Monday 10 July 2017

No 12055, Monday 10 Jul 2017, Dr. X


ACROSS
1   Support unknown politician in hasty scheme (8) SYMPATHY {Y}{MP} in {HASTY}*
5   Around the middle of day, alcoholic drink? Sign of middle age (6) PAUNCH {P{dAy}UNCH}
10 Wild dog to scram after commotion (5) DINGO {DIN}{GO}
11 Last man in trouble, cutting early (9) TAILENDER {AIL} in {TENDER}
12 Rude not to play Holi perhaps (3-6) OFF-COLOUR [C&DD]
13 One entering job gets advance (5) POSIT {POS{1}T}
14 Terrible score! Time to defend (6) ESCORT {SCORE+T}*
15 With grit capture and coerce (7) SANDBAG {SAND}{BAG}
18 Head of faculty ignores alternative claim (7) PROFESS PROFESSor
20 Fools having time and money (6) ASSETS {ASSE{T}S}
22 Despicable guy consuming ecstasy (5) CHEAP {CH{E}AP}
24 Journalists can’t meet them when phones aren’t working (9) DEADLINES [C&DD]
25 See red garment worn by woman, a fantastic top (4,1,4) BLOW A FUSE {W}{A}{Fa...c} in {BLOUSE}
26 Novel idea somewhat to omit a syllable (5) ELIDE [T]
27 Communist repressing cry of alarm, created a stink (6) REEKED {EEK} in {RED}
28 Passionate? Check out studs inside (8) VEHEMENT {HEMEN} in {VET}

DOWN
1   Pathetic people combine in call of distress (6) SADDOS {ADD} in {SOS}
2   Policy statement makes some faint (9) MANIFESTO*
3   What a busy person has that a dieter dislikes (1,3,2,4,5) A LOT ON ONES PLATE [DD]
4   Result of firewalking at top speed (7) HOTFOOT {HOT}{FOOT}
6   Secret advantage that a card sharp might have (3,2,4,6) ACE UP ONES SLEEVE [C&DD]
7   Signs of having elephantiasis initially -- Lumps (5) NODES {El...s} in {NODS}
8   Tradition — What one may not ask a lady about sex appeal (8) HERITAGE {HER AGE} around {IT}
9   They can be woven to manufacture briefs (6) FIBRES* &lit
16 Anathema to risk single! Rejected with indignation (4,5) BETE NOIRE {BET}{ONE<=}{IRE}
17 Key strikes! Turns to trap expert opening batsman (5,3) SPACE BAR {ACE}{Ba...n} in {RAPS<=}
19 Harassed husbands renouncing extreme burden become ascetics (6) SADHUS HUSbAnDS*
20 Invention made in brilliant world of scholars (7) ACADEME {MADE}* in {ACE}
21 New space-time dimension (6) ASPECT {SPACE+T}*
23 Run away with some damsel openly (5) ELOPE [T] &lit


44 comments:

  1. Few photographs of the 15th International Jawa/Yezdi day have been posted in the THCC Families blog at the following link
    JAWA/YEZDI Day

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Superb bikes and great pics Col.!

      27A Defn is Created a stink = Reeked

      4D Defn is At top speed = Hotfoot

      Delete
    2. Col, you should have worn a jacket like the Hell's Angels type and the pic would be complete with your moustache and old bike;-)

      Which model is your bike?

      Delete
  2. Brilliant puzzle. Highly entertaining. Loved the long ones and some puny defininions like hotfoot, off colour to name just two. Thanks Dr.for a superb beginning to the week.

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  3. Thank you Doc. for an absolutely enjoyable start to the week.
    Almost fainted laughing on reading the manifesto!
    Loved Heritage, making a sadhu out of husband, making briefs out of fibres to name a few.
    Nice surfaces to be read just as they are, bringing out a smile- no need to solve the clue.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tx Paddy! Extremely happy you enjoyed the surfaces :)

      Delete
  4. Could not solve the puzzle, but seeing the blog- very nice clues. Liked the embedded clue, as elope is to run away secretly, and in the clue it is openly

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  5. Very entertaining grid. Loved Sadhus, heritage

    Elope is superb :)

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  6. Enjoyable grid Doc! Lots of clues to make one smile - especially liked "BLOW A FUSE" and "PAUNCH".

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tx Ramki! Was initially contemplating defining Paunch as Gymnasts don't have it...but it doesn't quite have the same 'punch' as Sign of middle age! :)

      Delete
  7. I am out of town and habit (interpret it as you will )- I just read the clues that have received praise here and had fun. We can do that as well, can't we?Why exercise my braincells when there is a blog like this?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tx Chaturvasi Sir! :) Always encouraging to get your approval!

