The name’s William Ernest Butler, but please call me Bill. I grew up in Ireland, but now live out here in the San Francisco Bay Area. I’m retired now, from technology businesses that took our family all over the world. I answer all emails, so please feel free to email me at bill@paxient.com, or leave a comment below. If you are working on the New York Times crossword in any other publication, you are working on the syndicated puzzle. Here is a link to my answers to today’s SYNDICATED New York Times crossword. To find any solution other than today’s, enter the crossword number (e.g. 1225, 0107) in the “Search the Blog” box above.
This is my solution to the crossword published in the New York Times today …
COMPLETION TIME: 28m 02s
THEME: Critical Periods … The theme answers are common phrases, but read differently, with “critical periods” placed to suit the answer e.g. ACCEPTED U.S. AGE (accepted usage), THE U.N. EMPLOYED (the unemployed), PITTSBURGH P.I. RATE (Pittsburgh Pirate)
ANSWERS I MISSED: 0
TODAY’S WIKI-EST, AMAZONIAN GOOGLIES
Across
7. Flag : COLORS
The “colors” is the name given to the flag or banner of a particular country, say.
13. Certain Internet connection: Abbr. : DSL
DSL originally stood for Digital Subscriber Loop, but is now accepted to mean (Asymmetric) Digital Subscriber Line. DSL is the technology that allows Internet service be delivered down the same telephone line as voice service, by separating the two into different frequency signals.
16. Things refs raise their arms for : TDS
Touchdown!
19. Full chromosome set : GENOME
The genome of an organism is all of the hereditary information needed to reproduce that organism, in other words, all of its chromosomes. All this information takes up an awful lot of computer storage space, just for one animal (such as a human). And yet all of this information is in almost every cell in our bodies. Every cell “knows” how to make a whole human being. This fact is exploited when taking certain cells for cloning, creating new identical replicates of the original animal from which the donor cell was taken.
20. Pairs’ debarking point : ARARAT
The pairs of animals that Noah took with him onto the ark disembarked on the top of Mount Ararat, according to the Bible.
Mount Ararat is in Turkey. Ararat is a snow-capped dormant volcano, with two peaks. The higher of the two, Greater Ararat, is the tallest peak in Turkey. Ararat takes its name from a legendary Armenian hero called Ara the Beautiful (or Ara the Handsome).
23. 234, as of July 4, 2010? : ACCEPTED US AGE
(Accepted usage)
The accepted U.S. age on July 4, 2010 was 234 years old (1776 – 2010).
Rosanne Cash
26. 1950 noir film : D.O.A.
Both the original 1950 film “D.O.A.” starring Edmond O’Brien, and its 1988 remake starring Dennis Quaid and Meg Ryan, are excellent movies. The basic storyline is that the lead character discovers he has been poisoned, and uses the limited time he has left to discover who “murdered” him.
Warner Bros
31. Unit of force : DYNE
A dyne is a unit of force. The name “dyne” comes from the Greek “dynamis” meaning power or force.
32. Workers in a global peace organization? : THE U.N. EMPLOYED
(The unemployed)
38. Pass off as genuine : FOIST
The word “foist” comes from the Dutch word meaning “take in hand”. The original concept came from playing dice, in which one die was held surreptitiously in one hand.
40. Unconventional : OUTRE
The word “outré” comes to us from French, as you might imagine, derived from the word “outrer” meaning “to overdo, exaggerate”. “Outrer” is also the ultimate root of our word “outrage”.
41. Remove from a talent show, maybe : GONG
NBC’s “The Gong Show” only ran from 1976 to 1978, but it always seems to be on cable TV. I suppose the show was a forerunner of today’s “America’s Got Talent”, in that it was a talent show in which the acts can be cut off in mid-performance by the sounding of a gong (just like the 3 buzzers on “Talent”). Despite all the terrible acts that appeared, some famous names made if after the show e.g. Box Car Willy, Paul Reubens (Pee Wee Herman) and Andrea McArdle (played “Annie” on Broadway).
