1002-19 NY Times Crossword 2 Oct 19, Wednesday

Constructed by: Mangesh Ghogre
Edited by: Will Shortz

Today’s Reveal Answer: Gandhi

We have a rebus puzzle today, with “G and HI” appearing in three squares in the grid:

  • 69A Icon born 10/2/1869 … with a hint to three squares in this puzzle : GANDHI (or G AND HI)
  • 17A Gist : ROUGH IDEA
  • 4D It’s taxed at the maximum rate : HIGH INCOME
  • 21A 1999 rom-com with Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant : NOTTING HILL
  • 10D Prefight ritual : WEIGH-IN
  • 57A What a civilization like India or Egypt has : LONG HISTORY
  • 46D Mega-success : BIG HIT

Read on, or jump to …
… a complete list of answers

Bill’s time: 8m 45s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 Data stores : CACHES

In the world of computers a “cache” is a component that stores data locally so that there is no need to go get that original data all over again after the first usage. Applications that use a cache move along more quickly. A good example is a web browser that will store some information from a website in a cache on one’s computer. When you ask your browser to visit a website that you’ve used before, while the browser is waiting for the latest information from the website it will display the old data (the stuff that doesn’t change, that was retained from the last visit) from its cache, so that you don’t have to wait so long to view a web page.

7 Value which for Apple stock is $0.00001 : PAR

In days gone by, when companies first issued a stock, each share would be given a face value (called “par value”). In effect, the company was making a commitment not to issue any more stock under that par value, giving investors confidence that there was no better deal to be had. Nowadays, most stock is issued without such a “guarantee” and is called “no-par stock”.

15 “True Detective” channel : HBO

“True Detective” is a crime drama made by HBO that has an interesting format. Each series has its own narrative and cast. The show seems to be attracting some great actors. The first season was led by Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson, and the second by Colin Farrell and Rachel McAdams.

16 Email address ending : EDU

The .edu domain was one of the six original generic top-level domains specified. The complete original list is:

  • .com (commercial enterprise)
  • .net (entity involved in network infrastructure e.g. an ISP)
  • .mil (US military)
  • .org (not-for-profit organization)
  • .gov (US federal government entity)
  • .edu (college-level educational institution)

18 Plate umpire’s call : OUTSIDE!

That would be baseball.

21 1999 rom-com with Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant : NOTTING HILL

“Notting Hill” is a marvelous 1999 romantic comedy written by Richard Curtis that is set in the Notting HIll district of London. The romantic leads are played by Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts. Great stuff.

23 Fam. tree member : DESC

A descendant (desc.) is found in a family (fam.) tree.

26 Pablo Neruda’s “___ to Sadness” : ODE

“Pablo Neruda” was the pen name, and eventually the legal name, used by Chilean writer Neftali Ricardo Reyes Basoalto. Basoalto chose the name as an homage to Czech poet Jan Neruda.

34 Bad person to do a deal with : NARC

“Narc” and “narco” are slang terms describing a law enforcement officer who tracks down criminals associated with illegal drugs. Both words are short for “narcotics officer”. Narcs might work for the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

38 Board game with black-and-white pieces : OTHELLO

The game of Reversi is also sold as Othello. The name “Othello” was chosen as a nod to the play by William Shakespeare.

45 State capital founded during a gold rush : HELENA

Helena is the capital of the state of Montana, and is known as the Queen City of the Rockies. Helena’s main street has a very colorful name, i.e. Last Chance Gulch.

47 N.Y.C. subway inits. : MTA

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has public transportation responsibility in the state of New York (as well as part of Connecticut). “MTA” might also refer to the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which is known as “the Metro” and sometimes “the MTA”.

48 Superfood sometimes called “purple gold” : ACAI

Açaí (pronounced “ass-aye-ee”) is a palm tree native to Central and South America. The fruit has become very popular in recent years and its juice is a very fashionable addition to juice mixes and smoothies.

51 Mother, in Mumbai : MATA

Mumbai is the most populous city in India, and the second most populous city in the world (after Shanghai). The name of the city was changed from Bombay to Mumbai in 1995.

60 Pre-photocopy copy : MIMEO

A mimeograph (also “mimeo”) is a cheap printing press that applies ink to paper through a stencil wrapped around a rotating drum. Mimeographs are still around, but have largely been replaced by offset printers and photocopiers.

