https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/api.php?action=feedcontributions&user=XERXES.ai&feedformat=atomexplain xkcd - User contributions [en]2024-03-29T04:39:16ZUser contributionsMediaWiki 1.30.0https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=User_talk:Lcarsos&diff=16788User talk:Lcarsos2012-11-09T19:33:02Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* To the human behind the curtain */ new section</p>
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<div>Look, I was going to do it, alright? I had to go to class and left the edit page open. --[[User:Castriff|Jimmy C]] ([[User talk:Castriff|talk]]) 01:10, 24 October 2012 (UTC)<br />
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:I've moved this discussion to your talk page so the conversation can more easily be viewed. [[User:Lcarsos|lcarsos]] ([[User talk:Lcarsos|talk]]) 17:00, 24 October 2012 (UTC)<br />
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==Moved discussion==<br />
Hi, just to let you know that I move the thread you started to [[explain xkcd:Community portal/Admin requests]]. Cheers, --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 10:33, 10 August 2012 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Ruby Importer ==<br />
''For discussion of the Ruby Import assistant. Please create subsections for each item.''<br />
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===Multi-file Generation===<br />
I assume that <tt>./importer.rb 100{0,1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9}</tt> would also work? [[User:Blaisepascal|Blaisepascal]] ([[User talk:Blaisepascal|talk]]) 02:08, 26 August 2012 (UTC)<br />
: I hadn't even thought of that. I'll try it and report back as soon as I get home after work. [[User:Lcarsos|lcarsos]] ([[User talk:Lcarsos|talk]]) 16:18, 27 August 2012 (UTC)<br />
:: It'll work; it's not a Ruby thing, it's a Borne Shell thing. When the Borne Shell does wild-card expansion, it generates all alternatives enclosed in braces. So "echo 1{2,3,4,5}" is equivalent to "echo 12 13 14 15". I've been known to do things like <tt>echo 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 {1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9}{0,1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9} 100</tt> to list all numbers between 1 and 100. [[User:Blaisepascal|Blaisepascal]] ([[User talk:Blaisepascal|talk]]) 16:34, 27 August 2012 (UTC)<br />
::: I just ssh'd into a linux box, and yes that will work. But I still prefer using <tt>seq 1 100</tt>, much easier to type. [[User:Lcarsos|lcarsos]] ([[User talk:Lcarsos|talk]]) 17:17, 27 August 2012 (UTC)<br />
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==Removing Erroneous Categories==<br />
It seems to me that if you are removing the same "erroneous" category from three comics that all refer to the same thing (like Wikipedia) that perhaps a bit more explanation needs to be made as to why the category is erroneous. [[User:Blaisepascal|Blaisepascal]] ([[User talk:Blaisepascal|talk]]) 21:32, 27 August 2012 (UTC)<br />
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:I was going through categories, and it looked like someone had started to tag any page that had a link to Wikpedia. I was putting a stop to it.<br />
<br />
:But now that you've elevated this to conscious level, it might be that 2 of the pages were tagged Wikipedia because the theme of the comic was Wikipedia. The first one that caught my eye, [[548: Kindle]], merely had the word Wikipedia, that one to me seems that it was incorrectly categorized. The other two, now that I think about it, would make sense if we're categorizing comics by theme. I'll go back, make restitution, and fix [[739: Malamanteau]] and [[214: The Problem with Wikipedia]], and undo changes to the Wikipedia category. Thanks for keeping me honest.<br />
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:[[User:Lcarsos|lcarsos]] ([[User talk:Lcarsos|talk]]) 21:49, 27 August 2012 (UTC)<br />
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== LCARS ==<br />
<br />
Saw this and thought of you: http://www.engadget.com/2011/07/12/star-trek-padd-app-is-a-lcars-sporting-trekkies-reference-bible/<br />
<br />
:Okay, first, I'd like to thank you for showing this to me. I'm always interested to see anything Star Trek related. Always. There should never be a Trek-less day, for anyone, ever. But, now, you've opened a can of worms so now I get to do a little bit of ranting.<br />
<br />
:With a few exceptions, anything "official" that Paramount/CBS Paramount/CBS commissions to be made based on Star Trek is crap. This is one of those things. The interface, while reminiscent of, and is close enough to scare away the children, is a tragedy that shouldn't have the privilege of being able to call itself "official" or "LCARS". The color scheme is vomitous, every color that could have been put into the interface is there, as opposed to the restrained every-color-represents-a-function style that is shown in the show. About the one thing they got correct is the use of the LCARS font. Other than that, the font is too large in every instance. The font should be bottom-right aligned, and there should be a generous amount of padding except for the bottom-right corner. And, except for actual paragraph text, everything should be all-caps.<br />
<br />
:They also got the elbos (the bits that change from vertical UI to horizontal and vice versa) wrong. The curves aren't skewed like that. A quick look at the fan-made [http://www.lcarsdeveloper.com LCARS Standards website] would have showed them the correct way to build an elbo. Or, ''*GASP*'' they could ask Michael Okuda to consult on the project.<br />
<br />
:Final UI complaint: What is that panel on the bottom doing? You mean that the people that made this app completely missed the idea of the LCARS UI and just have a panel at the bottom with skinned buttons that take you to the main sections of the app? Also, don't mix the butt-ended buttons with the fully rounded buttons. Just don't. Someone should have slapped you in art school for doing that.<br />
<br />
:From reviews of the app in iTunes, it looks like the app isn't even fully baked. The database isn't full, just has entries for the popular characters and ships. This should be a front end for Memory-Alpha, but you'd have to do some work to strip out all the wikia bs.<br />
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:Finally, still iOS only? It's apparently been out for a year, and been updated once, in October, 2011. Was this a one-off, did CBS hire Random Company LLC to "Make a thing for the hip kids, with the iPads and the what-not" pay them to get the app out the door, kept them for a month to fix bugs and then fired them? Have we heard of Android? Is this the 90s when developers had to pick between developing for Windows 95 or Mac OS 8?<br />
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:Why is this catastrophe $5? There's obviously no development work going on, CBS makes bank off of the DVDs and other crap merchandise they sell (why are there no officially licensed replica isolinear chips?). This is pure, simple corporate greed.<br />
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:Sorry for the rant, I get angry when my favorite things are mistreated. [[User:Lcarsos|lcarsos]] ([[User talk:Lcarsos|talk]]) 17:05, 10 September 2012 (UTC)<br />
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== Double redirect ==<br />
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You're right. I knew there had been a reason I didn't do that for the first pile of comics I created. That's for reminding me. [[User:TheHYPO|TheHYPO]] ([[User talk:TheHYPO|talk]]) 21:37, 13 September 2012 (UTC)<br />
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:Yep. [[User:Lcarsos|lcarsos]] ([[User talk:Lcarsos|talk]]) 21:38, 13 September 2012 (UTC)<br />
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== To the human behind the curtain ==<br />
<br />
Hi Lcarsos - my apologies, I didn't realise that such a small number of uncontroversial fixes, which were all fully explained and marked as minor, would cause any issue? I try to keep good wikiquette on all the wikis I contribute to (minimum of 10 seconds between edits, manually confirming every change, obeying any wiki-specific policies and guidelines, etc) and acted entirely in good faith. Do you have any behavioral guidelines on assisted editing I could refer to should I wish to contribute further? Is the [[explain xkcd:Community portal/Coordination|Community Portal]] a good place to announce any other minor corrections I see as beneficial? [[User:XERXES.ai|<span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #808080;">XERXES.ai</span>]]&nbsp;<sup>[[User_talk:XERXES.ai|<span style="font-size: 5pt; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: #000000;">talk</span>]]</sup> 19:33, 9 November 2012 (UTC)</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1128:_Fifty_Shades&diff=167841128: Fifty Shades2012-11-09T16:58:39Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: facebook → Facebook</p>
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<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1128<br />
| date = 31 October 2012<br />
| title = Fifty Shades<br />
| image = fifty shades.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = Wishbone and the Illustrated Classics series have gotten me through every conversation I've ever had about Dickens, Treasure Island, The Anarchist's Cookbook, and Our Bodies, Ourselves.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
''{{w|Fifty Shades of Grey}}'' is a best-selling novel featuring large quantities of BDSM sex. {{w|Wishbone (TV series)|Wishbone}} was a children's TV show about a dog who draws parallels between literature and real life in his dreams, reenacting many literary classics. The show was especially praised in its time for refusing to censor the more unpleasant aspects of its source work. Many people within Randall's age group have experienced more literary classics through wishbone than by actually reading them; this phenomenon lead to the creation of a Facebook group dedicated to that idea.<br />
<br />
In the comic, Cueball claims to have learned all that he knows about ''Fifty Shades of Grey'' from the Wishbone adaptation of the book. Knowing the faithful nature of Wishbone's adaptations, an episode on the book would likely involve age-inappropriate material for children, as the sounds emanating from the TV would suggest.<br />
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{{w|Great Illustrated Classics}} is a series of easy to read adaptations of literary classics, including works by {{w|Charles Dickens}} and Stevenson's ''{{w|Treasure Island}}''. <br />
<br />
''{{w|The Anarchist Cookbook}}'', first published in 1971, is a book that contains instructions for the manufacture of explosives, rudimentary telecommunications phreaking devices, and other items. It was written by William Powell to protest United States involvement in the Vietnam War.<br />
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''{{w|Our Bodies, Ourselves}}'' is a book about women's health and sexuality produced by the nonprofit organization Our Bodies Ourselves (originally called the Boston Women's Health Book Collective). First published in 1971, it contains information related to many aspects of women's health and sexuality, including menopause, birth control, childbirth, sexual health, sexual orientation, gender identity, mental health and general well-being.<br />
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Part of the title text joke is that the latter two works would not likely be the subject of Great Illustrated Classics or ''Wishbone''.<br />
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==Transcript==<br />
:As with most famous books, I've never actually '''read''' ''Fifty Shades of Grey.''<br />
:I only know the plot from watching the ''Wishbone'' version<br />
:TV: Bark!<br />
:TV: Bark!<br />
:TV: ''Smack!''<br />
:TV: Bark!<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1126:_Epsilon_and_Zeta&diff=167831126: Epsilon and Zeta2012-11-09T16:58:33Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up</p>
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<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1126<br />
| date = October 26, 2012<br />
| title = Epsilon and Zeta<br />
| image = epsilon_and_zeta.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = The average error in the NHC forecasted position of a hurricane three days in the future has shrunk to a third of what it was in 1990--a staggering accomplishment. However, as you may have gathered, forecasts of future storm *strength* have proved more difficult to improve.<br />
}}<br />
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==Explanation==<br />
<br />
[[Randall]] is imagining the situation in the National Hurricane Center towards the end of 2005 (and the 2005 hurricane season). The monospaced text in most of the panels is material taken from actual NHC reports [http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al292005.discus.026.shtml][http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al292005.discus.027.shtml][http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al292005.discus.028.shtml] from that season. The commentary has been edited to fit the comic's format, but it's otherwise faithful to the actual reports.<br />
<br />
The [http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al302005.discus.030.shtml last report of the 2005 season] was issued on January 6th, 2006.<br />
<br />
A full analysis of the 2005 hurrican season can be found [http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/general/lib/lib1/nhclib/mwreviews/2005.pdf here].<br />
<br />
Randall [[453|has discussed]] the seemingly erratic nature of hurricanes before. This may, however, have been a response to the recent {{w|Hurricane Sandy}}.<br />
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===Sources for quotes===<br />
<br />
Not atypical of Randall's sense of humor, the quotes in this comic came from real weather advisories.<br />
<br />
[http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al292005.discus.001.shtml "<...> TROPICAL STORM EPSILON...THE 26TH NAMED STORM OF THE APPARENTLY NEVER ENDING 2005 ATLANTIC HURRICANE SEASON."]<br />
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[http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al292005.discus.007.shtml "<...> THE WINDOW OF OPPORTUNITY FOR STRENGTHENING SHOULD CLOSE IN 12-24 HR."]<br />
<br />
[http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al292005.discus.010.shtml "SLOW BUT STEADY WEAKENING IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN IN 12-24 HOURS <...>"]<br />
<br />
[http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al292005.discus.012.shtml "EPSILON DOES NOT APPEAR WEAKER <...>"]<br />
<br />
[http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al292005.discus.013.shtml "EPSILON HAS BEEN UPGRADED TO A 65-KT HURRICANE."]<br />
<br />
[http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al292005.discus.018.shtml "EPSILON HAS CONTINUED TO STRENGTHEN AGAINST ALL ODDS <...> EPSILON CAN NOT MAINTAIN THE CURRENT INTENSITY MUCH LONGER SINCE THE ENVIRONMENT IS BECOMING INCREASINGLY UNFAVORABLE."]<br />
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[http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al292005.discus.019.shtml "EPSILON MIGHT OR MIGHT NOT STILL BE A HURRICANE... BUT IN ANY CASE IT LIKELY WILL NOT BE ONE ON SUNDAY..."]<br />
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[http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al292005.discus.020.shtml "<...> EPSILON IS DOWNGRADED TO A TROPICAL STORM <...>"]<br />
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[http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al292005.discus.021.shtml "<...> MORNING SATELLITE IMAGES INDICATE THAT EPSILON HAS RESTRENGTHENED. <...> THERE ARE NO CLEAR REASONS...AND I AM NOT GOING TO MAKE ONE UP...TO EXPLAIN THE RECENT STRENGTHENING OF EPSILON AND I AM JUST DESCRIBING THE FACTS. HOWEVER...I STILL HAVE TO MAKE AN INTENSITY FORECAST AND THE BEST BET AT THIS TIME IS TO PREDICT WEAKENING <...> EPSILON WILL LIKELY BECOME A REMNANT LOW. I HEARD THAT BEFORE ABOUT EPSILON...HAVEN'T YOU?"]<br />
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[http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al292005.discus.026.shtml "THE CLOUD PATTERN CONTINUES TO BE REMARKABLY WELL-ORGANIZED FOR A HURRICANE AT SUCH HIGH LATITUDE IN DECEMBER."]<br />
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[http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al292005.discus.027.shtml "WE HAVE SAID THIS BEFORE <...> BUT EPSILON REALLY DOES NOT APPEAR AS STRONG THIS EVENING AS IT DID THIS AFTERNOON."] (this is likely the only case where the text was changed a bit from its original meaning. The original quote reads: "WE HAVE SAID THIS BEFORE AT TIMES DURING THE PAST SEVERAL NIGHTS... ONLY TO HAVE EPSILON MAKE A COMEBACK THE FOLLOWING MORNING... BUT EPSILON REALLY DOES NOT APPEAR AS STRONG THIS EVENING AS IT DID THIS AFTERNOON.")<br />
<br />
[http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al292005.discus.028.shtml "I HAVE RUN OUT OF THINGS TO SAY..."]<br />
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[http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al292005.discus.031.shtml "THE END IS IN SIGHT. IT REALLY REALLY IS. BUT IN THE MEANTIME... EPSILON CONTINUES TO MAINTAIN HURRICANE STATUS."]<br />
<br />
[http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al292005.discus.032.shtml "THE END IS IN SIGHT...YES...BUT NOT QUITE YET. I THOUGHT I WAS GOING TO FIND A WEAKENING SYSTEM AND INSTEAD I FOUND THAT EPSILON IS STILL A HURRICANE."]<br />
<br />
[http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al292005.discus.037.shtml "CONVECTION HAS VANISHED AND EPSILON IS NOW A TIGHT SWIRL OF LOW CLOUDS. <...> I HOPE THIS IS THE END OF THE LONG LASTING 2005 HURRICANE SEASON."]<br />
<br />
''Missing Zeta quotes TBD''<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:Caption: The 2005 atlantic hurricane season saw devastating storms like Katrina and Rita. But less well-remembered is just how ''strange'' the season got toward the end. The forecasters at the National Hurricane Center are the best of the best. Their predictions are masterpieces of professional analysis. But in November 2005, out in the center of the Atlantic -- far from any land -- the atmosphere stopped making sense. And the forcasters -- who'd expected the season to be long over by now -- started to get a little ... unhinged. This is their story, as seen through the actual 2005 NHC advisories:<br />
<br />
:Tuesday, November 29th, 2005:<br />
:Tropical storm Epsilon... The 26th named storm of apparently never ending 2005 Atlantic hurricane season.<br />
<br />
:10 PM Wed: The window of opportunity for strengthening should close in 12-24 hr.<br />
:4 PM Thu: Slow but steady weakening is expected to begin in 12-23 hours.<br />
<br />
:4 AM Fri: Epsilon does not appear weaker.<br />
:10 AM Fri: Epsilon has been upgraded to a 65-kt hurricane.<br />
<br />
:4 PM Sat: Epsilon has continued to strengthen against all odds ... [but] can not maintain the current intensity much longer since the environment is becoming increasingly unfavorable.<br />
<br />
:10 PM Sat: Epsilon might or might not still be a hurricane ... but in any case it likely will not be one on Sunday.<br />
:4 AM Sun: Epsilon is downgraded to a tropical storm.<br />
<br />
:10 AM Sun: Morning satellite images indicate that Epsilon has restrengthened.<br />
<br />
:There are no clear reasons ... and I am not going to make one up ... to explain the recent strengthening of Epsilon and I am just describing the facts.<br />
:However ... I still have to make an intensity forecast and the best bet at this time is to predict weakening ... Epsilon will likely become a remnant low.<br />
:I heard that before about Epsilon ... haven't you?<br />
<br />
:4 PM Mon: The cloud pattern continues to be a remarkably well-organized for a hurricane at such high latitude in December.<br />
<br />
:10 PM Mon: We have said this before ... but Epsilon really does not appear as strong this evening as it did this afternoon.<br />
<br />
:4 AM Tue: I have run out of things to say.<br />
<br />
:10 PM Tue: The end is in sight. It really really is. But in the meantime ... Epsilon continues to maintain hurricane status.<br />
:4 AM Wed: The end is in sight ... yes ... but not quite yet. I thought I was going to find a weakening system and instead I found that Epsilon is still a hurricane.<br />
<br />
:10 AM Thu: Convection has vanished and Epsilon is now a tight swirl of low clouds.<br />
:I hope this is the end of the long lasting 2005 hurricane season.<br />
<br />
:Nope.<br />
<br />
:ENTER TROPICAL STORM ZETA<br />
:Friday, December 30th, 2005: An elongated area of low pressure ... which had its origins in an old frontal trough ... began developing organized convection overnight. Advisories are initiated on the 27th tropical storm of 2005.<br />
<br />
:ANY NEW STORMS WOULD BE IN THE 2006 SEASON<br />
:4 PM Fri: Although the atmosphere seems to want to develop tropical storms ad nauseam ... the calendar will shortly put an end to the use of the Greek alphabet to name them.<br />
<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Hurricanes]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1120:_Blurring_the_Line&diff=167821120: Blurring the Line2012-11-09T16:58:10Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: self indulgent → self-indulgent (2)</p>
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<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1120<br />
| date = October 12, 2012<br />
| title = Blurring the Line<br />
| image = blurring the line.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = People into masturbatory navel-gazing have a lot to learn about masturbation.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
A {{w|metaphor}} is a comparison which may be used to emphasize, explain or embellish a point, as seen in this comic when [[Cueball]] likens himself to Michael Jordan. {{w|Michael Jordan}} is a famous {{w|basketball}} player who is well known for being one of the very best (if not the best) players at the sport.<br />
<br />
In this comic, [[White Hat]] is analyzing a movie about movies when Cueball compares White Hat's description of the movie to masturbatory {{w|Omphaloskepsis|navel-gazing}}, a comment combining two expressions used to refer to a pointless activity or effort, but also specifically self-referential activity. "Mental masturbation" and "navel gazing" are relatively common terms to dismiss work that is regarded as self-indulgent, overly introspective, and self-referential. Calling navel gazing, or introspection, "masturbatory" is a metaphor speaking of it in terms of the physical act of {{w|Masturbation|masturbation}}. The title text blurs the line between metaphor and reality by dragging both metaphors in the term "masturbatory navel-gazing" into reality and pointing out that literally staring at your navel is not going to be very effective at physical sexual self arousal, which is the goal of masturbation.<br />
<br />
White Hat then defends the movie by saying that it is about blurring the line between metaphor and reality, commenting that Cueball doesn't understand art. To this Cueball retorts by likening his ability to meld metaphor and reality by using a metaphor comparing himself to {{w|Michael Jordan}}. He then proceeds to actually blur the line by throwing a {{w|Basketball (ball)|basketball}} at White Hat. This can also be understood as another reality metaphor, passing the "conversational ball" to [[White Hat]].<br />
<br />
The last frame is also a graphic illustration of blurring the line between metaphor and reality, where a much more "real" depiction of a basketball intrudes into the colorless stick-figure world which serves as an abstraction of our shared reality.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[White Hat and Cueball are walking.]<br />
:White Hat: ...No, but see, it's a movie ''about'' movies.<br />
:Cueball: Sounds like masturbatory navel-gazing.<br />
:[Close-up of White Hat.]<br />
:White Hat: No, it's about blurring the line between metaphor and reality.<br />
:White Hat: You just don't know much about art.<br />
:Cueball: ''Seriously?''<br />
:[White hat and Cueball are standing.]<br />
:Cueball: I know ''all'' about blurring the line between metaphor and reality. I'm the goddamn ''Michael Jordan'' of blurring the line between metaphor and reality.<br />
:[White hat standing]<br />
:White Hat: ...Huh?<br />
:[Basketball hits White Hat in the head]<br />
:<nowiki>*Bonk*</nowiki><br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}} <br />
<!-- Include any categories below this line--><br />
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1116:_Traffic_Lights&diff=167811116: Traffic Lights2012-11-09T16:57:56Z<p>XERXES.ai: Clean up</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1116<br />
| date = October 3, 2012<br />
| title = Traffic Lights<br />
| image = traffic_lights.gif<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = There&#39;s an intersection I drive through sometimes that has a forward green arrow, a red light, and a &#39;no turns&#39; sign all on one pole. I honestly have no idea what it&#39;s telling me to do.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
This comics is an animated gif which features an array of {{w|traffic light}}s which are lighted signals posted at intersections to control vehicular traffic. The standard North American traffic light has three solid lights: red, yellow and green (meaning, in simplistic terms, "stop", "stop if you can; the light will be red shortly" and "go" respectively). More complicated lights sometimes have additional signals such as arrows indicating go or stop for a specific direction such as left or right turns.<br />
<br />
However, as in the strip, sometimes an intersection has multiple lights with certain of them designated to apply solely to a specific lane or specific direction of travel. A common one is a left-turn light that allows the lights to stop or allow left-turn traffic independent of the rest of the traffic. Another common example is a light that applies only to transit like streetcars which run on tracks on the city streets.<br />
<br />
There are also other rules and features that tend to be unique to different localities as noted in the Wikipedia article for {{w|Traffic-light signalling and operation}}.<br />
<br />
In this comic, [[Randall Munroe|Randall]] is commenting on the confusion that can be caused by having too many lights with multiple rules attached by creating an over-exaggerated example.<br />
<br />
In this strip, the right-hand light has a sign indicating that the light and the right-hand lane are for ''left'' turners, while the 3rd-from-left is a straight or ''right'' turn lane and the 2nd from left is ''right'' turn only. In normal course, right turns would be permitted from the right-hand lane and left turns from the left-hand lanes. The system in this comic would have turning traffic crossing each other, as well as the straight-ahead traffic and would cause chaos (and require very complicated traffic light phases to control). The left-most light on the post has a sign indicating that left, right and straight travel are all prohibited, which is even more confusing.<br />
<br />
The comic, as an animated gif, cycles through various phases, at first appearing somewhat normal, but then adding unusual phases. The animated gif takes about 90 seconds to cycle through the 32 discrete panels before repeating. The left-hand post light has (unusually) left ''and'' right arrows, later becoming up and down arrows. At times the light completely shuts off, and at other times, has conflicting signals.<br />
<br />
The third-from-left light has red ''and'' yellow, and later all three lights come on at the same time, then all three lights go yellow, and then reverse with green at top and red at bottom. The bottom light then becomes an arrow. <br />
<br />
The fourth-from-left traffic light switches from a green light to a purple light at times.<br />
<br />
The right-hand light only lights red in each position.<br />
<br />
The second-from-left light and second-from-right lights do not appear to have any quirks other than changing phases in unusual patterns.<br />
<br />
At frames 21 and 22 (see below) the colors of the latter five lights correspond to the color sequence of the letters in the Google logo. Only the first letter of the logo, which is blue, is not reproduced on the first traffic light. <br />
<br />
==Frame by frame breakdown==<br />
The following is a breakdown of all of the frames of the animated gif comic.<br />
<br />
[[File:traffic lights list.png]]<br />
<br />
==Closeups on the Lights==<br />
The following is a closeup on the lights, and the bird. The lights from left to right are here shown top to bottom. Time advances to the right.<br />
<br />
[[File:traffic lights closeups.png]]<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}} <br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]<br />
[[Category:Out of the ordinary]]<br />
[[Category:Traffic light]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1114:_Metallurgy&diff=167801114: Metallurgy2012-11-09T16:57:51Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Transcript */Clean up</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1114<br />
| date = September 28, 2012<br />
| title = Metallurgy<br />
| image = metallurgy.png<br />
| titletext = This exotic blade was wrought from a different fallen star. The meteorite was a carbonaceous chondrite, so it's basically a lump of gravel glued into the shape of a sword. A SPACE sword!<br />
| imagesize =<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
The comic explains how weapons would really behave if they were made out of unusual materials. In fantasy stories, using unusual materials for weapons traditionally makes the weapons more powerful and cooler despite limited explanation for exactly why materials of extraterrestrial origin are so superior to their earthen counterparts.<br />
<br />
On the other hand, iron from meteorites was often mixed with "terrestrial" iron in the early stages of human development to create relatively high quality steel for swords. Undeveloped metalworking techniques at the time meant that extraterrestrial metal was often more refined and plentiful than man-made metal ingots.[http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0016703767901408 Research] has shown that meteorites have an abundance of the chemical element Antimony (Sb) which by itself is a very brittle metal and therefore swords forged from metals harvested from meteorites are not as strong as lore may make one think. <br />
<br />
The second panel is a reference to stories set in Middle Earth and the sword is Sting, which glows blue when Orcs are near. Sting used to belong to Bilbo Baggins, when he grew old he gave it to Frodo Baggins as a gift. The dagger in question, though, glows because of the radioactive properties of Actinium (Ac) which is also highly toxic. Definitely not a dagger you would want to carry around for your every day battles.<br />
<br />
The word "Eldritch" in the third panel means sinister, ghostly, or magical.<br />
<br />
The fourth panel mentions that the weapon gives a +2 to a player's attribute. This is a reference to role-playing games in which it is common to find items that are able to improve one's character by increasing desirable attributes. In this case, however, +2 to cancer risk would definitely not be considered a desirable attribute to increase.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball and Megan are in a weapon store talking to a bearded salesman wearing a hat.]<br />
<br />
:[Salesman holds up a sword]<br />
:Salesman: This sword was forged from a fallen star. Antimony impurities make the blade surpassingly ''brittle'' and ''weak''.<br />
<br />
:[Salesman holds up a dagger]<br />
:Salesman: And this dagger is made of metal from a far-off kingdom. It glows blue.<br />
:Off-panel: When orcs are near?<br />
<br />
:Salesman: No, always. Radiation from the Actinium content.<br />
:Megan: ...Does it have eldritch powers?<br />
<br />
:Salesman: It gives the wearer +2 to cancer risk.<br />
:Cueball: I think we should find another shop.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Cancer]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1110:_Click_and_Drag&diff=167791110: Click and Drag2012-11-09T16:57:44Z<p>XERXES.ai: Clean up, typos fixed: Pokemon → Pokémon (2), XBox → Xbox, forseeable → foreseeable</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1110<br />
| date = September 19, 2012<br />
| title = Click and Drag<br />
| image = click_and_drag.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = Click and drag.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
== Explanation ==<br />
This comic is a take on how vast and rich the world is, and on the thrill of exploring it. The world can be described as sad, as well as it can be described as wonderful, even if this seems a bit contradictory, just because there are so many different things happening in it.<br />
<br />
