# LQL Questionzzzzzzzz



## ThatGuy (Apr 23, 2009)

1) Would you rather have a tiger attack you or a lion? 

2) How far can you run into the woods?

3) How many bricks does it take to complete a building made entirely of bricks? 

4) In a large western city, 80% of the phone numbers are listed, 20% of the phone numbers are businesses, and 20% of the phone numbers start with the numeral "2". If you were to take a random sample of 1000 phone numbers from the city's phone book, how many numbers would you expect to be unlisted, non-business phone numbers that start with a numeral other than "2"?

5) Some months have 31 days, others have 30 days. How many have 28 days? 

6) Do you say "Loo-iss-vill" is the capital of Kentucky, or do you say "Loo-ee-vill" is the capital of Kentucky? 

7) Nancy is a very attractive clerk in a candy store. She is 19 years old, is a Freshman at an Ivy League University, wears fashionable clothes, and is a highly competent mathematician. She has done a least squares analysis on her weight during the last two years and has found that the best fitting polynomial is a cubic equation. What does she weigh?

8) Why are 1968 pennies worth more than 1967 pennies?

9) This is awesome: Why is iron so important to women?

10) What was the (American) President's name in 1960?

11) What do you call a person who doesn't have all of his/her fingers on one hand?

12) If there are 6 apples and you take away 4, how many do you have? 

13) Which popular cheese is made backwards?

LQTM.


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## Lt-UnReaL (Apr 23, 2009)

/me is bored in psych class.



ThatGuy said:


> 1) Would you rather have a tiger attack you or a lion?


A lion. I hope it doesn't attack me, though.



> 2) How far can you run into the woods?


I can run up to right until the woods end.



> 3) How many bricks does it take to complete a building made entirely of bricks?


As many bricks as it takes to complete it!



> 4) In a large western city, 80% of the phone numbers are listed, 20% of the phone numbers are businesses, and 20% of the phone numbers start with the numeral "2". If you were to take a random sample of 1000 phone numbers from the city's phone book, how many numbers would you expect to be unlisted, non-business phone numbers that start with a numeral other than "2"?


That question is extremely unclear and could have like 50 possible answers. Structure it better. 



> 5) Some months have 31 days, others have 30 days. How many have 28 days?


12.



> 6) Do you say "Loo-iss-vill" is the capital of Kentucky, or do you say "Loo-ee-vill" is the capital of Kentucky?


Frankfort!



> 8) Why are 1968 pennies worth more than 1967 pennies?


1968 cents is more than 1967 cents...



> 12) If there are 6 apples and you take away 4, how many do you have?


4.


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## ThatGuy (Apr 23, 2009)

1,2,3,and 4 are wrong.


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## soccerking813 (Apr 23, 2009)

I'll do numbers 1-4.
1.) A tiger.
2.) Until I hit a tree.
3.) 1337
4.) 0, you can't find unlisted numbers in it.  I actually thought of that by myself.


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## Stefan (Apr 23, 2009)

1) Would you rather have a tiger attack you or a lion? 
*I'd rather have a tigher attack a lion.*

2) How far can you run into the woods?
*Until the middle, after that I can only run around inside or run out.*

3) How many bricks does it take to complete a building made entirely of bricks? 
*Zero or one, depending on what you consider a building.*

5) Some months have 31 days, others have 30 days. How many have 28 days? 
*All, if you don't mind some having even more.*

6) Do you say "Loo-iss-vill" is the capital of Kentucky, or do you say "Loo-ee-vill" is the capital of Kentucky? 
*No.*

7) Nancy is a very attractive clerk in a candy store. She is 19 years old, is a Freshman at an Ivy League University, wears fashionable clothes, and is a highly competent mathematician. She has done a least squares analysis on her weight during the last two years and has found that the best fitting polynomial is a cubic equation. What does she weigh?
*Candies.*

8) Why are 1968 pennies worth more than 1967 pennies?
*I was going to say the "8" needs more material than the "7", but peeked at LT's answer and agree.*

10) What was the (American) President's name in 1960?
*Barack Obama.*

11) What do you call a person who doesn't have all of his/her fingers on one hand?
*Normal*

12) If there are 6 apples and you take away 4, how many do you have? 
*At least those four that I took.*


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## shelley (Apr 23, 2009)

Once you take your first step into the woods, are you not also running out toward the exit on the other side?


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## Lt-UnReaL (Apr 23, 2009)

> 4) In a large western city, 80% of the phone numbers are listed, 20% of the phone numbers are businesses, and 20% of the phone numbers start with the numeral "2". If you were to take a random sample of 1000 phone numbers from the city's phone book, how many numbers would you expect to be unlisted, non-business phone numbers that start with a numeral other than "2"?


If I looked in the phone book, out of 1000 numbers that I saw in the phone book, none of the would be unlisted, so 0.


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## ThatGuy (Apr 23, 2009)

Nice. 
didn't get nine. ha. that one is really really good.

14) Does England have a Fourth for July?

15) In a race, if you pass the person in 2nd place, what place are you in?

16) In a race, if you pass the person in last place, what place are you in?


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## shelley (Apr 23, 2009)

Iron is important to women because they lose blood every month. What's the awesome answer?

14) Of course, just like every other country.
15) 2nd place
16) You're in first and you've lapped the slowest runner.


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## Lt-UnReaL (Apr 23, 2009)

ThatGuy said:


> 14) Does England have a Fourth for July?


Nah, they go from July 3rd to 5th. Everyone's age increases a lot faster than the rest of the world over there.



> 15) In a race, if you pass the person in 2nd place, what place are you in?


2nd.



> 16) In a race, if you pass the person in last place, what place are you in?


1st?


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## Robert-Y (Apr 23, 2009)

15) Any place if you do laps in the race

16) Any place but last if you do laps in the race


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## ThatGuy (Apr 23, 2009)

shelley said:


> Iron is important to women because they lose blood every month. What's the awesome answer?


Females would become males.

Straight race, no laps.
And: put your answers in white if you can, so you don't spoil them for other people who have never seen these questions.


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## Stefan (Apr 23, 2009)

14) Does England have a Fourth for July?
*No idea if you meant to say "for". If you meant "of", then yes.*

15) In a race, if you pass the person in 2nd place, what place are you in?
*Second place*

16) In a race, if you pass the person in last place, what place are you in?
*Last place*


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## Robert-Y (Apr 23, 2009)

Ah yes, I understand 15 and 16 now, thanks to Stefan


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## shelley (Apr 23, 2009)

Ha, clever.

I somehow missed the last question in your first post. Edam is made backwards.

If you're in last place, how do you pass yourself?


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## Lt-UnReaL (Apr 23, 2009)

16)
Huh? How can you pass the person in last place and end up in last?


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## ThatGuy (Apr 23, 2009)

15) You have two coins that total 15 cents, but one of them is not a nickel. How is that possible? 

16) Which is correct: "18 plus 19 is 36," or "18 plus 19 are 36"? 

17) Johnny's mother had four children. The first was April, the second was May, and the third was June. What was the name of her fourth child? 

18) Here is a question on international law: If an international airliner crashed exactly on the U.S.-Mexican border, where would they be required to bury the survivors? 

19) If a daddy bull weighs 1,200 pounds and eats twelve bales of hay each day, and a baby bull, who weighs 300 pounds, eats three bales of hay each day, how much hay, then, should a mommy bull eat if she weighs 800 pounds? 

20) A pen and a bottle of ink cost $1.10. The pen costs exactly $1.00 more than the ink. What does each cost? 

21) There is a misspelled word in the following sentence that makes it look like only two people died, when actually three people died. What word is misspelled? — One night, a king and a queen went on a boat trip. Their boat sank and they all drowned.

22) How quickly can you find out what is so unusual about this paragraph? It looks so ordinary that you would think that nothing is wrong with it at all, and, in fact, nothing is. But it is unusual. Why? If you study it and think about it, you may find out, but I am not going to assist you in any way. You must do it without coaching. No doubt, if you work at it for long, it will dawn on you. Who knows? Go to work and try your skill. Par is about half an hour.


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## Stefan (Apr 23, 2009)

Lt-UnReaL said:


> 16)
> Huh? If you weren't in 1st, how can you pass the person in last place and end up in last?


You passed backwards.


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## TheBB (Apr 23, 2009)

Lt-UnReaL said:


> 16)
> Huh? How can you pass the person in last place and end up in last?


I guess the person in last place passes you.


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## shelley (Apr 23, 2009)

15) One of them is not a nickel, but the other one is.
16) Neither. The correct answer is YOU FAIL AT MATH
17) Johnny
18) What kind of sick person buries survivors?
19) Bulls don't come in mommy form
20) 1.05, 0.05
21) night -> knight
22) The letter e, the most commonly used letter in the English language, does not appear once


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## Lt-UnReaL (Apr 23, 2009)

ThatGuy said:


> 15) You have two coins that total 15 cents, but one of them is not a nickel. How is that possible?


1 dime, 1 nickel.



> 16) Which is correct: "18 plus 19 is 36," or "18 plus 19 are 36"?


Neither.



> 17) Johnny's mother had four children. The first was April, the second was May, and the third was June. What was the name of her fourth child?


Johnny.



> 18) Here is a question on international law: If an international airliner crashed exactly on the U.S.-Mexican border, where would they be required to bury the survivors?


You don't bury people alive!



> 19) If a daddy bull weighs 1,200 pounds and eats twelve bales of hay each day, and a baby bull, who weighs 300 pounds, eats three bales of hay each day, how much hay, then, should a mommy bull eat if she weighs 800 pounds?


Mommy bull?



> 20) A pen and a bottle of ink cost $1.10. The pen costs exactly $1.00 more than the ink. What does each cost?


Pen - $1.05, ink - $0.05



> 21) There is a misspelled word in the following sentence that makes it look like only two people died, when actually three people died. What word is misspelled? — One night, a king and a queen went on a boat trip. Their boat sank and they all drowned.


*K*night!


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## ThatGuy (Apr 23, 2009)

put your answers in white to not spoil the question for others. please?


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## Stefan (Apr 23, 2009)

15) You have two coins that total 15 cents, but one of them is not a nickel. How is that possible? 
*The other is a nickel.*

16) Which is correct: "18 plus 19 is 36," or "18 plus 19 are 36"? 
*This one's embarrassing unless it has a nonobvious answer*

17) Johnny's mother had four children. The first was April, the second was May, and the third was June. What was the name of her fourth child? 
*Johnny*

18) Here is a question on international law: If an international airliner crashed exactly on the U.S.-Mexican border, where would they be required to bury the survivors? 
*Nowhere*

19) If a daddy bull weighs 1,200 pounds and eats twelve bales of hay each day, and a baby bull, who weighs 300 pounds, eats three bales of hay each day, how much hay, then, should a mommy bull eat if she weighs 800 pounds? 
*As much as a unicorn should.*

20) A pen and a bottle of ink cost $1.10. The pen costs exactly $1.00 more than the ink. What does each cost? 
*pen 1.05, ink 0.05*

21) There is a misspelled word in the following sentence that makes it look like only two people died, when actually three people died. What word is misspelled? — One night, a king and a queen went on a boat trip. Their boat sank and they all drowned.
*night. But it's not in "the following sentence".*

22) How quickly can you find out what is so unusual about this paragraph? It looks so ordinary that you would think that nothing is wrong with it at all, and, in fact, nothing is. But it is unusual. Why? If you study it and think about it, you may find out, but I am not going to assist you in any way. You must do it without coaching. No doubt, if you work at it for long, it will dawn on you. Who knows? Go to work and try your skill. Par is about half an hour.[/QUOTE]
*No "e".*


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## Bryan (Apr 23, 2009)

15) A dime and a nickel. The dime isn't a nickel.
16) Neither. 18+19=37
17) Johnny
18) You don't bury survivors. Besides, even dead people are transported back to their home country.
19) If you have a mommy bull, it probably has some really weird metabolism.
20) 1.05 and .05
21) s/night/knight/
22) ?



ThatGuy said:


> 15) You have two coins that total 15 cents, but one of them is not a nickel. How is that possible?
> 
> 
> 16) Which is correct: "18 plus 19 is 36," or "18 plus 19 are 36"?
> ...


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## TheBB (Apr 23, 2009)

> 16) Which is correct: "18 plus 19 is 36," or "18 plus 19 are 36"?


Oh come on, we're cubers, give us some credit.



> 17) Johnny's mother had four children. The first was April, the second was May, and the third was June. What was the name of her fourth child?


Johnny.



> 18) Here is a question on international law: If an international airliner crashed exactly on the U.S.-Mexican border, where would they be required to bury the survivors?


You're not required to bury survivors.



> 19) If a daddy bull weighs 1,200 pounds and eats twelve bales of hay each day, and a baby bull, who weighs 300 pounds, eats three bales of hay each day, how much hay, then, should a mommy bull eat if she weighs 800 pounds?


Assuming gender change operations in cattle, he or she might want to eat eight bales, but then, mommy bulls are rare.



> 20) A pen and a bottle of ink cost $1.10. The pen costs exactly $1.00 more than the ink. What does each cost?


Again ... give us some credit. $1.05 and $.05? Unless the bottle has some cost independent of the ink .



