1159: Countdown - Revision history

47.152.141.146: /* Explanation */ Posiblity

2026-01-23T01:10:48Z

‎Explanation: Posiblity

FaviFake: Undo revision 370193 by 162.158.193.61 (talk) This is not the name of the comic. We should not sort this one by name

2025-03-25T16:50:01Z

Undo revision 370193 by 162.158.193.61 (talk) This is not the name of the comic. We should not sort this one by name

162.158.193.61 at 02:39, 25 March 2025

2025-03-25T02:39:53Z

FaviFake: Undo revision 365948 by 162.158.114.181 (talk) A "comic" that doesn't have a name can't share a name with another comic

2025-02-17T15:10:38Z

Undo revision 365948 by 162.158.114.181 (talk) A "comic" that doesn't have a name can't share a name with another comic

162.158.114.181 at 06:53, 17 February 2025

2025-02-17T06:53:46Z

Cheesesentience: /* Explanation */

2024-12-12T14:09:04Z

‎Explanation

Cheesesentience: /* Explanation */

2024-12-12T14:08:38Z

‎Explanation

Cheesesentience: /* Explanation */

2024-12-12T14:05:52Z

‎Explanation

Cheesesentience: /* Explanation */

2024-12-12T14:05:22Z

‎Explanation

Cheesesentience: /* Explanation */

2024-12-12T14:04:58Z

‎Explanation

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 The comic shows a {{w|seven segment display}} (aka [http://www.ece.mtu.edu/labs/EElabs/EE2304/pages/bcd_to_seven_segment_TAversion.html calculator-style numbers]) with a countdown. [[Black Hat]] explains that it is a countdown, maybe to a {{w|supervolcano}} eruption. However, an unfortunately placed picture blocks view of the full display. Due to the form of a seven-segment display, the first digit could be 0, 6, or 8, and five digits are completely blocked by the picture. [[Cueball]] is worried and asks him to move the picture, but Black Hat lazily or teasingly refuses to move it.
-He has already teased that he doesn't know what the countdown is for. His reply can either be understood as if he does not know which one of the ({{w|Supervolcano#VEI_8|seven potential}}) supervolcanos it is counting down to, or to which other {{w|Global catastrophic risk|cataclysmic event}} it is a countdown for (such as a {{w|Impact event|meteor strike}} or global {{w|Nuclear warfare|nuclear war}} for instance - it could also just be a general {{w|Doomsday Clock}}). Since it seems to be Black Hat's countdown, it is safe to assume that he knows both what it counts down to and when it stops, but he just likes to mess with peoples' minds.
+He has already teased that he doesn't know what the countdown is for. His reply can either be understood as if he does not know which one of the ({{w|Supervolcano#VEI_8|seven potential}}) supervolcanos it is counting down to, or to which other {{w|Global catastrophic risk|cataclysmic event}} it is a countdown for (such as a {{w|Impact event|meteor strike}} or global {{w|Nuclear warfare|nuclear war}} for instance - it could also just be a general {{w|Doomsday Clock}}). Since it seems to be Black Hat's countdown, it is safe to assume that he knows both what it counts down to and when it stops, but he just likes to mess with peoples' minds. It is also possible that the countdown does not count down to anything, and Black Hat is simply messing with Cueball.
 The fully visible part starts at 2409, and based on the pace of the scene, it seems to be in seconds. Thus, it is unclear when the eruption might occur. If the obscured digits are '899 999', there's another 2.85 million years to go. On the other hand, if they are all 0s, it could be as soon as 45 minutes.

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← Older revision		Revision as of 02:39, 25 March 2025
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← Older revision		Revision as of 15:10, 17 February 2025
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−	~~[[Category:Comics sharing name\|Countdown]]~~

← Older revision		Revision as of 06:53, 17 February 2025
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 In an alternative view, the strip is not about pondering at distributions of digits on an oracle countdown. It's more of a grim view of our natural disaster prediction capabilities. As they say – the question is not if it will happen but when it will happen. "Move the picture" would mean investing in research and warning systems - that would correspond to shifting the picture to the left. If we disregard the 40 minutes, but instead think of it as an arbitrary interval of interests, minuscule as we folks have them, say - one's lifetime; or grimmer yet - some {{w|term of office}}. Because, hey, year after year passes and no apocalypse has been observed - the empirical odds are low indeed. An interesting question is what we would use the knowledge of the timing of our impending doom, if it is an event we can do nothing about, such as stopping a supervolcanic eruption or a large asteroid with a direct impact course on Earth. Would we not have lives more happily for our remaining years, how few that might be, while not knowing... On the other hand, if the event is something we might prevent given enough time to plan (and the funding resources such knowledge would ensure), then it may have saved us if we moved the picture just in time!
-Using a countdown theme for comic #1159 could be a subtle joke, as 11:59/23:59 is one minute to midnight (on the [[Doomsday clock]]!).
+Using a countdown theme for comic #1159 could be a subtle joke, as 11:59/23:59 is one minute to midnight (on the [[Doomsday Clock]]!).
 Supervolcanos were also referenced in the title text of [[1053: Ten Thousand]] and it is the subject of in [[1611: Baking Soda and Vinegar]].