Answer: Pixel Puzzle #322

The hidden picture is a pixel creature!

The picture as Python

Here is the same picture stored as numbers in a Python list. The program reads each number and prints a symbol for it, so you can see the picture appear in the Python shell.

picture = [
    "0000000000000000",
    "0000000000000000",
    "0011211001121100",
    "0011111001111100",
    "0111111001111110",
    "0111013113101110",
    "0111114004111110",
    "0110101001010110",
    "0011111111111100",
    "0011111001111100",
    "0011111111111100",
    "0001211001121000",
    "0011111001111100",
    "0001010000101000",
    "0001000000001000",
    "0000000000000000",
]
symbols = " #@*o"

for row in picture:
    line = ""
    for number in row:
        line = line + symbols[int(number)]
    print(line)

When you run it, it prints:

  ##@##  ##@##
  #####  #####
 ######  ######
 ### #*##*# ###
 #####o  o#####
 ## # #  # # ##
  ############
  #####  #####
  ############
   #@##  ##@#
  #####  #####
   # #    # #
   #        #

Squashing the picture smaller

Computers often save space with a trick called run-length encoding. Instead of storing every pixel, they count how many of the same colour are in a row. Here’s this picture written that way:

Show the run-length code

• Row 1: 16 × white
• Row 2: 16 × white
• Row 3: 2 × white, 2 × yellow, 1 × pink, 2 × yellow, 2 × white, 2 × yellow, 1 × pink, 2 × yellow, 2 × white
• Row 4: 2 × white, 5 × yellow, 2 × white, 5 × yellow, 2 × white
• Row 5: 1 × white, 6 × yellow, 2 × white, 6 × yellow, 1 × white
• Row 6: 1 × white, 3 × yellow, 1 × white, 1 × yellow, 1 × white, 2 × yellow, 1 × white, 1 × yellow, 1 × white, 3 × yellow, 1 × white
• Row 7: 1 × white, 5 × yellow, 1 × navy, 2 × white, 1 × navy, 5 × yellow, 1 × white
• Row 8: 1 × white, 2 × yellow, 1 × white, 1 × yellow, 1 × white, 1 × yellow, 2 × white, 1 × yellow, 1 × white, 1 × yellow, 1 × white, 2 × yellow, 1 × white
• Row 9: 2 × white, 12 × yellow, 2 × white
• Row 10: 2 × white, 5 × yellow, 2 × white, 5 × yellow, 2 × white
• Row 11: 2 × white, 12 × yellow, 2 × white
• Row 12: 3 × white, 1 × yellow, 1 × pink, 2 × yellow, 2 × white, 2 × yellow, 1 × pink, 1 × yellow, 3 × white
• Row 13: 2 × white, 5 × yellow, 2 × white, 5 × yellow, 2 × white
• Row 14: 3 × white, 1 × yellow, 1 × white, 1 × yellow, 4 × white, 1 × yellow, 1 × white, 1 × yellow, 3 × white
• Row 15: 3 × white, 1 × yellow, 8 × white, 1 × yellow, 3 × white
• Row 16: 16 × white