It makes about as much sense as 22 + 11 = 26 + 39.Q: Take this equation: 14 + 116 + 68 = 47. Clearly this doesn't work mathematically. But it does work in a nonmathematical way. Please explain.
Edit: My equation turns into Ti + Na = Fe + Y, referring back to the recent chemical elements puzzle where Tina Fey was the answer.
A: Looking at the periodic table and replacing the numbers with the chemical symbols, we get Si + Lv + Er = Ag
Here's my standard reminder... don't post the answer or any hints that could lead directly to the answer (e.g. via a chain of thought, or an internet search) before the deadline of Thursday at 3pm ET. If you know the answer, click the link and submit it to NPR, but don't give it away here.
ReplyDeleteYou may provide indirect hints to the answer to show you know it, but make sure they don't give the answer away. You can openly discuss your hints and the answer after the Thursday deadline. Thank you.
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
DeleteGot it! :)
ReplyDeleteOver 1100 correct submissions last week.
ReplyDeleteNPR certainly does like to use this sort of puzzle from time to time.
ReplyDeleteIndeed, and the "trick" is getting old. Having been stumped by the last one of these, I learned my lesson and solved this one without difficulty.
DeleteI kind of like the trick, but it also is sort of like a fairy tale.
Delete(That is, NPR uses this sort of puzzle periodically.)
DeleteI think I've got it.
ReplyDeleteI got this one. Annoying to me, though.
ReplyDeleteAs a math person, I really want to adjust the equation to make it work mathematically. This one might be a little more challenging for me.
ReplyDeleteI figured it out. Not the best puzzle.
DeleteI may have it. Now it's time for a cup of tea...
ReplyDeleteEasier than last week, I think. Expecting more correct submissions.
ReplyDeleteI would disagree on that. This is one that you get right away, or else you spend a week diving down rabbit holes before finally giving up in frustration. I just don't think that many will get it right away.
DeleteI agree!
DeleteI am nestled in a warren munching heartily on a winter supply of carrots.
DeleteI'm with Lancek. I'm thinking there will be less correct submissions, probably less than 1000.
DeleteLess than 500, I'd say. As has been noted before, this blog is not a random sample.
Deleteare all numbers equal 47?
ReplyDeleteThe answer came to me as I was thinking of past puzzles.
ReplyDeleteI have the perfect tee shirt for Thursday's reveal.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteHm, I had an answer, but Blaine's clue is certainly not hinting at it, and... well, mine wasn't very good.
ReplyDeleteSo I'll keep thinking!
Oh! Okay I have it now (and definitely get Blaine's hint too).
ReplyDeleteNext job: think of a reasonable hint.
Here’s a hint for someone who doesn’t need one:
Delete5 + 57 + 53 + 10 = 92
Also = 62 + 18 + 22
DeleteThe gimmick is, to me, a little thin. Whatevs.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDelete5+8+5+5+39=Bobby. I am good.
Delete5=B=Boron
Delete8=O=Oxygen
5=B=Boron
5=B=Boron
39=Y=Yttrium
Why was my Bobby hint deleted?
It was a periodic sweep.
DeleteTry this equation: 77+8+7 = 26
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteRats. My apologies.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I'm in no way a Mendo Ben when it comes to the Puzzlemaster. I am grateful for the many ways he has found to gracefully waste my time.
ReplyDeleteBut I do find it a bit disconcerting to submit ten candidate puzzles, have nine of them rejected, but then to once again see a thrice-repeated wisp of an idea.
On a more positive note, I was delighted to hear Eyder Peralta hosting the Weakened Edition today. He did a great job. It took me to show's end to notice the lack of neck strain incurred when I listen to, um, well, a different host.
Change is inevitable. Uhuh.
ReplyDeleteOld news. That said, I'm reminded of the Marx Brothers.
ReplyDeleteI did not hear Eyder Peralta introduced today. I wonder if he will be hosting again.
ReplyDeleteAt least in the Eastern Time Zone, they said that Ayesha Rascoe would be hosting again next week.
