Spectrum #68: Order these universities by endowment — the solution
The Spectrum puzzle from October 21, 2026: six things on one hidden scale, smallest to largest, with every figure and where the checks were best spent.
The puzzle
Order these universities by endowment, smallest at the top and largest at the bottom. The board opened in this order:
- MIT
- Harvard
- Duke
- Yale
- Princeton
- Notre Dame
Nothing was in its place; Harvard opened 4 places from home.
The walkthrough
The ends first. Duke is the smallest of the six at 12.3 billion dollars and Harvard the largest at 56.9 billion dollars. Anchor those and the middle four are what is left to place.
Where the scale splits. The widest gap is between Yale (44.1 billion dollars) and Harvard (56.9 billion dollars) — 12.8 billion dollars apart. Everything above that line belongs on the smallest side and everything below it on the largest side, so sorting the six into those two groups is most of the puzzle.
The closest call. Notre Dame (20.1 billion dollars) and MIT (27.4 billion dollars) are only 7.3 billion dollars apart — the pair that is a coin flip without the figures, and the place to spend a check: a check locks whatever is already right and leaves only the wrong tiles to swap.
The answer
| # | Smallest to Largest | Figure |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Duke | 12.3 billion dollars |
| 2 | Notre Dame | 20.1 billion dollars |
| 3 | MIT | 27.4 billion dollars |
| 4 | Princeton | 36.4 billion dollars |
| 5 | Yale | 44.1 billion dollars |
| 6 | Harvard | 56.9 billion dollars |
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About Spectrum
Spectrum is Noggin’s daily ordering puzzle: six things, one hidden scale, three checks. Tiles in the right place lock green; the figures turn over when the board is done. How to play Spectrum, or play today’s.