Editing Talk:482: Height

Are you sure it reads "missing winds"? It looks like "missing WMDs" to me, which would suggest a political reference to the US engagement of 2003 in Iraq.
[[Special:Contributions/109.40.138.109|109.40.138.109]] 02:48, 22 May 2013 (UTC)
:Yeah. Agreed. Changed. [[User:PinkAmpersand|PinkAmpersand]] ([[User talk:PinkAmpersand|talk]]) 11:23, 23 May 2013 (UTC)

 "The comic starts with Black Hat throwing a cat off the edge of the universe, probably a reference to Schrodinger's cat" 
::Has the editor here never heard of the "cats always land on their feet" myth? Black Hat would appear to be testing this from the extreme. Anonymous 01:43, 4 December 2013 (UTC) (and yes, that would be WMDs)
:::If I am not mistaken, this is a wiki; there is no set editor. If you have a suggestion for how to improve a page, it would be apt to edit it yourself. The discussion tends to be a forum for matters that may be tangentially related to the comic, or uncertain suggestions for improving the article. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 03:18, 4 December 2013 (UTC)
::Sorry, I wasn't aware of the proper terminology. I'll add my line shortly. Anonymous 05:13, 13 December 2013 (UTC)

Why is there a "(?)" in "Oort Cloud"? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.212.196|108.162.212.196]] 02:10, 15 December 2013 (UTC)
:Because it's not known if this cloud really does exist. Many objects are assumed to be there at that vast distance to the sun, but that distance is also the reason they could not be detected from earth. {{w|Voyager 1}}, the farthest humanmade object from Earth, will reach that region in many thousand years. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 21:37, 15 December 2013 (UTC)

Why is Snoop Dogg in space? {{unsigned ip|108.162.219.223}}
:Because he's high as shit, man--he's so high, he's the second-furthest any person's ever been from the earth. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.76|108.162.216.76]] 10:12, 6 February 2014 (UTC)

 Diameter of milky way: 100 - 120 kly (Lets call it 110 kly)
 Suns distance to galactic centre: 27.2 kly
 Distance to edge of galaxy: (0.5*110)-27.2 = 27.8 kly = 263E18
 
 Is my understanding and maths right? --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 08:08, 11 September 2014 (UTC)

;Conversion of pixels to height
Because it is a log graph for the y axis
 height<sub>final</sub> = height<sub>initial</sub> * factor
 pixels = Log<sub>base</sub>(height)

Using identities to show that a vertical distance on this graph represents a multiplicative change in true distance from the starting point of measure, and that a vertical change (delta) in the same number of pixels represents a corresponding multiplicative factor on total height.
 pixels<sub>final</sub> = Log<sub>base</sub>(height<sub>initial</sub> * factor) = Log<sub>base</sub>(initial) + Log<sub>base</sub>(factor)
 pixels<sub>final</sub> - pixels<sub>initial</sub> = Log<sub>base</sub>(factor) = pixels<sub>delta</sub>

Solving for the factor and the base of the log function
 factor = base<sup>pixels<sub>delta</sub></sup>
 base = factor<sup>1/pixels<sub>delta</sub></sup>

From the diagram it appears that  a change (delta) of 550 pixels represents a change of x*1000000 therefore we can determine the base and determine the multiplicative factor for any change in pixels in the original drawing.
 base = 1000000<sup>1/550</sup> 
 factor = (1000000<sup>1/550</sup>)<sup>pixels<sub>delta</sub></sup> = 1000000<sup>pixels<sub>delta</sub>/550</sup>

Therefore:
 height<sub>final</sub> = height<sub>initial</sub> * 1000000<sup>pixels<sub>delta</sub>/550</sup>
 The above can be used as an equation to estimate and validate the heights on the diagram, where height<sub>initial</sub> is the height of the reference point in meters, pixels<sub>delta</sub> is the vertical change in pixels on the diagram, and is positive if height increases and negative if height decreases.

