# ­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:** 87
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2022, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1722 "2022-10-12T13:30:34Z")
> [@Zakalwe](#): > > See: string theory. 😀 Or LENR, the reboot of cold fusion. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2022, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1723 "2022-10-13T03:38:20Z")
> **[Road Space Comparison](https://xkcd.com/2684/)** > > I wonder how hard it would be to ride an electric scooter in a hamster ball. ---
**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:** [October 13, 2022, 9:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1724 "2022-10-13T09:31:30Z")
I’m surprised Munroe has never heard about gerbiling on a [monowheel](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynasphere_(vehicle)), as I’m sure the same principle would apply to a scooter in a ball. Pro Tip: do not look up “gerbiling” without specifying “on a monowheel” ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2022, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1725 "2022-10-13T18:19:08Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > Pro Tip: do not look up “gerbiling” without specifying “on a monowheel” Shhhhh! You should let people expand their horizons. **WARNING** — IF YOU’RE PLANNING A RUN FOR PUBLIC OFFICE, ARE ON A WORK COMPUTER OR YOUR SEARCH HISTORY MAY COME UP IN THE FUTURE - FOLLOW MRDIBBLE’S ADVICE ---- **WARNING** ---
**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:** [October 13, 2022, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1726 "2022-10-13T22:09:46Z")
This feels like it’s a reference to something else. Was there some sort of “road space comparison” making the rounds, trying to argue for the superiority of some mode of transportation? ---
**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:** [October 13, 2022, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1727 "2022-10-13T22:21:42Z")
Similar images have been around for decades, with varying numbers of people. Usually only cars, bikes, and buses. No hamster balls. [![](https://urbanist.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83454714d69e2017d3c37d8ac970c-800wi) ](https://urbanist.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83454714d69e2017d3c37d8ac970c-800wi) ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2022, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1728 "2022-10-14T22:01:21Z")
> **[2045](https://xkcd.com/2685/)** > > "Sorry, doctor, I'm going to have to come in on a different day--I have another appointment that would be really hard to move, in terms of the kinetic energy requirements." So what bizarre thing is BHG going to do with the eclipse? You just know he’s planning something strange. Probably involving a superpowerful laser. ---
**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:** [October 14, 2022, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1729 "2022-10-14T22:16:46Z")
Sorta like the old Soviet joke: - I want to sign up for the waiting list for a car. How long is it? - Precisely ten years from today. - Morning or evening? - Why, what difference does it make? - The plumber’s due in the morning. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2022, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1730 "2022-10-18T21:01:24Z")
> **[Space Adventure](https://xkcd.com/2686/)** > > "Sir, it looked really cool." "Oh no--prestige TV. Okay, which of you has a terrible secret that's being slowly revealed to the audience through flashbacks? Just spit it out so we can escape this arc!" ---
**Author:** ![ekedolphin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ekedolphin/32/10003_2.png) [@ekedolphin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekedolphin)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2022, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1731 "2022-10-19T00:49:06Z")
This particular xkcd appeared on two of my Star Trek Facebook groups before I saw it anywhere else. ---
**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:** [October 20, 2022, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1732 "2022-10-20T05:59:09Z")
> **[Division Notation](https://xkcd.com/2687/)** > > Science tip: Scientists hardly ever use the two-dot division sign, and when they do it often doesn't even mean division, but they still get REALLY mad when you repurpose it to write stuff like SALE! ALL SHOES 30÷ OFF! He forgot: A \* (1.0 / B) : Software performance engineer ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2022, 11:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1733 "2022-10-20T11:28:57Z")
Also, B\A    Matlab coder ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2022, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1734 "2022-10-21T22:53:06Z")
> **[Bubble Universes](https://xkcd.com/2688/)** > > The theory finally unifies cosmic inflation and regular inflation. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2022, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1735 "2022-10-24T20:44:04Z")
> **[Fermat's First Theorem](https://xkcd.com/2689/)** > > Mathematicians quickly determined that it spells ANT BNECN, an unusual theoretical dish which was not successfully cooked until Andrew Wiles made it for breakfast in the 1990s. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2022, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1736 "2022-10-26T17:53:48Z")
> **[Cool S](https://xkcd.com/2690/)** > > Although I hear they were caught cheating off of Rosalind, who sat at a desk in front of them. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2022, 11:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1737 "2022-10-29T11:07:43Z")
> **[Encryption](https://xkcd.com/2691/)** > > WARNING: PEOPLE NAMED EVE ARE PROHIBITED FROM INSTALLING THIS APP! What about Carol and Dave? Did the programmer not think about how they will feel? ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2022, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1738 "2022-10-29T12:15:31Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > What about Carol and Dave? The whole point of this app is that they will never find out about it. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2022, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1739 "2022-10-29T14:32:25Z")
Can somebody explain the joke to me? ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2022, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1740 "2022-10-29T15:50:40Z")
Lots of thought experiments about cryptography use Alice (A) and Bob (B) as the names of the entities trying to communicate secretly. This isn’t limited to cryptography, those names are often used in relativity and quantum mechanics analogies as well. I’m sure they get screen time in other fields, too. If A and B aren’t enough, then C and D start coming into play, hence Carol and Dave, sometimes in cryptographic thought experiments, they are the ones trying to intercept the message. Once you get Eve involved, you’ve got yourself a pretty damn complicated thought experiment. ETA: the joke in the xkcd comic is that the creator of this app has taken the thought experiment a bit too literally. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2022, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574/1741 "2022-10-29T15:54:59Z")
Poor Ted. I guess he never made it out of the 60s. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574.md?page=86) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xkcd-thread/854574.md?page=88)