Across
- 5. Once classified as thrushes, these song birds are now part of Muscicapidae, or the Old World Flycatcher family. Featured in cultural works like the Korean Chunaengjeon court dance or juxtaposed with the rose in Ottoman Divan poetry, this national bird of Ukraine is also the subject of a rag by Joseph Lamb, an ode by John Keats & a popular WWII-era song “sang in Berkley Square”. It’s also the last name the Victorian era social reformer known for developing polar area diagrams & modern nursing.
- 6. This cryptocrystalline rock is formed from layers of chalcedony in alternating colors, though has parallel band rather than curved ones of agate rock. Its name comes from the Greek for “fingernail”, due to the appearance of white & flesh-colored varieties, despite the black version & red “sard” variant being more famous or commonly used in intaglio for superstitious properties. Most of sold carvings of this material are calcite or agates fakes, created using techniques described by naturalist Pliny the Elder in Naturalis Historia. It’s also the naming inspiration of a Generation 1 Pokémon owned by the Pewter City Gym leader & differs from a 4 species large antelope genus by one letter.
- 8. Contrary to popular belief, this 18th century Scottish mechanical engineer was not inspired by a kettle & did not invent the stem engine. Instead, he greatly improved upon the 1712 Newcomen engine with things such as the separate condenser, centrifugal governor & the sun & planet gear, which proved fundamental to the Industrial revolution. Seen on the current red GBP50 note (Series F) with Mathew Boulton, he also developed the concept of horsepower, the pressure-volume diagram, parallel motion & a namesake linkage . Like this puzzle’s “F” answer, an SI unit is named after him (for power).
- 10. I’m a non-climacteric fruit native to South East Asia with a “sweet, mildly acidic flavor” reminiscent of grapes or lychees, whose name is derived from the Malay word for “hair”. Also known as achotillo in Ecuador & Puerto Rico, you can spell its common name by removing one letter from either a landlocked Asian country or a four carbon alkane & adding behind the word for a male sheep. I’m also related to the answer starting with “C”.
- 11. “In winter time their flesh is firm, and […] sought after as articles of food, but in summer weather they are worthless” wrote Aristotle about this in The History of Animals VI, 6. Still seen as a delicacy in some countries today, a protein from this animal is used in research as a marker for inserted genes. Mirroring this puzzle’s “L” answer, while their common name suggests they are part of the Actinopterygii “ray-finned fish” class, this group’s “true” types belong to the Scyphozoans class within the Cnidaria phylum, known for their “stinging” cnidocyte cells. Ocean sunfish are a notable predator of this animal, as are sea turtles who may mistake plastic bags for them.
- 14. This word is type of medium-hard Scottish candy made using condensed milk, butter & sugar, often flavored with this puzzle’s V answer. The Latin phrase for wax “blank” versions of this are used to describe a newborn’s mind by proponents of “nurture” psychological theories. Meanwhile, the Vindolanda version of these were once the oldest surviving handwritten documents in Britain. In the pharmaceutical industry, it is an oral dosage form of medicine formed through compression.
- 16. In optics, it is made of brass strips in “Waterhouse” versions, & several blades in modern “iris” types, which is used to adjust aperture size when making bokeh effects. In acoustics, it is transducer which converts vibrations into sound or vice versa. In anatomy, it’s a thin asymmetric muscle involved in breathing, notably lacking in birds, which was coined by 12th century Italian translator Gerard of Cremona. It also may refer to a contraceptive, mechanical positive displacement pumps & structural lateral load bearing system.
- 19. Created in 1966 by American Maulana Karenga following the Watts riots/rebellion, this holiday is held annually from December 26 to January 1. It celebrates African-American culture & is ahistorically named after a Swahili phrase for “first fruits”. This seven-lettered festivity is represented by the Kinara, a seven-branched candleholder with red, green & black candles used to represent Nguzo Saba or the seven principles of African Heritage.
- 23. “Where flowers bloom, so does hope” said this Texan known by her animal nickname, who was wife to a single-term POTUS & associated with the Highway Beautification Act. Like this puzzle’s “J” answer, while the American name variant implies these animals are part of the Hemiptera “true bug” order, they are actually part of the Coleoptera “beetle” order, specifically the Coccinellidae family. They are also known as God's little cow, shaman bug, Mary’s chicken or Key maiden when directly translated from other languages.
- 24. I can help you stand out, even though I often come in pairs or more, describing figure skating turns & tree-growing polypore. You want to be in the upper version for sports, but need a bottom version when riding your bike. When wavy, I’m useful “Dart”-ing across the “C”-s in Java & Ceylon, while when I’m round, I can add extra information or citations.
- 25. In the earliest telling of Robin Hood, the titular character was a member of this social class, rather than a knight, though in later retellings three of these are rescued from the Sheriff of Nottingham & join the Merry Men. Jeffersonian Democracy was built around this sort of small landowning farmer in the USA. It is also a military term previously used to signify a fighting class between squires & pages in the UK, while the US Navy uses it today to denote enlisted members involved with clerical work.
- 26. Discovered in 1898 England by Sir William Ramsay & Moris Travers after krypton & neon, this noble gas glows blue when placed in an electric field & can be used as a general anesthetic or ion thruster propellant. Although generally unreactive, the formation of a hexafluoroplantinate by Neil Bartlett in 1962 made it the first noble gas compound to be synthesized. Its name comes from a Greek prefix meaning “stranger”, & pronounced by saying a different nearby letter of the alphabet from what it’s spelt with.
