A man and his wife were slowly driving along when their teenage son, who had just recently received his driver's license, suddenly drove his car up behind them and started to repeatedly smash into the back of their car, while his sister, who was in the car with him, loudly cheered and egged on her brother. Witnesses to the event appeared unaffected by the incident, and in fact some were even observed smiling. The police were never called. What was going on with this family, and why did no one call the police?
Think about a common family outing where people often gather to watch and enjoy...
The man and his wife had taken their two children to an amusement park. The parents were in one bumper car, and their two children were in another bumper car.
Dorothy and Irene are now model citizens, but in their younger days, when they were in elementary school, they were known as "The Two Lightning Bolts". It was the last day of fourth grade for these two classmates back in 1929, and the two had concocted an evil plot to get back at their fourth-grade teacher, who they did not like. At one point, when the teacher turned his back on them to face the blackboard, Dorothy and Irene each carefully removed loaded guns from their lunch boxes, aimed them at the teacher, and pulled the triggers. Fortunately, they were both poor shots, but they did manage to graze their teacher on his back and head with a few of their repeated shots. As the teacher tried to escape the classroom, he slipped and fell twice on Dorothy and Irene’s loose ammunition, but he managed to make it to the school office to report the shooting attack. However, "The Two Lightning Bolts" received only a two-week suspension, starting at the beginning of the following school year for their premeditated attack on the teacher. I always heard discipline was better and stronger in the past, but these two tried to shoot their teacher with loaded guns, and got off with only a two-week suspension! How can this travesty ok of justice possibly be explained?
Think about the phrase "loaded guns" in a different way...
Dorothy and Irene did indeed shoot their teacher while in fourth grade, but the attack was made with their squirt guns. The teacher slipped on the water which had missed him, and he subsequently slipped and fell on the floor during his attempted escape. The school went lightly on the two, because they knew the parents had additional punishments for “The Two Lightning Bolts”.
Four friends went out one night. During the trip back, they tried to squeeze under an umbrella, but it was too small for them to fit through. Still, everyone managed to stay dry by the time they arrived home. How can this be?
Think about the time of day and the circumstances of their trip...
It wasn't raining. I didn't say that it was raining after all!
Bruno, a former race car driver, decided to switch professions when he became 30 years old. One day, on his new job, he suddenly felt compelled to speed up his car to over 90 miles per hour on the highway. As he glanced at his rearview mirror, he saw two police cars with their lights flashing and sirens wailing, coming up behind him; but Bruno appeared unphased by this, and he increased his speed to over 100 m.p.h. The two police cars remained in hot pursuit when suddenly, Bruno heard a loud bang and realized he had blown a tire. He was very fortunate to be able to pull safely over to the side of the road. Bruno laid his head down on his steering wheel as the two police cars reached his location --- and then went whizzing past him down the highway. All Bruno could say was, "I hope they don't get away." Why didn’t the two police cars stop to arrest Bruno for speeding and running from the law, and what is Bruno's new profession?
Think about a job where speeding and reckless driving are not only allowed but also encouraged, and the police would be more interested in helping than arresting...
Bruno's new profession as he had become a police officer. He was in his police cruiser when he spotted a car that matched the description of one used by a couple of men who had just committed a robbery, and he began his high-speed pursuit. Two other police cars joined in the pursuit until Bruno’s car had a flat tire.
Mrs. Nimbus left some money for her eldest son, Garrett, to go grocery shopping. When Garrett went to take the money, he didn't find it. Mrs. Nimbus suspected that one of her two younger kids-either Abby or Rick–had stolen it, so she questioned them. Abby said that she had put the money underneath a book so that it wouldn't fly away. Rick said that he had put the money inside the book between pages 51 and 52. Who's the thief?
Think about the name "Mrs. Nimbus"... what does it imply about the environment in which the story takes place?
Rick is the thief. Books normally have their odd-numbered pages on the right, while the even-numbered pages are on the left. Pages 51 and 52 are on two sides of the same sheet, so Rick couldn't have put the money between those two pages.
The cost of making only the maker knows, Valueless if bought, but sometimes traded. A poor man may give one as easily as a king. When one is broken pain and deceit are assured. What am I?
Think about something that is priceless, yet worthless if you try to buy it, and is often exchanged between people, regardless of their social status...
Joe and Sally were sitting in their family room one night. While Joe was watching T.V, his wife Sally was reading. All of a sudden the power went out and Joe decided to go to bed, but Sally kept on reading. With no use of artificial light, Sally kept on reading. How?
