Tuesday, November 25, 2025

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SPCincinnatiNov 25, 2025, 2:05 PMnegative49%

I feel like doom scrolling is when I go through the comments here on a Thursday with a rebus puzzle I really liked.

65 recommendations1 replies
DOHNov 25, 2025, 4:55 PMneutral55%

@SP And nobody forces you to do either. Put the phone down. :)

2 recommendations
AnitaNYCNov 25, 2025, 8:11 AMpositive93%

I love Sam’s reference to BRIT LIT (which is making its debut, yeah!) and Jane Austen’s opening line gem, “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife”. So for you, Sam, what do JAMESJOYCE, BILLYJOEL and ELROYJETSON have in common? JOY SCROLLING

50 recommendations8 replies
AndrzejWarszawa, PolskaNov 25, 2025, 8:37 AMneutral58%

@Anita BRIT LIT's lit, innit?

16 recommendations
Mean Old LadyNow in MississippiNov 25, 2025, 2:13 PMpositive94%

@Anita Jane had so many excellent truths to share...! It might be time to reread some of her novels, in fact....

4 recommendations
dutchirisberkeleyNov 25, 2025, 4:33 PMneutral66%

@Anita I thought we were going to hear about stately, plump Buck Mulligan , et al.!

0 recommendations
Sam CorbinNew York, NYNov 25, 2025, 7:14 PMpositive98%

@Anita HAH! Very good.

3 recommendations
AndrzejWarszawa, PolskaNov 25, 2025, 5:57 AMpositive71%

I quite liked this, even though in the end I needed to check the puzzle to finish - my fault, really, because even though I could not have known whether some comic planet would be called BIZARRe or BIZARRO, eRS aren't really surgery sites, are they, unlike ORS. I would prefer it if trivia didn't cross with abbreviations, but this was gettable, I just didn't see it. The theme was skillfully implemented, I enjoyed it, and I found the fill perfect for Tuesday - had I not made that error, in would have finished exactly in my average Tuesday time (and faster than yesterday). Lucek the puppy's first snow a few days ago: <a href="https://imgur.com/a/jEks39g" target="_blank">https://imgur.com/a/jEks39g</a> He looks excited in the picture but generally he was very calm, under the circumstances. Jorge the Lab loved winter, and he went crazy each time he saw snow, rolling around in it and scooping it up with his mouth - even as an old and not very agile dog. When he was younger he would even slide down slopes in the snow, obviously on purpose and for fun. <a href="https://imgur.com/iXejvIR" target="_blank">https://imgur.com/iXejvIR</a>

43 recommendations7 replies
Eric HouglandDurango CONov 25, 2025, 6:21 AMpositive64%

@Andrzej Thanks for the dog photos. Just in case you missed it, in a different thread, I shared a NYT article that might be of interest to you.

6 recommendations
FrancisGrand Marais, MNNov 25, 2025, 7:05 AMneutral51%

@Andrzej We are nearly through November, and here in the "frozen wasteland" of Minnesota we've barely seen a flake. I don't think in the 22 years I've lived here have we gone so long without even the mildest dusting. Of course, it's all a hoax according to our all-knowing leaders, but I saw much more winter weather in Tennessee in the 80s than I've seen here in Minnesota in the last few years. The Onion a few years ago had the headline "Autumn closes after a billion year run." Loved the pictures of Lucek and Jorge.

26 recommendations
TimLondon, UKNov 25, 2025, 7:47 AMneutral51%

@Andrzej In the US and the UK, "BIZARRO-world" has leaked out into more common usage (e.g. "What, he got elected again? We must be living in bizarro-world."). I didn't know the term's origin story, so this was interesting for me at least!

8 recommendations
LeoWarsawNov 25, 2025, 10:38 AMnegative75%

@Andrzej I made the same mistake! Took me some time to find out it was and O and not an E. Indeed that crossing could have been avoided by the constructor. To be fair, it was possible to get it right without knowing Bizarro World, but I was trying to speed-solve and didn't pay enough attention.

2 recommendations
LewisAsheville, NCNov 25, 2025, 12:52 PMpositive90%

Props to John for coming up with this theme. It seems obvious, rearranging the letters of DOOM to get to a DOOMSCROLLS revealer. But John thought of it first, and, mind you, this catchy verb “doomscroll” has been in the language for seven years. Bravo, sir! Then he expertly formed the grid, coming up with an answer set that fit symmetry, and filled the box with varied and unjunky answers. Fresh answers too, with 12 entries that have appeared only four times or less in the 80 years of Times puzzles. The cluing was terrific, relatively easy but not embarrassingly so, and there were enough footholds to make things accessible to newer solvers. Making this happen takes talent and grit. I loved being misdirected by [#2s in classrooms], where for too long I kept searching my brain for a three-letter answer meaning “pencils”. I not only enjoyed a fun solve, but the splendid feeling that naturally arises when coursing through quality. Thank you for this, John!

