AYESHA RASCOE, HOST:
And it's time to play the Puzzle.
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RASCOE: The puzzle editor of the New York Times and puzzlemaster of WEEKEND EDITION, Will Shortz, is out this week, so we are joined by Greg Pliska. He's the chief puzzle officer of the Puzzler podcast with A.J. Jacobs and a former puzzle guru of NPR's Ask Me Another. Hey there, Greg.
GREG PLISKA, BYLINE: Hey. Good morning, Ayesha.
RASCOE: Greg, remind us of last week's challenge.
PLISKA: Of course. Last week's challenge came from Emma Meersman of Seattle, Wash. Take two three-letter tree names and combine them phonetically to get a clue for a type of fabric. Then change one letter in that word to get something related to trees. Now this turned out to be a tough one. The answer is the trees yew, Y-E-W, and fir, F-I-R. Phonetically they sound like ewe fur, E-W-E F-U-R, which would be a clue for wool, the fur of a sheep. From there, change the L to a D to get the answer, wood.
RASCOE: Yeah, that sounds really tough. About 260 of y'all got it correct. And this week's winner is Nate Tschaenn of Yukon, Okla. Congratulations, Nate.
NATE TSCHAENN: Thank you.
RASCOE: So how long have you been playing the Puzzle, Nate?
TSCHAENN: On and off for three years or so. So I kind of feel bad that I got picked so soon. I know people have done it a lot longer (laughter).
RASCOE: How did you figure this one out? Do you know a lot about trees?
TSCHAENN: I do. I'm actually a director of horticulture at a botanical gardens in Oklahoma City, so I know trees pretty well.
RASCOE: Oh, my goodness. So you were kind of a ringer here, right? Like, a little bit of a ringer. So I'm going to ask you, are you ready to play the Puzzle?
TSCHAENN: I guess.
RASCOE: All right. Take it away, Greg.
PLISKA: All right. Nate and Ayesha, today's puzzle is a tribute to our dear friend, puzzlemaster Will Shortz.
RASCOE: Aww.
PLISKA: Yeah. I thought it would be nice to do one for Will. Each answer is a two-word phrase with the initials W-S. So, for example, if I gave you the clue, climax of the baseball season, you'd say World Series.
TSCHAENN: OK.
PLISKA: All right, here we go - celestial event that usually occurs on December 21.
TSCHAENN: Winter solstice.
PLISKA: Yes. Inferior or unimpressive, metaphorically.
TSCHAENN: Oh, inferior. That's a tough one.
PLISKA: First word is the opposite of strong.
TSCHAENN: Weak - weak sauce. I don't know.
RASCOE: Yeah.
PLISKA: Yeah. Weak sauce.
TSCHAENN: That's it. Oh, OK (laughter).
PLISKA: A cane, for example.
TSCHAENN: Walking stick.
PLISKA: Very good. In the 1920s, Tulsa was home to the Black version of this financial center.
TSCHAENN: Wall Street.
PLISKA: Yeah. Very good. I didn't even know you were from Oklahoma when I wrote that one. Dish made with apples, nuts, celery and mayonnaise.
TSCHAENN: Apples and mayonnaise - I don't know if I know this one.
RASCOE: I think it's on the tip of my tongue. Does it start with, like, water?
TSCHAENN: Some kind of salad?
PLISKA: Yep, yep. It's named for a - I believe it's named for the hotel in New York where it was invented.
RASCOE: Oh, yes. But what is that?
TSCHAENN: A Waldorf?
PLISKA: Yes.
RASCOE: Waldorf? Yes (laughter).
TSCHAENN: I have no idea what that is.
PLISKA: Here's your next one - the largest known species of fish.
TSCHAENN: A whale shark.
PLISKA: Yes. And your last one - sport in which an individual is pulled behind a boat.
TSCHAENN: Water skiing.
PLISKA: There you go. Well done.
RASCOE: Yeah. You did a great job, Nate. You really got them. So (laughter), how do you feel?
TSCHAENN: Good.
RASCOE: So, for playing our Puzzle today, you'll get a WEEKEND EDITION lapel pin, as well as puzzle books and games. You can read all about it at npr.org/puzzle. And, Nate, what member station do you listen to?
TSCHAENN: KGOU.
RASCOE: That's Nate Tschaenn of Yukon, Okla. Thanks for playing the Puzzle.
TSCHAENN: Oh, thanks for having me.
RASCOE: OK, Greg, what's next week's challenge?
PLISKA: Next week's challenge comes to us from Mae McAllister from Bath in the United Kingdom. As you may know, each chemical element can be represented by a one- or two-letter symbol - hydrogen is H, helium is He, and so on. McCallister points out that there are two commonly known elements whose names each can be spelled using three other element symbols. Name either one. So again, your challenge is to find a commonly known chemical element whose name can be spelled using the symbols from three other elements. There are two possible answers, but you only have to submit one for credit.
RASCOE: When you have the answer, go to our website, npr.org/puzzle, and click on the Submit Your Answer link. Remember, just one entry, please. Our deadline for entries this week is Thursday, March 28 at 3 p.m. Eastern. Don't forget to include a phone number where we can reach you. If you're the winner, we'll give you a call, and if you pick up the phone, you'll get to play the Puzzle on the air on WEEKEND EDITION. And Greg, thank you for being this week's puzzler.
PLISKA: Thank you, Ayesha.
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