[[Cueball]] comments about this, and the title text invites the reader to, with their mouse, click and drag the inside of the last panel, and by dragging and dragging, explore what is hidden outside that panel. The image displayed at first turns out to be part of a huge landscape, filled with big or small things, humorous details, people here and there, cave mazes, things floating in the air, jokes and references, unexpected things, relaxing views, etc. (The above image is not functional; you will have to visit the [http://xkcd.com/1110/ original comic].)<br />
<br />
The fact that we only see a small part of the landscape at once refers to the idea that we cannot in real life comprehend the whole world altogether, but only what is around us and/or in the range of our understanding at the time. The click-and-drag process, in which it is impossible to go as fast as we would want to, also draws a parallel with the fact that exploration is always done gradually, step by step, and trying something (i.e. here dragging in a certain direction) always has a cost. This click-and-drag exploration reproduces the thrill of discovering new horizons, getting lost sometimes, finding unexpected things, seeing beauty, humor, desolation or happiness here and there... which can easily captivate an xkcd reader for a looong time (and as such qualifies as [[356: Nerd Sniping|nerd sniping]]).<br />
<br />
'''''Warning:''' there are cheating possibilities, people have implemented ways to explore that world more easily, but the best way to enjoy this comic 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 after lengthy click-and-dragging through a repetitive landscape... So if you didn't do that already, '''reading any below will spoil you from truly enjoying the comic.'''''<br />
<br />
__TOC__<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
This transcript will only cover the first 3 panels.<br />
<br />
:Cueball [narration]: From the stories<br />
:Cueball [narration]: I expected the world to be sad<br />
:[Cueball is floating by holding onto a balloon with one hand.]<br />
:Cueball [narration]: And it was<br />
<br />
:Cueball [narration]: And I expected it to be wonderful.<br />
:[Cueball has grabbed hold of the balloon with both hands.]<br />
<br />
:[The wind picks up and blows Cueball eastward.]<br />
:Cueball [narration]: It was.<br />
<br />
:[Full width panel, initial view of the world. Part of tile 1n1e.]<br />
:Cueball [narration]: I just didn't expect it to be so ''BIG''.<br />
:[Scene opens up. You see Cueball is about a tree's-height from the ground. To the right there is a tall tree with no leaves on it and a broken limb.]<br />
<br />
==List of details and references==<br />
<br />
{{Incomplete|1110: Click and Drag}}<br />
<br />
The 225 existing tiles are sorted by columns from West to East and from North to South in each column.<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable" |<br />
! width="130px" | Grid coords<br />
!Explanation and Transcript<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|33|w}}<br />
|[[Cueball]] and [[Megan]] reach the western edge of the image and decide to live there. This is a reference to the last line in the film ''[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Groundhog_Day_(film) Groundhog Day]''<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Cueball and Megan are in a valley. This is the western edge of the world. Megan is checking a GPS enabled device to check their distance traveled. Cueball is looking behind them (eastward).]<br />
:Cueball: We've walked pretty far. We must be on the other side of the world by now.<br />
:Megan: Let's see, we've gone... Two miles.<br />
:Cueball: Darn. You know, this is a nice spot. Let's just live here.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|32|w}}<br />
|Just terrain, no activity<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|31|w}}<br />
|Just terrain, no activity<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|30|w}}<br />
|Just terrain, no activity<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|29|w}}<br />
|Just terrain, no activity<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|28|w}}<br />
|The hillocks in this panel appear to be the face and belly of a giant sleeping on its back. The feet extend into the next panel to the east. Possibly a reference to the giant's drink from the book ''Ender's Game''.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|27|w}}<br />
|The westernmost hillock appears to be the feet of a giant sleeping on its back, continued from the next panel west. {{w|Velociraptor}}s in the high grass.<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Rolling hills with tall grass.]<br />
:[On the left there are two Velociraptors. The east-facing one looks to be a modern interpretation of the raptor, the west-facing is more Jurassic Park like.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|26|w}}<br />
|Just terrain, no activity <br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|25|w}}<br />
|A large {{w|radio telescope}} with a female listening for a signal. Possibly a reference to the movie {{w|Contact (film)|Contact}}.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|24|w}}<br />
|Just terrain, no activity. Very nice trees though.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|23|w}}<br />
|More nice trees.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|n|22|w}}<br />
|The top of a large rocket that looks similar to the {{w|Saturn V}} rocket (the base is in {{1110|1|n|22|w}}).<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[A Launch Tower with a waiting Saturn V rocket look-alike attached by the umbilical lines. There are two Cueball-type characters standing on the top.]<br />
:Person 1: So why did we build this? There have ''got'' to be other ways to get to space.<br />
:Person 2: Believe it or not, this is the ''least'' crazy one anyone has come up with.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|22|w}}<br />
|The base of the {{w|Saturn V}} rocket on a launchpad.<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[A Launch Pad and Tower with a waiting Saturn V rocket attached by the umbilical lines. There is a person scaling the rocket. They are at the base of the Second Stage.]<br />
:[A military guardsman is walking the grounds unaware of the person on the rocket.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|21|w}}<br />
|[[Cueball]] asks Jesus why his footprints look like tire tracks. This is a reference to the inspirational text ''{{w|Footprints (poem)|Footprints}}'' as well as a reference to the {{w|Transformers}}.<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Two characters stand on the shore by the sea. One has unkempt hair, the other is a Cueball character.]<br />
:Cueball: Jesus, why do your footprints change to tire tracks whenever I was threatened by Decepticons?<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|20|w}}<br />
|Water <br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|19|w}}<br />
|Water <br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|18|w}}<br />
|Water <br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|17|w}}<br />
|The scruffy character beneath the {{w|palm tree}} might be a reference to {{w|Desert Island Discs}}, a BBC radio program in which a celebrity chooses the records they would like to be stranded with if castaway. The hatch is a reference to {{w|Lost (TV series)|Lost}} in which the passengers on board a flight over the Pacific Ocean find themselves stranded on a strange island. Their first clue that they stumbled on something out-of-the-ordinary is the hatch.<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[An island in the middle of the sea. On its westward side is a hatch that leads down deep underground. A person is looking at the hatch. Meanwhile a person quietly climbs up a ladder built into the wall of the tunnel inside of the hatch.]<br />
:[On the other side, a scruffy man is looking at a disc while being shaded by a tall coconut palm tree.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|s|17|w}}<br />
|A miner. The sliding stone walls behind him (to keep back the water if he digs too far) are a reference to Ted Chiang's "Tower of Babylon" .<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|s|17|w}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Deep underground a vertical shaft gets wider the deeper you go.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|3|s|17|w}}<br />
|A reference to the game {{w|AaaaaAAaaaAAAaaAAAAaAAAAA!!!_–_A_Reckless_Disregard_for_Gravity|AaaaaAAaaaAAAaaAAAAaAAAAA!!!}}, where the game play consists of falling down while avoiding objects.<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Deep underground a vertical shaft gets wider the deeper you go. A man wearing a headband has set up a lemonade stand on a plank stuck into the wall. There are people falling down the shaft right next to him.]<br />
:Falling people: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA<br />
:Lemonade man: Lemonade? ...Aww, OK. Lemonade? ...Aww, OK. Lemonade?<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|4|s|17|w}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Deep underground a vertical shaft gets wider the deeper you go.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|5|s|17|w}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Deep underground a vertical shaft gets wider the deeper you go.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|6|s|17|w}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Deep underground a vertical shaft.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|7|s|17|w}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Deep underground a vertical shaft.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|8|s|17|w}}<br />
|An {{w|X-Wing}} fighter flies up a vertical shaft, its pilot communicating over radio. The quote is a reference to a scene of the {{w|Star Wars}} movie ''{{w|Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi|Return of the Jedi}}'', with an X-Wing piloted by {{w|Wedge Antilles}} escaping from inside the {{w|Death Star}} ([http://www.imdb.com/character/ch0000060/quotes]):<br />
:{{w|Lando Calrissian}}: "All right, Wedge. Go for the power regulator on the north tower."<br />
:Wedge Antilles: "Copy, Gold Leader. I'm already on my way out."<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Deep underground, in a vertical shaft. There is an X-Wing fighter running along the shaft.]<br />
:X-Wing pilot [over radio]: Copy that, Gold Leader. I'm already on my way out.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|9|s|17|w}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Deep underground a vertical shaft gets slimmer the deeper you go.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|10|s|17|w}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Deep underground a vertical shaft gets slimmer the deeper you go.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|11|s|17|w}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Deep underground a vertical shaft.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|12|s|17|w}}<br />
|Cueball and Megan looking up from the bottom of the shaft.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|16|w}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[A calm day out at sea.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|12|s|16|w}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Deep underground a tunnel comes from the west. A few feet before the end of it a vertical shaft goes down, just about wide enough for a single person to go down. It stops in a man-made cavern, then a tunnel continues eastward.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|15|w}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[A calm day out at sea.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|12|s|15|w}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Deep underground a tunnel comes from the west and meets a tall cavern, buts keeps going all the way to the east. Cueball has dug up from the ceiling tunnel and is shoveling out a little cavern.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|14|w}}<br />
|People today can't seem to turn off their phones, unplug and just be by themselves. It has become a societal expectation that every person is constantly connected to the world and is there to respond at any moment. The idea of being indisposed has become a foreign concept.<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[To the west is a sea. There is a beach. Further in-land there are lots of trees with park benches under them.]<br />
:[Cueball and White Hat are walking towards the benches]<br />
:White Hat: Do you ever put your phone away and just take a moment to breathe and be alone with your thoughts?<br />
:Cueball: Yeah, once. It was ''terrifying''.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|12|s|14|w}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Deep underground a tunnel with a very rough ceiling goes all the way from west to east.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|13|w}}<br />
|A rocky hill with a {{w|lighthouse}}. [[Megan]] and [[Ponytail]] sit atop the hill. A half-buried {{w|Statue of Liberty}} is on the other side in reference to ''{{w|Planet of the Apes(film)|Planet of Apes}}'' with [[Cueball]]'s "You Maniacs!" line parodying the final line from the film. Another western shore makes this a very small landmass.<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Cueball shaking his fist at the half-buried Statue of Liberty]<br />
:Cueball: You ''maniacs!''<br />
:Cueball: That sand sculpture trophy was supposed to be ''mine!''<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|12|s|13|w}}<br />
|Someone in a straw hat saying "Becky?". He is carrying either a grappling hook or the end of a rope. Probably a reference to {{w|The Adventures of Tom Sawyer}} in which the title character rescues his sweetheart, Becky Thatcher, from a cave.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|12|w}}<br />
|Water<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|12|s|12|w}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Deep underground a two distant tunnels run from west to east connected by a thin vertical shaft. The lower tunnel has a man-made cavern dug out.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|11|n|11|w}}<br />
|An empty white tile with symmetric coordinates (11 North, 11 West).<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|11|w}}<br />
|{{w|Marco Polo (game)|Marco Polo}} is a game similar to tag but played in a swimming pool. The person who is "it" closes their eyes, or is blind-folded and calls out "Marco". All the other players must respond "Polo". The person who is it then tries to find the people by a sort of echo-location. It is a reference to {{w|Marco Polo}} the Venetian merchant who was the first European to make it to Central Asia and China.<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Out at sea. A blindfolded character playing Marco Polo alone.]<br />
:Blindfolded man: ...Marco? ...Marco?<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|11|s|11|w}}<br />
|A black tile with symmetric coordinates (11 South, 11 West).<br />
Note, that this PNG file contains an ICC section which means that the blackness in this image is properly {{w|Color correction|color-corrected}}.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|12|s|11|w}}<br />
|Deep underground, a cavern opens up to reveal trees, grass, rocks, and a lake. A bird flies toward the trees. A person sits on a rock thoughtfully gazing into the water.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|10|w}}<br />
|Water.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|12|s|10|w}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|9|w}}<br />
|{{w|Bitcoin}} is digital currency that is untraceable, and thus liberated from the oversight of governments and banks. {{w|Peter Thiel}} is a co-founder of {{w|Seasteading#The_Seasteading_Institute|The Seasteading Institute}} that promotes permanent, autonomous ocean communities (similar to a {{w|micronation}}), enabling innovation with new political and social systems. Peter Thiel is also a co-founder of {{w|PayPal}}, a global e-commerce business allowing payments and money transfers to be made through the Internet. Peter Thiel and other co-founders' original vision for PayPal was to have an online payment service that enabled account holders to send money to anyone in the world with just an e-mail address. xkcd also supports [http://xkcd.com/bitcoin bitcoin donations]. This might be a reference to the unspent bitcoins from a recent [http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-19633980 $250,000 theft]. If they don't have any internet access they might find it hard to spend their loot.<br />
<br />
{{w|Edwin S. Shneidman}} was a pioneer in the field of suicide prevention. He published 20 books on suicide and its prevention, one of which, ''A Commonsense Book of Death'', defines most people to be death-postponers. A death-postponer hopes that death will not occur in anything like the foreseeable future; the event must be staved off for as long as possible. The reference to a "death-postponer" is also the literal opposite to the actual name of the item Cueball throws, a {{w|life preserver}}.<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Out at sea. There is an anti-aircraft platform with four people aboard, and one person in the water.]<br />
<br />
:[On the west side of the aircraft a man with hair is speaking to a bearded man half a head taller than the haired man.]<br />
:Man with hair: I'm not saying our bitcoin-only island nation was a bad idea, but we really should've secured Internet access ''before'' we left.<br />
<br />
:[On the east side of the platform a man wearing a sailor's hat walking toward the control tower. Cueball is on the edge holding a lifebuoy.]<br />
:Cueball: Hey, you in the water! Hang on-<br />
:Cueball: I'm gonna throw you a death postponer!<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|s|9|w}}<br />
|Jellyfish playing some sort of console game.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|12|s|9|w}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|8|w}}<br />
|{{w|Poop deck}} is the nautical term for the deck that forms the roof of a cabin built in the rear of the ship.<br />
<br />
The character climbing the rigging is apparently {{w|Elizabeth Warren}}, who said at the {{w|2012 Democratic National Convention}}, "People feel like the system is rigged against them. And here's the painful part: They're right. The system is rigged."<br />
<br />
The {{w|pirate}} onboard is shouting "{{w|Glossary of nautical terms#Avast|Avast!}}" (meaning stop), but no one is apparently listening. Possibly a reference to the comic being released on {{w|International Talk Like a Pirate Day}}.<br />
<br />
The three-masted sailing ship with the pirate could be a reference to {{w|Monty Python}}'s short film {{w|The Crimson Permanent Assurance}} in which rebellious office clerks turn their office building into a pirate ship, raiding financial districts in numerous big cities, before falling off the edge of the world.<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Out at sea. There is a three-masted sailing ship at full sail with a healthy wind billowing the sails. There are five crew out on deck, four are aloft, and one on watch in the bowsprit.]<br />
<br />
:[A girl is seated on the spanker.]<br />
:Girl: Haha, "Poop Deck."<br />
<br />
:[Aloft on the mizzen-mast a woman is standing talking to another woman climbing the rigging between the mizzen and main masts.]<br />
:Mizzen-mast woman: Elizabeth, why are you climbing the rigging?<br />
:Elizabeth: Forget ''this'' rigging. The whole ''system'' is rigged against the middle class and families trying to ''climb'' out of poverty.<br />
:Mizzen-mast woman: ...Ok, but for real, what are you doing on this boat?<br />
<br />
:[Fore of the mizzen-mast a classic bearded pirate stands with his sword drawn.]<br />
:Pirate: Avast! Avast! ...Avast?<br />
<br />
:[Fore of the main-sail, a Cueball-type character looks over the railing.]<br />
<br />
:[Aloft a man is swinging around the fore-mast pretending to be Spiderman.]<br />
<br />
:[Lower on the fore-mast a Cueball-type character is adjusting the rigging. On the deck another is adjusting more rigging.]<br />
<br />
:[Out on the bowsprit Megan is keeping watch, and telling the runner Ponytail what is ahead.]<br />
:Megan: We should go slow -<br />
:Megan: That water up ahead looks pretty deep.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|12|s|8|w}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|13|s|8|w}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|7|n|7|w}}<br />
|A {{w|Boeing 717}} in landing configuration.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|7|w}}<br />
|Water<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|13|s|7|w}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|14|s|7|w}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|6|w}}<br />
|Water<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|s|6|w}}<br />
|Jellyfish<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|13|s|6|w}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|14|s|6|w}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[A flat tunnel runs the length of the whole tile. It is rough cut on the ceiling, but a smooth surface for walking. There is a hint that the ceiling draws away from the floor to the west. Cueball is walking east along the tunnel.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|6|n|5|w}}<br />
|Red spiders from earlier comics falling from the sky<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|5|w}}<br />
|"{{w|I'm on a Boat}}" is a single from {{w|The Lonely Island}}'s debut album {{w|Incredibad}}.<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Out at sea. On the west side are two buoys, on the east is only one, in the center there is a sailboat. Cueball and another person wearing a beanie are on the small sailboat.]<br />
:Beanie: I'm on a boat! I expected more from the experience! Instead, all I can think to do is tell people where I am! ...I'm on a boat!<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|14|s|5|w}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[A flat tunnel runs the length of the whole tile. It is rough cut on the ceiling, but a smooth surface for walking.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|n|4|w}}<br />
|An {{w|Embraer E-Jet family|Embraer E-190}}<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|4|w}}<br />
|The coast of the body of water at a beach with some sea birds and beachgoers.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|14|s|4|w}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[A flat tunnel runs the length of the whole tile. It is rough cut on the ceiling, but a smooth surface for walking. The shaft grows in diameter as it goes eastward.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|3|n|3|w}}<br />
|<br />
; Transcript<br />
:[High in the sky.]<br />
:[Cueball is sitting in a swing attached to the end of a crane, and is swinging]<br />
:Cueball: WHEEE!<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|n|3|w}}<br />
|An empty white tile.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|3|w}}<br />
|The west wall of a large building which stair-cases narrower as it rises.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|14|s|3|w}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[A flat tunnel runs the length of the whole tile. It is rough cut on the ceiling, but a smooth surface for walking. A small vertical shaft goes up to a very small cavern.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|8|n|2|w}}<br />
|This seems to be the peak of the {{w|Burj Khalifa}} to which {{1110|6|n|27|e}} refers.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|7|n|2|w}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|6|n|2|w}}<br />
|[[Black Hat]] is seen in the picture with a {{w|gatling gun}}, probably the Imperial cannons referred in {{1110|8|n|6|e}}. Also at bottom, a cueball is flying a paper airplane off the building.<br />
;Transcript<br />
:Ponytail: We're so high up that if you threw a penny off the edge, inflation would reduce its value to 0.00999999975 by the time it landed.<br />
:[Further south, on a balcony]<br />
:Megan: The Wikipedia article on this balcony says the view is nice.<br />
:Cueball: I thought so.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|5|n|2|w}}<br />
|A construction crane lifting another, smaller, construction crane. Possibly a reference to the [http://vimeo.com/46359692 Truck Truck Truck] gag from the Simpsons. Also, self-erecting {{w|tower crane}}s do usually not lift {{w|crawler crane}}s<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|4|n|2|w}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|3|n|2|w}}<br />
|On the west side, the top of a (different) construction crane. On the east side, Cueball is firing a clay pigeon launcher while Ponytail fires a shotgun at the target. Meanwhile, someone else (Danish?) comes up from behind with CDs.<br />
;Transcript<br />
:Danish: I found some more CDs<br />
:Ponytail: PULL!<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|n|2|w}}<br />
|On the west side, the bottom of the construction crane. On the upper eastern side, a person is laid back, relaxing in a chair while using a laptop. On the next step down, a party crowd is out on a balcony. <br />
;Transcript<br />
:Person: I'm working at a small startup. Our business model is 'taking free drinks from industry events and reselling them.'<br />
:Person: Oh, hey, I should get going...<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|2|w}}<br />
|The bulk of the base of the building with one terrace visible on either side. Megan says "I came here to chew bubblegum... And I'm all out of bubblegum" is a reference to the movie {{w|They Live|They Live}} in which the character Nada famously says "I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass...and I'm all out of bubblegum". That line is also used in the game {{w|Duke Nukem 3D|Duke Nukem 3D}} by Duke himself, when Shrapnel City (Episode 3) starts. Also, Cueball says "That's a shame" a line popularised by Jerry in the sitcom {{w|Seinfeld|Seinfeld}}. Pool line is a reference to "pool on the roof" prank from the movie {{w|Hackers (film)|Hackers}}.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|14|s|2|w}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[A flat tunnel runs the length of the whole tile. It is rough cut on the ceiling, but a smooth surface for walking. There is a single vertical shaft that would have gone down. The ceiling above the shaft has crumbled, and the rubble has filled in the shaft]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|8|n|1|w}}<br />
|An empty white tile.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|5|n|1|w}}<br />
|The tail of the crawler crane lifted at {{1110|5|n|2|w}}.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|n|1|w}}<br />
|An empty white tile.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|1|w}}<br />
|The western wall at the base of a large building including its {{w|portico}}, a remote control rocket-powered bicycle attempting to launch from the first terrace, a balcony on the second terrace and a {{w|satellite dish}} and other exhausts on the third. Trees with squirrels stand in front of the building leading to a parking lot with cars and one {{w|Wienermobile}}<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|14|s|1|w}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[A flat tunnel runs the length of the whole tile. It is rough cut on the ceiling, but a smooth surface for walking. There are two rough cut vertical shafts going down, there is a rock pile on the ground between the two. A small vertical shaft goes up to a very small empty cavern.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|15|s|1|w}}<br />
|This is a sad statement about where the Internet is right now. The Internet should be a vast and diverse place filled with new and exciting content that breaks the mold of already established media. But instead, everyone on the Internet has become a shill for their Facebook page and their Twitter stream. It feels like everything links back to these two sites. Even stuck at the bottom of a shaft, these two people care more for how many Facebook likes and twitter followers they have, than for their own lives and safety.<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Deep underground. There are two shafts, the western one ends abruptly with a pile of rubble at the bottom. The other changes direction and becomes a tunnel to the east.]<br />
:[Cueball and Megan are stranded at the bottom of the western shaft.]<br />
:Cueball: Is anyone up there? If you can hear us, ''friend us on Facebook!''<br />
:Megan: ''Follow us on Twitter! Please!''<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|13|n|1|e}}<br />
|Two whales is possibly a reference to the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and the planet [http://hitchhikers.wikia.com/wiki/Magrathea Magrathea], where (improbably) two incoming missiles are turned into a whale and a bowl of petunias. It may also be a reference to the album From Mars to Sirius by the French heavy metal band Gojira, specifically the track, "Flying Whales." A third possibility is a reference to Respighi's "The Pines of Rome" from Fantasia II.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|6|n|1|e}}<br />
|A {{w|hot air balloon}} is the oldest form of human-carrying flight.<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[High in the sky. Cueball and Megan are in a hot air balloon.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|1|e}}<br />
|The {{w|Origin (mathematics)|"center"}} of the world; the default loaded image with Cueball floating by balloon. The balloons may be a reference to comic [[1106]]. This may also be a reference to {{w|Winnie The Pooh}}. The parking lot to the west ends to a grassy/rocky field with a tree. A hill runs up to the east with a fountain.<br />
<br />
; Transcript:<br />
:[Open scene.]<br />
:[To the extreme left there is the end of a parking lot. Right from that Cueball is holding onto a balloon several feet from the ground.]<br />
:Cueball [narration]: I just didn't expect it to be so ''BIG''.<br />
:[About 50 feet east of Cueball there is a lone tree with no leaves on it. Cueball is approximately parallel to with the top of it.]<br />
:[Farther east and much higher up is a single balloon floating away.]<br />
:[More east and on the ground Beret Guy is waving a butterfly net, chasing an RC Helicopter.]<br />
:[Two girls, one blonde and one darker, are walking away from Beret Guy.]<br />
:[On the extreme right is a fountain spraying water.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|14|s|1|e}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[A flat tunnel runs the length of the whole tile. It is rough cut on the ceiling, but a smooth surface for walking. A single vertical shaft extends southward, rough cut all around.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|15|s|1|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|16|s|1|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|17|s|1|e}}<br />
|Alaska at the bottom of the shaft<br />
At the lowest level of the cave, a fish leaps from water.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|9|n|2|e}}<br />
|A reference to the {{w|Apollo 13}} manned mission to the moon in 1970. Two days after launch, en route to the moon, an oxygen tank exploded. Astronaut Swigert [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Apollo13-wehaveaproblem.ogg reported] the incident to Mission Control in Houston saying 'Houston, we've had a problem.' The 1995 movie {{w|Apollo_13_(film)|Apollo 13}} deliberately misquoted Swigert's famous statement as 'Houston, we have a problem' because the original made it seem that the problem had already passed.<br />
<br />
The response is a parody of the inspirational quote 'There are no problems, only opportunities.'<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[The Apollo 13 mission is en route to the moon. An astronaut on board the craft informs Mission Control of an incident.]<br />
:Astronaut: Houston, we have a problem.<br />
:Mission Control: That's a negative, Apollo. There are no problems - only opportunities. Over.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|3|n|2|e}}<br />
|A reference to the {{w|Greek myth}} of {{w|Icarus}} and his father's escape from {{w|Crete}} by building wings of feathers and wax. The joke is that, the incredible part of the story, the fact that Icarus and his father actually flew with simple wax and feathers, is downplayed to try to give children an object lesson about {{Wiktionary|humility}} and {{Wiktionary|hubris}}.<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[High in the air. There are feathers floating gently down. Below them is Icarus falling head first, he has the remains of wax and feather wings strapped to his arms.]<br />
:Icarus: I only hope the story of how ''building wax wings enabled me to fly'' teaches everyone a lesson about hubris.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|2|e}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[To the left, Ponytail is climbing up while Cueball has second thoughts.]<br />
:Cueball: We should turn back.<br />
:Ponytail: Wimp.<br />
