Editing 1916: Temperature Preferences

Jump to: navigation, search

Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.

The edit can be undone. Please check the comparison below to verify that this is what you want to do, and then save the changes below to finish undoing the edit.
Latest revision Your text
Line 8: Line 8:
  
 
==Explanation==
 
==Explanation==
 +
{{incomplete|Edited by an Extremophobe. Fill in the table using data from [http://weatherbase.com weatherbase.com] (Randall's source). Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
 
This is a chart of major (and not-so-major) populated areas showing seasonal temperature patterns. The chart is a guide to where one might like to live depending on how much summer heat and winter cold they enjoy. There are four focused zones:
 
This is a chart of major (and not-so-major) populated areas showing seasonal temperature patterns. The chart is a guide to where one might like to live depending on how much summer heat and winter cold they enjoy. There are four focused zones:
  
* Hate both cold and heat -- Neither summers nor winters are too extreme.  These are either places at high altitude in the tropics (e.g. Quito, Addis Ababa) or areas at mid latitudes in Mediterranean climates (e.g. San Francisco, Wellington).  All of these areas (as well as cities near this zone such as Mexico City and Melbourne) have a climate type of C-b in the Koppen Climate Classification, indicating a temperate climate with a warm summer.
+
* Hate both cold and heat (e.g. Quito, Addis Ababa) -- Neither summers nor winters are too extreme.  These are either places at high altitude in the tropics (e.g. Quito, Addis Ababa) or areas at mid latitudes in Mediterranean climates (e.g. San Francisco, Wellington).  All of these areas (as well as cities near this zone such as Mexico City and Melbourne) have a climate type of C-b in the Koppen Climate Classification, indicating a temperate climate with a warm summer.
 
* Hate cold but love heat -- Very hot in the summer.  These are all either tropical regions with a latitude of 23°26’ or less (e.g. Rio, Bangkok, Manila) or desert areas very near the tropics (e.g. Needles, Baghdad).  These areas all have a climate type of A-, indicating a tropical rainforest, savanna, or monsoon climate; or a classification of B-h, indicating a hot desert or arid climate.  All cities listed with a Af/Am/Aw climate type fall in this zone.
 
* Hate cold but love heat -- Very hot in the summer.  These are all either tropical regions with a latitude of 23°26’ or less (e.g. Rio, Bangkok, Manila) or desert areas very near the tropics (e.g. Needles, Baghdad).  These areas all have a climate type of A-, indicating a tropical rainforest, savanna, or monsoon climate; or a classification of B-h, indicating a hot desert or arid climate.  All cities listed with a Af/Am/Aw climate type fall in this zone.
 
* Hate heat but love cold -- Very cold in the winter.  These are typically places at high latitudes (e.g. Moscow, Oslo), with almost none of the places listed below 40°, and the average latitude being 51°.  These areas tend of have a climate type of B-k, indicating a cold desert or steppe, or D-b, indicating a continental climate with a warm summer.  Some of coldest places, including those off of the chart, have a climate of Dfc subarctic (e.g. Fairbanks and Yellowknife) or EF ice cap (McMurdo).
 
* Hate heat but love cold -- Very cold in the winter.  These are typically places at high latitudes (e.g. Moscow, Oslo), with almost none of the places listed below 40°, and the average latitude being 51°.  These areas tend of have a climate type of B-k, indicating a cold desert or steppe, or D-b, indicating a continental climate with a warm summer.  Some of coldest places, including those off of the chart, have a climate of Dfc subarctic (e.g. Fairbanks and Yellowknife) or EF ice cap (McMurdo).
Line 30: Line 31:
 
* People who love cold should live where the average low in the coldest month is -3°C or less.  
 
* People who love cold should live where the average low in the coldest month is -3°C or less.  
 
* People who love heat should live where the hottest month Humidex is at least 33°C (in otherwise cold places such as Minneapolis) to 38°C (in otherwise hot places such as Honolulu).   
 
* People who love heat should live where the hottest month Humidex is at least 33°C (in otherwise cold places such as Minneapolis) to 38°C (in otherwise hot places such as Honolulu).   
* People who hate cold should live where the average low in the coldest month is higher than 3°C.   
+
* People who hate cold should liver where the average low in the coldest month is higher than 3°C.   
 
* People who hate heat should live where the hottest month Humidex is less than 29°C.
 
* People who hate heat should live where the hottest month Humidex is less than 29°C.
  
