Riddles and Puzzles

[ColinJ]

In heaven?

("Our father, who art in heaven ...")

 

[TheDoctor]

If you treat this as two simultaneous equations, and solve for the age of the child, the child's age is -0.75.
Therefore it's being conceived right now.
Shall I pass the Kleenex?

 

[classic33]

If you treat this as two simultaneous equations, and solve for the age of the child, the child's age is -0.75.
Therefore it's being conceived right now.
Shall I pass the Kleenex?

You mean to say that you're watching!

 

[Speicher]

Explain how you worked that out, please.

I made the assumption that the woman is 21 years old now.

In 6 years she will be 27 years old. 27 x 52 (number of weeks in a year) is 1404. One fifth of 1404 is 280 weeks, therefore the child is 5 years and 5 months old.

You have often said, "Read what is not there". So, if you missed off "is now" at the end of the second sentence, this means that the child was conceived before the mother's 16th birthday.

If I am right, it is a combination of seeing what is not there, and extrapolation of some intelligent guess work.

 

[hopless500]

My mum is 21 years older than me............

 

[Speicher]

My mum is 21 years older than me............

I am guessing here, that you are older than five!

 

[classic33]

The warden meets with 23 new prisoners when they arrive. He tells them, "You may meet today and plan a strategy. But after today, you will be in isolated cells and will have no communication with one another.

"In the prison is a switch room, which contains two light switches labeled 1 and 2, each of which can be in either up or the down position. I am not telling you their present positions. The switches are not connected to anything.

"After today, from time to time whenever I feel so inclined, I will select one prisoner at random and escort him to the switch room. This prisoner will select one of the two switches and reverse its position. He must flip one switch when he visits the switch room, and may only flip one of the switches. Then he'll be led back to his cell.

"No one else will be allowed to alter the switches until I lead the next prisoner into the switch room. I'm going to choose prisoners at random. I may choose the same guy three times in a row, or I may jump around and come back. I will not touch the switches, if I wanted you dead you would already be dead.

"Given enough time, everyone will eventually visit the switch room the same number of times as everyone else. At any time, anyone may declare to me, 'We have all visited the switch room.'
"If it is true, then you will all be set free. If it is false, and somebody has not yet visited the switch room, you will all die horribly. You will be carefully monitored, and any attempt to break any of these rules will result in instant death to all of you"

What is the strategy they come up with so that they can be free?

 

[classic33]

I am guessing here, that you are older than five!

You can never be quite certain these days ont internet. Click a box confirming you're over a certain age, just to get on the site.

 

[hopless500]

I am guessing here, that you are older than five!

only about 20 years (ish)

 

[classic33]

only about 20 years (ish)

So you say?

 

[hopless500]

So you say?

.... and a bit........

 

[buggi]

The warden meets with 23 new prisoners when they arrive. He tells them, "You may meet today and plan a strategy. But after today, you will be in isolated cells and will have no communication with one another.

"In the prison is a switch room, which contains two light switches labeled 1 and 2, each of which can be in either up or the down position. I am not telling you their present positions. The switches are not connected to anything.

"After today, from time to time whenever I feel so inclined, I will select one prisoner at random and escort him to the switch room. This prisoner will select one of the two switches and reverse its position. He must flip one switch when he visits the switch room, and may only flip one of the switches. Then he'll be led back to his cell.

"No one else will be allowed to alter the switches until I lead the next prisoner into the switch room. I'm going to choose prisoners at random. I may choose the same guy three times in a row, or I may jump around and come back. I will not touch the switches, if I wanted you dead you would already be dead.

"Given enough time, everyone will eventually visit the switch room the same number of times as everyone else. At any time, anyone may declare to me, 'We have all visited the switch room.'
"If it is true, then you will all be set free. If it is false, and somebody has not yet visited the switch room, you will all die horribly. You will be carefully monitored, and any attempt to break any of these rules will result in instant death to all of you"

What is the strategy they come up with so that they can be free?

this is getting complicated now, i haven't even worked out the first one.

 

[classic33]

A Petri dish hosts a healthy colony of bacteria. Once a minute every bacterium divides into two. The colony was founded by a single cell at noon. At exactly 12:43 (43 minutes later) the Petri dish was half full.
At what time will the dish be full?

 

[Hill Wimp]

13:23 ?

 

[Shaun]

12:44 ...