this post was submitted on 06 May 2025
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423
[XKCD] 3085 About 20 Pounds (imgs.xkcd.com)
submitted 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
15 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

https://www.explainxkcd.com/3085

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[–] [email protected] 77 points 3 weeks ago

Alt-text:

In addition to gravity, burritos interact through the strong, weak, and electromagnetic forces, which is believed to be a major contributor to their popularity.

[–] [email protected] 68 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

Dark matter is the computer running the simulation.
They blacklisted all simulated forces from interacting with it, but one of the devs commented out gravitation for a test and forgot to put it back in.

[–] [email protected] 19 points 3 weeks ago

Dont forget, it's also a fuckton of ghosts.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 3 weeks ago

seems like it'd be the opposite, it's the dummy particle used for testing gravity and they didn't take it out

[–] [email protected] 6 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

I'm leaning in more to this is all a simulation and we have discovered the physics engine by trial and error but the hard coded rules behind it are as understandable to us as it would be to Mario

[–] [email protected] 4 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Is theoretical physics just reverse engineering the physics engine by playing with variables and tracking the changes?

[–] [email protected] 5 points 3 weeks ago

I mean as someone that studied theoretical physics... Yeah basically.

We set up a bunch of math we expect to happen given the circumstances and then observe an incident that matches the conditions to see if it matched. It's fun when it does and concerns people when it doesn't but we have just reverse engineered the parts we can see and guess on the parts we can't.

[–] [email protected] 44 points 3 weeks ago

The Good Place gang pleads their case to a burrito

[–] [email protected] 17 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

What is "is"? Doesn't matter, burrito time. 🌯 🌯 🌯 🌯 🌯 🌯 🌯 🌯

[–] [email protected] 10 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

And it's imperial?

[–] [email protected] 17 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

Actually, it's a little under 9.1 kilograms, but "about 20 pounds" has less syllables.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 weeks ago

Fair enough

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 weeks ago

But is it heavier or lighter than 9.1 kilograms of feathers?

[–] [email protected] 7 points 3 weeks ago

I wonder if this was inspired by a koan:

A monk asked Tozan, "What is the Buddha?"
He replied, "Three pounds of flax."

[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 weeks ago

At the first three panels I thought this was a conversation with a stochastic parrot