Zero-Gravity: The Lighter Side of Science

And the winner is... Announcing the lucky winner of the physics crossword contest

Last March APS News announced a contest for the best physics crossword puzzle. Our panel of experts took into account both the intrinsic merit of the puzzle and the amount of physics content, and has come up with three prize-winning puzzles. Top prize goes to Gary Hodes of the Weizmann Institute in Israel, whose puzzle is reproduced on this page. The other prize-winning puzzles were submitted by Michael A. Pelizzari and Stephen Irons. All three will receive a copy of the book “Physics in the Twentieth Century.” Readers are cautioned that (a) Hodes's puzzle is very hard (it is in the style of a “cryptic crossword”); and (b) the numbering system is unconventional, since in many places numbers are repeated, once for across and once for down. Answers to the puzzle appear with the online version of this issue.

Readers are cautioned that (a) Hodes's puzzle is very hard (it is in the style of a “cryptic crossword”); and (b) the numbering system is unconventional, since in many places numbers are repeated, once for across and once for down

CLUES

Across

Down

2 This is an actual difference 1 A curious element 3 A useful place to send papers 2 A very short length of wood 4 Unidirectional flow 3 Distance 5 Reversed voltage drop 4 45 down of 45 across 6 What you need for this puzzle 5 Below this value, things really move 7 Straight from the wall 6 Male cats are made of these 14 Charges sometimes do this 7 Can be noisy 15 He’s on the level 8 Occurs in physics but not in commerce 16 This has one in the form of a band 9 Not quite microwaves 18 A striptease at the atomic level 10 Energy of an electron gas 19 Low temperature resistance unit? 11 Not positive about this abbreviation 20 An increasingly common referee comment 12 Complement of red 21 French Canadian research council 13 Think sharply 22 This word is in the correct position 14 A positive outcome of a crusade 23 This term becomes less common because of email 15 A heavy leader 24 Flows - at the moment 16 Go to great lengths to amass some time 25 Type of number 17 2 by 24 across 26 Rotates 18 A lamp inherited from ones central American forefathers 27 Opposite of 23 down 19 Handbook of Chemistry and Physics 28 Scatter-brained scientist 20 This technique resonates with many users 29 Basic electrical properties 21 A stupid mixup over a molten element 30 Transpond NSF 22 Unit of energy 31 One of the most important components of a Gordon conference 23 An archaic form of 20 across 32 Force 25 High level proceedings 33 A chemist’s answer for a biological mishap to physicists 26 Energy – even for laymen 34 Will force you to eat 27 Environmentally friendly way of getting down to detail 35 Elves might use this technique 28 Some physicists prefer to work on this 36 It’s both a solid and a gas. 29 Grind 37 A weighty term 30 A law to boast about 38 You’ll find a horse here in equilibrium 31 Transports by four wheels, not two 39 A Roman lab coat? 32 Not heavy but intermittent 40 Only one electron at a time 39 Directional 41 These are positively left behind 40 This club is for some physicists 45 Philanthropic species 41 16 across has one of these 46 A Gaussian system of units for slow people 42 An Oxford university address 47 A more international system 43 Like 20 down 48 Has a well-defined internal crystal structure 44 Having eyes that are charged 49 Narrowly fluoresces 45 A lot of people live there 50 A particular family 46 A current limiter 51 A very small unknown object 47 Spread by an urge to dive 52 Popular length units 48 Most got their first physics lessons here 53 Eyes see backwards 49 Not the most interesting of scientists 54 A certain type of pot does this 50 For a particle, this could be either a little or a lot of energy 55 Violet 51 A unit of time 56 A unit of 24 across 52 Logic circuit 57 Captain’s ruling springs to mind 53 Another version of 51 down 58 This will mess things up 54 Increasing potential energy 59 A unit you can't resist 55 Not as far as 9 down 60 This outshines 15 down 56 A few cases of this published in reputable journals 61 This guy is still on the up – for the moment  62 Sticky particles  63 392 Hz or some multiple  64 Letters useful also for public relations  65 A junction  66 Spin fast to get away from the smell