2013-02-22
Explanation
This single-panel comic depicts a man speaking to three women in what appears to be an intimate setting, with all figures unclothed. The man says: "I know one man and three women at the same time may sound complex, but suppose the two of you are together, then the third spins off toward me... Here, I'''ll make a diagram of... Wait... This is perfect." The caption below reads: "Another great day in the life of Richard Feynman."
The joke plays on the dual meaning of Richard Feynman'''s famous diagrams. Feynman diagrams are visual representations used in quantum physics to depict the interactions of subatomic particles -- for example, two particles coming together while a third moves in another direction. Here, the comic imagines Feynman realizing that the spatial arrangement of a group encounter he is describing to three women is topologically identical to one of his own physics diagrams. The humor comes from the collision of highbrow particle physics with a lowbrow romantic scenario.
This also plays on Feynman'''s real-life reputation as a charismatic ladies''' man, which he wrote about in memoirs like "Surely You'''re Joking, Mr. Feynman!" The comic imagines him as someone who would find the physics embedded in every situation, even the most personal ones.
The votey panel shows two people talking, with one asking "Is that what an ideal mate looks like to you?" and the other responding "Like Richard Feynman? Yeah." This extends the joke by suggesting someone finds the idea of a physicist who sees diagrams in everything to be genuinely attractive.