Inquisitor 1521: The Hard Stuff by Phi

I’m used to blogging Phi puzzles in the Independent, but I think it’s a while since I last blogged an Inquisitor by Phi

 

 

 

The preamble told us that “Four across entries are unclued – the symmetric pair give a name (to be augmented by a letter in the centre square), while the other two can be combined to form a debut (or perhaps opening)  Other across entries are formed by dropping a letter (wherever it occurs) from the defined answer to form the entry given by the wordplay.  The dropped letters yield a sequence of numbers; solvers must write  the three-word phrase associated with the number missing
from the sequence under the grid.”

I got off to a quick start with five Down clues solved very quickly – 2, 6, 13, 20 and 23  These entries helped me solve 25 across and discover that an M had to be omitted   20 across looked like some variation on MENINGO* -either MENINGOCOCCAL or MENINGOCOCCIC.  Noting that two letters had to be omitted, it was clear that MENINGOCOCCIC was the defined answer although I hadn’t at that point sorted out the parsing of the entry.  28 across looked like a hidden word requiring I to be omitted from the defined answer.

After a little bit more playing about and studying crossing letters it became clear that the letters being omitted from the across entries were all Roman numerals.

The next stage for me was deducing ARTHUR as the likely answer for the unclued top row entry.  With ARTHUR and the letters I had in the bottom row unclued entry, CLARKE became a strong possibility there with the obvious C going into the central square.

I don’t know much about CLARKE’s work but I knew he wrote 2001: A Space Odyssey.  More research showed that 2001 was just one of four books in a series:

2001: A Space Odyssey

2010: Odyssey Two

2061: Odyssey Three; and

3001: The Final Odyssey

The letters omitted from the entries are MMXMMLXIMMMI which can be separated into MMX (2010), MMLXI (2061) and MMMI (3001) thereby indicating that MMI (2001) is the missing number.  This gives the phrase A SPACE ODYSSEY to write under the grid.

The other unclued entries give us LOOP and HOLE.  In my reading about CLARKE, I discovered that LOOPHOLE was the first short story (debut) he wrote for the magazine Astounding Science Fiction in 1946.  The word LOOPHOLE also means ‘vertical slit in a wall eg of a castle, for looking through, firing through or receiving light and air; a means of escape’ or opening.

I found this puzzle to be one of the quickest Inquisitor solves I have done.  The grid was only 11 x 11 which reduced the number of clues to be solved.

All the parsings are explained in the body of the blog.  All were fair and clearly set out.

I noted during my trawl through the Internet that ARTHUR C CLARKE was born on 16 December 1917, 100 years to the day when the puzzle was published.

The completed grid looks like this:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A SPACE ODYSSEY

The one thing that puzzles me still is the title – THE HARD STUFF.  The best I can find is a few references stating that CLARKE‘s writing was known as HARD Science Fiction as it was based on well established or HARD science fact, more so than many other than the works of some other Science Fiction authors.

