I’ve always been a sucker for optical illusions, which I consider puzzles for the eye. They’re a visual treat that tricks you into seeing things that aren’t there. These inspired bits of perceptual trickery can fool you into thinking near is far, big is small, or two dimensions are really three.
And I’ve been fascinated ever since by this growing subset of glitch art where incredible precision is required to create physical art that looks fuzzy, uncertain, or even moving from the right angle.
So you can imagine my joy when I found this YouTube short:
This is the work of artist Enzo Prina, a physical media artist who specializes in Moiré art.
What is Moiré, you may ask? Well, XKCD has a fun explanation:
But please allow me to elaborate.
Moiré, which is both a mathematical and an artistic term, is the use of two or more overlapping grid patterns with regular spacing to create an interference pattern.
By overlapping these intricately formed and carefully spaced patterns at an angle to each other (and not directly lined up), you create the eye-catching patterns you see above.
Moiré patterns are all around us. If you’ve ever seen a Houndstooth jacket on an old television program, or tried to photograph a TV screen or computer screen at the wrong angle, you’ve no doubt noticed a Moiré pattern.
While making Moiré patterns isn’t difficult, you can see that Prina’s work is far more complex than simply layering two patterns. He maps out his designs with tape, meticulously pulling layer by layer of tape strands from his work as he paints it, making the creation process as gorgeous and mind-bending as the final product.
It’s truly something to behold, both during and after.
Prina claimed on LinkedIn back in January that he’d just started making art again after a ten-year break, and clearly that break has reenergized him, as his work continues to evolve and diversify in fascinating ways.
This intersection of art and mathematics really struck a chord with me. It’s not surprisingly, really, given that I’ve had Tom Lehrer on the brain for days, and he similarly combined math and artistic whimsy to create works of art that played with perception and imagination.
What a treat.
Now everyone, go stare at something boring and rest your eyes for a while.
The world of puzzles and games is larger than constructors and game designers. There are artists, writers, editors, wordsmiths, hosts, musicians, and influences that help shape puzzles and games in so many different ways. Their efforts enrich and popularize these beloved pastimes, contributing to the world by celebrating wordplay, creativity, and nerdy pursuits.
And sadly, the world grew a little less witty, a little less clever, and a lot less bold and outspoken about so many important topics when Tom Lehrer passed away a few days ago.
It’s hard to know where to begin.
How do you describe the cultural influence of a man whose songs still delight, inform, and push boundaries today, even though he wrote most of them over sixty years ago?
How do you describe a successful musician who walked away from public performance after three brilliant albums — thirty-seven songs, each an intricately-crafted dissection of some aspect of culture, science, or current events, often as poignant and sharp-tongued as they were hilarious — and spent the bulk of his life as a teacher and college professor instead?
His influence on pop culture can’t be overestimated. Across generations, his songs educated and inspired, and his legacy is bulletproof. He created songs for The Electric Company, Square One TV, and That Was The Week That Was. (Those shows were decades apart!)
He inspired performers like “Weird Al” Yankovic, and I think his fingerprints are unmistakable on other hilarious and educational projects, like the songs of Randy Rogel for Animaniacs. (Trust me, you can’t listen to “the Multiplication song” from Animaniacsand NOT think of Lehrer’s “New Math”.)
Tom retired from live performance in the late 1960s, having felt like he’d said everything he wanted to say with his music. (Plus, as he famously pointed out, “political satire became obsolete when Henry Kissinger was awarded the Nobel peace prize.”)
But his songs wouldn’t be denied.
Dr. Demento’s radio show brought Lehrer’s work to new ears in the 1970s, 80s, and 90s, and Honest2Betsy has brought him to yet another generation’s attention with her videos over the last few years.
His songs are timeless. “The Elements” alone has appeared in Better Call Saul, NCIS, Gilmore Girls, and The Big Bang Theory. (Not to mention Daniel Radcliffe’s famous rendition of the song on The Graham Norton Show, where he called Lehrer his hero. This actually led to Radcliffe starring in the film Weird: The Al Yankovic Story.)
Speaking of “Weird Al,” his New York Times crossword puzzle with constructor Eric Berlin namedropped Tom as part of the grid fill in this pun-heavy collaboration:
And it is a love of wordplay that sparked this tribute today.
Lehrer’s work is absolutely riddled with clever puns, comedic craftsmanship, and playing with the listener’s expectations: all things that great crossword cluing employs.
