Loss By Compression
(Solution)
by Charles Steinhardt and Robyn Speer
A single letter can be inserted into each clue phrase, printer's devilry style, to produce a new phrase. Many of the resulting clues are ambiguous, but you can fit them into the given enumeration if you remove the I's and O's (the "bits") corresponding to the removed letter.
All 26 clues have a different removed letter and therefore a different removed number in binary:
| A | A long distance (a)cross | WIDE |
| B | Or(b)its Jupiter | IO |
| C | Useless fa(c)ts | TRIVIA |
| D | Latin and Rin(d)ge are at the end of a local one | HIGH SCHOOL |
| E | Classical Greek ord(e)r | IONIC |
| F | (F)actual | NONFICTION |
| G | They're useful and form a (g)rid | UTILITIES |
| H | Lined or graph item used in sc(h)ool | SPIRAL NOTEBOOK |
| I | It's ma(i)nly in Venezuela | ORINOCO RIVER |
| J | Act by President T(J) | NONIMPORTATION |
| K | At Newswee(k), Tina Brown's it | EDITOR IN CHIEF |
| L | Study area (l)inked to police | CRIMINOLOGY |
| M | I(m)portant | HIGH PRIORITY |
| N | Made a Bo(n)d game | ACTIVISION |
| O | History from the First Foli(o) age | RICHARD III |
| P | He (p)reached until excommunication | GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA |
| Q | Scotty was one who never met (Q) | ENGINE ROOM OFFICER |
| R | Fi(r)st part of a start-up | INCORPORATION |
| S | With a (s)mall set of sellers | OLIGOPOLISTIC |
| T | Modern part of the Uin(t)a where you find old stuff | DINOSAUR NATIONAL MONUMENT |
| U | Similar to the L(u)dlow amendment | ISOLATIONIST |
| V | Con(v)ersion of the atmosphere | NITROGEN FIXATION |
| W | For some, (w)riting opinions | EDITORIALIZING |
| X | Not comple(x); Ted Barrus can use it | IDIOTPROOF |
| Y | Original New (Y)orkers by a lake | ONEIDA IROQUOIS |
| Z | Gravel was recommended by Jingo(z)ian at one | NOMINATING CONVENTION |
The title is similar, in that "Loss By Compression" is "Lossy Compression" with a "B" (OOIO) inserted.
Inserting the letter M makes the new clue phrase WITH MINUS ONE CHARGE, IODINE ION, and the solution to this clue containing IIOI is TRIIODIDE, the answer to the puzzle.