Puzzle 42 - Lost in Translation

Puzzle:

Lost? Here’s a quick guide!

  1. Translate 10100.

  2. Translate f(x).

  3. Translate 10100 x 3.

[Solution: The first step, translate 10100. Three of the crossword clues are a bit strange and are bolded: 18 Across, 35 Across, and 45 Across. “Translate 10100” suggests using Google (10100) Translate. When you Google Translate the italicized portion of the crossword clues (“marbles” for 18 Across) into one specific language, you get the crossword entry. Specifically, “marbles” → [English into Lithuanian] → [Lithuanian into English] → “GLASS BALLS,” “little bird told me” → [English into Javanese] → [Javanese into English] → “SMALL BIRDS TO ME,” and “sitting duck” → [English into Korean] → [Korean into English] → “A SITTING DUCK.” For the second step, translate f(x). The second part of these three clues is a function. After translating the crossword entries as if they were functions according to the equations (i.e. translate 35 across according to f(x - 5) - 8, so right 5 and down 8), a particular set of the letters line up. Doing this for all three equations gets you the answer “BLACKBIRD.” Finally, translate “BLACKBIRD” through all three languages used (× 3), in the order that the three answers ended up after step 2. “BLACKBIRD” → [English into Lithuanian] → [Lithuanian into Korean] → [Korean into Javanese] → the answer: RAVEN.]