34 recommendations3 replies
MattIsraelNov 25, 2025, 4:08 PMneutral69%

@Lewis dude...i might be talking out the back of my neck here...but i think you should give us a puzzle. have you given us a puzzle?

1 recommendations
john ezrapittsburgh, paNov 25, 2025, 4:23 AMpositive86%

After putting quite a few miles on my ODOMeter today, I was in just the right MOOD for this. And when it came to proper names I enjoyed the historical spread from the ancient times (Occam, Attila, ageless Shiva, not to mention plebs), those who might be considered more MOD, Or at least recognizable to baby boomers: Wilma, Ebsen, Richie, perhaps the planet Bizarro; and those currently in the air: BTS, Rita Ora, Rae, et al. A good spread. Paradoxically, Occam's Razor (the simplest solution is most often the best solution; the philosophical razor is used to slice away and eliminate less likely solutions) applies less and less frequently the better a puzzle's clues are at misdirection and avoiding hackneyed fill (glue, etc.) and unimaginative cluing. If you asked Occam to solve a first rate crossword puzzle, he'd very likely throw away his razor and buy himself a pack of disposable Bics at the Duane Reade down the street.

26 recommendations2 replies
lucky13New YorkNov 25, 2025, 7:06 AMneutral81%

@john ezra Occam: If you hear hooves, think horses, not zebras?

4 recommendations
FrancisGrand Marais, MNNov 25, 2025, 7:38 AMneutral55%

I'm kind of fascinated by the discussion of whether or not RAM (random access memory) is the same thing as computer "storage". It's hard for me to not consider "memory" a kind of "storage". Maybe less permanent than other forms of storage, but storage none-the-less. I mean, on the molecular level a huge number of things (vibrations, collisions) happen over the period of time as short as a fraction of a second. It reminds me of a great discussion we had here a few months ago about whether or not Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) was a form of biological energy storage. I claimed it was, although I learned to my surprise that individual ATP molecules don't last very long, and there were a lot of other molecules (fats, glucose...protein, even) that was a better candidate for energy storage, because it was longer term. Language is hard. I think I'm going to stop claiming that I can even speak one of them, as it's so hard to find definitive meanings for words like "storage".

24 recommendations15 replies
AndrzejWarszawa, PolskaNov 25, 2025, 7:40 AMnegative89%

@Francis Your post is the perfect example of a first world problem 🤣

8 recommendations
MattIsraelNov 25, 2025, 8:58 AMpositive74%

@Francis and...hes back!

2 recommendations
Brenda BronnerJerusalem IsraelNov 25, 2025, 11:42 AMneutral67%

@Francis Andrzej, if I understand you correctly, we shouldn’t be doing the puzzle at all; we should be helping the poor of the third world survive. Maybe you are right.

1 recommendations
AndrzejWarszawa, PolskaNov 25, 2025, 12:02 PMnegative80%

@Brenda Bronner Whaaaat? How could you have understood my post like *that*? I was just making friendly fun of Francis for writing a whole essay about something that essentially is a pure intellectual exercise, with no practical applicability.

5 recommendations
SueNorCalNov 26, 2025, 5:58 AMpositive51%

@Francis Reminded me of my first job in Silicon Valley for Four Phase Systems in 1975. They made the first commercial computer that used RAM instead of core for memory, and had the CPU on 9 chips. It was only the size of a large desk!! Not a big room full of big cabinets on a raised floor for all the wires and extra air-conditioning. It came in two models with either 96 or 128 K of RAM!

0 recommendations
Times RitaNVNov 25, 2025, 1:35 PMpositive91%

I got all excited when I saw the clue for 1A. Thought for sure it was going to be DOZIER. Lamont Dozier and the two Hollands were the most prolific songwriting and production team in Motown's history, writing a preponderance of the hits of that era. When we decided to move to Vegas, we weren't quite ready to commit full time to the move, so we bought a house and decided to rent it for a couple of years. Our R.E. agent got us Lamont Dozier and his third wife, Barbara, as our tenants. They moved a ton of stuff into the place —boxes of evening gowns and tuxedos, a grand piano, computers, TVs — everything but themselves. They never set foot in the place. The first year they paid the entire years' rent in one payment. The second year we had to run after them for the money. I was hoping I'd get to meet him and maybe even get a signed copy of one of his albums (he performed, too). Alas, it was not to be, and after the second year they left, cleaning out every bit of unused stuff they brought with them. We figured they were using it as an expensive storage facility as a tax shelter to have a Las Vegas address. It was nice that there wasn't any wear and tear on the house, but the downside was that a leak went undetected until we made a rare visit to check up on the house. So my one brush with fame never came to be.

23 recommendations4 replies
CoryFairportNov 25, 2025, 1:38 PMpositive98%

@Times Rita fascinating! Thanks for sharing, fun AM read.

