"2+2=5" - February 28, 2020

A place to discuss the weekly Wall Street Journal Crossword Puzzle Contest, starting every Thursday around 4:00 p.m. Eastern time. Please do not post any answers or hints before the contest deadline which is midnight Sunday Eastern time.
Locked
User avatar
Scott M
Posts: 455
Joined: Fri Apr 12, 2019 1:10 pm
Location: Charlottesville, VA

#201

Post by Scott M »

I got nothin'. Gonna be happy with the chance to watch (from some great seats) my 'Hoos beating the evil ones from Durham Saturday night, and regroup for next Thursday. Congrats to all who saw what just refuses to click for me.
Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.
Mark Twain
User avatar
Bird Lives
Posts: 2607
Joined: Tue Apr 09, 2019 6:43 pm
Location: NYC
Contact:

#202

Post by Bird Lives »

The tile is correct: two plus two equal five . . . for very large values of two.
Jay
User avatar
maprasad
Posts: 27
Joined: Sat Sep 07, 2019 6:13 pm

#203

Post by maprasad »

Shoosh, made it ashore, just under the wire.
User avatar
Colin
Posts: 546
Joined: Sat Apr 13, 2019 11:57 pm

#204

Post by Colin »

Threw my Hail Mary
Not all that sure
It’s a bit late but I’ll head to the beach
One world. One planet. One future.
Geoduck
Posts: 156
Joined: Fri Jun 21, 2019 6:40 pm
Location: Somewhere Nawth of Bangaw, or on The Other Cape

#205

Post by Geoduck »

To paraphrase Charlotte from Charlotte's Web -- this was TOTALly sum puzzle!
User avatar
MajordomoTom
Posts: 1401
Joined: Sat Nov 02, 2019 12:09 am
Location: St. Louis, MO

#206

Post by MajordomoTom »

Oh my Gawd
Like, TOTALly
Bodacious and Gnarly
"Lots of planets have a North", the Ninth Doctor.
User avatar
MajordomoTom
Posts: 1401
Joined: Sat Nov 02, 2019 12:09 am
Location: St. Louis, MO

#207

Post by MajordomoTom »

17A: QUEENANNE = QU + AN + T = 19A QUANT
26A: GUESTSTAR = GU + ST + O = 44A GUSTO
40A: EXPENSEACCOUNTS = EX+ AC + T = 1A EXACT
48A: COMMONCORE = CO + CO + A = 48D COCOA
64A: SEARCHOUT = SE + OU + L = 55D SEOUL

the + single letters spell "a word heard in math class": TOTAL
"Lots of planets have a North", the Ninth Doctor.
User avatar
Joe Ross
Moderator
Posts: 5001
Joined: Fri Apr 12, 2019 4:46 am
Location: Cincinnati

#208

Post by Joe Ross »

20200228 WSJCC 2+2=5.gif
Whole blood, platelets, or plasma: Donate 4 in 2024

PLATELET 𝗱𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗿𝗮𝗿𝗲.
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝘀 ENORMOUS 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲:
𝟰𝟬% 𝗽𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰,
𝟯𝟬% 𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰,
𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗰𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗿 & 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘂𝗺𝗮. 𝗣𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗦𝗘 𝗦𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗘!
User avatar
MajordomoTom
Posts: 1401
Joined: Sat Nov 02, 2019 12:09 am
Location: St. Louis, MO

#209

Post by MajordomoTom »

Bird Lives wrote: Sun Mar 01, 2020 10:41 pm The tile is correct: two plus two equal five . . . for very large values of two.
only on Leap Day
"Lots of planets have a North", the Ninth Doctor.
User avatar
yourpalsal
Posts: 177
Joined: Fri Feb 07, 2020 2:28 am

#210

Post by yourpalsal »

I spent so much time on (2)001 Tatou(2) movie and two(2) in tu(2)valu - the numbers of those clues 6D and 46D added up to 52D ONEal... sigh. Naturally the answer was so much simpler.
Tony S
Posts: 188
Joined: Thu Apr 25, 2019 9:14 pm

#211

Post by Tony S »

Scott Medvetz wrote: Sun Mar 01, 2020 10:37 pm I got nothin'. Gonna be happy with the chance to watch (from some great seats) my 'Hoos beating the evil ones from Durham Saturday night, and regroup for next Thursday. Congrats to all who saw what just refuses to click for me.
Seeing UVa beat Duke (on TV) brought more satisfaction to me than getting this week's meta --- seeing it live would surpass even winning the mug.
User avatar
Richard
Posts: 348
Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2019 7:06 pm

#212

Post by Richard »

In some respects this is a great meta.

