1 - Granted it could be used for fishing (7) - DRAGNET*
5 - Nice tax arrangement — but it's not right (7) - INEXACT*
9 - Underground missile chambers (5) - SILOS [E]
10 - Coach in refreshment stop (9) - {RES{TRAIN}T}
11 - Permanent impression by experience changed the German (6) - ENGRAM*
12 - Matter of great significance (8) - MATERIAL [DD]
14 - Whiplash of leather, although no good it cut short (5) - THO{N}{G} Anno for THO pending
15 - Starts with stop, turns colour and it's over (9) - {REMAIN}{DER<-}
18 - Nuclear hazard calls for reciprocal aid in limited supply (9) - {RA{DIA<-}TION}
22 - Make mock of the day one gets more money (8) - {SAT}{I}{RISE}
24 - Think a lot of one in wild dream (6) - {ADM{I}RE*}
26 - Free to go some way without ties (9) - {FOOT}{LOOSE}
27 - Separate, out of consideration (5) - APART
28 - Place of high standing, so to speak (7) - ROSTRUM [CD]
29 - Falsely profess friendship (7) - PRETEND [CD]
DOWN
1 - One not in agreement suffering from abnormal tiredness (9) - DISSENTER*
2 - Lively movement that exercises a left leg or back (7) - {A}{L}{LEG}{RO<-}
3 - Lost again — anyhow longing for home tie (9) - NOSTALGIA*
6 - Uncanny point I have gone into before (5) - {E}{ER{I}E}
7 - Gave excuse for failure (7) - ALIBIED [E]
8 - Baby Albert has everything (5) - {TOT}{AL}
13 - Passionate outburst, almost entirely wet (10) - B{RAINSTORM} Annopending
16 - I am to intercede next (9) - {I'M}{MEDIATE}
17 - Went back and bought another round (9) - {RE}{TREATED}
19 - Obliged to give out dues as proper service (7) - DUTEOUS* New word for me
21 - Disturb a soldier by the gallery (7) - {A}{GI}{TATE}
22 - More secure and free from danger (5) - SAFER [E]
23 - Made to measure sovereign? (5) - RULER [DD]
25 - The French pop back to spring upward (4) - {LE}{AP<-}
Hi
ReplyDeleteTARN it, Hari, this appears after all our High Talk. 17d RETREATED, is what the Doc did when I had a relapse. RULER, INEXACT, SATIRISE (the best) were nice.
6d also appears in today’s NIE in Orkut as 22a It’s always in poetry that is spinechilling (5)
14a THO= Short for although
ReplyDelete14A THO is short and informal for though. My OED on my laptop says so
ReplyDeleteVeer, in such a case the space between words (one less than the number of words required, but at fixed positions, since the enu will give something like 5,3,2) can be factored in. But as the spaces occupy fixed positions, I dont think they will affect the number of permutations.
ReplyDeleteBRAINSTORM means 'a moment in which one is unable to think or act sensibly' (OED). Hence passionate outburst.
ReplyDeleteThe solution is almost entirely wet (rainstorm).
13d I think what Manna wants to say is Brainstorm is a sudden thought (passionate outburst) and spelling wise it is mostly RAINSTORM hence wet.
ReplyDeleteAlthough 'THO' is short for though, is it short for although also ? :-)
ReplyDeleteLiked RULER, TOTAL and RESTRAINT.
ReplyDeleteCouldn't figure out the anno for BRAINSTORM and THONG. Is THO short for "although" too?
"make mock" is a new usage for me. I thought "mock" would have done it.
I am sure Colonel knew that tho is a short form of although. His question perhaps and mine as well for sure is, in "although no good, it cut short", how is one to know that the pronoun it refers to the word although?
ReplyDeleteAha! umm., Deepak
ReplyDeleteKishore,
ReplyDeleteYour 8:32 is a response to what?
Let's have expert views of CV and Shuchi on 14A and 13D if they are listening in
ReplyDelete14A: After trying hard, this is what I could come up with.
ReplyDeleteit = whiplash of leather.
whiplash of leather i.e. it, cut short "although no good," which should be read as "all though no good" meaning all following words i.e. though, no and good are shortened.
And 13D:
almost entirely = by - y (when one does something entirely on their own, we say, "by" herself, "by" himself etc.
wet = rainstorm.
To derive THO from 'although' is a stretch and I don't like it. The majority opinion above is also the same so everyone here is an expert.
ReplyDelete***
I don't think 'passionate outburst' is too apt a def for BRAINSTORM.
Also, RELIC is 'almost entirely' of RELICt.