You can’t listen to songs like “Silent E” or “Without an S” and NOT imagine clues or themes that Lehrer’s linguistic legerdemain could inspire.
Not to mention this gem:
There’s a playfulness there, paired with technique, creativity, and an absolute willingness to bend conventions to their breaking point in order to make something new. How can you not love it?
But wordplay, commentary, and scientific and mathematical literacy weren’t Lehrer’s only gifts to the world.
He claimed to have invented the jello shot while in the military (to skirt rules about alcohol consumption). He wrote the song “Don’t Major in Physics,” which would have been good advice to me in freshman year of college, had I cared to listen.
And he also made the incredible gesture in 2022 of transferring the music and lyrics for all the songs he had ever written into the public domain. He relinquished the copyright and performing/recording rights for his songs as well, making his music and lyrics free for anyone to use. Downloadable lyric and music files are available on his website.
His statement releasing all his works into the public domain concluded with this note: “This website will be shut down at some date in the not too distant future, so if you want to download anything, don’t wait too long.”
For now, at least, the website remains online.
And it seems so apropos that the man who walked away from music decades ago to share his love of mathematics, science, and teaching with others is also the man who would happily sign away the rights to his music to enrich the lives of others once again.
The humanities and the STEM fields both owe Tom Lehrer a debt that can never be repaid.
The world was blessed with his presence for 97 years, and I have no doubt that his words, his music, and the forceful spirit that infused both will be around for many many years to come.
Free RPG Day is one of my favorite events of the year. It helps spread the word about roleplaying games, gives new players a chance to try out games for themselves, and it supports local game shops. It’s a win-win all around.
This event means even more to me because, for the last two years, a game I’ve created has been included in 9th Level Games‘ flagship Free RPG Day publication, Level 1.
Each year, the Level 1 anthology has a different theme. Last year’s was programming, and this year’s was How the West Was Lost.
I highly recommend checking it out. The absolute variety of games and play styles inspired by that simple spark of inspiration — How the West Was Lost — shows the versatility of roleplaying games as well as the immense creativity of game designers in the community! I’m proud to once again be included among those eclectic and talented folks.
All the proceeds from this treasure trove of gaming fun will go towards the Level Up Fund, a charitable endeavor intended to grant game designers free use of 9th Level Games’ Polymorph game system, encouraging creators to continue creating games all year round!
Summer is always a fun time for crossword fans who enjoy a good tournament.
Westwords wrapped up a few weeks ago, as did the first World Cryptic Crossword Championship in London. Boswords is less than a week away, Lollapuzzoola is coming up in August, and the 7th Bryant Park Crossword Tournament not long after in September!
And while discussing the Scripps National Spelling Bee with a friend recently, they asked me, as a puzzle guy, if I thought that crosswords could ever become a spectator sport like that.
While crossword tournaments aren’t currently televised, I happily informed him that crosswords are pretty much already a spectator sport.
Every year, people at the ACPT not only enjoy watching the live-solved final puzzle, but they get commentary from Greg Pliska and Ophira Eisenberg!
Tournament finals are often live-solved in front of their fellow competitors, adding some drama and showmanship to these wonderful puzzly events.
We’re even getting behind-the-scenes videos on the tournaments now, like this one for Westwords:
But in terms of crosswords as a spectator sport, the World Cryptic Crossword Championship took things a step further.
The final round of the tournament wasn’t a live-solved puzzle, it was a single cryptic-style clue. No crossing letters or grid for context. Just the clue, and the competitor only had ten seconds to solve it before the next competitor took their shot.
I’ve never had to solve a puzzle in front of an audience like all the tournament finalists, but I can imagine it’s nerve-wracking. But giving someone a cryptic-style clue with NO context letters and ten seconds to solve it in front of an audience?
Good lord, thank you for the new anxiety nightmare fuel, WCCC.
That being said, it was an entertaining watch, and another step forward for crosswords as a spectator sport:
What do you think, fellow puzzler? Will we be seeing the ACPT or another puzzle tournament on an ESPN sister channel soon? Or perhaps as an Olympic event?
Let us know in the comments section below! We’d love to hear from you.
Other times, a major portion of an episode revolves around them. We’ve seen this countless times from shows as diverse as The Simpsons and NCIS: New Orleans.
But I didn’t realize an entire plot for world domination once hinged on a puzzle.