> 21) There is a misspelled word in the following sentence that makes it look like only two people died, when actually three people died. What word is misspelled? — One night, a king and a queen went on a boat trip. Their boat sank and they all drowned.


Knight.



> 22) How quickly can you find out what is so unusual about this paragraph? It looks so ordinary that you would think that nothing is wrong with it at all, and, in fact, nothing is. But it is unusual. Why? If you study it and think about it, you may find out, but I am not going to assist you in any way. You must do it without coaching. No doubt, if you work at it for long, it will dawn on you. Who knows? Go to work and try your skill. Par is about half an hour.


No E's. Five seconds.


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## ThatGuy (Apr 23, 2009)

23) A man dressed all in black is walking down a country lane. Suddenly a large black car without any lights on comes round the corner and screeches to a halt.

How did the driver know there was a man in the road?


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## Stefan (Apr 23, 2009)

ThatGuy said:


> put your answers in white to not spoil the question for others. please?


Too late. Plus too much work because we do have to include your questions because you used some numbers twice.


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## Lt-UnReaL (Apr 23, 2009)

23) It was day time and very easy to see the man?


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## TheBB (Apr 23, 2009)

ThatGuy said:


> 23) A man dressed all in black is walking down a country lane. Suddenly a large black car without any lights on comes round the corner and screeches to a halt.


I've seen this before. But anyway, it's daylight. Or there are streetlights. You should mention that the streetlights are out ... makes people think of night immediately.

24) A guy is at work listening to the radio. After hearing a particular announcement, he goes upstairs, turns the light on, and then commits suicide. Why?

25) A guy pulls his car up to a hotel, suddenly realizing he is broke. What happened?

26) In the middle of a field lies a dead man with a broken back. In his hand is half a match. What happened?

You're supposed to get yes/no questions answered for these, and then work yourself toward the answer.


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## ThatGuy (Apr 23, 2009)

24) A murderer is condemned to death. He has to choose between three rooms: The first is full of raging fires, the second is full of assassins with loaded guns, and the third is full of lions that haven't eaten in 3 years. Which room is safest for him? 

25) A magician was boasting one day at how long he could hold his breath under water. His record was 6 minutes. A kid that was listening said, "that's nothing, I can stay under water for 10 minutes using no type of equipment or air pockets!" The magician told the kid if he could do that, he'd give him $10,000. The kid did it and won the money. Can you figure out how? 

26) Can you name three consecutive days without using the words Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, or Sunday? 

27) Before Mount Everest was discovered, what was the highest mountain on Earth? 

28) Clara Clatter was born on December 27th, yet her birthday is always in the summer. How is this possible? 

29) How many times can you subtract the number 5 from 25? 

30) How could you rearrange the letters in the words "new door" to make one word? Note: There is only one correct answer. 

31) Even if they are starving, natives living in the Arctic will never eat a penguin's egg. Why not? 

32) In Okmulgee, Oklahoma, you cannot take a picture of a man with a wooden leg. Why not?


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## ThatGuy (Apr 23, 2009)

*What is one thing that all wise men, regardless of their religion or politics, agree is between heaven and earth?*


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## nitrocan (Apr 23, 2009)

> 24) A murderer is condemned to death. He has to choose between three rooms: The first is full of raging fires, the second is full of assassins with loaded guns, and the third is full of lions that haven't eaten in 3 years. Which room is safest for him?



A little obvious...



> 26) Can you name three consecutive days without using the words Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, or Sunday?



Sure, Pazartesi Salı Çarşamba.



> 27) Before Mount Everest was discovered, what was the highest mountain on Earth?



Mt. Everest



> 28) Clara Clatter was born on December 27th, yet her birthday is always in the summer. How is this possible?



Southern Hemisphere (Someone reading this that lives in the Southern Hemisphere goes "Isn't that obvious?" lol)



> 29) How many times can you subtract the number 5 from 25?



As much as I want?


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## ThatGuy (Apr 23, 2009)

*Somewhere in No. 7 there is a word that is not spelled correctly. Can you find it? *

*Which kind of candles burn longer, the ones from Costco or the ones from Walmart?*


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## Lt-UnReaL (Apr 23, 2009)

ThatGuy said:


> 24) A murderer is condemned to death. He has to choose between three rooms: The first is full of raging fires, the second is full of assassins with loaded guns, and the third is full of lions that haven't eaten in 3 years. Which room is safest for him?


Third, the lions are dead.



> 27) Before Mount Everest was discovered, what was the highest mountain on Earth?


Mount Everest.



> 29) How many times can you subtract the number 5 from 25?


As many times as I want...


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## shelley (Apr 23, 2009)

24) The room full of dead lions

25) He holds a container of water above his head for 10 minutes

26) Yesterday, today, tomorrow

27) Mount Everest

28) Come on. You know plenty of cubers from the southern hemisphere frequent this forum.

29) This could have multiple answers

30) New door -> One word 

31) Because it's a really long way to travel for a meal.

32) You don't take pictures with wooden legs.


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## Lt-UnReaL (Apr 23, 2009)

ThatGuy said:


> *What is one thing that all wise men, regardless of their religion or politics, agree is between heaven and earth?*


'and' 
.


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## TheBB (Apr 23, 2009)

24) The lion room.
25) Well if we assume he didn't actually hold his breath for 10 minutes, which I think is actually possible with training, I guess he drowned himself.
26) April 21st, 22nd and 23rd?
27) I'm guessing you mean Mount Everest, but then again, it depends on the geological period. Mount Everest hasn't always existed, nor has it always b8en highest.
29) She lives on the southern hemisphere.
30) As many times as you wish.
31) There are two, right? The o's are interchangeable, so there are two rearrangements.
32) Seriously...
33) Wooden legs are unsuitable for photography.



ThatGuy said:


> 24) A murderer is condemned to death. He has to choose between three rooms: The first is full of raging fires, the second is full of assassins with loaded guns, and the third is full of lions that haven't eaten in 3 years. Which room is safest for him?
> 
> 25) A magician was boasting one day at how long he could hold his breath under water. His record was 6 minutes. A kid that was listening said, "that's nothing, I can stay under water for 10 minutes using no type of equipment or air pockets!" The magician told the kid if he could do that, he'd give him $10,000. The kid did it and won the money. Can you figure out how?
> 
> ...


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## ThatGuy (Apr 23, 2009)

Did anyone get: Why do women need iron?


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## Tim Reynolds (Apr 23, 2009)

ThatGuy said:


> Did anyone get: Why do women need iron?



Without Fe, a female would just be a male


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## ThatGuy (Apr 23, 2009)

*There once was a race horse
That won great fame
What do you think
Was the horse's name.*

*There were 10 lit candles sitting a room. A strong breeze blew two of them out. You leave and come back an hour later, noticing that one more was blown out. You decide to close the window to prevent any further blow-outs. How many candles do you have left in the end? *


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## nitrocan (Apr 23, 2009)

Uhh, the iron one is hideous.


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## Lt-UnReaL (Apr 23, 2009)

ThatGuy said:


> *There were 10 lit candles sitting a room. A strong breeze blew two of them out. You leave and come back an hour later, noticing that one more was blown out. You decide to close the window to prevent any further blow-outs. How many candles do you have left in the end? *


10 candles.


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## ThatGuy (Apr 23, 2009)

Wrong!!!!!
-Right, at 12:09 class ends and i won't have acess to a computer anymore. just FYI.


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## TheBB (Apr 23, 2009)

Three candles!


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## Lt-UnReaL (Apr 23, 2009)

TheBB said:


> Three candles!


Bah, it could be 3 _or_ 10...just because a candle is melted doesn't mean it's not still a candle! What makes a candle that used to be a candle no longer a candle?


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## ThatGuy (Apr 23, 2009)

What's the end of time and space and the beginning of eternity?


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## Lt-UnReaL (Apr 23, 2009)

ThatGuy said:


> What's the end of time and space and the beginning of eternity?


The letter 'e'. C'mon, give us harder ones!


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## nitrocan (Apr 23, 2009)

You actually have 10, but they aren't in real good shape


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## ThatGuy (Apr 23, 2009)

didn't get this on yet:

There once was a race horse
That won great fame
What do you think
Was the horse's name.

A man lives in a normal house, but the four sides each face south. From inside the man sees a bear. What colour is the bear? 

Where do the biggest potatoes grow? 

How can you drop a raw egg onto a concrete floor without cracking it? 

Every year: in what month do Americans people eat least? 

What is the difference between Illegal and Unlawful?

Imagine you are in a sinking rowboat, surrounded by bloodthirsty sharks. You are not near land and have no supplies with you. How do you survive?

This one's pretty good: What is the longest word in the English dictionary and what does it mean?


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## shelley (Apr 23, 2009)

ThatGuy said:


> didn't get this on yet:
> 
> There once was a race horse
> That won great fame
> ...



There's nothing to answer for this one. It's a statement, not a question.


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## TheBB (Apr 23, 2009)

ThatGuy said:


> didn't get this on yet:
> 
> There once was a race horse
> That won great fame
> ...



It's not phrased as a question, so what do you expect me to say?


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## Lt-UnReaL (Apr 23, 2009)

shelley said:


> ThatGuy said:
> 
> 
> > didn't get this on yet:
> ...


Maybe ThatGuy wants us to figure out where it's supposed to trick us?
'What do you think' _is_ the horse's name.


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## TheBB (Apr 23, 2009)

Of course that's what he wants ... I was trying to phrase it in a nonobvious way .

Much in the spirit of the thread, in a sense.


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## ThatGuy (Apr 23, 2009)

*What is the longest word in the English dictionary and what does it mean?*

and...............class is over so i don't have a computer anymore........


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## shelley (Apr 23, 2009)

_A man lives in a normal house, but the four sides each face south. From inside the man sees a bear. What colour is the bear? _
*White.* Come on, any time a question asks "what color is the bear" it takes place at the North Pole.

_Where do the biggest potatoes grow?_ *In the dirt*

_How can you drop a raw egg onto a concrete floor without cracking it?_ *Remove the shell first.*

_Every year: in what month do Americans people eat least?_ *February*

_What is the difference between Illegal and Unlawful?_
*A couple of possible answers:*
1) the spelling
2) Illegal means explicitly forbidden by law. An unlawful action is not explicitly written in the books as forbidden, but forbidden anyway. Example: there is a law against driving while doing other distracting activities. Cubing while driving isn't explicitly mentioned, but you could still get pulled over for it.
3) (only works if spoken) One is something you're not allowed to do, the other is a sick bird

_This one's pretty good: What is the longest word in the English dictionary and what does it mean?_
*pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis* - inflammation of the lungs caused by inhaling silica dust
Or you're being a smart-ass and the longest word in the phrase "the English dictionary" is the word *dictionary*.


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## pcharles93 (Apr 23, 2009)

Or smiles... there's a mile between the S's


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## Lt-UnReaL (Apr 23, 2009)

ThatGuy said:


> *What is the longest word in the English dictionary and what does it mean?*
> 
> and...............class is over so i don't have a computer anymore........


I don't really see how this is any kind of riddle...
It's either 'pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis', because that is widely acknowledged as the longest word in the English language and appears in most 'high-tech' dictionaries...
Or it is 'dictionary'.


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## Bryan (Apr 23, 2009)

didn't get this on yet:
A man lives in a normal house, but the four sides each face south. From inside the man sees a bear. What colour is the bear? 

White


Where do the biggest potatoes grow? 

I want to say in the ground, but I don't want to rule out a hydroponic system.

How can you drop a raw egg onto a concrete floor without cracking it? 

Drop it from a small distance. Or crack it before hand, so the act of dropping it doesn't cause the cracking.

Every year: in what month do Americans people eat least? 

None. Americans don't eat months, they eat food  Or February.

What is the difference between Illegal and Unlawful?

Spelling.

Imagine you are in a sinking rowboat, surrounded by bloodthirsty sharks. You are not near land and have no supplies with you. How do you survive?

Poke them in the eye.

This one's pretty good: What is the longest word in the English dictionary and what does it mean?

There's no such thing as the "English dictionary". There's Webster's, Oxford (abridged and unabridged...) and probably many more.


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## nitrocan (Apr 23, 2009)

The ruler of a country, sentences a criminal to death. The ruler says "I will let you say one more sentence. If what you say in that sentence is true, then you will be burned to death. If it isn't true, then you will be beheaded."

The criminal says a sentence that prevents him from both situations. What does he say?


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## shelley (Apr 23, 2009)

nitrocan said:


> The ruler of a country, sentences a criminal to death. The ruler says "I will let you say one more sentence. If what you say in that sentence is true, then you will be burned to death. If it isn't true, then you will be beheaded."
> 
> The criminal says a sentence that prevents him from both situations. What does he say?



"I will be beheaded."


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## nitrocan (Apr 23, 2009)

Well it seems like these questions are very widely known, or can be just looked up from the internet.

So whats the point?


----------



## Stefan (Apr 23, 2009)

shelley said:


> nitrocan said:
> 
> 
> > The ruler of a country, sentences a criminal to death. The ruler says "I will let you say one more sentence. If what you say in that sentence is true, then you will be burned to death. If it isn't true, then you will be beheaded."
> ...



That doesn't prevent him from getting both burned and beheaded.



nitrocan said:


> Well it seems like these questions are very widely known, or can be just looked up from the internet.


Or... they're easy.