Down
- 1. Commonly known by this descriptive “Q” name, a sulfide of this element called cinnabar is used to make Vermillion red pigment, while it forms metal alloys called amalgams, such as Arquerite or dental tooth fillings. Once thought to be the First Matter of metals by alchemist, its use in thermometer & sphygmomanometer is being phased out due to toxicity concerns. In popular culture, it is the name of a Marvel speedster, while Tuco Salamanca’s HQ is destroyed with a fulminated version.
- 2. While traditional practitioners of this trade use materials like coir, hessian & scrims for their craft, modern artisans are more likely to use things like Dacron/Terylene, vinyl or closed-cell foam instead. Apprentices in this field are known as outsiders or trimmers, & may work with others to find the Martindale value of their final products.
- 3. Measured using the 4 stage Swiss system, ECG/EKGs of this emergency medical condition often shows Osborn J waves. A notable extreme victim of this condition is Anna Bågenholm, a Swedish 1999 ski accident survivor & example of the statement “nobody is dead until they are warm & dead”. This state, associated with paradoxical undressing, is responsible for the military campaign downfall of many notable leaders like Hannibal in 218 BC with the Second Punic War & Napoleon in 1812 with the French invasion of Russia.
- 4. Coined by Edgar Allen Poe in The Gold Bug, this word comes from ancient Greek words meaning “hidden”, “to write” & “study” respectively. People associated with the term include Al-Kindi, Polybius, Elizabeth Friedman, Claude E. Shannon & Agnes Driscoll. This science also triggered the USA entry to WWI through the Zimmermann Telegram.
- 7. This genus of orchid, meaning “little pod” in Spanish, was originally cultivated by early Mesoamericans. While the plant’s sap is caustic & causes contact dermatitis, the fruits are used extensively in baking & perfumes. Ironically, while its name synonymous with “conventional”, it’s the world’s 2nd most expensive spice due to the labor-intensive hand-pollination needed to produce it, a process invented by former Reunion island slave Edmond Albius at the age of 12.
- 9. Though only 4 letters long, it is the name of a genus of deer from the India subcontinent in Zoology, designator for a Cartesian-coordinate dimension in Math, C2 vertebra of the spine under the atlas in Anatomy & the “Roberto” powers in World War II History.
- 12. Monarchs Joanna of Castile, Suleiman I of the Ottoman Empire, Ethelred II of England, Vlad III of Wallachia & Ivan IV of Russia all share this feature in common. Often found in Homeric Epics, “Pallas” is an example of this. While it can refer to “derogatory phrases” in modern usage, the “specific” version of this word is used in binomial nomenclature governed by the ICZN & ICNafp.
- 13. Known for his experiments in electromagnetism, a picture of this 19th century scientist was kept alongside Newton & Maxwell in Einstein’s study. In chemistry, this man discovered benzene, invented an early Bunsen burner & reported the first nanoparticles observations. Regarding electricity, his work included the law of induction, laws of electrolysis & the principle of diamagnetism. He is associated with things like a cage, cup, paradox, rotator & wheel. Additionally, he started the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures to educate & inspire young scientists – as pictured on a withdrawn mauve-purple GBP 20 note (Series E). Like this puzzle’s “W” answer, an SI unit is named after him (for capacitance).
- 15. From the Indonesian “to tie”, this dyeing technique involves creating desired patterns by binding yarn together to form a resist. It differs from tie-dye or Batik in that the threads are not woven into cloth before resists are applied & dyed, which creates a characteristic “blurred” double-sided fabric pattern. Though the term is originally of Asian origin, the technique was likely developed from several region independently & is now a generic English loanword for the process regardless of pattern or location of production.
- 17. While the first recoded use of paper for this purpose dates to 1035 in Cairo markets, many other natural materials like amphorae & bota bags were used prior for similar purposes. French confectioner Nicolas Appert is known as the father of a tin form of this household item, but British merchant Peter Durand was the one who patented a form of this process in 1810. Other notable names in the field & their associated patent year include Francs Wolle (1852), Roner Gair (1890) & Joseph Coyle (1911). Mil spec regulations to this feature became implemented due to critical losses of supplies in 1940s Icelandic operations. The main aims of these items include protection, containment, portion control, convenience, & security.
- 18. Images of these mythological creatures were placed on objects as apotropaic symbols due to their petrifaction abilities, including the oldest stone pediment in Greece. While one is famously beheaded by Perseus, her sisters Stheno & Euryale are said to be immortal. One was also used to symbolize "French Liberty” following the French Revolution, unlike Athena-personified "English Liberty”.
- 20. “Oh, the humanity!” cried Herbert Morrison, when reporting on a 1937 disaster involving this mode of transport. Featured in the name of an English rock band & used by the German military in WWI, this machine is made using duralumin & goldbeater’s skin. A knot of this name, also known as a Rosendahl bend, is known for the ease with which it is untied, even after heavy loading.
- 21. Meaning “string” or “to sheath” in Malay, this garment consist of tube of fabric around a yard wide & 2.5 yards long, wrapped around the waist. Traditionally worn in formal settings with a kebaya blouse, rayon versions are sometimes worn in the Western world as a coverup for beachwear. Traditional regional variants include the izaar (Arabian Peninsula), lungi or mundu (Indian subcontinent), the macawiis (Horn of Africa) & tapis, patadyong or malong (Luzon, Visayas/Sulu & Mindanao Philippines). It is related to the “I” word of in this puzzle, as the fabric if often dyed using the technique.
- 22. While many Americans “plead the 5th after hearing these rights spoken to them today, this name was created by Shakespeare for a heroine in his 1611 “stormy” play. From the Latin for “admirable”, it can also refer to a fizzy orange soda, a British sitcom starring a 1.85m tall female comedian & the smallest of Uranus’ moons.