Editing 2217: 53 Cards
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==Explanation== | ==Explanation== | ||
− | + | {{incomplete|Created by a 53-CARD DECK. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}} | |
− | + | In this comic [[Cueball]] claims that he has found a way to manipulate a {{w|Standard 52-card deck|52-card deck}} into a 53-card deck with ''only'' shuffling and rearranging. This is absurd, since neither of those actions are capable of adding new cards to the deck. Cueball backs up his claim with a flowchart style diagram containing images of card decks along with unreadable text, with the number 52 next to the deck at top and the number 53 next to the deck at the bottom. | |
− | + | [[Ponytail]] states that he has not done such a thing, but Cueball then challenges Ponytail to find an error in his math as given in the complicated flow chart. This is an aggressive defense that some people employ when challenged that, intentionally or not, has the effect of discouraging argument because making false claims often takes less effort than refuting them. | |
− | + | The caption below the comic states this is also how every conversation runs between a physicist and a {{w|perpetual motion}} enthusiast, i.e. one who likes the notion that it could be possible for a mechanical system to work indefinitely without any external input of energy. The {{w|laws of thermodynamics}} - which are some of the most foundational and well-tested physical laws that we have - say that this is impossible as it would involve creating energy out of nowhere - similarly to how Cueball's process somehow creates an entire extra card out of nowhere, despite this making no physical or logical sense. | |
− | + | With this comic [[Randall]] makes it clear that he sees the creation of extra matter (and extra card) is as far fetched as creating the energy out of nothing that would be required for perpetual motion. But he makes it more clear how far out this is with this card trick. | |
− | In the title text, Ponytail responds to Cueball's challenge with snark, claiming that the most obvious error is the fact that the formula's result is "53". The implication is that his math results in the wrong ''answer'', which is proof that the calculations must contain errors. This, of course, starts with the assumption that Cueball's claimed result is impossible, rather than attempting to find the flaws in his specific method. Because most people would conclude, by basic physical reasoning, that merely shuffling and rearranging a deck of cards cannot increase the number of cards in the deck, that feels like a safe assumption. By analogy, increasing the amount of energy in a system only by moving and transferring energy should be equally impossible, on its face. | + | In the title text, Ponytail responds to Cueball's challenge with snark, claiming that the most obvious error is the fact that the formula's result is "53". The implication is that his math results in the wrong ''answer'', which is proof that the calculations must contain errors. This, of course, starts with the assumption that Cueball's claimed result is impossible, rather than attempting to find the flaws in his specific method. Because most people would conclude, by basic physical reasoning, that merely shuffling and rearranging a deck of cards cannot increase the number of cards in the deck, that feels like a safe assumption. By analogy, increasing the amount of energy in a system only by moving and transferring energy, should be equally impossible, on its face. |
==Transcript== | ==Transcript== |