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PCC#31 "Chain Reaction"

◆ · By Philip Chow · Published 2024-04-13T14:44:28.550Z

Meta Prompt
[Level 4] Meta prompt: The answer to the meta is a term used in nuclear physics
Hint #1: 16-Across and 24-Down loosely describe the mechanism... the game mentioned in 60-Across is worth looking up... and beware of falling into 8-Down
Hint #2: Study all the clues carefully
Hint #3: Note that there are lots of repeated words... spectrum, gambling, curry... this can't be a coincidence can it?
Hint#4: The last word of a clue would lead you to the first word of another clue - example: 1A Ingredient in a bhindi masala curry leads you to 26-Down curry favor... then the new last word favor will lead you to a new clue that starts with that word and so on
Hint 5: You will end up with a 21-word chain... take the first letters of the entries in this chain... it's up to you to determine where the chain starts
Checking for previous play data...

Leaderboard (updated hourly)

  • Hector solved 2024-04-13T15:52:22.658Z
  • Pair O Ducks solved 2024-04-13T17:00:36.061Z
  • A738840496 solved 2024-04-13T18:12:01.150Z
  • Lexi Pro solved 2024-04-13T18:49:08.316Z
  • JM solved 2024-04-13T21:22:39.101Z
  • atsiricajr111191 solved 2024-04-13T21:32:01.138Z
  • woozy solved 2024-04-14T00:43:22.684Z
  • benchen71 solved 2024-04-14T02:59:29.345Z
  • Ninji solved 2024-04-14T10:14:40.942Z
  • FrankieHeck solved 2024-04-14T11:58:41.371Z
  • Darth solved 2024-04-14T20:22:34.158Z
  • LCC17 solved 2024-04-14T21:07:11.088Z
  • lbray53 solved 2024-04-15T01:58:10.887Z
  • Tyrpmom solved 2024-04-15T04:26:05.628Z
  • DIS solved 2024-04-15T15:26:11.201Z
  • rjy solved 2024-04-16T14:52:43.160Z
  • markhr solved 2024-04-16T16:23:49.116Z
  • whimsy solved 2024-04-18T02:28:19.476Z
  • hoover solved 2024-04-18T19:29:50.208Z
  • Qmark solved 2024-04-20T13:05:00.142Z
  • Danny K Bernstein solved 2024-04-20T14:27:47.081Z
  • Berto solved 2024-05-11T20:20:53.415Z