42. Come under criticism : TAKE FLAK
Flak was originally an acronym from the German term for an aircraft defense cannon (FLiegerAbwehrKanone). Flak then became used in English as a general term for antiaircraft fire, and ultimately a term for verbal criticism, as in “take flak”.
(Pittsburgh Pirate)
Gumshoe is a slang term for a private detective or private investigator (P.I.). Apparently the term “gumshoe” dates back to the early 1900s, and refers to the rubber-soled shoes popular with private detectives.
52. Kid : JAPE
To jape is to joke or quip.
The Ute
57. Left at sea : PORT
The left side of a ship used to be called the “larboard” side, but this was dropped in favor of “port” as it was easily confused, say in high winds, with “starboard”, the right side of the vessel. The term “port” was chosen as it was customary to dock a ship, for loading in port, with the left side of the vessel against the dock.
59. Drinker’s problem, for short : DTS
The episodes of delirium that can accompany withdrawal from alcohol are called Delirium Tremens (the DTs). The literal translation of this Latin phrase is “trembling madness”.
60. Word that comes from the Greek for “indivisible” : ATOM
Leucippus lived in the 5th century BC in ancient Greece. He founded the Atomist Movement. The atomists believed that the world was composed of just atoms and voids, and that the atom was an indestructible particle. How wrong they were …
61. Not stay long for shots? : BAR HOP
Clever …
62. Symmetrical power conductor for appliances? : BILATERAL A.C. CORD
(Bilateral accord)
A sari
77. Any singer of “Hotel California” : EAGLE
“Hotel California” is the title song from a 1997 album released by the Eagles. The song is allegorical in nature, and tells of a luxury hotel where one can check in, but never check out. The hotel is a symbol for the California music industry of the seventies that destroyed so many people who were trapped by it. There is an unrelated Hotel California in San Francisco, my favorite of the city’s “boutique” and reasonable priced places to stay.
79. “Stop!” : AVAST
Avast is a nautical term, used to tell someone to stop, or desist from what they are doing. “Avast” comes from the Dutch “hou vast” meaning “hold fast”.
81. Grp. of connected PCs : LAN
You may have a Local Area Network (LAN) in your house. If you’ve got a PC and a router or switch, likely attached to some modem, then you have a LAN.
82. What’s borne at a funeral : PALL
A pall is a cloth used to cover a casket at a funeral. Pallbearers actually carry the coffin, covered by the pall. The phrase “casting a pall over”, meaning to create a dark mood, is metaphorical use of the pall over the casket.
83. Too much guitar work by a professor’s helper? : EXCESSIVE T.A. RIFFS
(Extensive tariffs)
A T.A. is a professor’s Teaching Assistant. A riff is a short rhythmic phrase in music, especially one improvised on a guitar.
Pre-split English muffins
88. Scullers’ needs : OARS
A scull is a rowing boat used for competitive rowing. The main hull of the boat is often referred to as a shell.
90. Aquatic shockers : EELS
Despite its name, the electric eel isn’t actually an “eel”, but rather what is called a knifefish, a fish with an elongated body related to the catfish. An electric eel has three pairs of organs along its abdomen, each capable of generating an electric discharge. The shock can go as high as 500 volts with 1 ampere of current (that’s 500 watts), and that could perhaps kill a human.
John Astin
94. “Pay in cash and your second surgery is half-price”? : STRANGE O.R. DEAL
(Strange ordeal)
That would indeed be a strange deal to make in the Operating Room (O.R.), although these days …
99. Small islands : AITS
Aits are little islands found usually in a river. Aits aren’t typically formed by erosion, but by the deposition of silt over time. As a result, aits often have a long and narrow shape, running the length of the river, as the sediment builds up with the flow of the water. Many of the islands in the River Thames that flows through London have been given the name Ait, like Raven’s Ait in Kingston-upon-Thames, and Lot’s Ait in Brentford.
