Tag: Insulation resistance tester’s unit crossword clue

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Constructed by: Joe Rodini

Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Reveal Answer: Crop Top

Themed answers need to have “TOP” CROPPED from it, in order to match the corresponding clues:

• 38A Revealing garment, or how to make 17-, 23-, 49-, and 53-Across match their clues : CROP TOP

• 17A Can’t and won’t : CONTRACTIONS (CONTRACT OPTIONS – TOP)
• 23A Respectful title in “Bridgerton” : HER GRACE (TOPHER GRACE – TOP)
• 49A Tribute band’s set list : COVERS (COVERT OPS – TOP)
• 53A Decorator’s samples : SWATCHES (STOPWATCHES – TOP)

Read on, or jump to …
… a complete list of answers

Bill’s time: 12m 10s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1A Personal space, perhaps : BLOG

Many folks who visit this website regard it as just that, a website. That is true, but more specifically it is referred to as a blog, as I make regular posts (actually daily posts) that then occupy the “front page” of the site. The blog entries are in reverse chronological order, and one can just look back day-by-day, reading older and older posts. “Blog” is a contraction of the term “web log”.

5A 1950s politico Stevenson : ADLAI

Adlai Stevenson (AES) ran for president unsuccessfully against Dwight D. Eisenhower (DDE), once in 1952 and again in 1956. Some years after his second defeat, Stevenson served under President Kennedy (JFK) as Ambassador to the United Nations. Stevenson was always noted for his eloquence and he had a famous exchange in a UN Security Council meeting during the Cuban missile crisis. Stevenson bluntly demanded that the Soviet representative on the council tell the world if the USSR was installing nuclear weapons in Cuba. His words were “Don’t wait for the translation, answer ‘yes’ or ‘no’!” followed by “I am prepared to wait for my answer until Hell freezes over!”

16A Chianti o pinot grigio : VINO

In Italian, a “vino” (wine) might be “Chianti o pinot grigio” (Chianti or pinot grigio).

20A Absolut rival : STOLI

Stolichnaya vodka originated in Russia, but now it’s made in Latvia. Latvia is of course a completely different country, so you won’t see the word “Russian” on the label anymore. But, the “Stoli” label still bears a drawing of the famous Hotel Moskva, which is located near Red Square in Moscow.

21A Actor Watanabe : KEN

Ken Watanabe is an actor from Japan known mainly for his roles in the films “Letters from Iwo Jima” and “The Last Samurai”. My favorite of Watanabe’s movies though, is “Inception”. Great film …

23A Respectful title in “Bridgerton” : HER GRACE (TOPHER GRACE – TOP)

“Bridgerton” is a fascinating period drama TV series based on a series of historical romance novels by Julia Quinn. Most of the action takes place in London’s high society during the Regency Era. An intriguing element is the show’s approach to race. There is a common, albeit unfounded, assertion that King George III’s wife Queen Charlotte was of African descent. “Bridgerton” runs with this assertion, portraying the era’s society as quite diverse.

Topher Grace is an American actor best known for his roles as Eric Forman on the sitcom “That ’70s Show” and as Eddie Brock/Venom in the 2007 film “Spider-Man 3”.

26A Oracle : SEER

In ancient Greece and Rome, an oracle was someone believed to be inspired by the gods to give wise counsel. The word “oracle” derives from the Latin “orare” meaning “to speak”, which is the same root for our word “orator”. One of the most important oracles of ancient Greece was Pythia, the high priestess to Apollo at Delphi.

28A Jelly bean dispenser opening : SLOT

Jelly beans are thought to have originated in Boston, and it is documented that they were sent from there by families and friends of soldiers fighting in the Civil War.

31A Reiteration opening : I SAID

The verb “to iterate” means to repeat over again. The verb “reiterate” means the same thing. One might suspect that “reiterate” is one of those words that has crept into the language due to repeated (reiterated?!) misuse. Well, that’s not quite the case, but close. Back in the 1400s, “iterate” meant “repeat”, and “reiterate” meant “repeat again and again”. We lost the distinction between those two definitions over time.