----------



## nitrocan (Apr 23, 2009)

StefanPochmann said:


> shelley said:
> 
> 
> > nitrocan said:
> ...



Being beheaded while being burned. What a way to die


----------



## qqwref (Apr 23, 2009)

Better than just being burned.

[tangent]
Historically beheading was viewed as a more honorable way to be executed than most other methods, perhaps because it was relatively quick and painless, and wasn't much of a spectacle (so the condemned wouldn't have to have people jeering at him while he died). On the other hand being burned to death was one of the least honorable ways to die, and was thus often the penalty for serious crimes such as treason (and, yes, witchcraft). Surprisingly enough to those living in modern times, an execution by burning could last quite a while, up to about two hours depending on how skillful the executioners were. The point of all this is that most people who were executed by burning would have been more than happy to have had their head chopped off partway through the process.
[/tangent]


----------



## soccerking813 (Apr 23, 2009)

This one's pretty good: What is the longest word in the English dictionary and what does it mean?
The longest word is dictionary, and *it* means, "Used to represent an animate or inanimate thing understood, previously mentioned, about to be mentioned, or present in the immediate context


----------



## Bryan (Apr 23, 2009)

qqwref said:


> Better than just being burned.
> 
> [tangent]
> Historically beheading was viewed as a more honorable way to be executed than most other methods, perhaps because it was relatively quick and painless, and wasn't much of a spectacle (so the condemned wouldn't have to have people jeering at him while he died). On the other hand being burned to death was one of the least honorable ways to die, and was thus often the penalty for serious crimes such as treason (and, yes, witchcraft). Surprisingly enough to those living in modern times, an execution by burning could last quite a while, up to about two hours depending on how skillful the executioners were. The point of all this is that most people who were executed by burning would have been more than happy to have had their head chopped off partway through the process.
> [/tangent]



Actually, for the beheadings, didn't the family of the condemned also tip the executioner, so that he would do a "good" job, and not "accidentally" make it half way through or forget to sharpen his blade?


----------



## qqwref (Apr 23, 2009)

Bryan said:


> Actually, for the beheadings, didn't the family of the condemned also tip the executioner, so that he would do a "good" job, and not "accidentally" make it half way through or forget to sharpen his blade?



It depends on the culture and time period. In some places/times it was normal to tip the executioner (often with a gold coin) to make sure they chopped off the person's head in one stroke (although that wouldn't guarantee a good execution, and not paying them wouldn't guarantee a bad one), but in others it was expected that any sufficiently competent executioner would perform the execution properly, as anything else would be considered dishonorable. As far as I can tell, doing the beheading in one blow was considered the norm, although of course mistakes still happened. (We still have botched executions every once in a while, even with seemingly foolproof things like the electric chair or lethal injection.)


----------



## skwishy (Apr 23, 2009)

ThatGuy said:


> How can you drop a raw egg onto a concrete floor without cracking it?



Just drop the egg, the egg will crack but not the concrete.


----------



## Chuberchuckee (Apr 23, 2009)

nitrocan said:


> The ruler of a country, sentences a criminal to death. The ruler says "I will let you say one more sentence. If what you say in that sentence is true, then you will be burned to death. If it isn't true, then you will be beheaded."
> 
> The criminal says a sentence that prevents him from both situations. What does he say?



He asks a question.


----------



## EmersonHerrmann (Apr 23, 2009)

ThatGuy said:


> 1) Would you rather have a tiger attack you or a lion?


Neither


> 2) How far can you run into the woods?


How far, hmmm....forever since you could run back and forth and left 'n' right 'n' stuff.


> 3) How many bricks does it take to complete a building made entirely of bricks?


Uhm...However many it takes to create


> 4) In a large western city, 80% of the phone numbers are listed, 20% of the phone numbers are businesses, and 20% of the phone numbers start with the numeral "2". If you were to take a random sample of 1000 phone numbers from the city's phone book, how many numbers would you expect to be unlisted, non-business phone numbers that start with a numeral other than "2"?


Well you can't really come up with that since you have only given the statistics of the listed numbers.


> 5) Some months have 31 days, others have 30 days. How many have 28 days?


All of 'em


> 6) Do you say "Loo-iss-vill" is the capital of Kentucky, or do you say "Loo-ee-vill" is the capital of Kentucky?


It's Frankfort 


> 8) Why are 1968 pennies worth more than 1967 pennies?


1,968 pennies is more than 1,967 pennies.


> 11) What do you call a person who doesn't have all of his/her fingers on one hand?


Emerson Herrmann


> 12) If there are 6 apples and you take away 4, how many do you have?


4


> 13) Which popular cheese is made backwards?


Edam.


----------



## Lt-UnReaL (Apr 23, 2009)

shelley said:


> nitrocan said:
> 
> 
> > The ruler of a country, sentences a criminal to death. The ruler says "I will let you say one more sentence. If what you say in that sentence is true, then you will be burned to death. If it isn't true, then you will be beheaded."
> ...


I was thinking about this question since nitrocan posted it, and all I could think of was some kind of paradox like 'This is a false statement'. However your answer works nicer.



StefanPochmann said:


> That doesn't prevent him from getting both burned and beheaded.


How does it not? I think it's safe to assume that if the sentence is true, the criminal will _only_ be burned to death.


----------



## IamWEB (Apr 23, 2009)

NO ONE Has Considered This Answer For #1?

A lion.

Why?

Rephrase it this way: Would you rather have a tiger attack, or would you rather have a lion?
---------

As far as the burned/beheaded thing, what he says would be false, which would cause him to be beheaded. But, that would make the statement true, causing a paradox. But wait! Being true, he would be burned! However, that means the the statement would now be false, which goes back to being beheaded. And the cycle continues.


----------



## puzzlemaster (Apr 24, 2009)

IamWEB said:


> NO ONE Has Considered This Answer For #1?
> 
> A lion.
> 
> Why?



I believe the statement is "would you rather have a tiger attack you or a lion." It can also be written like this for people who are having trouble understanding it lol.. Would you rather have a *tiger attack you*? Or have that *same tiger attack a lion?*


----------



## Bryan (Apr 24, 2009)

StefanPochmann said:


> 1) Would you rather have a tiger attack you or a lion?
> *I'd rather have a tiger attack a lion.*





IamWEB said:


> NO ONE Has Considered This Answer For #1?
> 
> A lion.
> 
> ...



So are you referring to Stefan as "No one"?


----------



## nitrocan (Apr 24, 2009)

Bryan said:


> StefanPochmann said:
> 
> 
> > 1) Would you rather have a tiger attack you or a lion?
> ...



These aren't the same things. What IamWEB says is that he would rather own a lion.


----------



## Lt-UnReaL (Apr 24, 2009)

IamWEB said:


> NO ONE Has Considered This Answer For #1?
> 
> A lion.
> 
> Why?


I considered it. Read the 2nd post in this thread...


----------



## nitrocan (Apr 24, 2009)

So there is a Mr. No one after all  JK.


----------



## Ellis (Apr 24, 2009)

IamWEB said:


> NO ONE Has Considered This Answer For #1?
> 
> A lion.
> 
> Why?



Because the lion that you have would probably attack you... unlike having the tiger attack the lion


----------



## Shnishiguh (Apr 24, 2009)

*Answers to some unanswered questions*



TheBB said:


> ThatGuy said:
> 
> 
> > 23) A man dressed all in black is walking down a country lane. Suddenly a large black car without any lights on comes round the corner and screeches to a halt.
> ...




26) My yes/no question is this: Are there mountains near the dead man?

Spoiler for you lazy people on 26


 The man was with a few other people in an aircraft (hot-air balloon i think) The men were going to crash into some mountains, so they had to lose weight. (to sail over the mountains) The men drew sticks and the dead guy got the smallest stick, so he had to jump off. 



ThatGuy said:


> 24) A murderer is condemned to death. He has to choose between three rooms: The first is full of raging fires, the second is full of assassins with loaded guns, and the third is full of lions that haven't eaten in 3 years. Which room is safest for him?
> 
> 25) A magician was boasting one day at how long he could hold his breath under water. His record was 6 minutes. A kid that was listening said, "that's nothing, I can stay under water for 10 minutes using no type of equipment or air pockets!" The magician told the kid if he could do that, he'd give him $10,000. The kid did it and won the money. Can you figure out how?
> 
> ...



25) The kids body is underwater,but his head is out?

26) yesterday, today, tommorrow

29) Once, then you are subtracting 5 from a different number

31) There's no penguins there... If there were, i'm sure the polar bears would eat them.

32) I dont have a wooden leg...


Here's a question for you, What do little red riding hood, a hot-air balloon, and a basketball court have in common?


----------



## ShadenSmith (Apr 24, 2009)

ThatGuy said:


> 6) Do you say "Loo-iss-vill" is the capital of Kentucky, or do you say "Loo-ee-vill" is the capital of Kentucky?



I say that Frankfort is the capital of Kentucky, actually. I also say that "Loo-uh-vull" is the largest city in the state. That's how it's pronounced with the standard Kentucky accent. If it is said a little slower the 'i' is pronounced as in 'dig' and the 's' is silent.

We also pronounce "Versailles" as "Ver-sails".


----------



## ThatGuy (Apr 24, 2009)

*Imagine you are in a sinking rowboat, surrounded by bloodthirsty sharks. You are not near land and have no supplies with you. How do you survive?*

its lame but you STOP IMAGINING!!!!!!!


----------



## Ellis (Apr 24, 2009)

ThatGuy said:


> its lame but you STOP IMAGINING!!!!!!!



Not even necessary 

My answer: (Do) nothing


----------



## Stefan (Apr 24, 2009)

EmersonHerrmann said:


> > 11) What do you call a person who doesn't have all of his/her fingers on one hand?
> 
> 
> Emerson Herrmann


You have all of your seven fingers on one hand? (or five, if you don't count thumbs as fingers)
(But yeah, for a moment I thought the same as you, but then realized the real answer)



Lt-UnReaL said:


> StefanPochmann said:
> 
> 
> > That doesn't prevent him from getting both burned and beheaded.
> ...


No it's not.



Ellis said:


> *How do you survive?*
> My answer: Nothing


Huh?


----------



## Ellis (Apr 24, 2009)

StefanPochmann said:


> Ellis said:
> 
> 
> > *How do you survive?*
> ...


I fail to see how stopping your imagination will allow you to survive more than doing nothing at all. If you imagine that you have been eaten by sharks, you've still actually survived, haven't you?


----------



## Stefan (Apr 24, 2009)

You probably meant to say something like "I do nothing", not "Nothing". The latter doesn't make any sense as an answer to the question. Hence my pretended confusion.


----------



## Ellis (Apr 24, 2009)

StefanPochmann said:


> You probably meant to say "I do nothing", not "Nothing". The latter doesn't make any sense as an answer to the question. Hence my pretended confusion.



oh yea, you're right. I didn't even catch that when you quoted me and you went out of your way to make it as obvious as possible. *facepalm*


----------



## TheBB (Apr 24, 2009)

Shnishiguh said:


> 26) My yes/no question is this: Are there mountains near the dead man?
> 
> Spoiler for you lazy people on 26
> 
> ...



Yes, and you're right.


----------



## Stefan (Apr 24, 2009)

Ellis said:


> *facepalm*


Some interesting statistic about that:
http://www.google.com/trends?q=facepalm
Makes me wonder where it came from.


----------



## mazei (Apr 24, 2009)

The question about the phone numbers wouldn't it be 200 numbers out of 1000? Because 80% is listed, 20% of that is something and another 20% of that is something as well. Which means there is 20% that isn't listed thus giving 200 out of 1000.


----------



## trying-to-speedcube... (Apr 24, 2009)

No, it's 0, because everything you find in the phone book is listed. You can't find unlisted numbers in a phone book...


----------



## d4m4s74 (Apr 24, 2009)

well, Captain Picard was the first facepalm image used, I guess it's use as a meme originated from the good old chans


----------



## qqwref (Apr 24, 2009)

StefanPochmann said:


> Ellis said:
> 
> 
> > *facepalm*
> ...



Probably 4chan. A lot of memes come from there.


----------



## brunson (Apr 24, 2009)

Number 10 doesn't work, Barak Obama was born in 1961.


Lt-UnReaL said:


> Bah, it could be 3 _or_ 10...just because a candle is melted doesn't mean it's not still a candle! What makes a candle that used to be a candle no longer a candle?


No wick.

Shelley,
You moved your blog and now all the brain teasers are gone. There was one I never figured out.


----------



## ThatGuy (Apr 24, 2009)

brunson said:


> Number 10 doesn't work, Barak Obama was born in 1961.



Dang. oh well


----------



## goldencuber (Apr 24, 2009)

I noticed many people said "as many times as you want"


> 29) How many times can you subtract the number 5 from 25?



As much as I want?[/QUOTE]
once, then the number changes to 20.


----------



## Ellis (Apr 24, 2009)

goldencuber said:


> I noticed many people said "as many times as you want"
> 
> 
> > 29) How many times can you subtract the number 5 from 25?
> ...



Wrong:

25 - 5 = 20
25 - 5 = 20
25 - 5 = 20
25 - 5 = 20

... Want me to keep going?