[[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.149|108.162.216.149]] 12:40, 30 September 2014 (UTC)

:We just need to be careful that the existing heights (which in ''most'' cases have been fairly thoroughly researched) are not replaced by heights determined by their 'pixel position'. --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 11:16, 1 October 2014 (UTC)
:Wrong, the explanation is intended to explain the comic not the real world. Before you get excited though let me explain, we may be on the same page. 
 Many height values can be determined from external research, and can be shown to be consistent with the graph (e.g. center of the galaxy). In these cases the researched number should be used in the height column, as clearly these numbers represent the authors intent.
 There or other cases where the height is labeled. These should always be used as height, as these numbers represent the authors intent. If they are inconsistent with the scale of the graph this should be noted in the description.
 There are other cases, such as where the space shuttle disintegrated, where we can research the numbers, but they are inconstant with the graph by more than an order of magnitude. Any large inconsistencies should be noted in the description, but in these cases the graph position, not the actual position should be in the height column, because this is the closest representation we can have to authors intent.
[[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.106|108.162.216.106]] 11:50, 1 October 2014 (UTC)

:Completely agree with the basis that authors intent is priority, and with pretty much everything written above. What I was concerned about was the possibility of someone indiscriminately changing existing height values based solely on its pixel position, with no cross-checking against the real world height. I would venture that the heights of the real items on the graph are intended by Randall to be at their correct positions, but there may be exceptions. I have a personal bias here, in that I spent quite considerable time doing research on many of the heights. That said, I don't in any way expect the height entries I worked on to be taken as correct, simply that there is some degree of reasoning behind the existing heights, and to change them without checking any discrepancies would be reckless. --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 12:48, 1 October 2014 (UTC)
@@ Line 10: / Line 10: @@
 Why is there a "(?)" in "Oort Cloud"? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.212.196|108.162.212.196]] 02:10, 15 December 2013 (UTC)
 :Because it's not known if this cloud really does exist. Many objects are assumed to be there at that vast distance to the sun, but that distance is also the reason they could not be detected from earth. {{w|Voyager 1}}, the farthest humanmade object from Earth, will reach that region in many thousand years. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 21:37, 15 December 2013 (UTC)
-: I think this is a very important point, and have added this to the Objects table entry for Oort cloud. [[User:Redbelly98|Redbelly98]] ([[User talk:Redbelly98|talk]]) 20:21, 21 July 2018 (UTC)
 Why is Snoop Dogg in space? {{unsigned ip|108.162.219.223}}
@@ Line 45: / Line 44: @@
 :We just need to be careful that the existing heights (which in ''most'' cases have been fairly thoroughly researched) are not replaced by heights determined by their 'pixel position'. --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 11:16, 1 October 2014 (UTC)
-::Wrong, the explanation is intended to explain the comic not the real world. Before you get excited though let me explain, we may be on the same page.
+:Wrong, the explanation is intended to explain the comic not the real world. Before you get excited though let me explain, we may be on the same page.
   Many height values can be determined from external research, and can be shown to be consistent with the graph (e.g. center of the galaxy). In these cases the researched number should be used in the height column, as clearly these numbers represent the authors intent.
   There or other cases where the height is labeled. These should always be used as height, as these numbers represent the authors intent. If they are inconsistent with the scale of the graph this should be noted in the description.
@@ Line 52: / Line 51: @@
 :Completely agree with the basis that authors intent is priority, and with pretty much everything written above. What I was concerned about was the possibility of someone indiscriminately changing existing height values based solely on its pixel position, with no cross-checking against the real world height. I would venture that the heights of the real items on the graph are intended by Randall to be at their correct positions, but there may be exceptions. I have a personal bias here, in that I spent quite considerable time doing research on many of the heights. That said, I don't in any way expect the height entries I worked on to be taken as correct, simply that there is some degree of reasoning behind the existing heights, and to change them without checking any discrepancies would be reckless. --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 12:48, 1 October 2014 (UTC)
-::The Bodes Law ratio of one planet to the next but one is:
-:::Pi^(9/4Pi): 20Pi^(3/2Pi)
-::thus rendering:
-*Mercury : Mars
-*Venus: Jupiter
-*Earth : Saturn
-*Mars : Uranus
-*Asteroids : Neptune
-Not that the inner asteroids appear between Mars and Jupiter on the right hand column.
-[[User:Weatherlawyer| I used Google News BEFORE it was clickbait]] ([[User talk:Weatherlawyer|talk]]) 01:09, 31 January 2015 (UTC)
-I think the "pulsar" at the top right might actually be a quasar (an active galaxy). They certainly are distant objects, so someone more versed with the wiki may want to have a look. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.123|141.101.99.123]] 20:10, 14 April 2015 (UTC)
-[[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.129|108.162.229.129]] 15:00, 18 August 2015 (UTC)
- Randall is stating that this is the longest distance that a ray of light has ever traveled to reach Earth, which implies that the universe is about 46 billion years old
-Never hear of the expanding space?
-[[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.129|108.162.229.129]] 15:00, 18 August 2015 (UTC)