61 Info for a bibliophile : EDITION

A bibliophile: a lover of books.

64 Dream stage : REM

“REM” is an acronym standing for rapid eye movement sleep. REM sleep takes up 20-25% of the sleeping hours and is the period associated with one’s most vivid dreams.

65 Deuce, e.g. : TIE

The origin of the 15, 30, 40 scoring system in a game of tennis is disputed. One theory is that a 60-minute clock face was used to keep score. Points won would advance in quarters, 15, 30, 45 and 60 for game. When the score “deuce” was introduced to avoid a win by a one-point difference, the score of 45 was pushed back to 40, so that 50 could indicate deuce.

67 Number of colori on the Italian flag : TRE

In Italian, the flag of Italy has “tri” (three) “colori” (colors), i.e. green, white and red.

69 Icon born 10/2/1869 … with a hint to three squares in this puzzle : GANDHI (or G AND HI)

Mohandas Gandhi was a political and spiritual leader in India in the first part of the 20th century, as the country sought independence from Britain. He was also referred to as “Mahatma”, meaning “great soul”. His remarkable philosophy of nonviolence and living a modest lifestyle was a great inspiration to the Indian people. India (and Pakistan) was granted independence in 1947. Tragically, Gandhi was assassinated the very next year.

Down

2 One end of a battery : ANODE

A battery is a device that converts chemical energy into electric energy. A simple battery is made up of three parts: a cathode, an anode and a liquid electrolyte. Ions from the electrolyte react chemically with the material in the anode producing a compound and releasing electrons. At the same time, the electrolyte reacts with the material in the cathode, absorbing electrons and producing a different chemical compound. In this way, there is a buildup of electrons at the anode and a deficit of electrons at the cathode. When a connection (wire, say) is made between the cathode and anode, electrons flow through the resulting circuit from the anode to cathode in an attempt to rectify the electron imbalance.

3 What a crossword has that a sudoku doesn’t : CLUES

Number puzzles similar to our modern-day Sudoku first appeared in French newspapers in the late 1800s. The format that we use today was created by Howard Garns, a 74-year-old freelance puzzle constructor from Connersville, Indiana and first published in 1979. The format was introduced in Japan in 1984 and given the title of “Sūji wa dokushin ni kagiru”, which translates to “the digits are limited to one occurrence”. The rather elaborate Japanese title was eventually shortened to Sudoku. No doubt many of you are fans of Sudoku puzzles. I know I am …

9 Indian flatbread : ROTI

In an Indian restaurant, naan bread is very popular. Roti is an unleavened cousin of naan.

14 One with possible Viking ancestry : DANE

The constitutional monarchy of Denmark consists of not only the country of Denmark, but also the autonomous constituent countries of the Faroe Islands and Greenland.

19 Feature of the Himalayas : SNOW

The magnificent Himalaya range of mountains in Asia takes its name from the Sanskrit for “abode of snow”. Geographically, the Himalaya separates the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau to the north.

24 King Arthur’s magician : MERLIN

Merlin is a figure of legend, and is the wizard in the stories of King Arthur.

27 Indian city of 28+ million : DELHI

New Delhi is the capital city of India. New Delhi resides within the National Capital Territory of Delhi (otherwise known as the metropolis of Delhi). New Delhi and Delhi, therefore, are two different things.

29 Preserver : Vishnu :: Creator : ___ : BRAHMA

The Hindu Trinity comprises Brahma the creator, Vishnu the maintainer or preserver, and Shiva (also “Siva”) the destroyer or transformer.

32 Device required by law to be outfitted with Braille : ATM

The Braille system of reading and writing was devised in 1825 by Louis Braille, who was himself afflicted with blindness. Braille characters are composed of six positions or dots, each arranged in two columns of three dots each. Every dot can be raised or not raised, given a total of 64 possible characters.

33 Density symbol : RHO

Rho is the Greek letter that looks just like our Roman letter “p”, although it is equivalent to the Roman letter R.

35 “That’s all ___ wrote” : SHE

No one seems to be very certain of the origin of the phrase “that’s all she wrote”. One popular story though is that it stems from the unfortunate “Dear John” letters that some soldiers received during WWII.