----------



## Paradox (Apr 24, 2009)

ThatGuy said:


> 1) Would you rather have a tiger attack you or a lion?
> *?*
> 
> 2) How far can you run into the woods?
> ...



Edit: Lol, I only saw the first page and thought that that was the end.


----------



## qqwref (Apr 24, 2009)

Yeah, the number 25 doesn't change when you take away (subtract) 5 from it. (The answer isn't 25 of course, but the answer and the 25 are a different thing entirely). But if you have 25 objects, on the other hand, you can only take away 5 once, because then what was 25 is now 20. The difference is that with numbers I don't think of subtraction as actually taking a number *away* from another number, but rather as just an operation that takes two numbers in and spits one number out.

It's difficult to make a good trick question, because the wording is all-important. It has to be vague (so there is an alternate reading which gives the answer right away) but not so vague that there are many different ways to read it. Of course, if there are many ways to read a problem, there are many answers of which none is really "wrong".

For example. Which digit doesn't belong? 2, 3, 5, or 9?
Well, it's 2, because that's the only even one. No, it's 9, because that's the only one that is composite. No, it's 5, because that's the only one that is not curved at the top when you write it. No, it's 3, because when you write the digits on an LCD display all of the others are still a digit when you turn them upside down.


----------



## goldencuber (Apr 24, 2009)

Ellis said:


> goldencuber said:
> 
> 
> > I noticed many people said "as many times as you want"
> ...



actually factor out (25-5=20)
and you get
(25-5=20)(1) = (25-5=20)(1)(1)(1)(1)=(25-5=20)
(1) 
(1)
(1)
lol I call it the golden distributive property.
Although materially I have a point (eg 25 apples and you eat 5)

what about 25-5(5)=0 and you took away "5" five times at once.


----------



## Ellis (Apr 24, 2009)

goldencuber said:


> actually factor out (25-5=20)
> and you get
> (25-5=20)(1) = (25-5=20)(1)(1)(1)(1)=(25-5=20)
> (1)
> ...


Funny. 



goldencuber said:


> what about 25-5(5)=0 and you took away "5" five times at once.



Why stop at 5? You don't need to end at zero. 25 - 5 (as much as you want) = x


----------



## Sa967St (Apr 24, 2009)

*The first is full of raging fires, the second is full of assassins with loaded guns, and the third is full of lions that haven't eaten in 3 years. Which room is safest for him? *
3rd room. The lions are dead

*A magician was boasting one day at how long he could hold his breath under water. His record was 6 minutes. A kid that was listening said, "that's nothing, I can stay under water for 10 minutes using no type of equipment or air pockets!" The magician told the kid if he could do that, he'd give him $10,000. The kid did it and won the money. Can you figure out how?* 

Yes I can. (he held a glass of water over his head for 10 mins)

*How could you rearrange the letters in the words "new door" to make one word? Note: There is only one correct answer. *

quite easily. "new door" is "one word" rearranged

*Even if they are starving, natives living in the Arctic will never eat a penguin's egg. Why not?* 
there are no pengiuns in the Arctic, they live in Antartica

*In Okmulgee, Oklahoma, you cannot take a picture of a man with a wooden leg. Why not?* 
a wooden leg is not capable of capturing pictures


----------



## qqwref (Apr 24, 2009)

goldencuber said:


> actually factor out (25-5=20)
> and you get
> (25-5=20)(1) = (25-5=20)(1)(1)(1)(1)=(25-5=20)
> (1)
> ...



Do you have ANY idea how much sense this doesn't make? (Hint: a lot)


----------



## Poke (Apr 25, 2009)

1) Would you rather have a tiger attack you or a lion? *
Lion
* 
2) How far can you run into the woods?
*1/8 mile... can't really run*

3) How many bricks does it take to complete a building made entirely of bricks? *1*

4) In a large western city, 80% of the phone numbers are listed, 20% of the phone numbers are businesses, and 20% of the phone numbers start with the numeral "2". If you were to take a random sample of 1000 phone numbers from the city's phone book, how many numbers would you expect to be unlisted, non-business phone numbers that start with a numeral other than "2"? *0*

5) Some months have 31 days, others have 30 days. How many have 28 days? *All of them*

6) Do you say "Loo-iss-vill" is the capital of Kentucky, or do you say "Loo-ee-vill" is the capital of Kentucky? *Frankfort*

7) Nancy is a very attractive clerk in a candy store. She is 19 years old, is a Freshman at an Ivy League University, wears fashionable clothes, and is a highly competent mathematician. She has done a least squares analysis on her weight during the last two years and has found that the best fitting polynomial is a cubic equation. What does she weigh? *Candy Purchases*

8) Why are 1968 pennies worth more than 1967 pennies? *One more penny*

9) This is awesome: Why is iron so important to women? *Need it to survive*

10) What was the (American) President's name in 1960? *Barack Obama(Thanks, Stefen)*

11) What do you call a person who doesn't have all of his/her fingers on one hand? *Someone with their fingers properly distributed.*

12) If there are 6 apples and you take away 4, how many do you have? *4* 

13) Which popular cheese is made backwards? *
Swiss

*14) Does England have a Fourth for July?
*Of course*

15) In a race, if you pass the person in 2nd place, what place are you in?
*Second*

16) In a race, if you pass the person in last place, what place are you in?
*How can you pass the person in second place*


----------



## JTW2007 (Apr 25, 2009)

Lt-UnReaL said:


> You don't bury people alive!!



I do.


----------



## toast (Apr 25, 2009)

JTW2007 said:


> Lt-UnReaL said:
> 
> 
> > You don't bury people alive!!
> ...



You bury them... with love and affection.


----------



## d4m4s74 (Apr 26, 2009)

I once buried someone alive,
well, not his head, I like them to suffer for as long as possible


----------



## goldencuber (Apr 27, 2009)

qqwref said:


> goldencuber said:
> 
> 
> > actually factor out (25-5=20)
> ...


My name is *Golden*cuber. Although, looking at the matrix, the operation does have logic behind it.
If you have 25 apples,and you take 5 from it, it's 20, so in that case the answer is 1.

Also,
11) What do you call a person who doesn't have all of his/her fingers on one hand?
Maybe normal, or maybe he/she has 6 fingers on one hand.


----------



## nitrocan (Apr 27, 2009)

The question was "How many times can you subtract 5 from the number 25?" or something.

Then it should be as many times as I want.

I can just do 25 - 5 = 20 as many times as I want as some of the other people said.


----------



## soccerking813 (Apr 27, 2009)

Or you could say infinite, because it goes: 25, 20, 15, 10, 5, 0, -5, -10, -15 etc....

Here is a question:
A man starts out from home. He goes a little ways, turn left, and goes straight. After a while he turns left again, and continues straight. He turns left one more time, and sees home, but with a man in a mask near it. Where is he?


----------



## soccerking813 (Apr 27, 2009)

No, he walks in a total of 4 straight lines, so not at the North/South Pole. And the turning left and man in the mask is important.

Edit: Just noticed a typo in my question.

A man starts out from home. He goes a little ways, turn left, and goes straight. After a while he turns left again, and continues straight. He turns left one more time, and *sees* home, but with a man in a mask near it. Where is he?


----------



## cubeman34 (Apr 27, 2009)

A baseball game


----------



## soccerking813 (Apr 27, 2009)

cubeman34 said:


> A baseball game



Yep. He has just gotten a hit, and ran to first base, turned left, got to second base, turned left, gotten to third base, and turned left. Then he saw home plate, and a man in a mask, which would be the catcher or umpire.

Here is another little thing.

Try saying this 5 times fast: Irish Wristwatch.
Beware, it is harder than it looks.


----------



## goldencuber (Apr 27, 2009)

@grama 

Here are some questions, in increasing order of difficulty.
I. When learning English there is one word that is always pronounced incorrectly, especially from those native to the USA. What is that word?
II. It is rather difficult to prove any thing beyond any doubt. In fact, it is impossible to. Why is this statement incorrect?
III. (not my question, but my solution is my own) You're going from point A to point B. you first go halfway. Then you go half the the remaining distance, and repeat (clarification: you first complete 50%, then 75%, then 87.5%, 93.75% and so on.) Could you get to the end? Assume space can be divided infinitely.
IV.John, who wears bifocal glasses, was asked to pick a number from one to a hundred (1-100) with his friend. The winner would get a prize. The number was 56, and John's friend picked 55. John won with the closest number, but his number was not 55,56, or 57. How did he do it?
V. John was asked to pick a number from one to one hundred with his friend. The winner would get a prize. The number was 56, and John's friend picked 56. John himself picked 50, and John won with the closest number. However, the number the judge picked (56) had an added element, making it different from normal numbers. All numbers are positive integers, what was this element?


----------



## byu (Apr 27, 2009)

III. No. It is impossible


----------



## soccerking813 (Apr 27, 2009)

IV. He guessed 55.5 or something between 55 and 56.


----------



## Ellis (Apr 27, 2009)

I. Incorrectly

I think I know II but I don't know if I agree with it.


----------



## shelley (Apr 27, 2009)

byu said:


> III. No. It is impossible



byu, have you ever walked from one place to another? Do you not first cover half the distance, then half the remaining distance, etc.? Do you not reach your destination nevertheless?


----------



## byu (Apr 27, 2009)

shelley said:


> byu said:
> 
> 
> > III. No. It is impossible
> ...



I mean first you go

1/2

Then 1/2 + 1/4 which less less than 1( whole trip)

Then 1/2 + 1/4 + 1/8 which is still less than 1.

Then 1/2 + 1/4 + 1/8 + 1/16 which is STILL less than 1.

And so on, and you will never get to 1, even though you will get extremely close.

For example:

1/2 + 1/4 + 1/8 + 1/16 + 1/32 + 1/64 + 1/128 + 1/256 + 1/512 + 1/1024

Turns out to be

0.9990234375

And you will never get to 1.

Unless I read the question wrong...


----------



## soccerking813 (Apr 27, 2009)

No, because you would go 50%, 75%, 87.5%, 93.75%, infinitely, because space can be divided infinite times. It is not possible to cover half the distance between you and an object, and yet arrive at an object, is it?


----------



## Ellis (Apr 27, 2009)

It didn't say _only_ half. You could walk to B and cover all the half distances in between.


----------



## goldencuber (Apr 27, 2009)

@soccerking, Ellis, and shelley got 4,3, and 1, respectively, though my explanation for III was that you move a pencil from point A to B (same logic though.)
And II is more theoretical, I'll tell you if you're right
This only makes sense to post after someone gets III
IIIB 
You're going from point A to point B. you first go halfway, and then stop. Then you go half the the remaining distance, stop, and repeat (clarification: you first complete 50%, then 75%, then 87.5%, 93.75% and so on.) Could you get to the end? Assume space can be divided infinitely.
Edit:after seeing byu's post, I say this Q is in honor of him


----------



## soccerking813 (Apr 27, 2009)

I guess for number 3 you could answer that you just ignore the halfway points and keep walking.


----------



## Ellis (Apr 27, 2009)

Then my answer for II (I feel like I'm missing something): The statement can't be true because it would contradict itself.

V. By picked number do you mean the number that John's friend picked? If so I would think it would be negative, since he didn't have to pick one between 1 and 100


----------



## d4m4s74 (Apr 27, 2009)

well, on III
you will never reach it, but you will get close enough for practical purposes


----------



## goldencuber (Apr 27, 2009)

Ellis said:


> Then my answer for II (I feel like I'm missing something): The statement can't be true because it would contradict itself.
> 
> V. By picked number do you mean the number that John's friend picked? If so I would think it would be negative, since he didn't have to pick one between 1 and 100



contradict itself? Why?

By the way, good idea for V, but no, the number is still 56. The number that was picked by the judge was positive 56. Sorry, I'll edit to clarify.
But your answer sparked another idea for a puzzle, thx.


----------



## soccerking813 (Apr 27, 2009)

For number 5, the number was -56, not 56. It says the numbers 1-100. We could interpret that as the numbers 1 -100, or 1 to -100.


----------



## Ellis (Apr 27, 2009)

goldencuber said:


> Ellis said:
> 
> 
> > Then my answer for II (I feel like I'm missing something): The statement can't be true because it would contradict itself.
> ...



"It is rather difficult to prove any thing beyond any doubt. In fact, it is impossible to."

Because if it were true then you are proving the statement beyond any doubt.



goldencuber said:


> By the way, good idea for V, but no, the number is still 56. The number that was picked by the judge was positive 56. Sorry, I'll edit to clarify.
> But your answer sparked another idea for a puzzle, thx.



Well an added element could be anything. The number John's friend picked could have the added element of minus 20 for example.

Edit- same works for for the original number of 56, I'm still was unsure if by "picked number" you meant john's friend's picked number or the original number.


----------



## goldencuber (Apr 27, 2009)

soccerking813 said:


> For number 5, the number was -56, not 56. It says the numbers 1-100. We could interpret that as the numbers 1 -100, or 1 to -100.



Same as before. That would actually work though, I now have another puzzle idea (it won't be for you guys though.) Again, I'll have to edit


----------



## Jude (Apr 27, 2009)

Answers in white, highlight to see

1) Would you rather have a tiger attack you or a lion?
I'd rather the tiger attacked the lion.

2) How far can you run into the woods?
Halfway, then you're running out again.

