Title: “Picture This”
Prompt: This week’s contest answer is something architects need to be good at.
Answer: MATH
Correct entries: 506 overall, of which 450 were solo solves

Spare and lovely meta from MGWCC Webmaster Alex Boisvert last week. Four noted structures populated the grid:

19-A: [Architectural marvel in Bangkok] = CHANG BUILDING
28-A: [Architectural marvel in Paris] = EIFFEL TOWER
43-A: [Architectural marvel in Rio] = CHRIST THE REDEEMER
54-A: [Architectural marvel in Kuala Lumpur] = PETRONAS TOWERS

What to do next? Simply picture these architectural feats in your mind (or with Google Images), and you’ll notice that each resembles a letter of the alphabet:

In order they spell contest answer MATH. Very nice!

oldjudge writes:

Really a fun puzzle by Alex!

markta says:

As a math teacher I support this puzzle.

jagoandlitefoot says:

had no idea until i looked up an image of the Chang Building, and everything fell into place at once

HeadinHome writes:

That. Was. Brilliant.

David Stein (who is a math teacher) notes:

Architects and everyone else!

The struggle was worth it for Magoo:

Perhaps the ultimate “if you see it, it’s easy, but if you don’t, it’s unsolvable, puzzle”. Took me 30 minutes to ‘see’ it. Lovely!

And finally, ab notes:

Luckily, you don’t have to accommodate British English here.

We’d need an S-Shaped building — egads!

Thanks to Alex for a lovely, outside-the-box meta. And for webmastering!

ZOOM TALK THIS EVENING WITH PETE MULLER:

Pete Muller and I are having a Zoom discussion this evening from 8:30-10:30 PM ET to celebrate 10 years of the Muller Monthly Music Meta. All are welcome, and there will be a question-and-answer session with Pete, plus he and I will each analyze one of our favorite Muller Music Metas from the past decade.

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/84784161407?pwd=ekZ4RCttWTR2SmpJV0I5SmIzcjY1dz09#success

Meeting ID: 847 8416 1407

Passcode: 494130

Hope to see you there!

THIS WEEK’S INSTRUCTIONS:

This week’s contest answer is a five-letter word.

Solve well, and be not led astray by words intended to deceive.