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

A Box Without Hinges

A box without hinges, key or lid,
Yet golden treasure inside is hid.

What is it?

An egg.

(From J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit)

Posted in Riddles

Spibered Rebus

What does this represent?

SPIbeRED

Be inspired, or literally, be in spired.

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Ties One Another

What ties one to another and is closest to the heart?

A wedding ring.

I know, this is nearly a duplicate with What Holds Two People Together.

Posted in Riddles

Travel a Lot Meet Both Rich and Poor

I travel a lot and meet both the rich and the poor, but nobody knows where I am going next. I’m invisible but you can see what I do. Who or what am I?

Wind (or anything blown by the wind). It moves all over, reaches the rich and the poor equally and no one knows exactly which way the next gust of wind will blow. You can’t see the wind, but you can see what it blows, like leaves or dust.

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100 Less Than 99

Where do you find that 100 is less than 99?

On a microwave. Most microwaves will run for a minute if you enter 100, but will run for a minute and 39 seconds if you enter 99.

100 is also less than 99 in an ordered ranking, where 1 is first, and 100th is a lower rank than 99th place.

Posted in Brain Teasers

Don’t Get a Goat

On a game show there are three closed doors – one hides a car and the other two conceal a goat. The contestant selects a door, which remains closed, and the host, knowing where the car is hidden, reveals a goat behind one of the remaining two doors. The contestant is then given the option to switch doors or stay with the one they originally selected. What should the contestant do to have the best chance of winning the car?

The contestant should switch doors, which doubles the chance of winning the car. Initially there is a 2/3 chance of picking a goat, but once the other goat is revealed, switching to remaining door gives the contestant a better chance of winning the car. This is known as the Monty Hall Problem and can be very unintuitive.

Posted in Brain Teasers

A Shorter Word

What word becomes shorter when you add letters to it?

Short. Adding ‘er’ to short gives you shorter.

Posted in Riddles

Built From Anything You Don’t Like

I’m built from anything you don’t like,
You’re using me right now in fact,
I am one but represent many,
When attacked I’m easily cracked,
I’m created in seconds but live forever
And though you may not understand,
I’ll help you do well but be careful my friend,
Hurt me and you won’t withstand.

What am I?

Character (or characters).

Kids are often told, when dealing with unpleasant things, that it builds character. You’re reading the characters this riddle is written with. In computer science a char is often represented by one byte and can store any character you want.

When politicians have their character besmirched it can swiftly change the voting public’s mind about them. Characters in novels are created with a few lines but live on in our memories. And if your character or reputation is damaged, you may find it hard to deal with the aftermath.

And here’s a great quote from Warren Buffet on your character.

“It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently.” — Warren Buffet

Posted in Riddles

Little Miss Eticote

Little Miss Eticote
In her white petticoat
And her red nose
The longer she stands
The shorter she grows

A candle.

Posted in Riddles