3) How many bricks does it take to complete a building made entirely of bricks?
Don't know

4) In a large western city, 80% of the phone numbers are listed, 20% of the phone numbers are businesses, and 20% of the phone numbers start with the numeral "2". If you were to take a random sample of 1000 phone numbers from the city's phone book, how many numbers would you expect to be unlisted, non-business phone numbers that start with a numeral other than "2"?
640? <-- I got it wrong.

5) Some months have 31 days, others have 30 days. How many have 28 days?
1? <-- I got it wrong.

6) Do you say "Loo-iss-vill" is the capital of Kentucky, or do you say "Loo-ee-vill" is the capital of Kentucky?
Neither, Frankfort is the capital of Kentucky, not Louisville

7) Nancy is a very attractive clerk in a candy store. She is 19 years old, is a Freshman at an Ivy League University, wears fashionable clothes, and is a highly competent mathematician. She has done a least squares analysis on her weight during the last two years and has found that the best fitting polynomial is a cubic equation. What does she weigh?
Don't know what a least squares analysis is :\

8) Why are 1968 pennies worth more than 1967 pennies?
Becauses there is one more?

9) This is awesome: Why is iron so important to women?
Pass

10) What was the (American) President's name in 1960?
Dwight Eisenhower <-- I got it wrong.

11) What do you call a person who doesn't have all of his/her fingers on one hand?
Normal? Both people have their fingers spread across 2 hands..

12) If there are 6 apples and you take away 4, how many do you have?
4?

13) Which popular cheese is made backwards?
Edam

..

15) You have two coins that total 15 cents, but one of them is not a nickel. How is that possible?
The other one is

16) Which is correct: "18 plus 19 is 36," or "18 plus 19 are 36"?
Neither it's 37

17) Johnny's mother had four children. The first was April, the second was May, and the third was June. What was the name of her fourth child?
Johnny

18) Here is a question on international law: If an international airliner crashed exactly on the U.S.-Mexican border, where would they be required to bury the survivors?
Survivors don't need burying

19) If a daddy bull weighs 1,200 pounds and eats twelve bales of hay each day, and a baby bull, who weighs 300 pounds, eats three bales of hay each day, how much hay, then, should a mommy bull eat if she weighs 800 pounds?
You don't get female bulls?

20) A pen and a bottle of ink cost $1.10. The pen costs exactly $1.00 more than the ink. What does each cost?
$0.05 and $1.05?

21) There is a misspelled word in the following sentence that makes it look like only two people died, when actually three people died. What word is misspelled? — One night, a king and a queen went on a boat trip. Their boat sank and they all drowned.
One knight 

22) How quickly can you find out what is so unusual about this paragraph? It looks so ordinary that you would think that nothing is wrong with it at all, and, in fact, nothing is. But it is unusual. Why? If you study it and think about it, you may find out, but I am not going to assist you in any way. You must do it without coaching. No doubt, if you work at it for long, it will dawn on you. Who knows? Go to work and try your skill. Par is about half an hour.
There's no letter 'e'

23) A man dressed all in black is walking down a country lane. Suddenly a large black car without any lights on comes round the corner and screeches to a halt.
It's day

24) A guy is at work listening to the radio. After hearing a particular announcement, he goes upstairs, turns the light on, and then commits suicide. Why?
Dunno

25) A guy pulls his car up to a hotel, suddenly realizing he is broke. What happened?
Monopoly!

26) In the middle of a field lies a dead man with a broken back. In his hand is half a match. What happened?
Dunno

24) A murderer is condemned to death. He has to choose between three rooms: The first is full of raging fires, the second is full of assassins with loaded guns, and the third is full of lions that haven't eaten in 3 years. Which room is safest for him?
The lions as they've probably starved to death

25) A magician was boasting one day at how long he could hold his breath under water. His record was 6 minutes. A kid that was listening said, "that's nothing, I can stay under water for 10 minutes using no type of equipment or air pockets!" The magician told the kid if he could do that, he'd give him $10,000. The kid did it and won the money. Can you figure out how?
He's really good at holding his breath? The world record is like 13 minutes. Failing that, he didn't put his head underwater.

26) Can you name three consecutive days without using the words Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, or Sunday?
Pass

27) Before Mount Everest was discovered, what was the highest mountain on Earth?
Mount Everest

28) Clara Clatter was born on December 27th, yet her birthday is always in the summer. How is this possible?
December 27th is summer in half the world?

29) How many times can you subtract the number 5 from 25?
Once, then your subtracting it from 20

30) How could you rearrange the letters in the words "new door" to make one word? Note: There is only one correct answer.
Pass

31) Even if they are starving, natives living in the Arctic will never eat a penguin's egg. Why not?
Penguins live in the southern hemisphere

32) In Okmulgee, Oklahoma, you cannot take a picture of a man with a wooden leg. Why not?
Pass


----------



## MTGjumper (Apr 27, 2009)

@ halving distance question:

Sigma (n, k=1): 1/(2^k)

As n tends to infinity, the sum tends to 1. But then again, you can't really repeat this step an infinite number of times, so you won't reach your destination; you'll just be close enough for practical purposes.
I reserve the right to be incorrect, and also apologise if my sigma notation is poor =P


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## qqwref (Apr 27, 2009)

Urgh, there's no single answer. It depends on convergence. Basically the question is: You have to complete events 1 through infinity (these are completing the next 1/(2^n) of the distance, basically). Event k takes an amount of time equal to f(k). Can you ever finish?

Now of course it depends on exactly what f(k) is. For instance, if you travel at a constant speed, f(k) is 1/(speed * 2^k), so the total amount of time it will take to complete the infinite number of tasks is finite. But if you take a given amount of time to finish each event (or stop for a certain amount of time after each one), then f(k) is c, and the total amount of time is infinite (so you'll never finish). But again it all depends on whether the sum of f(k) converges - you can still stop after each one (for instance) if the amount of time you stop for also decreases fast enough.


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## goldencuber (Apr 27, 2009)

MTGjumper said:


> Sigma (n, k=1): 1/(2^k)
> 
> As n tends to infinity, the sum tends to 1. But then again, you can't really repeat this step an infinite number of times, so you won't reach your destination.
> I reserve the right to be incorrect, and also apologise if my sigma notation is poor =P



You're correct in assuming that the step must be repeated an infinitely number of times. However, you're incorrect in assuming that it is impossible. 2 hints (I'm really just telling you what you already know, and yet...:
-If you must overcome fire, why not fight fire with fire?
-You must bypass the fact that you stop
VI-What is moving, but invisible? You can quantify it, but you can't tell how fast it's moving. You can't stop it, but it can stop you. It allows a flower to bloom or die, a soda to bubble, it turned polar bears white, can make a celebrity look like a fool, and a fool look like a celebrity, turns pancakes brown (nostalgic? Well it's not the same answer. Actually the answer to that riddle was I think  pressure) What is it?


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## byu (Apr 27, 2009)

Air? That's the first thing I thought of


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## goldencuber (Apr 28, 2009)

Originally I was thinking of writing the riddle w/ the answer of air, but then I changed it. You can stop air, and you can tell how fast it's moving.


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## Stefan (Apr 28, 2009)

goldencuber said:


> V. John was asked to pick a number from one to one hundred with his friend. The winner would get a prize. The number was 56, and John's friend picked 56. John himself picked 50, and John won with the closest number. However, *the number the judge picked (56) had an added element*, making it different from normal numbers. All numbers are positive integers, what was this element?


So what he picked has something that he didn't pick? Then he didn't pick it after all. Looks like lousy wording.

I hope you're not thinking of 5.6 or 56i, those would just be lame (and prove the wording lousy).


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## JBCM627 (Apr 28, 2009)

goldencuber said:


> III. (not my question, but my solution is my own) You're going from point A to point B. you first go halfway. Then you go half the the remaining distance, and repeat (clarification: you first complete 50%, then 75%, then 87.5%, 93.75% and so on.) Could you get to the end? Assume space can be divided infinitely.



Saw a few replies to this. The resolution is that of course you will get there... the time it takes you to cover those distances also halves. Although as qq said you could stop after each distance, if you argue that, then also consider that you aren't infinitesimally thin, so even if you do stop, some part of you will reach it.


----------



## goldencuber (Apr 28, 2009)

JBCM627 said:


> goldencuber said:
> 
> 
> > III. (not my question, but my solution is my own) You're going from point A to point B. you first go halfway. Then you go half the the remaining distance, and repeat (clarification: you first complete 50%, then 75%, then 87.5%, 93.75% and so on.) Could you get to the end? Assume space can be divided infinitely.
> ...



you're quite right. Although, you missed the post I made next. How would you prove that if you stopped each time? And I made the factor that space is divisible infinitesimally.

@Stephan
Yeah I'm sure; I actually put that in on purpose after editing to make it really clear. I'm guessing this is rather difficult, I might make a separate thread on this if no one gets this.


----------



## Ellis (Apr 28, 2009)

goldencuber said:


> I might make a separate thread on this if no one gets this.


No don't make a separate thread. Just tell us, if no one has got it by now, they probably wont. I just want to see the answer and see if it accurately fits the question in the problem.


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## JBCM627 (Apr 28, 2009)

goldencuber said:


> you're quite right. Although, you missed the post I made next. How would you prove that if you stopped each time? And I made the factor that space is divisible infinitesimally.





JBCM627 said:


> you could stop after each distance, but if you argue that, then also consider that you aren't infinitesimally thin, so even if you do stop, some part of you will reach it.


^^That. And if you want to say you are thin enough, then once you get within planks length of your destination, you will be there to an indistinguishable precision.


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## Stefan (Apr 28, 2009)

Ellis said:


> goldencuber said:
> 
> 
> > I might make a separate thread on this if no one gets this.
> ...


Agree. And I'm quite sure it won't fit the question, as the question is flawed already (56 has nothing "added to it", otherwise it's not 56... that part alone is terrible).


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## goldencuber (Apr 28, 2009)

Ellis said:


> goldencuber said:
> 
> 
> > I might make a separate thread on this if no one gets this.
> ...



OK then.
8=10, or more commonly, base 8 Math
And for the infinitesimal stuff, the answer is still the same: you walk over. Why? because just as there are infinite points, you have infinite time. I mean points in time. When time=infinitely low, you're motion=zero. Therefore, you've stopped then. In fact, you've already stopped infinity times before going halfway.


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## Stefan (Apr 28, 2009)

Thanks for the answer, although...



goldencuber said:


> I'm guessing this is rather difficult


... what you call difficult I call inconsistent and lame. Particularly, writing 8=10 is simply wrong.


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## goldencuber (Apr 28, 2009)

StefanPochmann said:


> Thanks for the answer, although...
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Hmmm..could you explain why it is inconsistent and lame? It was just something hard to think of.

think about it. Who said you had to count 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 instead of 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 10?
edit:base 8 math is also an established math


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## Stefan (Apr 28, 2009)

Dude I'm in computer science and a math enthusiast. I know about different number representation systems.

But when you use different representations together without telling so, you're inconsistent. And if you use that to trick people, you're lame.

Now I even prefer the other question, with the 55.5 answer, even though that was lame already.


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## Ellis (Apr 28, 2009)

Why can the answers only be in base 10 and not base 8?

Edit- sorry, by answers I mean John and his friend's guesses.

Edit2- "added element" okay... but why not base 7?


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## Stefan (Apr 28, 2009)

Ellis said:


> Why can the answers only be in base 10 and not base 8?


That is a reply to... what?

It *could* have worked with appropriate numbers. For example, 61 is closer to 57 than 54 is, using base 8 (throughout, of course!). But no, he used 56 twice and inconsistently. Nothing is closer to 56 than 56 itself. Unless you read it one way the first time and then another way the second time. But if you're doing that, then you could equally well make up a complete fantasy way of reading numbers, no need for base 8 (or any other representation people actually use). This kind of failure at making a good riddle is so substantial there's probably even a technical term for it.


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## Ellis (Apr 28, 2009)

I had already edited it because I realized I was being vague. I agree with you though about the inconsistency. If this were a real life situation and I guessed 56 correctly and wasn't given the prize, I would just say my answer was in base 8 as well... if you can just switch it around like that to make it mean whatever you want. 



StefanPochmann said:


> This kind of failure at making a good riddle is so substantial there's probably even a technical term for it.



If there isn't, there should be.


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## Stefan (Apr 28, 2009)

Ellis said:


> If this were a real life situation and I guessed 56 correctly and wasn't given the prize, I would just say my answer was in base 8 as well... if you can just switch it around like that to make it mean whatever you want.


That's a very nice way to put it.


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## goldencuber (Apr 28, 2009)

StefanPochmann said:


> Ellis said:
> 
> 
> > Why can the answers only be in base 10 and not base 8?
> ...


(Ah I love debate, pardon the long post. I expect a reply, by the way)

I see, though it seems that you're more frustrated that you could not come to one of these "fantasy" conclusions than at the riddle. The reason I used 56 was simple. If it's implied that 56 is not equal to 56, that's bound to get the reader thinking. It sends a clear message, that the answer is one that requires thinking, and likely an original one as well. I'm sure that you've come across many of these types of problems in your mathematical life, where a solution seems impossible but there is one. After all, original thinking is the foundation of Math. 