33A Take off politely : DOFF

One doffs one’s hat, usually as a mark of respect. To doff is to take off, with “doff” being a contraction of “do off”. The opposite of “doff” is “don”, meaning “to put on”.

40A __ culpa : MEA

Many Roman Catholics are very familiar with the Latin phrase “mea culpa” meaning “my fault”, as it is used in the Latin Mass. The additional term “mea maxima culpa” translates as “my most grievous fault”.

41A Eco-friendly beauty brand : AVEDA

Horst Rechelbacher was traveling in India in 1970 when he was introduced to the Hindu science of longevity called Ayurveda, which inspired him to set up his own company of skin and hair care products that he called Aveda. The company opened its doors in 1978 and is based in Blaine, Minnesota.

44A “Army of Darkness” director Sam : RAIMI

Sam Raimi is a very successful director and producer. He was behind the “Spider-Man” series of films among others, and TV shows such as “Xena: Warrior Princess”. In 1993, Raimi married Gillian Green, the youngest daughter of actor Lorne Greene of “Bonanza” fame. Raimi and Greene named their eldest son Lorne, after his grandfather.

“The Evil Dead” is a horror movie franchise that includes video games and comic books, all derived from a series of three films: “The Evil Dead” (1981), “Evil Dead II” (1987) and “Army of Darkness” (1992). I don’t “do” horror, so I can’t tell you anything about them …

46A Insulation resistance tester’s unit : MEGOHM

A megohm is a unit of electrical resistance equal to one million ohms.

62A Metric weights, casually : KGS

Today, the gram is defined as one thousandth of a kilogram, with the kilogram being equal to the mass of a physical sample preserved by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures (well, up until 2019, when it became more hi-tech than I can explain!). Prior to 1960, the gram was defined as the weight of a cubic centimeter of pure water (at the temperature of melting ice).

63A Florida city that hosts an annual Pirate Festival : TAMPA

The Gasparilla Pirate Festival is an annual outdoor celebration in Tampa, Florida, celebrating the legend of the pirate José Gaspar. The main event is the theatrical sea invasion of Tampa Bay by the fully-rigged pirate ship José Gasparilla II, followed by a Parade of Pirates along Bayshore Boulevard.

Down

2D Booty : LOOT

“Booty”, meaning “plunder, profit”, is derived from the Old French word “butin” that has the same meaning.

3D “Welp, never mind” : OR NOT

“Welp” is a slang term used at the beginning of a sentence to indicate disappointment. “Welp” is used in the same way that we use the interjection “well”.

Well, that worked out.

Welp, that didn’t work out.

4D “Amscray!” : GET LOST!

Pig Latin is in effect a game. One takes the first consonant or consonant cluster of an English word and moves it to the end of the word, and then adds the letters “ay”. So, the Pig Latin for the word “nix” is “ixnay” (ix-n-ay), and for “scram” is “amscray” (am-scr-ay).

5D Orthodontist’s org. : ADA

Orthodontics is a branch of dentistry dealing with the straightening of teeth. The name comes from the Greek “orthos” meaning “straight” and “dontia” meaning “teeth”.

6D Hall of Famer Eric who was NFL rushing yards leader four times in the 1980s : DICKERSON

Eric Dickerson is a retired NFL player. He set the league’s single-season rushing record (2,105 yards) in 1984. Because he was short-sighted, he wore prescription goggles for his whole professional career.

9D Web gateway co. : ISP

Internet service provider (ISP)

11D Part of LED : DIODE

A light-emitting diode (LED) is a specialized form of semiconductor that when switched on releases photons (light). LEDs were used in early digital watches, and are getting more and more popular even though their use in electronic equipment is fading away. LEDs are used as replacements for the much less-efficient tungsten light bulbs. I replaced all of my tungsten Xmas lights many years ago and saved a lot on my electricity bill.

13D Guinness superlative : MOST

“The Guinness Book of World Records” is the best-selling copyrighted book series of all time, and is one of the most frequently stolen books from public libraries. It was first published in 1954, compiled by twins Norris and Ross McWhirter, who later became famous in Britain for hosting a TV show about world records. The book was conceived by Sir Hugh Beaver, the managing director of Guinness Brewery, as a way to settle pub arguments and promote the Guinness brand.