      Delete
  8. With you on-
    "Why exercise my brain cells when there is a blog like this"
    Absolutely.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Nice puzzle. But I think a few things could have been done better. Anagram indicator in 2D, makes, would have worked better if it appeared after the fodder.

    In 9D, there's a technical issue. Briefs are generally knitted and not woven per se.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tx Sumit!

      2D Cannot understand how anagram indicator 'makes' can appear after fodder 'some faint'. Sentence wont make any sense unless I am making a mistake understanding your point.

      9D Sorry I was under the impression you get both types... knitted and woven briefs. Did not know they are only knitted. Thanks in brief :)

      Delete
    2. 2D, It was a general thing. Makes, as an anagram indicator does the job right when it appears in the form, Fodder makes Definition or Definition Fodder makes.

      Delete
  10. Yes, if I'm not mistaken, briefs are short and tight-fitting ones, made from soft knitted material.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, they are generally known as knitwear. But for the clue it is a minor deviation since both knit & weave work well as anind.

      Delete
  11. Sorry, Summit I deleted a message to which you replied moment before my action.

    ReplyDelete
  12. 18A All faculty are professors na, why just head? Head is the dean I think...
    7D 'of' is redundant?
    20D invention for anagram OK?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Even lecturers and tutors are faculty, not just professors.

      Delete
  13. DR.Nabar: 19 down: Lovely double entendre !! All harassed asses of husbands do renounce the burden of wives to become sadhus !! I had a good laugh reading out this clue to my wife whose aim with a ladle nearly missed my head !!

    Similarly, HER it AGE is a cheeky clue good for a chuckle.

    Bete noire was well constructed.

    A thoroughly enjoyable crossie , tinged with pungent humour !

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tx Raju! Reading that clue out to wives is a venture fraught with risk:)

      Delete
    2. 😀😀Rajuism at its best

      Delete
  14. Hi Esha!

    18A Definition of professor from Oxford English dictionary

    1. a university academic of the highest rank; the holder of a university chair.

    synonyms: holder of a chair, chair, head of faculty, head of department; Regius professor, emeritus professor; don, academic; full professor, academician; informalprof
    "a former professor of French at Oxford University"

    7D Yes you are right. I did not realize it

    20D Unquestionably "invention" is anagram indicator listed in Chambers Crossword Dictionary.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks a lot, esp fr the reference.

      I dnt get the synonym list.. how is emeritus or regius synonyms of professor? They are only types of professor na? And even a lecturer is academician?

      I meant there could be profs who are not the head of faculty... many faculty of the highest rank (prof) but only one head (dean)....

      Delete
    2. Lot of nice clues like many have mentioned.

      So it is inevitable that nitpicking is what one has left to do :)

      The problem for me with nounal anagram indicators like 'invention' is that without a qualifier, it sounds ungrammatical as an anagram instruction. So I can understand 'invention of < fodder >' or 'invention in < fodder >' but 'invention < fodder >' doesn't work. That is part of the reason adjectives make better anagram indicators that nouns. 'inventive < fodder >' for example.

      I have the same issue with 17D. 'Opening batsman' doesn't in any grammatical sense convey B to me.

      Delete
    3. This is how I see it. As an example, in the Orthopaedic faculty, we have the Professor who is the head of faculty/department. Then we have associate professors who are head of units. In each unit we have lecturers, senior and junior registrar, senior and junior housemen, and finally interns. Now there are many such faculties such as surgery, medicine, psychiatry etc. The Head of all these faculties would be the Dean!:)

      Delete
    4. Point noted Bhavan Sir thanks!

      Delete
    5. Thanks again for the detailed response :) I agree except that there could be many profs in the dept and no 'The Professor' :)

      Simply 'academic' or 'top-ranked academic' would have been enough in the clue na?

      Delete
    6. To clarify: the title prof refers to academic standing. Titles like HOD, dean, head of faculty refer to administrative standing imo....

      Delete
    7. Dear Esha, as a setter, one has to keep some standard reference books to stay true to the solver. For me, that's Chambers, OED, TFD and Mirriam-Webster(if American term). As long as the synonym is listed in these, I don't see an issue. Yes academic would have also served the purpose but head of faculty isn't incorrect either!

      Delete
    8. Def of synonym from doc: 1.1 A person or thing so closely associated with a particular quality or idea that the mention of their name calls it to mind.
      ‘the Victorian age is a synonym for sexual puritanism’

      But we have seen so many HODs not being professors, we may not associate professor so closely to HOD.

      Delete
  15. Academician is a general term which includes students, scholars & faculty.
    There may be professors who are not head of the dept.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Learnt a lot of new things from the interesting discussions above, especially nounal anagrinds, opening batsman(although in one of the clues Dr. has used middle of day instead of the oft used mid-day).

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  17. Lovely puzzle 🙂 My COD is ELOPE 🙂

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