DeleteAt the risk of incurring the WRATH OF STRAP, anagram the name Ayesha Rascoe to get (a) an alternate protein and (b) something you get when Ayesha Rascoe hosts.
Aha, easy score!
DeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteNo confirmation email!
ReplyDeleteI got a confirmation email. Now I know I am popular!
ReplyDeleteMe too! Or should I say U2? Oh wait, wrong week! :-)
DeleteWell, now I am stumped. NPR had better turn over a new leaf.
DeleteNo confirming email for me.
DeleteI wrote to NPR administration about confirmation issue today. I have written before. No response.
DeleteI just got a reply stating NPR received my message but may not respond as too many emails.
DeleteAll from you? ;-)
DeleteI do not think so as only wrote twice.
Delete"We’re always grateful to hear from NPR’s listeners and readers. We read every message and make certain that all feedback reaches the appropriate people for consideration. However, due to the incredibly high volume of mail we receive, we may often not be able to respond individually."
I am just a poplar I guess..."u" removed.
ReplyDeleteMaybe U are barking up the wrong tree ;-)?
DeleteI would like to get to the root of the problem though.
DeleteI walnut give up.
DeleteIt all seems a bit shady to me.
DeleteMay the forest be with me.
DeleteNatasha has fallen under the spell of SDB me thinks. Clever.
DeleteWhere is SDB today? I must have been channeling him. lol
DeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI thought this puzzle was going to take days to solve, but fortunately, it didn't.
ReplyDeleteI got off track thinking about last year's Caesar cipher puzzle where 3 = 47. Had to go back a little further. Anyway, 47 = -31.
ReplyDeleteIs that supposed to be some kind of a gag, Jan?
DeleteYou're not trying to place a gag order on him, are you? :-)
DeleteCute.
DeleteBTW, Lady Gaga sent her regards.
DeleteClarence Thomas.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDelete22+66=10+85
ReplyDeleteThis almost works for me.
ReplyDeleteFinally got it. Thought I was going to be the lone person in this group who couldn't figure it out.
ReplyDeleteOh nice.
Delete👏🏻
It took me a while to get onto the trick too.
DeleteThere is an alternative answer based on a completely different principle than what is being discussed above.
ReplyDeleteHint: 1 + 2 + 3 = 20
To put it more commonly: 20 + 37 + 8 + 7 = 6
ReplyDeleteNPR is again not sending my answer submission reply.
ReplyDeleteGot the answer! Going to treat myself to a slice of cheesecake.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteFor those who have solved the NPR puzzle but still crave puzzles (even though we neither promise nor provide lapel pins sand other booty if you solve them!), here is a link to Puzzleria!
ReplyDeleteIf I may suggest from our menu:
* "Five first-name’s-the-same fellas," our "Schpuzzle of the Week,"
* "Diviners vs. Dawdlers," a “Jefferiffic” Appetizer composed by Jeff Zarkin (SuperZee),
* Entree #2, an anatomically homophonic (or homophonically anatomical) puzzle-riff penned by Tortitude.
LegoWhoWillBeHappyToServeAsYourWaitpersonThisWeek ButWhoAlasIsNotAllowedByManagementToAcceptTipsEvenThoughHeCouldSureUseAFewHelpfulTipsOnHowToRunAPuzzleBlog!
Guglielmo Tell
ReplyDeleteGood gess.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteBlaine: I don't blame you for being on edge, but comments are made here, answers are submitted to NPR.
DeleteOkay, enough with the really long numeric expressions. I've allowed a few alternate equations, but can we stop now? You are revealing something even if you don't think so.
ReplyDeleteBlaine,
DeleteThank you; I am impressed. Earlier today I actually thought those numeric expressions should have been scrubbed, but I then thought that you are actually very lenient. So you just now surprised me in a good way. Good job.
I submitted my
ReplyDeleteanswer after first going through it with a fine tooth comb.
Ah. Long time lurker here. I got some hints by looking at prior entries on this blog. I wouldn't have figured it out. :-)
ReplyDeleteI hunted for and found a Thursday connection to this puzzle.
