Solution: How the Turntables
Answer: POMPEY LADIES
Written by Yanaphat Hemrattaphan
We first identify the solutions to the crossword clues in alphabetical order.
| Clue | Answer |
|---|---|
| Naltrexone or naloxone, for example (10) | ANTAGONIST |
| A set of yellow pieces usually represents Turkey in this board game (9) | DIPLOMACY |
| The phrase "Happy to discuss with you at your ___ convenience" (8) | EARLIEST |
| Horned leader of the White-Clad in Fire Force (10) | EVANGELIST |
| A Norwegian band with the first album named "Tragedies" (7) | FUNERAL |
| New Chrome private window (9) | INCOGNITO |
| Creative work which is sequel to Angels & Demons (7) | INFERNO |
| A refreshing citrus drink (8) | LEMONADE |
| Remedy or treat someone with drugs (8) | MEDICATE |
| Year after year it is difficult to break out of this cycle of hardship (7) | POVERTY |
| Kindred souls might celebrate starting life together at this function (9) | RECEPTION |
| Having a quiet and relaxing quality (7) | RESTFUL |
Solvers might notice that the first letter of each clue spells NATHAN CARYKH. Searching this clue phrase on Google gives this video. The video introduces a tool called Palindrome Explorer, which uses a series of turntables to rotate the letters around. The bracket notation should ensure that this is the right path.
The video itself goes at length on the topic of palindrome, which is not related to any of the words we have. However, at the very end of the video, Cary suggests that this tool could be used to create cool anagrams. If the solvers try to find anagrams of these words, they might notice that some of them have the opposite meaning of the original words. In fact, all of these words are antigram, which means that there is an anagram that has the opposite meaning of itself (how the tables have turned).
| Answer | Left Notation | Left Match | Antigram | Right Notation | Right Match | Extract |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ANTAGONIST | (A(N((TAG)O)))(NI)ST | (((())))() | NOT AGAINST | ((N(O(TAG)))A)(IN)ST | (((()))⍟)() | A |
| DIPLOMACY | ((D(I(P(LO))))(MA))CY | ((((())))()) | MAD POLICY | ((MA)(D((P(OL))I)))CY | (()(((⍟())))) | P |
| EARLIEST | (E((A(R(L(I(ES)))))T)) | ((((((())))))) | RISE LATE | ((((R((I(SE))L))A)T)E) | ((((((())))))⍟) | E |
| EVANGELIST | EV((A(N(GE)))((LI)S))T | (((()))(())) | EVIL’S AGENT | EV(((IL)S)(A((GE)N)))T | ((()⍟)((()))) | S |
| FUNERAL | ((FUN)((ER)AL)) | (()(())) | REAL FUN | (((RE)AL)(FUN)) | ((()◯⍟)()) | L |
| INCOGNITO | (IN(COG))(N((IT)O)) | (())((())) | COGNITION | ((COG)NI)(((TI)O)N) | (())((()⍟)) | O |
| INFERNO | (((I(NF))(ER))(NO)) | (((())())()) | NON-FIRE | ((NO)(((NF)I)(RE))) | (()((()⍟)())) | I |
| LEMONADE | ((LE)(MONA)(DE)) | (()()()) | DEMON ALE | ((DE)(MONA)(LE)) | ((⍟◯)()()) | D |
| MEDICATE | (M((ED)(IC)))ATE | ((()())) | DECIMATE | (((DE)(CI))M)ATE | ((()())⍟) | M |
| POVERTY | (PO(VER(TY))) | ((())) | VERY TOP | ((VER(YT))OP) | (((⍟◯))) | Y |
| RECEPTION | ((RECE((PT)I))ON) | (((()))) | NO RECEIPT | (NO(RECE(I(PT)))) | ((((⍟◯)))) | P |
| RESTFUL | (RE(ST)(F(UL))) | (()(())) | FLUSTER | ((F(LU))(ST)ER) | ((())()⍟◯) | E |
Thus, the solvers should try to use the tool to create arrangements of turntables that convert each word into its antigram and follow where each letter goes. The brackets used, both before and after turning, should match one of the rows in the table. Extracting the starred letters reads MY PEOPLE SAID.
The last remaining turntable converts the answer phrase into the final answer. A few positions of letters are given to lower the search space. The correct distributions of letters inside the turntable is ((M(Y(PE)))OP)L((ES)(A(ID)) leading to the full answer POMPEY LADIES.
Author’s Notes
When I saw the last thirty seconds of the video, I thought to myself, "That was such a neat idea. It would be cool if someone wrote a puzzle about this," then realized that person could be me.