Some form a parliament,
Others a company, congregation or convocation,
The mob can see a murder, or clamor and wake,
A bouquet is presented when flushed.
Imagine you are in a dark room with a locked door. All you have with you is a rope and a pencil. You can hear the rain outside, but there
are no windows. How do you get out?
Noreen doesn’t have a driver’s license and goes the wrong way on a one-way street, then turns left at a corner with a “No left turns” sign. A policeman sees her but does nothing. Why?
You are the bus driver. At your first stop, you pick up 29 people. On your second stop, 18 of those 29 people get off, and at the same time 10 new passengers arrive. At your next stop, 3 of those 10 passengers get off, and 13 new passengers come on. On your fourth stop 4 of the remaining 10 passengers get off, 6 of those new 13 passengers get off as well, then 17 new passengers get on. What is the color of the bus driver’s eyes?
I debated adding this riddle because it is less of a riddle and more of an illustration of how kids are (or are not) being taught to think for themselves. But after reading how kids feel the need to make up an answer without understanding why, I thought this could be a good reminder for all of us to exercise our critical thinking skills.
“Life’s funny”, said an old friend when I bumped into him the other day.
“Listen to this, I was born in March, yet I celebrate my birthday in August, and last February I married my mother”.
He was born in the month of August in a town named March, became a priest and married his widowed mother to her second husband in February (the month).
I hesitated to add this because it’s poorly worded, ambiguous and the answer could be almost anything. I prefer teasers with a single answer, but there you go.
If you came up with a different answer and can explain how you did it, don’t think you’re wrong. It’s probably just as valid. Feel free to share yours in the comments.
My answer for the first number is 2.
Here’s how I got it.
The generic rule for a number in the sequence is: 2^(n – 1) + 1, where n is the position in the sequence.
Note: The teaser doesn’t specify the position of 17. In this case, it’s fifth.
Position 1: (so n = 1) is 2^(1 – 1) + 1 = 2
Position 2: 2^(2 – 1) + 1 = 3
Position 3: 2^(3 – 1) + 1 = 5
Position 4: 2^(4 – 1) + 1 = 9
Position 5: 2^(5 – 1) + 1 = 17
For the curious, the next 5 numbers of the sequence would be:
An 18-wheeler is crossing a 4 kilometer bridge that can only support 10,000 kilograms and that’s exactly how much the rig weighs. Halfway across the bridge a 30 gram sparrow lands on the cab, but the bridge doesn’t collapse. Why not?
Since the bridge is 4 kilometers long, the halfway point would be 2 kilometers. The 18-wheeler would have used much more than 30g of fuel to drive 2 kilometers.