ReplyDeleteCarTalk has posted a new puzzler today—All Fizzy, All Day. I have read it over and over and cannot make sense of it. Perhaps someone here can.
ReplyDeleteInteresting. (And I have to admit, it does look like you were right and Ray is putting up new puzzles, not just recycled ones from the old show.)
DeleteOne possibility is that the flat bottle had been shaken frequently before opening -- maybe it was kept in the door rather than on the shelf of the fridge? So it would lose more gas each time it was opened?
(But this doesn't explain why the fizzy bottle was at full fizz -- is that supposed to be part of the puzzle?)
The puzzler begins with saying something about a bottle being left out with the cap removed and expecting its contents to lose its fizz, but nothing further about how that fits in with Tom's so called experiment. Not a well thought out presentation.
DeleteI think the answer involves upside-down Roman numerals and matchsticks.
DeleteOh, well, he expected that the fizz level would depend on the two things recorded, which were "leaving it out" and "cap removed time". But there was another factor he hadn't accounted for.
DeleteI know a little about this, and I *think* the other factor should be nucleation. Gas comes out of solution faster when the bubbles have a starting point on some surface. Small irregularities in your pots are where bubbles form when you're boiling water, for instance. And shaking the bottle makes tiny gas bubbles, which also form nucleation points.
In principle, dissolving something will also do it, but if the answer is that someone dumped a teaspoon of sugar into one of the bottles, that would be a pretty bad answer!
I feel like Word Woman might have some insight here.
jan, I think you may be on the right track. I was thinking the answer was: to get to the other side, but then I realized it is the answer to another puzzle.
DeleteCrito, the puzzle says Tom thought leaving a bottle OUT with the cap removed would cause it to lost its fizz. How does that fit in with the puzzle? There is no way to understand what Ray is asking.
I got it! The answer is bottle B.
Delete007 fan in the family?
DeleteCrito, I actually did figure out what Ray is looking for, but he stated the whole thing very poorly. Any idiot can tell that the more air, over a longer time, will cause the fizz to go just by dawdling over a glass of pop. When someone conducts an experiment he wants to determine something or see what happens, but this is not mentioned.
DeleteThe Car Talk show is at This link.
DeleteThis puzzle has 3 terms in the sum ... There is a case of the same phenomenon with 4 terms in the sum.
ReplyDeleteI must say, that is sum theory.
Delete(but please do not give the answer to this yet)
DeleteUnder different constraints, there is a beautiful 6-term solution.
DeleteI have a 4-term sum that works if a term is used more than once.
Delete(I now have one with four different terms too.)
Delete(... and if you remove all constraints, there is a unique 9-term solution ...)
Deletel'll be interested in the 6 and 9-term solutions. Meanwhile I have a third 4-term solution.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteHere are three solutions with 4-term sums:
Delete1. 18+34+28+6=33
[ARgon+SElenium+NIckel+Carbon = ARSENIC]
2. 20+37+8+7 = 6
[CAlcium+RuBidium+Oxygen+Nitrogen = CARBON
3. 27+15+15+68=29
[CObalt+Phosphorous+Phosphorous+ERbium = COPPER
If we're not allowing single-letter element symbols: unique solution of length 4:
Delete(33 AS arsenic) + (73 TA tantalum) + (22 TI titanium) + (10 NE neon) = (85 AT astatine)
That is longer than the given puzzle, and does not contain an ersatz element like Livermorium.
Allowing single-letter element symbols, no repeats: unique solution of length 6:
(16 S sulfur) + (53 I iodine) + (3 LI lithium) + (6 C carbon) + (8 O oxygen) + (7 N nitrogen) = (14 SI silicon)
Those are all familiar elements!
Allowing single-letter element symbols, with repeats: unique solution of length 9, briefly:
P + H + O + S + P + H + O + RU + S = P
RU also stands for Rudolfo ...
