Thursday, October 30, 2008

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Oct 26): Has Anyone Heard of This Sports Team?

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Oct 26): Has Anyone Heard of This Sports Team?:
Q: 'Nonclassical analysis' contains eight different letters. Two of them occur once, two of them occur twice, two of them occur three times, and two of them occur four times each. Which sports team's name has this same property?
Oh brother. Couldn't Will Shortz have picked something more topical for this week's puzzle rather than hitting us with this week's stumper? I doubt you could scour the sports pages and find any mention of this team... right? I mean, people are busy with Halloween but this puzzle has nothing to do with a favorite fall activity. Well, I'm sure you'll eventually figure this out, maybe after 5 tries... unless you have to take a couple more guesses.

Edit: Clues -- "Oh brother" (as in City of Brotherly Love), "hitting", "favorite fall activity", and "out". Plus there were additional references to the World Series throughout.
A: PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES

16 comments:

  1. The weekend that this puzzle came out is relevant on several grounds.

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  2. Somewhat off-topic - I have been playing the puzzle for some time but I am not a member of an NPR station, and I leave that box blank on the entry. Anyone know if winners are only chosen from entrants who are members?

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  3. Michael

    Last year a first-ever winner was picked from an Internet user. It was a funny moment!!

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  4. The answer to this puzzle is the most obvious out there. I figured out the team right away.

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  5. Michael - the one time i *accidentally* clicked the "I am a member." box was when i was chosen to play on-air (i played in late September of this year, REC Center episode). but i don't think there's a correlation. bizarre though...the ONE time i checked it. hmmm..

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  6. I used to say I was a member even when I wasn't just in case. Now am a member again for real.

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  7. Some of us tossed around this week's
    "puzzle" at the end of last week's
    comments while awating Blaine. Is
    the game over?

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  8. Based on what I know, the game is NOT over... there's still time until an on-air winner is announced.

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  9. I could personally relate to the sports team this week.

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  10. Phredp - no doubt because you are a fanatic of these puzzles!

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  11. Phredp, please rephrain phrom ophphering obvious clues.

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  12. That's phunny but what is a phantastic actually?

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  13. I'm not sure what a phanatic is, but I know the Phantastics was a Broadway musical. Didn't it feature a song about, "try to dismember a guy in September...?"

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  14. I think their mascot is called Phillie Fanatic

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  15. phredp, Wikipedia has a great
    picture of Phillies Phanatic. He's
    six feet two.

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