Secret Spot · Puzzle #11 · Saturday, October 10
Secret Spot: the answers
Seven prompts, one answer each, and the fewer surfers who said yours, the more it scored. Here are the prompts with the answers we expected to be most common, and the rarest. Play today's Secret Spot, or play this day as practice (never counted).
1. Name a Simpsons character
Each character counts once, by any name (Grampa is Abe Simpson, Sideshow Bob is Robert Terwilliger). A pair with one name counts once (Patty and Selma, Kang and Kodos, Itchy & Scratchy).
Most common
- Bart Simpson
- Homer Simpson
- Marge Simpson
Rarest
- Kent Brockman: Kent Brockman, Springfield's news anchor, first appeared in the episode 'Krusty Gets Busted'. Source: Wikipedia, “Kent Brockman” (CC BY-SA)
- Dr. Hibbert: Dr. Hibbert, Springfield's top doctor, is known for his signature chuckle. Source: Wikipedia, “Dr. Hibbert” (CC BY-SA)
- Kang and Kodos: Kang and Kodos, the drooling green aliens, come from the planet Rigel VII. Source: Wikipedia, “Kang and Kodos” (CC BY-SA)
Before the crowd came in: the answers we expected to be most and least common, from how well known each one is.
2. Name an ice cream flavor
Each flavor counts once, under any of its names: mint chip is mint chocolate chip, matcha is green tea.
Most common
- Chocolate
- Cookies and cream
- Mint chocolate chip
Rarest
- Goody Goody Gum Drops: New Zealand's Goody Goody Gum Drops is pale green, tastes like bubblegum and is full of gumdrops. Source: Wikipedia, “Goody Goody Gum Drops” (CC BY-SA)
- Hokey pokey: Hokey pokey, vanilla with honeycomb toffee, is New Zealand's favorite flavor after plain vanilla. Source: Wikipedia, “Hokey pokey (ice cream)” (CC BY-SA)
- Moon mist: Atlantic Canada's moon mist swirls together banana, grape and bubble gum. Source: Wikipedia, “Moon mist” (CC BY-SA)
Before the crowd came in: the answers we expected to be most and least common, from how well known each one is.
3. Name a jazz musician
Each musician counts once, by full name, stage name or nickname (Satchmo is Louis Armstrong, Bird is Charlie Parker), or by surname when only one jazz musician has it (Coltrane is John; give Alice Coltrane's first name). Jazz singers count, and so do crooners famous for jazz standards (Frank Sinatra). Bands don't.
Most common
- Duke Ellington
- Ella Fitzgerald
- John Coltrane
Rarest
- Hazel Scott: In 1950, Hazel Scott became the first Black American to host her own TV series. Source: Wikipedia, “Hazel Scott” (CC BY-SA)
- Jelly Roll Morton: Jelly Roll Morton was jazz's first arranger, showing an improvised music could be written down. Source: Wikipedia, “Jelly Roll Morton” (CC BY-SA)
- Antônio Carlos Jobim: Jobim's The Girl from Ipanema has been recorded over 240 times by other artists. Source: Wikipedia, “Antônio Carlos Jobim” (CC BY-SA)
Before the crowd came in: the answers we expected to be most and least common, from how well known each one is.
4. Name a famous statue
Famous statues and statue-like sculptures from anywhere and any age count, Mount Rushmore and Cloud Gate too. Each counts once by any name (the Bean is Cloud Gate, Lady Liberty is the Statue of Liberty).
Most common
- Statue of Liberty
- David
- Christ the Redeemer
Rarest
- Golden Driller: Tulsa's Golden Driller statue stands 76 feet tall and weighs about 43,500 pounds. Source: Wikipedia, “Golden Driller” (CC BY-SA)
- Big Merino: Australia's Big Merino has an observatory in the ram's eyes. Source: Wikipedia, “Big Merino” (CC BY-SA)
- Peter Pan statue: The Peter Pan statue in Kensington Gardens was commissioned by J. M. Barrie himself. Source: Wikipedia, “Peter Pan statue” (CC BY-SA)
Before the crowd came in: the answers we expected to be most and least common, from how well known each one is.
5. Name an ancient invention
Inventions from prehistory to about AD 500 count, and so do China's Four Great Inventions (paper, the compass, gunpowder and printing). Each counts once; a version counts as its invention (a watermill is the water wheel, movable type is printing). Buildings and famous objects don't count, except one-off machines like the Antikythera mechanism.
Most common
- Compass
- Gunpowder
- Paper
Rarest
- Acta Diurna: Rome's Acta Diurna, daily public notices begun in 59 BC, worked much like an early newspaper. Source: Wikipedia, “Acta Diurna” (CC BY-SA)
- Water organ: The hydraulis, an early pipe organ, was a Greek instrument created by Ctesibius of Alexandria. Source: Wikipedia, “Water organ” (CC BY-SA)
- Tally stick: Tally sticks go back to the Upper Palaeolithic, when people counted by carving notches into animal bones. Source: Wikipedia, “Tally stick” (CC BY-SA)
Before the crowd came in: the answers we expected to be most and least common, from how well known each one is.
6. Name a unit of measurement
Each unit counts once; spellings (meter and metre) and plurals are the same. Prefixed units like the kilometer mostly count on their own; units that share a name (the pound of mass and of force) count as one.
Most common
- Foot
- Inch
- Metre
Rarest
- Moment: A medieval moment lasted about 90 seconds on average. Source: Wikipedia, “Moment (unit)” (CC BY-SA)
- Horse length: A horse length, measured nose to tail, is about 8 feet. Source: Wikipedia, “Horse length” (CC BY-SA)
- Barleycorn: The barleycorn, a third of an inch, is still the basis of shoe sizes in some English-speaking countries. Source: Wikipedia, “Barleycorn (unit)” (CC BY-SA)
Before the crowd came in: the answers we expected to be most and least common, from how well known each one is.
7. Name a city in Europe
Each city counts once, however it's typed (Munich is München). City-states count (Monaco, Vatican City). Istanbul and Moscow count; overseas parts of European countries (Réunion, the Canary Islands) don't. Cities that share a name count once.
Most common
- Berlin
- London
- Paris
Rarest
- Reutlingen: Reutlingen in Germany has the narrowest street in the world, Spreuerhofstraße, just 31 cm wide. Source: Wikipedia, “Reutlingen” (CC BY-SA)
- Sigtuna: Old Norse religion held that Old Sigtuna, near Sweden's Sigtuna, was once the home of the god Odin. Source: Wikipedia, “Sigtuna” (CC BY-SA)
- Visby: Visby, on the island of Gotland, is the only Swedish county seat you can reach from the mainland only by boat or plane. Source: Wikipedia, “Visby” (CC BY-SA)
Before the crowd came in: the answers we expected to be most and least common, from how well known each one is.