Here you'll find a variety of puzzle themed items and pieces of information to hold your interest. Learn about some of the wonderful words and phrases in our everyday language, find out about the health benefits of crosswords and puzzles, be entertained by Christine's Hello column… and there's much more on offer. The latest submissions appear below. Thanks for dropping by and we hope you enjoy your visit.
Since the ancient times of the Greeks, owls have been perceived as being wise. Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom, is often depicted with an owl perched on her head or on one of her shoulders, symbolising knowledge and scholarship. Athena and her ‘Little Owl’ appear on opposite sides of ancient Athenian coinage. The [more…]
It’s not clear whether the game started in Scotland or was adapted from the Dutch who frequently traded on the east coast of Scotland. The evidence for this is the word golf, which came from the medieval Dutch term kolf, meaning club or stick. However, most other golfing terms are Scottish, and it was [more…]
A recent study to find out the effect on the brain of surfing the web discovered that it improves brain function in middle-aged and older adults. The test was carried out by Dr Gary Small, professor at the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behaviour at UCLA, and his research team. They used a [more…]
Long before we understood the science behind it, the sun featured in the myths and legends of cultures across the globe. In ancient Egypt, the sun god Ra was believed to ride across the sky in a golden chariot, bringing light and warmth to the land. The Aztecs worshipped the sun as a god [more…]
Alpha, being the first letter, implies ‘first’ or ‘leadership’, as in a first-class mark in a college exam or ‘alpha male’, the dominant man. Beta means second-best, as in a second-class exam mark. It was also a videotape format in those far off days before CDs and DVDs. Beta waves are generated when the [more…]
Mother’s Day is celebrated in many parts of the world, although on different dates. The modern form we recognise now originated in the United States, observed on the second Sunday in May. In the UK, Mother’s Day is also known as Mothering Sunday and is held in March, usually the fourth Sunday of [more…]
Where do sheep get their wool cut? The baa-baashop!
Just kidding. Shearing or clipping is usually done by skilled shearers. A sheep may be said to be sheared or shorn, depending on the dialect, and raddle is the coloured pigment that is used to mark sheep.
The above example is just a small clipping of the countless words and phrases that stem from sheep and sheep farming [more…]
When it comes to writing crossword clues, we have to be very careful when describing a word, especially when there’s another word with a similar meaning. Fortunately, the other word is usually of a different length and wouldn’t fit the clue space, or certain intersecting letters won’t fit in with other words in the [more…]
In Greek mythology, Mnemosyne was the goddess of memory. She was one of the daughters of Gaia and Uranus, and as the mother of the nine Muses she represents enchantment, inspiration, and the power of remembering. She is said to know everything, past, present, and future. A mnemonic device, named from the same [more…]
