Riddles and Brain Teasers

The Average of Three

There are three numbers. The first two are 2/3 and 3/4.

What does the third number have to be to make the average of all three be 2?

4 7/12In order for the average of three numbers to be 2, they must all add up to 6. That gives you this equation:
2/3 + 3/4 + n = 6Solve for n = 55/12, or 4 7/12.

4 7/12

In order for the average of three numbers to be 2, they must all add up to 6. That gives you this equation:
2/3 + 3/4 + n = 6

Solve for n = 55/12, or 4 7/12.

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Today Before Yesterday

I am a rare case where today comes before yesterday. What am I?

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A dictionary

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Where do the Numbers Belong?

Three numbers, 16, 14 and 38, need to be assigned to one of the rows of numbers below. Where do the numbers belong?

A	0	6	8	9	3
B	15	27	21	10	19
C	7	1	47	11	17

Hint: This is not a mathematical problem. The numerical values are irrelevant.

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The rows indicate the shape of the number. Row A is rounded, B is mixed and C is linear. Thus, 16 belongs in row B, 14 in row C and 38 in row A.

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Ground Not For Thy Daily Bread

Ground not for thy daily bread,
Leave me in my scented bed,
Ignore me not, lest I doth wither,
My name I leave you to consider.

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A flower. The soil they grow in is not used for food, like wheat to make bread, but for their smell. A neglected flower will wither.

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You’re Halfway There

You’re standing 11 feet away from a doorway and with each step you move halfway to the doorway. How many steps will it take for you to get to the doorway?

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Technically, the answer is infinity. If you keep going halfway, you’ll never actually make it to the doorway.But in practice, after 10 steps you’ll be 1/8th of an inch to the doorway and anyone behind you would say to stop being a baby and take a real step through the doorway already.

Technically, the answer is infinity. If you keep going halfway, you’ll never actually make it to the doorway.

But in practice, after 10 steps you’ll be 1/8th of an inch to the doorway and anyone behind you would say to stop being a baby and take a real step through the doorway already.

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A Circular Island

A circular island with a diameter of 30 feet has a 30 foot tree stands at the center. A man cuts the tree down with his chainsaw, making the cut a foot up from the ground. The tree comes crashing down and hits the water but doesn’t splash. Why not?

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It’s winter and the water is frozen.

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Sharpshooter

A sharpshooter hangs up his hat, turns around and walks 5000 meters in one direction, then turns around and shoots his gun, putting a hole right through his hat. How did he do it?

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He hung the hat up on his gun.

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The Train and the Tunnel

A train is a half mile long and is about to enter a 10 mile tunnel. If the train is traveling at 35mph, how long will it take for the entire train to make it through the tunnel, from the front of the train entering to the end of the train leaving the tunnel?

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18 minutes.Length of the train: 0.5 miles
Length of the tunnel: 10 miles
Total distance: 0.5 + 10 = 10.5 milesTime = 10.5 miles / 35 mph = 0.3 hours = 18 minutes

18 minutes.

Length of the train: 0.5 miles
Length of the tunnel: 10 miles
Total distance: 0.5 + 10 = 10.5 miles

Time = 10.5 miles / 35 mph = 0.3 hours = 18 minutes

Posted in Brain Teasers

Turning the Years Upside Down

What years from the 1900s and 1800s are the same year when read upside down?

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1961 and 1881.

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I Make Men Crazy

I can make men crazy,
I shine when you retire.
I move water without a touch,
My colors may cause you ire.

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The moon. The moon has a long association with being crazy (lunar being the basis for a lunatic). It shines at night, when you go to bed. The moon’s gravity creates the ocean tides and when the moon is different colors it can mean bad weather is on its way.

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