PUZZLE #38SATURDAY, OCTOBER 24, 2026

The answers

01PHYSICS
What share of the air we breathe is nitrogen?
78%
About 78%. Oxygen is only about 21%; the rest is mostly argon.
33% of players got it inside their bracket · 1 went for a Bullseye, none dead on
02TECHNOLOGY
How many searches does Google handle every second?
99,000 searches
Around 99,000 a second. Something like 15% of them have never been typed by anyone before.
0% of players got it inside their bracket
03TRANSPORT
How long is the Panama Canal?
50 miles
About 50 miles — and ships are lifted some 85 feet above sea level by locks to cross it.
83% of players got it inside their bracket
04CULTURE
How many words are in the full Harry Potter series?
1.1 million words
About 1.08 million across seven books — the longest, Order of the Phoenix, accounts for over a quarter of a million.
83% of players got it inside their bracket
05SPORT
How many grams of actual gold are in an Olympic gold medal?
6 grams
About 6 grams. The rest of the medal is silver.
67% of players got it inside their bracket