100. Nuevo Laredo store : TIENDA
“Tienda” is the Spanish word for “shop”.
Nuevo Laredo lies on the banks of the Rio Grande, directly across the US-Mexico border from American city of Laredo, Texas. Nuevo Laredo is a younger city than Laredo, but is larger than its US counterpart.
Ella Fitzgerald
103. Galoot : APE
“Galoot” is an insulting term, meaning an awkward or boorish man, an ape. It comes from the nautical world, where it was originally a sailor’s word for soldiers or marines.
108. Typical termite in a California city? : COMMON L.A. BORER
(Common laborer)
112. Inactive state : LATENCY
Something is said to be latent if it present, but not active.
113. Using fraudulently altered checks : KITING
Check kiting is illegal. The idea behind kiting is to write a check, even though there are in sufficient funds to cover the amount. Then, the con artist writes another check, also with insufficient funds, from another bank’s account, to cover the original check. I am not sure it would work nowadays, but then again, I am as honest as the day is long …
Sharpie
115. Preceder of 116-Across : ESS
ESS: the letter S.
116. Follower of 115-Across : TEE
Tee: the letter T.
In the Arabic tale “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves
Down
1. “Good grief!” : EGAD
Egad was developed as a polite way of saying “oh God” in the late 1600s, and is an expression of fear or surprise, as is, “Good grief!”.
Art Deco
3. Quechua speaker : INCA
Quechua was the existing Native American language that was adopted and by the Incan Empire and favored over other dialects. Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro discovered the Incas in 1526, the beginning of the end for the ancient civilization, ravaged by force and by imported smallpox.
4. Low digit : TOE
Clever …
6. Locking lever : DETENT
A detent is catch or lever that locks the movement of one part of a mechanism. Paradoxically, it comes from the French word “détente” meaning “loosening”, as is in our use of “détente”: the easing of tensions between rival nations.
Oral Roberts University is a private school in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It was founded relatively recently, in 1963, by the late evangelist Oral Roberts.
9. ___ Cruces : LAS
Las Cruces is the second largest city in the state of New Mexico, and is the home of New Mexico State University.
11. Seasoned stew : RAGOUT
Ragout is French in origin, and is a highly seasoned stew of either meat or fish. The name “ragout” comes from the verb “ragouter”, “to revive the taste”.
“Der Fuehrer’s Face” is a famous Donald Duck cartoon short produced to support the American war effort. It is a blatant anti-Nazi propaganda piece, and was well received, winning an Academy Award in 1943, the only Donald Duck cartoon to win an Oscar. If you get the chance, you just have to see it …
15. Explorer who claimed Louisiana for France : LASALLE
Robert de la Salle was a 15th century French explorer. On one of his expeditions to North America he claimed the entire Mississippi River basin for France. The La Salle name has been honored in numerous ways across North America, including the LaSalle automobile brand, LaSalle Street in Chicago and La Salle Avenue in Minneapolis.
Ventriloquist Edgar Bergen’s most famous character was Charlie McCarthy, but he also worked with Mortimer Snerd
22. Poi ingredient : TARO
I am a big fan of starch, and being an Irishman I love potatoes however they are prepared. That said, poi is horrible! Poi is made from the bulbous tubers (corm) of the taro plant, by cooking the corm in water and mashing it with water until the desired consistency is achieved.
Jack Kerouac’s “On the Road
36. Headquarters of the Union of South American Nations : QUITO
The full name of the capital city of Ecuador is San Francisco de Quito. It is the second highest administrative capital city in the world, after La Paz, Bolivia.
The Union of South American Nations is a nascent organization in South America that is modeled on the European Union. Originally, the headquarters were to be located in Quito, but it is likely that operations will begin in Buenos Aries.
Hansel and Gretel
Sanjay Gupta is an American neurosurgeon, and is best known as the CNN’s chief medical correspondent. In 2009, Gupta was offered the post of Surgeon General in the Obama administration, but he declined.