6 recommendations
Jacqui JRedondo Beach, CANov 25, 2025, 2:41 PMpositive97%

@Times Rita wow! What an experience!

2 recommendations
FrancisGrand Marais, MNNov 25, 2025, 3:00 PMpositive55%

@Times Rita Landlord to the Stars!

2 recommendations
HeidiDallasNov 25, 2025, 3:47 PMpositive92%

@Times Rita Ah, but it gave you a great story!

2 recommendations
EricHomewood, ALNov 25, 2025, 3:18 AMpositive97%

An enjoyable puzzle and a solid Tuesday.

20 recommendations
dutchirisberkeleyNov 25, 2025, 4:55 AMneutral51%

Today I recommended "Crazy Rich Asians" to a friend who has not seen it, and decided it was time for us to watch it again. Creepy clusters of coincidence these days. Maybe the universe is running out of stuff and just repeating itself more. Thanks, John. Nice puzzle.

17 recommendations
BenPortland, MaineNov 25, 2025, 3:56 PMneutral60%

I was convinced “#2s” had something to do with pencils. Got there in the end tho.

17 recommendations4 replies
AndrzejWarszawa, PolskaNov 25, 2025, 4:02 PMneutral84%

@Ben Us Europeans seem to be doing everything differently. We even label our pencils unlike Americans. A soft one would be B, for example.

4 recommendations
joepbtexasNov 25, 2025, 1:02 PMpositive37%

52A made me angry, because I am a nerd and I couldn't figure it out. Then I crossed it and got angrier, because it still made no sense. Then I added a mental hyphen and peace returned to the cosmos. That's why I love crosswords. Cheers!

15 recommendations
Sam FNYNov 25, 2025, 5:12 AMnegative74%

37 across seems wrong. RAM isn't storage; if anything, it's the opposite of storage. So it definitely wouldn't be described as "storage space".

14 recommendations10 replies
GreggNYCNov 25, 2025, 5:17 AMneutral94%

@Sam F See my reply a few comments down regarding "for short" in this clue.

1 recommendations
HeidiDallasNov 25, 2025, 5:36 AMneutral49%

@Sam F RAM most definitely is short-term storage. It’s the reason your computer can respond to your requests as quickly as it does. You might say that RAM puts the A in Access.

10 recommendations
MoAustraliaNov 25, 2025, 5:55 AMneutral67%

@Heidi RAM is very specifically not storage, it's memory.

2 recommendations
NoraFranceNov 25, 2025, 8:30 AMneutral78%

@Sam F As others have said, nope, RAM is most definitely storage. M stands for memory, and memory = storage. Merriam-Webster : a computer memory on which data can be both read and written and on which the location of data does not affect the speed of its retrieval especially : RAM that acts as the main storage available to the user for programs and data

6 recommendations
AnonymousUSANov 25, 2025, 1:03 PMnegative55%

@Sam F “RAM isn't storage; if anything, it's the opposite of storage.” The *opposite* of storage? I’m not even sure what that could mean. Otherwise, of course I get your point…but if someone asked me to summarize RAM as pithily as possible, one of the first responses that would come to mind is “ephemeral storage”. This entry was plenty accurate for a crossword puzzle.

5 recommendations
Jacqui JRedondo Beach, CANov 25, 2025, 6:52 AMpositive83%

Fun Tuesday grid. I’ve been known to fall down the DOOM SCROLLing hole 😬 I caught on by the second theme answer and immediately jumped down to the revealer and entered it followed by the remaining shaded squares in the correct order. It definitely helped speed up the solve. NIA Vardalos wrote and starred in My Big Fat Greek Wedding (I and II), My Big Fat Greek Life TV series and also directed I Hate Valentines Day. I think she is super talented. I don’t even know how many times I’ve seen MBFGW, but it’s in my top five favorites. It’s hilarious 🤣 This was my 2100th solve overall (not my streak which is 1601 today). Thanks, John!

14 recommendations
KevinGANov 25, 2025, 2:09 PMnegative68%

20+ proper names on a Tuesday? Bizarro!

13 recommendations1 replies
Barry AnconaNew York NYNov 25, 2025, 3:01 PMneutral62%

Kevin, How many of the proper nouns did you not know from the clues? Of those you did not know from the clues, how many could you not fill from the crosses?

2 recommendations
AnonymousUSANov 25, 2025, 8:11 PMneutral54%

To all the people commenting that “RAM is not storage”, I’m just going to drop a couple links: <a href="https://www.ibm.com/think/topics/primary-storage" target="_blank">https://www.ibm.com/think/topics/primary-storage</a> <a href="https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/glossary/primary-storage-devices" target="_blank">https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/glossary/primary-storage-devices</a> Point being: the generic term “storage” is absolutely applicable to RAM, along with other types of memory. The fact that tech folk most commonly use “storage” to refer to less volatile media (such as disks or SSDs) doesn’t mean it’s *wrong* to use that term in a clue for RAM. The idea in crossword puzzles is not for every entry to reflect a precise definition or the most idiomatic usage of the terms involved. In fact, clues often deliberately invoke *less* common definitions/usages, which can be confusing (you might even call it puzzling).

