James Turner, age 16, of Casper, Wyo., for his question:

WHAT IS A GORDIAN KNOT?

The Gordian knot comes from Greek mythology. It is a complex knot tied by Gordius, king of Phrygia and father of Mimos.

Gordius was a Phrygian peasant who became king because he was the first man to drive into town after an oracle had commanded his countrymen to select as ruler the first person who drove into the public square in a wagon.

In gratitude, Gordius dedicated his wagon to the god Zeus and placed it in the grove of the temple, tying the pole of the wagon to the yoke with a rope of bark. The knot was so intricately entwined that no once could undo it.

A saying developed that whoever succeeded in untying the difficult knot would become the ruler of all Asia. Many tried, but all failed.

According to legend, even Alexander the Great was unable to untie the Gordian knot, so he drew his sword and cut it through with a stroke. The expression "to cut the Gordian knot" is used to refer to a situation in which a difficult problem is solved by a quick and decisive action.