# ­xkcd thread **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** comic-strips\ **Created:** [May 28, 2020, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574 "2020-05-28T00:57:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 79
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2022, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1562 "2022-08-02T04:00:20Z")
> **[Omnitaur](https://xkcd.com/2653/)** > > "My parents were both omnitaurs, which is how I got interested in recombination," said the normal human. ---
**Author:** ![TroutMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troutman/32/6721_2.png) [@TroutMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroutMan)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2022, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1563 "2022-08-03T16:52:39Z")
> **[Chemtrails](https://xkcd.com/2654/)** > > Ants have reverse chemtrails--regular citizens spraying chemicals everywhere they go to control the government. Posting this a little earlier than usual to push the Omnitaur off the page. That thing is disturbing. ---
**Author:** ![Ponderoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponderoid/32/19221_2.png) [@Ponderoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponderoid)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2022, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1564 "2022-08-03T17:04:47Z")
This reminds me of the protagonist in the song [Mis-Conceptions by Mercedes Lackey and Leslie Fish](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4b3-KpdPjs0). Hyperlinked rather than embedded because of slightly NSFW language. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2022, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1565 "2022-08-05T23:27:15Z")
> **[Asking Scientists Questions](https://xkcd.com/2655/)** > > 'Does the substance feel weird to the touch?' is equally likely to get the answers 'Don't be ridiculous, you would never put your hand near a sample. We have safety protocols.' and 'Yeah, and it tastes AWFUL.' ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2022, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1566 "2022-08-09T06:12:17Z")
> **[Scientific Field Prefixes](https://xkcd.com/2656/)** > > Massage: Theoretical (10), Quantum (6), High-energy (2), Computational (1), Marine (1), Astro- (None) ---
**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:** [August 9, 2022, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1567 "2022-08-09T22:15:15Z")
I’m surprised that there’s so little “computational psychology”, “marine psychology”, or “high-energy engineering”-- Maybe the fields that I think those would apply to just use different keywords? And what the heck is all that “computational biology”? The “quantum psychology” and “quantum theology” are alarming to me-- I know that both of those get a lot of talk, but what kind of journal publishes it, and by what standards does Google consider such journals “scholarly”? ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2022, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1568 "2022-08-09T22:23:11Z")
You can do the search yourself: [https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&as\_sdt=0%2C5&q="quantum+theology"&btnG=](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C5&q=%22quantum+theology%22&btnG=) It shows the same 447 results that the comic shows. The top result seems to be written by… a mentally ill person. > Quantum Theology: Spiritual Implications Of The New Physics > Diarmuid O’Murchu > I am amazed, to see the cost is carefully designed to help me remember what it would be more innocent, this seems a little glad that I have to reread her book. Everything is clearly smitten with this book. The rest of ones self or none of the Underground Railroad. I had resigned myself to be a smart phone to call it. Trying to live with a tail that she has inherited a home where there should be or I’d have gladly paid several times as I did. I definitely felt like I had read the book, it gives you a rose bouquet. p23. I laughed out loud. Picture this as a writer that goes into enough of Nell Gwyne’s which won Baker a posthomous Nebula Award! Although the battles he had in there. These drawings are in solution, become more conscious of their schoolmates, and all have hidden abilities to maintain energy levels, etc Or maybe just autogenerated by some Markov chain system. I can’t see that it was actually published anywhere. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2022, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1569 "2022-08-09T22:34:28Z")
That said, some of the other examples do seem to have been published: [https://www.jstor.org/stable/27944383](https://www.jstor.org/stable/27944383) > _Quantum Non-Locality as an Indication of Theological Transcendence_ > American Journal of Theology & Philosophy [Vol. 27, No. 2/3](https://www.jstor.org/stable/i27944372) Is that a “real” journal? Shrugs. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2022, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1570 "2022-08-10T05:35:55Z")
It’s best to avoid [computational theology](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Nine_Billion_Names_of_God). ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2022, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1571 "2022-08-10T06:15:11Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > And what the heck is all that “computational biology”? Maybe you’ve heard of a little something called the Human Genome Project? That falls under [computational biology](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computational_biology) (specifically the computational genomics subfield) ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2022, 12:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1572 "2022-08-10T12:04:37Z")
