Brain Workout Section!
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For those of you who used to like the puzzles I printed in the old bulletins, here is a link to an online version: one of the puzzles that I used to feature in the old paper Bulletins, but it is easy to play on a computer as well. Not so easy on a tablet or phone, since most of the puzzles require right-clicks, not easily done in a tablet or phone environment. Signpost gives you a grid of cells with arrows, and some with numbers. Cell #1 is in the top left, and its arrow points to Cell #2, etc., through to the final cell (no arrow) at the bottom right corner. You simply need to find the missing numbers, because although the arrow points to the next cell, it could be adjacent or far away! By dragging the mouse from one cell to the next you connect the cells and the corresponding numbers appear; to delete a wrong number, drag it off of the puzzle. The dots at the lower left of each cell show a cell unconnected to the following cell. You can connect an un-numbered cell to another un-numbered cell and the display will give the chain a series headed by a letter: a, a+1, a+2, until it is connected to a cell with a number later. Strategies: look first for cells pointing in a direction in which there is only one cell before the edge and connect them. You can right-click on a cell to highlight all arrows that point to it, which can reveal other links. Known numbers separated by 2-4 may have only one possible route from lower to higher as more cells are identified. The "full instructions" link below each puzzle when you click the link has more solving tips and useful aids. Click on the puzzle you want to try at the right (or the caption below) to go to the page with all the instructions you'll need. These puzzles come from Simon Tatham's Portable Puzzle Collection (see below) and there are links there to apps for most devices. 
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 Easy puzzle (McBruce's time: 1min 11sec) |
 Medium puzzle (McBruce's time: 2min 42sec) |
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 Tricky puzzle (McBruce's time: 5min 26sec) |
Answers to the trivia questions at the top of the page...
(Click here to go back to the questions!)
June 17 birthdays:
- 1882 — Igor Stravinsky, Russian-born composer who later emigrated to France and the USA, whose ballet The Rite of Spring caused a near-riot at its premier because the complex harmonies and rhythms were too difficult for the unprepared audience!
- 1898 — M.C. Escher, Dutch illustrator whose work is filled with impossible objects, optical illusions, and complexities in symmetry, perspective, and tesselation.
- 1929 — Tigran Petrosian, Soviet-Armenian chess grandmaster, the World Champion who defeated Mikhail Botvinnik, defended the title against Boris Spassky but then lost to Boris Spassky.
- 1943 — Barry Manilow, American singer-songwriter with thirteen #1 singles including Could It Be Magic, Looks Like We Made It, Mandy, I Write the Songs, Can't Smile Without You, and Copacabana.
- 1951 — John Garrett, recently retired hockey commentator who played in and broadcasted Vancouver Canucks games, and was the unlikely callup to the 1983 NHL All Star game after an injury, where he was voted MVP of the game midway through the third period, until a hasty revote after Wayne Gretzky scored four goals in the final fourteen minutes (on a different goalkeeper)!
- ...and...
- December 17, 1978 — Manny Pacquiao, Filipino politician and retired professional boxer, one of the greatest of all time, having won titles in eight divisions and across four decades.