {{w|Alice's Adventures in Wonderland}}. {{w|Sauron}} is the main enemy in LOTR, the one who has made the ring, and now needs it to gain his powers back. In this mixed poem the second line is changed but follows the same rhyme scheme. But although ''rings'' would have rhymed with ''things'', it of course have to ''ring'' as the {{w|walrus}} can only put the {{w|One Ring|one ring of power}} on, while uttering the now much more ominous sounding phrase ''The time has come''. Megan is reading this poem/story at the base of the volcano Mount Doom where the ring was created and later destroyed. Like Frodo, Sauron is one of the characters from LOTR who is only mentioned, not shown, in the comic.<br />
|-<br />
|Vaping Earth.<br />
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:Cueball: The Earth is vaping.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/bd/1608_0969x1077y_Vaping_Earth.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/969:-1077+s.png (969, 1077)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/968:-1077+s.png (968, 1077)]<br />
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|{{w|Vaping}} is a term used instead of smoking for the use of electronic cigarettes. There is even a game called the {{w|Vaping game}} for blowing extra large clouds of vapor out while using these substitutes for cigarettes. Cueball remarks that here it is the Earth that does so, due to the volcanic activity of the nearby volcano.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Left of play area to Kite.'''<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a9/1608_Left_of_play_area_to_Kite.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/80/1608_Left_of_play_area_to_Kite_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|This is the area from below the volcano's slope and towards the play area. There are several hidden places and pools that can be seen in the second image link.<br />
|-<br />
|Kite and weird bug.<br />
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:Mom: Check out this one weird bug, discovered by a local mom.<br />
:Girl: Oh my God, mom, stop saying everything like that.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/ae/1608_0970x1077y_Kite_and_weird_bug.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a4/1608_0970x1077y_Kite_and_weird_bug_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/970:-1077+s.png (970, 1077)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/972:-1077+s.png (972, 1077)]<br />
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|Y<br />
|Comic [[1614: Kites]] and in general the [[:Category:Kites|kite category]]. Also the [[:Category:Clickbait|Clickbait category]]<br />
|The comic was released only two weeks after this game, and although it is clearly a girl in this comic, she looks like Megan who sets up the kite in the next comic. There is also a kite in ''Sky Toucher'' in TE and kites is a recurring theme in xkcd.<br><br>The mother in that discovers the bug has a clear resemblance to [[Miss Lenhart]]. But it cannot be said conclusively that it is her. She talks like she is one of the {{w|clickbait}} headlines used for getting people to click in on the link generally aimed at generating online advertising revenue. Her daughter is tired of this, especially as it seems like the mother speaks like that all the time. The girl may be embarrassed by this, especially if she is with a friend rather than a brother. Maybe the mother has been reading too many clickbait news on-line? As noted in the other references ''clickbait'' is a recurring theme in xkcd. The mother is near a small lake, so it is likely that there is plenty of insects and other bugs. It is possible to sink into the lake as can be seen in the second image with the hidden parts shown in red.<br />
|-<br />
|Space capsule with parachutes.<br />
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:Bird thinking: I don't remember laying these but ''wow'' they're already flying. Gonna be awesome when they hatch.<br />
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:Cueball: Yes! My phone has a signal.<br />
:Voice from inside: How many new likes did we get during reentry?<br />
:Cueball: I'm checking!<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e2/1608_0976x1079y_Space_capsule_with_parachutes.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/976:-1079+s.png (976, 1079)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/976:-1080+s.png (976, 1080)]<br />
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|Y<br />
|Comic : [[1133: Up Goer Five]]<br />
|The book TE was based on the comic ''Up Goer Five'' which was about the rocket that took this space capsule to the moon. When it lands it uses three large parachutes to slow down after the main brake-down during reentry. On top of these sits a bird looking like a hen. It is a hen that can think, but it is still not very clever. It believes that this is three eggs, and is amazed that they are already flying before they hatch, which is of course ridiculous, but they do float in the air...<br><br>The astronauts inside (two at least, but there should be three if it was one of the moon landing missions) has just been waiting to get close enough to Earth again that they can get a signal on their smart phones. Cueball is even opening the hatch during descend to increase this chance, which would be highly dangerous. Also normally they would land in water (which will though not be the case this time). The reason he does this is that they wish to know how many more likes they (and their mission) has received during the reentry. This would have been relevant if the moon landings had taken place today. There where no social media or internet back in 1969. This is similar to the Cueball who is trapped in the lava lair without connection to Twitter.<br />
|-<br />
|Girl running to other girl and small forest.<br />
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:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/30/1608_0978x1077y_Girl_running_to_other_girl_and_small_forrest.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/978:-1077+s.png (978, 1077)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/976:-1077+s.png (976, 1077)]<br />
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|Just two young girls playing near a forest of low trees. But with the space capsule above the forest.<br />
|-<br />
|Entire well - zoom out.<br />
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:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/2e/1608_0980x1075y_Entire_well_zoom_out.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/06/1608_0980x1075y_Entire_well_zoom_out_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|Comics in the [[:Category:Well|Well series]].<br />
|There are many similarities in this well to the well series. Someone is looking into a well that has the same general appearance and there is a person inside which turned out to be the case in [[568: Well 2]]. People throw coins into it and there is a coin at the bottom in the game (although above the water.)<br />
|-<br />
|Well top.<br />
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:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/70/1608_0980x1077y_Well_top.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/980:-1077+s.png (980, 1077)]<br />
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|Cueball looks into the deep well.<br />
|-<br />
|Well bottom.<br />
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:Girl: I'm not a ghost. I just like wells.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/82/1608_0980x1073y_Well_bottom.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/aa/1608_0980x1073y_Well_bottom_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/980:-1073+s.png (980, 1073)]<br />
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|At the bottom of the well in the water (see also the hidden passages image) is a girl. Above to the left of her is a coin. Maybe thrown in by Cueball at the top. Ghost living in wells is a common theme, for instance there is a Japanese movie {{w|Banchō Sarayashiki}} whose [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0202946/releaseinfo English title] is ''Ghost in the Well''. So this is why this real girl explains that she is actually not a ghost, she just like wells and thus likes to sit in the cold water at the bottom of wells. This could be very dangerous, and she will probably have a hard time getting up. It is also a very deep well, so falling into this well might very well be lethal. There are also many stories (in this case also real stories like the one about {{w|Jessica McClure}}) about kids that fall into wells, some of them surviving being stuck for several days in the wells. Also in movies this story is often used, for instance in {{w|Batman Begins}} the young Bruce Wayne falls down a dry well and is attacked by a swarm of bats, subsequently developing a fear of bats.<br />
|-<br />
|Entire gas station with birds above<br />
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:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/b3/1608_0982x1079y_Gas_station_with_birds_above_with_coin_on_string.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/83/1608_0982x1079y_Gas_station_with_birds_above_without_coin_on_string.png Without coin]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|The two birds with a coin between them flying above the gas station is way too high up, to be discovered when just moving normally over the gas station, even jumping once up from the highest spot. This is thus one of several coins that are easily missed. There are more explanation this scene where these two individual scenes are described.<br />
|-<br />
|Gas station with x-wing.<br />
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:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/44/1608_0982x1077y_Gas_station_with_x-wing.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/982:-1077+s.png (982, 1077)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/983:-1077+s.png (983, 1077)]<br />
|Y<br />
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|Megan has managed to land her {{w|x-wing}} fighter from the rebel fleet in Star Wars right next to a standard gas station. And she has planned to fill her space ship up. That it could run on petrol for cars seems highly unlikely. The question is if she has already filled it up and is heading back with the handle to the gas stander, or if she has just discovered that the hose is not long enough to reach all the way under the wing to the fighter. It will have taken considerable skills to land this close to the station without hitting the cover over the stander. Ponytail is sitting in the shop with a coin. This is the first coin to be discovered when going left from the play-area. There is a long stretch without coins to begin with. The coins on the rock island in the sky it on this stretch, but so far above that most people would miss them altogether. There is also a coin with two birds straight above the right wing on the X-wing. But about three jumps up, so it is easy to miss. the To get into the shop you need to go over the stander and back. Why Cueball have crawled up in the roof is not clear. But maybe he is enjoying the view over the cliff that is to the right of the station. There is a stop sign to the left, but there seems to be no road that way. Maybe that is why you should stop...<br />
|-<br />
|Birds with coin.<br />
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:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/7e/1608_0982x1079y_Birds_with_coin.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/9e/1608_0982x1079y_Birds_without_coin.png Without coin]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/982:-1079+s.png (982, 1079)]<br />
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|Film: {{w|Monty Python and the Holy Grail}}<br />
|In the film it is discussed if two swallows could carry a coconut between them on a string as the two birds do with the coin here. First when the coin has been taken, can the string between the birds be seen (see the other image). The birds are three jumps above the X-wing below, and this coin is thus easily missed by the players. In the film the horses are simulated with the sound of two coconuts shells being hit together. Someone asks how they happened to be in England and there is discussion about migratory birds like {{w|swallows}} and the possibility that they have brought the coconuts along with them. But the consensus is that they cannot do this by themselves the coconut being to heavy, but then it is suggested that two swallows could carry it on a string between them. Later in the film someone is seen actually tying two birds together to a coconut. In this comic, we now know how the coins have been transported through the image...<br />
|-<br />
|Our kingdom from a cliff.<br />
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:Cueball: Everything the light touches is our kingdom.<br />
:Girl: What's with the shadowy place over there?<br />
:Cueball: That is beyond our borders.<br />
:Girl: No, I mean what object casts a shadow over a whole region?<br />
:Cueball: Oh, that's god. He lives over there.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a0/1608_0986x1076y_Our_kingdom_from_a_cliff.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/986:-1076+s.png (986, 1076)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/986:-1075+s.png (986, 1075)]<br />
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|Film: {{w|The Lion King}} and comic: [[1504: Opportunity]] as well as [[:Category:The Lion King|The Lion King category]]<br />
|Cueballs lines is from The Lion King and has been used directly before in the comic Opportunity. Randall has made several references to the film in xkcd, and it is obvious that he was very affected by this film that came out when he was just the right age.<br><br>Cueball is talking to a child version of Ponytail, whose mother may be the one climbing up the cliff side below. The first three lines of the quote goes as in the film, but then it turns out that the girl is properly referring to the Star Destroyer that would be clearly visible from this cliff as it covers almost the entire right part of this world from just beyond the play-area. (They do not look high enough to see the rock island in the sky, and it would also not cast shadow over an entire region.) As it is not certain players coming here have already been to the right to see the Destroyer it is not necessarily clear that the reply from Cueball should apply to the Destroyer. But if it does then it would be the Emperor Palpatine that he reefers to as God. The emperor is on board the Destroyer near the bridge at the very top rear end of the space ship and has God like powers. It could however also just be a general reference to the {{w|God}} and thus be inferred as if God cast a shadow over an entire region (country). Maybe just in general as if he has a place in the sky that cast a shadow (like sitting on a cloud). Alternatively it could be the people who believe too much in any God, that can be viewed as living under a shadow, as they will not try to see any reality if it does not fit with their religious beliefs.<br />
|-<br />
|Hamster ball bowling.<br />
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:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/53/1608_0987x1075y_Hamsterball_bowling.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/987:-1075+s.png (987, 1075)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/989:-1074+s.png (989, 1074)]<br />
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|Y<br />
|Comics: [[:Category:Hamster Ball|Hamster Ball category]]<br />
|There have been several xkcd comics with human sized hamster balls, and there is even one more in this comic up in the Destroyer. In this scene it is two young girls that use the hamster ball as a bowling ball in a human sized {{w|ten pin bowling}} game. Hopefully the little girl with the hair bun behind the pins get away in time if it is a strike. It is the first time hamster ball and bowling has been matched, but in TE there are bowling alleys both on the ship ''The USS Laws of the Land'' and on the suspension of the longest bridge in ''Tall roads'' and such an alley is also used for measuring length in ''How to count things''. One of the many large trees that are found in the drawing is standing alone in this scene. Most other places there are more than one tree together.<br />
|-<br />
|If loving you is wrong I don’t want to and Beret Guy following insects<br />
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:Cueball: If loving you is wrong, I don't want to.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/4f/1608_0990x1074y_If_loving_you_is_wrong_I_dont_want_to.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/990:-1074+s.png (990, 1074)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/991:-1074+s.png (991, 1074)]<br />
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|Song (or quote): {{w|(If Loving You Is Wrong) I Don't Want to Be Right}}<br />
|A reference to either the [http://krexy.com/if-loving-you-is-wrong general love quote] or maybe more likely to the song [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FvJj7SN9EWI performed most notably] by {{w|Luther Ingram}}. Recently (2014), there has also been a TV series produced called {{w|If Loving You Is Wrong (TV series)|If Loving You Is Wrong}}.<br><br>The quote is very romantic, because the speaker is stating that if it is wrong to love a specific person, the speaker chooses to be in love and does not wish to be right. However, Cueball twist the quote quite a lot, saying instead that if it is wrong to love Ponytail then he does not want to love her at all - taking all romance out of the statement.<br><br>Also in this scene is one of only two instances where Beret Guy appears. Typical of his past appearances, he seems to be occupied by following a small flying insect through the tall grass.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Entire Washington monument'''<br />
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:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/21/1608_0995x1079y_Entire_Washington_monument_extra_zoom_out.png Overview] <br />
[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/ae/1608_0995x1079y_Entire_Washington_monument_extra_zoom_out_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/7a/1608_0995x1078y_Middle_of_Washington_monument_zoom_out.png Central hidden passage]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6d/1608_0995x1078y_Middle_of_Washington_monument_zoom_out_red.png Hidden passages in red] <br />
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|Overview<br />
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|Comic: [[1600: MarketWatch]]<br />
|The tallest man made structure on the ground in this game is the {{w|Washington Monument}} which recently before the release of this comic was refereed to in the mentioned comic. As can be seen in the hidden passages images there are two secret passages, one at the bottom (see this scene for more) and one in the middle of the monument. The one in the central part of the monument is actually quite large, and as can be seen in the images zooming in on the central part there is also a fault line in the monument at the base of this hidden passage. But it doesn't really lead to anywhere interesting. The fault line could be a reference to the {{w|Washington_Monument#2011_earthquake_damage|earthquake damage}} from 2011 where several stones cracked.<br />
|-<br />
|Base of Washington monument with Cueball and Megan<br />
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:Cueball: Honestly, it doesn't even look that muck like Washington.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/dc/1608_0994x1074y_Base_of_Washington_monument.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/16/1608_0994x1074y_Base_of_Washington_monument_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/994:-1074+s.png (994, 1074)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/995:-1074+s.png (995, 1074)]<br />
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|At the base of the Washington Monument Megan and Cueball is looking up at it, and Cueball complains that it doesn't even look like {{w|Washington, D.C.|Washington}}. If he is referring to the city or to the monument is a bit unclear. Of course since this is the only Washington based building in the game it is true that the place doesn't look like the city. If he refers to the monument then it can be questioned if this is because the monument is not an exact replica (in proportions and/or scale). It could also just be Cueball who is not happy about it. In any case it is clearly meant as an indicator that this is supposed to look like the monument, and with the tips apex being made of aluminum (see that scene) as on the real monument, there can be no doubt what is referenced. But it is possible to get to the left side of the monument without going up to see the tip, if the player immediately understands the sign with the white arrow that actually points to a hidden passage through the base of the monument, as can be seen in the second image with the hidden passages shown in red.<br><br>To the left of the monument there is a flag pole with a blown out flag. It is all black, but it should be the {{w|Flag of the United States|the Stars and Stripes}} as there are fifty flag poles with the US flag (one for each [[1653: United States Map|state]]) surrounding the monument in a circle. On top of the pole there sits a duck looking left. Towards the end of the world to the left on top of the left volcanic rim there also sits a similar duck looking right.<br />
|-<br />
|Tip of Washington monument with Cueball and White Hat<br />
|<br />
:Cueball: Look at that- Solid aluminum!<br />
:Cueball: We´re gonna be rich!<br />
:White Hat: Uh, what the heck is ''that?!''<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6f/1608_0995x1083y_Tip_of_Washington_monument.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/995:-1083+s.png (995, 1083)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/995:-1084+s.png (995, 1084)]<br />
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|The tip of the monument is actually {{w|Washington_Monument#Aluminum_apex|made of solid aluminum}} and at the time this {{w|aluminum}} apex was installed it was a rare metal as valuable as {{w|silver}}, but today it is maybe about 1/300 as valuable as silver. So Cueball and White Hat will not become rich based on the metal value. Of course if they did steal the tip of such a famous monument, they might actually be able to sell it to a scrupulous collector at a value comparable to if was just a lump of silver of that weight.<br><br>White Hat looking over his shoulder spots the Star Destroyer and thus help guide a player that has started going left towards the Destroyer to the right. How they have managed the climb, getting the ropes over the tip, or how Cueball intends to get down with the tip is left to the readers imagination...<br />
|-<br />
|'''Entire floating rock island.'''<br />
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:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/5c/1608_0994x1110y_Entire_floating_rock_island_zoom_out.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|Film: {{w|Avatar (2009 film)|Avatar}}<br />
|This floating rock island may be a reference to the film Avatar where floating rocks is part of the scenery of the fictive moon {{w|Fictional_universe_of_Avatar#Astronomy_and_geology|Pandora}}. The rock in the game is very hard to find by chance, it is kind of unobtainable, which may be a further reference to the film since the reason the rocks do float is a combination of a weak gravity, a strong magnetic field and a mineral whose {{w|Superconductivity|superconductive properties}} allow it to float in magnetic fields. Of course the levitating Hallelujah Mountains in the film contain significant quantities of the mineral which is called {{w|Unobtanium}}. Only thing pointing towards it is the Washington Monument and even if you go up from there, pushing the up arrow continuously for more than half a minute you may almost miss it, as only the far right girl would move through the view. And with two coins around this island it is important to find it in order to get all coins. Apart from the coins and the surprise there is little of interest here, and not even any spoken text.<br><br>To the right just beneath the rear end of the Destroyer there is a small lump of earth that has floated up from the ground, hovering over the corresponding hole in the ground. Maybe this is caused by the same force that have created this floating island.<br />
|-<br />
|Top left of floating rock island with coin.<br />
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:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/f5/1608_0989x1112y_Top_of_floating_rock_island_with_coin.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/990:-1112+s.png (990, 1112)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/990:-1111+s.png (990, 1111)]<br />
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|The large rock on top of the floating island is one of only two places where there is anything at a coordinate of Y=1112. On top of the globe of Death over the bridge of the destroyer, there are three images at the top of this that enters 1112. And there [http://xkcd.com/1608/1078:-1112+s.png the very top] is just slightly higher up. But there is no coin there, so the coin that would be in the tile used for main reference here that holds the coin is the highest location for any coin in the game, as the Globe of Death has its coin in its center below the top.<br />
|-<br />
|Top right of floating rock island with base jumpers.<br />
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:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/92/1608_0993x1112y_Top_of_floating_rock_island_with_base_jumpers.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/994:-1111+s.png (994, 1111)]<br />
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|Y<br />
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|In ''Sky Toucher'' in TE two people jump of a cloud, like the base jumpers Megan and Ponytail does here from the floating rock, but at least these two girls do have parachutes on (as opposed to the cloud jumpers in TE). How they got here is a good question, but of course they could have flown here in for instance the X-wing from below at the gas station.<br />
|-<br />
|Bottom of floating rock island with coin.<br />
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:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e1/1608_0992x1109y_Bottom_middle_of_floating_rock_island_with_coin.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/992:-1109+s.png (992, 1109)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/993:-1109+s.png (993, 1109)]<br />
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|At the bottom of the island several small and large boulders can be seen hanging only loosely on to the bottom. At the center the largest rock can be seen, but even this is slipping a little as can be seen by the small white speck high over the very bottom of this boulder. Right of this is the other coin that belongs to this hidden place in the sky.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Entire Play Area - zoom out.'''<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/7b/1608_1001x1074y_Entire_Play_Area_Zoom_out.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/8b/1680_Play_Area_Full_Size_Coins_Hoverboard_and_View.png With starting view]<br />
|Overview<br />
|<br />
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|The entire play area with the walls and their outer foundation. See also the insert with the starting view shown in red in the second image link and see more about the buildup of scenes from the individual image tiles using the [[#Play Area used as example|play area down below]]. It is easy to see how a player of the game, with no knowledge of Randall's way of thinking, may not even think about exploring outside this area, even if they do try to go outside the maze. Because it is possible to jump around in the maze without discovering that you can actually fly rather than just jump. If you only jump once you cannot see the too op the walls. On top of this there is the large [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/ae/Return_to_the_play_area.PNG red warning letters] telling you to go back if you try to leave the confines of the wall.<br />
|-<br />
|The Play Area.<br />
|<br />
:My new book,<br />
:''Thing Explainer,''<br />
:comes out today!<br />
:To celebrate, here's<br />
:a small game.<br />
<br />
:Deposit coins here<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6c/1608_1000x1074y_The_Play_Area.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/30/1608_1000x1074y_The_Play_Area_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1000:-1074+s.png (1000, 1074)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1000:-1075+s.png (1000, 1075)]<br />
|<br />
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|Y<br />
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|This is the starting area where the game begins. There is even some extra text telling you to ''Use arrow keys to move'' but as soon as you do, this text disappears, just like the [[#Messages in Play Area|message you can receive]] below in the view depending on your action in this area. The text below the starting point of the hoverboard Cueball that you control, explains that the game is released on this day to celebrate the release of Randall's new book [[Thing Explainer]] and thus directly references the book. And also explains why this comic has been made, and furthermore why it was released on a Tuesday rather than the usual Wednesday release, which was then skipped this week. It also explains that if you collect coins you can deposit them at the terminal, and when you do it list the score (number of coins and the time used) and rates your achievement. By noting that [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/7e/17_coins.PNG you got all the coins] if you collect all 17 coins in the play area maze, then it is one more trick to try to make you stay inside the walls of the maze. There is only one small feature that can be spotted from within the maze that breaks the symmetry and may give away the clue of the game. And that is the small stone that lies on the ground to the left. Because why should it be there, if this was just a platform/maze game. The walls cannot be seen if you stay in or just around the outer wall of the maze. But if you go to them you may think this is the end. Another detail about the game to be learned already here is that there can be "solid" black parts of the surroundings which are not solid at all. This can be seen in the image showing the hidden passages in red. Here it can be seen that the ledge beneath the two inverted parenthesis " )( " is not solid, and that you can fall or jump up through this section. This could forewarn you of the hidden passages, especially to the lair beneath the volcano which are the only real hidden place based on hidden passages, but also for those in the Washington Monument and in the cotton trap in the Destroyer and the glitch floor also on the Destroyer.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Everything Right of Washington monument.'''<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/66/1608_Everything_Right_of_washington_monument.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|Most of the details in the image is found to the right of the play-area, mainly in the form of the rooms in the Destroyer. On the ground only a few artifacts are large enough to be seen in this zoomed out version. The three T's and the forest, and then of course the pyramid. Interestingly enough there are almost more to be seen inside the Destroyer with the two large rooms (the cave and the Glitch floor room) both being large enough to [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/bf/1608_Entire_Cave_With_entire_pyramid_for_scale.png accommodate the entire pyramid].<br />
|-<br />
|Cueball outside play area.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c0/1608_1004x1074y_Cueball_outside_play_area.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1004:-1074+s.png (1004, 1074)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1003:-1074+s.png (1003, 1074)]<br />
|<br />
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|Typically reading direction would lead a player to this location first after escaping the play area. Is this is indeed the case then the grass and after that Cueball is the first hint that something more is going to happen in this game. Apart from the Cueball standing inside the play area, this is the closest person to the play area. He is just standing there doing nothing, so it is still not clear how big this is going to be.<br />
|-<br />
|Megan points at Runner after forest.<br />
|<br />
:Megan: Wow.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/53/1608_1008x1074y_Megan_points_at_Runner_after_forest.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1008:-1074+s.png (1008, 1074)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1006:-1074+s.png (1006, 1074)]<br />
|<br />
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|The small forest with two large trees and several small ones is the first really interesting to show up if exiting the play area to the right for the first time and finally a person actually speaking shows up (although Cueball at the base of the Washington Monument to the right would be closer). Megan is not saying much, but she is clearly reacting to something. It could be to one or both the space ships above her. Since the Destroyer is already on top of her, as the front end of that ship is just short of being above the right wall of the play area, then it could also be the Rebel Runner she is pointing out. No matter what, following her arm going up and right it is likely that the runner will enter the view, but it is possible to miss it, in which case there would be a long way up to the Destroyer. Megan and Cueball is standing on the edge of a cliff, offering them an excellent view. Stepping down on the plateau below the cliff takes the player close to the lowest possible level to be at in the game. There are no tiles with any white below that level (1073). But the lowest point is first in the Ocean.<br />
|-<br />
|Cliff with rock and cactus.<br />
|<br />
:(None, or rather the text has been written in the previous scene)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/f2/1608_1010x1073y_Cliff_with_rock_and_cactus.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c4/1608_1010x1073y_Cliff_with_rock_and_cactus_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1010:-1073+s.png (1010, 1073)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1008:-1073+s.png (1008, 1073)]<br />
|<br />
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|After the grassy ground and the forest above the cliff to the left this marks the beginning of a long stretch of barren land ending in a dessert before reaching the ocean. Here a cactus and two large boulders display this inhospitable terrain. It seems like something is sitting on top of the smaller boulder, this could be a lizard, but it is too small to be certain. But that it is not part of the rock can be seen in the other image showing the parts of the image that you can walk through in red. And this small "lizard" is obviously sitting on top of the boulder.<br />
|-<br />
|Entire wires from ground to Runner.<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/76/1608_1014x1076y_Entire_wires_from_ground_to_Runner.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
|<br />
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|Here is the first direct link from the ground to the Destroyer. This specific link takes the player from the ground level up along one of the three wires to the bottom of the hull of the Rebel Runner. If you went straight for the runner without going further right, the first coin you would find to the right would be one of the three at the runner. Else the first coin to the right (along the ground) would be in the dunes before Ponytail to the right.As can be seen the three wires are held by people and are then attached with anchors to the hull. Megan is climbing up the last of the three wires. See more in the specific scenes. <br />
|-<br />
|Three wires and people holding on on the ground<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c9/1608_1013x1073y_Three_wires_and_people_holding_on.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1013:-1073+s.png (1013, 1073)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1011:-1073+s.png (1011, 1073)]<br />
|<br />
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|Three pairs of people are trying to hold on the three wires going straight up. Cueball and Megan holds on leaning left on the left wire, another Cueball and Hairy hold on to each side of the middle wire and finally yet a Cueball holds on to the last, while a small girl with a hair bun steps on the end of the wire, like she would be able to walk it like a tightrope. This should not be physically possible as the ropes do not seem to be attached to the ground, at least not the one to the left. But there can be no doubt that the drawing shows her standing with both feet on the rope. She is thus not helping Cueball. From here it is not yet know to the player that it is the Rebel Runner they have caught (with anchors) above, but when this becomes clear it will also be clear that they have no chance of holding on to the space ship. But here it seems they are doing a great job. The ground is barren between these wires and a {{w|tumbleweed}} is blowing along to make this even more clear. This part of a plant was also mentioned in a toast in [[1645: Toasts]].<br />
|-<br />
|Three wires Megan hanging on that reaches up to three anchors in the bottom hull of the Runner.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/58/1608_1014x1078y_Three_wires_and_reaching_up_to_anchors_in_Runner.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1015:-1076+s.png (1015, 1076)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1014:-1078+s.png (1014, 1078)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|Megan tries to climb up the last of the wires going from the ground, and it turns out that it leads up to the bottom of the hull of the Rebel Runner. Not to a really good spot in her wires case, as there seems to be nothing to help her get inside the runner from there. The other two wires comes up to a canon close to an entrance, where Cueball is fishing birds with a crumb of bread or a cracker on the end of the hook. (The bird fishing scene is also depicted when going through the Runner [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/bc/1608_1012x1078y_Bridge_on_the_Rebel_Blockade_Runner.png down below]). All three wires ends in anchors that are here used the reverse way of a normal anchor, with the anchor attached to the ship instead of to the bottom of the sea (or at least the ground below an air ship). In ''Red world space car'' in TE, Megan is also seen hanging on to a rope like this.<br />
|-<br />
|Ponytail in the dunes - zoom out.<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/33/1608_1015x1073y_Ponytail_in_the_dunes_zoom_out.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|Y<br />
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|Ponytail is standing in the dunes of the desert that continues after the barren landscape to the left of the desert. Here a zoom out of the entire desert with the first three coins along the ground to the right. The Rebel Runner flying above this dune landscape is a reference to the desert planet {{w|Tatooine}} where the opening scene is taking place.<br />
|-<br />
|Ponytail in the dunes.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c4/1608_1015x1073y_Ponytail_in_the_dunes.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1015:-1073+s.png (1015, 1073)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1016:-1073+s.png (1016, 1073)]<br />
|<br />
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|Ponytail is standing in the desert on top of a small dune, as these get increasingly higher further right into the desert. The coin to the left of her at the tip of a dune is the first along the ground when going right. It is soon followed by a second one at the base of the largest dune in desert.<br />
|-<br />
|The largest dune.<br />
|<br />
:(None - the text is written in the scene centered on the ocean)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/0a/1608_1017x1073y_The_largest_dune.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1017:-1073+s.png (1017, 1073)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1018:-1073+s.png (1018, 1073)]<br />
|<br />
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|The largest dune in the desert, also shown partly in the scene with Ponytail, also has a coin at the other base. After this there is only one smaller dune and then the desert stops at the shore of a small sea or ocean.<br />
|-<br />
|Entire ocean.<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/0e/1608_1022x1073y_Entire_ocean.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/0c/1608_1022x1073y_Entire_ocean_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|The sea/ocean consist of a rather large body of water with a tall wave in the center. It is quite deep as can be seen in the other image with the water shown in red. Where the sea is deepest, is also the point that is the lowest hoverboard Cueball can get in the entire image. It is the closest that anything other than completely black comes to the level with Y=1072.<br />
|-<br />
|Megan rates the Sea.<br />
|<br />
:Megan: This is an OK sea.<br />
:Megan:★★☆☆☆<br />
:[She actually rates 2½ stars which cannot be transcribed].<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/99/1608_1019x1073y_Megan_rates_the_Sea.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c8/1608_1019x1073y_Megan_rates_the_Sea_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1019:-1073+s.png (1019, 1073)]<br />
|<br />
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|It is very unusually to rate a sea, like you would a film or book, or a restaurant or museum. But today it is also common to rate anything you have used on-line like an internet shop or a company you have used. So this may be a jab at all the people that rate everything in stars. According to [[1098: Star Ratings]] 2½ stars as an online star ratings means that the sea is a crap sea, so this indicates that Megan's rating should not be viewed as such, since she also exclaims that it is an OK sea, as in a acceptable. All in all another joke about online behavior, like the reference to Twitter and likes in the volcanic lair and the space shuttle respectively.<br />
|-<br />
|Rouge wave.<br />
|<br />
:Wave: I know rogue waves seem implausible, but we're a straightforward consequence of the equations of fluid dynamics.<br />
:Cueball: ...But you can talk?<br />
:Wave: The equations are really complicated.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/11/1608_1022x1073y_Rouge_wave.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/bf/1608_1022x1073y_Rouge_wave_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1022:-1073+s.png (1022, 1073)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1023:-1073+s.png (1023, 1073)]<br />
|<br />
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|Comic: [[1315: Questions for God]]<br />
|{{w|Fluid dynamics}} is a complex subdiscipline of {{w|fluid mechanics}} that deals with fluid flow. Although it is not their main target they can also be used for {{w|surface waves}} which would be like the {{w|rogue wave}} in this scene. This kind of waves is also known as freak waves, monster waves etc. They are large and spontaneous surface waves that occur far out in open water, and can be extremely dangerous. But as the wave describes to Cueball these big waves can be predicted from the equations in fluid dynamics. Of course Cueball is less afraid of the wave (even though it is {{w|Rogue (vagrant)|rouge}}), than he is fascinated by the fact that it speaks. The wave just replies that the equations are really complicated. That this is the case was for instance part of [[1315: Questions for God]] where a famous quote regarding turbulent motion of fluids is mentioned. {{w|Turbulence}} is also described by fluid dynamics, so they are part of the equations and the {{w|Horace_Lamb#Career| quote}} by {{w|Horace Lamb}} was: "I am an old man now, and when I die and go to heaven there are two matters on which I hope for enlightenment. One is {{w|quantum electrodynamics}}, and the other is the turbulent motion of fluids. And about the former I am rather optimistic." He turned out to be correct as nowadays we have a much clearer understanding of QED, while our understanding of turbulence has improved little. {{w|Richard Feynman}}, who was himself largely responsible for explaining QED, famously {{w|Turbulence|described turbulence}} as "the most important unsolved problem of classical physics". So who knows if these formulas could describe a talking wave? A coin crowns the wave.<br />
|-<br />
|Ruins with Cueball singing of Spiders and Panama.<br />
|<br />
:Cueball singing:<br />
::Spider-man <br />
:::Spider-plan<br />
::Spider-canal<br />
:::Spider-Panama<br />
::Gates let in<br />
:::Spider boats<br />
::Flood the locks<br />
:::Spiders float<br />
::''Look out!''<br />
::Spiders in both oceans.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/0d/1608_1026x1073y_Ruins_with_Cueball_singing_of_Spiders_and_Panama.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1026:-1073+s.png (1026, 1073)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1027:-1073+s.png (1027, 1073)]<br />
|<br />
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|<br />
|Comic: [[1632: Palindrome]] and the [[:Category:Spiders|Spiders category]]<br />
|<font color="red">Any explanation for the ruin?</font> The palindrome comic was released shortly after this and used a palindrome about the {{w|Panama canal}} which is the first four lines with ''Spider-'' changed with "A" the first three times and then with nothing before Panama as in ''"A Man, A Plan, A Canal: Panama''. The song is inspired by the {{w|Spider-Man (theme song)|Spider-Man theme song}} (see this [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUtziaZlDeE video]), but takes it in a rather different direction. Spiders have been a recurring theme and as the rest of the song tells that the spiders have now breached through the Panama canal using spider-boats and by flooding the gates (in the canal) so now there are spiders in both oceans. If they came from the {{w|Atlantic ocean}} to the {{w|Pacific ocean}} or the other way around is not clear, but there are now spiders on both sides of the {{w|Central America|Central American}} strip of land. If the line ''Spiders float'' refer to actually floating spiders or just because they float on their boat is unclear. But we are forewarned about these spreading spiders with a '''''Look out!''''' (another lyric from the Spider-Man theme song). This threat continues the theme of the [[:Category:Red Spiders|Red Spiders]] especially those from [[126: Red Spiders Cometh]].<br><br>There is a coin inside the ruin beneath Cueball who sits on top of the ruin and both sings the song and plays the guitar. Megan just stands inside the ruin at ground level and listens. It is not difficult to get to the coin, but there is only entrance into the little coin room between the ledge under Cueball and the ceiling of the lower room. But it is possible to walk directly in their from the left. Maybe the ruin is in this state of affair because the spiders have crossed the ocean just to the left, the shore of this can be seen at the edge of the scene. But there is no indication of any spiders anywhere else in the comic, in spite of the many animals throughout the comic.<br />
|-<br />
|Ponytail flying.<br />
|<br />
:Ponytails arms: Flap Flap Flap Flap Flap Flap Flap<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/3b/1608_1029x1073y_Ponytail_flying.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1029:-1073+s.png (1029, 1073)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1030:-1073+s.png (1030, 1073)]<br />
|<br />
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|<br />
|Ponytail manages to fly by just flapping her arms violently, a feat that is of course not possible. It keeps he above the coin on the ground, so the player can get to it first... In the Destroyer another Ponytail seems to be [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/76/1608_1053x1091y_Ponytail_flying_up_a_shaft_towards_a_coin.png flying straight up in a shaft] towards a coin this time without using her arms as wings. So her flying is a small theme in the game. (It is not close to being directly above the Ponytail on the ground as the Ponytail in the Destroyer is just past the pyramid on the ground).<br />
|-<br />
|Entire forest - zoom out.<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/3a/1608_1032x1074y_Entire_forest_zoom_out.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
|<br />
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|This is the largest collection of such tall trees, and if all smaller trees are counted probably also the largest collection of trees in general. In the left part of the world there is a scene with lots of trees, but they are all smaller than even the two medium-sized trees besides the five really large. the last tree to the right somehow belongs more to the wedding scene just right of it, but there are smaller trees all the way up to it, making it part of this forest. Drawing trees like this is often used in xkcd and in particularly also allot in ''click and drag''.<br />
|-<br />
|Left part of forest.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/56/1608_1032x1074y_Left_part_of_forest.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1032:-1074+s.png (1032, 1074)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1033:-1074+s.png (1033, 1074)]<br />
|<br />
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|The left part of the forest has the largest trees and also the two coins, one in the fork of the first big trees and another some way above the first substantial tree to the left. It is just high enough that it will be missed by just sliding along the ground, and even when jumping to get the other coin it will still not necessarily enter into the viewing frame, so it can be considered one of the slightly hidden coins in the game.<br />
|-<br />
|Right part of forest.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/37/1608_1034x1073y_Right_part_of_forest.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1034:-1073+s.png (1034, 1073)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1035:-1073+s.png (1035, 1073)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
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|The right part of the forest has the last two trees in the clump of four large ones, and then small to tiny trees continue the "forest" until the final tree, just beyond which the wedding takes place, and this tree also seems to be part of that scene.<br />
|-<br />
|Wedding and picnic.<br />
|<br />
:Priest: And if any here can give cause why these two should not be wed,<br />
:Priest: The Great Jabba the Hutt will now listen to your pleas.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c9/1608_1038x1073y_Wedding_and_picnic.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1038:-1073+s.png (1038, 1073)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1040:-1074+s.png (1040, 1074)]<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
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|Megan, in a black wedding dress, and Cueball, with a tie, is married by a female priest in front of a crowd of five sitting in chairs in front of them. In the crowd there is yet another Cueball, Hairy and Ponytail, but the last two it not familiar in xkcd one has a cap on backwards and then a person (M/W?) with black. Just before a {{w|wedding}} it is sometimes customary to ask if any in the crowd has could give a cause why these two people should not be wed. What is not customary is to threaten those who do have any objections that they would then have to plea these in front of the great gangster boss from Star Wars, {{w|Jabba the Hutt}}. In case he has condoned this wedding then you may end up pleading for him to kill you mercifully if you did object anyway. The normal way of saying what the priest does goes more [http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bcp/marriage.pdf like this]: "If any of you can show just cause why they may not lawfully be married, speak now; or else for ever hold your peace." (See the top of page 4 of the pdf file in the link (page 424) and a discussion about this sentences use [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=635317 in real life]).<br><br>Beyond the wedding another Megan is sitting on a large boulder facing the wedding, and behind her a third Cueball is having a picnic with a second Ponytail. The question here is if Megan looks at the wedding or turns her back to the picnic. Depending if the player went right along the ground to begins with and saw the wedding first or went through the Destroyer and came back the other way and saw the picnic first the players preconceptions on this questions may be completely different. In either case it still looks like Megan would have liked to be with Cueball (either the one in the tie or the one at the picnic. Of course with characters drawn "randomly" in many places she may bot even belong to either scene. Standing on the rock with Megan hoverboard Cueball cannot see either of the scenes, but standing between Megan and either scene, she can be seen together with either of the relevant Cueball and another girl. In the first case with the wedding, she might have wished she had the courage to speak up in spite of the Jabba threat. In the other case she may feel rejected by the happy picnic couple and has turned her back to them. Poor Megan. Ponytail and Cueball seems to enjoy their picnic lunch in the open air though.<br />
|-<br />
|Cemetery.<br />
|<br />
:Megan: They're inscribed with our family motto, ”Cur ego committitur dictar latinae,” which means ”Why did I just start speaking Latin?”<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/7b/1608_1042x1074y_Cemetary.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1042:-1074+s.png (1042, 1074)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1043:-1074+s.png (1043, 1074)]<br />
|<br />
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|<font color="red">Someone with better Latin knowledge than using Google translate would be most welcome to chip in here</font> It is so common to have your motto translated in to the dead language {{w|Latin}} that there even is an entire category for {{w|Category:Latin mottos|Latin mottos}} on Wikipedia. Since no one really speaks the language anymore, and only few learn it well enough to just read any sentence, by doing so you actually hide this motto that you probably would like to tell people about. Of course if it is famous then many will now the meaning just from the Latin words like for instance {{w|Carpe diem}} (seize the day). However, most of the time, like the one Megan is explaining to her friend, it would make much more sense to just write it in your native language (English in this case), but then of course there would be no need for a motto, where you ask yourself why you suddenly again changed into Latin. So it is a very Meta joke. There is also a cemetery in Click and Drag.<br><br>The Latin in the motto is not correct, but close, and it could both be Randall that just tried his best, or on purpose as there are probably many "private" mottoes out there that has not been checked by a professor in Latin. The original sentence ''Cur ego committitur dictar latinae'' cannot be translated by for instance {{w|Google Translate}} as the word ''dictar'' does not mean anything in Latin. But if it had meant speaking it would be close as the Google translation comes up with ''Why did I start '''dictar''' Latin''. Also the word ''just'' is completely missing, but could have been included by using ''iustus''. However, this part could have been added when Megan translated her already ''silly'' motto. ''Dictar'' is, however, not that far from some words that do make sense in the context. For instance ''dicta'' without the "R" means ''statements'' and ''dicti'' means ''said''. ''To speak'' is ''dicere'' (still relatively close to dictar), but ''speaking'' generally translates to ''loquitur'' but also dicere can be used here. Going the other way by just putting the English sentence into the translator ''Why did I just start speaking Latin'' gives this: ''Cur ego solum Latine loquantur'' (but only if the question mark is not used???) This, however, then translates back to ''Why did I only speak Latin'' so it makes no sense. The best Latin sentence seems to be ''Cur ego iustus committitur loquitur Latinae?'' which Google translates directly to the correct ''Why did I just start speaking Latin?'' sentence. However, by using dicere (which should be interchangeable with loquitur) as in ''Cur ego iustus committitur dicere Latinae'' this translates (again only without the questions mark???) to ''Why did I just start to speak Latin''. As the meaning is the same as the previous sentence and since dicere is at least close to dictar, and since ''just'' is not really needed then the sentence: ''Cur ego committitur dicere Latinae?'' comes close enough to real Latin and the quote and the meaning as Google translates this into ''Why did I start to speak Latin?''<br />
|-<br />
|Huge foot.<br />
|<br />
:Cueball: It says ”Yo, future dirtbags! Check out my huge foot!”<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d0/1608_1046x1074y_Huge_foot.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1046:-1074+s.png (1046, 1074)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1047:-1074+s.png (1047, 1074)]<br />
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|Y<br />
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|In ''How to count things'' in TE there is also a drawing of a huge foot, used to count mass, not length... The two Cueballs check out an inscription at the foot ([[559: No Pun Intended|pun intended]]) of a monument. Typically old relics from the past has been demolished, and if only part of a human body is displayed (at least when it is not just a {{w|Bust (sculpture)|bust}} supposed to only have head and shoulders), then it is often assumed that the rest of the statue has been lost. Just like the missing arms of the ancient Greek statue {{w|Venus de Milo}}. These arms was there originally. But as it turns out as Cueball reads the transcription someone in the past just wished to show the future his huge foot. Suggesting that this is either actual size, or just that he was very proud of at least one of his feet. He also mock anyone reading the inscription by calling them the derogating word [http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=dirtbag dirtbags]. This is a recent word so if this was an ancient monument it would be highly unlikely that it said that. Of course it could be Cueballs translation of what is actually written, or as this is not necessarily old, it is not just part of the original monument but the entire unbroken statue of a foot, then it could be a contemporary artist who made it. However it is just in front of the pyramid to the right, and in front of the real pyramid {{w|Pyramid of Khafre}} the {{w|Great Sphinx of Giza}}, also much larger than life size lies. (It has lost it's nose by the way). So this could be the games version of such a large statue in front of a pyramid.<br><br>As from the scene to the left of this giant foot, the inscription that Cueball reads is probably in Latin, in which case it could have read something along the lines of: ''Io, de futuro sacculo terra! Reprehendo sicco meus ingens radices!'' (which could be translated back to ''Io, for the future of the bag, earth Check out my huge foot!'', since there was no words for ''Yo dirtbags'' in Latin.<br />
|-<br />
|Entire Pyramid.<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/1d/1608_1050x1075y_Pyramid_Entire_zoom_out.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/bf/1608_Entire_Cave_With_entire_pyramid_for_scale.png Size scale of Destroyer]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|A smooth pyramid with Ponytail in front of the left side and a coin at the tip. It is large but not compared to the Destroyer above it. To illustrate the other image shows that the pyramid could comfortably be placed inside the cave in the Destroyer. There is also a pyramid in Click and Drag.<br />
|-<br />
|Pyramid protip.<br />
|<br />
:Ponytail: Protip:<br />
:Ponytail: Don't stop climbing just because you reach the top.<br />
:Ponytail: ☑ Show tips on startup<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/50/1608_1048x1074y_Pyramid_protip.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1048:-1074+s.png (1048, 1074)]<br />
|<br />
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|Comics: [[:Category:Protip|Protip category]]<br />
|Ponytail greets the player as (if) he approaches the pyramid from the left. She points up the side of the pyramid and gives a protip (a feature often used in xkcd). The tip is yet another indication that the Destroyer is above (the tip) of the pyramid. She tells the player to keep "climbing" after the top (that is not usually possible, but the hoverboard can keep on flying). By doing so the player may reach up to the entrance leading into the spiral corridor (although it will be difficult to keep the same incline as the pyramid on the way up). Ponytails last remark about showing tips on startup makes her sound like she is some kind of program, that can give you interesting hints and tips every time you start the program. If you do not wish this, you can just leave the [http://help.formulatrix.com/rock-maker/3.4/Content/Resources/Images/RM%203.0.3/StartUp%20Tips.png check box unchecked]. This is the last scene with spoken words (or other text) along the right ground, although it is only halfway from the play area to the right end of this world.<br />
|-<br />
|Pyramid tip.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/f6/1608_1050x1076y_Pyramid_tip.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1051:-1076+s.png (1051, 1076)]<br />
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|At the very tip of the pyramid there is a coin. This is the highest point in the right part of the world, that is directly connected with the ground through a fixed structure (i.e. not a wire). In most of the left part of the world even the ground level is higher, and the Washington Monument is much taller. The next coins is five scenes longer to the right as nothing much happens on the remaining stretch along the ground towards the end of the right part of the world from here.<br />
|-<br />
|Pyramid Right bottom.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c5/1608_1053x1074y_Pyramid_Right_bottom.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1053:-1074+s.png (1053, 1074)]<br />
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|As opposed to the left side of the pyramid with a protip, there is nothing on the right side of the pyramid, even the ground is completely featureless, and actually continuous to be so for a while as can be seen in the next two scenes. It is the longest stretch along the ground with no features of interest and also almost completely flat ground. Even the third scene from here is still without characters although there at least is some ground features. For certain the entertainment of the right side is up above in the Destroyer.<br />
|-<br />
|Flat and bare ground.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/19/1608_1056x1074y_Flat_and_bare_ground.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1056:-1074+s.png (1056, 1074)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1057:-1074+s.png (1057, 1074)]<br />
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|The first of several "boring" scenes without much feature. This though, even without much plant life probably takes the prize as thee most featureless scene in the game. <br />
|-<br />
|Flat grassy ground.<br />
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:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d2/1608_1059x1074y_Flat_grassy_ground.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1059:-1074+s.png (1059, 1074)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1060:-1074+s.png (1060, 1074)]<br />
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|The second in a row of several "boring" scenes without much feature. This though have a little more grass than the previous scene...<br />
|-<br />
|Small cliff or hill.<br />
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:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/99/1608_1063x1075y_Small_cliff_or_hill.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1063:-1075+s.png (1063, 1075)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1062:-1074+s.png (1062, 1074)]<br />
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|Almost as boring as the previous two scenes, but at least there is a little cliff. <br />
|-<br />
|The three T's.<br />
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:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/15/1608_1066x1075y_The_three_Ts.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1066:-1075+s.png (1066, 1075)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1067:-1075+s.png (1067, 1075)]<br />
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|Computer games<br />
|<font color="red">Could there be another explanation than computer games, or at least another game that comes even closer in appearance?</font> These three T's with Megan on top of the first, looks similar to scenes from many {{w|Platform game|platform computer games}}, like for instance [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/PlatformGame this example] from {{w|Mario Bros.}}.<br />
|-<br />
|Coin over grass hole.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/71/1608_1071x1074y_Coin_over_grass_hole.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/b6/1608_1071x1074y_Coin_over_grass_hole_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1071:-1074+s.png (1071, 1074)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1072:-1074+s.png (1072, 1074)]<br />
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|The fourth "boring" scene in a row at least have a coin. The grass is rather tall in this location and there are also two small hills to the left, and behind the coin another small bump to the right. The coin is located over a small hole that is filled with grass, so when the player takes the coin hoverboard Cueball will [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/58/Grasshole_under_coin.PNG sink to his waist].<br />
|-<br />
|Ponytail and bird black hat on a stick and Cueball whistling.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/bc/1608_1073x1074y_Ponytail_and_bird_black_hat_on_a_stick_and_Cueball_whistling.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1073:-1074+s.png (1073, 1074)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1074:-1074+s.png (1074, 1074)]<br />
|<br />
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|Ponytail is walking towards a small cliff with a flying bird following behind her. She approaches a black hat on a stick, looking like Black Hats hat. He usually never leaves without it, so it seems a little strange to find i hanging there. It is actually quite hard to find any Black Hat's in the comic, but above in the Destroyer, just slightly to the left of this hat the only instance of Black Hat in the game sits and snores in the Cave. So he is not only represented by this hat. A kid looking like Cueball stand to the right below the cliff. He seems to be either singing or whistling.<br />
|-<br />
|Small stone pile.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/04/1608_1078x1074y_Small_stone_pile.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1078:-1074+s.png (1078, 1074)]<br />
|<br />
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|After a small step down in the terrain height the only feature of this fifth boring scene is a small stone pile that seems to be made of 5-6 small stones with different size not ordered after size, so it looks like it could easily fall over. The pile is solid, so the player need to jump to get past it and hoverboard Cueball can stand on top of it.<br />
|-<br />
|Two birds and coin above them.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/33/1608_1081x1074y_Two_birds_and_coin_above_them.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1081:-1074+s.png (1081, 1074)]<br />
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|Once again two birds are seen together, this time they are not (as over the gas station to the left) tied together with string. But also here there is a coin, and just like there it is hidden. Not so much as over the gas station, as here the birds can be seen from the ground, but the coin can only be seen by jumping once. Walking along the ground would let the birds enter into the view but not the coin right above them.<br />
|-<br />
|Pedestal.<br />
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:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/bf/1608_1086x1074y_Pedestal.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1086:-1074+s.png (1086, 1074)]<br />
|<br />
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|Once again a very boring scene (6th) but at least there is a small pedestal to the right. In it self not very interesting, but if the player drops straight down out of the rear entry of the Destroyer above, hoverboard Cueball will land on this pedestal.<br />
|-<br />
|Medusa and floating earth.<br />
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:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e5/1608_1088x1074y_Medusa_and_floating_earth.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1088:-1074+s.png (1088, 1074)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1090:-1075+s.png (1090, 1075)]<br />
|<br />
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|The first character in four scenes is no one else but {{w|Medusa}} coming towards the player (if going right) arms outstretched and what appears to ne about 10 snakes jutting out of her head which Medusa is known for. The snakes are venomous and people who gaze upon her face would be turned to stone. So not so nice to come by and it for sure relates to the coming end of the world, at least of this worlds right end.<br><br>The floating earth to the right may be of similar origin as the floating rock island above the Washington Monument, maybe the same forces are at work. Seems like it has just been torn up from the hoke in the ground below it, like it is now floating up. If the player drops straight down from the very end of the Destroyer up above, hoverboard Cueball will land on this floating earth. Anything right of the start of the hole is no longer under the Destroyer, which anything else right of the play area until this hole has been. Could be the Destroyer's influence that creates this hole? (But not just because it passes over, because then the earth should be floating up all the way behind it).<br />
|-<br />
|White Hat hiding in the grass.<br />
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:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d9/1608_1093x1074y_White_Hat_hiding_in_the_grass.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1093:-1074+s.png (1093, 1074)]<br />
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|Another flat scenery but at least White Hat is hiding in the grass to the right, only his head showing above the high grass, so her must be either sitting or even lying down propped up on his arms. This is one of only two scenes with White Hat throughout the game.<br />
|-<br />
|Lollipop plant and coin.<br />
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:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/09/1608_1095x1075y_Lollipop_plant_and_coin.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1095:-1075+s.png (1095, 1075)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1094:-1074+s.png (1094, 1074)]<br />
|<br />
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|The seventh boring scene is lit up by a coin that hangs in the air slightly before the only feature of the scene, which appears to be a plant, with a strange lollipop shape.<br />
|-<br />
|Drifting Cueball.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/9d/1608_1098x1074y_Drifting_Cueball.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1098:-1074+s.png (1098, 1074)]<br />
|<br />
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|Another completely flat grassy landscape but with a strangely elongated Cueball drifting in the wind. Characters flying is depicted in two scenes where Ponytail flies, but she does this of her own will. Here is seems like Cueball is just drifting with the wind towards the end of the world, which is only two scenes away, and he is the last character along the ground towards the end. This is in some way reminiscent of Click and Drag, where the Cueball floating with the balloon to begin with, can also be seen at the very right end of the world. But then again here it more seems like Cueball doesn't have a choice, and he also seems to be out of shape. The shape he is in, and the relation to the end of the world could be a (loose) reference to the sixth and seventh day in [[1245: 10-Day Forecast]].<br />
|-<br />
|Just grass.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/30/1608_1103x1074y_Just_grass.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1103:-1074+s.png (1103, 1074)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1104:-1074+s.png (1104, 1074)]<br />
|<br />
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|The eight boring scene since the pyramid, with a rolling hill of grass, but only the 2nd most boring, as the most boring scene was the first scene after the pyramid because that one did not even have grass. <br />
|-<br />
|Storks nest at right end of the world with 10 coins.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/ce/1608_1107x1075y_Storks_nest_at_right_end_of_the_world_with_10_coins.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1107:-1075+s.png (1107, 1075)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1107:-1074+s.png (1107, 1074)]<br />
|<br />
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|This is the right end of the world, marked by a high pole raising up from a foundation, and on the top of the pole there is a large {{w|White stork|stork}} nest with three eggs in it. Maybe it is not a stork nest (though it looks like a {{w|White_stork#Conservation|man-made nest platform}} for storks), but an eagle nest, though they do not usually use mad made structures for their nest as do storks. But if it was an eagles nest, it could be for those two that are flying over the right tip of the volcano crater in the far of left part of the world.<br><br>With ten coins on top of the three eggs in the nest this is the place with the highest coin density in the game, but not most coins over a single image tile as that price goes to the starting tile with 11 coins. There are also 17 coins in the play area scene, but they are not as closely gathered as here, where all 10 coins are almost as close together as possible, and all of them in the same [http://xkcd.com/1608/1107:-1076+s.png completely white image tile] right above the tile with the nest and eggs.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Entire Rebel Blockade Runner'''<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/82/1608_1015x1078y_Entire_Rebel_Blockade_Runner_zoom_out.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/fd/1608_1015x1078y_Entire_Rebbel_Blockade_Runner_and_wires_zoom_out.png Also with wires]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/04/1608_1015x1078y_Entire_Rebbel_Blockade_Runner_zoom_out_to_torpedoes_and_ground.png Also with torpedoes]<br />
|Overview<br />
|<br />
|Y<br />
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|An overview of the entire Rebel Blockade Runner ''{{w|Tantive IV}}'' from the opening scene of the original Star Wars movie. It has four rooms (one blown open), a small canon room that cannot be entered by the hoverboard and two corridors. The rear is the large engines. There are three coins. There is a clear symmetry along the center, as the two canons and the two parabolic antennas are placed symmetrical on the top and bottom hull, and also the curves of the hull is symmetric. In the second image link the way to find the runner from the ground via the wires can be seen (six coins). And in the third the way to find the Destroyer above via the torpedoes can be seen (14 coins). The Destroyer is thus not hidden, like for instance the Floating Rock Island or the Hidden Lair beneath the lava lake, and there are many less direct indications that there is a runner from all the people who comment on them or even directly or indirectly point the way to the Destroyer. The Runner is supposed to be 150 m long.<br />
|-<br />
|Bridge on the Rebel Blockade Runner.<br />
|<br />
:First scene:<br />
:Long haired woman: Captain's log, stardate November 24th, 2015...<br />
:Hairbun: ''Augh!'' No! <br />
<br><br />
:Second scene:<br />
:Megan: Good against remotes is one thing, but a ''true'' Jedi trains with a T-shirt cannon.<br />
:Box: Shirts<br />
<br><br />
:Third scene:<br />
:Box: Bullets<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/bc/1608_1012x1078y_Bridge_on_the_Rebel_Blockade_Runner.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1012:-1078+s.png (1012, 1078)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1013:-1078+s.png (1013, 1078)]<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|Y<br />
|Film: The {{w|Star Trek}} universe<br />
|The bridge of the Rebel Blockade Runner is crammed with interesting scenes. First on the bridge itself a long haired woman (the captain) is mocking both Star Wars and Star Trek fans alike by using the [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcRX0Gw1aaw opening line] from the Star Trek series about stating the {{w|stardate}} for the captains log on board the first space ship ever shown in the Star Wars franchise. Hairbun behind her (it could be {{w|Princess Leia}} who also has buns but above each ear) is clearly distressed by this ”mistake”. This could either be because she is a Star Wars fan that dislike Star Trek or because the stardate used is the real date, November 24, 2015, on which the comic was released (as well as the book ''Thing Explainer'') instead of using the normal convention for stardates with a four or five digit number plus a decimal like 1513.1. Given that the long haired woman has the appearance of [[Danish]], this may be intentionally rather than a mistake. There is another reference to Star Trek universe in the scene where the torpedoes are fired from in the Destroyer above, so no less than two Trek infiltrations in the opening scene of Star Wars<br><br>Beneath the bridge there is a smaller room where Ponytail and Megan spoofs [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X69NCLxwLEY Luke's Lightsaber Training] from the original Star Wars movie where {{w|Luke Skywalker}} practices under {{w|Ben Kenobi}}'s guidance while {{w|Han Solo}} comes with snide remarks. Ponytail (in Luke's place) holds a {{w|lightsaber}} above which floats a sphere which represents the small remote controlled {{w|Jedi}} training device from that scene. Megan both guides like Ben and comments like Han. She holds some kind of cannon that she obviously loads with T-shirts from the box behind her. As she tells Ponytail, a true Jedi trains with a [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FgCz7C6jEIk t-shirt cannon]. Han Solo's quote begins like it but ends quite differently: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tOuCbDkKIs4 Good against remotes is one thing good against the living it's something else]. He would also prefer a {{w|Blaster (Star Wars)|blaster}} as he explains: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V268Qk6-xsw Hokey religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at your side kid]. There is a coin behind Ponytail<br><br>Above the bridge there is a hatch open where hoverboard Cueball may enter and a Cueball is standing behind the hatch looking down along the hull.<br><br>There are canons both above and below the hull, the one on top has a coin in front of the barrel. There is a similar canon with a coin in front on top of the Destroyer. Beneath this canon is a tiny room where another Cueball is pouring several small bullets from a bucket into a black box labeled bullets (for the canon). From this room there is a small shaft down to the main corridor in the Runner. But this shaft is too slim for hoverboard Cueball to pass up through it, or rather for the board to get in. Cueball can pass into the hole but the board holds him back from reaching up in the small room. The canon below has two of the anchors from the wires going to the ground attached around its barrel. The third anchor is stuck in the bottom hull further down the hull. It is unclear how this last has become attached to the hull!<br><br>In the corridor that runs away from the bridge a small robot on wheels drive towards left. Similar types of robots are often seen in the Star Wars universe and there is also [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/5f/1608_1034x1091y_Torpedo_canon_below_Destroyer.png another robot] looking like two of these on top of each other in the Destroyer above where the torpedoes connecting them ends up. Further down the corridor Ponytail is walking to the right while singing indicated with two notes.<br><br>Above the canon at the bottom of the hull on a ledge with an entry to the ship is a third Cueball holding a fishing rod out over the ledge so the hook hangs in the air. Maybe he is fishing for either of the two birds that are flying around the line. What appears to be a loaf of bread or [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/58/1608_1014x1078y_Three_wires_and_reaching_up_to_anchors_in_Runner.png a cracker is attached to the hook] at the end of the line. A similar scene is also found in TE in ''Sky Toucher''.<br />
|-<br />
|Death Star Plans in the Rebel Blockade Runner.<br />
|<br />
:First scene:<br />
:First Cueball: The Death Star plans are ''not'' in the main computer.<br />
:Second Cueball: Darn.<br />
:Second Cueball: See, if we had found them in the main computer, that would be good news, since it would mean no one else had them.<br />
:Second Cueball: But since we didn’t find them, we need to keep searching for anyone with a copy.<br />
:Second Cueball: That all makes sense and I ''definitely'' understand how computers work.<br />
<br><br />
:Second scene:<br />
:Third Cueball: So you just came down and made a hole in our ship without permission?<br />
:Fourth Cueball: Yup<br />
:Third Cueball: Wow, Rude.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/fa/1608_1017x1078y_Death_Star_Plans_in_the_Rebel_Blockade_Runner.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1017:-1078+s.png (1017, 1078)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1016:-1079+s.png (1016, 1079)]<br />
|Y<br />
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|<font color="red">Further explanation needed by someone with more computer skill than Second Cueball and me who wrote the current version... Also is there some reference to someone saying something like that to an attack, rather than the one with C3PO </font>The reference to the Death Star plans are from [https://youtu.be/yHfLyMAHrQE?t=340 the opening scene] in the first Star Wars movie. The sentence uttered by First Cueball is said by a Storm Trooper to Darth Vader. The [http://m.imdb.com/title/tt0076759/quotes?qt=qt0440708 rest of the quote] is not quite like in the comic. Rather is goes like this:<br />
:Darth Vader: [addressing the Tantive IV's captain, whom he is interrogating] Where are those transmissions you intercepted? WHAT have you DONE with those plans?<br />
:Captain Antilles: We intercepted no transmissions... This is a consular ship... We're on a diplomatic mission...<br />
:Darth Vader: [shouting] If this is a consular ship, WHERE is the ambassador?<br />
:Darth Vader: Commander, tear this ship apart until you find those plans! And bring me all passengers, I want them ALIVE! <br />
The comic jokes with the way Darth Vader seems to assume that if the plans had been found on the computer, then no one else would have had access to them. The second Cueball, although not Vader, represents a superior that have absolutely no idea about how computers work, in spite of his insistence that he actually do. If the data has once been intercepted they could have been shared or copied to several other computers or devices or even been printed. By finding them in the main computer they would only make sure that they were indeed intercepted, but not be certain that they have not been delivered to the rebel base.<br />
<br />
The other two Cueballs on top of the ship stand over a hole in the hull going into a small room above and left of the large room. It seems that the fourth Cueball has made this hole directly from the outside (i.e. it is not caused by an exploding torpedo from the Destroyer above). Because he confirms when the third Cueball asks if he just came down to make the hole without permission. The third Cueball thinks this is rude. This is, of course, hilarious as if a space pirate or any other attacker of a space ship would ask permission before attacking. And also the idea that he might get permission for asking is likewise crazy. To call this rude is also a weird way to look at such an attack. {{w|C3PO}} uses [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWoG9tKf1lA this as reply] to a comment made to him by a similar droid in the second movie.<br />
|-<br />
|Top rear end of the Rebel Blockade Runner.<br />
|<br />
:First scene:<br />
:First Cueball: That thing is ''huge. Imperial''-class?<br />
:Second Cueball: Yeah. Maybe a MK-1. Depends on whether this is the expanded universe or not.<br />
<br><br />
:Second scene:<br />
:Third Cueball's bow: Twang<br />
:Torpedo: Boom<br />
<br><br />
:Third scene:<br />
:Fourth Cueball: Why are they still firing?<br />
:Fifth Cueball: Oh, the turret operators pretty much do their own thing.<br />
:Fifth Cueball: It's definitely a pain sometimes.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/f1/1608_1018x1079y_Top_rear_end_of_the_Rebel_Blockade_Runner.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1018:-1079+s.png (1018, 1079)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1019:-1080+s.png (1019, 1080)]<br />
|Y<br />
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|In this overview of the top rear of the hull of the Runner, there are four scenes with two persons in each, with no less than six Cueballs. Beginning with the scene to the far left the two first Cueballs discuss what type of Star Destroyer is shooting at their ship from above them. They are clearly tilting their head far back to look up. The first Cueball comments on how huge it is and asks if it is an {{w|Star_Destroyer#Imperial_class|''Imperial'' class}} Destroyer. "''Imperial'' class" is the designation of the Destroyer ''[http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Devastator Devastator]'' that followed the Rebel Runner ''Tantive IV'' in the opening scene. There is also an more than 10 times as large version called a {{w|Star_Destroyer#Super_Star_Destroyer|Super Star Destroyer}}, which were featured in the two sequels in the original trilogy. But even the original Star Destroyers were improved during the movies, so when the improved Destroyers came out they became knows as ([http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Imperial_II-class_Star_Destroyer Mark II], Mk-II or plainly II, and the original (as Devastator) became known as [http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Imperial_I-class_Star_Destroyer Mk-1]. The second Cueball agrees with the first and suggest that it is an Mk-1 and thus makes it even more clear that this scene is actually the opening scene of the original Star Wars movie. But then again, he continues, it depends weather this is the {{w|Star Wars expanded universe|expanded universe}} (now know as ''Star Wars Legends'') where all authorized media (books etc) released based on the Star Wars franchise should be counted in, or if it is only the movies sanctioned directly by George Lucas (and now Disney). What he says is that in all those work there could be so many other types os ships mentioned, that he could mistake for an Mk-1, that in that universe he would not be certain at all. But in the "official" universe he would claim that it was an Mk-1 ''Imperial'' class Star Destroyer.<br><br>In the next scene Ponytail and a third Cueball fights a ridicules fight with bows and arrows against the Destroyers 100+ torpedoes raining down from above. Ten of these can be seen falling, one hits the ship and one has just exploded in a big ''boom'', to be compared with the feeble ''twang'' made by Cueballs bow when he fires the arrow. When later discovering how far there is up to the bottom of the Destroyer it only becomes even more silly.<br><br>In the third scene two more Cueballs (four and five) look up at the torpedoes falling down in an arch over their heads. The fourth Cueball asks why they still keep firing. And the fifth Cueball tries to explain. A {{w|Gun turret|turret}} is generally a weapon mount that houses the crew and a projectile-firing weapon and lets the weapon be aimed and fired in a given cone of fire. So it is this crew, that are the turret operators. There is also such [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/bc/1608_1012x1078y_Bridge_on_the_Rebel_Blockade_Runner.png an operator] on the Rebel Runner below the top canon (or turret), in the scene with the bridge. The reason they keep fighting is given that they just do their own thing and that is annoying. This indicates that these two Cueballs do no longer think that the Destroyer needs to fire anymore on the Runner, and thus also indicates that they are part of the crew from the Destroyer send down to take over the Runner. Thus it is annoying that the shooting has not stopped as it puts them in danger. If they belong to the Runner then they would not think it weird that the shooting continued. It turns out to be Megan who is the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/5f/1608_1034x1091y_Torpedo_canon_below_Destroyer.png turret operator in the Destroyer]! At least they can be happy that it is regular torpedoes. (See the explanation of the scene regarding the Torpedo canon below Destroyer).<br><br>In the final scene at the very end of the hull is the sixth Cueball together with Megan. She holds on to him as he tries to toasts a giant marshmallow on a stick by holding it in front of the exhaust pipe of the Runner. This would must likely melt the marshmallow instantaneously... In ''Red world space car'' in TE the Mars rower also toasts a marshmallow on a stick over a small fire.<br />
|-<br />
|Bottom rear end of the Rebel Blockade Runner.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/5b/1608_1020x1078y_Bottom_rear_end_of_the_Rebel_Blockade_Runner.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1020:-1078+s.png (1020, 1078)]<br />
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|The rear end of the Rebel Runner with the last part of the big Death Star plan room to visible to the left. Three engines are visible, with the top one being cut of (Cueball is roasting a marshmallow above the cut off - see previous scene). This is consistent with the three rows of engines as [http://cdn-static.denofgeek.com/sites/denofgeek/files/styles/insert_main_wide_image/public/2016/04/tantive_iv_over_tatooine.png?itok=1k3g3pFH can be seen in the film], with four engines in top and bottom row and three in the middle. There is a coin behind the lowest of the engines. There appear to be {{w|truck nuts}} attached to the rear of the ship beneath the hull. These are plastic or metal accessories, typically for cars, which resemble a pair of dangling testicles/balls. They are attached under the rear bumper of the vehicle so they are visible from behind as a practical joke. Some find it is in so bad a taste that it should be banned or fined.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Entire torpedoes rain from Runner to Destroyer.'''<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/87/1608_1023x1085y_Entire_torpedoes_rain_from_Runner_to_Destroyer.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|An overview of the entire rain of torpedoes fired down from the Star Destroyer to the Runner. There are 100 undamaged torpedoes in the air, two that are hitting each other exploding, one that has just made contact with the hull and one that has just exploded on the hull of the Runner. A total of 104 torpedoes has thus been fired at this moment in time. The rain is not so much there for jokes but to guide the player up to the Destroyer. Only real interesting scene on the way up is Beret Guy riding a torpedo, and apart from that and the two torpedoes hitting each other and exploding, there is nothing else to see. But there are two coins to collect.<br />
|-<br />
|Torpedoes just above Runner with coin.<br />
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:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a7/1608_1019x1081y_Torpedoes_just_above_Runner_with_coin.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1019:-1081+s.png (1019, 1081)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1020:-1081+s.png (1020, 1081)]<br />
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|11 torpedoes just above the Runner with a coin.<br />
|-<br />
|Torpedoes two steps above Runner with Beret Guy.<br />
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:Beret Guy: Horsey!<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/21/1608_1020x1083y_Torpedoes_two_steps_above_Runner_with_Beret_Guy.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1020:-1083+s.png (1020, 1083)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1021:-1083+s.png (1021, 1083)]<br />
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|Film: {{w|Dr. Strangelove}}<br />
|Beret Guys only second appearance in this comic. He is flying down from the Destroyer sitting astray a torpedo riding it like it was a horse. In the film Dr. Stangelove a man is also flying down like this riding a bomb like it is a horse (a nuclear bomb in that case though). Beret Guy will likely survive due to his [[:Category:Strange powers of Beret Guy|strange powers]]. With his torpedo there are eight torpedoes in this scene<br />
|-<br />
|Torpedoes three steps above Runner.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a7/1608_1023x1085y_Torpedoes_three_steps_above_Runner.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1023:-1086+s.png (1023, 1086)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1024:-1086+s.png (1024, 1086)]<br />
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|21 torpedoes are shown. This image is so large that it goes outside the "active" images, and thus the lower right part is in gray. In the game this part will be displayed as white, but there is no image below to save (but many all white images are active though!)<br />
|-<br />
|Torpedoes two steps below Destroyer with exploding torpedoes.<br />
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:Torpedoes: Boom<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a8/1608_1025x1087y_Torpedoes_two_steps_below_Destroyer_with_exploding_torpedoes.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1025:-1087+s.png (1025, 1087)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1026:-1087+s.png (1026, 1087)]<br />
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|21 torpedoes are shown, but two of them are hitting each other exploding. Where you can stand on the torpedoes, you can not stand on the "boom", but still on the black part of the exploding torpedoes. If the two exploding torpedoes are the same and if they have no means of self propelling, then they should not hit each other under normal conditions. Only if a wind gust slowed down the one and not the other (which could of course be the case.) But else they would follow the same parabolic path from canon to target without getting closer.<br />
|-<br />
|Torpedoes one step below Destroyer with coin.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/2b/1608_1029x1089y_Torpedoes_one_step_below_Destroyer_with_coin.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1029:-1089+s.png (1029, 1089)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1031:-1090+s.png (1031, 1090)]<br />
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|19 torpedoes just below the Destroyer with a coin.<br />
|-<br />
|Torpedo canon below Destroyer.<br />
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:Megan: We have no photon torpedoes, so I'm firing regular ones<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/5f/1608_1034x1091y_Torpedo_canon_below_Destroyer.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1034:-1091+s.png (1034, 1091)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1033:-1091+s.png (1033, 1091)]<br />
|Y<br />
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|Film: The {{w|Star Trek}} universe<br />
|The 12 last torpedoes leads up to the canon below the Destroyer that has fired them all towards the runner far below. In the control room (or turret room see explanation of scene where the torpedoes hits the Runner) is Megan and Cueball. She explains that she used regular torpedoes rather than the much more powerful {{w|Weapons_in_Star_Trek#Projectile_weapons|'''photon''' torpedoes}}. This may cheat some to think this is a reference to the weapon Luke Skywalker used when destroying the Death Star in the original Star Wars movie. But they were called {{w|List_of_Star_Wars_weapons#Ship-mounted|'''proton''' torpedoes}}. Photon torpedoes are a standard ship-based weapon armed with an {{w|antimatter}} warhead and one of those alone would probably take a ship like the Runner out if it was not shielded... However, they are used by the {{w|Starship Enterprise}} in the Star Trek universe. So this is the second (but more subtle) mixing of the two competing franchises connected with the torpedoes in the opening scene of Star Wars. The first being on the bridge of the Runner below. Above the control room there is a shaft up to a corridor in which a small robot of the types typically seen on spaceships in Star Wars is seen. There is a [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/bc/1608_1012x1078y_Bridge_on_the_Rebel_Blockade_Runner.png similar robot] down in the Runner but only half this ones height.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Entire Star Destroyer.'''<br />
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:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/cd/1608_Entire_Star_Destroyer.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|Y<br />
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|This is the only reference to Star Wars just because of the Destroyer. Anything inside the spaceship will only be listed as SW reference if there is something in relation to SW, or at least to part of the ship itself (like using special outcrops on the ship for a special room, like the Globe of Death at the top of the bridge).<br />
|-<br />
|'''Entire front end.'''<br />
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:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e1/1608_Entire_front_end.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/22/1608_Entire_front_end_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|This overview is shown to illustrate how far apart the rooms are even in the very front end of the Destroyer where it is slimmest. The image with hidden passages shows how deep the swimming pool is and that the hoverboard can also sink into the playpen pit. Moving just a little further right than this overview, and the Destroyer becomes wider than the zoom scale for these overviews.<br />
|-<br />
|Overview of the very tip of the front end.<br />
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:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/92/1608_Zoom_out_of_the_very_front_end.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|The front has both a mouth a nose and an eye with a pupil. It has just eaten a coin and can smell the one above its nose. See more on this interpretation under the ''Colon like structure'' below.<br />
|-<br />
|Very front with Cueball looking out at bottom of hull.<br />
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:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/60/1608_1002x1094y_Very_front_with_Cueball_looking_out_at_bottom_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1002:-1094+s.png (1002, 1094)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1003:-1094+s.png (1003, 1094)]<br />
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|The closest entrance to the Destroyer from the starting point is guarded by Cueball. Going straight up from the right wall in the play area will take the hoverboard straight up in front of Cueball. There is a coin behind him where this first corridor turns up into a shaft.<br />
|-<br />
|Very front with playpen balls pit at top of hull.<br />
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:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a7/1608_1004x1095y_Very_front_with_playpen_balls_pit_at_top_of_hull.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/35/1608_1004x1095y_Very_front_with_playpen_balls_pit_at_top_of_hull_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1004:-1095+s.png (1004, 1095)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1005:-1095+s.png (1005, 1095)]<br />
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|[[150: Grownups]] and the [[:Category:Playpen balls|Playpen balls Category]].<br />
|The top part of the front of the Star Destroyer also has an entrance as does the bottom section (see above). There is a coin above the hull. This first corridor leads to a playpen pit filled with playpen balls, which is a recurring subject in xkcd. Cueball and Megan is adult sized (i.e. as big as hoverboard Cueball) and it is thus a clear reference to Grownups. There could be water down below the balls as a fish is seen jumping out over the surface. But given that there are no splashes from the balls Cueball throws in the air, it could also just be a gimmick by Randall. To have something like this in a Star Destroyer kind of ruins the mood surrounding these war machines. Something seen several times throughout the space ship.<br />
|-<br />
|Piñata and Cueball with lightsaber at top of hull.<br />