If you realized that 56 is definitely equal to 56, than you would conclude that for John to win, the number must be lower than it seems. The problem is how. Logically, you'd know this "element" is the key. So, since you know 56 isn't really 56, than maybe it's a new number line? Perhaps it's really some sort of binary code? I'd hope you'd eventually question the math system itself: why do we use a decimal system? Why ten? What if we counted by 6th's? There's the answer

Like you, I also expected the possibility of multiple answers, though I edited to minimize that. If riddles like this are lame, than wouldn't the Riddle of the Sphinx also be lame? After all, it's so ludicrous and completely original. By the way, I call a lame riddle something like "when was the war of 1764?"


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## Stefan (Apr 28, 2009)

goldencuber said:


> it seems that you're more frustrated that you could not come to one of these "fantasy" conclusions than at the riddle.


Don't blame it on me. Just don't.



goldencuber said:


> If you realized that 56 is definitely equal to 56, than you would conclude that for John to win, the number must be lower than it seems.


********. It could also be higher. How? For example by reading the number backwards. See? Infinitely many possibilities once you open the gate to stupidity! And that's the problem. Similar to (I believe) Michael's earlier 2/3/5/9 example asking for the number that stands out.



goldencuber said:


> So, since you know 56 isn't really 56


You're really getting pathetic.



goldencuber said:


> If riddles like this are lame, than wouldn't the Riddle of the Sphinx also be lame?


Which one?


----------



## Stefan (Apr 28, 2009)

Or putting it differently...


goldencuber said:


> it seems that you're more frustrated that you could not come to one of these "fantasy" conclusions than at the riddle.


It's not my job to invent a solution to your riddle. It's my job to find *your* solution. Which ought to make sense (it doesn't, thanks to the inconsistency) and be outstanding (it isn't, thanks to you opening the door for infinitely many solutions).

I think the problem is that you learned about base 8 and got all excited about it and decided to put it into a riddle and just screwed up. Here's a better one that I just stumbled upon:

How many people can read hexadecimal if only you and dead people can read it?


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## qqwref (Apr 28, 2009)

goldencuber said:


> I see, though it seems that you're more frustrated that you could not come to one of these "fantasy" conclusions than at the riddle. The reason I used 56 was simple. If it's implied that 56 is not equal to 56, that's bound to get the reader thinking. It sends a clear message, that the answer is one that requires thinking, and likely an original one as well. I'm sure that you've come across many of these types of problems in your mathematical life, where a solution seems impossible but there is one. After all, original thinking is the foundation of Math.



Math isn't just something which lets you randomly play with numbers. There are rules. If you write "56" without any other context, there is only ONE possible meaning - you can't say "oh no, 56 is not equal to 56". Ever. Original thinking may be very useful in math (although it is not the foundation - trying to solve real-life problems is the foundation of math), but that doesn't mean you can say something false and then say "I was just thinking originally". Expecting that if you write 56 and 56 they could have different values would be like expecting that if you write down a number instead of an essay on a test you could still get full credit - it's not original, it's just nonsensical and wrong.

Here's a way to write your riddle (with different numbers) so that it makes sense. [Here, "57" can be in any base because it's not specified, but "fifty-six" represents a specific number.] Unlike your riddle, also, it HAS to be base 8.

John and Mary decides to play a carnival game. The rules are written as follows: "The operator will choose a whole number from 1 to 100 and write it down. The participants then each guess a number. After that, the operator reveals the number, and the participant who made the closest guess wins." The operator writes down a number; then John guesses "fifty-six" and Mary guesses "forty-five". When the operator reveals the number it says 57, but Mary is given the prize. Why?



StefanPochmann said:


> This kind of failure at making a good riddle is so substantial there's probably even a technical term for it.



I believe the technical term is "epic fail".


----------



## JL58 (Apr 28, 2009)

A young sailor meets this old pirate with 3 parrots on his shoulder. He asks for the age of the parrots.

The pirate: I'll give you a hint. The sum of their ages is 13.
The sailor: Give me another hint.
The pirate: The product of their ages is 36.
The sailor: Give me another hint.
The pirate: The oldest speaks too much.
The sailor: Thank you!

And he leaves.


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## byu (Apr 28, 2009)

What is the question? Is it "How old are the parrots?"

a + b + c = 13
abc = 36

I am guessing one is a year old, and two of them are 6. But if "the oldest speaks too much", can two of them be 6?


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## Stefan (Apr 28, 2009)

qqwref said:


> If you write "56" without any other context, there is only ONE possible meaning


Tell that to the thumbless aliens who find base 8 natural.



qqwref said:


> Unlike your riddle, also, it HAS to be base 8.


Would you still say that if the upper and lower limit weren't there?



qqwref said:


> StefanPochmann said:
> 
> 
> > This kind of failure at making a good riddle is so substantial there's probably even a technical term for it.
> ...


No, I really mean something more specific, meaning violating the solution-makes-sense-and-is-outstanding rule.


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## JBCM627 (Apr 28, 2009)

JL58 said:


> A young sailor meets this old pirate with 3 parrots on his shoulder. He asks for the age of the parrots.
> 
> The pirate: I'll give you a hint. The sum of their ages is 13.
> The sailor: Give me another hint.
> ...


What ever happened to using spoiler tags?


Spoiler



2, 2, 9





StefanPochmann said:


> No, I really mean something more specific, meaning violating the solution-makes-sense-and-is-outstanding rule.


I searched urban dictionary, but didn't find anything too relevant.


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## shelley (Apr 28, 2009)

byu said:


> What is the question? Is it "How old are the parrots?"
> 
> a + b + c = 13
> abc = 36
> ...



Try again.


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## byu (Apr 28, 2009)

shelley said:


> byu said:
> 
> 
> > What is the question? Is it "How old are the parrots?"
> ...



The only other one Ive found is 2,2,9


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## Stefan (Apr 28, 2009)

byu said:


> The only other one Ive found is 2,2,9


Is that your answer?


----------



## byu (Apr 28, 2009)

StefanPochmann said:


> byu said:
> 
> 
> > The only other one Ive found is 2,2,9
> ...



No, because there was never a question. The sailor walks away, and a question is never mentioned except for in dialogue


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## Stefan (Apr 28, 2009)

byu said:


> No, because there was never a question.


Hmm, I didn't even notice that. So yeah, assume the question is "How old are the parrots?".


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## Ellis (Apr 28, 2009)

I don't get it... why does byu's first answer not work?


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## Bryan (Apr 28, 2009)

Ellis said:


> I don't get it... why does byu's first answer not work?



Not sure why people are rejecting it. Just because people have the same age (which is a rounded number), doesn't mean that one of them isn't older. People always ask who's older between my twin brother and myself, and the answer is him, because he was born first.


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## Ellis (Apr 28, 2009)

Please explain yourself shelley.


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## qqwref (Apr 28, 2009)

StefanPochmann said:


> qqwref said:
> 
> 
> > If you write "56" without any other context, there is only ONE possible meaning
> ...


You misunderstand me - I never said what the one possible meaning was  I was saying that if you see "56" written in a book or something, without anything to say that it should be interpreted in a specific way, there has to be a single default way to read it, because otherwise it's useless to write numbers in the first place.

And to be hyper-technical, if there is absolutely no context at all, there is still only one possible meaning - the string which is a concatenation of the symbols 5 and 6! 



StefanPochmann said:


> qqwref said:
> 
> 
> > Unlike your riddle, also, it HAS to be base 8.
> ...


Assuming the chosen number and the base are positive integers, sure. 57 doesn't exist in a base <8, and in base 9+ John is closer.


----------



## Stefan (Apr 28, 2009)

Bryan said:


> Ellis said:
> 
> 
> > I don't get it... why does byu's first answer not work?
> ...





Spoiler



I'd say it would violates the "no waste principle" in riddles. Focus on the last part:

The sailor: Give me another hint.
The pirate: The oldest speaks too much.
The sailor: Thank you!

Clearly the riddle tells you that the sailor needed that last hint and that it helped him. That means that this last hint is important. If you allow both 1+6+6 and 2+2+9, then this last hint wouldn't matter at all, it would just be waste. Here the no waste principle comes into play, you must assume it's not waste and see how you can make sense of it. And this is why 2+2+9 is the superior answer and what makes 1+6+6 unacceptable.


----------



## Stefan (Apr 28, 2009)

qqwref said:


> StefanPochmann said:
> 
> 
> > qqwref said:
> ...


Darn, you played it safe. What I intended to point out was negative bases. All of them would work in your riddle, they might be one step weirder than what most people know, and they're interesting enough to point them out.


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## Ellis (Apr 28, 2009)

StefanPochmann said:


> Bryan said:
> 
> 
> > Ellis said:
> ...





Spoiler



I still can't see why the last hint makes any difference. 1+6+6 is still completely valid. Are you suggesting that it isn't possible for one 6-year old to be older than another? Another hint that would have the same effect would be "one is the oldest", which doesn't really tell you anything. The only thing I can see is that 2+2+9 may be a _better_ answer, but that doesn't make it the only one. For 1+6+6 not to work, the two older ones would have to have been born at exactly the same time, which would be extremely unlikely. I fail to see why the last hint justifies having only one correct answer.


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## Stefan (Apr 28, 2009)

Tired of spoilering...



Ellis said:


> I still can't see why the last hint makes any difference.


Because it's there! Because it's a riddle and there are rules for riddles. Again: If that last hint doesn't make any difference, it's waste and shouldn't be in the riddle. Because it *is* in the riddle, it matters. Another way to put this is: You must not ignore parts of the riddle. You must assume that everything that's in there, is in there for a reason.

Here, answer this one:

A man lives in the penthouse of an apartment building. Every morning he takes the elevator down to the lobby and leaves the building. Upon his return, however, he can only travel halfway up in the lift and has to walk the rest of the way - unless it's raining. What is the explanation for this?



Ellis said:


> Another hint that would have the same effect would be "one is the oldest", which doesn't really tell you anything.


Wrong, it does tell you something. Exactly the same as the original last hint. Only obviously. The original hint is worded like it is precisely to contain the "one is oldest" information indirectly rather than obviously. That's part of what makes a riddle good.

Oh and arguing that ages are in reality not only integers is nitpicking not appropriate for the riddle.


----------



## (X) (Apr 28, 2009)

TheBB said:


> ThatGuy said:
> 
> 
> > 23) A man dressed all in black is walking down a country lane. Suddenly a large black car without any lights on comes round the corner and screeches to a halt.
> ...



No one has aswered 24 and 26...


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## qqwref (Apr 28, 2009)

Ellis said:


> StefanPochmann said:
> 
> 
> > Bryan said:
> ...





Spoiler



I guess the rationale is that we're already assuming the parrots' ages are integers. If you're going to dispute and say that one 6-year-old parrot is older than another, then surely they are not both exactly 6 years old, and the sum of their ages isn't exactly 13 years, et cetera. It's just not consistent to use a figure of "6 years" for the math and then say that that is not their actual age. Anyway it's kind of traditional in riddles to assume ages are whole numbers just for the sake of simpler math - if the ages don't even have to be integers, you open the door to solutions like (9 - 3 sqrt(5))/2, 4, (9 + 3 sqrt(5))/2. I don't think I have to say that nobody wants that


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## Ellis (Apr 28, 2009)

StefanPochmann said:


> Here, answer this one:
> 
> A man lives in the penthouse of an apartment building. Every morning he takes the elevator down to the lobby and leaves the building. Upon his return, however, he can only travel halfway up in the lift and has to walk the rest of the way - unless it's raining. What is the explanation for this?



Because he's short and can't reach the highest buttons without an umbrella. 

Sigh. Is there actually a rule in riddles that says that every statement needs to be relevant to the answer? I just don't like the parrot one, I think it is poorly made and not the same thing as the example you gave. Maybe I'm just taking a silly riddle way too seriously? That riddle is something that if I heard when I was a kid, would have seriously bothered me. I would have spent days wondering why 1+6+6 was wrong because I would be trying to find all the answers that logically fit the problem. I don't really see that as nitpicking.



qqwref said:


> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> I guess the rationale is that we're already assuming the parrots' ages are integers. If you're going to dispute and say that one 6-year-old parrot is older than another, then surely they are not both exactly 6 years old, and the sum of their ages isn't exactly 13 years, et cetera. It's just not consistent to use a figure of "6 years" for the math and then say that that is not their actual age. Anyway it's kind of traditional in riddles to assume ages are whole numbers just for the sake of simpler math - if the ages don't even have to be integers, you open the door to solutions like (9 - 3 sqrt(5))/2, 4, (9 + 3 sqrt(5))/2. I don't think I have to say that nobody wants that



okay, that helped me a little.


----------



## Ellis (Apr 28, 2009)

(X) said:


> TheBB said:
> 
> 
> > ThatGuy said:
> ...



Someone already correctly answered 26.

I've heard 24 before-


Spoiler



He worked at a lighthouse and had forgotten to turn the light on. A ship crashed because of the mistake, and he heard it on the radio. So he went upstairs, turned on the light and killed himself because he was angry he caused the ship to crash. Something along those lines.


----------



## Stefan (Apr 28, 2009)

Ellis said:


> Because he's short and can't reach the highest buttons without an umbrella.


Right. I think I once saw this riddle as an example of people ignoring parts, in this case I believe mostly ignoring the rain. And an answer explaining that part is clearly superior to one ignoring it.