Nice! I didn't think about whether single-letter elements were okay, since the original puzzle didn't specify.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThat post will be removed by daybreak.
DeleteYou think it's TMI?
DeleteAgreed. If you still have access to it, see Rob's Sunday 9:55 AM post.
DeleteOK, sorry.
DeleteSDB: Have you seen the ballet Wonderland at PNW Ballet?
ReplyDeleteNo.
DeleteWait Wait Don't Tell Me is celebrating their 25th year on the air this week.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the warning.
DeleteLate to the party once again…I never got to the puzzle till Tuesday. (No clue here; the answer is not "Voices Carry.") I've been busy preparing my upcoming trip to the DR. I look forward to getting a tan on the Playa Dorada. 😎⛱
ReplyDeleteOnce I did get to the puzzle, it was quick. An equation like 21 + 18 = 88 + 55 would have been more logical, though, IMO.
ReplyDeleteOr 21 + 18 = 3 + 8 + 7
DeleteWe at Puzzleria! are proud to welcome our friend Nodd, the latest member of our sterling legion of “guest puzzle-makers.” His "Nodd ready for prime time" feature will debut tomorrow with four superb befuddlers titled: "Political Connections," "Performers, Past and Present," "Presidential Branding," and "American Novelties..." More galore are in store on future Puzzlerias!... it's not just a "Nodding" aquaintanceship!
ReplyDeletePuzzleria! is uploaded just after Midnight PST, wee-hourly, every early Friday morn.
This week's menus also include:
* a Schpuzzle of the Week linking an English nursery rhyme, mysteriously, with American history and herstory,
* a slice of a puzzle linking Astronomy, Biology and “Chemystery,”
* a Dessert Slice the asks the question, "Was Jesus a fan of cheeses?"... and
* eight Riff-Off-Appetizers – titled “Elementary, my dear Watson... and Crick!” – of this week's Nitrogen+Praseodymium (7+57=NPr) "N-PeRiodic" puzzle.
(Two of those eight Appetizers – including one that brilliantly "anticipates" this past Sunday's "fruity" NPR on-air challenge with Will Shortz and Ayesha Rascoe – are the "brainchildren" of our friend Tom Rymsza (screen name,TomR) a playwright, "puzzlewright" and occasional Blainesville commenter.)
The weeklong Puzzleria! Party begins again every Friday (it's like "Groundhog Week"!). Join us! And remember to T.G.I.F. ... "Think Good, It's Friday."
LegoWhoThanksAndCelebratesCerebralContributorsAndCommentersLikeNoddTomRAndScoresMoreWhoMakePuzzleria!"YouPlaceForPuzzlement!"
Looking forward to the puzzles!
DeleteThe periodic table of 118 chemical elements gave me the answer!
ReplyDeleteSi (14) + Lv (116) + Er (68) = Ag (47). SILVER = Ag.
How many of us posted a “102 + 5 + 57 + 53 + 7 + 68” → a “NO-BLAINER” that the blog administrator removed ?
Periodic Table 14 (Si) + 116 (Lv) + 68 (Er) = 47 (Silver)
ReplyDeleteMy Hint: "Guglielmo Tell" This Italian for The William Tell Overture which most Americans equate with The Lone Ranger whose horse was named Silver.
A further connection -- Tonto was played by Jay Silverheels.
DeleteFrom the periodic table, with the numbers from the equation as the atomic number, the equation becomes Si + Lv + Er = Ag, which is SILVER.
ReplyDeleteI had stated, "Not the best puzzle." The best would get a GOLD medal. This one only gets SILVER. (Yeah, I know, a bunch of you don't want to give it any kind of award...
On a side note, I had actually thought of the periodic table early on, but the 116 threw me. When I had high school chemistry, the table didn't have atomic numbers that high! It was only later, when I actually pulled one up, that I realized that I should have checked in the first place!
14=Si (Silicon) + 116=LV (Livermorium) + 68=Er (Erbium) = 47 (Silver)
ReplyDeleteThe numbers on the left side of the equation represent abbreviations of corresponding elements of the Periodic Table. Read together, the abbreviations spell "Silver," which is element #47.