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:Cueball: No, I got this.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/20/1608_1006x1095y_Pinata_and_Cueball_with_lightsaber_at_top_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1006:-1095+s.png (1006, 1095)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1007:-1095+s.png (1007, 1095)]<br />
|Y<br />
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|Comic: [[1620: Christmas Settings]]<br />
|Although the original {{w|piñata}} was star shaped it is now common to use different shapes like the horse or donkey displayed in the comic. Children usually hits the piñata with a club until it breaks and falls down revealing candy or toys inside. The two Cueballs, Megan and Hairy are adults though as big as hoverboard Cueball, just like in the playpen pit. It is though not uncommon for adults to participate in hitting down a piñata. But to do it with a {{w|lightsaber}} would defeat the purpose of this game as it will go right through the piñata on contact thus spilling the contest out on the floor in the first go. The Cueball with the lightsaber can thus confidently say that he got this. But it seems like the other Cueball is trying to stop him and that Hairy, holding the club they were intended to use, puts a hand protectively on Megan. A lightsaber would be a very dangerous weapon, and should not be used lightly in a playful setting. As a side note any candy/toy in the path of the ligtsaber as it passes through the piñata will melt/burn immediately. Lightsaber noises are mentioned in the title text of the Christmas Settings comic coming out shortly after this one.<br />
|-<br />
|Shaft and corridor at bottom of hull.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/eb/1608_1007x1094y_Shaft_and_corridor_at_bottom_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1007:-1094+s.png (1007, 1094)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1008:-1094+s.png (1008, 1094)]<br />
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|Lots of sections inside the Destroyer consist of long corridors with shafts going up and down here and there, but with no interesting features or objects. This is the first example of such a corridor, near the bottom hull of the Destroyer, showing that it is not a featureless outer hull. Appart from the ever increasing width of the Destroyer there are some steps up and down, to indicate some of the features seen in the Star Wars movie.<br />
|-<br />
|Swimming pool with Ponytail jumping at bottom of hull.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/ba/1608_1010x1094y_Swimming_pool_with_Ponytail_jumping_at_bottom_of_hull.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e6/1608_1010x1094y_Swimming_pool_with_Ponytail_jumping_at_bottom_of_hull_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1010:-1094+s.png (1010, 1094)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1011:-1094+s.png (1011, 1094)]<br />
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|Another enjoyable activity to attend to by adults is located here in the front sections of the Destroyer: A swimming pool. Don't worry about Ponytail jumping head first into the water, as can be seen in the hidden passage image it is rather deep. Cueball and Megan is already in. Supposedly there is a rung ladder up again on the side, but it cannot be seen in this slice through the Destroyer. A coin hangs in the top corner of the room. When standing with the hoverboard on the bottom of the pool it will be possible to see that there is a coin on the outside of the hull in the indentation in the hull below the pool. From the outside, however, it will not be possible to see that there is a pool above as the water is the same black (to the eye) as the solid hull.<br />
|-<br />
|Shaft and corridor with three coins at top of hull.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/ba/1608_1011x1096y_Shaft_and_corridor_with_three_coins_at_top_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1011:-1096+s.png (1011, 1096)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1009:-1095+s.png (1009, 1095)]<br />
|<br />
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|After leaving the piñata room going down the corridor there are two coins. One under the shaft going up and one further down the corridor. Going up the shaft there is also a coin on the outside of the top hull at the top of another of the small step where the hulls width increases faster than the steady slope that are always there. This coin is almost on top of the one in the corridor below.<br />
|-<br />
|Dead end shaft with rubbles at bottom of hull.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/0c/1608_1015x1093y_Dead_end_shaft_with_rubbles_at_bottom_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1015:-1093+s.png (1015, 1093)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1016:-1093+s.png (1016, 1093)]<br />
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|From the shaft that exits the Destroyers bottom hull there goes a corridor to the left. But only for a short while. Then there is a pile of rubble like there has either been a cave in or as if someone has been digging this tunnel and then has stopped. This is consistent with the mining company seen much further down the Destroyer. There is a coin in front of the rubble.<br />
|-<br />
|Zoom out of shaft and corridors with Hairy looking down a shaft at top of hull.<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/34/1608_1019x1095y_Zoom_out_of_shaft_and_corridors_with_Hairy_looking_down_a_shaft_at_top_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|This zoom out gives an overview of a large section of the Destroyer with only a long corridor and two shafts going down from it. There is almost no features, but for Hairy standing carefully at the edge of one shaft looking down into it. So again an example of the larger areas inside the destroyer where nothing happens.<br />
|-<br />
|Hairy looking down a shaft at top of hull.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/73/1608_1016x1095y_Hairy_looking_down_a_shaft_at_top_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1016:-1095+s.png (1016, 1095)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1013:-1096+s.png (1013, 1096)]<br />
|<br />
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|This is the shaft that came out of the piñata room. At the end of this image is the first shaft going down where Hairy is standing carefully at the edge looking down. Before that a shaft goes up to the top hull where a coin is situated on top of a small step down. At the other end of this "step" to the left there was also a coin.<br />
|-<br />
|Three coins room and shafts.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e6/1608_1023x1095y_Three_coins_room_and_shafts.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1023:-1095+s.png (1023, 1095)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1022:-1095+s.png (1022, 1095)]<br />
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|This is the room where the long corridor going from the piñata room ends. Although it is a quite boring room it has three coins, the highest coin density seen so far when entering the Destroyer from the front end. A shaft down outside the room prevents this from being a dead end.<br />
|-<br />
|Triple coins and a single coin on top of a shaft at top of hull.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d0/1608_1023x1097y_Triple_coins_and_a_single_coin_on_top_of_a_shaft_at_top_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1023:-1097+s.png (1023, 1097)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1025:-1097+s.png (1025, 1097)]<br />
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|There is a very long straight stretch on top of the hull where nothing happens after the step down, but suddenly there are three coins in a row, and then a shaft down, with a ledge out over the shaft opening, with yet a coin, makes it worth the players while to come up there as well.<br />
|-<br />
|Zoom out of shaft and corridors with ledge at bottom of hull.<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6f/1608_1025x1092y_Zoom_out_of_shaft_and_corridors_with_ledge_at_bottom_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|This overview at the bottom of the hull shows the shaft (to the right) that was covered with a ledge at the top of the hull. Although it takes a small turn left before going down and out at the bottom it thus almost runs straight through the Destroyer and also here at the bottom a thin ledge covers the shafts exit. But here are no coins. There are another shaft and two corridors.<br />
|-<br />
|Shall '''not not''' pass room and parachutes at one of two ledges at bottom of hull.<br />
|<br />
:Cueball: You shall not not pass!<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/ad/1608_1026x1093y_Shall_not_not_pass_room_and_parachutes_at_one_of_two_ledges_at_bottom_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1026:-1093+s.png (1026, 1093)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1028:-1092+s.png (1028, 1092)]<br />
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|Y<br />
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|The shaft going out at the bottom left is the one mentioned above. Going through the corridor above takes hoverboard Cueball into a room with a Cueball blocking his way holding a hand out towards him. He almost uses the last part of a [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120737/quotes?item=qt0445998 famous quote by Gandalf] when facing the {{w|Balrog}} in the mines of {{w|Moria (Middle-earth)|Moria}}, but here with an '''extra not''' added to negate the "not" from the quote. So "You shall ''not'' '''not''' pass" = You '''shall''' pass, and when you do you get a coin. It is easy to miss that there are two times not in the sentence which is for certain intentionally by Randall, as the spoken sentence thus do not match the appearance of Cueball with a hand out.<br><br>If hoverboard Cueball jump ship at the ledge to the left he can fly over to the next ledge where Cueball and a guy with black hair is preparing to jump of the ship using parachutes. Behind them there is a shaft going up into the ship with a coin.<br />
|-<br />
|Two coins room and shafts.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/5d/1608_1026x1095y_Two_coins_room_and_shafts.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1026:-1095+s.png (1026, 1095)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1027:-1095+s.png (1027, 1095)]<br />
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|The shaft going up in the two coins room comes from a corridor below that also connects to the shaft to the left. The corridor is right above the ''you shall not not pass'' room below. The shaft tot he left goes up the the ledge covered exit to the top hull.<br />
|-<br />
|Steven Universe family and ice cream prediction.<br />
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:Megan: Prediction: Seconds before you die, you will remember these words.<br />
:Box: Ice cream<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/39/1608_1031x1095y_Steven_Universe_family_and_ice_cream_prediction.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1031:-1095+s.png (1031, 1095)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1028:-1095+s.png (1029, 1095)]<br />
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|TV series: {{w|Steven Universe}}<br />
|In the room to the left Megan talks to Cueball while they walk towards an ice cream freezer at the end of the room with a coin on top. Her comment that she can predict that he will remember those words when he dies could be quite sinister. Since they are so boring the only way she can make this prediction come through is if she now turns around killing him. If she waits a little longer she will not have to move him so far before she can hide his body in the freezer...<br><br>In the room to the right is the boy {{w|Steven Universe (character)|Steven Universe}} with his [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Steven_Universe_characters#/media/File:StevenFinalPoster.jpg family]. The first woman with least hair is {{w|Pearl (Steven Universe)|Pearl}}, the high woman with sunglasses and afro hair in the middle is {{w|Garnet (Steven Universe)|Garnet}} and the shot woman with the big blond hair is {{w|List_of_Steven_Universe_characters#Amethyst|Amethyst}}. The three woman are what is called crystal gems and are aliens. Steven is half alien. See later when Darth Vader himself references them, and the fact that Steve is thus a half gem, while standing on the bridge of the Destroyer. A coin hovers over Garnet's hand that she is holding palm up next to her head.<br><br>Below these two rooms runs a corridor that goes left to the shaft going up to the top hull. The shaft going down goes to the two guys with parachutes. There is a coin next to the shaft. To get from this corridor to the rooms above hoverboard Cueball either have to go out on the top hull or move through the rotary that follows to the right.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Entire Rotary section.'''<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/67/1608_Entire_Rotary_section.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e4/1608_Entire_Rotary_section_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e1/1608_Entire_Rebel_Blockade_Runner_swallowed_by_Destroyer.png Swallow Runner]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|Y<br />
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|To the left in this overview is the roundabout like structure that Cueball above it calls a rotary, which has given name to this section of the ship that follows after it up to the section with the cave. The Destroyer becomes much broader here especially due to the two large steps that the top part of the hull takes in the middle and to the right in this image.<br><br>In the hidden passage image the cotton trap is revealed with the two entrances to the room below and to the corridor to the right that leads past different traps into the cave. At the top and bottom middle of the image there are two cars, and as it can be seen in the hidden passage image the hoverboard cannot rest on top of those.<br><br>In the composite ''Swallow Runner'' image the Rebel Runner has been placed in the opening in the bottom hull to reveal that this is indeed the opening in the bottom of the Destroyer that swallows the entire Rebel Runner in the opening scene of the first Star Wars movie. This feature is thus a direct reference to the "real" Devastator Destroyer and thus a direct reference to the opening scene and to Star Wars. Below the individual scenes in the Rotary section will be described. <br />
|-<br />
|Empty room and Cueball on corridor going to rotary at top of hull.<br />
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:Cueball: Ugh, rotaries.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/cf/1608_1029x1097y_Empty_room_and_Cueball_on_corridor_going_to_rotary_at_top_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1032:-1096+s.png (1032, 1096)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1030:-1097+s.png (1030, 1097)]<br />
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|A big empty room near the top hull and a coin in a shaft going down from the top hull. The shaft going down will lead to both the room with the ice dream box and the one with Steven Universe's family. The corridor going right will go down into the rotary, see next scene. Cueball is looking down into this and expressing his dislike of this {{w|Traffic circle|type of structures}}. Maybe he has bad experience with these in real life traffic.<br />
|-<br />
|The rotary.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/3e/1608_1033x1095y_The_rotary.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1033:-1095+s.png (1033, 1095)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1035:-1095+s.png (1035, 1095)]<br />
|<br />
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|This is the {{w|Traffic circle|Rotary}} that has given it's name to the section of the Star Destroyer from the structure itself and right of this until the section where the cave is located. A rotary is also known as a ''traffic circle'' and is a large version of a roundabout with several roads exiting from it. At the top of the upper left passage (see the scene above) Cueball is looking down into this structure and calls it a rotary (hence the name).<br><br>Typically for a real life rotary it is possible for pedestrians to enter the central part of the structure as is the case here with the small room with the hairy kid and his plant and coin.<br><br>Large rotaries may have more than four roads leading away, but in this case there are four, and neither of them are leading straight away up/down or left/right. Three of them are almost at a 45 degree angel, but the one going down is only a little of to the right, and soon turns straight down.<br><br>Only other feature is the Cueball rushing right on his bike in the corridor leading away from the rightmost exit. There are several bikes throughout the comic, with two more in the Globe of Death above the bridge of the Destroyer and one going down the right slope of the Volcano.<br><br>Entering the rotary for the first time there are of course three new directions to move along in, making it a special point in the users exploration of the Destroyer.<br />
|-<br />
|Photon canon Tetris piece and mini robot at bottom of hull.<br />
|<br />
:(None - the canon part has been transcribed in the torpedo section)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/df/1608_1034x1091y_Photon_canon_Tetris_piece_and_mini_robot_at_bottom_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1034:-1093+s.png (1034, 1093)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1034:-1092+s.png (1035, 1092)]<br />
|<br />
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|Computer game: {{w|Tetris}}<br />
|The bottom part of the scene has already been described in relation to the torpedo rain. But as can be seen here it is possible to enter the torpedo room almost directly from the bottom exit of the rotary above. Coming down that way is also a T-shaped {{w|Tetris#Colors_of_Tetriminos|tetriminos}} from the Tetris computer game. At the end of the corridor with the small robot there is a shaft, and in the exit from the corridor there is a coin.<br />
|-<br />
|Shaft corridor with coin and room with coin over ledge at bottom of hull.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d3/1608_1038x1092y_Shaft_corridor_with_coin_and_room_with_coin_over_ledge_at_bottom_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1038:-1092+s.png (1038, 1092)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1036:-1092+s.png (1036, 1092)]<br />
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|Going down from the corridor from the scene above takes the player through a small room with a coin at the bottom of the hull and then out over a thick ledge in the air beneath the Destroyer. There is a large gap starting here that ends in the ''Atmosphere worry and car room at bottom of hull''. This large section is the section in which [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e1/1608_Entire_Rebel_Blockade_Runner_swallowed_by_Destroyer.png the Destroyer swallows the Rebel Runner] in the opening scene of the first Star Wars movie, as mentioned in the overview above.<br />
|-<br />
|Giant octopus in Destroyer.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/b5/1608_1038x1094y_Giant_octopus_in_Destroyer.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1038:-1094+s.png (1038, 1094)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1038:-1093+s.png (1038, 1093)]<br />
|<br />
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|Y<br />
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|A giant octopus with a dome shaped head in a dome shaped room with coins above it's tentacles left and right. In TE there are several octopuses, and this animal is also often used in xkcd in general. But particularly in ''The USS Laws of the Land'' there is both a large octopus beneath the ship and one giant tentacle reaching up from the deep. If this is considered a monster then this section of the ship may be the monster section as there also seem to be some kind of horned monster in the room to the right of this room.<br />
|-<br />
|Hamster ball and stilts room.<br />
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:Megan: ''AaaaAaaa'' <br />
:Guy with hair: I can't leave.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/89/1608_1038x1095y_Hamsterball_and_stilts_room.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1038:-1095+s.png (1038, 1095)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1039:-1096+s.png (1039, 1096)]<br />
|<br />
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|Y<br />
|Comics: [[:Category:Hamster Ball|Hamster Ball category]]<br />
|This room is the first after exiting the rotary to the upper right. The shaft goes down past the octopus room (see scene above). It is the second instance with a hamster ball in this comic, the first being a small girl (with Megan like hair) in the left part of the world just before the plateau. But in this case it is the adult Megan that is inside the ball, not only running but actually standing on a skateboard. She is clearly not in control. As the player is on a hoverboard there is some kind of connection with a girl on skateboard. In ''Sky Toucher'' in TE Megan also uses a skateboard, inside a rounded structure.<br><br>Megan is not alone though as there is also a guy (with a wee bit of hair) on stilts. The stilts seems to be very high and if the guy wishes to stay on these stilts his assessment, that he can't leave the room, is true. Between his stilts there is a coin. The world highest stilts is shown in [[482: Height]] and in the next "game" comic after this one, [[1663: Garden]], it is possible to "[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/0c/1663_garden_One_color_Between_Light_yellow_and_yellow_First_thing_stilts.png grow]" a [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d0/Garden_Stilt_walker.png girl on stilts].<br />
|-<br />
|Box with horns and coin room.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a2/1608_1043x1093y_Box_with_horns_and_coin_room.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1043:-1093+s.png (1043, 1093)]<br />
|<br />
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|<font color="red">Is there any clear references to a horned box that is being missed here?</font> In this room across from the giant octopus room there is yet a possible monster hidden in a box. Two large horns jut out of the box, but if they are standing on the box or is sitting on some horned beast inside the box is not clear. But they look rather ominously, and if it is a monster it would with the giant octopus make this section a monster section. A coin is hovering between the horns. The shaft up is the only way to move further down inside the Destroyer without moving over or under the hull.<br />
|-<br />
|Zoom out of three empty rooms near bottom of hull.<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e6/1608_1046x1094y_Zoom_out_of_three_empty_rooms_near_bottom_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|A dead end with three empty room with no coins or any interesting features, thus only this zoomed out version is displayed here. The rooms are just right of the horned box and below is the part of the hull that is the opening where the Runner will be swallowed by the Destroyer. It is not a complete waste to come over this way, as the room to the right with the hoverboard is central to the comic. But no need to go into these rooms if trying to pick up all the coins as fast as possible.<br />
|-<br />
|Corridor with coin.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a2/1608_1046x1097y_Corridor_with_coin.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1046:-1097+s.png (1046, 1097)]<br />
|<br />
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|This is one of the longer corridors without any features. It is the only way to move right inside the destroyer in this section. The corridor goes above the three empty rooms in the scene above and also above the hoverboard room in the scene below. At the end of the corridor there is a shaft up. The only reason this segment is shown is because of the coin.<br />
|-<br />
|Two hoverboards room.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/01/1608_1048x1095y_Two_hoverboards_room.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1048:-1095+s.png (1048, 1095)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1048:-1094+s.png (1048, 1094)]<br />
|<br />
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|<br />
|Comic: [[1623: 2016 Conversation Guide]]<br />
|Self-reference to title of this comic, and the conversation guide comic released shortly after this is also referencing this entire comic as it complains that hoverboards are not real yet. There is both another hoverboard Cueball and a hoverboard Megan in this room, but compared to the players hoverboard Cueball these two are some what more advanced, and managed to swoop around the coin in the middle. The room can only be entered from the right. To the left there is only a dead end with three completely empty rooms, so don't bother going there if you are in a hurry to pick up all the coins...<br />
|-<br />
|Zoom out with dead end corridor car room and shaft at top of hull.<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/f9/1608_1051x1097y_Zoom_out_with_dead_end_corridor_car_room_and_shaft_at_top_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|Overview of the end of the long corridor with the coin mentioned above. It ends here in the dead end at the bottom. The corridor above has Cueball lying on the hood of a car in a small room quite a distance from any exits to the outside.<br />
|-<br />
|Cueball on hood of car room and a giant step with coins at top of hull.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d4/1608_1048x1099y_Cueball_on_hood_of_car_room_and_a_giant_step_with_coins_at_top_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1048:-1099+s.png (1048, 1099)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1049:-1099+s.png (1049, 1099)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|In this dead end room Cueball is lying on the hood of a car. Hoverboard Cueball cannot copy this as the car is not a solid segment of the image. The hull is not far away, and the car room is right where one of the large steps in the upper hull appears. Right outside there are two coins at the bottom and top of the step. These cannot be seen from inside the room. There is no fast way to get outside from here, and actually no easy way to get a car into this room either. In ''Sky Toucher'' in TE there is also a car stuck in the middle of the sky scraper a long way from the parking cellar. In this comic there is actually even one more car in the Destroyer, but that is at least close to an exit ledge (see scene below).<br />
|-<br />
|Atmosphere worry and car room at bottom of hull.<br />
|<br />
:Megan: Is this ship designed to fly in the atmosphere like this?<br />
:Blonde woman with hair bun: Whatever. Who cares it’s probably fine.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/1d/1608_1049x1090y_Atmosphere_worry_and_car_room_at_bottom_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1049:-1090+s.png (1049, 1090)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1050:-1090+s.png (1050, 1090)]<br />
|Y<br />
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|Megan is referring to the fact that space ships in Star Wars often fly fast also inside the atmosphere of a planet. Not something you would normally design for. Though in the case with the Destroyer and Runner they did not go inside the atmosphere as depicted here in the comic, in the scene from the original Star Wars movie. The blonde woman comes with a comment typical for b-moves, who cares if this would work in real life, it is just a film.<br><br>There is a large gap in the bottom hull ending here and starting in the ''Shaft corridor with coin and room with coin over ledge at bottom of hull''. This large section is the section in which [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e1/1608_Entire_Rebel_Blockade_Runner_swallowed_by_Destroyer.png the Destroyer swallows the Rebel Runner] in the opening scene of the first Star Wars movie, as mentioned in the overview above.<br><br>Behind the two women, who are standing on a thin ledge where the large gap ends, there is another car (see scene above). At least it is clear how this car could get into this room (and out again). Above the car there is a coin. Behind the car there is a corridor going into the Destroyer, but quite high up on the wall for a normal exit. The car cannot be used as a step to jump in there, as it is not part of the solid picture. <br />
|-<br />
|Ponytail flying up a shaft towards a coin.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/76/1608_1053x1091y_Ponytail_flying_up_a_shaft_towards_a_coin.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1053:-1091+s.png (1053, 1091)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1054:-1091+s.png (1054, 1091)]<br />
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|The corridor from the room with Megan and the car is long. In the middle of it there is a shaft going up (a long way). Just inside this shaft Ponytail is seen flying up, hands in front of her like another Superman. Above her in the shaft there is a coin. This is not the only place in the comic where Ponytail is flying. Although here it seems like an automatic thing (like Superman), whereas down below on the ground below the Destroyer she has to flap her arms violently, but then actually manages to take of from the ground. In a space ship like this Destroyer there could both be a system to let people float upwards, some gravitational effects or just plain effects of the flying itself, wheres down on the ground flying like that would be magic for sure. But at least there seems to be some correlation since it is Ponytail that flies in both cases.<br />
|-<br />
|Trap covered with leaves and flying Ponytail at bottom of hull.<br />
|<br />
:Cueball: ...And we cover it with leaves so no one sees it.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/fd/1608_1055x1090y_Trap_covered_with_leaves_and_flying_Ponytail_at_bottom_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1055:-1090+s.png (1055, 1090)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1055:-1091+s.png (1055, 1091)]<br />
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|After the shaft where Ponytail flies up (see more in the scene above) the corridor continues to a pit which Cueball and a kid have been covering with leaves and sticks. It seems like they are making a trap, which is even more likely seeing that the bottom of the pit has six sharp spikes that would likely impale any unlucky victims that fell in. Alternatively (given the words Cueball uses), they have made this hole by mistake, and now tries to cover it so no one sees it. If he meant it to be a trap he might instead have phrased it, "so they won't see it until it is too late". The kid looks like the kid in the room at the rotary, as they have the same hairdo.<br />
|-<br />
|Corridor and shaft with coin.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/8f/1608_1053x1094y_Corridor_and_shaft_with_coin.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1053:-1094+s.png (1053, 1094)]<br />
|<br />
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|The shaft going up from Ponytail below goes past the corridor to the left that goes to the hoverboards room. There is a coin in the entrance.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Entire Corridor peristalsis and colon.'''<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c6/1608_Entire_Corridor_peristalsis_and_colon.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/be/1608_Entire_area_around_Corridor_peristalsis_and_colon.png Zoom out to entire area]<br />
|Overview<br />
|<br />
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|With the comment from Hairbun about peristalsis - the bowel movement getting food etc. through the digestive system, and with the three chambers with coins above a colon like structure, leading into the corridor with these motions, with a coin both going down the colon and through the peristalsis, there can be no doubt that this is the digestive system for this ”living” space ship, and coins is what it lives off. This interpretation can further be extended to the very front end, where there is the appearance of a head that eats coins (see the front end overview) and at the rear end a coin is bouncing out at the very last shaft before the very end of the ship. Suggesting where this animal gets rid of the waste products afterwards. (The rest of the ship is not part of this interpretation).<br />
|-<br />
|Corridor peristalsis and two coin rooms at top of hull.<br />
|<br />
:Hairbun: Ah, yes. Corridor peristalsis.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e4/1608_1054x1099y_Corridor_peristalsis_and_two_coin_rooms_at_top_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1054:-1099+s.png (1054, 1099)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1057:-1100+s.png (1057, 1100)]<br />
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|Following the corridor from the room with Cueball on the hoof of a car leads to a part of that corridor experiencing {{w|peristalsis}}. This is the kind of muscle movements that causes food to move through the {{w|human gastrointestinal tract}}. Hairbun is telling Cueball that this is indeed corridor peristalsis, so a way for the corridor to move stuff along. As there are coins at both end of this section it is quite clear that these coins are moved along by the corridor itself. The indentations of the corridor is so strong that the corridor is not wide enough to allow hoverboard Cueball to pass through. So to get both coins another route needs to be found. The shortest way is to go up the shaft behind Hairbun, passing the two empty rooms with coins on the way to the top of the Destroyers hull. To get to the other side hoverboard Cueball will then have to pass through the Destroyers colon like structure to the right. See below. As mentioned in the overview above this is a clear reference to the human digestive system, or in this case the Destroyers ditto.<br />
|-<br />
|Corridor peristalsis and colon.<br />
|<br />
:Cueball: Wheee!<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/0a/1608_1055x1099y_Corridor_peristalsis_and_colon.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1055:-1099+s.png (1055, 1099)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1056:-1099+s.png (1056, 1099)]<br />
|<br />
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|Y<br />
|<br />
|Moving a little further down right than the peristalsis scene above the bottom part of the {{w|Large intestine|colon}} like structure can be seen, closely connected to this other intestine like structure (The three coins in the left part of the image are the same as in the scene above). The reason for showing this scene is to show the closeness of these two digestive system structures. In ''Box that cleans food holders'' in TE Ponytail yells Wheee! as she slides through a pipe inside the machine on her stomach, a mix of the action performed by Cueball and Ponytail in the colon like structure. Ponytail is sliding towards a coin at the bottom in one of the colon loops. The top part of the colon can be seen in the next scene.<br />
|-<br />
|Colon like structure with Ponytail and Cueball sliding down.<br />
|<br />
:(None - text already transcribed in the scene above ''Corridor peristalsis and colon''.)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/b3/1608_1058x1100y_Colon_like_structure_with_Ponytail_and_Cueball_sliding_down.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1058:-1100+s.png (1058, 1100)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1058:-1101+s.png (1058, 1101)]<br />
|<br />
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|The entrance from the top to the colon like structure have a Cueball looking down into it. The rest of the scene has been described above.<br />
|-<br />
|Huge step and three room with coin and Cueball looking into shaft at top of hull.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/14/1608_1058x1102y_Huge_step_and_three_room_with_coin_and_Cueball_looking_into_shaft_at_top_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1058:-1102+s.png (1058, 1102)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1056:-1103+s.png (1056, 1103)]<br />
|<br />
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|This is the upper entrance to the colon like structure into which Cueball is looking. (See scenes above). To the left is the top hull of the Destroyer which takes two huge steps up at this place. Cueball is standing in a corridor with three small rooms, each with a coin in the top of the room. This seems to be a place to hold the coins until they are ready to move down the colon like structure, where another coin is already moving through, going down to the corridor peristalsis in the corridor below, where more coins are moving through the ships digestive system. Going over the hull and down this colon like structure is the fastest/shortest way between the two separated sides of the corridor peristalsis.<br />
|-<br />
|Coin in corridor under Buffer stop room.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/75/1608_1060x1099y_Coin_in_corridor_under_Buffer_stop_room.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1060:-1099+s.png (1059, 1099)]<br />
|<br />
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|Moving away to the right from the corridor peristalsis takes hoverboard Cueball past a small shaft up into a room with two coins in front of what looks like a train {{w|buffer stop}}. One coin in front of each of the buffers. Continuing along the corridor there is another coin. The corridor continues and a shaft is going up. This part of the Destroyer is the beginning of the cave section. The cave can be entered from above by continuing along the corridor.<br />
|-<br />
|Canon with coin on top of hull.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a0/1608_1060x1103y_Canon_with_coin_on_top_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1060:-1103+s.png (1060, 1103)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1062:-1103+s.png (1062, 1103)]<br />
|<br />
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|There is a similar canon with a coin in front of the barrel on the top of the Runner below the Destroyer. This canon is on top of the hull above and right of the three room above the colon like structure. The shaft going down right is over the next cave section.<br />
|-<br />
|Coin in corridor below mining company in dead end corridor.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c8/1608_1062x1101y_Coin_in_corridor_below_mining_company_in_dead_end_corridor.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1062:-1101+s.png (1062, 1101)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1063:-1101+s.png (1063, 1101)]<br />
|<br />
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|Two Cueballs work as a mining company in this corridor which they are expanding. It could be that they are digging for gold, but if that gold should be represented by coins, it is weird that the coin hangs above the Cueball with the {{w|pickaxe}} in the higher section of this corridor, instead of being in front of him. The other Cueball drives away with a wheelbarrow full of the rubble they have dug free from the ship. This is another indication of how big the ship is. It is easier to just dig a new corridor than to build the corridor into the ship to begin with. Further to the left in the Destroyer there was another dead end corridor that looked like it had been dug out - see the scene ''Dead end shaft with rubbles at bottom of hull.'' But here the mining company had left (even though there also was a coin there). The shaft to the left goes up to the hull right of the canon from the scene above. The corridor below goes left (past another coin) to the shaft down to the corridor with peristalsis. To the right it goes above the cave to the dance hall room with piano.<br />
|-<br />
|Mining company in dead end corridor also coin on top of hull.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/ca/1608_1063x1102y_Mining_company_in_dead_end_corridor_also_coin_on_top_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1063:-1102+s.png (1063, 1102)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1063:-1103+s.png (1063, 1103)]<br />
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|The same mining company scene as described above but with the view moved to show the top hull, right of the canon. Right of the shaft going up there is a coin. At the very top right of the hull, the basketball dropped by the Cueball like kid can be seen as it comes bouncing down the length of the hull. This basketball scene is part of the cave section and will be describved below.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Entire cotton trap and spark gap room.'''<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/78/1608_Entire_cotton_trap_and_spark_gap_room.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/65/1608_Entire_cotton_trap_and_spark_gap_room_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/36/1608_Entire_area_around_cotton_trap.png Entire area around]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/ae/1608_Entire_area_around_cotton_trap_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|Overview<br />
|<br />
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|Here are two different zoom out of the cotton trap room with the spark gap room below. In the first overview a zoom out is shown with only these two rooms. There are four coins inside and two on the outside of the hull. The three coins around the cotton trap is almost connected by the cotton, as can be seen in the next overview where the hidden passage through the cotton is clearly marked in red. As can be seen there is a very deep black hole beneath the surface of the cotton (which Ponytail states is cotton). From the bottom of the cotton trap going left will lead to a hidden entrance to the top of the spark gap room. Going right will lead to the hidden entrance to the corridor with traps going to the left entrance to the cave. There are coins on each exit as well as just above the cotton to the right. The third image is a further zoom out to show the entire surroundings of the cotton trap room. (And the last is with the cotton etc. turned red). Here the traps in the corridor leading to the cave can be seen as well as the opening into the cave. Below that the strange spiral corridor can be seen. Both these scenes will be described below in the cave section. To the left the shaft and corridors that connect the two rooms even if not noticing the hidden passage can be seen. It is the corridor with the trap covered by Cueball and the shaft where Ponytail flies up. Three more coins are visible in this wider zoom out for a total of nine coins in this area. The two rooms will be described in further detail below. All of the rooms that can be entered through the cotton trap can also be entered through different entrances from other routes. This means that failing to find out how the cotton trap works, will not prevent the player in reaching either the spark gap from below or the cave to the right.<br />
|-<br />
|Entire Cotton trap room.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/be/1608_1058x1094y_Zoom_out_of_Cotton_trap_room.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/11/1608_1058x1094y_Zoom_out_of_Cotton_trap_room_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|Overview<br />
|<br />
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|Overview with the entire cotton trap with and without the cotton shown in red. See above and below for more details.<br />
|-<br />
|Coins in two corridors towards cotton trap.<br />
|<br />
:(None - transcript is written in the scene below.)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/1d/1608_1055x1095y_Coins_in_two_corridors_towards_cotton_trap.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1055:-1095+s.png (1055, 1095)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1056:-1095+s.png (1056, 1095)]<br />
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|The corridor going from the shaft with the flying Ponytail to the Ponytail warning about the cotton trap also has a coin. The coin in the exit of the other corridor to the shaft was mentioned previously as it is the exit from the room with two hoverboards. See more about the cotton trap below.<br />
|-<br />
|Cotton trap room with Ponytail.<br />
|<br />
:Ponytail: Watch out for the cotton. It's a trap for someone, I think.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/28/1608_1058x1094y_Cotton_trap_room_with_Ponytail.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/42/1608_1058x1094y_Cotton_trap_room_with_Ponytail_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1057:-1095+s.png (1057, 1095)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1059:-1094+s.png (1059, 1094)]<br />
|<br />
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|Entering this room along the top corridor reveals Ponytail standing at the beginning of a steep descend. She clearly warns the player about a trap made of cotton. As can be seen in the hidden passage image most of the black at the bottom of the descend is not solid floor but a hidden passage. Given Ponytails comment it must be assumed to be made of cotton. Given that hoverboard Cueball is not affected by the cotton and can move either up again, or out left or right it is not a trap for him. But other unlucky persons falling into the cotton might not be as lucky. If this is not a trap in it self, there are several traps if moving out to the right (where the coin is below the cotton level). This corridor goes to the cave, but first after passing five traps. See more about the entire surroundings in the overview scenes above. <br />
|-<br />
|Cotton trap room bottom.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/32/1608_1058x1092y_Cotton_trap_room_bottom.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/73/1608_1058x1092y_Cotton_trap_room_bottom_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1058:-1092+s.png (1058, 1092)]<br />
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|The bottom of the cotton trap is a dark place. But as can be seen in the red hidden passage image it is possible to move both left and right to get out. In either case a coin can be obtained at the exit. The left exit leads to a shaft going into the spark gap room below, and the right exit leads through a corridor with traps into the cave. Going up in the spark gap room below will clearly reveal the shaft up. But if the cotton trap has not been discovered at this time, it is likely that the player will not attempt to breech the wall, and would thus fail to enter the cotton trap from below. The coin could easily seem enough reason for this dead end shaft above the room.<br />
|-<br />
|Entire spark gap room to bottom of hull.<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/7b/1608_1058x1090y_Zoom_out_of_spark_gap_room_to_bottom_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
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|An overview of the entire spark gap room, both showing the two coins beneath the outside hull as well as the coin in the top shaft (leading to the cotton trap to the right of this) and the coin behind the spark gap. See more below.<br />
|-<br />
|Spark gap room<br />
|<br />
:Cueball on wall: Shh.<br />
<br><br />
:Electrode bottom: JS<br />
:Electrode top: JS<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/4d/1608_1057x1092y_Spark_gap_room_with_Cueball_on_the_wall.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6a/1608_1058x1090y_Spark_gap_room_only_with_Cueball_on_floor_and_coins_at_bottom_of_hull.png Buttom part to below hull]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1058:-1090+s.png (1058, 1090)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1057:-1092+s.png (1057, 1092)]<br />
|<br />
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|<br />
|<font color="red">Why is ''JS'' written on both electrodes</font> This room is called the {{w|spark gap}} room, because there seems to be a spark between the two large electrode like structures marked JS. Cueball is watching this, maybe he is the evil inventor that has created this device. At least another Cueball is climbing high above him up on the wall to the left, and when the player passes him on his hoverboard he asks the player no to tell about him (''shh''). It is unclear if he is sneaking away, spying or sneaking down to attack the other Cueball. A coin is hidden behind the spark gap, but as the spark gap is of the "red" type of black hoverboard Cueball can pass without problems into the coin. As can be seen in the other image displaying the lower part of this scene, the coin outside of the hull is close by, and actually the two coins above each other down there are in the same small image (see the first of the small images).<br />
|-<br />
|Corridor with fire and hammer traps.<br />
|<br />
:Hammers left: Chomp Chomp <br />
:Hammer right: Chomp<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a2/1608_1061x1093y_Corridor_with_fire_and_hammer_traps.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/16/1608_1061x1093y_Corridor_with_fire_and_hammer_traps_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1060:-1094+s.png (1060, 1094)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1061:-1093+s.png (1061, 1093)]<br />
|<br />
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|This is the corridor exiting the cotton trap room (with a coin as mentioned previously), see the cotton in the hidden passage in red image. The corridor leads to the cave, but to get there five traps has to be passed. First there are four hammers with jagged edges that opens and closes with much force as perceived by the noises. And then a pit with a fire has to be surpassed. Of course as can be seen in the "red" image, neither of these traps are any problem for hoverboard Cueball as they are all of the red type of black. But it is a clear indication that the player is about to enter some interesting place, which is true as the cave is one of the most interesting places in the Destroyer. Although there are two other ways to get into the cave, it is by far the most interesting way to enter the cave for the first time!<br />
|-<br />
|Corridor to cave opening.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/32/1608_1062x1094y_Corridor_to_cave_opening.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1062:-1094+s.png (1062, 1094)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1063:-1094+s.png (1063, 1094)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Same scene as above but only the right part with the fire, to show how the corridor enters the beginning of the cave.<br />
|-<br />
|Zoom out with spiral corridor at bottom of the hull.<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/45/1608_1063x1091y_Zoom_out_with_spiral_corridor_at_bottom_of_the_hull.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
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|<br />
|Below the corridor to the cave is a strange corridor which spirals into nothing in the middle. There are no coins in this section so this is a zoom out without any further zoom in on this section. The room at the top seems like a starting point to go into the spiral. The corridor to the right goes into the huge glitch floor room below the cave. The shaft down goes out the bottom of the hull.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Entire Cave Bridge and rear end.'''<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/74/1608_Entire_Cave_Bridge_and_rear_end.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e0/1608_Entire_Cave_Bridge_and_rear_end_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|Overview<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|'''Entire cave section.'''<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/1d/1608_Entire_cave_section.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Entire Cave and Glitch floor room.<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/ea/1608_Entire_Cave_and_Glitch_floor_room.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
|<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|From this image it is clear that the two largest rooms in the Destroyer are almost of the same size, and positioned almost on top of each other. They only need a little parallel shift to make them into one big circular room. The Glitch floor room, is a feature that can be seen in the Star Wars film, as a protrusion beneath the hull of the Destroyer.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Entire Cave.'''<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/58/1608_Entire_Cave.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/24/1608_Entire_Cave_and_shaft_above.png With shaft and room above]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/bf/1608_Entire_Cave_With_entire_pyramid_for_scale.png Size scale of Pyramid]<br />
|Overview<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|In ''Sky Toucher'' there is also a floor in the sky scraper with trees inside, just like the tree inside the cave inside the Destroyer.<br />
|-<br />
|Lake with tree birds and puma on rock at exit in the bottom left side of the cave.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/75/1608_1053x1093y_Lake_with_tree_birds_and_puma_on_rock_at_exit_in_the_bottom_left_side_of_the_cave.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/81/1608_1053x1093y_Lake_with_tree_birds_and_puma_on_rock_at_exit_in_the_bottom_left_side_of_the_cave_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1065:-1093+s.png (1065, 1093)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1067:-1094+s.png (1067, 1094)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Three birds in the top left side of the cave.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/5a/1608_1065x1095y_Three_birds_in_the_top_left_side_of_the_cave.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1065:-1095+s.png (1065, 1095)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Gazebo puma deer Cueball with bow and talk of Palpatine in the middle of the cave.<br />
|<br />
:Cueball: I know it seems weird, but every Star Destroyer has one of these rooms.<br />
:Cueball: Say what you will about Palpatine's politics, but he's a staunch supporter of the imperial parks and the Coruscant Audubon society.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/b0/1608_1067x1094y_Gazebo_puma_deer_Cueball_with_bow_and_talk_of_Palpatine_in_the_middle_of_the_cave.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1068:-1093+s.png (1068, 1093)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1068:-1094+s.png (1068, 1094)]<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|The {{w|National Audubon Society}} is a non-profit environmental organization dedicated to conservation. Palpatine is the evil emperor and the capital ”planet” Coruscant is a planet with city all over the solid parts of the surface. So that he is interested in keeping parks both on this planet and on all his Star Destroyers comes as a surprise...<br />
|-<br />
|The broad shaft going into the top of the cave.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a5/1608_1067x1097y_The_broad_shaft_going_into_the_top_of_the_cave.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1067:-1097+s.png (1067, 1097)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1068:-1096+s.png (1068, 1096)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Deer and exit below lamp coin and Black Hat in the bottom right side of the cave.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/68/1608_1069x1093y_Deer_and_exit_below_lamp_coin_and_Black_Hat_in_the_bottom_right_side_of_the_cave.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/69/1608_1069x1093y_Deer_and_exit_below_lamp_coin_and_Black_Hat_in_the_bottom_right_side_of_the_cave_no_coin.png Without coin]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1069:-1093+s.png (1069, 1093)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1071:-1093+s.png (1071, 1093)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Lamp coin and Black Hat in the top right side of the cave.<br />
|<br />
:Insects: ''Bzzzzz''<br />
<br />
:Black Hat: Zzz<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/0d/1608_1070x1095y_Lamp_coin_and_Black_Hat_in_the_top_right_side_of_the_cave.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/aa/1608_1070x1095y_Lamp_coin_and_Black_Hat_in_the_top_right_side_of_the_cave_no_coin.png Without coin]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1070:-1095+s.png (1070, 1095)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|In this image the coin is part of the scenery as it is the lamp the buzzing insects fly around. When it is gone it reveals a broken lamp, and an insect that had been hidden behind the coin.<br />
|-<br />
|Corridor from shaft to the two coins in corridors.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e1/1608_1063x1099y_Corridor_from_shaft_to_the_two_coins_in_corridors.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1065:-1099+s.png (1065, 1099)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1064:-1098+s.png (1064, 1098)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Two coins in corridors and four coin room above shaft to cave.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/0b/1608_1067x1104y_Two_coins_in_corridors_and_four_coin_room_above_shaft_to_cave.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1067:-1100+s.png (1067, 1100)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1067:-1098+s.png (1067, 1098)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Chandelier room with two coins above cave.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d6/1608_1070x1098y_Chandelier_room_with_two_coins_above_cave.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1070:-1098+s.png (1070, 1098)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1071:-1098+s.png (1071, 1098)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Zoom out with dance room and basketball and slinky stair at top of hull.<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/f3/1608_1068x1101y_Zoom_out_with_dance_room_and_basketball_and_slinky_stair_at_top_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Basketball on top of Destroyer - zoom out.<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/5a/1608_1065x1104y_Basket_ball_on_top_of_Destroyer_zoom_out.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Coin close to basketball on top of Destroyer.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/4e/1608_1063x1104y_Coin_close_to_basket_ball_on_top_of_Destroyer.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1065:-1104+s.png (1065, 1104)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1064:-1104+s.png (1064, 1104)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Basketball on top of Destroyer.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/1d/1608_1067x1104y_Basket_ball_on_top_of_Destroyer.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1067:-1104+s.png (1067, 1104)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1066:-1104+s.png (1066, 1104)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|In ''Playing Fields'' in TE basketball mentioned, and it is also played on the left side of the volcano crater<br />
|-<br />
|Dancing room with piano.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a7/1608_1069x1101y_Dancing_room_with_piano.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1069:-1101+s.png (1069, 1101)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1070:-1101+s.png (1070, 1101)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Slinky staircase at top of hull.<br />
|<br />
:Slinky: Slink slink slink<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/1c/1608_1069x1104y_Slinky_stair_case_at_top_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1069:-1104+s.png (1069, 1104)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1070:-1103+s.png (1070, 1103)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Upside down room and Giddyayup cowboy riding the ship at top of hull.<br />
|<br />
:Cowboy: Giddyayup!<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/79/1608_1073x1104y_Upside_down_room_and_Giddyayup_cowboy_riding_the_ship_at_top_of_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1072:-1104+s.png (1072, 1104)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1074:-1103+s.png (1074, 1103)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|'''Entire Glitch floor room.'''<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/52/1608_Entire_Glitch_floor_room.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6b/1608_Entire_Glitch_floor_room_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/63/1608_Entire_Glitch_floor_room_and_two_close_rooms.png Including two rooms]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/dd/1608_Entire_Glitch_floor_room_and_two_close_rooms_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/49/1608_Entire_area_around_Glitch_floor_room.png Entire area around the room]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/00/1608_Entire_area_around_Glitch_floor_room_red.png Hidden passages in red] [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/63/1608_Entire_Glitch_floor_room_and_two_close_rooms.png Also including two close rooms]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/dd/1608_Entire_Glitch_floor_room_and_two_close_rooms_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/49/1608_Entire_area_around_Glitch_floor_room.png Entire area around the room]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/00/1608_Entire_area_around_Glitch_floor_room_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|Overview<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|In the zoom outs the coin below the hidden glitch in the floor can be seen at the very bottom of the pictures. It is quite a drop to catch it, but if you did not expect it, it is likely you would reach it before going up again.<br />
|-<br />
|Bottom center of Glitch floor room with coin sign and Cueball.<br />
|<br />
:Large sign:<br />
::! <br />
::Caution: <br />
::Glitchfloor.<br />
<br />
:Floor signs:<br />
::!<br />
::!<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/fa/1608_1070x1089y_Bottom_center_of_Glitch_floor_room_with_coin_sign_and_Cueball.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/71/1608_1070x1089y_Bottom_center_of_Glitch_floor_room_with_coin_sign_and_Cueball_red.png Hidden passages in red]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1069:-1088+s.png (1069, 1088)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1070:-1088+s.png (1070, 1088)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|You are warned not to step onto this glitch floor! But if you do you can drop down to yet another coin far below the Destroyer, but even farther up above the ground.<br />
|-<br />
|Two rooms with coins right of Glitch floor room.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/2e/1608_1074x1090y_Two_rooms_with_coins_right_of_Glitch_floor_room.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1073:-1092+s.png (1073, 1092)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1074:-1091+s.png (1074, 1091)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Canon protruding below the hull.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/f4/1608_1075x1088y_Canon_protruding_below_the_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1075:-1088+s.png (1075, 1088)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1076:-1088+s.png (1076, 1088)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Entire area around the bridge.<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/bd/1608_Entire_area_around_the_bridge.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/4b/1608_Entire_Bridge_and_rear_section.png Entire bridge area]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/f1/1608_Entire_Bridge_and_emperor.png Brdige and emperor]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c2/1608_Entire_Bridge_and_globe_of_death.png Bridge and globe of death]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/54/1608_Actual_Bridge_with_Vader_and_Tarkin.png Actual bridge]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c7/1608_Vader_twice_and_emperor_on_and_near_bridge.png Vader twice and emperor]<br />
|Overview<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Ponytail with paper plane and coin below her on top hull.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/11/1608_1077x1107y_Ponytail_with_paper_plane_and_coin_below_her_on_top_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1078:-1106+s.png (1078, 1006)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1077:-1105+s.png (1077, 1105)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|Cueball also throws out a plane in Click and Drag from the sky scraper. This also happens in the ''Sky Toucher'' in TE where it is Ponytail again.<br />
|-<br />
|Tarkin on the bridge and Ponytail with paper plane.<br />
|<br />
:Cueball: The fault, dear Tarkin, is not in our star destroyers, but in ourselves.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/20/1608_1077x1107y_Tarkin_on_the_bridge_and_Ponytail_with_paper_plane.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1077:-1107+s.png (1077, 1107)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1077:-1108+s.png (1077, 1108)]<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
||<font color="red">More on who Tarkin is</font> This is most likely a reference to the book (then made into a movie) titled {{w|The_Fault_in_Our_Stars |"The Fault in Our Stars"}}. The title of which is a reference to a line in {{w|William Shakespeare |Shakespeare's}} play {{W|Julius Caesar (play) |Julius Ceasar}}; "The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, / But in ourselves".<br />
|-<br />
|Darth Vader talks about Steven Universe on the bridge Megan adjust antenna.<br />
|<br />
:Megan: Such a pain adjusting his thing every time we move<br />
<br />
:Darth Vader: ''Breathe''<br />
:Darth Vader: But Steven's ''mother'' is a crystal gem,<br />
:Darth Vader: ''Breathe'')<br />
:Darth Vader: so he's half- Are you getting all this?<br />
:Hairy: Yes, my Lord!<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/fa/1608_1077x1109y_Darth_Vaders_talks_about_Steven_Universe_on_the_bridge_Megan_adjust_antenna.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1077:-1109+s.png (1077, 1109)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1077:-1110+s.png (1077, 1110)]<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|TV series: {{w|Steven Universe}}<br />
|Darth Vader refers to Steven Universe from the TV series. His mother is a Crystal Gem, so since his father is human, he is only a half gem, which is a joke in itself. Steven and his family are located inside a room in the middle of the Destroyer. Maybe as prisoners or it could be Vader is just a big fan since he talks about them on the bridge.<br />
|-<br />
|Globe of Death at the top of the Destroyer.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/7b/1608_1078x1111y_Globe_of_Death_at_the_top_of_the_Destroyer.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1078:-1110+s.png (1078, 1110)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1077:-1112+s.png (1077, 1112)]<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|This structure of the Globe of death is part of the Star Destroyer as can be seen in the films.<br />
|-<br />
|Fire system with pure oxygen and two coins room.<br />
|<br />
:Hairbun: In the event of a fire on one of the decks, this system will seal it off and pump in pure oxygen.<br />
:Ponytail: Wait, ''Oxygen?'' Not a fire suppressant like-<br />
:Hairbun: Ugh, ''boring''.<br />
<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d0/1608_1080x1105y_Fire_system_with_pure_oxygen_and_two_coins_room.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1080:-1105+s.png (1080, 1105)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1081:-1105+s.png (1081, 1105)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Darth Vader’s gold bullion and Cueball and Ponytail in small room at the top of the hull.<br />
|<br />
:Cueball: Aha! Darth Vader's secret gold bullion reserves! We'll be rich!<br />
:Megan: I'm not sure this is canon.<br />
:Bags: $ $ $<br />
:Boxes: $ $ $ $ $<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/7e/1608_1080x1108y_Darth_Vaders_gold_bullion_and_Cueball_and_Ponytail_in_small_room_at_the_top_of_the_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1080:-1108+s.png (1080, 1108)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1079:-1109+s.png (1079, 1109)]<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Large crocodile near globe of death at the top of the hull.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e8/1608_1081x1110y_Large_crocodile_near_globe_of_death_at_the_top_of_the_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1081:-1110+s.png (1081, 1110)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1079:-1111+s.png (1079, 1111)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|The Emperor Palpatine and his birds at the top of the hull.<br />
|<br />
:Guy: My emperor...<br />
:Guy: We all share in your newfound enthusiasm for birdwatching.<br />
:Guy: But normally one watches them in the wild, rather than drugging and imprisoning them in a house of stairs.<br />
:Emperor: ''Silence.''<br />
:Bird: Chirp<br />
:Bird: Chirp<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6b/1608_1083x1109y_The_Emperor_Palpatine_and_his_birds_at_the_top_of_the_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1083:-1109+s.png (1083, 1109)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1084:-1109+s.png (1084, 1109)]<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Coin behind the rear end at the top of the hull.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/01/1608_1087x1108y_Coin_behind_the_rear_end_at_the_top_of_the_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1087:-1108+s.png (1087, 1108)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|'''Entire Prince of Persia maze.'''<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/b0/1608_Entire_Prince_of_Persia_maze.png Overview]<br>[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/fa/1608_Entire_Prince_of_Persia_maze_with_both_exits.png Including both exits]<br />
|Overview<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Computer game: {{w|Prince of Persia}}<br />
|Compare to this [http://cdn.wikimg.net/strategywiki/images/a/a2/Princeofpersia_dos_level1.png picture of level 1] taken from the game.<br />
|-<br />
|Corridor left of Prince of Persia maze.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/5b/1608_1073x1101y_Corridor_left_of_Prince_of_Persia_maze.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1073:-1101+s.png (1073, 1101)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1072:-1101+s.png (1072, 1101)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Left entrance to Prince of Persia maze.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6c/1608_1076x1101y_Left_entrance_to_Prince_of_Persia_maze.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1076:-1101+s.png (1076, 1101)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1077:-1101+s.png (1077, 1101)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Left part of Prince of Persia maze.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/03/1608_1079x1102y_Left_part_of_Prince_of_Persia_maze.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1077:-1102+s.png (1077, 1102)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1080:-1102+s.png (1080, 1102)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Right part and exit of Prince of Persia maze.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/1d/1608_1082x1101y_Right_part_and_exit_of_Prince_of_Persia_maze.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1082:-1101+s.png (1082, 1101)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1081:-1102+s.png (1081, 1102)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Right exit of Prince of Persia maze and shafts.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/42/1608_1084x1103y_Right_exit_of_Prince_of_Persia_maze_and_shafts.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1083:-1102+s.png (1083, 1102)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1083:-1103+s.png (1083, 1103)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Ant Queen and alarm ante room.<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/10/1608_Ant_Queen_and_alarm_ante_room.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|In this section all rooms have the same dome shaped ceiling that goes a little below the walls of the corridors.<br />
|-<br />
|Corridor with alarm and trapped Cueball.<br />
|<br />
:Alarm: …Beep…<br />
:Alarm: …Beep…<br />
:Alarm: …Beep…<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/01/1608_1075x1094y_Corridor_with_alarm_and_trapped_Cueball.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1075:-1094+s.png (1075, 1094)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1074:-1094+s.png (1074, 1094)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Ant Queen in Destroyer.<br />
|<br />
:Cueball: What's up?<br />
:Ant queen: The usual. Poopin' out ants.<br />
:Cueball: Eww.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d2/1608_1078x1095y_Ant_Queen_in_Destroyer.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1078:-1095+s.png (1078, 1095)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1077:-1094+s.png (1077, 1094)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Y<br />
|Comic: [[1610: Fire Ants]] and [[1641: Hot Dogs]]<br />
|The ant comic was released only a week after this comic and refers how cool ants are. Ants are also used twice in TE A zoom in on an ant is used to indicate size in ''Earth's past'' and under the ''Tree'' in that explanation there is an ant colony where one ant is much bigger than the others; an ant queen, a clear reference to the ant queen in the Destroyer. The other comic is a discussion running along exactly the same template ending in ''Eww''. <br><br>This is probably a reference to a part of Orson Scott Card's "Xenocide" in his Ender series. In it, the main character, Ender, visits a hive queen "bugger" he saved on his travels and became friends with, at a time after the queen has settled in on a new planet. At one point, Ender brings other humans to meet the queen at a time when she was giving birth to some of her drones. This is most likely meant to represent a parody of that conversation or else represent a comedic idea of his first conversation with her when she had been birthing, where Ender is alone and is speaking to the Hive Queen. In this version, when he finds out that she is in the process of birthing more ants, rather than being compassionate and understanding with the Queen (as he is in the book), Ender is weirded out like the other humans he brings along with him later. <br />
|-<br />
|Entire shafts from top to bottom towards the rear end.<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/ce/1608_Entire_shafts_from_top_to_bottom_towards_the_rear_end.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|This is the longest shaft in the Destroyer, and with the other shaft going out at the rear end, it is possible to go from the top room at the emperor and out beneath in a very short time.<br />
|-<br />
|Coin in the longest shaft.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/5a/1608_1084x1099y_Coin_in_the_longest_shaft.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1084:-1099+s.png (1084, 1099)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Cueball and Megan hanging on to each other in a shaft figuring this out.<br />
|<br />
:Cueball: Okay<br />
:Cueball: We can figure this out.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c4/1608_1084x1095y_Cueball_and_Megan_hanging_on_to_each_other_in_a_shaft_figuring_this_out.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1084:-1095+s.png (1084, 1095)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Zoom out on light bulb with corridor and other room.<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/5b/1608_1084x1092y_Zoom_out_on_light_bulb_with_corridor_and_other_room.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Giant light bulb room.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d2/1608_1084x1090y_Giant_light_bulb_room.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1084:-1090+s.png (1084, 1090)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1085:-1090+s.png (1085, 1090)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Y<br />
|<br />
|In ''The pieces everything is made of'' in TE a light bulb is used as reference for the entry on tungsten as the filament in such bulbs is made from this element.<br />
|-<br />
|Hairbun proposition room and Cueball losing his sandwich at the rear end.<br />
|<br />
:Hairbun: Use a proposition instead of a preposition if you need something to end a sentence with, baby.<br />
<br />
:Cueball: My sandwich!<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/63/1608_1086x1091y_Hair_Bun_Girl_proposition_room_and_Cueball_losing_his_sandwich_at_the_rear_end.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1086:-1091+s.png (1086, 1091)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1089:-1091+s.png (1089, 1091)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|One comment is inside the other on the outside of the Destroyer. Cueballs sandwich will fall to the ground.<br />
|-<br />
|Coin bouncing out from a shaft below the hull.<br />
|<br />
:Coin: Bounce<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/44/1608_1086x1088y_Coin_bouncing_out_from_a_shaft_below_the_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1086:-1088+s.png (1086, 1088)]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1086:-1090+s.png (1086, 1090)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|In relation to the colon interpretation (see above) then this would literally be the rear of this living space ship, and the coin is the waste going out the rear entry!<br />
|-<br />
|Megan hanging on below the bottom of the hull.<br />
|<br />
:Megan Hmm.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/ee/1608_1082x1088y_Megan_hanging_on_below_the_bottom_of_the_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1082:-1088+s.png (1082, 1088)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Zoom out on shaft and small dead end room at the rear end.<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/11/1608_1088x1098y_Zoom_out_on_shaft_and_small_dead_end_room_at_the_rear_end.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Zoom out on shafts and part of the rear end.<br />
|<br />
:(N/A)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/45/1608_1088x1105y_Zoom_out_on_shafts_and_part_of_the_rear_end.png Overview]<br />
|Overview<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Coin in a small indentation corridor at the rear end.<br />
|<br />
:(None)<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/35/1608_1090x1102y_Coin_in_a_small_indentation_corridor_at_the_rear_end.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1090:-1102+s.png (1090, 1102)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<font color="red">Explanation missing</font><br />
|-<br />
|Megan wants synesthesia at the rear end at bottom of the hull.<br />
|<br />
:Megan: I want synesthesia so bad I can ''taste'' it.<br />
|[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/9d/1608_1090x1088y_Megan_want_synesthesia_at_the_rear_end_at_bottom_of_the_hull.png Overview]<br />
|[http://xkcd.com/1608/1090:-1088+s.png (1090, 1088)]<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|Comic: [[1213: Combination Vision Test]]<br />
|{{w|synesthesia}} is a neurological phenomenon in which stimulation of one sensory or cognitive pathway leads to automatic, involuntary experiences in a second sensory or cognitive pathway. One typical version is where numbers are perceived as having colors. This was used in the comic referenced. In this comic a wish for something makes Megan almost taste it. If she did indeed have this dysfunction, she might already have what she wished for... This is one of the rare incidences where there are two almost identically Megans in one scene.<br />
|}<br />
<br />
==Coins==<br />
*There are 169 coins.<br />
**Here should be more details about the coins and where they are located and how many.<br />
*For more details see here for [[1608: Hoverboard/Images coins|coins location]].<br />
*The Coins are not part of the drawing. <br />
**They are added later for the game, and they are superimposed on top of the image. <br />
**This means they are always on top of the black parts of the image. <br />
**There are no coins located over any part of the type of black that you cannot pass through. <br />
**But in more than one occasion the coins cover some of the black parts that you can walk through.<br />
***See example here [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/0b/1608_with_coin_1070_1095.png with coin] vs. [http://xkcd.com/1608/1070:-1095+s.png without coin].<br />
***The coin is here a lamp, and then when it is removed it reveals an exploded lamp beneath the coin, and also one more insect.<br />
****This means that the coins can never be hidden by anything black, and although coins can be hidden away in a secret lair, they can never be hidden under water or lava or holes in the Washington Monument.<br />
****Because if there were any coins in these dark areas, the coins would still be shown on top of the image.<br />
<br />
==Technical aspects==<br />
The game was made by [http://chromakode.com Max Goodman] who has previously worked on [[1416: Pixels]]. The source code for the game can be found [https://xkcd.com/1608/tigl.js here].<br />
<br />
===Image tiles and coordinates===<br />
As previously noted, the comic bears considerable resemblance to [[1110: Click and Drag]]. The comic is made in much the same way, with 'drawn' images "glued" together to form a large "map", with the illusion of infinite bounds made possible through space saving techniques where blank tiles are not stored and are instead painted white. The boundary between blank squares and 'drawn' squares is made clear as any white space in the normal images has a very slight grey tint. Thus, seams between images and blank spaces can be discerned.<br />
<br />
The tiles for the map are stored as simple PNG files in the naming scheme: X:-Y+s.png. An example from the starting tile can be seen here: http://xkcd.com/1608/1000:-1074+s.png, with the coordinate (X, Y) coordinate (1000, 1074).<br />
<br />
Each file is 513x513 pixels in size, one pixel is reserved as overlap to ensure seamless joining of images. The image tiles names are listed as coordinates in an X - Y grid with X in the range from 928 to 1108 and Y in the range from 928 to 1112. <br />
<br />
Internally in the game, the position of the player is given for instance as (X: 512187, -Y: -549668) for the starting position. Then these numbers are divided by 512 and rounded down. This gives the coordinate of the tile that the hoverboard is currently in.<br />
:(X: 512187, -Y: -549668)/512 => (X, Y) = (1000.37, -[-1073,6]) => (1000, 1074) when the numbers are rounded down. <br />
The bottom left corner of the first tile, would thus be (1000, 1073), and the top left corner (1000, 1074) => (512000, -549888).<br />
<br />
The collision map is encoded in the darkness of the black. Using an image manipulation program, one can easily find the secret pathways even in the zoomed out maps provided below by enhancing the contrast of the dark areas. <br />
<br />
====Play Area used as example====<br />
*Using the Play Area as an example some of the features mentioned in this section will be explained.<br />
**The images used below can be seen together [[1608: Hoverboard/Screen-shots#All of Play Area|here]].<br />
*The hoverboard begins in in (X, Y) = [http://xkcd.com/1608/1000:-1074+s.png (1000, 1074)]. <br />
**But even while staying within the Play Area, defined as the area where you will not be told to [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/ae/Return_to_the_play_area.PNG Return to the Play Area], you can see all or part of 20 images. <br />
***You can move one image left and right of the starting point before reaching the walls, and one image up without getting too high. But from there you can see part of the images one step further left, right and up, and from the starting level you can see part of the black images below as well.<br />
***This makes it a 5 times 4 images rectangle.<br />
*This first example shows a full size image combined from these 20 images that make up the play area starting in the top left corner with image [http://xkcd.com/1608/998:-1076+s.png (998, 1076)] and finishing down the right corner with image [http://xkcd.com/1608/1002:-1073+s.png (1002, 1073)]. <br />
**Here is only the images themselves, nothing with the game parts, i.e. coins and hoverboard Cueball:<br />
***[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/eb/1680_Play_Area_Full_Size_Images_Only.png Play Area Full Size Images Only].<br />
*This next example shows both where the tiles are and what you see to begin with, i.e. the starting view when loading the comic to begin with. Still without any in game details.<br />
**Here the tiles are lines out with green and the view frame is in red. From this it can be seen that the view is somewhat larger than a single image.<br />
**More precisely the view is 1.43 times longer and 1.34 higher than a tile giving an area almost twice as big (1.93 times), but only going about 1/3 of a tile length in each direction:<br />
***[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/7b/1680_Play_Area_Full_Size_Tiles_and_View.png Play Area Full Size Tiles and View].<br />
*This third example shows the game version, with coins and hoverboard, but still the hole Play Area and hence also the read viewing square.<br />
**This is included to indicate which coins can be seen to begin with and also how the view is centered around Cueball and the hoverboard.<br />
**Cueballs center is also the center of the view. His center is defines as the line of his body in the X direction and just above his hands in the Y direction.<br />
**The view is 12 times as high and 30 times as wide as the Cueball on hoverboard (and compared to a tile these numbers are 9.4 and 20.8 times).<br />
***[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/8b/1680_Play_Area_Full_Size_Coins_Hoverboard_and_View.png Play Area Full Size Coins Hoverboard and View].<br />
*The last and fourth example is the same as above, but again with the green tiles.<br />
**This to indicate the size of a tile compared to Cueball<br />
**It also shows that although there are 12 coins in the starting view, the one at the top left is clearly in the image above, and the three other at the top are grazing the top edge of the image:<br />
***[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a3/1680_Play_Area_Full_Size_Coins_Hoverboard_Tiles_and_View.png Play Area Full Size Coins Hoverboard Tiles and View].<br />
<br />
===Functionality===<br />
By observing page code while playing, the game grabs and displays images based on location, and subsequently clears all non-visible images. The game uses what seems to be a position syntax to retrieve the intended images live, and returns an error if such an image does not exist, such as a blank area. This technically means things could be added to the world and updated live. If the player is moving sufficiently fast or if the internet connection is slow, this means that the player can get stuck in a black area that does not load in time.<br />
<br />
This also means that the game does not have coded top or bottom limits, so any attempt to find the ''ceiling'' of the game will be futile unless the game is tweaked. The game does however have side limits, and it is not possible to go down further than image with Y coordinate 1073 (and it goes down to 1069 in the full image), so there is a bottom limit in the game. If using a [[#Cheats and Exploits|cheat mode]] this may be different.<br />
<br />
Opening the console will display the text: what? hoverboard not enough for you!? in the log. Activating goggles mode will cause the text 'B-)' to appear in the log.<br />
<br />
===Bugs and errors===<br />
*On a slow connection, it's possible to move into an 'open' area and then the black image loads in and (probably permanently, without tricks) traps you immobile.<br />
*Sometimes the timing of the game is completely off. This can make the Cueball move extremely slowly. Or on the other extreme make him go faster so the images jumps and makes the graphic look horrible.<br />
**This error was actually used to discover something about how you move when pressing the arrows - see under [[#Controls|Controls]].<br />
*If the focus switches from the game to the page, the Cueball can freeze in midair. The same thing can happen if the window border overlaps the play area.<br />
<br />
===Controls===<br />
The keyboard controls are as follows:<br />
<br />
*'''Go Left''' - Left arrow key, a or h<br />
*'''Go Right''' - Right arrow key, d or l<br />
*'''Go Up (jump or hover)''' - Up arrow key, w, or k<br />
*'''Go Down (if gravity disabled)''' - Down arrow key, s, or j<br />
<br />
This control scheme covers the three commonly used directional key sets: WASD a set of keys commonly used by modern games; HJKL a set of movement keys used by vi and applications which attempt to mimic vi key controls (vim); and the arrow keys, the most generic set of keys which is usually accepted by most applications which take movement as input, these were commonly used in older games.<br />
<br />
On devices which have a touch screen and tilt sensor (portable devices like mobile phones and tablets) the controls are as follows:<br />
*'''Go Left''' - Roll the device anticlockwise<br />
*'''Go Right''' - Roll the device clockwise<br />
*'''Go Up (jump or hover)''' - Tap the screen<br />
<br />
After inspecting the source code, there appears to be no way to move down on a portable device, this is only relevant if gravity is disabled (see [[#Cheats and Exploits|Cheats and Exploits]]).<br />
<br />
*If you keep down the left/right control you will keep moving along in that direction as long as no object blocks you.<br />
*A jump will only take you a certain height. <br />
**Then you drop down. <br />
**The jump is fast to begin with, then gravity stops you and revert the direction.<br />
**When descending again you accelerate to begin with but quickly reach a terminal velocity.<br />
*If you jump repeatedly while keeping a left/right control down you will jump in that direction.<br />
**But if you only jump one time, while keeping down the direction control, then you will stop moving forward after about 2.8s, from then on you will just keep falling straight down, or stop where you reached if on the ground. <br />
**This makes quite a difference when you jump into an opening from a high structure. If the background is completely white, you cannot see that you do not continue to move forward, and will thus not be aware that you are now falling straight down, instead of going left/right. <br />
**It can actually be quite difficult to notice as you will leave any structures that can indicate this issue very quickly.<br />
***Of course if you notice that you land much too close to some high structure from where you base jumped, you will begin to understand. For instance falling off the floating rock, and not moving away from under neath it during that long fall.<br />
***The timing was discovered because of one of the [[#Bugs and errors|bugs]] in the program that sometimes makes Cueball move extremely slow, so one jump takes more than 3s. <br />
**The solution if you wish to keep moving to either side while descending, is that after the jump, you release and repress the left/right control. Then you will continue moving in that direction as long as you do not jump again. <br />
**As long as you continue to jump you will also keep moving laterally if you keep one of those buttons down. The is quite counter intuitive.<br />
***This also means that when you jump up over a long distance (or continue to jump hover over the landscape), you will not have this issue, since every jump reactivates the lateral movement.<br />
***But if you jump over a small obstacle and then just keep another arrow down, you will soon stop, which could fool you into believing that it was an obstacle on the ground that held you back.<br />
<br />
===Cheats and Exploits===<br />
Aside from the obvious ability to move out of bounds in the game, there are some more obscure hidden features which can't be enabled through normal gameplay, the ones found so far are as follows:<br />
<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 />
<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed leftAlign" style="width:100%"><br />
<br />
*'''Gandalf Mode:''' ''i.am.gandalf = true'' - jumps and runs further. displays a white gandalf hat that works well in places where the avatar can't be seen.<br />
*'''Speedhack:''' ''explorer.opts.speed= *Value*'' - Speed hacking, with 1 = normal speed<br />
*'''Jump Hack:''' '' explorer.opts.jumpForce= -*Value*'' - Jump hacking, with -1 = normal jump (positive values cause the hoverboard guy to move down when jumping)<br />
*'''Mewtwo mode:''' ''mewtwo = true'' - disables gravity<br />
*'''Noclip mode:''' ''noclip = true'' - player is able to move around the map without collision. Combine with Gandalf and Mewtwo modes for free easy map traversal.<br />
*'''Goggles mode:''' ''ze.goggles()'' - displays a small window showing area around the player in a pixelated manner. The goggles indicate collision boundaries (where the player touches the world) in cyan lines. Black pixels that are passable (such as other characters or text) will be highlighted red (allowing secret passages to be discovered).<br />
*'''Position Tracking:''' ''explorer.pos'' - Returns the player location to the console. Can be used to track position and test to ensure you are still moving. Must be re-entered to compare positioning.<br />
*'''Position Setting:''' ''explorer.pos.x = *Value* or explorer.pos.y = *Value*'' - Can be used to manually set a position within the world. The start is at x: 512106, y: -549612. The left terrain bound is at x: 475210, y: -553711. The right terrain bound is at x: 567281, y: -549712. Mewtwo and Noclip modes are a must for exploring in this way.<br />
* '''All the above:''' ''explorer.opts'' - Contains all the game's parameters. You can directly mess with ''gravity'', collision (''disableCollision''), jump force (''jumpForce'') and speed (''maxSpeed''), among others. Run ''Object.keys(explorer.opts)'' to list all available parameters you can tweak.<br />
* '''List all coins:''' ''explorer.objects'' - Array containing the position of the 169 coins of the game.<br />
* '''Disable tilt input:''' ''getEventListeners(window)['deviceorientation'][0].remove()'' - on Macs with motion sensor, disables tilt input which causes problems controlling the avatar<br />
<br />
'''Getting All Coins: ''' To instantly get all coins, input the below into the console window. Does not use standard formatting of [i] to avoid conflicts with i.am.gandalf<br />
<br />
for (var T = 0; T < explorer.objects.length; T++) {<br />
explorer.objects[T].got = true;<br />
}<br />
<br />
To teleport to the next coin every time you press the left or right arrow:<br />
<br />
var T = 0;<br />
document.onkeydown = function(event){<br />
if (event.keyCode == 37) { T = T-1 }<br />
else if (event.keyCode == 39) { T = T+1 }<br />
else { return }<br />
T = T % explorer.objects.length;<br />
var coin = explorer.objects[T];<br />
explorer.pos.x = coin.x1; explorer.pos.y = coin.y1;<br />
}<br />
<br />
For a quick tour of all the coins:<br />
<br />
var delayInMilliseconds = 1000; // 1 second delay between each teleport. feel free to change this.<br />
var index = 0;<br />
explorer.objects.forEach(function(x){<br />
setTimeout(function(){<br />
explorer.pos.x = x.x1;<br />
explorer.pos.y = x.y1;<br />
x.got = true;<br />
explorer.frame(); // forces a redraw<br />
},<br />
(index + 1) * delayInMilliseconds);<br />
index++;<br />
});<br />
<br />
To see a list of coin coordinates you have not yet collected:<br />
<br />
var L = 0;<br />
for (var S = 0; S < explorer.objects.length; S++) {<br />
var I = explorer.objects[S];<br />
if (I.got) {<br />
L++;<br />
} else {<br />
console.log(I.x1.toString() + ", " + I.y1.toString());<br />
}<br />
}<br />
console.log("You've found " + L.toString() + " of 169 coins");<br />
<br />
To display the distance and direction to the closest coin (with inverted colors once you have all the coins):<br />
<br />
function distance(x1, y1, x2, y2) {<br />
var dx = x2 - x1;<br />
var dy = y2 - y1;<br />
return Math.sqrt(dx * dx + dy * dy);<br />
}<br />
<br />
function angle(x1, y1, x2, y2) {<br />
var dx = x2 - x1;<br />
var dy = y2 - y1;<br />
return Math.atan2(dy, dx) * 180 / Math.PI;<br />
}<br />
<br />
function renderRadar() {<br />
var mindist = 10000000000;<br />
var closest = {<br />
x1:512278.0, y1:-549613.0<br />
};<br />
var linecolor = "red";<br />
for (var S = 0; S < explorer.objects.length; S++) {<br />
var I = explorer.objects[S];<br />
if (!I.got) {<br />
var dist = distance(explorer.pos.x, explorer.pos.y, I.x1, I.y1);<br />
if (dist < mindist) {<br />
mindist = dist;<br />
closest = I;<br />
}<br />
}<br />
}<br />
if (mindist == 10000000000) {<br />
mindist = distance(explorer.pos.x, explorer.pos.y, closest.x1, closest.y1);<br />
if (document.getElementById("radar").style.backgroundColor != "red") {<br />
document.getElementById("radar").style.backgroundColor = "red";<br />
}<br />
linecolor = "green";<br />
} else {<br />
if (document.getElementById("radar").style.backgroundColor != "green") {<br />
document.getElementById("radar").style.backgroundColor = "green";<br />
}<br />
}<br />
var ang = angle(explorer.pos.x, explorer.pos.y, closest.x1, closest.y1);<br />
var indicator = "";<br />
if (ang > 112.5 || ang < -112.5) {<br />
indicator += "left";<br />
}<br />
if (ang < 67.5 && ang > -67.5) {<br />
indicator += "right";<br />
}<br />
if (ang > -157.5 && ang < -22.5) {<br />
indicator += " up";<br />
}<br />
if (ang > 22.5 && ang < 157.5) {<br />
indicator += " down";<br />
}<br />
document.getElementById("radar").innerHTML = "Distance: " + mindist.toFixed(1).toString() + "&lt;br/>";<br />
document.getElementById("radar").innerHTML += indicator + " (" + -ang.toFixed(1).toString() + "°)";<br />
document.getElementById("radar").innerHTML += "<div id='circle' style='border: 1px solid black; border-radius: 50px; width: 100px; height: 100px; position:absolute; top:50px; left:25px'/>";<br />
document.getElementById("radar").innerHTML += "<div id='line' style='width: 50px; height: 1px; background-color: " + linecolor + "; position:absolute; top:100px; left:75px; transform:rotate(" + ang + "deg); transform-origin:0% 0%'/>";<br />
}<br />
<br />
var d = document.createElement("div");<br />
d.id = "radar";<br />
d.style.position = "fixed";<br />
d.style.left = "0px";<br />
d.style.top = "0px";<br />
d.style.width = "150px";<br />
d.style.height = "160px";<br />
d.style.border = "1px solid red";<br />
d.style.zIndex = "2";<br />
d.style.backgroundColor = "green";<br />
d.style.color = "#8f8";<br />
document.body.appendChild(d);<br />
<br />
setInterval(renderRadar, 100);<br />
<br />
To display your current coordinates:<br />
<br />
function renderRadar2() {<br />
document.getElementById("radar2").innerHTML = "x: " + explorer.pos.x.toFixed(1).toString() + "&lt;br>y: " + explorer.pos.y.toFixed(1).toString()<br />
}<br />
<br />
var d = document.createElement("div")<br />
d.id = "radar2"<br />
d.style.position = "fixed"<br />
d.style.left = "150px"<br />
d.style.top = "0px"<br />
d.style.width = "150px"<br />
d.style.height = "35px"<br />
d.style.border = "1px solid red"<br />
d.style.zIndex = "2"<br />
d.style.backgroundColor = "green"<br />
d.style.color = "#8f8"<br />
document.body.appendChild(d)<br />
<br />
setInterval(renderRadar2, 1000)<br />
</div><br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:No title text]] <!-- See trivia --><br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]<br />
[[Category:Large drawings]]<br />
[[Category:Comics with animation]] <!-- Different positions of hoverboard Cueball, Blinking text, appearing and disappearing text --><br />
[[Category:Dynamic comics]]<br />
[[Category:Interactive comics]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]] <!-- Well hidden in the cave --><br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairbun]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Elon Musk]] <!-- Hidden in the volcanic lair on a chair --><br />
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]] <!-- There are many situations with more than one Cueball, so it is not just because he is in separate locations --><br />
[[Category:Philosophy]]<br />
[[Category:Video games]]<br />
[[Category:Star Wars]]<br />
[[Category:LOTR]]<br />
[[Category:The Lion King]] <!-- Cueball recites a line from the movie see here: http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a0/1608_0986x1076y_Our_kingdom_from_a_cliff.png --><br />
[[Category:Animals]]<br />
[[Category:Spiders]] <!-- No spider shown, but Cueball sings about them in this image: http://xkcd.com/1608/1026:-1073+s.png --><br />
[[Category:Songs]] <!-- Cueball sings about spider in this image: http://xkcd.com/1608/1026:-1073+s.png --><br />
[[Category:Protip]] <!-- Ponytail gives one at the base of the pyramid to the right --><br />
[[Category:Hamster Ball]]<br />
[[Category:Playpen balls]]<br />
[[Category:Kites]]<br />
[[Category:Basketball]]<br />
[[Category:Sport]] <!-- Apart from basketball there are bowling and swimming, sleighing, biking --><br />
[[Category:Robots]] <!-- Small in both Space Ships to the left as well as quadcopters in the volcano--><br />
[[Category:Artificial Intelligence]] <!-- Quadcopters in the volcano --><br />
[[Category:Food]] <!-- Cueball drops his sandwich of the back of the Destroyer and he and Megan roast a Marshmallow at the back of the Runner --><br />
[[Category:Social networking]] <!--Trending and Twitter in the lava lair and "likes during reentry" for the space probe--><br />
[[Category:Clickbait]] <!--The mother who discovers a bug near the kite to the left--></div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1556:_The_Sky&diff=1221221556: The Sky2016-06-18T02:29:36Z<p>173.245.54.30: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1556<br />
| date = July 27, 2015<br />
| title = The Sky<br />
| image = the_sky.png<br />
| titletext = The other half has some cool shipwrecks, rocks, and snakes, but if you move those out of the way, it also has more sky.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