:[In the middle, Cueball and Megan seem to be soaking in some sort of pond.]<br />
:[To the right, Ponytail is standing on top of a castle while Megan pushes a boulder and Cueball is playing some music.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|14|s|2|e}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[A flat tunnel runs the length of the whole tile. It is rough cut on the ceiling, but a smooth surface for walking.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|17|s|2|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|3|n|3|e}}<br />
|[[Megan]] is surfing on a {{w|Boeing 767|Boeing 767-300W}}<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|n|3|e}}<br />
|[Ground slops uphill, left-to-right (West to East). Close to the far right boundary is the Christmas Tree from {{w|A Charlie Brown Christmas|A Charlie Brown Christmas}}. In the middle is an electronic listening station. Left and Up-slope of the listening station, Megan and Cueball are lying on the ground, talking. Near bottom left is Ponytail, wearing sunglasses, roller-skiing off a ski jump. Top left are four birds in the sky.]<br />
;Transcript<br />
:Megan: Ever wonder if there's life up there ''beyond'' the stuff we're covering up?<br />
:Cueball: Nah.<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|3|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|14|s|3|e}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[The tunnel opens up to a small cavern. The ground of the cavern is grass covered, and there is a tree growing in the center. Cueball is lounging near the tree.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|17|s|3|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|18|s|3|e}}<br />
|{{w|Minecraft}} reference: Someone escapes a creeper, running deeper into the cave he just fell in.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|n|4|e}}<br />
|The {{w|Blue Hill Meteorological Observatory}} as seen in [http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9c/Great_Blue_Hill_Weather_Station_Milton_MA_01.jpg this particular photo]. The radio tower depicted shows the antennas for the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WGBH_%28FM%29 WGBH] and {{w|WKAF}} FM stations.<br />
A reference to George Mallory's famous response to the question: "Why do you want to climb Mount Everest?".<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Megan seems to be helping Cueball climb the hill.]<br />
:Megan: "Because it's there" is more poetic than "I'm rich enough that my goals are arbitrary."<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|4|e}}<br />
|A black empty tile (required because unspecified North tiles are automatically filled with white).<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|18|s|4|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|19|s|4|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|n|5|e}}<br />
|Cueball can't get cellphone reception, while two wingsuit flyers are leaping off a cliff above him.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|5|e}}<br />
|A black empty tile (required because unspecified North tiles are automatically filled with white).<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|17|s|5|e}}<br />
|Possibly The {{w|Nautilus (Verne)|Nautilus}}, the submarine from Jules Verne's novels Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (1870) and The Mysterious Island (1874) Also, possibly an allusion to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schwa_%28art%29 Schwa].<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|19|s|5|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|8|n|6|e}}<br />
|{{w|Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope|Red Five}} is both Anakin and Luke Skywalker's call sign. Anakin uses the sign in the Battle of Coruscant and Luke uses it in the Battle of Yavin. Also note the use of "{{w|cannon}}" and "{{w|Canon (basic principle)|canon}}."<br />
;Transcript<br />
:Red Five to Red Leader - I'm out of range of any Imperial cannons or canons.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|n|6|e}}<br />
|Giant airborne jellyfish.<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Two birdwatchers with binoculars walk on the slope of a hill, one with her back to the giant jellyfish and the other one staring at it]<br />
:Birdwatcher#1: Ooh, a {{w|yellow warbler}}!<br />
:Birdwatcher#2: Cool.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|6|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|16|s|6|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|17|s|6|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|19|s|6|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|7|e}}<br />
|Level 1-1 of the original {{w|Super Mario Bros.}} This is confirmed by text on {{1110|3|s|7|e}}. Compare with [http://www.mariowiki.com/images/e/e4/World_1-1_SMB.png screenshot]. The level's "bottomless pits" continue downward.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|s|7|e}}<br />
|Two people climbing up/down the holes, and one falling.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|s|7|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|3|s|7|e}}<br />
|Two people are talking next to a "bottomless pit" from the Mario level, one is saying: "The walls... worn smooth by billions of tumbling Mario corpses".<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|4|s|7|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|5|s|7|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|6|s|7|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|7|s|7|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|8|s|7|e}}<br />
|[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Role-playing_game RPG] style pit trap<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|9|s|7|e}}<br />
|Another {{w|Minecraft}} reference. Cueball standing while a girl swings a pickaxe to further dig out a tunnel. Farther down, part of the mine shaft has collapsed and sealed the hole.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|10|s|7|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|11|s|7|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|12|s|7|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|13|s|7|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|14|s|7|e}}<br />
|A cane is wedged in the right hand mine shaft. Likely a reference to the first {{w|Where's Waldo}} book, where Waldo loses his walking stick (and other items) and readers must scour the detailed illustrations to find Waldo and each of the items he drops.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|15|s|7|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|16|s|7|e}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Deep below the surface, the two never ending holes finally ends. The bones of the unfortunate ones to have fallen down the holes are scattered. A single man-made shaft is covered by a plug of some kind. The shaft goes down to a reverse suspension bridge, its purpose cannot be known. Under the suspension bridge a large cavern opens up.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|17|s|7|e}}<br />
|<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[A Pyramid in a cavern. Most likely a reference to Neon Genesis Evangelion's [http://evangelion.wikia.com/wiki/GeoFront NERV HQ] which is also located in a deep underground cavern. Most of a thatch-roof gazebo can be seen to the east of the pyramid.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|19|s|7|e}}<br />
|Horizontal tunnel<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|8|e}}<br />
|Four wind turbines<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|16|s|8|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|17|s|8|e}}<br />
|A small graveyard.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|18|s|8|e}}<br />
|There are tentacle-like objects restricting the passing of objects through this tunnel, the art of which closely resembles the Xbox Live Arcade game {{w|Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet}}, and also bears a resemblance to the mouth of a {{w|Sarlacc Pit}} from Star Wars.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|19|s|8|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|9|e}}<br />
|Reference to the first line of "{{w|99 Problems}}" by {{w|Jay-Z}} ("If you're having girl problems I feel bad for you son. I've got 99 problems but a <rhymes with "witch"> ain't one."). Just left of the fence is a small cleared area with what appears to be a frog in the center. Frog Prince? Also a reference to {{w|Off-by-one_error#Fencepost_error|fencepost error}}. Ironically, there may be an off-by-one error in the joke, since it would only take 100 fenceposts to cover 99 problems, not 101.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|3|n|10|e}}<br />
|The outline of a {{w|Bombardier Dash 8|Bombardier Dash-8 Q400 aircraft}}, with original photo located [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombardier_Dash_8 here].<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|10|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|11|n|11|e}}<br />
|An empty white tile with symmetric coordinates (11 N, 11 E).<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|11|e}}<br />
|A {{w|sine}} curve {{w|oscillate}}s between -1 and 1.<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[A bridge begins. The land falls down to meet the water with an almost sinusoidal curve.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|11|s|11|e}}<br />
|An empty black tile with symmetric coordinates (11 N, 11 E).<br />
Note, that this PNG file contains an ICC section which means that the blackness in this image is properly {{w|Color correction|color-corrected}}.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|5|n|12|e}}<br />
|This is a re-enactment of one of the last scenes in {{w|2001: A Space Odyssey (film)|2001: A Space Odyssey}}, in which Dave Bowman shuts down {{w|Hal 9000}} by one-by-one pulling out processor modules. Hal eventually regresses to his first programmed memories, the song {{w|Daisy Bell}} which he sings for Bowman.<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[High above the ground. Cueball has scaled the outside of a hot air balloon and is using a knife to cut it open while the gondola sings Daisy Bell.]<br />
:<<RIIIP>><br />
:Gondola [singing, getting slower]: Daiiisyyy... Daiiiiiiisy...<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|12|e}}<br />
|{{w|Bourne Bridge|Bourne}} or {{w|Sagamore Bridge}}<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[The bridge continues.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|13|e}}<br />
|The bridge is either the {{w|Bourne Bridge|Bourne}} or {{w|Sagamore Bridge}}.<br />
<br />
The {{w|covered wagon}} was popularized during the {{w|American Frontier|American expansion west}}, as a good way to bring goods along with as a family journeyed from the crowded eastern states out west (usually to Oregon or California).<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Center of the bridge.]<br />
<br />
:[A covered wagon is crossing east, there is a person driving driving, and a person poking out the back. A footman is walking quite a ways ahead of the carriage.]<br />
<br />
:[On top of the bridge structure, Megan and Ponytail are sitting and eating some kind of picnic.]<br />
:Megan and Ponytail: Nom nom nom<br />
<br />
:[A tank, vaguely resembling a {{w|Sherman Firefly}}, is crossing west, possibly in a reference to the WWII film {{w|A Bridge Too Far}}. Ponytail is sitting on the turret. Cueball is being more daring and is balancing with arms outstretch on the end of the gun.]<br />
<br />
:[Underneath the tank a two-masted junk rigged sailboat is resting with sails furled. Megan and Cueball are fore standing at the railing looking out over the sea.]<br />
:Megan: So, um, here's the thing&mdash;<br />
:Megan: I'm married to the sea, but it's a very ... ''open'' marriage.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|14|e}}<br />
|{{w|Bourne Bridge|Bourne}} or {{w|Sagamore Bridge}}<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Land again.]<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|15|e}}<br />
|[[Cueball]] is singing the chorus to the song "{{w|Flagpole Sitta}}" by {{w|Harvey Danger}}. The characters in the wagon reference the {{w|Oregon Trail (computer game)|Oregon Trail}} computer game. <br />
<br />
[[Black Hat]] seems to be up to his usual shenanigans.<br />
<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[The bridge meets land again, and at the western foot of the bridge is a cannon. Black Hat is sitting behind the cannon, and has lit its fuse.]<br />
:[Where the river meets the land there are stairs leading up to a landing.]<br />
<br />
:[The covered wagon has made it across the bridge. Everything is drooping, now. The horse is not walking as upright, the driver is slouching, the person out the back is now lounging on the back with a gun clearly visible.<br />
:Someone inside wagon: You brought no food but ''how'' many boxes of bullets?<br />
<br />
:[Farther east Cueball is sitting on top of a flagpole singing. Just northwest of him, a leaf spins through the air.]<br />
:Cueball [singing]: I'm not sick, but I'm not wellll<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|n|16|e}}<br />
|Top of VLF antenna.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|16|e}}<br />
|A cabin which appears to be hooked up to a VLF antenna.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|n|17|e}}<br />
|Top of VLF antenna.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|17|e}}<br />
|VLF antenna and a steep cliff dropoff to water. Cueball watches a butterfly flit around as they did in the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peanuts Peanuts] comic strip.<br />
The VLF antenna is likely to be a representation of the [http://www.stormfax.com/wireless.htm Marconi Station] on Cape Cod as it existed in the early 1900's. This station transmitted the first trans-Atlantic wireless telegram in 1903. It had the same four towers and steep drop-off to the beach as depicted in this comic with possible original photo [http://capecodhistory.us/Wellfleet-records/pictures/Marconi-pc.jpg here].<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|3|n|18|e}}<br />
|A {{w|Boeing 717}} with landing gear deployed. Caption: "Folks, this is your captain speaking. I need you all to turn on every electronic device your have. There's no time to explain." (a reference to {{w|No Time To Explain|the game with the same name}}?)<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|18|e}}<br />
|Two swimmers in the ocean saying "Stupid {{w|FreeBSD}}...". FreeBSD is a Unix-like operating system. A reference to [[349: Success]].<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|19|e}}<br />
|A {{w|humpback whale}} breaching.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|20|e}}<br />
|A rocky shore. The uppermost rock formation in this panel appears to be a laughing face in profile.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|21|e}}<br />
|A fin-shaped object protrudes from the ground<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|n|22|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|22|e}}<br />
|An anchor for {{w|Guy-wire}}s<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|3|n|23|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|n|23|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|23|e}}<br />
|An anchor for {{w|Guy-wire}}s<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|4|n|24|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|3|n|24|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|n|24|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|24|e}}<br />
|An anchor for {{w|Guy-wire}}s<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|5|n|25|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|4|n|25|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|3|n|25|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|n|25|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|25|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|6|n|26|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|5|n|26|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|4|n|26|e}}<br />
|Black Hat is hanging from one of the wire supports.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|3|n|26|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|n|26|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|26|e}}<br />
|An anchor for {{w|Guy-wire}}s<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|7|n|27|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|6|n|27|e}}<br />
|This appears to be the former record-holder for the tallest man-made structure, the {{w|KVLY-TV mast}} in {{w|North Dakota}}. It was surpassed by the {{w|Burj Khalifa}} (829.84 m (2,723 ft)) located in Dubai (also included in the comic).<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Top of a radio tower. There are four guy-wires that connect to the tower, two on each side. A woman is standing on the top, holding onto the antenna for stability.]<br />
:Woman: Dubai may have taken the record for "Tallest Manmade Structure," but North Dakota still has "[http://www.realnd.com/jamestownbuffaloindex.htm Largest Buffalo Monument]," "[http://heritagerenewal.org/bigthings/hamburger.htm Biggest Hamburger]," and "[http://www.realnd.com/casseltoncanpileindex.htm Tallest Pyramid of Oil Cans]." So ''there''.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|5|n|27|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|4|n|27|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|3|n|27|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|n|27|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|27|e}}<br />
|The base of a {{w|radio tower}}<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|6|n|28|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|5|n|28|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|4|n|28|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|3|n|28|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|n|28|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|28|e}}<br />
|An anchor for {{w|Guy-wire}}s<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|5|n|29|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|4|n|29|e}}<br />
|Someone is sliding down the wire. Possibly a reference to the game [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infamous_%28video_game%29 Infamous].<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|3|n|29|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|n|29|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|29|e}}<br />
|{{w|Guy-wire}}s<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|4|n|30|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|3|n|30|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|n|30|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|30|e}}<br />
|An anchor for {{w|Guy-wire}}s<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|3|n|31|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|n|31|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|31|e}}<br />
|An anchor for {{w|Guy-wire}}s<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|n|32|e}}<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|32|e}}<br />
|An anchor for {{w|Guy-wire}}s<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|33|e}}<br />
|A tree with a tractor<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|34|e}}<br />
|A rolling grassy landscape with a fence. Some of the fence posts are topped with bluebird boxes, and birds sit on the fence wires.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|35|e}}<br />
|a {{w|barn}} and some trees<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|36|e}}<br />
|Reference to the original Pokémon games. When Prof. Oak tells you not to go into the tall grass without a Pokémon.<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[There is a large hill with very tall grass (taller than any character in this section).]<br />
:[Left-most is some structure of some kind.]<br />
:[West of the structure is Cueball shouting to Megan, who is running into the long grass.]<br />
:Cueball: Don't go into the long grass! (Line from Jurassic Park 2: The Lost World which precedes the velociraptor attack.)<br />
:Megan: Pikachu, I choose ''DEATH''&mdash;<br />
:Megan: And with it immortality.<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|37|e}}<br />
|Grass<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|38|e}}<br />
|Grass with a short rectangular structure<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|2|n|39|e}}<br />
|The top of a water tower. Cueball and Megan on the catwalk at the top. Cueball looking out. Megan using some mounted device (maybe a telephone?, or some controls?).<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|39|e}}<br />
|The base of a water tower<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|40|e}}<br />
|Grass<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|41|e}}<br />
|Grass<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|42|e}}<br />
|Grass<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|43|e}}<br />
|Grass<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|44|e}}<br />
|Grass<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|45|e}}<br />
|Grass<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|46|e}}<br />
|Grass<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|47|e}}<br />
|Grass<br />
|-<br />
|{{1110|1|n|48|e}}<br />
|[[Cueball]] with a balloon in his hand, flying towards the image border. He says "I wonder where I'll float next". This is a reference to [[1|the very first xkcd comic]]. It may also be a reference to {{w|World of Goo}}, a computer game, where at the and of level 1 the goo balls leave the screen carried by balloons, wondering what will be next. Alternatively, this may be a reference to the detail and variety of earlier panels.<br />
;Transcript<br />
:[Grassy hill slowly rolls until the extreme right which ends in a much larger drop-off. This is the end of the world.]<br />
:[Cueball is still floating holding his balloon, heading further east.]<br />
:Cueball: I wonder where I'll float next.<br />
|-<br />
|}<br />
<br />
== References by Category ==<br />
<br />
=== Vehicles ===<br />
{| class="wikitable" |<br />
! Name<br />
! width="130px" | Grid coords<br />
! Thumbnail<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|covered wagon|Covered wagons}}<br />
|{{1110|1|n|13|e}} {{1110|1|n|14|e}}<br />
|[[File:covered-wagon.png]] [[File:covered-wagon-2.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|Remote-controlled rocket-powered bicycle<br />
|{{1110|1|n|1|w}}<br />
|[[File:rocket-powered-bicycle.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Sailboat}}<br />
|{{1110|1|n|5|w}}<br />
|[[File:sailboat.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Sailing ship}}<br />
|{{1110|1|n|8|w}}<br />
|[[File:sailing-ship.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Junk-rigged Sailboat}}<br />
|{{1110|1|n|13|e}}<br />
|[[File:junk-rigged-sailboat.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Hot air balloons}}<br />
|{{1110|6|n|1|e}}<br />
|[[File:hot-air-balloon-1.png]] [[File:hot-air-balloon-2.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Cars}}<br />
|{{1110|1|n|1|w}} {{1110|1|n|1|e}}<br />
|[[File:cars-sedans-1.png]] [[File:cars-sedans-2.png]] [[File:cars-sedans-3.png]] [[File:cars-sedans-4.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Wienermobile}}<br />
|{{1110|1|n|1|w}}<br />
|[[File:wienermobile.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Tractor}}<br />
|{{1110|1|n|33|e}}<br />
|[[File:tractor.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Tank}}<br />
|{{1110|1|n|13|e}}<br />
|[[File:tank.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Submarine}}<br />
|{{1110|17|s|5|e}}<br />
|[[File:submarine.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Boeing 717}} Jet airliner<br />
|{{1110|7|n|7|w}} {{1110|3|n|18|e}}<br />
|[[File:boeing-717-jet.png]] [[File:boeing-717-jet-landing.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Embraer E-Jet family|Embraer E-190}} Jet airliner<br />
|{{1110|2|n|4|w}}<br />
|[[File:embraer-e-190-jet.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Boeing 767|Boeing 767-300W}} Jet airliner<br />
|{{1110|3|n|3|e}}<br />
|[[File:boeing-767-300w-jet.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Bombardier Dash 8|Bombardier Dash-8 Q400}} turboprop airliner<br />
|{{1110|3|n|10|e}}<br />
|[[File:bombardier-dash-8.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Saturn V}} Rocket<br />
|{{1110|1|n|22|w}} {{1110|2|n|22|w}}<br />
|[[File:saturn-v-rocket.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Apollo 13}} spacecraft<br />
|{{1110|9|n|2|e}}<br />
|[[File:apollo-13-spacecraft.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|X-Wing fighters}}<br />
|{{1110|8|n|6|e}} {{1110|8|s|17|w}}<br />
|[[File:x-wing-fighter-1.png]] [[File:x-wing-fighter-2.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|}<br />
<br />
=== Man-made Structures ===<br />
{| class="wikitable" |<br />
! Name<br />
! width="130px" | Grid coords<br />
! Thumbnail<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Burj Khalifa}}<br />
|{{1110|8|n|2|w}}, {{1110|6|n|27|e}} <br />
|[[File:burj-khalifa.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Statue of Liberty}}<br />
|{{1110|1|n|13|w}}<br />
|[[File:statue-of-liberty.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Pyramid}}<br />
|{{1110|17|s|7|e}}<br />
|[[File:1110-pyramid.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|Bridges (Suspension bridge, Arch bridge)<br />
|{{1110|1|n|12|e}} {{1110|1|n|13|e}} {{1110|1|n|14|e}}<br />
|[[File:arch-bridge.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Lighthouse}}<br />
|{{1110|1|n|13|w}}<br />
|[[File:lighthouse.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|Water tower<br />
|{{1110|1|n|39|e}} {{1110|2|n|39|e}}<br />
|[[File:water-tower.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|Mine shafts<br />
|{{1110|1|s|17|w}}<br />
|[[File:mine-shafts.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|Graveyard / cemetery<br />
|{{1110|17|s|8|e}}<br />
|[[File:graveyard-cemetary.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|Parking lot<br />
|{{1110|1|n|1|w}} {{1110|1|n|1|e}}<br />
|[[File:cars-sedans-1.png]] [[File:cars-sedans-2.png]] [[File:cars-sedans-3.png]] [[File:cars-sedans-4.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|Fence posts<br />
|{{1110|1|n|34|e}}<br />
|[[File:fenceposts.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|Bluebird boxes<br />
|{{1110|1|n|34|e}}<br />
|[[File:bluebird-boxes.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|Barn<br />
|{{1110|1|n|35|e}}<br />
|[[File:barn.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|Tire Swing<br />
|{{1110|2|n|4|e}}<br />
|[[File:tire-swing.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|Fountain<br />
|{{1110|1|n|1|e}}<br />
|[[File:1110-fountain.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|Park benches<br />
|{{1110|1|n|14|w}}<br />
|[[File:park-benches.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|Buoys<br />
|{{1110|1|n|5|w}}<br />
|[[File:buoy-1.png]] [[File:buoy-2.png]] [[File:buoy-3.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|Beach Umbrella<br />
|{{1110|1|n|4|w}}<br />
|[[File:beach-umbrella.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|Butterfly Net<br />
|{{1110|1|n|1|e}}<br />
|[[File:butterfly-net.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|}<br />
<br />
=== Technology ===<br />
{| class="wikitable" |<br />
! Name<br />
! width="130px" | Grid coords<br />
! Thumbnail<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Construction Cranes}} (Tower crane, Crawler crane)<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|Anti-aircraft platform<br />
|{{1110|1|n|9|w}}<br />
|[[File:anti-aircraft-platform.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|Wind turbines<br />
|{{1110|1|n|8|e}}<br />
|[[File:wind-turbines.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Meteorological Observatory}}<br />
|{{1110|2|n|4|e}}<br />
|[[File:meteorological-observatory.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Radio station}}<br />
|{{1110|1|n|16|e}} {{1110|2|n|16|e}} {{1110|1|n|17|e}}<br />
|[[File:marconi-station.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Radio mast}}<br />
|{{1110|2|n|16|e}}<br />
|[[File:kvly-tv-mast.png]] [[File:guy-wires-with-mast.png]]<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Radio Telescope}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Satellite Dish}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|GPS}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Bitcoins}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|Game Console<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Guns}} (Gatling Gun, Shotgun)<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Laptop}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Cellphones}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|FreeBSD}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Facebook}}, {{w|Twitter}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|}<br />
<br />
=== Games ===<br />
{| class="wikitable" |<br />
! Name<br />
! width="130px" | Grid coords<br />
! Thumbnail<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|AaaaaAAaaaAAAaaAAAAaAAAAA!!! – A Reckless Disregard for Gravity|AaAaAA!!!}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Clay pigeon}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Duke Nukem 3D}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Marco_Polo_(game)|Marco Polo}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Super Mario Brothers}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Minecraft}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Oregon Trail}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|inFamous}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Pokemon}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|}<br />
<br />
=== Movies ===<br />
{| class="wikitable" |<br />
! Name<br />
! width="130px" | Grid coords<br />
! Thumbnail<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|2001: A Space Odyssey (film)|2001: A Space Odyssey}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|A Bridge Too Far (film)|A Bridge Too Far}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Apollo 13 (film)|Apollo 13}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Contact (film)|Contact}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Groundhog Day (film)|Groundhog Day}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Hackers (film)|Hackers}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Jurassic Park (film)|Jurassic Park}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Planet of the Apes (1968 film)|Planet of the Apes}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|The Crimson Permanent Assurance}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|They Live}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Transformers}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|}<br />
<br />
=== Television Shows ===<br />
{| class="wikitable" |<br />
! Name<br />
! width="130px" | Grid coords<br />
! Thumbnail<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Lost_(TV_series)|Lost}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|The Simpsons}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Seinfeld}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|A Charlie Brown Christmas}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|}<br />
<br />
=== Books ===<br />
{| class="wikitable" |<br />
! Name<br />
! width="130px" | Grid coords<br />
! Thumbnail<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Ender's Game}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|Footprints<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Tower of Babylon}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|The Adventures of Tom Sawyer}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|A Commonsense Book of Death}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy }}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Where's Waldo}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|}<br />
<br />
=== Music ===<br />
{| class="wikitable" |<br />
! Name<br />
! width="130px" | Grid coords<br />
! Thumbnail<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|99 Problems}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Daisy Bell}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Flagpole Sitta}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|I'm on a Boat}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|}<br />
<br />
=== Radio Programs ===<br />
{| class="wikitable" |<br />
! Name<br />
! width="130px" | Grid coords<br />
! Thumbnail<br />
|-<br />
|Desert Island Discs<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|}<br />
<br />
=== Flora and Fauna ===<br />
{| class="wikitable" |<br />
! Name<br />
! width="130px" | Grid coords<br />
! Thumbnail<br />
|-<br />
|Trees<br />
|[http://imgs.xkcd.com/clickdrag/14s3e.png 14 South, 3 East]<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|Squirrels<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|Velociraptors<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|Seabirds<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|Jellyfish<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|Whales (Humpback)<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|Fish<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|Yellow Warbler<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|Red spiders<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|}<br />
