Thursday, October 29, 2009

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Oct 25): Where in the World...

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Oct 25): Where in the World...:
Q: Take the name 'Boris Karloff.' It contains the letters of 'Oslo' in left-to-right order (although not consecutively). Now write down these three names: Leonardo da Vinci, Frank Sinatra, Stephen Douglas. Each conceals the name of another world capital in left-to-right order, although not in consecutive letters. What capitals are these?
I wasn't able to post the puzzle earlier because I had just pulled an all-nighter. We had intended to get to bed at an hour that was reasonable. However, since we needed to construct our Halloween costumes in time for the parade today, we couldn't settle for inaction.

Edit: Three airport codes are hidden in the last word of each sentence (alL-nigHteR=LHR, rEaSonaBle=ESB, InaCtioN=ICN). Doesn't really help you solve the puzzle, but it might have confirmed you had the right locations.
A: LONDON (England), ANKARA (Turkey), SEOUL (South Korea)

Thursday, October 22, 2009

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Oct 18): Bonnie Raitt Anagram

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Oct 18): Bonnie Raitt Anagram:
Q: Take the name of the singer Bonnie Raitt, rearrange these 11 letters to be two words that are loosely synonyms. What are they?
Hope I have the right answer; it relies on the words being loosely related since I wouldn't say they are direct synonyms.

Edit: It's after the deadline so I think it is okay to reveal my hint. It was Hope+I = Hopi, as in the Native American Tribe/Nation. There were others I considered using like Oneida, Cherokee, etc.
A: BONNIE RAITT --> TRIBE, NATION

Thursday, October 15, 2009

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Oct 11): Name That Beverage

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Oct 11): Name That Beverage:
Q: Think of a beverage with a 2-word name. The first word has 3 letters and the second word has 9. Arrange the letters of the 9-letter word in a 3x3 box with the first 3 letters across the top, the middle 3 across the center and the last 3 across the bottom. If you've named the right beverage, you can read down the center column to get the 3-letter word in the beverage's name. What beverage is this?
This should be another easy week for everyone. I thought of a few 3 letter words and the 9 letter word came to me instantly. Given that it is so easy, I'm not going to give a hint on the puzzle.

Edit: Okay, that was a fib. I did provide several hints. The first clue was "instantly" since most people use an instant mix to make this beverage. Also, if you look at the first letters in "hint on the..." you'll see that they spell hot.

I don't know if you also noticed that one word was different in my standard reminder (first comment below). This was so the initial letter of each sentence (Here, Once, Thank you) would also spell out HOT.
A: HOT CHOCOLATE

Thursday, October 08, 2009

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Oct 4): Chain Reaction

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Oct 4): Chain Reaction:
Q: The challenge is to find a chain of 'C' words to connect 'carbon' to 'circuit.' Each pair of words completes a compound word or familiar two-word phrase (e.g. CASH COW or CREDIT CARD). Will's chain has seven words between 'carbon' and 'circuit' for a total of nine words. The answer doesn't have to match Will's, but each word has to start with 'C,' and each has to combine with the words before and after to make a compound word or familiar two-word phrase.
You can work this forward and/or backward; I did both. In retrospect I shouldn't have had so much trouble finding the joining word in the middle. It's hard to give clues without revealing the answer. I'll just say I'm pretty sure I have the same list as Will.

Edit: The hint above referred to the middle word in the chain which coincidentally was "center".
A: CARBON - COPY - CAT - CALL - CENTER - COURT - CASE - CLOSED - CIRCUIT

Thursday, October 01, 2009

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Sep 27): Name That Country...

NPR Sunday Puzzle (Sep 27): Name That Country...:
Q: Take the family name of a famous world leader in history. Drop the last letter, then switch the last two letters that remain. The result will name the country that this leader led. Who is it and what is the country?
Gee, I planned to get this puzzle posted earlier, but I've had a lot on my plate. My hint this week: Work backwards; it's much easier.

Edit: The hiddens clues were Gee (G) and Plate (China). Put them together and you have the answer.
A: Chiang Kai-Shek (CHIANG) --> Country (CHINA)
I actually found it easier to work backwards thinking of country names, flipping the last two letters and seeing what letter might be added to make a name. CHINA became CHIAN which immediately made me think of CHIANG (Kai-shek).