interpretation
Explanation
The Joke
The comic presents three interpretations of quantum mechanics, each in its own panel. The first is the Copenhagen Interpretation, stated relatively faithfully: "There is only one reality. Yes, there's quantum weirdness, but when you observe a system it collapses to a single, real state." The second is the Many Worlds Interpretation, also stated fairly accurately: "Quantum effects just prove the universe is constantly branching. We are just in a particular branch of all possible realities."
The third panel introduces "My Companion's: The Escape-4 Universe Interpretation," where a woman states: "The universe is a simulation run 5 times a day except Tuesday by Steve Holofing and Hugh Everett's bot army." This is clearly a completely made-up, absurdly specific "interpretation" that one person invented, presented alongside two legitimate and widely debated interpretations of quantum mechanics as though it has equal standing.
The Humor
The comedy derives from the juxtaposition of two genuine, rigorously debated scientific interpretations with an utterly nonsensical personal theory, presented in the same format to give it an air of equal legitimacy. It satirizes how people sometimes present their pet theories -- no matter how outlandish -- as being on the same intellectual footing as ideas developed by serious physicists over decades. It also pokes fun at the fact that interpretations of quantum mechanics, while scientifically motivated, are in some sense unfalsifiable philosophical positions, which makes it easy for cranks to invent their own "interpretation" and feel justified.
References
The Copenhagen Interpretation is associated with Niels Bohr and Werner Heisenberg (1920s). The Many Worlds Interpretation was proposed by Hugh Everett III in 1957. The mention of "Hugh Everett" in the fake third interpretation is a playful nod to the real physicist.