Newsgroups: rec.puzzles.crosswords
From: matthew@cs.wellesley.edu (Matthew Merzbacher)
Subject: PCWC #35 Results
Message-ID: <MATTHEW.94Nov28111400@gazoo.cs.wellesley.edu>
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Organization: Computer Science Department, Wellesley College
Date: Mon, 28 Nov 1994 16:14:00 GMT

Well, it's finally over!  PCWC 35 is complete, and the winners are
bountiful.

First, Tom Deneau won the overall competition, barely scraping past Paul
Woodiel (less than 1% margin of victory!).  I wonder if the relative
positions of the clues on the ballot had any effect on the outcome (Tom's
was first, Paul's was very near the end).  The clues were "randomly"
ordered.

The next winner is Clayton Colwell, who is the highest ranking entrant
clever enough to moderate the next contest.  Look for PCWC 36 from Clayton
"real soon now".

Finally, I get to insert a few comments as my moderator's perogative.  I
chose DIGEST because I wanted a word that was short and had definitions
that were at least two different parts of speech.  Perhaps I should have
continued to search, because there was some grousing (and some accolade) on
how difficult it was to clue "DIGEST".  (SPRING is a great word in that
regard -- I guess I'll have to win again).

One voter suggested that perhaps we would get more votes given the low
number of entrants.  Alas, Such was not the case.  There were fewer votes
than entrants, which is discouraging.  Nonetheless, the entries that I did
receive were top notch.

I must say, I had a good time, and I learned something.  Just wait until
lightning strikes twice and I win again...


HERE ARE THE SCORED CLUES, FOLLOWED BY THE BONUS CLUES:

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1st place (score 76.91%) - clue 1

    From: Tom.Deneau@amd.com (Tom Deneau)
    Abstract sculpture of topless midgets (6)

Votes (normalized): 13 31 67 71 78 80 83 100 100 100 100 100

An interesting surface--I need to get to the art gallery more 
often, or...maybe not.  The mechanics are a little quirky, 
but not unreasonable.  A good clue.

Solid cryptic construction, but the surface frightens and confuses me :^)

This is an excellent clue, both clear and funny. Would have given it a 
perfect score, but I didn't write it. 

Smooth surface and a solid cryptic.
Sculpture is a great anagram indicator.

Good cryptic.  The surface meaning is a bit strange [if it's
an abstract, how can we tell it's of topless midgets? :-],
but cute.

slightly strange... double wordplay makes it obscure

Anagram indicator iffy

Delightfully whimsical; very nice double meaning of "abstract".
The winner for me, by a few points over clues 11, 12, and 13.

Nice surface, with "abstract" combining comfortably with
"sculpture"; it evokes an interesting image.  Imaginative
(and acceptable) anagram indicator, though I'm slightly 
concerned about the "distance" between it and what's to be
anagrammed.

Nice pun on abstract

Good, run-of-the-mill clue

Odd but comprehensible surface; 'sculpture' is a nice anagram
indicator.

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2nd place (score 75.97%) - clue 12

    From: "D. Paul Woodiel Jr" <fiddler@pipeline.com>
    Partially blind, I gesticulate to assimilate (6) 

Votes (normalized): 30 31 43 79 80 80 85 91 93 100 100 100

A good clue, the best concealing of the hidden word clues in this
competition, IMHO.

I had to think about the surface for a while and have come to like
        it!  The cryptic is there without wasting words.  OK!

Stilted.

Not bad

A fine clue.  Simple, and a good irrelevant surface reading.

Nice straight definition, serving in a different capacity in
the surface.  As a hidden word clue, though, it's too easy --- 
all the sounds of "digest" are right there; it would be better
to have avoided words with exactly the same sounds as the one
being clued.

Brilliant! Scans well, conjures up a lovely scene.

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3rd place (score 67.24%) - clue 2

    From: Clayton Colwell <eris@bga.com>
    Read off-color joke and ponder (6)

Votes (normalized): 0 36 43 53 67 73 80 80 81 92 100 100

The "off" bothers me in this clue.  The hyphen suggests that 
"off-color" should be taken as an adjective, leading to DYED.  As
part of the homophone indicator, which the cluer suggests, it's 
superfluous.  