“Old news.” —> How many times have we seen this basis for the puzzle?
“I’m reminded of the Marx Brothers," i.e., the film Duck Soup, or “elementary.” Naming the film might have been tmi. Just ask Rob, who posted a Sherlock Holmes allusion that resulted in removal by Blaine.
My apologies to Blaine for making his supervisory role that much more difficult this week. I think that those of us whose comments were removed—I counted 15 in all, more than the usual—were just having some exuberant fun, playing with the possibilities once we cracked the code.
The numbers in the equation are the atomic numbers of Silicon (chemical symbol SI; atomic number 14), Livermorium (LV; 116), Erbium (ER; 68), and Silver (47). SI+LV+ER=SILVER, so 14+116+68 = 47.
ReplyDeleteMy hint: “Clarence Thomas.” (See Anita Hill’s “Long Dong Silver” testimony at Thomas’ confirmation hearing.)
The numbers represent the atomic numbers of the element symbols on the periodic table so 14 + 116 + 68 = 47 translates to SiLvEr = Ag = Silver
ReplyDelete.
My phrase (now deleted) translates to AgNeW KNeW.
Ho hum. Or shall I say "1 + 8 + 1 + 92 + 25 - 7." We've done this twice before.
I enjoyed the clue from Dr. Awkward about our having seen this from time to time, as a nod to periodicity.
Periodicity! Now that's a worthy word.
DeleteThank you—you're right on the money!
DeleteThis week's puzzle was first posted in last week's thread thusly:
ReplyDeletejan has left a new comment on the post "NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb 19, 2023): Make Like A Tree and Get Out of Here":
This week's challenge comes from listener Jim Francis, of Kirkland, Wash.
Take this equation: 14 + 116 + 68 = 47. Clearly this doesn't work mathematically. But it does work in a nonmathematical way. Please explain.
Si Lv Er Ag
And as you can see, the answer is to treat the numbers as atomic numbers of the Periodic Table of the Elements.
Now as done above, here are all the comments this week which included numbers, but now with every number interpreted:
Blaine's clue: It makes about as much sense as 22 + 11 = 26 + 39.
Ti Na Fe Y
Crito has left a new comment on the post "NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb 26, 2023): It Doesn't Add Up":
Here’s a hint for someone who doesn’t need one:
5 + 57 + 53 + 10 = 92
B La I Ne U
Bobby has left a new comment on the post "NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb 26, 2023): It Doesn't Add Up":
5+8+5+5+39 is good.
B O B B Y
Natasha has left a new comment on the post "NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb 26, 2023): It Doesn't Add Up":
Try this equation: 77+8+7 = 26
Ir O N Fe
Courtney has left a new comment on the post "NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb 26, 2023): It Doesn't Add Up":
102+5+88+53+7+68
No B Ra I N Er
pblues has left a new comment on the post "NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb 26, 2023): It Doesn't Add Up":
This puzzle is 16+1+53+52
S H I Te
Word Woman has left a new comment on the post "NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb 26, 2023): It Doesn't Add Up":
47 + 10 + 74 + 19 + 10 + 74
Ag Ne W K Ne W
Andrew has left a new comment on the post "NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb 26, 2023): It Doesn't Add Up":
Also = 62 + 18 + 22
Sm Ar Ti
Natasha has left a new comment on the post "NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb 26, 2023): It Doesn't Add Up":
19+10+74?
K Ne W
I got off track thinking about last year's Caesar cipher puzzle where 3 = 47. Had to go back a little further. Anyway, 47 = -31.
Roman Numerals: THREE (+4)==> XLVII Ag -Ga
Berf has left a new comment on the post "NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb 26, 2023): It Doesn't Add Up":
6+88+15
C Ra P
Paul has left a new comment on the post "NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb 26, 2023): It Doesn't Add Up":
22+66=10+85
Ti Dy Ne At
Howie Roark has left a new comment on the post "NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb 26, 2023): It Doesn't Add Up":
To put it more commonly: 20 + 37 + 8 + 7 = 6
Ca Rb O N C
ron has left a new comment on the post "NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb 26, 2023): It Doesn't Add Up":
This puzzle was 23 + 53 + 6 + 53 + 8 + 92 + 16 !!!