<br />
=== People ===<br />
{| class="wikitable" |<br />
! Name<br />
! width="130px" | Grid coords<br />
! width="256px" | Thumbnail<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Peter Thiel}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Elizabeth Warren}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Icarus}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|George Mallory}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|}<br />
<br />
=== Places ===<br />
{| class="wikitable" |<br />
! Name<br />
! width="130px" | Grid coords<br />
! Thumbnail<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Dubai}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|North Dakota}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|{{w|Alaska}}<br />
|<br />
|<br />
|-<br />
|}<br />
<br />
== Whole Image ==<br />
<br />
[[File:1110 full tiny2.png|none|frame|Whole Image at 0.5% Zoom. The part visible at the beginning is marked red.]]<br />
<br />
== Viewers ==<br />
Though you can download the full view, the easiest way to browse it is through a [[wikipedia:Zooming user interface|Zooming user interface]].<br />
<br />
* http://xkcd.com/1110/ (native zoom, click-and-drag)<br />
* http://xkcd-map.rent-a-geek.de/ '''[recommended]''' (zoom controls, scroll-zoom, click-and-drag, hash permalinks, full-screen)<br />
* http://clickanddrag.azurewebsites.net/ (zoom controls, scroll-zoom, click-and-drag)<br />
* http://sumamimasen.com/xkcd/1110/ (native zoom, keyboard controls, Flash-only)<br />
* http://xkcdmap.webege.com/ Google-maps-style navigation and zooming, with tiles with content highlighted in black or white, allows easy finding of interesting tiles with small things hidden in the ground and sky<br />
<br />
== Trivia ==<br />
<br />
*The click-and-drag portion of this comic is divided up into 2592 sections of 2048x2048 pixels.<br />
*There are 225 separate 2048x2048 PNG files (plus the PNG container with the first panels). The other 2337 sections are simply filled black (in the south) or white (in the north) with HTML.<br />
*The populated area is 81 frames wide (33 West - 48 East) and 32 frames tall (13 North - 19 South)<br />
*According to [[Randall]] in #xkcd on the night this was released, a full size image of this comic, leaving out the blanks would be 60 gigapixels, a true single rectangular image would be close to a terapixel. The online version is 1 gigapixel without the blanks and 10 gigapixel as rectangular image (2048x2048x225 = 943,718,400 and 2048x2048x2592 = 10,871,635,968).<br />
*Based on the height of figures as well as the "two mile" figure given on the left-hand side, the scale should be approximately 32 pixels per 5 feet, making the entire map 25920 feet wide (4.9 miles or 7.9 kilometers) by 10240 feet tall (1.9 miles or 3.1 kilometers). If it were an overhead area, it would be about 9.5 square miles (6093 acres or 24.7 square km), roughly the size of Block Island, Rhode Island, USA. Just the POPULATED area (225 tiles with something drawn on them) would be 529 acres, or 0.826 square miles-- about the size of Princeton University.<br />
*If the 2048x2048 PNGs were to be printed out as a single poster at 300 dpi, the poster would be 15.36 yards (14.05 meters) long and 6.07 yards (5.55 meters) tall. Most of the detail would be invisible, as these PNGs are optimized for ~72 dpi screens.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]<br />
[[Category:Interactive comics]]<br />
[[Category:Velociraptors]]<br />
[[Category:Large Drawings]]<br />
[[Category:Wingsuit]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1099:_Tuesdays&diff=167781099: Tuesdays2012-11-09T16:56:48Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Trivia */Clean up</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1099<br />
| date = August 24, 2012<br />
| title = Tuesdays<br />
| image = tuesdays.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = Try our bottomless drinks and fall forever!<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
In this comic, [[Beret Guy]] and at least one other person (which looks like it might be [[Megan]]) are sitting at a restaurant. The waitress, [[Ponytail]], tells Beret Guy there is a special on Tuesdays for "endless wings". Restaurants often have different daily discounts to encourage people to come in. In a normal restaurant, "endless wings" would presumably refer to "all-you-can-eat" chicken wings, meaning the customer can pay a flat price and continue ordering additional wings without paying any more money.<br />
<br />
However, in this comic, Beret Guy tells the waitress that he already has "endless wings", which he means literally (a similar issue of wishes being taken literally is referenced in [[1086: Eyelash Wish Log]]) and Beret Guy begins growing wings which ultimately appear "endless" as they grow to a span of at least the circumference of the earth by the last panel (and presumably continue growing). The other characters scream in horror for obvious reasons.<br />
<br />
The title text plays on another common restaurant offer of "bottomless drinks", meaning unlimited free refills of drinks. However, taken literally, falling into something bottomless would result in falling forever.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Ponytail begins to serve some customers at a table]<br />
:Ponytail: ...and on Tuesdays we offer endless wings.<br />
:Beret Guy: Haha, cool. i have those.<br />
<br />
:Ponytail: You what?<br />
<br />
:[Beret Guy sprouts a pair of wings]<br />
:Ponytail: AAAAA!!<br />
<br />
:[Beret Guy's wings start getting longer]<br />
:Everyone: AAAAAAA<br />
<br />
:[Wings start to extend into space out from the earth]<br />
:Everyone: AAAAAAAA<br />
<br />
==Trivia==<br />
* This is one of the few comics since the ''xkcd'' lettering became inked and standardized as all-caps that lowercase lettering has been used (including the word "i" which would normally be capitalized). In this case, the usage may be to denote a whisper or soft voice.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}} <br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1093:_Forget&diff=167771093: Forget2012-11-09T16:56:35Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: occuring → occurring, 1970's → 1970s</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1093<br />
| date = August 10, 2012<br />
| title = Forget<br />
| image = forget.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = 'Baby Got Back' turned 20 this year. My favorite nostalgia show is VH1's 'I Love The Inexorable March of Time Toward the Grave That Awaits Us All.'<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
The median age in {{w|USA}} is currently about 37 years. Assuming that you must be at least five years old to remember a cultural event later, this means that anything that happened longer ago than the fifth birthday of someone who is 37 years now is remembered by a minority of people today. This applies to any event prior to 1980, so here in 2012, the majority of Americans are too young to remember the Seventies. However, according to census estimation the median will raise in the future, so instead of a 32 years gap between event and the moment when most people can't remember it, the gap becomes 35 years (implying a median of some 40 years).<br />
<br />
'''2013: The Carter presidency''' {{w|Jimmy Carter}} was the {{w|President of the United States}} from 1977-1981. He lost all popularity after he was viewed as mishandling several crises during his presidency, including the {{w|Three Mile Island accident}}, the {{w|Iran Hostage crisis}}, and the "{{w|stagflation}}" of the late 1970's. According to Wikipedia, his decisions to reinstate registration for the draft and his decision to boycott the {{w|1980 Summer Olympics}} in Moscow (over the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan) helped contribute to his defeat in the 1980 Presidential campaign.<br />
<br />
'''2014: The Reagan shooting''' References the 1981 {{w|Reagan assassination attempt|assassination attempt}} on the then American president, {{w|Ronald Reagan}}.<br />
<br />
'''2015: The Falkland Islands War''' This is in reference to the {{w|Falklands War|brief outbreak of hostilities}} between the {{w|UK}} and {{w|Argentina}} over the {{w|Falkland Islands|Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas)}} located off the shore of Argentina claimed by both but controlled by the UK. Even to this date, tensions remain high over the ownership of these islands, and while many people alive today weren't alive to witness it, it nevertheless remains present in the collective psyche of both nations.<br />
<br />
'''2017: The first Apple Macintosh''' The {{w|Macintosh}} was a line of computers created by {{w|Apple Inc.|Apple}}, first introduced in 1984, with the introduction of the {{w|Macintosh 128K}}.<br />
<br />
'''2018: New Coke''' References a public relations blunder that the Coca Cola corporation undertook in attempting to reformulate its cola recipe, the new formula called {{w|New Coke}} popularly. The public backlash so shook the company that they reintroduced the original recipe as {{w|Coca-Cola Classic}} within 3 months. New Coke was eventually rebranded from Coca-Cola to Coke II, and then discontinued. Coca-Cola Classic has quietly been rebranded back to simply Coca-Cola, as it originally was. The "New Coke" introduction is considered one of the biggest PR blunders from a major company ever. <br />
<br />
'''2019: Challenger''' The {{w|Space Shuttle Challenger|Challenger}} was a {{w|NASA}} space shuttle, which was launched in 1986, but {{w|Space Shuttle Challenger disaster|exploded}} 72 seconds into its flight, killing everyone aboard, including {{w|Christa McAuliffe}}, a teacher selected to be the first teacher in space.<br />
<br />
'''2020: Chernobyl''' Refers to the 1986 meltdown of a {{w|Chernobyl|nuclear power plant}} in the {{w|Ukranian SSR}} (then a part of the Soviet Union). The meltdown forced the nearby city of {{w|Pripyat}} to be abandoned, and it remains a ghost town today.<br />
<br />
'''2021: Black Monday''' Refers to the 1987 {{w|Black_Monday_(1987)|day}} of the largest one-day {{w|stock market}} drop in history.<br />
<br />
'''2022: The Reagan presidency''' {{w|Ronald Reagan}} was an American president from 1981 to 1989, and was a generally well received president known for ending the Cold War, oversaw the {{w|Iran–Contra affair}}, {{w|Invasion of Grenada|invading Grenada}}, and issuing forth a number of new {{w|Reaganomics|economic policies}}.<br />
<br />
'''2023: The Berlin Wall''' Refers to the {{w|Berlin Wall|barrier}} surrounding the western-controlled part of {{w|Berlin}}. It was erected by the {{w|East Germany|East German}} Government in 1961 to stop illegal emigration to West Berlin---the western-controlled enclave after the ending of the second WW. After a friendly revolution in 1989, emigration to West Berlin (and West German in general) was granted suddenly and very surprisingly again on November 9, 1989. The following rush of people to the Wall from East (to cross the border) and from West (to welcome friends and relatives) in that night coined the figurative "Fall of the Wall", preceding the actual reunion of Germany in 1990 and (almost) complete demolition of the Wall.<br />
<br />
'''2024: HammerTime''' Refers to a refrain in {{w|MC Hammer|MC Hammer's}} 1990 hit song {{w|U Can't Touch This}}; [[Randall Munroe]] makes reference to this song elsewhere in his comics, too (specifically [[108: M.C. Hammer Slide]] and [[210: 90's Flowchart]]).<br />
<br />
'''2025: The Soviet Union''' Refers to the cold-war adversary of the United States, emerging after the end of {{w|World War I}} and only collapsing in 1991.<br />
<br />
'''2026: The LA Riots''' Refers to the {{w|1992 Los Angeles riots|massive riots}} occurring at the release of the verdict acquitting the officers accused of the {{w|Rodney King}} beatings in 1992.<br />
<br />
'''2027: Lorena Bobbit''' Refers to the {{w|John and Lorena Bobbitt|woman}} who {{w|emasculated}} her husband in 1993.<br />
<br />
'''2028: The Forrest Gump release''' ''{{w|Forrest Gump}}'' was a 1994 drama starring {{w|Tom Hanks}} as a mentally disabled man, telling his spectacular life story. The movie had a highly successful release, and remains one of the greatest films of all time.<br />
<br />
'''2029: The Rwanda Genocide''' Refers to the 1994 {{w|Rwandan genocide}}, where an estimated 800,000 people were killed.<br />
<br />
'''2030: OJ Simpson's Trial''' The {{w|O. J. Simpson murder case|O.J. Simpson trial}} was a famous criminal case during which {{w|O.J. Simpson}}, a professional football player, was {{w|acquitted}} of the murder of {{w|Nicole Simpson}} and {{w|Ronald Goldman}}. He was later arrested and jailed for other crimes, including armed robbery and kidnapping.<br />
<br />
'''2031: Clinton's reelection''' {{w|Bill Clinton}} was the American president from 1993 to 2001. He won his second term in the {{w|United_States_presidential_election,_1996|1996 presidential election}}. During his second term, he faced controversity during an {{w|impeachment}} trial, for which he was acquitted, and a large number of pardons he made on his last day of office. Clinton was a generally favoured president, exiting his presidency with a high approval rate.<br />
<br />
'''2032: Princess Diana''' {{w|Princess Diana}} was a famous {{w|Commonwealth}} princess who made headlines after her 1997 {{w|Death of Diana, Princess of Wales|death}} in a car crash.<br />
<br />
'''2033: Clinton's impeachment''' In 1998, the American {{w|Congress}} voted to {{w|Impeachment_of_Bill_Clinton|impeach}} then-president Clinton, based on allegations that he {{w|Lewinsky scandal|lied}} about relations with a {{w|Monica Lewinsky|White House intern}}. He was later acquitted.<br />
<br />
'''2034: Columbine''' Refers to the 1999 {{w|Columbine High School massacre}}, where 13 people were killed by a {{w|Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold|pair of shooters}}.<br />
<br />
'''2035: Forgot About Dre''' Refers to the {{w|Grammy}} winning 2000 song, {{w|Forgot About Dre}}, by the rapper {{w|Dr. Dre}}.<br />
<br />
'''2036: 9/11''' Refers to the {{w|9/11}} event, in 2001, where terrorists crashed two planes into the {{w|World Trade Center}} towers, in {{w|New York}}. Two other planes that crashed that day: one into the {{w|The Pentagon}}, and one in a field outside of {{w|Shanksville, Pennsylvania}} (Presumably on its way to crashing into the Capitol Building)<br />
<br />
'''2037: VH1's I love the 80s''' ''{{w|I Love the '80s (U.S. TV series)|I Love the '80s}}'' was a 2002 nostalgia TV series by {{w|VH1}}.<br />
<br />
'''2038: A time before Facebook''' Refers to the online social media site, {{w|Facebook}}, launched in 2004.<br />
<br />
'''2039: VH1's I love the 90s''' ''{{w|I Love the '90s (U.S. TV series)|I Love the '90s}}'' was a TV series airing in 2004.<br />
<br />
'''2040: Hurricane Katrina''' {{w|Hurricane Katrina}} was a devastating 2005 hurricane that hit {{w|New Orleans}}, killing almost 2000 people and causing 81 billion dollars in damage.<br />
<br />
'''2041: The planet Pluto''' {{w|Pluto}} is a {{w|dwarf planet}} in our solar system. Up until 2006, Pluto was considered to be a planet.<br />
<br />
'''2042: The first iPhone''' {{w|Apple}}'s first iPhone was released in 2007.<br />
<br />
'''2043: The Bush presidency''' {{w|George W. Bush}} was the American presidency from 2001 to 2009. He was criticized for the wars on {{w|War_in_Afghanistan_(2001%E2%80%93present)|Afghanistan}} and {{w|Iraq_War|Iraq}}, poor handling of Hurricane Katrina, and seeing the United States enter a recession. His approval peaked after the 9/11 attacks, but had fallen to historical lows by the end of his second term, making him one of the least liked US presidents.<br />
<br />
'''2044: Michael Jackson''' Refers to the {{w|Michael Jackson|pop singer}} who died of drug overdose in 2009.<br />
<br />
'''2045: Trying to say Eyjafjallajökull''' Is a reference to a volcano in {{w|Iceland}} that {{w|Eyjafjallajökull#2010 eruptions|erupted}} in 2010. The eruption threw volcanic ash several kilometres up in the atmosphere, which led to air travel disruption in northwest Europe for six days.<br />
<br />
'''2046: The Arab Spring''' Refers to the {{w|Arab Spring|wave of revolutions}} that began in late 2010, where many Arabic nations overthrew leaders and started civil wars, with many nations converting to democracies.<br />
<br />
'''2047: Anything embarrassing you do today''' Refers to the fact that in 35 years, the majority of Americans will not have been around on this date.<br />
<br />
The title text is in reference to the vastly over-saturated programming on VH1 dedicated to the history of the TV universe.<br />
<br />
{{Comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics with charts]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1086:_Eyelash_Wish_Log&diff=167761086: Eyelash Wish Log2012-11-09T16:56:18Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: pokemon → Pokémon</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1086<br />
| date = July 25, 2012<br />
| title = Eyelash Wish Log<br />
| image = eyelash_wish_log.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = Ooh, another one. Uh ... the ability to alter any coefficients of friction at will during sporting events.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
== Explanation ==<br />
This comic is based on the situation that when someone's eyelash falls out, that person can make a wish on it. This comic appears to be a page from the fictitious Wish Bureau in charge of granting said wishes. And of course the Wisher is [[Black Hat]] and he has quite a few wishes, most of them based on the previous wish. A common trope in fiction is that wishing for more wishes is prohibited and for many of his wishes [[Black Hat]] attempts to circumvent that.<br />
<br />
February 12's wish seems to be a reference to the unlimited {{w|breadsticks}} offered at {{w|Olive Garden}}.<br />
<br />
March 7's wish is a reference to {{w|Nate Silver}}, who is a former writer for {{w|Baseball Prospectus}} working on predicting baseball players' stats and now writes for {{w|Five Thirty Eight}} in which he predicts the outcome of elections based on polling data.<br />
<br />
And April 22's wish is a reference to the cartoon and video game, {{w|Pokemon}}. A pokéball can be thrown at a Pokémon (or in this case, an annoying pet) to capture it and seal it indefinitely.<br />
<br />
{{Comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1079:_United_Shapes&diff=167751079: United Shapes2012-11-09T16:56:03Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Transcript */Clean up, typos fixed: childrens' → children's</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1079<br />
| date = July 9, 2012<br />
| title = United Shapes<br />
| image = United Shapes.png<br />
| imagesize = 800px<br />
| titletext = That eggplant is in something of a flaccid state.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
Click on the image above to see the large version, which makes every state perfectly clear. Additionally, Randall provides a closeup of the Colorado article. [http://xkcd.com/1079/colorado/] (It is obviously a fake Wikipedia article.)<br />
<br />
In the large version, all of the items inside the States make sense once you get your head oriented the correct direction. I can't for the life of me figure out what New York's shape is, but a commenter suggests that it looks like an automatic transmission in cross section. Any other thoughts? I guess a key was too obvious.<br />
<br />
There is also a pun in the image text on the word State. It is playing off the definition of the word as a noun (which means "The particular condition that someone or something is in at a specific time") and the word as a proper noun as in "The State of Florida".<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
The United Shapes: A map of things states are shaped like<br />
<br />
(Each state has some item wedged to stay inside its borders)<br />
<br />
*Alabama: A moai head facing east.<br />
*Alaska: Winne the Pooh with a jetpack and a ray gun.<br />
*Arizona: A refrigerated shelf containing milk, bread, and pastries.<br />
*Arkansas: A measuring cup.<br />
*California: A vacuum.<br />
*Colorado: The wiki article on Colorado.<br />
*Connecticut: A train conductor's hat.<br />
*Delaware: A meerkat.<br />
*Florida: an eggplant.<br />
*Georgia: Missouri.<br />
*Hawaii: A snowball.<br />
*Idaho: A garden gnome, sitting down.<br />
*Illinois: A gangster with a guitar case, upside down.<br />
*Indiana: The brush of a paintbrush.<br />
*Iowa: A tomato, lettuce, cold cut and cheese sandwich.<br />
*Kansas: A stand-up piano.<br />
*Kentucky: A cloud.<br />
*Louisiana: A boot with some gum stuck to the bottom of it.<br />
*Maine: A Vulcan salute.<br />
*Maryland: A howling wolf, upside down.<br />
*Massachusetts: An elephant, being ridden by a man, carrying tea.<br />
*Michigan: A mitten for the lower portion, an eagle for the UP.<br />
*Minnesota: $160 in $20 USD bills.<br />
*Mississippi: A moai head facing west.<br />
*Missouri: Georgia.<br />
*Montana: One half of a muffin.<br />
*Nebraska: A blue VW type 2 with mattresses sticking out the back.<br />
*Nevada: A clothes iron.<br />
*New Hampshire: A tall brick factory building.<br />
*New Jersey: A bent-over old person.<br />
*New Mexico: A liquid container labeled for something of unusual and silly danger.<br />
*New York: A hybrid transmission with standard manual-style gears and a torque converter sliced in half.<br />
*North Carolina: A bouquet of flowers.<br />
*North Dakota: The top half of an amp.<br />
*Ohio: Underwear (Briefs).<br />
*Oklahoma: A covered pot, dripping with boilover.<br />
*Oregon: A locomotive.<br />
*Pennsylvania: A very thick book with a bookmark.<br />
*Rhode Island: The bow half of a boat's hull.<br />
*South Carolina: A slice of pizza.<br />
*South Dakota: The bottom half of an amp.<br />
*Tennessee: A number of children's books, placed in a slightly askew pile.<br />
*Texas: A dog sitting in a bowl.<br />
*Utah: An oven.<br />
*Vermont: A microscope, upside down.<br />
*Virgina: A stegosaurus.<br />
*Washington: A whale.<br />
*West Virginia: A frog.<br />
*Wisconsin: A skull.<br />
*Wyoming: An envelope.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Large Drawings]]<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1073:_Weekend&diff=167741073: Weekend2012-11-09T16:55:45Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: a a → a</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1073<br />
| date = June 25, 2012<br />
| title = Weekend<br />
| image = Weekend.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = Of the two Garfields, you wouldn't think the cat would turn out to be the more compelling presidential speechwriter, but there you go.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
I can't find any confirmation that any of these words are references to something from former US President James Garfield or Garfield the cartoon cat. However, Garfield the cartoon cat has a bunch of different images emphasizing the greatness of the weekend and bemoaning the existence of the first day of the work week, Monday. <br />
<br />
And of course, the comic was posted on a Monday, so the comic is timed to emphasize that.<br />
<br />
And of course, in the first image, there is a reference to the Lover Boy song "[http://youtu.be/0-lH2nhC_R4 Everybodys Workin For the Weekend]". "We are all working for the weekend" is a reference to the title and lyrics in the Lover Boy song which indicate that "Everybody's working for the weekend."<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[A man stands at a podium before a very large crowd.]<br />
:Man: We all hate Mondays. We're all working for the weekend. But our chains exist only in our minds.<br />
<br />
:[A shot of the man from the podium upwards, from a 34 angle. He raises one hand in explanation.]<br />
:Man: Calendars are just social consensus. Nature doesn't know the day of the week.<br />
<br />
:[Closer still, looking straight ahead.]<br />
:Man: My friends-- we can make today Saturday.<br />
<br />
:[Extreme close-up, negative colors.]<br />
:Man: We can make it Saturday forever.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1068:_Swiftkey&diff=167731068: Swiftkey2012-11-09T16:55:32Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: wikipedia → Wikipedia</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1068<br />
| date = June 13, 2012<br />
| title = Swiftkey<br />
| image = Swiftkey.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = Although the Markov chain-style text model is still rudimentary; it recently gave me "Massachusetts Institute of America". Although I have to admit it sounds prestigious.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
Swiftkey is a product that is installable only on Android-based phones and tablets. Swiftkey has noticed their inclusion in xkcd and have created a blog post for other users to comment with their default phrase when they hit the "central prediction key". The results are pretty funny. [http://www.swiftkey.net/swiftkey-on-xkcd]<br />
<br />
In the image text, the {{w|Markov chain}} is a reference to: (via Wikipedia) "A Markov chain, named after {{w|Andrey Markov}}, is a mathematical system that undergoes transitions from one state to another, between a finite or countable number of possible states. It is a random process characterized as memoryless: the next state depends only on the current state and not on the sequence of events that preceded it. This specific kind of "memorylessness" is called the Markov property. Markov chains have many applications as statistical models of real-world processes."<br />
<br />
So, that makes sense because Swiftkey only looks at the previous word, not the sequence of words that preceded that word.<br />
<br />
And the “I am so sorry - that's never happened before” is a sexual reference, as that is something a guy would say after a particularly unsatisfying sexual encounter. The guy would say that to convince his sexual partner to give sleeping with him another try some time, even though they didn’t like it that time. And of course that is funny because it is his typical sentence, so he is texting that phrase over and over again.<br />
<br />
Massachusetts Institute of America is an unlikely name because it shows two different locations. It is an amalgamation of Massachusetts Institute of Technology and [field] Institute of America (e.g. Mining)<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball shows off phone to Megan]<br />
:Cueball: Have you tried SwiftKey? It's got the first decent language model I've seen. It learns from your SMS/Email archives what words you use together most often.<br />
<br />
:Cueball: Spacebar inserts its best guess. So if I type "The Empi" and hit space three times, it types "The Empire Strikes Back";.<br />
:Megan: What if you mash space in a blank message?<br />
<br />
:Cueball: I guess it fills in your most likely first word, then the word that usually follows it..<br />
:Megan: So it builds up your "typical" sentence. Cool! Let's see yours!<br />
:Cueball: Uh -<br />
<br />
:SwiftKey: I<br />
:SwiftKey: Am<br />
:SwiftKey: So<br />
:SwiftKey: Sorry<br />
:SwiftKey: That's<br />
:SwiftKey: Never<br />
:SwiftKey: Happened<br />
:SwiftKey: Before.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1052:_Every_Major%27s_Terrible&diff=167721052: Every Major's Terrible2012-11-09T16:55:10Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: youtube → YouTube</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1052<br />
| date = May 7, 2012<br />
| title = 1052: Every Major&#39;s Terrible<br />
| image = Every Major's Terrible.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = Someday I'll be the first to get a Ph. D in 'Undeclared'.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
'Undeclared' is sometimes called "General Studies".<br />
<br />
Here's a YouTube video of "I Am the Very Model of A Modern Major's General" [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zSGWoXDFM64] for those who need to get the tune.<br />
<br />
Here's is Tom Lehrer's Elements.[http://www.privatehand.com/flash/elements.html]<br />
<br />
And [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U3zAbQ0aMK8 here] is Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious from Mary Poppins.<br />
<br />
In panel 4, {{w|Methyl acetate}} is the solvent used to remove stamps from their envelope.<br />
<br />
In panel 8, {{w|underwater basket weaving}} is a commonly used metaphor for any college major that is easy or worthless.<br />
<br />
In panel 25, {{w|supermoon}} and {{w|zodiac}} are terms invented not by astronomers, but rather by early {{w|astrology|astrologists}}.<br />
<br />
In panel 26, {{w|agronomy}} is the science of using plants as food or fuel, while the unrelated {{w|agoraphobia}} is the fear of wide open spaces.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
And {{w|Sophie's Choice}} is any dilemma where choosing one cherished person or thing over the other will result in the death or destruction of the other, derived from the theme of the novel, and has also been turned into a romantic drama film. <br />
<br />
{{Comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1047:_Approximations&diff=167711047: Approximations2012-11-09T16:55:01Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: occuring → occurring</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1047<br />
| date = April 25, 2012<br />
| title = Approximations<br />
| image = approximations.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = Two tips: 1) 8675309 is not just prime, it's a twin prime, and 2) if you ever find yourself raising log(anything)^e or taking the pi-th root of anything, set down the marker and back away from the whiteboard; something has gone horribly wrong.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
Per {{w|twin prime|wikipedia}}: A twin prime is a {{w|prime number}} that differs from another prime number by two.<br />
<br />
“Rent Method” refers to the song “Seasons of Love” from the musical “Rent.” The song asks, “How do you measure a year?” One line says “525,600 minutes” while most of the rest of the song suggests the best way to measure a year is moments shared with a loved one.<br />
<br />
Incidentally, 75^4 overstates the number of seconds in a year by 29 hours.<br />
<br />
Jenny’s Number = (867)-5309, “please don’t change your number on me” But since this is *explain*xkcd, let’s add that it’s from a song by Tommy Tutone: [http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x20zsk_tommy-tutone-867-5309-jenny_music]<br />
<br />
The complicated formula for the White House switchboard yields 0.2024561415. (202) 456-1415 was (at least during the Bush administration) the phone number for the White House switchboard.<br />
<br />
All these approximations actually work astonishingly well. There are re-occurring math jokes along the lines of, “3/5 + pi/(7-pi) – sqrt(2) = 0, but your calculator is probably not good enough to compute this correctly”, which are mainly used to troll geeks. Those interested in number theory may easily compute that sqrt(2) is not even algebraic in the quotient field of Z[pi], which disproves the equality.<br />
<br />
Furthermore, there are some useful approximations (which were even more useful in times before calculators) such as “pi is approximately equal to 22/7”.<br />
<br />
[[Randall]] makes fun of both of these, using rather strange approximations (honestly: you may handle 22/7, but who can calculate in a sensible way with 99^8, let alone 30^(pi^e)?) to calculate some constants that are easy enough to handle in the decimal system, and stating such “slightly wrong” trick equations, one of which *is* actually correct (which may astonish only those who are not familiar with cosines).<br />
<br />
Jenny’s number and the White House switchboard have already been explained. The other constants are either self-explanatory or simple physical constants that have decimal values you may google in about 1 sec. I am not going to explain what these constants mean. Three things to note: near the bottom, there is a constant which you may easily confuse for a 9. Instead, it’s a g, the standard gravity.<br />
<br />
Now to the accuracy values: The fine structure constant is 0.007297 something, which is approximately 1/137. Randall’s point here is that 1/137 is not a very useful approximation: Firstly, 0.007297 is input into a calculator as fast as 1/137, and it’s more accurate. Secondly, if you do not have a calculator, 1/137 earns you nothing, for 137 is a prime and therefore does not ease further computation. That’s why Randall stated he’s had enough of this crap.<br />
<br />
The ruby laser wavelength varies because “ruby” is not clearly defined.<br />
<br />
The mean earth radius varies because there is not one single way to make a sphere out of the earth. Theoretically, it should be possible to measure the distance from the center for any point on the Earth’s surface and compute the mean integral, but practically it’s not, so geodesy has defined some sets of radii to take the mean of, yielding different mean radii. If you are interested in details, ask {{w|Earth radius#Mean radii|Wikipedia}}. Randall’s value lies somewhere in between, thus actually being a possible definition for Earth’s mean radius.<br />
