Curio Cabinet / Teaser Curio

Tomorrow is the 25th anniversary of Toy Story's release. Time certainly flies! As the days get shorter, and the pandemic rages on, perhaps we could all use a little Woody, Buzz Lightyear, and company in our lives. Or maybe we just need Forky, the beloved spork in Toy Story 4.
 
If you're like Forky, you might be having an existential crisis. Distract yourself by unscrambling today's teaser, and learning more about Toy Story's production and release tomorrow.
 

The phrases of the original quote have the number of words and letters shown below. The phrases were scrambled independently (i.e., the letters from the first phrase aren't scrambled into the second phrase). Can you figure out the original phrase?

"I was meant for a baa domiciles plushy.
And then the trash! Tile Trim! Freedom!" — Forky
 

"I was meant for (4), (5), (5) (4). And then the trash! (2) (6)! Freedom!" — Forky

Think you know the answer? Email support@curious.com with the subject "Teaser #261" and let us know, or check back next week to find out!

If you've ever traveled to a country where you don't speak the language, undoubtedly you know the importance of pictograms in bridging the language barrier. In 1963, the International Council of Graphic Design Associations (Icograda) was established in London to "encourage the better use of graphic design as a means towards the advancement of humanity, regardless of race or creed." One of Icograda's primary missions was to design universal symbols or pictograms for events like the Olympic Games. This International System of Typographic Picture Education (Isotype) made it possible to identify different Olympic events and locations. One of Icograda's members, anthropologist Margaret Mead, was also responsible for recommending the United Nations incorporate glyphs—pictograms and ideograms—in their materials.

See if you can solve this glyph-inspired puzzle, and stay tuned tomorrow to learn more about Margaret Mead.

This is a rebus (ree-buhs) puzzle is a code where images, symbols, or letters represent certain words or phrases. It comes from the Latin phrase non verbis, sed rebus, meaning not by words, but by things. Can you figure out the phrase represented below?
 

Think you know the answer? Email support@curious.com with the subject "Teaser #260" and let us know, or check back next week to find out!

“Too much of anything is bad, but too much of good whiskey is barely enough," Mark Twain once said. After this week, month, year you might need a drink. Pour yourself a finger or two of whiskey, and solve today's boozy teaser. Stay tuned tomorrow to learn more about the Bourbon-making Baptist Minister, Elijah Craig.
  Remember: a word square is similar to a square crossword puzzle, but the same words appear across and down.

Here's an example of a 3x3 word square:
  CAT AGO TOY  

Below are four clues, not in order. Can you make a 4x4 word square out of it?
Drink too much and you might feel this.
A French term for a spirit distilled from sugarcane juice.
You might drink the clue above while on vacation here.
Illinois's state grain.

Think you know the answer? Email support@curious.com with the subject "Teaser #259" and let us know, or check back next week to find out!

Happy Halloween! Looking for a last-minute costume idea? Grab a red hat and trench coat, and a black turtleneck—you're the international caper Carmen Sandiego. While you're getting ready, can you solve today's teaser? In the episode, "A Higher Calling," Carmen Sandiego steals Stonehenge, several ancient artifacts, and today's clue—located in Puerto Rico—to contact extraterrestrials! Unravel this riddle and tune in tomorrow to learn more about the mystery object.

This is a 11 letter English word:

(The original word) A gateway to the cosmos.
(Change the suffix to -ion) A remark.
(Change the suffix to -e) To notice something.
(Remove the first two letters) To perform duties for someone or something.

What's the original word?
 

Think you know the answer? Email support@curious.com with the subject "Teaser #258" and let us know, or check back next week to find out!

Am I blue? Yes, I am blue. Or maybe I'm just looking at Pablo Picasso's paintings. From 1901 to 1904, the Spanish artist worked in a blue-green palette, crafting gloomy portraits like "Melancholy Woman" or "The Glass of Beer (Portrait of the Poet Sabartes." During this phase, Picasso suffered from severe depression following the death of his friend, Catalan painter Carles Casagemas. He expressed his grief through his art, although it took quite some time before any of these paintings sold. In 2015, a painting from his blue period titled "Nightclub Singer" set a new record, fetching $67.5 million at auction. Tune in tomorrow to learn more about Pablo Picasso's illustrious career. In the meantime, can you make a word ladder from BLUE to NUDE.

