Search results

...evitably result in a system just as complicated. This is an example of the paradox in complexity theory that if you attempt to simplify a system of problems b

...then arrange for them to fall in love before he ceases to exist due to the paradox of his own parents never having children. An unintended side-effect of the

...st (near {{w|light speed}}) for 74 non-subjective years to return {{w|Twin paradox|without having aged much}}. However, this would not explain why she thinks

....S., and an unimportant one at that, which pokes fun at the UK, creating a paradox (sort of).

...y 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 mus

...s that cannot be proved from the axioms. His proof used a self-referential paradox.

...hese "pieces" into two distinct balls both identical to the original. This paradox has been proven for theoretical shapes, but requires infinitely complicated ...nt alternate form of set theory. Since the proof for the Banach–Tarski paradox relies on accepting the axiom of choice, the interviewer is suggesting Cueb

In the title text, [[Randall]] notes a social paradox: that people tend to be disparaging of such inefficient time-wasting while

The {{w|Fermi paradox}} is the question of why humans have yet to detect any evidence of extrater There are a number of different theories to explain this apparent paradox, ranging from life (or intelligent life) being rarer than we expect to the

See also the {{w|Unexpected hanging paradox|paradox of the "unexpected hanging"}}.

...ing of spatially separated events depend on the observer?}}", or "{{w|Twin paradox|can time run at different rates for different observers?}}". But it doesn'

...st, then it is also specifically an illustration of the {{w|false positive paradox}}: A test that is rarely wrong, but which tests for an event that is even r

...ith this property is called the Condorcet winner. Due to the {{w|Condorcet paradox}}, an election with 3 or more candidates might not have a Condorcet winner,

...annot add days to the counter without re-setting the sign, which creates a paradox: either you add a day by re-setting it (which, according to the sign, means The sign is {{w|self-referential}} (which causes the paradox). Self-reference is a [[:Category:Self-reference|recurring theme]] in xkcd.

The third panel is a reference to the {{w|Quine paradox}}, whereby a sentence repeated twice in succession proves to be paradoxical ...atement is false" but without the explicit self-reference. Named after the paradox, a {{w|quine (computing)|quine}} is also a computer program which outputs i

...ent does not end well for the ant according to Randall, likely because the paradox often ends up with incredibly long amounts of time until the ant finally ge

:'''Arrow paradox:''' At any instant in time, an arrow suspended in mid-air is no different f :'''Dichotomy paradox:''' Suppose I need to go from point A to point B. First I must walk halfway

...). One of the most famous examples on this is the {{w|Schrödinger's cat}} paradox.

...ng ca. 1975), is still around and heavily used. [[Randall]] points out the paradox that after 15 years he is still unable to write out a proper tar command fr

...theories about how it would still be possible - see the link. The obvious paradox is that when Rob dies the future Rob never existed. But also the time trave

...omic is multi-layered, and seems to be [[Randall]]'s take on the {{w|Fermi paradox}}.

...re are tons of alien encounter stories. This is known as Fermi's Lack-of-a-Paradox. ...is paradox, but it remains a question of scientific debate. The Lack-of-a-Paradox in this strip, however, is that the math suggests that there should be huge

...ve himself to age slowly while the other ages quickly, forming an apparent paradox. Megan expresses a preference for Cueball's older twin, who will be more "m

...ould immediately invalidate them. In fact, this is precisely {{w|Russell's Paradox}}, discovered by Bertrand Russell himself. ...org Cantor}}, the inventor of {{w|set theory}}, and adds a second, similar paradox: if you have a fetish for doing everything in the book twice, then that bel

...ntil you stop assuming acceleration phases can be neglected) or {{w|ladder paradox}} (ladder is both smaller and larger than the garage, until you consider se

...iewpoint that is related to the thwarted search for {{w|Interesting number paradox|'boring' numbers}}.

...nterfering in the development of civilizations}}. This answer to the Fermi Paradox is commonly called {{w|zoo hypothesis}}.

...it is still tiny. This can be compared to the {{w|Sorites paradox}} (the "paradox of the heap"), which involves a "heap" of sand from which grains of sand ar

...retched by {{w|redshift}} so it's no longer visible to us. See {{w|Olbers' paradox}}

The apparent "paradox" of the Monty Hall Problem is that many people's initial reaction once the ...problem is strikingly similar to the {{w|Two envelope problem|Two Envelope Paradox}}, one of [http://blog.xkcd.com/2008/09/09/the-goddamn-airplane-on-the-godd

The {{w|Fermi paradox}} is the contradiction that arises between high estimates of the likelihood ...raterrestrial life is sending any sign of existence back is that {{w|Fermi paradox#Communication is dangerous|they fear they might be destroyed}} soon after t

...he resulting time-travel questions. This act would result in a time-travel paradox.