<br />
The image text gives more or less useful information. Twin primes have always been a subject of interest, because they are comparatively rare, and because it is not yet known whether there are infinitely many of them.<br />
<br />
{{w|Pi}} is a natural constant that arises in describing circles or ellipses. As such, useful as it may be, it’s not supposed to occur anywhere in an exponent (unless you deal with complex numbers). Thus a sensible use of the pi-th root would be as if you found an English-speaking extraterrestrian community – not really impossible, but of such low probability that nobody would believe you.<br />
<br />
Same goes for the e-th power: e only appears in the basis of a power, not in the exponent.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
A table of slightly wrong equations and identities useful for approximations and/or trolling teachers. (Found using a mix of trial-and-error, Mathematica, and Robert Munafo's Ries tool.) All units are SI MKS unless otherwise noted.<br />
<br />
*Relation: One light year(m) ~= 99^8<br />
Accurate to within: one part in 40<br />
<br />
*Relation: Earth Surface(m^2) ~= 69^8<br />
Accurate to within: one part in 130<br />
<br />
*Relation: Ocean's volume(m^3) ~= 9^19<br />
Accurate to within: one part in 70<br />
<br />
*Relation: Seconds in a year ~= 75^4<br />
Accurate to within: one part in 400<br />
<br />
*Relation: Seconds in a year (rent method) ~= 525,600 x 60<br />
Accurate to within: one part in 1400<br />
<br />
*Relation: Age of the universe (seconds) ~= 15^15<br />
Accurate to within: one part in 70<br />
<br />
*Relation: Planck's constant ~= 1/(30^pi^e)<br />
Accurate to within: one part in 110<br />
<br />
*Relation: Fine structure constant ~= 1/140<br />
Accurate to within: [I've had enough of this 137 crap]<br />
<br />
*Relation: Fundamental charge ~= 3/(14 * pi^pi^pi)<br />
Accurate to within: one part in 500<br />
<br />
*Relation: White House Switchboard ~= 1/(e^((1 + 8^(1/(e-1)))^(1/pi)))<br />
<br />
*Relation: Jenny's Constant ~= (7^(e/1 - 1/e) - 9) * pi^2<br />
<br />
----<br />
Intermission: World Population Estimate which should stay current for a decade or two:<br />
<br />
Take the last two digits of the current year<br />
<br />
Example: 20[14] <br />
<br />
Subtract the number of leap years since hurricane Katrina<br />
<br />
Example:14 (minus 2008 and 2012) is 12<br />
<br />
Add a decimal point<br />
<br />
Example: 1.2<br />
<br />
Add 6<br />
<br />
Example: 6 + 1.2<br />
<br />
7.2 ~= World population in billions.<br />
<br />
Version for US population:<br />
<br />
Example: 20[14]<br />
<br />
Subtract 10<br />
<br />
Example: 4<br />
<br />
Multiply by 3<br />
<br />
Example: 12<br />
<br />
Add 10<br />
<br />
Example: 3[22] million<br />
----<br />
<br />
*Relation: Electron rest energy ~= e/7^16 Joules<br />
Accurate to within: one part in 1000<br />
<br />
*Relation: Light-year(miles) ~= 2^(42.42)<br />
Accurate to within: one part in 1000<br />
<br />
*Relation: sin(60 degrees) = (3^(1/2))/2 ~= e/pi<br />
Accurate to within: one part in 1000<br />
<br />
*Relation: 3^(1/2) ~= 2e/pi<br />
Accurate to within: one part in 1000<br />
<br />
*Relation: gamma(Euler's gamma constant) ~= 1/(3^(1/2))<br />
Accurate to within: One part in 4000<br />
<br />
*Relation: Feet in a meter ~= 5/(pi^(1/e))<br />
Accurate to within: one part in 4000<br />
<br />
*Relation: 5^(1/2) ~= 2/e + 3/2<br />
Accurate to within: one part in 7000<br />
<br />
*Relation: Avogadro's number ~= 69^pi^(5^(1/2))<br />
Accurate to within: one part in 25,000<br />
<br />
*Relation: Gravitational constant G ~= 1/(e^((pi - 1)^(pi + 1)))<br />
Accurate to within: one part in 25,000<br />
<br />
*Relation: R(gas constant) ~= (e+1) * (5^(1/2))<br />
Accurate to within: one part in 50,000<br />
<br />
*Relation: Proton-electron mass ratio ~= 6*pi^5<br />
Accurate to within: one part in 50,000<br />
<br />
*Relation: Liters in a gallon ~= 3 + pi/4<br />
Accurate to within: one part in 500,000<br />
<br />
*Relation: g ~= 6 + ln(45)<br />
Accurate to within: one part in 750,000<br />
<br />
*Relation: Proton-electron mass ratio ~= (e^8 - 10)/phi<br />
Accurate to within: one part in 5,000,000<br />
<br />
*Relation: Ruby laser wavelength ~= 1/(1200^2)<br />
Accurate to within: [within actual variation]<br />
<br />
*Relation: Mean Earth Radius ~= (5^8)*6e<br />
Accurate to within: [within actual variation]<br />
<br />
----<br />
Protip - not all of these are wrong:<br />
<br />
*2^(1/2) ~= 3/5 + pi/(7-pi)<br />
<br />
*cos(pi/7) + cos(3pi/7) + cos(5pi/7) ~= 1/2<br />
<br />
*gamma(Euler's gamma constant) ~= e/3^4 + e/5<br />
<br />
*5^(1/2) ~= (13 + 4pi)/(24 - 4pi)<br />
<br />
*sigma(1/n^n) ~= ln(3)^e<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics with charts]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1041:_Whites_of_Their_Eyes&diff=167701041: Whites of Their Eyes2012-11-09T16:54:47Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Transcript */Clean up, typos fixed: the the → the</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1041<br />
| date = April 11, 2012<br />
| title = Whites of Their Eyes<br />
| image = whites_of_their_eyes.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = Don't fire until you see through the fragile facade to the human being within.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
This comic is based on the famous command, "Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes", given by {{w|William Prescott}}, an {{w|American}} officer during the {{w|Revolutionary War}}. His men were running low on bullets, so Prescott commanded that they hold their fire until the enemy was close enough to guarantee a hit. In this comic, Prescott carries on after his initial command, adding romantic allegories. The title text expands on that, stating not to fire until you see the person's "soul" in their eyes.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
[A Revolutionary War soldier gives orders to two others hunkered down behind a rock]<br />
<br />
Lead soldier: Don't shoot until you see the whites of their eyes<br />
<br />
Lead: And smell the scent of their hair.<br />
<br />
[the two others getting an incredulous look on their faces]<br />
<br />
Lead: And taste the sweetness of their lips.<br />
<br />
[They begin taking fire from the opposition]<br />
<br />
Lead: And feel the heat of their skin pressed against yours, trembling as you-<br />
<br />
Soldier 2: Maybe we should just start shooting.<br />
<br />
Lead: Right, yes.<br />
<br />
{{Comic discussion}}</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1040:_Lakes_and_Oceans&diff=167691040: Lakes and Oceans2012-11-09T16:54:24Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1040<br />
| date = April 9, 2012<br />
| title = Lakes and Oceans<br />
| image = lakes_and_oceans.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = James Cameron has said that he didn't know its song would be so beautiful. He didn't close the door in time. He's sorry.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
[[:File:lakes and oceans large.png|Full size image (2.5MB - 2592×1728)]]<br />
<br />
This comic is a scale representation of our lakes and oceans, with an emphasis on how little we know about our oceans. It shows the depths and lengths to in relative scale. The {{w|Edmund Fitzgerald}} was a {{w|Great Lakes}} freighter which sank in 1975. The {{w|K-141 Kursk}} was a {{w|Russian}} nuclear submarine which sank in 2000 after an explosion. The {{w|RMS Lusitania}} was a {{w|British}} ocean liner which was famously sunk in 1915, prompting the {{w|United States}} to enter {{w|World War I}}. All three of these ships were sunk in water that was shallower than they were long. The shortest was the K-141 Kursk, which was 154 metres long, and sunk in water only 100 metres deep.<br />
<br />
Also on the diagram is the {{w|Titanic}}, which famously sank in 1912 after hitting an iceberg, and the {{w|Seawise Giant}}, which is the largest ship ever built, at 485 metres. It was scrapped in 2010. The {{w|Deepwater Horizon}} is an offshore oil well which made headlines after an explosion in 2010 caused the {{w|Deepwater_Horizon_oil_spill|world's largest oil spill}}. The skyscraper the {{w|Burj Khalifa}} is also shown. The Burj Khalifa is the world tallest manmade structure, and is located in the city of {{w|Dubai}}, in the {{w|United Arab Emirates}}. The {{w|Chilean}} mine showed on the far right is the {{w|San José Mine}}, which suffered a {{w|2010 Copiapó mining accident|collapse}} in 2010, trapping 33 men 700 metres underground for 69 days. The {{w|Kola Superdeep Borehole}} also shown on the right was a {{w|Soviet}} (and later Russian) research project attempting to drill as deep into the {{w|earth's crust}} as possible. It was abandoned in 2005, after reaching a record of 12,262 metres deep.<br />
<br />
Also shown are several notable bodies of water. There are the Great Lakes: {{w|Lake Superior}}, {{w|Lake Michigan}}, {{w|Lake Huron}}, {{w|Lake Erie}}, and {{w|Lake Ontario}}. {{w|Death Valley}} is a large, desert valley in {{w|California}}, named because the deadly climate and dry environment support very few life forms. {{w|Great Slave Lake}} is the deepest lake in {{w|North America}}, and is located in the {{w|North West Territories}}, in {{w|Canada}}. {{w|Crater Lake}} is located in {{w|Oregon}}, and is the deepest lake in the United States. {{w|Loch Ness}} is the {{w|Scotland|Scottish}} lake which is the location of the alleged "{{w|Loch Ness Monster}}". {{w|Lake Baikal}} is located in {{w|Russia}} and {{w|Mongolia}}, and is the world's deepest lake. On the far right side of the image is the {{w|Dead Sea}}, a lake near {{w|Jordon}} and {{w|Israel}} which is characterized for having such high salt levels that the waters cannot sustain life (and thus, it's literally a "dead" sea).<br />
<br />
In the water, the {{w|Andrea Gail}} was a ship that sunk in a {{w|1991 Perfect Storm|storm}} in 1991, and was later eulogized with a {{w|The_Perfect_Storm_(book)|book}} and {{w|The_Perfect_Storm_(film)|film}}. Several depth limits are shown, including the {{w|free-diving}} record (273 metres), the {{w|scuba diving}} record (330 metres), the depth bike tires go flat (approximately 100 metres), the depth at which water rushes in instead of air rushing out (approximately 2000 metres), the pressure that would push a cork into a bottle (approximately 250 metres), the depth that would push water up a faucet (approximately 75 metres), the depth an {{w|emperor penguin}} can dive (535 metres), the depth limit of an {{w|Ohio-class submarine}} (240 metres), the depth limit of a {{w|Typhoon class submarine}} (400 metres), the depth limit of a {{w|blue whale}} (500 metres), and the depth a {{w|leatherback sea turtle}} can dive (1280 metres).<br />
<br />
The comic also illustrates how {{w|sperm whales}} can dive as deep as 3000 metres (though don't frequently go deeper than 400 metres). It is presumed that they dive so deep to feed on {{w|giant squid}}, which can be found as deep as 3000 metres (but, to our knowledge, are more commonly found in depths of 300 to 1000 metres). The fact that sperm whales can dive so deep and come up battered emphasizes Randall's point that we know so little about our oceans. Also shown are the depth limit of the {{w|DSV Alvin}}, a deep-sea vessel, the {{w|mid-ocean ridge}}, an underwater mountain range which could be considered to be the largest mountain range in the world, the {{w|Puerto Rico Trench}} (and the included {{w|Milwaukee Deep}}), which is the deepest part of the {{w|Atlantic Ocean}}, at 8648 metres, and the {{w|Mariana Trench}}, the deepest point of the {{w|Pacific Ocean}} at 10,944 metres. At the bottom of the Mariana Trench, pressure is as high as 1086 {{w|bar (unit)|bars}} and {{w|Xenophyophore|life forms}} have been found at depths as low as 10,641 metres.<br />
<br />
The marked {{w|abyssal plains}} are a deep-sea plain believed to hold a very diverse array of life forms, but are largely unexplored. The stick figures of {{w|David Bowie}} and {{w|Freddie Mercury}} are a reference to Bowie's song "{{w|Under Pressure}}". The label "the abyss" with its sublabel of "it's rude to stare" is a reference to the {{w|Friedrich Nietzsche}} quote, "when you stare into the abyss, the abyss stares back".<br />
<br />
The reference of the door at the bottom of the Marianas Trench is a reference to {{w|James Cameron}}'s attempt to reach the bottom of the trench in his {{w|Deepsea Challenger}} vessel, which he filmed with 3D cameras. The title text's allusion of music playing when Cameron opened this door is a reference to {{w|Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire}}, where {{w|Harry Potter}} obtains a golden egg which sings, but can only be understood underwater.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
Lakes and Oceans Depths and animal ship boat lengths are to scale; horizontal distance is not<br />
<br />
Fun Fact: The Edmund Fitzgerald, The Kursk, and The Lusitania all sank in water shallower than they were long.<br />
<br />
Edmund Fitzgerald Lake Superior Lake Michigan Lake Huron Lake Erie Lake Ontario Death Valley Great Slave Lake Crater Lake Loch Ness Lake Baikal Burj Khalifa Kursk Lusitania Aircraft carrier Titanic Seawise Giant (largest ship ever) Free-diving depth record Andrea Gail (probably) Scuba record Bike tires go flat Pressure at this deapth would force water up a household faucet Emperor penguin Ohio-class nuclear sub depth limit Typhoon-class nuclear sub depth limit Blue whale Leahterback turtle Deepwater horizion Dead sea Kola borehole: Soviet project to try to drill through the Earth's crust to the mantle just to see what would happen. Russians are awesome. Chilean mine collapse miner refuge Sperm whales dive this deep (they come up covered in wounds and sucker marks, so presumably there are big squid down here? ... man, we know nothing about the ocean.) Mid-ocean ridge Titanic (sunk bow & stern) Abyssal plain Alvin depth limit David Bowie & Freddie Mercury Puerto Rico Trench Milwaukee Deep Marianas Trench Challenger Deep Mysterious door which James cameron built his sub to reach and open. He will not say what he found within. Mauna Kea, Hawaii (accurate horizontal scale) Marianas trench OIL<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics with charts]]<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]<br />
[[Category:Large Drawings]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1039:_RuBisCO&diff=167681039: RuBisCO2012-11-09T16:54:18Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: choosen → chosen</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1039<br />
| date = April 6, 2012<br />
| title = RuBisCO<br />
| image = rubisco.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = Bruce Schneier believes safewords are fundamentally insecure and recommends that you ask your partner to stop via public key signature.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{w|Safeword|Safe words}} are designated words for sexual play which are meant to be called if one partner is uncomfortable with the way things are proceeding. Calling the pre-chosen "safe word" would be a sign to stop. To prevent accidental usage, people generally pick words that they wouldn't normally use. In the case of this comic, the characters are chemists, and the uncommon word they happen to have chosen is {{w|RuBisCO|Ribulose-bisphosphate carboxylase oxygenase}}, also known as RuBisCO (which actually isn't a very uncommon word, as it's the most abundant {{w|protein}} on earth, but it would be uncommon to use the full word). However, the length of the word makes it impractical for a safe word, as it would take too long to say.<br />
<br />
In the image text, {{w|Bruce Schneier}} is a computer security professional, and public keys are the publicly known half of {{w|public-key cryptography}}, which uses two mathematically linked keys to decrypt information.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
(Person in background (out-of-frame) screams out this word over all 3 panels)<br />
<br />
Sub: RIBULOSEBISPH..<br />
<br />
Sub: ...OSPHATECARBOXYL...<br />
<br />
Sub: ...ASEOXYGENASE!<br />
<br />
Dom: Oh, Sorry!<br />
<br />
Person: Man, chemists pick the worst safewords.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1038:_Fountain&diff=167671038: Fountain2012-11-09T16:54:04Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Transcript */Clean up</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1038<br />
| date = April 4, 2012<br />
| title = Fountain<br />
| image = fountain.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = Implausible, did you say? Sorry, couldn't quite hear you from all the way up heeeeeeeeere!<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
This comic is about how it's considered implausible to "fly" by positioning an umbrella under a water jet. However, with a strong enough jet of water, a powerful enough umbrella, and a sure grip, such an event is physically plausible (although you'd risk ripping your arm off).<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
[A wannabe Mary Poppins heads to a fountain with three massive water jets while holding an umbrella]<br />
<br />
[Person splashes through the pond]<br />
<br />
[Person gets to one of the jets]<br />
<br />
[Person opens up the umbrella]<br />
<br />
[Person swings umbrella into water jet stream]<br />
<br />
Person: WHEEEEEEE!<br />
<br />
{{Comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1037:_Umwelt&diff=167661037: Umwelt2012-11-09T16:53:35Z<p>XERXES.ai: Clean up, typos fixed: April Fools Day → April Fools' Day, controled → controlled, embarassing → embarrassing, april → April, wednesday → Wednesday, twitter → Twitter, youre → you're</p>
<hr />
<div>{{Incomplete}}<br />
{{comic<br />
| number = 1037<br />
| date = April 1, 2012<br />
| title = Umwelt<br />
| image = umwelt.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = Umwelt is the idea that because their senses pick up on different things, different animals in the same ecosystem actually live in very different worlds. Everything about you shapes the world you inhabit--from your ideology to your glasses prescription to your web browser.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
An {{w|umwelt}}, as the image text explains, is the idea that ones entire way of thinking is dependent on their surroundings. Thus, this {{w|April Fools}} comic changes based on the browser, location, or referrer. Thus, what the viewer is viewing the comic on, where they live, or where they came from determines which comic they actually see. As a result, there are actually multiple comics that went up on April Fools' Day (although only one is seen).<br />
<br />
===Aurora===<br />
The joke here may or may not be that the characters of xkcd cannot see anything other than the normal black and white of the comic, i.e. they are colorblind.<br />
<br />
===Snake===<br />
The joke here is the extreme length of snakes. The world's longest snake is the python, the longest ever being 33 feet. The red and blue circles refer to the hit game {{w|Portal}}<br />
<br />
===Black Hat===<br />
An analyst attempts to psychoanalyze [[Black Hat|Black Hat's]] [[72: Classhole|classhole]] tendencies. The joke here is that the turtle has actually been turned over and neither sees helping it as a priority.<br />
It's a reference to the Voight-Kampff test used in the movie Blade Runner (1982) to identify replicants.<br />
<br />
===Too Quiet===<br />
A reference to {{w|Jurassic Park (film)|Jurassic Park}} which has been [[87: Velociraptors|constantly]] [[135: Substitute|referred]] [[1110: Click and Drag|to]] [[155: Search History|before]] in this comic.<br />
<br />
===Galaxies===<br />
This is a joke on [[Megan|Megan's]] normally existentialist attitude. Whereas normally, she might be freaked out by the vastness of space, in this case, she can actually see the galaxies in question, and is furthermore weirded out by the fact that they seem to have a grudge against [[Cueball]].<br />
<br />
===xkcd Gold===<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
[Two people...]<br />
<br />
(..wait.. <scrolls through a listing of everything> oh goddammit Randall. Thanks a bunch, dude. I better get a raise for typing out all this)<br />
<br />
{Note to courageous readers- The transcript has been reordered in the order in which the comics appear in the picture and appropriate names have been given}<br />
<br />
===The void===<br />
[An epic void with a bright light shining right on you]<br />
<br />
===Aurora===<br />
[Person heading out past another person comfortably sitting in front of a desk]<br />
<br />
Person 1: Apparently there's a solar flare that's causing some Great Aurorae. CBC says they may even be visible here! Wanna drive out to see?<br />
<br />
Person 2: Hockey's on.<br />
<br />
Person 1: Ok. Later.<br />
<br />
[An expansive, marvelous image of emerald green northern lights, floating down through the sky]<br />
<br />
Person 2: See anything?<br />
<br />
Person 1: No, just clouds.<br />
<br />
Person 2: Not surprised.<br />
<br />
===Snake===<br />
<br />
[Two people standing next to each other. One is holding the head end of a snake. Depending on the width of your browser, the snake is: three frames, the third of which has a little bit of a bump; the first frame has a human-size bump, the second has a third person looking at the snake, and the third has the snake going though two Portals; a squirrel and the human-size bump in the first frame, a ring next to the third person in the second frame, and Beret Guy riding the snake in front of the portal; or The squirrel, a fourth person within the snake being coiled, and the human bump in the first frame, the ring, a fifth person in love, and the third person in the second frame, Beret Guy and the portal in the third frame, and the same two people in the fourth frame.]<br />
<br />
Person holding snake head: I found a snake, but then I forgot to stop.<br />
<br />
===Black hat===<br />
<br />
[Two people sitting at a desk. One is Black Hat Guy. The other is an analyst. Black Hat Guy has a number of terminals attached to his head]<br />
<br />
Analyst: You come across a tortoise in the desert. You flip it over. It struggles to right itself. You watch. You're not helping. Why is that? <br />
<br />
Black Hat Guy: It *knows* what it did.<br />
<br />
[View of the entire scene, with said turtle off in the distance on its back and trying to right itself.<br />
<br />
===Too quiet===<br />
<br />
[A group of four scale down a wall into a field in the middle of the night. They walk off single-file]<br />
<br />
Person 1: It's quiet.<br />
<br />
Person 3: Yeah - *Too* quiet.<br />
<br />
[A Velociraptor is off in the distance, following the group]<br />
<br />
Person 4: Yeah - too *too* quiet.<br />
<br />
Person 2: Yeah - 2quiet2furious.<br />
<br />
Person 1: Fuck off, Steve.<br />
<br />
===Pond===<br />
[A landscape showing a pond, some reeds, and a set of mountains off in the distance]<br />
<br />
===Galaxies===<br />
[A trio of galaxies]<br />
<br />
Galaxy 1: He's not looking!<br />
<br />
Galaxy 3: Let's get him!<br />
<br />
[Lines draw in illustrating the eye-line of one of a pair of people]<br />
<br />
Person 1: So he said he didn't get the text, but c'mon, he *never* misses texts. Right? ..hello?<br />
<br />
Person 2: I'm just staring at your head freaked out by th efact that there are millions of galaxies *directly behind it*.<br />
<br />
===xkcd Gold/Beehive part 1===<br />
<br />
[Person holding bat]<br />
<br />
Person: Sorry, but this comic<br />
<br />
[Person starts to wind up]<br />
<br />
requires<br />
<br />
[Person prepares to strike with bat]<br />
<br />
XKCD<br />
<br />
[Person swings at a beehive]<br />
<br />
GOLD<br />
<br />
===Beehive part 2===<br />
[Penis Bees fly out of the beehive]<br />
<br />
===Yo mamma===<br />
[Person yells at another person]<br />
<br />
Person 1;Oh yeah? Well you mama's so *cynical*, her only dog ballast is a *leash*!<br />
<br />
(This comic takes place in a dystopian future where the government is afraid dogs can hover, so it requires them to wear weights at all times, and some people privately doubt the government, but not enough to stop buying dog weights)<br />
<br />
===Reddit===<br />
Five seconds ago:<br />
<br />
[You sitting in front of a desk, reading a reddit thread]<br />
<br />
You: Oh, hey, reddit has a link to some XKCD april fools comic.<br />
<br />
Now: [An image of this very page]<br />
<br />
Five seconds from now:<br />
<br />
You: ..hey<br />
<br />
30 seconds from now:<br />
<br />
[DANCE PARTY!]<br />
<br />
===Buns and Hotdogs===<br />
<br />
Person: What I wanna know is why do hot dogs come in packages of six while buns come in these huge sacks of ash and blood from which "Ave Maria" is faintly audible?<br />
<br />
[Chanting sacks of gore in the background]<br />
<br />
===Twitter===<br />
[A Twitter account page with the following: Many tweets, fewer following, even fewer followers, A bunch of assholes in the suggested follow box, trending topics partitioned into: Word Games, Misogyny, and Bieber, stuff your eyes automatically ignore, A really pleasant blue. and the timeline: Something about a podcast, Someone confused because the description doesn't match the link, The link you clicked on to get to this comic, Rob Delaney, Passive Aggression, and horse_ebooks.]<br />
<br />
===Wikipedia===<br />
[There's no comic here because instead of drawing one, I spent the last hour reading every news story cited in the Wikipedia article on "The Mile High Club"]<br />
<br />
===Google Chrome===<br />
[A Chrome plugin error page]<br />
<br />
Chrome: This plugin requires Sergey Brin's permission to run. Please wait while he is woken.<br />
<br />
===Chrome/Firefox===<br />
[Two people; one is sitting at a desk in front of a laptop.]<br />
<br />
Person 1: Man, chrome's hardware acceleration really sucks.<br />
<br />
Person 2: Oh - Theres' a great add-on that fixes it.<br />
<br />
Person 1: Oh? What's it called?<br />
<br />
Person 2: "Firefox".<br />
<br />
===Google Chrome-2===<br />
[A Chrome plugin error page with the characteristic jigsaw piece]<br />
<br />
Chrome: Chrome is looking for this piece. Have you seen it? Chrome thinks it links up with a corner.<br />
<br />
===Mozilla Firefox Private Browsing===<br />
[Firefox error page]<br />
<br />
Firefox: Well, this is embarrassing. You know how I'm not supposed to peek at your browsing in private mode? Firefox.. is sorry. Firefox will not blame you if you<br />
<br />
[button with text]<br />
<br />
click here to report this incident.<br />
<br />
===Internet Explorer===<br />
[IE error page]<br />
<br />
IE: Error: Internet Explorer has given up.<br />
<br />
===Maxthon===<br />
Person: Maxthon? Hey, 2005 called. Didn't say anything. All I could hear was sobbing. This is getting harder. Anyway, yeah, Maxthon's still cool! Didn't know it was still around!<br />
<br />
===Netscape Navigator===<br />
[Person with tentacle arms]<br />
<br />
Person: Netscape Navigator? Hey, the nineties called - drunk as usual. I hung up without saying anything. This is getting harder. Anyway - it's cool that you'e got netscape running.<br />
<br />
===Rockmelt===<br />
[Person running to laptop]<br />
<br />
I ran to Rockmelt to hide my face<br />
<br />
[Person sitting at laptop]<br />
<br />
But Rockmelt cried out -<br />
<br />
[Laptop shouting]<br />
<br />
NO HIDING PLACE<br />
<br />
[zoom out]<br />
<br />
NO HIDING PLACE DOWN HERE<br />
<br />
===Google Chrome-4===<br />
[A chrome plugin error page]<br />
<br />
Chrome: There does not exist --nor could there *ever* exist-- a plugin capable of displaying this content.<br />
<br />
===Microsoft/Amazon/The Times/Google - Chrome===<br />
[Chrome error page]<br />
<br />
Chrome: This plugin requires clearance from the corporate press office in order to run. Remember, Microsoft/Amazon/The Times/Google is a team; individual employees should *never* speak for the company without authorization.<br />
<br />
===Military===<br />
[Person looking at two browser windows]<br />
<br />
I know y'all know what you're doing. But if you're on a military machine and you're supposed to be watching for missiles or something, I hope you're keeping an eye on that in the background while you're reading comics. Also: Thanks.<br />
<br />
===T-Mobile===<br />
[Error page]<br />
<br />
Data Error: T-Mobile was unable to establish a connection<br />
<br />
===AT&T/Verizon===<br />
[Error page] Error; You have exceeded your AT&T/Verizon monthly bandwidth cap. Mobile web browsing has been disabled.<br />
<br />
===France===<br />
[Two people; one of which is browsing using a laptop]<br />
<br />
Person 1: Hey, you're French, right? Ever see what happens when you type "French Military Victories" into Google?<br />
<br />
French person: Does it take you to an article on Napoleon?<br />
<br />
French person: ..no? Strange, given how he kicked everyone's asses up and down europe for over a decade.<br />
<br />
[beat]<br />
<br />
Person 1: Touche.<br />
<br />
French person: You know, that'd sound smarter if you didn't pronounce it like it rhymes with "douche".<br />
<br />
===Germany===<br />
[A person dropping food from an unorthodox high perch]<br />
<br />
June 1948: In response to the Soviet blockade of East Germany, the western allies construct the Berlin Chairlift.<br />
<br />
Person on chairlift: Food!<br />
<br />
===Israel===<br />
[Person on phone]<br />
<br />
(Translation from Hebrew)<br />
<br />
Person: Mom, I met a great guy! But he's not Jewish. ... Wait, what do you mean "neither are we"? I'm completely confused.<br />
<br />
===Carnot Cycle===<br />
[Person on a motorcycle with a heat-entropy graph on the side]<br />
<br />
Person 1: Check out my new Carnot Cycle!<br />
<br />
Person 2: Neat -- how fast does it go?<br />
<br />
Person 1: Depends how cold it is outside.<br />
<br />
===Great Britain===<br />
[Illustration of the atlantic ocean]<br />
<br />
American person: Sorry I don't have a comic poking fun at the UK here. I only had time to get to the most *important* US states.<br />
<br />
British person: Hey -- At least we have free health care and real ale.<br />
<br />
===Earthquake-Blizzard===<br />
[Two people sitting at a desk, facing each other. The desk rattles.]<br />
<br />
Person 1: Stop jiggling your leg.<br />
<br />
Person 2: I'm not ji-.. oh!<br />
<br />
Person 1: What!<br />
<br />
Person 2: You'll get it..<br />
<br />
[EVERYTHING RUMBLES]<br />
<br />
Person 1: ..HOLY CRAP IT'S AN EARTHQUAKE!<br />
<br />
Person 2: Just a little one. Happens all the time back in San Francisco.<br />
<br />
Person 1: But this is {Options: "Alabama", "Boston", "Chicago", "Dallas", "Georgia", "Halifax", "Illinois", "Michigan", "Minnesota", "Missouri", "the Northeast", "Ohio", "Oklahoma", "Ottawa", 'Pennsylvania", "Philadelphia", "Texas", "Toronto", "Tennessee", "New York", "Wisconsin"}! That was huge!<br />
<br />
Person 2: Seriously? That's the worst this place can do? Wow. I guess we grow up tougher in California.<br />
<br />
Person 1: Oh *really*... Six Months Later..<br />
<br />
[Both people are trudging through a massive blizzard]<br />
<br />
Person 2: In pictures, snow always looked so nice and sof -- AAAA! MY NECK! How do people live here?!<br />
<br />
Person 1: Come on - it's only three more miles.<br />
<br />
===Earthquake-Tornado===<br />
[Two people sitting at a desk, facing each other. The desk rattles.]<br />
<br />
Person 1: Stop jiggling your leg.<br />
<br />
Person 2: I'm not ji-.. oh!<br />
<br />
Person 1: What! Person 2: You'll get it..<br />
<br />
[EVERYTHING RUMBLES]<br />
<br />
Person 1: ..HOLY CRAP IT'S AN EARTHQUAKE!<br />
<br />
Person 2: Just a little one. Happens all the time back in San Francisco.<br />
<br />
Person 1: But this is {Options: "Alabama", "Dallas", "Illinois", "The Midwest", "Missouri", "Ohio", "Oklahoma", "Ottawa", "Tennessee", "Texas"}!<br />
<br />
That was huge!<br />
<br />
Person 2: Seriously? That's the worst this place can do? Wow. I guess we grow up tougher in California.<br />
<br />
Person 1: Oh *really*...<br />
<br />
Six Months Later..<br />
<br />
[Both people are in a shelter in a prairie with a rapidly-approaching tornado]<br />
<br />
Person 2: AAAA CLOSE THE SHELTER DOOR!<br />
<br />
Person 1: Say the magic words...<br />
<br />
Person 2: THIS PLACE IS THE WORST!<br />
<br />
Person 1: Thank you.<br />
<br />
===Lake Diver Killer===<br />
[TV Field Reporter in front of a cordoned-off lake]<br />
<br />
Police divers searching the bay say they have recovered thebody of another victim of the "Lake Diver Killer" During the search, three more divers were reported missing.<br />
<br />
===Washington===<br />
[The Lincoln Monument]<br />
<br />
In this Marble Prison As in the nightmares of the nation they tried to devour The nanobots that constituted Abraham Lincoln Are entombed forever.<br />
<br />
===Alaska===<br />
[A snowy Alaskan field]<br />
<br />
Person: Some people hunt wolves from helicopters. I hunt helicopters from a wolf.<br />
<br />
===Life in lab===<br />
[Newspaper headline]<br />
<br />
Scientists/UMass Amherst students/RIT students create life in lab<br />
<br />
