June 3
Quick Hits
Today’s set is done a little differently. You’ll have an initial clue that points toward the answer actually sought, then a second, subsidiary clue only indirectly related to the first clue, while also being reflective of a larger theme. I think you will see what I mean. See if you can answer each question after only the first clue. Enjoy.
Questions
Which mathematician?
This man’s namesake “laws,” shown below, are useful in computer programming partly because they can transform AND statements to OR statements as well as OR statements to AND statements.
The whole unit known by this name is rarely used, since it would represent about 100 million base pairs in the human genome - an impractically large amount with which to work, and less useful when dealing with matters of probability anyhow.
Which actress?
The same year as her breakthrough movie role, this actress appeared in the music video for the song “Sara” by Starship (shown).
The man who was the Duke of this location at one point was so influential in the court of King Henry IV of France that he was called the “Huguenot pope,” though today he is remembered more because of the addition of cheese to something.
Which writer?
Among his contributions to science fiction include Lest Darkness Fall (one of the earliest works in alternate history) and Genus Homo (which likely inspired Planet of the Apes), but today this man may be better known for coining “E.T.” to mean “extraterrestrial.”
Redacted from the following is this word, the titular subject of a 1964 essay.
Which person?
The author of the 1938 novel Nausea dedicated that work “au Castor” - a punning reference to this person.
Some of the better views from this estate - best known today as Jefferson Davis’s home following the Civil War - include those of Oyster Bayou and the Gulf of Mexico, though several structures still yet to be repaired following damage from Hurricane Katrina are noted as well.
What inventor?
The kind of automobile suspension named for this man features his namesake tube that connects the wheel on the right to its opposite on the left, along with a differential that is mounted directly on the chassis, with the advantage of such a setup being less weight connected directly to the wheels, allowing for a smoother ride.
D’eux, released by a person with this surname, is the best-selling French language album of all time, with an estimated 12 million copies sold worldwide.
Who?
Tim Kuilmine, more colloquially called in English “the Big Hole,” is located on what once was farmland owned by two brothers - descendants of a soldier for the VOC originally from Finland by way of Lübeck - with this surname.
Skol, from Brazil; Bintang, from Indonesia; Belikin, from Belize; Efes, from Turkey; Mythos, from Greece; and Snow, from China and thought to be the best-selling of all, are all examples of these.
Which writer?
The following redacted image is taken from the cover of a best-selling work by this man.
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At a 2002 tribute to honor this man’s philanthropic work, Cher joined R.E.M. on stage to perform “I Got Your Babe.”
Which actress?
Her biggest film roles - such as her breakthrough as the title character in 1945’s Salome, Where She Danced and as Sephora, the wife of Moses, in The Ten Commandments - gave this actress a kind of dark exoticism that would lend itself to her most famous work, appearing on television for a 1960s sitcom.
The man with this first name was the father of, among others, a Princess and Duchess of Guastalla, a King of Westphalia, a Prince of Canino and Musignano, a Queen of Naples, and a Grand Duchess of Tuscany.
Which thinker?
This man’s essays, including “Criticism and Crisis” and “The Resistance to Theory,” are key works among deconstructionists, with the former beginning with the premise that literature inherently is not factual - perhaps a secret nod toward his own life, as this man reinvented himself when he moved from Belgium to America, covering up a past of a criminality, philandering, and advocacy for Nazism in doing so.
Future Bond henchman Richard Kiel got his breakthrough in the entertainment industry when he portrayed all of the members of a super-tall race of aliens called the Kanamits, as featured in a television episode that hinged on how those aliens actually intended to go about serving this.
Who?
Seized by authorities at one point, with what remained of it burned by his family after his death, a ten-volume novel to have been named The Days of Florbelle, or Nature Unveiled is the lost final work of this man.
This band behind albums like Diamond Life and Promise is named after their lead singer, who goes by a shortened version of a name that in Yoruba means “honor earning a crown” - I wonder if having five albums reach platinum status counts as such an honor?
Which performer?
This man (shown) won a Tony in 2019 for Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical following his portrayal of Hermes in the musical Hadestown.
A heater, which is triangular; a pavise, which was used by archers during medieval times; the ancient aspis, effective because its porpax allowed for a dual grip; and one named for the Nguni people (and appearing on the flag of one of the countries of the world) are all examples of these.
Which character?
In a 1938 novel, a person appears at a ball using the assumed name Caroline, and at one point remarks that a letter that she received spelled her first name correctly, suggesting it might be unusual - but otherwise her identity is unclear, as she is generally referred to by this phrase.
What, in theory, should be next in a series: Thrones, Kings, Swords, Crows, and Dragons.
Which economist?
This economist, known for his work studying the “informal economy” and even better known for his influence in spreading neoliberal economic ideas throughout South America (especially in his home country of Peru) apparently modified his surname as a young man to make it sound more aristocratic, and not out of an intentional homage to the explorer who is thought to have been buried near modern-day Ferriday, Lousiana.
To be persuaded to leave one team for their crosstown rival, this man signed a 15-year, $765 million dollar deal - a bonanza which remains the most valuable such contract in professional sports history.