Pinky and the Brain was a spinoff of a recurring series of animated shorts from the show Animaniacs, and the concept was simple.
Two mice plotted to take over the world from their lab cage, and their plans were invariably foiled by either Pinky’s idiocy or Brain’s almost magical ability to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.
The schemes ranged from time travel and mind control to hypnotic songs and (my personal favorite) a papier mache duplicate of Earth.
But on February 21st, 1998, the show aired its 53rd episode, The Family That Poits Together, Narfs Together.
The Brain’s latest plan for global domination targeted the intellectual elite by sabotaging the daily crossword in every newspaper in the world.
Here, I’ll let The Brain explain his diabolical endeavor:
This is the Sunday crossword puzzle. The most educated people all around the world spend hours each weekend deciphering its complex web of interlocking verbiage. But change just one clue, and the whole puzzle becomes impossible to solve…
I will change one clue in the crossword puzzle in every newspaper around the globe, throwing the intelligentsia into a hopeless dither. While they frantically ripple through their dictionaries and thesauri, I will step into the breach, and take over the world!
Unfortunately, he needs $25,000 to fund this operation (including the cost of bagels with cream cheese), so he plans to reunite Pinky’s family and put them on a talk show to win the prize for the world’s most perfect family.
Naturally, shenanigans ensue — and Eric Idle plays both Pinky’s mom AND dad, which is very entertaining — but the family actually wins the prize!
A trip around the world valued at $25,000.
The Brain’s dastardly plans have been scuttled once more.
But that does raise the question…
Would it have worked?
(Let’s ignore for the moment the fact that the intelligentsia for the most part aren’t currently in positions of power, especially in the United States.)
In a world before resources like Xwordinfo and online forums where solvers can share their grievances, it could have given the puzzle solvers of the world pause.
Especially on a Sunday, where you’d think at least some of them would be at home and not at their various important duties.
So there could have been a window.
But was The Brain equipped to seize that opportunity? Did he have the manpower to be in all those places? To snatch up those resources and reins of power for himself?
I don’t think so. Not on a budget of $25,000 (which again, covered the crossword modification and snacks, NOT the ensuing power grab). That’s barely gonna cover a few henchmen, even at 1998 prices.
So, sadly, I think the plan would have failed.
BUT!
He would have had the personal victory of denying that moment of solving satisfaction to puzzlers around the world.
Which is arguably even more villainous.
What do you think, fellow solver? Would it have worked? You can watch the episode for free here on Dailymotion.
And to close out today’s post, let’s enjoy an earworm together and listen to that marvelous theme song:
I finally had a chance to sit down and try my hand at the puzzles from this year’s Westwords Crossword Tournament. Given the talent involved amongst the organizers and constructors, I had high expectations, and I was not disappointed.
So let’s put those puzzles under the microscope and see what’s what!
Puzzle #1: Brace for Turbulenceby Kevin Christian
The tournament launched with this 16×15 grid loaded with two-word entries (ROUGH CUT, SAVAGE GARDEN) where the first word (the west word) was a synonym for “wild,” aligning with the revealer WILD WEST.
It was a solid starter puzzle with a nice flow and cluing that knocked any solving ring rust from the competitors and prepared them for the day’s events. My only qualm was the repetition of ALL with ALL EARS and AFTER ALL, but that’s more a personal preference than any fault with the construction.
Interesting grid entries included CAJOLED, SALINAS, BEER RUN, and VALLEJO, and my favorite clues were the dual usage of the clue “Pizzazz” for ZING and BRIO, and “Online ‘Reader’ whose name is hidden in ‘Nunavut News'” for UTNE. Nice bit of Crostic-style cluing there!
Puzzle #2: Suspension of Disbeliefby Willa Angel Chen Miller
The second tournament puzzle was a freestyle 16×15 with a grid-crossing spanner nicely tying the grid together. It was definitely tougher than Puzzle #1, but the stellar fill and engaging cluing made this one of my favorite puzzles of the tournament.
Miller absolutely made the most of this themeless and jammed loads of long entries into an elegantly constructed grid.
Interesting grid entries included DEAR LORD, EGGS BENNY, SAINTLY, and the pair of WE SHOULD TALK and I BLAME YOU, and my favorite clues were “Device that can affect its user’s balance” for ATM, “Big name in construction” for LEGO, “Two objects in a row?” for OARS, and “The rest of the day?” for SIESTA.
