Sorta Game — the daily ordering puzzle

Sorta Game puzzle #8 · July 18, 2026

Three rounds of five things, each with a hidden scale to sort them by — then one last guess at the theme tying all three together. Here’s what this puzzle asks.

1. Round 1

   Order these naturally occurring structures by their approximate physical width, from smallest to largest.

   • A single facet of a housefly's compound eye
   • Saturn's north polar storm
   • A typical mature snowflake
   • A single benzene molecule
   • A single basalt column at the Giant's Causeway

2. Round 2

   Order these human-made items or scientific milestones by the year they were invented, introduced, or achieved, from oldest to most recent.

   • The first laboratory isolation of graphene
   • Chicken wire mesh fencing
   • The standard Allen wrench
   • The traditional black-and-white soccer ball
   • The board game Settlers of Catan

3. Round 3

   Order these specific structures, territories, or objects by their total two-dimensional surface area, from smallest to largest.

   • The fully deployed primary mirror of the James Webb Space Telescope
   • The territorial footprint of Mainland France
   • A typical decorative acoustic wall panel
   • The flat face of a standard 1/2-inch metal hardware nut
   • Fort Jefferson in the Dry Tortugas

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