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By Kevin Hwang, Ariel Schwartz, and Sid Creutz
Answer: THUMB HOLES

Solvers are presented with 12 separate sets of diagramless clues, labeled Metal and Brick, respectively. The grids are ordered from smallest to largest within each category.

These grids can be solved mostly as normal, except that occasionally individual letters have to fit in between columns, and some columns are physically separated from the rest of their rows, in a fairly obnoxious fashion. The filled grids are shown below:

M1 A B C D E
1 A T A T S
2 R O O T
3 S A N D Y
4 K C A L
5 E Y E
M2 A B C D E
1 A L E X A
2 D E L H I
3 O N O
4 B I O S
5 E N N A
M3 A B C D
1 A R E A
2 T E X T
3 L A T H
4 A L O E
5 T E R N
6 E S T A
M4 A B C D E F
1 E P A L O B
2 F A B U R E
3 F R U I T S
4 E I G H T
5 C S I R O
6 T H
M5 A B C D E
1 N E N E
2 A X E S
3 T A W S
4 A L D I
5 S T I E B
6 H E M A L
7 A D D L E
M6 A B C D E F
1 O F A G A M
2 H E L E N A
3 E P O X Y
4 M C R I B
5 S E G O E
6 S E I U
7 A S I
M7 A B C D E F G H
1 S T A G E S G E E
2 C O R E A E D M
3 P E R O X I D E
4 P S S R O G E R
5 R E I G N E R G
6 I A S E Y R I E
7 M R I
8 O P T I
B1 A B C D
1 E X A M
2 P E L E
3 I N C A
4 L O O N
5 E P H
6 P H O
7 S H E O L
8 R N
B2 A B C D E F G H
1 C D I M E W
2 A N N E X E D
3 M I G H T B E
4 P P R I R M A
5 O R A A S E A
6 O R I T M I
7 K N E E L
B3 A B C D E F G
1 B E G S F O R
2 O R E I L L Y
3 G A O L E M E
4 I S R A X E L
5 T A G S I C E
6 T H E M B T A
7 A I S L E S
8 I N E P T
B4 A B C D E F G H I J K
1 D S L G E T T O I T
2 M A C R O S S X S W
3 T O D O S A V I L E
4 C O R V I D A E
5 G R O O M I N G
6 I O C M A Z D A
7 A C A G E E S E
8 N A N O D R E W
B5 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R
1 A K A G P S B O O E D F I X E D
2 G A I L O R O G R O C E R G E H R Y
3 E Z R A W I N D O W R A I N N S I E
4 I A T D E M O E D N O R C O O U S T
5 S K I C R O O N E R S A A B C L A N
6 T H E E U T H I S I S U S E I N A R
7 A R P E A N N G E R A L D A C C
8 O S T R I C H N A S S E R
9 A T O T A L

At this point (or during the grid filling step), solvers need to realize that the grids they have constructed form pieces of another building on campus. As with the pre-evolution form of this puzzle (“It’s Not Easy”), the individual crossword squares here represent windows on a building. As hinted by a number of Course 6-themed clues, the textural information, and the explicit appearance of GEHRY within the grid, this building is the Stata Center.

The structure of the building has been taken to its natural conclusion in the puzzle (broken into pieces). The next step is to attempt to reassemble the pieces of Stata to reform the building. The 12 grids can be rearranged into the two towers of Stata, as shown in unrolled form below (each piece starts and ends at the vertical glass wall in the building on each tower).

This time, there isn’t anything in the windows of the building (at least, nothing we’re planning on placing). However, within the grid there are 10 squares marked with X, each of which appear sort of close to the boundaries between assembled grid squares.

Repeating the mechanic from the previous puzzle using these windows , we can read words diagonally down and to the right from each X square. This is also clued by the phrase DOWNRIGHT CROSS in the final brick grid.

Reading in order around each tower (starting and ending at the vertical glass wall of each tower), the words from Dreyfoos tower read out IT LETS HIKERS HITCH and the words from Gates tower read out BOOK BASED WITHIN CAMP GREEN LAKE. These two cluephrases can be solved and joined to provide the final answer, THUMB HOLES.

Dreyfoos Tower
A L E X A
D E L H I
O N O
B I O S
E N N A
D S L G E T T O I T
M A C R O S S X S W
T O D O S A V I L E
C O R V I D A E
G R O O M I N G
I O C M A Z D A
A C A G E E S E
N A N O D R E W
A R E A
T E X T
L A T H
A L O E
T E R N
E S T A
 (bldg 36) 
A K A G P S B O O E D F I X E D
G A I L O R O G R O C E R G E H R Y
E Z R A W I N D O W R A I N N S I E
I A T D E M O E D N O R C O O U S T
S K I C R O O N E R S A A B C L A N
T H E E U T H I S I S U S E I N A R
A R P E A N N G E R A L D A C C
O S T R I C H N A S S E R
A T O T A L
E P A L O B
F A B U R E
F R U I T S
E I G H T
C S I R O
T H
Gates Tower
O F A G A M
H E L E N A
E P O X Y
M C R I B
S E G O E
S E I U
A S I
C D I M E W
A N N E X E D
M I G H T B E
P P R I R M A
O R A A S E A
O R I T M I
K N E E L
N E N E
A X E S
T A W S
A L D I
S T I E B
H E M A L
A D D L E
B E G S F O R
O R E I L L Y
G A O L E M E
I S R A X E L
T A G S I C E
T H E M B T A
A I S L E S
I N E P T
S T A G E S G E E
C O R E A E D M
P E R O X I D E
P S S R O G E R
R E I G N E R G
I A S E Y R I E
M R I
O P T I
E X A M
P E L E
I N C A
L O O N
E P H
P H O
S H E O L
R N
A T A T S
R O O T
S A N D Y
K C A L
E Y E