The hint is: Think about the timing and the activity Sally was doing...
Sally was blind, she was reading a book by Braille.
A woman is sitting in her hotel room when there is a knock at the door. She opened the door to see a man whom she had never seen before. He said "Oh I'm sorry, I have made a mistake, I thought this was my room." He then went down the corridor and in the elevator. The woman went back into her room and phoned security. What made the woman so suspicious of the man?
Here's a hint:
Think about what the man said and did, and how it relates to the fact that he was a stranger in the woman's hotel room...
Scientists have proven that cats have more hair on one side than on the other side. Some people believe that this is because when cats lay on their sides they need insulation from the cold on the floor or ground.
Which side of a cat has more hair?
There are two rooms in front of you. On the door to each room, there is a sign; only one of the signs tells the truth. The sign on the door to the first room says, "There is treasure here. A monster lurks in the other room,". And the sign on the door to the second room says, "The treasure and the monster are in different rooms,". Where is the treasure?
Think about what would happen if the sign on the first room was telling the truth... would the sign on the second room still make sense?
The treasure is in the second room. If the first sign is true, then the second sign is true, too. This contradicts the terms of the game. Therefore, the first sign is false, and the second sign is truthful.
George was cleaning the windows on the eighteenth floor of an office block when there was a massive power failure. The electric hoist on his platform was immoblized.
So how did he manage to get down before the power was restored?
Think about what George was doing when the power failure occurred...
George walked down the stairs. He was cleaning the inside of the windows.
How old is your son? asked a man to his neighbour. My son is five times as old as my daughter and my wife is five times as old as my son. Iam twice as old as my wife whereas my grandmother, who is celebrating her eighty-first birthday is as old as all of us put togeather.
How old is the man's son?
Pay close attention to the relationships between the ages of the family members, and think about how the grandmother's age can be used to set up an equation that will help you solve for the son's age.
Taking that internship in a remote mountain lab might not have been the best idea. Pulling that lever with the skull symbol just to see what it did probably wasn't so smart either. But now is not the time for regrets because you need to get away from these mutant zombies...fast. Can you use math to get you and your friends over the bridge before the zombies arrive? Alex Gendler shows how.
Think about the concept of "rate" and how it can be used to solve a problem involving time, distance, and speed.
At first it might seem like no matter what you do, you're just a minute or two short of time, but there is a way. The key is to minimize the time wasted by the two slowest people by having them cross together. And because you'll need to make a couple of return trips with the lantern, you'll want to have the fastest people available to do so. So, you and the lab assistant quickly run across with the lantern, though you have to slow down a bit to match her pace. After two minutes, both of you are across, and you, as the quickest, run back with the lantern. Only three minutes have passed. So far, so good. Now comes the hard part. The professor and the janitor take the lantern and cross together. This takes them ten minutes since the janitor has to slow down for the old professor who keeps muttering that he probably shouldn't have given the zombies night vision. By the time they're across, there are only four minutes left, and you're still stuck on the wrong side of the bridge. But remember, the lab assistant has been waiting on the other side, and she's the second fastest of the group. So she grabs the lantern from the professor and runs back across to you. Now with only two minutes left, the two of you make the final crossing. As you step on the far side of the gorge, you cut the ropes and collapse the bridge behind you, just in the nick of time.
A Panda Bear walked into a restaurant. He sat down at a table and ordered some food. When he was finished eating, he took out a gun and shot his waiter. He then left the restaurant. After the police caught up with him, they asked him why he had killed the waiter. He replied, "Look me up in the dictionary." What did the dictionary say?
When they looked up the word "Panda" in the dictionary, it stated, "Panda: Eats shoots and leaves."
Two convicts are locked in a cell. There is an unbarred window high up in the cell. No matter if they stand on the bed or one on top of the other they can't reach the window to escape. They then decide to tunnel out. However, they give up on the tunneling because it will take too long. Finally one of the convicts figures out how to escape from the cell. What is his plan?
Think about the physical characteristics of the convicts that could be used to their advantage...
His plan is to dig the tunnel and pile up the dirt to climb up to the window to escape.
Think about the physical characteristics of turtles that might make it difficult for them to participate in a game that requires quick movements and precise actions...
I weaken all men for hours each day. I show you strange visions while you are away. I take you by night, by day take you back, None suffer to have me, but do from my lack.
What am I?
You're often found in the darkest of places, yet you're a common companion to many...
Large as a mountain, small as a pea,
Endlessly swimming in a waterless sea.
What am I?
