Comic #5096: longitude
Description
Here’s a detailed, accurate description of the comic:
Panel 1:
- Text: "About 50 years before the marine chronometer was invented, Humphry Ditton proposed a way to measure longitude at sea."
- Visual: A woman with glasses and a child are standing together. The child is looking up at her.
Panel 2:
- Text: "Basically, you build enormous stations in the Atlantic at particular longitudes, then have them explode gigantic bombs at regular intervals."
- Visual: The woman is explaining with a slight smile, and there’s a visual representation of a bomb being detonated, symbolized by the word "BOOM!"
Panel 3:
- Text: "By measuring the time between the sound and the flash, you can calculate the distance to a given station and figure out where you are."
- Visual: There’s a diagram showing a bomb explosion at sea, and arrows indicating sound and light reaching a boat.
Panel 4:
- Text: "These were never built."
- Visual: The woman looks amused while pointing out that the idea remained unrealized.
Panel 5:
- Text: "There was nearly a timeline where Blackbeard the pirate coexisted with gigantic explosion-based lighthouses in the middle of the sea."
- Visual: A pirate resembling Blackbeard is shown with angry eyebrows and an eyepatch.
Panel 6:
- Text: "Instead, decades later, a guy named Harrison invented a clock that was a really good clock."
- Visual: The woman continues talking, her expression changed to a slightly frustrated one.
Panel 7:
- Text: "Woo."
- Visual: The woman sits back, almost sarcastically celebrating the invention of the clock.
Panel 8:
- Pirate: "Why are you telling me this?"
- Visual: The pirate now looks confused, aiming the question at the woman.
Panel 9:
- Woman: "I want to encourage you to never read any history."
- Visual: The woman looks directly at the pirate, clearly conveying her opinion. The child is holding her hand, and they are both listening.
This description includes all the essential elements of the comic for someone who may not be able to see it.