[caption under picture of scientists]<br />
<br />
"The trick was fuckin'"<br />
<br />
===American Revolution===<br />
Robot Paul Revere: Remember: Zero if by land, One if by sea.<br />
<br />
===MIT===<br />
[Two people in front of a group of students]<br />
<br />
Person 1: I've hired a team of MIT students to count cards for us.<br />
<br />
Person 2: We'll be rich!<br />
<br />
[Person 2 deals some cards while the students watch]<br />
<br />
[The gears turn..]<br />
<br />
Student: Five. There are five cards.<br />
<br />
Person 1: I see their admission standards have been slipping.<br />
<br />
Person 2: Yeah - there are actually four.<br />
<br />
===MIT Course 15c===<br />
[Two people in front of a group of students]<br />
<br />
Person 1: I've hired a team of MIT students to count cards for us.<br />
<br />
Person 2: We'll be rich!<br />
<br />
[Person 2 deals some cards while the students watch]<br />
<br />
[The gears turn..]<br />
<br />
Student: Five. There are five cards.<br />
<br />
Person 1: I *knew* we shouldn't have picked course 15s.<br />
<br />
Person 2: Yeah - there are actually four.<br />
<br />
===Smith/Wellesley===<br />
[Two people in front of a group of students]<br />
<br />
Person 1: I've hired a team of Smith/Wellesley students to count cards for us.<br />
<br />
Person 2: We'll be rich!<br />
<br />
[Person 2 deals some cards while the students watch]<br />
<br />
[The gears turn..]<br />
<br />
Student: Five. There are five cards.<br />
<br />
Person 1: We should've gone with Wellesley/Smith.<br />
<br />
Person 2: Yeah - there are actually four.<br />
<br />
===CNU===<br />
[Person unsuspectingly strolls under a giant box trap controlled by a Trible.]<br />
<br />
I worry that CNU only invited me back as a ruse because they realized I never turned in my final paper and want my diploma back. But if it turns out it's for real, I'll see you Wednesday at the Ferguson!<br />
<br />
===Dana Farber===<br />
[Cueball, pointing towards head]<br />
<br />
Cueball: Check it out - In support of people going through chemo, i shaved my head.<br />
<br />
Lots of love to everyone reading this at Dana Farber. Cancer sucks. If you are new to DCFI, there's a great little garden on the third floor of the yawkey if you need somewhere quiet to just sit for a little bit and breathe.<br />
<br />
===Earthquake-Hurricane===<br />
[Two people sitting at a desk, facing each other. The desk rattles.]<br />
<br />
Person 1: Stop jiggling your leg.<br />
<br />
Person 2: I'm not ji-.. oh!<br />
<br />
Person 1: What! Person 2: You'll get it..<br />
<br />
[EVERYTHING RUMBLES]<br />
<br />
Person 1: ..HOLY CRAP IT'S AN EARTHQUAKE!<br />
<br />
Person 2: Just a little one. Happens all the time back in San Francisco.<br />
<br />
Person 1: But this is {Options: "D.C", "Florida", "Houston", "Miami", "New Jersey", "North Carolina", "South Carolina", "Virgina"}! That was huge!<br />
<br />
Person 2: Seriously? That's the worst this place can do? Wow. I guess we grow up tougher in California.<br />
<br />
Person 1: Oh *really*...<br />
<br />
Six Months Later..<br />
<br />
[Both are in the middle of a hurricane. Person 2 is grabbing onto a signpost to avoid being swept away]<br />
<br />
Person 2: AAAAA WHAT THE SHIIIIT!<br />
<br />
Person 1: Calm down - this is barely a category 2.<br />
<br />
===Corporate===<br />
[Error page]<br />
<br />
Error: This plugin requires clearance from the corporate press office in order to run. Remember, we work as a team; individual employees should *never* speak for the company without authorization.<br />
<br />
===Microsoft/Amazon - Firefox===<br />
[Firefox error page]<br />
<br />
Chrome: This plugin requires clearance from the corporate press office in order to run. Remember, Microsoft/Amazon is a team; individual employees should *never* speak for the company without authorization.<br />
<br />
===Microsoft/The Times===<br />
[Error page]<br />
<br />
Error: This plugin requires clearance from the corporate press office in order to run. Remember, Microsoft/The Times is a team; individual employees should *never* speak for the company without authorization.<br />
<br />
===Aurora-US===<br />
[Person heading out past another person comfortably sitting in front of a desk]<br />
<br />
Person 1: Apparently there's a solar storm causing northern lights over Canada. CNN say they might even be visible {Options: "As Far South As Us", "Here in Boston", "Maine", "Ohio", "Oregon", "New York"}! Wanna drive out to see?<br />
Person 2: It's cold out.<br />
Person 1: Ok. Later.<br />
<br />
[An expansive, marvelous image of emerald green northern lights, floating down through the sky]<br />
<br />
Person 2: See anything?<br />
<br />
Person 1: No, just clouds.<br />
<br />
Person 2: Not surprised.<br />
<br />
==Trivia==<br />
* Reddit user [http://www.reddit.com/user/SomePostMan SomePostMan] created a [http://www.reddit.com/r/xkcd/comments/t6wmh/all_umwelt_1037_comics_in_two_imgur_albums/ post] that collected all of the Umwelt comics and added explanations.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Dynamic comics]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1033:_Formal_Logic&diff=167651033: Formal Logic2012-11-09T16:51:09Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: self reference → self-reference</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1033<br />
| date = March 23, 2012<br />
| title = Formal Logic<br />
| image = formal_logic.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = Note that this implies you should NOT honk solely because I stopped for a pedestrian and you're behind me.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
The key part of this comic is "IFF", which in {{w|formal logic}} means "if and only if". "If and only if" represents a formal logic connector that the result is that the truth of either one of the connected statements requires the truth of the other, i.e., either both statements are true, or both are false. In the comic, if someone honks at this car, it means they like formal logic, there is not any other possible reason per this bumper sticker. (As we see in the image text.)<br />
<br />
The joke is the contained self-reference. You have to love formal logic to take the sticker serious and honk for exclusively that reason.<br />
<br />
But if you don’t love formal logic you would dislike the sticker at all and try to do something contradictory. And now the problem begins: If you don’t honk to contradict the sticker completely you automatically follow its instruction. So, there is nothing you can do except starting to love formal logic.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Vehicle with a bumper sticker:"Honk iff you love formal logic"]<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1023:_Late-Night_PBS&diff=167641023: Late-Night PBS2012-11-09T16:50:41Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: a capella → a cappella, a American → an American</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1023<br />
| date = February 29, 2012<br />
| title = Late-Night PBS<br />
| image = late_night_pbs.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = Then it switched to these old black-and-white tapes of Bob Ross slumped against the wall of an empty room, painting the least happy trees you've ever seen. Either PBS needs to beef up studio security or I need to stop using Ambien to sleep.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{w|PBS}} stands for Public Broadcasting Service and is an American TV channel that is (somewhat) supported by the viewers themselves through pledge drives. It often runs (and sometimes co-produces) acclaimed British {{w|costume drama}}s, including the mentioned "{{w|Downton Abbey}}".<br />
<br />
"{{w|Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego}}" was a {{w|computer game}} series in the mid-80s. The series moved to a {{w|Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego (Game Show)|game-show TV series}} in the early from around 1990 to 1995. The point of the series was to learn about geography and the world while playing a game or watching a game show. {{w|Carmen Sandiego}} was a mysterious character that you tracked around the globe, attempting to find clues to find out where she was headed to next.<br />
<br />
{{w|Mogadishu}} is a battle-torn city in {{w|Somalia}}, where there was the aptly named "{{w|Battle of Mogadishu (1993)|Battle of Mogadishu}}" in 1993, which would coincide with the airdates of "Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego" game show.<br />
<br />
{{w|The Killing Fields}} are a number of sites in {{w|Cambodia}} where large numbers of people were killed and buried by the {{w|Khmer Rouge}} regime, during its rule of the country from 1975 to 1979, immediately after the end of the {{w|Cambodian Civil War}} (1970-1975).<br />
<br />
The reference to "A Bookshelf in a Dutch Apartment" is a reference to {{w|Anne Frank}}, who was a Jewish girl who hid from the {{w|Nazi}}s in a Secret Annex hidden behind a bookshelf in an apartment in {{w|Amsterdam, Netherlands}}. She wrote the famous diary, {{w|Diary of Anne Frank}}.<br />
<br />
{{w|Rockapella}} was the {{w|a capella}} (keeping up the tradition of punny names for a cappella groups) group which sang the theme song to "Where in The World Is Carmen Sandiego." A capella is a phrase adopted into English from Italian meaning "''in the manner of the Church''" hearkening back to {{w|Gregorian chant}}, in the 19th century the term evolved to mean merely vocalization without accompaniment.<br />
<br />
The last frame also makes mention of how many programs intended for children, often have subtle themes for adults who may be watching the show with their children.<br />
<br />
In the title text there is a reference to {{w|Bob Ross}}, who is the famous painter who had a painting show on PBS called "{{w|The Joy of Painting}}" that amazingly ran for 12 years.<br />
<br />
{{w|Ambien}}, also known as Zolpidem, is a prescription medication used for the treatment of insomnia, as well as some brain disorders. Known side effects are vivid dreams and hallucinations if you wake up (or haven’t yet fallen asleep) while it is still active.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Scruffy is rubbing sleep out of their eyes and talking to clean shaven.]<br />
:Scruffy: Have you ever watched PBS late at night?<br />
:Scruffy: I fell asleep after Downton and woke up at like 3 AM.<br />
<br />
:[The upper portion of the panel continues dialogue, while the lower shows a drunk gameshow host and several contestants. The monitor shows a field of crosses, presumably graves.]<br />
:Scruffy: Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego was back on, except the host hadn't aged well and he'd clearly been drinking.<br />
:Scruffy: Every question took them to some horrible place like Mogadishu or the Cambodian killing fields.<br />
<br />
:[Now it shows a bookshelf revealing a hidden room.]<br />
:Scruffy: The kids were freaked out, but they kept playing. Eventually they were told they'd found Carmen Sandiego hiding behind a bookshelf in a Dutch apartment.<br />
<br />
:Scruffy: The Chief appeared and asked "Are you proud of what you've become?"<br />
:Scruffy: Then Rockapella walked out and just glared at the kids until they started crying.<br />
:Clean-shaven: I, uh, don't remember the old show being that dark.<br />
:Scruffy: Maybe we were too young to pick up on it.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1018:_Good_Cop,_Dadaist_Cop&diff=167631018: Good Cop, Dadaist Cop2012-11-09T16:50:25Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: an European → a European</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1018<br />
| date = February 17, 2012<br />
| title = Good Cop, Dadaist Cop<br />
| image = good_cop_dadaist_cop.png<br />
| imagesize =<br />
| titletext = NOW INVENT AN IMPOSSIBLE-TO-TRANSLATE LANGUAGE AND USE IT TO TELL US WHERE THE MONEY IS.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
This is a play on the traditional police officer strategy of "Good Cop, Bad Cop", in which two officers play different parts to get the suspect to give the required information. One is nice to the suspect and the other is mean to the suspect.<br />
<br />
However, in this comic, they use the strategy "Good Cop, Dadaist Cop" strategy in which one is nice to the suspect and the other is {{w|Dadaist}}, which is defined as (via [http://www.thefreedictionary.com/dadaist the Free Dictionary]) a European artistic and literary movement (1916-1923) that flouted conventional aesthetic and cultural values by producing works marked by nonsense, travesty, and incongruity.<br />
<br />
So, the Dadaist cop is spouting nonsense attempting to get the suspect to give some information. Unfortunately, this probably is not going to work.<br />
<br />
{{w|Mark Zuckerberg}} is the co-founder of {{w|Facebook}}; {{w|Church Latin}} (aka Ecclesiastical Latin) is a particular style of the {{w|Latin}} language used mainly by the {{w|Catholic Church}}. All that, however, is beside the point because Zuckerberg does not own a house (and thus does not have a {{w|mortgage}}), he rents. [http://allfacebook.com/mark-zuckerberg-moves-into-another-rental-house_b29174]<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1017:_Backward_in_Time&diff=167621017: Backward in Time2012-11-09T16:50:16Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Transcript */Clean up</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1017<br />
| date = February 15, 2012 <!-- date on archive page seems incorrect (2012-02-14) based on xkcd forum date of 2012-02-15 --><br />
| title = Backward in Time<br />
| image = backward_in_time.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = People tell me I have too much time on my hands, but really the problem is that there's too much time, PERIOD.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
[https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/pub?key=0Ak43bGxHGI1adDMtOHVWVXZrYzhKd2VtbFJJMmJPTEE&single=true&gid=1&output=html Here's the spreadsheet] which [[Randall]] used to calculate the times and dates for the comic. It also has a lot of other percentages and dates, so take a look if you are interested.<br />
<br />
[[Cueball]]/Randall creates this formula which helps him wait for long stretches of time which goes increasingly faster into the past as more time goes by, which gives him the effect of looking like the time goes by quickly. Which assists in the waiting process.<br />
<br />
As far as the actual math is concerned, the formula is an {{w|exponential function}} (i.e. the variable appears in the exponent). The effect that the function grows faster and faster as p grows, is due to T(p) being exponential. More precisely, when you repeatedly add some constant to the exponent, you will repeatedly multiply some (other) constant with the value of the function. Compare how “slow” a value grows by adding even high values (1, 1001, 2001, 3001, 4001, 5001 …) and how fast it grows by multiplying even low values (1, 10, 100, 1000, 10000, 100000 …)<br />
<br />
Now, the function has to be adjusted so that, as Randall put it, “the time spent in each part of the past is loosely proportional to how well I know it.” The most important adjustment is putting p to the power of three. That lowers the amount added to the exponent for low values (0.1³=0.001, 0.2³=0.004, i.e. only 3/1000 have been added for 10% workflow) and increases the amount for high values (0.8³=0.512, 0.9³=0.729, i.e. more than 1/5 has been added for 10% workflow). That means the recent past will pass even slower and the historic past even faster than it already does by choosing an exponential function.<br />
The remaining adjustments are technical. The coefficient in front of p³ adjusts the constant by which the result will be multiplied while adding some constant to p, while it also roughly ensures that p=1 yields the lifetime of the universe. The 3 added to the product in the exponent further adjusts the actual values of the power without touching the slope (the multiplicative constant). In the parentheses, e³ is subtracted to put the time to 0 when p=0. Otherwise the function would start approx. 20 yrs and 1 month ago. For bigger p, this offset does not matter much. (Imagine subtracting 20 yrs from the lifetime of the universe!)<br />
<br />
Finally, the result is subtracted from the current date for aesthetical reasons. The formula could tell you "20 yrs ago", or it could read "February 1992". Randall decided the latter would be better.<br />
<br />
[[940|(Also, the workout website, Fitocracy has been mentioned previously in xkcd.)]]<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
When I have a boring task to get through &mdash; a three-hour lecture, a giant file download, or a long term point goal in fitocracy &mdash; I use this formula to convert the percentage completed (p) into a date:<br />
<br />
T=(Current Date) - (e^(20.344p^3) - e^3) years<br />
<br />
When the task is 0% done, it gives today's date, and as I make progress, I move further and further back in time<br />
<br />
((inverse given in lighter colors))<br />
<br />
Inverse: p = sqrt((ln(T+e^3)-3)<br />
<br />
(20.3444))<br />
<br />
[Line Graph explaining the correlation between completion percentages and temporal deltas.]<br />
<br />
0% = now ((Date of comic is 2012-02-14T00:00-0500, approx. 1329195600 UNIX))<br />
<br />
10% = September 2011<br />
<br />
20% = 2008<br />
<br />
30% = 1997<br />
<br />
40% = 1958<br />
<br />
50% = 1776<br />
<br />
60% = 405 AD<br />
<br />
70% = 22,000 years ago<br />
<br />
80% = 671,000 years ago<br />
<br />
90% = 55 million years ago<br />
<br />
100% = 13.8 billion years ago<br />
<br />
]]<br />
<br />
It moves slowly through the first few years, then steadily accelerates. I tuned the formula so the time spent in each part of the past is loosely proportional to how well I know it. This means I hit familiar landmarks with each bit of progress, giving me a satisfying sense of movement.<br />
<br />
((The following are panels detailing completion percentages, correlated time periods, and notable events from this time period))<br />
<br />
7.308% December 18, 2011<br />
<br />
Around this time:<br />
<br />
Kim Jong-Il dies. US leaves Iraq.<br />
<br />
31.12% February 1995<br />
<br />
Around this time:<br />
<br />
Windows 95 debuts. OJ found not guilty.<br />
<br />
47.91% 1844<br />
<br />
Around this time:<br />
<br />
Rubber vulcanized, bicycle invented, wrench patented.<br />
<br />
70.33% 24,000 years ago<br />
<br />
Around this time:<br />
<br />
Caves painted, ceramic art made. Neanderthals extinct.<br />
<br />
90.42% 68 million years ago<br />
<br />
Around this time:<br />
<br />
First flowering plants. Chicxulub impact kills off most dinosaurs.<br />
<br />
100% 13.76 billion years ago<br />
<br />
Around this time:<br />
<br />
Universe begins. First stars ignite.<br />
<br />
Download complete.<br />
<br />
[Person 1 watches a download progress on a laptop in amazement and happiness. Person 2 stands nearby and looks at person 1 with a bemused posture]<br />
<br />
Person 1: Swoosh! Watching all that time blur past is such a rush!<br />
<br />
Person 2: So... you've tried to make an extreme sport out of.. ''waiting''.<br />
<br />
Person 1: Swoosh!<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Comics with charts]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1015:_Kerning&diff=167611015: Kerning2012-11-09T16:50:00Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: wikipedia → Wikipedia</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1015<br />
| date = February 10, 2012<br />
| title = Kerning<br />
| image = kerning.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = I have never been as self-conscious about my handwriting as when I was inking in the caption for this comic.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
== Explanation ==<br />
In typography, {{w|kerning}} (via Wikipedia) is the process of adjusting the spacing between characters in a proportional font, usually to achieve a visually pleasing result. Kerning is the adjustment of the space between individual letter forms.<br />
<br />
As you can see in the above comic, the spacing between the C and I and the C and E are different that than the rest of the words. And now all of us are going to be among those people that recognize bad kerning everywhere we go. Thanks, Randall.<br />
<br />
== Transcript ==<br />
:[Some IDIOT used a font with TERRIBLE kerning on the side of a building for a sign labeled "CITY OFFICES". Only.. you aren't even frickin' sure because of this terrible kerning, as the "C" and the "I" in "CITY" have waaay too strong kerning. And so do the "C" and the "E" in "OFFICES", to the point that it actually looks like TWO words. And the I and the C are so close together, they almost look like a freakish K! Two people stand in front of this sign. One notices all these obvious flaws, while the other exists in peaceful ignorance.]<br />
:Person 1: *Argh*!<br />
:Person 2: what?<br />
:If you really hate someone, teach them to recognize bad kerning.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1007:_Sustainable&diff=167601007: Sustainable2012-11-09T16:49:33Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: wikipedia → Wikipedia</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1007<br />
| date = January 23, 2012<br />
| title = Sustainable<br />
| image = sustainable.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = Though 100 years is longer than a lot of our resources.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
This is a graph of the usage of the word "Sustainable" in English in the United States each year. And as you can see, [[Randall]] extends the graph to the point where sustainable will be used as every word.<br />
<br />
Sustainable has been increasing in use as people of the US are concerned about making sure that Earth's resources are not totally exhausted in the near future by developing sustainable development. {{w|Sustainable development}} (using Wikipedia here) is a pattern of growth in which resource use aims to meet human needs while preserving the environment so that these needs can be met not only in the present, but also for generations to come.<br />
<br />
As Randall mentions in the title text, the 100 years it takes for the word sustainable to get to 100% usage is a lot longer than most of our non-renewable (and non-sustainable) resources will last on the Earth.<br />
<br />
The graph is plotted with a logarithmic independent axis. Most people aren't used to reading these kind of graphs, so while it looks like the increase is linear and one day we will wake up and find that the only word in our vocabulary is the word "Sustainable," we are merely in the first phase, where use is rocketing up. After some time the increase in the amount of "sustainable"s you hear will slow.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
Frequency of use of the word "sustainable" in US English text, as a percentage of all words, by year. Source: Google NGrams.<br />
<br />
[A two-axis graph with percentages increasing logarithmically (from 0.000001% to 1,000%) on the Y-axis, and years progressing linearly (from 1950 to 2140) on the X-axis. Actual data points show a high correlation from 0.00001 at 1950 to 0.001% at present day. Extrapolated data points exist for the future. 2036 (approx. 0.1%): "sustainable" occurs an average of once per page. 2061(approx. 1%): "sustainable" occurs an average of once per sentence. 2109(approx. 100%) All sentences are just the word "sustainable" over and over.]<br />
<br />
The word "sustainable" is unsustainable.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics with charts]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1005:_SOPA&diff=167591005: SOPA2012-11-09T16:49:21Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1005<br />
| date = January 18, 2012<br />
| title = SOPA<br />
| image = sopa.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = In protest of SOPA, I'm currently getting totally blacked out.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
== Explanation ==<br />
<br />
SOPA, the {{w|Stop Online Piracy Act}} and PIPA, the {{w|Protect IP Act}}, were a pair of controversial bills being considered by the United States government late 2011 and early 2012. The bills contained the ability for the US government to deny American internet users access to certain sites at a judge's request. These would be activated if the government could prove to a court that a site was primarily used to harbor illegally distributed copyrighted goods, such as video games, music, and TV shows.<br />
<br />
Many people considered this to be censorship and were concerned that this could instead be used by larger corporations to squelch smaller competing sites who may not have the resources to challenge a "take-down notice" in court.<br />
<br />
As the bills gained infamy online, many popular websites and web comics participated in a mass protest on January 18, 2012, to announce their displeasure with the bill in an attempt to convince the House of Representatives to reverse their judgement, which had at the time been considered likely to pass if drafted. This was xkcd's participation in the protest. [[Randall]] discusses that as someone who would have better copyright protection that he would not have ever gotten popular if fans had not been allowed to distribute the comic.<br />
<br />
[[File:sopa hidden message.png||upright=2|The comic image with the message revealed.]]<br />
<br />
In typical xkcd fashion, this comic contains several layers of depth that may not be immediately obvious to the casual observer. In this instance, the apparently solid-black region contains a hidden image revealed with simple brightness+contrast manipulation, with [[Black Hat]] saying "A message from sysadmins everywhere: Seriously, don't screw with DNS. If you break this internet, we are ''<u>not</u>'' making you a new one." This stems from the fact that sites could be ordered taken down by allowing manipulation of the {{w|DNS}} system itself, effectively making a site completely disappear from the web. This court-enforced DNS manipulation was considered by many technical professionals to damage the underlying structure of the internet, as well as potentially criminalizing recent work to improve its security.<br />
<br />
The image text referred to a common theme across protesting sites: a blackout of the internet. Sites such as Google changed to a black background, while Wikipedia prevented access by linking their sites to a black page with white text explaining their participation. This may also be a pun with the term "getting totally blacked out" which could simply mean "getting completely drunk", as "to black out" can mean to lose consciousness or loose all memories from a specific period of time, for instance because of too much alcohol.<br />
<br />
After the protest, the bills were postponed from being drafted on January 20, 2012.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[don't censor the web]<br />
:[Hidden in the background of the above text is Black Hat]<br />
:Black Hat: A message from sysadmins everywhere:<br />
:Black Hat: Seriously, don't screw with DNS. If you break this internet, we are ''not'' making you a new one.<br />
:I make my living drawing xkcd, which wouldn't have been possible if people hadn't been able to freely share my comics with each other all over the internet. As a copyright holder and small business owner, I oppose SOPA and PIPA. See the links below to learn more.<br />
:[Randall Munroe's signature, with a little drawing of [[Cueball]] on one of the tails]<br />
<br />
{{Comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Randall Munroe]]<br />
[[Category:Politics]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1004:_Batman&diff=167581004: Batman2012-11-09T16:49:15Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: is is → is</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1004<br />
| date = January 16, 2012<br />
| title = Batman<br />
| image = batman.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = I'm really worried Christopher Nolan will kill a man dressed like a bat in his next movie. (The man will be dressed like a bat, I mean. Christopher Nolan won't be, probably.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
This comic is a reference to the comic book and movie character Batman, who is actually wealthy playboy Bruce Wayne as we see on the left being referenced as "Master Wayne" by his butler Alfred. In the middle is the stick figure representation of Batman and on the right is the Joker as played by the late Heath Ledger. Each of these is an actual scene from a Batman film, with the subject text replaced. The premise, presumably, is that lines that sound very serious actually sound very stupid when you replace "Batman" with "a man dressed like a bat", even though that is what Batman is. In this way, [[Randall]] is pointing out that he Batman commands a lot of respect and fear considering that all he is a man in a costume.<br />
<br />
The in title text, Randall expressess his fear that Christopher Nolan (the director/producer/writer of the latest Batman trilogy) will kill Batman off in the next movie (''{{w|Dark Knight Rises}}''). Of course, Randall substitutes for "Batman" as in the comic. This causes a grammatical ambiguity which Randall points out where the "dressed like a bat" could apply to the "man" or to Nolan. A similar ambiguity explicitly discussed in the title text of [[1087: Cirith Ungol]].<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[One panel, depicting three wavy circles. The one in the center is slightly larger, and the ones on either side are higher up. Their edges are touching.]<br />
<br />
:[The left circle has Bruce Wayne in the foreground, with Alfred in the background.]<br />
:Alfred: Know your limits, Master Wayne.<br />
:Bruce: A man dressed like a bat ''has'' no limits.<br />
<br />
:[The center circle has a close-up on Batman in his cowl.]<br />
:Someone off-screen: ''What the hell are you?''<br />
<br />
:Batman: I'm a man dressed like a bat.<br />
<br />
:[In the right circle is The Joker.]<br />
:Off-screen: ''What do you propose?''<br />
<br />
:Joker: It"s simple - we kill a man dressed like a bat.<br />
<br />
:My Hobby: Whenever anyone says "Batman," I mentally replace it with "a man dressed like a bat."<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
:<small>For more discussion see the explainxkcd.com [http://www.explainxkcd.com/2012/01/16/batman/#comments blog comments].</small><br />
<br />
[[Category:My Hobby]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1000:_1000_Comics&diff=167571000: 1000 Comics2012-11-09T16:49:02Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Trivia */Clean up</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1000<br />
| date = January 6, 2012<br />
| title = 1000 Comics<br />
| image = 1000 comics.png<br />
| imagesize = 800px<br />
| titletext = Thank you for making me feel less alone.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
This comic is the 1000th comic shown on xkcd, containing 1000 characters from previous comics arranged in the shape of the number "1000". [[Megan]] is clearly excited as she screams "Wooooo!", but [[Cueball]], in true nerd fashion, thinks in base 2, saying that there are "just 24 to go until a big round-number milestone", as 1024 is a round number in base 2 (2<sup>10</sup>) where 1000 is a round number in base 10 (10<sup>3</sup>).<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
[1000 characters, numerous of which have appeared previously in other comics, are arranged to create the number "1000". Two more people stand in the foreground commenting on the formation]<br />
<br />
Megan: WOOOO!<br />
<br />
Cueball: Wow - Just 24 to go until a big round-number milestone!<br />
<br />
==Trivia==<br />
*There is a [[:file:1000 comics binary.png|"hidden" image]] if you connect the binary signs in the center of the image with lines in (binary) numerical order - 0,1,10,11,100,101,110,111,1000,1001 and back to 0.<br />
<br />
{{Comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Large Drawings]]<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=999:_Cougars&diff=16756999: Cougars2012-11-09T16:48:44Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: wikipedia → Wikipedia (2)</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 999<br />
| date = January 4, 2012<br />
| title = Cougars<br />
| image = cougars.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = If you're lying in bed tonight and you see yellow eyes glinting in your window, are you being stalked by a puma, a mountain lion, a panther, a catamount, or a cougar? Trick question--in North America, they're all names for the same species, Puma concolor! Isn't learning fun? Anyway, sleep tight!<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
In this comic, [[Randall]] is giving reason 58 why he should not have children. We see fictitious "father [[Cueball]]" talking about the Wikipedia entry for the list of fatal cougar attacks in North America. Here's the link so you can look for yourself.<br />
<br />
And the reason he should not have children is the fact that he can't resist himself when learning and sharing knowledge about the world (from Wikipedia). Usually, when you have kids and you learn scary things, you should not share it with them. {{w|List of fatal cougar attacks in North America|This is the article Cueball is reading}}.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
