Twenty from Three 3s

What’s the simplest way to make 20 using only three 3s (no other digits) and a combination of mathematical operations using any of these symbols?

+ – × / ^ ! √ . ()

(3 + 3) / .3 = 20

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Ted and The Vicious Dog

Ted was lost while driving around the country and saw a house. He parked under a nearby tree and started toward the house. As soon as he got out of his car a huge dog lunged at him from the opposite side of the tree. Fortunately the dog was chained and Ted managed to stay out of reach. Finding no one home at the house, Ted returned to his car, but as he approached the dog lunged at him again. The chain was so long the snarling animal could reach both car doors. How did Ted escape the dog and get back into his car?

Ted moved slowly around the tree keeping just out of the dog’s reach. The animal followed, winding its chain around the tree until it was too short to reach Ted’s car

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Cat-Related Phrases

What are these words or phrases, which contain the word cat?

A dreadful event (11 letters)
A robber who climbs walls (10 letters, 2 words)
A systematic list (7 letters)

Catastrophe
Cat Burglar
Catalog

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The Quirky Fruit Stand

At a quirky fruit stand, an orange costs 18 cents, a pineapple costs 27 cents and a grape costs 15 cents. Using the same logic, how much does a mango cost?

A mango costs 15 cents. The logic is 3 cents per letter.

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Jim’s Canoeing Adventure

Jim was canoeing on a lake when a sudden thunderstorm blew in tipped his boat. He swam to a rocky island about a mile from his family’s cottage and found a small, abandoned shack. Inside was an old kerosene lamp and a few matches. All the wood on the island was too damp to burn and the lamp was his only means of signaling for help but it only held an inch of kerosene, not enough to reach its short wick. How did he get the lamp burning to summon help?

Knowing kerosene and water wouldn’t mix and kerosene is less dense than water, he dipped the lamp in the lake and filled it with enough water so the kerosene rose to the top to cover the wick. The lamp was still burning an hour later when a motorboat rescued him.

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What Everleigh Likes

Everleigh likes knights but not batteries, writing but not typing and to listen but not to sing. Does she like an unknown or a famous author?

Unknown. Everleigh likes words with silent letters.

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Pitching On The Merry-Go-Round

Everly and I were playing on the merry-go-round at the local park. It was very large and we stood on opposite sides. As we spun the merry-go-round counter-clockwise, I threw a ball to Everly. Did the ball go to Everly, to the right or left of them?

Since the merry-go-round had moved while the ball was traveling to Everly the ball went to the right of them.

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The Train and the Tunnel

A train is a half mile long and is about to enter a 10 mile tunnel. If the train is traveling at 35mph, how long will it take for the entire train to make it through the tunnel, from the front of the train entering to the end of the train leaving the tunnel?

18 minutes.

Length of the train: 0.5 miles
Length of the tunnel: 10 miles
Total distance: 0.5 + 10 = 10.5 miles

Time = 10.5 miles / 35 mph = 0.3 hours = 18 minutes

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Fly In The Ear

One evening a man is walking home from work and an insect flies into his ear. He tries to pry it out but it doesn’t work. Shaking his head isn’t successful either. Finally he managed to get it out. How did he do it?

As soon as he got home, he shined a flashlight close to his ear and the insect, attracted by the light, flew toward it.

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Ethan’s Grand Night Out

Ethan was going for a night out but his key fob battery had died and the button wouldn’t unlock his car door. How was he able to get in?

He used the key embedded in the key fob.

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