If You Break Me, I Don’t Stop Working

If you break me
I do not stop working,
If you touch me
I may be snared,
If you lose me
Nothing will matter.

Your heart.

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Before Mount Everest

Before Mt. Everest was discovered, what was the tallest mountain in the world?

Still Mount Everest. Just because it wasn’t discovered didn’t make it any smaller.

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I Am a Protector

I am a protector.
I sit on a bridge.
One person can see right through me.
Others wonder what I hide.

What am I?

Sunglasses

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Harvest Though No Grain

I harvest you, though you’ve no grain,
I reap you in the wind and rain,
You bleed not but your soft meat
And nectar makes a sweetest treat.
What am I?

A clam or oyster. You harvest clams or oysters on the beach or go diving, and the beach is often windy and rainy. Neither bleeds but are known for having, soft, slimy meat, and people often drink the “clam nectar” or “oyster juice”.

Thanks to Helena for this submission

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What Word Could Be Added to Make New Words?

What word could be added to all of these words?

apple
cone
lake
tree
ridge
nuts

Pine.

Posted in Brain Teasers

Paris to Roye

Hans made a meandering journey from Paris to Roye. On the first day, he went half of the distance. On the second day, he went one third of the remaining distance. On the third day he went three quarters of the remaining distance. The next day he traveled half of the remaining distance and was left with 5 kilometers to get to Roye. How far was the entire journey?

120 kilometers.

Hans’ trip went like this:

Day 1 – 60 km (60 km remaining)
Day 2 – 20 km (40 km remaining)
Day 3 – 30 km (10 km remaining)
Day 4 – 5 km (5 km remaining)
Day 5 – 5 km (arrives in Roye)

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A Mile From End To End

A mile from end to end, yet as close to as a friend. A precious commodity, freely given. Seen on the dead and on the living. Found on the rich, poor, short and tall, but shared among children most of all. What is it?

A smile.

Posted in Riddles

All Things Devours

This thing all things devours,
Birds, beasts, trees, and flowers.
Gnaws iron bites steel,
Grinds hard stones to meal,
Slays king, ruins town,
And beats high mountain down

Time. Iron, steel, stone and virtually any substance will be worn down given enough time.

(From J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit)

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False Positive HIV Test

Imagine an HIV test that is 95% accurate (false positive rate of 5%) and around 2% of the tested population is infected with HIV. What is the probability that you actually have HIV when your test comes back positive?

29%

To read more about this, see the False Positive Paradox page on Wikipedia.

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What Can You Catch But Not Throw?

What can you catch but not throw?

Your breath or an illness (a cold, virus, the flu etc).

Posted in Riddles