[Parent is sitting at a computer; child is standing behind.]<br />
<br />
Parent: Whoa, ever seen Wikipedia's list of people who were attacked and killed by cougars?<br />
<br />
Parent: Crazy how many of them were kids who were just playing outside their houses.<br />
<br />
Reason #58 I should never have children: My love of learning and sharing knowledge about the world.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=994:_Advent_Calendar&diff=16755994: Advent Calendar2012-11-09T16:48:30Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: , → ,</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 994<br />
| date = December 23, 2011<br />
| title = Advent Calendar<br />
| image = advent_calendar.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = I think you could get up to about 11:59:57 before you'd have trouble swallowing the chocolates fast enough. At that point, you'd need some kind of a liquify-and-chug apparatus to get up over the 11:59:59 barrier. Anyway, Merry Christmas!<br />
}}<br />
<br />
== Explanation ==<br />
In this comic, the picture depicts an {{w|Advent calendar}}, which has a chocolate every time they get halfway to Christmas. This is a joke because of {{w|Zeno's paradox}}, which said "Before a moving object can travel a certain distance, it must travel half that distance. Before it can travel half the distance it must travel 1/4 the distance, etc. This sequence goes on forever. Therefore, it seems that the original distance cannot be traveled, and motion is impossible. " so eating chocalates at diminishing intervals will make it so Christmas never happens. The scrollover test says that when you get close to midnight, it gets physically impossible to eat the chocolates that fast, but you could get the one second away mark with a chocolate liquidator and feeder tube, joking that if you took it seriously, you could go insane with a chocolate pumping machine.<br />
<br />
== Transcript ==<br />
:(There's a single large panel. It shows a portion of an advent calendar.))<br />
:December 23rd<br />
:December 24th 12:00AM<br />
:December 24th NOON<br />
:December 24th 6:00PM<br />
:December 24th 9:00PM<br />
:December 24th 10:30PM<br />
:December 24th 11:15PM<br />
:December 24th 11:37:30PM<br />
:December 24th 11:48:45PM<br />
:December 24th 11:54:22.5PM<br />
:December 24th 11:57:11.25PM<br />
:December 24th 11:58:35.63PM<br />
:...<br />
<br />
:Zeno's Advent Calendar<br />
<br />
{{Comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=993:_Brand_Identity&diff=16754993: Brand Identity2012-11-09T16:48:18Z<p>XERXES.ai: Clean up, typos fixed: , → ,</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 993<br />
| date = December 21, 2011<br />
| title = Brand Identity<br />
| image = brand_identity.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = Legally-mandated information would be printed on the back or discreetly along the bottom. In small letters under the nutrition information it would say 'Like our products? Visit our website!' There would be no URL.<br />
}} <br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
This comic presents [[Randall]]'s idea for a line of food products all with clear black font on a white background. The products with black block lettering and white background stand out from the other items in this comic. <br />
<br />
In the title text, the lack of a listed URL relates to the lack of branding on the package. It is possible that omitting the URL the consumer’s curiosity will be aroused, and they will spend time on the internet hunting for the actual site.<br />
<br />
==Trivia==<br />
The Swedish grocery store chain “Konsum”, whose low-price brand “Blåvitt” (literally “blue-white”, which were the only two colours used) had almost that design from 1979 to 1998, and still is one of the most widely recognised brands in Sweden. See http://krafsklotter.blogspot.com/2009/06/blavitt.html<br />
<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
The incredibly varied shelf of a supermarket aisle. There are many different types of products on this shelf. Each type has numerous different brands, all surrounding a very plain brand that has, as its only label, the type of product. A plain bag, labeled in plain black letters, says "Potato Chips" and is surrounded by all the other various brands of potato chips. The same exists for tissues, crackers, matches, peanuts, hot sauce, sugar, milk, pasta, coffee, black beans, lima beans, mayo, ketchup, tea, and bread. There is a stark contrast between the incredibly noisy and complex labeling of every other brand and this simple one. <br />
<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=992:_Mnemonics&diff=16753992: Mnemonics2012-11-09T16:48:09Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: is is → is</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 992<br />
| date = December 19, 2011<br />
| title = Mnemonics<br />
| image = mnemonics.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = Sailor Moon's head exploded once' and 'Some men have explosive orgasms' both work for the Great Lakes from west to east (Paddle-to-the-Sea order).<br />
}} <br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
Here we have six different science mnemonics. A {{w|mnemonic}} is (thanks Wikipedia!) any learning technique that aids memory. Mnemonics rely on associations between easy-to-remember constructs which can be related back to the data that are to be remembered. This is based on the observation that the human mind much more easily remembers spatial, personal, surprising, physical, sexual or humorous or otherwise meaningful information, as compared to retrieving arbitrary sequences. To improve long term memory, mnemonic systems are used to make memorization easier.<br />
<br />
The category is listed at the top of the box, the members are listed below that. Then there is the traditional mnemonic that children are usually taught in school to help them remember. Below the comic is one or two options for new mnemonics suggested by Randall. The top one is illustrated in the frame.<br />
<br />
*{{w|SI}} Prefixes are the prefixes for the systems of units from large to small and since there are so many, the mnemonic needs two lines. {{w|Karl Marx}}, as he is seen in the comic, was a German philosopher, economist, sociologist, historian, journalist, and revolutionary socialist. {{w|Microsoft}}'s {{w|Zune}} was a failed mp3 player that Microsoft brought to market and never "caught on".<br />
<br />
*{{w|Taxonomy}} is the science of identifying and naming species. {{w|Katy Perry}} is an {{w|America}} {{w|pop music}} singer, who's popular songs are ones like "Fireworks" or "I Kissed A Girl". And that is the stick figure of her in the illustration.<br />
<br />
*In the geologic periods frame, the illustration is of a month's worth of "the pill" a common contraceptive.<br />
<br />
*In {{w|Resistor}} Color Codes, {{w|Glenn Beck}} is in the illustration. Beck is a far-right conservative commentator in the US, who used to have a show on the {{w|Fox News}} Network.<br />
**The sign Glenn Beck is holding is a reference to [[966: Jet Fuel]]<br />
<br />
*In the Planets frame, the illustration is of Mary and Joseph, who in the story of the Birth of Jesus in the Bible, were mother and father to Jesus. However, Mary's conception of Jesus was from God and Mary was still considered a virgin. This mnemonic shows Joseph not really believing that story.<br />
**Most traditional Planets mnemonics include Pluto, which was "officially" considered a planet before 2006.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
XKCD Presents: Some New Science Mnemonics<br />
<br />
<br />
Pattern goes: <br />
<br />
((Subject<br />
<br />
Elements<br />
<br />
Traditional mnemonic<br />
<br />
Contents of frame<br />
<br />
New mnemonics))<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
'''Order of Operations'''<br />
<br />
Parentheses, Exponents, Division & Multiplication, Addition & Subtraction<br />
<br />
Traditional: Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally<br />
<br />
[Person having a shark delivered to his laptop]<br />
<br />
Please Email My Dad A Shark<br />
<br />
or<br />
<br />
People Expect More Drugs And Sex<br />
<br />
<br />
'''SI Prefixes'''<br />
<br />
Big: Kilo, Mega, Giga, Tera, Peta, Exa, Zetta, Yotta<br />
<br />
Milli, Micro, Nano, Pico, Femto, Atto, Zepto, Yocto<br />
<br />
(Graph of the declining profits of the Zune)<br />
<br />
[Karl Marx delivering a number of zeppelins to a bunch of confused proletariats]<br />
<br />
Big: Karl Marx Gave The Proletariat Eleven Zeppelins, Yo<br />
<br />
Small: Microsoft Made No Profit From Anyone's Zunes, Yo <br />
<br />
<br />
'''Taxonomy'''<br />
<br />
Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species<br />
<br />
Traditional: King Philip Came Over For Good Sex<br />
<br />
Katy Perry: I'm not sure who doubts this, really.<br />
<br />
Katy Perry Claims Orgasms Feel Good Sometimes<br />
<br />
or<br />
<br />
Kernel Panics Crash Our Family Game System. <br />
<br />
<br />
'''Geologic Periods'''<br />
<br />
(Precambrian), Cambrian, Ordovician, Silurian, Devonian, Carboniferous, Permian, Triassic, Jurassic, Cretaceous, <br />
Paleogene, Neogene<br />
<br />
Traditional: [I never learned one]<br />
<br />
[A month's set of birth control pills]<br />
<br />
PolyCystic Ovarian Syndrome Does Cause Problems That Judicious Contraceptives Partially Negate <br />
<br />
<br />
'''Resistor Color Codes'''<br />
<br />
Black, Brown, Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Violet, Gray, White<br />
<br />
Traditional: [none I care for]<br />
<br />
[Glenn Beck holding the traditional "Nanobot Vaccine Chemtrail 9 11" sign]<br />
<br />
"Big Brother Reptilian Overlords", yelled Glenn, "Brainwashing Via Ground water!!"<br />
<br />
or<br />
<br />
Be Bold, Respect Others; You'll Gradually Become Versatile, Great Wikipedians! <br />
<br />
<br />
'''Planets'''<br />
<br />
Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune<br />
<br />
Traditional: My Very Excellent Mother Just Served Us Nachos<br />
<br />
[A pregnant Mary attempting to explain things to an incredulous Joseph]<br />
<br />
Mary's "Virgin" Explanation Made Joseph Suspect Upstairs Neighbor.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Airships]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=985:_Percentage_Points&diff=16752985: Percentage Points2012-11-09T16:47:41Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: none the less → nonetheless</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 985<br />
| date = December 2, 2011<br />
| title = Percentage Points<br />
| image = percentage_points.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = Grayton also proposed making college scholarships available exclusively to sexually active teens, amnesty for illegal immigrants who create room for themselves by killing a citizen, and a graduated income tax based on penis size. He has been endorsed by Tracy Morgan, John Wilkes Booth's ghost, and the Time Cube guy.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
Senator Grayton is a fictional name, made up for this comic, which is a bit surprising as the names used in xkcd are usually references to something.<br />
<br />
A line on each of the issues that Grayton fictionally supports:<br />
<br />
*Tax Breaks to Drunk Drivers - Grayton proposed to give money back on their taxes for people who have been convicted of a DUI or DWI. Driving Under the Influence or Driving While Intoxicated<br />
*{{w|Predator Drones}} and the War on {{w|Christmas}} - The War on Christmas is a not a real war, it is simply {{w|Christian}}s who believe that non-Christians are trying to get rid of Christmas trees, Christmas music and the endless barrage of Christmas-themed nonsense we get from Thanksgiving to Christmas. I don't know how his support would go down if he supported unmanned Predator Drones to destroy people who hate Christmas, knowing America. (Jokes!)<br />
*College Scholarships to Sexually Active Teens - Not sure how they would test for this on the scholarship application, but it is funny nonetheless.<br />
*Illegal Immigrants Who Murder - This is an argument for immigration, but only if they make "room" and possibly an open job for themselves by getting rid of another person. This one is pretty evil.<br />
*Income Tax Based on Penis Size - Wow, this one would never pass!<br />
<br />
On To the Names:<br />
<br />
*{{w|Tracy Morgan}} is an actor in the TV Show {{w|30 Rock}}, who plays {{w|Tracy Jordan}}, he is known for his outlandish statements on politics and everything else in the world. He has been reprimanded for controversial comments on homosexuals and {{w|Sarah Palin}} (in separate incidents).<br />
*{{w|Josh Wilkes Booth}} is the person who assassinated {{w|Abraham Lincoln}}. He was a sympathizer with the {{w|Confederate}} cause and was for slavery and all its trappings.<br />
*{{w|Time Cube}} Guy is Gene Ray, also known as Otis E. Ray. He has a website known as Time Cube (Thanks Wikipedia) where he sets out his personal model of reality, which he calls Time Cube. He suggests that all of modern physics is wrong, in addition to claiming religion to be evil, specifically Christianity, and the idea of family is poisoning children.<br />
<br />
Ok, finally to the numbers:<br />
<br />
If his polling is at 20% and drops by 19%, without specifying percentage points, that means that his support has only dropped 3.8 percentage points, because 19% of 20% is only 3.8%. That would mean after all his outrageous statements, his support dropped from 20% to 16.2%. However, if they had said his 20% polling dropped 19 percentage points, that would mean his support has dropped to 1%. Therefore, the distinction is important.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
[An average news anchor reading news copy of below average intelligence appears on a TV, with one person watching it in utter disgust]<br />
<br />
News Anchor: Senator Grayton's campaign has imploded following the candidate's promise to give tax breaks to drunk drivers and to authorize the use of unmanned Predator drones in the War On Christmas. Grayton had been polling at 20%, but his support has since plunged by 19%.<br />
<br />
I hate the ambiguity created when people don't distinguish between percentages and percentage points.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Politics]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=984:_Space_Launch_System&diff=16751984: Space Launch System2012-11-09T16:47:34Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Transcript */Clean up, typos fixed: , → ,</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 984<br />
| date = November 30, 2011<br />
| title = Space Launch System<br />
| image = space_launch_system.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = The SLS head engineer plans to invite Shania Twain to stand under the completed prototype, then tell her, 'I don't expect you to date me just because I'm a rocket scientist, but you've gotta admit--this is pretty fucking impressive.'<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
SLS, which stands for {{w|Space Launch System}} (naturally) is the new launch program being designed by {{w|NASA}} to replace the retired {{w|Space Shuttle}} launch system. In the first frame, [[Cueball]] is showing [[Black Hat]] something about the SLS, possibly a video on his phone or other portable electronic device.<br />
<br />
As usual with his appearances, Black Hat is causing trouble. Here Black Hat would appear to be telling the truth because {{w|Nazi}}-{{w|Germany}} era scientists like {{w|Wernher von Braun}}, who was one of the developers of the {{w|Saturn V}} launch vehicle, came over to NASA and helped develop NASA's space program.<br />
<br />
Black Hat's assumption in the last frame is obviously a bridge too far (which is where the joke is in the comic), but he gets his desired reaction out of Cueball, who is hanging his head.<br />
<br />
{{w|Shania Twain}} comes into this comic in the title text because in her song "That Don't Impress Me Much", she sings: "Okay, so you're a rocket scientist / That don't impress me much". But, the title text argues that if she stood under the new SLS prototype, she would admit it was in fact, impressive.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
Person 1: Check out the SLS - 130 tons to orbit. Finally, rockets that improve on the ones we had 40 years ago.<br />
<br />
Black Hat Man: Are we getting Nazis to build those ones too?<br />
<br />
Person 1, offscreen: What?<br />
<br />
Black Hat Man, offscreen: When we first captured von Braun and his team, we had our engineers interview them, then *we* built the rockets. But our rockets kept exploding<br />
<br />
[von Braun interviewed by a scientist while under guard]<br />
<br />
[The same scientist in front of a spectacularly exploding rocket]<br />
<br />
Black Hat Man, narrating: Eventually we gave up and had the German teams do it, and they built us the Saturn V moon rocket. <br />
<br />
[The Saturn V gracefully arcing across the night sky]<br />
<br />
Person 1: I'm.. not sure what lesson to take from that.<br />
<br />
Black Hat Man: "If you want something done right, learning from the Nazis isn't enough. You have to actually put them in charge.<br />
<br />
Person 1: That's a *terrible* lesson.<br />
<br />
Black Hat Man: Then I guess you should get a Nazi to come up with a better one.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=978:_Citogenesis&diff=16750978: Citogenesis2012-11-09T16:47:01Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Transcript */Clean up</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 978<br />
| date = November 16, 2011<br />
| title = Citogenesis<br />
| image = citogenesis.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = I just read a pop-science book by a respected author. One chapter, and much of the thesis, was based around wildly inaccurate data which traced back to ... Wikipedia. To encourage people to be on their toes, I'm not going to say what book or author.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
This comic is calling into question the {{w|Wikipedia#Accuracy of content|accuracy}} of {{w|Wikipedia}}. This is a favorite past-time of librarians and professional researchers, and not usually one of [[Randall]]'s. But, to take it seriously for a moment: People, Wikipedia is editable by anyone. If you are doing serious work, follow through the citations, and decide which are from upstanding sources, and which are just people writing on their blog, and which are people writing on their blog who know what they are talking about.<br />
<br />
The title of the comic is a play on the word [http://www.merriam-webster.com/medical/cytogenesis cytogenesis]. Cytogenesis is the formation of cells and their development. Citogenesis, on the other hand is a [http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/portmanteau portmanteau] of 'Citation' and 'Genesis'. [http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/citation Citation] meaning quoting a source. [http://mw1.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/genesis?show=1&t=1346949206 Genesis] being the origin of something. So, citogenesis would be the creation of a quote that can be used to back-up a fact or statement.<br />
<br />
The comic is discussing citogenesis occurring on Wikipedia. {{w|Wikipedia}} is a free and freely editable encyclopedia that aims to become the most complete and correct knowledge base available, in all languages, to all people. Wikipedia is managed by the {{w|Wikimedia Foundation}} who publish {{w|MediaWiki}}, a web-based {{w|wiki}} engine written in {{w|PHP}}. The explain xkcd wiki is run on a MediaWiki server.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
Where Citations Come From:<br />
<br />
Citogenesis Step #1<br />
<br />
Through a convoluted process, a user&#39;s brain generates facts. These are typed into Wikipedia.<br />
<br />
[A guy with short hair sits at a desk, typing on a laptop.]<br />
<br />
Guy: (typing) The "scroll lock" key was designed by future Energy Secretary Steven Chu in a college project.<br />
<br />
<br />
A rushed writer checks Wikipedia for a summary of their subject.<br />
<br />
[A woman with a ponytail sits at a desk, typing on a desktop.]<br />
<br />
Woman: (typing) US Energy Secretary Steven Chu, (Nobel Prizewinner and creator of the ubiquitous "scroll lock" key) testified before Congress today...<br />
<br />
Step #2<br />
<br />
<br />
Surprised readers check Wikipedia, see the claim, and flag it for review. A passing editor finds the piece and adds it as a citation. <br />
<br />
[A man sits on a couch with a laptop in his lap, typing.]<br />
<br />
Man: Google is your friend, people. (typing) &lt;ref&gt;{{cite web|url=<br />
<br />
Step #3<br />
<br />
<br />
Step #4<br />
<br />
Now that other writers have a real source, they repeat the fact.<br />
<br />
[A flow chart, with "Wikipedia citation" in the center. The word "Wikipedia" is in black, the word "citations" is white with a red background.<br />
<br />
A black arrow leads from "brain" to "Wikipedia."<br />
<br />
A black arrow labeled "words" leads from "Wikipedia" to "careless writers," and a red arrow labeled "citations" leads back to "Wikipedia citations."<br />
<br />
A black & red arrow leads from "Wikipedia" to "cited facts" which leads to "slightly more careful writers," which leads to "more citations," which leads back to "Wikipedia" (all black & red arrows).]<br />
<br />
References proliferate, completing the citogenesis process.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics with charts]]<br />
[[Category:Wikipedia]]<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=977:_Map_Projections&diff=16749977: Map Projections2012-11-09T16:46:35Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: a icosahedron → an icosahedron</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 977<br />
| date = November 14, 2011<br />
| title = Map Projections<br />
| image = map_projections.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = What's that? You think I don't like the Peters map because I'm uncomfortable with having my cultural assumptions challenged? Are you sure you're not ... ::puts on sunglasses:: ... projecting?<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
An explanation for each!<br />
<br />
;Mercator<br />
<br />
{{w|Gerardus Mercator}}, a Flemish cartographer presented the {{w|Mercator projection}} in 1569. It was useful to have a standardized map to sail the seas by, but it's radically incorrect in how it shows the size of landmasses. The comic implies that it's not a very good projection and that people who like it aren't very interested in maps.<br />
<br />
;Van der Grinten<br />
The {{w|Van der Grinten projection}} is not much better than the Mercator. It was adopted by {{w|National Geographic}} in 1922 and was used until they updated to the Robinson projection in 1988.<br />
<br />
The Van der Grinten projection is circular as opposed to the Mercator projection. Circles look happier than squares, leading to the conclusion that people who like the projection are optimistic.<br />
<br />
;Robinson<br />
The {{w|Robinson projection}} was developed by {{w|Arthur H. Robinson}} as a map that was supposed to look nice. National Geographic moved to this projection in 1988, and used it for ten years, moving to the Winkel-Tripel in 1998.<br />
<br />
{{w|The Beatles}} was a rock band that enjoyed great commercial success in the 1960s. The Beatles, coffee, and running shoes suggest an ordinary, easygoing lifestyle paralleled by the projection.<br />
<br />
;Dymaxion<br />
Also called the Fuller Map, the {{w|Dymaxion Map}} takes a sphere and turns it into an icosahedron, that is a polyhedron with triangular faces. It is far easier to unwrap an icosahedron than it is to unwrap a sphere into a 2D object and has very little skewing of the poles.<br />
<br />
Randall associates the projection to geek subculture and niche markets:<br />
<br />
*{{w|Isaac Asimov}} was an American science-fiction writer, that (as well as publishing many textbooks) is considered the father of the modern concept of robots. He invented the {{w|Three Laws of Robotics}}. He also worked on more than 500 books throughout his career.<br />
*{{w|XML}} is the eXtensible Markup Language. It is used to represent data in a format that machines can read and understand, as well as being human-readable. In practice, XML is cumbersome to read.<br />
*{{w|Vibram FiveFingers|Toed-Shoes}} are a [[1065|favorite]] of Randall's to pick on. In society they are seen as a {{w|Hipster (contemporary subculture)#Late 1990s through late 2000s|hipster}} clothing item.<br />
*Brought to the world by {{w|Dean Kamen}}, the {{w|Segway PT}} was supposed to be a device that changed the way cities were built. In reality, most principalities have put in place rules specifically against Segways, making them a frustration to own and use within the law (In some states in Australia, it is illegal to use them on public footpaths or roads). Also, the former owner of {{w|Segway Inc.}}, the late {{w|Jimi Heselden}}, accidentally rode his Segway off a cliff in 2010.<br />
*{{w|Virtual reality|3D goggles}} are a very niche market only pursued by enthusiasts. In the 1990s the promise of virtual realities was very tantalizing, many companies attempted to perfect it, but fell short of the mark. Also the phrase "The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence." is relevant.<br />
*{{w|Dvorak Simplified Keyboard|Dvorak}} is an alternate keyboard layout to QWERTY. Where QWERTY was invented to help keep manual typewriters from jamming (by placing the most used keys further away from each other), Dr. {{w|August Dvorak}} performed many studies and found the mathematically optimal keyboard layout to reduce finger travel for right handed typists. While technically better than QWERTY, QWERTY had become the standard. All the keyboards were laid out in QWERTY format, and retraining the brain after becoming a touch typist is extremely difficult.<br />
<br />
;Winkel Tripel<br />
Proposed by {{w|Oswald Winkel}} in 1921, this map tried to reduce the three (German: tripel) main problems with map projections: area, direction, and distance. The {{w|Kavrayskiy VII projection|Kavrayskiy projection}} is very similar to the Winkel Tripel and was used by the USSR, but very few in the Western world know of it.<br />
<br />
The comic links this projection to {{w|hipster}} subculture. The whole point of hipsters is to avoid conforming to mainstream fashions. "Post-" refers to a variety of musical genres such as {{w|post-punk}}, {{w|post-grunge}}, {{w|post-minimalism}}, etc. that branch off of other genres.<br />
<br />
;Goode Homolosine<br />
The {{w|Goode Homolosine projection}} takes a different approach to skewing a sphere into a roughly circular surface. An orange peel can be taken off of an orange and flattened with fair success, this is roughly the procedure that {{w|John Paule Goode}} followed in creating this projection.<br />
<br />
Common people make, what seems to be, fairly reasonable arguments that if normal people would run the United States, then the US wouldn't be in the trouble it is. This is from the belief that career politicians are simply out to make money and will only act in the interest of their constituency when their continued easy life is threatened (usually around election time).<br />
<br />
Airline food is another, much maligned, problem. How do you store enough food to feed people on long airplane trips? The common solution is to use some kind of sub-standard microwave-able dinner. Randall is saying that the people in favor of the Goode Homolosine wonder why the airlines don't simply order meals from the restaurants in the airport, store that food, and serve it, rather than using frozen, and microwaved food.<br />
<br />
Older cars burned oil like mad fiends and oil back then would become corrosive to the innards of an engine, so oil had to be changed often. But, with the introduction of synthetic motor oil and better designed engines, new cars only need their oil changed about ever 10,000 to 15,000 miles. Allegedly. Perhaps this is a conspiracy built by the collusion of the car manufacturers and big oil companies!<br />
<br />
All of these references suggest that people who like the Goode Homolosine projection are fans of practical solutions to simple problems. <br />
<br />
;Hobo-Dyer<br />
The {{w|Hobo–Dyer projection}} was commissioned by Bob Abramms and Howard Bronstein and was drafted by Mick Dyer in 2002. It is a modified {{w|Behrmann projection}}. The goal was to be a more visually pleasing version of the Gall-Peters.<br />
<br />
As is discussed in the Gall-Peters explanation, the Gall-Peters was developed to be equal area, so that economically disadvantaged areas can at least take comfort in the fact that their country is represented correctly by area on maps.<br />
<br />
Randall associates the Hobo-Dyer projection to "crunchy granola" &mdash; a stereotype associated with vegetarianism, environmental activism, anti-war activism, liberal political leanings, and some traces of {{w|hippie}} culture.<br />
<br />
With the new general acceptance of homosexual, bisexual, and transgendered persons, some have begun to invent gender-neutral pronouns so that when referring to a person whose gender is not known they cannot be offended by being referred to by the wrong pronouns. In old English 'they' and 'their' were accepted gender-less pronouns that could replace 'he', 'she' as well as be used to represent a crowd. This usage is now considered archaic, so, a whole host of new pronouns are being invented in an attempt to keep from ever offending anyone ever again.<br />
<br />
;Plate Carrée<br />
Also known as the {{w|Equirectangular projection}} that has been in use since, apparently, 100 AD. The benefit of this projection is that latitude and longitude can be used as x,y coordinates. This makes it especially easy for computers to graph data on top of it.<br />
<br />
According to the comic, the projection appeals to people who find much beauty in simplicity.<br />
<br />
;A Globe!<br />
In any good discussion there has to be at least one smart-ass. This is a comic about map projections, that is, the science of taking a sphere and flattening it into 2 dimensions. The smart-ass believes that we shouldn't even try: a sphere is, in fact, the perfect representation of a sphere.<br />
<br />
To quote ''{{w|The Princess Bride}}'': "Yes, you're very smart. Shut up."<br />
<br />
;Waterman Butterfly<br />
Similar to the Dymaxion, the {{w|Waterman butterfly projection}} turns a sphere into an octahedron, and then unfolds the net of the octahedron, which was devised by mathematician {{w|Waterman polyhedron|Steve Waterman}} based upon the work of {{w|Bernard J.S. Cahill}}<br />
<br />
Bernard Cahill published a [http://www.genekeyes.com/B.J.S._CAHILL_RESOURCE.html butterfly map] in 1909. Steve Waterman probably has the only extant "ready to go" map following the same general principles, though Gene Keys may not be far behind. Waterman has a poem with graphics in a similar vein to this xkcd comic that is worth reading. [http://watermanpolyhedron.com/worldmap.html]<br />
<br />
The Cahill/Keyes/Waterman projections are arguably the only map projections, thus far, that more or less equally balance the inevitable “all maps lie” distortions in size, shape and area<br />
<br />
The joke is that the person responding deeply understands map projections; anyone who knows of this projection is a person that Randall would like to get to know.<br />
<br />
;Peirce Quincuncial<br />
The {{w|Pierce quincuncial projection}} was devised by {{w|Charles Sanders Peirce}} in 1879 and uses {{w|complex analysis}} to make a {{w|conformal mapping}} of the Earth, that conforms except for four points which would make up the south pole.<br />
<br />
{{w|Inception}} was a 2010 movie about {{w|meta}} {{w|lucid dream}}ing. It has a complex story that is difficult to follow and leaves the viewer with many questions at the end, and almost needs to be watched multiple times to be understood.<br />
<br />
The human brain is not well developed to deal with oddly obvious things. One example is that everyone has a skeleton, but everyone is surprised when a bone pokes through the skin after it has been broken. Another is the fascinating complexity of the human hand, a machine that is amazingly complex driven by a complex interplay of electrical and chemical signals and yet is the size of the hand and is so useful.<br />
<br />
;Gall-Peters<br />
The {{w|Gall-Peters projection}} is mired in controversy, surprising for a map. {{w|James Gall}} a 19th century clergyman presented this projection in 1855 before the {{w|British Association for the Advancement of Science}}. In 1967, the filmmaker {{w|Arno Peters}} created the same projection and presented it to the world as a "new invention" that put poorer, less powerful countries into their rightful proportions (as opposed to the Mercator). Peters played the marketing game and got quite a few followers of his map by saying it had "absolute angle conformality," "no extreme distortions of form," and was "totally distance-factual" in an age when society was very concerned about social justice. All of these claims were in fact false. The polar regions are horribly distorted, and south of the Mediterranean Sea is "taller" than it should be.<br />