BLUE
 
 
 
 This animal goes "bah"
 
 
 
 
 A facial feature
 
NUDE

Hint: there are two solutions to this puzzle, an 7-step answer, and an 11-step answer. We are looking for the 11-step solution.
 

Remember: a word ladder is a series of words, starting from one word and ending with another, where each subsequent word is a one-letter change from the previous word (without rearranging, adding, or removing letters). And, of course, each step is a common, valid English word. For instance, you can change CAT to DOG like this: CAT => COT => DOT => DOG.
 

Think you know the answer? Email support@curious.com with the subject "Teaser #257" and let us know, or check back next week to find out!

It's spooky season! Break out those tools and get to work on that Jack-o-Lantern. Pro-tip: get a pumpkin with a thick green stem to ensure peak freshness and to assist with carving. But before you start scooping out those pumpkin seeds, try to untangle this lyric from The Nightmare Before Christmas.
 
The phrases of the original quote have the number of words and letters shown below. The phrases were scrambled independently (i.e., the letters from the first phrase aren't scrambled into the second phrase). Can you figure out the original phrase?

A shoeshine twill, a shoeshine twill. Pumpkins scream in attended of high.

 

(4) (2) (9), (4) (2) (9). Pumpkins scream in (3) (4) (2) (5).

 
Think you know the answer? Email support@curious.com with the subject "Teaser #256" and let us know, or check back next week to find out!

It’s World Space Week. Enjoy this week's space-themed teaser.
 

In case you thought 2020 couldn't get any stranger, Russia has declared Venus to be a "Russian planet." That's right, we are now laying claim to entire planets. As you may have read, scientists discovered potential signs of life on the hot planet. Now, Russia is gearing up to return to the planet and find out for themselves. Between the 1960s and 1980s the former USSR "Venera" program successfully landed 10 probes on Venus. Of course, they only lasted between 23 minutes and two hours before they were crushed and incinerated. Today, as you contemplate the next potential space race, try solving this teaser.
 

It's the future. You're given the chance to go to Venus in a spacecraft equipped with all the luxuries money can buy—a fancy space toilet, quality liquid meals, and even a Netflix subscription. All you have to do is keep a journal of what you see. Here's the catch: you can only stay one day or one year. If you stay one day you'll earn $1 million, and if you stay one year you'll earn $2 million. Which is the better deal?

Think you know the answer? Email support@curious.com with the subject "Teaser #255" and let us know, or check back next week to find out!

Have you taken up any quarantine hobbies? Perhaps you've tried out some backyard pottery, cross stitching, or papier-mâché or maybe you're sticking with two-dimensional arts and craft projects. Either way, maybe you can help us by solving this week's teaser.
 

A 2 by 2 square is divided into four 1 by 1 squares. Each of the small squares is to be painted either purple or yellow. In how many different ways can the painting be accomplished so that no purple square shares its top or right side with any yellow square? There may be as few as zero or as many as four small purple squares.
 

Think you know the answer? Email support@curious.com with the subject "Teaser #254" and let us know, or check back next week to find out!

The heroes at the Post Office sort, send, and deliver mail in rain, snow, and unbearable heat. To celebrate the Post Office, whose origins date to the Second Continental Congress (1775) under the leadership of Postmaster General Benjamin Franklin, try solving today's teaser.

Can you make a word ladder from POST to MAIL? Hint: there are two solutions to this puzzle, a 5-step answer, and a 7-step answer. We are looking for the 7-step solution.

POST  
 
 
 
A Grimm story  
 
MAIL

Remember: a word ladder is a series of words, starting from one word and ending with another, where each subsequent word is a one-letter change from the previous word (without rearranging, adding, or removing letters). And, of course, each step is a common, valid English word. For instance, you can change CAT to DOG like this: CAT => COT => DOT => DOG.

Think you know the answer? Email support@curious.com with the subject "Teaser #253" and let us know, or check back next week to find out!

Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me. It's National Talk Like a Pirate Day. Grab yer grog—we're going to plunder and pillage, lads and lasses. No prey no pay! Best follow the cap'n's orders or you'll be walking the plank. Savvy?

Embrace your inner pirate by figuring out today's puzzle. Follow the clues to the find the buried treasure! Today's word is a 12-letter English word. (The original word) Someone skilled in swordplay. (Remove the last letter) To ostentatiously engage in daring adventures. (Remove the last 6 letters) To move with a splashing sound. (Remove the first letter) What you do on laundry day. What's the original word?
 