Clever use of "Read off" further disguised by the dash.  Too bad "and"
        needed for the surface.

A good clue with a clever twist 

Sounds like indicator a bit off colour

Two-word soundalikes are rarely quite exact, since the accentuation
is usually wrong.  This is the case here.

Commendable homophone indicator, in that it's not one of 
the same old tired bunch ("audible", "heard", etc.).  Pretty 
good surface, as well.

Concise clue, great imagery

'read off' does not indicate 'sound like' to me

Fine surface, good phonetic charade, but questionable 
definition; seems to me you ponder *in order to* digest.

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4th place (score 57.34%) - clue 6

    From: A dream broken <jlundon@xstacy.enet.dec.com>
    Think over short summary (6)

Votes (normalized): 13 22 25 43 52 54 57 66 78 83 93 100

DIGEST is not a good double def. word.

Solid as DD's go.  That is if you like DD's.

a little obvious, not too swift 

OK, but too basic.

Short and sweet.

Legal and brief (!), although the surface doesn't inspire me
with awe.

Diesn't quite scan, otherwise very good

The two definitions are too close.

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5th place (score 57.06%) - clue 10

    From: Felix Lee <flee@cse.psu.edu>
    Saudi gesture is deeply abstract (6)

Votes (normalized): 11 22 25 41 55 56 57 66 70 89 93 100

Not sure about "is deeply" being a hidden word indicator.  An Ok clue.

Not a great surface, and "deeply" is a stretch, somehow.  

Deeply as a container word?

Not bad

"Deeply" doesn't seem an adequate container indicator to me.

Is "deeply" supposed to pass as a hidden word indicator?  It
doesn't in my book.  Not a bad surface, and the "di" at the 
end of "Saudi" doesn't sound like the "di" in digest (a plus).

'Deeply' is not the best of hidden-indicators.

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6th place (score 53.32%) - clue 5

    From: Greg Lawler <lawler@math.ubc.ca>
    Readers, for example, like winter time in New England (6)

Votes (normalized): 11 15 22 43 47 50 56 67 71 78 80 100

Another hip clue, but surface lacks quality and "EST" is a stretch (man).

very pleasant reading, this clue 

Good definition.
Winter time in New England is wonderful.

I like the dual meaning of "like"

EST is a bit localised for my liking

I don't think the "ignore punctuation" convention should apply to a
usage like this, so I think "Readers" for "Reader's" ( which is not
"Readers'"!) is wrong.  I do like the clue for EST, which reads very
nicely and achieves transatlantic neutrality by combining the British
"winter time" with the American time zone name.

"Dig" is, again, a little slangy.  Nice surface, and cryptic
cluing of "est", but for the definition/example to be really
proper, that apostrophe needs to be there (although that would
obviously make the surface unworkable).  By the way, that's
"Reader's Digest" --- yet I'm sure more than one reader is
making use of it.

Original use of EST. Reads quite well. 

I really had to have this explained to me - but then Readers'
Digest is old-fashioned

'Readers' is not a kind of digest so the definition doesn't
appeal to me.  'Winter time in New England' is clever.

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7th place (score 49.76%) - clue 9

    From: "Kevin Sherlock" <kevin_sherlock@msmgate.mrg.uswest.com>
    Analyze a variety of diets around $1000 to the letter (6)

Votes (normalized): 0 10 22 29 33 40 61 67 75 80 80 100

For me, "to the letter" was unnecessary--I see $1,000 = G clues all 
the time.  "Variety" isn't a great anagram indicator, but otherwise an
adequate clue.

Not a great surface scan. It's solvable without "to the letter", isn't
it? 

'around' and 'to the letter' contradict each other.

"around $1000 to the letter" bogs down the surface reading.  Perhaps
"focused around grazing first"?  

Choppy surface

Construction is okay, but there's no smooth surface reading.

Okay definition and anagram indicator, but in the surface, the
"around" contradicts "to the letter".

Reads OK, but like #4 the answer pops out immediately.

'To the letter' was what turned me off most.

