Category: Chandi Deitmer

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Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

5 ___ Kola (Peruvian beverage partly owned by Coca-Cola) : INCA

Inca Kola is a soft drink from Peru that was introduced in 1935. The soda’s main flavoring ingredient is lemon verbena, and it is said to taste like bubblegum.

22 I– : IODIDE

Potassium iodide is an important nutrient, and is the most common additive used in iodized table salt. The addition of a source of iodine to table salt is a public health measure taken to prevent iodine deficiency. Additional iodine in the diet isn’t really necessary for those who eat a reasonable amount of seafood, as there is a lot of iodine in the oceans.

23 Home to the Cedar Point amusement park, a mecca for roller-coaster enthusiasts : OHIO

Cedar Point is an amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio and is the second-oldest such park in the country that is still operating (the oldest is Lake Compounce in Bristol, Connecticut, which opened in 1846). Cedar Point specializes in roller coasters.

24 Enjoy a La-Z-Boy recliner? : LEISURE SIT (“leisure suit” – U)

La-Z-Boy is a furniture manufacturer based in Monroe, Michigan. Although the company makes furniture for every room in the house, it is famous for its recliner chairs found in family rooms all over the country.

31 What a pump might squeeze : TOE

A pump is a woman’s shoe that doesn’t have a strap. Such shoes are probably called “pumps” because of the sound they make while walking in them.

34 Captain Hook’s #2 : SMEE

In J. M. Barrie’s play and novel about Peter Pan, Smee is one of Captain Hook’s pirates and is Hook’s bosun and right-hand man. Smee is described by Barrie as being “Irish” and “a man who stabbed without offence”. Nice guy! Captain Hook and Smee sail on a pirate ship called the Jolly Roger.

36 “How I Met Your Mother” narrator Bob : SAGET

Bob Saget was a real enigma to me. He made a name for himself playing very sugary roles in TV shows like “Full House” and “America’s Funniest Home Videos”, and yet in the world of stand-up comedy Saget was known for very blue and raunchy routines.

“How I Met Your Mother” is a sitcom that CBS has been airing since 2005. The main character is Ted Mosby, played by Josh Radnor. Mosby is also the narrator for the show looking back from the year 2030 (the live action is set in the present). As narrator, the older Mosby character is voiced by Bob Saget.

39 Navy and others : HUES

Navy blue is a dark blue shade that was named for the color of uniforms worn by officers in the British Royal Navy as early as 1748. When the color’s name first took on the association with uniforms in the early 1800s, it was known as “marine blue”, but soon changed to “navy blue”.

45 Six-foot runner? : ANT

The study of ants is known as myrmecology. The term “myrmecology” derives from the Greek “myrmex” meaning “ant”.

54 Metallic fabric : LAME

Lamé is a fabric that has metallic yarns included in the weave. It is a popular fabric for stylish evening wear, and also in the sport of fencing. The metallic threads are conductive and so help register a touch by an épée.

57 Prince William, to Charles and Diana : ELDER SON

Born in 1982, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge is the elder of the two sons of Charles and Diana, Prince and Princess of Wales. As such, William is first in line to the British throne.

58 They’re found beneath sink holes : P-TRAPS

Most sinks in a home have a P-trap in the outlet pipe that empties into the sewer line. This P-trap has at its heart a U-bend that retains a small amount of water after the sink is emptied. This plug of water serves as a seal to prevent sewer gases entering into the home. By virtue of its design, the U-bend can also capture any heavy objects (like an item of jewelry) that might fall through the plughole. But the “trapping” of fallen objects is secondary to the P-trap’s main function of “trapping” sewer gases.

61 Jousts with : TILTS AT

The verb phrase “tilt at” meaning “fight with” derives from the sport of jousting,also known as “tilting”, in which contestants fought each other on horseback with lances.

69 Grp. regulating pesticides : EPA

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

76 Website feed inits. : RSS

Many websites and blogs publish content in a format known as Rich Site Summary (RSS). The “feed” can be read using an RSS reader. The advantage of using an RSS reader is that the user doesn’t have to check the website for new content. That new material is fed to the RSS reader as soon as it is published.

77 Committee head? : HARD C

The head letter of the word “committee” is a hard letter C.