Think about something that can be enormous in concept, yet tiny in physical form, and is often associated with a vast, ocean-like expanse, but not necessarily made of water...
I am nothing, I am everything. I am perfect dark, I am the brightest lights. I am hungry, I am full. I am nowhere, I am everywhere. I am unseen, I am watched by millions. What am I?
Think about something that can be both absent and present, and can be perceived in different ways by different people...
They say the eyes are windows to your soul, But yet I had no soul, From time to time I always stand tall, An immortal, Nothing could move me, If I could, I would run as fast as I could, Feeling the wind carry me beneath my feet, But alas, I can not, The Medusa's Curse. What am I?
Here's a hint: Think about something that can be found in a statue...
Made of ten but two are we. Five apart and we are weak. Five together havoc wreak. What am I
"Think about something that has ten parts, but is often referred to in terms of two. The key to this riddle lies in the way these parts are arranged..."
Where man is, there I am
I'm natural, man makes me
I'm a shield, a weapon
I enchain to release
A stable foundation
Though ever-evolving
My body is quite vast
Though I'm not physical
I have many branches
I'm not a tree or plant
No guesses, you know me now
No mercy, if you are wrong
What am I?
Think about something that is inherently connected to human existence, yet is not a living thing, and has a dual nature that can be both protective and restrictive...
Round I start, yet no shape have I. Allow me to breathe, and my life will die. The older I grow, the more sought after I become. You will feel much better when I am done.
What am I?
Think about something that begins with a circular motion, but doesn't necessarily have a fixed shape. It needs "breathing room" to exist, but if it's allowed to "breathe" too much, it will disappear. As it ages, it becomes more desirable, and its completion brings a sense of relief...
You feel me sometimes, but I never appear in new things. Joy and excitement are definitely my antidote, and sadness and pain are effective ways to drive me away. What am I?
Think about emotions and how they can change your physical sensations...
I'm done with a hand, one at a time;
A motion to make words, but not to make lines;
I'm known as correct, and as a way, in a way;
And even if you don't take me away, none of me would be left.
What am I?
Think about an action you perform with your hand that helps you communicate, but isn't about drawing or writing.
I am not found on any ground,But always in the air; Though charged each cloud with thunder loud, You can not find me there. Now, if from France you choose to dance Your way just into Spain, I there am seen, and near the queen, In hail, in mist, and rain.
What am I?
Think about something that is always present in the air, yet not physically found on the ground, and is closely associated with weather phenomena...
What is Greater than God, worse than evil, the poor have it, the rich require it and if you eat it you die?
Think about something that is often associated with power, yet can be a burden to those who have it, and is desperately needed by those who don't. It's a paradoxical concept that can be both coveted and feared.
Nothing. Nothing is better than God. Nothing is worse than evil. The poor have nothing. The rich don't have anything they have everything. If you eat nothing you die.
What ancient device allows people to traverse through walls?
Think about something that was used in the past to help people move from one place to another, and its name has a word that is also a type of partition or barrier...
A train just leaves a station and enters a tunnel. Where is the best place for a claustrophobic person to sit?
Think about the part of the train that is already OUT of the tunnel...
In the back. See, the train is still accelerating as it is leaving the station so the train will be moving faster when the back of the train enters the tunnel.
Think about a girl's title or label, and how it changes when she becomes an adult...
Replace the letters G, I, and R with the three letters A, D, and Y. The word "lady" is another word for woman. Other possible answers: AGE, MRS, MOM...
Four kings of whom I am one lord. Often on deck but never on board. Though I have a large heart, I am always seen at war. During which I always wear a suit, but never a suit of armor. Who am I?
Think about a game where strategy and skill are key, and the "war" is more of a mental battle...
A woman named Maria was at the funeral of her mother. She met a nice young man that she had never seen before and after the service, they spent a bit of time together. Then she got busy and didn’t get his name or phone number before he left. She tried to find him, but no one knew who he was or how to contact him. A few weeks later, Maria’s older sister dies and the police suspect murder. Who killed the sister?
Think about the funeral setting and the people who typically attend...
Maria. She hoped the man would show up at her sister’s funeral just as he had for her mother’s funeral.
Three hens lay three eggs in three days. How many eggs do 15 hens lay in 15 days?
Think about the rate at which each hen lays eggs, rather than the total number of hens or days.
If three hens lay three eggs in three days, then one hen lays one egg in three days. In 15 days, one hen will lay five eggs. Therefore, 15 hens will lay 75 eggs in 15 days.