V I C I O U S
Dr. K has left a new comment on the post "NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb 26, 2023): It Doesn't Add Up":
After I solved it, I celebrated with some 6 + 67 + 27 + 57 + 52.
C Ho Co La Te
Noah has left a new comment on the post "NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb 26, 2023): It Doesn't Add Up":
This puzzle was kind of a bore.
15 + 92 + 7 + 49 + 52 + 7 + 22 + 8 + 7 + 13
P U N In Te N Ti O N Al
ron has left a new comment on the post "NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb 26, 2023): It Doesn't Add Up":
It must have been a 102 + 5 + 57 + 53 + 7 + 68...
No B La I N Er
Noah has left a new comment on the post "NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb 26, 2023): It Doesn't Add Up":
74 + 67 + 8 + 15 + 62 + 39 + 56 + 105 + 57 + 53 + 10 = 2 + 2 + 2
W Ho O P Sm Y Ba Db La I Ne He He He
Dr. K has left a new comment on the post "NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb 26, 2023): It Doesn't Add Up":
6 + 6 + 15 + 16
C C P S
A thorough chronicle, E_a_W_f. I meant to post 8 + 8 + 15 + 16 --> OOPS, as an apology to Blaine once he had removed it, but clealy I don't know my oxygen from my carbon.
DeleteQuite a few of these made it very clear that the numbers stood for letters somehow. I kept a few additional comments that at least were *equations* keeping the equal sign, but felt compelled eventually to delete the *expressions*.
DeleteWhen you look at the periodic table of elements:
ReplyDelete14=Si, 116=Lv, and 68=Er.
The letters, in succession, spell "silver" (number 47).
The periodic table of elements was the first thing I tried. Obviously, it worked. Although, I thought the puzzle as stated was logically flawed. That's why I said in my earlier post that an equation like 21 + 18 = 88 + 55 would have been more logical: Sc + Ar = Ra + Cs.
Other than this observation, my clues were:
I've been busy preparing for my upcoming trip to the DR. I look forward to getting a tan on the Playa Dorada.
A tan is bronze. Dorada is Spanish for 'golden.' Among sports-event medals, silver is between bronze and gold.
Also, the Playa Dorada is located in Puerto Plata, DR. Plata is Spanish for 'silver.'
Once I did get to the puzzle, it was quick.
But not "quicksilver." 😉
And my addition to your comment: 21 + 18 = 3 + 8 + 7
DeleteSc + Ar = Li + O + N, which refers to Scar from The Lion King
ReplyDeleteAt.No. Symbol
------ ------
14 Si
116 Lv
67 Er
47 Ag (Silver)
> 47 = -31.
The inverse of Ga is Ag, I guess.
> I hunted for and found a Thursday connection to this puzzle.
On Silver Thursday, March 27, 1980, the Hunt brothers (Nelson Bunker, William Herbert, and Lamar) tried to corner the b>silver market, leading to a steep fall in prices and panic on commodity and futures exchanges.
> Sherlock Holmes would have no trouble with this puzzle. [Deleted]
It's elementary.
> Wait Wait Don't Tell Me is celebrating their 25th year on the air this week.
It's their Silver anniversary. ("Billver", according to Bill Kurtis.)
Yet another Periodic Table Puzzle.
ReplyDeleteSi + Lv + Er = Ag
I wrote The gimmick is, to me, a little thin.
A little thin was cluing SLIVER, which is SILVER spelled sideways.
I also suggested we anagram Ayesha Rascoe to get
(a) an alternate protein and
(b) something you get when Ayesha Rascoe hosts
That of course is SOYA and EARACHES
As a lapsed Chemist, may I say that these puzzles are becoming a bit tired?
The numbers are chemical elements.
