Backward in Time
Permanent link to this comic:
https://xkcd.com/1017/
Image URL (for hotlinking/embedding):
https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/backward_in_time.png
When I have a boring task to get through -- a three-hour lecture, a giant file download, or a long term point goal in fitocracy -- I use this formula to convert the percentage completed (p) into a date:
T=(Current Date) - (e^(20.344p^3) - e^3) years
When the task is 0% done, it gives today's date, and as I make progress, I move further and further back in time
((inverse given in lighter colors))
Inverse: p = sqrt((ln(T+e^3)-3)
(20.3444))
[[Line Graph explaining the correlation between completion percentages and temporal deltas.
0% = now ((Date of comic is 2012-02-14T00:00-0500, approx. 1329195600 UNIX))
10% = September 2011
20% = 2008
30% = 1997
40% = 1958
50% = 1776
60% = 405 AD
70% = 22,000 years ago
80% = 671,000 years ago
90% = 55 million years ago
100% = 13.8 billion years ago
]]
It moves slowly through the first few years, then steadily accelerates. I tuned the formula so the time spent in each part of the past is loosely proportional to how well I know it. This means I hit familiar landmarks with each bit of progress, giving me a satisfying sense of movement.
((The following are panels detailing completion percentages, correlated time periods, and notable events from this time period))
7.308% December 18, 2011
Around this time:
Kim Jong-Il dies. US leaves Iraq.
31.12% February 1995
Around this time:
Windows 95 debuts. OJ found not guilty.
47.91% 1844
Around this time:
Rubber vulcanized, bicycle invented, wrench patented.
70.33% 24,000 years ago
Around this time:
Caves painted, ceramic art made. Neanderthals extinct.
90.42% 68 million years ago
Around this time:
First flowering plants. Chicxulub impact kills off most dinosaurs.
100% 13.76 billion years ago
Around this time:
Universe begins. First stars ignite.
Download complete.
[[Person 1 watches a download progress on a laptop in amazement and happiness. Person 2 stands nearby and looks at person 1 with a bemused posture]]
Person 1: Swoosh! Watching all that time blur past is such a rush!
Person 2: So... you've tried to make an extreme sport out of.. *waiting*.
Person 1: Swoosh!
{{Title text: People tell me I have too much time on my hands, but really the problem is that there's too much time, PERIOD.}}
A webcomic of romance,