79 Dog breed associated with the British royal family : CORGI

The Welsh corgi is a herding dog that originated in Britain, with two recognized breeds: the Pembroke and Cardigan. Corgis aren’t fast enough to do their job by running around livestock like collies, and instead nip at the heels. “Corgi” is Welsh for “dwarf dog”.

80 Nowhere to be found, for short : MIA

Missing in action (MIA)

81 The Lions, on scoreboards : DET

The Detroit Lions are the NFL team that play home games at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan. The team was founded way back in 1929 as the Portsmouth Spartans from Portsmouth, Ohio. The Spartans joined the NFL during the Great Depression as other franchises collapsed. However, the Spartans couldn’t command a large enough gate in Portsmouth so the team was sold and relocated to Detroit in 1934.

82 Mexican garments, as they’re spelled in Mexico : SARAPES

“Serape” is the English pronunciation and spelling of the Spanish word “zarape”. A zarape is like a Mexican poncho, a soft woolen blanket with a hole in the middle for the head. Most serapes have colorful designs that use traditional Mayan motifs.

97 Annual gala host, with “the” : … MET

The Costume Institute Gala is an annual fundraising event that benefits the Anna Wintour Costume Center in New York City’s Museum of Modern Art. The fundraiser is commonly referred to as the Met Gala or Met Ball, and was established in 1948.

98 Went down an Olympic track : LUGED

A luge is a small sled used by one or two people, on which one lies face up and feet first. The luge can be compared to the skeleton, a sled for only one person and on which the rider lies face down and goes down the hill head-first. Yikes!

101 Sea eagle : ERNE

The ern (sometimes “erne”) is also known as the white-tailed eagle or the sea eagle.

102 It’s one foot long : IAMB

An iamb is a metrical foot containing an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable. The lines in William Shakespeare’s “Sonnet 18” use five sequential iambs, e.g. “Shall I / compare / thee to / a sum- / -mer’s day?” With that sequence of five iambs, the poem’s structure is described as iambic pentameter.

108 Amer. currency : USD

The dollar sign ($) was first used for the Spanish-American peso, in the late 18th century. The peso was also called the “Spanish dollar” (and “piece of eight”). The Spanish dollar was to become a model for the US dollar that was adopted in 1785, along with the dollar sign.

112 Farm connector : YOKE

A yoke is a wooden beam used between a pair of animals so that they are forced to work together.

116 My garden waterer that’s seen better days? : THIS OLD HOSE (“This Old House”)

“This Old House” first aired in 1979, on PBS, with Bob Vila as host. After ten years on the show, Vila was able to make extra income with commercial endorsements. These earnings caused conflict with commercial-free PBS, and so Vila was replaced by Steve Thomas.

121 Tilt-a-Whirl, e.g. : RIDE

The Tilt-A-Whirl is a fairground ride that has seven cars on a spinning platform, with the cars rotating freely and randomly. Each of the cars hold 3-4 riders; pretty nauseated riders at times.

123 Barre bend : PLIE

A barre is a handrail used by ballet dancers for warm-up exercises and to provide support when practicing certain moves.

125 Foil alternative : EPEE

There are three fencing events in the modern Olympics, with each distinguished by the weapon used:

• Foil
• Épée
• Sabre

126 Kitsch : BAD ART

“Kitsch” is a German word, an adjective that means “gaudy, trash”.

Down

4 One meaning of “X” : KISS

In the sequence letter sequence “X-O-X”, the X represents a kiss, and the O a hug. “O-O-O” is a string of hugs, and “X-X-X” a string of kisses. Hugs and kisses …

7 Award won by Don Draper on “Mad Men” : CLIO

The Clio Awards are the Oscars of the advertising world and are named after Clio, the Greek Muse of History. Clio was also the recorder of great deeds, the proclaimer and celebrator of great accomplishments and a source of inspiration and genius. The Clio Awards were first presented in 1959.

Jon Hamm lived the life of a struggling actor for quite some time before he hit gold with a starring role in the AMC drama “Mad Men”. He plays the main character, advertising executive and man about town Don Draper.