ReplyDelete14=Si=Silicon
116=Lv=Livermorium
68=Er=Erbium
47=Silver
The answer is elementary.
ReplyDeleteElement 14 is Silicon (Si); element 116 is Livermorium (Lv) and element 68 is Erbium (Er). Put them together to get SILVER, element 47.
One of my geekier tee shirts is a reproduction of the periodic table, captioned, “I wear this shirt periodically.”
Quoth the raven, 116.
ReplyDeleteWonderful, Paul!
DeleteLegoWhoKnows'TisNeitherANoNoNorPasFauxToGoWithQuotationsByPoe(WhoseDeath,WagsSpeculate,WasTriggeredByMoreLiquorThanHisLiverCouldHandle)
At first glance, I kinda had an idea of Periodic Table (yawn) – so I pulled out my laminated, half-fold Periodic Table of the Elements, from 1999. Looking at number 116 I see Ununhexium, 1999, Berkeley California, symbol Uuh. Well, that can’t be it. But when I Google an updated Periodic Table, I see that number 116 has been renamed to be Livermorium, symbol Lv. (Lawrence Livermore Lab is in/near Berkeley). Thus my “Change is inevitable. Uhuh” comment.
ReplyDeleteI wanted to hint: Tom Lehrer who did a riff, The Elements, on Gilbert & Sullivan's I am the model of a modern major general., but thought it was TMI.
ReplyDeleteHere it is. (Livermorium hadn't yet been discahvard.)
DeleteJan: Thank you for posting The Elements video. Sent to my science friends. I had a lot of elements memorized from using the table so much in all my chemistry and science classes. I wonder if anyone memorized The Elements song. I saw one of the discoverers of Livermorium on a talk show this week. I need to find out her name. She gave a great interview. I did not know the history of this element until the Sunday Puzzle. I am so grateful to the puzzle for that reason. Usually for number puzzles I immediately consider the Periodic Table as has been used before. Also is used on Jeopardy periodically! I hope my friends enjoy the video as much as I did.
Deletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WdbF4L_ruyM
DeleteInterview about discovery of Livermorium.
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteNot sure how to post a link like Jan posted "Here it is."
DeleteCan someone help me? Tks.
What about Liverwurst? Did it pass and I missed the livermemoriam?
DeleteLOL! Guess it did not make the "cut".
DeleteI always assumed that when elements die they barium.
Deletehttps://www.npr.org/2023/02/27/1159779530/this-navy-vet-helped-discover-a-new-super-heavy-element
DeleteThis is the person who was interviewed this week. Helped discover Element 117 Tennessine TS. 4 new elements last named in 2016.
This comment has been removed by the author.
Delete68: How did you create the links? I can create links on emails and other places. Appreciate your help?
DeleteThanks so much!
Try this again!
DeleteNatasha, not sure if this is what you wanted, see if this might help: Livermorium
Also, Element 117, Tennessine will this help, too??
68: How did you create Livermorium so it can just be clicked on to locate the site? That is my problem.
DeleteThanks!
Natasha, not sure of the best way to post the HTML code without having a "broken code" appearing.
DeleteNatasha, Not sure if this will help, but my butcher creates links all the time; perhaps yours does too.
DeleteHow did you post Livermorioum to be clickable and to take the place of the url address?
DeleteNatasha, see this for instructions on posting a link.
DeleteWhat 68Charger posted was (translate the special characters): LeftAngleBracket a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WdbF4L_ruyM" RightAngleBracket Livermorium LeftAngleBracket /a RightAngleBracket
DeleteThis "might" help... it may just appear as a broken link, though.
DeleteTry removing the asterisks and it may show the proper code.
Good luck!!
*<*a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WdbF4L_ruyM"> Livermorium */a*
Also, *<*a href= "https://www.npr.org/2023/02/27/1159779530/this-navy-vet-helped-discover-a-new-super-heavy-element"> Element 117, Tennessine *<*/a*>* will this help, too??
Thanks Jan and Word Woman, that works, too!