In this comic [[Cueball]] and [[Megan]] admire a majestic sky on a beautiful day. This is one of the few comics where the scenery is drawn entirely in color, adding to the feeling of awe and natural wonder. The lighting on the clouds and the night sky in the upper corner suggest that this is either at sunset or sunrise and the picture is drawn to show the ever changing beauty of the many different stages of the sky. When the sun falls below the horizon the light produces many different colors which can often be breathtaking to witness. Similar things happen at sunrise.<br />
<br />
Megan says that the sky is one of her favorite halves, an odd way to refer to the sky and without the title text its difficult to figure out what she means.<br />
<br />
The title text suggests she is referring to the earth and the sky. Both can be beautiful in their own right and, as the title text points out, beyond the earth underfoot there is more sky.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball and Megan are standing looking upward with in a small frame a light blue background.]<br />
:Cueball: I like the sky.<br />
:Megan: Yeah.<br />
<br />
:[Zooms out to show a blue evening sky, the sun must be setting to the left and a streak of yellow and orange clouds goes from top left to bottom right. The sky/clouds get darker further to the right and several stars are visible behind the clouds on the indigo blue sky in the top right corner. There are also some gray clouds low over the horizon. Cueball and Megan standing to the far left Below them and the sky from the horizon and down there is a thick a black slab taking up about a sixth of the frame height.]<br />
:Megan: It's one of my favorite halves.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1663:_Garden&diff=1221211663: Garden2016-06-18T02:28:40Z<p>173.245.54.30: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1663<br />
| date = April 4, 2016<br />
| title = Garden<br />
| image = garden.png <!--This is the starting point and should be used here. Other images need to go in the explanation --><br />
| titletext = Relax.<br />
}}<br />
<div class="toclimit-3" style="float:right; margin-left: 10px;">__TOC__</div><br />
*'''Note''' this is an interactive comic. Go to {{xkcd|1663|xkcd}} to try it out.<br />
**Also '''note''' that a few weeks after the comic was released a change was made so growth only seems to appear when the gardens is actively running in a browser window! <br />
**(This is opposed to what happened during the first few weeks after release!)<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
This comics represents the [[:Category:April fools' comics|April fools' comic]] of 2016, and it is [[Randall|Randall's]] celebration of {{w|April Fools' Day}} Friday, April 1, 2016. It represents the third time in a row that user input changes the April Fool's comic. Although in the last two [[1350: Lorenz]] and [[1506: xkcloud]] it was written (or drawn) input that became part of the comics. This time the user input is like a game, as the user actively adds, moves and deletes items, and new items appear based on these actions. In this way it actually more resembles the game comic [[1608: Hoverboard]], than the previous April Fool's comics.<br />
<br />
Due to technical problems (or to make fools of his fans (see more about the [[#April Fool's header text|header text]] below)) the comic did not go live until Sunday evening (after midnight, so technically first on Monday April 4th) so there was no Friday release the week before, see [[#Monday 4th of April release|more details below]].<br />
<br />
The comic begins with a [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/f1/Garden_Loading_collage.png loading screen] with a revolving tree and the text "loading..." This is because the first time a computer loads this dynamic comic it can take a while.<br />
<br />
Once it is loaded it displays "your '''Garden'''" being the barren landscape, with a small pond to the left, some rubbles far left and right and a single lamp shining light yellow light on most of the ground. This is what is shown at the top of the explanation here. But if you leave the lights on and wait (or "relax", as the reader is told to do by the title text), then plants and other items will start to appear. <br />
<br />
The reason it is correct to call it "your garden" is that every time this comic is loaded from scratch, a new garden will be created with a unique url-address. By [[#Saving garden with url|saving this link]] (making a bookmark for it), the user will be able to return to their garden again and again. As the garden only develops very slowly this is important. (If users wish to share their garden they can do it in the table on the page for '''[[1663: Garden/Users gardens|Users gardens]]''').<br />
<br />
[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/78/1663_garden_Three_colors_over_everything_not_very_interesting.png Plants appear] one at a time, and sometimes it takes a long time. Only a few of the plants actually grow. For instance there are some large trees that begins as [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/27/1663_garden_Fast_growing_tree_-_leafless.png a large trunk] and from there [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/67/1663_garden_Fast_growing_tree_-_lots_of_leaves.png grows branches and leaves]. This can sometimes happen quite fast. Most other plants just appear, the only other exception being one type of flowers. All plants, except cactus, clearly sway in the breeze.<br />
<br />
Also [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/5a/1663_garden_Pruned_garden_with_birds_deer_gate_cactus_turtles_snake_gate.png animals] and [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/de/1663_garden_Three_lamps_two_along_ground_with_pillars_not_in_blue_world_and_symmetric_gates.png building like structures] like [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/15/1663_garden_Megan_Monolith_Animals_and_more.png a Monolith and birdbaths] appear together with lots of other items like [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/ad/1663_garden_Office_space_with_star_plant_balloon_with_bird_and_grass_on_Cueball.png office furniture] with [http://xkcd.com/1663/#98dc3452-fcf2-11e5-8010-42010a8e0008 balloons swaying in the wind] or even one of the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/3f/1663_garden_One_color_Between_orange_red_and_red_First_thing_Mars_rover.png Mars rovers] which so [[:Category:Mars rovers|often has been featured]] in xkcd.<br />
<br />
On top of all this there several known characters may appear in different poses including [[Cueball]] and [[Megan]] (for instance with a sword, see [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6b/1663_garden_Megan_with_sword%2C_trees_octopuses_with_Cueball_bunny_ducklings.png here]), [[Ponytail]] (see [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/eb/1663_garden_Ponytail_and_two_Cueballs_cat_pillar_and_trunk_sE.png here]) and [[Beret Guy]] from the torso and up (see [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/9b/1663_garden_Three_colors_more_separate_Beret_Guy_in_shrubbery_and_Octopus_on_office_desk.png here]). Megan and also Cueball can both be seen [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/06/1663_garden_Giant_planter_on_pillars_and_both_Cueball_and_Megan_with_black_hat.png with a black hat], but it is one that "grows" on top of their heads after they first appear. However, Cueball with a black hat automatically turns into [[Black Hat]], so he can also be said to be in this comic. There is also an unknown character, a [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/0c/1663_garden_One_color_Between_Light_yellow_and_yellow_First_thing_stilts.png girl on stilts] with black hair in a ponytail who like plants and balloons [http://xkcd.com/1663/#e774b4b8-fcd4-11e5-8001-42010a8e0017 sways in the wind].<br />
<br />
All the [[#Items in the garden|items that can appear]] in the garden are listed below in several tables. During the first week new items kept appearing, but after the eight day (April 12th), no new items seems to have appeared. Also the growth rate (and thus the fun of this comic) has decreased with time (maybe due to the enormous amount of gardens that the server has to keep track of?) <br />
<br />
Every so often the image will refresh. You can change the number of lamps, their position, direction, beam width and the color temperature which always begins somewhere between white and yellow, but can change all the way from red to blue (See this [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/b8/Garden_Three_Lamp_screen_shot.png example] with one lamp selected and three colors of light). Other colors than those four may appear where two lamps light cone of different colored light overlap.<br />
<br />
The color of light [[#Effect of light|affects the growth]] with a strong correlation for what appears in the garden depending on the [[#Colors of light|color of light]], and this is not only split between red, yellow and blue, but rather in more than [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/4a/1663_garden_Numbered_color_scale_1-17.png 10 different colors]. <br />
<br />
Early on it became clear that pure red light results in a desert theme with [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/98/1663_garden_Desert_with_red_light_only.png cactus and turtles] and pure blue light gives an aquatic theme with [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/23/1663_garden_Octopus_garden_with_Cueball_hand_up_and_a_black_hat_octopus.png lots of octopuses] that may also wear the black hat! For the most interesting gardens the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/15/1663_garden_Megan_Monolith_Animals_and_more.png light colors should be mixed], see more below under [[#Effect of light|Effect of light]].<br />
<br />
If this comic is scientifically accurate, that correlation will be based on {{w|photosynthetically active radiation}}.<br />
<br />
Some users manage to create fantastic gardens (by using lots of time on them, pruning them at the right time and changing the light and lamp position to get what they strive for). Especially one user have created a series of amazing gardens that is posted on another [http://forums.xkcd.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=114415&start=600 xkcd forum]. Here is a collection of screen shots with some of [[1663:_Garden/Screen-shots#Blitz_Girls_amazing_gardens|Blitz Girls amazing gardens]]!<br />
<br />
The title text "Relax" can be debated. Is it to let the users know they should just sit back and relax as the garden grows. Or should they relax and don't worry so much about how it works (not working here on explain xkcd though!) Or is he teasing the users by giving them a garden that they need to tend to, and then telling them to relax. And also giving them many more colors than lamps... Given that this comic was supposed to come out on April 1st, there is a good chance that it is, also, to tease the users. There are actually [[#Trivia|two other title texts]] as well.<br />
<br />
===Extra Garden pages===<br />
*Since this comic is so complicated extra pages have been created to include much more information than is wished for on this main page (which is already of considerable size).<br />
*These pages are listed here for convenience, but they are also linked in the relevant sections below:<br />
**[[1663: Garden/Images]]. The images of items that can appear in the comic.<br />
***This page is linked in the section below with table for ''[[#Items in the garden|Items in the garden]]''.<br />
**[[1663: Garden/Screen-shots]]. Since there are no permalink it in order to save a particular moment of a garden a screen shot is needed. These can be posted here. <br />
***This page is linked in the section below about for ''[[#Saving images|Saving images]]''.<br />
**[[1663: Garden/Users gardens]]. A place for users of explain xkcd to post links to their own garden, and also for experimental gardens.!<br />
***This page is linked in the section below about for ''[[#Saving garden with url|Saving garden with url]]''.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[After a '''loading image''' with a rotating tree in the middle and the text "Loading..." with the three dots appearing one at a time, and then disappear when all three have been there the image shown above in the explanation will appear:]<br />
<br />
:['''Description of the image above''': A piece of bare landscape is shown. At the edges there are some rocks or stones raising the level from the general level through the center of the panel. Above the middle, a little more than halfway to the to of the panel, is a light bulb sitting inside a lamp that reminds of the desk lamp from the movie Luxo Jr. The lamp shines a yellow light down on the landscape in a broad cone that jus reaches the first rock to the left, but not those to the right. The lamp just hovers in the air. In the top right corner are two gray icons. The top one has a black frame and shows an image of a lamp, tilted left as opposed to the straight position of the lamp in the image. There is a + sign below in the left corner. The second icon without a frame has a large white cross in the middle.]<br />
<br />
:[This turns out to be a '''web applet''' and using the "+ lamp" icon two more lamps can be added getting up to three. They are all adjustable both regarding position, direction, color of light and beam width. When selecting a lamp a red circle appear around it with a small circle on top that can be used to control the light color from blue to the left to red to the right. In front is a red arrow that can turn the lamp and it can also be used to change the beam width by pulling it away from the lamp or pushing it back. The lamps can be moved by just clicking on it and moving it. The other icon with a X can be used to remove the lamps (and later any object that appear in the garden). When any object is selected there is a red circle around it. When this is done the gray cross icon becomes red and can the be used to delete the selected item. When no item is selected (either because it is deleted, or by clicking in a part of the screen with no items), then the cross icon turns gray again. When all three lamps are on, then the "+ lamp" icon is faded out.]<br />
<br />
:['''If you wait''' (or relax, as in the title text), then a plant will grow or animals, humans and other items may appear. This could be birds, snakes, octopuses or turtles, Megan or Cueball or a birdbath, a monolith or a tall gate just as a few examples. Most of the items appear in one go, but at least the largest trees grow up with a big stem first and then adds parts later with leaves or empty branches. Also one item may appear on top of another item and for instance birds may fly in the air.]<br />
<br />
:[There is but one word in the entire comic, which appears when you grow a sign:]<br />
:Sign: Sale<br />
<br />
==Functionality==<br />
===Saving garden with url===<br />
*There is no [[1350#Permalink|permalink button]] as in the last two years' April Fool's comics.<br />
*The URL is different for every garden that is loaded, but stays the same. It links to a server-side copy of the scene, which then changes depending on what the users does with their gardens.<br />
**Sharing a URL will connect a new browser to the same garden session, but only the original browser will be allowed to edit.<br />
**The user can always return to change the garden with the link, but only from the same browser on the same computer.<br />
**This means that a specific moment in a gardens life has to be [[#Saving images|saved as an image]] for future references.<br />
*The garden itself will thus continue to develop further from the time when the url was copied, and events will happen from now on even though the garden is not opened in any browser.<br />
**If the user doesn't keep it, it will become infested with weeds.<br />
**So most likely the garden is serverside, as all browsers are allowed to see the development of this garden, but users following the url are not allowed to edit anything.<br />
*Here is an example garden [http://www.xkcd.com/1663/#0d11a2c8-fa8f-11e5-8001-42010a8e000e linked by ID] versus the same garden:<br />
**In the original [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/7f/1663_garden_tree_turtle_birdbath.png screenshot from April 4th] from when the url was created<br />
**In a [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/7c/1663_garden_Flying_birds_deer_gate_with_cactus_turtles_snake_etc.png screenshot from April 5th] the day after.<br />
**Here [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/5a/1663_garden_Pruned_garden_with_birds_deer_gate_cactus_turtles_snake_gate.png example] after the user pruned the garden in the examples.<br />
**Other [[1663: Garden/Users gardens|user gardens]] can be found on the link.<br />
*Starting two browser windows or tabs pointing to the same URL will allow you to edit from either window.<br />
**linden.xkcd.com holds all the data; the UUID just corresponds to your access key, held in your browser's local storage.<br />
<br />
====Saving images====<br />
*Since the [[#Saving garden with url|urls are changing]] the only way to save a particular garden is to save an image of the current garden.<br />
**Alternatively by deleting all lamps (or changing them to laser beams or turning them upwards) the no new growth will occur. But then the garden will no longer develop.<br />
*In Edge, Firefox and Chrome, the image plus light cones but minus lamps and icons elements, can be saved by right clicking in the image. (Not possible in explorer).<br />
**They do not always save in the same way as some browsers saves the part of the background without any light cones as white, and other save it as no background, in which case it may render black, basically hiding any black items outside the light.<br />
***For those images it depends on which viewer is used to see the image, if everything can be seen or only that in the light cones.<br />
****See examples of how it looks with black background in these two color maps collections using [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/50/1663_garden_Single_colors.png a single lamp] and [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/90/1663_garden_Three_colors.png three lamps].<br />
****See more details about how these [[1663:_Garden/Screen-shots#Color_maps|color maps]] have been made.<br />
****See also (at least) two examples of saved images as the are here on explain xkcd [[1663:_Garden/Screen-shots#Saved_image_from_xkcd|here]].<br />
*An image of the whole screen can be captured, by pressing the PrtScn (Print Screen) key on the keyboard & then pasting the content into a blank image in an image-editing program.<br />
**An even better solution is to use a tool like {{w|Snipping Tool}} which can take the part of the screen that are relevant. This is how most of the [[1663: Garden/Screen-shots|screen shots]] for this explanation has been aquired.<br />
**In both way the lamps and icons can also be displayed, which is not an option with saved images.<br />
<br />
===Lamps===<br />
*Additional lamps, up to a total of three lamps, can be added by clicking the black plus lamp icon along the right of the window. The control will black plus lamp icon will [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/b8/Garden_Three_Lamp_screen_shot.png turn gray].<br />
*Lamps can be removed by clicking to select a lamp, then clicking the red X icon along the right of the window, or pressing the Delete or Backspace key on the keyboard. All lights can be deleted.<br />
*The position of the lamp can be moved by clicking and dragging the lamp within the scene.<br />
*The angle and area of the light cone emitted by the lamp can be changed by [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/09/Garden_Red_Lamp_screen_shot.png clicking to select the lamp and to reveal the red control triangle]. Rotating the control triangle around the lamp will change the aim of the lamp to point in the direction of the triangle, dragging the control triangle towards the lamp will [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/cc/1663_garden_One_color_Light_blue.png widen the beam], and dragging the control triangle towards away from the lamp will [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/5a/1663_garden_Pruned_garden_with_birds_deer_gate_cactus_turtles_snake_gate.png narrow the beam].<br />
*The color emitted by the lamp can be changed by clicking the lamp to reveal the colored control dot, and by rotating the dot around the lamp. The small color control circle changes color to match the color of the lamps beam of light. new lights default to a center position, emitting a pale green. '''rotating the control right''' changes the color to yellow, orange, and finally red, and '''rotating the control left''' changes the color to white, then blue.<br />
===Colors of light===<br />
*The color control moves in a smooth gradient between colors, along the spectrum without any set positions.<br />
*Small changes in the color can have an effect on the garden, even though there is no clear change in the color. <br />
*[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/50/1663_garden_Single_colors.png As many as nine colors] can be identified from the emitted light of a single lamp, and many more colors are evident when [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/90/1663_garden_Three_colors.png two or three lamps overlap].<br />
*There is reason to believe that even half the change will create different gardens, i.e. there can be at least one more position between those nine settings that will change the effect, giving eight more settings for a total of 17 "different" colors. An experiment with such '''17 settings''' for just [[1663:_Garden/Screen-shots#One_lamp_one_color|One lamp with one color]].<br />
*Several unique elements only seem to appear using the eight half-colors. Both the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/3f/1663_garden_One_color_Between_orange_red_and_red_First_thing_Mars_rover.png Mars rover] and the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/1b/1663_garden_One_color_Between_Light_yellow_and_yellow_First_thing_stilts_right.png Stilts girl] might be missed.<br />
*Colors can thus be indicated from these 17 divisions:<br><br />
**Below is a table with these 17 division shown and what to expect. <br />
**This may change over time, but was as it about a week after release. <br />
***If updating, please make a note that this may have only applied during the first week(s) and add new feature without deleting.<br />
**There has been an [[1663:_Garden/Screen-shots#One_lamp_one_color|experiment made]] with these 17 colors, see that for more details. <br />
***The color names links to these experimental gardens, that will never be changed after the initiation.<br />
***But there are reasons to believe that two gardens made identical may develop quite differently, as it seems some gardens have very limited growth in spite of the same light. Some of these gardens may be of that persuasion.<br />
****This was proven when 34 more gardens using the 17 colors where started in a [[1663:_Garden/Screen-shots#Second_experiment|similar experiment]].<br />
*The debugger reveals that each light has a "temp" property which ranges from 0 (red) to 1 (blue). The default setting is 0.5.<br />
**The RGB color corresponding to "temp" is determined by this function in linden.js:<br />
::<tt>function u(t){return.32>t?[1,.5+.5*t/.32,.5]:.64>t?[1,1,.5+.5*(t-.32)/.32]:[.75+.25*(1-t)/.36,.75+.25*(1-t)/.36,1]}</tt><br />
[[File:1663 garden Numbered color scale 1-17.png]]<br><br />
{| class="wikitable"<br />
! #<br />
! Color<br />
! Description of items etc<br />
|-<br />
| 1 <br />
| [http://xkcd.com/1663/#f65c4906-fcf1-11e5-8001-42010a8e0016 Blue]<br />
| '''Pure blue'''! Aquatic theme with octopus (some with black hat), Cueball checking for rain with hand up. Less growth after the first week and octopus only over the pond (see [[1663:_Garden/Screen-shots#Growth_speed_vs_blue_light|growth speed vs blue light]]).<br />
|-<br />
| 2<br />
| [http://xkcd.com/1663/#d5b7fed6-fd94-11e5-8001-42010a8e000a Blue -> light blue]<br />
| Octopus over pond and boats in pond, Cueball hands up and down (the latter possibly with black hat), {{w|Cairn}}s of '''stones''' and {{w|obelisk}}.<br />
|-<br />
| 3<br />
| [http://xkcd.com/1663/#3afb7988-fcf2-11e5-8001-42010a8e0019 Light blue]<br />
| Cueball hands down (but can be with [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/64/1663_garden_Color_03_8d.png hand up] as well), Cairns of '''stones''', obelisk, wading bird and boats.<br />
|-<br />
| 4<br />
| [http://xkcd.com/1663/#303c341c-fd95-11e5-8001-42010a8e0016 Light blue -> blue white]<br />
| Obelisk, flower base and stems and balloon string with normal and huge balloons, Cueball hands up (and [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a5/1663_garden_Color_04_2_8d.png also down] with {{w|column}} and wadding bird), fish, shark fins and boats.<br />
|-<br />
| 5<br />
| [http://xkcd.com/1663/#98dc3452-fcf2-11e5-8010-42010a8e0008 Blue white]<br />
| Office landscape with desks and chairs, table, column, obelisk, pots with star plant or other flowers base and stems, Beret Guy in pond, Cueball hands up and down, balloon string with normal and huge balloons drifting far left and right on their strings in the wind. [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/ac/1663_garden_Color_05_8d.png Also wadding bird], boats and shark fin<br />
|-<br />
| 6<br />
| [http://xkcd.com/1663/#5a45a1f8-fd95-11e5-8001-42010a8e000e Blue white -> white]<br />
| Both kinds of Cueball, Ponytail, Beret Guy, both types of cats, office desk, table, standing bird, wading bird, heron, owl, shark fin, bunny boat, flowers base and stems, balloon string with normal and huge balloons. Also [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/36/1663_garden_Color_06_2_8d.png fish] and [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/75/1663_garden_Color_06_8d.png flying fish].<br />
|-<br />
| 7<br />
| [http://xkcd.com/1663/#ba6b4ac2-fcf2-11e5-8001-42010a8e0019 White]<br />
| Balloon string with normal and huge balloons (here '''three in one garden'''), Megan hand up, cats, bunnies, shark fin, fish, Beret Guy, flowers base and stems and trees. [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c7/1663_garden_Color_07_8d.png Also] platform in tree, beehive base, Ponytail, water bird and flying fish and [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/82/1663_garden_Color_07_2_8d.png Heron].<br />
|-<br />
| 8<br />
| [http://xkcd.com/1663/#8874be6a-fd95-11e5-8001-42010a8e0016 White -> light yellow]<br />
| Megan hands up, {{w|shrub}}s, flowers base stems, '''hilt''' and '''some blooms''', trees, bunnies, fish, shark fin, water bird, owl, bunnies. [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/2a/1663_garden_Color_08_2_8d.png Also] birdbath and stilt girl.<br />
|-<br />
| 9<br />
| [http://xkcd.com/1663/#db338968-fcf2-11e5-8001-42010a8e0016 Light yellow]<br />
| '''Starting color'''. Megan hands down and with sword on platform, trees, shrub, flowers base and stems, grass, platform in tree, birdbath, ducks, wading bird, pots, with star plants, tall platform. [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c3/1663_garden_Color_09_8d.png Also] deer, stilt girl, fish and [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/1f/1663_garden_Color_09_2_8d.png shark fin].<br />
|-<br />
| 10<br />
| [http://xkcd.com/1663/#b28f8522-fd95-11e5-8001-42010a8e0013 Light yellow -> Yellow]<br />
| Girl on stilts, Megan with swords on platform, trees, flowers base and stems, grass, reeds in pond, platform in trees, tall platforms, deer, snake, pots<br />
|-<br />
| 11<br />
| [http://xkcd.com/1663/#efccf292-fcf2-11e5-8010-42010a8e0003 Yellow]<br />
| Sale signs, tall platform, snakes, armadillo, flowers base and stems, reeds in pond. Also [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/ce/1663_garden_Color_11_2_8d.png deer].<br />
|-<br />
| 12<br />
| [http://xkcd.com/1663/#de4fd3b0-fd95-11e5-8001-42010a8e0011 Yellow -> Orange]<br />
| Sale signs, snakes, turtles, tulips and wavy plants. Also [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/bb/1663_garden_Color_12_2_8d.png tall platform] and armadillo.<br />
|-<br />
| 13<br />
| [http://xkcd.com/1663/#0d6bca62-fcf3-11e5-8019-42010a8e0005 Orange]<br />
| Wavy plants, turtles, [[#Linsang_-_cat_like_animal|linsang]], flying birds and flying Megan (and thus also bird risers and their roots). Also [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/98/1663_garden_Color_13_8d.png armadillos].<br />
|-<br />
| 14<br />
| [http://xkcd.com/1663/#578b80bc-fd96-11e5-8001-42010a8e000a Orange -> orange red]<br />
| Snakes, turtles, linsang, armadillo, tulips wavy plants, flying birds and flying Megan (and thus also bird risers and their roots).<br />
|-<br />
| 15<br />
| [http://xkcd.com/1663/#28b238b0-fcf3-11e5-8001-42010a8e0018 Orange red]<br />
| Desert landscape with turtles, cactus sale, signs, lamp post poles without lamps, platform on cactus resulting in inverted pyramids. Also [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d4/1663_garden_Color_15_2_8d.png linsang].<br />
|-<br />
| 16<br />
| [http://xkcd.com/1663/#ad7ca596-fd96-11e5-8020-42010a8e0006 Orange red -> red]<br />
| Desert landscape with Mars rover, turtles, cactus sale, signs, lamp post poles without lamps but no platforms. Also [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e3/1663_garden_Color_16_2_8d.png linsang].<br />
|-<br />
| 17<br />
| [http://xkcd.com/1663/#46cc4e08-fcf3-11e5-8001-42010a8e0013 Red]<br />
| '''Pure red'''! Desert landscape with turtles and cactus only.<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Effect of light===<br />
*How much the color affects the growth took some time to find out but already from the stat it was clear that there definitely was a correlation<br />
*For instance areas under lights set to the the outer position or the starting position was very different.<br />
**[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/23/1663_garden_Octopus_garden_with_Cueball_hand_up_and_a_black_hat_octopus.png Pure blue light] (left most) develop into a boring aquatic theme with only lots of octopuses (maybe with a black hat) and the Cueball holding a hand out to check for rain. <br />
***The appearance of pure blue gardens have changed with time so octopuses now only appear over the pond [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/1d/1663_garden_One_color_Blue_9d.png like this].<br />
**[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/70/1663_garden_One_color_red_9d.png Pure red light] (far right) develop into a boring desert theme with only cactus and turtles.<br />
**[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/9c/1663_garden_One_color_Light_yellow_9d.png Light yellow] or [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/2e/1663_garden_Color_09_3d.png starting light] grows lots of plants like trees, grass and scrubs and several animals like ducks, deer, fish and wadding bird and also birdbath, stilt girl and both standing Megan and sword Megan.<br />
*Soon after the release of the comic some research into a single lamp with unchaining light, that covering the whole light range split into 17 divisions was undertaken.<br />
*[[File:1663 garden Numbered color scale 1-17.png]]<br />
**See these gardens [[1663:_Garden/Users_gardens#Locked_gardens_only_for_explanation_use|locked for explanation use only]] and also see more about the 17 split in the color range [[#Colors of light|above]].<br />
*Mixed light seems to be able to do the same, but it is unclear if what grows only depends on the final mixed color, or if it is a mix of what would grow under those two colors.<br />
**There are some indications that it is not a clear mix as pure blue together with pure red, does not seem to produce neither Octopuses or desert theme.<br />
**If there are any items that can only grow under a mix of light this has not been proven. Most objects that can grow directly from the ground, has been observed in the experimental single color gardens mentioned above.<br />
**But there may be items that needs to grow on top of other objects, and these may require a change of color from what the base needs. And thus they will not appear under one color light. Possible examples of these items could be:<br />
***[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/f3/Garden_Desk_lamp.png Desk lamp] (needing some kind of platform forming in another color range like the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/ee/Garden_Tall_platform.png tall platform], yellow or the small [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/11/Garden_Platform_1.png platform], orange).<br />
***[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/88/Garden_Giant_Planter.png Giant Planter] (needing for instance a [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c4/Garden_PlatformColumn_3.png platform column], light blue light]<br />
***[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e0/Garden_lamp-topper.png Lamp pole tops] (needing [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/81/Garden_Lamppost_1.png lamp poles] forming under orange light)<br />
***[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a4/Garden_Flower_bloom_1.png Flower blooms] (any type) (needing [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d1/Garden_Flower_segment_1.png flower segments], several colors)<br />
***[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/7e/Garden_Actual_flying_fish_1.png Actual flying fish] (needing bird raiser, orange light)<br />
***[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/5d/Garden_Saucer.png Flying saucer] (needing bird raiser, orange light)<br />
*What happens when using only one color (other than the two outer points red and blue and the starting light yellow color) has been explored in great depth in no less than two different [[1663:_Garden/Screen-shots#One_lamp_one_color|One lamp one color]] experiments with [[1663:_Garden/Users_gardens#Locked_gardens_only_for_explanation_use|51 gardens]] created using 17 different color settings.<br />
**[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/27/1663_garden_One_color_Between_blue_and_light_blue_6d.png Blue light] (just right of pure blue) creates a landscape with stones forming cairns, together with monoliths, both kinds of Cueballs (with black hat on the standing one) and still octopuses. <br />
**[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/75/1663_garden_One_color_Light_blue_9d.png Light blue light] (just a little farther from pure blue than above), the octopuses disappear, but the rest remains the same, although boats and wadding bird now appear in the water, and still both [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a6/1663_garden_Color_03_5d.png Cueballs] can occur. Going just slightly further away [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e4/1663_garden_Color_04_2_5d.png fish and columns] start to appear.<br />
**[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d1/1663_garden_One_color_White_Blue_12h.png Blue white light] grow a sort of office theme, with desks, balloons and Cueballs. Moving towards white light [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d0/1663_garden_One_color_Between_Blue_White_and_White_5d.png Ponytail appears] with less office items together with cats (and now no Beret Guys in the pond but [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/df/1663_garden_One_color_Between_Blue_White_and_White_8d.png lots of animals]).<br />
**[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/f7/1663_garden_One_color_White_9d.png White light] gives a forest of balloons with Megan holding her hands up.<br />
**[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/3e/1663_garden_One_color_Yellow_2d.png Yellow light] (somewhat right of the starting color) produce sale signs and snakes.<br />
**[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/4f/1663_garden_One_color_Between_orange_and_orange_red_8d.png Orange light] produce flying bird and flying Megans and on the ground snakes, turtles, linsangs and armadillos, plus tulips and wavy plants.<br />
**[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/02/1663_garden_One_color_Between_orange_red_and_red_8d.png Orange red light] (just left of red) produce lamp posts (without the top), in addition to the same desert theme as red with cactus and turtles. If it is very close to red the Mars rover appears (as in the example above). If it is a little longer from red, the platforms can form, which can then act as a catalyst for growth and create [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/58/1663_garden_One_color_Orange_red_9d.png large towers] on top of cactus's.<br />
*Nothing seems to be able to grow under several conditions:<br />
**If no lamps are pointing towards the ground for instance because:<br />
***All [http://xkcd.com/1663/#21374f9e-fbbd-11e5-8001-42010a8e0015 lamps are deleted].<br />
***The [http://xkcd.com/1663/#4896b678-fbbe-11e5-8001-42010a8e0011 beam is laser thin.]<br />
***The lamps points towards the sky without [http://www.xkcd.com/1663/#6a6a7be0-fbbe-11e5-800d-42010a8e0008 touching the ground.]<br />
***The lamps are [http://xkcd.com/1663/#c75991f6-fbbe-11e5-8001-42010a8e0011 below the ground pointing down]. (In this case the one over the pond was not far enough down and a single water plant has formed anyway.)<br />
****On the other hand if the lamps are below the ground but pointing up it can result in growth well enough as shown in this [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/7c/1663_garden_Different_light_from_below_the_ground.png example] and this [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/3a/1663_garden_Yellow_light_from_below_the_ground.png example].<br />
**It was believed that if the lamps where very close to the ground pointing straight down there would be no growth.<br />
***However this can be because only a very small area is illuminated<br />
****In this [http://www.xkcd.com/#9733dff4-fbbe-11e5-8001-42010a8e0012 example] there are turtles under the red light in the pond, plants under the yellow and octopus, column and Cueball under the blue (from the time that columns could appear under pure blue light).<br />
****Similar in this [http://xkcd.com/1663/#357a48d8-fbbf-11e5-8019-42010a8e0006 example] there are octopus (in the pond), deer/plants and a cactus from even lower lamps.<br />
****Of course the lamp has to be so high as not to be underground as mentioned above.<br />
**Also if lamps point towards the ground there can still only grow something from the ground [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/3e/1663_garden_Two_light_on_small_area_nothing_outside_the_light.png where the light touches]. The growth can move outside the light cones up in the air, but the base has to be within an area with light.<br />
**Similar with items that can grow new things on top of them like tree trunks or platforms, this will only happen if light shines on the relevant places. <br />
***For instance the tall tree trunks can easily grow outside a light cone. Then leaves and branches will [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e9/1663_garden_One_color_Between_Light_yellow_and_yellow_3d.png only grow below] the point where the light hits<br />
****Similar with platform, that [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/3e/1663_garden_One_color_Yellow_2d.png grows partially outside] the light cone. More items will only appear where this lamp still hits the platform.<br />
***One exemption to the rule mentioned here seems to be the bird raisers. The bird raisers are used to hold anything that flies up in the air. And the bird raiser it self needs to grow from either another bird riser or from a bird riser root (which in the end holds all bird raisers). This root has to have light on the ground to grow and thus have light on it self. But from the top of the bird raisers growing from such a root, items are able to grow even if the tip pf the bird raiser is not in the light. <br />
****Thus flying items can appear to grow where there has [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/4f/1663_garden_One_color_Between_orange_and_orange_red_8d.png never been light]! <br />
****See much more about this under the description of bird raisers in the [[#Helper_structures|table below]].<br />
**Of course lights can be moved and changed without destroying what has already grown there (or so it seems). So a tended garden cannot be used to determine this.<br />
***This is why some [[1663:_Garden/Users_gardens#Locked_gardens_only_for_explanation_use|locked gardens]] have been set up where there will be no changes ever. <br />
***Examples from above has mainly been taken from screen shots of these locked gardens.<br />
<br />
===Grown items===<br />
*Grown items may be highlighted by clicking on them. Selected grown items will be highlighted with a red circle, and appear slightly lighter then other items.<br />
*Grown items may be "pruned" by the red X icon along the right of the window, or pressing the Delete key on the keyboard.<br />
*Some items (such as the large tree) can be deleted in minor parts by selecting a branch or smaller set of leaves without deleting the entire tree.<br />
*See the images (with links to xkcd) of all 250 items that can appear, here below in the [[#Items_in_the_garden|tables]].<br />
<br />
===Growth development===<br />
*'''After a few weeks''' growth no only seems to appear when the garden is actively running in a browser window (maybe only in the original users browser?)<br />
*There continued to appear new items that was not available on the release day.<br />
**This lasted about a week (maybe 8 days).<br />
**For instance many new items and animals like the columns and the owls started to appear after a few days.<br />
**Also tulips and lightning poles did not appear at first.<br />
***A last burst of new animals occurred about a week after release (either 11th or 12th of April). This burst included the following animals:<br />
***Herons, Wadding birds, Sharks fins, jumping fish and flying fish plus actual flying fish (flying without water), armadillos and no less than 12 different linsangs (see [[1663:_Garden#Linsang_-_cat_like_animal|Linsang - cat like animal]]).<br />
*But it also seems to change what might appear, so that the result of a particular color will change dramatically, not only by adding new, but also by not growing what used to be.<br />
**A clear example of this is that for the first half week pure blue light resulted in lots of octopuses all along the ground and also Cueballs cheeking for rain.<br />
**Later also columns appeared.<br />
***But after a week the growth rate under blue light almost stopped, and it seems that octopuses now only grow over the pond to the left, and much less Cueball and no columns under that color.<br />
**See details here: [[1663:_Garden/Screen-shots#Growth_speed_vs_blue_light|Growth speed vs blue light]].<br />
<br />
===Debug mode===<br />
{{notice|Anyone who can explain what the debug mode is, how it works, why it is there and why there is difference between the linden and the normal xkcd?}}<br />
*By changing the url address it is possible to get into a debug mode.<br />
**This may not work from for instance explorer, but seems to work from Firefox and chrome.<br />
*Normal mode: http://xkcd.com/1663/#ID <br />
**[http://xkcd.com/1663/#98dc3452-fcf2-11e5-8010-42010a8e0008 Normal mode example].<br />
*At one point the Debug mode worked from this address http://xkcd.com/1663/?debug#ID<br />
**But as can bee seen from this [http://xkcd.com/1663/?debug#98dc3452-fcf2-11e5-8010-42010a8e0008 example] it does not work any more but just goes back to normal mode.<br />
*But there is still another version of the link which gives access to the debug mode: http://linden.xkcd.com/?debug#ID<br />
**[http://linden.xkcd.com/?debug#98dc3452-fcf2-11e5-8010-42010a8e0008 Linden debug mode].<br />
**In this mode each item can clearly be seen as the image is framed, and thus invisible lifter images for flying things can be seen.<br />
***See this [http://linden.xkcd.com/?debug#d12a0932-faaa-11e5-8012-42010a8e0006 example].<br />
**This last mode can be used to find the names of the [[1663:_Garden/Images#Images|images of each item]] in a garden.<br />
***See this section on [[1663:_Garden/Images#How_to_find_new_links|How to find new links]].<br />
***By preventing the browser from loading specific images (''e.g.'' with an ad blocker), all instances can be pruned temporarily.<br />
*On the forum, [http://forums.xkcd.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=114415&start=600#p3959056 yan provides some jQuery] which can be entered in the javascript console to add an interactive sidebar listing the objects in the garden.<br />
<br />
===Limitations===<br />
*The beam produced by each lamp is normally restricted to spread between 0&deg; (which results in no growth) and 95&deg;. The "create new light" button chooses a random angle between 45&deg; and 90&deg;.<br />
*Attempting to view several gardens simultaneously may cause some to hang on the "loading" image, likely due to the server refusing additional connections. The maximum number which can load successfully is usually six, but may be as low as three.<br />
<br />
===Bugs===<br />
*There have been several bugs mentioned already after the first day. Please include any spotted here:<br />
**Also some problems that may now be fixed.<br />
*May not run on some tablets or smart phones (i.e. touch-screen only devices).<br />
*There are some browser versions of Chrome and Firefox where it doesn't run.<br />
*The lamps may be invisible for a few seconds after loading.<br />
*The whole page used to refresh at random intervals and lose the whole progress.<br />
**It still does on April 5th.<br />
**Sometimes (in some browsers?) the garden is reloaded when refreshing.<br />
***This may though be because of the url which is a [[#Saving garden with url|link to a given garden]].<br />
***See examples of this [[1663: Garden/Users gardens|here]].<br />
***Seems to be dependent on the browser type.<br />
*Some lamps jumped back to their starting position after a few minutes, without the whole page reloading.<br />
*For a few hours after its apparition, the loading didn't seem to stop for some people, making them think that the rotating tree was the whole joke, with people expected to "relax" while looking at it.<br />
*Occasionally invisible objects are added. They can be deleted, and they have bounding boxes in the [[#Debug mode|debugger]]: [http://linden.xkcd.com/?debug#d12a0932-faaa-11e5-8012-42010a8e0006 Example].<br />
*Doesn't work over https, you have to use http instead.<br />
*It is possible to save the image in Chrome and in Firefox, but not in Explorer.<br />
**It is possible to save the visible portion of the image (in any browser) by pressing the Print-Screen key to perform a screen capture.<br />
**But in Chrome the image is black where there is no light.<br />
**In Firefox everything is visible, wth the light cones (in color) shown.<br />
*Appears to have a memory leak at least in some Windows/Firefox versions, as keeping the page open for a long time will cause Windows to kill Firefox for insufficient memory.<br />
**On the forum, Weeks tries to summon davean! [http://forums.xkcd.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=114415&start=320#p3951923]<br />
*Does not work in many Linux versions.<br />
*Tree trunks will sometimes grow endlessly without leaves depending on the lights hitting them.<br />
*If you are dragging a light, the arrow, or the color slider when a refresh happens, the refresh will enter an infinite loop.<br />
**This seems to cause corruption of the garden because refreshing the whole page will result in a loop that never loads the page.<br />
**Clearing your local data for xkcd.com solves the issue but also makes you unable to edit your garden.<br />
*On April 6, gardens viewed from [http://xkcd.com/1663/#7877bdfc-fc03-11e5-8001-42010a8e000c http://xkcd.com/1663/] links began to include double-size objects, while they appeared <s>normally</s> with different objects enlarged when viewed from [http://linden.xkcd.com/#7877bdfc-fc03-11e5-8001-42010a8e000c http://linden.xkcd.com/].<br />
**Apparently some of the server's art files were <s>misdirected to the larger versions</s> replaced with new large images. [https://web.archive.org/web/20160407054439/http://linden.xkcd.com/art/rover.png] [http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-rover.png]<br />
**New giant objects are still placed according to their original sizes. [http://forums.xkcd.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=114415&start=320#p3951908]<br />
**This was suddenly fixed on April 7, possibly inducing browser memory issues at that time. [http://forums.xkcd.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=114415&start=360#p3952207]<br />
***However, some giant images remained cached (where?) for a long time. [http://forums.xkcd.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=114415&start=400#p3952527]<br />
*Although there are six bee images, they have not been reported in any gardens[[File:Garden_Bee_1.png]]<br />
<br />
==Items in the garden==<br />
*Below in the section are several tables displaying all the known images of items that may grow (appear) in the garden. <br />
**They have been sorted based on type like characters, animals (by type), plants (by type), platforms, others and helper structures.<br />
**In time each item will have a link to a screen shot where they appear.<br />
**Also explanations for each item can be written in these tables<br />
*For colors reference refer (also) to the numbers in this image:<br><br />
*[[File:1663 garden Numbered color scale 1-17.png]]<br />
**The color under which a given item may grow should be noted. <br />
***Particularly if they can grow under just one color if light (maybe a range, but with only one lamp lit as one specific color). <br />
***But almost more important if some items needs more than one color<br />
****Especially if the items base, the base on which they have to grow, needs another color than they do, as seems to be the case with flower blooms and the lamp to go at the top of the lamp poles.<br />
*All the images can be seen without the table here: [[1663: Garden/Images|Images of items]].<br />
===Characters===<br />
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |<br />
! To see/hide images click here:<br />
! Description of images<br />
! Relevant colors<br />
! Link to screen-shots<br />
|-<br />
! [[Cueball]]<br>[[File:Garden Man 1a.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-man-1a.png Man 1a]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Man 2a.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-man-2a.png Man 2a]<br />
| <br />
*Here are the two different images of Cueball.<br />
*The first Cueball just stands with his hands down. <br />
**In this position he always looks left.<br />
**Some items can grow on his head, most obviously [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/27/1663_garden_One_color_Between_blue_and_light_blue_6d.png the hat], turning him into [[Black Hat]]. But also animals like the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/92/1663_garden_Blitz_Girls_UFO_and_birds_garden.png water bird], [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/32/1663_garden_One_color_Between_Blue_White_and_White_6d.png standing bird or cats] and [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d4/1663_garden_Crazy_cat_peoples_garden.png owls] can perch on his head. <br />
**He never seems to appears in pure blue light, and also only appears when the light is turned left of white.<br />
*The second Cueball has one hand out.<br />
**In this position he always looks right.<br />
**He is the only character that appears under pure blue light (color 1).<br />
**It seems like he cannot wear the hat or anything else on his head.<br />
**In stead he can hold object on his hand, like a [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/1e/1663_garden_S_shaped_empty_balloon_string_left.png balloon string] (later [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/0e/1663_garden_Office_space_with_two_herons_in_lake_and_huge_balloon_on_long_string.png with balloon] or the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c2/1663_garden_Blitz_Girls_strong_Megan_garden.png huge balloon]), the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e5/1663_garden_Blitz_Girls_Armadillo_tower.png small platform] or some of the smaller animals like [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/32/1663_garden_One_color_Between_Blue_White_and_White_6d.png the bird], the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/09/1663_garden_Cueball_holds_a_Turtle_in_front_of_Megan_looking_like_a_cap_on_her.png turtle], or [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d4/1663_garden_Crazy_cat_peoples_garden.png cat and owls].<br />
| <br />
*Standing Cueball with color [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/92/1663_garden_One_color_Between_blue_and_light_blue_2d.png 2 blue], [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c9/1663_garden_One_color_Light_blue_12h.png 3 light blue], [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e4/1663_garden_Color_04_2_5d.png 4 light blue] and [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/b2/1663_garden_One_color_Blue_white_2d.png 5 Blue white]<br />
*Hand out Cueball with color [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/bf/1663_garden_One_color_Blue_6d.png 1 blue], [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/92/1663_garden_One_color_Between_blue_and_light_blue_2d.png 2 blue], [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a6/1663_garden_Color_03_5d.png 3 light blue], [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/5e/1663_garden_One_color_Between_light_blue_and_Blue_White_6d.png 4 light blue] and [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/d1/1663_garden_One_color_White_Blue_12h.png 5 Blue white]<br />
| [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c9/1663_garden_One_color_Light_blue_12h.png Standing]<br />
[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e5/1663_garden_One_color_Blue_18h.png Hand out]<br><br />
|-<br />
! [[Megan]]<br>[[File:Garden Woman 1a.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-woman-1a.png Woman 1a]<br>[[File:Garden Handfig 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-handfig-1.png Handfig 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Handfig 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-handfig-2.png Handfig 2]<br>[[File:Garden Sword fig.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-sword-fig.png Sword fig]<br>[[File:Garden Flying fig.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flying-fig.png Flying fig]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of Megan. <br />
**Megan with sword seems to only occur on top of a platform or a piece of furniture. <br />
***She seem to not be willing to pull out the sword when just standing on the ground.<br />
***This means that she can only occur under a one color setting if that setting can also produce a platform. This is the case though see the color column.<br />
| <br />
*Standing (Yellow 9 standard)<br />
*Hands up (L and R) (White 7)<br />
*Sword ([http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/9c/1663_garden_One_color_Light_yellow_9d.png Yellow 9 standard] and [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6d/1663_garden_One_color_Between_Light_yellow_and_yellow_2d.png Yellow 10])<br />
*Flying (Orange 15)<br />
| [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/cb/1663_garden_One_color_Light_yellow_12h.png Standing ]<br><br />
[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/99/1663_garden_One_color_White_12h.png Hands up]<br><br />
[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6b/1663_garden_Megan_with_sword%2C_trees_octopuses_with_Cueball_bunny_ducklings.png Sword-tree platform]<br> [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/cb/1663_garden_Megan_with_sword_and_owl_on_gate.png Sword-gate]<br> [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/1d/1663_garden_My_first_linsang_cat_like_creature_in_SC.png Sword-desk] <br> <br />
[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/87/1663_garden_One_color_Orange_d7.png Flying]<br />
|-<br />
! [[Beret Guy]]<br>[[File:Garden Beret shrub.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-beret-shrub.png Beret shrub]<br />
|<br />
*Here is the image of Beret Guy.<br />
| White 7 or mix of yellow and blue<br />
| [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/99/1663_garden_One_color_White_12h.png In lake]<br><br />
[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/24/1663_garden_Shark_finn_and_Beret_Guy_in_same_bird_bath_fish_boat_heron_and_more.png In birdbath]<br><br />
[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/9b/1663_garden_Three_colors_more_separate_Beret_Guy_in_shrubbery_and_Octopus_on_office_desk.png In shrub]<br />
|-<br />
! [[Ponytail]]<br>[[File:Garden Fig 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-fig-1.png Fig 1]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of Ponytail.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/eb/1663_garden_Ponytail_and_two_Cueballs_cat_pillar_and_trunk_sE.png Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Stilt girl<br>[[File:Garden Stilt walker.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-stiltwalker.png Stilt walker]<br />
|<br />
*Here is the image of the girl on stilts.<br />
| Light yellow 10<br />
| [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/1b/1663_garden_One_color_Between_Light_yellow_and_yellow_First_thing_stilts_right.png Example]<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Animals===<br />
====Mammals====<br />
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |<br />
! To see/hide images click here:<br />
! Description of images<br />
! Relevant colors<br />
! Link to screen-shots<br />
|-<br />
! Armadillo<br>[[File:Garden Armadillo L.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-armadillo-l.png Armadillo L]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Armadillo R.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-armadillo-r.png Armadillo R]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of Armadillo.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Cats<br>[[File:Garden Cat Balanced.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cat-balanced.png Cat Balanced]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Cat Ground.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cat-ground.png Cat Ground]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of cats.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Deer<br>[[File:Garden Deer 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-deer-1.png Deer 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Deer 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-deer-2.png Deer 2]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of Deer.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Bunny<br>[[File:Garden Important bun.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-important-bun.png Important bun]<br />
|<br />
*Here is the image of the Bunny.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Linsang<br>[[File:Garden Linsang 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-linsang-1.png Linsang 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Linsang 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-linsang-2.png Linsang 2]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Linsang 3.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-linsang-3.png Linsang 3]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Linsang 4.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-linsang-4.png Linsang 4]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Linsang 5.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-linsang-5.png Linsang 5]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Linsang 6.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-linsang-6.png Linsang 6]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Linsang 7.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-linsang-7.png Linsang 7]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Linsang 8.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-linsang-8.png Linsang 8]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Linsang 9.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-linsang-9.png Linsang 9]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Linsang 10.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-linsang-10.png Linsang 10]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Linsang 11.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-linsang-11.png Linsang 11]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Linsang 12.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-linsang-12.png Linsang 12]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of linsangs.<br />
**See more about [[#Linsang - cat like animal|Linsang - cat like animal]] in the trivia section.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/68/1663_Garden_Ophiocordyceps_linsang.png Linsang infected by fungus]<br />
|}<br />
<br />
====Birds====<br />
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |<br />
! To see/hide images click here:<br />
! Description of images<br />
! Relevant colors<br />
! Link to screen-shots<br />
|-<br />
! Flying birds<br>[[File:Garden Bird 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-bird-1.png Bird 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Bird 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-bird-2.png Bird 2]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Bird 3.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-bird-3.png Bird 3]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Bird 4.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-bird-4.png Bird 4]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Bird 5.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-bird-5.png Bird 5]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of flying birds.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Standing bird<br>[[File:Garden Bird standing.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-bird-standing.png Bird standing]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of Standing bird.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Duck <br>[[File:Garden Duck 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-duck-1.png Duck 1]<br />
|<br />
*Here is the image of the duck.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Heron<br>[[File:Garden Heron L.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-heron-l.png Heron L]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Heron R.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-heron-r.png Heron R]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of Herons.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Owl<br>[[File:Garden Owl.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-owl.png Owl]<br />
|<br />
*Here is the image of the Owl.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Wading bird<br>[[File:Garden Wading bird L.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-wading-bird-l.png Wading bird L]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Wading bird R.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-wading-bird-r.png Wading bird R]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of wading birds.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Water bird<br>[[File:Garden Water bird 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-waterbird-1.png Water bird 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Water bird 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-waterbird-2.png Water bird 2]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of water bird.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|}<br />
<br />
====From the sea====<br />
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |<br />
! To see/hide images click here:<br />
! Description of images<br />
! Relevant colors<br />
! Link to screen-shots<br />
|-<br />
! Fish <br>[[File:Garden Fish 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-fish-1.png Fish 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Fish 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-fish-2.png Fish 2]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of Fish.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Flying fish<br>[[File:Flying fish 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flying-fish-1.png Flying fish 1]<br><br />
[[File:Flying fish 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flying-fish-2.png Flying fish 2]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Actual flying fish 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-actual-flying-fish-1.png Actual flying fish 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Actual flying fish 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-actual-flying-fish-2.png Actual flying fish 2]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of Flying fish.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [http://forums.xkcd.com/download/file.php?id=51476&mode=view Flying fish in Megan's hair] [http://forums.xkcd.com/download/file.php?id=51543&mode=view Flying fish and UGO]<br />
|-<br />
! Octopus<br>[[File:Garden Octopus.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-octopus.png Octopus]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Octopus hat capable.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-octopus-hat-capable.png Octopus hat capable]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of Octopuses.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Sharks<br>[[File:Garden Shark fin L.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-shark-fin-l.png Shark fin L]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Shark fin R.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-shark-fin-r.png Shark fin R]<br />
|<br />
*Here is the image of the shark fins.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6e/1663_Garden_Megan_there%27s_a_shark_in_the_water.png Shark in birdbath]<br />
|-<br />
! Tentacle<br>[[File:Garden Tentacle 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-tentacle-1.png Tentacle 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Tentacle 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-tentacle-2.png Tentacle 2]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Tentacle 3.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-tentacle-3.png Tentacle 3]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Tentacle 4.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-tentacle-4.png Tentacle 4]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Tentacle 5.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-tentacle-5.png Tentacle 5]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Tentacle 6.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-tentacle-6.png Tentacle 6]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of tentacles.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|}<br />
<br />
====Reptiles====<br />
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |<br />
! To see/hide images click here:<br />
! Description of images<br />
! Relevant colors<br />
! Link to screen-shots<br />
|-<br />
! Snake<br>[[File:Garden Snake 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-snake-1.png Snake 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Snake 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-snake-2.png Snake 2]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of snakes.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Turtle<br>[[File:Garden Turtle 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-turtle-1.png Turtle 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Turtle 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-turtle-2.png Turtle 2]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of turtles.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6c/1663_Garden_octopus_turtle_capable.png Octopus turtle capable]<br />
|}<br />
<br />
====Insects====<br />
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |<br />
! To see/hide images click here:<br />
! Description of images<br />
! Relevant colors<br />
! Link to screen-shots<br />
|-<br />
! Bees<br>[[File:Garden Bee 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-bee-1.png Bee 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Bee 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-bee-2.png Bee 2]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Bee 3.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-bee-3.png Bee 3]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Bee 4.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-bee-4.png Bee 4]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Bee 5.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-bee-5.png Bee 5]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Bee 6.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-bee-6.png Bee 6]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of bees.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Beehive<br><br />
[[File:Garden Beehive-base.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-beehive-base.png Beehive-base]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Beehive entrance a.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-beehive-entrance-a.png Beehive entrance a]<br><br />
[[File:Beehive section.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-beehive-section.png Beehive section]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images that construct the beehive.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [http://forums.xkcd.com/download/file.php?id=51487&mode=view BlitzGirl's beehive]<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Plants===<br />
====Trees====<br />
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |<br />
! To see/hide images click here:<br />
! Description of images<br />
! Relevant colors<br />
! Link to screen-shots<br />
|-<br />
! Tall trunks<br>[[File:Garden Tall trunk 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-talltrunk-1.png Tall trunk 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Tall trunk 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-talltrunk-2.png Tall trunk 2]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Tall trunk 3.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-talltrunk-3.png Tall trunk 3]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Tall trunk 4.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-talltrunk-4.png Tall trunk 4]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of tall trunks.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Trunks<br>[[File:Garden Trunk 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-trunk-1.png Trunk 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Trunk 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-trunk-2.png Trunk 2]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Trunk 3.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-trunk-3.png Trunk 3]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Trunk 4.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-trunk-4.png Trunk 4]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Trunk 5.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-trunk-5.png Trunk 5]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Trunk 6.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-trunk-6.png Trunk 6]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Trunk 7.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-trunk-7.png Trunk 7]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Trunk 8.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-trunk-8.png Trunk 8]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of smaller trunks.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Branches<br>[[File:Garden Branch 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-1.png Branch 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Branch 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-2.png Branch 2]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Branch 3.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-3.png Branch 3]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Branch 4.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-4.png Branch 4]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Branch 5.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-5.png Branch 5]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Branch 6.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-6.png Branch 6]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Branch 7.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-7.png Branch 7]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Branch 8.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-8.png Branch 8]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Branch 9.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-9.png Branch 9]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Branch 10.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-10.png Branch 10]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Branch 11.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-11.png Branch 11]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Branch 12.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-12.png Branch 12]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Branch 13.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-13.png Branch 13]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Branch 14.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-14.png Branch 14]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Branch 15.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-15.png Branch 15]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Branch 16.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-16.png Branch 16]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Branch 17.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-17.png Branch 17]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Branch 18.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-18.png Branch 18]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Branch 19.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-19.png Branch 19]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Branch 20.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-20.png Branch 20]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Branch 21.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-21.png Branch 21]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Branch 22.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-22.png Branch 22]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Branch 23.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-23.png Branch 23]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Branch 24.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-24.png Branch 24]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of branches.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Leaves<br>[[File:Garden Leaves 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-1.png Leaves 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-2.png Leaves 2]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 3.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-3.png Leaves 3]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 4.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-4.png Leaves 4]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 5.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-5.png Leaves 5]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 6.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-6.png Leaves 6]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 7.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-7.png Leaves 7]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 8.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-8.png Leaves 8]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 9.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-9.png Leaves 9]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 10.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-10.png Leaves 10]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 11.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-11.png Leaves 11]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 12.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-12.png Leaves 12]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 13.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-13.png Leaves 13]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 14.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-14.png Leaves 14]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 15.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-15.png Leaves 15]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 16.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-16.png Leaves 16]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 17.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-17.png Leaves 17]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 18.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-18.png Leaves 18]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 19.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-19.png Leaves 19]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 20.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-20.png Leaves 20]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 21.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-21.png Leaves 21]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 22.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-22.png Leaves 22]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 23.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-23.png Leaves 23]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 24.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-24.png Leaves 24]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 25.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-25.png Leaves 25]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 26.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-26.png Leaves 26]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 27.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-27.png Leaves 27]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 28.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-28.png Leaves 28]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 29.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-29.png Leaves 29]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Leaves 30.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-30.png Leaves 30]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of leaves.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|}<br />
<br />
====Flowers====<br />
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |<br />
! To see/hide images click here:<br />
! Description of images<br />
! Relevant colors<br />
! Link to screen-shots<br />
|-<br />
! Blooms<br>[[File:Garden Flower bloom 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-bloom1.png Flower bloom 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Flower bloom 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-bloom2.png Flower bloom 2]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Flower bloom 3.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-bloom3.png Flower bloom 3]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Flower bloom 4.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-bloom4.png Flower bloom 4]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Flower bloom 5.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-bloom5.png Flower bloom 5]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Flower bloom 6.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-bloom6.png Flower bloom 6]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Flower bloom 7.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-bloom7.png Flower bloom 7]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of blooms.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Hilt<br>[[File:Garden Flower hilt 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-hilt1.png Flower hilt 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Flower hilt 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-hilt2.png Flower hilt 2]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of hilt.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Stem segments<br>[[File:Garden Flower base.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-base.png Flower base]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Flower segment 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-segment1.png Flower segment 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Flower segment 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-segment2.png Flower segment 2]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Flower segment 3.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-segment3.png Flower segment 3]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Flower segment 4.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-segment4.png Flower segment 4]<br><br />
[[File:Flower segment 5.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-segment5.png Flower segment 5]<br><br />
[[File:Flower segment 6.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-segment6.png Flower segment 6]<br><br />
[[File:Flower segment 7.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-segment7.png Flower segment 7]<br><br />
[[File:Flower segment 8.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-segment8.png Flower segment 8]<br><br />
[[File:Flower segment 9.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-segment9.png Flower segment 9]<br><br />
[[File:Flower segment 10.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-segment10.png Flower segment 10]<br><br />
[[File:Flower segment 11.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-segment11.png Flower segment 11]<br><br />
[[File:Flower segment 12.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-segment12.png Flower segment 12]<br />
|<br />
*Here is the image of the base and segments of the flower stems.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Star plant<br>[[File:Garden Star Plant.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-starplant.png Star Plant]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images the star plant.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Tulips<br>[[File:Garden Tulip 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-tulip-1.png Tulip 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Tulip 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-tulip-2.png Tulip 2]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of Tulips.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/03/1663_Garden_tulip_Megan.png Tulip Megan]<br />
|}<br />
<br />
====Other plants====<br />
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |<br />
! To see/hide images click here:<br />
! Description of images<br />
! Relevant colors<br />
! Link to screen-shots<br />
|-<br />
! Cactus <br>[[File:Garden Cactus 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cactus-1.png Cactus 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Cactus 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cactus-2.png Cactus 2]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of cactus.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Grass<br>[[File:Garden Grass 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-grass-1.png Grass 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Grass 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-grass-2.png Grass 2]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Grass 3.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-grass-3.png Grass 3]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Grass 4.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-grass-4.png Grass 4]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Grass 5.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-grass-5.png Grass 5]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Grass 6.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-grass-6.png Grass 6]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Grass 7.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-grass-7.png Grass 7]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Grass 8.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-grass-8.png Grass 8]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Grass 9.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-grass-9.png Grass 9]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of grass.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Reeds<br>[[File:Garden Reeds 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-reeds-1.png Reeds 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Reeds 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-reeds-2.png Reeds 2]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Reeds 3.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-reeds-3.png Reeds 3]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Reeds 4.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-reeds-4.png Reeds 4]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Reeds 5.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-reeds-5.png Reeds 5]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Reeds 6.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-reeds-6.png Reeds 6]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Reeds 8.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-reeds-8.png Reeds 8]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Reeds 9.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-reeds-9.png Reeds 9]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Reeds 10.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-reeds-10.png Reeds 10]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Reeds 11.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-reeds-11.png Reeds 11]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Reeds 12.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-reeds-12.png Reeds 12]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Reeds 13.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-reeds-13.png Reeds 13]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of reeds.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Shrub<br>[[File:Garden Shrub 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-shrub-1.png Shrub 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Shrub 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-shrub-2.png Shrub 2]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Shrub 3.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-shrub-3.png Shrub 3]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Shrub 4.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-shrub-4.png Shrub 4]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Shrub 5.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-shrub-5.png Shrub 5]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Shrub 6.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-shrub-6.png Shrub 6]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Shrub 7.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-shrub-7.png Shrub 7]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Shrub 8.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-shrub-8.png Shrub 8]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Shrub 9.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-shrub-9.png Shrub 9]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Shrub 10.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-shrub-10.png Shrub 10]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Shrub 11.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-shrub-11.png Shrub 11]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of shrubs.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Wavy plant<br>[[File:Garden Wavy plant 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-wavyplant-1.png Wavy plant 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Wavy plant 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-wavyplant-2.png Wavy plant 2]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Wavy plant 3.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-wavyplant-3.png Wavy plant 3]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Wavy plant 4.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-wavyplant-4.png Wavy plant 4]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of wavy plants.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Platforms===<br />
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |<br />
! To see/hide images click here:<br />
! Description of images<br />
! Relevant colors<br />
! Link to screen-shots<br />
|-<br />
! Tree platform<br>[[File:Garden Left platform.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-left-platform.png Left platform]<br>[[File:Garden Right platform.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-right-platform.png Right platform]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of platforms in trees.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Platform<br>[[File:Garden Platform 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-platform-1.png Platform 1]<br />
|<br />
*Here is the image of the basic platform.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Platform Column<br>[[File:Garden PlatformColumn 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-platform-column-1.png PlatformColumn 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden PlatformColumn 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-platform-column-2.png PlatformColumn 2]<br><br />
[[File:Garden PlatformColumn 3.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-platform-column-3.png PlatformColumn 3]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of platform columns.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Stone Platform<br>[[File:Garden Stone Platform 1 Wide.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-stone-platform-1wide.png Stone Platform 1 Wide]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Stone Platform 3 Wide.png]]&nbsp; [http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-stone-platform-3wide.png Stone Platform 3 Wide]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Stone Platform 5 Wide.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-stone-platform-5wide.png Stone Platform 5 Wide]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of stone platforms.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Tall platform<br>[[File:Garden Tall platform.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-tall-platform.png Tall platform]<br />
|<br />
*Here is the image of the tall platform.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Other items===<br />
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |<br />
! To see/hide images click here:<br />
! Description of images<br />
! Relevant colors<br />
! Link to screen-shots<br />
|-<br />
! Balloon<br>[[File:Garden Balloon.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-balloon.png Balloon]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Balloon Huge.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-balloon-huge.png Balloon Huge]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Balloon Segment.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-balloon-segment.png Balloon Segment]<br><br />
[[File:Balloon segment short.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-balloon-segment-short.png Balloon segment short]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of balloons and their strings.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/34/1663_garden_S_shaped_empty_balloon_string_right.png S-shaped balloon string]<br />
|-<br />
! Birdbath<br>[[File:Garden Birdbath.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-birdbath.png Birdbath]<br />
|<br />
*Here is the image of the birdbath.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a1/1663_garden_Purple_garden_with_Heron.png Birdbath legged deer]<br />
|-<br />
! Boat<br>[[File:Garden Boat 1 L.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-boat-1-l.png Boat 1 L]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Boat 1 R.png]]&nbsp;[http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-boat-1-r.png Boat 1 R]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of boats.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Cairn stones<br>[[File:Garden Cairn Base 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cairn-base-1.png Cairn Base 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Cairn Base 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cairn-base-2.png Cairn Base 2]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Cairn Base 3.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cairn-base-3.png Cairn Base 3]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Cairn Base 4.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cairn-base-4.png Cairn Base 4]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Cairn Base 5.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cairn-base-5.png Cairn Base 5]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Cairn Mid 1.png]]&nbsp; [http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cairn-mid-1.png Cairn Mid 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Cairn Mid 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cairn-mid-2.png Cairn Mid 2]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Cairn Mid 3.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cairn-mid-3.png Cairn Mid 3]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Cairn Mid 4.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cairn-mid-4.png Cairn Mid 4]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Cairn Mid 5.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cairn-mid-5.png Cairn Mid 5]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Cairn Top 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cairn-top-1.png Cairn Top 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Cairn Top 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cairn-top-2.png Cairn Top 2]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Cairn Top 3.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cairn-top-3.png Cairn Top 3]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Cairn Top 4.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cairn-top-4.png Cairn Top 4]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Cairn Top 5.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cairn-top-5.png Cairn Top 5]<br />
|<br />
*Here is the image of the stones used to form cairns.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/23/1663_Garden_An_Engineer_cairns.png Gigantic rock pile]<br />
|-<br />
! Furniture<br>[[File:Garden Desk 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-desk-1.png Desk 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Desk lamp.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-desk-lamp.png Desk lamp]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Table 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-table-1.png Table 1]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of furniture for the office and other places.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Giant Planter<br>[[File:Garden Giant Planter.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-giant-planter.png Giant Planter]<br />
|<br />
*Here is the image of the giant Planter.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/1a/1663_garden_Underground_light_gives_large_tub_on_top_of_pillar_then_filled_with_trees.png Giant planter with trees]<br />
|-<br />
! Hat<br>[[File:Garden Hat 1a.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-hat-1a.png Hat 1a]<br />
|<br />
*Here is the image of the black hat.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Lamppost<br>[[File:Garden Lamp crossbar left.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-lamp-crossbar-left.png Lamp crossbar left]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Lamp crossbar right.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-lamp-crossbar-right.png Lamp crossbar right]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Lamppost 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-lamppost-1.png Lamppost 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden lamp-topper.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-lamp-topper.png lamp-topper]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images that may form the complete lamppost.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Obelisk<br>[[File:Garden Obelisk.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-obelisk.png Obelisk]<br />
|<br />
*Here is the image of the obelisk.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Pot<br>[[File:Garden Pot 1.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-pot-1.png Pot 1]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Pot 2.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-pot-2.png Pot 2]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Pot 3.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-pot-3.png Pot 3]<br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of pots.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Rover<br>[[File:Garden Rover.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-rover.png Rover]<br />
|<br />
*Here is the image of the Mars rover.<br />
| Color 16<br />
| [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/3f/1663_garden_One_color_Between_orange_red_and_red_First_thing_Mars_rover.png Mars rover]<br />
|-<br />
! Sale sign<br>[[File:Garden Sale sign.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-sale-sign.png Sale sign]<br />
|<br />
*Here is the image of the sale sign.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|-<br />
! Saucer<br>[[File:Garden Saucer.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-saucer.png Saucer]<br />
|<br />
*Here is the image of the flying saucer.<br />
| Color?<br />
| [http://forums.xkcd.com/download/file.php?id=51432&mode=view BlitzGirl's UFO garden]<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Helper structures===<br />
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |<br />
! To see/hide images click here:<br />
! Description of images<br />
! Relevant colors<br />
! Link to screen-shots<br />
|-<br />
! Bird riser<br>[[File:Garden Bird riser.png]],&nbsp;[[File:Garden Bird riser with background.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-bird-riser.png Bird riser], and with background<br><br />
[[File:Garden Bird riser root.png]]&nbsp;[[File:Garden Bird riser root with frame.png]][http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-bird-riser-root.png Bird riser root], and with frame<br><br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of the bird riser and it's root. <br />
**They only seem to appear in the orange color range.<br />
**The riser is invisible (white) and would have to have a background to be seen (both versions are shown to the left). This will never be the case in the garden as the raiser does not show up in front of other black items.<br />
***However, the risers can be seen using the [[#Debug_mode|debug mode]], and this is used as the example to the right.<br />
***Also using the debug mode on this [http://www.xkcd.com/1663/#1e853af8-055f-11e6-8001-42010a8e000f garden] the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e0/1663_garden_Color_13_2_5d_debug_with_count.png number of items can be counted] as shown in the link. <br />
****From this link it is clear that there are three bird risers attached to two of the seven bird riser roots. <br />
****Here only single bird risers are displayed, but they can be connected see below.<br />
**The root can often be seen on the ground, but it can be hidden behind other objects. <br />
***Also the root has the first short part of a bird riser above the root, which is invisible (by any means). The bird riser takes hold at the top of this invisible part. That it is there can best be seen by putting a frame around the image of the root, to see that it is twice as high as the root itself. Such an image is also shown to the left. (But the end can also be seen in the debug mode images).<br />
*The riser are used to make items fly in the air. <br />
**I.e. the five types of flying birds, the saucer, flying Megan and the two "actual flying fish", can attach them selves to the end of a bird riser.<br />
**Whereas the risers need to have a root to begin, then more risers can attach to the end already existing risers, thus getting much higher up in the air than one riser (all the way up!).<br />
**Risers can have any angles to each others, even going further down, which can explain birds and other flying objects touching the ground (even making an object be situated partially beneath the ground, like [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/cf/1663_garden_One_color_Orange_6d.png this flying Megan] from this [http://xkcd.com/1663/#0d6bca62-fcf3-11e5-8019-42010a8e0005 garden] or maybe even outside the frame, see last example below).<br />
**As opposed to anything else the light that creates a bird (or other flying item) does not need to touch the actually bird, but rather the place from where the bird riser is rooted. <br />
***This indicates that the birds etc. can grow from light touching the base of the risers rather than the tip. <br />
****Since many bird risers can grow in layers above the first riser it is clear that the bird riser does not appear with a bird on them in one go! <br />
***There are many examples with [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/48/1663_garden_One_color_Orange_9d.png birds] or [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/4f/1663_garden_One_color_Between_orange_and_orange_red_8d.png flying Megan] "growing" outside the light, where no light ever was, as seen from some of the [[1663:_Garden/Users_gardens#Locked_gardens_only_for_explanation_use|locked experimental gardens]].<br />
*When selecting a bird riser root all bird risers and all flying things connected to these will also be selected (and deleted if the root is deleted).<br />
