At Least One is a Boy

A couple has two children. At least one of them is a boy. Assuming the probability of having a boy or girl is 50%, what is the probability that both children are boys?

If you answered 1/2, you’re not without comrades, but the generally accepted answer by statisticians (though not without debate) is 1/3. This is because there are four possible combinations: boy-boy, boy-girl, girl-boy and girl-girl. Since we are told one of the children is a boy (but we don’t know if it’s the first or second child), we can rule out the girl-girl combination, leaving three remaining options. Only one out of 3 is boy-boy, so we get a 1/3 chance.

This is a well-known problem known as the Boy or Girl paradox. The other variation is this brain teaser.

Posted in Brain Teasers

Cats and Kittens But No Mittens

Six men are carrying boxes holding six cats and each cat has 6 kittens. How many legs are there in total?

1020. There are 6 men with 2 legs each, for a total of 12 legs.
There are 36 cats with 4 legs each for a total of 144 legs.
There are 216 kittens with 4 legs each for a total of 864 legs
12 + 144 + 864 = 1020.

Posted in Brain Teasers

I Appear In The Morning But Am Always There

I appear in the morning but am always there.
You can never see me though I am everywhere.
By night I am gone, though I sometimes never was.
Nothing can defeat me but I am easily gone.

What am I?

Sunlight.

Posted in Riddles

Word Pronounced Incorrectly

What 11-letter word does everyone pronounce incorrectly?

The word “incorrectly”.

Posted in Riddles

854917632

What is special about the number 854917632?

It is the numbers from 1 to 9 in alphabetical order.

Eight
Five
Four
Nine
One
Seven
Six
Three
Two

Posted in Riddles

I Sleep By Day

I sleep by day, I fly by night. I have no feathers to aid my flight. What am I?

A bat.

Posted in Riddles
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Walking Through Paper

You have a regular sized piece of paper. How could you cut a hole in it large enough for you to walk through?

Fold the paper in half and make cuts that are almost entirely across the width of the paper. Switch between sides. When the paper is opened there will be a very large hole that you can climb through (carefully).

Posted in Brain Teasers

Each Morning I Appear

Each morning I appear
To lie at your feet,
All day I will follow
No matter how fast you run,
Yet I nearly perish
In the midday sun.

Shadow.

Posted in Riddles

Jim and Wanda’s Apples

Jim and Wanda both have some apples. If Jim gives Wanda an apple, they will both have the same number of apples. However, if Wanda gives Jim an apple, Jim will have twice as many as Wanda. How many apples do Jim and Wanda each have?

Jim has 7 apples and Wanda has 5 apples.

Posted in Brain Teasers

CASE Rebus

CA   SE
CASE

Open and closed case.

Posted in Riddles
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