When I got it, I posted "Aha."

Should have posted "Duh."

So easy after you see it.

I actually stared at the all of the qu combos and thought of quadratic etc. Then while lying down without the puzzle thought of Queen Anne and Quant and then the rest was obvious.


Richard
jag
Posts: 43
Joined: Sun Oct 20, 2019 8:02 am

#213

Post by jag »

jag wrote: Sun Mar 01, 2020 8:47 pm I am still at sea (granted, without much time this weekend to work on this). Making one last effort here, with my terrier by my side on the couch, to plumb a couple more rabbit holes...
i made it to shore last night, just before the deadline. Guess my dog really did help!
User avatar
Colin
Posts: 546
Joined: Sat Apr 13, 2019 11:57 pm

#214

Post by Colin »

Gusto, exact... Aargghh!
No mug for my Seoul cocoa
But quant meta though
One world. One planet. One future.
User avatar
Joe Ross
Moderator
Posts: 5001
Joined: Fri Apr 12, 2019 4:46 am
Location: Cincinnati

#215

Post by Joe Ross »

Richard wrote: Mon Mar 02, 2020 1:48 amThen while lying down without the puzzle thought of Queen Anne and Quant and then the rest was obvious.
QUeen ANne & quanT turned the trick, here, too.

Afterward, I wondered if 19A QUANT was a generous gift or the beginning of an abandoned attempt to tie five grid answers to the Theme Answers, per the 2+2=5 formula.
Whole blood, platelets, or plasma: Donate 4 in 2024

PLATELET 𝗱𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗿𝗮𝗿𝗲.
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝘀 ENORMOUS 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲:
𝟰𝟬% 𝗽𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰,
𝟯𝟬% 𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰,
𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗰𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗿 & 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘂𝗺𝗮. 𝗣𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗦𝗘 𝗦𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗘!
User avatar
Bird Lives
Posts: 2607
Joined: Tue Apr 09, 2019 6:43 pm
Location: NYC
Contact:

#216

Post by Bird Lives »

What distracted me for the longest time were all those repeated letters in the first four long entries: EE NN, ST ST, CC, CO CO. Maybe the key was to "search out" other entries with them. I would guess that many solvers noticed that third row -- QUEEN ANNE and QUANT -- early on and sailed easily ashore.
Jay
User avatar
Commodore
Posts: 362
Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2019 7:12 pm

#217

Post by Commodore »

You sunk my battleship!
Near miss. Much work to get off the EE-NN-CC paths. Discovered the 2 + 2 + 1 idea. But for some reason, (distractions of Sunday afternoon golf watching on TV?) was hung up on borrowed letter being from answers at the puzzle sides. Arrived at TETAS. Gave up anagram hunt, figured that 5 - 1 = 2 + 2 and we needed to lose a letter. Took the lone T out of EXACT. Left with ETAS, plural of ETA. Felt a bit better than Hail Mary.

Excellent puzzle. If no MUGGLE trophy in the cards, please consider us for a MUDDLE prize.
To the lifeboats!

WSJ Grid small.jpg
User avatar
TMart
Posts: 816
Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2019 7:13 am
Location: Malvern, PA

#218

Post by TMart »

Bird Lives wrote: Mon Mar 02, 2020 8:30 am What distracted me for the longest time were all those repeated letters in the first four long entries: EE NN, ST ST, CC, CO CO. Maybe the key was to "search out" other entries with them. I would guess that many solvers noticed that third row -- QUEEN ANNE and QUANT -- early on and sailed easily ashore.
Same here. And then CO CO broke it open for me.
MaineMarge
Posts: 1597
Joined: Tue Apr 09, 2019 9:57 pm

#219

Post by MaineMarge »

Luckily I zeroed in on the 5 in the title indicating to look at the 5 letter grid answers- of which there were many. PDQ exacT popped up and I saw the light. Gotta love those Xs in a grid.
I thought this was an interesting twist on a method we see regularly of a shorter grid answer +1/-1 letter being contained in a theme answer.
Nice going Matt.
User avatar
DBMiller
Posts: 537
Joined: Wed Apr 10, 2019 8:59 pm
Location: New Hampshire

#220

Post by DBMiller »

https://youtu.be/UIKGV2cTgqA

First thing I thought of when I saw the puzzle title. What is this, some kind of new math?
If I'm around, I am willing to join the Muggle Zoom room at other times to lend a hand to those in need.
Locked