Puzzle #3: State Linesby Amie Walker
The third and largest puzzle of the tournament was this 21x puzzle where the themed entries across were clued with state nicknames — “Beehive state?” for GENERATING BUZZ or “Gem state?” for PEARL CLUTCHING) — and crossed entries where the state abbreviation for that state-specific clue was concealed in the down entry. (CA crossed the entry clued “Golden state?” for example.)
This was really smart and well-executed construction, managing it six times in the grid and never feeling shoehorned-in or inorganic. The simple title not only hinted at the cluing but allowed solvers to add “crossing” to “State Lines” subconsciously. This puzzle was a treat.
Interesting grid entries included HAT TIP, BARBIELAND, OBI-WAN, and SATSUMA, and my favorite clues were “Bird with a notable top spin?” for OWL, “What’s rhymed with ‘pretty mama’ in the Beach Boys’ ‘Kokomo'” for BAHAMA, and “This is so you-coded” for DNA.
Wait, right message, wrong West…
Puzzle #4: Go Dubs!by David Steinberg
With this devious 15x, Puzzle #4 in Westwords could build a similar reputation to the eternally-challenging Puzzle #5 at the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament.
The toughest puzzle of the tournament, this very clever entry from Steinberg featured several entries clued with words starting with W where you had to ignore the W to read the actual clue.
For instance, one clue was “Witch”, but the actual clue was “Itch” and the “W” was a directional hint. The answer, HANKERING, had to be entered into the grid facing west, like GNIREKNAH. Each themed entry followed this pattern, giving us EIGHT literal west-running words for Westwords (as confirmed by the revealer)!
Interesting grid entries included ACETIC, RENATA, PRELAW, and VAIO, and my favorite clues were “One thing, or two people” for ITEM and “Performance at 100-120 BPM” for CPR.
Puzzle #5: L.A.byrinthby Nate Cardin
After Puzzle #4’s trickery, it was nice to have some clear directions to follow with Puzzle #5, an 18×15 grid where Cardin’s clues literally directed solvers through a series of LA roadways grayed out in the grid from top to bottom. Each clue containing part of the pathway through the grid was written like someone giving you directions, i.e. “Okay, now take the 101…” for ENTRY LEVEL COURSE.
Using number-based clues that both hint at the answer and feel like proper conversational directions is a narrow tightrope to walk, but Cardin does a terrific job balancing the style with the substance. This felt totally different from every other puzzle in the tournament and the visual element was great fun.
Interesting grid entries included CORONAL, WAVES HI, and SO SORRY, and my favorite clues were “Board game with ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ and ‘Scooby-Doo’ versions” for CLUE and the very appropriately thematic “Like one navigating a freeway maze, hopefully” for ALERT.
Puzzle 6: Finalby Caitlin Reid
The final puzzle for the tournament boasts a different set of clues for each of the divisions — Beach and Mountain — and Reid constructed a puzzle with loads of intriguing entries and personality to spare.
The Beach cluing was smooth and accessible while still testing solvers, while the Mountain side offered some very challenging trivia and clever wordplay to keep competitors guessing to the very end.
Interesting grid entries included ROSHAMBO, AU REVOIR (very fitting), LIVE IT UP, COMIC-CON, and ADORBS.
As for favorite clues, here’s a list:
BEACH: “Word before can or tan” for SPRAY BEACH: “Like a town that’s hardly worth a dot on the map” for ONE-HORSE BEACH: “Las Vegas institution with a silent partner?” for PENN AND TELLER MOUNTAIN: “Current law maker?” for AMPERE MOUNTAIN: “Seat in the House of Lords?” for ARSE
Overall, I really enjoyed my first experience with Westwords. (I have the puzzles from the 2024 event but haven’t solved them yet). Solvers have high expectations when it comes to crossword tournaments these days, and the creativity and skill level of the constructors for this year’s Westwords puzzles absolutely did not disappoint.
We got several different puzzles playing on the Westwords gimmick, some delightful visuals, and a host of terrific clues for fresh grid fill and classic crossword words alike.
If you’ve never tackled tournament-style puzzling before, I would highly recommend giving Westwords a try. The puzzles are tricky and fair in equal measure, and I enjoyed the arrangement of puzzle difficulty throughout the day.
West Coast puzzlers, you’re in excellent hands.
Did you attempt this year’s Westwords tournament puzzles, fellow solver? If so, I’d love to hear from you in the comments section below!
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