...for a human but much harder for a computer. This illustrates {{w|Moravec's paradox}} from the 1980s in a modern context. By the 1950s computers were useful fo

...ation spontaneously, on a millisecond or even microsecond time scale. This paradox is central to computational approaches to protein structure prediction.

The title text touches upon a strange paradox regarding gravity: in isolation it is the simplest and easiest to understan

This comic points out an apparent paradox in product performance: Many products that are [https://www.google.com/sear

...ink it is impossible to disprove. Therefore, he references the omnipotence paradox by requiring that God do such an impossible thing in order to have maximall ...not exist. It is similar in approach to this comic and to the omnipotence paradox, in that it also requires a God that can do the logically impossible. In Da

|temporal paradox

|I call zeno's paradox on this... thing.

...ner) thought experiments on {{w|special relativity}}, such as the {{w|twin paradox}} (the twin on the train should be younger after decelerating to a stop), a

The preferred resolution of the paradox is not to insist (as early physicists did) that the universe's state is a c

...dox}} where you will never be born, and thus cease to exist. Of course the paradox is that you could thus not have prevented your birth in the first place, if

Also implies a paradox where if flags were to use em dashes, this flag would be invalid.

...kill her past self. The comic does not explain {{w|Grandfather paradox|the paradox}} of how someone who died in the past could still be alive in the present/f

...us" time loop] is also perfectly possible, the grandfather paradox isn't a paradox if quantum entanglement is taken into account - something Megan would no do

The apparent paradox of people knowing more about a subject also having more problems with it is

...it cannot; if it doesn't, then it must. Similarly, like in the {{w|barber paradox}}, the vehicle which launches only vehicles which do not launch themselves ...replacing "precisely those" with "only". Under that scenario, there is no paradox; the barber is merely unkempt.

The title text elaborates on the hypothetical paradox of computers trying not to care about stuff. Neural network programs are de

...about how many planets have life in the Milky Way relates to the {{w|Fermi Paradox}}. For life, of the type we know, to exist outside of the Solar system ther

:Such integers are sometimes called "{{w|Interesting number paradox|uninteresting numbers}}" in mathematical terms, and attempts have been made ...his would not be known at the time of submission). Thus, as in the Russell Paradox, this set would be out of date as soon as it was accepted, since the set of

...heres that have to be broken before leaving as an explanation of the Fermi Paradox. Furthermore, in the lore of Dungeons & Dragons, the solar system is also e

...time travel paradoxes}} which asserts that any event which would lead to a paradox must have probability zero).

...lity that even an omniscient and omnipotent genie might be {{w|Omnipotence paradox|technically unable}} to fulfill the wish, at least without, for example, ch

...ating the component pieces without changing their shape. The Banach-Tarski paradox was also referenced in [[804: Pumpkin Carving]].

| Daniel del Zorro Multicolor (Foxical Paradox)

...e philosophical topics: {{w|Occam's Razor}}, the {{w|Barber paradox|Barber Paradox}}, and {{w|Murphy's Law}}. ...ttempt at a concrete, real-world analog of {{w|Russell's paradox|Russell's Paradox}} in set theory.

...ement of the meetings was made 2 decades in advance, there's a {{w|Paradox|paradox}} that these participants would have taken the date from an announcement in

...on options. Among urban planners, this is known as the {{w|Downs–Thomson paradox}}.

...ble to control the power, which leads to a situation similar to the liar's paradox.

* Money supply size for price inflation (see e.g. the {{w|paradox of thrift}}) * Proportion renewable energy for carbon reduction (see {{w|Jevons paradox}})

...e to go that still doesn't have it. It could also be a comment on the mild paradox that a nominally unreliable internet connection has advantages for those wh

...o the absurdity, one can see the whole joke as an instance of the {{w|Liar paradox}}: if one considers that the conclusion of the meta-analysis is that "scien

...w|Thorne–Hawking–Preskill bet|bet}} with {{w|John Preskill}} over this paradox.

...since his success would create a {{w|Temporal_paradox#Grandfather_paradox|paradox}}. [[:Category:Time travel|Time travel]] is a recurring topic on xkcd and e