Talk:2127: Panama Canal

Explain xkcd: It's 'cause you're dumb.
Revision as of 18:49, 23 March 2019 by 172.69.33.95 (talk) (Pacific plate motion, proposed Dezhnev-Alaska bridge)
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Can any English majors verify if 'we would had to modify it' in the Title text is grammatically ok or not? It sounds like it should be 'we would have had to modify it' or 'we would've had to...', but I could be wrong or maybe it was intentional? Stickfigurefan (talk) 18:45, 22 March 2019 (UTC)

Pretty sure it is just a missing word and yes I think "have" is the missing word so we would have had to modify it was the intention. Maybe it will be corrected, the comic has only been up 20 minutes now. --Kynde (talk) 18:53, 22 March 2019 (UTC)
But as written, you can split the title text exactly in half (at the the space after "would", and including the final period). "Have" doesn't work--the two halves aren't even--"halve" works...but then you have to split it as "ha|lve". Elvenivle (talk)
Hm, there also appears to be another missing word: "...would ['ve/of/have] had to modify it [to] include...". I was hoping there was a joke in the shorter cut--representing the standard Panama palindrome--crossing the longer title text (represented in the vertical canal, leaving an improperly-cut "have", either as 've or "of") but two missing words doesn't seem to fit that hope. Elvenivle (talk)
The title text reads as if Randall was sleepy, drunk, or distracted. The missing words are common typos. 172.68.65.114 02:13, 23 March 2019 (UTC)

Fun fact: The portion of the Arctic–Antarctic Canal that passes through central Panamá actually runs from south to north (or at least southwest to northeast), rather than from north to south! —TobyBartels (talk) 19:58, 22 March 2019 (UTC)

The actual Panama Canal runs West to East from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Both are due to the fact that Panama is a bit of an S shape. Cgrimes85 (talk) 00:17, 23 March 2019 (UTC)
Right, that's the real fun fact. Mine is a fun fact in the alternate universe where Randall's canal proposal was accepted. But I'm pleased that both of these can be seen on Randall's maps, if you look closely. —TobyBartels (talk) 02:57, 23 March 2019 (UTC)
Not permanently. The Pacific plate is rotating counterclockwise, so Baja will someday be off the coast of California instead of off the coast of Mexico (the boundary between the Pacific plate and North American plates runs through the Gulf of California and the San Andreas fault). This motion may straighten Panama... or tear it apart into two disconnected pieces (making a canal unnecessary).172.69.33.95 18:49, 23 March 2019 (UTC)

My proposal for the Suez Canal was for it to run from the Cape of Good Hope to Cape Dezhnev via Nepal and Tibet... 162.158.155.152 21:17, 22 March 2019 (UTC)

Would you opt for tunnel through Himalayas? Note that Himalayas are still rising by more than 1 cm per year, so you would need to compensate in your maintenance plans. -- Hkmaly (talk) 23:51, 22 March 2019 (UTC)
Would it connect to the proposed bridge to Alaska?

It's interesting to me how palindromic the Panama cut is...compared to the other one. Elvenivle (talk)

Wot no Palindromes 141.101.99.41 00:53, 23 March 2019 (UTC)

I propose a canal between Tierra del Fuego and The Cape of Good Hope. US$1.000.000.000 and I keep the difference if the project is completed under-budget. These Are Not The Comments You Are Looking For (talk) 06:03, 23 March 2019 (UTC)