“The Guinness Book of World Records” holds some records of its own. It is the best-selling, copyrighted series of books of all time and is one of the books most often stolen from public libraries! The book was first published in 1954 by two twins, Norris and Ross McWhirter. The McWhirter twins found themselves with a smash hit, and eventually became very famous in Britain hosting a TV show based on world records.

25D Mulligan : REDO

There doesn’t seem to be a definitive account for the origin of the term “mulligan”, which is most often used for a shot do-over in golf. There are lots of stories about golfers named Mulligan though, and I suspect that one of them may be true …

28D Ersatz : SHAM

Something described as ersatz is a copy, and usually not a good one. “Ersatz” comes from the German verb “ersetzen” meaning “to replace”.

30D Universal donor’s type, briefly : O NEG

In general, a person with type O-negative blood is a universal donor, meaning that his or her blood can be used for transfusion into persons with any other blood type: A, B, AB or O, negative or positive (although there are other considerations). Also in general, a person with type AB-positive blood is a universal recipient, meaning that he or she can receive a transfusion of blood of any type: A, B, AB or O, negative or positive.

32D Germane : APT

Something that is germane is relevant. “Germane” originally meant “having the same parents”, but the term was used more figuratively to mean “on topic” by William Shakespeare in “Hamlet”. That’s the way we’ve been using the word since “Hamlet” was first performed in the 1600s.

35D Disaster relief org. : FEMA

Federal emergency management has been structured for over 200 years, but what we know today as the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) was created in 1979 in an Executive Order issued by President Jimmy Carter.

38D Partnership, informally : CAHOOTS

To be in cahoots with someone is to be in partnership with that person. The exact etymology is unclear, but one suggestion is that it comes from the French “cohorte”, which was used in the US to mean “companion, confederate”.

39D Oracle : PROPHET

In ancient Greece and Rome, an oracle was someone believed to be inspired by the gods to give wise counsel. The word “oracle” derives from the Latin “orare” meaning “to speak”, which is the same root for our word “orator”. One of the most important oracles of ancient Greece was Pythia, the high priestess to Apollo at Delphi.

42D __ Without Borders : DOCTORS

“Médecins Sans Frontières” (Doctors Without Borders) is an international aid organization that was founded in France in 1971. The organization is usually referred to as Doctors Without Borders here in North America, but goes by the initialism “MSF” in much of the world.

45D Tottenham’s opponent in the North London derby : ARSENAL

Arsenal Football Club (nicknamed “the Gunners”) is an English soccer team based in the Holloway district of London. The club was founded in 1886 as Dial Square by workers at the Royal Arsenal munitions factory. Dial Square was the name given to the workshops at the center of the Royal Arsenal complex. After just a few weeks in existence, the club changed its name to Royal Arsenal, which was eventually shortened to just Arsenal.

Tottenham is an area in north London in England. It is home to a famous football (soccer) club called Tottenham Hotspur, the team that I used to follow as a kid many moons ago …

47D Letters for a GOAT, perhaps : MVP

Greatest of all time (GOAT)

48D Abbreviation that refers to many racial identities : POC

People of Color (POC)

50D Tree hut dwellers on Endor : EWOKS

The fictional forested moon of Endor features prominently in the “Star Wars” movie “Return of the Jedi”. The moon is home to the race of furry aliens known as Ewoks. Filming for the forest scenes actually took place in Humboldt Redwoods State Park in Northern California.

52D Statistical tool for comparing means : T-TEST

A “t-test” in the world of statistics is one that makes use of a “Student’s t distribution”. The t-statistic was introduced by a chemist working in the Guinness Brewery in Dublin, back in 1908. “Student” was the chemist’s pen name.

56D Chaps : HES

“Chap” is an informal term meaning “lad, fellow” that is used especially in England. The term derives from “chapman”, an obsolete word meaning “purchaser” or “trader”.

59D Busy bee in Apr. : CPA

April 15th wasn’t always Tax Day in the US. The deadline for returns was March 1st from 1913-18, when it was moved to March 15th. Tax Day has been April 15th since 1955.