Ellis said:


> Is there actually a rule in riddles that says that every statement needs to be relevant to the answer?


I'd say it depends on the scale. In that parrot riddle, it was said that the oldest speaks too much. The "speaks too much" is not directly relevant. But it still does serve a purpose, namely masking the otherwise too obvious hint "One is oldest". So you are actually supposed to decide to ignore that "speaks too much". However, ignoring the whole _"I need more info - One is oldest - Ok thanks"_... that's just inappropriate. You're throwing away a crucial and too big part of the riddle and are thus somewhat answering a different riddle.

Plus it's also about the other rule mentioned earlier, that the answer should be outstanding. If you have two possible answers that you consider equally valid, you're simply not finished. Because the objective is to find the one intended solution.

All that said, I'm of course no certified riddle maker or something like that. The "rules" I mentioned are only what I observed and what makes sense to me and makes riddles beautiful to me. Feel free to disagree. Aaand... I'm out of here.


----------



## shelley (Apr 28, 2009)

Ellis said:


> StefanPochmann said:
> 
> 
> > Bryan said:
> ...





Spoiler



The hint that one parrot is oldest is necessary to figure out their ages. If you allow one six year old parrot to be older than the other, stating that one parrot is oldest would be a useless hint and the sailor still wouldn't know whether they are 9,2,2 or 1,6,6. The whole point is that the sailor doesn't know the ages before the pirate gives the third hint, but after he gets that hint he can figure it out.

The version of this riddle I'm familiar with involves three children, two of which are twins. While you can say one twin is older than another, that is not always known. Until Star Wars Episode 3 we didn't know whether Luke or Leia was older, and by Episode 6 all the characters who would have known are dead. When twins are mentioned in a logic puzzle it is usually a fair approximation/assumption to say they are the same age.





Ellis said:


> Please explain yourself shelley.



Self explained!


----------



## shelley (Apr 28, 2009)

Spoiler



Speaking of twins,



Two children are born naturally to the same father and mother, on the same day of the same year. Yet they are not twins. Is this possible? Explain.


----------



## Bryan (Apr 28, 2009)

shelley said:


> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> ...



One was born on January 5th, 2008 and the other was born on December 27th, 2008.


----------



## shelley (Apr 28, 2009)

...Those are not the same day of the same year.


----------



## qqwref (Apr 28, 2009)

I found two solutions, shelley. I need more information to determine which is the right one 

1) They are triplets (or quadruplets, or...).

2) The parents are time travelers. After they give birth to one child and the wife gets pregnant again, they decide to go back in time in order to give birth to the other child on the same day, just to prove to the world that it is possible to have two children with the same exact birthday without them being twins.


----------



## soccerking813 (Apr 28, 2009)

grama said:


> Ok, this is not actually a riddle, just a quote that i like, (brought up but the whole "56 discussion".
> 
> "There are 10 types of people, those who understand binary code, and those who doesn't"



I love that quote.  I am just glad that I understand it.

And qqwref, I think the first is the "real answer", but I like the second one more.


----------



## Bryan (Apr 28, 2009)

shelley said:


> ...Those are not the same day of the same year.



They're both Saturday. That's the angle I was thinking.


----------



## goldencuber (Apr 28, 2009)

StefanPochmann said:


> qqwref said:
> 
> 
> > If you write "56" without any other context, there is only ONE possible meaning
> ...


ONE possible meaning? If I write 56, say that it's different from normal numbers, and say it's not equal to 56...



StefanPochmann said:


> qqwref said:
> 
> 
> > Unlike your riddle, also, it HAS to be base 8.
> ...



The answer does not have to be 8. 7 would suffice. I simply said 8 because "base 8" is more common.



StefanPochmann said:


> Don't blame it on me. Just don't.


I'm not really blaming you.



StefanPochmann said:


> goldencuber said:
> 
> 
> > If you realized that 56 is definitely equal to 56, than you would conclude that for John to win, the number must be lower than it seems.
> ...


Backwards? 56 backwards is 65? Why would you want the number higher? The point is to figure out how John would win. Of the possibilities thus exposed by the "gate to stupidity", so far they indeed are stupid.



StefanPochmann said:


> goldencuber said:
> 
> 
> > So, since you know 56 isn't really 56
> ...


Well, I used logic. Would you mind backing up your accusations with facts?



StefanPochmann said:


> goldencuber said:
> 
> 
> > If riddles like this are lame, than wouldn't the Riddle of the Sphinx also be lame?
> ...


The one found in Oedipus Rex



StefanPochmann said:


> Or putting it differently...
> 
> 
> goldencuber said:
> ...


It's your job to find "a" solution. I learned the concept of different bases long ago, it simply came up while I was thinking of riddles. Explain "screw up." The answer logically follows, and the riddle is designed such that it implies that the answer would be unique.

It seems that by the hexadecimal riddle, that you prefer puzzles with answers that can be found concrete reasoning?


----------



## shelley (Apr 29, 2009)

The Riddle of the Sphinx used metaphors. It didn't completely change the meaning of words on you. Your riddle was lame because you arbitrarily changed the value of numbers without giving any context.

Without context, when you say a number like 56 it is generally assumed to be 56 in base 10. This kind of standardization is what makes communication possible. When you say 56 when you really mean 56 in base 8 and don't tell us it's base 8, you're cheating and that's lame.

Now here's an example of a proper riddle that involves different base systems:

Q: Why do programmers confuse Christmas and Halloween?
A:


Spoiler



Because OCT 31 = DEC 25


----------



## Ellis (Apr 29, 2009)

StefanPochmann said:


> Feel free to disagree.


I think I still would had it not been for qq's response. It was the only argument that made enough sense to quiet me. I mentioned before that if I heard this parrot riddle when I was younger, and was told that 2+2+9 was the only valid answer, it would have seriously bothered me. Shelley and your explanations were "meh". I have no problem accepting that all the hints in riddles are necessary to come to a logical conclusion, but since I didn't see why that one was actually important I just figured it was a poorly worded riddle. I can't really make any argument after what michael said though- he successfully over analyzed my over analysis. And for that, I'm officially done on the topic. Considered my points defeated.


----------



## goldencuber (Apr 29, 2009)

shelley said:


> When you say 56 when you really mean 56 in base 8 and don't tell us it's base 8, you're cheating and that's lame.


So if I don't tell you the answer in the question, I'm cheating? Hm...I guess that means teachers have been testing students incorrectly for centuries...... I'm guessing that was just an error in communication?

Ignoring that, I repeat "If I write 56, say that it's different from normal numbers, and say it's not equal to 56..."
*the riddle clearly implies that rules are being broken here. * It shouldn't have taken long, if you got past disbelief in the question, to realize that the answer would mean changing something you take for granted. 

Although, it is human tendency not to even think the possibility of base 8, as the environment we are exposed to, in a way, forces base 10 into our subconscious such that we don't question it. Therefore, the question would be very difficult to solve, since it involves questioning of the foundation of our most basic cognitive functions, such that in our minds it is like turning apples into oranges. 

If that is what you're saying, than I understand your point regarding the nonconformity of the riddle, though I still disagree with it being cheating. Maybe we'll leave questions like this for those with quirky minds. But, going beyond standardizations is not lame and stupid.

Although, after that, if you still think it's lame because it's simply too hard or improbable for us to think of (or just to improbable), and you still such a question is unfair, than that is simply childish and ignorant. You're just angry that you didn't think as far, more so at yourself than at me. It you're more angry at me, than you're simply a narcissist character, and incapable of finding fault with yourself.

I think this exhausts most points on this topic, and many responses will just be repeats. Unless someone thinks of something new, I doubt there's any reason to continue this debate.

so...I'll go with a very conventional riddle that I've heard many times
VII-You're driving an airplane, and it is headed toward New York city at 600 mph (wind 30 against you). You're angle of depression is 6 degrees, and descent should be slow. Gas is only 1/10 full, and it should be saved.
What is the name of the pilot?


----------



## enovinbakht23 (Apr 29, 2009)

1) an electric train is moving west, what dirrection does the smoke blow?

2)you have 19 sheep, all but 9 die, how many do you have left?

3)how many birthdays does an average man have?

4)ther are ten birds on a line, you shoot one, how many are left?


----------



## Ellis (Apr 29, 2009)

enovinbakht23 said:


> 1) an electric train is moving west, what dirrection does the smoke blow?
> 
> 2)you have 19 sheep, all but 9 die, how many do you have left?
> 
> ...





Spoiler



1) There is no smoke, at least caused the train.
2) I say 19 - 10 of which are dead, and 9 of which are alive 
3) One
4) Eh, I'm gunna leave this one blank because I could answer it a few ways.


----------



## JBCM627 (Apr 29, 2009)

goldencuber said:


> VII-You're driving an airplane, and it is headed toward New York city at 600 mph (wind 30 against you). You're angle of depression is 6 degrees, and descent should be slow. Gas is only 1/10 full, and it should be saved.
> What is the name of the pilot?





Spoiler



2006MERT01


----------



## shelley (Apr 29, 2009)

goldencuber said:


> shelley said:
> 
> 
> > When you say 56 when you really mean 56 in base 8 and don't tell us it's base 8, you're cheating and that's lame.
> ...



As other people have said before, by arbitrarily breaking rules without specifying anything, you just opened the door to a lot of possibilities. 56 could have been in base 7, base 8 or base 9. Maybe the "added element" was a tiny addition or multiplication sign nestled between the 5 and the 6. Or maybe the judge is using an entirely different system of numbers, for example a substitution cipher where each numeral he writes really represents another one. Maybe he just has really bad handwriting and what looks like a 6 really is a 0. All of these, in my opinion, are equally valid as answers to your riddle, given the conditions you've laid out.


----------



## qqwref (Apr 29, 2009)

goldencuber said:


> So if I don't tell you the answer in the question, I'm cheating?


No, you don't understand at all. A good riddle must provide enough information so that an intelligent observer can figure out the *unique* answer. You actually DO have to say the answer in the question - but in such a way that it requires the reader to think a bit and play around with the words in order to discover it.



goldencuber said:


> the question would be very difficult to solve ... if you still think it's lame because it's simply too hard or improbable for us to think of ... You're just angry that you didn't think as far, more so at yourself than at me ... you're simply a narcissist character, and incapable of finding fault with yourself


STOP INSULTING PEOPLE. YOU are the one who wrote a crappy riddle which had many possible solutions, and then insisted that the only correct solution was one which made no sense. Every intelligent person in this topic (yes, that doesn't include you!) agrees that your riddle was badly written and mathematically invalid. If anyone is an unintelligent narcissist who is incapable of finding fault with themself, it is YOU, the one who cannot understand, even after we have tried to explain several times, that your so-called "riddle" was completely devoid of merit and logic.


----------



## Stefan (Apr 29, 2009)

goldencuber said:


> If I write 56, say that it's different from normal numbers ...


... then you need to learn the fundamental difference between numbers and representations of numbers. Your wording was severely flawed in several ways, and no amount of whining will change that. Like said earlier, it could've worked had you just written it properly. I have nothing against the basic idea of the riddle, you just very much screwed up formulating it.


----------



## goldencuber (Apr 29, 2009)

@shelley. I intended that for the reader to get the answer, that they would have had to have realized that rules were being broken.I did not imply or state that base 8 was the only answer. But yes, the question does allow for multiple answers. My argument is that just like you can solve the Rubik cube using different solutions, you could solve the riddle using different solutions too. As many of my teachers have said "as long as it is correct..."



qqwref said:


> goldencuber said:
> 
> 
> > So if I don't tell you the answer in the question, I'm cheating?
> ...


Multiple answers can be given to a question, just like there is more than one way of doing the same thing. As long as it's correct, it's fine. No, you don't have to discreetly or directly state answers in questions. Like the psychology test where you're presented with a blot of ink, and are asked to identify it. It involves creative thinking.



qqwref said:


> STOP INSULTING PEOPLE.


I'm simply stating fact: If you really do think the question is unfair because it's too hard, you are simply saying "All questions must be answerable by me, or else they're bad questions." I'm wasn't intentionally insulting anyone, please don't get so defensive.


qqwref said:


> YOU are the one who wrote a crappy riddle which had many possible solutions, and then insisted that the only correct solution was one which made no sense.


No where did I say that there was only one answer, I simply presented "an answer." And it does make sense. If you read the posts, than you'll see that the answer is correct, and that it fits the context of the question.


qqwref said:


> *Every intelligent person in this topic (yes, that doesn't include you!*) agrees that your riddle was *badly written* and *mathematically invalid. *If anyone is an *unintelligent narcissist who is incapable of finding fault with themself, it is YOU,* the one who *cannot understand*, even after *we *have tried to explain several times, that your so-called "riddle" was completely devoid of *merit and logic*.


It is mathematically valid. You seem to have misunderstood. People called it lame, not illogical. I would think that my arguments would have at least a little merit, otherwise Stefan would just quote my entire argument and say "self-explanatory." As for "badly written", the debate is about how my riddle is worded such that it too vaguely hints to any specific answer, and I'm saying it's sufficient to hint any correct answer. Sorry, I don't get the "we", would those affiliated with him please say that you are?

As for your insults, they are not relevant to this debate, and you owe me an apology.