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8th place (score 47.34%) - clue 13

    From: mwilson@hps.sso.loral.com (Mark Wilson)
    Stand in mud?  I gestured! (6)

Votes (normalized): 0 14 20 20 31 33 44 47 80 87 91 100

The surface is a little vague.

An indirect definition?!  Hmmmm...

The sense of "stand" is a little far off for my taste. 

Definition, I take it, is obsolete/archaic?  Far too much for me.
Surface needs help, too.

I've my doubts about stand being a synonym of digest

Just quirky enough to remind me of some palindromes; for some
reason that adds to its appeal for me.

See clue 12's comments about "too easy".  Then again, the
straight definition makes it very difficult.  The tense of
first part is present, while the latter part is in the past.

I had difficulties with the synonym 'stand' = 'digest' but 
until I looked it up!

Poor surface.

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9th place (score 42.60%) - clue 4

    From: msb@sq.com (Mark Brader)
    To make a long story short, it's to appreciate and begin esteeming (6)

Votes (normalized): 20 22 22 29 38 40 41 44 50 60 65 80

"Begin esteeming = EST" is a stretch.  I really like the definition,
though.

I like the definition, but the cryptic might be too "groovy" for me.

a little tortured, and not a short story 

Great definition

The defn. is good, but the second clause is a clunky read.  Also,
"begin esteeming" -> EST is too arbitrary in how much is picked off. 

"begin esteeming" made me think of the first letter, not 3

Nice definition but surface choppy

Did I really write this?  I don't care for it much now.

"Dig" is a little slangy for "appreciate".  "Esteeming" seems
stilted.  "Begin" is too arbitrary an indicator of "first 3
letters" for my taste.  Not a bad straight definition, though.

Far too much emphasis on following clueing conventions

surely 'dig' is a bit passe now?

Good definition but it should be 'beginning of esteeming'
('and' should link noun phrases or imperatives but not a
mixture).  Minor point:  we're not told how much of 
'esteeming' to take.  The default is one letter.

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10th place (score 42.12%) - clue 14

    From: mdm@sma.usna.navy.MIL (Mark D. Meyerson)
    Absorb kernel (6)

Votes (normalized): 0 13 15 20 33 33 34 43 70 78 80 85

DIGEST is not a good double def. word.

I normaly don't like double definitions, but especially ones
        that don't make sense on the surface.

"Kernel" is a little stretchy.  

The clue is adequate, but far too flat.

If brevity is the soul of wit, then is this the funniest clue?
Certainly no wasted words, but neither does it have a
gripping surface.

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11th place (score 38.45%) - clue 3

    From:  Phil Rose (pvr@wg.icl.co.uk)
    A periodical abstract from food (6)

Votes (normalized): 0 7 10 10 28 41 43 47 52 56 80 89

DIGEST isn't a good doble def. word.  The surface sounds like some
food item wrote the periodical abstract--Huh?

The cryptic is fun, but troublesome -- I like the dovetailing
of the defns., as well as the noun-verb change between them,
but it might be a bit tough to catch.  The surface reading,
though, is iffy at best.

Sometimes I like unconventional constructions, but not this one.

I don't like "abstract" doing double duty, although you
might have gotten away with just "a periodical" as one
definition.  The surface isn't entirely believable:  I've
never seen a periodical constructed from food, which is 
what it implies to me.

Both definitions are too precise. More ambiguity perhaps?

coz it's mine

The rulebreaking doesn't add anything to the clue and the
second definition is forced.

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12th place (score 38.42%) - clue 8

    From: bcs@sc.harris.com (Brian Spollen)
    Like, Beatnik came to extreme conclusion, but it's abstract (6)

Votes (normalized): 0 10 22 22 24 25 28 29 40 75 91 94

I wasn't sold on "Extreme conclusion = -est."  

Surface doesn't make sense, cryptic is too much.  I do appreciate
        the effort to convey "dig" as a beatnik expression though.

I don't think "Beatnik" is like, necessary in 1994!Also, the definition is
not accurate unless its AN abstract, right?  

I like the reading and atmosphere of the clue.  "Extreme conclusion"
is a *nice* touch.  Fewer extraneous words would be nice.