13 recommendations6 replies
SBKFaster, higher, eelier!Nov 25, 2025, 8:39 PMneutral79%

@Anonymous Human life analogy: When you hang your coat up in the closet, are you putting it in storage? Technically, yes. You're putting it in a special place designed for it with the intention of regaining access to it for some future reuse, no? But actually no. No one would say this about a closet. RAM = closet. ROM = attic.

3 recommendations
Riley CMoline, ILNov 25, 2025, 9:07 PMnegative66%

@Anonymous RAM is technically storage, but because it is technically correct and requires a precise caveat to fit the definition means that it was at least clued poorly.

0 recommendations
Jane WheelaghanLondonNov 25, 2025, 10:19 AMpositive76%

Nice crossword. As someone has said, quite the mix of old and new. I remember reading about BIZARRO world in Superman comics in the early 1960s, and TOM DOOLEY was playing on the radio - such a scary song, and WILMA and co on the TV. Then completely unknown to me, NIA and RAE (I'm one of the few who has never watched TikTok). I've learnt RITA ORA, GUAC, BTS, YEOH, OTS, MCAT from doing the crossword. No complaints here.

12 recommendations
AshleyUpstateNov 25, 2025, 4:03 PMnegative81%

Uh oh, feeling compelled to comment. Calling RAM a computer’s storage space is a bit painful. RAM is extremely short-term memory meant to hang onto things temporarily while you work. Referring to it as storage space just feels wrong. There was plenty of room in those spaces for HDD, SSD, or anything better.

12 recommendations1 replies
GrantDelawareNov 25, 2025, 7:13 PMneutral87%

@Ashley As you seem knowledgeable, when I use CTRL+C, does whatever I copied go into RAM? That seems to be what I'm seeing here.

0 recommendations
Brian CoffeySacramento, CANov 25, 2025, 5:19 PMpositive88%

While the orange trees in Seville are lovely, ask any Spaniard which city is famous for oranges, and they’ll surely say “Valencia”!

12 recommendations4 replies
AndrzejWarszawa, PolskaNov 25, 2025, 5:25 PMneutral60%

@Brian Coffey My wife and I visited Seville in February, just as the orange trees were in fruit. I wondered why people did not pick the fruit off the street. As soon as I tasted one, I knew 🤣

5 recommendations
TomUSANov 25, 2025, 7:04 PMneutral54%

@Brian Coffey. We toured Sevilla a while ago , and the local guide said the only reason those oranges are still grown is because they look pretty and the crazy English like sour-tasting orange jam. I’m guessing she meant marmalade!

1 recommendations
Pax Ahimsa GethenSan Francisco, CaliforniaNov 25, 2025, 7:28 PMpositive97%

@Brian Coffey - Valencia peanut butter is also delicious!

1 recommendations
PetrolFerney-Voltaire, FranceNov 25, 2025, 7:44 AMnegative89%

It seems apt that doomscrolling leads to a bad mood.

11 recommendations
MattIsraelNov 25, 2025, 11:59 AMneutral48%

i know im 11 months late to the party but apropos of yesterdays references to the ART HEIST and ESCAPE ROOM puzzles ive just gotta say... i did solve escape room since i encountered it just after i started solving these puzzles and it annoyed me no end. perhaps now it would delight me... but i just now finished art heist, which dropped just days before i started... breathtakingly beautiful puzzle.

11 recommendations5 replies
AndrzejWarszawa, PolskaNov 25, 2025, 12:20 PMnegative89%

@Matt I can't recall the escape room one, but the art heist puzzle was one of the most annoying things I have ever seen in my life. I still shudder thinking about it :D

9 recommendations
Barry AnconaNew York NYNov 25, 2025, 1:37 PMpositive98%

"breathtakingly beautiful puzzle." Matt, Yes it was!

7 recommendations
HeathieJSt. Paul, MNNov 25, 2025, 11:50 PMpositive88%

@Matt Totally agree!!

0 recommendations
The X-PhileBack in the BluegrassNov 25, 2025, 2:52 PMneutral91%

Today's TIL: HMRC, which, for those who don't yet know, stands for His Majesty's Revenue and Customs. Today's nit: Are TikTok stars really "stars"??? Today's bit of nostalgia: I remember learning about Bizarro World from an episode of "Seinfeld": <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0LPIc5JIFwk" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0LPIc5JIFwk</a>

11 recommendations2 replies
FrancisGrand Marais, MNNov 25, 2025, 2:57 PMpositive59%

@The X-Phile I loved that episode. The part where Elaine say "Get out" and pushes Bizarro Jerry and he's genuinely insulted is comedy gold.