Comments

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  • Philip Chow constructor · 2024-04-13T14:44:28.550Z
    Answer explanation: Hinted by the game "Last Word, First Word" in the clue for IMPROVCLASS, solvers needed to create a word chain in which the last word of a clue would lead you to the first word of another clue... in OKRA, the last word is "curry" which starts the clue for FAWN... in FAWN, the last word is "favor" which starts the clue for POR... and so on... extracting the first letters of the clues starting from OKRA and ending at EEL gives you: OFPUZZLEISANSWERTITLE... note that EEL loops back around to OKRA with the word "ingredient"... If we begin the 21-word chain at the T from TISSUE and add some spaces, we get "Title of puzzle is answer"... and so the answer to the meta is "Chain Reaction" - a term used in nuclear physics
    On March 14, we get Pi Day because 3.14 correlates to the first three digits of the mathematical constant... one month later we now have World Quantum Day... April 14 was chosen because "4.14" represents the rounded first three digits of Planck's constant: 4.14×10−15 eV·s
    • Philip Chow constructor · 2024-04-13T17:48:27.513Z
      Typo: should read “extracting first letter from entries” (not clues)
    • Darth 12:50 · 2024-04-14T20:23:12.968Z
      Lol. I wasn't expecting that! Cool idea, Philip!
      • Tyrpmom 3s · 2024-04-15T04:29:30.097Z
        Well wasn’t that cool.
        • whimsy 11:19 · 2024-04-18T02:32:49.958Z
          Turned the corner so many times I was chasing my tail! 😄 Very clever and a fun hunt -- Thanks, Phil!
          • hoover 7s · 2024-04-18T19:30:03.344Z
            Wow, that's an amazing construction!
            • Qmark 4s · 2024-04-20T13:06:23.326Z
              Great construction Phil! Took me a while to follow all the connections, but loved the journey! (Only needed the first 2 hints to help me see that the path was in the clues...)
              • Berto 1s · 2024-05-11T20:25:09.214Z
                Being a nuclear physicist I was getting concerned when I couldn’t think of a phrase that wasn’t chain reaction!!! Very sneaky. Needed a nudge to end my con-fusion…
                Play today's daily mini crossword
                1A
                Ingredient in a bhindi masala curry
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                Across
                1. 1A
                  Ingredient in a bhindi masala curry
                2. 5A
                  Asset for a singer
                3. 8A
                  Follow the coxswain's calls, perhaps
                4. 11A
                  Use, as a weapon
                5. 13A
                  Mulligans, in golf
                6. 15A
                  "Objects in mirror ___ closer than they appear"
                7. 16A
                  Computer code that runs forever
                8. 18A
                  Protective cover for a lobster eater
                9. 19A
                  Spectrum and Xfinity, for short
                10. 20A
                  Air conditioner capacity, briefly
                11. 21A
                  Go up and down, as a buoy
                12. 22A
                  San Diego suburb named for a feature of its geography
                13. 25A
                  Recording of an online meeting that you can download to watch later
                14. 27A
                  Spanish or Italian for "one"
                15. 28A
                  Cutting-___ (like the latest technology)
                16. 30A
                  More tidy
                17. 31A
                  Corn eater's discard
                18. 32A
                  Approaches
                19. 34A
                  Monogram of “A Brief History of Time” physicist
                20. 35A
                  Work with yarn and needles
                21. 37A
                  Trail left behind by a wild animal
                22. 39A
                  "Follow your ___!" (phrase in Froot Loops ads)
                23. 42A
                  Webpage ID
                24. 44A
                  Prevent, in legalese
                25. 46A
                  Facial feature
                26. 47A
                  Pounce on
                27. 50A
                  Cold War rival of the USA
                28. 51A
                  Linguistic suffix with "morph" or "phon"
                29. 52A
                  Deny responsiblity
                30. 54A
                  Drop wiper, say
                31. 56A
                  Baseball Hall-of-Famer Mel who was the target of Leo Durocher's "Nice guys finish last" sentiment
                32. 57A
                  Actress Whitley who played Yolanda on "Young & Hungry"
                33. 58A
                  One of seven in the original "Sonic the Hedgehog" video game
                34. 59A
                  "___ favor" ("please," in Spanish)
                35. 60A
                  Where you might learn how to play the game "Last Word, First Word"
                36. 65A
                  Writer Sutherland whose "Wings of Fire" fantasy series has many epic dragon stories to tell
                37. 66A
                  Critically endangered bird of Sulawesi with a masculine-sounding name
                38. 67A
                  Fairy-tale shoemaker's helpers
                39. 68A
                  Fuel additive brand that sponsors NASCAR
                40. 69A
                  Queens and Brooklyn location: Abbr.
                41. 70A
                  Previously cut, as lumber
                Down
                1. 1D
                  Have something outstanding
                2. 2D
                  They're all in the family
                3. 3D
                  End color of the visible spectrum
                4. 4D
                  "Hyperbole and a Half" and "Solutions and Other Problems" writer Brosh
                5. 5D
                  Common sushi ingredient
                6. 6D
                  Vinegary stew of Filipino cuisine
                7. 7D
                  Cheer for
                8. 8D
                  Hard-to-escape predicaments
                9. 9D
                  Black-and-orange bird
                10. 10D
                  "The Phantom of the Opera" and "Cats" composer Andrew Lloyd ___
                11. 12D
                  "Along for the Ride" and "The Truth About Forever" novelist Sarah
                12. 13D
                  Blog feed letters
                13. 14D
                  Froths or foams on the sea
                14. 17D
                  Trick-taking card game similar to bridge
                15. 22D
                  Gambling asset
                16. 23D
                  "Author unknown" byline
                17. 24D
                  Surface with only one side that looks like the infinity symbol
                18. 25D
                  Game theory concept exemplified by poker and gambling
                19. 26D
                  Curry favor
                20. 29D
                  Stare open-mouthed
                21. 33D
                  Heavy drinkers
                22. 36D
                  Star ___ (company that makes treadmills)
                23. 38D
                  University where Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn studied math and physics
                24. 40D
                  Actor Liu of "Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings"
                25. 41D
                  Weapon with a blunted end
                26. 43D
                  Rapper on "Lady Marmalade" with Christina Aguilera, Mýa, and P!nk
                27. 45D
                  Eric in "The Little Mermaid," for example
                28. 47D
                  Takes in, as a rescue dog
                29. 48D
                  Pass on, as dancing to a song
                30. 49D
                  "Tell it to me in ___'s terms" ("Use language that's more common")
                31. 53D
                  Say something indirectly, as a suggestive writer
                32. 55D
                  ___ short (takes a chance on a stock market drop)
                33. 58D
                  Where to see lions and tigers and bears
                34. 61D
                  ___ center (building for community activities)
                35. 62D
                  Singer Max with the songs "Sweet but Psycho" and "Kings & Queens"
                36. 63D
                  Work with needle and thread
                37. 64D
                  Abbr. for a nine-digit ID of personal use
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