1116-19 NY Times Crossword 16 Nov 19, Saturday

Constructed by: Daniel Larsen
Edited by: Will Shortz

Today’s Theme: None

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

Bill’s time: 18m 30s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

8 One who’s got something brewing : BARISTA

A barista is a person who serves coffee in a coffee shop. “Barista” is Italian for “bartender”.

18 Place for a pigeon : LEDGE

Taxonomically, doves and pigeons are the only members of the order Columbidae. The terms “dove” and “pigeon” are often used interchangeably. Scientifically speaking, dove species tend to be smaller that pigeon species. Colloquially though, many refer to doves as the white or nearly white species in the family.

20 Weather balloon, maybe : UFO

Unidentified flying object (UFO)

21 One in 10 people being left-handed, e.g.: Abbr. : EST

Estimate (est.)

27 Sporty car option : T-TOP

A T-top is a car roof that has removable panels on either side of a rigid bar that runs down the center of the vehicle above the driver.

31 Some obligations : IOUS

I owe you (IOU)

35 International marque whose logo is a pair of calipers : ACURA

Acura is the luxury brand of the Honda Motor Company. As an aside, Infiniti is the equivalent luxury brand for the Nissan Motor Company, and Lexus is the more luxurious version of Toyota’s models.

36 Leader in a 24-Down : VICAR

(24D Domain led by a 36-Across : PARISH)
A vicar is a member of the clergy in several Christian traditions. In more general terms, we can use the word “vicar” for a person who acts in the place of another, i.e. a deputy. It was the latter usage of the term that gave rise to the religious usage, as a vicar in a church was considered a person acting for God.

39 Forbes rival : INC

“Inc.” is a business magazine that specializes in articles about growing companies. “Inc.” publishes a list of the 500 fastest-growing private companies in the country each year, calling it the “Inc. 500”. The “Inc. 5000” is an expanded list also published by the magazine.

“Forbes” is a business magazine that has been published since 1917, when it was founded by B. C. Forbes and Walter Drey. The full name of the original publication was “Forbes: Devoted to Doers and Doings”. “Forbes” is noted for publishing lists of the biggest and richest in the world of business. In 2014, “Forbes” listed the 2000 largest public companies in the world and showed for the first time that the three biggest companies are based in China.

50 Past presidential candidate who once worked for IBM : PEROT

Ross Perot graduated from the US Naval Academy in 1953, as president of his class. Perot served his 4-year commitment but then resigned his commission, apparently having become somewhat disillusioned with the navy. He was ranked number 101 on the Forbes 400 List of Richest Americans in 2012, and at that time was worth about $3.5 billion. Back in 1992, Perot ran as an independent candidate for US president. He founded the Reform Party in 1995, and ran as the Reform Party candidate for president in 1996.

52 Its chief agricultural export is dates : OMAN

Oman lies on the southeast coast of the Arabian Peninsula and is neighbored by the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Yemen. Oman is a monarchy, and the official name of the state is the Sultanate of Oman. All of the country’s legislative, executive and judiciary power resides with the hereditary sultan.

56 Part of a Cinderella story : BALL

The folktale usually known as “Cinderella” was first published by French author Charles Perrault in 1697, although it was later included by the Brothers Grimm in their famous 1812 collection. The storyline of the tale may date back as far as the days of ancient Greece. A common alternative title to the story is “The Little Glass Slipper”.

58 Relatives of chalcedonies : OPALS

Chalcedony is a mineral. It is a form of silica.

60 How Old Faithful erupts : ON A REGULAR BASIS

Old Faithful is a geyser in Yellowstone National Park. It erupts almost every 63 minutes on the nose, making it one of the most predictable geographic features on the planet. It was this predictability that led to the name “Old Faithful”. In the early days of Yellowstone’s existence as a park, the geyser was used as a laundry. Dirty linen clothing was placed in the geyser’s crater during the quiet period. The clothing was ejected during the eruption, thoroughly washed.