2 recommendations
AndrzejWarszawa, PolskaNov 25, 2025, 3:09 PMpositive63%

@The X-Phile Why wouldn't TikTok stars be stars? Hundreds of millions of people follow them. They certainly are better known and more popular than some of the musical theater "stars" that pop up in these puzzles. Also, Addison RAE apparently started out on TikTok (which I've never used) but she's released a successful and actually quite good album, a few songs from which I have added to my favorite playlist.

6 recommendations
AshSalt LakeNov 25, 2025, 6:46 PMpositive97%

Coincidentally, NYT games replaced DOOMSCROLLing for me. 😂 Still a lot of screen time, sure, but I get to exercise my brain, learn new things, and feel a sense of accomplishment. Huge improvement! I enjoyed this theme, and found myself stumped for an embarrassingly long time before ALP came to me.

11 recommendations
Cat Lady MargaretMaineNov 25, 2025, 3:38 AMneutral47%

I tried to do “a Lewis” in guessing the revealer. Doom circle? Cycle of doom? Then what do I find? Only my sad little habit that I honed and practiced starting in March 2020. Ha, that should’ve been so obvious. You got me, John Ewbank!

10 recommendations1 replies
LewisAsheville, NCNov 25, 2025, 11:59 AMneutral52%

@Cat Lady Margaret -- He got me too. I danged afterward when, like you, I thought it should be so obvious. Sometimes, when I'm stumped, I uncover one letter at a time, starting with the first, and today I finally got the answer at DOOMS.

2 recommendations
little lavendersouthern californiaNov 25, 2025, 10:18 AMnegative74%

not me feeling personally attacked by this puzzle just after DOOMSCROLLING for several hours 😭 thank you for the reminder 🥲

10 recommendations
LewisAsheville, NCNov 25, 2025, 12:07 PMneutral70%

From the Interesting Times department: A 2024 poll concluded that almost a third of Americans doomscroll regularly. On the other hand, a 2023 study concluded that 39% of people worldwide actively avoid the news.

10 recommendations1 replies
HeidiDallasNov 25, 2025, 3:53 PMneutral51%

@Lewis Which means that roughly a third of Americans manage to stay informed while keeping their sanity? Sounds a little high to me.

2 recommendations
Kevin DPuyallup, WANov 25, 2025, 4:45 PMpositive80%

Re: 67A RAE, I had no idea. But, the crossings were a really fun collection of snippets from my past. Superman comics from 65 years ago, Windows user for the last 40 years, and finally, a Punk reference to a guy one year older than me. You only need to know half the answers!

10 recommendations
kilaueabartOakland CANov 25, 2025, 5:30 PMnegative55%

I barely finished this "easy" Tuesday. I have so much new stuff to learn and some to relearn, but "Oh!"s and "Aha!"s kept popping up enough to keep me from giving up for an hour-and-a-half.

10 recommendations3 replies
kilaueabartOakland CANov 25, 2025, 5:32 PMnegative80%

@kilaueabart Oops! I knew it couldn't be a Monday and be hard to do, but I'm not much good a knowing anymore.

2 recommendations
Barry AnconaNew York NYNov 25, 2025, 5:39 PMpositive88%

Bart, You're doing just fine!

7 recommendations
EverettCanadaNov 25, 2025, 6:48 PMneutral78%

While I agree the clueing on RAM could have been more clear, if people do want to get technical then the clue is not entirely inaccurate as some people are suggesting. RAM isn’t an “extremely short term memory” it’s just volatile memory that’s cleared when the process ends or you turn off your computer. And it most definitely is a storage device, albeit a temporary one. Your ability to access it directly doesn’t change that definition. Hard drives, even SSDs, are slow. If I load up Call of Duty on a Friday night (80+GB game) the game’s textures, shaders, models, etc get loaded into the RAM when the game loads. That’s like a holding area for the info so the game can access it quickly. Then as I play the game engine tells the VRAM (graphics card memory) to pull what it needs from the RAM in anticipation of processing (done by the GPU). The general info that loaded at the start to RAM mostly stays there and then loading screens between match add map specific data to it. If RAM was extremely short term or not a storage device I wouldn’t need a minimum of 8GB of it to load/run my game.

10 recommendations2 replies
AndreThe BahamasNov 25, 2025, 7:24 PMnegative76%

@Everett nah, nobody thinks of RAM as storage, and it barely counts as storage. That's like calling a loading bay a storage facility.

6 recommendations
allenUS, SouthNov 25, 2025, 8:13 PMnegative65%

@Everett no. You can't even get pedantic about this, RAM is always refered to as memory because computer storage is a specific thing that is separate from memory.

3 recommendations
BillDetroitNov 25, 2025, 8:12 PMneutral71%

A short while ago we had a punny-puzzle about Shakespeare, and discussion was made in the wordplay column about puns which worked using Elizabethan pronunciation, but are, for the most part, lost on us. 47D reminds me of my favorite silly Shakespeare pun--in Much Ado about Nothing, Leonato advises Beatrice to be "civil" when speaking to Benedick. She assure her uncle she will-- "I will be as civil as an orange."

