by Peter Keyne
How can you put ten coins into three cups so that each cup contains an odd number of coins?
5. Alternating Glasses
Six glasses are placed in a row. The first three contain water; the second three are empty. By moving only one glass, how is it possible to rearrange the glasses so they alternate between full and empty.
6. Upside-down Glasses
Seven upside-down glasses are placed in row. The challenge is to turn them all right-side up in the fewest possible moves. One move consists of turning over three glasses. The glasses may or may not be adjacent, but you must always turn over three at a time.
How many moves are required to turn all of the glasses right-side up?
7. From Nine to Five
How can you correct this sum by moving only one toothpick?
8. Fish Bones
How can you make the fish swim to the right by moving just three toothpicks?
9. One Toothpick Too Few
Is it possible to remove six toothpicks and be left with ten?
10. Four Triangles
Here two triangles are formed using six toothpicks in total.
Using only the same six toothpicks, how can you form four triangles each of the same size as these?
Answers: Round 3
1.
2." You will not give me the silver coin or the bronze coin.”
After saying this, you cannot then be given either of these coins. Giving you even one of them would make the statement false and you have been told that you will get nothing for a false statement.
Equally, you cannot be given nothing. If you are not given the silver or bronze coin, the statement you have said is true, and you must be given one coin for it. Therefore, you must receive the gold coin.
3. There are multiple solutions to this puzzle. Here is one:
(4 to 1; 6 to 9; 8 to 3; 2 to 5; 10 to 7)
4. The trick is to put one of the cups inside another. Here is one possible solution.
5. Pour the water from the second glass into the fifth glass, then return the empty glass to its original position.
6. Three.
Move 1: Turn three glass up.
Move 2: Turn two glasses up and one glass down again.
Move 3: Turn three glasses up.
7. You can change the second IX into a IV:
8.
9. Yes:
10. With only six toothpicks, you will need three dimensions!
*Illustrations
Round 4: Words Words Words 1
1. Six Minus One
I know a word; six letters it contains. And yet if you take one away, twelve is what remains.
What is the word?
2. Thirteen Animals
Below are the names of thirteen animals. However, twenty-six letters have been removed; two from each animal’s name. In total, one of every letter from A to Z has been removed. The remaining letters in each word are in the correct order. What are the thirteen animals?
3. A Long Time Waiting
Which letter of the alphabet can you add four letters to without changing its pronunciation?
4. Word Prison
Ten letters here a word impound;
Remove six letters and the word is found.
5. Not a Heavy Word
Forward I am heavy, but backward I am not.
What am I?
6. The Answer to Everything
I am the beginning of the end, and the end of time and space. I am essential to creation, and I surround every place. What am I?
7. Odd One Out
Which of the following phrases is the odd one out?
1. Matadors are discovered roaming its districts
2. Remains of magnificent empire
3. Turned out Kyoto: (Yen only)
4. Broadleaf rainforest attracts zoologists inspecting life
5. Picturesque (as Renoir impressionistically shows)
8. An Impossible Word?
What word starts with "e," and ends with "e," but often has only one letter in it?
9. A Charade by Sam Loyd
My first's possessed by all mankind,
My second skims the wave;
My whole will dash through wave and wind.
In hopes my first to save.
10. Nine Words in One
The challenge here is to build a nine letter word, one letter at a time, so that at every stage a word can be read. You’ve been given the first letter to get you started, and the arrows indicate where the next letter should be placed at each stage.
An Example with a four-letter word:
Answers: Round 4
1. Dozens (remove the “s” and you’re left with “dozen”)
2. The 26 animals are:
1) Gibbon
2) Zebra
3) Squid
4) Skunk
5) Koala
6) Tiger
7) Sheep
8) Red Fox
9) Hyena
10) Jackal
11) Bison
12) Beaver
13) Wombat
3. Q. You can add “ueue” to make “Queue”.
4. FOUND (Remove “S” “I” “X” “L” “E” “T” “T” “E” “R” “S”)
5. Ton
6. The letter “e”
7. Broadleaf rainforest attracts zoologists inspecting life. In this instance, the initial letters of each word spell the name of a country (Brazil). All of the other phrases spell the names of capital cities (Madrid, Rome, Tokyo, and Paris).