8 Gladys Knight and Norah Jones, for two : ALTOS

Gladys Knight & the Pips performed together from 1953 to 1989. The Pips were founded around Gladys Knight, originally featuring her brother, sister and two cousins. The group took its name from yet another cousin, a cousin named “Pip”.

The beguiling Norah Jones is the daughter of famed sitar virtuoso Ravi Shankar, and is one of my favorite singers. If you haven’t heard Jones singing her song “Come Away with Me”, you just haven’t lived …

9 Platoon members, for short : GIS

In military terms, a platoon is a subdivision of a company-sized unit, and is usually divided into squads or sections. The term “platoon” arose in the 1630s from the French “peloton”. “Peloton” translates literally as “little ball”, and is used to this day to mean “agglomeration”. “Peloton” gives rise to our word “pellet”. Also, we use the Modern French “peloton” in English now to refer to the main body (agglomeration) of riders in a bicycle race.

10 Networking aid : ROUTER

In the world of computing, a router is a device that helps direct traffic, as it were. A router in a house is often found in combination with a modem, and directs traffic between the Internet and the computers in the home.

14 CrossFit bits : REPS

CrossFit is a trademarked fitness, strength and conditioning program that was introduced in 2000.

15 One who’s barely acting? : PORN STAR

The word “pornography” comes from the Greek “pornographos” meaning “writing of prostitutes”.

16 Board game popular in Japan : SHOGI

Shogi is a game that is also known as Japanese chess. The name “shogi” translates as “general’s board game”.

17 Certain trig ratios : SINES

Trigonometry (trig) is a branch of mathematics dealing with triangles, and calculations based on the relationship between a triangle’s angles and the lengths of its sides.

40 Deli assortment : SALAMIS

“Salame” (note the letter E at the end) is an Italian sausage that is traditionally associated with the peasant classes. The meat in the sausage is preserved with salt, and it can be hung and stored for as long as ten years. The name “salame” comes from “sale”, the Italian word for salt, and “-ame”, a suffix indicating a collective noun. Our English word “salami” is actually the Italian plural for “salame”.

42 Comedian who said “I once spent a year in Philadelphia. I think it was on a Sunday” : WC FIELDS

W.C. Fields worked hard to develop the on-screen image of a pretty grumpy old man. In his real life he was fairly grumpy too, and fond of protecting his privacy. He was famous for hiding in the shrubs around his house in Los Angeles and firing a BB gun at the legs of tourists who intruded on his property. Also Fields often played the drunk on-screen. In real life, Fields didn’t touch alcohol at all when he was younger, partly because he didn’t want to do anything to impair his skill as a juggler. But later in life he took to heavy drinking, so much so that it affected his health and interfered with his ability to perform.

47 Prized metamorphic rock : LAPIS

Lapis lazuli is a blue, semi-precious stone mined mainly in Afghanistan. “Lapis Lazuli” is Latin for “stone of Lazhward”, referring to the Persian name for the location where the stone was mined. Our word “azure”, a shade of blue, has the same root.

50 Author Mario Vargas ___ : LLOSA

Mario Vargas Llosa is a Peruvian writer of renown, and one of the most significant authors from Latin America by all accounts. Llosa is also very active politically, and in 1990 ran unsuccessfully for the Peruvian presidency.

51 Drive home? : USB PORT

Universal Serial Bus (USB) is an industry standard dealing with how computers and electronic devices connect and communicate, and dealing with electrical power through those connections.

52 Singer Knowles : SOLANGE

Solange Knowles is a singer/songwriter, and the younger sister of the incredibly successful singer Beyoncé. Solange was in the news a while back when security camera footage was released showing her punching and kicking Beyoncé’s husband Jay-Z in an elevator.

53 Head doc? : ENT

Ear, nose and throat specialist (ENT)

58 Donor group, for short : PAC

A political action committee (PAC) is a private group that works to influence the outcome of a particular election or group of elections. Any group becomes a PAC by law when it receives or spends more than $1,000 for the purpose of influencing the outcome of an election. In 2010 the Supreme Court ruled that PACS that did not make direct contributions to candidates or parties could accept unlimited contributions. These “independent, expenditure-only committees” are commonly referred to as “super PACs”.