10 recommendations1 replies
AmaranthKansas CityNov 26, 2025, 2:49 AMpositive96%

@Bill I love Much Ado About Nothing! I have read and seen it many times, and have a clear picture in my head of Emma Thompson delivering that line. And yet I never quite got the joke until today. So thank you for adding a little more joy to my scroll!

0 recommendations
MornInNov 25, 2025, 3:22 AMneutral69%

Can someone explain LORES to me please?

9 recommendations4 replies
Steve LHaverstraw, NYNov 25, 2025, 3:27 AMneutral72%

@Morn It's LO RES, short for low resolution.

37 recommendations
GrumpyTorontoNov 25, 2025, 3:29 AMneutral54%

@Morn Took me a few moments to twig too, but it's not oral histories, it's LO-RES (as in low resolution).

5 recommendations
LeontionCaliforniaNov 25, 2025, 3:52 AMneutral76%

When I'm teaching med students, I tell them what my former dean always said. Occam's razor says a single diagnosis that explains most of the symptoms is usually right. But then there's Hickam's Dictum: "the patient can have as many diagnoses as he damn well pleases"! Keep both in mind.

9 recommendations3 replies
FrancisGrand Marais, MNNov 25, 2025, 8:21 AMnegative62%

@Leontion I've always thought that while a great rule of thumb, Occam's razor would be a disaster in those rare situations which are, in fact, much more complicated.

2 recommendations
Nancy J.NHNov 25, 2025, 11:02 AMneutral48%

Ahh, BIZARRO World. <a href="https://thenib.com/this-bizarro-world" target="_blank">https://thenib.com/this-bizarro-world</a>/ Maybe I'll move there.

9 recommendations3 replies
Times RitaNVNov 25, 2025, 1:02 PMneutral75%

@Nancy J. We're already there.

7 recommendations
MattIsraelNov 25, 2025, 4:20 PMnegative69%

@Nancy J. TIL about tom tomorrow. but it was a painful experience as the after-work wine i was drinking at one point came out my nose. thank you.

1 recommendations
MehitabelThe AlleyNov 25, 2025, 4:00 AMpositive86%

Fun puzzle! 1 down - oof!

8 recommendations
GinnyNacogdoches, TXNov 25, 2025, 4:11 AMneutral90%

Dear John, Re 54 Across - See 1 down.

8 recommendations
JanineBC, CanadaNov 25, 2025, 11:48 AMpositive95%

The revealer was a big help today as I figured out the theme immediately, and then promptly promised myself to do less of that! I went to school with a boy named ATTILA. I don't know what his parents were thinking, but we kids thought he was cool.

8 recommendations7 replies
AndrzejWarszawa, PolskaNov 25, 2025, 11:59 AMneutral91%

@Janine Attila is a common enough name for Hungarians. Maybe that was his heritage?

10 recommendations
HeidiDallasNov 25, 2025, 3:54 PMneutral89%

@Janine Was he a hon?

1 recommendations
heironymouselsewhereNov 25, 2025, 2:32 PMneutral73%

My nit to pick (I called “Shenanigans”) was the computer storage clue RAM is not storage Hard drive space is storage. RAM is active data space which goes byebye if your computer loses power /exits soapbox

8 recommendations6 replies
AnonymousUSANov 25, 2025, 2:49 PMneutral73%

@heironymous It’s ephemeral storage…but still storage. If you browse any instruction set (e.g. x86), you’ll see a variety of instructions for “storing” data to memory/registers, along with others for “loading” data from the same. Why? Because RAM and registers are storage media! Yes, “storage” would usually refer to persistent storage in colloquial tech speak…but that’s not the right frame of comparison for evaluating the suitability of a crossword entry.

13 recommendations
dlrSpringfield, ILNov 25, 2025, 2:53 PMneutral85%

@heironymous Back when I studied Computer Science (when mainframes roamed the earth), RAM was “primary storage” and any more permanent storage (paper tape, punched cards, mag tape, or even disks) was “secondary storage.”

11 recommendations
TomUSANov 25, 2025, 7:17 PMneutral85%

@heironymous. I rented a storage locker for a month. It was temporary, but definitely storage.

0 recommendations
MichelleBostonNov 25, 2025, 9:14 PMnegative78%

For some reason, my time for today is coming up as 988:20:06. I think that's probably not accurate.

8 recommendations
JJLafayette, CANov 25, 2025, 3:16 AMpositive75%

Enjoyed the puzzle! Was admittedly kind of weird to see the entry for 49D (AMT) next to the clue for 48A (Infinitesimal amount).

