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About Jeremiah Farrell

Jeremiah (Jerry) Farrell (born 1937) is an American professor emeritus of mathematics at Butler University in Indiana. He is well known for having designed Will Shortz's favorite puzzle, the 1996 "Election Day" crossword in The New York Times. This puzzle was discussed at length in Allan Connor's The Crossword Century. He has also written puzzles for many other books and newspapers, such as Scott Kim's puzzle column for Discover magazine. He was featured in the New York Sun for solving the Washington Square Park puzzle in 2006.

With his wife Karen, Farrell has helped to organize the biannual Gathering for Gardner conferences, which started in 1993 as an invitation-only event for people connected with Martin Gardner.

In 2006 Farrell and his wife took over from A. Ross Eckler, Jr. as editors and publishers of the quarterly publication Word Ways: the Journal of Recreational Linguistics, established in 1968.

Positions

Present Editor of Word Ways, Butler University
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Present Professor Emeritus of Mathematics, Butler University ‐ Department of Mathematics & Actuarial Sciences
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Disciplines

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Gathering For Gardner (33)

Gathering for Gardner inspires fun and wonder for recreational mathematics, magic, puzzles, and art. Farrell has helped to organize the biannual Gathering for Gardner conferences, which started in 1993 as an invitation-only event for people connected with Martin Gardner. Papers and solutions produced for the Gathering for Gardner Gift Exchange have been published in Martin Gardner Tribute Books, published by AK Peters (now CRC Press).

Recent Works (1)

International Puzzle Party (11)

Jeremiah Farrell is a regular attendee at the International Puzzle Party. International Puzzle Parties have been held almost every year since 1978. IPP's are usually organized in three-year cycles in the USA, the Far East, and Europe. 100 puzzle designers create 100 copies of their puzzle and pass it out at the party and exchange them with the other attendees.

Crossword Puzzles (6)

While Farrell's most famous crossword puzzle is the 1996 'Election Day' Puzzle from the New York Times, he has created numerous puzzles throughout his career.