**Here are two examples from the same [http://xkcd.com/1663/#578b80bc-fd96-11e5-8001-42010a8e000a garden] where two different roots have been selected:<br />
***In this [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/b9/1663_garden_14_Between_orange_and_orange_red_15d_selected_bird_riser_root.png example] the selected root is hidden by the tulip in the red circle. Seven birds are selected both right and left of this root. (Two of them on top of each other).<br />
***In this [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/27/1663_garden_14_Between_orange_and_orange_red_15d_selected_bird_riser_root_Megan.png example] the root in the red circle is completely hidden by turtles etc. It connects to three birds and one flying Megan, showing that it is the bird riser roots that also connect to her.<br />
**In this next example [http://xkcd.com/1663/#59246c86-fcce-11e5-8001-42010a8e0010 garden] the links between a root and four birds are displayed in detail.<br />
***The [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/73/1663_garden_SF_final.png first image] is just the normal garden view screen-shot (lamps deleted). 10 birds can be seen; there are six birds over the lamp post; two near the ground under the high platform; one near the right crown of the tree; and one to the left that looks like it is a part of the linsang. Several bird riser roots (at least five) can be seen on the ground from the middle of the platform and right past the cat (two under it) and then at the sign.<br />
***In the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/8d/1663_garden_SF_final_selected.png second image] the root at the foot of the Sale sign has been selected. Four birds have been selected, spread out over the entire section with birds, including the lowest, the highest, the left most and one over the lamp post.<br />
***In the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/73/1663_garden_SF_final_debug.png third image] debug mode has been used. All the long purple lines (of equal length) indicate bird risers.<br />
***In the last [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/35/1663_garden_SF_final_debug_drawing.png fourth image] the links between the root and the four birds have been indicated. A zero (0) has been written under the root. Then 1 indicates the single bird riser that goes to the right bird over the lamp post. Bird riser 2, 3 and 4 connect to each other from the root up to the highest bird right of the crown. Then bird riser 5 goes from that to the bird near the linsang left of the tree, and finally bird riser 6 and 7 goes straight back and down to the lowest bird near the ground. <br />
****Several bird risers seems to go beneath the ground!<br />
**That bird risers can go beneath the ground has already been show with flying Megan partly under ground.<br />
***In this last example it is made clear that birds can then appear either under ground (or under the top of other structures blocking their view) or even totally outside the frame (as indicated above the bird risers seem to be able to sprout items outside the cones of light, as long as they grow in the light them selves).<br />
***The proof for this comes in this [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/16/1663_garden_Color_13_5d_debug_with_count.png example] with the debug version of this [http://www.xkcd.com/1663/#fa1b5c92-055e-11e6-8001-42010a8e000f garden] showing the count:<br />
****At the time of [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/73/1663_garden_Color_13_5d.png these images] there where only 8 visible birds<br />
****But the count lists 20 birds, indicating that no less than 12 birds are hidden from view!<br />
| Color [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/48/1663_garden_One_color_Orange_9d.png 13 Orange] and [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/4/4f/1663_garden_One_color_Between_orange_and_orange_red_8d.png 14 Orange].<br />
| [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e7/1663_garden_Color_13_2_5d_debug_bird_risers.png Bird riser debug]<br><br />
[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/5e/1663_garden_Color_14_3d.png Root]<br />
|-<br />
! Null<br>[[File:Garden Null.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-null.png Null]<br>[[File:Garden Null continue.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-null-continue-air.png Null continue]<br><br />
[[File:Garden Null continue air.png]],&nbsp;[[File:Garden Null continue air with background.png]]&nbsp;[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-null-continue-air.png Null continue air], and with background<br><br />
|<br />
*Here are the images of ''null''. They cannot normally be seen, the air version even have to have a background to be seen (both versions are shown). They are used for ??.<br />
| Color<br />
| [ Example]<br />
|}<br />
<br />
==Trivia==<br />
*There are three different title text in this comic, as there are also one over each of the two icons. <br />
**This is special as with some of the newest "game like comics" there are [[:Category:No title text|no title text]]!<br />
**The normal one "Relax" is mentioned above in the main explanation.<br />
**The other two are explanations for what the two icons in the top right corner does and appear when the cursor hovers over them.<br />
***They are ''Create new light'' explaining that this icon introduces new lamps and<br />
***''Remove selected (delete key)'', which explain that this icon can be used to remove (delete) selected items like lamps, plants or items. It also explains that the delete key can be used instead of the icon.<br />
<br />
===Linsang - cat like animal===<br />
*In the second week of release no less than 12 [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/38/Garden_Linsang_1.png images] of the animal called {{w|linsang}} appeared [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/1d/1663_garden_My_first_linsang_cat_like_creature_in_SC.png in the garden].<br />
**See all of them [[1663:_Garden/Images#Images|here]].<br />
*This animal was referenced in ''[[Thing Explainer]]'' in ''Tree of life'' where the animal is drawn in the ''cat-shaped'' section with the following caption:<br />
::'''Almost cat'''<br />
::This animal looks like a cat with a long neck. It's the closest thing to a cat that's not actually in the cat family.<br />
::*Next to the section another one is drawn in front of Cueball (obvsiously it's Randall).<br />
::*The linsang says "Mrowl?" and Cueball says "I wan't one!"<br />
*Randall has in an interview discussed these [http://www.wsj.com/articles/randall-munroe-creator-of-xkcd-on-google-search-tricks-and-cat-like-creature-videos-1447945313 Cat-Like-Creatures] and in is quoted for saying<br />
::Q: '''An animal I’m obsessed with is:'''<br />
::A: The linsang, which looks almost like a cat but has this weird long neck. I find them both unnerving and adorable. I found some footage of one running; it’s like watching a cat video from a parallel universe.<br />
::*The linsang is related to the animal {{w|Genet (animal)|genet}}, and here are two videos/photos of a genet running:<br />
::**[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRdJSVlPrGo Genet on a rhino]<br />
::**[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ehq3ssg7zwk Genet on other things]<br />
<br />
===Monday 4th of April release===<br />
*Due to technical problems (or to make [[#April Fool's header text|fools of his fans?]]) the comic did not go live until Sunday evening (after midnight, so technically first on '''Monday April 4th''').<br />
**There was thus no Friday release in the week before<br />
**So the Wednesday comic [[1662: Jack and Jill]] got a lot more attention than it would usually have had. <br />
*This comic thus turned in to the Monday release instead, as no other comic was released later that Monday, as this would have taken attention away from this very special comic.<br />
**But it was called the ''April 1st comic'' and later the ''Friday comic'' in the [[#April Fool's header text|header text]] displayed at the top of xkcd to explain why there was no Friday comic. <br />
***A header text continued to stay a the top but changed two more times until the release past midnight Sunday in the US. It was even past midnight {{w|Pacific Time}}, but not yet on Hawaii.<br />
**There were thus only two comics released in the week before this Monday, which may be the first time since xkcd went live on {{xkcd||xkcd.com}} in 2006.<br />
<br />
===April Fool's header text===<br />
*There is some debate as to whether this comic is an April Fool's comic or not.<br />
**Was instead the April fool's joke the text written above the comic in the header of xkcd?<br />
**There is reason to believe this was [[#April Fool's comic|not the case]] based on among other thing these header text.<br />
*Below it a list of the different header text displayed from Friday until the comic was just released.<br />
**The header text continued to change regularly [[#Header text after release|after release]] in regard to this comic at least until next Friday (April 8th).<br />
**Here below is the different header text with info on when it appeared.<br />
***Links are given when possible to a [[1663:_Garden/Screen-shots#Screen-shots_of_header_text|screen shots]] on the word ''message'' and to a webarchive in another link when both are available.<br />
*On Friday, April 1st, 2016, the xkcd website changed to a new [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/81/1663_garden_April_1st_comic_is_currently_experiencing_technical_difficulties.png message] where the standard message "XKCD updates every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday." usually is. (This [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/69/1663_garden_Commercial_header_text_before_April_1st_problems.png message] had, however, up to this point and for a long time been a [http://web.archive.org/web/20160401175527/https://www.xkcd.com/ commercial] for ''[[Thing Explainer]]''). But now it [http://web.archive.org/web/20160401204749/https://xkcd.com/ began displaying] this instead:<br />
::The xkcd April 1st comic is currently experiencing technical difficulties. <br />
::Please stand by!<br />
*Early Saturday April 2nd the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e0/1663_garden_Calendar_systems_in_which_Saturday_is_April_1st.png message] was [http://web.archive.org/web/20160402050932/http://xkcd.com updated]:<br />
::The xkcd April 1st comic is currently experiencing technical difficulties.<br />
::Status update: Please stand by.<br />
::Status update: This is fine. Everything is fine.<br />
::Status update: Everything is on fire.<br />
::Status update: Searching for calendar systems in which Saturday is April 1st.<br />
*Later on Saturday the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/06/1663_garden_Delayed_until_Sunday_night.png message] was again [http://web.archive.org/web/20160402175822/http://www.xkcd.com changed] to:<br />
::The Friday xkcd comic is currently experiencing technical difficulties<br />
::[Editor's note: Everything is on fire] and has been delayed until Sunday night.<br />
*The comic did not come out until past midnight in the entire North America (coming out just before midnight in Hawaii).<br />
*It was finally released very early on Monday April 4th, and the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/53/Garden_Loading_screen_shot.png message] then [http://web.archive.org/web/20160404123555/http://xkcd.com/ returned] to the old standard text for xkcd for a short while:<br />
::XKCD updates every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.<br />
<br />
===Header text after release===<br />
*During April 4th, after the release the message changed from the old standard to display a [[:Category:Protip|Protip]]:<br />
::'''Protip:''' If you don't like how your garden is growing, you can click to prune it.<br />
*And then later on April 4th, the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a2/1663_garden_Protip_and_url_hint.png message] was again [http://web.archive.org/web/20160404185353/http://www.xkcd.com/#5dbfbb82-fc20-11e5-8001-42010a8e000d changed] to:<br />
::'''Protip:''' If you don't like how your garden is growing, you can click to prune it.<br />
::You can copy the URL to share your garden. From other browsers, it will be view-only.<br />
*When the next comic came out, the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/61/1663_garden_Note_if_seeing_todays_comic.png message] then [http://web.archive.org/web/20160408105110/http://xkcd.com/1663/#4b04323a-fddc-11e5-8001-42010a8e0016 changed], (also for the [http://web.archive.org/web/20160406194653/http://xkcd.com/1664/ new comic]) to<br />
::'''Protip:''' If you don't like how your garden is growing, you can click to prune it.<br />
::You can copy the URL to share your garden. From other browsers, it will be view-only.<br />
<br><br />
::Note: If you're seeing today's comic in place of your garden, change the URL from xkcd.com/#<your code> to xkcd.com/1663/#<your code>.<br />
*[http://web.archive.org/web/20160408145017/http://xkcd.com/ After] the Friday comic came out on April 8th, the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c5/1663_garden_Back_to_pro_tips_only_after_Friday_comic.png message] then [http://web.archive.org/web/20160408195958/http://xkcd.com/ changed] back to<br />
::'''Protip:''' If you don't like how your garden is growing, you can click to prune it.<br />
::You can copy the URL to share your garden. From other browsers, it will be view-only.<br />
*The [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/c/c6/1663_garden_Still_pro_tip_on_Friday_22nd_comic.png message stayed] like the one above at least until Friday April 22th before that Friday's comic [http://web.archive.org/web/20160422102754/http://xkcd.com/ was released]. But either at the time of release or at least on Saturday the day after the release the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/ae/1663_garden_Back_to_normal_text_after_Friday_22nd_comic.png message returned] to [http://web.archive.org/web/20160423103108/http://xkcd.com/ the original].<br />
::XKCD updates every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.<br />
:*The pro tip, however, remained as [http://web.archive.org/web/20160425022201/https://www.xkcd.com/1663/ the header text] when displaying the {{xkcd|1663|Garden comic}}.<br />
<br />
===April Fool's comic===<br />
*This comic '''was indeed supposed to be''' the Friday 1st of April, April Fool's comic!<br />
**This statement is based on several things, which can can be deduced from the above header text and the subsequent issues with the many [[#Bugs|bugs in this comic]].<br />
*It is clear that this comic did actually come out as promised, at least as promised in the third message about release on Sunday night.<br />
**It is also clear that it is regarded as the Friday comic, even in the last update before the release, which was two days after April 1st.<br />
*It is also clear that this was a very complex comic, and it is realistic that Randall did have problems with making it work. <br />
**On day two there still seemed to be several minor bugs, which seemed to improve over time so Randall was still working on it after release.<br />
***But then new bugs appeared when the next comic was released.<br />
*Both of the last two April Fool's comics, [[1350: Lorenz]] and [[1506: xkcloud]], have had no real meaning or joke in the comic. The jokes appeared from user input, and here it comes from waiting.<br />
**This makes people who spend too much time on these comics ''April Fool's'' (or if they rather wish to be called a ''nerds'' than fools, then they can claim to have been a victim of [[356: Nerd Sniping|nerd sniping]]).<br />
**So, even if Randall ''did'' play a joke on people who [[Talk:1662: Jack and Jill#What happened to Friday's comic|eagerly awaited the comic]], then he did deliver as promised a spectacular comic Sunday night.<br />
*There are several reasons to believe that Randall would have preferred the comic to get out on Friday April 1st.<br />
**Apart from it being a time consuming comic that in it self is April Fool's comic material, then by getting it out Friday this special comic, which he obviously have used a lot of time to prepare, would have had one more day as the first comic.<br />
**Getting it out before a weekend would have let many more users spend time looking at their garden. Now many would not spend enough time to appreciate the comic, as it came out right when the new work week began.<br />
***And it is a very complicated comic that just to get to understand how to really use it could take a days time even for someone with time.<br />
***And this is not talking about how the comic works, but just how to use the program, i.e. the whole [[#Functionality|functionality]] of the comic is way more complex than even a game like [[1608: Hoverboard]].<br />
**And before next weekend two more comics were released taking some of the focus away from this one too soon, and also before the next weekend. <br />
***Of course die hard fans will not forget this one, but many xkcd fans may only come by in the weekend etc. and such a hard to come by comic like this, that demands patience and that you return does not profit from being bumped down to number three as it would be next Friday.<br />
*Randall lives of his fans goodwill and to deliberately make a pun on them like this would probably not seem like a good business proposal, apart from the fact that the comic now gets less attention than by coming out before the weekend.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]<br />
[[Category:Dynamic comics]]<br />
[[Category:Interactive comics]]<br />
[[Category:Comics with animation]] <!-- The trees and plants wave in the breeze --><br />
[[Category:April fools' comics]] <!-- This was delayed but if not directly an April fool's comic then the comments leading up to it was, and this is the only comic to list as April fools' this year --><br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]] <br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]] <br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]] <br />
[[Category:Animals]]<br />
[[Category:Sharks]] <!-- Shark fins appeared after more than a week --><br />
[[Category:Mars rovers]]<br />
[[Category:Protip]] <!-- The tip given in the header of xkcd as a reaction to the comic. Maybe that will not be permanent, but it will be mentioned in the explanation here and should stay--></div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1649:_Pipelines&diff=1221201649: Pipelines2016-06-18T02:27:59Z<p>173.245.54.30: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1649<br />
| date = February 29, 2016<br />
| title = Pipelines<br />
| before = [[#Explanation|↓ Skip to explanation ↓]]<br />
| image = pipelines.png<br />
| titletext = In the future, every single pipeline will lead to the bowl of a giant blender, and we'll all just show up with a bucket each day to take our share of the resulting smoothie.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
This comic follows a similar idea to the [[what if?]] ''{{what if|147|Niagara Straw}}'' from three days before this comic's release, where the entire water flow over {{w|Niagara Falls}} is imagined to be funneled through a straw (i.e. 7&nbsp;mm diameter), with disastrous results.<br />
<br />
In this comic [[Randall]] imagines what size pipes are necessary to carry US domestic production/consumption of various fluids if the flow rate were fixed at 4 meters per second. Randall notes that "many pipes would overlap", owing to the fact that consumption of one item as corn syrup would be due to the production of one of the others, in this case soda pop (another example, than the previous one which is actually mentioned in the comic, could be gasoline which is produced from petroleum ).<br />
<br />
The top panel is in [http://store-xkcd-com.myshopify.com/products/actual-size-stickers actual size] (something Randall often jokes about, like in the very next released what if? ''{{what if|148|Eat the Sun}}'', where he shows part of the sun in actual size in the 2nd picture, but in this comic he ''actually'' means it). This means that if you look at the image in actual size (or measure lengths in the full size image) then the measured diameter is the diameter Randall has calculated the pipe should be, based on his data for the consumption of these substances.<br />
<br />
In the second panel the pipes are too big for his drawing. To indicate the scale he has both inserted a human (appearance like [[Miss Lenhart]],) and the top panel has been shrunk down to indicate how much larger the bottom panel is (this is similar to the link between the panels in [[980: Money]]). Using the size of the top panel and the smaller insert, it can be found that the scale is 20:1. The woman is 9&nbsp;cm tall in the image, which makes her 180&nbsp;cm — 5 feet 11 inches — in "real life". The pipe next to her for gasoline would have a diameter of 2.2&nbsp;m.<br />
<br />
Since the caption at the top mentions both fluid produced and consumed in the US it becomes very difficult to find out which number Randall uses. For instance the consumption of wine in the US and the production of wine in the US is not necessarily the same as wine is both imported and exported. Should there then be two pipes? Unlike similar comics (like Money mentioned above) there are no references for where Randall has the data for this comic.<br />
<br />
As usual with xkcd, the absurdity — and improbability — of routing the entirety of each fluid through a single pipe at any point is the source of humor. In addition, despite Randall's stated assumption that all the fluids are magically flowing at the same rate as public water (4 meters per second), many could never actually do so; some "fluids" shown are too viscous (e.g. peanut butter, Silly Putty, meat), adhesive (e.g. maple syrup), or thermally impractical (e.g. glass, cheese, ice cream and yogurt). Lastly, many are just plain zany (e.g. saliva a reference to another what if? {{what if|144|Saliva Pool}}). Note that at the bottom of the last panel there is a much larger pipe for the tap water used by the public. All substances are listed below in the [[#Table|table]].<br />
<br />
The title text refers to a possible future based on the idea of this comic in which all the pipes with the above-mentioned fluids will actually lead into the same hole as shown in the top right panel. This hole will then be the bowl of a giant blender that mixes all these substances together to a ''{{w|smoothie}}''. The future people will then just come up to this blender and get a bucket full of this mix each day. In reality, this would be an impractical method of getting all of the fluids. Setting the logistical considerations of such a setup aside, this would mean that ketchup and salsa, both intended for human consumption, would be mixed with fluids which are harmful to humans, such as windshield wiper fluid.<br />
<br />
Note: "Soup" has been left out, and it might have been expected in this comic due to the similarity to this system with [[Beret Guy]]'s use of a "soup outlet" as an entrepreneur in [[1293: Job Interview]]. It is probably a larger pipeline than salsa and possibly even ketchup. However, there are many different varieties of soups, and most soup is probably not bought finished, both very good reasons to not include it in the chart. But still the idea of having a soup outlet is very similar to this comic.<br />
<br />
===Table===<br />
*All the substances are listed here in the "reading" order also used in the transcript.<br />
*The diameter is for the inner part of the tube.<br />
*GL is for GigaLiters - or Billion Liters. This is strictly the annual discharge of the Size (cm) column at 4&nbsp;m/s.<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
|+ All substances with size as found in the picture, vs. size calculated from public information<br />
|-<br />
! scope="col" | Substance<br />
! scope="col" | Size (cm)<br />
! scope="col" | Annual Discharge (GL)<br />
! scope="col" | Explanation<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Toothpaste}}<br />
| 3.5<br />
| 0.121<br />
| In the title text of [[1599: Water Delivery]] Randall claims that he as a child could not understand why there were no toothpaste pipe to his house when there was one for water. Given this is at the top, this is a clear allusion to this comment. Calculation is based on 542 g/year per capita consumption of toothpaste. Source:[https://www.google.com/search?q=toothpaste+consumption+by+country&tbm=isch&pf=m#imgrc=2wpGcxkoKlCvAM%3A here].<br />
The year the graph was made in is estimated to be 2013, and 316.5 million estimated 2013 US population to calculate the diameter above.<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Nail polish}}<br />
| 0.4<br />
| 0.000159<br />
| Much less than acetone, which is used as a nail polish remover.<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Windshield washer fluid}}<br />
| 5.6<br />
| 0.311<br />
| Largely water<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Silly putty}}<br />
| 0.1<br />
| 0.0000991<br />
| Smallest diameter<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Shampoo}}<br />
| 4<br />
| 0.159<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Honey}}<br />
| 5.2<br />
| 0.268<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Blood donation|Donated blood}}<br />
| 0.9<br />
| 0.00803<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Vanilla}}<br />
| 0.4<br />
| 0.000159<br />
| Not the ice but the spice (which is black as the substance in the vanilla pipe).<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Ketchup}}<br />
| 5.2<br />
| 0.268<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Salsa (sauce)|Salsa}}<br />
| 3.6<br />
| 0.128<br />
| Smaller than a typical jar<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Sunscreen}}<br />
| 1.35<br />
| 0.0181<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Personal lubricant}}<br />
| 0.65<br />
| 0.00419<br />
| AKA lube<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|LCD liquid}}<br />
| 0.26<br />
| 0.000670<br />
| For {{w|Liquid-crystal display}}<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Mayonnaise|Mayo}}<br />
| 4.4<br />
| 0.192<br />
| Or mayonnaise<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Printer ink}}<br />
| 1.4<br />
| 0.192<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Maple syrup}}<br />
| 1.8<br />
| 0.0178<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Hair conditioner|Conditioner}}<br />
| 2.5<br />
| 0.0620<br />
| For hair<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Mustard (condiment)|Mustard}}<br />
| 3.7<br />
| 0.136<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Liquid soap}}<br />
| 4.7<br />
| 0.219<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Olive oil}}<br />
| 6.2<br />
| 0.381<br />
| Largest diameter in the upper chart<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Coffee}}<br />
| 58<br />
| 33.4<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Peanut butter}}<br />
| 8.6<br />
| 0.733<br />
| Smallest diameter in the bottom chart<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Ice cream}}<br />
| 20<br />
| 3.97<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Cheese}}<br />
| 70<br />
| 48.6<br />
| Made from milk (cow) also in the chart<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Soft Drink|Soda}}<br />
| 82<br />
| 66.7<br />
| As in {{w|Soft Drink|soda pop}} aka soft drinks (flavored carbonated water) or {{w|Carbonated water|club soda}} (unflavored carbonated water). In many parts of the U.S. flavored carbonated water is referred to simply as "soda".<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Acetone}}<br />
| 13.6<br />
| 1.83<br />
| An organic chemical used as a highly potent cleaner in labs.<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Liquor}}<br />
| 15<br />
| 2.23<br />
| May not include beer or wine (also in chart)<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Gasoline}}<br />
| 220<br />
| 480.<br />
| Made from petroleum, also in the chart<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Yogurt}}<br />
| 15<br />
| 2.23<br />
| Made from milk (cow), also in the chart<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Milk#Cow.27s_milk|Milk (cow)}}<br />
| 106<br />
| 111<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Bottled water}}<br />
| 71<br />
| 50.0<br />
| See also [[1599: Water Delivery]]<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Sugar}}<br />
| 42<br />
| 17.5<br />
| See also [[1639: To Taste]]<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Saliva}}<br />
| 85<br />
| 71.6<br />
| From these data it could be calculated how long it would take America to drool enough to fill that pool from the what if? {{what if|144|Saliva Pool}}.<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Wine}}<br />
| 18<br />
| 3.21<br />
| Americans drank just under [https://www.wineinstitute.org/resources/statistics/article86 900 million gallons of wine in 2014], or almost 3.4 million cubic metres per year meaning that Americans drink about 0.11&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup>/s. With the pipe flowing at 4&nbsp;m/s this pipe must have an area of 268&nbsp;cm<sup>2</sup>. The radius of a pipe of area 268&nbsp;cm^2 is 9.25&nbsp;cm. The wine pipe should thus have a diameter of 18.5&nbsp;cm, very close to the one found by measuring on the chart.<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|HFCS}}<br />
| 20<br />
| 3.97<br />
| High fructose corn syrup<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Breast milk|Milk (human)}}<br />
| 10.6<br />
| 1.114<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Petroleum}}<br />
| 318<br />
| 1002<br />
| Largest diameter in the bottom chart, except for the public water. Also known as crude oil. Used to make for instance gasoline, also in the chart.<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Meat}}<br />
| 59<br />
| 34.5 <br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Glass}}<br />
| 28<br />
| 7.77<br />
|Glass is rumored to be a liquid. However, glass is an amorphous solid; people, wrongfully, assumed this lack of crystallinity gave it the potential for viscous flow, making it technically a liquid. This is incorrect as glass is composed of covalently bound molecules in a somewhat disorganized fashion, more similar to a thermoset plastic than a liquid. This common misconception was referred to before in the title text of [[843: Misconceptions]].<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Beer}}<br />
| 54<br />
| 28.9<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Tea}}<br />
| 41<br />
| 16.67<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Cement}}<br />
| 74<br />
| 54.3<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Tap water|Public water}}<br />
| 2550<br />
| 64,465<br />
| Using the formula [http://math.stackexchange.com/questions/564058/calculate-the-radius-of-a-circle-given-the-chord-length-and-height-of-a-segment here] it is possible to calculate the diameter of a circle given the chord length = l and height = h of a segment. From the drawing (and scaling) l = 390&nbsp;cm and h = 15&nbsp;cm. The formula states that D = h + l<sup>2</sup>/(4*h) = 15&nbsp;cm + (390&nbsp;cm)<sup>2</sup>/(4*15&nbsp;cm) = 2550&nbsp;cm.<br />
|}<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Caption above the first main panel, to the left of a smaller panel to the right.]<br />
:<big>The size of the US’s</big><br />
:<big><big>'''Pipelines'''</big></big><br />
:<big>if each fluid produced or consumed in the US has to be carried by a single pipe</big><br />
:<font color="gray">Assuming they all flowed at the same speed of about 4<sup>m</sup><small>/</small><sub>s</sub></font><br />
:<font color="gray">Note: Many pipelines would overlap (eg. '''soda'''/corn syrup)</font><br />
<br />
:[There is a small panel to the right showing three gray pipes of different sizes leading out over a large hole in the ground. Only a part of the hole can be seen at the bottom left part of the panel, but it curves around indicating it is a large circular hole. The pipes are supported by small legs beneath them and from the end of all three thick liquids are squirting out and down into the hole. The first pipe is by far the largest; the liquid from it is white, but not as white as the background. The second pipe is by far the smallest squirting dark red liquid and the final rightmost pipe is in between and squirts our light brown liquid. Each pipe is labeled. The label on the smallest cannot be read properly, but from the info gained in the next panel it can be inferred for certain what it says (and this is indicated here below):]<br />
:[Large pipe (white)]: Mayo<br />
:[Small pipe (dark red)]: Nail polish<br />
:[Medium pipe (light brown)]: Maple syrup<br />
<br />
:[Below is a large panel with a caption at the top. And below this there are twenty circles in different sizes and with different color (or even texture). Each circle is labeled, for the five smallest the label is outside, in one case with an arrow indicating where the label belongs. The rest has the label inside. The text is in black except for four of those with text inside, but with red of black color. Here the text is white. The labels are indicated by color and size, going roughly from top left in reading order based on the position and size of circles not of position of the text:]<br />
<br />
:<big>Actual size </big> <font color="gray">(When viewed on a typical computer screen) </font><br />
:[Medium green blue and white spiral]: Toothpaste<br />
:[Tiny dark red]: Nail polish<br />
:[Big light blue with white specks]: Windshield washer fluid<br />
:[Very tiny purple]: Silly putty<br />
:[Medium light green]: Shampoo<br />
:[Large dark yellow]: Honey<br />
:[Very small blood red]: Donated blood<br />
:[Tiny black]: Vanilla<br />
:[Big red]: Ketchup<br />
:[Medium dark red with chunks of in different green and lighter red colors]: Salsa<br />
:[Small white]: Sunscreen<br />
:[Very small light green]: Personal lubricant<br />
:[Very tiny gray]: LCD liquid<br />
:[Medium off-white]: Mayo<br />
:[Very small black]: Printer ink<br />
:[Small light brown]: Maple syrup<br />
:[Small light green]: Conditioner<br />
:[Medium yellow]: Mustard<br />
:[Large light green]: Liquid soap<br />
:[Big olive green]: Olive oil<br />
<br />
:[The panel just described is indicated to fit into a small rectangle at the top left of the next panel below. There are four lines ending at the four corners of this small rectangle, two of these are going to the two bottom corners and the other two ends on the lower part of the panel just above the small rectangle. They are indicated to go under the panel and would hit the two top corners if extrapolated. The 11 largest circles are clearly seen, but most of the other circles can also be noted. The colors are the same but any features in the original circles as well as the labels are gone. The part of the black top frame of the next panel below is faded out to gray in between the section cut off by the two lines going to the bottom corners of the panel above. This rectangle indicated the increasing size compared to the first panel above.]<br />
<br />
:[Apart from the insert mentioned above the second panel follows the same layout, but with 22 circles with even larger range of sizes. The panel is more than twice as long as the first panel. A Megan-like girl, but with white hair, is drawn at the top of the panel just left of the middle. Her hair close to the top, just below the line going to the right corner above. There are two medium and five smaller circles to her left and one small close to her head and one huge circle to her right. Her feet are less than a third down this panel standing on top of the next row of circles. In the bottom half of the panel there is a giant circle which almost touches the left side of the panel. There are smaller circles above it and down along the right side. One last circle is to the left almost at the bottom. At the very bottom is a slightly curving line to indicate a much much larger blue circle that only graces the panel (no. 23). There is a small green fish in this water to the left of the label. Below the labels are again listed as above. One label has a foot note. But it is written directly beneath the circle in which it is referenced. So it will be written together with the label on the next line. There is also one case with an arrow used to indicate where the label belongs.]<br />
<br />
:[Medium dark gray]: Coffee<br />
:[Very tiny gray]: Peanut butter<br />
:[Very small gray with black specks]: Ice cream<br />
:[Very small yellow with white specks]: Cheese<br />
:[Large brown with white fizzing]: Soda<br />
:[Tiny White]: Acetone<br />
:[Tiny gray]: Liquor<br />
:[Huge dark yellow]: Gasoline<br />
:[Tiny White with blue and orange specks]: Yogurt<br />
:[Big white]: Milk (cow)<br />
:[Large light blue]: Bottled water<br />
:[Small white]: Sugar<br />
:[Large light gray with white specks]: Saliva<br />
:[Very small light yellow]: Wine<br />
:[Very small orange]: HFCS<br />
:[Very tiny white]: Milk (human)<br />
:[Gigantic dark gray]: Petroleum<br />
:[Medium dark red with black texture]: Meat (mostly solid)<br />
:[Small white]: Glass*<br />
::<nowiki>*</nowiki>Solid at room temperature<br />
:[Medium light brown]: Beer<br />
:[Small gray brown]: Tea<br />
:[Large gray]: Cement<br />
:[Gracing bottom of panel light blue, with a fish inside]: Public water<br />
<br />
==Trivia==<br />
*In addition to the what if? article, the relevancy of pipelines, particularly regarding public water, is heightened due to the ongoing public health crisis in {{w|Flint, Michigan}}, caused by recent (mis-)management of their public water system.<br />
**See McLaughlin, Elliot. [http://edition.cnn.com/2016/01/18/us/flint-michigan-water-crisis-five-things/index.html 5 things to know about Flint's water crisis], '{{w|CNN}}', January 21, 2016. Retrieved 1 March 2016.<br />
**Studies have shown that temporary use of the Flint River as a water source caused corrosive water to leach lead from old pipes, causing lead poisoning in many residents, particularly children; other ill effects in addition to lead have been noted.<br />
**The crisis has lead to a public outcry against the state "emergency financial management" team appointed and supervised by the state executive (Gov. Rick Snyder and staff) and an outpouring of support from nearby communities such as Metro Detroit via bottled water donations to Flint residents.<br />
*This is the third comic posted on Leap Day ({{w|February 29}}) on Monday in 2016; the previous ones were:<br />
**[[390: Nightmares]] on a Friday in 2008 and<br />
**[[1023: Late-Night PBS]] on a Wednesday in 2012.<br />
**If the current M-W-F schedule continues, the next such comic will not happen before 2036 when the leap day again falls on a Friday (Following the {{w|Solar cycle (calendar)|28 year cycle}}).<br />
**It may also be interesting to note that the first three leap years after xkcd began (in just over 10 years) all fell on a release day, then followed by a break of 20 years.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]<br />
[[Category:Charts]]<br />
[[Category:Rankings]]<br />
[[Category:Food]]<br />
[[Category:Animals]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=980:_Money&diff=122119980: Money2016-06-18T02:26:40Z<p>173.245.54.30: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 980<br />
| date = November 21, 2011<br />
| title = Money<br />
| image = money.png<br />
| titletext = There, I showed you it.<br />
}}<br />
{{TOC}}<br />
<br />
'''Note:''' Clicking on the image on xkcd (click the date above the comic to go to the comic on xkcd) takes you to an [http://xkcd.com/980/huge/ interactive] and '''much much''' larger image. <br><br />
On the interactive image there are two links:<br><br />
One takes you to the [http://xkcd.com/980/sources/ sources and downloads] page where a list of sources can be downloaded (DataDump.csv).<br><br />
Also the [http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/money_huge.png full image] can be downloaded here (it is a PNG of considerable size: 12528x8352 pixels).<br><br />
This is one of the comics that can be [http://store.xkcd.com/products/money-poster bought as a poster] on xkcd and the other link takes you there.<br />
<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
This is another [[:Category:Charts|chart]] comic - a type of comic that [[Randall]] does from time to time. He has for instance done [[Online Communities|maps of the Internet]] ([[Online Communities 2|twice]]!) and other huge visualizations like this chart [[Radiation]] with a similar structure as this chart but with Radiation as the subject. The Radiation chart is most likely the inspiration for this much more comprehensive Money chart.<br />
<br />
In the chart there are five boxes with items on different scales of monetary value. Each scale of dollar increments are different colors. One dollar increments are green - naturally, because American paper money is green. Thousands are Orange/Red. Millions are gray. Billions are yellow. Trillions are blue. This comic uses {{w|Long and short scales|the short scale}} for naming large numbers (so a billion = 1000 millions = 10<sup>9</sup> rather than a million millions = 10<sup>12</sup> as in continental Europe).<br />
<br />
Because the comic is so huge and complex the explanation has been split into several parts and also individual pages:<br />
:Below are [[#Tables with explanations|five tables]] with explanation for some of the items.<br />
:The [[#Transcript|transcript]] is (as is usually the case with huge comics) only given for the text that is visible on the picture shown here above.<br><br />
:However the '''[[980: Money/Transcript|full transcript]]''' for all the text in the [http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/money_huge.png huge image] has also been completed.<br />
:Finally some [[980: Money/Prices in tables|tables with prices]] has been made (although they are not yet complete).<br />
<br />
In the Billions box there is a vague term called the "Economic Vortex" as well as arrows that flow between different blocks of this box. This is to show where the money goes. Where it is collected from, and where it is distributed to.<br />
<br />
Included in one frame is a small man with a red and white striped shirt, blue pants, a cane and a knit cap. He is known as Wally or Waldo (in the US) from the {{w|Where's Wally?|Where's Waldo books}}. To not give anything away for those who wish to search for him themselves there will be no spoiler here. But if someone needs a little help... Then by clicking this [[980: Money/Transcript#Billions|link]] you will be directed to the relevant section amongst the five sections where Waldo can be found. (The link will take you to that section of the full transcript page). If you still cannot find him (or give up in advance) then just search the transcript page for Wally or Waldo.<br />
<br />
The title text is a reference to the phrase "Show me the money!" which originates from the film ''{{w|Jerry Maguire}}''.<br />
<br />
==Tables with explanations==<br />
===Dollars===<br />
{| class="wikitable"<br />
|+Dollars<br />
|-<br />
|Top-left<br />
|The price of various common bills and commodities. The One Dollar Menu is a type of menu at various fast food restaurants.<br />
|-<br />
|Middle-left<br />
|Pet Ownership. The {{w|ASPCA}} is the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.<br />
|-<br />
|Bottom-right<br />
|Four boxes indicate that the CEO pay has skyrocketed from $490.31 (hourly) to $5,419.97 (hourly) in the same time period in which the average worker's salary has skyrocketed 10 cents.<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Thousands===<br />
{| class="wikitable"<br />
|+Thousands<br />
|-<br />
|Top-right<br />
|Hogwarts degree: a reference to {{w|Hogwarts|Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardy}} from the popular book series by {{w|J.K. Rowling}} about {{w|Harry Potter}}.<br />
One box is the estimated yearly tuition for the school and the next is how much seven years at the school would cost. To get a degree at the school, it takes 7 years (starting at age 11, ending at age 18).<br />
|-<br />
|Bottom<br />
|A reference to the song by {{w|Bare Naked Ladies}} entitled "{{w|If I Had $1000000}}" and all the things referenced in the song to buy the love of another person.<br />
|-<br />
|Bottom<br />
|A few items on the marriage of {{w|Wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton|Kate Middleton and Prince William}}, the major royal wedding of 2011, including:<br />
*a {{w|Wedding dress of Kate Middleton|wedding dress with its own Wikipedia page}} of 3 times the annual per capita income of the average UK person,<br />
*an 8-tier [http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1381944/Royal-Wedding-cake-Kate-Middleton-requested-8-tiers-decorated-900-flowers.html wedding cake],<br />
*and the flowers for the wedding. These re-appear in the Millions section of the graph, where they also list the costs for the security around the event ($20 million).<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Millions===<br />
{| class="wikitable"<br />
|+Millions<br />
|-<br />
|Left<br />
|Dr. Evil's ransom demands from the film "Austin Powers" corrected for inflation between 1969 and 1997.<br />
|-<br />
|Middle-right<br />
|Another reference to JK Rowling, comparing her (actual $1 billion) net worth as an author with her (imagined $82,000) net worth as a rapper. <br />
The magnified 82 orange/red ($1,000) boxes are footnoted "Professional assessment by rapper/geek culture expert MC Frontalot." {{w|MC Front-A-Lot}} is the creator of the subgenre of {{w|hip-hop}} known as {{w|Nerd Core}}.<br />
|-<br />
|Middle<br />
|An [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_Martin_F-22_Raptor F-22 Raptor fighter jet] (valued at $154.5M) is compared to a Velociraptor ($1.9M in production costs for the film Jurassic Park)<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Billions===<br />
{| class="wikitable"<br />
|+Billions<br />
|-<br />
|Top-Left ((Fictional)Billionaires section)<br />
|{{w|Carlisle Cullen}} is from the {{w|Twilight (series)|Twilight Series}} of books and movies. He is a vampire and adoptive father of {{w|Edward Cullen|Edward}}, {{w|Emmett Cullen|Emmett}} and {{w|Alice Cullen (Twilight)|Alice Cullen}}, as well as {{w|Rosalie Hale|Rosalie}} and {{w|Jasper Hale}}. He was born in the 1640s and amassed his wealth through many years of compound interest and investments.<br />
|{{w|Scrooge McDuck}} is a cartoon character from many {{w|Disney}} properties including the afternoon cartoon, {{w|Duck Tales}}. Scrooge McDuck has a "money bin" full of coins and other sorts of collectibles that he routinely [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CMU2NwaaXEA goes swimming in].<br />
|{{w|Bruce Wayne}} is {{w|Batman}}. {{w|Batman}} is {{w|Bruce Wayne}}. He is portrayed in many comic books, graphic novels, TV shows and movies by many different actors.<br />
|{{w|Artemis Fowl II|Artemis Fowl}} is an Irish child prodigy and a ruthless master criminal from the {{w|Artemis Fowl (series)|eponymous book series}}. He uses his intelligence to build his family fortune through crime.<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Trillions===<br />
{| class="wikitable"<br />
|+Trillions<br />
|-<br />
|As Randall already indicated in the transcript, this is the block for world, continent and nation finances. The numbers are really huge. There are no jokes in here (apart from the fact that Randall tried to make the shapes of the GDP look like the continent), likely because financial values this large aren't funny to start with.<br />
|-<br />
|GDP is {{w|Gross domestic product}}, the market value of all goods and services produced in a nation.<br />
*The major chart in the center shows the development of the GDP in the world since the 1940s. So far the US GDP has always grown, except for a small reduction in the early 1980s, a flat line around the 1991 global recession and a flat line in the second half of the naughts. The world-wide GDP is growing more rapidly, but is also much more volatile.<br />
|-<br />
|In the middle of the box, it shows the worth of all gold ever mined in 2011 prices. This is important because of the concept of the {{w|Gold standard}}, a concept where monetary values are linked to the value of gold. As indicated in the top-right of the box, both the EU and the USA have more debt than the total value of all gold in the world.<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Derivative (finance)|Derivatives}} are a complex financial instrument where one is not trading in something tangible, but in derived values - like options. Derivatives thus are dangerous as one trades in concepts instead of values. Critics claim that derivatives are at the base of the 'economic bubble'.<br />
*The growth of the derivatives market size is incredible - more than doubling every four years. The derivatives market thus is much larger than the GDP of the entire world.<br />
*We get a reference to [http://landartgenerator.org/blagi/archives/127 a proposed project to power the world] by erecting massive solar farms out in the deserts. The area of Texas alone would be enough to match almost all of our modern power costs (though the people who live in Texas wouldn't enjoy being displaced).<br />
|}<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[This transcript is only reproducing text visible on the [http://www.xkcd.com/980/ front page comic].]<br />
:[Title panel at the top left has one large heading, and then it is possible to read the first and third out of five lines (but not for instance the second line which is just the word "almost"):] <br />
:'''Money'''<br><br />
:A chart of<br><br />
:all of it<br><br />
:[Below this there are 5 large panels, each with a series of plots, comparing the values of various things. The only clearly visible text is the title of each panel written in white on black background at the top of each panel]<br><br />
:[The first section covers single coffees up to the hourly salaries of CEOs. It is located below the title panel and there are a lot of green groups marked by unreadable text.]<br />
:'''Dollars''' <br />
:[The next section discusses values from around $1000 to $1,000,000, including a dissection of the song If I had $1000000. It is located directly below the Dollars section and has mainly orange groups (but also some gren) marked by unreadable text.]<br />
:'''Thousands'''<br />
:[The third section focuses on $1,000,000 to $1,000,000,000, with a large section on campaign contributions of American political presidential campaigns, values of expensive works of art, and J. K. Rowling. It is located to the right of the Thousands section below the Billions section and there are a lot of gray groups (but also some orange) marked by unreadable text.]<br />
:'''Millions'''<br />
:[The fourth section gets into larger scale finances, profits of various sectors, costs of natural disasters, and net worths of the richest people on the planet. Also, Donald Trump. It is located to the right of the Dollars section and above both the Millions and Trillions section and has mainly yellow groups (but also some gray and red) all marked by unreadable text. There are, however, a few large headings that can be read:]<br />
:'''Billions'''<br />
:Education<br />
:The Economic (...?)<br />
:US household income<br />
:Federal budget<br />
:[In the last panel global financial status is described. It discusses derivatives, liquid assets, public debt by nation and GDP by continent, culminating with the total economic production of the human race to date. It is located below the Billions section to the right of the Millions section and has mainly cyan groups (but also one yellow) all marked by unreadable text.]<br />
:'''Trillions''' <br />
:['''For the full transcript of the [http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/money_huge.png huge image] see [[980: Money/Transcript]].''']<br />
==Trivia==<br />
*XKCD comics are usually posted at, or around, midnight Eastern time the day of the comic (Monday, Wednesday, Friday). This one was posted at about noon on Monday<br />
**The reason for this was that it was difficult to get it all finished in time, as was explained in the [[Blag]] post titled [http://blog.xkcd.com/2011/11/24/money-chart/ Money chart] released three days later.<br />
**This post also states that this was the first big project he undertook after his [http://blog.xkcd.com/2011/06/30/family-illness/ fiancée was diagnosed] with breast [[:Category:Cancer|cancer]].<br />
*Most of the amounts has a [http://xkcd.com/980/sources/ source at XKCDS]. In the dollars section there is an [[980: Money/Transcript#Important notes|important note]] that at every possible opportunity Randall used a scholarly work or government publication as a source.<br />
<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]<br />
[[Category:Large drawings]]<br />
[[Category:Charts]]<br />
[[Category:Velociraptors]]<br />
[[Category:Playpen balls]]<br />
[[Category:Star Wars]]<br />
[[Category:The Lion King]]<br />
[[Category:Food]]<br />
[[Category:Twilight]] <!--Reference to how much money the Cullen family owns --></div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1695:_Code_Quality_2&diff=1221181695: Code Quality 22016-06-18T02:25:38Z<p>173.245.54.30: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1695<br />
| date = June 17, 2016<br />
| title = Code Quality 2<br />
| image = code_quality_2.png<br />
| titletext = It's like you tried to define a formal grammar based on fragments of a raw database dump from the QuickBooks file of a company that's about to collapse in an accounting scandal.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
The comic is a continuation of [[1513: Code Quality]], in which we see [[Ponytail]] being introduced to the {{w|source code}} [[Cueball]] has written, and where he is warning her that he is self-taught so his code probably won't be written the way she is used to. In the first comic she continues to describe poetically the total mess of a code she encounters, using references to a child building houses, recipes created by corporate lawyers or the transcript of a couple arguing at IKEA, as well as using emojis in the code (title text). <br />
<br />
In this comic she continues this trend in four more abusive comments, after starting this sequel with a short remark on how she hates reading Cueball’s code. Cueball is not even shown in this comic, only replying twice off-panel, but as the title makes it clear this is a sequel there can be no doubt that it is Cueball. With the four remarks here as well as a fifth in the title text, she has now managed to make no less than a total of nine derogatory remarks on Cueballs skills in programming. <br />
<br />
In the second panel Ponytail makes a reference to "OCR" ({{w|Optical Character Recognition}}), a technique for recognizing text in a picture using software. In this case she is referring to a picture of a {{w|Scrabble}} game, which is a popular word-making game in which players have a pseudo-randomized set of letters and must arrange them on a grid to form interlocking words. OCR software is notoriously imperfect at the time of writing, and the criss-crossing semi-random words on a Scrabble board fed through an OCR program would likely produce dubious results, certainly not fit for current code standards.<br />
<br />
Ponytail observes that Cueball’s code includes the [https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Lexical_grammar#Keywords JavaScript reserved words] more often than a typical Scrabble board would, a concession that the code looks at least vaguely code-like. Reserved words such as ‘function’, ‘if’ and ‘return’ are fundamental building blocks of code, and most code uses them often. (They are called “reserved” because those words are reserved for their actual meanings such as defining a function – programmers may not create variables with those names.) As for why “triple points” translates to a prevalence of those words, Scrabble's point system is based on the value of individual letters, combined with certain modifier squares on the game board which can boost points. "Triple points" is the highest class of modifier available in the game (though it can be for triple points on a specific letter, or the entire word) and is highly-sought-after by players.<br />
<br />
The third panel continues Ponytail's rant, this time referencing naval weather forecasts, avian interference and indentation. A weather forecast is a complex, multidimensional array of data used in predicting or assessing the atmospheric conditions of a geographical area over a set time. One such example of a "naval weather forecast" [https://www.fnmoc.navy.mil/wxmap_cgi/cgi-bin/wxmap_DOD_area.cgi?area=efs_nvg_nlant&set=EFS may be this one], which would generally be unreadable to an untrained individual. Transcribing it would be a long and typing-intensive process which could result in an even more unreadable product, further complicated by a {{w|woodpecker}} (a bird noted for its rapid successive pecking motions) "hammering" (pecking) the Shift key on the keyboard, which would result in many letters being randomly capitalized. Indentation is the practice of shifting a section of text further from the starting margin, which in coding is typically used to organize functions and statements, but if done "randomly" would only serve to scramble the code hierarchy.<br />
<br />
The fourth panel references famous poet {{w|E. E. Cummings}} and user name suggestions. Edward Estlin Cummings was a poet (pseudonym "e e cummings" or "E. E. Cummings") who used capitalization, punctuation, and line breaks in unconventional ways. Websites that offer membership often also require that users create a pseudonym (known as a "username") for use in tracking/authenticating their actions on the site, as well as identifying them to the site's community. Many of these sites also require usernames be unique. On popular sites, many common words, phrases and names have already been reserved by users, so when signing up for them many people run into situations where the name they want has already been taken. On many sites where this happens, the site may suggest alternate usernames, usually based on the one that was entered to begin with. For example, if the username "Hedgeclipper" is already reserved, the site may recommend "Hedgeclipper1234" or "H3dg3clipp3r" instead, depending on the algorithm behind the suggestions. In other cases, websites requiring users to enter personal information such as their name may suggest a username based on their name with a string of digits after it, such as "Joshua1128". An E. E. Cummings poem written entirely out of these semi-random suggestions would make the resulting poem even more "unusual" than his work is already considered.<br />
<br />
The last panel's simile involves {{w|Markov chain|Markov chaining}}, {{w|Chatterbot|chat-bots}} (presumably), bus schedules and potential [http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/Air-India-plane-unfit-to-fly-may-be-scrapped-after-bus-crash/articleshow/50307194.cms gross vehicular negligence]. Applied Markov chaining is a process used in many computer algorithms that try to simulate real-world concepts such as speech simulation and decisions-making. Its inherent randomness also makes it a candidate for unpredictable things such as stock market analysis and speech recognition. Bus schedules are [http://elb-jpinstances-1463028547.us-east-1.elb.amazonaws.com/ccg3/XSLT_STT_REQUEST?mode=direct&line=ccg:01065:%20:H:y15&sessionID=0&requestID=0&itdLPxx_template=tableResults&type_stt=any&language=en&coordOutputFormat=WGS84%5Bdd.ddddd%5D&outputFormat=0&name_stt=10111816&contentFilter=allstops often complicated and full of notation], and are notorious for confusing people who are not used to reading them. Chat-bots using applied Markov chains to recognize and respond to speech/text rely on the input being clear and well-organized in plain language. "Feeding" bus schedules to such a bot would likely result in the returns being complete gibberish and unreadable. The issue is further complicated when Ponytail suggests that the schedules are from a city where "the [http://www.heapsoffun.com/pictures/20120106/funny_bus_crash_1002.jpg buses] [http://data.whicdn.com/images/45882595/original.jpg crash] [http://blog.taxiforsure.com/wp-content/uploads/indian-traffic-bus.jpg constantly]", which would be horrifying if it happened so [http://i3.kym-cdn.com/entries/icons/original/000/002/842/unexplainable.jpg regularly] that the schedules actually took [http://baddogneedsrottenhome.com/images/emails/527927c6cbfff.jpg crashes] into account. Even more horrifying would be the further unpredictability of the output of the chat-bot from such unpredictable input.<br />
<br />
Cueball finally comments that "… it runs fine for now" which indicates he knows the code has problems but it reluctant to fix them because it's more-or-less serving its function. Ponytail quips back that "So does a [http://scarboroughwhat.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/bitch-im-a-burning-bus.jpg burning bus]", which is technically true, but the "for now" part implies that disaster and injury could result at any moment, as would likely happen on a burning bus.<br />
<br />
In the title text Ponytail makes a final remark… A formal grammar is a way of describing the structure of text such that computers can recognize or generate such text. A raw database dump is an export of the data from a database for the purposes of transferring it to another database or importing it into a program, viewed “raw” without processing to make it easy for humans to read. QuickBooks is an accounting software package.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Zoom in on Ponytail sitting in front of a computer screen typing. Cueball speaks only off-panel, but since this is a direct continuation of comic 1513: Code Quality where Cueball is shown, there can be no doubt it is him.]<br />
:Ponytail: Ugh, I hate reading your code.<br />
:Cueball (off-panel): I know, I know.<br />
<br />
:[Zoom out of Ponytail in an office chair in front of the computer on a desk.]<br />
:Ponytail: It's like you ran OCR on a photo of a Scrabble board from a game where Javascript reserved words counted for triple points.<br />
<br />
:[Zoom in on Ponytails head.]<br />
:Ponytail: It looks like someone transcribed a naval weather forecast while woodpeckers hammered their shift keys, then randomly indented it.<br />
<br />
:[Zoom out back to the setting of the second panel.]<br />
:Ponytail: It's like an E E Cummings poem written using only the usernames a website suggests when the one you want is taken.<br />
<br />
:[Zoom in to Ponytails head and the screen in a wider panel. Finally Cueball again answers off-panel]<br />
:Ponytail: This looks like the output of a Markov bot that's been fed bus timetables from a city where the buses crash constantly.<br />
:Cueball (off-panel): Whatever, it runs fine for now.<br />
:Ponytail: So does a burning bus.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics sharing name|Code Quality 02]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]] <!--It is Cueball that replies given that this is a follow up to 1513: Code Quality --><br />
[[Category:Language]] <!-- Formal grammar title text--><br />
[[Category:Animals]] <!-- Woodpeckers --><br />
[[Category:Programming]]<br />
[[Category:Computers]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1688:_Map_Age_Guide&diff=1218841688: Map Age Guide2016-06-13T10:49:32Z<p>173.245.54.30: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1688<br />
| date = June 1, 2016<br />
| title = Map Age Guide<br />
| image = map_age_guide.png<br />
| titletext = Does the screeching chill your blood and herald death? If yes, banshee. If no, seagull.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
*A [http://xkcd.com/1688/large/ larger version] of this image can be found by clicking the image at xkcd.com - the comic's page can also be accessed by clicking on the comic number above.<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
The comic consists of a flowchart depicting various ways to tell what era a map is from based on present country borders and land forms. (Except in the Not a Political Map Branch (from "Can you see the familiar continents?" downwards), the comic applies to a political map.) While many of the options are very serious, a few bizarre options reference to fictional maps ({{w|Discworld}}, {{w|Narnia}} and Tolkien's {{w|Middle-earth}}), or consider that seagulls, staplers, tubas or breadboxes could be mistaken for a map. Randall also mentions US President {{w|Jimmy Carter}} being attacked by a giant swimming rabbit, an event previously referenced as one we must never forget in [[204: America]].<br />
<br />
The flowchart, although probably effective in eventually identifying the production year of certain maps, is designed in a rather inefficient way as some early distinctions are already on a very detailed level before some really important distinctions (fictional or non-political map) are made. This, of course, adds to the humorous tone of the comic. It is also hampered by several smaller or larger error (see [[#Trivia|trivia]]), the biggest a whole section on I-25 that gives year in the range 1948-1952, before the I-25 was built and coming from a question that fixed the year range to 1960-1961.<br />
<br />
Additionally, (possible) future maps including a "Radioactive Exclusion Zone" in the place of Colorado are mentioned. It predicts that some kind of nuclear incident will occur in Colorado (possibly at Rulison or Rio Blanco nuclear testing sites) in 2022. It also predicts that the area will be infested by radioactive spiders one year later.<br />
<br />
The title text continues the path where the user has confused a seagull for a map by inquiring if the (presumed) seagull might be a banshee based on the effect of its screams.<br />
<br />
===Table===<br />
*Going through the flowchart, taking the leftmost path first, recursively. (Note there is no recursive loop). See also {{w|Depth-first search}}. <br />
**"Prior Date Range" is the range determined immediately before the question, carried over from the previous question.<br />
**"Question Date Range" is the range each answer choice implies. <br />
**"New Date Range" is the intersection of the Prior Date Range and the Question Date Range for each choice, and is the range determined by all questions hitherto answered.<br />
<br />
{| border =1 width=100% cellpadding=5 class="wikitable"<br />
! # !! Question !! Explanation !! Prior Date Range !! Question Date Range !! New Date Range<br />
|-<br />
! 1<br />
| '''Istanbul or Constantinople'''<br />
| The largest city in Turkey is famous for having different names at different times or to different people. Variations on both names go back at least 1,000 years. Other names have also been used at various points. {{w|Istanbul}} has been the official name since the 1920's, although Western maps often referred to it as Constantinople as late as the 1960's; on the flowchart, the choice of name appears to go with the 1920's date. The name changes are the subject of a [http://mentalfloss.com/article/60314/original-istanbul-not-constantinople song], originally by the Four Lads, but now mainly known for the They Might Be Giants recording.<br />
| '''Start here'''<br />
|<br />
* Constantinople: 330 - 1928 <br />
* Neither: inconclusive<br />
* Istanbul: 1928+<br />
|<br />
* Constantinople: 330 - 1928 (Go to 2)<br />
* Neither: inconclusive (Go to 19)<br />
* Istanbul: 1928+ (Go to 52)<br />
|-<br />
| colspan="6" | '''Note:''' the chart splits here into three divisions, each from a choice in question 1. The Neither Division will attempt to use other indicators to sort maps into one of the other two divisions or branches thereof, or, after 5 failures to find a country, conclude that the "map" in question is not a political map and proceed to find out what it is (the Not a Political Map Branch). The Constantinople and Istanbul Divisions are linear except where the Neither Division joins them as stated above.<br />
|-<br />
! colspan="6" | Constantinople Division<br />
|-<br />
! 2<br />
| '''Do any of these exist?'''<br />
* '''Independent Canada'''<br />
* '''US Territory of Alaska'''<br />
* '''Tokyo'''<br />
| All these seem to specify a date cut-off of 1867/8, but there are caveats attached to each:<br />
* Canada gained its independence gradually, but it would appear as its own country on maps some time between the {{w|Constitution Act, 1867}} (which created Canada as a British dominion) and the {{w|Statute of Westminster 1931}} (which made Canada largely self-governing).<br />
* The {{w|Territory of Alaska}} existed between 1912 (previously, it was a US district) and 1959 (when it became a state). The US has owned Alaska since the 1867 {{w|Alaska Purchase}}, but it was not a territory then.<br />
* {{w|Tokyo}} was once called Edo. It was renamed Tokyo (which means "Eastern Capital") when it became the capital in 1868. [https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=Tokyo%2CTokei&year_start=1870&year_end=1880&corpus=15&smoothing=3&share=&direct_url=t1%3B%2CTokyo%3B%2Cc0%3B.t1%3B%2CTokei%3B%2Cc0 Most English books around then] would actually have called it "Tokei", the Chinese reading. The name Tokyo didn't take off until {{w|Hepburn romanization}} was popularized in the 1880s.<br />
| 330 - 1928 (from 1)<br />
1299 - 1922 (from 19 in the Neither Division)<br />
(from 24 in the Neither Division)<br />
|<br />
* No: 1867-<br />
* Yes: 1868+<br />
|<br />
* No: 330 - 1867 (Go to 3)<br />
* Yes: 1868 - 1928 (Go to 11)<br />
|-<br />
! colspan="6" | Holy Roman Empire Branch<br />
|-<br />
! 3<br />
| '''The Holy Roman Empire?'''<br />
| The predecessor to modern Germany, the {{w|Holy Roman Empire}} was a union of hundreds of small states in Central Europe. Nationalism and the concept of the {{w|nation state}} hadn't taken off yet, so countries as we know them didn't really exist. There were just small lands, often with keenly contested borders, owned by minor aristocracy who pledged allegiance to one of the big powers. The HRE was dissolved in 1806 after it was invaded by Napoleon, arguably the first leader to realise the potential of making a nation salute a flag.<br />
| 330 - 1867<br />
|<br />
* Yes: 899 - 1806<br />
* No: 899- or 1806+<br />
|<br />
* Yes: 899 - 1806 (Stated in comic as "1805 or earlier", since modern map-making was fuzzy as a concept prior) ('''Stop''')<br />
* No: 330 - 899 or 1806-67 (Go to 4)<br />
|-<br />
! 4<br />
| '''The United States?'''<br />
| The original 13 colonies declared independence in 1776. A map that does not include ''either'' the HRE ''or'' the USA must be older than the HRE which would put the map some time prior to 1000 AD, when there really were no countries, and English wasn't used yet, hence Randall's comment.<br />
| 330 - 899 or 1806-67<br />
|<br />
* No: 1776-<br />
* Yes: 1776+<br />
|<br />
* No: 330 - 899 (Not stated in comic, since a map in this period is probably not in English, which violates a proviso of the comic) ('''Stop''')<br />
* Yes: 1806-67 (Go to 5)<br />
|-<br />
! 5<br />
| '''Texas is...<br/>Part of Mexico?<br/>Independent?<br/>Part of the US?'''<br />
| Mexico occupied the area modern day Texas from around 1718 ({{w|Spanish Texas|when the first permanent Spanish settlements were founded}}) to the {{w|Texas Declaration of Independence}} in 1836 (the comic apparently cited 1834 as the date) - the land called "Texas" was only a small part of the modern day state. The {{w|Republic of Texas}} only lasted a decade, and joined the US in 1846.<br />
| 1806-67<br />
|<br />
* Part of Mexico: 1718 - 1836<br />
* Independent: 1836-46<br />
* Part of the US: 1846+<br />
|<br />
* Part of Mexico: 1806-36 (Go to 6)<br />
* Independent: 1836-46 (stated in comic as 1834-45 - a discrepancy) ('''Stop''')<br />
* Part of the US: 1846-67 (Go to 9)<br />
|-<br />
! 6<br />
| '''Florida is part of...<br/>Spain?<br/>The US?'''<br />
| Spain occupied {{w|Florida}} (as East Florida and West Florida) but frankly they didn't actually want it - it was expensive to send people to settle it, and there wasn't much economic value in it. So they gave it to the US for free in the 1819 {{w|Adams–Onís Treaty}} (which took effect in 1821) in exchange for the US giving up parts of Mexico and paying off angry Spanish settlers. (For some reason, the comic treats Florida as part of the US in 1818; see questions 7 and 8.)<br />
| 1806-36<br />
|<br />
* Spain: 1565 - 1763 or 1783 - 1821<br />
* The US: 1821+<br />
|<br />
* Spain: 1806-21 (Go to 7)<br />
* The US: 1821-36 (Go to 8)<br />
|-<br />
! 7<br />
| '''{{w|Paraguay}}?'''<br />
| Declared independence from Spain in 1811 (although it might appear on older maps as the Spanish Province of Paraguay).<br />
| 1806-21<br />
|<br />
* No: 1811-<br />
* Yes: 1811+<br />
|<br />
* No: 1806-11 (stated in comic as 1806-10) ('''Stop''')<br />
* Yes: 1811-21 (stated in comic as 1811-17 - a discrepancy (see question 6)) ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 8<br />
| '''{{w|Venezuela}} and/or {{w|Ecuador?}}'''<br />
| Both declared independence from {{w|Gran Colombia}} (Greater Colombia) in 1830.<br />
| 1821-36<br />
|<br />
* No: 1830-<br />
* Yes: 1830+<br />
|<br />
* No: 1821-30 (stated in comic as 1818-29 - a discrepancy (see question 6)) ('''Stop''')<br />
* Yes: 1830-36 (stated in comic as 1830-33 - a discrepancy (see question 5)) ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 9<br />
| '''Does Russia border the Sea of Japan?'''<br />
| The 1858 {{w|Treaty of Aigun}} brought the Russian border to the Sea of Japan.<br />
| 1846-67<br />
|<br />
* No: 1858-<br />
* Yes: 1858+<br />
|<br />
* No: 1846-58 (Go to 10)<br />
* Yes: 1858-67 ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 10<br />
| '''The US's southern border looks...'''<br />
| The last southward expansion of the US is the 1854 {{w|Gadsden Purchase}}, where the US bought a chunk of what is now Arizona and New Mexico so they could build a railway that avoided unfavourable terrain. The southern border looks "weird" before that because we are accustomed to the current border shape.<br />
| 1846-58<br />
|<br />
* Weird: 1854-<br />
* Normal: 1854+<br />
|<br />
* Weird: 1846-54 (stated in comic as 1846-53) ('''Stop''')<br />
* Normal: 1854-58 (stated in comic as 1854-56 - a discrepancy (where is 1857?)) ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! colspan="6" | South Africa Branch<br />
|-<br />
! 11<br />
| '''{{w|South Africa}}?'''<br />
| The Union of South Africa was created in 1910, although South Africa was then not yet fully independent from the United Kingdom (which would not happen until 1931).<br />
| 1868 - 1928<br />
|<br />
* No: 1910-<br />
* Yes: 1910+<br />
|<br />
* No: 1868 - 1910 (Go to 12)<br />
* Yes: 1910-28 (Go to 16)<br />
|-<br />
! 12<br />
| '''Rhodesia?'''<br />
| The region was named {{w|Rhodesia_(region)|"Rhodesia"}} by the British South Africa Company in 1895. An {{w|Rhodesia|unrecognised state}} (1965-79) and a {{w|Southern_Rhodesia|colony}} (1923-80 on-and-off) also born this name, but they are both outside the Prior Date Range.<br />
| 1868 - 1910<br />
|<br />
* No: 1895-<br />
* Yes: 1895+<br />
|<br />
* No: 1868-95 (Go to 13)<br />
* Yes: 1895 - 1910 (Go to 15)<br />
|-<br />
! 13<br />
| '''Is Bolivia landlocked?'''<br />
| {{w|Bolivia}} lost its coastal territory to Chile in the {{w|War of the Pacific}}, ceding Antofagasta in the {{w|Treaty of Valparaiso}} in 1884.<br />
| 1868-95<br />
|<br />
* No: 1825-84<br />
* Yes: 1884+<br />
|<br />
* No: 1868-84 (Go to 14)<br />
* Yes: 1884-95 ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 14<br />
| '''"Buda" and "Pest" or "Budapest"?'''<br />
| In 1873, the cities of {{w|Buda}} and {{w|Pest,_Hungary|Pest}} joined together to form the city of {{w|Budapest}}.<br />
| 1868-84<br />
|<br />
* Buda and Pest: 1247 - 1873<br />
* Budapest: 1873+<br />
|<br />
* Buda and Pest: 1868-73 (stated in comic as 1868-72) ('''Stop''')<br />
* Budapest: 1873-84 (stated in comic as 1873-83) ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 15<br />
| '''Is Norway part of Sweden?'''<br />
| {{w|Norway}} was ceded to Sweden in 1814, from which it separated in 1905.<br />
| 1895 - 1910<br />
|<br />
* Yes: 1814 - 1905<br />
* No: 1814- or 1905+<br />
|<br />
* Yes: 1895-1905 (Stated in comic as 1896-1905) ('''Stop''')<br />
* No: 1905-10 (Stated in comic as 1906-09) ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 16<br />
| '''Austria-Hungary?'''<br />
| {{w|Austria-Hungary}} formed in 1867 and dissolved in 1918. (However, during that time period, it was frequently called simply "Austria"; it is more consistently called "Austria-Hungary" in historical maps created later, for example, in history textbooks illustrating the alliances of World War One.)<br />
| 1910-28<br />
|<br />
* Yes: 1867-1918<br />
* No: 1918+<br />
|<br />
* Yes: 1910-18 (Go to 17)<br />
* No: 1918-28 (Go to 18)<br />
|-<br />
! 17<br />
| '''Albania?'''<br />
| {{w|Albania}} declared independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1912.<br />
| 1910-18 <br />
|<br />
* No: 1912-<br />
* Yes: 1912+<br />
|<br />
* No: 1910-12 ('''Stop''')<br />
* Yes: 1912-18 (stated in comic as 1913-18) ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 18<br />
| '''Leningrad?'''<br />
| {{w|Saint Petersburg}} was known as Leningrad between 1924 and 1991. The city was founded in 1703 as Saint Petersburg (specific spellings vary); in August 1914, due to major anti-German sentiment related to WWI, it was renamed Petrograd (essentially the Russian translation of Petersburg). On January 26, 1924, five days after the death of Vladimir Lenin (the main revolutionary leader), the new Communist government (hostile to both the the Orthodox Saint the city was named after and the Czar Peter the Great who named it) renamed the city Leningrad in his honor. After the decline of the Soviet government in 1991, the name became unpopular, and a referendum in June 1991 (concurrently with the first Russian presidential election) restored the name Saint-Petersburg for the city (officially in September 1991), which it holds to this day.<br />
| 1918-28<br />
|<br />
* No: 1924- or 1991+<br />
* Yes: 1924-91<br />
|<br />
* No: 1918-24 (stated in comic as 1919-23) ('''Stop''')<br />
* Yes: 1924-28 (stated in comic as 1924-29) ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! colspan="6" | Neither Division<br />
|-<br />
! 19<br />
| '''Does the Ottoman Empire exist?'''<br />
| The {{w|Ottoman Empire}} was founded in 1299, and defeated and dissolved on November 1, 1922 when the sultanate was abolished.<br />
| Inconclusive<br />
| <br />
* Yes: 1299-1922<br />
* No: 1299- or 1922+<br />
|<br />
* Yes: 1299-1922 (Go to 2 in the Constantinople Division)<br />
* No: 1299- or 1922+ (Go to 20)<br />
|-<br />
! 20<br />
| '''The Soviet Union?'''<br />
| The {{w|Soviet Union}} is one of the largest countries ever to exist consisting of Russia and large portions of eastern Europe and central Asia. It was a major political force from December 28, 1922, when several allied Soviet republics united, to 1991, when it broke up.<br />
''Note:'' This question is the same as question 52 in the Istanbul Division, but because there a Prior Date Range of 1928+ has already been established by the presence of Istanbul, we need one more question to determine whether we are within the range of 1928+.<br />
| 1299- or 1922+<br />
|<br />
* Yes: 1922-91<br />
* No: 1922- or 1991+<br />
|<br />
* Yes: 1922-91 (Go to 21)<br />
* No: 1299- or 1922 (November 1 - December 28) or 1991+ (Go to 22)<br />
|-<br />
! 21<br />
| '''Saudi Arabia?'''<br />
| The kingdom of {{w|Saudi Arabia}} was founded in 1932. It is the first modern state to exert control over the area it claims, which previously were controlled by various tribal leaders. Most maps before 1932 will not mark the area as belonging to a nation at all, will attempt to mark the various shifting chieftains, or will attribute the land to the ottoman empire, which claimed the land but did not effectively control it.<br />
| 1922-91<br />
|<br />
* Yes: 1932+<br />
* No: 1932-<br />
|<br />
* Yes: 1932-91 (Go to 53 in the Istanbul Division)<br />
* No: 1922-32 ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 22<br />
| '''North Korea?'''<br />
| The Korean Peninsula was divided into two regions, the north of which would be known as {{w|North Korea}}, at the end of World War II in 1945.<br />
| 1299- or 1922 (November 1 - December 28) or 1991+<br />
|<br />
* Yes: 1945+<br />
* No: 1945-<br />
|<br />
* Yes: 1991+ (Go to 69 in the Istanbul Division)<br />
* No: 1299- or 1922 (November 1 - December 28) (Go to 23)<br />
|-<br />
! 23<br />
| '''Saint Trimble's Island'''<br />
| Since [[Randall]] just made up this place, it is impossible that a map would include it.<br />
| 1299- or 1922 (November 1 - December 28)<br />
|<br />
* No: inconclusive<br />
* Yes: impossible<br />
|<br />
* No: 1299- or 1922 (November 1 - December 28) (Go to 24)<br />
* Yes: impossible ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 24<br />
| '''Is Jan Mayen part of the kingdom of Norway?'''<br />
| Jurisdiction over the island of {{w|Jan Mayen}} was given to Norway around 1920, and it officially joined in 1930.<br/><br/>'''Note:''' Strictly speaking, it should be almost impossible to answer "Yes" to this question - the Ottoman Empire existed until 1922, the Soviet Union existed from 1922 to 1991, and North Korea from 1945 onwards, so by answering "No" to the previous three questions, the user has ruled out the entire period during which Norway has officially owned Jan Mayen, and almost the entire period it controlled it bar an extremely slim sliver of time between November 1, 1922 to December 28, 1922. The following questions ignore the previous ones (East Germany only existed at the same time as the USSR, and Pakistan was founded later than North Korea, so both should have already been excluded) - essentially, the Jan Mayen question reboots the test.<br />
| 1299- or 1922 (November 1 - December 28)<br />
|<br />
* Not yet: prior to 1930<br />
* What?: Not a political map<br />
* Yes: 1930+<br />
|<br />
* Not yet: (Go to 2 in the Constantinople Division)<br />
* What?: (Go to 25)<br />
* Yes: (Go to 54 in the Istanbul Division)<br />
|-<br />
! colspan="6" | Not a Political Map Branch<br />
|-<br />
! 26<br />
| '''Can you see the familiar continents?'''<br />
| At this point it is clear that the map in question is not a political map from any time. Therefore the comic tries to determine whether it is a map of the Earth at all by asking if the continents are there.<br />
|<br />
|<br />
* Yes: map of the Earth<br />
* No: not a map of the Earth<br />
|<br />
* Yes: map of the Earth (Go to 27)<br />
* No: not a map of the Earth (Go to 33)<br />
|-<br />
! colspan="6" | Topographical Map / Satellite Image Subbranch<br />
|-<br />
! 27<br />
| '''This sounds like a physical map or satellite photo.'''<br />
| A map of the Earth that does not label political regions must be a topological map; or, it can be a satellite image of the Earth.<br />
| Map of the Earth<br />
|<br />
* Yes, that's it: topographical map or satellite image of the Earth<br />
|<br />
* Yes, that's it: topographical map or satellite image of the Earth (Go to 28)<br />
|-<br />
! 28<br />
| '''Is Lake Chad missing?'''<br />
| {{w|Lake Chad}} lost 3/4 of its area in the 1970s, becoming too small to be included in a map or picture of the Earth.<br />
| Topographical map or satellite image of the Earth<br />
|<br />
* No: 1970s-<br />
* Yes: 1970s+<br />
|<br />
* No: 1970s- (Go to 29)<br />
* Yes: 1970s+ (Go to 32)<br />
|-<br />
! 29<br />
| '''How far east do the American prairies reach?'''<br />
| As settlers made their way west, the prairie land in the {{w|Great Plains}} region was steadily replaced by farmland and ranches. By the 1920s, most of the land had been converted to agricultural use, and the last of the prairie was largely obliterated by the {{w|Dust Bowl}}s in the 1930s. The dividing lines correspond roughly to the three types of prairie: {{w|tallgrass prairie}} grew between the Mississippi and Indiana, {{w|mixed grass prairie}} covered Nebraska and other states on the {{w|100th meridian west}}, and {{w|shortgrass prairie}} covered the remaining area east of the Rocky Mountains. There's some overlap in the dates, since it's fairly arbitrary at what you point you say the prairies stopped existing. There are still patches of prairie (covering about 1% of their former reach), but these are probably not visible in a satellite image.<br />
<br />
| 1970s-<br />
|<br />
* Indiana: Before 1830<br />
* The Mississippi: 1830 - 1880s<br />
* Nebraska: 1860s - 1910s<br />
* What prairies?: 1920s+<br />
|<br />
* Indiana: Before 1830 ('''Stop''')<br />
* The Mississippi: 1830 - 80s ('''Stop''')<br />
* Nebraska: 1860s - 1910s (Go to 30)<br />
* What prairies?: 1920s - 1970s (Go to 31)<br />
|-<br />
! 30<br />
| '''Is there a big lake in the middle of Southern California? (created by mistake)'''<br />
| This is {{w|Salton Sea}}, a previously dry lake bed accidentally flooded in 1905 while attempting to increase irrigation to the area from the Colorado River<br />
| 1860s - 1910s<br />
|<br />
* No: before 1905<br />
* Yes: 1905+<br />
|<br />
* No: 1860s - 1900s ('''Stop''')<br />
* Yes: 1910s ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 31<br />
| '''Is there a big lake in the middle of Ghana? (created on purpose)'''<br />
| {{w|Lake Volta}}, formed by the {{w|Akosombo Dam}} which was built in the 1960s<br />
| 1920s - 1970s<br />
|<br />
* No: before 1960s<br />
* Yes: 1960s+<br />
|<br />
* No: 1920s - 50s ('''Stop''')<br />
* Yes: 1960s - 70s ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 32<br />
| '''Is the Aral Sea missing?'''<br />
| Shrinking since the 1930s, the {{w|Aral Sea}} would be too small to be on maps or images of the Earth by the 2000s.<br />
| 1970s+<br />
|<br />
* No: 1990s-<br />
* Yes: 2000s+<br />
|<br />
* No: 1970s-90s ('''Stop''')<br />
* Yes: 2000s+ ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! colspan="6" | ''Topograpical Map / Satellite Image Subbranch ends''<br />
|-<br />
! colspan="6" | Fictional Map / Non-Map Subbranch<br />
|-<br />
! 33<br />
| '''Rivers "Sirion" or "Anduin"?'''<br />
| The rivers {{w|List_of_Middle-earth_rivers#Sirion|Sirion}} and {{w|Anduin}} are part of {{w|Middle-earth|Middle-earth}}, the fictional setting of J.R.R. Tolkien's ''Lord of the Rings'' books.<br />
| Not a map of the Earth<br />
|<br />
* Yes: map of Middle-earth<br />
* No: inconclusive<br />
|<br />
* Yes: map of Middle-earth (Go to 34)<br />
* No: not a map of the Earth (Go to 38)<br />
|-<br />
! colspan="6" | Middle-earth Subbranch<br />
|-<br />
! 34<br />
| '''Mordor?'''<br />
| {{w|Mordor}} is the base of operations of {{w|Sauron}}, who settled there c. 1000 in the {{w|Second Age}} (which lasted for 3,441 years).<br />
| Map of Middle-earth<br />
|<br />
* No: S.A. c. 1000-<br />
* Yes: S.A. c. 1000+<br />
|<br />
* No: S.A. c. 1000- (Go to 35)<br />
* Yes: S.A. c. 1000+ (Go to 36)<br />
|-<br />
! 35<br />
| '''Beleriand?'''<br />
| {{w|Beleriand}} was broken in the {{w|War of Wrath}} in the year 583 in the {{w|Years of the Sun}} in the {{w|First Age}} The First Age itself ran for 450 Valian Years and 590 Years of the Sun, adding up to between 5,023 and 65,390 Years of the Sun, depending on the conversion factor used ({{w|J. R. R. Tolkien}} has given several during the years). Note that Randall has apparently ignored the time before the First Age (4,550 Valian Years).<br />
| S.A. c. 1000-<br />
|<br />
* Yes: Y.S. 583 First Age-<br />
* No: Y.S. 583 First Age+<br />
|<br />
* Yes: Y.S. 583 First Age- (stated in comic as First Age) ('''Stop''')<br />
* No: Y.S. 583 First Age - S.A. c. 1000 (stated in comic as early Second Age) ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 36<br />
| '''Númenor?'''<br />
| The island of {{w|Númenor}} was raised from the sea at the start of the Second Age. It sank back into the sea in 3319 in the Second Age, as the formerly flat Earth was made into a globe.<br />
| S.A. c. 1000+<br />
|<br />
* Yes: S.A. 1 - 3319<br />
* No: First Age- or S.A. 3319+<br />
|<br />
* Yes: S.A. c. 1000 - 3319 (stated in comic as late Second Age) ('''Stop''')<br />
* No: S.A. 3319+ (Go to 37)<br />
|-<br />
! 37<br />
| '''The forest east of the Misty Mountains is...'''<br />
| The forest {{w|Mirkwood}} was called Greenwood the Great from its discovery by the Elves c. V.Y. 4620 in the First Age to 1050 in the {{w|Third Age}} when the shadow of Sauron fell upon it and it was renamed. It was cleansed on 'March' 28, 3019 in the Third Age (which ran for 3,021 years), after which it is called the Wood of Greenleaves. Note that Randall ignores the Fifth Age and onwards; although Tolkien said that the present day is about the end of the Sixth Age or the beginning of the Seventh, nothing is written about these later Ages.<br />
| S.A. 3319+<br />
|<br />
* Greenwood the Great: c. V.Y. 4620 - T.A. 1050<br />
* Mirkwood: T.A. 1050 - 3019-03-28<br />
* The Wood of Greenleaves: T.A. 3019-03-28+<br />
|<br />
* Greenwood the Great: S.A. 3319 - T.A. 1050 (stated in comic as early Third Age) ('''Stop''')<br />
* Mirkwood: T.A. 1050 - 3019-03-28 (stated in comic as Late Third Age) ('''Stop''')<br />
* The Wood of Greenleaves: T.A. 3019-03-28+ (stated in comic as Fourth Age) ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! colspan="6" | ''Middle-earth Subbranch ends''<br />
|-<br />
! 38<br />
| '''Cair Paravel?'''<br />
| {{w|Cair Paravel}} is the fictional castle where the Kings and Queens of Narnia rule in ''{{w|The Chronicles of Narnia}}''.<br />
| Not a map of the Earth<br />
|<br />
* Yes: map of Narnia<br />
* No: inconclusive<br />
|<br />
* Yes: map of Narnia (Go to 39)<br />
* No: not a map of the Earth (Go to 43)<br />
|-<br />
! colspan="6" | Narnia Subbranch<br />
|-<br />
| colspan="6" | '''Note:''' This series contains seven books, whose original publication order does not match their chronological order. Specifically, ''The Magician's Nephew'' is earlier than ''The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe'', and ''The Horse and His Boy'' is between ''The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe'' and ''Prince Caspian''. Questions in this subbranch concern whether the place referenced can be found in the map contained in each book, not in which books' time the place exists. Therefore, places that exist in a book published later but is chronologically earlier than another book will not appear in the latter book, even if canonically they still exist in its time. Here are the seven books in their original publication order, which they will be referred to as.<br />
<br />
# ''{{w|The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe}}''<br />
# ''{{w|Prince Caspian}}''<br />
# ''{{w|The Voyage of the Dawn Treader}}''<br />
# ''{{w|The Silver Chair}}''<br />
# ''{{w|The Horse and His Boy}}''<br />
# ''{{w|The Magician's Nephew}}''<br />
# ''{{w|The Last Battle}}''<br />
|-<br />
! 39<br />
| '''Calormen?'''<br />
| {{w|Calormen}} is a foreign empire in ''The Chronicles of Narnia''. While it was indirectly referenced in the first three books, it was not included in maps until the later books in the series.<br />
| Map of Narnia<br />
|<br />
* No: 3-<br />
* Yes: 4+<br />
|<br />
* No: 3- (Go to 40)<br />
* Yes: 4+ (Go to 42)<br />
|-<br />
! 40<br />
| '''Lotta islands?'''<br />
| Refers to [http://www.charliewstarr.com/_Media/mapdawntreader.gif this map] from ''The Voyage of the Dawn Treader'', which focused on a ship voyage from Cair Paravel to the eastern edge of the world and back.<br />
| 3-<br />
|<br />
* No: not 3<br />
* Yes: 3<br />
|<br />
* No: 2- (Go to 41)<br />
* Yes: 3 ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 41<br />
| '''Beruna'''<br />
| Refers to [http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-54_2TDRUbHY/TpJHzFBzmiI/AAAAAAAALOA/q3RnPSvfdJ0/s1600/IMG.jpg the map] of Narnia originally published in Prince Caspian. During the time of ''The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe'', the people of Beruna crossed the Great River via a ford, but it had been replaced by a bridge at the beginning of ''Prince Caspian''.<br />
| 2-<br />
|<br />
* Ford: 1<br />
* Bridge: 2<br />
|<br />
* Ford: 1 ('''Stop''')<br />
* Bridge: 2 ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 42<br />
| '''Weird recursive heaven?'''<br />
| Refers to ''The Last Battle'', where the protagonists find themselves in {{w|Aslan's Country}}, a glorious afterlife of which Narnia (along with Earth and presumably every other world) is only a shadowy reflection.<br />
| 4+<br />
|<br />
* No: 6-<br />
* Yes: 7<br />
|<br />
* No: 4 - 6 (stated in comic as one of the random later books) ('''Stop''')<br />
* Yes: 7 ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! colspan="6" | ''Narnia Subbranch ends''<br />
|-<br />
! 43<br />
| '''Mossflower?'''<br />
| A forest from the ''{{w|Redwall}}'' book series.<br />
| Not a map of the Earth<br />
|<br />
* Yes: ''Redwall''<br />
* No: inconclusive<br />
|<br />
* Yes: ''Redwall'' ('''Stop''')<br />
* No: not a map of the Earth (Go to 44)<br />
|-<br />
! 44<br />
| '''Is the world on the back of a turtle?'''<br />
| The comic fantasy book series ''{{w|Discworld}}'' is set on the fictional Discworld, a flat disc balanced on the backs of four elephants which in turn stand on the back of a giant turtle.<br />
| Not a map of the Earth<br />
|<br />
* Yes: ''Discworld''<br />
* No: inconclusive<br />
|<br />
* Yes: ''Discworld'' ('''Stop''')<br />
* No: not a map of the Earth (Go to 45)<br />
|-<br />
! 45<br />
| '''Are you ''sure'' this is a map?'''<br />
| After incorrectly guessing several popular fictional world, it is fair to doubt whether the subject being identified here is a map at all.<br />
| Not a map of the Earth<br />
|<br />
* Yes: a map ''for sure'', just not of the Earth<br />
* No: not a map<br />
|<br />
* Yes: a map ''for sure'', just not of the Earth (Go to 46)<br />
* No: not a map (Go to 48)<br />
|-<br />
! 46<br />
| '''Did you make it yourself?'''<br />
| At this point, the map can only be a homemade map of some other fictional world.<br />
| A map ''for sure'', just not of the Earth<br />
|<br />
* Yes: a homemade map<br />
|<br />
* Yes: a homemade map (Go to 47)<br />
|-<br />
! 47<br />
| '''It's very nice.'''<br />
| A stock response to "[It's] Very nice" is "Thanks, I made it myself". Since we have already done the "made it myself" part, we need to do the other parts too, albeit out of sequence.<br />
| A homemade map<br />
|<br />
* Thank you!: something "very nice"<br />
|<br />
* Thank you!: a "very nice" homemade map ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! colspan="6" | Not a Map Subbranch<br />
|-<br />
! 48<br />
| '''Is it trying to bite you?'''<br />
| Now we are trying to guess something that is not a map. Makes sense to ask if it's something that bites, right? Right?<br />
| Not a map<br />
|<br />
* No: doesn't bite<br />
* Yes: bites<br />
|<br />
* No: doesn't bite and not a map (Go to 49)<br />
* Yes: bites (Go to 50)<br />
|-<br />
! 49<br />
| '''Is it larger than a breadbox?'''<br />
| The most common reference to breadboxes is the phrase "Is it bigger than a breadbox?" when trying to guess what some surprise object may be in the game {{w|Twenty_Questions|Twenty Questions}}. However, instead of asking further questions to narrow down the choices, the comic just gives a guess for each response. The comic guesses a breadbox itself as something about the same size as a breadbox. <br />
| Doesn't bite and not a map<br />
|<br />
* Yes: larger than a breadbox<br />
* No: smaller than a breadbox<br />
* About the same: about the same size as a breadbox<br />
|<br />
* Yes: larger than a breadbox, doesn't bite, and not a map (comic guesses a tuba) ('''Stop''')<br />
* No: smaller than a breadbox, doesn't bite, and not a map (comic guesses a stapler) ('''Stop''')<br />
* About the same: about the same size as a breadbox, doesn't bite, and not a map (comic guesses a breadbox) ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 50<br />
| '''If you let it go, what does it do?'''<br />
|<br />
| Bites<br />
|<br />
* Hisses and runs away: hisses and runs away if let go<br />
* Screeches and flaps around the room breaking things: screeches and flaps around the room breaking things if let go<br />
|<br />
* Hisses and runs away: bites, and hisses and runs away if let go (comic guesses a cat) ('''Stop''')<br />
* Screeches and flaps around the room breaking things: bites, and screeches and flaps around the room breaking things if let go (comic guesses a seagull) ('''Stop''' (however, see 51))<br />
|-<br />
! 51<br />
| '''Does the screeching chill your blood and herald death?'''<br />
| ''Note: Title text question.''<br />
| Bites, and screeches and flaps around the room breaking things if let go<br />
|<br />
* Yes: Screeching chills your blood and heralds death<br />
* No: Screeching does not chill your blood and herald death; or does not screech<br />
|<br />
* Yes: bites; screeches and flaps around the room breaking things if let go; screeching chills your blood and heralds death (title text guesses a banshee) ('''Stop''')<br />
* No: bites; screeches and flaps around the room breaking things if let go; screeching does not chill your blood and herald death (title text guesses a seagull) ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! colspan="6" | Istanbul Division<br />
|-<br />
! 52<br />
| '''Does the Soviet Union exist?'''<br />
| The Soviet Union, officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, existed from 1922 - 1991. After 1991, the Soviet Union split up into Russia and 15 other post-Soviet states.<br />
|1928+<br />
|<br />
* Yes: 1928 - 1991 <br />
* No: 1991+<br />
|<br />
* Yes: 1928 - 1991 (Go to 53)<br />
* No: 1991+ (Go to 70)<br />
|-<br />
! colspan="6" | West Africa branch<br />
|-<br />
! 53<br />
| '''Is most of West Africa a giant French blob?'''<br />
| Before 1960, most of West Africa consisted of a number of French colonies united under {{w|French_West_Africa|French West Africa}}.<br />
|1928 - 1991<br />
|<br />
* Yes: 1928 - 1960 <br />
* No: 1960 - 1991<br />
|<br />
* Yes: 1928 - 1960 (Go to 54)<br />
* No: 1960 - 1991 (Go to 61)<br />
|-<br />
! 54<br />
| '''Pakistan?'''<br />
| Pakistan was officially recognized as its own country in 1947, when British India was granted independence and partitioned into two nations. Pakistan was created at the request of Muslims who wished for a Muslim majority state.<br />
|1928 - 1960<br />
|<br />
* No: 1928 - 1947<br />
* Yes: 1947 - 1960 <br />
|<br />
* No: 1928 - 1947 (Go to 55)<br />
* Yes: 1948 - 1960 (Go to 57)<br />
|-<br />
! 55<br />
| '''How many Germanys are there?'''<br />
| During WWII, the Nazi Party invaded a large swath of Europe, which would make Nazi Germany huge on the map during that period. After the war, it split up into two countries — West Germany which was part of NATO, and East Germany which was part of the Warsaw Pact. Note that by modern standards, pre-WWII Germany was also quite huge, since at that point Germany included {{w|Prussia}} which contained much of modern Poland as well as Russian {{w|Kaliningrad}}, and in 1938 Germany took control of Austria in the {{w|Anschluss}} and the {{w|Sudetenland}} in {{w|Czechoslovakia}} following the {{w|Munich Agreement}}. Not all maps produced during WWII used the Nazi borders, since the Allies refused to recognize German occupation and supported the {{w|government-in-exile|governments-in-exile}}.<br />
|1928 - 1947 <br />
|<br />
* One: 1928 - 1940 <br />
* One, but it's ''huge'': 1941 - 1945<br />
* Two: 1946 - 1947<br />
|<br />
* One: 1928 - 1940 (Go to 56) <br />
* One, but it's ''huge'': 1941 - 1945 ('''Stop''')<br />
* Two: 1946 - 1947 ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 56<br />
| '''Persia or Iran?'''<br />
| In 1935 the Iranian Government requested that westerners call it by the name its own people had used for hundreds of years, rather than after a tribe within it that gained prominence 2500 years earlier. The interval from 1928 - 1930 is dropped from this branch, but it would fall under Persia.<br />
|1928 - 1940 <br />
|<br />
* Persia: 1930 - 1934<br />
* Iran: 1935 - 1940<br />
|<br />
* Persia: 1930 - 1934 ('''Stop''')<br />
* Iran: 1935 - 1940 ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 57<br />
| '''Cambodia?'''<br />
| Cambodia (or Kampuchea) declared independence from France in 1953.<br />
|1948 - 1960 <br />
|<br />
* No: 1948 - 1953<br />
* Yes: 1953 - 1960<br />
|<br />
* No: 1948 - 1953 (Go to 58)<br />
* Yes: 1953 - 1960 (Go to 60)<br />
|-<br />
! 58<br />
| '''Eritrea is a part of...'''<br />
| Eritrea declared independence from Italy in 1952, joining Ethiopia to create the {{w|Federation of Ethiopia and Eritrea}}.<br />
|1947 - 1953<br />
|<br />
* Italy: 1948 - 1952<br />
* Ethiopia: 1952 - 1953<br />
|<br />
* Italy: 1948 - 1952 (Go to 59)<br />
* Ethiopia: 1952 - 1953 ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 59<br />
| '''Canada is...'''<br />
| In 1949, the {{w|Dominion of Newfoundland}} became a part of Canada. Before that, it was marked as its own region on the map, so maps from 1948 and before would have Canada "missing a piece" on its east coast as compared to how it looks today.<br />
|1947 - 1952 <br />
|<br />
* Missing a piece: 1948<br />
* Fine: 1949 - 1952<br />
|<br />
* Missing a piece: 1948 ('''Stop''')<br />
* Fine: 1949 - 1952 ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 60<br />
| '''The United Arab Republic?'''<br />
| The {{w|The United Arab Republic}} was a short-lived political union between Egypt and Syria. The union began in 1958 and existed until 1961.<br />
This had been forgotten (and two placed had been pointed wrong)<br />
|1953 - 1960<br />
|<br />
* No: 1953-1958<br />
* Yes: 1958-1960<br />
|<br />
* No: 1953-58 (stated in comic as 1954-57 - a discrepancy) ('''Stop''')<br />
* Yes: 1958-60 ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 61<br />
| '''How many Vietnams are there?'''<br />
| On April 30, 1975, forces from North Vietnam captured Saigon, and reunified the country, in an event known as {{w|Reunification Day}}, which marked the end of the Vietnam War. Maps before this date would have "North Vietnam" and "South Vietnam" on them rather than a single "Vietnam".<br />
|1960 - 1991<br />
|<br />
* Two: 1960 - 1975<br />
* One: 1975 - 1991<br />
|<br />
* Two: 1960 - 1975 (Go to 62)<br />
* One: 1975 - 1991 (Go to 65)<br />
|-<br />
! 62<br />
| '''Bangladesh?'''<br />
| Bangladesh declared independence from Pakistan in 1972, as they had different languages, cultures, and the Bengalis felt their country was being run from 'West Pakistan' without their input. The resulting war lasted just over 8 months and ended in Indian intervention. <br />
|1960 - 1975<br />
|<br />
* No: 1960 - 1972<br />
* Yes: 1972 - 1975<br />
|<br />
* No: 1960 - 1972 (Go to 63)<br />
* Yes: 1972 - 1975 ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 63<br />
| '''Is the area south of Lake Victoria...'''<br />
| The area south of {{w|Lake Victoria}} was called {{w|Tanganyika}}, and it declared independence from Britain to form its own country in 1961, and unified with {{w|Zanzibar}} to create {{w|Tanzania}} in 1964.<br />
|1960 - 1972 <br />
|<br />
* British: 1960 - 1961<br />
* Tanganyika: 1961 - 1964<br />
* Tanzania: 1965 - 1971<br />
|<br />
* British: 1960 - 1961 (Go to 64)<br />
* Tanganyika: 1961 - 1964 ('''Stop''')<br />
* Tanzania: 1965 - 1972 (stated in comic as 1964-1971 - a discrepancy) ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 64<br />
| '''The town on I-25 between Albuquerque and El Paso is... '''<br />