@stefan-If you've being arguing that it was impossible for anyone to realize that the answer was exactly "base 8", than you're right. Perhaps there was a misunderstanding when I posted the answer. I didn't mean that it was the only answer. Maybe I should have said that the concept of changing bases was a solution, though there could be others.

I'm guessing you want it like:
John and Jake are playing a game with their teacher. The teacher writes down a number between one through a hundred on a piece of paper, and John and his friend must guess the number. John and Jake alternate turns guessing, and whoever guesses the number first wins. The teacher writes down the number Thirty-seven. However, the teacher's states that the number, and only his number, has a special abstract element to it, such that it's value is different from what it would be conventionally (Jake was a renowned cheater in school, and the teacher wanted fair play.) Jake guesses Thirty-seven, and then John guesses Twenty-eight. John wins. What was this special element?


----------



## Stefan (Apr 29, 2009)

goldencuber said:


> I'm guessing you want it like: ...


No, that version is just as bad, for pretty much the same reasons.


----------



## goldencuber (Apr 29, 2009)

than I give up in attempting to conform. How would you revise it?


----------



## Bryan (Apr 29, 2009)

StefanPochmann said:


> goldencuber said:
> 
> 
> > I'm guessing you want it like: ...
> ...



I would think it's worse. It's one thing to call "37" octal, but it's another thing to call "thirty-seven" octal.

Yes, you've learned about numbers in different bases. Did you teacher (or whereever you learned it) also explain that the "special abstract element" of a different base is suppose to be expressed with the number, either using a common prefix or subscript?



goldencuber said:


> than I give up in attempting to conform. How would you revise it?


I would try to not shoehorn my "Fact of the Day" into a riddle.


----------



## Stefan (Apr 29, 2009)

Oh here's another flaw that hasn't been mentioned yet, and the new version managed to make me aware of it: There's simply no reason for the judge or the teacher to do that number base thing in the first place.

I'll probably write a proper version soon, but now I go to bed.


----------



## goldencuber (Apr 30, 2009)

@Stefan That's more or less criticizing the plot, which would go under literary criticism.

@Bryan Well, that would be good advice...if it applied. 
The answer was the concept itself. If I mentioned the subscript, it would be obvious a few, and others might have gone to periodic tables. 
Although, that would be basis for a puzzle...

This is just getting picky; You could criticize almost anything thinking this way.


----------



## Dene (Apr 30, 2009)

goldencuber said:


> Multiple answers can be given to a question, just like there is more than one way of doing the same thing. As long as it's correct, it's fine. No, you don't have to discreetly or directly state answers in questions. Like the psychology test where you're presented with a blot of ink, and are asked to identify it. It involves creative thinking.



I have no idea what you are trying to say about this "test", but you are wrong. Identifying images in ink blots is NOT a test, it is a way for a psychoanalytist to try to identify thoughts hidden in the subconscious. There is literally no right or wrong answer, nor is there creative thinking. It is an opinion. A complete opinion. There are certainly "standard" responses to certain patterns, but that's only because some patterns really do look like butterflies.
I mean, it isn't even a question. So there can't even _be_ an answer. "I like chocolate" is not an answer to anything, and neither is "it looks like a butterfly".

You're a moron and I suggest you give up now. You're riddles were stupid, lame, and inconsistent. Accept it.


----------



## goldencuber (Apr 30, 2009)

I was simply saying that not all questions can imply an answer. If there is no answer, than the question couldn't imply any answer, so not all questions have to imply answers. I'm also saying that this riddle needed creative thinking. I asked other people this riddle, and no one criticized it. Most just said that they would have gotten it with time.

Although, since everyone echo's Dene, I'll give it a rest.


----------



## Stefan (Apr 30, 2009)

goldencuber said:


> @Stefan That's more or less criticizing the plot, which would go under literary criticism.


Nope.



goldencuber said:


> I asked other people this riddle, and no one criticized it.


Were any of them as competent in math and riddles as we are? And as autonomous? I think your mommy/daddy/buddies or whoever that was either weren't able to see the flaws or were too insecure or polite to tell you.



goldencuber said:


> Multiple answers can be given to a question, just like there is more than one way of doing the same thing.


So, as long as the answer is *some* possible explanation, it ought to be considered correct?



goldencuber said:


> People called it lame, not illogical.


Hey! I explicitly called it inconsistent! That counts!



goldencuber said:


> Although, since everyone echo's Dene, I'll give it a rest.


Nobody "echoes" anybody here. We all independently see how flawed it is. Really not hard to see.


----------



## mazei (Apr 30, 2009)

And really, don't play around with psychology with Dene.


----------



## qqwref (Apr 30, 2009)

mazei said:


> And really, don't play around with psychology with Dene.



Oh, he wasn't even here until I told him to read this thread


----------



## Dene (Apr 30, 2009)

Yea I had no intention of ever reading this thread once I saw the title. So I didn't until qqwref mentioned this guy :/


----------



## soccerking813 (Apr 30, 2009)

I think that we should get back on topic here.

More stupid questions:

The maker doesn't want it; the buyer doesn't use it; and the user doesn't see it. What is it?

Captain Frank and some of the boys were exchanging old war stories. Art Bragg offered one about how his grandfather led a battalion against a German division during World War I. Through brilliant maneuvers he defeated them and captured valuable territory. After the battle he was presented with a sword bearing the inscription "To Captain Bragg for Bravery, Daring and Leadership. World War I. From the Men of Battalion 8." Captain Frank looked at Art and said, "You really don't expect anyone to believe that yarn, do you?" What's wrong with the story?

What is one thing that all wise men, regardless of their religion or politics, agree is between heaven and earth?

After the new Canon Law that took effect on November 27, 1983, would a Roman Catholic man be allowed to marry his widow's sister?

Note: These question are taken exactly as they are worded from the site http://faq.programmerworld.net/new/fun/tricky-qiestion.html I do not claim to have made these questions, nor am I responsible for any misspellings or wrongly worded questions.


----------



## Ethan Rosen (Apr 30, 2009)

soccerking813 said:


> I think that we should get back on topic here.
> 
> Captain Frank and some of the boys were exchanging old war stories. Art Bragg offered one about how his grandfather led a battalion against a German division during World War I. Through brilliant maneuvers he defeated them and captured valuable territory. After the battle he was presented with a sword bearing the inscription "To Captain Bragg for Bravery, Daring and Leadership. World War I. From the Men of Battalion 8." Captain Frank looked at Art and said, "You really don't expect anyone to believe that yarn, do you?" What's wrong with the story?



They didn't know that it was World War 1 as opposed to just a world war, or the great war until the second one occurred. Any sword given at that time would just say great war.


----------



## Mike Hughey (Apr 30, 2009)

Ethan Rosen said:


> soccerking813 said:
> 
> 
> > I think that we should get back on topic here.
> ...



Yes, but the wording above just says "After the battle he was presented with a sword...". It doesn't say when after the battle. If the sword was presented in, say, 1950 by the remaining survivors of his battalion, the story could still be true.


----------



## shelley (Apr 30, 2009)

soccerking813 said:


> I think that we should get back on topic here.
> 
> More stupid questions:
> 
> ...





Spoiler



First question: a coffin. Second question: no, because he would be dead. Though apparently it's legal to marry a dead person in France, under certain conditions.


----------



## brunson (Apr 30, 2009)

soccerking813 said:


> After the new Canon Law that took effect on November 27, 1983, would a Roman Catholic man be allowed to marry his widow's sister?


That reminds me of a favorite of mine: If a man and a woman are married in their home state of Arkansas and then move to California, are they still legally brother and sister?


----------



## qqwref (Apr 30, 2009)

brunson said:


> soccerking813 said:
> 
> 
> > After the new Canon Law that took effect on November 27, 1983, would a Roman Catholic man be allowed to marry his widow's sister?
> ...


Hahahahaha, nice one


----------



## soccerking813 (May 1, 2009)

In answer to your question, he knew it was a fake, because nobody knew it was B.C. when it was B.C. because they didn't know that Christ was coming. There would not have even been year dates then I would guess, but don't bother pointing out if I am wrong.


----------



## nitrocan (May 1, 2009)

You are right, but I think he wasn't asking the question, but giving a similar example to the other question.


----------



## soccerking813 (May 1, 2009)

I know. I just felt like answering it.


----------



## Bryan (May 1, 2009)

grama said:


> It is like another one:
> 
> "a man goes to a coin collector offering a very valuable item "it's a very old coin" says the man, "it's from 300 B.C", the coin collector takes a look, and rejects him knowing it was a fake... How did he know?. "
> 
> it's kind of the same answers as yours.



OK, an important thing here. You messed this whole thing up because no where in the riddle does it have any indication that the coin itself says it's from 300 BC.


----------



## ThatGuy (May 1, 2009)

i'm back maybe.

No sooner spoken than broken. What is it?

Mountains will crumble and temples will fall, and no man can survive its endless call. What is it?


----------



## brunson (May 1, 2009)

Spoiler:
Silence
Time


----------



## qqwref (May 1, 2009)

grama said:


> "Yes, but the wording above just says "After the battle he was presented with a sword...". It doesn't say when after the battle. If the sword was presented in, say, 1950 by the remaining survivors of his battalion, the story could still be true."
> 
> I think you are being too technical here, even when in the story they don't say EXACTLY when it was presented, if you take that into a real, natural context, when you say "after [...] (something happened)" you mean intermediately after or a somehow relative short amount of time, if you want to refer to a more far away date (didn't know how to say that, but i think you get my point) you use other expressions like "a few years later" or "after [and you give a date]" or "in [date]...".



You don't even have to worry about how technical you are. The joke implies that there is SOMETHING wrong with the story - so unless there's something else wrong with it (and I can't find anything), the answer has to be that the sword said World War I (which *implies* that the sword was presented before WWII).



Bryan said:


> grama said:
> 
> 
> > It is like another one:
> ...



Same situation here. If the coin collector could know it was a fake so quickly, it's probably because it says "300 BC" (although in this case there COULD be another answer, i.e. it's a well-known coin type and the lettering was misspelled). You could argue that the riddle here is to figure out what *could* be wrong with the coin that would make it obvious it was fake.


----------



## spdcbr (May 1, 2009)

What does LQL mean?


----------



## Bryan (May 1, 2009)

qqwref said:


> Same situation here. If the coin collector could know it was a fake so quickly, it's probably because it says "300 BC" (although in this case there COULD be another answer, i.e. it's a well-known coin type and the lettering was misspelled). You could argue that the riddle here is to figure out what *could* be wrong with the coin that would make it obvious it was fake.



It's one thing to make the person figure out what could be wrong, but there's nothing that helps it rule out the other possible explanations. Perhaps he handed the coin dealer a coin made of plastic or it had a picture of the Little Caesar's mascot on it. Neither of these can be rejected from the clues in the riddle. The fact that a coin collector can reject it quickly is of no surprise, because they're experts. Even with nothing written on the coin, they could dismiss a fake quickly. Without given enough details to at least limit the answer to a few possibilities, the riddle becomes worthless.

It's like stating, "Some days a man rides the elevator up." It's been paraphrased so far down that you lose critical elements. Yes, it's more extreme than the example above, but shouldn't the person figure out what "could" be wrong?


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## shelley (May 1, 2009)

qqwref said:


> You could argue that the riddle here is to figure out what *could* be wrong with the coin that would make it obvious it was fake.



Yeah, but then that will start looking like "what *could* be wrong with the number 56 so that it doesn't equal 56"


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## ThatGuy (May 2, 2009)

spdcbr said:


> What does LQL mean?



laughing quietly loudly.


I didn't realize a bored day at school would spawn 24 pages.


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## soccerking813 (May 2, 2009)

There was once a very old woman who lived in a one story house that was right in the middle of the neighborhood she lived in. Everything she had was pink. The forks were pink, her book were all pink, and even her cat had pink fur. What color were her stairs?

And please, think of the general usage of stairs.


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## Ellis (May 2, 2009)

soccerking813 said:


> There was once a very old woman who lived in a one story house that was right in the middle of the neighborhood she lived in. Everything she had was pink. The forks were pink, her book were all pink, and even her cat had pink fur. What color were her stairs?
> 
> And please, think of the general usage of stairs.





Spoiler



she had a pink stairmaster, but no regular stairs... c'mon.


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## spdcbr (May 2, 2009)

soccerking813 said:


> There was once a very old woman who lived in a one story house that was right in the middle of the neighborhood she lived in. Everything she had was pink. The forks were pink, her book were all pink, and even her cat had pink fur. What color were her stairs?
> 
> And please, think of the general usage of stairs.


She didnt have stairs since she lived in a one-story house. Nailed it!


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## byu (May 2, 2009)

spdcbr said:


> soccerking813 said:
> 
> 
> > There was once a very old woman who lived in a one story house that was right in the middle of the neighborhood she lived in. Everything she had was pink. The forks were pink, her book were all pink, and even her cat had pink fur. What color were her stairs?
> ...



Except Ellis got it before you.


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## Ellis (May 2, 2009)

And it was the most stupidly easy question. It's not really something to be proud of.


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## qqwref (May 2, 2009)

Haha, maybe there were stairs to her house? I've seen one-story houses on stilts that you needed stairs to get to.

I'm guessing the stairs were pink.


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