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Secret Spot · Puzzle #13 · Monday, October 12

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. 1. Name a supermarket chain

    Each chain counts once, by its name (Whole Foods, Trader Joe's), and chains that share a name count as one (every Safeway is Safeway). Grocery chains from anywhere count, and so do big stores that sell groceries, like Walmart, Target and Costco; convenience stores, dollar stores and pharmacies don't.

    Most common

    • Walmart
    • Kroger
    • Publix

    Rarest

    • Keedoozle: Keedoozle, dreamed up by grocer Clarence Saunders in 1937, was the first fully automated grocery store in the US. Source: Wikipedia, “Keedoozle” (CC BY-SA)
    • Bulk Barn: Bulk Barn, founded in 1982, is the largest bulk foods retailer in Canada. Source: Wikipedia, “Bulk Barn” (CC BY-SA)
    • King Kullen: King Kullen was founded by Michael J. Cullen in 1930 and grew to 27 stores across Long Island. Source: Wikipedia, “King Kullen” (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. 2. Name a Mexican dish

    Each dish counts once, by any of its names (tamal is tamale, flautas are taquitos). A filling or style counts as its dish (a fish taco is a taco, a burrito bowl is a burrito), but named dishes count on their own (al pastor, birria, quesabirria). Tex-Mex dishes, salsas, breads and desserts count; drinks do not.

    Most common

    • Burrito
    • Enchilada
    • Nachos

    Rarest

    Before the crowd came in: the answers we expected to be most and least common, from how well known each one is.

  3. 3. Name a classical composer

    Each composer counts once, by full name or by surname when only one famous composer has it (Bach is Johann Sebastian, Mozart is Wolfgang Amadeus). Composers of concert music from medieval times to today; film composers count only when also known for concert works.

    Most common

    • Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
    • Ludwig van Beethoven
    • Frédéric Chopin

    Rarest

    Before the crowd came in: the answers we expected to be most and least common, from how well known each one is.

  4. 4. Name a famous person from ancient Rome

    Each person counts once, by full name or a well-known short name (Caesar is Julius Caesar). Kings, statesmen, generals, writers, empresses and legendary figures count, up to the fall of the West in 476; emperors don't (they have their own prompt). Romulus and Remus count as one.

    Most common

    • Julius Caesar
    • Mark Antony
    • Spartacus

    Rarest

    • Apuleius: Apuleius's Metamorphoses is the only ancient Latin novel that has survived complete. Source: Wikipedia, “Apuleius” (CC BY-SA)
    • Tiberius Gracchus: Tiberius Gracchus is best known for a law moving land from the state and the wealthy to poorer citizens. Source: Wikipedia, “Tiberius Gracchus” (CC BY-SA)
    • Cassius Dio: Cassius Dio spent 22 years writing a Roman history, in Greek, that covers about 1,000 years. Source: Wikipedia, “Cassius Dio” (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. 5. Name a bird of prey

    Each species counts on its own (a bald eagle and a golden eagle are two answers), and so does a plain eagle, hawk, falcon, vulture, kite, buzzard, harrier or condor. Close cousins sharing a name count as one: any kestrel is a kestrel, any goshawk a goshawk, any sparrowhawk a sparrowhawk. Owls count once: any owl is an owl.

    Most common

    • Owl
    • Bald eagle
    • Peregrine falcon

    Rarest

    Before the crowd came in: the answers we expected to be most and least common, from how well known each one is.

  6. 6. Name a winter sport

    Each sport counts once, and so does each discipline with a name of its own (slalom, ski jumping, ice dancing); men's, women's and doubles versions are the same answer.

    Most common

    • Ice hockey
    • Figure skating
    • Skiing

    Rarest

    • Icebocce: Icebocce mixes bocce, curling and bowling, and is a favorite at Minnesota winter festivals. Source: Wikipedia, “Icebocce” (CC BY-SA)
    • Crokicurl: Crokicurl, first played in Winnipeg in 2016, is a giant mix of curling and the board game crokinole. Source: Wikipedia, “Crokicurl” (CC BY-SA)
    • Barrel jumping: Barrel jumpers build up speed on skates and leap over a long row of barrels. Source: Wikipedia, “Barrel jumping” (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. 7. Name a city in Japan

    Each city or town counts once, however it's typed (Kyōto is Kyoto). Tokyo's wards and districts count as Tokyo (Shibuya is Tokyo). Prefectures and islands don't count, but a city with the same name does. Places that share a name count once.

    Most common

    • Tokyo
    • Hiroshima
    • Kyoto

    Rarest

    • Hiraizumi: The little town of Hiraizumi became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2011 for its historic temples and gardens. Source: Wikipedia, “Hiraizumi” (CC BY-SA)
    • Kusatsu, Gunma: Kusatsu, a mountain town in Gunma, is one of the most famous hot spring resorts in Japan. Source: Wikipedia, “Kusatsu, Gunma” (CC BY-SA)
    • Ise, Mie: Ise is home to Ise Grand Shrine, the most sacred Shinto shrine in Japan. Source: Wikipedia, “Ise, Mie” (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.

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