Talk:1653: United States Map

Explain xkcd: It's 'cause you're dumb.
Revision as of 04:26, 11 March 2016 by Miamiclay (talk | contribs) (Comment re fitment)
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But what prompted this map? Has there been a real life event that influenced Randall to create this? 141.101.91.25 07:32, 9 March 2016 (UTC)

Yes, this is about voting districts. They are so random you can not guess where your vote will count: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90RajY2nrgk

08:10, 9 March 2016 (UTC)

Citation needed. Jkshapiro (talk) 03:22, 10 March 2016 (UTC)
Definintely a case of [Citation needed]. -Pennpenn 108.162.250.162 03:58, 10 March 2016 (UTC)

(Finally, someone made the page so I can post this. :| ) I removed the names from Randall's map! Here's a blank version! Muahahaha! Quoice (talk) 07:39, 9 March 2016 (UTC)

Cool. Could you be so mean as to make a version including the shapes of Alaska and Hawaii. You could use the ones from Randall's map of United shapes as templates. That would be fantastic! --Kynde (talk) 09:03, 9 March 2016 (UTC)


Maybe add a table with every state cut out; and add a correct map with the cut out pieces in the right place? sirKitKat (talk) 09:05, 9 March 2016 (UTC)

That would just be a normal map... The piece could go over a real map in the wrong place to show it. Or rather the entire map should be overlaid on a real map... --Kynde (talk) 09:22, 9 March 2016 (UTC)
This sounds like a great idea to me! Case of "A picture is worth a thousand words". Elektrizikekswerk (talk) 11:39, 9 March 2016 (UTC)


First thing that comes to mind when I look at the map is seeing New York being against the Mexico border. I wonder how New Yorkers would deal with the Mexicans coming across. --173.245.54.28 14:43, 9 March 2016 (UTC)

This proves it: continental drift is real, and much faster than we thought. 162.158.114.217 15:18, 9 March 2016 (UTC)


1653-rearranged.png -- Frankie (talk) 15:31, 9 March 2016 (UTC)

AZ <-> NM 162.158.56.173 16:38, 9 March 2016 (UTC)
RI should be rotated Azsr (talk) 17:31, 9 March 2016 (UTC)
D'oh! Fixed AZ & NM (although server is still caching the original). Leaving RI as is due to caption arrangement. -- Frankie (talk) 18:00, 9 March 2016 (UTC)
Great map. Have linked from the explanation at the top. Also made my own real life jigsaw which I put in the trivia.

There's nothing in the article right now that indicates the shapes of the states have been altered slightly so that they fit together seamlessly in this arrangement. I think that's an important point. 162.158.255.80 15:53, 9 March 2016 (UTC)

I think that's obvious 141.101.70.157 16:18, 9 March 2016 (UTC)
I mentioned it in the trivia. Maybe it should go up also? But it is surprisingly close to being correct within the reasonable limits of the resolution --Kynde (talk) 19:44, 9 March 2016 (UTC)
+1, fitting Cape Cod into Mobile Bay is particularly stellar. Miamiclay (talk) 04:26, 11 March 2016 (UTC)

What happened to Long Island (part of NY)? 108.162.218.118 (talk) (please sign your comments with ~~~~)

The article indicates Maine has only been moved, but it's also been rotated 180 degrees. (Upside down) 198.41.235.107 (talk) (please sign your comments with ~~~~)

I will correct my mistake then ;-) --Kynde (talk) 19:44, 9 March 2016 (UTC)

So glad I'm not in Illinois any more... I guess I'm in Texas now. 108.162.221.18 18:04, 9 March 2016 (UTC)

* Do not use for navigation. Alexbuzzbee (talk) 23:39, 9 March 2016 (UTC)


Reminds me of this MIT Mystery Hunt puzzle from 2013 where you rebuild the US states into a map of Europe: http://web.mit.edu/puzzle/www/2013/coinheist.com/indiana/watch_your_back/answer/answer2/solution.png --162.158.252.185 02:47, 10 March 2016 (UTC)

"Orientation none" sounds strange to me, like saying "no temperature" when it is 0 degrees. Isn't "normal" or "unchanged" better? Jkrstrt (talk) 16:25, 10 March 2016 (UTC)

... or change the title of the column to be "Rotation" -- to which "None" is valid 21:54, 10 March 2016 (UTC)

Could someone with more experience than me fix the picture so it's not ginormous? I tried last night and the picture was replaced with the generic "picture failed to load" graphic, same as it looks here: http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/File:1653_United_States_Map_49_piece_jigsaw_solved.jpg NotLock (talk) (please sign your comments with ~~~~)