8. Envelope
9. Lifeboat
10. I, IN, SIN, SING, STING, STRING, STARING, STARTING, STARTLING
*Illustrations
Round 5: A Different Way of Seeing
1. East and West
The king’s two bodyguards developed an ingenious method for assuring the king’s safety. With the king standing between them, they would face in opposite directions; one looking to the west and the other to the east, but at the same time, and without the use of any reflective surfaces, they would both be able to observe the king clearly. How was this possible?
2. A Seemingly Simple Sentence
What does this say?
3. A Cake Divided
You need to divide a round birthday cake into eight pieces, so each of your guests will have something to eat. How can you do this by making only three straight cuts with a knife, and without moving any of the pieces?
4. Triangles
How many triangles are there in the image below?
5. Mountainous Mystery
Before Mount Everest was discovered, what was the highest mountain in the world?
6. A Black Cat
A black cat stepped out onto a black road where there were no street lights, and not even the faintest glimmer of light from the moon. A black car approached with its lights turned off, and yet the driver slowed down and allowed the cat to cross the road. How did he know the cat was there?
7. A Leap of Faith
How is it possible to jump from a 40-foot ladder onto concrete without getting hurt?
8. A Sleepy Bus Driver
A bus driver is heading down a street in San Francisco. It’s been a long day and he’s feeling tired. He pays no attention to a stop sign, and as a police car is passing, he goes onto the pavement, and turns the wrong way into a one-way street. The policemen have seen everything. Can you explain why the bus driver isn’t arrested?
9. Counting Letters
How many F’s are there in this sentence?
10. Crows
There are 17 crows in a tree. Rather spitefully, the farmer comes out and shoots one. How many crows remain?
Answers: Round 5
1. They were facing each other.
2. The cat sat on the the mat. It’s very easy to miss the second “the”.
3. The cake is easily divided into quarters with your first two cuts (simply make an “X”). With your third cut however, you must turn the knife, and slice the cake horizontally
.
4. 13
5. Mount Everest
6. It was daytime.
7. By jumping from the bottom rung.
8. He’s walking.
9. There are six F’s. It’s easy to skim over “of”, where the “f” is sounded as a “v”.
10. 0. The other 16 have flown away!
*Illustrations
Round 6: The Tale’s the Thing: Lateral Thinking Puzzles 1
This round presents ten lateral thinking puzzles that blend logic with storytelling and creative speculation. Puzzles of this kind are best enjoyed with friends, we think, but this isn’t to say you shouldn’t attempt to solve them on your own first!
If you are playing with friends, one person should take on the role of storyteller. They may embellish the scenario however they wish, and decide how generous to be with clues and guidance. To begin with, the storyteller should be restricted to responding to questions with only “Yes”, “No”, or “It’s not important".
Although there are many possible solutions to the puzzles in this round, the only truly satisfying and legitimate answers are those which take account of every detail mentioned in the story.
1. Bankrupt
A man is pushing his car along the road. He arrives at a hotel, stops and immediately declares “I’m bankrupt!”
Can you explain what has happened?
2. Five Men Go To Church
Five men are going to church. It starts to rain, and four of the men begin to run. When they arrive at the church, the four men who ran are soaking wet, whereas the fifth man, who didn’t run, is completely dry.
How is this possible?
3. Welcome to the Saloon
A man enters a saloon and asks the barman for a glass of water. The barman reaches under the bar, pulls out a gun, and points it at the man. The man says “Thank you”, and leaves the saloon.
How do you explain their behavior?
4. Murderous Intentions?
A woman has an argument with her husband, and later that day she shoots him. She then holds him under water for five minutes, pulls him out again and hangs him. In the evening they go to a restaurant together and have a wonderful time.
How is this possible?
5. Prophetic Watchman
A night-watchman on the city wall rushes into the Grand Vizier’s chamber in the morning. He explains frantically that last night he had a dream vision, and saw the city under siege. The Grand Vizier reflects on what he has heard and decides to heed the man’s warning. It proves provident, as the city is indeed attacked that very evening, and thanks to the night-watchman’s warning, they are able to repel the invaders. In the midst of the celebrations, the Grand Vizier summons the man to his chamber. But instead of rewarding him, he dismisses him on the spot. Why?
6. Camel Race
The dying ruler of a desert kingdom decreed that his empire would not be split between his two sons, but passed in its entirety to whichever of them proved more deserving of it. He devised a test of stamina. His sons would ride camels in a race across the desert. It was not a race in the ordinary sense however — the son whose camel arrived at the finish line last would inherit the kingdom.