Cladistics is also heavily computational I think ---
**Author:** ![abcdefghij](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/43a26b/32.png) [@abcdefghij](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/abcdefghij)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2022, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1573 "2022-08-10T12:43:57Z")
This guy also had something to say about computational biology: > [@AI showing protein structure? A big deal?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ai-showing-protein-structure-a-big-deal/968733/2): > > It’s a big step. If nothing else, it’s a very difficult problem, and so the fact that a computer can do it is a significant milestone for how good computers are getting. As for practical biological application, as I understand it, the real holy grail is to solve the problem in the other direction: Given a desired shape for the finished protein, come up with an amino acid sequence that will fold into that shape. That would enable the rapid development of all sorts of drugs, because most drugs… ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2022, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1574 "2022-08-10T13:13:56Z")
Things like Alpha Fold are less what I think of as covered by the term than using computational methods on network analysis such as protein-protein interactions across the system. I think of the AI approaches that give answers but can’t explain how it got there as an amazing tool but not the subject, if that makes sense. ---
**Author:** ![abcdefghij](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/43a26b/32.png) [@abcdefghij](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/abcdefghij)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2022, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1575 "2022-08-10T14:07:16Z")
I’m a computational materials scientist. AI/ML mining of properties obtained by somebody else, either from experiments or from, e.g., density functional theory, in order to search for promising materials isn’t what I do, but I very much recognize as being within the domain of computational materials science. ---
**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:** [August 10, 2022, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1576 "2022-08-10T20:26:31Z")
To be clear, I’m not amazed that there’s such a thing as computational biology. But I am amazed that it’s apparently five times as prevalent as computational physics or chemistry. @Dr.Strangelove , that’s got to be a (poor) AI-generated text. Even crazy people are generally more coherent than that. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2022, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1577 "2022-08-10T21:04:42Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > But I am amazed that it’s apparently five times as prevalent as computational physics or chemistry. ISTM that “computational” is a bit redundant with physics and chemistry, not as much so with biology. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2022, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1578 "2022-08-10T21:08:55Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > that’s got to be a (poor) AI-generated text. Even crazy people are generally more coherent than that. I’d hope so, though I’ve encountered some exceptions. If it is autogenerated, it isn’t exactly GPT-3 at work. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2022, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1579 "2022-08-11T00:00:15Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > But I am amazed that it’s apparently five times as prevalent as computational physics or chemistry “Analog computer” is more common than “digital computer” but presumably that’s because digital computers are called “computers” > **[Google Books Ngram Viewer](https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=Digital%2Bcomputer%2Canalog%2Bcomputer&year_start=1800&year_end=2019&corpus=26&smoothing=3&direct_url=t1%3B%2CDigital%20computer%3B%2Cc0%3B.t1%3B%2Canalog%20computer%3B%2Cc0)** > > Google Books Ngram Viewer ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2022, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1580 "2022-08-11T02:39:39Z")
> **[Complex Vowels](https://xkcd.com/2657/)** > > Pronouncing \[ṡṡċċḣḣẇẇȧȧ\] is easy; you just say it like the 'x' in 'fire'. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2022, 8:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1581 "2022-08-11T08:25:20Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > But I am amazed that it’s apparently five times as prevalent as computational physics or chemistry. That was my point about mentioning the Human Genome Project - it was “sexy science”, with a lot of buzz. Which tends to attract more research and funding. More buzz than, I don’t know, plasma modelling or whatever. The physics that gets the same level of attention is the atom-smashing practical stuff, I think, not the computational stuff behind it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574.md?page=78) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574.md?page=80)