It’s a snowy Thor’s Day here in the mountains. Over a foot of snow fell overnight and blanketed all the world in white, fluffy splendor. Schools are cancelled and businesses shut down. Restaurants and yoga studios told employees to stay home and off the roads. I need to make a trip to the store, but I’m dreading it. Thank god for 4-wheel drive.
In any case, yesterday I gave you a bit of a puzzle, or rather an optical illusion. This time, with visuals! Below, you’ll find the answer. Then we’ll get to today’s Wordle.
In the image below, which square is darker: A or B?
The answer is neither! The ‘A’ and ‘B’ square are the same exact shade of gray. Here’s an image proving it:
This is called the Checker Shadow Illusion and was created by MIT professor of vision science, Edward H. Adelson, back in 1995. While the ‘A’ square appears darker, it’s just an optical illusion. If you printed this image both squares would use the identical mixture of ink and are displayed with pixels of the same exact color, which is rather astonishing. Just looking at the first picture, I still can’t make my brain accept that they’re the same. Wild! It just goes to show how much our perception of things influences how we think about them—and how unreliable our senses truly are.\
In any case, it’s time to knock out today’s Wordle. Let’s do it!
How To Solve Today’s Wordle
The Hint: In stories, it’s important to establish a sense of time and of this thing.
The Clue: This Wordle ends with a vowel.
.
.
.
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The Answer:
Wordle Analysis
Every day I check Wordle Bot to see how I did. You can check your Wordles with Wordle Bot right here.
If only I’d used the Wordle Bot’s favorite word today. Trace would have gotten me to the answer faster. Still, three ain’t bad! Spear is a word I think I’ve used before but I quite like it as an opening guess and I couldn’t think of anything else off the top of my head that I liked as much. I was hopeful that peach would be the answer—wouldn’t that have been just peachy!—but it was the next best thing, slashing the 25 remaining solutions down to just 1: place for the win!
Competitive Wordle Score
Alas, the Wordle Bot guessed in just 2. That gives me a wash today as far as Competitive Wordle is concerned. 1 point for guessing in three, -1 for losing to El Bot Boy.
Today’s Wordle Etymology
The word “place” has its etymology rooted in the Latin word “platea,” which means an open space, courtyard, or broad way. This Latin term itself traces back to the Greek “platys” (πλατύς), meaning broad or wide. Over time, “platea” evolved into “place” in Old French, from which the English language borrowed it. The meaning of “place” has expanded over the centuries to encompass various concepts related to location, space, and position, reflecting its broad and open origins in ancient languages.