Down

4 ___ bag : SWAG

“Swag” is “loot, stolen property”, and a term that started out as criminal slang in England in the 1830s. “Swag” is also the name given to the promotional freebies available at some events. That said, there’s an urban myth that the promotional version of “swag” is an acronym standing for “stuff we all get”.

7 Dweller in the Hundred Acre Wood : ROO

In A. A. Milne’s “Winnie-the-Pooh” collection of stories, Pooh has many friends in the Hundred Acre Wood. Besides Christopher Robin, who doesn’t actually live in the wood, the list includes Piglet, Eeyore, Kanga, Roo, Rabbit, Tigger and Owl.

9 They get minuses in chemistry : ANIONS

As we all recall from science class, a positive ion is called a cation and a negative ion is an anion. The names “cation” and “anion” come from Greek, with “kation” meaning “going down” and “anion” meaning “going up”.

10 Musical movement with a recurring theme : RONDO

A rondo was often chosen by composers in the classical period for the last movement of a sonata (or symphony or concerto, for that matter). In rondo form there is a principal theme that alternates with a contrasting theme(s). So, the original theme anchors the whole piece in between secondary digressions.

13 Rogers : TEN-FOURS

There is a set of “ten-codes” that were developed in 1937 for the use of law enforcement departments. As of 2006, the US federal government is recommending that they be replaced by plain language due to a lack of standardization in ten-codes. Examples of ten-codes are:

  • 10-1 meaning “bad reception”
  • 10-4 meaning “understood”
  • 10-9 meaning “say again”
  • 10-33 meaning “emergency, all units stand by”

The term “roger”, meaning “yes” or “acknowledged”, comes from the world of radiotelephony. The British military used a phonetic alphabet in the fifties that included “Roger” to represent the letter “R”. As such, it became customary to say “Roger” when acknowledging a message, with R (Roger) standing for “received”.

16 2016 election meddlers : RUSSIAN TROLLS

In Internet terms, a troll is someone who attempts to disrupt online group activities. The fishing term “troll” is used to describe such a person as he or she throws out off-topic remarks in an attempt to “lure” others into some emotional response.

23 Texter’s qualifier : IMO

In my opinion (IMO)

28 It’s a stunner : PHASER

A MASER is a device that was around long before LASERs came into the public consciousness. A MASER (Microwave Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation) is similar to a LASER, but microwaves are emitted rather than light waves. When the storyline for “Star Trek” was being developed, the writers introduced a weapon called a “phaser”, with the name “phaser” derived from PHoton mASER.

30 School where Aristotle taught : LYCEUM

The Academy was founded by Plato circa 387 BC in Athens. Aristotle studied at the Academy for twenty years and then founded his own school called the Lyceum.

35 Kind of system in a hospital : ABO

The most important grouping of blood types is the ABO system. Blood is classified as either A, B, AB or O, depending on the type of antigens on the surface of the red blood cells. A secondary designation of blood is the Rh factor, in which other antigens are labelled as either positive or negative. When a patient receives a blood transfusion, ideally the donor blood should be the same type as that of the recipient, as incompatible blood cells can be rejected. However, blood type O-neg can be accepted by recipients with all blood types, A, B, AB or O, and positive or negative. Hence someone with O-neg blood type is called a universal donor.

36 Old RCA product : VCR

Video Cassette Recorder (VCR)

43 Open organization, for short : PGA

The Professional Golfers’ Association (PGA) was founded in 1916 and today has its headquarters (unsurprisingly) in Florida, where so many golfers live. Back in 1916, the PGA was based in New York City.

49 Abbr. in a formal salutation : MESSRS

The abbreviation “Messrs.” is used at the head of a list of male names, in place of “Misters”. It is an abbreviation of the French “messieurs”, the plural of “monsieur”. The equivalent female term is “mesdames”, the plural of “madame”, and is shortened to “Mmes.”

51 Division signs : OBELI

The division symbol consists of a horizontal line with a dot above and below. It is called an “obelus” (plural “obeli”). “Obelus” is the Greek word for “sharpened stick, pointed pillar”. Prior to 1659, the obelus was used as the symbol for subtraction, and not division.