| {{w|Interstate 25 in New Mexico|I-25}} didn't exist for any of the years listed for this item, since the Interstate Highway System wasn't launched until 1956. The highway designation on maps printed during the years listed was {{w|U.S._Route_85#New_Mexico|U.S. 85}}, and it was first replaced by the I-25 in 1970-1990. The town changed it name from Hot Springs to "{{w|Truth or Consequences, New Mexico|Truth or Consequences}}" in 1950, although locals say that it provides more of the latter than of the former. Still the question would have made sense (although it should have been US 85) had it not been for the fact that the whole question is for the wrong time period, as the search tree leading to a British Tanganyika is only the period from 1960-1961. Actually this item seems like it should actually follow from the "Fine" option of "Canada is.." from 1949-1952 as it is in the same time period.<br />
|1960 - 1961<br />
|<br />
* Hot Springs: 1916-49<br />
* Truth or Consequences: 1950+<br />
|<br />
* Hot Springs: 1948-49 ('''Stop''') (a discrepancy as this is for a period from 1960-61)<br />
* Truth or Consequences: 1950-52 ('''Stop''') (a discrepancy as this is for a period from 1960-61)<br />
|-<br />
! 65<br />
| '''Jimmy Carter is...'''<br />
| On April 20, 1979, Jimmy Carter was "{{w|Jimmy Carter rabbit incident|attacked}}" by a swamp rabbit, a fact referenced in [[204|204: America]]. This fact would not normally be referenced on a map, however, and is simply a joke entry that leads to the next question.<br />
|1975 - 1991<br />
|<br />
* Being attacked by a giant swimming rabbit: April 20, 1979<br />
* Fine: 1975 - 1991<br />
|<br />
* Being attacked by a giant swimming rabbit: April 20, 1979 ('''Stop''')<br />
* Fine: 1975 - 1991 (Go to 66)<br />
|-<br />
! 66<br />
| '''The Sinai is part of what country?'''<br />
| In 1979, Israel signed a peace treaty in which it would gradually retreat from the entire Sinai Peninsula, handing that area to Egypt. This happened over a period of three years, completing in 1982.<br />
|1975 - 1991<br />
|<br />
* Israel: 1976 - 1979<br />
* Mostly Israel: 1980<br />
* Mostly Egypt: 1981<br />
* Egypt: 1982 - 1991<br />
|<br />
* Israel: 1976 - 1979 (missing 1975?) ('''Stop''')<br />
* Mostly Israel: 1980 ('''Stop''')<br />
* Mostly Egypt: 1981 ('''Stop''')<br />
* Egypt: 1982 - 1991 (Go to 67)<br />
|-<br />
! 67<br />
| '''What's the capital of Micronesia?'''<br />
| The {{w| Federated States of Micronesia}} are a group of small islands in the Pacific Ocean. Their capital was Kolonia until 1989, when it changed to Palikir, on the same island.<br />
|1982 - 1991<br />
|<br />
* Kolonia: 1982 - 1988<br />
* Palikir: 1989 - 1991<br />
|<br />
* Kolonia: 1982 - 1988 (Go to 68)<br />
* Palikir: 1989 - 1991 (Go to 69)<br />
|-<br />
! 68<br />
| '''Republic of the Upper Volta or Burkina Faso?'''<br />
| Burkina Faso was named the Republic of the Upper Volta until 1984, when the president Thomas Sankara decided to rename it to promote a sense of unity in the nation and in an anti-colonial statement. <br />
|1982 - 1988<br />
|<br />
* Upper Volta: 1982 - 1984<br />
* Burkina Faso: 1985 - 1988<br />
|<br />
* Upper Volta: 1982 - 1984 ('''Stop''')<br />
* Burkina Faso: 1985 - 1988 ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 69<br />
| '''(Number of Yemens) + (Number of Germanys) = ?'''<br />
| In 1990, two unification events took place: the {{w| Yemeni unification}} on May 22, and the {{w|German_reunification}} on October 3. Before these events, in early 1990, there would have been four Yemens and Germanys total. In mid-1990, when only the Yemeni unification had taken place, there would be one Yemen and two Germanys, for a total of three. and in late 1990, after both events took place, there would be one of each for a total of two.<br />
|1989 - 1991<br />
|<br />
* Four: 1989 - early 1990<br />
* Three: mid-1990<br />
* Two: late 1990-1991<br />
|<br />
* Four: 1989 - early 1990 ('''Stop''')<br />
* Three: mid-1990 ('''Stop''')<br />
* Two: late 1990-1991 ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! colspan="6" | Post-Soviet branch<br />
|-<br />
! 70<br />
| '''Zaire? or: "Hong Kong (UK)"''' <br />
| Zaire was one of a series of names for what is today called the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In 1996 a (successful) revolt began to oust the reigning government from power. As part of this revolution, the country was renamed. The original name change away from 'Congo' was part of an 'Africanisation' naming campaign, although 'Congo' is in origin an authentic African name for the river that set the boundaries of the nation. <br />
<br />
{{w|Hong Kong}} was taken by the British in 1843 at the end of the {{w|First Opium War}}, and an additional area (the New Territories) were leased from China in 1898 on a 99-year lease. When the lease expired in 1997, {{w|Transfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong|the whole of Hong Kong was returned to China}}.<br />
|1991+<br />
|<br />
* Yes: 1992 - 1996<br />
* No: 1996+<br />
|<br />
* Yes: 1992 - 1996 ('''Stop''')<br />
* No: 1996+ (Go to 71)<br />
|-<br />
! 71<br />
| '''Serbia and Montenegro are...'''<br />
| Serbia and Montenegro were a remnant of Yugoslavia. Montenegro voted to become its own country in 2006.<br/><br/>'''Note:''' For much of the prior date range, "Serbia and Montenegro" did not appear on maps - the states still went by the name Yugoslavia. {{w|Serbia and Montenegro#State union|Serbia and Montenegro only came into existence in 2003}}.<br />
|1996+<br />
|<br />
* One country: 1996 - 2006<br />
* Two countries: 2007+<br />
|<br />
* One country: 1996 - 2006 (Go to 72)<br />
* Two countries: 2007+ (Go to 73)<br />
|-<br />
! 72<br />
| '''East Timor?'''<br />
| East Timor is a nation north of Australia and south east of Indonesia. During the dutch colonization of Indonesia east Timor remained in Portuguese hands. While occupied and annexed by Indonesia since 1976, east Timor retained its own culture and voted for independence, then had a nasty militia action that required UN peacekeeping action, and finally become independent in 2002.<br />
|1996 - 2006<br />
|<br />
* No: 1997 - 2001<br />
* Yes: 2002 - 2006<br />
|<br />
* No: 1997 - 2001 ('''Stop''')<br />
* Yes: 2002 - 2006 ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 73<br />
| '''How many Sudans are there?'''<br />
| In 2011, after a long history of violence between the two portions of the country (which can be characterized as Islamic vs. Christian and Traditional Religions), South Sudan became independent from its northern neighbor.<br />
|2006+<br />
|<br />
* One: 2007 - 2011<br />
* Two: 2011+<br />
|<br />
* One: 2007 - 2011 ('''Stop''')<br />
* Two: 2011+ (Go to 74)<br />
|-<br />
! 74<br />
| '''Is Crimea disputed?'''<br />
| In 2014, a revolution ousted the current Ukrainian president. Crimea had its own civil unrest, and Russian troops exploited the unrest to launch an invasion. A referendum, where many nations, including all member states of the EU, the USA, and Canada, disputed the democratic legitimacy of the referendum, was held during this and ostensibly decided in favor of Russian annexation. Depending on where you get your maps, Crimea might not be marked as disputed - [http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2014/04/12/302337754/google-maps-displays-crimean-border-differently-in-russia-u-s Google Maps Ukraine shows it as solely Ukrainian while Google Maps Russia shows it as Russian].<br />
|2011+<br />
|<br />
* Yes: 2014+<br />
* No: 2012 - 2013<br />
|<br />
* Yes: 2014+ (Go to 75)<br />
* No: 2012 - 2013 ('''Stop''')<br />
|-<br />
! 75<br />
| '''"Colorado" or "Danger—Radioactive Exclusion Zone—Avoid"?'''<br />
| This entry and the one below it are now referring to hypothetical future events: specifically, a huge radioactivity event in Colorado that takes place some time in 2022. Colorado has a previous history of radioactive contamination - it was home to uranium mines, nuclear tests (including {{w|Project Rulison}}, an attempt to use nuclear bombs to drill for natural gas that ended up making the gas radioactive) and the controversial {{w|Rocky Flats Plant}}, a nuclear weapons manufacturing facility that suffered {{w|Radioactive contamination from the Rocky Flats Plant|several fires and leaks}} and was ultimately raided and shut down by the FBI. None of these has yet caused spiders to mutate.{{Citation needed}}<br />
|2014+<br />
|<br />
* Colorado: 2014 - 2021<br />
* Danger: 2022+<br />
|<br />
* Colorado: 2014 - 2021 ('''Stop''')<br />
* Danger: 2022+ (Go to 76)<br />
|-<br />
! 76<br />
| '''Does the warning mention the spiders?'''<br />
| Presumably some time in 2023, the radioactive exclusion zone also becomes infested with mutant spiders.<br />
|2022+<br />
|<br />
* No: 2022<br />
* Yes: 2023 or later<br />
|<br />
* No: 2022 ('''Stop''')<br />
* Yes: 2023 or later ('''Stop''')<br />
|}<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[A very complicated flow chart, which can only be read in detail using the larger image now shown at the top of this page. This transcript uses the large version, where there is no problem reading all entries.]<br />
<br />
:[At the top of the chart there is a large caption, with a smaller caption below:]<br />
:<big>Guide to figuring out the age of an undated world map</big><br />
:<small>(Assuming it's complete, labeled in english, and detailed enough)</small><br />
<br />
:[Below the starting bracket in the small caption is a start box. It has rounded corners and it is gray with white text. From this box there is a gray line to a box consisting of a black frame with rounded corners. In these kind of boxes there are questions regarding the map in black text. Below this box there are three gray boxes like the start box, superimposed over the bottom frame. In these boxes are the possible answers to the question in the frame above. From each of these options there is a gray line going to similar black framed boxes with other questions either below, or to either side. There can either be two, three or four gray boxes, two the most common. Only at the very bottom of the central branch where it turns out it was a home made map, are there two frames with only one gray question box each. This trend continues over this entire large image. When reaching the end of a branch in the flow chart, there is no line away from one, more or all of the gray boxes for a black frame. When this happens a year range or a guess at what the map shows, or what it is (if it turns out to not be a map) is written below the gray box in gray text. Of the text in the gray boxes are Yes/No, but not always. There are 74 boxes with black frames with 158 gray boxes and 78 endpoints with text below the gray box and one end point without text below (the one with the home made map).]<br />
<br />
:Start<br />
::Istanbul or Constantinople?<br />
:::Constantinople<br />
::::<span id="canada-alaska-tokyo"><u>Do any of these exist</u>? </span><br />
::::*Independent Canada<br />
::::*US Territory of Alaska<br />
::::*Tokyo<br />
:::::No<br />
::::::The Holy Roman Empire?<br />
:::::::Yes<br />
::::::::1805 or earlier (before this point, the modern idea of a complete political map of the world gets hard to apply.)<br />
:::::::No<br />
::::::::The United States?<br />
:::::::::No<br />
::::::::::How sure are you that this map is in english?<br />
:::::::::Yes<br />
::::::::::Texas is...<br />
:::::::::::Part of Mexico<br />
::::::::::::Florida is part of...<br />
:::::::::::::Spain<br />
::::::::::::::Paraguay?<br />
:::::::::::::::No <font color="gray">1806-10</font><br />
:::::::::::::::Yes <font color="gray">1811-17</font><br />
:::::::::::::The US<br />
::::::::::::::Venezuela and/or ecuador?<br />
:::::::::::::::No <font color="gray">1818-29</font><br />
:::::::::::::::Yes <font color="gray">1830-33</font><br />
:::::::::::Independent <font color="gray">1834-45</font><br />
:::::::::::Part of the US<br />
::::::::::::Does Russia border the Sea of Japan?<br />
:::::::::::::No<br />
::::::::::::::The US's southern border looks...<br />
:::::::::::::::Weird <font color="gray">1846-53</font><br />
:::::::::::::::Normal <font color="gray">1854-56</font><br />
:::::::::::::Yes <font color="gray">1858-67</font><br />
:::::Yes<br />
::::::South Africa?<br />
:::::::No<br />
::::::::Rhodesia?<br />
:::::::::No<br />
::::::::::Is Bolivia landlocked?<br />
:::::::::::No<br />
::::::::::::"Buda" and "Pest" or "Budapest"?<br />
:::::::::::::Buda and Pest <font color="gray">1868-72</font><br />
:::::::::::::Budapest <font color="gray">1873-83</font><br />
:::::::::::Yes <font color="gray">1884-95</font><br />
:::::::::Yes<br />
::::::::::Is Norway part of Sweden?<br />
:::::::::::Yes <font color="gray">1896-1905</font><br />
:::::::::::No <font color="gray">1906-09</font><br />
:::::::Yes<br />
::::::::Austria-Hungary?<br />
:::::::::Yes<br />
::::::::::Albania?<br />
:::::::::::No <font color="gray">1910-12</font><br />
:::::::::::Yes <font color="gray">1913-18</font><br />
:::::::::No<br />
::::::::::Leningrad?<br />
:::::::::::No <font color="gray">1919-23</font><br />
:::::::::::Yes <font color="gray">1924-29</font><br />
:::Neither<br />
::::Does the Ottoman Empire exist?<br />
:::::Yes <font color="gray">[[#canada-alaska-tokyo]]</font><br />
:::::No<br />
::::::The Soviet Union?<br />
:::::::Yes<br />
::::::::Saudi Arabia?<br />
:::::::::Yes<br />
::::::::::<span id="west-africa-french-blob">Is most of West Africa a giant french blob?</span><br />
:::::::::::Yes<br />
::::::::::::<span id="bangladesh">Bangladesh?</span><br />
:::::::::::::No<br />
::::::::::::::Is the area south of Lake Victoria...<br />
:::::::::::::::British<br />
::::::::::::::::The town on I-25 between Albuquerque and El Paso is...<br />
:::::::::::::::::Hot Springs <font color="gray">1948-49</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::Truth or Consequences <font color="gray">1950-52</font><br />
:::::::::::::::Tanganyika <font color="gray">1961-64</font><br />
:::::::::::::::Tanzania <font color="gray">1965-71</font><br />
:::::::::::::Yes <font color="gray">1972-75</font><br />
:::::::::::No<br />
::::::::::::How many Vietnams are there?<br />
:::::::::::::Two<br />
::::::::::::::[[#bangladesh]]<br />
:::::::::::::One<br />
::::::::::::::Jimmy Carter is...<br />
:::::::::::::::Being attacked by a giant swimming rabbit <font color="gray">April 20, 1979</font><br />
:::::::::::::::Fine<br />
::::::::::::::::The Sinai is part of what country?<br />
:::::::::::::::::Israel <font color="gray">1976-79</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::Mostly Israel <font color="gray">1980</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::Mostly Egypt <font color="gray">1981</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::Egypt<br />
::::::::::::::::::What's the capital of Micronesia?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::Kolonia<br />
::::::::::::::::::::Republic of the Upper Volta or Burkina Faso?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::Upper Volta <font color="gray">1982-84</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::Burkina Faso <font color="gray">1985-88</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::Palikir<br />
::::::::::::::::::::(number of Yemens) + (number of Germanys) = ?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::Four <font color="gray">1989-early 1990</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::Three <font color="gray">mid-1990</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::Two <font color="gray">late 1990-1991</font><br />
:::::::::No <font color="gray">1922-1932</font><br />
:::::::No<br />
::::::::North Korea?<br />
:::::::::Yes<br />
::::::::::<span id="zaire">Zaire? or: "Hong Kong (UK)"</span><br />
:::::::::::Yes <font color="gray">1992-96</font><br />
:::::::::::No<br />
::::::::::::Serbia/Montenegro are...<br />
:::::::::::::One country<br />
::::::::::::::East Timor?<br />
:::::::::::::::No <font color="gray">1997-2001</font><br />
:::::::::::::::Yes <font color="gray">2002-06</font><br />
:::::::::::::Two countries<br />
::::::::::::::How many Sudans are there?<br />
:::::::::::::::One <font color="gray">2007-11</font><br />
:::::::::::::::Two<br />
::::::::::::::::Is Crimea disputed?<br />
:::::::::::::::::Yes<br />
::::::::::::::::::"Colorado" or "Danger—Radioactive Exclusion Zone—Avoid"?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::Colorado <font color="gray">2014-21</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::Danger<br />
::::::::::::::::::::Does the warning mention the spiders?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::No <font color="gray">2022</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::Yes <font color="gray">2023 or later</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::No <font color="gray">2012-13</font><br />
:::::::::No<br />
::::::::::Saint Trimble's Island<br />
:::::::::::No<br />
::::::::::::Is Jan Mayen part of the Kingdom of Norway?<br />
:::::::::::::Not yet<br />
::::::::::::::[[#canada-alaska-tokyo]]<br />
:::::::::::::What?<br />
::::::::::::::Can you see the familiar continents?<br />
:::::::::::::::Yes<br />
::::::::::::::::This sounds like a physical map or satellite photo.<br />
:::::::::::::::::Yes, that's it<br />
::::::::::::::::::Is Lake Chad missing?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::No<br />
::::::::::::::::::::How far east do the American Prairies reach?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::Indiana <font color="gray">before 1830</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::The Mississippi <font color="gray">1830s-80s</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::Nebraska<br />
::::::::::::::::::::::Is there a big lake in the middle of Southern California? (created by mistake)<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::No <font color="gray">1860s-1900s</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::Yes <font color="gray">1910s</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::What prairies?<br />
::::::::::::::::::::::Is there a big lake in the middle of Ghana? (created on purpose)<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::No <font color="gray">1920s-50s</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::Yes <font color="gray">1960s-70s</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::Yes<br />
::::::::::::::::::::Is the Aral Sea missing?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::No <font color="gray">1970s-90s</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::Yes <font color="gray">2000s+</font><br />
:::::::::::::::No<br />
::::::::::::::::Rivers "Sirion" or "Anduin"?<br />
:::::::::::::::::Yes<br />
::::::::::::::::::Mordor?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::No<br />
::::::::::::::::::::Beleriand?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::Yes <font color="gray">First Age</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::No <font color="gray">Early Second Age</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::Yes<br />
::::::::::::::::::::Númenor?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::Yes <font color="gray">Late Second Age</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::No<br />
::::::::::::::::::::::The forest east of the Misty Mountains is...<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::Greenwood <font color="gray">Early Third Age</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::Mirkwood <font color="gray">Late Third Age</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::The Wood of Greenleaves <font color="gray">Fourth Age</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::No<br />
::::::::::::::::::Cair Paravel?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::Yes<br />
::::::::::::::::::::Calormen?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::No<br />
::::::::::::::::::::::Lotta Islands?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::No<br />
::::::::::::::::::::::::Beruna<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::::Ford <font color="gray">The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::::Bridge <font color="gray">Prince Caspian</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::Yes <font color="gray">Dawn Treader</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::Yes<br />
::::::::::::::::::::::Weird recursive heaven?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::No <font color="gray">One of the random later books</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::Yes <font color="gray">The Last Battle</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::No<br />
::::::::::::::::::::Mossflower?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::Yes<br />
::::::::::::::::::::::Redwall<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::No<br />
::::::::::::::::::::::Is the world on the back of a turtle?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::Yes <font color="gray">Discworld</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::No<br />
::::::::::::::::::::::::Are you ''sure'' this is a map?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::::Yes<br />
::::::::::::::::::::::::::Did you make it yourself?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::Yes<br />
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::It's very nice.<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::Thank you!<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::::No<br />
::::::::::::::::::::::::::Is it trying to bite you?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::No<br />
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::Is it larger than a breadbox?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::Yes <font color="gray">tuba</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::No <font color="gray">stapler</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::About the same <font color="gray">breadbox</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::Yes<br />
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::If you let it go, what does it do?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::Hisses and runs away <font color="gray">cat</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::Screeches and flaps around the room breaking things <font color="gray">seagull</font><br />
:::::::::::::Yes<br />
::::::::::::::Pakistan?<br />
:::::::::::::::No<br />
::::::::::::::::How many Germanys are there?<br />
:::::::::::::::::One<br />
::::::::::::::::::Persia or Iran?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::Persia <font color="gray">1930-34</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::Iran <font color="gray">1935-40</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::One, but it's ''huge'' <font color="gray">1941-45</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::Two <font color="gray">1946-47</font><br />
:::::::::::::::Yes<br />
::::::::::::::::Cambodia?<br />
:::::::::::::::::No<br />
::::::::::::::::::Eritrea is part of...<br />
:::::::::::::::::::Italy<br />
::::::::::::::::::::Canada is...<br />
:::::::::::::::::::::Missing a piece <font color="gray">1948</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::::Fine <font color="gray">1949-52</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::Ethiopia <font color="gray">1952-53</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::Yes<br />
::::::::::::::::::The United Arab Republic?<br />
:::::::::::::::::::No <font color="gray">1954-57</font><br />
:::::::::::::::::::Yes <font color="gray">1958-60</font><br />
:::::::::::Yes <font color="gray">No, I made that one up.</font><br />
:::Istanbul<br />
::::Does the Soviet Union exist?<br />
:::::Yes<br />
::::::[[#west-africa-french-blob]]<br />
:::::No<br />
::::::[[#zaire]]<br />
<br />
==Trivia==<br />
*There are some errors and several discrepancies in the comic regarding how year ranges is given.<br />
**The largest error seem to be a real mistake, rather than just not being precise.<br />
***It regards the entry ''The town on I-25 between Albuquerque and El Paso is...'' which gives a year range from 1948-1952, but to get to this entry the previous answer ''British'' fixes the time to 1960-1961. Also the I-25 was built in 1970-1990 through New Mexico, see the [[#Table|table]] above for more info.<br />
**Here other errors or discrepancies can be listed...<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Large drawings]]<br />
[[Category:Flowcharts]]<br />
[[Category:Maps]]<br />
[[Category:Time]]<br />
[[Category:Geography]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring politicians]] <!-- Jimmy Carter --><br />
[[Category:Animals]] <!-- Cat and seagull --><br />
[[Category:LOTR]]<br />
[[Category:Fiction]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1689:_My_Friend_Catherine&diff=1218821689: My Friend Catherine2016-06-13T10:43:16Z<p>173.245.54.30: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1689<br />
| date = June 3, 2016<br />
| title = My Friend Catherine<br />
| image = my_friend_catherine.png<br />
| titletext = I can't get any work done because my friend Catherine is sitting on my keyboard.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
<br />
This is another comic using [[:Category:Substitutions|substitutions]] to create the joke by replacing words or phrases, in this case "My cat", with a different word or phrase, in this case "My friend Catherine" (hence the title). The choice of the name is probably because "Kat" is a common nickname for "Catherine".<br />
<br />
By doing so in a list of [[#The original posts|people discussing things their cat did]], it makes it seem like they are discussing things their female human friend did. What is cute (sitting on keyboards), impressive (doing backflips to eat bugs), or at least normal behavior for a cat (vomiting hairballs) would often be weird, disgusting or disturbing if an adult human were to do it, which is what makes the substitution humorous.<br />
<br />
The comic depicts a feed on a page for people discussing their cat, similar to Twitter or Facebook, which would be the only kind of place where the substitution is really funny. Apart from known characters like two looking like [[Cueball]], [[Megan]] and [[Ponytail]], there is also a person with black hair, not looking particularly like any standard characters, and then a person with a [[1350:_Lorenz#Knit_Cap_Girl|knit cap]], which could be the same knit cap wearing user that was also used in [[1506: xkcloud]] (see the [[1506:_xkcloud/Transcript#User_pictures| pictures of the users]]).<br />
<br />
In the title text there is another cat related status update regarding a cat sitting on a keyboard. Given the fact that one of the earlier substitution comics from before the [[1288: Substitutions|three]] ''[[1625: Substitutions 2|Substitution]]'' [[1679: Substitutions 3|comics]], was [[1031: s/keyboard/leopard/]] that replaced keyboard with leopard, many [[#Discussion|fans of xkcd]] were a little disappointed that the title text did not read: ''I can't get any work done because my friend Catherine is sitting on my leopard.''<br />
<br />
===The original posts===<br />
*My cat just did a backflip and then ate a bug! <br />
*I wish my cat wouldn't wake me up by chewing on my hair. <br />
*Oh no, my cat has learned to open the refrigerator. <br />
*My cat just walked in, threw up on the rug, and walked out. <br />
*My cat is looking out the window making weird noises at the birds. <br />
*I wish my cat wouldn't make eye contact with me while pooping.<br />
*I can't get any work done because my cat is sitting on my keyboard. (title text)<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Captions above the frame:]<br />
:New favorite substitution:<br />
:<big>My Cat→My Friend Catherine</big><br />
<br />
:[A news feed with comments by six different people discussing their cat, but after the above substitution. Next to each post is a user image, and above the clear text of the substituted comment is a unreadable line of wiggles probably with information about the post time stamp.]<br />
<br />
:[A head shot of a person seen straight on with black hair:]<br />
:My friend Catherine just did a backflip and then ate a bug!<br />
<br />
:[A full view of Cueball:]<br />
:I wish my friend Catherine wouldn't wake me up by chewing on my hair.<br />
<br />
:[A head shot of Megan with unreadable text below the image:]<br />
:Oh no, my friend Catherine has learned to open the refrigerator.<br />
<br />
:[A head shot seen from the side of a person with a knit cap and short black hair below the cap:]<br />
:My friend Catherine just walked in, threw up on the rug, and walked out.<br />
<br />
:[A head shot of Ponytail:]<br />
:My friend Catherine is looking out the window making weird noises at the birds.<br />
<br />
:[Cueball seen from the torso and up:]<br />
:I wish my friend Catherine wouldn't make eye contact with me while pooping.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Substitutions]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]<br />
[[Category:Social networking]]<br />
[[Category:Animals]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1671:_Arcane_Bullshit&diff=1207981671: Arcane Bullshit2016-05-25T13:03:10Z<p>173.245.54.30: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1671<br />
| date = April 22, 2016<br />
| title = Arcane Bullshit<br />
| image = arcane_bullshit.png<br />
| titletext = Learning arcane bullshit from the 80s can break your computer, but if you're willing to wade through arcane bullshit from programmers in the 90s and 2000s, you can break everyone else's computers, too.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Brief Explanation==<br />
When fixing/improving an existing computer program, programmers sometimes need to read, understand, and improve old code. The older a piece of code is, the less it tends to conform to modern programming practices, and the more likely it is to be "arcane bullshit" from the perspective of a 21st Century programmer. (See the detailed explanation below for more information.)<br />
<br />
[[Randall]] seems to feel that willingness to deal with "arcane bullshit" is a "{{w|Catch 22}}" that prevents 80s arcane bullshit from being fixed. Someone completely unwilling to deal with arcane bullshit would lack the patience to learn how to program. Someone extremely willing to wade through an 80s programmer's arcane bullshit is likely to "nerd snipe" ([[356: Nerd Sniping]]) themselves into fiddling with {{w|Kernel (operating_system)|kernels}} (which are inherently arcane bullshit) instead of making useful code. Cueball is in the middle of the scale: smart and patient enough to make the 80s bullshit worse, but not smart and patient enough to know how to fix it.<br />
<br />
==Detailed Explanation==<br />
<br />
This comic could be a reference to changes in programming methodologies. As the first computer programs were written in the 40's and 50's they were prone to becoming "spaghetti code", where the flow of execution would jump from one part of the program to another using the JUMP which gives no state information. While this method of programming can work very quickly, it makes it difficult to predict program flow and can create interdependencies that are not obvious. In the BASIC language JUMP was called GOTO and the courses for new programmers argued that using GOTO in all but trivial cases was a very bad idea. On the other hand, old programmers argued that calculated GOTO was a sexy way of programming.<br />
<br />
To combat the problem computer scientists have relied on increasing the levels of abstraction and encapsulation, by developing structured programming, procedural programming, and OOP (object oriented programming). <br />
<br />
In structured programming you break your program into well defined blocks of code with specified entry and exit points. Using the stack (a portion of memory dedicated to storing information / program state) it is possible to call a block of code and then have that block of code return control to the point that called it after it has done what was requested. <br />
<br />
Very quickly it was decided to mark these blocks of code as functions or procedures, making it a lot easier to know how to call the blocks and edit them. Languages that made this a focus include Pascal, Modula, and C.<br />
<br />
Structured and procedural programming were well entrenched in the 80's. Most systems programming was done in mid- or low-level languages, which to improve performance don't do much to control access to the data structures in the programs. Because they are low level the code requires many steps to do seemingly easy things like draw a box on a screen, making it hard for a non-experienced programmer to understand what is happening.<br />
<br />
Although the idea of OOP was around as early as the 1950's, it was not implemented in a widespread fashion until the 1990's. OOP encapsulates the data structures inside of functions, so rather than manipulate the variable directly you call the data structure and tell it to do something. This additional level of abstraction can make it a lot easier to work on varied data. It also can protect the program data from unexpected changes by other sections of the program. <br />
<br />
Because code in the 80's was typically done at a much lower level, it can be hard for programmers used to having the language and libraries do more work for them. It also meant that programmers would often hard code expectations into their source code such as the number of files that can be opened at once, or size of the operating system disk buffers, rather than make them configurable while the program is running, or even while it was being loaded. This means if you need the program to handle a larger file, you might need to recompile it after finding and changing all the places in the code that assume the smaller max file size.<br />
<br />
As such, few people are willing to try to surpass the massive barrier to learning. This group is on the left. To the right are people who have gotten so used to the tools and conventions of the 80's that they spend all of their time adjusting and recompiling the kernel of their computers to match their current needs, instead of actually creating new programs.<br />
<br />
In the center is Cueball, presumably representing Randall, who has learned enough to try and fix code, but not enough for his fixes to actually work.<br />
<br />
As programs age, they often lose support from the initial project head and die out, no longer supported on new computers. So, as the title text says, learning more coding from the '90s and after is necessary for also breaking everyone else's computers.<br />
<br />
This could also be a comment on hacking and the advent of the internet and the technologies behind that (TCP/IP, HTML, CSS, PHP...) being 90s/2000s. Computers in the 80s were typically stand alone so what you are learning can only be applied to your machine. To break everyone else's you need to understand networking.<br />
<br />
The title text might be a reference to various recently discovered {{w|security vulnerabilities}} in {{w|open-source software}}. In some cases, underskilled programmers have provided flawed code for critical infrastructure with very little review, resulting in global computer security disasters. Randall described some of these in [[424: Security Holes]] (2008), [[1353: Heartbleed]] and [[1354: Heartbleed Explanation]] (2014). Other recent examples include {{w|Shellshock (software bug)|Shellshock}} and vulnerabilities in the {{w|Linux kernel}} involving the [http://timetobleed.com/a-closer-look-at-a-recent-privilege-escalation-bug-in-linux-cve-2013-2094/ perf] and [http://perception-point.io/2016/01/14/analysis-and-exploitation-of-a-linux-kernel-vulnerability-cve-2016-0728/ keyrings] subsystems.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[A horizontal graph with arrows pointing left and right with labels. The line has three ticks one towards each end and one in the middle above which Cueball is drawn. Below each tick there is a caption. There is a caption at the top of the panel:]<br />
: Willingness to wade through some 80's programmer's arcane bullshit:<br />
:[Left end:] Low <br />
:[Left tick:] Never learn to program<br />
:[Above Cueball:] Me<br />
:[Center tick:] Learn enough to break everything but not enough to fix it<br />
:[Right end:] High<br />
:[Right tick:] Spend all your time compiling kernels and never make anything<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Charts]]<br />
[[Category:Programming]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1683:_Digital_Data&diff=1207971683: Digital Data2016-05-25T13:02:23Z<p>173.245.54.30: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1683<br />
| date = May 20, 2016<br />
| title = Digital Data<br />
| image = digital_data.png<br />
| titletext = &acirc;&euro;&oelig;If you can read this, congratulations&acirc;&euro;&rdquo;the archive you&acirc;&euro;&trade;re you're using still knows about the mouseover text&acirc;&euro;!<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
<br />
{{w|Digital information}} has the potential to be copied such that the copy is 100% identical to the original. While physical media themselves (such as books, or hard drives) and information stored by analog means may degrade as the universe continues, digital information as expressed by specific values, such as combinations of binary zeros and ones, does not decay over time and can be copied indefinitely with no changes.<br />
<br />
However, in this comic, [[Randall]] points out that while digital information itself doesn't need to degrade, things that are on the Internet are often degraded through copying when the copy is not a 1:1 copy or changes are deliberately introduced. In addition, as technology advances the method to save or call the information changes and the medium to view it changes, occasionally causing misinterpreted information. (This is also demonstrated with the title text.) As the frames continue, they gain the appearance of images which have been screenshotted repeatedly, with a resulting loss of quality due to compression of the original resolution and {{w|JPEG}} {{w|compression artifact|artifacting}}. (The JPEG format is intended for representing photorealistic grayscale or color images; when misused for line drawings, such as comic strips, any compression artifacts become particularly noticeable, as the background is normally of completely uniform color.) In the last frame, this is taken to an extreme, as the frame appears to have been very sloppily screenshotted off of at least two different smartphones (not the same device that uses the bottom frame in the third panel as the top border in panel four), and the final image is covered both with a watermark from an unregistered screenshot program, as well as references to at least two different web sites: {{w|9GAG}} (bottom right image) and {{w|Tumblr}} in the web address bottom left. 9GAG is an online platform and social media website where users upload and share content of their own, or of other networks. It is often accused of rehosting other sites' funny content without attribution and adding their own watermark to the image or video.<br />
<br />
<!--[9Gag is well known; maybe also provide the example of iFunny. Talk about things like "unregistered HyperCam" and the phenomenon in more detail.]<br />
[You can also see the word tumblr in the last panel. Additionally, the phone frame on the top of panel 4 would not have come from the same device as the bottom of panel 3.]<br />
--><br />
<br />
The title text is seemingly addressed to a reader in the future who will only be able to access xkcd through a {{w|digital archive}}. Digital information might not degrade with time, but it can't be properly displayed without knowledge of the encoding. As new encodings and file formats get developed and old ones abandoned, the webpage format of the comix might not be available in the future, when users would need special archives to view content from today's world. The title text contains seemingly garbage characters, which typically result from data being interpreted according to a {{w|character encoding}} different from the one used to encode it. In this case, the characters are the result of encoding the string <tt>“If you can read this, congratulations—the archive you’re you're using still knows about the mouseover text”!</tt> using {{w|UTF-8}} (which represents non-{{w|ASCII}} {{w|Unicode}} characters as multibyte sequences) and then interpreting the resulting bytes as the still commonly used {{w|Windows-1252}} encoding (which uses only one byte per character, but utilizes the non-ASCII codepoints for a limited selection of extra letters and symbols such as "â" or "€"). This shows that degradation of digital data through conversions isn't restricted to images. Furthermore, as screen navigation moves away from the mouse toward touch, voice recognition, and modes still to be implemented, mouseover text will itself become archaic.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball and a White Hat are walking, Cueball holds both hands in front of him palms up.]<br />
:Cueball: The great thing about digital data is that it never degrades.<br />
<br />
:[They walk on in the next panel which shows jpeg compression artifacts, as if it is a screen shot of the actual image.]<br />
:Cueball: Hard drives fail, of course, but their bits can be copied forever without loss.<br />
<br />
:[They continue walking in the third panel which is now clearly pixelated, the white is slightly discolored, and it contains part of the interface of some program, probably supposed to be a screen shot from a smartphone. At the bottom there are three blue buttons and one gray. the first is a blue "<" indicating back in a browser. Then a grayed out ">" that is not active. And then three more standard buttons in blue to the right of those two. The interface matches that of an iPhone running Safari in iOS 9 (or other versions with the same Safari UI (probably iOS 7-9)]<br />
:Cueball: Film degrades, paint cracks, but a copy of a century-old data file is identical to the original.<br />
<br />
:[Still walking, now Cueball holds out both arms to the sides, and finally White Hat replies. This panel is heavily pixelated and discolored and has a distorted aspect ratio. It contains a clear watermark (although difficult to read all letters in the end of the first word), even more 'frame' elements, and text above the image at the bottom (where the last letter is obscured by the frame of the image). There is also an internet address at the bottom left, but it is not readable except for the .com ending. In this panel it is clear that it is a screen shot from a smart phone. The frame around the image obscure the very top of Cueball's text and the half of the last letter in White Hat's reply.]<br />
:Cueball: If humanity has a permanent record, we are the first generation in it.<br />
:White Hat: Amazing<br />
<br />
:Watermark: Screenshotpro 2<br />
:Watermark: ~Unregistered~<br />
<br />
:Top border: Verizon LTE '''4:45 PM'''<br />
:Bottom text [slightly cut off]: 9GAG<br />
:Internet address at the bottom [nearly unintelligible]: [ama].tumblr.com<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]<br />
[[Category:Computers]]<br />
[[Category:Self-reference]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1685:_Patch&diff=1207961685: Patch2016-05-25T13:01:50Z<p>173.245.54.30: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1685<br />
| date = May 25, 2016<br />
| title = Patch<br />
| image = patch.png<br />
| titletext = My optimizer uses content-aware inpainting to fill in all the wasted whitespace in the code, repeating the process until it compiles.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
<br />
{{w|Adobe Photoshop}} is a commonly used software for image manipulation. One of its features is "content-aware inpainting", which allows the user to delete parts of the image and seamlessly replacing the deleted sections with "patches" of texture from other parts of the image. <br />
<br />
The {{w|GNU}} {{w|Patch (Unix)|patch}} is a software program that replaces only parts of the code with an updated version, without requiring the user to download the entire source code. Here, it appears the author was told to "patch" the code, but used Photoshop to do this instead of GNU patch, with devastating results. Although the title text suggest that if you did this enough times the code would eventually compile, this would never happen... In fact, Photoshop could only edit an image of the text and not the text itself.<br />
<br />
The code appears to be written in {{w|Python_(programming_language)|Python}}, a programming language often referred to in xkcd.. A few of the function names that can be recognized are "isPrime" and "quicksort", both commonly used in solving programming contest problems.<br />
<br />
The title text also explains that patch used the content-aware inpainting to fill in all the wasted whitespace in the code. In Python, whitespaces are used as a part of programming syntax (for example, new line of code are used instead of semicolon (;), and indents are used instead of curly brackets.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[The panel displays part of a code, in four different colors (red, light blue, green and purple) as well as normal black text, which due to image editing is difficult to read. The first and last line are partly obscured by the frame of the panel. Here below is an attempt to transcribe the code, using the sign "¤" for anything not easily transcribed. Feel free to add other signs instead of these that looks more like the one in the image (and also improve the attempted transcription if possible).]<br />
:<font color="red">impo¤l <font color="purple">me<br />
:<font color="red">doo<font color="purple">PisPS¤me</font></font></font></font>(n):<br />
:::<font color="red">r</font>(<font color="purple">¤</font>n<font color="red"><</font>n,<font color="light blue">1</font>:<br />
:::::<font color="red">retern</font> <font color="light blue">F</font>(<font color="light blue">ise</font><br />
:::<font color="red">for</font> i <font color="red">ir<font color="light blue">ararre</font></font>(<font color="light blue">2</font>, <font color="light blue">nint</font> <font color="red">*</font>n<font color="red">**</font>n<font color="red">+</font><font color="light blue">5</font>)<font color="red">+</font><font color="light blue">5</font>):<br />
:::::<font color="red">if</font> n i<font color="red">==<font color="light blue">0</font></font><br />
:::::::<font color="red">ret¤¤nrs<font color="light blue">elsel</font></font>:<br />
:::<font color="red">re¤ irn <font color="light blue">True</font></font><br />
:<font color="red">defe<font color="purple">sisPrimcieg ¤x</font></font>(c<font color="purple">x</font><br />
:::<font color="red">if</font> <font color="purple">g</font>e<font color="purple">¤i</font>natc<font color="purple">x</font>(<font color="red">r</font>'<font color="light blue">^<font color="blue">(1<font color="red">?| ?.<font color="blue">1<font color="red">+?<font color="blue">)<font color="gree">\+<font color="blue">)<font color="light blue">$</font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font>'<font color="red">*</font>n <font color="blue">)1'<font color="red">*</font></font>n):<br />
:::::<font color="red">rerjrn <font color="light blue">Fa<font color="blue">(</font> e</font></font><br />
:::<font color="red">Letyl<font color="purple">nr<font color="light blue">Trl</font></font></font><br />
:<font color="red">dq<font color="purple">l qlsorsor<font color="light blue">n</font></font></font>(a :<br />
:::<font color="red">if <font color="light blue">¤n</font></font>(a <font color="red">< <font color="light blue">2</font></font>:<br />
:::::<font color="red">eteturn </font>a<br />
:::pi<font color="red">= =r f</font>a[<font color="light blue">0</font>]<br />
:::l<font color="red">=</font>pi<font color="red">=for</font> j <font color="red">ln</font> a i<font color="red"><</font> i<font color="red"><</font>pi<font color="red"><</font>(t]<small>(</small>)<br />
:::r<font color="red">=</font>[l<font color="red">=for f in</font> a) <font color="red">r</font> i<font color="red">></font>viviv]<small>(</small>vo)<br />
:::mid<font color="red">=</font>[pi[<font color="red">*</font>t]<font color="red">*</font>(<font color="light blue">l</font><font color="red">*</font>t<font color="light blue">,</font>(a)<font color="red">-</font>(<font color="light blue">len</font>pi<font color="light blue">enlen</font>(c)))<br />
:::<font color="red">r¤lrurrr</font>iklcksckt(l) <font color="red">+</font> r ¤ ¤quickrort(r)<br />
<br />
:[Caption below the panel:]<br />
:Protip: If you don't have access to the GNU ''patch'' tool, you can use the Photoshop one.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]<br />
[[Category:Protip]]<br />
[[Category:Programming]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1681:_Laser_Products&diff=1207951681: Laser Products2016-05-25T13:00:50Z<p>173.245.54.30: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1681<br />
| date = May 16, 2016<br />
| title = Laser Products<br />
| image = laser_products.png<br />
| titletext = ERRORS: HAIR JAM. COLOR-SAFE CONDITIONER CARTRIDGE RUNNING LOW. LEGAL-SIZE HAIR TRAY EMPTY, USING LETTER-SIZE HAIR ONLY.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
This comic takes three laser-based technologies - laser eye surgery, laserjet printers, and laser hair removal - and conflates them, with humorous results. These are illustrated through reviews by users of the resulting combinations. For the original combinations, the reviews are highly positive. For the new combinations, most are negative, because most of these new "technologies" are ill-conceived and possibly harmful.<br />
<br />
'''Laser eye surgery''' gets a positive review, since it has successfully corrected the reviewer's vision, no longer requiring them to use glasses. However, '''laser eye removal''' would be very painful, and thus the review is negative, stating that the reviewer had read the description incorrectly, likely believing it to be one of the real combinations on the chart. This is not the first time laser eye removal has been mentioned, see the lower right part in the [[1619: Watson Medical Algorithm]] chart. '''Laser eye printer''' refers to printing on (or possibly ''of'') an eyeball, which gets an "Eww" response.<br />
<br />
'''Laser jet surgery''' makes the reviewer nervous, as performing maintenance on a jet with lasers is potentially dangerous and could easily be done incorrectly. {{Citation needed}} Alternatively, laser jet surgery could mean laser surgery done on a human from a jet aircraft with a laser mounted to it (unspecified whether the human being operated on is aboard that aircraft as well, another aircraft, or on land: in any case, not a safe idea). The ambiguity of the phrase may contribute to the person's concern. '''Laser jet removal''' implies the destruction of jets with lasers, which works, but angers the Federal Aviation Administration, and probably resulted in legal consequences for the reviewer. '''Laserjet printing''' gets a positive review, as it is legitimate printing technology that works well for the reviewer.<br />
<br />
The '''Laser Jet Removal''' may refer to [https://www.faa.gov/about/initiatives/lasers/ the real FAA concern] of the many incidents [http://www.laserpointersafety.com/laser-hazards_aircraft/laser-hazards_aircraft.html of people using laser pointers] against aircraft.<br />
<br />
'''Laser hair surgery''' is rated neutrally, with the reviewer pointing out that they consider the phrase to be bizarre and they note that the using a laser to cut hair results in a smell of burning hair. '''Laser hair removal''' is reviewed well, as it is a real process that effectively removes unwanted hair. '''Laser hair printer''' is negatively reviewed for being disgusting, the printer jamming, and the machine being unable to stop printing the hair. <br />
<br />
The title text expands on the laser hair printer from the last entrance, displaying standard printer error messages, replacing "paper" with "hair". It also replaces "ink" with "color-safe conditioner". <br />
<br />
===Laser eye surgery===<br />
<br />
LASIK, one of the more common laser eye surgeries, works by cutting open the cornea and ablating a small amount of the lens. Lasers are used for both steps. This, or equivalent, is the referenced surgery. There are other laser eye surgeries for various other conditions besides near- and far-sightedness.<br />
<br />
===Laserjet printing===<br />
<br />
LaserJet is a brand name used by Hewlett Packard (HP) for its line of laser printers.<br />
<br />
Laser printing is an electrostatic digital printing process. It produces high-quality text and graphics (and moderate-quality photographs) by repeatedly passing a laser beam back and forth over a negatively charged cylinder called a "drum" to define a differentially-charged image. The drum then selectively collects electrically charged powdered ink (toner), and transfers the image to paper, which is then heated in order to permanently fuse the text and/or imagery. As with digital photocopiers and multifunction/all-in-one inkjet printers, laser printers employ a xerographic printing process. However, laser printing differs from analog photocopiers in that the image is produced by the direct scanning of the medium across the printer's photoreceptor. This enables laser printing to copy images more quickly than most photocopiers.<br />
<br />
===Laser hair removal===<br />
<br />
Laser hair removal is the process of removing unwanted hair by means of exposure to pulses of laser light that destroy the hair follicle. It had been performed experimentally for about twenty years before becoming commercially available in the mid-1990s. One of the first published articles describing laser hair removal was authored by the group at Massachusetts General Hospital in 1998.The efficacy of laser hair removal is now generally accepted in the dermatology community,[citation needed] and laser hair removal is widely practiced in clinics, and even in homes using devices designed and priced for consumer self-treatment. Many reviews of laser hair removal methods, safety, and efficacy have been published in the dermatology literature.<br />
<br />
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laser_Weapon_System Laser Jet Removal] (Although it's primarily meant to be used against jet ''missiles'' not jet planes (as the FAA quip suggests)<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Heading above the table:]<br />
:Online Reviews of Laser Products<br />
<br />
:[A three by three table with one word to the far left, from which three lines split out and goes to three words just left of each of the three rows. Above each column is three other words. Below in the table are nine reviews with star rating on a five star scale. The actual rating is indicated with black stars and also use half filled stars in the rating system. The ratings are written in the table in square brackets.]<br />
:{| class="wikitable"<br />
! <br />
! <br />
! ...surgery<br />
! ...removal<br />
! ...printer<br />
|-<br />
!rowspan="3"|Laser<br />
! eye...<br />
| [4 1/2 stars]<br>"I don't need<br>glasses anymore!"<br><br> || [1/2 star]<br>"Aaaaaaa! Misread<br>the description!<br>Aaaaaaaaaaaa!!" || [1 star]<br>"Eww."<br><br><br><br />
|-<br />
! jet...<br />
| [1 1/2 stars]<br>"Too nervous<br>to try it."<br><br> || [2 1/2 stars]<br>"Effective, but<br>the FAA got<br>''really'' mad." || [4 stars]<br>"Prints great!"<br><br><br><br />
|-<br />
! hair...<br />
| [2 1/2 stars]<br>"Confusing term<br>for haircut.<br>Burning smell." || [4 stars]<br>"Great results!"<br><br><br> || [1/2 star]<br>"Disgusting, won't<br>turn off, jams<br>constantly."<br><br />
|-<br />
|}<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Charts]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=378:_Real_Programmers&diff=120793378: Real Programmers2016-05-25T12:51:25Z<p>173.245.54.30: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 378<br />
| date = February 1, 2008<br />
| title = Real Programmers<br />
| image = real_programmers.png<br />
| titletext = Real programmers set the universal constants at the start such that the universe evolves to contain the disk with the data they want.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
<br />
This comic satirises the mythical {{w|Real Programmer}}. To quote Wikipedia, "the term Real Programmer is computer programmers' folklore to describe the archetypical 'hardcore' programmer who eschews the modern languages and tools of the day in favour of more direct and efficient solutions". The implication is that modern programmers are coddled by today's tools of the trade, which eschew detailed understanding for simple workflows. {{w|GNU nano}} is a {{w|text editor}} - a program often used to edit the source code of other programs; it is modern, simple, and easy-to-use. {{w|Emacs}} and {{w|Vim (text editor)|Vim}} are also text editors, and {{w|ed (text editor)|ed}} is a {{w|line editor}}. These represent progressively more "old school" solutions to the problem of editing code. {{w|cat (Unix)|cat}} is a Unix program that concatenates and outputs the contents of files. Things get steadily more ridiculous from here. Using a magnetised needle to flip bits on a hard drive requires nanometric precision and intuitive mastery of binary code, but in the early days of programming people did use needles sometimes to fix bugs on {{w|Punched card|Punched cards}}. The use of a magnetized needle may also be a reference to the {{w|Apollo Guidance Computer|Apollo AGC guidance computer}}, whose instructions were physically written as patterns of wires looped around or through cylindrical magnets in order to record binary code.<br />
<br />
The above-mentioned methods are the ones mentioned in the comic. The first is used by the a man sitting at his desk. Followed by [[Megan]], two others and [[Hairbun]]. <br />
<br />
The final character suggests the utterly surreal idea of using butterflies; he is referring to the {{w|Butterfly effect in popular culture|Butterfly effect}}, a "phenomenon whereby a minor change in circumstances can cause a large change in outcome". The joke at this point relies on stretching the connection between the ideas of "difficult-to-use" and "requires detailed understanding of underlying principles", to suggest that not only do ''Real'' Programmers know everything about how computers work, but they know how to manipulate the ambient physical environment in elaborate ways to cause computers to do what they want, akin to performing {{w|trick shot}}s that accomplish feats of programming.<br />
<br />
However, this type of programming has already been implemented as an emacs command, which is stated by another character as: ''C-x M-c M-butterfly...'' To this the final programmer can only say ''Dammit, Emacs.'' as this has just proven that real programmers use Emacs...<br />
<br />
{{w|GNU Emacs}} is a popular editor known for its vast profusion of features and extensions to perform all sorts of functions beyond simple text editing, and is widely regarded as one of the best examples of software which succeeds despite being totally riddled with {{w|Feature creep|featuritis}}. It is likely that [[Randall]] really thought this was a great tool at the time of this comic.<br />
<br />
Emacs commands are usually referred to by the key sequence required to activate them, such as "C-x M-c" (Control-x Meta-c, though this exact key sequence is a bit different from most Emacs commands). The macro referenced is a pun on the play/movie titled "{{w|M. Butterfly}}". The butterfly programmer saying "Dammit, Emacs" plays on Emacs' notoriety for its kitchen sink design approach of tossing in all the features and options that anybody might ever conceivably want. By way of example, later versions of Emacs actually added a totally useless "M-x butterfly" command as an easter egg, in reference to this very comic: see the [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQtxhuX6ano YouTube demo] and [http://www.screenr.com/a2s screenr demo].<br />
<br />
To cap this the title text suggests manipulating the {{w|Physical constant|universal constants}} in order to create a universe in which the required computer data will exist. The programmers shown may even represent the fulfillment of this master programmers plan. The universe may have been designed in such a way that the programmers ancestry would result in his parents, who would meet and have a child, who would learn programming and eventually find himself in a position where he undertakes the task of creating a program, which fills the disk with the desired data. In tandem, of course, all of the people involved with creating and developing all the required hardware, software, raw materials, computer science, electricity, logic (etc., etc., etc.) would have to be part of the master plan. Put simply, it would probably be simpler just to use Emacs. To put it theologically this Real Programmer would be called God.<br />
<br />
[[505: A Bunch of Rocks]] features Cueball as a ''Real'' Programmer, who designs the universe out of boredom as a simulation made of rocks. He would also be a God of our universe, although he did run it as a simulation just by setting the physical constants.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[A Cueball like man sits at a computer, programming. Cueball stands behind him and looks over his shoulder.]<br />
:Cueball: <code>nano</code>? Real Programmers use <code>emacs</code>.<br />
<br />
:[Megan appears behind him.]<br />
:Megan: Hey. <u>Real</u> Programmers use <code>vim</code>.<br />
<br />
:[A second Cueball like man appears behind her.]<br />
:Ed Cueball: Well, <u>Real</u> Programmers use <code>ed</code>.<br />
<br />
:[A third Cueball like man appears behind him.]<br />
:Cat Cueball: No, Real Programmers use <code>cat</code>.<br />
<br />
:[Hairbun appears behind him.]<br />
:Hairbun: <u>Real</u> Programmers use a magnetized needle and a steady hand.<br />
<br />
:[A fourth Cueball like man enters, facing them all. We see him facing the last two Cueball like men and Hairbun.]<br />
:Butterfly Cueball: Excuse me, but <u>Real</u> Programmers use butterflies.<br />
<br />
:[A Cueball like programmer is standing and holding out a butterfly in front of his computer. The butterfly flaps its wings.]<br />
:Butterfly Cueball (narrating off-screen): They open their hands and let the delicate wings flap once.<br />
<br />
:[The next two panels are smaller and the two texts below are written uninterrupted respectively above and below both panels. The first panel is the Cueball like programmer with the butterfly, and above him four curved arrows pointing up or down. The second panel shows the upper atmosphere, with large clouds far below and the earth even further down. Also here are shown seven of the same type of arrows.]<br />
:Butterfly Cueball (narrating off-screen): The disturbances ripple outward, changing the flow of the eddy currents in the upper atmosphere.<br />
:Butterfly Cueball (narrating off-screen): These cause momentary pockets of higher-pressure air to form,<br />
<br />
:[Also the next two panels are smaller and the texts below are written uninterrupted above both panels. The first panel shows the atmosphere, again with clouds, and four parallel lines coming from above, and then they begin to merge, getting quite close at the bottom of the panel. The second panel shows the four lines merging on a driver platter.]<br />
:Butterfly Cueball (narrating off-screen): Which act as lenses that deflect incoming cosmic rays, focusing them to strike the drive platter and flip the desired bit.<br />
<br />
:[All the programmers who has commented so far stands in the order they have commented facing the last Cueball like man who slaps his forehead.]<br />
:Cueball: Nice. 'Course, there's an Emacs command to do that.<br />
:Cat Cueball: Oh yeah! Good ol' C-x M-c M-butterfly...<br />
:Butterfly Cueball: Dammit, Emacs.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairbun]]<br />
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]<br />
[[Category:Programming]]<br />
[[Category:Emacs]]<br />
[[Category:Science]]<br />
[[Category:Animals]]<br />
[[Category:Physics]]<br />
[[Category:Rankings]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1679:_Substitutions_3&diff=1207901679: Substitutions 32016-05-25T12:43:01Z<p>173.245.54.30: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1679<br />
| date = May 11, 2016<br />
| title = Substitutions 3<br />
| image = substitutions_3.png<br />
| titletext = BREAKING: Channing Tatum and his friends explore haunted city<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
This is the third time [[Randall]] has suggested substitutions that will make reading the news more fun. This time it will be even '''more''' fun!{{Citation needed}} It began with [[1288: Substitutions]] which was followed more recently by [[1625: Substitutions 2]].<br />
<br />
The title text in original form would be "Scientists explore ancient city", which most would consider a fairly bland headline. Two days before this comic came out, there was [http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/forgotten-mayan-city-discovered-in-central-america-by-15-year-old-a7021291.html news] that a potential ancient Mayan city had been found by a 15 year old boy through satellite imagery, which may be what Randall was referencing. The Mayan city has now been proven inexistent. Imagining Channing Tatum and his "friends", and pretending that the city is haunted, provides a much more dramatic setting mirroring many episodes (and later films) of ''Scooby Doo'' featuring a gang of friends (Mysteries, Inc.).<br />
<br />
===Table of Substitutions===<br />
{| class="wikitable" border="1" cellpadding="4" style="border-collapse: collapse;"<br />
|-<br />
! Original word/phrase !! Meaning !! Substitution !! New meaning<br />
|-<br />
| Gaffe || A social mistake, faux pas || Magic spell || A form of sorcery<br />
|-<br />
| Ancient || Very old || Haunted || Occupied by ghosts, spirits, etc., spooky<br />
|-<br />
| Star-studded || Featuring a lot of popular celebrities || Blood-soaked || <br />
Full of blood, or a place where a lot of violent deaths occurred<br />
|-<br />
| Remains to be seen || Unknown as of yet, speculative || Will never be known || Can never be determined, final statement indicating we've given up trying to understand, etc.<br />
|-<br />
| Silver bullet || Perfect solution || Way to kill werewolves || In {{w|werewolf}} folklore, a {{w|silver bullet}} was usually the only way to actually kill a werewolf. The phrase "silver bullet" is usually used to mean something like "perfect solution" &mdash; this substitution suggests the more literal meaning of the phrase.<br />
|-<br />
| Subway system || A network of underground tunnels for commuter trains || Tunnels I found || A more personal and colloquial way to refer to underground tunnels, as though they had just been discovered for the first time.<br />
|-<br />
| Surprising || Unexpected || Surprising (but not to me) || The speaker/writer claims that everyone else is surprised by something, but he/she had anticipated it all along.<br />
|-<br />
| War of words || Public arguments, smear campaigns, etc. || Interplanetary war || A major conflict involving the civilizations of multiple planets. ({{w|Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy|"Well, that escalated quickly."}})<br />
|-<br />
| Tension || Anxiety, conflict between people or groups || Sexual tension || Situation in which two or more people attempt to avoid acknowledging being sexually attracted each other.<br />
|-<br />
| Cautiously optimistic || A guarded statement of optimism about a situation || Delusional || Firmly believing something in spite of clear evidence to the contrary<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Doctor Who}} || Popular sci-fi TV series about time travel || {{w|The Big Bang Theory}} || A different TV comedy series about scientifically-gifted and socially awkward friends.<br />
|-<br />
| Win votes || To make a politician more popular and more likely to win an election || Find {{w|Pokémon}} || To collect virtual creatures in a popular video game series<br />
|-<br />
| Behind the headlines || Usually, to go into greater depth on a news story || Beyond the grave || To communicate with (or experience) life after death<br />
|-<br />
| Email / {{w|Facebook}} post / {{w|Twitter|Tweet}} || All forms of electronic communication. The last two are forms of social networking. || Poem || An artistic form of writing that usually involves rhyming and meter.<br />
|-<br />
| Facebook CEO || At time of writing, {{w|Mark Zuckerberg}} || This guy || Any generic person. Sometimes used in a derogatory fashion, or to refer to one's self.<br />
|-<br />
| Latest || The most recent in a series || Final || The last entry in a series (as in, there won't be any more).<br />
|-<br />
| Disrupt || Interrupt, temporarily hinder || Destroy || Make completely inoperable, remove all trace of, etc.<br />
|-<br />
| Meeting || A gathering of people to discuss a topic, as in business || Ménage à trois || One or more sex acts performed among three people.<br />
|-<br />
| Scientists || A group of people considered authorities in various scientific realms of study || {{w|Channing Tatum}} and his friends || A famous actor and a group of people closely associated with him. The name was likely chosen at random.<br />
|-<br />
| You won't believe || A catchphrase used in "click-bait" headlines to attract attention and traffic || I'm really sad about || A different catchphrase expressing disappointment in the topic<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Real life examples===<br />
*Remains to be seen ➜ Will never be known<br />
**[http://english.cri.cn/12394/2016/04/30/4203s926079.htm Japan's Sincerity in Improving Bilateral Ties Will Never Be Known]<br />
*Cautiously optimistic ➜ Delusional<br />
**[http://jewishvoiceny.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=14455:london-jews-cautiously-optimistic-about-first-ever-muslim-mayor&catid=106:international&Itemid=289 London Jews Delusional About First-Ever Muslim Mayor]<br />
*Silver Bullet ➜ Way to Kill Werewolves<br />
**[http://moneymorning.com/2016/05/10/why-no-silver-bullet-will-ever-kill-crude-oil/ Why no Way to Kill Werewolves will Kill Crude Oil]<br />
* Tension ➜ Sexual Tension; Meeting ➜ Ménage à Trois<br />
**[http://townhall.com/tipsheet/cortneyobrien/2016/05/09/2016-race-roundup-tension-between-trumpryan-ahead-of-thursday-meeting-n2160407 Sexual Tension Between Trump-Ryan Ahead of Thursday Ménage à Trois]<br />
*Gaffe ➜ Magic Spell<br />
**[http://www.theguardian.com/politics/blog/2016/may/11/david-cameron-corruption-remark-gaffe Was David Cameron's corruption remark really a magic spell?]<br />
*Ancient ➜ Haunted<br />
**[http://gizmodo.com/teen-discovers-lost-maya-city-using-ancient-star-maps-1775735999 Teen Discovers Lost Maya City Using Haunted Star Maps]<br />
*Star-Studded ➜ Blood-Soaked<br />
**[http://ewn.co.za/2016/05/11/Woody-Allen-tops-bill-at-star-studded-Cannes-festival Woody Allen tops bill at blood-soaked Cannes Festival]<br />
*Subway system ➜ Tunnels I found<br />
**[http://pix11.com/2016/05/09/dhs-releasing-harmless-gas-in-nyc-subway-system-to-test-bioterror-airflow/ DHS releasing harmless gas in NYC tunnels I found to prepare for possible attack]<br />
*Surprising ➜ Surprising (but not to me)<br />
**[http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2016/05/11/476198119/a-surprising-japanese-presence-in-central-ohio A Surprising (But Not to Me) Japanese Presence In Central Ohio]<br />
*War of Words ➜ Interplanetary War<br />
**[http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Coimbatore/road-caves-in-leading-to-war-of-words-between-aiadmk-and-dmk/article8577830.ece Road caves in leading to interplanetary war between AIADMK and DMK]<br />
*Tension ➜ Sexual Tension<br />
**[http://allafrica.com/stories/201605111244.html Uganda: Use Swearing-in to Ease Sexual Tension]<br />
*Doctor Who ➜ The Big Bang Theory<br />
**[http://www.themarysue.com/doctor-who-trans-identity/ On The Big Bang Theory and My Struggle With My Trans Identity]<br />
*Win votes ➜ Find Pokémon<br />
**[http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/14479510.Jeremy_Corbyn_must_urgently_develop_strategy_to_win_votes__warns_failed_leadership_candidate_Yvette_Cooper/ Labour's Jeremy Corbyn must urgently develop strategy to find Pokémon, warns failed leadership candidate Yvette Cooper]<br />
*Behind the headlines ➜ Beyond the grave<br />
**[http://www.theyeshivaworld.com/news/headlines-breaking-stories/411443/behind-the-headlines-the-erev-pesach-story-we-all-should-be-talking-about.html Beyond the Grave: The Erev Pesach Story We All Should Be Talking About]<br />
*Email / Facebook Post / Tweet ➜ Poem<br />
**[http://www.cbsnews.com/news/wtae-anchor-and-reporter-wendy-bell-apologizes-for-facebook-post-that-could-be-viewed-as-racist/ TV anchor admits poem about fatal shooting "could be viewed as racist"]<br />
*Facebook CEO ➜ This guy<br />
**[http://hotair.com/archives/2016/05/10/senator-thune-demands-answers-from-facebook-about-news-bias/ Senator Thune demands answers from this guy about news bias]<br />
*Latest ➜ Final<br />
**[http://www.engadget.com/2016/05/11/garmin-forerunner-735xt-running-watch/ Garmin's final running watch tracks your suffering]<br />
*Disrupt ➜ Destroy<br />
**[https://news.fastcompany.com/amazon-thinks-it-can-disrupt-youtube-4006719 Amazon thinks it can destroy YouTube]<br />
*Scientists ➜ Channing Tatum and his friends<br />
**[http://www.futurity.org/memory-acetylcholine-ptsd-1159862-2/ Channing Tatum and his friends test a way to erase scary memories]<br />
*You won't believe ➜ I'm really sad about<br />
**[http://www.komando.com/happening-now/357958/iphone-7-rumor-you-wont-believe-what-it-looks-like iPhone 7 rumor: I'm really sad about what it looks like]<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Caption above the panel:]<br />
:Even More <br />
:<big>'''Substitutions'''</big><br />
:That make reading the news more fun<br />
<br />
:[A table of words/sentences on the left that change in to those on the left. Between each set of words there is an arrow pointing from right.]<br />
:{|<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Gaffe<br />
| ➜ <br />
| Magic spell<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Ancient<br />
| ➜ <br />
| Haunted<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Star-Studded<br />
| ➜ <br />
| Blood-soaked<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Remains to be seen<br />
| ➜ <br />
| Will never be known<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Silver bullet<br />
| ➜ <br />
| Way to kill werewolves<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Subway system<br />
| ➜ <br />
| Tunnels I found<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Surprising<br />
| ➜ <br />
| Surprising (but not to me)<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | War of words<br />
| ➜ <br />
| Interplanetary war<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Tension<br />
| ➜ <br />
| Sexual tension<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Cautiously optimistic<br />
| ➜ <br />
| Delusional<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Doctor Who<br />
| ➜ <br />
| The Big Bang Theory<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Win votes<br />
| ➜ <br />
| Find Pokémon<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Behind the headlines<br />
| ➜ <br />
| Beyond the grave<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Email \<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Facebook Post <br />
| ➜ <br />
| Poem<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Tweet /<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Facebook CEO<br />
| ➜ <br />
| This guy<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Latest<br />
| ➜ <br />
| Final<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Disrupt<br />
| ➜ <br />
| Destroy<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Meeting<br />
| ➜ <br />
| Ménage à trois<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Scientists<br />
| ➜ <br />
| Channing Tatum<br> and his friends<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | You won't believe<br />
| ➜ <br />
| I'm really sad about<br />
|}<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Charts]]<br />
[[Category:Substitutions]]<br />
[[Category:Comics sharing name|Substitutions]]<br />
[[Category:Language]]<br />
[[Category:Science]]<br />
[[Category:Politics]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]] <!--Channing Tatum--><br />
[[Category:Pokémon]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1288:_Substitutions&diff=1199681288: Substitutions2016-05-11T21:29:48Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1288<br />
| date = November 8, 2013<br />
| title = Substitutions<br />
| image = substitutions.png<br />
| titletext = INSIDE ELON MUSK'S NEW ATOMIC CAT<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
There are now two sequels: [[1625: Substitutions 2]], and [[1679: Substitutions 3]]. But there have been several [[:Category:Substitutions|comics using substitutions]] both before and after these ones.<br />
<br />
[[Randall]] is playing off of the fact that many readers of modern news articles quickly become bored with the legal and political jargon. He suggests that by substituting certain words for others can make reading the article more interesting, albeit less accurate. Although since Randall doesn't think very highly of the news, he's probably suggesting this chart wouldn't make them less accurate at all. (See for instance [[558: 1000 Times]] and [[932: CIA]]).<br />
<br />
For example, a sentence that reads<br />
:Witnesses reported that the suspect allegedly escaped unharmed.<br />
would be changed to<br />
:These dudes I know reported that the suspect kinda probably escaped unharmed.<br />
<br />
This substitution does not change the meaning much, and the original sentence does not lose much of its accuracy. However, for substitutions later in the comic, a sentence may be changed as following<br />
:A new study finds that senators and other congressional leaders are increasingly likely to view election results on their smartphone.<br />
into<br />
:A Tumblr post finds that elf-lords and other river spirits are increasingly likely to view eating contest results on their Pokédex.<br />
<br />
Which is less meaningful, but more interesting.<br />
<br />
The final substitution returns from the realm of the ridiculous to replacing "could not be reached for comment" with "is guilty and everyone knows it." If a journalist writes a story about an accused suspect but is unable to contact them or receives no response from them, they will write that the person "could not be reached for comment." Randall's whimsical assumption that silence implies guilt is so common that juries are instructed that they should not infer guilt if the defendant fails to testify, particularly in nations which have a right against self-incrimination.<br />
<br />
[https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/xkcd-substitutions/jkgogmboalmaijfgfhfepckdgjeopfhk?hl=en&gl=001 Chrome] and [https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/xkcd-substitutions/?src=ss Firefox] extensions are available for applying the substitutions on webpages.<br />
<br />
'Spaaace' could be a reference to the Space Core from {{w|Portal 2}}, or to the way {{w|The Muppet Show}} presented [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHsr7Chmff8 Pigs in Spaaace].<br />
<br />
The {{w|Virtual Boy}} is a table-top video game console made by Nintendo released in 1995, and discontinued about the same year. It achieved true-3D graphics through the use of a large visor containing a pair of LED screens.<br />
<br />
The Pokédex is a device in the {{w|Pokémon|Pokémon world}} that records the data of captured Pokémon.<br />
<br />
{{w|Homestar Runner}} is the title character of a Flash-animated web cartoon series, known for being an idiot.<br />
<br />
In the title text {{w|Elon Musk}} is mentioned. He is (amongst other things) the CEO of {{w|Tesla Motors}}, which produces electric cars. In the title text the sentence "Electric cars" was replaced by "atomic cats" according to the chart of the comic.<br />
<br />
News reports about new studies ({{w|Tumblr}} posts) are further lampooned in [[1295: New Study]], a comic posted two weeks later.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Caption above the panel:]<br />
:'''Substitutions''' that make reading the news more fun:<br />
<br />
:[A table of words/sentences on the left that change in to those on the left. Between each set of words there is a gray arrow pointing from right.]<br />
:{|<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Witnesses<br />
| <font color="gray">➜</font><br />
| These dudes I know<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Allegedly<br />
| <font color="gray">➜</font><br />
| Kinda probably<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | New study<br />
| <font color="gray">➜</font><br />
| Tumblr post<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Rebuild<br />
| <font color="gray">➜</font><br />
| Avenge<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Space<br />
| <font color="gray">➜</font><br />
| Spaaace<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Google Glass<br />
| <font color="gray">➜</font><br />
| Virtual Boy<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Smartphone<br />
| <font color="gray">➜</font><br />
| Pokédex<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Electric<br />
| <font color="gray">➜</font><br />
| Atomic<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Senator<br />
| <font color="gray">➜</font><br />
| Elf-lord<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Car<br />
| <font color="gray">➜</font><br />
| Cat<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Election<br />
| <font color="gray">➜</font><br />
| Eating contest<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Congressional leaders<br />
| <font color="gray">➜</font><br />
| River spirits<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Homeland security<br />
| <font color="gray">➜</font><br />
| Homestar Runner<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Could not be reached for comment<br />
| <font color="gray">➜</font><br />
| Is guilty and everyone knows it<br />
|}<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Substitutions]]<br />
[[Category:Language]]<br />
[[Category:Video games]]<br />
[[Category:Pokémon]]<br />
[[Category:Politics]]<br />
[[Category:Charts]]<br />
[[Category:Comics sharing name|Substitutions]]<br />
[[Category:Animals]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Elon Musk]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1338:_Land_Mammals&diff=1189121338: Land Mammals2016-04-27T21:49:52Z<p>173.245.54.30: We'll never be able to guess all the unlabeled animals, so there's no point in trying. Besides, we will never know if any of our guesses are right or not, so this whole ordeal is just a bunch of spec</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1338<br />
| date = March 5, 2014<br />
| title = Land Mammals<br />
| image = land_mammals.png<br />
| titletext = Bacteria still outweigh us thousands to one--and that's not even counting the several pounds of them in your body.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
This comic shows the total weight of {{w|Human|mankind}} and all other land {{w|mammals}}. Only a few centuries ago, {{w|humans}}, their {{w|pets}} and {{w|livestock}} came to make up a great proportion of the earth's land mammal {{w|biomass}}. Note that only land-dwelling mammals are taken into account, so for instance {{w|whales}} and {{w|sea cows}} will not be included. (Whether this only covers animals that cannot live on land or any {{w|marine mammals}} like for stance {{w|Pinniped|seals}} and {{w|walrus}}, is not clear).<br />
<br />
The design of the blocks loosely resembles a {{w|Cell (biology)|cell}}. This could be a reference to how these animals support humans, analogous to a cell supporting a central nucleus. If so, it seems that all the animals in this diagram, {{w|wild animals|wild}} or {{w|Domestication|domestic}}, in some way support human activity.<br />
<br />
The title text states that {{w|bacteria}} outweigh us thousands to one, without counting the several pounds of {{w|Human microbiota|bacteria in our body}} that are considered part of our own weight (like {{w|Gut flora}}). The aforementioned cell could also be a bacterium, making it a possible reference to the title text, since 1256 blocks have been used to sketch the "cell", and bacteria outweigh us by about this factor.<br />
<br />
This comic may be a [[Nerd Sniping|nerd snipe]] from [[Randall]], challenging his readers to figure out the missing parts.<br />
<br />
Randall also discusses animal biomass in [http://whatif.xkcd.com/123/ Fairy Demographics] in which he compares the biomass of "fairies" to humans, horses, and humpback whales.<br />
<br />
===Weight===<br />
According to the diagram, there are 358 million tons of humans, 864 million tons of pets and livestock, of which 520 million tons comes from {{w|cattle}}, and 34 million tons of wild animals; for a total of 1.256 billion tons.<br />
The number of blocks represents the weight of the group in millions of tons = billions of kg. Note that some entries have the same number of blocks, and thus have the same rank.<br />
<br />
====Humans====<br />
Cattle, in aggregate, are much heavier than the human population. Humans outweigh both {{w|sheep}} and {{w|Domestic pig|pigs}} put together. This may be a surprise for people in the countries that produce the majority of meat from such animals, because here these animals outweigh the population. But there are many parts of the world where especially pigs are not eaten, and it is not every where that sheep is in great demand. And especially in the some of the most populations dense regions in the {{w|Third World}} meat is not something you can afford to eat on a regular basis.<br />
<br />
====Our pets and livestock====<br />
There are 13 distinct blocks of pets and live stock; only the top 5 are labeled - in order of weight they are: Cattle, Sheep, Pigs, {{w|Goats}} and {{w|Horses}}. Cattle, in aggregate, are much heavier than the human population, which has been inserted in the table for comparison:<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="width: auto; text-align: center; font-size: 95%; table-layout: fixed; line-height:1.25"<br />
|-<br />
! Total&nbsp;Rank<br />
! Weight&nbsp; (Millions of tons)<br />
! Name<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00001|1}}<br />
| {{sort|00520|520}}<br />
| Cattle<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00001|2}}<br />
| {{sort|00358|358}}<br />
| (Humans)<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00003|3}}<br />
| {{sort|00135|135}}<br />
| Sheep<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00004|4}}<br />
| {{sort|00090|90}}<br />
| Pigs<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00005|5}}<br />
| {{sort|00039|39}}<br />
| Goats<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00006|6}}<br />
| {{sort|00029|29}}<br />
| Horses<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00007|7}}<br />
| {{sort|00013|13}}<br />
| Unlabeled<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00009|9}}<br />
| {{sort|00008|8}}<br />
| Unlabeled<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00010|10}}<br />
| {{sort|00007|7}}<br />
| Unlabeled<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00010|10}}<br />
| {{sort|00007|7}}<br />
| Unlabeled<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00013|13}}<br />
| {{sort|00006|6}}<br />
| Unlabeled<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00014|14}}<br />
| {{sort|00005|5}}<br />
| Unlabeled<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00017|17}}<br />
| {{sort|00003|3}}<br />
| Unlabeled<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00019|19}}<br />
| {{sort|00002|2}}<br />
| Unlabeled<br />
|-<br />
|}<br />
<br />
====Wild Animals====<br />
There are 8 distinct blocks of wild animal ({{w|elephants}} and 7 others). The elephant is the only type of wild animal to be singled out in the comic. This may possibly be due to elephants being the largest land mammal. And yes, the world's heaviest land animal only takes up one square. Also interesting is that the largest group of wild animals only comes in on a tied 8 place in the ranking (which is shared between the two tables).<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="width: auto; text-align: center; font-size: 95%; table-layout: fixed; line-height:1.25"<br />
|-<br />
! Rank<br />
! Weight&nbsp; (Millions of tons)<br />
! Name<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00008|8}}<br />
| {{sort|00010|10}}<br />
| Unlabeled<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00010|10}}<br />
| {{sort|00007|7}}<br />
| Unlabeled<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00014|14}}<br />
| {{sort|00005|5}}<br />
| Unlabeled<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00016|16}}<br />
| {{sort|00004|4}}<br />
| Unlabeled<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00017|17}}<br />
| {{sort|00003|3}}<br />
| Unlabeled<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00019|19}}<br />
| {{sort|00002|2}}<br />
| Unlabeled<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00019|19}}<br />
| {{sort|00002|2}}<br />
| Unlabeled<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00022|22}}<br />
| {{sort|00001|1}}<br />
| Elephants<br />
|-<br />
|}<br />
<br />
====References====<br />
The comic references the book [http://vaclavsmil.com/the-earths-biosphere-evolution-dynamics-and-change/ The Earth's Biosphere: Evolution, Dynamics, and Change] by {{W|Vaclav Smil}} as the source for most of the data. A few other sources have also been used, but were not referenced.<br />
On page 186 of Smil's book, there is a bar chart with the following values:<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="width: auto; text-align: center; font-size: 95%; table-layout: fixed; line-height:1.25"<br />
|-<br />
! (Millions of tons)<br />
! Name<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00008|0.8}}<br />
| Elephants<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00400|40}}<br />
| Horses<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|01000|100}}<br />
| Pigs<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|04500|450}}<br />
| Cattle<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|02800|280}}<br />
| People<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00800|80}}<br />
| Whales<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|00300|30}}<br />
| all&nbsp;wild&nbsp;{{w|vertebrates}}<br />
|-<br />
| {{sort|06500|650}}<br />
| all&nbsp;domesticated&nbsp;vertebrates<br />
|-<br />
|}<br />
Note that all labelled non-human animals are in this table. It seems that this table was the source of most of the data in the comic. Only land dwelling mammals are taken into account. Whales, wild vertebrates, and domesticated vertebrates are not included in the comic.<br />
<br />
====Unlabeled Animals====<br />
These are guesses about the identity of the unlabeled animals<br />
{| class="wikitable" style="width: auto; text-align: center; font-size: 95%; table-layout: fixed; line-height:1.25"<br />
|-<br />
! Rank<br />
! Comic weight (Millions of tons)<br />
! Type<br />
! Guess<br />
! Actual Population (Millions)<br />
! Average Weight (kg)<br />
! Total weight (Millions of kg)<br />
! Explanation<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan="1" |7<br />
| rowspan="1" |13<br />
| rowspan="1" |Pets/Livestock<br />
| <br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan="1" |8<br />
| rowspan="1" |10<br />
| rowspan="1" |Wild animals<br />
| <br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
| <br />
|-<br />
| rowspan="1" |9<br />
| rowspan="1" |8<br />
| rowspan="1" |Pets/Livestock<br />
| <br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan="2" |10<br />
| rowspan="2" |7<br />
| rowspan="2" |Pets/Livestock<br />
| {{w|Camel}}<br />
| 17<br />
| 412<br />
| 7004<br />
| Wikipedia lists the number of camels as 17 million. An average weight, based on Wikipedia's numbers for male and female, is about 500&nbsp;kg. So, including the non-adult camels, an average around 400&nbsp;kg seems to be a realistic estimate.<br />
|-<br />
| &nbsp;<br />
| <br />
| <br />
| <br />
| <br />
|-<br />
| rowspan="1" |10<br />
| rowspan="1" |7<br />
| rowspan="1" |Pets/Livestock<br />
| <br />
|<br />
| <br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan="1" |10<br />
| rowspan="1" |7<br />
| rowspan="1" |Wild animals<br />
| <br />
| <br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan="2" |13<br />
| rowspan="2" |6<br />
| rowspan="2" |Pets/Livestock<br />
| {{w|Dogs}}<br />
| 400<br />
| 15<br />
| 6000<br />
|According to Wikipedia, there are 400 million dogs worldwide. If the average weight is 15&nbsp;kg, there would be 6 blocks.<!-- Small dog=2 kg large dog = 100 kg the log average is about 15 kg. --><br />
|-<br />
| &nbsp;<br />
| <br />
| <br />
|<br />
| <br />
|-<br />
| rowspan="2" |14<br />
| rowspan="2" |5<br />
| rowspan="2" |Pets/Livestock<br />
| {{w|Donkeys}}<br />
| 41<br />
| 122<br />
| 5002<br />
| There are roughly 41 million {{w|Donkey#Present status|donkeys on Earth}}, with an average weight of about 125&nbsp;kg.<br />
|-<br />
| &nbsp;<br />
| <br />
| <br />
|<br />
| <br />
|-<br />
| rowspan="1" |14<br />
| rowspan="1" |5<br />
| rowspan="1" |Wild animals<br />
| <br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan="1" |16<br />
| rowspan="1" |4<br />
| rowspan="1" |Wild animals<br />
| <br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan="1" |17<br />
| rowspan="1" |3<br />
| rowspan="1" |Pets/Livestock<br />
| <br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan="1" |17<br />
| rowspan="1" |3<br />
| rowspan="1" |Wild animals<br />
| <br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan="2" |19<br />
| rowspan="2" |2<br />
| rowspan="2" |Pets/Livestock<br />
| {{w|Cats}}<br />
| 500<br />
| 4<br />
| 2000<br />
| There are 500 million domestic cats worldwide. The average weight of an adult cats is 4.5&nbsp;kg. Factoring in the lighter weight of immature cats, 4&nbsp;kg as an average for all cats, (adult and immature) is within the range of possibility. (According to [[526: Converting to Metric]] cats do weigh 4 kg, only with caption do they reach 4.1 kg).<br />
|-<br />
| &nbsp;<br />
| <br />
| <br />
| <br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan="1" |19<br />
| rowspan="1" |2<br />
| rowspan="1" |Wild animals<br />
| <br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan="2" |19<br />
| rowspan="2" |2<br />
| rowspan="2" |Wild animals<br />
| {{W|Rat#Species and description|Rat}}<br />
| 4000<br />
| 0.5<br />
| 2000<br />
|The {{W|World Health Organization}} estimates 4 billion rats{{Citation needed}} worldwide. The average weight of an adult rat is under 500 g. <br />
|-<br />
| &nbsp;<br />
| <br />
| <br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|}<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Caption at the top of this chart:]<br />
:<big>'''Earth's <big><big>Land Mammals</big></big> by Weight'''</big><br />
<br />
:[Below the caption is a light gray block with a label (in light gray as well) to indicating the value of each block:] <br />
:<font color="gray">= 1,000,000 tons</font><br />
<br />
:[Below this there is a row with three blocks each in a different color, dark and light gray and green, each block is labeled to the right:] <br />
:'''Humans'''<br />
:'''Our pets and livestock'''<br />
:'''Wild animals'''<br />
<br />
:[The rest of the comic consist of a chart with different groups made up of these individually and differently colored blocks, each grouping representing the weight of a different mammals, except the center part, the only one with dark gray block, which represent humans. The largest group to the left is the only one larger than the humans group in the center. There are 22 groups in total, 1 human group with 358 dark gray block, 13 groups of light gray with a total of 864 blocks and 8 green groups with a total of 34 blocks for a total of 256 blocks. Both the light gray and the green groups are spread out on all sides of the human center group. Only difference is that all the green are on the very outside, whereas some of the smaller light gray groups are close to the core, far from the outside. The five largest groups of light gray blocks are labeled, as well as the smallest group consisting only of a single green block. All the labels has a line pointing to the relevant group and all of them are on the outside of the entire block. Going clockwise from the top left the labels are:]<br />
:<big><font color="gray">Cattle</font></big><br />
:<big><font color="gray">Pigs</font></big><br />
:<big><font color="gray">Goats</font></big><br />
:<big><font color="gray">Sheep</font></big><br />
:<big><font color="gray">Horses</font></big><br />
:<big><font color="gray">Elephants</font></big><br />
<br />
:[At the bottom right of the comic is the following gray text with a reference:]<br />
:<font color="gray">Data from Vaclav Smil's ''The Earth's Biosphere: Evolution, Dynamics, and Change'', plus a few other sources.</font><br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Charts]]<br />
[[Category:Animals]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1672:_Women_on_20s&diff=1189111672: Women on 20s2016-04-27T21:45:45Z<p>173.245.54.30: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1672<br />
| date = April 25, 2016<br />
| title = Women on 20s<br />
| image = women_on_20s.png<br />
| titletext = I get that there are security reasons for the schedule, but this is like the ONE problem we have where the right answer is both easy and straightforward. If we can't figure it out, maybe we should just give up and just replace all the portraits on the bills with that weird pyramid eye thing.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
This comic portrays a series of press conferences with a {{w|US Treasury}} spokesperson (different from [[Cueball]] in the first panel as he has a bit of hair). The panels after the first summarize and ridicule the recent controversy over the upcoming redesign of US currency. The dialog between the US Treasury and reporters is paraphrased for comedic effect, but the events depicted are {{w|United_States_twenty-dollar_bill#Proposal_for_a_woman.27s_portrait|otherwise factual}} (including the punchline).<br />
<br />
American currency has only once had a woman as the primary portrait on paper currency ([http://www.mountvernon.org/george-washington/martha-washington/martha-on-1/ Martha Washington] was on the $1 Silver Certificate in the 1880's and 1890's), which is widely seen as a real problem. Responding to this issue, the Treasury Department initially planned to replace the portrait of {{w|Andrew Jackson}} in the {{w|United States twenty-dollar bill|$20 bill}} with a woman, to be chosen by public voting. {{w|Trail of Tears}} is a reference to the {{w|Andrew_Jackson#Indian_removal_policy|forced re-locations}} of Native American peoples that Andrew Jackson conducted during his presidency. This is now seen as a human rights violation on a massive scale, and is presented as a reason why Andrew Jackson should not be honored on American currency.<br />
<br />
The timing of the release of this new bill with a woman, was to be scheduled with the 100 year anniversary of {{w|Women's suffrage in the United States|Women's suffrage}} in 2020, and should thus preferably also be on the $20 bill.. But as will be seen this has turned into a serious problem...<br />
<br />
The voting process [http://www.womenon20s.org/results selected] {{w|Harriet Tubman}}, a 19th century {{w|abolitionist}} and a major figure in the {{w|Underground Railroad}} system which freed {{w|Slavery in the United States|American slaves}}. Cueball is seen to be clearly pleased and excited about this prospect in the first panel, where he votes for her first, among several other options. <br />
<br />
The list shows that Cueball chooses Tubman first representing the generic everyman and thus represents the about one in five that choose her first. But he may select up to three out of the fifteen selected candidates.<br />
*The other two women he chooses are:<br />
**{{w|Eleanor Roosevelt}} an American politician, diplomat, and activist. She was the longest-serving {{w|First Lady of the United States}}, holding the post from March 1933 to April 1945 during her husband President {{w|Franklin D. Roosevelt}}'s four terms in office. She became the runner-up in the vote. <br />
**{{w|Rachel Carson}}, a pioneering environmentalist who is most famous for her book {{w|Silent Spring}}.<br />
Since Carson was not one of the options for the final round, where only four was selected (the other two was {{w|Rosa Parks}}, 3rd; and {{w|Wilma Mankiller}}, 4th), it is clear that Cueball was already voting in the primary ballot, where Roosevelt actually came in first.<br />
<br />
At this point, bureaucratic and political complications arise. The Treasury Department announces that, instead of replacing Andrew Jackson on the $20 bill, she would replace {{w|Alexander Hamilton}} on the {{w|United States ten-dollar bill|$10 bill}}. The {{w|United_States_ten-dollar_bill#Future_redesign|reason given}} is that the $10 bill was scheduled for redesign first. A reporter asks why they can't simply change the schedule, but doesn't get a clear answer.<br />
<br />
There is suggestion from "Steve" to put {{w|Martin Shkreli}} on the {{w|United States five-dollar bill|$5 bill}}. Shkreli is an pharmaceutical executive and hedge fund manager who provoked controversy when he {{w|Martin_Shkreli#Price_hike_controversy|raised the price}} of an anti-parasite drug by over 5000%, making it unaffordable to many poorer people. He became known as "the most hated man in America". This suggestion receives short shrift. This may be the same Steve who messed up both [[809: Los Alamos]] and [[1532: New Horizons]].<br />
<br />
The plan to replace Hamilton is complicated when {{w|Hamilton_(musical)|a Broadway musical}} about the life of Alexander Hamilton comes out and becomes massively popular. This creates a flood of interest in Hamilton, and makes replacing his portrait politically complicated. The spokesperson suggests putting both Hamilton and Tubman on the $10 bill, but the reporters clearly think this is an unnecessary compromise.<br />
<br />
Finally, the spokesperson announces that they will put Tubman on the $20 bill, but their schedule demands that they do the $10 bill first. They decide to put a "mural to women" on the new $10 bill to try and contain the tension until the new $20 bill is released. The reporters say that the Treasury has total control over the release of currency, so the simpler solution is just to change the schedule, but they apparently ignore that suggestion.<br />
<br />
In the final panel, the spokesperson mentions that Jackson's portrait will still appear on the new $20 bill, seriously weakening the symbolism of replacing him and adding irony since Jackson was a slave owner. This is likely an effort to head off the complaints of traditionalists, but is seen here as an unfortunate attempt to avoid taking a real stand.<br />
<br />