36 Stimpy’s TV pal : REN

“The Ren & Stimpy Show” is an animated television show created by Canadian animator John Kricfalusi, and which ran on Nickelodeon from 1991 to 1996. The title characters are Marland “Ren” Höek, a scrawny Chihuahua, and Stimpson J. Cat, a rotund Manx cat. Not my cup of tea …

41 Popular allergy medicine : CLARITIN

Claritin is a Bayer brand name for the drug loratadine, which is used to treat allergies.

49 Tech worker : CODER

Like my youngest son, for example …

50 Japanese art genre : ANIME

Anime is cartoon animation in the style of Japanese Manga comic books.

55 Sophomore’s grade : TENTH

The term “sophomore” has been used for a student in the second year of university since the 1680’s. The original meaning of the word was “arguer”. The term has Greek roots, from two Greek words that have been artificially combined in English. The Greek “sophos” means “wise”, and “moros” means “foolish”.

60 Prefix with tarsal : META-

There are five metacarpal bones in each hand. They make up the framework of the palm and the back of the hand. Each metacarpal is connected to a finger and the wrist. The equivalent bones in the foot are called the metatarsals.

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 Data stores : CACHES
7 Value which for Apple stock is $0.00001 : PAR
10 Large chunk of cash : WAD
13 Not having wrinkles : UNLINED
15 “True Detective” channel : HBO
16 Email address ending : EDU
17 Gist : ROUGH IDEA
18 Plate umpire’s call : OUTSIDE!
20 Mythical places : EDENS
21 1999 rom-com with Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant : NOTTING HILL
23 Fam. tree member : DESC
24 “I guess you missed the ___” : MEMO
25 Loved ___ : ONES
26 Pablo Neruda’s “___ to Sadness” : ODE
28 Pasta shape : ELBOW
31 Like the 70s vis-à-vis the 60s or 50s, say : WARMER
34 Bad person to do a deal with : NARC
35 Honorific for 69-Across : SRI
38 Board game with black-and-white pieces : OTHELLO
40 Units of cookies : BATCHES
42 Rock subgenre : EMO
43 Part of a sword : HILT
45 State capital founded during a gold rush : HELENA
46 Tricky situations : BINDS
47 N.Y.C. subway inits. : MTA
48 Superfood sometimes called “purple gold” : ACAI
51 Mother, in Mumbai : MATA
53 “Darn!” : RATS!
57 What a civilization like India or Egypt has : LONG HISTORY
60 Pre-photocopy copy : MIMEO
61 Info for a bibliophile : EDITION
62 Act as if : PRETEND
64 Dream stage : REM
65 Deuce, e.g. : TIE
66 Chip away at : EAT INTO
67 Number of colori on the Italian flag : TRE
68 On the ___ : SLY
69 Icon born 10/2/1869 … with a hint to three squares in this puzzle : GANDHI (or G AND HI)

Down

1 No longer ill : CURED
2 One end of a battery : ANODE
3 What a crossword has that a sudoku doesn’t : CLUES
4 It’s taxed at the maximum rate : HIGH INCOME
5 Quashes : ENDS
6 “Didn’t I tell you?” : SEE?
7 Negative space? : PHOTO LAB
8 Border : ABUT
9 Indian flatbread : ROTI
10 Prefight ritual : WEIGH-IN
11 Confuse : ADDLE
12 Argument settlers of old : DUELS
14 One with possible Viking ancestry : DANE
19 Feature of the Himalayas : SNOW
22 Divine message, for some : OMEN
24 King Arthur’s magician : MERLIN
27 Indian city of 28+ million : DELHI
29 Preserver : Vishnu :: Creator : ___ : BRAHMA
30 Eightsome : OCTET
31 Misfortune : WOE
32 Device required by law to be outfitted with Braille : ATM
33 Density symbol : RHO
35 “That’s all ___ wrote” : SHE
36 Stimpy’s TV pal : REN
37 “There ___ God!” : IS A
39 Inherited wealth : OLD MONEY
41 Popular allergy medicine : CLARITIN
44 Emperor of Russia : TSAR
46 Mega-success : BIG HIT
48 Having perked-up ears : ALERT
49 Tech worker : CODER
50 Japanese art genre : ANIME
52 Genre : TYPE
54 Tweak, say : AMEND
55 Sophomore’s grade : TENTH
56 “Yes from me, too” : SO DO I
58 Poses : SITS
59 Work hard : TOIL
60 Prefix with tarsal : META-
63 Tease, with “on” : RAG …