Games and Competition
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Challenge Yourself With Ken Jennings’ Latest “Playful” Puzzle
Can you figure out this exclusive new brain teaser from the “Jeopardy!” champion?
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This Geometry Game Is Nerdy, Addictive Fun
Bisecting an angle has never been more fun
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Behind the Unceasing Allure of the Rubik’s Cube
The 80’s fad should’ve fallen into obscurity—somehow it didn’t
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The National Spelling Bee Ended With a Tie For the First Time in Half a Century
One champion later said he and his co-winner were competing against the dictionary, not each other
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Google Doodle Celebrates Rubik’s Cube 40th Birthday
For its 40th Birthday, the cube goes digital
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Architects Give the Classic Chess Set a Radical Makeover
The designer behind the traditional kings and queens would resign if he saw these avant-garde game boards
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Mathematicians Say Candy Crush Really Is Hard
You can feel better about your obsession with Candy Crush. The game isn’t just mindless swiping; it's an actually difficult math problem.
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How Merv Griffin Came Up With That Weird Question/Answer Format for Jeopardy!
Champion Ken Jennings delves into what gives the virtually unchanged game show its lasting power
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What is Garry Kasparov's Next Move?
The great chess champion brings his knowledge to the games of Sochi, global politics and computer intelligence
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What's a 9-Letter Word for a 100-Year-Old Puzzle?
The crossword puzzle turns 100 this week -- here's how it rose to popularity
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The Strange and Mysterious History of the Ouija Board
Tool of the devil, harmless family game—or fascinating glimpse into the non-conscious mind?
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Disney Kills LucasArts, My Childhood
When LucasArts was first starting out in the 1980s, the future of video games included holograms, virtual reality headsets and worldwide networking
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What Does Citizen Kane Have to Do With Mass Effect 2?
Modern games find inspiration in the techniques of classic film noir
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The Murky History of Foosball
How did the tabletop game get from parlor halls in 19th-century Europe to the basements of American homes?
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Gamblers Take Note: The Odds in a Coin Flip Aren't Quite 50/50
And the odds of spinning a penny are even more skewed in one direction, but which way?
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Crockford’s Club: How a Fishmonger Built a Gambling Hall and Bankrupted the British Aristocracy
A working-class Londoner operated the most exclusive gambling club the world has ever seen
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Post Script: How I Constructed the Great American History Puzzle
Post Script: How I Constructed the Great American History Puzzle
Hints and Honors
The Great American History Puzzle lives on! Now complete with helpful hints and full explanations of answers! Plus, our Honor Roll of solvers
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Congratulations to (drum roll…) Jeffrey Davidson!
I'm pleased to announce the winner of the Smithsonian's Great American History Puzzle
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Victory
The contest part of the Great American History Puzzle is officially over! I think the ninth puzzle was a lot of fun, however, so I hope you take a shot at it even if there's no grand prize on the table anymore.
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