The brothers saddled their camels and set off. They were soon wandering hopelessly through the desert. After many days without seeing another living creature, they encountered a man sitting cross-legged at the crest of a great sand dune. In desperation, they dismounted to seek his counsel. He proved wise indeed, for once he had spoken, the brothers leapt onto the camels and galloped away as fast as they could towards the finish line.
What did the wise man tell them?
7. Anthony and Cleopatra
When Anthony and Cleopatra were discovered dead on the floor of their Egyptian villa, there was a broken bowl lying beside them. Their bodies were examined and there was nothing to indicate that they had been attacked or poisoned. The door was locked, and although the window was open, it appeared that nobody else had entered the room.
How did they die?
8. The Elevator
A man lives on the twelfth floor of an apartment block. Each morning he takes the elevator down to the ground floor and goes to work. When he returns in the evening, he enters the lift on the ground floor. If it has been raining that day, he usually goes directly to the twelfth floor. Likewise, if there are other people in the elevator, he goes directly to the twelfth floor. However, at all other times, he takes the elevator to the ninth floor and walks up the remaining three flights of steps to his apartment.
Can you explain why he does this?
9. Mystery in the Snow
A man with a pack on his back is found dead in a snow-covered field. He is miles from the nearest town, and yet there are no tracks in the snow.
How did he die?
10. A Suspicious Death
A woman’s father died. At the funeral she saw a man she had never seen before and instantly fell in love with him. Nobody could tell her who he was, however, or where he came from.
A few days later, the woman’s mother was dead as well.
Can you explain what happened?
Answers: Round 6
1. He is playing monopoly.
2. It is the fifth man’s funeral, and the other four men are carrying him into the church in a coffin.
3. The man had hiccups, and the barman thought a sudden shock would make them go away. It did, so the man thanked him, and no longer needing the water, left the saloon.
4. The woman is a photographer, and is developing the pictures she has taken of her husband. Their argument is forgotten and they can enjoy their evening together.
5. The night-watchman had inadvertently revealed that he was asleep on the job.
6. He advised them to switch camels. Their father said that the son whose camel crossed the finish line last would inherit the kingdom. If they ride each other’s camels, they will both try to cross the finish line first.
7. Anthony and Cleopatra are goldfish. A strong gust of wind blew their bowl onto the floor.
8. He is of short stature, and cannot reach the button for the twelfth floor. If it has been raining, he usually has his umbrella with him, and can use it to press the button.
9. He jumped from an aircraft, but his parachute failed to open from his pack.
10. In a desperate attempt to draw the mysterious stranger to her, the woman murdered her own mother. She hoped that he would attend this funeral as well.
*Illustrations
Round 7: What am I? Painting Word Pictures
1. You Use a Knife to Slice my Head
You use a knife to slice my head,
Then weep beside me when I’m dead.
2. Reaching Stiffly for the Sky
Reaching stiffly for the sky,
I bare my fingers when it’s cold.
In warmth I wear an emerald glove,
And in between I dress in gold.
3. Two Horses
Two horses, swiftest traveling,
And harnessed in a pair,
Grazing ever in places
Distant from them.
4. They Have Not Flesh
They have not flesh, nor feathers, nor scales, nor bone.
Yet they have fingers and thumbs of their own.
5. An Iron Horse
An iron horse with a flaxen tail that gallops on and on.
As further and further it onward runs, so shorter and shorter its tail becomes.
6. Glittering Points
Glittering points that downward thrust,
Sparkling spears that never rust.
7. A Wee, Wee Man
A wee, wee man, in a red, red coat,
A staff in his hand, and a bone in his throat.
8. A House of Wood
A house of wood in a hidden place,
Built without nails or glue.
High above the earthen ground,
It holds pale gems of blue.
9. If a Man Carried My Burden
I
f a man carried my burden, he would break his back.
I am not rich, but I leave silver in my track.
10. Here, the cart comes first and the horse comes after
Here, the cart comes first and the horse comes after,
(And laughter follows the disaster).
Here, the rainbow comes before the shower,
And a day is passed long before an hour.
Here, the number eight precedes all others,
And sisters always follow brothers.
Here, the moon appears long before the stars
And close to Mercury and Mars.
Do you know where I am?
Answers: Round 7
1. An Onion
2. A Deciduous Tree