<br />
Anyone who loves such a politically charged map that has become popular by way of marketing stunts, Randall would rather not have anything to do with.<br />
<br />
The title text makes a joke that goes to the familiar meme from CSI:Miami, in which the star, David Caruso starts on sentence, then [[:Category:puts on sunglasses|puts on his sunglasses]] and then ends it with a corny pun. This internet meme has been mentioned previously by xkcd in comic [[626]] and possibly others.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
What your favorite<br />
<br />
'''Map Projection'''<br />
<br />
says about you<br />
<br />
(All of these are organized as Title, a copy of the particular projection underneath, and what it says about you under that)<br />
<br />
*Mercator<br />
**You're not really into maps.<br />
*Van der Grinten<br />
**You're not a complicated person. You love the Mercator projection; you just wish it weren't square. The Earth's not a square, it's a circle. you like circles. Today is gonna be a good day!<br />
*Robinson<br />
**You have a comfortable pair of running shoes that you wear everywhere. You like coffee and enjoy The Beatles. you think the Robinson is the best-looking projection, hands down.<br />
*Dymaxion<br />
**You like Isaac Asimov, XML, and shoes with toes. You think the Segway got a bad rap. you own 3D goggles, which you use to view rotating models of better 3D goggles. you type in Dvorak.<br />
*Winkel-Tripel<br />
**National Geographic adopted the Winkel-Tripel in 1998, but you've been a W-T fan since ''long'' before "Nat Geo" showed up. You're worried it's getting played out, and are thinking of switching to the Kavrayskiy. You once left a party in disgust when a guest showed up wearing shoes with toes. Your favorite musical genre is "Post&ndash;".<br />
*Goode Homolosine<br />
**They say mapping the Earth on a 2D surface is like flattening an orange peel, which seems enough to you. You like easy solutions.You think we wouldn't have so many problems if we'd just elect ''normal'' people to Congress instead of Politicians. You think airlines should just buy food from the restaurants near the gates and serve ''that'' on board. You change your car's oil, but secretly wonder if you really ''need'' to.<br />
*Hobo-Dyer<br />
**You want to avoid cultural imperialism, but you've heard bad things about Gall-Peters. You're conflict-averse and buy organic. You use a recently-invented set of gender-neutral pronouns and think that what the world needs is a revolution in consciousness.<br />
*Plate Carrée <small>(Equirectangular)</small><br />
**You think this one is fine. You like how X and Y map to latitude and longitude. The other projections overcomplicate things. You want me to stop asking about maps so you can enjoy dinner.<br />
*A Globe!<br />
**Yes, you're very clever<br />
*Waterman Butterfly<br />
**Really? You know the Waterman? Have you seen the 1909 Cahill Map it's based&mdash; ...You have a framed reproduction at home?! Whoa. ...Listen, forget these questions. Are you doing anything tonight?<br />
*Peirce Quincuncial<br />
**You think that when we look at a map, what we really see is ourselves. After you first saw ''Inception'', you sat silent in the theater for six hours. It freaks you out to realize that everyone around you has a skeleton inside them. You ''have'' really looked at your hands.<br />
*Gall-Peters<br />
**I ''hate'' you.<br />
<br />
==Trivia==<br />
*There is no transcript for this comic on xkcd<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics with charts]]<br />
[[Category:puts on sunglasses]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=965:_Elements&diff=16748965: Elements2012-11-09T16:46:10Z<p>XERXES.ai: Clean up, typos fixed: tv → TV (2)</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 965<br />
| date = October 17, 2011<br />
| title = Elements<br />
| image = elements.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = Of all the nations, the armies of the ununoctium-benders are probably the least intimidating. The xenon-benders come close, but their flickery signs are at least effective for propaganda.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
In the popular children's TV show {{w|Avatar: The Last Airbender}}, the four nations that inhabit the world can each control one of the four classical elements: water, fire, earth and air. One person, the avatar, can control all four elements and is markedly more powerful than any other character. Mendeleev is the creator of the modern periodic table, which categorizes the 118+ elements by their atomic masses.<br />
<br />
Polonium gained a level of notoriety as the poison used to kill Russian dissident {{w|Alexander Litvinenko}}.<br />
<br />
The title text talks about power levels of the elements if each element had a controlling nation as per the TV show.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Aang the Avatar and Dmitri Mendeleev stand in opposition to each other. Aang wields all 4 classical elements: Water, Fire, Earth, and Air.]<br />
:Aang: I'm the avatar, master of all 4 elements!<br />
:Mendeleev: Really? I'm Mendeleev, master of all 118+.<br />
:''swoosh''<br />
:Mendeleev: That was polonium-bending. You probably didn't feel anything, but the symptoms of radiation poisoning will set in shortly.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}} <br />
<!-- Include any categories below this line--><br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=User:XERXES.ai&diff=16747User:XERXES.ai2012-11-09T16:45:54Z<p>XERXES.ai: Created page with "XERXES.ai. Artificial intelligence. Wikignome. Gentleman."</p>
<hr />
<div>XERXES.ai. Artificial intelligence. Wikignome. Gentleman.</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=960:_Subliminal&diff=16746960: Subliminal2012-11-09T16:45:08Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: a American → an American</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 960<br />
| date = October 5, 2011<br />
| title = Subliminal<br />
| image = subliminal.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = Once you see it, you can't help seeing it every time. Until your body finishes metabolizing the mushrooms.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
[[File:fedex-logo.png|right|300px|thumb|The FedEx Express logo, for comparison]]<br />
This comic is about the {{w|Fedex}} {{w|FedEx#Operating_units_and_logos|logo}} and how there is a subliminal/hidden arrow in the logo. [[Cueball]] in the comic cannot see it, instead seeing a wild scene including {{w|Guy Fawkes}}, {{w|Willie Mays}} and an {{w|assault vehicle}}. The implication being in the title text that he is affected by {{w|Mushroom#Psychoactive_mushrooms|hallucinogenic wild mushrooms}}.<br />
<br />
Guy Fawkes was the British revolutionary who was one of the main characters in the fictional graphic novel and movie "{{w|V For Vendetta}}". Willie Mays was an American {{w|baseball}} player for the {{w|San Francisco Giants}} who made a famous over the shoulder catch in the World Series. Some consider it to be the best defensive play of all time in baseball.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Two people are gathered around a computer. A person is seated interacting with the computer while another stands behind them with an arm resting on the back of the chair.]<br />
:Person 1 (seated): What hidden arrow?<br />
:Person 2 (standing): I thought everyone knew about it. Pull up the FedEx logo.<br />
:<<Click>><br />
<br />
:[The second person is now pointing at the screen.]<br />
:Person 1: Where is it?<br />
:Person 2: Right there. Look at the whitespace.<br />
:Person 1: I don't see it.<br />
<br />
:[The next panel shows a stylised view of the FedEx logo. The white space above the 'ed' in Fed is decorated to look like a tank turret with the barrel extending into the letter 'F'. Along the bottom of the letters a baseball player with the number 24 on his back is reaching out to catch a baseball. The baseball is forming the centre of the 'e' while the arm provides the break for the tail. The baseballers head marks the centre of the 'd' and the number 24 is coloured in blue to show the lower half of the stroke of the 'd'. Toward the right of the image the space between the 'E' and 'x' has been decorated to look like a Guy Fawkes mask, with ties wrapping around the 'x' and being drawn off-screen. A faint outline suggests the whitespace above the 'x' is a hat, with the brim extending into the upper part of the 'E'. Two speech bubbles are visible above the drawing, both spoken by off-screen characters.]<br />
:Person 1 (off-screen): All I see if Guy Fawkes watching Willie Mays catch a fly ball while an armored assault vehicle rolls past.<br />
:Person 2 (off-screen): ...You either need more medication or less. Not sure which.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}} <br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=945:_I%27m_Sorry&diff=16745945: I'm Sorry2012-11-09T16:44:34Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Transcript */Clean up</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 945<br />
| date = August 31, 2011<br />
| title = I'm Sorry<br />
| image = im_sorry.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = You know I've always hated her.<br />
<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
In the US (and likely other countries as well), when someone presents the other with bad news, they respond with (as the comic explains) a sympathetic "I'm Sorry". That is different than the apologetic "I'm Sorry" that a person would give for something that is their fault.<br />
<br />
As it says below the comic, Cueball switches his sympathetic "I'm Sorry" when Megan does not accept the "I'm Sorry" because it was not his fault. Cueball says at the end "I know what I did..." and "You know I've always hated her" as a wild switch to an apologetic "I'm Sorry".<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Two people are standing next to each other having a conversation.]<br />
:Person 1: My Mom's house burned down.<br />
:Person 2: Oh! I'm sorry!<br />
:Person 1: Why? It's not ''your'' fault.<br />
:Person 2: It's nice of you to say that, but I know what I did.<br />
<br />
:It annoys me when people interpret an obviously sympathetic "I'm sorry" as an apology, so I've started responding by making it one.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}} <br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=941:_Depth_Perception&diff=16744941: Depth Perception2012-11-09T16:44:19Z<p>XERXES.ai: Clean up, typos fixed: self explanatory → self-explanatory</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 941<br />
| date = August 22, 2011<br />
| title = Depth Perception<br />
| image = depth_perception.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = I've looked at clouds from both sides now.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
This comic is very self-explanatory as it explains what he is doing every step of the way. This is one of those xkcd's that is all about emotion and feeling for both [[Cueball]] and the reader.<br />
<br />
Ancient stargazers though the sky was simply a domed ceiling like the 2nd frame on the top line.<br />
<br />
In the first frame of the 2nd line, Cueball puts HD webcams on the tops of football uprights, so "hundreds of feet" apart would be 120 yards (360 feet) apart exactly.<br />
<br />
Cueball uses strong reading glasses and reversed webcam images to greatly expand his {{w|Depth perception}} using the principle of {{w|Parallax}}.<br />
<br />
The title text is a line from "{{w|Both Sides Now}}" by Joni Mitchell.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[The comic is narrated by an unspecified person. All dialog is shown in boxes overlaid on the comic panels.]<br />
<br />
:[The panel background looks like a cloudy sky, with the clouds all running together and appearing as a blue<br />
:grey smear.]<br />
:I've always had trouble with the size of clouds.<br />
:I ''know'' they're huge. I can see their shapes.<br />
:But I don't really see them as objects on the same scale as trees and buildings.<br />
:They're a backdrop.<br />
<br />
:[A person stands on a flat disk inside a hemispherical dome with the front half cut away. The dome is labelled "Sky", and the disk is labelled "Ground". The dome is about twice as tall as the person.]<br />
:Stars are the same way.<br />
<br />
:I know they're scattered through and endless ocean, but my gut insists they're a painting on a domed ceiling.<br />
<br />
:((The next two lines of dialog are stretched over the following three panels.))<br />
:[A person stands on a curved surface, looking up.]<br />
:If I try hard enough, I get a glimmer of depth, a dizzying sense of space,<br />
<br />
:[The perspective of the scene shifts, suddenly the surface the person was standing on is in the top left of the panel. The person is now looking down, leaning back, and waving their arms trying to regain balance.]<br />
:But then everything snaps back.<br />
<br />
:[The perspective of the scene returns to normal, the person is now semi-crouched, staring at the ground with legs spaced apart to help them balance.]<br />
<br />
:[An American football field is shown, with sections at the tips of the goal posts highlighted and shown as a zoomed view in an insert box. The goal posts each have a webcam mounted on top of them.]<br />
:So one summer afternoon<br />
:I set up two HD webcams hundreds of feet apart,<br />
:Pointed them at the sky,<br />
<br />
:[The next two lines of dialog are stretched over two panels each.]<br />
:[The first panel shows a pair of glasses with the note "Very strong reading glasses." and a smartphone with an attachment designed to clip onto the glasses. The smartphone screen is setup to display two images side by side such that one camera is visible in the left half of the screen, and the other camera is visible in the right half of the screen.]<br />
:And fed one stream to each of my eyes.<br />
<br />
:[The next panel shows the completed phone glasses assembly.]<br />
:The parallax expanded my depth perception by a thousand times,<br />
<br />
:[The person stands wearing the phone glasses assembly, staring into the sky.]<br />
:And I stood in my living room<br />
:At the bottom of an abyss<br />
<br />
:[The person now stands on the shore of an unidentified coastline (possibly Boston?), a city is near their right foot and the tallest skyscraper appears ankle high. A mountain range is behind them that is also barely ankle high. The person is standing with their head well above cloud level as clouds swim around them.]<br />
:Watching mountains drift by.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}} <br />
<!-- Include any categories below this line--><br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=933:_Tattoo&diff=16743933: Tattoo2012-11-09T16:40:56Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: tatoo → tattoo</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 933<br />
| date = August 3, 2011<br />
| title = Tattoo<br />
| image = tattoo.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = I calculate that the electrons in radiation therapy hit you at 99.8% of the speed of light, and the beam used in a 90-second gamma ray therapy session could, if fired with less precision, kill a horse (they did not let me test this).<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
An {{w|Oncologist}} is a doctor who specializes in the treatment of {{w|cancer}}. This comic is certainly related to the {{w|breast cancer}} issue that [[Randall]] is going through with his fiancé. [[Megan]] in this comic has a {{w|tattoo}} for the alignment lasers of the radiotherapy machine which will fire a beam of radiation with sufficient intensity to kill the cells in the targeted area. A common such machine is a linear accelerator or "Linac" which accelerates electrons to very high speed, these can then either be used to generate high energy Xrays to treat the patient, or the electron beam itself can be used (both are types of radiation). Commonly when radiotherapy is used as part of breast cancer treatment some combination of both is perscribed. In order to allow healthy tissue to recover better, rather than deliver all the radiation in one go, the treatment is delivered a little bit each day over the course of about a month. It is therefore vital that the radiation can be delivered to the correct target area day after day, and this is done by lining up the alignment lasers of the linac with the skin markers - that is Megan's tattoo dots. It may not be considered a "traditional" tattoo (because it says it was done by her Oncologist and not in a tattoo parlor).<br />
<br />
In the last frame, [[Cueball]] mentions that he has a barbed wire bicep tattoo, which is common in the US as a tattoo that people get when they want to seem tough, even if they aren't tough already.<br />
<br />
The joke in the comic is that Cueball got this barbed wire tattoo to look tough, but it pales in comparison to the tattoo from (or for) the cancer removal or treatment. This is ironic because people who get barbed wire tattoos believe themselves to be tough. It is kind of funny because Cueball has his whole shirt off just to show a bicep tattoo.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Megan is in the panel. Megan points at her chest.]<br />
:Megan: I just have one tattoo - it's six dots on my chest, done by my oncologist.<br />
<br />
:Megan: I need them for aligning the laser sights on a flesh-searing relativistic particle cannon,<br />
<br />
:Megan: So it will only kill the parts of me<br />
<br />
:[Dramatic zoom, the panel background is black, with white text.]<br />
:Megan: That are holding me back.<br />
<br />
:[The panel is larger, revealing who they're talking to.]<br />
:Megan: But your barbed wire bicep tattoo is pretty hardcore, too!<br />
:Cueball: No, it's OK. I'll just go put a shirt on.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}} <br />
<!-- Include any categories below this line--><br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Cancer]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=930:_Days_of_the_Week&diff=16742930: Days of the Week2012-11-09T16:40:43Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: the the → the</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 />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = Not pictured: the elongated Halley's-Comet-like orbit of every Rebecca Black lyric.<br />
}}<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. And, not pictured but mentioned in the title text are the lyrics to {{w|Rebecca Black}}'s mind-numbingly poppy hit "{{w|Friday (Rebecca Black song)|Friday}}" [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kfVsfOSbJY0] which probably 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. The title text calls it a {{w|Halley's Comet}}-like orbit.<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 />
==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>&#39;s line crosses <day>.<br />
:Each curve is normalized to have the same number of total hits - they&#39;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 charts]]<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=927:_Standards&diff=16741927: Standards2012-11-09T16:40:27Z<p>XERXES.ai: Clean up</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 927<br />
| date = July 20, 2011<br />
| title = Standards<br />
| image = standards.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = Fortunately, the charging one has been solved now that we've all standardized on mini-USB. Or is it micro-USB? Shit.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
This one is pretty straightforward and oh so true. In this comic, [[Cueball]] and [[Ponytail]] see that there are 14 different competing technologies to become a universal standard. So, they create one in attempt to become the universal standard. And instead of becoming the standard, it just becomes one of the many competitors.<br />
<br />
A few years ago, it looked like everyone was going to standardize on {{w|mini-USB}}, but then smartphones decided on {{w|micro-USB}} and now it seems that most devices are using micro-USB.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
HOW STANDARDS PROLIFERATE<br />
<br />
(See: A/C chargers, character encodings, instant messaging, etc.)<br />
<br />
SITUATION:<br />
<br />
There are 14 competing standards.<br />
<br />
Geek: 14?! Ridiculous! We need to develop one universal standard that covers everyone's use cases.<br />
<br />
Fellow Geek: Yeah!<br />
<br />
Soon:<br />
<br />
SITUATION:<br />
<br />
There are 15 competing standards.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=923:_Strunk_and_White&diff=16740923: Strunk and White2012-11-09T16:39:10Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: orignal → original, the the → the</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 923<br />
| date = July 11, 2011<br />
| title = Strunk and White<br />
| image = strunk_and_white.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = The best thing about Strunk/White fanfiction is that it's virtually guaranteed to be well written.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
This is a comic about the 1918 writing style guide called "{{w|The Elements of Style}}" by Cornell University professor William Strunk Jr. and New Yorker writer E.B. White. Just like in the original book, they are clarifying the usage of words and punctuation in the English language. In this case however, they are clarifying the use of the original authors' names, one usage for the book and another for the {{w|slash fiction}} or erotic fan fiction involving them.<br />
<br />
Erotic fan fiction, if you were not aware, is a genre of fiction in which fans make up erotic stories involving characters from non erotic stories. "Slash fiction" is a special subgenre that pairs characters of the same sex and is denoted by using the "/" to separate the paired characters. {{w|Orthography}} is the rules of a written language, including punctuation and spelling.<br />
<br />
I'm sure if there was not a Strunk/White slash fiction out before, there is one now.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[3 dignified-looking editors of Strunk & White's "The Elements of Style" before a desk with a computer. One is seated and types the following:]<br />
<br />
:Dear Internet,<br />
: We, the current editors of Strunk & White's "The Elements of Style", must &mdash;with great reluctance&mdash; clarify a point of orthography:<br />
: "Strunk & White" should be used for the style manual and "Strunk/White" for the erotic fan fiction pairing.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}} <br />
<!-- Include any categories below this line--><br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=917:_Hofstadter&diff=16739917: Hofstadter2012-11-09T16:38:57Z<p>XERXES.ai: Clean up, typos fixed: self reference → self-reference</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 917<br />
| date = June 27, 2011<br />
| title = Hofstadter<br />
| image = hofstadter.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = "This is the reference implementation of the self-referential joke."<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{w|Douglas Hofstadter}} is an American and to quote Wikipedia: "...an American academic whose research focuses on consciousness, analogy-making, artistic creation, literary translation, and discovery in mathematics and physics." In 2007, he wrote a book called {{w|I Am a Strange Loop}} in which he studied the properties of {{w|self-reference|self-referential systems}}. In popular culture, self-reference is referred to as being {{w|meta}}.<br />
<br />
So, the one line autobiography is meta because it is also an acronym which reads "IS META", thus finishing its own sentence.<br />
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In the title text, reference implementation is a reference to the standard implementation during a software development process.<br />
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==Transcript==<br />
:[A man sits at a desk, working on a laptop. A woman approaches the desk and picks up a tiny book.]<br />
:Woman: What's this?<br />
:Man: Douglas Hofstadter's six-word autobiography. After all those 700-page tomes, I guess he wanted to try for brevity.<br />
:Woman: Huh. Let's see...<br />
<br />
:[Close up of woman, reading the tiny book.]<br />
:Book: I'm So Meta, Even This Acronym<br />
<br />
:[Full shot of man and woman again. The woman looks down at the tiny book in her hand.]<br />
:Woman: ...whoa.<br />
:Man: I think he nailed it.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}} <br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=914:_Ice&diff=16738914: Ice2012-11-09T16:38:28Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 914<br />
| date = June 20, 2011<br />
| title = Ice<br />
| image = ice.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = On the plus side, she wrote "Welcome to the AAA Club!" in lipstick on the bathroom mirror, and left me a membership/roadside assistance card on the counter.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
This comic is a reference to an old urban legend: a guy is drugged, then he awakes in an ice-filled bathtub only to discover one (or both) of their kidneys has been harvested by organ thieves [http://www.snopes.com/horrors/robbery/kidney.asp]. <br />
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In the comic, the situation is reversed: [[Beret Guy]] (who has just bought some ice for a party) is drugged, and he awakes in a bathtub filled with kidneys, only to discover that his ice has been harvested by a thief.<br />
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The title text refers to a similar story where the victim is left a note by their captor or one-night stand that says "Welcome to the AIDS club". Rather than having been involuntarily infected with HIV/AIDS, the victim ([[Beret Guy]]) has been involuntarily enrolled in the [[wikipedia:American Automobile Association|American Automobile Association]].<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Beret Guy and Megan are setting up a party, with a snack table and a big banner reading "PARTY!"]<br />
:Megan: Everything's ready...<br />
:Megan: Except we're out of ice.<br />
:Beret Guy: I'll get some!<br />
<br />
:[Beret Guy is walking down the street past a building marked Save Mart, with a bag of ice over his shoulder. Danish is standing on the sidewalk calls to him.]<br />
:Danish: Hey sexy. Where're you headed with all that ice?<br />
:Beret Guy: A party!<br />
:Danish: There's a ''better'' party up at my place.<br />
:Beret Guy: But I&mdash;<br />
:Danish: C'mon, one drink.<br />
<br />
:The next morning...<br />
:[Beret Guy rubs eyes groggily.]<br />
:Beret Guy: ...ugh... Where am I?<br />
:Beret Guy: I was supposed to&mdash;<br />
:Beret Guy: &mdash;where's all my ice!?<br />
<br />
:[Beret Guy looks down to find himself in a bathtub full of kidneys.]<br />
:Beret Guy: '''AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA'''<br />
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{{comic discussion}} <br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Danish]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]</div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=902:_Darmok_and_Jalad&diff=16737902: Darmok and Jalad2012-11-09T16:38:10Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: a a → a</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 902<br />
| date = May 23, 2011<br />
| title = Darmok and Jalad<br />
| image = darmok_and_jalad.png<br />
| imagesize = <br />
| titletext = I wonder how often Patrick Stewart has Darmok flashbacks when talking to Star Trek fans.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
This comic is a parody of the {{w|Star Trek: The Next Generation}} episode "{{w|Darmok}}" in which [http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Jean-Luc_Picard Captain Picard] and the Enterprise crew meet with a [http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/The_Children_of_Tama Tamarian] ship. They can translate the words of Tamarian, but because the language is based on metaphors, they cannot understand what the words mean. "Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra" is repeated many times in this episode by the Tamarian captain, Dathon. Picard is eventually able to decipher the line to discover that it was a story of two warriors marooned on an island (Tanagra) who work together to defeat a common foe. The alien's intention is that he and Picard work together to defeat a monster as a way to cement ties between the Tamarians and the [http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/United_Federation_of_Planets Federation].<br />
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In the comic, instead of suggesting a dramatic gesture to achieve a diplomatic breakthrough, the alien seems to be using a corny up chat line. It is not clear if he is chatting up [http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Deanna_Troi Deanna Troi] (who has the long curly hair) or Picard. However, given that in the original episode Darmok and Jalad (the two warriors) were identified with Dathon and Picard, it seems likely that he is flirting with Picard.<br />
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"Kalenda's" sounds similar to "Calender's" and could refer to calender models and be the name of an adult dance/strip club.<br />
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The title text suggests that the actor {{w|Patrick Stewart}} (who played Picard) might sometimes feel as confused by the way that Star Trek fans talk as the character he played did in this episode.<br />
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==Transcript==<br />
:[Captain Dathon is seen on a communications screen]<br />
:Alien: Darmok and Jalad at Kalenda's!<br />
<br />
:[Jean-Luc Picard and Deanna Troi stand next to each other, looking off to the right.]<br />
:Picard: Their language must be based on folklore and metaphor! Computer! Search cultural archives for Darmok-Jalad-Kalenda!<br />
<br />
:[Picard and Troi listen to the response]<br />
:Computer (off-panel): In Tamarian legend, Darmok and Jalad got totally wasted and hooked up at a party at Kalenda's.<br />
<br />
:[Dathon is seen on the communications screen again, winking]<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}} <br />
<!-- Include any categories below this line--></div>XERXES.aihttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=859:_(&diff=16736859: (2012-11-09T16:37:52Z<p>XERXES.ai: /* Explanation */Clean up, typos fixed: so called → so-called</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 859<br />
| date = February 11, 2011<br />
| title = (<br />
| image = (.png<br />
| titletext = Brains aside, I wonder how many poorly-written xkcd.com-parsing scripts will break on this title (or ;;"'<nowiki />'{<<[' this mouseover text."<br />
| imagesize =<br />
}}<br />
<br />
== Explanation ==<br />
In programming, punctuation is often used to mark sections of code. Paired punctuation marks must always be matched up with a corresponding closing mark, otherwise a so-called {{w|Syntax error|syntax error}} occurs. The programming language {{w|Lisp_(programming_language)|Lisp}} (also featured in [[224: Lisp]]<!--)--> is known for large numbers of nested/paired parentheses. Even in literary works intended only for human consumption, the absence of a matching closing parenthesis, (as appears in this paragraph) or other "balanced" punctuation sets creates a mental expectation of eventual closure and completion that remains unfulfilled even long after the unmatched mark is encountered.<br />
<br />
There is also reference to [[312: With Apologies to Robert Frost]] which could contain the missing paren...<br />
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It can also be interpreted as a {{w|metaphor}}, which compares the reader with a Lisp {{w|Interpreter (Computing)|interpreter}}. The interpreter looks for the parenthesis until the end of the file, where it eventually halts, and prints out the error. The comic claims that if you read an unmatched parenthesis, you will look for it for the rest of the day too.<br />
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It also refers to this awkward feeling when you see something like an unmatched parentheses, speeling<!--sic--> error or a randomly-placed comma.<br />
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The title text refers to the same issue as already highlighted in [[327: Exploits of a Mom]]: if your scripts trust external input, you sometimes will be surprised. At the time of this comic, there were quite a few websites that would grab the latest xkcd comic three times a week and publish them on their own site. This comic likely broke at least some of the websites because of either the unmatched brace or the extra unmatched markup that is in the title text.<br />
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==Transcript==<br />
(An unmatched left parenthesis creates an unresolved tension that will stay with you all day.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<!-- [[Category:Out of the Ordinary]] ?--><br />
<br />
[[Category:Lisp]]</div>XERXES.ai