Square Root Equations

Arrange the digits 1 through 9 into an equation so that the first number is the square root of the second number. (Two possible variations)

5672 = 321,489

OR

8542 = 729,316

Posted in Brain Teasers

Weight In My Belly

Weight in my belly;
trees on my back;
nails in my ribs;
feet I do lack.

A ship.

Posted in Riddles

The Age of Three Daughters

I was visiting a friend one evening and remembered that he had three daughters. I asked him how old they were. “The product of their ages is 72,” he answered. Quizzically, I asked, “Is there anything else you can tell me?” “Yes,” he replied, “the sum of their ages is equal to the number of my house.” I stepped outside to see what the house number was. Upon returning inside, I said to my host, “I’m sorry, but I still can’t figure out their ages.” He responded apologetically, “I’m sorry, I forgot to mention that my oldest daughter likes strawberry shortcake.” With this information, I was able to determine all three of their ages. How old is each daughter?

3, 3, and 8. The only groups of 3 factors of 72 to have non-unique sums are “2 6 6” and “3 3 8” (with a sum of 14). The rest have unique sums:

2 + 2 + 18 = 22
2 + 3 + 12 = 18
2 + 4 + 9 = 15
3 + 4 + 6 = 13

The house number alone would have identified any of these groups. Since more information was required, we know the sum left the answer unknown. The presence of a single oldest child eliminates “2 6 6”, leaving “3 3 8” as the only possible answer.

Posted in Brain Teasers

Alone I’m Unknown

Alone I’m unknown,
With my twin I’m twenty,
And triplets make me a warning.

What am I?

The letter ‘X’. A single x is often used in math as an unknown, along with Mr. X. Two together (XX) make the Roman numeral 20, and three signifies a warning for adult only content, or a warning to other programmers of a problem in source code.

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I Can Kill People

I can kill people, or cause great pain.
You eat me.
I can mean you’re crazy.
I hold things together.
I help climbers stay safe.
I can replace a swear.
And I’m on a violin.

What am I?

Nuts.

People with nut allergies can die from eating nuts. Being hit in the nuts hurts (I speak from experience. Painful, painful experience). You eat nuts (unless you’re allergic, in which case you should run away). If someone says you’re nuts, it doesn’t mean you’re a peanut or an almond. Nuts and bolts hold things together. A climber’s nut or chock wedges into a rock. Instead of swearing, you can say, “Aww nuts!”. And finally, the nut on a violin is a small piece of hard material that supports the strings.

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Until I Am Measured

Until I am measured
I am not known,
Yet how you miss me
When I have flown.

Time.

Posted in Riddles

Leave a Grieving Wife

If you throw me from the window,
I’ll leave a grieving wife.
Bring me back, but in the door and,
You’ll see something giving life.

What am I?

The answer is the letter ‘n’. Taking ‘n’ out of window makes widow. And putting ‘n’ back into door makes donor.

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Willow’s Broken Keyboard

Willow’s keyboard is acting up. The a, e, i, o and u keys don’t work and the space key is misbehaving as well. Can you decipher these common sayings they typed?

tfsghttfmnd
ctnsspkldrthnwrds
hnstysthbstplcy
sycmsyg

Out of sight, out of mind
Actions speak louder than words
Honesty is the best policy
Easy come, easy go

Posted in Brain Teasers

I’m A Sifter

I’m a sifter of a memorable shape,
You can eat a variety of me, but I can be toxic,
I can cause severe pain if you’re not careful,
And the action I describe could hurt as well.

What am I?

A kidney.

Kidneys filter your blood and are shaped like kidney beans, which you can eat. Red kidney beans contains high amounts of phytohemagglutinin (quite the word, eh?) and can be toxic if not soaked and boiled. Kidney stones can be extremely painful and if a kid knees you in the stones, that would also be unpleasant.

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It’s True I Bring Serenity

It’s true I bring serenity,
And hang around the stars
But yet I live in misery;
You’ll find me behind bars
With thieves and villains I consort
In prison I’ll be found
But I would never go to court,
Unless there’s more than one

The letter “s”.

Posted in Riddles