7 recommendations
Steve LHaverstraw, NYNov 25, 2025, 3:26 AMneutral58%

I'm trying to decide whether VOODOO MAGIC is unnecessarily redundant. Any African-based folk religion experts out there want to weigh in? On another front: Monday, we had a teacher's AIDE. Tuesday, we have TAS. Curious.

7 recommendations13 replies
GabNYCNov 25, 2025, 4:10 AMneutral68%

@Steve L perhaps “unnecessarily redundant” is too

48 recommendations
Eric HouglandDurango CONov 25, 2025, 6:13 AMnegative54%

@Steve L I asked the same question about VOODOO MAGIC in my Fiend review. The dictionaries I checked suggest that that answer is redundant.

3 recommendations
Mean Old LadyNow in MississippiNov 25, 2025, 2:33 PMneutral46%

@Steve L Anyone who thinks there aren't different sorts of MAGIC has plainly never made their own mayonnaise....drizzling olive oil into a blender containing an egg and a little lemon juice just as Julia Child instructs ...well, serious magic!

5 recommendations
dutchirisberkeleyNov 26, 2025, 2:46 AMnegative62%

@Steve L Double negatives will always be with us, irregardless.

1 recommendations
Elizabeth ConnorsChicagoNov 25, 2025, 3:46 AMpositive98%

A fine Tuesday with a little pull. Thank you, John Ewbank.

7 recommendations
Eric HouglandDurango CONov 25, 2025, 5:03 AMpositive83%

My Diary of a Crossword Fiend review: <a href="https://crosswordfiend.com/2025/11/24/tuesday-november-25-2025/#ny" target="_blank">https://crosswordfiend.com/2025/11/24/tuesday-november-25-2025/#ny</a> Thanks for the fun, Mr. Ewbank!

7 recommendations4 replies
ad absurdumchicagoNov 25, 2025, 4:15 PMneutral55%

@Eric Hougland Nice review. I read the musicals article you linked to and wasn't blown away by the choices. I can see that list swaying a few people who are on the fence(like Andrzej) but not those more vehemently opposed.

2 recommendations
ad absurdumchicagoNov 25, 2025, 6:14 PMnegative85%

@Andrzej I may have misinterpreted your rather vague comments on musicals. Sue me. Sue me. What can you do me?

2 recommendations
VaerBrooklynNov 25, 2025, 7:38 PMneutral54%

@Ad Absurdum Adelaide!

2 recommendations
LJUKNov 25, 2025, 2:05 PMnegative86%

Please no more Rita Ora!

7 recommendations15 replies
LeAnneUSANov 25, 2025, 2:22 PMneutral85%

@LJ I just started doing NYT crosswords, and yes, what’s with all the Rita Ora clues?

1 recommendations
AndrzejWarszawa, PolskaNov 25, 2025, 2:31 PMneutral67%

Her surname is 66% vowels. Simple as that.

6 recommendations
Joe And LindaEast USANov 25, 2025, 2:52 PMneutral81%

@LJ Would you prefer ONO? At least ORA has two different vowels….

1 recommendations
Ms. Billie M. SpaightNew York CityNov 25, 2025, 3:31 PMneutral87%

@LJ Is she an emu or an oreo? BTW where did THOSE 2 go?

0 recommendations
RobertoSpainNov 25, 2025, 3:47 PMneutral59%

@LJ A little while back the clothing retailer Primark featured a Rita Ora clothing line. The girl gets around. Too bad RIRI is already taken.

0 recommendations
MattIsraelNov 25, 2025, 4:03 PMnegative83%

@LJ im team anyone who rages against the precise fill i can never...but never ever...come up with without the help of crosses or head trauma.

0 recommendations
Steve HWake ForestNov 25, 2025, 5:33 PMnegative67%

There are many dark folk songs like Tom Dooley that are cringy to hear today. Steve Martin wrote a “story song” as he calls it that takes the genre and gives it a hilarious modern twist offered up by Edie Brickell. <a href="https://youtu.be/4lFMK3UIa74?si=Z2qGeLdmWJ4y_2Tz" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/4lFMK3UIa74?si=Z2qGeLdmWJ4y_2Tz</a>

7 recommendations1 replies
fellow solverNYCNov 25, 2025, 6:05 PMpositive98%

@Steve H What a treat! And it's about time, Steve Martin( I'll say no more, but give a listen)! Thank you so much for sharing.

1 recommendations
ΙασωνMunichNov 25, 2025, 4:54 AMpositive79%

I was Dooked by LORES until I came here. Nice puzzle. I guess it was too hard to turn it by 90 degrees for the direction of the scroll. It’s impressive as it is. Thanks

6 recommendations3 replies
lucky13New YorkNov 25, 2025, 7:03 AMneutral64%

@Ιασων I know about as much about computers as I do about K-Pop, so lots of lookups today.

3 recommendations
Don HVirginiaNov 25, 2025, 4:27 PMnegative50%

@Ιασων I used to fish with LORES, but I never caught anything, and I think they didn't bite because they couldn't see them clearly. So I switched to HIRES, and now I catch ALOTOF fish. I'm not a PRO, its VOODOOMAGIC.