Think you know the answer? Email support@curious.com with the subject "Teaser #252" and let us know, or check back next week to find out!

These days you might be weary of turning on the TV or scrolling through your social media feeds. Fear not! This brain teaser bears no surprising headlines. Skip the front page to figure out the clues in today's puzzle.

  Remember: a word square is similar to a square crossword puzzle, but the same words appear across and down. Here's an example of a 3x3 word square:   CAT AGO TOY   Below are four clues, not in order. Can you make a 4x4 word square out of it? A constant fixture in the Los Angeles skyline A city in central Texas whose famous residents include Chip and Joanna Gaines The SAT is a type of this The other three clues are often discussed in this

Think you know the answer? Email support@curious.com with the subject "Teaser #251" and let us know, or check back next week to find out!
ut.

Twenty-three years ago, Princess Diana died in a tragic car crash in Paris, France. Today, she is often remembered for her iconic style and complicated marriage to Prince Charles. What Diana wanted to be remembered for, however, was her devotion to her children and her humanitarian work. As a public figure, she brought attention to the issues like the HIV/AIDS epidemic, leprosy, homelessness, and landmines. In honor of her commitment to social justice, we invite you to unscramble this quote from Diana's interview with BBC journalist Martin Bashir. The phrases of the original quote have the number of words and letters shown below. The phrases were scrambled independently (i.e., the letters from the first phrase aren't scrambled into the second phrase). Can you figure out the original phrase? People think that at the hay deed font a man is the only answer. Actually, loafing jib full is better for me. — Princess Diana People think that at the (3) (2) (3) (3) a man is the only answer. Actually, (1) (10) (3) is better for me. — Princess Diana

Think you know the answer? Email support@curious.com with the subject "Teaser #250" and let us know, or check back next week to find out!

Acclaimed children's book author Dr. Seuss may have espoused the many benefits of love and togetherness, but it seems his definition of love was rather... scatological? In fact, the serial neologist apparently coined two terms, "canal paste" and "eardrum soy," which put a far more nauseating spin on the exploits of Whoville. Hmm... but then again, something doesn't look quite right about those quotes. Did Dr. Seuss wrap up his career with his mind in the gutter, or have we royally dropped the ball? Two phrases from this Dr. Seuss quote have been scrambled. The phrases of the original quote have the number of words and letters shown below. The phrases were scrambled independently (i.e., the letters from the first phrase aren't scrambled into the second phrase). Can you figure out the original phrases? You know you're in love when you canal paste fell because reality is finally better than eardrum soy. — Dr. Seuss You know you're in love when you (4) (4) (6) because reality is finally better than (4) (6). — Dr. Seuss

Think you know the answer? Email support@curious.com with the subject "Teaser #249" and let us know, or check back next week to find out!

If you were expecting a well-thought-out preamble to this Teaser, think again. Instead, I'm going to subject you all to word salad. What kind, you ask? If only I had thought of that before I started. Don't mind me while I start babbling about my dislike of the color sky blue, then segue into mindnumbing facts about my Aunt Phyllis, before speaking outright gibberish. Hey! Are you listening to me over there?! I am a five-letter English word. I frequently run my mouth. If you remove the first letter from me, I'll become sad and forced to do this. If you remove the first two letters from me, I didn't make it to first base. If you remove the second and third letters from me, some might refer to me as a barfly. What am I?

Think you know the answer? Email support@curious.com with the subject "Teaser #248" and let us know, or check back next week to find out!

It's a Flashback! Enjoy this favorite from the Curio Cabinet archives.
 

Congratulations to the Chicago Cubs! In honor of their dramatic and historic victory, here's a baseball brain teaser to keep the baseball juices flowing (ummm, that's brain juices, not steroid juices):

This year, Ace Alonzo, Blazin' Boone, and Cruisin' Callahan played for the Chicago Cubs, Cleveland Indians, and Boston Red Sox in some combination. Can you figure out which teams they each played for?

Here are some things that happened this season:

Cruisin' Callahan once struck out Blazin' Boone on three pitches.
Ace Alonzo never wanted to be a Lovable Loser so never played for them.
Cruisin' Callahan played for a team from the capital city of its state.
Blazin' Boone never had any games at Progressive Field.
Cruisin' Callahan had a special clause in his contract that let him only play home games, which means he got to sleep in his tree house fort in his childhood oak tree every night of the whole season.
Ace Alonzo had spring training at Goodyear Ballpark.
Cruisin' Callahan was covering first base when he got an out by catching a throw from Ace Alonzo.
Blazin' Boone had one favorite baseball cap that he wore for every game.