43. Northern inlets : FJORDS
A fjord is a drowned valley that was formed by glaciation.
44. Any tail in a cat-o’-nine-tails : LASH
The cat o’ nine tails was a vicious instrument of punishment, particularly popular in the Royal Navy. The “cat” was made up on nine cord thongs, and at the end of each thong was a knot. The specialty knot was aptly called a blood knot, and was designed to bite into the skin and draw blood. It was these “claws” at the and of the thongs, along with the nine “tails” that gave the name to the whip, the “cat o’ nine tails”.
The Lhasa apso
49. Thick soups : POTAGES
A potage is a think soup or stew, and is named after the Old French word for a potted dish: “pottage”).
Miley Cyrus is 17 years old now, and became famous playing the Disney Channel character “Hannah Montana”. She is of course the daughter of country singer Billy Ray Cyrus. When she was born, Billy Ray and his wife named Miley “Destiny Hope”, but then she became known as “Smiley” as she was always smiling as a baby, and this got shortened to Miley over time. Cute …
58. Some short-term investments, briefly : TBILLS
A Treasury Bill (T-Bill) is a US government debt that matures in one year or less. The bill is purchased at a discount to the face value, and at the date of maturity can be redeemed for that face value. For comparison, a T-Note matures in 1-10 years, and a T-Bond matures in 20-30 years.
60. Seed coverings : ARILS
The casing called the aril, which surrounds may seeds, may be quite fleshy. This fruit-like characteristic makes it desirable as a food and aids in the dispersion of the seeds.
61. ___ nova : BOSSA
Bossa Nova is style of music from Brazil that evolved from samba. The most famous piece of bossa nova is the song “The Girl from Ipanema”.
“Li’l Abner
68. Food thickener : AGAR
Agar is a jelly extracted from seaweed, with many uses. It is found in Japanese desserts, can be used as a laxative, as a food thickener, and is the most common growth medium used for growing bacteria in petri dishes.
There have two versions of the movie “Alfie” now. The original
77. Bobby Fischer, once : EXILE
American Bobby Fischer was one of the greatest chess players of all time, enjoying remarkable success from a very early age. Perhaps his most famous victory was against Boris Spassky in 1992, a match held in Yugoslavia. At the there was a strict embargo against the country, bringing Fischer into conflict with his own government in the US, after which he roamed the world, never to return home. He lived in Hungary, Germany, the Philippines and Japan, and finally in Iceland where he died in 2008 at 54 years of age.
84. Tiny bit : IOTA
Iota is the ninth letter in the Greek alphabet. We use it to portray something very small, as it is the smallest letter in the alphabet.
91. Dexterous : ADROIT
The French for “to the right” is “à droit”, from which we get our word “adroit”. The original meaning of “adroit” was “rightly, properly”, but it has come to mean dexterous and skillful.
93. Rice dishes : PILAFS
Pilaf is a Persian word, and we use it to describe rice that is browned in oil and then cooked in a seasoned broth.
Tina Brown is a British journalist, best known in America as author of “The Diana Chronicles
Tina Turner is of course the American singer, the “Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll”.
103. “Che gelida manina,” e.g. : ARIA
“Che gelida manina” is a famous aria from Puccini’s opera “La Boheme”, sung by the tenor lead, Rudolfo.
107. Nautical rope : TYE
A tye can be either a chain or a rope, and is used to hoist a spar up a mast.
109. Novy ___, Russian literary magazine : MIR
“Novy Mir” is a Russian literary magazine with a long and varied history dating back to 1925. At one time its content was heavily influenced by the Soviet Communist Party, but there was also times when it became an outlet for dissidents. Famously it published “One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich”, a novella by Alexander Solzhenitsyn telling the story of a prisoner in the Gulag.
111. International grp. since 1948 : OAS
The Organization of American States has its headquarters in Washington, D.C. All the independent states in the Americas are members of the group (except Honduras, suspended after the 2009 coup in that country).