59 Title for multiple Marias and Annas in history : TSARINA

A tsarina (also “czarina”) was the wife of a tsar (also “czar”), and so was a Russian empress.

73 Newspaper debut of 9/15/82 : USA TODAY

The title of the widest circulation of any American newspaper is an honor competed for by “The Wall Street Journal”, “The New York Times” and “USA Today”, with each paper selling about 2 million copies each day (including online subscribers). “USA Today” was launched in 1982.

74 Vapes : E-CIGS

An electronic cigarette (also called an “e-cigarette”) is a battery-powered device that resembles a real cigarette. The e-cigarette vaporizes a solution that contains nicotine, forming a vapor that resembles smoke. The vapor is inhaled in a process called “vaping”, delivering nicotine into the body. The assumption is that an e-cigarette is healthier than a regular cigarette as the inhaled vapor is less harmful than inhaled smoke. But, that may not be so …

80 It may be dropped for emphasis : MIC

A mic drop takes place when a performer has done particularly well and decides to celebrate by throwing or dropping the microphone to the floor. That doesn’t seem to happen at the performances I tend to frequent …

83 Event with barrel racing : RODEO

Barrel racing is an event featured in rodeos. Competitors on horses race around barrels in a cloverleaf pattern, each trying to complete the course in the fastest time. The event tends to be confined to male and female youths, and to women riders.

84 Close rival, in a sense : FRENEMY

A frenemy is someone who feigns friendship but who is actually an enemy or competitor.

87 The Cards, on scoreboards : STL

The St. Louis Cardinals were originally called the “Brown Stockings”, changing their name to the “Perfectos” in 1899. That obviously didn’t go down well with the locals, as the owners changed it one year later to the Cardinals.

89 Mr. Wednesday’s true identity in Neil Gaiman’s “American Gods” : ODIN

“American Gods” is a 2001 fantasy novel by English author Neil Gaiman. The book has been adapted into a TV series, with the first season airing on Starz in 2017. It’s all about gods and mythological creatures in contemporary America. Not my cup of tea, although there is a leprechaun named Mad Sweeney in the mix …

Neil Gaiman is an English author whose works include novels, comic books and graphic novels. He has a very noteworthy friendship with musician Tori Amos. Amos has included “Neil” in the lyrics of several of her songs. In turn, Gaiman included her as a character in his comic book “The Sandman”, and Amos penned the introduction to the comic “Death: The HIgh Cost of Living”, and features on the cover.

91 Secretly, from the Latin : SUB ROSA

“Sub rosa” is a Latin term that translates literally as “under the rose”. The term is used to denote confidentiality, as the rose has been a symbol of secrecy since ancient times.

94 Salad green also known as “rocket” : ARUGULA

Eruca sativa is an edible plant that is known as “arugula” in the US, and “rocket” in Britain and Ireland and in Canada. The Italian name for the plant is “rucola”, from the Latin name. It is “rucula” that evolved into the American term “arugula”.

95 Brooks no debate : INSISTS

“To brook” and “to abide” both mean “to tolerate, to put up with”.

105 Big name in baseball cards : TOPPS

Topps was a relaunch of an older company called American Leaf Tobacco, with the Topps name used from 1938. The earlier company was in trouble because it could not get supplies of its Turkish tobacco, so it moved into another chewy industry, making bubblegum. Nowadays, Topps is known for including (mainly) sports-themed trading cards in the packs of gum.

109 Infinitive of the French “suis” and “sommes” : ETRE

The French for “to be” is “être”.

111 Former Israeli P.M. Barak : EHUD

Ehud Barak served as Prime Minister of Israel from 1999 to 2001, taking over from Benjamin Netanyahu. Barak left office after he called a special election for Prime Minister and lost the vote to Ariel Sharon. Barak resigned from the Knesset and took an advisory job with the US company Electronic Data Systems (EDS), and did some security-related work with a private equity company. In 2007, Barak took over leadership of Israel’s Labor Party.

117 Focus of the Human Genome Project : DNA

The genome is all the hereditary information needed to reproduce an organism, in other words, all of its chromosomes. When scientists unravel the human genome, it takes up an awful lot of computer storage space, and yet all of this information is in almost every cell in our bodies. Each and every cell “knows” how to make a whole human being.