So, what do you think? Which teams did Alonzo, Boone, and Callahan play for? Warning: This is trickier than it looks...

Think you know the answer? Email support@curious.com with the subject "Teaser FLASHBACK" and let us know, or check back next week to find out!

It's a Flashback! Enjoy this favorite from the Curio Cabinet archives.
 
Is there such a thing as too much bacon? The answer will shock you!
 

Of course, there is. John, however, loves bacon and refuses to give it up. Recently, he went way overboard with a 100%-bacon lunch, justifying it to himself and his cardiologist by saying it helped him come up with this math teaser.
 
In the addition problem below, each unique letter represents a different single digit. None of the numbers starts with a 0 (i.e., B and L are not 0). What are the values of BACON and LUNCH?
 

  BACON
  BACON
  BACON
+ BACON
  LUNCH

 
Think you know the answer? Email support@curious.com with the subject "FLASHBACK Teaser" and let us know, or check back next week to find out!

It's a Flashback! Enjoy this favorite from the Curio Cabinet archives.
 

Whose turn is it? Well, it's our turn to send you a teaser, followed by your turn to bombard us with (hopefully correct) answers. But right after you do, let's flip it around. Send us a teaser (and hopefully correct answer), and we might use it for a future teaser! Ready? It's your turn.
 
This is a common 5-letter English word.

(The original word) You can turn with this.
(Remove the 1st letter) You can turn on this.
(Remove the 1st and 2nd letters) This can be turned delicious.
(Remove the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd letters) This might turn above you (less common).

What's the original word?
 
Think you know the answer? Email support@curious.com with the subject "FLASHBACK | Teaser #157" and let us know, or check back next week to find out!

Have you heard about the outlaw Teaser Curio running amok across the country? Headlines say it could be hiding right in front of our noses and we'd never know it! Here's a snippet of the wanted poster: WANTED: Notorious Teaser #247, solved or unsolved REWARD: 1 CQ Point I say we join the search posse and nab this puzzling lamster! Can you make a word ladder from BURST to POSSE that satisfies the clue below? BURST        Steed       POSSE Remember: a word ladder is a series of words, starting from one word and ending with another, where each subsequent word is a one-letter change from the previous word (without rearranging, adding, or removing letters). And, of course, each step is a common, valid English word. For instance, you can change CAT to DOG like this: CAT => COT => DOT => DOG.

Think you know the answer? Email support@curious.com with the subject "Teaser #247" and let us know, or check back next week to find out!

I don't need to tell you boxing is, in many ways, a brutal sport. Its entire premise is to beat the other guy's face black and blue, or as Panamanian former professional boxer Roberto Durán would say, turn it "tinge tight." Hold on... that doesn't sound right. Did Durán maybe take a few too many punches to the head? Hmm... no, it's Durán's quote that took a few too many knocks on the grammatically level. Rather than throwing in the towel, let's give this quote a Rocky-esque pep talk to get it back on its feet and unscrambled. Ding, ding!

Two phrases from this Roberto Durán quote have been scrambled. The phrases of the original quote have the number of words and letters shown below. The phrases were scrambled independently (i.e., the letters from the first phrase aren't scrambled into the second phrase). Can you figure out the original phrases? Tinge tight motivates me. It makes me neigh thus yup more. — Roberto Durán (7) (3) motivates me. It makes me (6) (3) (3) more. — Roberto Durán

Think you know the answer? Email support@curious.com with the subject "Teaser #246" and let us know, or check back next week to find out!

Now isn't the best time for home improvement... but hey, we're bored beyond our wits and tired of pacing our livingrooms. Sure, all of our friends and family are quarantining. But who cares! We're staying engaged by torturing ourselves with masonry, roofing, and carpentry, as well as dizzying selections of paints, landscaping pebbles, and countertops. Oh, and let's not forget interior decoration!   Remember: a word square is similar to a square crossword puzzle, but the same words appear across and down. Here's an example of a 3x3 word square:   CAT AGO TOY   Below are four clues, not in order. Can you make a 4x4 word square out of it? Run a drill Flubs It gets wiped All done

Think you know the answer? Email support@curious.com with the subject "Teaser #245" and let us know, or check back next week to find out!