In the title text [[Randall]] reiterates that this is a rare case in politics in which there's a clear and simple solution. The Treasury has the authority to redesign currency, and a petition to Congress could change the release schedule to fit their needs. That makes all the compromises and backtracking unnecessary: they could simply replace Jackson with Tubman and hypothetically release the new $20 bill whenever they choose. Randall appears frustrated with the artificial constraints that are holding back what should be a simple and straightforward process although he does acknowledge that it takes time to evaluate the security of a redesign's resistance to {{w|Counterfeit money|counterfeiting}}.<br />
<br />
The mention of the "[http://google.com/search?q=illuminati+confirmed weird pyramid eye thing]" is a reference to the {{w|Eye of Providence}}, which is an old and [http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Illuminati somewhat arcane symbol] that appears on the {{w|United States one-dollar bill|US $1 bill}}. Randall seems to be using this as an example of the outdated and frankly strange design of American currency, the implication that using that on all US dollar bills would constitute giving up on ever having a design relevant to the modern world. Also by replacing all portraits with this image, there would no longer be any gender controversy. The so called "eye" has been used in illuminati montages and mlg 420 no scope get rekt r8 8\8 gr8 b8 m8 compilations. <br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball is sitting at his laptop. Above him is the text he reads on the screen, then he speaks, and below that text is the list of women from his computer showing his three picks, each with a gray "drop-down menu" triangle to the right of the names. Below this is his final spoken line. At the top of the panel is a small frame breaking the top left border with a caption:]<br />
:2015<br />
:Website: Petition: Replace Andrew "Trail of Tears" Jackson with a woman on the $20 for the 100<sup>th</sup> anniversary of women's suffrage in 2020.<br />
:Cueball: Hey, good idea!<br />
:Website: <br />
::Vote for your three picks:<br />
::<font color="gray">1</font> Harriet Tubman<br />
::<font color="gray">2</font> Eleanor Roosevelt<br />
::<font color="gray">3</font> Rachel Carson<br />
:Cueball: Tubman for #1, definitely.<br />
<br />
:[An executive from the department of treasury, with a wee bit of hair on his head, stands behind a lectern. On the front of the lectern the top part of the image inside the seal for the department of treasury is visible inside a circle, showing the scales and the tip of the triangular band beneath it. The rest of this image is hidden below the panel frame. There is text written above this image. At the top of the panel is a small frame breaking the top left border with a caption:]<br />
:Soon...<br />
:Treasury Executive: After a flood of public interest, the Treasury has decided to feature a woman on our money!<br />
:Offscreen voice 1: Yay!<br />
:Treasury Executive: She will replace Hamilton on the $10.<br />
:Offscreen voice 1: Yay-- wait, what? Why not the $20?<br />
:Offscreen voice 2: ''Are we mad at Hamilton?''<br />
:Text above the seal: Treasury<br />
<br />
:[The executive with a hand on the lectern is seen from the side.]<br />
:Treasury Executive: The $10 was scheduled for the next redesign by a board made up of-<br />
:Offscreen voice 3: Can't you just do the $20 next?<br />
:Treasury Executive: We will review the...<br />
:Offscreen voice 3: *Sigh*<br />
:Offscreen voice 4 (Steve): ''Put Martin Shkreli on the $5!''<br />
:Offscreen voice 5: Shut up, Steve.<br />
<br />
:[The executive lifts both hands, the one over the lectern points a finger up. Again seen from the side. At the top of the panel is a small frame breaking the top left border with a caption:]<br />
:Later in 2015...<br />
:Treasury Executive: Wow, some musical came out, and now suddenly Hamilton has ''tons'' of fans.<br />
:Offscreen voice 6: So do the $20 next. Problem solved!<br />
:Treasury Executive: Maybe he and a woman can ''share'' the $10!<br />
:Offscreen voice 6: Are you serious.<br />
<br />
:[The executive, again with a hand on the lectern, is seen from the side. At the top of the panel is a small frame breaking the top left border with a caption:]<br />
:2016:<br />
:Treasury Executive: We've decided to put Harriet Tubman on the $20.<br />
:Offscreen voice 7: Perfect! Happy ending.<br />
:Treasury Executive: -After we do the new $10. <br />
:Offscreen voice 7: What?<br />
<br />
:[The executive again from the front behind the lectern. On the front of the lectern only the text and the very top of the circle around the image can be seen.]<br />
:Treasury Executive: We'll put a mural to women on the back of the $10. Hopefully that will tide you over until we get to the $20? <br />
:Offscreen voice 8: ''Seriously?'' How is this so complicated? Just say "We're putting Harriet Tubman on the $20," then do it.<br />
:Text above the seal: Treasury<br />
<br />
:[The executive with hands down behind the lectern is seen from the side.]<br />
:Treasury Executive: We'll do the $20 ASAP, but we can't change the-<br />
:Offscreen voice 9: C'mon, your hands aren't tied here. You're the freaking Treasury. This is the '''''one''''' thing you're definitely in charge of. <br />
<br />
:[The executive lifting a hand above the lectern is seen from the side.]<br />
:Treasury Executive: Oh, and we're putting Andrew Jackson on the back.<br />
:Three offscreen voices: '''''What.'''''<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Public speaking]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1667:_Algorithms&diff=1179251667: Algorithms2016-04-15T23:36:10Z<p>173.245.54.30: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1667<br />
| date = April 13, 2016<br />
| title = Algorithms<br />
| image = algorithms.png<br />
| titletext = There was a schism in 2007, when a sect advocating OpenOffice created a fork of Sunday.xlsx and maintained it independently for several months. The efforts to reconcile the conflicting schedules led to the reinvention, within the cells of the spreadsheet, of modern version control.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
An algorithm is a basic set of instructions for performing a task, usually on a computer. This comic lists some algorithms in increasing order of complexity, where complexity may refer to either {{w|computational complexity theory}} (a formal mathematical account of the {{w|computational resource}}s – primarily computation time and memory space – required to solve a given problem), or the more informal notion of {{w|programming complexity}} (roughly, a measure of the number and degrees of internal dependencies and interactions within a piece of software).<br />
<br />
At the simplest end is '''left-pad''', or adding filler characters on the left end of a string to make it a particular length. In many programming languages, this is one line of code. This is possibly an allusion to a [http://www.haneycodes.net/npm-left-pad-have-we-forgotten-how-to-program/ recent incident] when {{w|Npm (software)|NodeJS Package Manager}} [https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20160324/17160034007/namespaces-intellectual-property-dependencies-big-giant-mess.shtml angered a developer] in its handling of a trademark claim. The developer unpublished all of his modules from NPM, including a package implementing left-pad. A huge number of programs depended on this third-party library instead of programming it on their own, and they immediately ceased to function.<br />
<br />
'''{{w|Quicksort}}''' is an efficient and commonly used {{w|sorting algorithm}}.<br />
<br />
'''{{w|Git (software)|Git}}''' is a {{w|version control}} program, i.e., software that allows multiple people to work on the same files at the same time. When someone finalizes ("commits") their changes, the version control program needs to figure out how to join the new content with the existing content. This process is called '''{{w|Merge (version control)|merging}}''', and the algorithm for it is anything but simple.<br />
<br />
A '''{{w|self-driving car}}''' is an automobile with sensors and software built into it so that it can maneuver in traffic autonomously, i.e. without a human controller. Various companies have been working on such vehicles for many years now, and while they're further along now than would have been imaginable even a couple of years ago, we're still far away from the dream of hopping in a driver-less taxi and sitting back as the car itself navigates to where we want to be. Recently [[Randall]] has made several references to self-driving cars, for instance in [[1559: Driving]],[[1623: 2016 Conversation Guide]] and [[1625: Substitutions 2]].<br />
<br />
The '''{{w|Google Search}} backend''' is what enables you to type "what the heck is a leftpad algorithm" into your browser and have Google return a list of relevant results, including correcting "leftpad" to "left-pad", ignoring the "what the heck" part, and sometimes even summarizing the findings into a box at the top of the results. Behind all that magic is a way to remember what pages the Internet contains, which is just a mind-bogglingly large quantity of data, and an even more mind-numbingly complex set of algorithms for processing that data.<br />
<br />
The last item is the punchline: a sprawling {{w|Microsoft Excel|Excel}} {{w|spreadsheet}} built up over 20 years by a church group in Nebraska to coordinate their scheduling. Spreadsheets are a general {{w|end-user development}} programming technique, and therefore people use Excel for all sorts of purposes that have nothing to do with accounting (its original purpose), including one guy who made a [http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2013/04/how-an-accountant-created-an-entire-rpg-inside-an-excel-spreadsheet/ role-playing game that runs in Excel]; but even that doesn't approach the complexity that develops when multiple people of varying levels of experience use a spreadsheet over many years for the purpose of coordinating the schedule of several coordinated groups. <br />
<br />
The scheduling of tasks over a group of resources (a.k.a. the ''{{w|nurse scheduling problem}}''), while respecting the constraints set by each person, is a {{w|NP-hardness|highly complex}} problem requiring stochastic or heuristic methods for its resolution. Here, the algorithm would be further complicated by being solved by inexpert users over a spreadsheet model without using engineering practices. The potential hyperbole here is in thinking that such combination of circumstances would produce complexity far over that required to drive a car or sort the public contents of the Internet. While most churches meet mainly on Sunday morning, scheduling of what happens during the service when (especially if there are multiple concurrent services) as well as Sunday School, church business meetings, and congregation-wide events all potentially needing to be scheduled on a particular Sunday morning, the need to find a solution very close to the best possible solution quickly becomes a dire need. Furthermore, with different members involved in a wide variety of activities within and outside of the church, and the classrooms available to the church on Sunday itself, (just scheduling the choir practice times to coordinate with everyone's work schedules is very possibly impossible, especially if two people share the same occupation, and one is the relief for the other,) can indeed be daunting. In addition, there would likely be assorted committee meetings and youth groups during the week.<br />
<br />
In the title text, part of the spreadsheet's complexity is described as originating from different versions of the file for different programs. The words used like {{w|schism}} and {{w|sect}} are normally used in context of religions splitting into groups about differences in beliefs. In this case, the split seems to have been not over a {{w|theology|theological}} issue, but about the use of {{w|open-source software|open-source}} vs. {{w|proprietary software|proprietary}} software, disagreements about which are often compared to religious debates. Most likely, the schism being referred to is the East-West Schism of 1054.<br />
<br />
The title text also implies that while trying to reconcile after the schism and to merge the two schedules they reinvented an alternative to Git within the spreadsheet itself, making the algorithms in place at least as complicated as that. Since most spreadsheet programs have a sort algorithm built in, that aspect is implied too, and left-padding could be compared to vamping on an introduction to a hymn. This would indicate that the other milestones of complexity are either included in the current version of the spreadsheet or are planned to be implemented.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
'''Algorithms'''<br>By Complexity<br />
{|<br />
|colspan="6" style="text-align:left;border-bottom:1px solid;"|More complex &rarr;<br />
|- style="vertical-align:top;"<br />
|style="padding-right:2em;"|Leftpad<br />
|style="padding-right:2em;"|Quicksort<br />
|style="padding-right:2em;"|GIT<br>Merge<br />
|style="padding-right:2em;"|Self-<br>driving<br>car<br />
|style="padding-right:8em;"|Google<br>Search<br>backend<br />
|Sprawling Excel spreadsheet<br>built up over 20 years by a<br>church group in Nebraska to<br>coordinate their scheduling<br />
|}<br />
<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
<!-- Include any categories below this line. --><br />
[[Category:Charts]]<br />
[[Category:Google Search]]<br />
[[Category:Programming]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=296:_Tony_Hawk&diff=117855296: Tony Hawk2016-04-15T05:45:59Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 296<br />
| date = July 30, 2007<br />
| title = Tony Hawk<br />
| image = tony_hawk.png<br />
| titletext = Bad idea #271: Dropping into the half-pipe on a Segway.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
[[Cueball]] is seen using a {{w|PlayStation_Portable|PSP}}, a hand-held game system, while on a skateboard. He is playing one of the many {{w|Tony Hawk's (series)|Tony Hawk}} titles in which you control a skater and perform tricks to gain points and achievements. While playing the game on his PSP, he wants to simultaneously perform the trick in real life both because it is exceptionally difficult to do both and because the game will give him praise when he does a trick successfully.<br />
<br />
The title text implies that this could be bad idea #270 as the title text adds the next item to the bad idea list: #271 Dropping into the {{W|half-pipe}} on a {{w|Segway PT|Segway}}. Since a Segway uses a gyroscope to keep you balanced, trying to "drop into a half-pipe" while using one will likely violently fling the rider back into the upright position probably hurting them against the side of the half pipe as well as possibly damaging the Segway itself. Since it's being added to the list, it's also likely that Cueball tried this at some point in time (along with his Tony Hawk hobby and at least 269 other bad ideas).<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:My Hobby:<br />
:Doing skateboard tricks in ''Tony Hawk'' while also doing them in real life.<br />
:[Cueball moves towards a quarter pipe on his skateboard while manipulating his PSP.]<br />
:''Beep''<br />
:''Click''<br />
:''Beep''<br />
<br />
:[Cueball is in mid air having performed a Frontside 360°, both literally and on the PSP.]<br />
:''♪ Frontside 360°! ♫''<br />
:''Frontside 360°!''<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Video games]]<br />
[[Category:My Hobby]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1667:_Algorithms&diff=1178541667: Algorithms2016-04-15T05:45:08Z<p>173.245.54.30: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1667<br />
| date = April 13, 2016<br />
| title = Algorithms<br />
| image = algorithms.png<br />
| titletext = There was a schism in 2007, when a sect advocating OpenOffice created a fork of Sunday.xlsx and maintained it independently for several months. The efforts to reconcile the conflicting schedules led to the reinvention, within the cells of the spreadsheet, of modern version control.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
An algorithm is a basic set of instructions for performing a task, usually on a computer. This comic lists some algorithms in increasing order of complexity, where complexity may refer to either {{w|computational complexity theory}} (a formal mathematical account of the {{w|computational resource}}s – primarily computation time and memory space – required to solve a given problen), or the more informal notion of {{w|programming complexity}} (roughly, a measure of the number and degrees of internal dependencies and interactions within a piece of software).<br />
<br />
At the simplest end is '''left-pad''', or adding filler characters on the left end of a string to make it a particular length. In many programming languages, this is one line of code. This is possibly an allusion to a [http://www.haneycodes.net/npm-left-pad-have-we-forgotten-how-to-program/ recent incident] when {{w|Npm (software)|NodeJS Package Manager}} [https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20160324/17160034007/namespaces-intellectual-property-dependencies-big-giant-mess.shtml angered a developer] in its handling of a trademark claim. The developer unpublished all of his modules from NPM, including a package implementing left-pad. A huge number of programs depended on this third-party library instead of programming it on their own, and they immediately ceased to function.<br />
<br />
'''{{w|Quicksort}}''' is an efficient and commonly used {{w|sorting algorithm}}.<br />
<br />
'''{{w|Git (software)|Git}}''' is a {{w|version control}} program, i.e., software that allows multiple people to work on the same files at the same time. When someone finalizes ("commits") their changes, the version control program needs to figure out how to join the new content with the existing content. This process is called '''{{w|Merge (version control)|merging}}''', and the algorithm for it is anything but simple.<br />
<br />
A '''{{w|self-driving car}}''' is an automobile with sensors and software built into it so that it can maneuver in traffic autonomously, i.e. without a human controller. Various companies have been working on such vehicles for many years now, and while they're further along now than would have been imaginable even a couple of years ago, we're still far away from the dream of hopping in a driver-less taxi and sitting back as the car itself navigates to where we want to be. Recently [[Randall]] has made several references to self-driving cars, for instance in [[1559: Driving]],[[1623: 2016 Conversation Guide]] and [[1625: Substitutions 2]].<br />
<br />
The '''{{w|Google Search}} backend''' is what enables you to type "what the heck is a leftpad algorithm" into your browser and have Google return a list of relevant results, including correcting "leftpad" to "left-pad", ignoring the "what the heck" part, and sometimes even summarizing the findings into a box at the top of the results. Behind all that magic is a way to remember what pages the Internet contains, which is just a mind-bogglingly large quantity of data, and an even more mind-numbingly complex set of algorithms for processing that data.<br />
<br />
The last item is the punchline: a sprawling {{w|Microsoft Excel|Excel}} {{w|spreadsheet}} built up over 20 years by a church group in Nebraska to coordinate their scheduling. Spreadsheets are a general {{w|end-user development}} programming technique, and therefore people use Excel for all sorts of purposes that have nothing to do with accounting (its original purpose), including one guy who made a [http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2013/04/how-an-accountant-created-an-entire-rpg-inside-an-excel-spreadsheet/ role-playing game that runs in Excel]; but even that doesn't approach the complexity that develops when multiple people of varying levels of experience use a spreadsheet over many years for the purpose of coordinating the schedule of several coordinated groups. <br />
<br />
The scheduling of tasks over a group of resources (a.k.a. the ''{{w|nurse scheduling problem}}''), while respecting the constraints set by each person, is a {{w|NP-hardness|highly complex}} problem requiring stochastic or heuristic methods for its resolution. Here, the algorithm would be further complicated by being solved by inexpert users over a spreadsheet model without using engineering practices. The potential hyperbole here is in thinking that such combination of circumstances would produce complexity far over that required to drive a car or sort the public contents of the Internet. While most churches meet mainly on Sunday morning, scheduling of what happens during the service when (especially if there are multiple concurrent services) as well as Sunday School, church business meetings, and congregation-wide events all potentially needing to be scheduled on a particular Sunday morning, the need to find a solution very close to the best possible solution quickly becomes a dire need. Furthermore, with different members involved in a wide variety of activities within and outside of the church, and the classrooms available to the church on Sunday itself, (just scheduling the choir practice times to coordinate with everyone's work schedules is very possibly impossible, especially if two people share the same occupation, and one is the relief for the other,) can indeed be daunting. In addition, there would likely be assorted committee meetings and youth groups during the week.<br />
<br />
In the title text, part of the spreadsheet's complexity is described as originating from different versions of the file for different programs. The words used like {{w|schism}} and {{w|sect}} are normally used in context of religions splitting into groups about differences in beliefs. In this case, the split seems to have been not over a {{w|theology|theological}} issue, but about the use of {{w|open-source software|open-source}} vs. {{w|proprietary software|proprietary}} software, disagreements about which are often compared to religious debates.<br />
<br />
The title text also implies that there is an alternative to Git within the spreadsheet itself, making the algorithms in place at least as complicated as that. Since most spreadsheet programs have a sort algorithm built in, that aspect is implied too, and left-padding could be compared to vamping on an introduction to a hymn. This would indicate that the other milestones of complexity are either included in the current version of the spreadsheet or are planned to be implemented.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
'''Algorithms'''<br>By Complexity<br />
{|<br />
|colspan="6" style="text-align:left;border-bottom:1px solid;"|More complex &rarr;<br />
|- style="vertical-align:top;"<br />
|style="padding-right:2em;"|Leftpad<br />
|style="padding-right:2em;"|Quicksort<br />
|style="padding-right:2em;"|GIT<br>Merge<br />
|style="padding-right:2em;"|Self-<br>driving<br>car<br />
|style="padding-right:8em;"|Google<br>Search<br>backend<br />
|Sprawling Excel spreadsheet<br>built up over 20 years by a<br>church group in Nebraska to<br>coordinate their scheduling<br />
|}<br />
<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
<!-- Include any categories below this line. --><br />
[[Category:Charts]]<br />
[[Category:Google Search]]<br />
[[Category:Programming]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1666:_Brain_Upload&diff=1176871666: Brain Upload2016-04-13T05:59:51Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1666<br />
| date = April 11, 2016<br />
| title = Brain Upload<br />
| image = brain upload.png<br />
| titletext = I just spent 20 minutes deciding whether to start an email with 'Hi' or 'Hey', so I think it transferred correctly.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
[[Megan]] is {{w|Mind uploading|uploading}} [[Cueball|Cueball's]] {{w|consciousness}} into a computer device attached to his head via a cap on his skull. After the upload, the computer seems to have stopped responding to inputs, causing Megan to conclude that the process has failed, however Cueball insists the transfer could have worked, or at least gave the correct response (although that response could also be from the transfer failing). This is because that is the kind of behaviour he is used to experiencing from his own brain. <br />
<br />
It's unclear why they are doing this, and this is clearly in some future setting as this technology doesn't currently exist. It could be a new procedure Megan as a scientist has just invented, and she asked Cueball to be the subject. Or it could be a common procedure in this future setting (though it is perhaps not as common that the recipient computer would become unresponsive after the transfer) -- perhaps as a way of "backing up" a person's brain. If the process can work in reverse, perhaps a person could recover from brain damage. It could also be a way to become immortal in some sense, though since it's a copy rather than a transfer it's doubtful the human would feel like the copy is really them. Nevertheless, upon a person's death someone enough like him (whether on a computer or perhaps transferred to a "blank" body) could continue to live, so that he would consider that immortality.<br />
<br />
In the title text either [[Randall]] or Cueball tells that this kind of no response from the brain (or a computer) is something he just experienced when trying to write a email and then failing to get started for 20 minutes while he (or his brain) tried to decide the very important detail of whether to begin the email with 'Hi' of 'Hey', which is of course ridiculous, as this has no consequence (in any normal relationship with friends that you wish to email this informally).<br />
<br />
Sometimes computers can seem to be frozen, but if left alone for long enough, they sometimes snap out of it. In fact, it is probably impossible for a computer to determine (for all cases) if a program will eventually stop (see {{w|halting problem}}).<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Megan is standing in front of the control panel of a device with both hands on the keyboard. The device is linked to Cueball's heads through a wire that goes to a cap on top of Cueball's head, where it spreads out in more than ten wires connecting to different places all over the cap. Cueball sits, hands in his laps, on a kind of table on the other side of the device facing Megan.]<br />
:Megan: Neural-digital link established. Ready to upload your consciousness to the computer?<br />
:Cueball: Sure, go for it.<br />
<br />
:[Same setting in a frame-less panel, but Megan presses a button on the keyboard with one hand and a flash of light goes through the wire and around Cueballs head. Cueball seems to jerk as his hands are lifted from his lap and his legs move a little forward.]<br />
:Computer: ''Bzzzzzzt''<br />
<br />
:[Same setting again but Megan seems to be typing harder on the keys (shown with small lines above her hands on the keyboard) and Cueball sits normally again but one hand further back than in the first panel.]<br />
:Megan: ...Hmm.<br />
:Cueball: What?<br />
<br />
:[Same as first panel but Megan looks a little more down on the keyboard.]<br />
:Megan: It's not responding - the whole system is frozen. I think the transfer failed.<br />
:Cueball: No, that sounds right.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
<!-- Include any categories below this line. --><br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Science]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1665:_City_Talk_Pages&diff=1176861665: City Talk Pages2016-04-13T05:59:19Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1665<br />
| date = April 8, 2016<br />
| title = City Talk Pages<br />
| image = city talk pages.png<br />
| titletext = "I don't think the Lakeshore Air Crash Museum really belongs under 'Tourist Attractions.' It's not a museum--it's just an area near the Lake Festival Laser Show where a lot of planes have crashed.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
The comic makes fun of Wikipedia talk pages. On Wikipedia, every article has a place to discuss the content of the page, called a "{{w|Help:Using talk pages|talk page}}". In this case, the comic talks about the talk page of an article about a city. While some of the topics are quite normal for such a page (e.g. the quality of the images) others are not (e.g. too many murders and mine disasters in the city). The topics discussed suggest that the city has many problems and is a bad place to live in or visit.<br />
<br />
The topics show a common problem at Wikipedia's talk pages: People often use them as a place to talk about the ''subject'' of the article, but it is for talking about the ''article'' itself. Someone at the top of the talk page is suggesting a better name for the city.<br />
<br />
The article repeatedly refers to "the murders", suggesting that the city might be well-known for them. It seems that the editors cannot agree on how notable "the murders" are. "Not that notable" refers to Wikipedia's general criteria for including information in articles. Material which is not noteworthy should be removed; however, different editors often disagree about what is notable, resulting in conflicting edits as text is inserted and then removed (an "edit war"). Someone replies that "all cities have murders". While true, many cities in low-crime countries would not have a series of them so well-known that when someone talks about "the murders" any reader could be expected to know what they are talking about, making this sound like an attempt to make the city sound nicer than it is. "I think the murderer is reverting my edits" suggests the murders are being committed by ''one person'' who is influencing how they are shown on WIkipedia - perhaps trying to prevent Wikipedia from publishing evidence of them or possibly publicise them by adding ''more'' information about them. This raises the possibility that the discussion of the murder visible in the infobox picture may have been ''initiated by the murderer''.<br />
<br />
The {{w|WP:Infobox|infobox}} is a short fact sheet that many articles in the (English) Wikipedia have; it generally includes an image illustrating the subject of the article. The question of which picture is best for the infobox (because this image is so prominent) can cause edit wars. It emerges that the photograph of the city has a murder in it. Instead of forwarding the picture to law enforcement, someone uses the image editing software Photoshop to erase the murder so the picture will be less objectionable. It appears that murders are so common in the city that any random photograph of the city has a chance of showing a murder, to the point where a second photo proposed as a replacement for the infobox picture is found to show ''another'' murder.<br />
<br />
{{w|Voltaire}} was a French Enlightenment writer. As a prominent and very opinionated intellectual, [https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Voltaire#Misattributed he gets a lot of quotes falsely attributed to him]; most famously, he did not actually say "I disagree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it" (that was {{w|Evelyn Beatrice Hall}}).<br />
<br />
It seems that the people who are editing the article are getting desperate to find a non-bleak picture of the city. When a non-bleak picture is added, it turns out to be from the 2016 Disney film {{w|Zootopia}}. The fictional city which is the setting and title of the film has a distinctive [http://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/disney/images/4/43/Zootopia_City_Full.jpg look] which is far from bleak, but is not a picture of the city. (Zootopia is called Zootropolis in many European countries for trademark reasons.)<br />
<br />
The city apparently is a mining city and there have been some mining disasters. An editor is complaining that this section is too long, but another editor points out that this is because there have been so many mining disasters that a large section is needed to cover the topic. {{w|Mining}} is the extraction of minerals or substances from the earth's crust. People often use mining as a means of employment. These people are called {{w|miners}}. Sometimes there are many miners in one area who mine a lot of product. Then mining might become the main export of a city. These cities are called {{w|mining communities}}. In this comic, it is implied that the city being discussed is a mining city. A {{w|mining disaster}} is a unfortunate happenstance that can lead to a miner's {{w|death}}. Mining accidents are bad things that can occur in a variety of different ways. Causes of death from a mining accident can include {{w|suffocation}}, {{w|explosion}}, {{w|poisoning}}, and {{w|crushing}}. <br />
<br />
{{w|1982 Secession}} refers to Key West, Florida seceding from the United States in 1982 to form the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conch_Republic Conch Republic].<br />
<br />
A known problem on Wikipedia is "coatracking", where people use articles to promote topics that are not strictly the subject of the article (perhaps by writing far more about them than is necessary, when they could just be mentioned in passing). Here, it emerges that the article on a city expresses a dubious opinion on condom use. This is against several Wikipedia policies: it would be irrelevant to the article and sounds like an editor's attempt to publicise their views.<br />
<br />
{{w|Andrew Lloyd Webber}} is an English composer famous for writing ''The {{w|Phantom Of The Opera}}''. (Webber is also known for writing the music for ''{{w|Starlight Express}}'', a rock opera about anthropomorphized trains, which is probably another factor in the train station joke.) Meanwhile, {{w|Frank Lloyd Wright}}, who shares his middle name and last initial, was an American architect, who designed more than 1,000 structures. As it turns out it was the composer who was responsible for the train station, and as a result the station roof has collapsed.<br />
<br />
In the comic ''Webber'' is spelled ''Weber''. This could be a mistake by [[Randall]], (but then it is likely to be corrected later...) More likely Randall did this for the sake of realism as this is what can be expected by people writing in a talk page on Wikipedia, where errors are not necessarily corrected as they would be in the main article.<br />
<br />
It is complained that the article is promoting the "Lake Festival Laser Show" too much. In the alt text, it emerges that the laser show is so impressive that it has caused a number of aeroplanes to crash. This probably refers to the fact that laser pointers should not be aimed at aircrafts, as they can be distracting to the pilots. The article has been promoting this area of crashed planes as the "Lakeshore Air Crash Museum", despite it not having any educational purpose.<br />
<br />
==Examples==<br />
*{{w|Talk:Key West, Florida#What's with the Chicken photo}} questions the relevance of free range chickens.<br />
*{{w|Talk:Rio de Janeiro#Oh, there's no crime in Rio?}} suggests crime incidence in Rio has been suppressed to promote tourism.<br />
*{{w|Talk:Kirkcaldy}} discusses naming.<br />
*{{w|Talk:Isfahan}} has many naming proposals.<br />
*{{w|Talk:Chattanooga, Tennessee}} has disputes over crime and notability of residents.<br />
*{{w|Talk:Muara Bungo}} indicates someone ''repeatedly'' tried to delete the second-largest city in Jambi, Sumatra.<br />
*{{w|Talk:Arvada, Colorado}} held a heated argument considerably longer than the article, concerning the existence of a scandal in the police department. A year later, one editor deemed the issue unimportant and removed it entirely.<br />
*{{w|Talk:Sutton-in-Ashfield}} discusses the cultural significance of town landmarks.<br />
*{{w|Talk:Abergele}} has residents arguing over who should be included.<br />
*{{w|Talk:Tucson, Arizona}}:<br />
** ''I heard you can get Chicago-style deep dish pizza even in Tucson! Is this true? If so, it probably should be added to the article.''<br />
** ''Um...I heard this place is kinda dangerous.''<br />
** ''Shouldn't the headline-indicated shooting be included?''<br />
** ''Why are there three photos showing snow in the vicinity of Tucson? I know snow is an event for us, but I think other Wikipedians know what it looks like.''<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Caption above the panel: ]<br />
:I love reading the Wikipedia talk pages for articles on individual cites<br />
<br />
:[A list of contents for a Wikipedia talk page regarding an article about a city. Except for the header and the square brackets, which are written in black text, the rest is in a blue font.]<br />
:::Contents [<font color="blue">Hide</font>]<br />
<br />
:<font color="blue">1 Origin of city's name?<br />
::1.1 Idea for a better name<br />
::1.2 Not how Wikipedia works<br />
:2 Too much promotion of the lake festival<br />
:3 Should we mention the murders?<br />
::3.1 Not that notable<br />
::3.2 All cites have murders<br />
:4 Quote verification: Even if Voltaire did visit (unlikely), why would he get so angry about our restaurants?<br />
:5 Discuss: New picture<br />
::5.1 Current one looks awfully bleak<br />
::5.2 Gray sky<br />
::5.3 What about this<br />
::5.4 Also bleak<br />
::5.5 Maybe this place just looks that way<br />
::5.6 Found a better picture, more colorful<br />
::5.7 That's a shot from Disney's ''Zootopia''<br />
:6 "Mining disasters" section too long<br />
::6.1 Not really Wikipedia's fault<br />
::6.2 Why is this town so bad at mining?<br />
:7 Infobox picture: I just realized you can see a murder happening in the background<br />
::7.1 This city is terrible<br />
::7.2 Photoshopped out murder<br />
::7.3 Can someone just take a better picture<br />
::7.4 Okay, uploaded a new picture<br />
::7.5 Wait, never mind, I just noticed there's a murder in this one, too<br />
:8 1982 secession still in effect?<br />
:9 I think the murderer is reverting my edits<br />
:10 Why does this article take '''''any''''' position on correct condom use, let alone such a weird and ambiguous one?<br />
:11 Train station "Designed by Andrew Lloyd Weber"?<br />
::11.1 They probably mean Frank Lloyd Wright<br />
::11.2 I thought so too, but it's apparently not a mistake<br />
::11.3 Didn't know he did architecture<br />
::11.4 Roof collapse</font><br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]<br />
[[Category:Wikipedia]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1664:_Mycology&diff=1176841664: Mycology2016-04-13T05:58:53Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1664<br />
| date = April 6, 2016<br />
| title = Mycology<br />
| image = mycology.png<br />
| titletext = Conspiracy theory: There's no such thing as corn. Those fields you see are just the stalks of a fungus that's controlling our brains to make us want to spread it.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
[[Cueball]] and [[Megan]] are studying a {{w|fungus}} that takes over the brains of mammals and makes them want to study the fungus. This is a reproductive tactic by the fungus, since the fungus makes the mammal whose brain it took over want to study the fungus, which means that mammal will need to produce more of the fungus to study it. Cueball and Megan are most likely themselves being controlled by the fungus, since they tell [[Ponytail]] that they want to cultivate the fungus as much as possible.<br />
<br />
The title of the comic refers to {{w|Mycology}}, the study of fungi.<br />
<br />
This is likely a reference to various species of ''{{w|Cordyceps}}'' fungi, which can infect the brains of insects causing behavior advantageous to the reproduction or spread of the fungus. This also may be an allusion to another fungus, ''{{w|Ophiocordyceps unilateralis}}'', which manipulates its hosts to aid its propagation. <br />
<br />
{{w|Toxoplasma_gondii}} is also known to alter the behavior of mammals, and some researchers have proposed that this parasite may be partly responsible for the "{{w|Cat_lady}}" phenomenon, whereby humans are compelled to hoard cats. The comic and its subtitle may, in fact, be a subtle argument that human behavior, and the entire concept of free will, may need to be re-evaluated given the massive numbers of {{w|Human_Parasite}}(s) known to exist.<br />
<br />
In evolutionary biology, the phenomenon of an organism influencing its environment, sometimes by modifying the behavior of other organisms, is known as “the extended phenotype”. Richard Dawkins wrote a book of that name (as a follow-up of “The Selfish Gene”) where he describes this mechanism as an extreme example of the so-called selfishness of genes. <br />
<br />
The title text parodies numerous {{w|Conspiracy_theory|conspiracy theories}}, by suggesting that corn, which has been propagated by humans throughout large parts of the world, is actually just a fungus that has used humans, and is not a grain at all. This type of theory is remarkably similar to the {{w|Brain in a Vat}} thought experiment, and to the {{w|Isaac Asimov}} short story {{w|Each an Explorer}}. In both cases something has affected the perception of the mind itself, making it impossible to discern the true reality of something.<br />
<br />
In practical terms, there would be little difference between this conspiracy theory and the reality, as it posits the fungus-corn would be the same food that humans have already been cultivating for food for millennia. Unless, of course, this fungus's stalks have no nutritional value, and it's only been making us ''think'' that it's a food, and those of us who live on corn are starving without realizing it.<br />
<br />
Conspiracy theories is a [[:Category:Conspiracy theory|recurring subject]] on xkcd.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Megan and Cueball are talking to Ponytail.]<br />
:Megan: Our lab is studying a fungus that takes over mammal brains and makes them want to study fungi.<br />
:Cueball: It's very promising! We're opening a whole new wing of the lab just to cultivate it!<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]<br />
[[Category:Conspiracy theory]]<br />
[[Category:Science]]<br />
[[Category:Animals]] <!--Mammals--></div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1661:_Podium&diff=1176831661: Podium2016-04-13T05:57:59Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1661<br />
| date = March 28, 2016<br />
| title = Podium<br />
| image = podium.png<br />
| titletext = BREAKING: Senator's bold pro-podium stand leads to primary challenge from prescriptivist base.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
A "{{w|podium}}" is a small platform like the one [[Cueball]] is standing '''on'''. This word originates from Greek ''podion'' meaning ''foot''.<br />
<br />
A "{{w|lectern}}" is a stand for holding notes, like the one Cueball standing '''behind'''. In American English this stand may be also called a ''podium'', which is not backed up by etymology. See [http://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/podium podium] and [http://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/lectern lectern] in Oxford Learners Dictionaries. In medieval universities, the "lecturer" was not someone who gave talks, but literally one who read from the lectern, the latin root meaning "To read" - Lectio.<br />
<br />
The comic is playing on a stereotypical politician, without any real beliefs, here represented by Cueball, but they want to appear to stand for something. Alternatively, this is what might happen if someone like Cueball (or the strip's author [[Randall]]), who tend to think literally and who get interested in and distracted by tangents, were running.<br />
<br />
Thus, Cueball picks up what is, in some American circles, an argument: whether the standing desk used by public speakers should be called a "podium" or a "lectern." This argument is actually [http://www.messagemasters.squarespace.com/articles/what-is-a-lectern-or-podium.html common] among [http://mannerofspeaking.org/2012/03/10/podium-vs-lectern/ members] of {{w|Toastmasters International}} (see more [http://joyfulpublicspeaking.blogspot.com/2012/03/what-should-we-call-stage-furniture-on.html here]), though it would usually not rise to the level of needing to be part of a national discourse. And it is not only the Toastmasters that [http://www.platformgiant.com/podium-vs-lectern care about this].<br />
<br />
The fact is, though the etymological definition is clear - the lectern is the desk that stands on the podium - and the difference might be important if you were setting up an auditorium, in common American usage it really doesn't matter.<br />
<br />
The title text is presented as a breaking news that implies that a senator has taken a bold stand on the subject of podium vs. lectern (This senator could be Cueball, but it could also be another who has been rallied by Cueball's speech). The senator is pro- podium, meaning that he thinks the lectern should be called a podium. This leads to the people who follow a prescriptivist position to organize and put forward a political candidate to challenge this senator in the {{w|primaries}}.<br />
<br />
The {{w|Linguistic prescription|prescriptivist}} position relies on rules rather than on usage. In this case a prescriptivist relies on etymology and would thus be pro-lectern. In the U.S., the primaries are used to select a single candidate from a particular party to represent that party at final election (whether national or on a state level). At the time of this comics release (2016-03-28) the {{w|United States presidential primary}} elections to determine the candidates for the {{w|United States presidential election, 2016}} was in full progress and not at all determined yet.<br />
<br />
The title text is also a pun, as 'stand' is another word for an object like a lectern (e.g. as used by musicians to hold sheet music), and 'base' a word for something a stand or lectern might be placed on, as is a podium.<br />
<br />
It is unclear from this comic which position Randall favors. He likes that rules are followed, but he also like that it is easy to talk with people, especially friends. This was recently displayed in [[1643: Degrees]], see especially the last "benefits" in the third panel.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball is speaking at a lectern standing on a podium.]<br />
:Cueball: The American people are tired of politics as usual.<br />
:Cueball: They're tired of-<br />
:Cueball: Okay, brief tangent: is this thing a podium or a lectern? People say "podium" is wrong, but I also see it used that way in pretty formal contexts. Is usage just changing?<br />
:Cueball: If elected, I will get to the bottom of this for once and for all.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Public speaking]]<br />
[[Category:Politics]]<br />
[[Category:Language]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1660:_Captain_Speaking&diff=1176821660: Captain Speaking2016-04-13T05:56:27Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1660<br />
| date = March 25, 2016<br />
| title = Captain Speaking<br />
| image = captain_speaking.png<br />
| titletext = Oh dang, you have to pay? Hey, has anyone else paid already? If so, can I borrow your phone for a sec?<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
At periodic intervals on a commercial flight, the captain of the plane will address the passengers with information about the flight. Typically this will begin with "This is your captain speaking..." and go on to describe the progress of the flight, expected arrival time and other information about the flight such as if or when refreshments will be brought to passengers.<br />
<br />
This comic takes this cliché and inverts it. Instead of the captain providing information, the captain tells the passengers that he has apparently forgotten everything about the flight, even down to what kind of plane he is supposed to be flying – although he does think it is a {{w|Boeing}}. He at least discovers the flight number and then plans to use the consumer app {{w|Flightaware}} that is made for tracking flights. He thus hopes to be able to find out what the destination of “his” plane is. But Flightaware requires {{w|Wi-Fi}} access, so he goes on to ask the passengers if anyone know how to access the Wi-Fi.<br />
<br />
This even gets worse in the title text where he realizes that you have to pay for using the on-board Wi-Fi, which means he is trying to access the same Wi-Fi that the passengers have access to instead of using the on-board Wi-Fi that must be in the cockpit (to which he is supposed to have free access). Instead of just paying he then asks the passengers if someone has already paid, because then he would like to borrow their smartphone so he can check the Flightaware app to find out where they are going.<br />
<br />
Options for explaining this scenario are:<br />
#The "captain" is not a genuine pilot, but has somehow found himself in the position of being in charge of an airplane (this could be a reference to this earlier comic: [[726: Seat Selection]]).<br />
#The captain has genuinely fallen asleep and has forgotten what plane he is on...but he has thus also forgotten how to navigate, determine his flight plan, or communicate with air traffic control. In the USA (where xkcd cartoons are normally set), there is normally at least a first officer and a flight attendant on the plane to support the captain.<br />
#The captain has been drugged and shanghaied onto the plane. He is now expected to fly and land it for his "employer", but he has chosen to disclaim this fact to his passengers in the least reassuring manner possible.<br />
#After taking-off, the captain enters a {{w|dissociative fugue}} state losing his personal identity.<br />
#This may be in the future, where auto-pilot is so smart and do so much of the previous job of the pilot that future pilots might forget how to fly altogether.<br />
#The captain knows exactly where he is and where they are going, and is playing a [[Black Hat]]-style prank on his passengers.<br />
<br />
Seeing as how planes cannot take off on {{w|auto-pilot}} (nor can they taxi, but some can actually land), and require a skilled, awake human at the controls, it is unlikely that this captain was responsible for take-off; which must mean this auto-pilot is much more advanced than current models, likely a future model, or that his first officer took off and then went away or asleep. In the event a pilot falls asleep, on medium sized planes, ground- or proximity-, radar would set off an alarm waking the captain if they are on a collision course.<br />
<br />
Whilst it is normal for the captain to sleep part of a long flight, this can only occur if there are multiple pilots on the plane. Most flights are on auto-pilot for hours at a time, and the pilots serve primarily for takeoff, landing, and emergencies. He is completely clueless, having to use a consumer app and asking the passengers to get flight details, instead of radioing for help as he probably should. He would easily be able to get the information of where they are going by just asking any of the passengers though.<br />
<br />
The fact that the captain is not sure of the flight number is not hard to imagine. Commercial pilots fly multiple flights per day and the numbers all run together after a while. Every radio communication starts with the flight number, but if the captain has been out of commission for some time, the flight number could easily be forgotten. However, he would probably know the aircraft type, as commercial pilots are type-rated for a specific aircraft type and with rare exceptions (e.g. Boeing 757/767) the type is specific to an airframe type. This makes it more likely that he is not professionally qualified, although he could just be rated for so many types of aircraft that it takes him a moment to determine which one is at hand (though such a veteran pilot would be unlikely to have slept through takeoff or forget how to look up flight information from the cockpit).<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[The text is written above a large commercial passenger airplane seen from below as it turns left. The text emanates from the cockpit.]<br />
:Captain: This is your captain speaking.<br />
:Captain: Gonna be honest-I just woke up and have no idea where I am. Looks like a Boeing of some kind?<br />
:Captain: Oh, hey, it says the flight number here.<br />
:Captain: Okay, I'm gonna check FlightAware to figure out where we're going.<br />
:Captain: Anyone know how to get on the wifi?<br />
<br />
==Trivia==<br />
*Real World Parallels:<br />
**This comic coincided with [http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/british-man-goes-out-for-quiet-drink-in-essex-wakes-up-in-barcelona-a6951756.html a newspaper story] of British man, Alex Caviel, who after a night out had a vivid dream of being on a plane only to wake up to find himself on a plane landing in Barcelona.<br />
**The comic was also published shortly after the [https://www.rt.com/news/337113-flydubai-scandal-leaks-fatigue/ Flydubai scandal], in which many pilots and former pilots accused the airline of overworking its pilots and causing massive fatigue and stress, shortly after the crash of the flight FZ981. These claims were later waged against the Fly Emirates airline. The comic could portray a scenario in which one of the fatigued pilots wake up mid-flight, still suffering from lack of sleep.<br />
**The comic was released a year and a day after the {{w|Suicide by pilot|suicide by pilot}} crash of {{w|Germanwings Flight 9525}} on 2015-03-24. This is probably a coincidence as there is no real relation to a pilot that forgets where he is, and then one that deliberately decides to crash a passenger plane killing 150 people, himself included. But for this particular flight the first officer, who crashed the plane, was left alone in the cockpit by the captain, and this was what enabled him to commit the deed. This event thus lead many companies to adopt a rule that there should always be at least two people in the cockpit at all times. But this was not always the case before, and this could explain the situation of the captain in this comic being alone in the cockpit when he "wakes" up.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1656:_It_Begins&diff=1176811656: It Begins2016-04-13T05:55:50Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1656<br />
| date = March 16, 2016<br />
| title = It Begins<br />
| image = it_begins.png<br />
| titletext = You can also try 'Yikes.'<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
This comic encourages the reader to post random news stories on the Internet, under the line "It begins." This creates a sense of impending doom, as well as making people wonder what, exactly, is being referred to. This could also encourage people to theorize about what, exactly, is beginning. It could also just confuse the intended audience, as they try to comprehend what the author is saying.<br />
<br />
This could in the worst case speedily lead to several people making repost of such a non-news story that would not have gotten any attention otherwise. This may lead to speculation, and other curious theories, going out the tangent it could create fear or mass hysteria.<br />
<br />
Some stories that might benefit especially from this are those relating to machine autonomy, animal attacks, disease, and so forth. This would call to mind various popular culture and/or scientific hypothetical scenarios.<br />
<br />
Perhaps the comic's choice of article refers to {{w|Alfred Hitchcock}}'s thriller {{w|The Birds (film)|The Birds}}, in which birds (especially {{w|Seagull|seagulls}}) begin attacking humans for no apparent reason, or the broader idea of an animal revolution, or just that even animals get sick of us always looking at our smart phones.<br />
<br />
The title text instructs readers to try the line "[https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/yikes Yikes]" instead. The idea is the same but would give a completely different response.<br />
<br />
Other comics which advocate using catch-all phrases as standard responses for any comment:<br />
*[[174: That's What SHE Said]]<br />
*[[178: Not Really Into Pokemon]]<br />
*[[559: No Pun Intended]]<br />
*[[1022: So It Has Come To This]]<br />
*[[1215: Insight]]<br />
*[[1627: Woosh]]<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[A post in Megan's news feed on some social network platform is shown. Megan's head-shot profile image is shown in a frame to the left with two lines of unreadable text below. Her comment is to the right of this image, also with unreadable text above both in a black and gray font. This comment is above the news story she has posted below in a frame. Inside the frame there is another smaller frame to the left with a picture of Cueball on a beach, holding his hand out towards a seagull that flies away with his phone. Two other seagulls can be seen in the air above the sea. There is a small heading at the top, and then a larger one below this. Below that again there is two lines of unreadable text:]<br />
:It Begins<br />
::<small>''Local News''</small><br />
::Seagull Steals Phone, Drops it in Ocean<br />
<br />
:[Caption below the panel:]<br />
:Protip: To make your day more dramatic, post a random minor news story with the comment "it begins."<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Protip]]<br />
[[Category:Social networking]]<br />
[[Category:Animals]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1654:_Universal_Install_Script&diff=1176801654: Universal Install Script2016-04-13T05:55:07Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1654<br />
| date = March 11, 2016<br />
| title = Universal Install Script<br />
| image = universal_install_script.png<br />
| titletext = The failures usually don't hurt anything, and if it installs several versions, it increases the chance that one of them is right. (Note: The 'yes' command and '2>/dev/null' are recommended additions.)<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
Most users of computers today are used to simple, easy installation of programs. You just download a {{w|.exe}} or a {{w|Installer_(OS_X)#Installer_package|.pkg}}, double click it, and do what it says. Sometimes you don't even have to install anything at all, and it runs without any installation.<br />
<br />
However, when things are more "homebrew", for example downloading source code, things are more complicated. Under {{w|Unix-like}} systems, which this universal install script is designed for, you may have to work with "build environments" and "{{w|makefiles}}", and command line tools. To make this process simpler, there exist repositories of programs which host either packages of source code and the things needed to build it or the pre-built programs. When you download the package, it automatically does most of the work of building the code into something executable if necessary and then installing it. However, there are many such repositories, such as "{{w|pip (package manager)|pip}}" and "brew", among others listed in the comic. If you only know the name of a program or package, you may not know in which repository(ies) it resides.<br />
<br />
The <code>install.sh</code> file provided in the comic is a {{w|shell script}}, which attempts to fix this problem by acting as a "universal install script" that contains a lot of common install commands used in various Unix-like systems. This script in particular is interpreted by the {{w|Bourne Again Shell}} (Bash), which is denoted by the <code>#!/bin/bash</code> in the first line. In between each of the install commands in the script is the & character, which in {{w|POSIX}}-compatible {{w|Unix shell|shells}} (including {{w|Bash (Unix shell)|Bash}}, a popular shell scripting language) means it should continue to run the next command without waiting for the first command to finish, also known as "running in the background". This has the effect of running all the install commands simultaneously; all output and error text provided by them will be mixed together as they are all displaying on the screen around the same time.<br />
<br />
The script accepts the name of a program or package as an argument when you run it. This value is then referenced as "$1" (argument number 1). Everywhere the script says "$1", it substitutes in the name of the package you gave it. The end result is the name being tried against a large number of software repositories and package managers, and hopefully, at least one of them will be appropriate and the program will be successfully installed. Near the end, it even tries changing the current working directory to that which is assumed to hold the package to be installed, and then runs several commands which build the program from source code.<br />
<br />
All in all, this script would probably work; it runs many standard popular repository programs and package managers, and runs the nearly-universal commands needed to build a program. Most of the commands would simply give an error and exit, but hopefully the correct one will proceed with the install.<br />
<br />
One of the more subtle jokes in the comic is the inclusion of <code>apt-get</code> and <code>sudo apt-get</code> in the same script. Good unix practice dictates never logging in as root; instead you stay logged in as your normal user, and run system admin accounts via <code>sudo program name</code>. This prevents accidental errors and enables logging of all sensitive commands. A side effect of this, however, is that an administrator may forget to prefix her command with <code>sudo</code>, and re-running it properly the second time. This is a common joke in the Linux community, an example of which can be found at [https://twitter.com/liamosaur/status/506975850596536320 viral tweet] which shows a humorous workaround for the issue.<br />
<br />
Since Randall's script does not use sudo for any but the <code>apt-get</code> command, there are two possibilities: the script itself was run via the root user or via sudo ,in which case the <code>sudo apt-get</code> is not needed, or the script was run as a normal user, in which case all of the commands will fail (due to lacking necessary permissions) with the possible exception of the <code>sudo apt-get</code> one.<br />
<br />
Sudo has also been used both by [[Randall]] in [[149: Sandwich]] and by Jason Fox to force Randall to let him appear on xkcd with [[824: Guest Week: Bill Amend (FoxTrot)]].<br />
<br />
The tool <code>curl</code> downloads files from the network (e.g., the Internet). For example <code>curl http://xkcd.com/</code> downloads and displays the xkcd HTML source. The pipe <code>|</code> in the script attaches the output of the command before the pipe to the input of the command after the pipe, thus running whatever commands exist in the web content. Although this "curl|sh" pattern is a common practice for conveniently installing software, it is considered extremely unwise; you are running untrusted code without validation, there may be a MITM who modifies the code you receive, or the remote system could have been hijacked and the code made malicious. Most local package managers (e.g. <code>apt</code>, <code>yum</code>) offer digitally-signed packages that thwart this problem. You can find many examples of software providers suggesting a <code>curl|sh</code> solution at [https://curlpipesh.tumblr.com/ curlpipesh]<br />
<br />
There appears to be a bug with the & at the end of the "git clone" line; since a git repository typically contains program source code, not executables, it may have been intended to retrieve the source code with git and then compile and install the program in the next line. In this case, the single & should be replaced with &&, an operator that will run the second command only if the first one has completed successfully. This plays into a second bug on the "configure" line, where the placement of the & means that only the "make install" command will be run asynchronously after the "configure" and "make" steps have finished in sequence. To make success as likely as possible, the two lines should be like this or script should be executed twice:<br />
<br />
git clone <nowiki>https://github.com/</nowiki>"$1"/"$1" && (cd "$1"; ./configure; make; make install) &<br />
<br />
Since all commands are running in the background, any command that requires user input will stop and wait until brought to the foreground. A common request would be for a database password, or if it is allowed to restart services for the installation. This could lead to packages being only partly installed or configured. (See more about using "yes" below.)<br />
<br />
The title text mentions the possibility that the same program may be in multiple repositories, so in this case, the script will download and install several versions, or it may fail on a number of repositories, in which case usually nothing bad happens. Since all the commands come from different operating systems, versions, or distributions, it is not very likely that more than one will work (with the exception of pip/easy_install and the two forms of apt-get) or even exist on the same system. It mentions that adding a way of automatically saying "yes" to questions asked during the different repository-fetching programs' running, by making them read input from another program that writes a (nearly) endless stream of "y"s, could simplify things further. This would not work for any curses-based menus, or to answer any more complicated questions. Adding <code>2>/dev/null</code> to a command redirects the second output stream (the "error stream") to the null device driver, which discards all writes to it, meaning errors (the package not existing) will not be sent to the screen.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[In the panel is a shell script which, unusual for xkcd, uses only lower case. At the top the title of the program is inlaid in the frame, which has been broken here.]<br />
:<big>Install.sh</big><br />
<br />
:<nowiki>#!/bin/bash</nowiki><br />
<br />
:pip install "$1" &<br />
:easy_install "$1" &<br />
:brew install "$1" &<br />
:npm install "$1" &<br />
:yum install "$1" & dnf install "$1" &<br />
:docker run "$1" &<br />
:pkg install "$1" &<br />
:apt-get install "$1" &<br />
:sudo apt-get install "$1" &<br />
:steamcmd +app_update "$1" validate &<br />
:git clone <nowiki>https://github.com/</nowiki>"$1"/"$1" &<br />
:cd "$1";./configure;make;make install &<br />
:curl "$1" | bash &<br />
<br />
==Trivia==<br />
*pip and easy install are package managers for {{w|Python (programming language)|Python}}<br />
*brew is the successor/replacement for {{w|MacPorts}} and a third-party package manager for OS X<br />
*{{w|npm (software)|npm}} is the node package manager that maintains node.js packages<br />
*{{w|Yellowdog Updater, Modified|yum}} is the package management tool for {{w|Red Hat Enterprise Linux}} and some derivatives<br />
*{{w|DNF (software)|dnf}} is the package management tool for {{w|Fedora (operating system)|Fedora}} since version 22<br />
*docker run is a {{w|Docker (software)|Docker}} command that runs a given container (similar to a virtual machine)<br />
*pkg is the package management tool on {{w|Berkeley Software Distribution|BSD systems}}<br />
*apt-get is the package management tool of {{w|Debian}} and derivatives (e.g. Ubuntu)<br />
*steamcmd refers to {{w|Steam (software)|Steam}}, the computer game client<br />
*git is the revision control software used for many projects and gained a lot of traction through the {{w|GitHub}} platform<br />
*configure/make/make install refers to the standard way of compiling software from source (on Linux/Unix)<br />
*curl is a tool for loading data via http:// (i.e. from a website), this data is then pushed to the shell interpreter (in order to install)<br />
**Note: While this is a security nightmare, some projects (like Homebrew) still use it as the preferred or only method of installation.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Programming]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1650:_Baby&diff=1176791650: Baby2016-04-13T05:53:28Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1650<br />
| date = March 2, 2016<br />
| title = Baby<br />
| image = baby.png<br />
| titletext = Does it get taller first and then widen, or does it reach full width before getting taller, or alternate, or what?<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
[[Cueball]] (representing [[Randall]]) is uncomfortable about talking with couples who present their baby to him (here represented by [[Megan]] and another Cueball-like guy holding a baby in a blanket). Because he never knows what to say, he has many strange thoughts and/or reasonable questions, that shouldn't be mentioned in front of happy parents showing off their precious baby for the first time. See [[#Table|the table]] below for his thoughts.<br />
<br />
Cueball's thoughts of what he didn't say includes the awkward ''You sure did make that'', the plain strange ''What brand is it?'', and interesting musing about science, which has nothing to do with this baby, ''So do they learn words...'', and even rating someone's baby: ''★★★★☆ Great baby''! Some of the thoughts are quite true, like ''It doesn't really look like you since you're not a baby.''<br />
<br />
In the end he manages to make a comment about how cool the baby is, and immediately regrets this, as he just realized he has squandered the chance to say something meaningful and instead has come out with something quite inane.<br />
<br />
In the title text he continues his thoughts again, going in the scientific direction with a question regarding how a child grows. Does it get tall first and then put on weight? (i.e. widen). This is a valid question which has no general answer. (See more in the table below). But he is not serious, as he also wonders if the child ''reach full width before getting taller''.<br />
<br />
Randall was 31 at the time of the release of this comic. As far as this page and Wikipedia informs, at the time of writing, he has no children, although he is married. However, given his age, it is highly likely that many of his friends are having babies during these years, so he will probably often get into the depicted situation. Therefore, it is highly likely that the comic is based on his own experience, and that it is indeed Randall depicted as the thinking Cueball.<br />
<br />
Having problems with small talk is a recurring theme in xkcd (see [[222: Small Talk]]), even something as simple as talking about the weather can be a problem (see [[1324: Weather]]). This comic is the third in less than a month were Cueball has issues with this; the first two were [[1640: Super Bowl Context]] and [[1643: Degrees]].<br />
<br />
There has previously been a "plural" version of this comic called [[441: Babies]], here Cueball also manages to say something better left unsaid, even if it was about his own baby.<br />
<br />
===Table===<br />
*In the table is a list of all the different sentences Cueball can think of or actually speaks in this comic:<br />
{| class="wikitable"<br />
|-<br />
|+ Cueballs thoughts, including final statement and the title text.<br />
|-<br />
! scope="col" | Sentence<br />
! scope="col" | Explanation<br />
|-<br />
| Wow, it's getting so big! Unlike most babies, which stay the same size forever.<br />
| The first part of the sentence is quite a normal response, if it is not the first time the person sees the baby. But the second part can be interpreted as sarcastic, as newborn babies are supposed to grow fast, and it would be strange/bad if the baby had not grown considerably if it had been some months since last time. This also shows how inane the normal statement is, though people often feel inclined to say it anyway.<br />
|-<br />
| Hi! I'm talking to a baby!<br />
| People often talk to the baby, rather than the parents. This makes no sense for Cueball, as the baby doesn't understand him. Should he mention this?<br />
|-<br />
| What brand is it?<br />
| Typically a question one would ask about a new car, article of clothing, electronics, or other inanimate object, not a baby. Alternatively, the "{{w|brand}}" could also figuratively refer to the baby's sex. Usually it may be OK to ask what sex the baby is, though the normal question would be ''Is it a boy or a girl.''<br />
|-<br />
| Wow, definitely much smaller than a regular person!<br />
| As all babies are... Typically a real response would be ''Wow, they are so small''.<br />
|-<br />
| You sure did make that.<br />
| A typical comment would be ''he sure looks like you''. (See the comment that it doesn't look like you.) Such a sentence basically means you can see that it is clear that these two people did in fact make this baby. But making a baby requires sex, so when he puts it like that he actually refers to the sex part, which may be uncomfortable for many people.<br />
|-<br />
| ★★★★☆ Great baby.<br />
| It is custom to praise parents for their lovely baby, but do not ever rate it with stars! In [[1608: Hoverboard]] Megan [http://xkcd.com/1608/1019:-1073+s.png rates a sea], something also not usually done. At least she gives fewer stars than Cueball does for the baby. According to [[1098: Star Ratings]] this means the baby is OK.<br />
|-<br />
| It doesn't really look like you since you're not a baby.<br />
| A common comment is ''He totally looks like you''. What people mean is that they can see features in the face (he has his fathers nose but his mothers eyes). But of course given that the parents are adults they of course no longer look like a baby. Often it could be speculated that people just say this because they wish to see the similarities and to please the parents (hopefully).<br />
|-<br />
| So do they learn words one at a time alphabetically or can you pick the order or what?<br />
| Here Cueball displays interest in the process of learning to speak a language as a baby. Very interesting subject, but since this is a very small baby not something first time parents for instance would have thought about yet. Learning one word at a time seems reasonable, but the last two suggestions that they learn alphabetically or in a specific order the parents chooses is plain silly.<br />
|-<br />
| I hope it does a good job.<br />
| A baby actually does nothing that can be described as a ''job'', so this statement is not meaningful.<br />
If it were about the future of the baby, it would be a socially very inadequate comment to care only about the possible usefulness of the baby, than to anticipate the joy of the parents about the child's person.<br />
Alternatively, Cueball could mean ''does a good job of making the parents feel happy/fulfilled/meaningful'' in other words fulfill the reason the couple decided to have the baby in the first place. <br />
|-<br />
| Wow, that's a really cool baby!<br />
| This is what Cueball actually ends up saying. He thinks immediately that this was a silly thing to day and thinks ''Dammit'' (see title text of this comic: [[559: No Pun Intended]]).<br />
|-<br />
| Title text: Does it get taller first and then widen, or does it reach full width before getting taller, or alternate, or what?<br />
| It is not possible to generalize about how {{w|Child_development#Physical_growth|children grow}}, but of course it doesn't reach full width before getting taller! But it's mostly true that kids do alternate between putting on weight and using that weight to get taller. So they'll might get chubbier during a period of time, but then suddenly they will lose the fat as they grow taller and becomes thin again. If they don't eat much, they may stay small. If you feed them a diet with lots of sugar, they may stay fat even during growth spurts. But not necessarily as each kid is different. The question is thus very interesting, but again not something to discuss as an anecdote the first time you have the chance to comment on a newborn baby.<br />
|}<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball is standing in front of a family consisting a Cueball-like guy holding a newborn baby, with spiky hair, in a blanket and Megan. Cueball is thinking lots of thoughts about what to say to the couple upon seeing their baby for the first time. There is thus a huge thinking bubble in the top of the panel above the characters. Everything in this bubble has been crossed out like taking a pencil and drawing lines on top of the text, but it can still be read. After using all this time thinking, Cueball finally decides what to say, only to immediately regret this as can be seen in a small thought bubble below his spoken line, which is between the huge and the small bubble.]<br />
:Cueball (thoughts that are crossed out): <!--These thoughts are not striked-out --><br />
::Wow, it's getting so big! Unlike most babies, which stay the same size forever.<br />
::Hi! I'm talking to a baby!<br />
::What brand is it?<br />
::Wow, definitely much smaller than a regular person!<br />
::You sure did make that.<br />
::★★★★☆ Great baby.<br />
::It doesn't really look like you since you're not a baby.<br />
::So do they learn words one at a time alphabetically or can you pick the order or what?<br />
::I hope it does a good job.<br />
:Cueball: Wow, that's a really cool baby!<br />
:Cueball (thinking): Dammit.<br />
<br />
:[Caption below the panel:]<br />
:I can never figure out what to say about babies.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]<br />
[[Category:Comics sharing name|Baby 2]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1648:_Famous_Duos&diff=1176781648: Famous Duos2016-04-13T05:49:35Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1648<br />
| date = February 26, 2016<br />
| title = Famous Duos<br />
| image = famous_duos.png<br />
| titletext = The Romeo and Butt-Head film actually got two thumbs up from Siskel and Oates.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
In popular culture (the term is loosely used in this case) there are many '''famous duos''', such as {{w|Calvin & Hobbes}} (six-year-old boy and his toy tiger, from the cartoon strip with the same name) or {{w|David & Goliath}} (famous past King of Israel and giant, {{w|Biblical}} characters from the {{w|Book of Samuel}} in the {{w|Old Testament}}). (See the [[#Trivia|trivia section]] regarding an on-line list of duos).<br />
<br />
In this table, [[Randall]] describes a fictional {{w|Many-worlds interpretation|parallel universe}} where the same names are used in different combinations — instead of Calvin, it is now Thelma (from the movie ''{{w|Thelma & Louise}}'') who is paired up with Hobbes, and Calvin is instead paired of with the King, from ''{{w|Anna and the King}}''. In all cases the one mentioned first on the list is also mentioned first in our universe, so it is always of the form Calvin and the King, never Calvin and Anna. There are 24 duos, and all 48 partners are mentioned (they go through four [[#Cycles|cycles]]). (In the title text of [[1644: Stargazing]] from the week before this comic, there is an indirect reference to parallel universes/{{w|multiverse}}).<br />
<br />
The humor of this comic comes from the ridiculousness of the pairings, and the reader's imagination of the stories that are created with the pairs. See the whole [[#List of real duos|list of real duos]] as well as the [[#List of alternative duos|list of alternative duos]] below, with more detailed explanations.<br />
<br />
In the title text, alternative movie ''Romeo and Butt-Head'' is mentioned, the fifth entry on the list. This is a combination of the famous {{w|Shakespeare}} play "{{w|Romeo and Juliet}}", which has been filmed many times; most recently in ''{{w|Romeo + Juliet}}'' from 1996 with {{w|Leonardo DiCaprio}} and {{w|Claire Danes}} in the leading roles. {{w|Butt-Head}} is the less stupid one (of the very stupid duo) from the animated TV series ''{{w|Beavis and Butt-Head}}'' (and a {{w|Beavis and Butt-Head Do America|film}}). As Romeo and Juliet is one of the best known love stories and Butt-Head is one of the most disgusting teens ever depicted on the big screen (only overtaken by {{w|Beavis}}), the combination could create disturbing pictures in people's heads (especially in the heads of anyone who may identify themselves with Juliet).<br />
<br />
In the alternative universe, when this movie was released, it got the best possible review of two thumbs up from the critics ''Siskel and Oates''. {{w|Gene Siskel}} was paired with {{w|Roger Ebert}}, when they reviewed movies as the famous duo {{w|Siskel and Ebert}}. They were widely known for the "thumbs up/thumbs down" review summaries, with their best combined review being ''Two Thumbs Up'', one from each of them.<br />
<br />
In the alternative universe Siskel and his partner gives the film a (surprising) two thumbs up, but Ebert has been replaced with Oates. This is a reference to John Oates of {{w|Hall & Oates}}, a famous American musical duo from Philadelphia.<br />
<br />
There also exists a comedy duo named {{w|Garfunkel and Oates}}, formed by Riki Lindhome and Kate Micucci, who chose the "Garfunkel and Oates" name by combining the second names from both ''Hall & Oates'' and ''{{w|Simon and Garfunkel}}'' (the latter duo is mentioned in the main comic). Although this exact combo would not be possible in the xkcd version, as the "real universe" combo takes the second names from two duos rather than the first name from one and the second name from another (as in this comic), there may definitely be a deliberate reference to this group as well which has taken the parallel universe idea into our universe.<br />
<br />
===List of real duos===<br />
*See the list of [[#List of alternative duos|alternative duos]] below.<br />
*In this list the ''partner index'' indicates whom the second from the duo is linked with in the comic<br />
**So in the case with Thelma (index 1) and Louise (partner index 3), this means that Louise is paired up with Batman (index 3).<br />
**Thelma is paired up with the Hobbes who has partner index 1.<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
|+ Famous duos in this universe<br />
|-<br />
! scope="col" | Name<br />
! scope="col" class="unsortable" | pairing<br />
! scope="col" | Partner<br />
! scope="col" class="unsortable" | Explanation<br />
! scope="col" | Name index<br />
! scope="col" | Partner index<br />
|-<br />
| Thelma<br />
| and<br />
| Louise<br />
| {{w|Thelma & Louise}} is a famous road trip film from 1991.<br />
| 1<br />
| 3<br />
|-<br />
| When Harry<br />
| Met<br />
| Sally<br />
| {{w|When Harry Met Sally...}} is a romantic comedy film from 1989.<br />
| 2<br />
| 16<br />
|-<br />
| Batman<br />
| and<br />
| Robin<br />
| {{w|Batman}} and {{w|Robin (comic)|Robin}} are comic book characters (first appearance for Batman was in 1939 Robin the year after). There have been several {{w|Batman_in_film#Films|films}} including one called {{w|Batman & Robin (film)|Batman & Robin}} from 1997. A new Batman film {{w|Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice}} has its release date three weeks after the release of this comic (2016-02-26).<br />
| 3<br />
| 4<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Mark Antony|Antony}}<br />
| and<br />
| {{w|Cleopatra}}<br />
| {{w|Mark Antony#Antony and Cleopatra|Antony and Cleopatra}} are historical figures who had an affair and three children together after the death of {{w|Julius Caesar}} up to Anthony's death 30 BC. Their combined names are best known from the play {{w|Antony and Cleopatra}} by {{w|Shakespeare}}.<br />
| 4<br />
| 12<br />
|-<br />
| Romeo<br />
| and<br />
| Juliet<br />
| {{w|Romeo and Juliet}} are characters from Shakespeare's famous romantic tragedy, from 1597, made into several {{w|Romeo and Juliet on screen#Significant feature releases|major films}}.<br />
| 5<br />
| 24<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Bonnie and Clyde#Bonnie Parker|Bonnie}}<br />
| and<br />
| {{w|Bonnie and Clyde#Clyde Barrow|Clyde}}<br />
| {{w|Bonnie and Clyde}} were American criminals who traveled the central United States with their gang during the Great Depression until their death on May 23, 1934. They are well known from the film {{w|Bonnie and Clyde (film)|Bonnie and Clyde}}.<br />
| 6<br />
| 7<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Pinky and the Brain#Pinky|Pinky}}<br />
| and<br />
| {{w|Pinky and the Brain#Characters|the Brain}}<br />
| Two mice from {{w|Pinky and the Brain}}, an American animated TV series from the nineties.<br />
| 7<br />
| 20<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Paul Simon|Simon}}<br />
| and<br />
| {{w|Art Garfunkel|Garfunkel}}<br />
| {{w|Simon & Garfunkel}} is a very famous musical duo from the sixties. (See also explanation for the title text).<br />
| 8<br />
| 22<br />
|-<br />
| Beauty<br />
| and<br />
| the Beast<br />
| {{w|Beauty and the Beast}} are fairy tale characters from a French book from 1740, today best known from the {{w|Beauty and the Beast (1991 film)|Disney film}} from 1991.<br />
| 9<br />
| 10<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Beavis}}<br />
| and<br />
| {{w|Butt-head}}<br />
| {{w|Beavis and Butt-Head}} is an animated TV series from the nineties shown on {{w|MTV}}.<br />
| 10<br />
| 5<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Rocky the Flying Squirrel|Rocky}}<br />
| and<br />
| {{w|Bullwinkle J. Moose|Bullwinkle}}<br />
| A flying squirrel and a moose known from the {{w|The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show}}, an American animated TV series from the sixties.<br />
| 11<br />
| 2<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Bud Abbott|Abbott}}<br />
| and<br />
| {{w|Lou Costello|Costello}}<br />
| {{w|Abbott and Costello}} is a famous American comedy duo whose work in vaudeville and on stage, radio, film and television made them the most popular comedy team during the forties.<br />
| 12<br />
| 17<br />
|-<br />
| Dr. Jekyll<br />
| and<br />
| Mr. Hyde<br />
| Not really a duo, {{w|Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (character)|Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde}} are the two sides of a well known character from the book {{w|Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde}} written by the Scottish author {{w|Robert Louis Stevenson}} in 1886. It has been adapted into several {{w|Adaptations_of_Strange_Case_of_Dr._Jekyll_and_Mr._Hyde#Film|films}}.<br />
| 13<br />
| 15<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Samson}}<br />
| and<br />
| {{w|Delilah}}<br />
| Not really a duo, Samson and Delilah are Biblical characters from the {{w|Book of Judges}} (chapters 13-16). Samson was given supernatural strength by God in order to combat his enemies. Samson had two vulnerabilities, however: his attraction to untrustworthy women and his hair, without which he was just a normal man. These vulnerabilities ultimately proved fatal for him when Delilah had him reveal the secret of his hair, which she subsequently cut off. Then she handed him over to be captured by the Philistines, who gouged his eyes out and brought him to imprisonment in Gaza. He died while in capture but on his own terms. Delilah had not explained why he was no longer strong so his hair had been allowed to grow out again. When he got it all back he used his power to tear down a temple he was led into, taking many enemies standing on the roof with him in death.<br />
| 14<br />
| 11<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Butch Cassidy}}<br />
| and<br />
| the {{w|Sundance Kid}}<br />
| They are historical criminals who died in 1908. They were notorious American train and bank robbers with the {{w|Butch Cassidy's Wild Bunch}} gang in 1899-1901. They were made famous by the film {{w|Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid}} from 1969.<br />
| 15<br />
| 23<br />
|-<br />
| Bill<br />
| and<br />
| Ted’s Excellent Adventure<br>and Bogus Journey<br />
| {{w|Bill & Ted (franchise)|Bill & Ted}} are characters from the two films {{w|Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure}} (1989) and {{w|Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey}} (1991). The two titles are spread out on the two new pairings for Bill and Ted, in recognition that this duo is mainly known for these two films, although there also is a {{w|Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventures (1990 TV series)|spin-off animated series}} from 1990-1991.<br />
| 16<br />
| 6<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|David}}<br />
| and<br />
| {{w|Goliath}}<br />
| Not really a duo, David and Goliath were biblical adversaries best known from small David's defeat of giant Goliath in the story {{w|David#David_and_Goliath|David and Goliath}}. David later became the second king of Israel, according to the {{w|Books of Samuel}}, and according to the {{w|New Testament}}, an ancestor of {{w|Jesus}}.<br />
| 17<br />
| 8<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Sherlock Holmes}}<br />
| and<br />
| {{w|Dr. Watson}}<br />
| Characters from {{w|Arthur Conan Doyle}} famous books (from 1887-1927) which have been made into numerous {{w|Adaptations of Sherlock Holmes#Film|films}}, recently (2009 and 2011) a new {{w|Sherlock Holmes (2009 film)|series of movies}} has been released with {{w|Robert Downey Jr.}} and {{w|Jude Law}} as the two characters, and there have also been several TV series, most famously the {{w|Sherlock Holmes (1984 TV series)|1984 TV series}}.<br />
| 18<br />
| 19<br />
|-<br />
| Jay<br />
| and<br />
| Silent Bob<br />
| {{w|Jay and Silent Bob}} is a strange duo from {{w|View Askew Productions|View Askew's}} film universe first seen in the film {{w|Clerks}} from 1994 but they now even have a film names after the duo with {{w|Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back}} from 2001. The director of these movies, {{w|Kevin Smith}} plays Silent Bob, who of course rarely speaks, but when he finally does it often becomes a long defining monologue. Jay (played by {{w|Jason Mewes}}) talks all the time!<br />
| 19<br />
| 18<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Anna Leonowens|Anna}}<br />
| and<br />
| the {{w|Mongkut|King}}<br />
| Recently made famous by the film {{w|Anna and the King}} from 1999, based on the book {{w|Anna and the King of Siam (novel)|Anna and the King of Siam}} from 1944 by {{w|Margaret Landon}} who again is based on two memoirs written by Anna Leonowens in 1870 and 1872 based on her experience as Royal governess for King Mongkut's children and also as language secretary for the king from 1862-1867.<br />
| 20<br />
| 21<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Calvin (Calvin and Hobbes)|Calvin}}<br />
| and<br />
| {{w|Hobbes (Calvin and Hobbes)|Hobbes}}<br />
| {{w|Calvin and Hobbes}} is a famous comic series by {{w|Bill Watterson}} that ran from 1985-1995. Calvin being a six-year-old boy and Hobbes is Calvin's stuffed tiger and best friend, who becomes animated in his private fantasy world. They have been [[:Category:Calvin and Hobbes|featured regularly]] in xkcd most prominently in the "duo" comic: [[409: Electric Skateboard (Double Comic)]].<br />
| 21<br />
| 1<br />
|-<br />
| Timon<br />
| and<br />
| Pumbaa<br />
| {{w|Timon and Pumbaa}} are characters from {{w|The Lion King}} film (1994) and they now also have their own {{w|The Lion King 1½|film from 2004}} and a {{w|Timon & Pumbaa (TV series)|TV series}} that ran from 1995-1999. There have been [[:Category:The Lion King|many references]] to ''The Lion King'' in xkcd, for instance the comment in the final panel of [[1504: Opportunity]], is from the original movie.<br />
| 22<br />
| 14<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Mary Kate Olsen|Mary Kate}}<br />
| and<br />
| {{w|Ashley Olsen}}<br />
| Known as the {{w|Mary-Kate_and_Ashley_Olsen|Olsen twins}} these {{w|Twin#Dizygotic_.28fraternal.29_twins|fraternal twin}} actresses from 1986 have been on TV since they were infants (on {{w|Full House}} from 1987) and began starring together in TV, film, and video projects, which enabled them to join the ranks of the wealthiest women in the entertainment industry at a young age. They have previously been the pun of the joke in [[362: Blade Runner]].<br />
| 23<br />
| 13<br />
|-<br />
| {{w|Mario}}<br />
| and<br />
| {{w|Luigi}}<br />
| In the {{w|Mario (franchise)|''Mario'' series of video games}}, which started with the 1983 game ''{{w|Mario Bros.}}'', Mario and his brother Luigi are the main characters. ''Mario'' games have been referenced in several xkcd comics, such as [[151: Mario]] and the comics in the {{w|''Mario Kart''}} [[:Category:Mario Kart|category]].<br />
| 24<br />
| 9<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===List of alternative duos===<br />
*See the list of [[#List of real duos|real duos]] above.<br />
{| class="wikitable"<br />
|-<br />
|+ Famous Duos in a nearby parallel universe<br />
|-<br />
! scope="col" | Duo name<br />
! scope="col" | Explanation<br />
|-<br />
| Thelma&nbsp;and&nbsp;Hobbes<br />
| In this essay [http://www.exampleessays.com/viewpaper/207623.html Political Philosophies in Thelma and Louise] the sentence ''Thelma and Hobbes's Total Sovereign Authority'' can be found. In this case it is a reference to {{w|Thomas Hobbes}} as the essay is an analysis of Thelma and Louise's actions and the decision they make in comparison to the political philosophies of Thomas Hobbes and {{w|Jean Jacques Rousseau}}. Hobbes was an English philosopher, best known today for his work on political philosophy. He also developed some of the fundamentals of European liberal thought, which could be said to be relevant for the movie.<br />
|-<br />
| When Harry met Bullwinkle<br />
| {{w|Billy Crystal}} who played Harry in When Harry Met Sally... also has an uncredited cameo part as a mattress salesman in the movie {{w|The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle}} (see the list of uncredited actors on [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0131704/combined IMDb]). In this real action movie, Rocky and Bullwinkle ends up in the real world, where it thus becomes likely that Billy who played Harry ends up meeting Bullwinkle "in real life".<br />
|-<br />
| Batman and Louise<br />
| This duos name comes rather close to the real duo {{w|Clark Kent}} and {{w|Lois Lane}} especially since the film {{w|Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice}} was set for release three weeks after the release of this comic in February 2016.<br />
|-<br />
| Antony and Robin<br />
| There is a book called ''[http://www.amazon.com/Shakespeares-Antony-Cleopatra-English-Literature/dp/0713155884 Shakespeare's "Antony and Cleopatra"] written by a Robin Lee.<br />
|-<br />
| Romeo and Butthead<br />
| It would be quite a different story if either Butt-head should replace Juliet or if Romeo should replace Beavis... (Note Butt-Head is spelled with a hyphen, but has been misspelled in the comic.)<br />
|-<br />
| Bonnie and Ted's excellent adventure<br />
| There was not much excellent about the adventure for Bonnie as {{w|Ted Hinton}} was a Dallas County, Texas, deputy sheriff, the youngest of the posse that ambushed and killed Bonnie and Clyde in 1934. That they could have had an excellent adventure in an alternative universe becomes clear from this segment from his history on Wikipedia: "Ted Hinton was also once acquainted with young Bonnie Parker while she was working in Marco's Cafe in Dallas. Because of her good looks, many of the male customers would flirt with her. Hinton was always gentlemanly and treated Bonnie with respect. Hinton admitted in a later biography that he had a crush on Bonnie, which made it difficult for him as one of the men on the team sent to kill her and her lover, Clyde."<br />
|-<br />
| Pinky and Clyde<br />
| As can be seen in the table above this refers to Pinky the mouse from Pinky and the Brain and Clyde from Bonnie and Clyde. But {{w|Ghosts (Pac-Man)#Pinky|Pinky}} and {{w|Ghosts (Pac-Man)#Clyde|Clyde}} are also the names of the pink and orange {{w|Pacman}} ghosts in this universe. They are, however, not a duo as there are {{w|Ghosts (Pac-Man)|four ghosts}} ({{w|Ghosts (Pac-Man)#Blinky|Blinky}} and {{w|Ghosts (Pac-Man)#Inky|Inky}} being the two others).<br />
|-<br />
| Simon and Goliath<br />
| Goliath begins with G as Garfunkel. Simon was the shorter of the duo thus fitting as David vs. Goliath.<br />
|-<br />
| Beauty and Luigi<br />
| No direct relation to either Mario or the Beast. However, each story has had a less-popular adaptation that takes place in the sewers of New York City: the 1993 {{w|Super Mario Bros. (film)|''Super Mario Bros.'' film}} and the 1987-1990 {{w|Beauty and the Beast (1987 TV series)|"Beauty and the Beast" TV series}}. Of course, Mario and Luigi are beast hunters rather than beasts.<br />
|-<br />
| Beavis and the Beast<br />
| Beavis starts with the same three letters as Beauty, just like Beast does.<br />
|-<br />
| Rocky and Delilah<br />
| There is a book called ''[http://www.bensonink.com/delilahsdaughters.html Delilah's Daughters]'', by Angela Benson, where Delilah Monroe's (note the closeness to Munroe) late husband is called Rocky. (See also [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XsIvBLuiiRs Rocky and Delilah] on YouTube...)<br />
|-<br />
| Abbot and Cleopatra<br />
| Abbot starts with an A as does Anthony. Cleopatra starts with a C as does Costello.<br />
|-<br />
| Dr. Jekyll and Ashley Olsen<br />
| In the Robert Louis Stevenson story, Dr. Jekyll has a sinister alter-ego in Mr. Hyde just like twins are (almost) the same persons. Though the Olsen twins are not {{w|Twin#IdenticalTwins|identical twins}}, as children the two shared the role of Michelle Tanner on the U.S. sitcom ''Full House''. Jekyll and Hyde are two people in one body, while Mary Kate and Ashley were, in a way, one person in two bodies. There are only three switches in this cycle. Butch Cassidy takes Mr. Hyde and the other Olson twin takes The Sundance Kid. This means that both twins are paired with a man instead of as in real life with a woman.<br />
|-<br />
| Samson and Pumbaa<br />
| Samson has several letters in common with Timon but Samson is a huge man where Timon is a very small animal compared to the other main characters in The Lion King film.<br />
|-<br />
| Butch Cassidy and Mr. Hyde<br />
| See above explanation for Dr. Jekyll and Ashley Olsen.<br />
|-<br />
| Bill and Sally's Bogus Journey<br />
| In this [http://www.rogerwhitney.com/casestudy/ case study] regarding retirement we ''meet Bill and Sally'' (as Sally met Harry). It could be said to be a ''bogus journey'' as it is just a case study.<br />
|-<br />
| David and Costello<br />
| As Costello was the smaller of Abbot and Costello this does not match up with David vs. a Goliath as it did with Goliath vs small Simon.<br />
|-<br />
| Sherlock Holmes and Silent Bob<br />
| This is the only case of a direct switch between two duos. Dr. Watson usually listen to the musings of Sherlock Holmes and Silent Bob is, as his name indicates, mainly silent. Jay talks all the time.<br />
|-<br />
| Jay and Dr. Watson<br />
| See explanation above for their respective real universe partners (the only case of a direct switch between two duos).<br />
|-<br />
| Anna and the Brain<br />
| The Brain desires to take over the world; the King is ruler of his domain.<br />
|-<br />
| Calvin and the King<br />
| Although it is Calvin's fantasy that decides what happens, it is Hobbes that behaves like the King in their relationship at least when it comes to displaying physical strength to determine who decides.<br />
|-<br />
| Timon and Garfunkel<br />
| Timon is put together with Garfunkel, which makes it a close match to Simon and Garfunkel.<br />
|-<br />
| Mary-Kate and the Sundance Kid<br />
| See above explanation for Dr. Jekyll and Ashley Olsen.<br />
|-<br />
| Mario and Juliet<br />
| Mario would have no issue with balconies. His name has some similarities with Romeo.<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Cycles===<br />
*There are four cycles.<br />
*The cycles listed below are sorted like explained this example from the longest cycle:<br />
**It starts with "Thelma" (from Thelma and Louse), who is paired with "Hobbes". Hobbes is then shown diagonally down in the next entry below, Calvin and Hobbes, thus leading from "Hobbes" to "Calvin", who is similarly paired with "the King" leading to Anna and so on, until "Batman" is paired with "Louise", completing the cycle.<br />
* First cycle: length 15<br />
Thelma & Louise<br />
Calvin & Hobbes<br />
Anna & the King<br />
Pinky & the Brain<br />
Bonnie & Clyde<br />
Bill & Ted<br />
Harry & Sally<br />
Rocky & Bullwinkle<br />
Samson & Delilah<br />
Timon & Pumbaa<br />
Simon & Garfunkel<br />
David & Goliath<br />
Abbot & Costello<br />
Antony & Cleopatra<br />
Batman & Robin<br />
<br />
* Second cycle: length 4<br />
Romeo & Juliet<br />
Beavis & Butthead<br />
Beauty & the Beast<br />
Mario & Luigi<br />
<br />
* Third cycle: length 3<br />
Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde<br />
Mary-Kate & Ashley Olsen<br />
Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid<br />
<br />
* Fourth cycle: length 2<br />
Sherlock Holmes & Dr. Watson<br />
Jay & Silent Bob<br />
<br />
* Assigning an index starting with 1 (= Thelma & Louise) to 24 (= Mario & Luigi), they can be written as:<br />
<br />
(1, 21, 20, 7, 6, 16, 2, 11, 14, 22, 8, 17, 12, 4, 3)<br />
(5, 10, 9, 24)<br />
(13, 23, 15)<br />
(18, 19)<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Caption above the panel:]<br />
:Famous Duos in a nearby parallel universe<br />
<br />
:[A list with 24 duos with a gray “and" between the two names (in one case it is a “met") and three times there is a gray word before (once) or after (twice) the names. The list is centered with the “and" in the middle disregarding the length of the names on each side:]<br />
:{|<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Thelma<br />
| <font color="gray">and</font><br />
| Hobbes<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | <font color="gray">When</font> Harry<br />
| <font color="gray">met</font><br />
| Bullwinkle<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Batman<br />
| <font color="gray">and</font><br />
| Louise<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Antony<br />
| <font color="gray">and</font><br />
| Robin<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Romeo <br />
| <font color="gray">and</font><br />
| Butthead<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Bonnie<br />
| <font color="gray">and</font><br />
| Ted<font color="gray">'s excellent adventure</font><br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Pinky<br />
| <font color="gray">and</font><br />
| Clyde<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Simon<br />
| <font color="gray">and</font><br />
| Goliath<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Beauty<br />
| <font color="gray">and</font><br />
| Luigi<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Beavis<br />
| <font color="gray">and</font><br />
| the Beast<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Rocky<br />
| <font color="gray">and</font><br />
| Delilah<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Abbot<br />
| <font color="gray">and</font><br />
| Cleopatra<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Dr. Jekyll<br />
| <font color="gray">and</font><br />
| Ashley Olsen<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Samson<br />
| <font color="gray">and</font><br />
| Pumbaa<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Butch Cassidy<br />
| <font color="gray">and</font><br />
| Mr. Hyde<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Bill<br />
| <font color="gray">and</font><br />