However, given the great variability of weather patterns across the globe, it's not altogether clear how useful this would actually be to someone looking to choose where to live, since it's not clear exactly what "love/hate hot/cold" would mean.  It's also not clear that the relationship between temperature and discomfort is linear. More likely is that there is a small temperature band where each degree of change causes significantly more discomfort, and beyond which it's just "too hot/cold".
+
However, given the great variability of weather patterns across the globe, it's not altogether clear how useful this would actually be to someone looking to choose where to live, since it's not clear exactly what 'love/hate hot/cold' would mean.  It's also not clear that the relationship between temperature and discomfort is linear. More likely is that there is a small temperature band where each degree of change causes significantly more discomfort, and beyond which it's just "too hot/cold".
  
Hottest and coldest month therefore may not be the best measure.  For example, is one or two very cold days better or worse than a month's worth of moderately cold days?  Shown in the table below for each place are the number of days above 32°C (90°F) and the number of days below 0°C (32°F), taken from Weatherbase.com (Randall's source).  For most people a temperature above 32°C is considered hot and a temperature below 0°C is considered cold.  So, for instance, someone who loves heat might want to live in Tehran (with three months above 32°C) rather than Beijing (with only one month) even though the peak month Humidex in Beijing is higher.  Someone who loves cold might want to live in Santa Fe, where it never gets particularly cold (only -8°C) but where it is below freezing almost half of the year (179.8 days on average).  In general though, the places with the most hot or cold days also have the hottest and coldest extremes.
+
Hottest and coldest month therefore may not be the best measure.  For example, is one or two very cold days better or worse than a month's worth of moderately cold days?  Shown in the table below for each place are the number of days above 32°C (90°F) and the number of days below 0°C (32°F); also taken from Weatherbase.com.  For most people a temperature above 32°C is considered hot and a temperature below 0°C is considered cold.  So, for instance, someone who loves heat might want to live in Tehran (with over three months above 32°C) rather than Beijing (with only one month) even though the peak month Humidex in Beijing is higher.  Someone who loves cold might want to live in Santa Fe, where it never gets particularly cold (only -8°C) but where it is below freezing almost half of the year (179.8 days on average).  In general though, the places with the most hot or cold days also have the hottest and coldest extremes.
  
Once again, Turpan stands out for its misery, with days above 32°C totaling four months and days below 0°C totaling four months.  In fact, on average there is at least one day every month of the year that the temperature is either above 32°C or below 0°C.  This includes almost every day in June, July and August being hot and every single day in December, January and February being below freezing.
+
Once again, Turpan stands out for its misery, with over four months above 32°C and four months below 0°C.
  
Some of the most extreme climates on earth are not shown on this comic, however, perhaps because some of them are uninhabited.  {{w|Eismitte}} (a camp established in the center of Greenland in the 1930s) and {{w|Vostok Station}} (in the center of Antarctica) both see temperatures far colder than McMurdo, although being in the middle of ice caps neither can be inhabited without outside support.  The areas around {{w|Oymyakon}} and {{w|Verkhoyansk}} in eastern Siberia also see temperatures colder than McMurdo and are actual towns, although summer temperatures are much higher.  In both places the summer weather is generally average (Humidex of 22°C to 23°C) but they have seen record highs of 34°C  to 37°C  and record lows of almost -68°C, giving them the greatest temperature swings on earth.  {{w|Bouvet Island}} is a small island in the South Atlantic Ocean, near the latitude where there are no land masses to interrupt storms and currents (south of South America but north of Antarctica).  As a result it has one of the most consistent climates on earth, with a high and low almost always within a few degrees of 0°C all year long – a perpetual state of almost to just freezing, combined with clouds, fog, wind and rain from ocean storms.  {{w|Death Valley}} in California, {{w|Shahdad}} in Iran, and {{w|Murzuk}} in Libya all vie for having the highest temperature in the world, although not the highest Humidex.
+
Some of the most extreme climates on earth are not shown on this comic, however, perhaps because some of them are uninhabited.  {{w|Eismitte}} (a camp established in the center of Greenland in the 1930s) and {{w|Vostok Station}} (in the center of Antarctica) both have temperature far colder than McMurdo, although being in the middle of ice caps neither could be inhabited without outside support.  The area around {{w|Oymyakon}} and {{w|Verhoyansk}} in eastern Siberia also see temperatures colder than McMurdo and are actual towns, although summer temperatures are much higher.  In both places the summer weather is generally average (Humidex of 22°C to 23°C) but both have seen records highs of 34°C  to 37°C  and record lows of almost -68°C, giving them the greatest temperature swings on earth.  {{w|Bouvet Island}} is a small island in the South Atlantic Ocean, near the latitude where there are no land masses to interrupt storms and currents (south of South America but North of Antarctica).  As a result it has one of the most consistent climates on earth, with a high and low almost always within a few degrees of 0°C all year long – a perpetual state of almost to just freezing, combined with clouds, fog, wind and rain from ocean storms.  {{w|Death Valley}} in California, {{w|Shahdad}} in Iran, and {{w|Murzuk}} in Libya all vie for having the highest temperature in the world, although not the highest Humidex.
  
