daily.surf

Secret Spot · Puzzle #36 · Wednesday, November 4

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 variety of apple

    Each apple variety counts once, by any of its names (Pink Lady is Cripps Pink); a sport counts as its parent (Wijcik McIntosh is McIntosh).

    The answer sheet for this prompt accepts 253 different answers. The obvious picks are Honeycrisp, Granny Smith and Gala: party waves on the sheet, worth 1.0 each. Cosmic Crisp looks like a clever pick, but the sheet marks it as a kook move, worth only 1.5. For a big score you need something like EverCrisp, Lady Williams and Roxbury Russet, which the sheet rates Locals only, worth up to 8.5. One deep cut: EverCrisp is a cross between Honeycrisp and Fuji.

    Most common

    • Honeycrisp
    • Granny Smith
    • Gala

    Rarest

    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 fairy tale

    Each tale counts once, by its usual title (Little Red Cap is Little Red Riding Hood). Folktales and literary fairy tales from anywhere count; fables like The Tortoise and the Hare, novels and films don't.

    The answer sheet for this prompt accepts 793 different answers. The obvious picks are Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood and Hansel and Gretel: party waves on the sheet, worth 1.0 each. Rumpelstiltskin and The Princess and the Pea look like clever picks, but the sheet marks them as kook moves, worth only 1.5. For a big score you need something like The Gigantic Turnip, Legend of the Christmas Spider and Issun-bōshi, which the sheet rates Locals only or Secret spot, worth up to 10.0. One deep cut: the Gigantic Turnip was published in 1863 by the Russian folklorist Alexander Afanasyev.

    Most common

    • Cinderella
    • Little Red Riding Hood
    • Hansel and Gretel

    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 an MLB team

    Each of the 30 teams counts once, typed by city, nickname or both (Boston, Red Sox). A former name counts as its team (the Montreal Expos are the Nationals).

    The answer sheet for this prompt accepts 30 different answers. The usual answers are Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox, the party waves, worth 1.0 each. Watch out for Toronto Blue Jays: however original that pick seems, the sheet marks it a kook move, worth 1.5. The big scores sit further out: Kansas City Royals, Tampa Bay Rays and Cincinnati Reds are rated Uncrowded or Locals only on the sheet, worth up to 8.5. One deep cut: the Royals are named after the American Royal, Kansas City's yearly livestock show, rodeo and barbecue contest.

    Most common

    • Los Angeles Dodgers
    • New York Yankees
    • Boston Red Sox

    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 mountain range

    Any named mountain range on Earth, typed with or without "Mountains" or "Range" (the Rockies, the Smokies). Sub-ranges count on their own (the Tetons, the Dolomites), but a country's stretch of a range counts as the range (the Canadian Rockies are the Rockies). Ranges that share a name count once. Single peaks don't count.

    The answer sheet for this prompt accepts 431 different answers. The usual answers are Appalachian Mountains, Himalayas and Rocky Mountains, the party waves, worth 1.0 each. Watch out for Ural Mountains and Pyrenees: however original those picks seem, the sheet marks them as kook moves, worth 1.5. The big scores sit further out: Transantarctic Mountains, Snowy Mountains and Rwenzori Mountains are rated Locals only on the sheet, worth up to 8.5. One deep cut: the Transantarctic Mountains cross the whole continent, dividing East Antarctica from West Antarctica.

    Most common

    • Appalachian Mountains
    • Himalayas
    • Rocky Mountains

    Rarest

    • Jotunheimen: Jotunheimen, "home of the giants", holds all 29 of Norway's highest mountains. Source: Wikipedia, “Jotunheimen” (CC BY-SA)
    • The Remarkables: New Zealand's Remarkables live up to their name, rising sharply into a remarkable backdrop for Queenstown. Source: Wikipedia, “The Remarkables” (CC BY-SA)
    • Cuillin: Skye's Black Cuillin is made mostly of gabbro, a rough rock that gives climbers a superb grip. Source: Wikipedia, “Cuillin” (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 dinosaur

    Each dinosaur counts by its genus: T. rex is Tyrannosaurus, and a species counts as its genus. Pterosaurs and sea reptiles aren't dinosaurs.

    The answer sheet for this prompt accepts 316 different answers. The obvious picks are Tyrannosaurus, Brontosaurus and Stegosaurus: party waves on the sheet, worth 1.0 each. Spinosaurus and Archaeopteryx look like clever picks, but the sheet marks them as kook moves, worth only 1.5. For a big score you need something like Micropachycephalosaurus, Gojirasaurus and Yi, which the sheet rates Locals only, worth up to 8.5. One deep cut: Micropachycephalosaurus has the longest name of any dinosaur: 23 letters.

    Most common

    • Tyrannosaurus
    • Brontosaurus
    • Stegosaurus

    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 an empire

    Each empire counts once, under any of its names (the Eastern Roman Empire is the Byzantine Empire). Numbered empires of one country count as one (the First and Second French Empires), and imperial Chinese dynasties count.

    The answer sheet for this prompt accepts 145 different answers. The usual answers are Ottoman Empire, Roman Empire and Achaemenid Empire, the party waves, worth 1.0 each. Watch out for Holy Roman Empire and Byzantine Empire: however original those picks seem, the sheet marks them as kook moves, worth 1.5. The big scores sit further out: Ghana Empire, Asante Empire and Srivijaya are rated Locals only on the sheet, worth up to 8.5. One deep cut: the old Ghana Empire, also called Wagadu, lay in today's Mauritania and Mali, not modern Ghana.

    Most common

    • Ottoman Empire
    • Roman Empire
    • Achaemenid Empire

    Rarest

    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 kind of vehicle

    Each kind of vehicle counts once, by its usual names (a plane is an airplane, a tuk-tuk is an auto rickshaw); a narrower kind counts on its own (a mountain bike is not just a bicycle). Makes and models, like a Mustang, don't count.

    The answer sheet for this prompt accepts 276 different answers. The obvious picks are Bicycle, Bus and Car: party waves on the sheet, worth 1.0 each. Hovercraft and Unicycle look like clever picks, but the sheet marks them as kook moves, worth only 1.5. For a big score you need something like Dandy horse, Bucket-wheel excavator and Recumbent bicycle, which the sheet rates Locals only, worth up to 8.5. One deep cut: the dandy horse, the first bicycle, had no pedals: riders pushed it along with their feet.

    Most common

    • Bicycle
    • Bus
    • Car

    Rarest

    • Monowheel: A monowheel's rider sits inside one big hollow wheel that loops right over their head. Source: Wikipedia, “Monowheel” (CC BY-SA)
    • Charabanc: Charabanc comes from the French for 'carriage with benches'. Source: Wikipedia, “Charabanc” (CC BY-SA)
    • Ice resurfacer: The first ice resurfacer was built by Frank Zamboni in 1949, which is why people call them Zambonis. Source: Wikipedia, “Ice resurfacer” (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.

All of puzzle #36 · The archive