| Sally<font color="gray">'s Bogus Journey</font><br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | David<br />
| <font color="gray">and</font><br />
| Costello<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Sherlock Holmes<br />
| <font color="gray">and</font><br />
| Silent Bob<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Jay<br />
| <font color="gray">and</font><br />
| Dr. Watson<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Anna<br />
| <font color="gray">and</font><br />
| the Brain<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Calvin<br />
| <font color="gray">and</font><br />
| the King<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Timon<br />
| <font color="gray">and</font><br />
| Garfunkel<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Mary-Kate<br />
| <font color="gray">and</font><br />
| the Sundance Kid<br />
|-<br />
| style="text-align:right;" | Mario<br />
| <font color="gray">and</font><br />
| Juliet<br />
|}<br />
<br />
==Trivia==<br />
*Here is a ranked list with [http://www.ranker.com/list/best-duos-of-all-time/ariel-kana The Best Duos of All Time].<br />
**When this comic came out there was still less than 300 duos on the list.<br />
**16 of the 24 in the comic, and one of the two mentioned in the title text was on this list.<br />
**Below the ranking refers to where they were on the list Sunday after the release of the comic (on Friday).<br />
**The index refers to the index from the table above with the [[#List of real duos|list of real duos]].<br />
:{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
|-<br />
|+ Ranking (on 2016-02-28) of famous Duos<br />
|-<br />
! scope="col" | Rank<br />
! scope="col" | Duo<br />
! scope="col" | Index<br />
|-<br />
| 2 || Batman and Robin|| 3<br />
|-<br />
| 8 || Holmes and Watson|| 18<br />
|-<br />
| 11 || Simon and Garfunkel|| 8<br />
|-<br />
| 22 || Thelma and Louise|| 1<br />
|-<br />
| 23 || Pinky and The Brain|| 7<br />
|-<br />
| 24 || Hall and Oates|| 26 Title text<br />
|-<br />
| 31 || Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid|| 15<br />
|-<br />
| 35 || Calvin and Hobbes|| 21<br />
|-<br />
| 41 || Jay and Silent Bob|| 19<br />
|-<br />
| 46 || Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde|| 13<br />
|-<br />
| 71 || Abbott and Costello|| 12<br />
|-<br />
| 79 || Beauty and the Beast || 9<br />
|-<br />
| 85 || Antony and Cleopatra|| 4<br />
|-<br />
| 99 || Beavis and Butt-head|| 10<br />
|-<br />
| 106 || Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen|| 23<br />
|-<br />
| 110 || Romeo and Juliet|| 5<br />
|-<br />
| 206 || Rocky and Bullwinkle|| 11<br />
|-<br />
| N/A || When Harry Met Sally...|| 2<br />
|-<br />
| N/A || Samson and Delilah || 14<br />
|-<br />
| N/A || Bill & Ted|| 16<br />
|-<br />
| N/A || David and Goliath || 17<br />
|-<br />
| N/A || Anna and the King || 20<br />
|-<br />
| N/A || Timon and Pumbaa || 22<br />
|-<br />
| N/A || Mario and Luigi || 24<br />
|-<br />
| N/A || Siskel and Ebert || 25 Title text<br />
|}<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Charts]]<br />
[[Category:Video games]]<br />
[[Category:Calvin and Hobbes]]<br />
[[Category:The Lion King]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1619:_Watson_Medical_Algorithm&diff=1176771619: Watson Medical Algorithm2016-04-13T05:48:52Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1619<br />
| date = December 21, 2015<br />
| title = Watson Medical Algorithm<br />
| image = watson_medical_algorithm.png<br />
| titletext = Due to a minor glitch, 'discharge patient' does not cause the algorithm to exit, but instead leads back to 'hunt down and capture patient'.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
IBM's {{w|Watson (computer)|Watson}} is a natural language system designed to answer questions posed by humans. Recently, {{w|IBM}} has extended Watson to act as a {{w|clinical decision support system}}, using image analytics to aid {{w|physicians}} in medical decision making. <br />
<br />
In this comic, [[Randall]] uses a {{w|flowchart}} (as he [[:Category:Flowcharts|often does]]) to represent a guide to the algorithm used by Watson, including bizarre techniques including surgical alteration of a patient to match a height and weight chart or squeezing the patient to make sure fluids come out of them. Like [[416: Zealous Autoconfig]], this comic pokes fun at a rigid, poorly-designed setup that ends up potentially doing more harm than good. The computer's behavior in this comic can be compared to the health-care robot named Baymax in the movie {{w|Big Hero 6 (film)|Big Hero 6}}.<br />
<br />
Modern {{w|medicine}} involves both standard processes and clinical judgment based around years of advanced training. An algorithm like this would have to be incredibly complicated in order to simulate the clinical judgment of a good doctor. Below is a [[#Explaination of steps|detailed description of each step]], but here is a list of some of the more strange steps:<br />
*The algorithm depicted treats a patient as more of a machine or mechanical system than a living being, especially through decisions such as:<br />
**Injecting oxygen into patients with low {{w|Oxygen saturation (medicine)|oxygen saturation}}, rather than treating the root cause.<br />
**Removing and inspecting a skeleton, then diagnosing the patient's condition with a bone count. This is likely a reference to [http://buttersafe.com/2015/10/15/a-serious-case-of-spookiness/ A Serious Case Of Spookiness] from the [http://buttersafe.com/ Buttersafe] web-comic, a comic Randall links to from below the comics on {{xkcd}}.<br />
***In the book ''[[Thing Explainer]]'' there is an explanation ''Colors of light'' for the electromagnetic spectrum, where [[Ponytail]] as a doctor looks at a full body x-ray of [[Cueball]] and exclaims that ''... It looks like your body is full of bones'' to which Cueball replies ''Oh no! Is there any cure?'' Well if he meets Watson he might have them all removed... This comic came out about a month after the book so it may be viewed as a kind of reference to the problem with too many bones.<br />
**{{w|Dissecting}} a doctor "for parts" after consulting him or her for advice.<br />
**Removing extra limbs from a patient if the count is 100 or more (This might be a reference to different number systems used in computers, as 100 is read in binary as four.)<br />
**Determining whether the "build environment" of the patient is sane. This is most probably a reference to the {{w|configure script}} used in the {{w|GNU_build_system|GNU build system}}, which emits "checking whether build environment is sane" as one of its status messages.<br />
**Rinsing the whole patient with a {{w|Saline (medicine)|saline solution}}.<br />
**Removing organs from a patient regardless of response to an {{w|organ donation}} request.<br />
*Other decisions appear to be entirely unrelated to the conditions upon which they are predicated:<br />
**If the patient doesn't rate their {{w|Pain scale|pain on a scale}} from 0-10, {{w|Genome project|sequence their genome}}, apply a {{w|tourniquet}}, and perform an {{w|autopsy}}<br />
**If the patient's phone's battery is low, {{w|Defibrillation|defibrillate}} until the battery is charged, sync photos, then administer general anesthesia<br />
**If the patient is successfully comforted after an oxygen injection, check their medical history and apply {{w|Skin grafting|skin grafts}}<br />
**If green fluid is released from the patient, begin to {{w|Cauterization|cauterize}}<br />
**If the patient has less than 100 limbs, check their {{w|Vitamin D}} level<br />
<br />
Although there are two options where the patient is {{w|Inpatient_care#Planning_for_patient_discharge|discharged}} the patient should be very lucky to make it there alive. <br />
<br />
The option at the bottom left is only reached after your skeleton is removed (and nothing is mentioned about putting it back, even if that would help). <br />
<br />
The other discharge option is to the right, three boxes down, and can only be reached if you survive having an oxygen saturation of less than 50 % (less than 80-90 % can be a serious problem, see [[#Explaination of steps|table below]]), and a very dangerous oxygen injection. Then you have to have a skin graft and a good D vitamin level. It is also best that you have a fully charged phone else you will be subject to defibrillation (which may very likely kill you, if it will continue until your phone is charged to above "low" level - which is probably not even possible). <br />
<br />
You can also reach this discharge option another way, but that would only be after your organs were removed... But if you get through this you could reach the discharged option alive. Sadly there is a little glitch mentioned in the title text:<br />
<br />
The title text implies that, if the patient is so lucky to ever reach one of the two places with the option "discharge patient", a minor glitch will cause the program to go back to the ''hunt down and capture patient'' option which thus force the patient and the program to repeat the process again in an infinite cycle, that will only end once the patient give another rating than 0-10 of their pain level on the 0-10 scale. Then the program will start to sequence their genome then apply a tourniquet and finally perform an autopsy, on what will, in the end, for certain be a deceased patient; but maybe the patient was still alive when the autopsy began... This will finally cause the patient to leave the cycle as a corpse. If the patient dies before giving a different option, the machine could get stuck, as it will never receive any answer to the pain level question... It could also get stuck trying to charge the patients phone battery by defibrilation <br />
<br />
This is the second comic in a row about health issues with the last comic being [[1618: Cold Medicine]].<br />
<br />
===Explanation of steps===<br />
{| class="wikitable"<br />
| | <b >Step</b><br />
| | <b >Medically valid?</b><br />
| | <b >Conditions and following step</b><br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Draw Blood<br />
| |<br />
Phlebotomy is a normal early step in the diagnostic process, but not as first and unconditional step<br />
| |<br />
Record patient’s name<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Record patient’s name<br />
| |<br />
OK<br />
| |<br />
Measure Patient’s height and Weight<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Measure Patient’s height and Weight<br />
| |<br />
OK<br />
| |<br />
Consult Standard height/weight chart<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Consult Standard height/weight chart<br />
| |<br />
OK<br />
| |<br />
Surgically adjust patient to match<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Surgically adjust patient to match<br />
| |<br />
May be considered ethically dubious unless there are [http://www.gosh.nhs.uk/medical-information/procedures-and-treatments/limb-length-difference-and-limb-lengthening sound medical reasons] for doing so. Could be an allusion to {{w|Procrustes}}.<br />
| |<br />
Is patient coughing up blood?<br />
|-<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 |<br />
Is patient coughing up blood?<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 |<br />
OK, coughing up blood is generally a sign that there is something wrong. Typical causes are respiratory tract infections (e.g. tuberculosis), lung trauma or pulmonary embolism.<br />
| |<br />
Yes: Gather blood and return it to body<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
No: Is patient still here?<br />
|-<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 |<br />
Is patient still here?<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 |<br />
Not usually considered a step, but missing patients are a problem in some fields, psychiatry or intensive care for example.<br />
| |<br />
Yes: Record pulse rate<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
No: Hunt down and capture patient<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Hunt down and capture patient<br />
| |<br />
Valid if patient should not have left the bed/unit, but the wording is possibly dubious.<br />
| |<br />
Is patient still here?<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Gather blood and return it to body<br />
| |<br />
Dangerous idea in this case due to likelihood of contamination, although if safely done autotransfusion is an accepted medical technique to ensure a matching blood supply prior to a major operation, or to enhance stamina (blood doping)<br />
| |<br />
Record pulse rate<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Record pulse rate<br />
| |<br />
OK, but maybe a little late. <br />
| |<br />
Is patient screaming?<br />
|-<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 |<br />
Is patient screaming?<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 |<br />
Very important question, indicating patient is conscious, in pain, and aware pain is bad. First attenders can use it in classifying priorities (quiet patients may be more severely injured). Generally useful in assessing nerve damage, pain relief, etc.<br />
| |<br />
Yes: Ignore<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
No: Check blood O<sub>2</sub> saturation<br />
|-<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 ` |<br />
Check blood O<sub>2</sub> saturation<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 |<br />
Only really indicated if the patient is in danger of hypoxia. Generally normal people should have a SpO2 of 98-100%, but in chronic lung disease this can fall as low to 80%, and in premature babies a SpO2 of 90% is usually targeted to avoid problems with retinopathy. If the SpO2 were to fall as low as 50%, the patient would definitely be dead or unconscious.<br />
| |<br />
&gt;50%: Remove and inspect skeleton<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
&lt;50%: Inject oxygen<br />
|-<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 |<br />
Remove and inspect skeleton<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 |<br />
Fatal if patient is still alive when beginning. Also not a valid medical procedure in any way as it is impossible to remove most of the long bones of the body without destroying all surrounding tissue.<br />
| |<br />
Too many bones: Is fluid coming out of patient?<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Too few bones: Request consult with human doctor<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Request consult with human doctor<br />
| |<br />
Medically valid in the context of obtaining an opinion from a doctor in a different speciality who is better suited to treating the patient.<br />
| |<br />
Dissect doctor for parts<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Dissect doctor for parts<br />
| | <b >This may be considered ethically dubious.<span > </span></b>Possible reference to the Doctor Who episode “{{w|The Girl in the Fireplace}}”<br />
| |<br />
Discharge patient (left)<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Discharge patient (left)<br />
| |<br />
Acceptable, but patient would generally be dead by then.<br />
| |<br />
END STATE (before you read the title text)<br />
|-<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 |<br />
Is fluid coming out of patient<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 |<br />
Unintended fluid release is always a problem. How significant a problem depends on where the fluid came from and if it is supposed to be coming from there. Red generally is due to blood, yellow is due to pus/tissue fluid/lymph and green signifies bacterial infection or bile salts (biliverdin). Could also relate to normal fluids being lost (e.g. urine, saliva, sweat)<br />
| |<br />
No: Squeeze patient<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Yes: What color?<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Squeeze patient<br />
| |<br />
Could be in the medical context is in providing external ventilation (see iron lung) or other means of removing fluid (e.g. squeezing pus from a boil).<br />
| |<br />
Is fluid coming out of patient<br />
|-<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=4 |<br />
What color?<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=4 |<br />
Never underestimate the number of different types of fluid the body can produce.<br />
| |<br />
Yellow: Squeeze Patient<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Black: Activate Sprinklers<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Red: Ask patient to rate pain level<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Green: Cauterize<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Activate sprinklers<br />
| |<br />
Not medically valid. Presumably a reference to how much cleaning up will be required by this stage.<br />
| |<br />
Subdue patient<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Subdue patient<br />
| |<br />
Potentially very important if patient is behaving dangerously to themselves and others around them (due to mental health issues e.g. psychosis or drugs) and/or is moving too much to be given treatment. This would be likely due to what happened earlier.<br />
| |<br />
Apply cream<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Apply cream<br />
| |<br />
Medically valid as a form of barrier dressing to improve wound healing.<br />
| |<br />
Ask patient to rate pain level<br />
|-<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=4 |<br />
Ask patient to rate pain level<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=4 |<br />
Useful in the sense that it provides the doctor with the means to ensure that the patient is receiving adequate analgesia during conditions of chronic and acute pain.<br />
| |<br />
0-8: Massage scalp<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
9: Admit for observation<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
10: Laser eye removal<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Other response: Sequence genome<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Massage scalp<br />
| |<br />
This would belong more to the domain of palliative care and reflexology rather than being an accepted medical treatment.<br />
| |<br />
Patient is healthy<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Patient is healthy<br />
| |<br />
A subjective assessment of the health patient is often helpful in ruling out certain diagnoses. For example, one is less likely to suspect cancer in a fit, healthy 30 year old than a thin, lethargic 50 year old.<br />
| |<br />
Admit for observation<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Admit for observation<br />
| |<br />
Useful in the context of 'watchful waiting', in which the doctor may be unsure if the patient actually has a condition that they suspect that the patient has. By keeping the patient on the ward for a few days, the clinician can monitor the progression of symptoms and rapidly initiate adequate treatment if medically warranted.<br />
| |<br />
Ask patient to rate pain level<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Laser eye removal<br />
| |<br />
This is not a standard medical procedure, and not a good idea. This could be a pun on laser eye surgery where a laser is used to correct visual problems (e.g. short-sightedness), or laser hair and tattoo removal. <br />
| |<br />
Admit for observation<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Sequence genome<br />
| |<br />
Useful in the association of extremely rare point mutations with an organic illness. See for instance the Genome 10K Project or the Cancer Genome Atlas. Or in diagnosing extremely rare mutations that are not picked up by most commercial DNA screening tests (e.g. kidney failure due to INF2 mutation).<br />
| |<br />
Apply tourniquet<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Apply tourniquet<br />
| |<br />
Useful to stop acute bleeding from an injured extremity, but if it is drawn too tightly it can cause neuromuscular damage.<br />
| |<br />
Perform autopsy<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Perform autopsy<br />
| | The patient has died, and Watson is being ordered to determine the cause of death. Note that the only way to reach this state is from "apply tourniquet", implying the cause of death is strangulation via tourniquet.<br />
| | END STATE (taking the title text into account, the only possible one)<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Inject oxygen<br />
| |<br />
May be fatal as injecting gases directly to the blood vessels can cause a serious embolism if it blocks blood flow to the brain or coronary arteries. However, if the oxygen is injected slowly into the venous circulation, it may be survivable as the bubbles may simply collect in the lungs where the oxygen is then slowly reabsorbed into the blood.<br />
| |<br />
Comfort patient<br />
|-<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 |<br />
Comfort patient<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 |<br />
Psychological support to the patient and relatives is often useful after breaking news of a poor prognosis. It may also be useful in subduing the agitated or psychotic patient.<br />
| |<br />
Comforting successful: Review medical history<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Comforting unsuccessful: Subdue patient<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Review medical history<br />
| |<br />
Important early step, rather too late and conditional.<br />
| |<br />
Skin grafts<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Skin grafts<br />
| |<br />
Only indicated if massive areas of the skin are damaged (typically due to burns)<br />
| |<br />
Count number of limbs<br />
|-<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 |<br />
Count number of limbs<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 |<br />
Not really relevant in medicine, but may be of use to know the reason behind any missing or extra limbs on seeing the patient though a through review of the medical history will render this point moot. Probably a little late to be noticing this now.<br />
| |<br />
Fewer than 100: Measure Vitamin D<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
100+: Remove extra limbs<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Remove extra limbs<br />
| |<br />
Medically indicated in cases of polymelia either due to cosmetic purposes or because the extra limbs pose a direct threat to the health of the baby.<br />
| |<br />
Subdue patient<br />
|-<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 |<br />
Measure vitamin D<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 |<br />
Valid in diagnosis of bone related issues, for example if multiple or comminuted fractures were being counted as additional limbs/bones.<br />
| |<br />
Good: Check whether build environment is sane<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Bad: Blood loss?<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Check whether build environment is sane<br />
| |<br />
Could be technical reference to the installation of the algorithm in the robot, or could relate to the sanity of:<br />
*The robot doctor<br />
*The patient undergoing this procedure (before or after reaching this part of the process)<br />
*The person who programmed the robot to perform this flowchart<br />
*The person who allowed this state of affairs to occur (I'm looking at you [[Black Hat]])<br />
<br />
This could also be a reference to the title text for [[371: Compiler Complaint]].<br />
<br />
NB: Whether the build environment is sane is irrelevant to the flowchart.<br />
| |<br />
Rinse patient with saline solution<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Rinse patient with saline solution<br />
| |<br />
Tepid sponging may be indicated if the patient has a high fever. Could also refer to internally rinsing patient with saline solution i.e. providing intravenous sodium chloride to boost circulating volume or to perform peritoneal dialysis.<br />
| |<br />
Is patient phone battery low?<br />
|-<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 |<br />
Is patient phone battery low?<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 |<br />
Invalid in medical terminology, could be a technological metaphor for the patient's consciousness or stamina. "Your life-force is running out"<br />
| |<br />
Yes: Defibrillate<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
No: Sync photos from camera<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Defibrillate<br />
| |<br />
Indicated in cases where there is ventricular fibrillation, and to a lesser extent in atrial fibrillation (chemical cardioversion with adenosine is usually preferred), but would not help with a phone.<br />
| |<br />
Is patient phone battery low?<br />
|-<br />
| | <br />
Sync photos from camera<br />
| |<br />
Definitely invalid. Could refer to the robot attempting to backup photos from a camera before attempting to repair it/attempting to back-up patient's consciousness.<br />
| |<br />
Administer general anesthesia<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Administer general anesthesia<br />
| |<br />
Valid, but not at this stage. Only used when the procedure will invoke unnecessary distress or pain to the patient if they were to be awake beforehand.<br />
| |<br />
Discharge patient (right)<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Discharge patient (right)<br />
| |<br />
Acceptable if coming from above, but the option from below (see below) would mean that the patient would be dead by then.<br />
| |<br />
END STATE (before you read the title text)<br />
|-<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 |<br />
Blood loss?<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 |<br />
Useful. Patient may die if this clinical sign is missed.<br />
| |<br />
Minor: Patient address changed?<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Substantial: Apply cream<br />
|-<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 |<br />
Patient address changed?<br />
| width="33%" rowspan=2 |<br />
Useful to ensure that the organisation has current contact details for the patient in the event that they may need to contact the patient (e.g. to arrange further appointments)<br />
| |<br />
Yes: Request organ donation<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
No: Patient is healthy<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Request organ donation<br />
| |<br />
Generally done prior to registering an individual for a driving licence or to a medical practice, or to the relatives of the deceased if consent had not been acquired beforehand.<br />
|Remove organs<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Remove organs<br />
| |<br />
The only organs which can be safely removed from a living person without resulting in serious, chronic medical issues are the kidneys/lungs (only one can be removed), spleen, part of the liver (as long as one lobe is left it can regrow to its original size) and colon (usually consisting of the appendix only). With some serious lifestyle modifications, the pancreas, pituitary gland, frontal lobe of brain, half of the brain, adrenal glands, bladder and most of the gut can be removed. The heart can be removed from the body and replaced with an artificial pump for a few months at the most. However, such organ removals are only indicated if there is a genuine clinical need to do so due to the non-negligible risk of death associated with these operations.<br />
| Discharge patient (right)<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Title text<br />
| |<br />
The glitch in the algorithm causes it to continue in spite of having just discharged the patient<br />
| Hunt down and capture patient.<br />
|}<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:Heading: A guide to the medical diagnostic and treatment system used by IBM's '''Watson''' system<br />
:[A flowchart with the following steps is shown, starting from "start":]<br />
:{| class="wikitable"<br />
| | <b >Step</b><br />
| | <b >Following step</b><br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Start<br />
| |<br />
Draw Blood<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Draw Blood<br />
| |<br />
Record patient’s name<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Record patient’s name<br />
| |<br />
Measure Patient’s height and Weight<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Measure Patient’s height and Weight<br />
| |<br />
Consult Standard height/weight chart<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Consult Standard height/weight chart<br />
| |<br />
Surgically adjust patient to match<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Surgically adjust patient to match<br />
| |<br />
Is patient coughing up blood?<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan=2 |<br />
Is patient coughing up blood?<br />
| |<br />
Yes: Gather blood and return it to body<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
No: Is patient still here?<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan=2 |<br />
Is patient still here?<br />
| |<br />
Yes: Record pulse rate<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
No: Hunt down and capture patient<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Hunt down and capture patient<br />
| |<br />
Is patient still here?<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Gather blood and return it to body<br />
| |<br />
Record pulse rate<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Record pulse rate<br />
| |<br />
Is patient screaming?<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan=2 |<br />
Is patient screaming?<br />
| |<br />
Yes: Ignore<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
No: Check blood O<sub>2</sub> saturation<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan=2 ` |<br />
Check blood O<sub>2</sub> saturation<br />
| |<br />
&gt;50%: Remove and inspect skeleton<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
&lt;50%: Inject oxygen<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan=2 |<br />
Remove and inspect skeleton<br />
| |<br />
Too many bones: Is fluid coming out of patient?<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Too few bones: Request consult with human doctor<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Request consult with human doctor<br />
| |<br />
Dissect doctor for parts<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Dissect doctor for parts<br />
| |<br />
Discharge patient<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Discharge patient<br />
| |<br />
END STATE (before you read the title text)<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan=2 |<br />
Is fluid coming out of patient<br />
| |<br />
No: Squeeze patient<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Yes: What color?<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Squeeze patient<br />
| |<br />
Is fluid coming out of patient<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan=4 |<br />
What color?<br />
| |<br />
Yellow: Squeeze Patient<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Black: Activate Sprinklers<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Red: Ask patient to rate pain level<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Green: Cauterize<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Activate sprinklers<br />
| |<br />
Subdue patient<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Subdue patient<br />
| |<br />
Apply cream<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Apply cream<br />
| |<br />
Ask patient to rate pain level<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan=4 |<br />
Ask patient to rate pain level<br />
| |<br />
0-8: Massage scalp<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
9: Admit for observation<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
10: Laser eye removal<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Other response: Sequence genome<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Massage scalp<br />
| |<br />
Patient is healthy<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Patient is healthy<br />
| |<br />
Admit for observation<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Admit for observation<br />
| |<br />
Ask patient to rate pain level<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Laser eye removal<br />
| |<br />
Admit for observation<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Sequence genome<br />
| |<br />
Apply tourniquet<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Apply tourniquet<br />
| |<br />
Perform autopsy<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Perform autopsy<br />
| | [End state, and if taking the title text into account, the only possible one]<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Inject oxygen<br />
| |<br />
Comfort patient<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan=2 |<br />
Comfort patient<br />
| |<br />
Comforting successful: Review medical history<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Comforting unsuccessful: Subdue patient<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Review medical history<br />
| |<br />
Skin grafts<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Skin grafts<br />
| |<br />
Count number of limbs<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan=2 |<br />
Count number of limbs<br />
| |<br />
Fewer than 100: Measure Vitamin D<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
100+: Remove extra limbs<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Remove extra limbs<br />
| |<br />
Subdue patient<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan=2 |<br />
Measure vitamin D<br />
| |<br />
Good: Check whether build environment is sane<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Bad: Blood loss?<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Check whether build environment is sane<br />
| |<br />
Rinse patient with saline solution<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Rinse patient with saline solution<br />
| |<br />
Is patient phone battery low?<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan=2 |<br />
Is patient phone battery low?<br />
| |<br />
Yes: Defibrillate<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
No: Sync photos from camera<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Defibrillate<br />
| |<br />
Is patient phone battery low?<br />
|-<br />
| | <br />
Sync photos from camera<br />
| |<br />
Administer general anesthesia<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Administer general anesthesia<br />
| |<br />
Discharge patient<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan=2 |<br />
Blood loss?<br />
| |<br />
Minor: Patient address changed?<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Substantial: Apply cream<br />
|-<br />
| rowspan=2 |<br />
Patient address changed?<br />
| |<br />
Yes: Request organ donation<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
No: Patient is healthy<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Request organ donation<br />
|Remove organs<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Remove organs<br />
| Discharge patient<br />
|-<br />
| |<br />
Discharge patient<br />
| |<br />
[End State: See title text]<br />
|}<br />
<br />
==Trivia==<br />
*The [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/archive/1/15/20151222113107!watson_medical_algorithm.png original comic] was updated after it was first posted.<br />
**The decisions for number of limbs were swapped so it made sense. <br />
**In the corrected version it was only if you had more than 100 limbs that Watson would remove the extra limbs.<br />
**Before it removed limbs if you had less than 100 (i.e. always, and now never.)<br />
**This actually opened up (a slim) chance to survive to the right discharge patient box. Although it would not matter according to the title text...<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Flowcharts]]<br />
[[Category:Artificial Intelligence]]<br />
[[Category:Computers]]<br />
[[Category:Sarcasm]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1585:_Similarities&diff=1176761585: Similarities2016-04-13T05:47:17Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1585<br />
| date = October 2, 2015<br />
| title = Similarities<br />
| image = similarities.png<br />
| titletext = I just came from The Martian, and I just have to say: Forget BB-8; I want a pet Sojourner! It's always been the cutest of our Mars rovers.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
There's a common punchline in which the plot-lines of two thematically-different works of fiction (usually movies) are compared in greatly-abbreviated form, and the speaker sarcastically concludes that the two movies are "basically the same". For sake of example, Disney's ''Aladdin'' and James Cameron's ''Titanic'' [http://imgur.com/gallery/kasCMYd both feature a story in which a lower-class boy and an upper-class girl fall for each other, among other cherry-picked yet interesting parallels.] But due to the different emotional tones of the films (a family-friendly "happy ever after" tale and a disaster thriller respectively) one would not normally describe them as similar.<br />
<br />
This comic spoofs the idea. Instead of comparing plot-lines of two movies, [[Ponytail]] and [[Cueball]] compare development histories of two movies.<br />
<br />
''{{w|Fifty Shades of Grey}}'' began as a {{w|fan fiction}} of a well known brand (the {{w|Twilight (novel series)|Twilight book series}}). It was originally written on the internet by {{w|E. L. James}}. It was then transformed into a successful book series which was later turned into a {{w|Fifty Shades of Grey (film)|movie}} released in February 2015.<br />
<br />
''{{w|The Martian (Weir novel)|The Martian}}'' was originally a serialized story written by {{w|Andy Weir (writer)|Andy Weir}} on his blog which was later compiled into an ebook for people to easily download, then published into a physical book, and has now had a {{w|The Martian (film)|movie}} created based on it. The movie was officially released in the US on the same day this comic was released (October 2, 2015).<br />
<br />
Since ''Fifty Shades'' is a romance story about a sadomasochistic relationship, and ''The Martian'' is a very technical story about surviving completely alone on a hostile planet, the two books could not be any more different, hence the joke due to the juxtaposition. Cueball continues the joke by joining the two titles using red for Mars, to make a new book title, that should cover both books: ''Fifty Shades of Red.'' Ponytail is very enthusiastic about the book concept, saying it would be irresistible (at least for her and Cueball). It is not clear from the comic if he liked the movie. Since he now compares it to a book series that has been {{w|Fifty_Shades_of_Grey#Background|described}} as ''mommy porn'' it could indicate that he was not so satisfied with the movie. On the other hand, he may just have noticed this connection and found that it would make a great joke here on the release day.<br />
<br />
An alternative explanation is that Randall is commenting on the [http://screencrush.com/the-martian-damon-interstellar/ frequent] [http://io9.com/sorry-interstellar-we-just-saw-some-of-the-martian-an-1699793860 comparisons] made between The Martian and the movie [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interstellar_%28film%29 Interstellar], comparisons centering on the fact that in both Matt Damon plays an astronaut stuck on a deserted planet, but also mentioning, among others, the appearance of Jessica Chastain and the similar design of the space suits used in both movies. These comparisons have been prevalent on the Internet long before the release of The Martian, so evidently spurred by the movie trailers, rather than by reviews of viewers. Randall is making the point that to one who has seen the movie, comparing The Martian to Interstellar is as far fetched as comparing it to Fifty Shades of Grey. According to this interpretation, Randall is not ridiculing The Martian, but rather Interstellar. By proxy, he is praising The Martian. Given that Randall has chosen (now for the second time) to mention the film explicitly on his site, the idea that he is promoting The Martian is perhaps more plausible than the idea that he is expressing dissatisfaction with it. The title text, where he makes a similar comparison, favoring The Martian over Star Wars: The Force Awakens, further boosts this explanation.<br />
<br />
It is possible that the brand that the Martian derives from is NASA itself. The Martian has been [https://xkcd.com/1536/ compared to Apollo 13] by Randall. [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112384/ Apollo 13] does indeed glorify the roles of the NASA engineers; and the Martian does a similar thing. That Randall would go see this movie as soon as it was released was already made perfectly clear back in June when he released the comic [[1536: The Martian]] showing how excited he is about the book. He then really looked forward to the movie.<br />
<br />
[[Randall]] indicates in the title text that he has just seen the movie (certainly possible, if he caught a midnight screening; perhaps he drew this comic in advance and wrote the title text after) and finds the Sojourner rover adorable.<br />
<br />
The [http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/BB-8 BB-8] mentioned in the title text is the {{w|astromech droid}} from the upcoming movie {{w|Star Wars: The Force Awakens}}, and is available as a toy (see also BB-8 on the [http://www.starwars.com/databank/bb-8 official Star Wars] home page). {{w|Sojourner (rover)|Sojourner}} was the Mars ''Pathfinder'' robotic rover used by Mark Watney, the protagonist of ''The Martian'' (played by {{w|Matt Damon}} in the movie), to allow him to contact Earth. Randall indicated that he thinks the Sojourner is much cuter than BB-8, and that he would like to have one as a pet. He then states that the Sojourner has always been the cutest among all the {{w|Mars rovers}}. There have been 4 so far the other three being {{w|Opportunity (rover)|Opportunity}}, {{w|Spirit (rover)|Spirit}} and {{w|Curiosity (rover)|Curiosity}} which have already been used in xkcd comics: [[695: Spirit]], [[1091: Curiosity]] and [[1504: Opportunity]].<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Ponytail is talking to Cueball.]<br />
<br />
:Ponytail: So it's a work of fiction about a well-known brand. written on the Internet by an enthusiast, republished as a bestselling book, and then made into a big movie.<br />
:Cueball: Yup.<br />
<br />
:[Ponytail holds her hand to her chin. Beat panel.]<br />
<br />
:[Ponytail is talking to Cueball again.]<br />
:Ponytail: Yeah, ''The Martian'' and ''Fifty Shades of Grey'' are basically the same book.<br />
:Cueball: "''Fifty Shades of Red?''"<br />
:Ponytail: Man, ''tell'' me you wouldn't read that.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Mars rovers]] <!--Title text--><br />
[[Category:Star Wars]] <!--Title text--><br />
[[Category:Space]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1574:_Trouble_for_Science&diff=1176751574: Trouble for Science2016-04-13T05:46:14Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1574<br />
| date = September 7, 2015<br />
| title = Trouble for Science<br />
| image = trouble_for_science.png<br />
| titletext = Careful mathematical analysis demonstrates small-scale irregularities in Gaussian distribution<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
The comic highlights the fact that several well-publicized scientific critiques have recently been published that raise questions about some commonly accepted scientific methods. For scientists, these critiques serve as reminders of the dangers of overconfidence in any method, hopefully leading those who have naively accepted results to remember that any scientific conclusion is by its very nature tentative and limited by methodological reliability. However, popular press reporting of these papers may lead a general public of modest scientific literacy to the impression that science might be in trouble, as implied by the title. Some of these methodological issues and shortcomings are well known in the scientific community but are – for better or worse – the best toolkit science has at its disposal today. This is however greatly exaggerated by the last (fictional) headline, which suggests that Bunsen burners in fact have a cooling effect, which is of course absolutely ridiculous, but would nevertheless change one more fundamental scientific belief drastically. Additionally, each headline contains irony or a double meaning for comical effect.<br />
<br />
The title of five scientific articles are shown:<br />
<br />
;Many commercial antibody-based immunoassays are unreliable<br />
This sentence is true. See Kebaneilwe Lebani, [http://espace.library.uq.edu.au/view/UQ:352531 Antibody Discovery for Development of a Serotyping Dengue Virus NS1 Capture Assay], 2014. In this PhD thesis, 11 references are given.<br />
<br />
;Problems with the p-value as an indicator of significance<br />
In empirical research, one is usually interested in effects / results / relationships in a population. However, for practical reasons, only smaller subsets of populations are available to the researcher. These are called samples. Usually an effect of interest is tested using a sample. The purpose of hypothesis testing is to determine whether the observed effect (or lack of effect) in a sample is a random artifact of our particular sample, or whether there is a good chance that it also exists in the population.<br />
<br />
Generally a null hypothesis states that there is no effect in the population while the alternative hypothesis states that there is an effect.<br />
<br />
P-values are used in hypothesis testing. The p-value is the probability of observing an effect / result / relationship in your sample data, given that no such effect / result / relationship exists in the population. It is based on the sample data and the particular statistic (such as sample average, t, or F). A statistic is the result of a calculation based on the sample. A p-value can be calculated for each statistic of interest. Formally, the p-value is the probability of observing a test statistic equal to or greater than the one based on the sample data, given that the null hypothesis is true.<br />
<br />
The threshold for p-value cutoff, α, is pre-specified (usually 5% or 1%, which is more conservative). When the p-value is lower to or equal to α, the null hypothesis is rejected in favor of the alternative hypothesis. When it is higher than α, the null hypothesis is retained.<br />
<br />
The value used for ''α'' has been proposed by [http://web.lru.dk/sites/lru.dk/files/lru/docs/kap9/kapitel_9_126_On_the_origins.pdf Fisher] and is arbitrary.<br />
<br />
The use of p-values as a measure of statistical significance is frequently criticized, for example in [http://wiki.bio.dtu.dk/~agpe/papers/pval_notuseful.pdf Hubbard and Lindsay]. Randall has demonstrated this problem in the past in [[882: Significant]].<br />
;Overfeeding of laboratory rodents compromises animal models<br />
<br />
[http://tpx.sagepub.com/content/24/6/757.full.pdf Keenan et al.] makes this case. Additionally, the word model takes on two meanings. In one sense, a model can refer to a scientific description that makes sense of a phenomenon; in another sense, model can refer to an individual whose job it is to demonstrate fashions, typically fashionable outfits. Fashion models are notorious for being exceptionally thin, and so overfeeding would compromise their job as a model.<br />
<br />
;Replication study fails to reproduce many published results<br />
A [https://explorable.com/replication-study Replication Study] is a study designed to duplicate the results of a previous study by using the same methods for a different set of subjects and experimenters. It aims to recreate the results to gain confidence in the results of the previous study as well as ensuring that the findings of the previous study are transferable to other similar areas of study.<br />
<br />
Randall is probably referring to this recent study described in Nature: [http://www.nature.com/news/over-half-of-psychology-studies-fail-reproducibility-test-1.18248 Over half of psychology studies fail reproducibility test.] It might also be a reference to at least 3 studies mentioned here: http://www.jove.com/blog/2012/05/03/studies-show-only-10-of-published-science-articles-are-reproducible-what-is-happening. There is also irony in the phrasing of the title because in biology replication is a form of reproduction.<br />
<br />
Another possible interpretation of this headline is that a replication study, which may have successfully replicated the results of the specific study it was designed for, failed to reproduce the published results of many other unrelated studies. The headline is quite vague as to which results have been considered in this study.<br />
<br />
;Controlled trials show Bunsen burners make things colder<br />
The theme of this comic is that commonly accepted scientific methods can be unreliable, and the joke here is that a Bunsen burner, a device intended to heat things, is newly discovered to always cool things instead, which would be absurd.<br />
<br />
In theory, yes, putting a Bunsen Burner underneath an object that's already incredibly hot would, slowly, equalize the temperature between the flame and object resulting in cooling. Given that a Bunsen Burner burns between 1000 K and 2000 K, there is probably some methodological error if the testing materials were already much hotter than the flame (more than 2000 Kelvin). It's also possible that if the "controlled trial" involved a Bunsen burner that was not lit, but was turned on to allow gas to flow, it would have a cooling effect as the gas expanded from the line pressure to atmospheric pressure. Another alternative theory is that a cold substance, such as cold water or frigid air, was fed through the burner against a warmer object.<br />
<br />
Alternatively, a trial could be set up to test something against a Bunsen burner on the one hand, and an even hotter flame on the other hand. As compared to that hotter flame, the Bunsen burner would not heat up the tested material as much, resulting in something being made "colder" than the alternative.<br />
<br />
As in the previous headline, the key to understanding the joke here is to examine the headline's ambiguity, as no clue is given about ''how'' the trials were controlled.<br />
<br />
;Careful mathematical analysis demonstrates small-scale irregularities in Gaussian distribution<br />
This is another joke of a premise that is obviously untrue. The {{w|Gaussian function|Gaussian distribution}} is a mathematical construct that is generally known as the bell curve or the Normal distribution. As it is an ideal mathematical construction, by definition, it cannot have any irregularities - similar to how the equation y = 2x + 1 cannot have small-scale irregularities. The joke probably alludes to the fact that many types of observations are frequently initially modeled as a Gaussian distribution, though on careful observation the actual distribution of outcomes will often deviate from a pure Gaussian distribution.<br />
<br />
In addition, an experiment to test a Gaussian distribution will have a finite sample size, giving a non-exact Gaussian distribution. A possible paper submitted would conclude that this result is "approximately a normal distribution" with "small-scale irregularities". A news reporter without knowledge of statistics could easily misinterpret that this paper decisively concludes errors in the mathematical definitions (rather than coming from random error inherent in experimenting).<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Five panels, each with the top part of a scientific article, where only the title is legible. Below is the list of authors and subheading and text in unreadable wiggles.]<br />
<br />
:Many Commercial Antibody-Based Immunoassays Are Unreliable<br />
<br />
:Problems With the p-Value as an Indicator of Significance<br />
<br />
:Overfeeding of Laboratory Rodents Compromises Animal Models<br />
<br />
:Replication Study Fails to Reproduce Many Published Results<br />
<br />
:Controlled Trials Show Bunsen Burners Make Things Colder<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Science]]<br />
[[Category:Biology]]<br />
[[Category:Chemistry]]<br />
[[Category:Math]]<br />
[[Category:Physics]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1572:_xkcd_Survey&diff=1176741572: xkcd Survey2016-04-13T05:45:14Z<p>173.245.54.30: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1572<br />
| date = September 2, 2015<br />
| title = xkcd Survey<br />
| image = xkcd_survey.png<br />
| titletext = The xkcd Survey: Big Data for a Big Planet<br />
}}<br />
*The comic links to [http://goo.gl/forms/B5RaBeZ6nw The xkcd survey] on Google.<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
As the comic image states, it links to a survey created with [https://www.google.com/forms/about/ Google Forms], containing a series of questions. The questions range from mundane typical survey questions such as “Do you have any food allergies?”, to rather strange, such as “Fill this text box with random letters by randomly mashing keys on your keyboard.” (See [[1530: Keyboard Mash]]).<br />
<br />
The stated goal of the survey is to “create an interesting and unusual data set for people to play with”. A strange data set is a ripe opportunity for a sampling of readers. It's also supposed to be “a search for weird correlations” – presumably the goal is to be able to say things like “people who have been skydiving are (more/less) likely than average to dislike cilantro”. (See also [[882: Significant]] about finding presumably-spurious correlations between unrelated data.)<br />
<br />
This explanation will undoubtedly expand when the data comes in.<br />
<br />
{{w|Image_map#Client-side_image_map|HTML image maps}} is a technique for marking up areas of an image on a web page, such that each area can be a link without the whole image being a link. [[Randall]] could have used this type of image map to make only the “Click here to take the survey” button be a link, and none of the rest of the image. But he cannot get the hang of it (or knowing his skills, does not wish to take the time to learn it). Not getting the hang of HTML image maps was also referenced on [http://imgs.xkcd.com/store/tour-news.png the banner for his book tour] from [http://web.archive.org/web/20140901023821/http://xkcd.com/ September 2014]<br />
<br />
The title text is a joke off of {{w|Big Data}}, which is a name for analysis of a set of data that includes a huge amount of information. He also says "for a big planet" because the Earth is big.{{Citation needed}}<br />
<br />
The survey is closed, and the questions replaced with the text: "The xkcd survey is now closed. Thank you for all your answers! Response data is being collected and will be posted soon." As of 19 March 2016, the same caption is still there, with no indication of exactly how soon the data is intended to be posted. (Apparently, Randall crashed google forms, so the data is taking a long time to be retrieved [https://www.reddit.com/r/xkcd/comments/40mhve/what_ever_happened_to_the_survey_we_took/ (see this reddit thread)] - much like his breaking of [http://what-if.xkcd.com/imgs/a/62/balloon_wolfram.png/ Wolfram Alpha]] during answering a reader's question on [[What If]])<br />
<br />
==The Survey==<br />
The Survey started off with the following statement:<br />
<br />
<nowiki>This is an anonymous survey. After it's done, a database of everyone's responses will be posted.<br />
There's no specific reason for any of the questions. The goal is to create an interesting and unusual data set for people to play with. This is obviously not going to be a real random sample of people, but in the interest of getting cooler data, if you're sharing this with friends, try sending it to some people who wouldn't normally see this kind of thing!<br />
<br />
WARNING: This survey is anonymous, but your answers WILL BE MADE PUBLIC. Depending what you write, it's possible that someone may be able to identify you by looking at your responses. None of these questions should ask about anything too private, but don't write anything that you don't want people to see. If you're not comfortable answering a question, just skip it.</nowiki><br />
<br />
'''Note:''' The order of the possible answers (the list of possibilities) was random, and changed every time the page is reloaded. So do not try to fix the order here below...<br />
<br />
===Plane===<br />
*Have you ever been in a plane?<br />
**No<br />
**Yes<br />
<br />
===Skydiving===<br />
*Have you ever been {{w|Parachuting|skydiving}}?<br />
**No, but I might someday<br />
**Yes<br />
**No<br />
<br />
===The Dress===<br />
*When you first saw {{w|The dress (viral phenomenon)|The Dress}}, what color was it? — (Also see [[1492: Dress Color]] and the [[Blag]] ENTRY [http://blog.xkcd.com/2010/05/03/color-survey-results/ Color Survey Results]).<br />
**White and gold<br />
**A color combination not listed here<br />
**I don't remember<br />
**Blue and black<br />
**What dress?<br />
<br />
===Popular food===<br />
*What's a really popular food that you don't like?<br />
**''Text box''<br />
<br />
===Floaters===<br />
*When you look at a blue sky, do you see those swirly {{w|floater|floaters}} in your vision?<br />
**Yes, constantly<br />
**I'm not sure what things you mean<br />
**Yes, occasionally<br />
**No<br />
<br />
===Running out of gas===<br />
*Have you ever had a car run out of gas while you were driving it?<br />
**Yes<br />
**No<br />
<br />
===Animals===<br />
*Name the first five animals you can think of<br />
**''Multi line text box''<br />
<br />
===Weather===<br />
*What's the weather like where you are right now?<br />
**''Text box''<br />
<br />
===Activities===<br />
*Which of these can you do reasonably well?<br />
*(Check all that apply)<br />
**{{w|slam dunk|Dunk}} a basketball &mdash; A "slam dunk" or simply "dunk" is the act of jumping up and putting the ball through the net with a lot of force<br />
**Tie a {{w|sheet bend}} or {{w|bowline}} &mdash; A sheet bend is a knot that joins two ropes together; A bowline is a knot used to form a fixed loop at the end of a rope. Although tied differently, the resulting knots are identical.{{Citation needed}}<br />
**Roller skate<br />
**[http://www.huffingtonpost.com/news/high-heel-race/ Run in high heels]<br />
**Drive a stick shift — See {{w|Manual transmission}} of a car<br />
**Solve a {{w|Rubik's cube}}<br />
**Dive headfirst off a diving board &mdash; See {{w|Springboard}} and {{w|Diving platform}}<br />
**Ice skate<br />
**{{w|Skateboarding|Skateboard}}<br />
**Walk on {{w|stilts}} — Stilts are poles, posts or pillars used to allow a person to walk at a height above the ground<br />
**Ski<br />
**Cut vegetables with a knife<br />
**Swim<br />
**Ride a horse<br />
**{{w|Unicycle}}<br />
**Change the oil on a car<br />
**Do a back {{w|Handspring (gymnastics)|handspring}} &mdash; A handspring is an exercise in gymnastics in which you jump through the air landing on your hands, then again landing on your feet<br />
**Juggle — {{w|Toss juggling}} (the most recognizable form of juggling) consists in throwing objects into the air and catching them.<br />
<br />
===Spelling===<br />
*What word can you never seem to spell on the first try?<br />
**''Text box''<br />
<br />
===Condiments===<br />
*Do you eat {{w|condiments}} directly out of the fridge as a snack?<br />
**No <br />
**Yes<br />
<br />
===Thermostat===<br />
*When you adjust a thermostat that was set by someone else, it's usually because you want the room to be...<br />
**Cooler<br />
**Warmer<br />
<br />
===Clothing===<br />
*What color is the shirt/dress/upper-body-clothing you're wearing right now, if any?<br />
**''Text box''<br />
<br />
===Colds===<br />
*Do you get {{w|Common cold|colds}} often?<br />
**No<br />
**Yes<br />
<br />
===Number===<br />
*Pick a number from 1 to 100<br />
**''Text box''<br />
<br />
===Spelling===<br />
*On a scale of 1 to 10, how good at spelling are you? (Note that the question does not specify which end of the scale is good or bad.)<br />
**''Tick off list with numbers from 1 to 10.''<br />
<br />
===Myers-Briggs===<br />
*Do you know your {{w|Myers–Briggs_Type_Indicator|Myers-Briggs type}}?<br />
**No<br />
**Yes<br />
<br />
===Astrology===<br />
*Do you know your {{w|astrological sign}}?<br />
**No<br />
**Yes<br />
<br />
===Siblings===<br />
*How many older siblings do you have?<br />
**''Text box''<br />
*How many younger siblings do you have?<br />
**''Text box''<br />
*How many twin/etc siblings do you have?<br />
**''Text box''<br />
<br />
===Sleepiness===<br />
*Do you feel sleepy a lot?<br />
**Yes<br />
**No<br />
<br />
===Movie star===<br />
*Name a movie star<br />
**''Text box''<br />
<br />
===Time in sun===<br />
*Do you spend a lot of time in the sun?<br />
**Yes<br />
**No<br />
<br />
===Broccoli===<br />
*Does {{w|broccoli}} taste bitter to you?<br />
**Yes<br />
**No<br />
**I've never had it<br />
<br />
===Wakefulness===<br />
*Do you regularly stay awake much later than you meant to?<br />
**Yes<br />
**No<br />
<br />
===Keyboard mashing===<br />
*Fill this text box with gibberish by mashing random keyboard keys (See [[1530: Keyboard Mash]]).<br />
**''Broad multi-line text box''<br />
<br />
===Driving===<br />
*On a scale of 1 to 5, where 1 is terrible and 3 is average, how good a driver do you think you are?<br />
**''Tick off list with numbers from 1 to 5.''<br />
<br />
===Allergies===<br />
*Do you have any food allergies?<br />
**No<br />
**Yes <br />
<br />
===Thunder===<br />
*Have you heard thunder or seen lightning in the past year? — (The title-text of [[831: Weather Radar]] mentions the belief that thunderstorms seemed more common when one was a kid. Since the survey also asks for age this question is likely a test of that belief.)<br />
**Yes<br />
**No<br />
<br />
===Flavor preference===<br />
*Which do you prefer? (It seems to be missing the ''neither'' option...)<br />
**Chocolate<br />
**Vanilla<br />
<br />
===Number (reprise)===<br />
*Pick another number from 1 to 100 (Supposedly is should not be the same as in the first pick a number box).<br />
**''Text box''<br />
<br />
===Internet===<br />
*When you think about stuff on the internet, where do you picture it being physically located? Even if you know it's not really how things work, is there a place you imagine websites and social media posts sitting before you look at them? If so, where is it?<br />
**''Broad multi-line text box''<br />
<br />
===Roll tongue===<br />
*Can you {{w|Tongue rolling|roll your tongue}}?<br />
**Yes<br />
**No<br />
**What?<br />
<br />
===Toes===<br />
*Can you pick things up with your toes?<br />
**No<br />
**Yes<br />
<br />
===Age===<br />
*How old are you?<br />
**''Text box''<br />
<br />
===Walls===<br />
*What color are the walls around you right now?<br />
**''Text box''<br />
<br />
===Cell phone===<br />
*What kind of cell phone do you have?<br />
**{{w|iPhone}}<br />
**{{w|Android (operating system)|Android}}<br />
**Other smartphone<br />
**Non-smartphone<br />
**I don't have a cell phone<br />
<br />
===Eating===<br />
*What's the last thing you ate?<br />
**''Text box''<br />
<br />
===Difficult words===<br />
*Which of these words do you know the meaning of?<br />
*Some of these words don’t appear in any of the following dictionaries: the Oxford English Dictionary, the New Oxford American Dictionary, Wiktionary, or Dictionary.com. These words were probably made up by Randall. Perhaps the goal is to make people feel like they have a weak vocabulary because they don’t know many of the words, until they try look up the meanings and realize they have been tricked.<br />
*More likely, the inclusion of fictitious words is a validity check. Hidden tests of the validity of responses is a part of good questionnaire design. For example, long lists of questions with "Agree-Disagree" responses will often have one or more items which are "reverse-coded" (phrased in a direction opposite to the rest of the questions): if a respondent provides a response which contradicts the pattern presented by the rest of the responses, this casts doubt on the validity of the other responses - suggesting that the respondent is not actually reading the questions properly. In the instance of Randall's survey, claiming to know the meaning of fictitious words would cast doubt on the respondent's claims of a knowing the meaning of the other words in the list.<br />
*In addition, these false claims by respondents may themselves then be used as a source of data: for example, an analysis of the data could find that males (and/or skydivers) are more likely than females to over-represent their actual level of knowledge.<br />
*[http://dictionary.reference.com/ Dictionary.com] has an index of difficulty (measured in pixels, with class name <code>difficulty-indicator</code>). We add it at the right of the words that have it. N/A means that a word isn't present in Dictionary.com, or that it doesn't have an index.<br />
**Slickle – Not in any standard dictionary. However, it [http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Slickle is in] the crowd-sourced in Urban Dictionary, as well as a suggested planet name in [[1253: Exoplanet Names]]<br />
**[https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/rife Rife] – [http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/rife 117]<br />
**[https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/soliloquy Soliloquy] – [http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/soliloquy 150]<br />
**Fination – not in any dictionary. Appears infrequently in Victorian texts (e.g., [http://books.google.com/books?id=ghNOAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA245&dq=Fination 1889], [http://books.google.com/books?id=nwlCAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA214&dq=Fination 1839])<br />
**[https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/stipple Stipple] – [http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/stipple 144]<br />
**[https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/peristeronic Peristeronic] – [http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/peristeronic N/A]. Randall used it and defined it for readers in [[798: Adjectives]].<br />
**[https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/modicum Modicum] – [http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/modicum 120]<br />
**Trephony – Not available in reference dictionaries. An obsolete spelling of "{{w|Trephine}}" (especially when used as a verb for the process of {{w|Trepanning|trephination}}). Initially a transliteration of Greek [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0057:entry=tru/panon τρυπάω] for the same.<br />
**Tribution – A regular construction from [https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/tribute#Verb Tribute (verb)] using "-tion" to transform into a noun. Using this regular formation, the term would mean the act of tribute, but no examples of actual use are available. It is worth noting that the use of "tribute" as a verb is generally considered obsolete and the few forms that persist in use relate primarily to the tributary and distibutary river systems<br />
**[https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/phoropter Phoropter] – [http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/phoropter N/A] 1.An instrument used in eye examinations to determine an individual's prescription, the patient looking through various lenses at a chart on the other side.<br />
**Unitory – Not available in reference dictionaries. An obsolete spelling of "Unitary," chiefly British. While long obsolete in normal usage, it persisted longer in mathematics that it did elsewhere (particularly for "Unitory Method" and "Unitory Matrices"). Example of use: [https://books.google.com/books?id=Wl1BAQAAMAAJ&pg=RA5-PA27&lpg=RA5-PA27&dq=unitory+method&source=bl&ots=rfRKJXAJqV&sig=Wsr_gV7xG6Airah9Lx1M0hi-7Zc&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0CDsQ6AEwBmoVChMInd_R9qTbxwIVChU-Ch36IAh_#v=onepage&q=unitory%20method&f=false (1)]<br />
**[https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/amiable Amiable] – [http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/amiable 123]<br />
**[https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/salient Salient] – [http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/salient 69]<br />
**[https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/regolith Regolith] – [http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/regolith 162]<br />
**[https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/lithe Lithe] – [http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/lithe 105]<br />
**Revergent – technical word from {{w|fern}} biology, referring to the edges of fern leaves which curl back on themselves (see [http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2FBF00985044 Schölch, 2000])<br />
**[https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/hubris Hubris] – [http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/hubris 117]<br />
**[https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/fleek Fleek] – [http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/fleek N/A]<br />
**Cadine – A rare loan-word for [https://fr.wiktionary.org/wiki/cadine a sultan's wife or a noble ottoman woman] which comes to English through the French. Examples of Use: [https://books.google.com/books?id=4yz-Y-_OOO0C&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q=cadine&f=false (1)]. Also the name of an [https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadine italian city]. <br />
**[https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/apricity Apricity] – Not available in reference dictionaries. An obsolete word for the sun's heat in winter (e.g., [http://books.google.com/books?id=CFBGAAAAYAAJ&pg=PT76&dq=apricity Bailey 1775]). According to the What If? book (page 80), this is Randall's single favourite word in the English language.<br />
<br />
===cat===<br />
*Please type "cat" here: <br />
**''Text box''<br />
<br />
===Dreams===<br />
*Do you usually remember your dreams?<br />
**No<br />
**Yes<br />
<br />
===Text editors===<br />
*Do you have strong opinions about text editors? (See {{w|Editor war}})<br />
**Yes<br />
**No<br />
<br />
===Emoji===<br />
*How do you feel about {{w|emoji}}?<br />
**Negative 😠 (Unicode 1f620 - Angry face)<br />
**Positive 😊 (Unicode 263a - Smiling face)<br />
**Neutral 😐 (Unicode 1F610 - Neutral face)<br />
<br />
===Snow===<br />
*Does it ever snow where you live?<br />
**No<br />
**Yes<br />
<br />
===Taste of food===<br />
*Do you strongly dislike the taste or texture of any of these things?<br />
**Eggs<br />
**Chocolate ice cream<br />
**Beer<br />
**White wine<br />
**{{w|Carbonation}} (or Fizz)<br />
**Red wine<br />
**{{w|Cilantro}}<br />
**Coffee<br />
**Tomatoes<br />
**Yogurt<br />
<br />
===Beverages===<br />
*Which of these do you regularly drink?<br />
**Caffeinated soda (e.g. Coca-Cola, Dr. Pepper)<br />
**Noncaffeinated soda<br />
**Coffee<br />
**Fruit juice<br />
**Milk<br />
**Beer<br />
**Wine<br />
**Tea<br />
**{{w|Maple syrup}}<br />
**Water<br />
<br />
===Random words===<br />
*Type five random words<br />
**''Broad multi-line text box''<br />
<br />
===Flying===<br />
*Are you nervous about flying?<br />
**Yes<br />
**No<br />
**A little<br />
<br />
===Favorite number===<br />
*On a scale of 1 to 5, which number is your favorite?<br />
**''Tick off list with numbers from 1 to 5.''<br />
<br />
===Sandwich===<br />
*Which of these would you consider a {{w|sandwich}}?<br />
*(Check all that apply)<br />
**{{w|Taco}}<br />
**{{w|Quesadilla}}<br />
**{{w|Submarine sandwich|Sub/Hoagie}}<br />
**{{w|Cheesesteak}}<br />
**{{w|Hamburger}}<br />
**{{w|Open-faced sandwich}}<br />
**{{w|Calzone}}<br />
<br />
===Animal affinity===<br />
*Which of these describes you?<br />
*(Check all that apply)<br />
**Dog person<br />
**Cat person<br />
**Half-cat half-person<br />
**Part of a subterranean race of dog people<br />
**Literally named "Catherine Person"<br />
<br />
===Sense of direction===<br />
*Would you say you have a good sense of direction?<br />
**Yes<br />
**No<br />
<br />
===Socks or underwear===<br />
*Have you ever thrown out all your different pairs of socks/underwear, bought a bunch of replacements that were all one kind, and then told all your friends how great it was and how they should do it too?<br />
**Yes<br />
**No<br />
**I did the throwing out thing, but didn't talk to everyone about it<br />
**No, but I'm totally doing that now<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[A simple comic with text only. The ''click here'' part is inside a black frame.]<br />
:Introducing <br />
:'''The xkcd Survey'''<br />
:A search for weird correlations<br />
:Note: This survey is anonymous, but<br />
:<font color="red"> all responses will be posted publicly </font><br />
:so people can play with the data.<br />
:'''Click here to'''<br />
:'''take the survey'''<br />
:Or click here, or here.<br />
:The whole comic is a link,<br />
:because I still haven't gotten<br />
:the hang of HTML imagemaps.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1564:_Every_Seven_Seconds&diff=1176731564: Every Seven Seconds2016-04-13T05:44:19Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1564<br />
| date = August 14, 2015<br />
| title = Every Seven Seconds<br />
| image = every_seven_seconds.png<br />
| titletext = Every few months, I think about sex every seven seconds and how weird and implausible it would be.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
There is an oft-stated {{w|urban myth}} that men think about sex every seven seconds. See for example this [http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20140617-how-often-do-men-think-about-sex BBC article], where they say that a more realistic number is 19 times in a waking day, i.e. once every 50 minutes.<br />
<br />
In this comic [[Cueball]] is a {{w|sociologist}}, and the thought bubbles show his train of thoughts regarding this myth. First of all, he flatly denies that it could be true, and progressively his thoughts move to the effects if it were true, and then Cueball considers how it would even be studied. The title of the comic ''(Every seven seconds)'' hints strongly that this is the subject he is thinking about, and this is subsequently confirmed both in the caption and in the title text.<br />
<br />
The setup is that thinking about sex every seven seconds would be dysfunctional and unproductive in addition to making working, social interactions and etcetera nearly impossible as explained by the sociologists thoughts. The punch line is that thinking about ''how ridiculous it is to think about sex every seven seconds'' '''every seven seconds''' is just as dysfunctional and unproductive even if the thought time is spent refuting the original notion as understood in third person.<br />
<br />
The irony of the comic is that in thinking every seven seconds about how impossible it would be for men to think about sex every seven seconds, the sociologist is, in fact, thinking about sex every seven seconds, albeit in a roundabout way.<br />
<br />
In the title text, the narrator ([[Randall]] or Cueball the sociologist?) says he thinks about how implausible it would be to have sex every seven seconds, several times a year. See alternate interpretations below:<br />
<br />
In the title text, the narrator's statement leaves some meaning up to interpretation:<br />
*Every few months, I "think about sex" every seven seconds [in one day, i.e. 8200 times that day] and how weird and implausible [having intercourse] would be.<br />
**Implying that narrator's sex life is not very active.<br />
*Every few months, I think about "sex every seven seconds" and how weird and implausible [having intercourse every seven seconds] would be.<br />
**Having sex every seven seconds is implausible.<br />
*Every few months, I think about [the statistic that men think about] sex every seven seconds and how weird and implausible it would be.<br />
**An even more realistic take on the main comic's topic.<br />
*Every few months, I think about "sex" every seven seconds and how weird and implausible [such an assertion] would be.<br />
**This interpretation is a bit paradoxical, because it implies that the narrator finds himself thinking about the very thing he dismisses as a possibility to think about so often.<br />
*Every few months, I think about "sex every seven seconds and how weird and implausible it would be."<br />
**The narrator (probably Randall) thinks about how implausible he finds the premise of "every seven seconds" every few months.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball is walking with four thought bubbles above him.]<br />
<br />
:Cueball (thinking):<br />
::There’s no way that’s true.<br />
::It would interfere with basic cognition.<br />
::Such a ridiculous view of masculinity.<br />
::How would you even ''study'' that?<br />
<br />
:[Caption below the panel:]<br />
:Every seven seconds, sociologists<br />
:think about that made-up statistic<br />
:about how often men think about sex.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Sex]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1536:_The_Martian&diff=1176721536: The Martian2016-04-13T05:42:17Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1536<br />
| date = June 10, 2015<br />
| title = The Martian<br />
| image = the_martian.png<br />
| titletext = I have never seen a work of fiction so perfectly capture the out-of-nowhere shock of discovering that you've just bricked something important because you didn't pay enough attention to a loose wire.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
[[Cueball]] is very excited about seeing that the trailer for ''{{w|The Martian (film)|The Martian}}'' is finally released, because he really liked the book. Cueball most likely represents [[Randall]] himself in this comic.<br />
<br />
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ue4PCI0NamI This trailer] for ''The Martian'' was released on Monday the 8th June 2015, two days before this comic, although a teaser [https://youtu.be/CumZP6_9sHU "viral" trailer] had been released the previous day. The film, starring {{w|Matt Damon}} (''{{w|The Bourne Identity (film)|The Bourne Identity}}''), is directed by {{w|Ridley Scott}} (''{{w|Alien (film)|Alien}}''). It was released in the United States on October 2, 2015.<br />
<br />
''The Martian'' is based on {{w|The Martian (Weir novel)| a book of the same name}} by {{w|Andy Weir (writer)|Andy Weir}}. The book is very popular for its funny writing, great cast of characters, and skilled use of realistic science to create drama. The plot is a cross between the film ''{{w|Apollo 13 (film)|Apollo 13}}'' and the plot of the novel ''{{w|Robinson Crusoe}}'' — but just on {{w|Mars}}.<br />
<br />
Cueball is telling [[White Hat]] about this trailer and the book, thus White Hat asks if he should read it. Cueball then describes a scene from Apollo 13: ''You know the scene in Apollo 13 where the guy says "we have to figure out how to connect this thing to this thing using this table full of parts or the astronauts will all die?"'' And he then tells White Hat that ''The Martian'' is like that the whole way through. What is actually said in the [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2YZnTL596Q mentioned scene] is: ''We gotta find a way to make this fit into the hole for this using nothing but that.'' The first part being a large square box and the other a smaller cylinder.<br />
<br />
The film ''Apollo 13'' is based on the true historical event of the {{w|Apollo 13| Apollo 13 incident}} where the astronauts find themselves in a damaged spacecraft. They evacuated from the {{w|Apollo Command Module}}, losing all its life support systems, to the {{w|Lunar Module}} which was designed only for two people for two days instead of three people for four days. One issue the crew faced was a buildup of carbon dioxide. In order to resolve the issue, the crew needed to find a way to attach a square-shaped air-cleaning cartridge from the command module to the circular receptacle of the lunar module: literally fitting a square peg into a round hole. In one [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2YZnTL596Q brief scene], the {{w|Mission Control}} staff gather together a box of items equivalent to what the crew would also have on-board and sit down with the mandate to figure out how the astronauts can connect the two with the items available to them. In that case, the ground crew took on the task of trial and error given the availability of backup supplies in case they damaged or destroyed some of the supplies. Once a working solution was devised, specific instructions were relayed to the astronauts. Cueball suggests that ''The Martian'' essentially consists primarily of the type of problem-solving shown in that scene (as was suggested by the author, Andy Weir, in [https://youtu.be/5SemyzKgaUU?t=45m56s this] interview).<br />
<br />
In the final panel, White Hat, who probably would not be so interested in this kind of story, wonders how a novel based on that kind of seemingly cerebral and procedural problem-solving became a big-budget film starring Damon. Big-budget films are generally films with a great deal of special effects and often also action sequences likely to draw big audiences — and to gain big returns. Matt Damon has become a high-profile big-budget star known for action films like the {{w|Bourne (film series)|''Bourne'' film series}}.<br />
<br />
'''Spoiler alert:'''<br><br />
The title text is a reference to a particular part of ''The Martian''s story: The astronaut stranded on Mars has previously established communications with Earth by {{w|repurposing}} the {{w|Mars Pathfinder|Pathfinder}} space probe that NASA landed on Mars in 1997. While working on another piece of equipment, he accidentally subjects the probe to an electrical short-circuit, destroying its electronics and "bricking" it. "{{w|Bricking}}" is a term in consumer electronics which essentially means to cause an electronic device to become non-functional and essentially no more useful than a "brick". The term is commonly used in respect of an unrecoverable failure of {{w|software}} and often a corruption of {{w|firmware}}. An unexpected "bricking" can be very surprising, and in a case where the item is critical, could be devastating.<br />
<br />
On the day the movie was released in the US Randall went to see it and released this comic about it: [[1585: Similarities]].<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball is sitting at a desk using a computer and White Hat walks in.]<br />
:Cueball: Ooh, trailer for ''The Martian!''<br />
:White Hat: What's that?<br />
:Cueball: Movie of a book I liked.<br />
:White Hat: Should I read it?<br />
<br />
:[Cueball pivots on chair and turns away from computer to face White Hat.]<br />
:Cueball: Depends. You know the scene in Apollo 13 where the guy says "we have to figure out how to connect ''this'' thing to ''this'' thing using ''this'' table full of parts or the astronauts will all die?<br />
:White Hat: Yeah?<br />
<br />
:[Cueball pivots on chair again and resumes using computer while talking. White Hat looks at his smart phone.]<br />
:Cueball: ''The Martian'' is for people who wish the whole movie had just been more of that scene.<br />
:White Hat: How on earth did ''that'' become a big-budget thing with Matt Damon?<br />
:Cueball: No idea, but I'm ''so'' excited.<br />
<br />
==Trivia==<br />
In [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5SemyzKgaUU&feature=youtu.be&t=2760 a video interview] by Adam Savage with Andy Weir the author of ''The Martian'' says that his goal was to make the whole book like the mentioned scene from ''Apollo 13'' - exactly what the comic is saying. The video was posted on YouTube the day after the xkcd comic.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]<br />
[[Category:Space]]<br />
[[Category:Space probes]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1526:_Placebo_Blocker&diff=1176711526: Placebo Blocker2016-04-13T05:41:44Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1526<br />
| date = May 18, 2015<br />
| title = Placebo Blocker<br />
| image = placebo blocker.png<br />
| titletext = They work even better if you take them with our experimental placebo booster, which I keep in the same bottle.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
This comic is a joke about the difficulty of testing a drug that is supposed to block the placebo effect.<br />
<br />
A placebo experiment is used for testing a drug candidate. It has two groups: one that gets a real drug candidate, and one that gets a fake. The placebo effect describes the observation that the group that gets the fake often show signs of having recieved a working drug - though commonly weaker than in the group that gets an effective real drug. In this comic, [[Cueball]] is trying to test a placebo blocker.<br />
This means that the one that gets the real thing will think that they got it because they did, and the group that gets the fake will think that they got the real thing because of the placebo effect, and this makes [[Hairbun]]'s head hurt.<br />
<br />
[[Cueball]] states to [[Hairbun]], with a citation from the real world, that his team created a Placebo Blocker, a drug designed to prevent the placebo effect. Cueball begins to design a test for this new drug. Following typical experimental design, patients would be split into two groups: a control group, and the group that receives the treatment.<br />
<br />
Cueball knows that the treatment given to the control group is supposed to be designed so that it is not influenced by the variable trying to be isolated. As the placebo effect ''is'' the effect under investigation, a placebo can not be used as a control treatment as a comparison with a placebo blocker. Cueball tries to design around this. In his test, both groups would receive a placebo as a treatment for an unspecified condition (the ''Treatment Placebo''); in addition the test group would receive the Placebo Blocker drug, while the control group would get a placebo pill instead (the ''Placebo-Blocker Placebo''). If this works as expected, the ''Treatment Placebo'' would be blocked by the ''Placebo Blocker'' in the test group, while in the control group, the ''Placebo-Blocker Placebo'' may have a placebo effect in blocking the placebo effect of the ''Treatment Placebo'', and the difference between these effects can be measured to test the effectiveness of the ''Placebo Blocker''.<br />
<br />
Cueball and Hairbun think about this trial until they both develop headache from frustration. Cueball then kindly offers Hairbun a sugar pill. While this might have helped cure the headache via the placebo effect had he told her it was a headache treatment, by revealing the pill as merely a sugar pill, it may suppress or reduce the effect (although as noted above, it would probably still have some effect).<br />
<br />
In the title text, Cueball mentions that his sugar pills against headache works even better together with the new experimental placebo ''boosters''. Incidentally, he indicates that he keeps those in the same bottle with his sugar pills. Assuming someone believes placebo ''boosters'' are in the jar this would allow them to take the sugar pills and receive a greater placebo effect, as the placebo effect is based upon faith in the treatment, regardless of whether there are placebo ''boosters'' in the jar.<br />
<br />
It is possible but unlikely that:<br />
* Cueball's sugar pills are, in fact, the Placebo Blockers themselves and that, seeing Hairbun has a headache, Cueball is inspired to somehow use the opportunity as an experiment to test the Blockers<br />
* Cueball is suggesting Hairbun take a "placebo booster" which is really a "placebo blocker", thus testing the blocker he mentioned earlier in the comic.<br />
<br />
Questionable neuroscience research is also discussed in [[1453: fMRI]].<br />
<br />
===Placebos===<br />
The {{w|placebo}} effect refers to the phenomenon in which patients given an inactive treatment such as a sugar pill can still show improvement relative to an untreated patient. The placebo effect is thus very important to consider when testing new drugs, since even ineffective drugs can have a positive effect on the patients due to the placebo effect. Modern drug experiments are hence conducted as {{w|Blind experiment#Double-blind trials|double-blind trials}}, where the patients are randomly given either the treatment or a placebo without either they or the administering doctors knowing who receives the new drug and who received the placebo pill. (It is important that the doctor does not know, as if they did, it may affect the way they interact with the patient.)<br />
<br />
Generally the patients need to believe that they are receiving an active treatment, but one [http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0015591 study] showed that the effect can occur even if the patients are told that they are receiving a placebo pill. The key factor seems to be that the patients must believe that a positive effect will occur. For example, (1) patients experience a greater effect if they believe that the treatment is expensive and (2) patients who know that they have not been given an active treatment will experience the effect if they are told that placebos can have a positive effect through the power of the mind. Furthermore, the placebo can increase the effectiveness of treatments which ''seem'' larger (this is why over-the-counter pain medication is often administered as two half-doses rather than just one full dose).<br />
<br />
Several reasons for the placebo effect have been proposed, from study artifacts - such as under-reporting of negative outcomes by patients who think they are being treated, to neurological explanations for how mental state can translate into physical outcomes.<br />
<br />
Placebo-blockers do actually already exist. A side-effect of the opiate antagonist {{w|Naloxone}} is that it [http://healthland.time.com/2009/08/26/a-neurological-explanation-for-the-placebo-effect/ blocks the placebo effect].<br />
<br />
===Mechanisms of the placebo effect===<br />
The placebo effect is one of the greatest mysteries in modern medicine. It is typically found that the placebo effect is an effective treatment in itself in addition to the effectiveness of drugs and other treatments, and it has been found to cause small improvements to cancer outcomes. In other cases such as pain relief, the placebo effect is very large compared with the effectiveness of the drug itself. <br />
<br />
The comic refers to the recent study by Kathryn T. Hall, Joseph Loscalzo, and Ted J. Kaptchuk. (2015) ''[https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/J.MOLMED.2015.02.009 Genetics and the placebo effect: the placebome.]'' Trends in Mol Medicine. Volume 21, Issue 5, May 2015, Pages 285–294<br />
<br />
It is possible to test the placebo blocker using three groups: a test group who receive a placebo blocker, a control group who receive a placebo, and a second control group who receive no treatment whatsoever, as a lack of treatment is the variable that an actual placebo is designed to control for. Still it might be hard to determine if the pills are having a negative effect or blocking the placebo effect, so multiple trials with multiple illnesses may have to be carried out.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Hairbun is standing in front of Cueball who does all the talking. Below them is a footnote.]<br />
:Cueball: Some researchers* are starting to figure out the mechanism behind the placebo effect.<br />
:Cueball: We've used their work to create a new drug: A ''placebo effect blocker''.<br />
:Footnote: * Hall et al, DOI: 10.1016/J.MOLMED.2015.02.009<br />
<br />
:[Zoom in on Cueball who now holds his arms out.]<br />
:Cueball: Now we just need to run a trial! We'll get two groups, give them both placebos, then give one the ''real'' placebo blocker, and the other a...<br />
:Cueball: ...wait.<br />
<br />
:[Hairbun holds her chin, while Cueball just stand there for a beat panel.]<br />
<br />
:[Hairbun looks again at Cueball who begins to take the lid off of a medicine bottle.]<br />
:Hairbun: ...My head hurts.<br />
:Cueball: Mine too.<br />
:Cueball: Here, want a sugar pill?<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairbun]]<br />
[[Category:Science]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1416:_Pixels&diff=1176701416: Pixels2016-04-13T05:41:09Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1416<br />
| date = September 3, 2014<br />
| title = Pixels<br />
| image = pixels.png<br />
| titletext = It's turtles all the way down.<br />
}}<br />
<div style="float:right"> __TOC__ </div><br />
'''NOTE:''' <br />
*The above is only a zoomed out version of the this interactive comic.<br />
*To experience the interactivity, visit the {{xkcd|1416|original comic}}.<br />
*For a collection of images that appear when zooming in on this comic, see [[1416: Pixels/Images]].<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
This interactive comic begins with a panel where [[Cueball]] is stacking turtles. This is a reference to the idiom "{{w|turtles all the way down}}", which refers to the problem of infinite recursion: if everything in the universe is "on top of" something else, so to speak, there must be a "bottom." A joking solution to the paradoxical nature of such a bottom is the proposition that the world rests on a semi-infinite stack of turtles.<br />
<br />
The origins of the turtle story are uncertain. It has been recorded since the mid 19th century, and may possibly date to the 18th. One recent version appears in {{W|Stephen Hawking}}'s 1988 book {{W|A Brief History of Time}}, which starts:<br />
<br />
:A well-known scientist (some say it was {{W|Bertrand Russell}}) once gave a public lecture on astronomy. He described how the earth orbits around the sun and how the sun, in turn, orbits around the center of a vast collection of stars called our galaxy. At the end of the lecture, a little old lady at the back of the room got up and said: "What you have told us is rubbish. The world is really a flat plate supported on the back of a giant tortoise." The scientist gave a superior smile before replying, "What is the tortoise standing on?" "You're very clever, young man, very clever," said the old lady. "But it's turtles all the way down!"''<br />
<br />
:—Hawking, 1988<br />
<br />
Several {{w|World Turtle|ancient myths}}, dating back thousands of years, involve a turtle which supports the whole world, or a part of it, although it is usually just one turtle, not an infinite regression. This is also repeated in {{w|Terry Pratchett}}'s {{w|Discworld}} novels, in which the world is supported by four elephants standing on the back of a single turtle called {{w|Great A'Tuin}}.<br />
<br />
As can be read you should '''"scroll to zoom"'''. This can be done by placing the cursor inside the panel of the comic. When scrolling up (using the mouse wheel) the picture zooms in on the pixel beneath the cursor. Moving the cursor will also move the point to which the picture zooms. You can then zoom in until the pixels are visible. When you continue to zoom in on a pixel it then resolves into another comic picture, with black-on-white comic panels making up the white pixels and white-on-black panels making up the black pixels. Scrolling on until you can see the pixels of the comic picture you are now zooming into the process is repeated again and will be so for all subsequent sets of comic panels. Not all white and all black panels are the same; some sets involve more than two different panels, but all involve repetitive tiling.<br />
<br />
Once you have zoomed in, you are able to click and drag the picture, thus enabling you to move from black to white picture pixel. This is reminiscent of the earlier [[:Category:Interactive comics|interactive]] comic [[1110: Click and Drag]].<br />
<br />
==Themes==<br />
*Below are all the themes relevant to cover all the images found when zooming in.<br />
*They are sorted in the same order as in the gallery: [[1416: Pixels/Images]].<br />
**Open the gallery in another window - zoom out and then you can see the pictures in this window as you read about them here below. You can see thumbnail versions of each picture at the top of the theme sub-section.<br />
<br />
===Turtles===<br />
[[Image:01-100-pixels-turtles.png|link=File:pixels-turtles.png]]<br />
[[File:02-100-pixels-quiet-turtle.png|link=File:pixels-quiet-turtle.png]]<br />
[[File:03-100-pixels-i-am-a-turtle.png|link=File:pixels-i-am-a-turtle.png]]<br />
<br />
Apart from the first image there are two more with a single turtle in them. In one of these the turtle thinks "I am a turtle". This is a reference to [[889: Turtles]]. It may say so to the Cueball that is seen standing all alone in another picture.<br />
<br />
===What if?===<br />
[[File:04-100-pixels-blank-figure.png|link=File:pixels-blank-figure.png]]<br />
[[File:05-100-pixels-whatif-trade.png|link=File:pixels-whatif-trade.png]]<br />
[[File:06-100-pixels-whatif-king.png|link=File:pixels-whatif-king.png]]<br />
<br />
There is a panel featuring just Cueball, followed by is a picture of the ''What If?'' book, large enough that all of the text is visible on the front cover. But there is also another version where the author's name is crossed out and replaced with {{w|Stephen King}}, the word "Spooky" has been added above the title, and the word "xkcd" below has been struck and replaced with "being afraid" to form the phrase "creator of being afraid". Stephen King is one of the most prolific and well-known horror authors of all time.<br />
<br />
===Book Launch===<br />
[[File:07-100-pixels-book-launch.png|link=File:pixels-book-launch.png]]<br />
<br />
This comic was released on September 3, 2014, the day after [[Randall|Randall's]] book ''[http://whatif.xkcd.com/book/ What If]'' was launched. The book is shown and referred to in a number of frames; for example, it is [[:File:pixels-upgoer.png|'''literally''' launched]] as a part of an <strike>rocket</strike> [[1133: Up Goer Five|''up goer'']] built by Cueball. There is also a picture with Cueball holding his book, while being excited about the launch.<br />
<br />
The model ''up goer'' is [[:File:pixels-assembly-1.png|made of Rocket Parts from KSP]]. KSP is the {{w|Kerbal Space Program}}, a spaceflight simulator which was also [[1350: Lorenz#Themes|part]] of the latest interactive comic [[1350: Lorenz]]. Perhaps xkcd's "parts" refers to KSP's large community of mod developers who contribute 'parts' to the game, although it was likely intended as nothing more than the humorous supposition that one could purchase physical rocket parts from a simulator. The frames showing the book launch use URLs that include the text "upgoer" in reference to the [[Up Goer Five]] comic.<br />
<br />
In the end the up goer leaves the Earth after one orbit and then flies through space.<br />
<br />
===Needs More Struts===<br />
[[File:08-100-pixels-assembly-1.png|link=File:pixels-assembly-1.png]]<br />
[[File:09-100-pixels-assembly-2.png|link=File:pixels-assembly-2.png]]<br />
[[File:10-100-pixels-assembly-3.png|link=File:pixels-assembly-3.png]]<br />
[[File:11-100-pixels-assembly-4.png|link=File:pixels-assembly-4.png]]<br />
[[File:12-100-pixels-assembly-5.png|link=File:pixels-assembly-5.png]]<br />
[[File:13-100-pixels-assembly-6.png|link=File:pixels-assembly-6.png]]<br />
[[File:14-100-pixels-assembly-7.png|link=File:pixels-assembly-7.png]]<br />
[[File:15-100-pixels-assembly-planet.png|link=File:pixels-assembly-planet.png]]<br />
[[File:16-100-pixels-assembly-planet-1.png|link=File:pixels-assembly-planet-1.png]]<br />
[[File:17-100-pixels-assembly-planet-3.png|link=File:pixels-assembly-planet-3.png]]<br />
<br />
{{w|Strut|Struts}} are structural members in engineering, and are one of the components used in Kerbal Space Program to construct rockets. "Needs More Struts" is a meme amongst players of Kerbal Space Program along the lines of "when in doubt, overengineer"; it stems from a time when the ragdoll physics in the Unity engine underlying KSP was unstable enough to necessitate their overuse. Megan deems Cueball's rocket to be insufficiently structurally sound, and declares that it "[[:File:pixels-assembly-4.png|Needs More Struts]]".<br />
<br />
The first three images depict Cueball building a Kerbal Space Program rocket out of parts from a box, labelled "KSP Rocket Parts". The top part of the rocket, usually where the crew module would be located, is made from the ''What If..?'' book. In the fourth panel Megan declares that it needs more struts, and in the next three panels, Cueball takes her advice and adds more struts.<br />
<br />
Panel 8 shows the Earth from a distance, with somebody (presumably Megan) saying again "More Struts". Panel 9 shows the Earth alone, and panel 10 shows the Earth with the rocket nearby, having just launched.<br />
<br />
===The Only Copy===<br />
[[File:18-100-pixels-upgoer.png|link=File:pixels-upgoer.png]]<br />
[[File:19-100-pixels-upgoer-2.png|link=File:pixels-upgoer-2.png]]<br />
[[File:20-100-pixels-upgoer-3.png|link=File:pixels-upgoer-3.png]]<br />
[[File:21-100-pixels-upgoer-4.png|link=File:pixels-upgoer-4.png]]<br />
[[File:22-100-pixels-upgoer-5.png|link=File:pixels-upgoer-5.png]]<br />
[[File:23-100-pixels-upgoer-6.png|link=File:pixels-upgoer-6.png]]<br />
[[File:24-100-pixels-upgoer-planet.png|link=File:pixels-upgoer-planet.png]]<br />
[[File:25-100-pixels-launch-planet.png|link=File:pixels-launch-planet.png]]<br />
[[File:26-100-pixels-upgoer-planet-2.png|link=File:pixels-upgoer-planet-2.png]]<br />
[[File:27-100-pixels-upgoer-planet-3.png|link=File:pixels-upgoer-planet-3.png]]<br />
[[File:28-100-pixels-upgoer-planet-4.png|link=File:pixels-upgoer-planet-4.png]]<br />
[[File:29-100-pixels-upgoer-space.png|link=File:pixels-upgoer-space.png]]<br />
<br />
This series of panels parallels the "Needs More Struts" series. The first four panels shows the rocket lifting off, and the subsequent gasses dissipating.<br />
<br />
Cueball and Megan look up at the ascending rocket, and then turn to each other having just launched the What-If book rocket into space (construction and launch are seen in other panels). Perhaps Megan realizes they may have misunderstood the term "book launch", and that they may have just lost ''[[:File:pixels-upgoer-6.png|the only copy]]'' of the book.<br />
<br />
Panel 7 shows the Earth from space; panel 8 also shows the Earth, with the words "Book Launch". The next three panels show the rocket circling around the Earth once before heading into deep space, and the last shows the rocket by itself on its journey.<br />
<br />
===Space objects===<br />
[[File:30-100-pixels-sun.png|link=File:pixels-sun.png]]<br />
[[File:31-100-pixels-moon.png|link=File:pixels-moon.png]]<br />
[[File:32-100-pixels-saturn.png|link=File:pixels-saturn.png]]<br />
[[File:33-100-pixels-stars-1.png|link=File:pixels-stars-1.png]]<br />
[[File:34-100-pixels-stars-2.png|link=File:pixels-stars-2.png]]<br />
<br />
Here are five objects in space. It is possible that the What-If book rocket passes them by, or that these images are seen from the point of view of the rocket.<br />
<br />
