New game 172 is now available.
Round 1: D E L E A R K H R
I started with the invalide LEDE; a relatively modern invention, LEDE is a journalism term for the opening sentence of a story designed to entice readers to read the rest of it. It has become adopted because the spelling LEAD has enough other meanings that confusion might arise. Unfortunately, the Macquarie does not list this form of it. Regardless, I continued with LEAD, HARKED, LEADER / DEALER, HERALD, and pondered REHEARD and REHERALD / HERALDER but correctly rejected them.
After time I amused myself by picturing a German screening of Doctor Who referring to HERR DALEK, but could not seriously better six.
There is one seven, though: ADHERER.
My selection: HERALD
Best: ADHERER
Round 2: L B O S E O R C A
I had SLOB, LOBES, LOOSE, LOOSER, COBRAS, ORACLES, and correctly rejected SCORABLE.
Seven does seem to be the limit, but there are quite a few of them: CABOOSE, BOLEROS, COOLERS / CREOSOL (a component of creosote) , COALERS / SOLACER, AEROSOL / ROSEOLA ("a kind of rose-coloured rash"), ROBALOS (ROBALO being a type of fish) / BAROLOS (BAROLO being a type of wine), and CORBELS (CORBEL: "a supporting projection of stone, wood, etc., on the face of a wall").
My selection: ORACLES
Round 3: Target 547 from 100 25 50 75 10 5
The offset from 550 is 3, which is clearly 75/25. Holding that back yields a couple of working methods; I started with 547 = 5*100 + 50 - 75/25 and continued with 547 = 10*(50 + 5) - 75/25.
My selection: 547 = 10*(50 + 5) - 75/25
Round 4: R F T O A D S O I
I had FORT, DRAFT, DRAFTS, ADROIT, RADIOS, and wondered if FORSAID might be an acceptable variation of FORESAID. I've encountered some instances of such foreshortening before, but guessed correctly that this was not one of them. After time I spotted ASTROID at last, but I know from past investigations that the Macquarie fails to list it.
The seven that is lurking in the mix is TOROIDS.
My selection: DRAFTS
Best: TOROIDS
Round 5: Y A L D A N N O C
I had LADY, LAND, ANNAL, CANON, briefly flirted with CLANNAD (which I know is not valid thanks to NG 134, and indeed I may have made it up entirely), and ANNOY.
The sixes here are CANYON, CANOLA, and ANODAL. But the seven, astutely found by commenter Andrew Fisher, is the musical direction CALANDO ("gradually diminishing in loudness and tempo").
My selection: ANNOY
Best: CALANDO
Round 6: Target 778 from 100 50 2 8 5 5
My first thoughts were to try and make this as 775 + 3, but my attempts to get in the vicinity left me one away instead with 777 = 8*100 - 5*5 + 2. However, while thinking about ways to make the required offset from 800 I spotted what turned out to be a working line: 778 = 8*100 - 2*(50 + 5)/5. Phew!
There is only one other solution: 778 = (100 + 50/5)*(5 + 2) + 8.
My selection: 778 = 8*100 - 2*(50 + 5)/5
Round 7: S A U M U G R N A
I had GUMS, MAGUS ("an ancient astrologer or magician"), SUGAR, a non-serious SARUMAN, MANGAS (plural of MANGA, the Japanese comic, not male flatulence), GASMAN, and AUGURS (AUGUR: "to conjecture from signs or omens; presage").
Six does seem to be the limit, with the others being UNARMS, RAGMAN, GUANAS (GUANA being an obsolete form of the word GOANNA), and possibly AURUMS (AURUM being a term from chemistry for the element gold, and if elements are considered pluralisable -- which they are -- then there's certainly a case to be made for AURUMS).
MUNGA is listed as colloquial for "food", but my interpretation is that this is a mass noun sense and not pluralisable.
My selection: AUGURS
Round 8: Target 370 from 100 25 6 6 8 3
My first thought was that the target was near 5*75, and that shifted to using the factorisation 5*74 soon enough, giving me 370 = (8 - 3)*(100 - 25 - 6/6). Then I considered that the 375 could also be made as 3*125, and found another tweaked solution: 370 = 3*(100 + 25 - 6/6) + 8.
My selection: 370 = (8 - 3)*(100 - 25 - 6/6)
Round 9: THE ANOXIC
I ended up choosing this conundrum explicitly, after being presented with the similar HEXATOMIC / HEMATOXIC, neither of which is listed in the Macquarie. But while checking on the former I saw HEXATONIC listed (adjective derived from HEXATONE: "a gapped scale containing only six notes in an octave") and decided to use that.
My selection: [N/A -- conundrum chosen explicitly]
Best: HEXATONIC
6 comments:
Here are mine:
LEAKED
CABLERS
5*(100+10)-75/25=547
FIRST
CANNY
8*100-(5+5+2)=778
RUNGS
3*(100+25)-6=369 (1 off)
x
1. DEALER
2. ORACLES
3. 547 = 5*100 + 50 - 75/25
4. TOROIDS
5. CANNY
6. 1-away: 777 = 5*(100 + 50 + 5) + 2
7. SUGAR
8. 370 = (8 - 3)*(100 - 25 - 6/6)
9. HEXATONIC (several minutes and even then just a lucky guess)
READER
AEROSOL
547 (110x5 - 75/25)
TOROIDS
CALANDO
779 (8x(100-2))-5
AUGURS
368 (14x25 + 3x6)
Nothing within time, and having checked, there is nothing valid in Scrabble within that selection (other sources give possible CATHEXION or HEXATONIC)
Some tough tounds here, but the conundrum turned out well for me.
1. HERALD, nearly tried HERALDER, but presumed that one who heralds is a herald.
2. BOLEROS. I was thinking of the word CABALLEROS at some points.
3. 547 = (50+5)*10 - 75/25 or 5*100 + 50 - 75/25
4. RATIOS
5. CANDY
6. 1-away: 777 = 5*(100 + 50 + 5) + 2
7. AUGURS
8. 370 = (100+25+6/6)*3 - 8
9. HEXATONIC - 4.3s. Wasn't sure, but must have come across it in music classes or reading at some point.
I'm afraid you were unfortunate with CABLERS, Mike. I agree it should be listed, but it is not. I think I've mentioned this before but I'd forgotten and might well have tried CABLERS if I'd seen it as my first seven. Also, I'm afraid that your second numbers round is 788, not 778.
Victor: Nice work with TOROIDS, an excellent find.
Andrew: Again, nice work with TOROIDS and more so with CALANDO. Also, a good 779 in round 6 from you.
Sam: Nice work on the conundrum!
Round 8, the other tweaked solution of 3*(100 + 25 - 6/6) + 8 adds up to 380. It should be 370 = 3*(100 + 25 + 6/6) - 8 which was my method.
Ron
Post a Comment