3 recommendations
SamDenverNov 25, 2025, 4:57 AMneutral55%

More cunning is SLYER, no? Never seen “slier” for this. Thought you were being cute with magyc.

6 recommendations3 replies
lucky13New YorkNov 25, 2025, 7:00 AMneutral51%

@Sam This hung me up, too, and I had to click "Reveal" puzzle. So no streak! (I wasn't sure about Occam either.)

1 recommendations
VaerBrooklynNov 25, 2025, 11:42 AMneutral76%

@Sam If you've been doing puzzles for a while, you've seen SLIER instead of SLyER. I've finally learned you have to check the cross before completing.

3 recommendations
Steve LHaverstraw, NYNov 25, 2025, 12:00 PMneutral79%

@Sam You can find it in the dictionary. It's not magyc. <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sly" target="_blank">https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sly</a> Note for future reference: The most common usage, spelling or meaning isn't necessarily what they're looking for in the puzzle. They're looking for what goes with the crosses.

2 recommendations
HeidiDallasNov 25, 2025, 5:59 AMpositive93%

This was pleasantly chewy for a Tuesday. Not so tough that I needed Google help, but challenging enough to make me stop and think. Thanks, John, for this refreshing break from my usual DOOMSCROLLing.

6 recommendations
TerryAsheville, NCNov 25, 2025, 1:34 PMpositive97%

This was fun. Again I could not find my typo! Loved the theme-so appropriate for our current times. I try to avoid doomscrolling as much as possible! I’d rather do crosswords instead. Thanks, John! Y’all have a wonderful Tuesday!

6 recommendations
CaptainQuahogPlanet EarthNov 26, 2025, 2:47 AMneutral61%

For all the pedants who are confusing a crossword PUZZLE for a computer science textbook: Please go to the Wikipedia article posthaste and start editing. The word "storage" is found therein 36 times -- granted, many are in the sidebar with links to various storage technologies, but there are others within the text itself and in the references (you will also need to contact the publishers of these references to have them correct their articles). I also found references to RAM being storage on the web sites of other clearly tech-unsophisticated sources such as INTEL. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Random-access_memory" target="_blank">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Random-access_memory</a>

6 recommendations
DaveTacoma, WANov 25, 2025, 3:50 AMnegative63%

The answer for 45-Across is wrong. "PLEBS" is neither a Latin plural form nor substantively correct. The distinction between patricians and plebeians eroded centuries before Julius Caesar's time.

5 recommendations8 replies
AndrzejWarszawa, PolskaNov 25, 2025, 6:22 AMneutral80%

@Dave Not really though? Caesar's contemporary Publius Clodius Pulcher (brother of Clodia, whom Sam Lyons discussed here recently as the subject of Catullus's poetry), born a patrician, was infamous for becoming a plebeian and the shenanigans he caused as a tribune of the plebs.

3 recommendations
Mr DaveSoCalNov 25, 2025, 6:54 AMneutral88%

@Dave I'm no historian but Webster's says plebs were a Roman thing. <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/plebeian" target="_blank">https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/plebeian</a>

2 recommendations
Sam Lyonsroaming the Old WorldNov 25, 2025, 8:12 AMneutral63%

@Dave Plēbs is an uncountable noun denoting a mass of people. Full stop. The only thing the clue gets wrong is when it was in use. Julius Caesar and his contemporaries used an earlier, Classical Latin form plēbes (5th declension). Plēbs (3rd declension) doesn’t show up until post-Classical imperial literature, so 100-150 years later. Tacitus uses plēbes. Was plēbs around earlier—on the street if not in literature? Did Julius Caesar use plēbs when rosy from too much wine? It’s possible; there’s no way to know. Maybe the clue should have referenced Caligula in lieu of Julius Caesar for philological accuracy, but plēbs as a collective noun meaning ‘crowd’ or ‘the masses’ (the clue did *not* call for a plural, nor did it call for any sociopolitical conclusions) is very much correct.

19 recommendations
AndrzejWarszawa, PolskaNov 25, 2025, 8:51 AMneutral59%

@Sam Lyons <3 (I'm on my PC so I can't use proper emojis, but that's a heart. A platonic but very sincere one)

5 recommendations
Don HVirginiaNov 25, 2025, 4:13 PMnegative71%

@Dave I would have pluralized it as PLEBES, which is perhaps wrong. But it paused my progress until I gave in and dropped the E. As to whether this was of the JC era, I'll leave that to people smarter than me.

1 recommendations
Charles Nelson ReillyNYCNov 25, 2025, 5:09 AMpositive95%

I liked the chewiness of this. It was slightly harder than the average Tues but slightly easier than the average Weds. Theme was okay. Nice to see The STOOGES. RAM is not really storage space though.

5 recommendations