First is the Sun, shown with visible {{w|solar prominence}}s. Next is the Moon, shown in a crescent view with stars behind it. This is followed by Saturn, also in a crescent view with stars behind it.<br />
<br />
There follow two images with just stars.<br />
<br />
===Sky===<br />
This is a reference to [[428: Starwatching]]:<br />
[[File:35-100-pixels-sky.png|link=File:pixels-sky.png]]<br />
[[File:36-100-pixels-sky-2.png|link=File:pixels-sky-2.png]]<br />
[[File:37-100-pixels-sky-3.png|link=File:pixels-sky-3.png]]<br />
[[File:38-100-pixels-sky-4.png|link=File:pixels-sky-4.png]]<br />
<br />
In four pictures Cueball and Megan are sitting below the stars. In the second the following conversation takes place:<br />
:Cueball: Someone once told me the great kings of the past look down on us...<br />
:Megan: From the stars?<br />
:Cueball: Just in general.<br />
The second panel is a reference to Disney's [http://lionking.wikia.com/wiki/The_Great_Kings_of_the_Past The Lion King]. Early in the film, Mufasa tells Simba that the great kings of the past look down on them from the stars. Later on, Simba recalls this to his companions, Timon and Pumba (who don't take him seriously). In the film, the kings of the past literally look down on — and watch over — the characters, which is how Megan interprets Cueball's initial statement. Cueball's reply that they just look down on us in general shows that he means the kings of the past figuratively look down on us (they view us as inferior or beneath them).<br />
<br />
In the next image a shooting star is seen above them. The final picture is almost identical to the first (only four stars and a few pixels of ground are different).<br />
<br />
===Mario===<br />
[[File:39-100-pixels-mario-entry.png|link=File:pixels-mario-entry.png]]<br />
[[File:40-100-pixels-mario-sitting-1.png|link=File:pixels-mario-sitting-1.png]]<br />
[[File:41-100-pixels-mario-sitting-2.png|link=File:pixels-mario-sitting-2.png]]<br />
[[File:42-100-pixels-mario-sitting-3.png|link=File:pixels-mario-sitting-3.png]]<br />
[[File:43-100-pixels-mario-sitting-b.png|link=File:pixels-mario-sitting-b.png]]<br />
[[File:44-100-pixels-mario-n1.png|link=File:pixels-mario-n1.png]]<br />
[[File:45-100-pixels-mario-n2.png|link=File:pixels-mario-n2.png]]<br />
[[File:46-100-pixels-mario-n3.png|link=File:pixels-mario-n3.png]]<br />
<br />
A series of 8 images are called ''Mario''. The first is called ''entry'', and has a picture of a TV on a low stand. The next four has Megan in front of said TV, holding a video game controller. The cable is connected to something inside the stand. She first sits on her knees, then on her butt. In the third picture she is lying down. What follows is a picture which is an inverse of the sitting picture.<br />
<br />
The last three images seem to depict a level from one of the {{w|Super Mario Bros.}} games. In the upper right one can see the iconic bricks which Mario can smash, two clouds appear stationary in the background, and a crude depiction of Mario is standing in the lower left. Over the course of the three images, a galaxy rises into the sky. It does not look like the Milky Way would from anywhere on Earth.<br />
<br />
The view is reminiscent of a quote from Carl Sagan: "...from a planet orbiting a star in a distant globular cluster, a still more glorious dawn awaits. Not a sunrise, but a galaxy rise. A morning filled with 400 billion suns. The rising of the milky way." The quote was also referenced in https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/681:_Gravity_Wells<br />
<br />
Randall often allows images of transcendant awe to take over mundane scenes. In this case, the galaxy-rise is a surprising twist revealing the true setting of the Super Mario Brothers games. At the same time it conveys how long Megan has been playing the game - day has turned into night in her room, and also within the game itself. Instead of playing it, she is simply watching the galaxy-rise, as the character on the screen has not moved. The view may contain a hidden pun, by calling to mind {{w|Super Mario Galaxy}}.<br />
<br />
===Shut Down the Server===<br />
[[File:47-100-pixels-server-1.png|link=File:pixels-server-1.png]]<br />
<br />
Cueball tells an offscreen character that he is going to [[:File:pixels-server-1.png|shut down the server]], while carrying a bucket of water.<br />
<br />
Usually shutting down a {{w|Server (computing)|server}} is done via the operating system or software. Directly turning it off or pulling the power plug also would technically work though not recommended for obvious reasons. But in this case it appears that Cueball is going to attempt to shut off the server by dousing it with water. This will likely result in serious water damage to the hardware, thus forcing it off as it no longer is able to function.<br />
<br />
===Clouds===<br />
[[File:48-100-pixels-clouds-1.png|link=File:pixels-clouds-1.png]]<br />
[[File:49-100-pixels-clouds-2.png|link=File:pixels-clouds-2.png]]<br />
[[File:50-100-pixels-clouds-3.png|link=File:pixels-clouds-3.png]]<br />
[[File:51-100-pixels-clouds-4.png|link=File:pixels-clouds-4.png]]<br />
[[File:52-100-pixels-clouds-5.png|link=File:pixels-clouds-5.png]]<br />
<br />
In five pictures Megan is floating in the clouds. The first shows Megan flying to the right, the second and third show just clouds, the fourth shows Megan flying to the left, and the fifth shows birds flying.<br />
<br />
===Walking===<br />
[[File:53-100-pixels-walking.png|link=File:pixels-walking.png]]<br />
[[File:54-100-pixels-stockholm.png|link=File:pixels-stockholm.png]]<br />
[[File:55-100-pixels-time-turner.png|link=File:pixels-time-turner.png]]<br />
[[File:56-100-pixels-walking-b.png|link=File:pixels-walking-b.png]]<br />
[[File:57-100-pixels-fire-hydrant.png|link=File:pixels-fire-hydrant.png]]<br />
<br />
In two images Cueball and Megan are seen walking. The first is a normal black-on-white close up, and the second an inverted image seen from afar. They are talking while walking; after the first walking image they discuss [[#Stockholm Syndrome|Stockholm syndrome]] and then [[#Time Turners|Time Turners]], and after the second walking image Black Hat discusses a [[#Fire Hydrant|fire hydrant]] with a firefighter.<br />
<br />
====Stockholm Syndrome====<br />
{{w|Stockholm syndrome}} is the name for a psychological phenomenon, in which hostages develop sympathy, empathy and/or positive feelings towards their captors. These feelings are usually seen as irrational, seeing as the hostage is held against their wishes, usually with the threat of physical harm or death.<br />
<br />
[[:File:pixels-stockholm.png|This panel]] asks "How do we know anyone really ''wants'' to live in Stockholm?", questioning whether everyone who lives in the city of Stockholm is in fact held hostage there and only stays because they have developed to like life there (due to Stockholm Syndrome).<br />
<br />
====Time Turners====<br />
The time turner is a device from the {{w|Harry Potter}} series of novels by {{w|JK Rowling}}. It allows the user to re-live a period of time over again. In the third novel Hermione is given the time-turner to allow her to take extra classes, however it is eventually used to spare Buckbeak the hippogryph from execution. This prompted many questions regarding why time-turners weren't used on other occasions to save people's lives (among other things).<br />
<br />
While J.K Rowling has "[http://pottermore.wikia.com/wiki/Time-Turner solved the problem to her own satisfaction]" she admits that she entered into the subject of time-travel too lightly.<br />
<br />
[[:File:pixels-time-turner.png|This panel]] jokes that if the real life JK Rowling had a fictional time-turner which worked, she would have gone back and removed the time-turner plotline from the book, saving her all the hassle of dealing with the resulting time-travel questions. This act would result in a time-travel paradox.<br />
<br />
====Fire Hydrant====<br />
[[Black Hat]] is talking to a fireman, with a fire engine on fire in the background, he asks "To be fair, what else would you expect to come out of a "[[:File:pixels-fire-hydrant.png|fire hydrant]]"?"<br />
<br />
Black Hat appears to have managed to replace the usual water supply to the {{w|fire hydrant}} with actual fire. Thus when the hydrant is used, the result is, quite literally, fire (or oil with possibly flint and steel contraptions to cause fire). In Black Hat's logic, a hydrant which delivers water should be called a water hydrant.<br />
<br />
This completely ignores the meaning of the word "hydrant", a pipe which supplies water (derived from the English root ''hydro-'' meaning ''relating to water'', which is in turn from the Greek ''hudōr'' meaning ''water'').<br />
<br />
An alternative explanation is that Black Hat has replaced the water that would normally come out of the fire hydrant with a strong alcoholic beverage, colloquially called {{w|firewater}}, with a high enough ethanol content to burn. If this were the case, the ability to douse a fire would be severely decreased, both due to the flammable component and because ethanol can absorb less heat per volume than water.<br />
<br />
===Eeee===<br />
[[File:58-100-pixels-e1.png|link=File:pixels-e1.png]]<br />
[[File:59-100-pixels-e2.png|link=File:pixels-e2.png]]<br />
[[File:60-100-pixels-e3.png|link=File:pixels-e3.png]]<br />
[[File:61-100-pixels-e4.png|link=File:pixels-e4.png]]<br />
[[File:62-100-pixels-e5.png|link=File:pixels-e5.png]]<br />
[[File:63-100-pixels-e6.png|link=File:pixels-e6.png]]<br />
[[File:64-100-pixels-eb.png|link=File:pixels-eb.png]]<br />
<br />
Megan hears a very long stretched ''EEEEEEEEEEEEE'' sound which goes over 6 images. It turns out it is a large letter '''E''' that shouts ''EEEEEEE!!!''. In total there are 64 small E emanating from the big one. There is also a picture with two big white E on black background. Those E are larger than the E that shouts.<br />
<br />
===Evolution===<br />
[[File:65-100-pixels-evolution.png|link=File:pixels-evolution.png]]<br />
<br />
The {{w|March of Progress}} image is a famous and instantly recognisable image showing the stages of human evolution by way of a series of primate figures as if marching in a line. The panel parodies the March of Progress image, with [[:File:pixels-evolution.png|5 ducklings following an adult duck]]. In this case, rather than portraying selected individuals millions of years apart, the March shows evolution in action on a human timescale, the mother taking care of her ducklings. The comic has some resemblance to [[537: Ducklings]].<br />
<br />
===Rope===<br />
[[File:66-100-pixels-rope.png|link=File:pixels-rope.png]]<br />
<br />
Four ropes cross diagonally across this black picture.<br />
<br />
===Chess and Cantor Set Fractals===<br />
[[File:67-100-pixels-chess-b.png|link=File:pixels-chess-b.png]]<br />
[[File:68-100-pixels-chess-w.png|link=File:pixels-chess-w.png]]<br />
[[File:69-100-pixels-cantor.png|link=File:pixels-cantor.png]]<br />
<br />
There are two chess boards on black and white background with smaller chessboards drawn upon them in a {{w|Fractal}} pattern.<br />
<br />
[[:File:pixels-cantor.png|One panel]] contains a number of lines and dots, which are in fact a depiction of the first 5 steps of a {{w|Cantor set|Cantor Ternary Set}}, mirrored about the horizontal centreline (see {{w|File:Cantor set in seven iterations.svg|reference image}}). The Cantor ternary set is constructed by repeatedly deleting the open middle thirds of a set of line segments. In the comic, the two upper-left most segments and the two lower-right most segments are misaligned slightly.<br />
<br />
The Cantor Set is one of the canonical examples of a fractal, a shape whose individual parts resemble the whole. The use of the Cantor Set in this comic is self-referential, in that the comic, itself, is composed of parts of the same shape as the whole.<br />
<br />
===Atom etc===<br />
[[File:70-100-pixels-particles.png|link=File:pixels-particles.png]]<br />
[[File:71-100-pixels-atom.png|link=File:pixels-atom.png]]<br />
[[File:72-100-pixels-string.png|link=File:pixels-string.png]]<br />
<br />
There is a picture of tiny particles, quite spaced out. These probably represent atoms, and given how distant they are, they may well be a gas.<br />
<br />
There follows a picture of a Bohr Model atom with point electrons surrounding a nucleus of protons and neutrons. The atom is a {{w|Carbon}} atom which is essential for all living matter and therefore for evolution. There is also a picture of what is probably a vibrating cosmic string fragment (a concept in {{w|string theory}}). Despite {{w|Werner Heisenberg|Heisenberg's}} {{w|Uncertainty Principle}}, zooming down to the string does not mean that the cartoon viewer has reached the "bottom" of the comic - zooming in on the loop will show a picture of string.<br />
<br />
===Holism, Reductionism, Mu===<br />
[[File:73-100-pixels-mu.png|link=File:pixels-mu.png]]<br />
[[File:74-100-pixels-mu-b.png|link=File:pixels-mu-b.png]]<br />
[[File:75-100-pixels-holism.png|link=File:pixels-holism.png]]<br />
[[File:76-100-pixels-holism-b.png|link=File:pixels-holism-b.png]]<br />
[[File:77-100-pixels-reductionism.png|link=File:pixels-reductionism.png]]<br />
[[File:78-100-pixels-reductionism-b.png|link=File:pixels-reductionism-b.png]]<br />
<br />
These three words refer to "A MU offering", an essay by {{w|Douglas Hofstatder}} in his book {{w|Godel, Escher, Bach}} (which was referenced by Randall in [[24: Godel, Escher, Kurt Halsey]]). It includes a similar multiple level drawing: {{w|Mu (negative)|the word MU}} is composed of copies of the words [[:File:pixels-holism.png|HOLISM]] and [[:File:pixels-reductionism.png|REDUCTIONISM]], each of which are in turn made of smaller copies of the other, which are in turn made of [http://newtonexcelbach.wordpress.com/2011/02/16/two-more-letters/ tiny copies] of the word [[:File:pixels-mu.png|MU]].<br />
<br />
{{w|Mu (negative)|Mu}} is an important word in {{w|Buddhism}}. Literally, it means "no" or "not", but in Buddhism it also refers to a state of being or thinking - or rather, of not being and not thinking. It could be said that the pairs of panels in this series are each other's Mu, being negative (white-on-black and black-on-white).<br />
<br />
{{w|Holism}} is a philosophical principle that systems should be considered as a complete whole, not as a set of individual parts. For example, a human viewed holistically is a whole interconnected being which can only be fully understood in its own context.<br />
<br />
{{w|Reductionism}} is essentially Holism's opposite, a philosophical principle that any complex object can be reduced to a collection of simpler objects. A human can be considered as a set of organs (eg the heart), which in turn is composed of tissue (in this case muscle), composed of many cells. Cells can then be reduced to organelles, such as the nucleus; this contains chromosomes, made of DNA, a molecule made of atoms; atoms are made of components including protons; and protons are composed of quarks (which may be considered as one-dimensional strings). Reductionism holds that a full understanding of the simplest components of a system, and how they interact, can lead to a full understanding of the system as a whole.<br />
<br />
Holism and reductionism are complementary, rather than competing, philosophies, as both have their strengths and weaknesses. Holism can be very effective in understanding the larger-scale effects of a system by observing macroscopic events and how they are linked, but it ignores the more in-depth understanding gained by considering the smaller-scale components. Reductionism can in theory give us a complete understanding of the entire system by building it up from the smallest and simplest parts, but for a complex system, this is effectively impossible (a typical human contains roughly 10<sup>29</sup> quarks, whose interactions cannot possibly be computed and understood in human terms or timescales).<br />
<br />
"Pixels" is an example of a system best understood with a combination of holism and reductionism. Each panel can be fully explained in its own terms, but is more completely understood as part of a small series of panels. The interconnectedness of all the panels shows a more holistic understanding, yet even this cannot explain comic fully, which must be experienced, with its interactivity and sense of exploration.<br />
<br />
These panels can be found inside panels with Megan.<br />
<br />
===du===<br />
[[File:79-100-pixels-du.png|link=File:pixels-du.png]]<br />
<br />
"[[:File:pixels-du.png|du]]" is a {{w|POSIX}} (think {{w|Linux}}/{{w|Mac OS X}}) command to indicate the "disk usage" of a file or directory.<br />
<br />
~$ du -s video/<br />
4170882256<br />
<br />
This is a command that shows how large all the files are in this user's "video" directory - presumably where they store their personal videos. The units of the result is probably kilobytes (depending on settings, could also be the number of 512-byte blocks).<br />
<br />
This number is clearly large and difficult to parse, and the units are not clear (to a bystander). More appropriate units would be gigabytes rather than bytes. The du command offers an option to display units in "human readable format", which will adapt to use kilobytes, megabytes, gigabytes, terabytes, etc. as appropriate. The next command purports to request the same result in more human-readable form.<br />
<br />
~$ du -hs video/<br />
A lot.<br />
~$<br />
<br />
It seems that the computer, rather than giving a specific answer, simply says that the size of the video directory is "A lot."<br />
<br />
The final line indicates the computer is now ready to accept a new command.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball is stacking turtles, and is about to put the fourth turtle on his pile. At the bottom right there is a small panel. Inside this is written:]<br />
:Scroll to zoom<br />
<br />
:[When zooming in there will be several panels with text. The transcript of these may not be possible to complete - but add the transcript of these panels here: [[1416: Pixels/Transcript|interactive transcript]]]<br />
<br />
:The following code can be found by inspecting the comic's source code:<br />
:<nowiki>[[A large picture of a person kneeling on the ground, stacking turtles.]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>((In this strip, when you zoom into the panel, each pixel becomes its own panel. Each of those panels can be scrolled into, for the same effect. The story progresses as you scroll deeper.))</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[The Earth as seen from space with the words BOOK LAUNCH.]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[A stick-Randall holding a copy of 'What If?' saying, "So excited about my book launch!"]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[A copy of the cover of 'What If?' labeled "book."]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[Stick-Randall is assembling parts from a box labeled 'rocket parts' and preparing to 'launch' his book.]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[Various stages of assembly.]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[A second person comes in, looks at SR's rocket set-up and says, "Needs more struts."]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[SR adds more struts.]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[The rocket launches.]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[A big cloud of smoke, which then dissipates.]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[SR and the other person look skywards at the launched book.]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[The book is shown leaving Earth's orbit.]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[The other person turns to SR and says, "I think that was the only one."]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[The two walk away.]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>((The panels after this are a random assortment of these mostly stand-alone panels.))</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[A momma duck with several ducklings in a row behind her, labeled 'Evolution.']]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[The other person floating around in the sky.]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[A stick figure with a sploshing bucket of water saying, "I'm gonna shut down the server!"]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[Two people walking along, one saying, "But if the Time-Turners worked after Book 3, Rowling would have used one to go back and remove the Time Turner from Book 3."]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[The code:</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>~$ du -s video</nowiki><br />
<br />
:<nowiki>4170882256</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>~$ du -s video</nowiki><br />
<br />
:<nowiki>A lot.</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>~$]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[A cloud.]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[A flock of birds.]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[MU]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[A pixel.]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[A person using a computer on the floor.]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[HOLISM]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[Saturn]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[An atom.]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[Two people star-gazing on a hill.]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[Person one says, "Someone once told me the great kings of the past look down on us..." Person two says, "From the stars?" The first person replies, "Just in general."]]</nowiki><br />
:<nowiki>[[The start of Mario World 1-1.]]</nowiki><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
:<nowiki>{{Title text: It's turtles all the way down.}}</nowiki><br />
<br />
==Trivia==<br />
===Gallery===<br />
[[1416: Pixels/Images|This gallery]] contains the [http://azttm.wordpress.com/2014/09/03/xkcd-com-1416-pixels/ 79 images used in this comic]. The images are related in a [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/37/1416_Pixels_layout.png directed graph].<br />
<br />
===Images Database===<br />
This google sheet describes all possible images, their associated codes, and what possible images can be used as sub-images for each zoom level: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1nldKAkeVcK606CY12KI9bah9rDmK9E7CZOyinsEj2Lo/edit?usp=sharing<br />
<br />
===Image scraping script===<br />
This gist recursively downloads all possible images:<br />
https://gist.github.com/Aaron1011/d3b56325881cd639506a<br />
<br />
===Bugs===<br />
*Doesn't seem to work properly in all browsers (e.g. Firefox and Safari on MacOSX), giving "TypeError: this.data is null" in line 173 of zoom.js: "var item = this.data.get(dims)"<br />
*Firefox on Lubuntu 14.04 (presumably other Ubuntu/Linux distros as well) will allow zooming in, and then freeze when each pixel is about 1/3 of the pane.<br />
*Doesn't seem to work in IE8, comic is blank, but title text works.<br />
*Does not work on xkcd.org neither www.xkcd.org in Firefox and Chrome. Currently you should visit http://xkcd.com for this comic to work properly.<br />
*Also, it doesn't work on HTTPS.<br />
*Very slow and consumes a ridiculous amount of memory (>4GB) in Firefox.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Interactive comics]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]<br />
[[Category:The Lion King]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1209:_Encoding&diff=1176691209: Encoding2016-04-13T05:40:22Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1209<br />
| date = May 8, 2013<br />
| title = Encoding<br />
| image = encoding.png<br />
| titletext = I don't see how; the C0 block is right there at the beginning.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{w|Skywriting}} is using an airplane to write words in the sky with controlled releases of smoke. {{w|Unicode}} is a standard for digitally encoding text which supports a huge variety of characters and modifiers. <br />
<br />
[[Cueball]] and [[Megan]] hired a skywriter to write some text which they provided in Unicode, but now they are dissatisfied with the result and Cueball is using one of their {{w|walkie-talkies}} to tell the pilot about his mistake - with the result that the pilot seems to lose control (presumably control of the plane, not the text).<br />
<br />
An {{w|interrobang}} (‽) is a combination question mark and exclamation mark. A {{w|diacritic}} is any symbol added to a character (for instance ´, ˘, ˇ, ¨), usually an accent mark added to a letter. In Unicode, {{w|Combining character|combining diacritics}} are represented as separate characters, but computer programs that render text graphically treat them as modifications to the previous character. The request to modify the interrobang is strange, given that diacritics are supposed to modify ''letters'', not punctuation marks, and given that in interrobang is already conceptually a character combination.<br />
<br />
The skywriter's errors and the phrase "Unicode support" play off the common issue of {{w|Mojibake|software rendering Unicode symbols incorrectly}}. But here the error does not seem to make the text unintelligible: all the skywriter has apparently done is put a diacritic ''underneath'' the interrobang instead of above it. If this is the only problem with the text (which is likely, given that an interrobang would probably be at the end), then the comment that the skywriter has "terrible Unicode support" makes Cueball and Megan seem fastidious and unforgiving. The comic points up computer users' tendency to use hyperbole when describing minor problems, exaggerating their relative seriousness. Here Cueball and Megan seem concerned more about their incorrectly rendered text than about the skywriter's safety.<br />
<br />
The title text refers to the {{w|C0 and C1 control codes|C0 Block}}, the name for the first 32 character codes in Unicode (and {{w|ASCII}}), traditionally called control characters. Cueball wonders how the plane could possibly have lost "control", when the "control characters" are so clearly in the conventional location.<br />
<br />
Comic [[1647: Diacritics]] also references an absurd use of diacritics.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball and Megan are both holding walkie-talkies. Cueball is talking into his, Megan is holding hers down. Both are looking up in the sky.]<br />
:Cueball: No, the combining diacritics go '''''over''''' the interrobang!<br />
:Megan: Oh jeez, I think he's lost control.<br />
<br />
:[Caption below the panel:]<br />
:The skywriter we hired has terrible Unicode support.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1193:_Externalities&diff=1176681193: Externalities2016-04-13T05:38:59Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1193<br />
| date = April 1, 2013<br />
| title = Externalities<br />
| image = externalities.png<br />
| titletext = Mouse over words and things to see where they come from.<br />
}}<br />
==Explanation==<br />
This comic isn't a static image - even the title text changes depending on which part of the image you're hovering over. It presented a competition for students to see who could come closest to break a {{w|Skein (hash function)|Skein hash}} but also an aid appeal for the Wikimedia Foundation.<br />
<br />
There are quite a few references in the comic to {{w|Baidu}}. Baidu is a large Chinese Internet services company that employs thousands, whose shares are publicly traded on world stock exchanges. It's the predominant Internet search provider of China, and is sometimes called the "Google of China". It offers parallels for the Chinese market of many of the services that Google provides and offers its own encyclopedic wiki with a restricted edit policy to serve as a replacement for Wikipedia. Wikipedia reports that Baidu's search engine handled 56% of Chinese internet search queries in Q4 2010. and that in October 2012, Baidu ranked 5th overall in the Alexa Internet rankings. Given that explanation for the Baidu references in #1193 is still solicited for explainxkcd, Baidu apparently is not well known yet among savvy XKCD readers.<br />
Baidu Search results reputedly follow the censorship dictates of the Chinese authorities, causing it to return censored responses to searches for politically sensitive terms like "Tianamen Square massacre" or "Falun Gong" when executed by web browsers that are connected via Chinese ISPs. When you execute such searches via Baidu in the US, the top links returned for these topics do seem to reflect Chinese government sensibilities although the uncensored English language Wikipedia articles for these topics are listed high in the query results. Baidu's reputation for censorship provides background for Megan's reply "but nothing about Tianamen Square" in response to the "Come and find your future at Baidu" employment enticement of panel one and also provides the background to understand the "It takes great minds to stifle other great minds" slogan of the second panel.<br />
<br />
__TOC__<br />
<br />
The blank regions in the above image are dynamically generated from various sources.<br />
*The university that is being recruited changes depending on which university is winning the hash finding competition in the fifth panel.<br />
*The company doing the recruiting is randomly selected from a pool of companies. It was formerly the first NASDAQ-100 company mentioned on a varying Wikipedia page.<br />
*The text in the second panel may vary: See [[1193: Externalities#Second Panel|this section]].<br />
*The text in the third panel may vary: See [[1193: Externalities#Third Panel|this section]].<br />
*The text in the fourth panel may vary: See [[1193: Externalities#Fourth Panel|this section]].<br />
*The text in the fifth panel [[1193: Externalities#Fifth Panel|changes]], depending on which university is currently in third place in a hash finding competition. Clicking on the panel takes you to [http://almamater.xkcd.com/ a webpage] where people can enter their school's domain name and hash data, and ranks schools on how close their students can come to matching a Skein 1024 1024 hash value.<br />
*The text in the top half of the sixth panel may vary. See [[1193: Externalities#Sixth Panel|this section]]. The second half of the panel is always the same.<br />
*The last panel varies with the amount donated to the Wikimedia Foundation via [https://donate.wikimedia.org/?utm_medium=socialmedia&utm_campaign=xkcd_april1 this link]. For past images, see [[1193: Externalities#Seventh Panel|this section]].<br />
<br />
===Hashing Competition===<br />
For the two days until comic 1194 appeared, a competition was underway to see who could come closest to breaking a {{w|Skein (hash function)|Skein hash}}. The first text line of the first panel contains a link to http://almamater.xkcd.com. This page contained the text:<br />
<br />
:Currently looking for Skein 1024 1024 input matching<br />
<pre>5b4da95f5fa08280fc9879df44f418c8f9f12ba424b7757de02bbdfbae0d4c4fdf9317c80cc5fe04c6429073466cf29706b8c25999ddd2f6540d4475cc977b87f4757be023f19b8f4035d7722886b78869826de916a79cf9c94cc79cd4347d24b567aa3e2390a573a373a48a5e676640c79cc70197e1c5e7f902fb53ca1858b6</pre><br />
<br />
On this page, users were invited to enter "Your school's domain name" — presumably intended to be their college alma mater. (At least in the beginning, only a few top-level domains were accepted.) If the user entered an acceptable domain (by xkcd's rules, which apparently changed during the 48 hours of the competition), he could then enter data values one at a time. For each data value entered, xkcd returned a hash value and the number of bits by which it differed from the target value. The object was to achieve the lowest possible number of differing bits, ideally zero.<br />
<br />
A ranking page showed the lowest value achieved for each domain name entered, but not the data that achieved it. The first name on the list was substituted in various panels, and the third-place school showed in panel five. No data values were reported by xkcd, but various results were posted by users of the xkcd forums and on other websites, leading to copycat submissions, so that occasionally large numbers of institutions would show the same moderately low value.<br />
<br />
After the end of the contest, the data submission page vanished, replaced by the final list of rankings, which shows that Carnegie Mellon University achieved the best score with 384 bits incorrect out of 1024. The rankings only show a few hundred out of the several thousand domains submitted&mdash;presumably Randall chose to chop the copycat submissions off the end of the list, retaining only honestly obtained results.<br />
<br />
===First Panel===<br />
In some cases, Megan's reply seems to correspond to the company.<br />
{| class="wikitable table-padding"<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Hey, [university] students!<br />
:Have you applied to [company] yet?<br />
:Megan: The recruiter hasn't emailed me back in over three minutes.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Hey, [university] students!<br />
:Have you applied to [company] yet?<br />
:Megan: The recruiter hasn't emailed me back in over an hour!<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Hey, [university] students!<br />
:Have you thought of a career at [company]?<br />
:Megan: I'm not that good at math.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Hey, [university] students!<br />
:Have you thought of a career at [company]?<br />
:Megan: What do they even do?<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Hey, [university] students!<br />
:Have you thought of a career at [company]?<br />
:Megan: I don't like monopolies.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Hey, [university] students!<br />
:Have you thought of a career at [company]?<br />
:Megan: Only in my darkest moments.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Hey, [university] students!<br />
:Be part of the Apple experience!<br />
:Megan: I'm not really a fan of turtlenecks.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Hey, [university] students!<br />
:Come work at Microsoft!<br />
:Megan: I only came to this tech talk for the xbox giveaway.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Hey, [university] students!<br />
:Y U No Work Yahoo?<br />
:Megan: I like working from home!<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Hey, [university] students!<br />
:Become a partner at Starbucks!<br />
:Megan: But green's not my colour.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Hey, [university] students!<br />
:Come work in the Amazon!<br />
:Megan: I don't have to actually move to South America, do I?<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Hey, [university] students!<br />
:Have you thought of a career at [company]?<br />
:Megan: Not after that presentation.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Hey, [university] students!<br />
:Thought about working for Intel?<br />
:Megan: I'm not that great at division.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Hey, [university] students!<br />
:Dude, you should work at Dell!<br />
:Megan: That catchphrase is so old.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Ahoy, carnegie melonites!<br />
:Have you thought of a career at [company]?<br />
:Megan: Not after that presentation.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Hey, [university] students!<br />
:Have you looked for a job at Kraft Foods?<br />
:Megan: I'm allergic to sugar<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Hey, [university] students!<br />
:How about working for Whole Foods?<br />
:Megan: Could I afford the food if I did?<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Hey, [university] students!<br />
:Come work at EBay!<br />
:Megan: Maybe if they made a good bid.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Hey, [university] students!<br />
:Come work for Activision... er... Blizzard... er...<br />
:Megan: Activision Blizzard?<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Hey, [university] students! <nowiki>|</nowiki> Ahoy. Carnegie Melonites!<br />
:Come find your future at Baidu!<br />
:Megan: But nothing about Tiananmen Square.<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Second Panel===<br />
The text in the second panel is based on the company in the first panel:<br />
{| class="wikitable table-padding"<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:When the Singularity happens, it will happen here.<br />
:Ponytail: [Company] has outgrown us.<br />
:Men: It is time.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Think of ways to make things smaller and smaller!<br />
:Ponytail: I'm worried mine is too big.<br />
:Men: Yeahhh<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Think of ways to make things smaller and smaller!<br />
:Ponytail: But will it blend?<br />
:Men: Yeahhh<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:You'll be part of a dynamic research team envisioning the future.<br />
:Ponytail: It probably looks cool.<br />
:Men: Yeahhh<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:You'll be creating the future of commerce platforms!<br />
:Ponytail: More recommendations.<br />
:Men: Yep.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:You'll be an insignificant cog in our giant machine<br />
:Ponytail: We should improve Notepad<br />
:Men: Nah<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:We can't tell you what you'll be working on.<br />
:Ponytail: [Confidential]<br />
:Men: [Redacted]<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:You'll be an insignificant cog in our giant machine<br />
:Ponytail: Needs more Bob.<br />
:Men: Nah<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:You'll help set the future of the company<br />
:Ponytail: Wait. You hired a college grad as the CFO?<br />
:Men: Yeahhh<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:At Qualcomm, we know you're born mobile.<br />
:Ponytail: Born mobile!<br />
:Men: Texting!<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Short or tall, we've got a grande job for you!<br />
:Ponytail: How many job openings are there?<br />
:Men: Ele-venti or so.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:You'll help direct the future of nutrition<br />
:Ponytail: Microwaveable toast<br />
:Men: Delicious<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Help us find and provide the best healthy, local, and sustainable products.<br />
:Ponytail: Hey guys, how about kale cookies?<br />
:Men: Sounds great!<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:We're the Classmates.com to Facebook's Craigslist.<br />
:Ponytail: Maybe we should use game theory.<br />
:Men: Why Bother?<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Whatever. Come create the future of gaming!<br />
:Ponytail: Call of Duty 14.<br />
:Men: That's genius!<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:It takes great minds to stifle other great minds.<br />
:Ponytail: Let's block Canada<br />
:Men: Sounds good.<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Third Panel===<br />
{| class="wikitable table-padding"<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:We're a convenient four hour drive from New York City (15,000 hours by Roomba)<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Only a short commuter flight away!<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Travel to us by Roomba, we're *that* close!<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:We're so close you can get to us by Roomba.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Free Roomba rides every morning while you have coffee.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Your Roomba comes in black & slate, or white & silver<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Just a short Roomba ride up the coast, try not to fall off.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:We know what everyday life is like for your generation:<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Fourth Panel===<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable plainlinks table-padding"<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Our recruiting team is on the lookup for promising young [university] graduates.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:We hired a new recruiting startup to help us hire [university] students.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:We borrowed the botanical gardens' net to catch promising recruits.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:We prefer to recruit from [university] students, of course.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Our recruiters are on the hunt for unaware [university] graduates.<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Fifth Panel===<br />
{| class="wikitable table-padding"<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Or students from [university], if they're clever with their applications<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Possibly [university] grads, if their form-filling startup works out.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Or [university] graduates, provided any of them manage to fill out the application correctly.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Or [university] graduates, if they manage to fill out the application correctly.<br />
|}<br />
<br />
The text in the form varies independently of the text at the top, sometimes related to the organization in 3rd place:<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable table-padding"<br />
|-<br />
!Organization<br />
!Name<br />
!Email<br />
!Education<br />
!(Explanation)<br />
|-<br />
|MIT<br />
|Oliver Smoot<br />
|pgp encrypted<br />
|have you ever really looked at the fourier<br />
|As an undergrad at MIT in 1948, Smoot was used to measure the Harvard Bridge during a fraternity prank. This led to the introduction of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smoot "smoot"] as a non-standard unit of length.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
|Wheeeee<br />
|ford.com<br />
|stealing lunches from startups<br />
|-<br />
|CMU<br />
|leeroy jenkins<br />
|me@car<br />
|I can cut up melons<br />
| Le(e)roy Jenkins is an internet meme originating from a 2006 'Let's Play' video of World of Warcraft<br />
|-<br />
|CMU<br />
|pittsburgh<br />
|me@car<br />
|I can cut up melons<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
|SEGMENTATION FAULT<br />
|save trees<br />
|Contra dancing.<br />
|-<br />
|Cambridge<br />
|I'm applying<br />
|cam.gov<br />
|on going problems with birds<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
|certainly<br />
|elephant<br />
|An excellent year in the Sahara<br />
|-<br />
|Stanford<br />
|Stanford<br />
|ford.com<br />
|Stealing lunches from startups<br />
|-<br />
|Stanford<br />
|Yes Please<br />
|@twitter<br />
|Are you Stanford?<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
|Applying<br />
|For a job<br />
|I would like to work at you<br />
|-<br />
|St.Olaf<br />
|Me olaf<br />
|You Helga<br />
|Hunting wooly mammoths<br />
|-<br />
|Ohio State<br />
|Oh!<br />
|IO<br />
|O HAI O<br />
| A joke on the pronunciation of Ohio.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
|FOLLOWBACK<br />
|TOTALLY.EDU.US<br />
|CONVENIENT US DOMAIN REDIRECTS<br />
| .edu is a website suffix mostly used for (American) university websites.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
|Mancher<br />
|Outlook<br />
|Made a collage out of macaroni<br />
|-<br />
|Stanford<br />
|Yes Please<br />
|ford.com<br />
|Are you Stanford?<br />
|-<br />
|Michigan<br />
|ANN<br />
|SOUTH DETROIT<br />
|HUNT LIKE A WOLVERINE<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
|christopher<br />
|POBox 12532<br />
|p.s. ill find my frog<br />
|PO Box 12532 is located at Pyramid Lake in Nevada.<br />
|-<br />
|Oxford<br />
|Bond, James<br />
|Righto<br />
|We're better than Cambridge<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
|Which one<br />
|Forget it<br />
|Riding the L all night long<br />
|-<br />
|Kit<br />
|Kat<br />
|Oh dear<br />
|Something something sleep<br />
|-<br />
|Google<br />
|My G+ handle?<br />
|Any<br />
|I'm feeling lucky<br />
|G+ stands for Google+, Googles social network. I'm feeling lucky is the second option under the searchbar on Google.<br />
|-<br />
|UIC<br />
|Which one<br />
|Forget it<br />
|Riding the L all night long<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
|MY JOB NOW<br />
|@<br />
|SAVE DOCUMENT AND SEND<br />
| Could be Randall saying most jobs are just sending e-mails (@).<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Sixth Panel===<br />
{| class="wikitable table-padding"<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:At [company], you'll work at a scale you won't find anywhere else<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Explore the depths of expensive and undocumented tools!<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:At Apple, we believe in pushing the boundary of perfection.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:At Microsoft, you just need to relax and embrace the machine<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Yahoo management aren't just suits. We code too!<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:At [company], you'll have the opportinity to work on cutting-edge projects.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:At Amazon, you'll be shaving the most cutting-edge of yaks.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:You get to bid first on any auction, and use other experimental tools!<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:At QUALCOMM, Device driver code quality is job #1<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:Make use of our powerful in-house game creation tools.<br />
|-<br />
|<br />
:We're even working on some experimental biotechnology<br />
|}<br />
<br />
===Seventh Panel===<br />
{| class="wikitable table-padding"<br />
|-<br />
|[[File:externality-dog1.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|[[File:externality-dog2.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|[[File:externality-dog2A.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|[[File:externality-dog3.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|[[File:externality-dog4.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|[[File:externality-dog5.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|[[File:externality-dog6.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|[[File:externality-dog7.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|[[File:externality-dog8.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|[[File:externality-dog9.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|[[File:externality-dog10.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|[[File:externality-dog12.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|[[File:externality-dog13.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|[[File:externality-dog14.png]]<br />
|}<br />
<br />
==Title Text==<br />
The title text documents the different sources of data in the comic. The different title texts are:<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable table-padding"<br />
|-<br />
!Comic region<br />
!Title text<br />
|-<br />
|Most of the comic, during the competition.||Mouse over words and things to see where they come from.<br />
|-<br />
|Most of the comic, after the competition ended||This comic went up on April 1st, and the panels changed throughout the day in response to readers doing things like breaking hashes, edited a rapidly-shuffling set of target Wikipedia articles, and donating to Wikimedia Foundation. (The vandalism is over now and CMU won the hashing contest.)<br />
|-<br />
|The part of the first panel (text and drawing) which is not a link. There is no title text at all over the part where the link is active||Happy April 1st, Everyone!<br />
|-<br />
|Fifth panel.||[University] has the third best hash. See the full standings at http://almamater.xkcd.com/best.csv (University = uic after competition)<br />
|-<br />
|Last three panels (only within a frame that would just fit around all three of them).||The dog gains a pound for every $10 donated to the wikimedia foundation via this link. Currently at [amount donated] (Amount = $51135.33 after competition).<br />
|}<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[This was a dynamic image where the text changed during April 1st. The main title text also changed after the dynamic part was finished, and there are even different title text for different part of the comic. This transcript is of the final version of the comic, (no longer dynamic or changing), as displayed at present on xkcd, there are still four different title texts for specific panels. These four title text are for that reason included here in the transcript.]<br />
<br />
:[The basic title text for the entire comic is: "This comic went up on April 1st, and the panels changed throughout the day in response to readers doing things like breaking hashes, edited a rapidly-shuffling set of target Wikipedia articles, and donating to Wikimedia Foundation. (The vandalism is over now and CMU won the hashing contest.)" The other three title text are only active over certain panels.] <br />
<br />
:[The first panel with the caption and Megan below has it's own title text. A part of that panel is a link, and in the section where this link is active there is no title text at all. The title text for the rest of the first panel is: "Happy April 1st, everyone!"]<br />
<br />
:[A panel with only text is above the first drawing. There is a link on the top part of the text to <nowiki>http://almamater.xkcd.com/</nowiki> (the link is now broken).]<br />
:Ahoy, carnegie melonites! <br />
:<br />
:Come find your future at Baidu.<br />
<br />
:[Below, not in a frame, is Megan.]<br />
:Megan: But nothing about Tiananmen Square.<br />
<br />
:[Caption floating above the frame of the next panel:]<br />
:It takes great minds to stifle other great minds.<br />
:[Ponytail sits at a desk, hand to her chin, with two Cueball-like guys with their hands on the table.]<br />
:Ponytail: Let's block Canada<br />
:Cueball-like guys: Sounds good.<br />
<br />
:[Ponytail crouches on a moving Roomba (labeled) with a steaming mug of coffee in one hand and a smartphone in the other. Above her is a caption. The Roomba makes a noice]<br />
:We're a convenient four hour drive from New York City (15,000 hours by Roomba.)<br />
:''Whirrrrrrr''<br />
:Roomba<br />
<br />
:[Ponytail and Hairy corners Cueball as he walks out of a door, and a black haired ponytailed girl is moving towards him wielding a giant butterfly net. There is a caption above them:]<br />
:Our recruiters are on the hunt for unaware CMU graduates<br />
<br />
:[The fifth panel has it's own title text only active within (or very close to) the frame. It is: "uic has the third best hash. See the full standings at <nowiki>http://almamater.xkcd.com/best.csv</nowiki>" (The link is now broken)]<br />
<br />
:[There is a caption above a website application. There is three fields to be filled, with each their caption and text:]<br />
:or uic graduates, provied any of them manage to fill out the application correctly.<br />
::Name which one<br />
::Email forget it<br />
::Education Riding the L all night long<br />
<br />
:[Caption floating above the frame of the next panel:]<br />
:At Baidu, Inc., you'll have the opportunity to work on cutting-edge projects.<br />
:[Cueball sits at a computer.]<br />
:Cueball: What does "make dog" do?<br />
:Off-screen voice: Experimental dog generator. Don't click on it; the default size isn't set, so-<br />
:'''*click*'''<br />
<br />
:[The last three panels has their own title text, only active within a frame that could contain all three panel. Outside that "frame" (all the way around) is the other title text. Within the title text is: "The dog gains a pound for every $10 donated to the Wikimedia Foundation via this link. Currently at $51135.33."]<br />
<br />
:[Small insert panel, going in above the next larger panel: Cueball stares at the screen.]<br />
:''Kzzzt'' <br />
:''*bip*''<br />
:Off-screen voice: Uh oh.<br />
<br />
:[A giant dog looks down at the desk where the computer once was, now only the wires are left. Cueball, leaning way back in his office chair, holding his hand to his mouth, stares up at it.]<br />
<br />
:[Again a smaller insert panel above the large one with the dog. A graphic showing two sliders and a dog (similar to the one in the previous panel). Next to the dog with arrows pointing to it are a thermometer graphic and an equation. Below is an e-mail type text and finally a caption. There are arrows over and under "God" and "dogs" between the g and d's.] <br />
:d(x)=R<br />
:careers@baidu, Inc. <br />
:'''Play God with dogs.'''<sup>TM</sup><br />
<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:April fools' comics]]<br />
[[Category:Dynamic comics]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairy]]<br />
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]<br />
[[Category:Wikipedia]]<br />
[[Category:Science]]<br />
[[Category:Animals]]<br />
[[Category:Roomba]]<br />
[[Category:Butterfly net]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1081:_Argument_Victory&diff=1176671081: Argument Victory2016-04-13T05:37:39Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1081<br />
| date = July 13, 2012<br />
| title = Argument Victory<br />
| image = argument victory.png<br />
| titletext = Really, the comforting side in most conspiracy theory arguments is the one claiming that anyone who's in power has any plan at all.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
[[Cueball]] is arguing with a {{w|conspiracy theorist}}, who is sitting in front of his computer talking back. They are probably using {{w|Skype}} as Cueball later asks him to watch closely, holding his phone up to show the other guy what he is doing. <br />
<br />
Cueball's opponent seems to ignore all reliable sources, like {{w|Snopes}} and {{w|Wikipedia}} on top of several {{w|Academic journal|journals}}, instead preferring sources that are seemingly not credible (but that do agree with him). These conspiracy ".net" pages typically just have a black background and uses several different sizes of fonts, the larger (and probably also in bright colors), the more convincing, seems to be the belief, and Cueball cannot take these kind of sources seriously. ".net" websites can be made by anyone and have little limitations. The maker of a ".net" does not need to show sources of information, or even their name. As such, ".net" websites are notoriously unreliable and often have viruses or other malware. [http://zapatopi.net/blackhelicopters/ The Truth about Black Helicopters] is an example of one such website, supposedly explaining the truth behind<br />
government "Black Helicopers".<br />
<br />
The conspiracy theorist insists that by trusting reliable sources, Cueball is simply buying in to the cover-up. Cueball says he can win the argument, and will show him how, and then ceases to argue further in favor of going down a {{w|waterslide}} while holding up the phone to show the other guy how to have a good time. Since conspiracy theorists tend to be [https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/intransigent intransigent], Cueball sees himself as the victor after ceasing to argue with a guy who cannot be argued with, and instead decides to have some fun. This is even improved by the fact that it makes his opponent angry. (It is like discussing {{w|religion}} with very religious people - you can never make them change their mind by arguing with reason taken from scientific studies). <br />
<br />
The joke here is also in the title of the comic which is ''[http://imgur.com/EKkAXgR Argument Victory]'' something that is very hard to achieve by on the web... Cueball won this victory not by arguing but by stopping this argument he was having with someone that could/would not be argued with.<br />
<br />
The title text points out that belief in a conspiracy presupposes that those with the power to carry out the conspiracy actually have a plan, a situation which might be found more "comforting" than the alternative that those in power are just muddling through with no plan at all. This concept is revisited in [[1274: Open Letter]].<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball, looking right, is talking at his smartphone while holding it up in front of his head using both hands.]<br />
:Cueball: I can't believe you're so wrong. I'm backed by Snopes, Wikipedia, and a half-dozen journals. You're citing .net pages with black backgrounds and like 20 fonts each.<br />
<br />
:[A conspiracy theorist is sitting in front of this lap top at his desk looking left. He has his hair combed down. He is talking to Cueball via his laptop, probably Skyping.]<br />
:Conspiracy theorist: It's sad how you buy into the official story so unquestioningly. <br />
:Conspiracy theorist: Guess some people ''prefer'' to stay asleep.<br />
<br />
:[Back to Cueball who has lowered his phone a bit. The reply from the conspiracy theorist is shown to come out of the phone with a jagged arrow and likewise speech bubble.]<br />
:Cueball: Watch closely— I'm about to win this argument.<br />
:Conspiracy theorist (reply from phone): How?<br />
<br />
:[Cueball is sitting at the very top of a waterslide preparing to descend.]<br />
:Cueball: By ''going down a waterslide''.<br />
<br />
:[A split panel, with a close-up of the conspiracy theorist above and below Cueball is sliding down the waterslide with both hands above his head, water splashing up behind him as he holds his smartphone above the water in one hand.]<br />
:Conspiracy theorist: So? What does that prove?<br />
:Cueball: ''Wheee..''<br />
<br />
:[Another split panel, this time a smaller part is used for the close-up of the conspiracy theorist above and below Cueball has more of this panels space for sliding down to the bottom of the waterslide with both hands above his head, water still splashing up behind him as he continues to keep his smartphone above the water in one hand.]<br />
:Conspiracy theorist: You didn't win the argument!<br />
:Cueball: ''...eeee!''<br />
:Cueball: ''Sploosh!''<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Conspiracy theory]]<br />
[[Category:Wikipedia]]<br />
[[Category:Internet]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=930:_Days_of_the_Week&diff=117666930: Days of the Week2016-04-13T05:35:35Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 930<br />
| date = July 27, 2011<br />
| title = Days of the Week<br />
| image = days_of_the_week.png<br />
| titletext = Not pictured: the elongated Halley's-Comet-like orbit of every Rebecca Black lyric.<br />
}}<br />
The xkcd page links to [http://xkcd.com/930/large/ a much larger version].<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
As explained in the image, the graph is a polar graph, charting the relative strengths by which certain phrases are associated with certain days of the week. The closer a phrase comes to the center of the graph, the less the phrase is associated with whatever day of the week that is. Conversely, the further out a phrase is, the more associated with that day of the week it is.<br />
<br />
Perhaps the clearest example of this in the above graph is the ladies night line, which has such a strong peak on Wednesday that it goes clear out of the bounds of the picture. Likewise, church is so strongly associated with Sunday that it goes off the chart there.<br />
<br />
Also of interest are the less eccentric orbits, for instance "big day" and "so drunk." The fact that these don't clearly peak on any one day indicates that (according to Google, at least) big days are spread out fairly evenly throughout the week (with a minimum on Mondays), and so drunk tends to peak on weekends, though it seems fairly evenly split between Fridays and Saturdays.<br />
<br />
Mentioned in the title text is {{w|Rebecca Black}}'s viral pop hit "{{w|Friday (Rebecca Black song)|Friday}}," [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kfVsfOSbJY0] which received considerable negative attention and ridicule for its terrible songwriting and performance. It peaks so far out that no perspective which would show it would be of any use, since many parodies have been made of the song since.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[The whole comic is a single panel, with a circular diagram of the days of the week.]<br />
<br />
:Polar graph of what stuff happens on which days, based on number of Google results for phrases like "company meeting on <day>."<br />
:The relative frequency of <day> in <phrase> is shown by the distance from the center at which <phrase>'s line crosses <day>.<br />
:Each curve is normalized to have the same number of total hits - they're not on the same scale.<br />
<br />
:(Not easy to reproduce the actual plot, these are the phrases, in order of popularity on Wednesday.)<br />
:1. <day> is ladies night<br />
:2. announced <day><br />
:3. company meeting on <day> / company meeting <day><br />
:4. due on <day><br />
:5. got laid <day><br />
:6. drunk on <day> / so drunk <day><br />
:7. <day> is the big day<br />
:8. Church <day><br />
:9. got my period <day><br />
:10. we broke up on <day><br />
:11. <day> sucked<br />
<br />
:[Thursday, from most common to least common: 11, 2, 1, 3, 9, 4, 5, 7, 10, 6, 8]<br />
:[Friday, from most common to least common: 10, 4, 6, 7, 5, 9, 11, 3, 2, 1, 8]<br />
:[Saturday, ditto: 6, 7, 5, 11, 9, 10, 8, 3, 2, 1, 4]<br />
:[Sunday, ditto: 8, 9, 7, 11, 10, 5, 6, 2, 3, 4, 1]<br />
:[Monday, ditto: 4, 2, 9, 11, 3, 5, 10, 6, 7, 8, 1]<br />
:[Tuesday, ditto: 3, 2, 4, 5, 1, 7, 9, 10, 11, 8, 6]<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]<br />
[[Category:Charts]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=793:_Physicists&diff=117665793: Physicists2016-04-13T05:34:22Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 793<br />
| date = September 15, 2010<br />
| title = Physicists<br />
| image = physicists.png<br />
| titletext = If you need some help with the math, let me know, but that should be enough to get you started! Huh? No, I don't need to read your thesis, I can imagine roughly what it says.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
This comic shows a view that many physics students, upon first encountering a well-known problem, think that it is not a difficult problem, since they think they can fix it using an extremely simplified model. The obvious problem with this is that if it was that simple to solve the problem to a useful degree, there wouldn't be an entire department studying the problem. This attitude leads to great annoyance from those who have probably spent years and years working on the problem. This argument is similar to the {{w|Spherical cow}}, an idea that basic models taught in early physics classes only work in friction-less vacuums, as shown in [[669: Experiment]]. The title text takes the dismissive attitude to its logical extreme.<br />
<br />
The comment "liberal-arts majors can be annoying sometimes" seems to be referencing the stereotype that they're all elitist know-it-alls.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball stands at a blackboard covered in equations and diagrams, an open laptop and scattered paper at his feet. His fists are balled in anger and there is a little angry squiggle over his head. A Cueball-like physicist stands behind him, arms out in a shrug.]<br />
:Physicist: You're trying to predict the behavior of <font color=gray><complicated system></font>? Just model it as a <font color=gray><simple object></font>, and then add some secondary terms to account for <font color=gray><complications I just thought of></font>.<br />
:Physicist: Easy, right?<br />
:Physicist: So, why does <font color=gray><your field></font> need a whole journal, anyway?<br />
:Liberal-arts majors may be annoying sometimes, but there's ''nothing'' more obnoxious than a physicist first encountering a new subject.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]<br />
[[Category:Physics]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=697:_Tensile_vs._Shear_Strength&diff=117664697: Tensile vs. Shear Strength2016-04-13T05:33:11Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 697<br />
| date = February 3, 2010<br />
| title = Tensile vs. Shear Strength<br />
| image = tensile_vs_shear_strength.png<br />
| titletext = Although really, the damage was done when the party planners took the hole punch to the elevator ribbon to hang up the sign.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
Tensile strength represents how hard you can pull on something without it breaking. Shear strength represents how hard you can try to cut it without it breaking. Many materials have great tensile strength but low shear strength (such as dental floss — try to break it by just pulling on two ends), including whatever this space elevator is made of. The material clearly has extremely high tensile strength because it can hold the elevator in place, with one end on the ground and one in space, but it can be cut with a simple pair of pruning shears. This also highlights the fact that "shear strength" and "shears" are etymologically related.<br />
<br />
A {{w|space elevator}} is a proposed construction that would make space travel easier. It consists of a long string attached to the Earth (near equator) on one end and a counterweight (beyond the {{w|geostationary orbit}}) on the other end, kept taut and in one place by the gravity and centrifugal forces. This would make it possible to carry spacecraft into the orbit by simple mechanical means, as opposed to requiring the use of rockets as is the case nowadays, saving lot of energy and resources.<br />
<br />
The title text makes the point that even before [[Black Hat]] cut the space elevator's cable in two, it was ruined by the holes in it for the banner. The holes would reduce the surface area of the cross section of the pole, dwarfing its ability to keep the elevator attached to the ground. The flag and holes would also potentially make it impossible for the elevator to travel up the pole, making the entire elevator useless.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[A space elevator occupies the height of the frame, consisting of a base, a cable extending out into space, and an elevator unit with standard elevator features such as sliding doors and up/down buttons. A banner flutters in the breeze attached to the cable going up above the elevator there is text on the banner. Text appear in four lines split across the elevator cable itself, the rhyming portions of the text is on the right side of the cable. Five individuals stand at the base of the elevator. To the left are Megan, a Cueball-like guy, with his arms up, and Ponytail who has recently opened a bottle of champagne holding it up while spilling some of the liquid out the top of the bottle because she holds it and her other arm up. To the right is Black Hat, who cuts the cable with a pruning shear like it was part of the ceremony as a ribbon cutting. Finally further right is Cueball who sees what Black Hat is doing. He is very alarmed holding a hand to his mouth while holding the other out towards Black Hat.]<br />
<br />
:Banner: Space Elevator<br />
:Banner: Grand opening<br />
::{|<br />
|-<br />
|style="text-align:right;"|After countless<br />
|style="text-align:left;"|engineers<br />
|-<br />
|style="text-align:right;"|spend trillions over<br />
|style="text-align:left;"|fifty years,<br />
|-<br />
|style="text-align:right;"|a modern babel<br />
|style="text-align:left;"|disappears<br />
|-<br />
|style="text-align:right;"|because some fuck brought<br />
|style="text-align:left;"|pruning shears<br />
|}<br />
:Pruning shears: ''Snip''<br />
:Cueball: ''!!''<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]<br />
[[Category:Elevators]]<br />
[[Category:Space]]<br />
[[Category:Science]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=225:_Open_Source&diff=117663225: Open Source2016-04-13T05:31:52Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 225<br />
| date = February 19, 2007<br />
| title = Open Source<br />
| image = open source.png<br />
| titletext = Later we'll dress up like Big Oil thugs and jump Ralph Nader.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{w|Richard Stallman}}, or ''rms'' after his handle, is an old-school hacker known these days primarily for establishing the {{w|Free Software Foundation}} and initiating the {{w|GNU Project}} in the early 1980s, which produced major portions of what would later be the {{w|Linux|GNU/Linux}} operating system. In this capacity, he's also known for being one of the most ardent and outspoken proponents of {{w|free software}}, sometimes called {{w|open source software}}. In fact, his advocacy is so emphatic and polemical that he has garnered active dislike from traditionalists who believe that software {{w|source code}} should be retained as a trade secret by its developer(s). Stallman has expressed that he did not even wish to be in a comic using the word '''Open Source''', see the [[#Trivia|trivia]] section.<br />
<br />
While this dislike may not rise to the level of hiring {{w|ninja}} assassins to remove him from the world, it is strong. The joke of the comic, as it also turns out, is that the two ninjas was just out to have a fun time teasing Stallman, and they seemed to know that Stallmans paranoia about {{w|Microsoft}} makes him sleep with no less than two {{w|katana}} swords near his bed. This type of swords were one of the traditionally made Japanese swords that were used by the {{w|samurai}} of feudal Japan. A ninja was a covert agent or mercenary in feudal Japan. Their covert methods of waging irregular warfare were deemed "dishonorable" and "beneath" the samurai-caste, who observed strict rules about honor and combat. So this makes sense in this comic with Stallman the samurai and the ninjas the lackeys of the oppressing Microsoft (at least in his mind). It also turns out that they specifically chooses a target for their raids that have reason to be paranoid of come larger companies that might send someone after them, and thus sleeps with weapons near their bed. Stallman has received a Katana due to this comic, see the [[#Trivia|trivia]] section.<br />
<br />
{{w|GPL}} refers to the 'GNU General Public License', which is a copyright license written by the FSF that covers much GNU software and plenty of other free software besides. It stipulates that software so copyrighted must always be provided along with full source code, and that everyone in possession of such software is free to use, study, modify, and redistribute it for any purpose whatsoever (including sale or resale) provided they give due credit to any other contributing developers, also provide access to the complete source code, and retain all copyright notices.<br />
<br />
Legally, this gives all users of such software exactly the same rights under copyright as the developer(s), and prevents any developers from ever taking away those rights from users, which is the defining feature of '{{w|Free software#Definition|free-as-in-libre}}' software. It also has the effect of making all software ''derived'' from GPL software thereby also GPL, even if 'derived' merely means 'borrowed a few lines of code from'. Some (e.g. Microsoft's {{w|Steve Ballmer}}) have therefore argued that this makes GPL software behave as a kind of {{w|viral license|'license virus'}}, which spreads GPL-guaranteed freedoms to any software used in close conjunction with GPL'd software during development, such that businesses should actively avoid adopting {{w|FOSS|free and open source software}}, so as not to jeopardize software developers' legal standing with regard to {{w|proprietary software|proprietary IP copyright}}s.<br />
<br />
During the attack Richard Stallman begins to speak like he quotes an old play. For instance the wording "For a GNU dawn!" is pronounced "For a g'new dawn!", following the pronunciation of {{w|GNU}}, so it is a version of ''New Dawn'', a sentence used often in fiction. He even gets annoyed when it turns out the ninjas just run away, he had clearly waited a long time to, even looking forward to, defending him self with his katanas.<br />
<br />
Because as it turned out that the two "nijas" made a prank with him, and they realized that they had so much fun out of Stallman that they plan to do more of these nightly raids even mentioning two other possible future targets on their way out of the window:<br />
<br />
{{w|Eric S. Raymond}} is a famous {{w|Hacker (programmer subculture)|hacker}} who wrote {{w|The Cathedral and the Bazaar}} and has been something of an unofficial spokesperson for open source as a {{w|Open-source software development|software development methodology}}. The plan to prank Eric Raymond could be a bad one since he is an experienced martial artist, swordsman, and firearm enthusiast. However, this seems to be the attraction of these two "nijas" as can be seen by what they seems to know about their other possible target:<br />
<br />
{{w|Linus Torvalds}} is the creator of the {{w|Linux kernel}}, an free/open source operating system kernel inspired by the {{w|Unix}} kernel, which proved to be the final component that, combined with then pre-existing GNU system functions and {{w|userland}} components, produced the first fully free operating system, {{w|Linux}}. The plan to prank Torvalds would at first sound more boring as the mild-mannered Finn, while known to be strongly, abrasively opinionated, is otherwise mostly harmless. However, one of the nijas seems to now otherwise since it is rumored that Linus sleeps with {{w|nunchaku|nunchucks}} in the same way that Stallman sleeps with two katana swords. The ''nunchaku'' is a traditional Okinawan martial arts weapon consisting of two sticks connected at one end by a short chain or rope.<br />
<br />
A third possible target of this prank is mentioned in the title text. {{w|Ralph Nader}} is a famous consumer rights advocate, most famous for the 1965 book {{w|Unsafe at Any Speed}} and for running for US President in 2000. Nader was an environmentalist, a member of the Green Party, and supported clean energy, thus he should naturally be opposed to the Big Oil companies.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[The first panel has the second panel inside it. It also has a slightly light gray background color. Just above the inlaid second panel is Richard Stallman lying in his bead sleeping, the bottom part at the foot of the bed is hidden behind the second panel below. Below his bed under his head lies a katana sword in it's sheath, and another one hangs in it's sheath behind the end of the bed. Two ninjas with black cloth around their heads and swords jump through the skylight smashing it so glass scatters around them. Each of them is hanging one handed from the same rope coming down from the skylight. The rope ends just above the inlaid frame below. The two ninjas shouts at Richard Stallman, from four speech bubbles which have pointy ends to indicate how the two alternately speaks. (These bubbles are white not gray).]<br />
:Richard Stallman: ''Zzzz''<br />
:Top Ninja: Richard Stallman! Your viral open source licenses have grown too powerful.<br />
:Bottom Ninja: The GPL must be stopped.<br />
:Top Ninja: At the source.<br />
:Bottom Ninja: You.<br />
<br />
:[In the second inlaid panel (with normal white background) Richard Stallman wakes up immediately, and while sitting up in bed he pulls out both his katana swords from their sheaths leaving the sheaths under and behind the bed. One hand is up in the air with the sword from behind the bed, and the other is still pointing down with the swords from below the bed. Lines indicate the fast movement of the swords. His three speech bubbles are like those of the ninjas, the last two even breaking the panel entering into the large first panel.]<br />
:Katana swords: Shing! Shing!<br />
:Richard Stallman: Hah! Microsoft lackeys! So it has come to this!<br />
:Richard Stallman: A night of blood I've long awaited. But be this my death or yours, free software will carry on! For a GNU dawn! For freedom!<br />
:Richard Stallman: ...Hey, where are you going?<br />
<br />
:[An outside scene at night with black sky. Richard Stallmans gray house can be seen with the broken white skylight on the roof. The ninjas are jumping out of a window at ground height while taking of their ninja cloth around their heads, holding them in their hand, thus revealing they both looks like Cueball. The first one is already on the grassy ground beneath the window his sword pointing down and left, the other just jumps from the window pane his sword pointing up and right. Again they have speech bubbles like before. It is not possible to tell which of the two ninjas from before is first out the window.]<br />
:Ninja in window: Man, you're right, that never gets old.<br />
:Ninja on the grass: Let's do Eric S. Raymond next.<br />
:Ninja in window: Or Linus Torvalds. I hear he sleeps with nunchucks.<br />
<br />
==Trivia==<br />
*The phrase "So it has come to this" is the title of [[1022: So It Has Come To This]].<br />
*In [[1624: 2016]] [[Cueball]] smashes through the ceiling, also hanging on a rope, to wake a person in a bed. Not as a threat though, but still a very similar situation.<br />
*Because of this comic Stallman has [http://blog.xkcd.com/2007/04/19/life-imitates-xkcd-part-ii-richard-stallman/ been given a katana] by fans of xkcd. <br />
*At his [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHp_Vh9TESU#t=1645 talk at JCCC3] (as well as in a note in ''[http://store-xkcd-com.myshopify.com/products/xkcd-volume-0 xkcd: Volume Zero]''), [[Randall]] mentioned that the comic he originally published had the assassins say "free software" and Richard Stallman says "open source software". He swapped the two terms after complaints that Richard Stallman was [https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/open-source-misses-the-point.html opposed to the phrase "open source"]. Even after this change he got an e-mail from Stallman himself saying that he didn't even want to be portrayed in the same comic as the words "open source".<br />
*Stallman's well-known opposition to the term "open source" stems from the fact that "open source" refers specifically to a methodology for software development involving allowing customers to actively participate in development and testing of software products by giving them access to in-development source code and soliciting feedback; as such, the term was first adopted as a means to promote free software ideas to business interests. In contrast, Stallman and the FSF view free software as a political issue concerning the basic freedoms that should belong to all computer users, and thus 'open source' as an appeal to software businesses misses the point of getting individuals to think about their rights as users.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Richard Stallman]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]<br />
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]<br />
[[Category:Computers]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1665:_City_Talk_Pages&diff=1174181665: City Talk Pages2016-04-11T18:31:17Z<p>173.245.54.30: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1665<br />
| date = April 8, 2016<br />
| title = City Talk Pages<br />
| image = city talk pages.png<br />
| titletext = "I don't think the Lakeshore Air Crash Museum really belongs under 'Tourist Attractions.' It's not a museum--it's just an area near the Lake Festival Laser Show where a lot of planes have crashed.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|Almost complete, keep up the good work}}<br />
<br />
The comic makes fun of Wikipedia talk pages. On Wikipedia, every article has a place to discuss the content of the page, called a "{{w|Help:Using talk pages|talk page}}". In this case, the comic talks about the talk page of an article about a city. While some of the topics are quite normal for such a page (e.g. the quality of the images) others are not (e.g. too many murders and mine disasters in the city). The topics discussed suggest that the city has many problems and is a bad place to live in or visit.<br />
<br />
The topics show a common problem at Wikipedia's talk pages: People often use them as a place to talk about the ''subject'' of the article, but it is for talking about the ''article'' itself. Someone at the top of the talk page is suggesting a better name for the city.<br />
<br />
The article repeatedly refers to "the murders", suggesting that the city might be well-known for them. It seems that the editors cannot agree on how notable "the murders" are. "Not that notable" refers to Wikipedia's general criteria for including information in articles. Material which is not noteworthy should be removed; however, different editors often disagree about what is notable, resulting in conflicting edits as text is inserted and then removed (an "edit war"). Someone replies that "all cities have murders". While true, many cities in low-crime countries would not have a series of them so well-known that when someone talks about "the murders" any reader could be expected to know what they are talking about, making this sound like an attempt to make the city sound nicer than it is. "I think the murderer is reverting my edits" suggests the murders are being committed by ''one person'' who is influencing how they are shown on WIkipedia - perhaps trying to prevent Wikipedia from publishing evidence of them or possibly publicise them by adding ''more'' information about them. This raises the possibility that the discussion of the murder visible in the infobox picture may have been ''initiated by the murderer''.<br />
<br />
The {{w|WP:Infobox|infobox}} is a short fact sheet that many articles in the (English) Wikipedia have; it generally includes an image illustrating the subject of the article. The question of which picture is best for the infobox (because this image is so prominent) can cause edit wars. It emerges that the photograph of the city has a murder in it. Instead of forwarding the picture to law enforcement, someone uses the image editing software Photoshop to erase the murder so the picture will be less objectionable. It appears that murders are so common in the city that any random photograph of the city has a chance of showing a murder, to the point where a second photo proposed as a replacement for the infobox picture is found to show ''another'' murder.<br />
<br />
{{w|Voltaire}} was a French Enlightenment writer. As a prominent and very opinionated intellectual, [https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Voltaire#Misattributed he gets a lot of quotes falsely attributed to him]; most famously, he did not actually say "I disagree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it" (that was {{w|Evelyn Beatrice Hall}}).<br />
<br />
It seems that the people who are editing the article are getting desperate to find a non-bleak picture of the city. When a non-bleak picture is added, it turns out to be from the 2016 Disney film {{w|Zootopia}}. The fictional city which is the setting and title of the film has a distinctive [http://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/disney/images/4/43/Zootopia_City_Full.jpg look] which is far from bleak, but is not a picture of the city. (Zootopia is called Zootropolis in many European countries for trademark reasons.)<br />
<br />
The city apparently is a mining city and there have been some mining disasters. An editor is complaining that this section is too long, but another editor points out that this is because there have been so many mining disasters that a large section is needed to cover the topic. {{w|Mining}} is the extraction of minerals or substances from the earth's crust. People often use mining as a means of employment. These people are called {{w|miners}}. Sometimes there are many miners in one area who mine a lot of product. Then mining might become the main export of a city. These cities are called {{w|mining communities}}. In this comic, it is implied that the city being discussed is a mining city. A {{w|mining disaster}} is a unfortunate happenstance that can lead to a miner's {{w|death}}. Mining accidents are bad things that can occur in a variety of different ways. Causes of death from a mining accident can include {{w|suffocation}}, {{w|explosion}}, {{w|poisoning}}, and {{w|crushing}}. <br />
<br />
{{w|1982 Secession}} refers to Key West, Florida seceding from the United States in 1982 to form the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conch_Republic Conch Republic].<br />
<br />
A known problem on Wikipedia is "coatracking", where people use articles to promote topics that are not strictly the subject of the article (perhaps by writing far more about them than is necessary, when they could just be mentioned in passing). Here, it emerges that the article on a city expresses a dubious opinion on condom use. This is against several Wikipedia policies: it would be irrelevant to the article and sounds like an editor's attempt to publicise their views.<br />
<br />
{{w|Andrew Lloyd Webber}} is an English composer famous for writing ''The {{w|Phantom Of The Opera}}''. (Webber is also known for writing the music for ''{{w|Starlight Express}}'', a rock opera about anthropomorphized trains, which is probably another factor in the train station joke.) Meanwhile, {{w|Frank Lloyd Wright}}, who shares his middle name and last initial, was an American architect, who designed more than 1,000 structures. As it turns out it was the composer who was responsible for the train station, and as a result the station roof has collapsed.<br />
<br />
In the comic ''Webber'' is spelled ''Weber''. This could be a mistake by [[Randall]], (but then it is likely to be corrected later...) More likely Randall did this for the sake of realism as this is what can be expected by people writing in a talk page on Wikipedia, where errors are not necessarily corrected as they would be in the main article.<br />
<br />
It is complained that the article is promoting the "Lake Festival Laser Show" too much. In the alt text, it emerges that the laser show is so impressive that it has caused a number of aeroplanes to crash. This probably refers to the fact that laser pointers should not be aimed at aircrafts, as they can be distracting to the pilots. The article has been promoting this area of crashed planes as the "Lakeshore Air Crash Museum", despite it not having any educational purpose.<br />
<br />
==Examples==<br />
*{{w|Talk:Key West, Florida#What's with the Chicken photo}} questions the relevance of free range chickens.<br />
*{{w|Talk:Rio de Janeiro#Oh, there's no crime in Rio?}} suggests crime incidence in Rio has been suppressed to promote tourism.<br />
*{{w|Talk:Kirkcaldy}} discusses naming.<br />
*{{w|Talk:Isfahan}} has many naming proposals.<br />
*{{w|Talk:Chattanooga, Tennessee}} has disputes over crime and notability of residents.<br />
*{{w|Talk:Muara Bungo}} indicates someone ''repeatedly'' tried to delete the second-largest city in Jambi, Sumatra.<br />
*{{w|Talk:Arvada, Colorado}} held a heated argument considerably longer than the article, concerning the existence of a scandal in the police department. A year later, one editor deemed the issue unimportant and removed it entirely.<br />
*{{w|Talk:Sutton-in-Ashfield}} discusses the cultural significance of town landmarks.<br />
*{{w|Talk:Abergele}} has residents arguing over who should be included.<br />
*{{w|Talk:Tucson, Arizona}}:<br />
** ''I heard you can get Chicago-style deep dish pizza even in Tucson! Is this true? If so, it probably should be added to the article.''<br />
** ''Um...I heard this place is kinda dangerous.''<br />
** ''Shouldn't the headline-indicated shooting be included?''<br />
** ''Why are there three photos showing snow in the vicinity of Tucson? I know snow is an event for us, but I think other Wikipedians know what it looks like.''<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Caption above the panel: ]<br />
:I love reading the Wikipedia talk pages for articles on individual cites<br />
<br />
:[A list of contents for a Wikipedia talk page regarding an article about a city. Except for the header and the square brackets, which are written in black text, the rest is in a blue font.]<br />
:::Contents [<font color="blue">Hide</font>]<br />
<br />
:<font color="blue">1 Origin of city's name?<br />
::1.1 Idea for a better name<br />
::1.2 Not how Wikipedia works<br />
:2 Too much promotion of the lake festival<br />
:3 Should we mention the murders?<br />
::3.1 Not that notable<br />
::3.2 All cites have murders<br />
:4 Quote verification: Even if Voltaire did visit (unlikely), why would he get so angry about our restaurants?<br />
:5 Discuss: New picture<br />
::5.1 Current one looks awfully bleak<br />
::5.2 Gray sky<br />
::5.3 What about this<br />
::5.4 Also bleak<br />
::5.5 Maybe this place just looks that way<br />
::5.6 Found a better picture, more colorful<br />
::5.7 That's a shot from Disney's ''Zootopia''<br />
:6 "Mining disasters" section too long<br />
::6.1 Not really Wikipedia's fault<br />
::6.2 Why is this town so bad at mining?<br />
:7 Infobox picture: I just realized you can see a murder happening in the background<br />
::7.1 This city is terrible<br />
::7.2 Photoshopped out murder<br />
::7.3 Can someone just take a better picture<br />
::7.4 Okay, uploaded a new picture<br />
::7.5 Wait, never mind, I just noticed there's a murder in this one, too<br />
:8 1982 secession still in effect?<br />
:9 I think the murderer is reverting my edits<br />
:10 Why does this article take '''''any''''' position on correct condom use, let alone such a weird and ambiguous one?<br />
:11 Train station "Designed by Andrew Lloyd Weber"?<br />
::11.1 They probably mean Frank Lloyd Wright<br />
::11.2 I thought so too, but it's apparently not a mistake<br />
::11.3 Didn't know he did architecture<br />
::11.4 Roof collapse</font><br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]<br />
[[Category:Wikipedia]]</div>173.245.54.30https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1663:_Garden/Images&diff=1166831663: Garden/Images2016-04-06T17:57:05Z<p>173.245.54.30: /* Images of items */ tweak name</p>
<hr />
<div>*Here are links to the images used in the interactive comic [[1663: Garden]]<br />
**Preferably they will also all be downloaded and uploaded here so they can be seen side by side like on [[1350: Lorenz/Images]].<br />
*Screen shot can be found here: [[1663: Garden/Screen-shots]].<br />
*Links to users gardens (i.e. NOT permalinks) can be found here [[1663: Garden/Users gardens]].<br />
<br />
===Images of items===<br />
*Below are links to images of the items that can appear in the comic:<br />
**'''Note''': smaller versions of all these pictures can be had by deleting the 2x- to the filename such as to the very last on the list:<br />
***[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/woman-1a.png Woman 1a - small]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-background.png Background]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-balloon.png Balloon]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-balloon-segment.png Balloon segment]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-beehive-base.png Beehive-base]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-beehive-entrance-a.png Beehive entrance a]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-beret-shrub.png Beret shrub]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-bird-1.png Bird 1]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-bird-2.png Bird 2]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-bird-3.png Bird 3]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-bird-4.png Bird 4]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-bird-5.png Bird 5]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-bird-riser.png Bird riser]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-bird-standing.png Bird standing]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-birdbath.png Birdbath]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-1.png Branch 1]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-10.png Branch 10]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-11.png Branch 11]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-12.png Branch 12]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-13.png Branch 13]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-14.png Branch 14]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-15.png Branch 15]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-16.png Branch 16]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-17.png Branch 17]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-18.png Branch 18]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-19.png Branch 19]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-2.png Branch 2]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-20.png Branch 20]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-21.png Branch 21]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-22.png Branch 22]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-23.png Branch 23]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-24.png Branch 24]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-3.png Branch 3]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-4.png Branch 4]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-5.png Branch 5]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-6.png Branch 6]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-7.png Branch 7]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-8.png Branch 8]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-branch-9.png Branch 9]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cactus-1.png Cactus 1]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cactus-2.png Cactus 2]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cat-balanced.png Cat Balanced]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cat-ground.png Cat Ground]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cairn-base-1.png Cairn Base 1]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cairn-base-2.png Cairn Base 2]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cairn-base-3.png Cairn Base 3]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cairn-base-4.png Cairn Base 4]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-cairn-base-5.png Cairn Base 5]<br />
*Cairn Mid 1-5 are half-size versions of Cairn Base 1-5, and Cairn Top 1-5 are quarter size<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-deer-1.png Deer 1]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-deer-2.png Deer 2]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-desk-1.png Desk 1]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-desk-lamp.png Desk lamp]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-duck-1.png Duck 1]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-fig-1.png Fig 1]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-base.png Flower base]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-segment1.png Flower segment 1]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-segment2.png Flower segment 2]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-segment3.png Flower segment 3]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flower-segment4.png Flower segment 4]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-flying-fig.png Flying fig]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-grass-1.png Grass 1]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-grass-2.png Grass 2]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-grass-3.png Grass 3]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-grass-4.png Grass 4]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-grass-5.png Grass 5]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-grass-6.png Grass 6]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-grass-7.png Grass 7]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-grass-8.png Grass 8]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-grass-9.png Grass 9]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-handfig-1.png Handfig 1]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-handfig-2.png Handfig 2]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-hat-1a.png Hat 1a]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-important-bun.png Important bun]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-lamp-crossbar-left.png Lamp crossbar left]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-lamp-crossbar-right.png Lamp crossbar right]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-lamppost-1.png Lamppost 1]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-1.png Leaves 1]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-10.png Leaves 10]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-11.png Leaves 11]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-12.png Leaves 12]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-13.png Leaves 13]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-14.png Leaves 14]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-15.png Leaves 15]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-16.png Leaves 16]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-17.png Leaves 17]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-18.png Leaves 18]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-19.png Leaves 19]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-2.png Leaves 2]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-20.png Leaves 20]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-21.png Leaves 21]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-22.png Leaves 22]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-23.png Leaves 23]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-24.png Leaves 24]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-25.png Leaves 25]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-26.png Leaves 26]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-27.png Leaves 27]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-28.png Leaves 28]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-29.png Leaves 29]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-3.png Leaves 3]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-30.png Leaves 30]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-4.png Leaves 4]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-5.png Leaves 5]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-6.png Leaves 6]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-7.png Leaves 7]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-8.png Leaves 8]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-leaves-9.png Leaves 9]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-left-platform.png Left platform]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-man-1a.png Man 1a]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-man-2a.png Man 2a]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-null.png Null]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-null-continue-air.png Null continue air]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-obelisk.png Obelisk]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-octopus.png Octopus]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-octopus-hat-capable.png Octopus hat capable]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-platform-1.png Platform 1]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-pot-1.png Pot 1]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-pot-2.png Pot 2]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-pot-3.png Pot 3]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-right-platform.png Right platform]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-rover.png Rover]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-shrub-1.png Shrub 1]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-shrub-2.png Shrub 2]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-shrub-3.png Shrub 3]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-shrub-4.png Shrub 4]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-shrub-5.png Shrub 5]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-shrub-6.png Shrub 6]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-shrub-7.png Shrub 7]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-shrub-8.png Shrub 8]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-shrub-9.png Shrub 9]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-shrub-10.png Shrub 10]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-shrub-11.png Shrub 11]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-snake-1.png Snake 1]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-snake-2.png Snake 2]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-starplant.png Star Plant]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-sword-fig.png Sword fig]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-tall-platform.png Tall platform]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-talltrunk-1.png Tall trunk 1]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-talltrunk-2.png Tall trunk 2]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-talltrunk-3.png Tall trunk 3]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-talltrunk-4.png Tall trunk 4]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-tentacle-1.png Tentacle 1]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-tentacle-2.png Tentacle 2]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-tentacle-3.png Tentacle 3]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-tentacle-4.png Tentacle 4]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-tentacle-5.png Tentacle 5]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-tentacle-6.png Tentacle 6]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-trunk-1.png Trunk 1]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-trunk-2.png Trunk 2]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-trunk-3.png Trunk 3]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-trunk-4.png Trunk 4]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-trunk-5.png Trunk 5]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-trunk-6.png Trunk 6]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-trunk-7.png Trunk 7]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-trunk-8.png Trunk 8]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-turtle-1.png Turtle 1]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-turtle-2.png Turtle 2]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-waterbird-1.png Water bird 1]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-waterbird-2.png Water bird 2]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-wavyplant-1.png Wavy plant 1]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-wavyplant-2.png Wavy plant 2]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-wavyplant-3.png Wavy plant 3]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-wavyplant-4.png Wavy plant 4]<br />
*[http://xkcd.com/1663/art/2x-woman-1a.png Woman 1a]<br />
<br />
{{DEFAULTSORT:&nbsp;1663}}<br />
[[Category:Comic subpages]]</div>173.245.54.30