ReplyDeleteWhether 'almost entirely' can be used to derive RAIN grom gRAIN, I am not sure.
Deepak
ReplyDeleteYou mean Kishore's 08:37?
It's about permutations and combinations, an issue from yesterday's Comments section.
Of course, 'brainstorm' is one thing and 'brainstorming' is another.
ReplyDeleteWhiplash of leather, although no good it cut short (5)
ReplyDeleteIf we take "it" as a typo for "if" does that make it any better?
WordWeb shows tho', although,though, while and whilst as synonyms of each other.
ReplyDeleteNot that WordWeb is the final say on English usage, but that is at least less baffling tho' still unsatisfactory than brainstorm
Great work, Bhavan,
ReplyDeleteYou've spotted a typo.
I never accept the authority of WordWeb.
ReplyDeleteSorry to return to the subject:
ReplyDelete(Inc. Bhavan's correction)
Whiplash of leather, although no good if cut short (5)
Now, what is 'cut short' here?
Looks like tho' for although is non-standard. It's not even there in many of the online dictionaries.
ReplyDeleteJust for fun
ReplyDeleteInstant clue-writing exercise (be informed I may not necessarily write a critique of attempts)
Write a clue for THONG (without using the def of whip/whiplash/instrument of punishment
Strip of modesty? (5)
ReplyDeleteChaturvasi, if there's a typo or a blatant error in any of the clues, what's the general protocol? Should the setter make it known to the solvers by posting a note on any of the popular blogs or it's not really expected? Does it happen on blogs like fifteensquared?
ReplyDeleteI wonder if the setter confused between brainstorm and barnstorm. The latter may be defined loosely as a passionate outburst. What say?
ReplyDeleteWell... To CVasi's poser
ReplyDeleteStrip right out of crowd (5)
Detailed, tongs holding head in a flip-flop (5)
ReplyDeleteG-string grabber sneaked hand in? (5)
ReplyDeleteThere does not seem to be any 'protocol'.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, if there is a typo (and THC often has typos, which are noticed by readers/solvers: many of these are brought to the attention of the Readers' Editor but I am sorry to say that not all these are acknowledged) it must be corrected in the online edition as early as possible. I don't think this is done by TH.
As for the print edition, it's too late and there is really no point in carying a correction the next day (some have been corrected in the past ,but, as I say, there has been no consistency in this and many other mistakes have not been corrected in the RE's C and C column) efforts must be in the direction of eliminating them.
In UK, setters seem to keep track of Comments in blogs and many of them often independently admit the printing mistakes; if it's not a printing mistake but a setter's mistake they have often publicly offered apologies to the solvers in the blogs.
But we shouldn't really expect THC setters to point out any printing mistakes; if it is their mistake, it's up to them and their conscience.
CVasi @ 9:21 ...Now, what is 'cut short' here?...
ReplyDeleteMy take : Thong has two meanings as a leather strip/lash:
1)as a whiplash like in the clue
2)as a (smaller)strip to lash or bind things.
Veer @ 9:52,
ReplyDeleteYour clue takes the cake, I don't think anyone else need try to clue for THONG
CVasi sir,
ReplyDeleteFinally get mercury to hold on a strip of material (5) {T}{H{ON}G}
Is that too NJesque? :-)
Colonel @10:21,
ReplyDeleteYes sir. I agree with you. Veer sure grabbed that bull by its horn. :-)
Good morning all. Nice puzzle.
ReplyDeleteNothing alarming and relatively easy offering. I wonder how Manna score each day differently. 90% sankalak and Gridman today.
A small Thong creates lots of excitement today. A cartoon or photograph would have added more spice...
Mathu
Satya,
ReplyDeleteThis would be NJ style
Finally got Mercury to hold onto new garb first, garment.
Veer @9.52 : You have my vote too.
ReplyDeleteColonel @10.32 : LOL
Chaturvasi, thanks for your reply.
ReplyDeleteMy question was specifically in reference to setter's errors. Since TH doesn't have an editor to proofread the clues sent by the setters, only setters can clarify if there's an error or any complex alternate explanation. Gridman, Sankalak and Neyartha have done it in the past. It'd be nice if others joined in too.
In case of publisher's errors, the next day's edition should at least carry a short acknowledgment, as otherwise it'd be unfair to the setters.
Colonel @10:32,
ReplyDeletePerfect NJ-speak sir. No wonder you can solve an NJ puzzle quicker than anyone! You have learned to contort your brain to match her twisted brain so well that you are practically in sync with her now. :-)
Veer, LOL.