DeleteSDB: Sausage good idea!
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteWW: thank you but does not work on this site. I can create the hyperlink but not clickable on this site like 68's links.
DeleteHmmm. My link above is exactly how I posted my "see this" comment. Html is quite precise, though, and a missing " or <, or > can render the link unlinked. I've done that sometimes.
Delete^^^missing or misplaced
DeleteWW: How did you get "see this" to post as a link? I can create a link with a word for the url link but it is not clickable on this site like your link is.
DeleteNatasha, Now, don't be a brat. :=)
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteHi Natasha.
DeleteI'm going to show you what WordWoman wrote in the comment box to get her 'see this' to be a clickable link. It's a bit difficult to do this, because if I just put in the characters she put in, of course what would show up in my comment here is what showed up in hers, and you wouldn't see the html code! Jan tried to do it by using quotation marks to stop the html reader from interpreting, and 68Charger did it with asterisks. But I'll do it a trickier way. I'm not 100% sure this will work! Let's see if it does.
Word Woman actually wrote this, to make the words into a clickable link:
Natasha, <a href=”https://www.w3schools.com/tags/tag_a.asp”>see this</a> for instructions on posting a link.
(I botched it the first time so I had to delete it!)
Crito: Thank you so much for this information. Seems like too much work. I have no problem with substituting one word for a url address as a link in other places like emails and microscoft office word, powerpoint etc. Learned about all this in classes for teaching on zoom. I guess a blog is more complicated.
DeleteIt's simple html code. It just takes awhile to get used to the order of the brackets and quotes. Here's a primer on html. Nesting matters!
DeleteOk, here's how 68Charger did it:
Delete68Charger has left a new comment on the post "NPR Sunday Puzzle (Feb 26, 2023): It Doesn't Add Up":
Try this again!
Natasha, not sure if this is what you wanted, see if this might help: <A href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WdbF4L_ruyM">Livermorium</A>
Also, <A href="https://www.npr.org/2023/02/27/1159779530/this-navy-vet-helped-discover-a-new-super-heavy-element"<Element 117, Tennessine</A> will this help, too??
Post a comment.
Unsubscribe to comments on this post.
Posted by 68Charger to Blaine's Puzzle Blog at Mar 3, 2023, 1:57 PM
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteNow I'm interested in this comment from this week:
ReplyDeleteMdB posted on Sun Feb 26, at 06:55:00 PM PST:
There is an alternative answer based on a completely different principle than what is being discussed above.
Hint: 1 + 2 + 3 = 20
Ok, MdB; what's your alternative answer?
(33 AS arsenic) + (73 TA tantalum) + (22 TI titanium) + (10 NE neon) = (85 AT ... ASTATINE)
ReplyDeleteThat is longer than the given puzzle, and does not contain an ersatz element like Livermorium. Related stuff posted above.
My hint about cheesecake referred to Baby Watson Cheesecake. "Elementary my dear Watson"
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of elements, the lead article in the current New Yorker is by Elizabeth Kolbert, "Elemental Need", on how phosphorus saved our way of life and now threatens to end it. (Including much on peecycling -- “Pee the change you want to see in the world.”) Who knew the longest conveyor belt in the world carries phosphorus and can be seen from space?
ReplyDeleteMy niece, a professor who is heavily into peecycling, recommends:
Deletehttps://ecommons.cornell.edu/handle/1813/41289
(not her in the video, possibly one of her students)
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteHas anyone noticed the conjunction of the planets, Venus and Jupiter , the last few days? The view has been pretty good but now they are looking further apart from each other. Right now the view is best just before and after sunset.
ReplyDeleteI saw them near the moon at sunset last week, when I was in Miami. Overcast now in Cambridge; about to get snow.
DeleteThis spectacular conjunction was a treat to view here in Colorado.
DeleteDarn, at least you probably had a nice view while in Miami!
DeleteWe had either high clouds, rain or freezing cold during the ZTF comet's appearance. I never was able to see that one!
WW, it was sure neat to watch!
Delete