The relevant temperature data for these extreme locations, where known, is in the second table for comparison.
+
The relevant temperature data for these locations, where known, is in the second table for comparison.
  
 
The title text refers to a quote sometimes attributed to {{w|Mark Twain}}; however, as it points out, the quote is [https://www.snopes.com/quotes/twain.asp misattributed], and it is unknown who created it. The text then goes on to claim that the person who originally said the quote never visited {{w|McMurdo Station}}, a US Antarctic research center, which is certainly a colder place than San Francisco.
 
The title text refers to a quote sometimes attributed to {{w|Mark Twain}}; however, as it points out, the quote is [https://www.snopes.com/quotes/twain.asp misattributed], and it is unknown who created it. The text then goes on to claim that the person who originally said the quote never visited {{w|McMurdo Station}}, a US Antarctic research center, which is certainly a colder place than San Francisco.
Line 47: Line 48:
 
{| class="wikitable sortable"
 
{| class="wikitable sortable"
 
! scope="col" style="width: 100px;" | City
 
! scope="col" style="width: 100px;" | City
! scope="col" style="width: 100px;" | Country
+
! Country
 
! Continent
 
! Continent
 
! scope="col" style="width: 100px;" | Preference Type
 
! scope="col" style="width: 100px;" | Preference Type
Line 164: Line 165:
 
| {{w|Kiev}} || Ukraine || Europe || Love Cold, Hate Heat || -9 || 23 || 12 || 25.3 || 145 || 0 || 50° 27′ N || 179 || Dfb (warm summer humid continental)
 
| {{w|Kiev}} || Ukraine || Europe || Love Cold, Hate Heat || -9 || 23 || 12 || 25.3 || 145 || 0 || 50° 27′ N || 179 || Dfb (warm summer humid continental)
 
|-
 
|-
| {{w|Kinshasa}} || Democratic Republic of the Congo || Africa || Love Heat, Hate Cold || 20 || 30 || 21 || 38.4 || 0 || 0 || 4° 19′ S || 240 || Aw (tropical savanna)
+
| {{w|Kinshasa}} || Democratic || Africa || Love Heat, Hate Cold || 20 || 30 || 21 || 38.4 || 0 || 0 || 4° 19′ S || 240 || Aw (tropical savanna)
 
|-
 
|-
 
| {{w|Lagos}} || Nigeria || Africa || Love Heat, Hate Cold || 23 || 30 || 23 || 40.3 || 0 || 0 || 6° 27′ N || 41 || Aw (tropical savanna)
 
| {{w|Lagos}} || Nigeria || Africa || Love Heat, Hate Cold || 23 || 30 || 23 || 40.3 || 0 || 0 || 6° 27′ N || 41 || Aw (tropical savanna)
Line 286: Line 287:
 
| {{w|Volgograd}} || Russia || Europe ||  || -9.2 || 29.3 || N/A ||  || 146 || 11 || 48° 42′ N || 36 || Dfa (hot summer humid continental)
 
| {{w|Volgograd}} || Russia || Europe ||  || -9.2 || 29.3 || N/A ||  || 146 || 11 || 48° 42′ N || 36 || Dfa (hot summer humid continental)
 
|-
 
|-
| {{w|Wellington}} || New Zealand || Oceania || Hate Both || 6.3 || 20.6 || 12 || 22.9 || 0 || 0 || 41° 17′ S || 495 || Cfb (temperate oceanic)
+
| {{w|Wellington}} || New Zealand || Oceania || Hate Both || 6.3 || 20.6 || 12 || 22.9 || 0 || 0 || 47° 17′ S || 495 || Cfb (temperate oceanic)
 
|-
 
|-
 
| {{w|Wuhan}} || China || Asia ||  || 2 || 32 || 24 || 43.3 || 35 || 49 || 30° 35′ N || 37 || Cfa (humid subtropical)
 
| {{w|Wuhan}} || China || Asia ||  || 2 || 32 || 24 || 43.3 || 35 || 49 || 30° 35′ N || 37 || Cfa (humid subtropical)
Line 301: Line 302:
 
