# It's my turn to be stumped by an XKCD **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 12, 2012, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-my-turn-to-be-stumped-by-an-xkcd/615597 "2012-03-12T22:26:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-my-turn-to-be-stumped-by-an-xkcd/615597/41 "2012-03-13T13:09:36Z")
They’re in different instances. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-my-turn-to-be-stumped-by-an-xkcd/615597/42 "2012-03-13T15:14:25Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Exactly. Notice that everyone only understood what it was they saw. Damn. Nice catch. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-my-turn-to-be-stumped-by-an-xkcd/615597/43 "2012-03-13T15:36:43Z")
> [@PaulC2](#): > > This is the first xkcd in a long time that made me weep. My least favorite xkcd of all time. ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-my-turn-to-be-stumped-by-an-xkcd/615597/44 "2012-03-13T16:45:58Z")
> [@Wheelz](#): > > Hat Guy and Girl have both traversed the entire distance between the two holes without meeting up with Beret Guy and Roundhead, who are also between the two holes. How did _that_ happen? Because their world is not actually two-dimensional. > [@Autolycus](#): > > Yes, but was it on purpose? Awesome consonance, or a shitty comic? Hmmm… I am going to go with shitty comic. At his best, Randal is brilliant, but he has plenty of bad (and indifferent) days and this was one of his worst. ---
**Author:** ![Tanbarkie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a698b9/32.png) [@Tanbarkie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tanbarkie)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-my-turn-to-be-stumped-by-an-xkcd/615597/45 "2012-03-13T16:49:51Z")
> [@Autolycus](#): > > Yes, but was it on purpose? Awesome consonance, or a shitty comic? Hmmm… I’m 99% certain it’s on purpose. Randall is a good enough writer (and a good enough visual communicator) that, if he wanted to make the point concisely, he could have. As, in fact, he does - in the alt text. The comic itself is intentionally obtuse as an illustration of the comic’s subject matter. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-my-turn-to-be-stumped-by-an-xkcd/615597/46 "2012-03-13T16:55:28Z")
> [@](#): > > Hat Guy and Girl have both traversed the entire distance between the two holes without meeting up with Beret Guy and Roundhead, who are also between the two holes. How did that happen? Some scientists have speculated that there may actually be a _third dimension_, in addition to the two we’re familiar with, and that it might actually be possible, under the right circumstances, to actually travel through that third dimension. Yes, I know it’s pretty esoteric, and strains suspension of disbelief, but this is Randal Monroe we’re talking about here-- I wouldn’t put it past him to pull that kind of sci-fi twist. ---
**Author:** ![Carnacki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b5e925/32.png) [@Carnacki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carnacki)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-my-turn-to-be-stumped-by-an-xkcd/615597/47 "2012-03-13T17:08:37Z")
> [@Tengu](#): > > A triangle with an exclamation point in it is a [standard warning sign](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warning_sign). So common, in fact, that Windows uses it for several ‘problem encountered’ messages. I do see that now, thanks. Although in some of the panels, I have to say it doesn’t look much like an exclamation point. ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-my-turn-to-be-stumped-by-an-xkcd/615597/48 "2012-03-13T19:30:29Z")
> [@njtt](#): > > Because their world is not actually two-dimensional. > [@Chronos](#): > > Some scientists have speculated that there may actually be a _third dimension_, in addition to the two we’re familiar with, and that it might actually be possible, under the right circumstances, to actually travel through that third dimension. Yes, I know it’s pretty esoteric, and strains suspension of disbelief, but this is Randal Monroe we’re talking about here-- I wouldn’t put it past him to pull that kind of sci-fi twist. This particular comic, as drawn (even more poorly than usual), seem to rule out the existence of a third dimension in this little scenario. Otherwise people might have simply walked around the hole. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-my-turn-to-be-stumped-by-an-xkcd/615597/49 "2012-03-13T20:09:46Z")
But they didn’t see the hole, they weren’t paying attention, they were too busy being exasperated by the idiot they were just talking to. They could just as easily have stopped walking, like the hat guy did in the first panel. Or the girl must have done off screen. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-my-turn-to-be-stumped-by-an-xkcd/615597/50 "2012-03-13T20:20:47Z")
Perhaps it is a trench. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-my-turn-to-be-stumped-by-an-xkcd/615597/51 "2012-03-13T21:28:33Z")
> [@Trepa\_Mayfield](#): > > On a related note, was anyone brave enough to try the Holistic Browser? It takes you randomly to one of the urls someone else entered, but I’m not risking being taken to a shock site/virus dump/rick roll. I tried it yesterday, entering the URL of my personal Web site, and it just loaded up the xkcd comic again. I tried it again today, this time entering the URL of the Straight Dope, and I got photos of [adorable baby otters](http://www.buzzfeed.com/pajaroentertainmentltd/otters-31ii). ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-my-turn-to-be-stumped-by-an-xkcd/615597/52 "2012-03-13T22:56:39Z")
> [@Wheelz](#): > > Hat Guy and Girl have both traversed the entire distance between the two holes without meeting up with Beret Guy and Roundhead, who are also between the two holes. How did _that_ happen? I don’t think Beret Guy and Roundhead _are_ between the two holes. Even if they are in the same area and all the stick people are there at the same time (neither of which is certain), Beret Guy and Roundhead could both be off somewhere to the right of the right-most hole. There’s no indication that Roundhead has already passed a hole. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-my-turn-to-be-stumped-by-an-xkcd/615597.md?page=2)