ReplyDeleteStringy bottom for the bottom member. (DD)
ReplyDeleteSince TH doesn't have an editor to proofread the clues sent by the setters
ReplyDeleteNot exactly true.
The crosswords are edited and proofread and corrections are carried out.
My idea of a 'crossword editor' is one who has experience as a crossword setter and who takes care of the crosswords before they are handed over to the subeditors/proofreaders. This person will have the authority to revise the clues after having solved the puzzle and ensure that standards are maintained. The final versions of the crosswords are handed over to the editorial staff for pre-print process.
I can't say if any Indian newspaper that publishes original puzzles has this person in their employ.
In the absence of which the onus is on the setter and if the work of any setter is fine they must have gone to extreme lengths to ensure accuracy.
Deepak, I think CV has already answered your query to me.
ReplyDeleteAlso, missed out on the animated brainstorming on thong. Belated addition:
Multitude without right for microcover.
Of course, I agree that Veer 952 is the best that would satisfy Marie Antoinette.
If anyone can take their mind off the picture evoked by the clue entered by Veer
ReplyDeleteand is wondering how the clue resolves itself:
G-string (def) grabber (TONG, which you use to grab the ice cube maybe?) sneaked (part of inserticator) hand (H as in RHS in maths) in (part of inserticator)? (5)
So T(H)ONG
Well, well, well.
ReplyDeleteI don't wish to spoil the party, but -
G-string grabber sneaked hand in? (5)
TONGS, like scissors, is plural. So can we get TONG from 'grabber'.
'tong' can be used as a verb, which means to grab with tongs, but that doesn't work here.
Veer, continuing my 837, I have given further thought to it as we do not put anything in the space.
ReplyDeleteTaking an example, if enu is 5,3 there are still only 8 slots to be filled as the space is not a slot to be filled i.e.
xxxxxSxxx, where x are slots to be filled up and S is space which cannot be filled up.
So the perms are 8! even in this case.
To conclude: Only space,no matter, space does not matter at all. QED (as against OED quoted by most people here)
Ah, CVasi sir, I had the same question, hence the rather gratuitous looking "?" at the end. When I visited the Oxford website, it listed grabber as a noun derivative but did not list it as only in the plural form. So, I felt it may pass muster with a little license.
ReplyDeleteChaturvasi@18:00
ReplyDeleteG-string grabber sneaked hand in and went south (5)
Colonel@08:32,
That's hilarious!
Oops! Meant to type Colonel@10:32.
ReplyDeleteK @ 18:36: Very true. The space indeed does not matter as you have demonstrated. But, in that case, I have failed to see the catch in your statement from yesterday's. Will think some more when I have a few minutes again. Thanks for taking the time to explain.
ReplyDeleteHi friends
ReplyDeleteJust back from a long out-station trip.
Have you all noticed the pattern of today's date?
20102010
Hi Richard, Welcome back.
ReplyDeleteIt would have been even better if you had posted 13 minutes earlier:
201020102010
Sorry to go off on a cevian.
For the uninitiated, QED in my 1836 refers to
ReplyDeleteQuod Erat Demonstrandum, in Latin
Quite Easily Done, in English
and when read under the influence Shuchi's Topic of the Day:
Quart Easily Drunk
Incidentally, QED in Greek is stated as:
ReplyDeleteὅπερ ἔδει δεῖξαι (hoper edei deixai; abbreviated as ΟΕΔ).
and OED is Oxford English Dictionary, which is quoted by many in this forum !
Richard,
ReplyDeleteIncidentally, the late Subramanyan Chandrasekhar, the nobel prize-winning astrophysicist, who, had he been alive, would have turned 100 yesterday, was born on 19.10.1910.
And welcome back. The comments section seemed amiss without your usual first-post. :)
Wonder what is Richard's view on the Topic of the Day,
ReplyDeleteThat oft discussed, well disected, answer to clue
14a.
Today's 5 D is same as 24 Across in THC 9947. Is it ok to give the same clue twice in one month?
ReplyDeleteChaturvasi (1210), thanks for clarifying.
ReplyDelete"My idea of a 'crossword editor' is one who has experience as a crossword setter and who takes care of the crosswords before they are handed over to the subeditors/proofreaders. "
Perhaps I wasn't clear. This is exactly what I meant by proof-reading i.e. editing the clues that deviate from the basic norms. Personally, I wouldn't focus too much on minor errors in enumerations, typos like "wrods" instead of "words" etc (however if a typo totally changes the meaning of the clue, it's a different story like today's 14A for example).
Major concern is when the quality of the puzzle is sacrificed due to incorrect cluing.