55 2022 World Cup venue : DOHA

Doha is the capital city of the Persian Gulf state of Qatar. The name “Doha” translates from Arabic as “the big tree”.

59 Provider of a lifeline : PALM

In the practice called palmistry, someone might tell your fortune by interpreting the lines and other features seen on the palm of your hand. The lines in the palm have names such as life line, head line, heart line and fate line. The life line is the curve that sweeps around in an arc centered at the base of the thumb.

63 Part of the original spelling of “Sparta” : RHO

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

Sparta was a city-state in ancient Greece that was famous for her military might. Spartan children had a tough upbringing, and newborn babies were bathed in wine to see if the child was strong enough to survive. Every child was presented to a council of elders that decided if the baby was suitable for rearing. Those children deemed too puny were executed by tossing them into a chasm. We’ve been using the term “spartan” to describe something self-disciplined or austere since the 1600s.

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 Goes after : GUNS FOR
8 One who’s got something brewing : BARISTA
15 Somehow : ONE WAY OR ANOTHER
17 What a performer does periodically during a musical : BREAKS OUT IN SONG
18 Place for a pigeon : LEDGE
19 Not barefoot : SHOD
20 Weather balloon, maybe : UFO
21 One in 10 people being left-handed, e.g.: Abbr. : EST
22 Nurses : SIPS
25 Recognize silently : NOD TO
27 Sporty car option : T-TOP
29 Puts in a box, perhaps : MAILS
31 Some obligations : IOUS
33 “Great job!” : HOORAY!
35 International marque whose logo is a pair of calipers : ACURA
36 Leader in a 24-Down : VICAR
39 Forbes rival : INC
40 Diminutive, informally : BITSY
41 Tapped : CHOSE
42 Use as a doormat : STEP ON
44 Teased, teased, teased : RODE
45 [Eh] : {SHRUG}
46 Seed : GERM
50 Past presidential candidate who once worked for IBM : PEROT
52 Its chief agricultural export is dates : OMAN
54 Diminutive : WEE
55 Hollow, maybe : DEN
56 Part of a Cinderella story : BALL
58 Relatives of chalcedonies : OPALS
60 How Old Faithful erupts : ON A REGULAR BASIS
64 Refuge, of sorts : HOMELESS SHELTER
65 Opposite of crowed : ATE DIRT
66 Total train wreck : HOT MESS

Down

1 Relative of a snifter : GOBLET
2 Brewing rebellion : UNREST
3 Must : NEED TO
4 ___ bag : SWAG
5 Basketball’s jab step and others : FAKES
6 Cries of dismay : OYS
7 Dweller in the Hundred Acre Wood : ROO
8 Jets might be found in this : BATH
9 They get minuses in chemistry : ANIONS
10 Musical movement with a recurring theme : RONDO
11 “___ alive!” : IT’S
12 Public mention : SHOUT-OUT
13 Rogers : TEN-FOURS
14 Cornstarch brand since 1892 : ARGO
16 2016 election meddlers : RUSSIAN TROLLS
23 Texter’s qualifier : IMO
24 Domain led by a 36-Across : PARISH
26 Kitchen prep for onions and tomatoes : DICING
28 It’s a stunner : PHASER
30 School where Aristotle taught : LYCEUM
32 “How about this …” : SAY …
34 Carnotite, for example : ORE
35 Kind of system in a hospital : ABO
36 Old RCA product : VCR
37 “Heaven forbid!” : I HOPE NOT!
38 “Rawhide,” for Ronald Reagan : CODE NAME
43 Open organization, for short : PGA
45 Impresario : STAGER
47 Discarded computer parts and such : E-WASTE
48 Hinges : RELIES
49 Abbr. in a formal salutation : MESSRS
51 Division signs : OBELI
53 What “check” means in poker : NO BET
55 2022 World Cup venue : DOHA
57 ___ for life : LUST
59 Provider of a lifeline : PALM
61 Nickname akin to Ginger : RED
62 The letter Æ : ASH
63 Part of the original spelling of “Sparta” : RHO