{| class="wikitable sortable"
 
{| class="wikitable sortable"
 
! scope="col" style="width: 100px;" | City
 
! scope="col" style="width: 100px;" | City
! scope="col" style="width: 100px;" | Country
+
! Country
 
! Continent
 
! Continent
 
! scope="col" style="width: 100px;" | Preference Type
 
! scope="col" style="width: 100px;" | Preference Type
Line 314: Line 315:
 
! Koppen Climate Classification
 
! Koppen Climate Classification
 
|-
 
|-
| {{w|Bouvet Island}} || Norway (dependency) || South Atlantic || Love Cold, Hate Heat || -5 || 4 || 0.5 || 2 ||  ||  || 54° 25′ S || 780 || EF (ice cap)
+
| {{w|Bouvet Is.}} || Norway (dependency) || South Atlantic || Love Cold, Hate Heat || -5 || 4 || 0.5 || 2 ||  ||  || 54° 25′ S || 780 || EF (ice cap)
 
|-
 
|-
 
| {{w|Death Valley}} || United States || North America || Love Heat, Hate Cold || 3.8 || 46.4 || 4 || 45.4 || 4.3 || 191.8 || 36° 14′ N || -86 || BWh (hot desert)
 
| {{w|Death Valley}} || United States || North America || Love Heat, Hate Cold || 3.8 || 46.4 || 4 || 45.4 || 4.3 || 191.8 || 36° 14′ N || -86 || BWh (hot desert)
Line 326: Line 327:
 
| {{w|Shahdad}} || Iran || Asia || Love Heat, Hate Cold || 7.7 || 46.1 ||  ||  ||  ||  || 30° 25′ N || 452 || BWh (hot desert)
 
| {{w|Shahdad}} || Iran || Asia || Love Heat, Hate Cold || 7.7 || 46.1 ||  ||  ||  ||  || 30° 25′ N || 452 || BWh (hot desert)
 
|-
 
|-
| {{w|Verkhoyansk}} || Russia || Asia || Love Cold, Hate Heat || -48.3 || 23.5 || 6 || 23.1 ||  ||  || 67° 33′ N || 142 || Dfd (cold subarctic)
+
| {{w|Verhoyansk}} || Russia || Asia || Love Cold, Hate Heat || -48.3 || 23.5 || 6 || 23.1 ||  ||  || ° ′ N || 142 || Dfd (cold subarctic)
 
|-
 
|-
 
| {{w|Vostok Station}} ||  || Antarctica || Love Cold, Hate Heat || -75 || -30 || -37 || -35.4 || 365 || 0 || 78° 27′ S || 3419 || EF (ice cap)
 
| {{w|Vostok Station}} ||  || Antarctica || Love Cold, Hate Heat || -75 || -30 || -37 || -35.4 || 365 || 0 || 78° 27′ S || 3419 || EF (ice cap)
 
|-
 
|-
 
|}
 
|}
 
===Original version===
 
[[File:temperature_preferences_smudge.png|frame|The "smudge" from the original comic, edited to enhance visibility]]
 
 
The [[:File:temperature_preferences_original.png|comic as originally published]] had a "smudge" or scattering of gray pixels, visible in the center of the image between the labels for Madrid and Lubbock. A new version of the image was later uploaded with this removed.
 
 
By editing the image to increase the contrast between the background and the "smudge", as shown here, it is possible to see dots and grid lines. This would seem to be a scatter graph, likely one showing temperature data used by Randall as a reference while making this comic, and accidentally left visible when the comic was first uploaded. A similar thing happened in [[1561: Water Phase Diagram]], where a phase diagram from Wikipedia was faintly visible in the [[1561: Water Phase Diagram#Original version|original version of the comic]].
 
  
 
==Transcript==
 
==Transcript==
Line 489: Line 483:
  
 
[[Category:Scatter plots]]
 
[[Category:Scatter plots]]
[[Category:Weather]]
 

Please note that all contributions to explain xkcd may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here.
You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see explain xkcd:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission!

To protect the wiki against automated edit spam, we kindly ask you to solve the following CAPTCHA:

Cancel | Editing help (opens in new window)