![]() Two of the common ones are barred crosswords, which use bold lines between squares (instead of shaded squares) to separate answers, and circular designs, with answers entered either radially or in concentric circles. Substantial variants from the usual forms exist. These puzzles usually have no symmetry in the grid but instead often have a common theme (literature, music, nature, geography, events of a special year, etc.) The grid often has one or more photos replacing a block of squares as a clue to one or several answers for example, the name of a pop star, or some kind of rhyme or phrase that can be associated with the photo. This style of grid is also used in several countries other than Sweden, often in magazines, but also in daily newspapers. Arrows can be omitted from clue cells, in which case the convention is for the answer to go horizontally to the right of the clue cell, or – if the clue cell is split vertically and contains two clues – for the answer to go horizontally to the right for the top clue and vertically below for the bottom clue. Instead, clues are contained in the cells which do not contain answers, with arrows indicating where and in what direction to fill in answers. The "Swedish-style" grid (picture crosswords) uses no clue numbers. they may not be orthogonally contiguous) and that the corner squares must be white. ![]() The design of Japanese crossword grids often follows two additional rules: that shaded cells may not share a side (i.e. Most puzzle designs also require that all white cells be orthogonally contiguous (that is, connected in one mass through shared sides, to form a single polyomino). For example, if the top row has an answer running all the way across, there will often be no across answers in the second row.Īnother tradition in puzzle design (in North America, India, and Britain particularly) is that the grid should have 180-degree rotational (also known as "radial") symmetry, so that its pattern appears the same if the paper is turned upside down. Crossword grids elsewhere, such as in Britain, South Africa, India and Australia, have a lattice-like structure, with a higher percentage of shaded squares (around 25%), leaving about half the letters in an answer unchecked. In such puzzles shaded squares are typically limited to about one-sixth of the total. is part of both an "across" word and a "down" word) and usually each answer must contain at least three letters. It's challenging professors have high expectations.Barred grid where bold bars are used instead of shaded blocks to separate the wordsĬrossword grids such as those appearing in most North American newspapers and magazines feature solid areas of white squares. I really like this puzzle, especially because the theme resonates so strongly with me and what I love about my school. "I thought that turning the B's of a puzzle into A's - à la grade inflation - was puzzle-worthy, so I racked my brain for words that still made sense with A's in the place of B's. "Swarthmore prides itself on its lack of grade inflation," she says of her puzzle's theme. It's a group, she notes, that includes Shortz himself. ![]() "It is a true honor to be admitted to the group of cruciverbalists who have been published in the Times before turning 20," she says. Over winter break with the encouragement of friends, Shechtman sent a puzzle to Times' puzzle editor, Will Shortz. "I identified with the film's word-nerds and essentially had an 'I can do that' moment," says Shechtman, who also writes Swarthmore-themed and wordplay-laden puzzles for The Phoenix. Shechtman, an honors English major with minors in art history and interpretation theory from New York, began constructing crosswords in high school, after seeing the documentary, Wordplay. "It's the perfect break in my daily routine, escapist but challenging." "My relationship with the Times' puzzle verges on addiction," she says. Anna Shechtman '12 talks more about her love of puzzles in Wordplay, the NYT's crossword blog.Īnna Shechtman '12 is not yet 20, but she realized a life goal when her crossword puzzle appeared in the New York Times.
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