Choppy surface

I like "Like, Beatnik" better than plain "like" or "appreciate".
But "extreme conclusion" to clue a suffix does not appeal at all.

"Like" is properly modified by "Beatnik" to give the slangy
"dig".  Kind of leaves the solver wondering what this abstract,
extreme conclusion might be.

Good clue, but the comma after "Like" seems inappropriate

'-est' indicates superlative rather than extreme

I like 'like, beatnik', but 'but' is a poor linker.

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13th place (score 34.15%) - clue 7

    From: Rock Marshall Pereira <rockp@gibbs.oit.unc.edu>
    A grand proposal, but English beau dropped princess, leading to book (6)

Votes (normalized): 0 10 11 11 20 31 33 57 57 65 80

A little involved.  The surface is hard to follow, and "book" is a rather
weak definition.

Great British clue,  although a bit contrived.  I love the trendy surface.

not too cool, since if you "drop" the other E, you get DIGSTE. 

Urk.  Too tortuous a cryptic, and what about us folks who don't know
French at all?  Plus it includes a DI reference -- ugh!

Topical?

Rather complicated, but correctly constructed and has the added
charm of topicality.

Well, it all seems to fit together legitimately, but its 
complexity detracts from it; and "grand proposal" = "beau
geste" strikes me as too much of a stretch.

'Beau geste' in my dictionary gives 'gracious gesture'

Forced definition of 'beau geste', 'but' with no cryptic
function, overvague definition, clumsy surface.

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14th place (score 15.68%) - clue 11

    From: NEMCC@CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU
    Readers get the disordered gist of a subject (6)

Votes (normalized): 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 14 40 43 91

The added words may add smoothness to the surface, but it compromises
the elegance of cryptic clue writing.  There are many fine examples
of clues in this competition in which good surfaces are not burdened
with extra words.  I don't think the anagram is fair no matter which
way it's written.

I did not like solving this clue either.

mmm.... well, okay. 

As the cluer said, "of a subject" is completely extraneous to the
cryptic part.  Given that the phrase is >25% of the clue, I feel
that's too much to spend to improve the surface.  Besides,
"disordered gist" is clumsy enough, and "Readers" alone is 
insufficient for the definition.

"of a subject" really not necessary

Rather a nice partial &lit, but marred by the suggestive "Readers"
and the number of words that don't participate in the cryptic.
I do like "disorderED GIST", though!

"Readers" is an example rather than a definition; it isn't 
flagged as such.  Much as I can sympathize with your not
wanting to hyphenate "disordered", I really don't like clues 
which require the solver to assume what you're requiring,
especially when "disordered" is a perfectly good indicator.

Plenty of false leads. Beware! *smile*

Readers wasn't even made an example of digest and the anagram 
indication was atrocious

A newcomer, I suspect, thinking that anything not impossibly
rococo will be too obvious.  'Of a subject' has no function
in the cryptic reading.


=== BONUS CLUES ===

    From: msb@sq.com (Mark Brader)
    Condensation formed in hole in front of estuary (6)

Great, but "in front of" is not the cleanest.  Good effort though!

Both instances of "in" are noise words.

Good use of separate meanings of "condensation" in the surface
and straight definition.  But "hole" is a poor synonym of "dig",
and "front" is too arbitrary indicator of "first 3 letters".

Incorrect cryptic reading; the answer is not EDIGST.  'At'
'in' would fix it.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

    From: Me!  (I couldn't resist)
    Listening to a joke by the princess is after dinner activity (6)

I've been waiting for someone to use the "Princess = DI"
        construction.  I don't care for that, but otherwise this clue
        is much the best!   I love the definition and the great surface!

Great definition.

Good one -- I particularly like the "after dinner activity".
I am getting a bit tired of "Di", but still, I would certainly
have given this an above-average score.

An okay clue, although "listening" and "princess" are a little
overused in the cluing world; "after dinner" should be 
hyphenated.

Clue leads to JEST-DI rather than the other way round

The activity is 'digestion', not 'digest'.

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-- 
Matthew Merzbacher                              matthew@cs.wellesley.edu
Assistant Professor                                       (617) 283-3152
Computer Science Department                     
Wellesley College                       That's "Professor MooMoo" to you
