Explain SMBC — the wiki for Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal

The Joke

The comic presents a "Science Idea" in which a researcher describes an experiment performed on rats. Two colonies of rats were reared together, then separated. They were introduced to other colonies of different types. Subsequently, the researchers brought them back together in a single chamber, where they were rewarded with a large meal. This was repeated until all individuals refused to enter the chamber, regardless of the potential reward.

The punchline, delivered as a deadpan caption beneath the panel, reads: "An experiment to determine if rats can be made to hate Thanksgiving." The entire elaborate experimental setup -- the separation, mixing with strangers, forced reunification, and food reward -- is a direct parallel to the experience of Thanksgiving dinner, where family members who have gone their separate ways and developed different social circles are brought back together and given a large meal, often resulting in awkward or unpleasant interactions.

The Humor

The humor works on multiple levels. First, there is the absurdity of designing a rigorous scientific experiment to replicate a distinctly human social experience (dreading Thanksgiving) in rats. The formal, clinical language of the experimental description contrasts sharply with the mundane, relatable complaint about family holiday gatherings. Second, the joke taps into the widely shared cultural experience of Thanksgiving as an obligation -- a meal where people who have grown apart are forced to reconnect, and the food is the only real incentive to attend. The fact that even the rats eventually refuse to enter the chamber despite the food reward suggests that the social discomfort of "Thanksgiving" is so powerful it overrides even basic biological drives.

References

The comic parodies the format of behavioral psychology experiments, particularly those involving operant conditioning and social behavior in rodent colonies. It also references the common cultural trope of Thanksgiving as an awkward or dreaded family obligation, a frequent subject in American humor.