Across
No.	Clue	Defined Solution	Letter	Wordplay	Entry
6	Call ‘tail of mouse, retreating’ an encouragement to cat (6)	EMETIC (a medicine that causes vomiting; one definition of CAT is ‘to vomit’	M	(CITE [call or summon] + E [last letter of {tail of} MOUSE]) all reversed (retreating) (CITE E)<	EETIC
10	Styling on our hair? Pay for  professional services (10)	HONORARIUM (voluntary fee paid, esp to a professional person for their services)	M	Anagram of (styling) ON OUR HAIR HONORARIU*	HONORARIU
11	Good dope, and other drug, backed as offering thrill (8)	EXCITING (offering thrill)	X	(G [good] + NIT [idiot; dope] + ICE [an illicit drug, a highly synthesized form of methamphetamine]) all reversed (backed) (G NIT ICE)<	ECITING
12	Drink, sweetened for a time, but not entirely (5)	MORAT (drink made of honey and mulberry juice; sweet drink)	M	ORAT (hidden word [not entirely] in FOR A TIME) ORAT	ORAT
14	Two-thirds of lingerie I discarded, on fire inside, no less (12)	UNDIMINISHED (no less)	M	IN (alight; on fire) contained in (inside) (UNDI [4 of the 6 {two thirds} letters in UNDIES {lingerie}] + I + SHED [discarded]) UNDI (IN) I SHED	UNDIINISHED
16	Most of netball team, recalled standards (6)	LEVELS (grades; standards)	L	(SEVEN [there are seven players in a netball team]) excluding the final letter [most of] N) all reversed (recalled) EVES<	EVES
18	State reduced provocation (5)	TEXAS (American State)	X	TEASE ([act of] provocation) excluding the final letter (reduced) E TEAS	TEAS
20	Blokes leading (say) charity cricket clubs receiving nothing regarding spinal infection? (13)	MENINGOCOCCIC (relating to a spinal infection)	I	MEN + NGO (non governmental organisation; a charity for example [say]) + ([CC {Cricket Club} + CC {Cricket Club} to give Cricket Clubs] containing (receiving O [zero; nothing]) MEN NGO (C (O) C CC)	MENNGOCOCCC
25	Allege the French will invade nearby part of UK? (5)	CLAIM (allege)	M	LA (one of the French forms of ‘the’) contained in (will invade) CI (Channel Islands, the nearest part of the British Isles to France) C (LA) I	CLAI
26	Touch applied to one beset by it having mollifying effect (8)	MITIGANT (having a mollifying effect)	M	(TIG [touch] + AN [one]) contained in (beset by) IT I (TIG AN) T	ITIGANT
27	Painter old, to understand one place for hanging picture is revolutionary (10)	MODIGLIANI (reference Amedeo MODIGLIANI [1884 – 1920], Italian painter and sculptor)	M	O + DIG (understand) + (I [Roman numeral for one] + (NAIL [place for hanging a picture]) reversed (is revolutionary) O DIG (LIAN I)<	ODIGLIANI
28	Add new material to contents of barrel? Never (6)	RELINE (add new material to the inside of an object or garment)	I	RELNE (hidden word in [contents of]) BARREL NEVER) RELNE	RELNE
Down
1	Greeting Greek character on English road (6)			AVE (be well and happy, greeting)  + NU (character of the Greek alphabet) + E (English) AVE NU E	AVENUE (road)
2	Once very put out to transfer again (8)			Anagram of (put out) ONCE VERY RECONVEY*	RECONVEY (transfer again )
3	Heartless of  those people sitting on Dutch bronze? (5)			THEIR (of those people) excluding the central letter (heartless) E + D (Dutch) THIR D	THIRD (THIRD place is often described as the bronze medal position or just bronze position)
4	With leader deposed, becoming set to accept Nationalist joining (7)			SUITING (becoming) excluding (deposed) the first letter (leader) S containing (set to accept) N (Nationalist) U (N) ITING	UNITING (joining)
5	Irish Saint kept going on being promoted (5)			RAN ON (kept going) with ON moved up the phrase (promoted; down clue) to form R ON AN R ON AN	RONAN (reference the 6th century Irish Saint, RONAN
6	Work in support of part of US hospital as a consequence (4)			ER (Emergency Room, American equivalent of the British A&E [Accident & Emergency]; part of US hospital) + GO (work)  As this is a down entry the letters GO are supporting the letters of ER ER GO	ERGO (therefore; as a consequence)
7	Friend abandoning certain type of beer, it’s considered very bad (4)			PALE ALE (certain type of beer) excluding (abandoning) PAL (friend) E ALE	EALE (a word found in Shakespeare’s Hamlet.  Chambers says that there are various conjectures for it’s meaning, generally supposed to be for evil but it also suggests it is perhaps a misprint)
8	Cut foot? Here’s a tablet (6)			TROCHEE ( a foot of two syllables) excluding the final letter (cut) E TROCHE	TROCHE (round medicinal tablet.)
9	Quantity of drink I had is a promoter of amorousness (5)			CUP (quantity of drink) + I’D (I had) CUP ID	CUPID (Roman god of sexual love; promoter of amorousness)
13	Nice moves in summit?  That’s an anti-war campaigner (8)			Anagram of (moves) NICE contained in (in) PEAK (summit) PEA (CENI*) K	PEACENIK (pacifist,; anti-war campaigner)
15	Is endlessly shivering pierced by head of arrow, affecting bone (7)			IS + (CHILL [shivering with cold) excluding the final letter {endlessly} L] containing (pierced by) A [first letter of {head of} ARROW]) IS CHI (A) L	ISCHIAL (affecting the posterior bone of the pelvic girdle)
17	Note in particular account denying daughter estate (6)			N (note) contained in (in) DETAIL (particular account) excluding (denying) D (daughter) E (N) TAIL	ENTAIL (an estate settled on settle on a series of heirs so that the immediate possessor may not dispose of it)
19	Sharp blade, frightening article, cutting most of arm (6)			SCARY (frightening) excluding (cutting) AR (two of the three letters of [most of] ARM)  + THE (definite article) SCY THE	SCYTHE (an instrument with a large sharp curved blade and wooden handle, for mowing or cropping by hand)
20	Colorado restricted by rise of odd mould (5)			CO (Colorado) contained in (restricted by) (RUM [odd] reversed [rise of; down clue]) MU (CO) R<	MUCOR (mould)
21	Drink supplier quickly upset after intervention by Pastor (5)			(CITO [Latin for quickly]) containing [after intervention by] P [pastor]) all reversed (upset; down clue) (O (P) TIC)<	OPTIC (registered trademark for a device attached to an inverted bottle for measuring alcoholic liquid dispensed)
22	Limits to choral melody in opening of Debussy place? (5)			CL (first and last letters of [limits to] CHORAL) + AIR (melody) CL AIR	CLAIR (reference Debussy’s piece the full title of which is CLAIR de Lune)
23	Something to indicate Government will probe crime (4)			G (government) contained in (will probe) SIN (crime) SI (G) N	SIGN (something to indicate)
24	Bad first to last?  No better! (4)			EVIL (bad) with the first letter (first) E moved to the end (last) position to form VILE VILE	VILE (descriptive of something equally as bad as EVIL)