Timewaster's Guide Archive
General => Everything Else => Topic started by: Firemeboy on December 22, 2005, 05:25:19 PM
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I thought about starting a Riddles Round 4 thread, and then starting with a 'where is round 3?' puzzle... But I didn't. Obviously.
Ok, enough shenanigans.
During the Cold War, a submarine communications officer received the following message in morse code which, when decoded, read:
TOP SECRET
Captain Brown
We have a spy in our midst and we believe he
is giving information to the Russians. We
have recently made a breakthrough and have
been able to narrow down our list of suspects
to one of the 252 members of your crew. We
have no exact information and no physical
description. We are convinced that you are
not the spy and as such we entrust you to
perform some covert investigation to aid us
in our attempt to catch the rogue operator.
We wish you good luck in this endeavour but
we must remind you to keep this secret. We
needn't remind you a refusal to follow these
instructions exactly to the letter will
result in an immediate courtmarshall.
Instructions for arrest:
1) If you fail to find the spy then, upon
docking you will ensure that none of your
crew can leave the ship.
2) If you do ascertain who the spy is then
you should arrest him, confine to the Brig
immediately & place him under 24 hour guard.
From this point on you should cease all
communications with us.
Naturally the Captain was purturbed by this message. He was just about to destroy the message to ensure safety when he was presented with another message which read.
Addendum to previous message:
D-C / T-H / A-A / O-H / C-A / X-K / W-A / O-F / X-D.
After the Captain read this message he was a little less purturbed than he was before and soon decided on an appropriate course of action. What was it?
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The captain realized his communications officer had gone insane, so he locked him up?
Interesting puzzle. I shall have to think more deeply.
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:) Yeah, this is a fun one when you finally get it.
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Are they initials of those who have gotten this message before Captain Brown and who then sent it on to a new person? If so, he probably picked someone and sent it on to them with his initials added to the end of the list.
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Nope, not initials.
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Maybe it's time for a hint?
Count the number of lines in the message.
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The second message decodes to:
Arrest your communications operator immediately he is the spy
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Correct. Nicely done.
For the record, if anybody is wondering, I didn't make that puzzle up. I didn't want to say before that I got it off the internet, or somebody would have gone and googled it.
EJS is up.
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But I don't get how it translates. Sorry for being dumb, but can you explain, please?
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The clue about the number of lines was what pushed me in the right direction.
There are 26 lines in the first message. Assign a letter to each line in reverse alphabetic order. (I tried normal order first, and it didn't work.)
In each letter pair in the second message, the first letter corresponds to a line of the message. The second letter indicates a word on that line (A = 1st word, B = 2nd word, etc.)
And now, the next puzzle:
There's a room with 100 light bulbs with corresponding switches, numbered from 1 to 100. All of the bulbs are off.
Outside the room are 100 people, numbered 1 to 100.
Person #1 enters the room and flips every switch from #1 to #100, thus turning on every bulb.
Person #2 then enters the room and flips switch #2 and every switch with a number that's a multiple of 2, thus turning those bulbs off.
Person #3 then enters the room and flips switch #3 and every switch with a number that's a multiple of 3, thus switching the state of those bulbs from off to on or vice versa.
Persons #4 to #100 follow the same procedure, each one flipping the switch for their number and all multiples of their number.
When they are all done, what is the state of bulb #64? And how many bulbs are on?
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Isn't that just a matter of making a big diagram in word, or am I missing something?
I'm assuming there's some kind of pattern, but I'm just making a big diagram on word.
Edit: ok, found the pattern, a total of ten lights will be on, including light no. 64
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You can also do it mathematically Lightning. 64 would be flipped by all the factors of it, that is to say 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, and 64. So it would be flipped a total of 7 times, which would mean that it is on. Then you figure that since all numbers with an odd number of factors are going to be on, and all the numbers with an even number are going to be on. Therefore, you can take out all the prime numbers, because they will be off. That's 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19, 23, 29, 31, 37, 41, 43, 47, 53, 59, 61, 67, 71, 73, 79, 83, and 89, right? Correct me if I am wrong, I just did that off the top of my head. If I am correct, then that is 25 lights off. I don't have time to continue my thought process right now, but I will post again when I do.
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The pattern on my diagram was that they were all squares; 1,4,9,16,25,36,49,64,81,100
Edit: I'll admit though, that all I had noticed was that the difference was increasing by two each time, I only realised the square thing while typing them down just now, since I had never looked at them all together
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Very cool puzzle.
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Lightning eater got it right.
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Eater of all things electric, you're up.
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Would someone else be able to go for me? I only had three or four riddles of my own, but when I checked the first Riddle thread to see if they were there, they were all taken
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Would someone else be able to go for me?
Hmm. A difficult question. I'm going to take a wild guess and say, "Yes."
Assuming that's the correct answer, I win and get to present the next riddle:
A man leaves for vacation on Friday. He is gone exactly seven days, but he comes back on Wednesday. How is this possible?
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He's riding a horse named Wednesday.
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Correct.
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I'm going to steal a riddle from Shadows of Undrentide. You'll have to wait a little for it though.
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I was about ready to pull out my international time zone chart, think about leap year, and the 'leap second' that just took palce, and figure out what was going on.
Thanks, e, for saving me all that work.
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I was about ready to pull out my international time zone chart, think about leap year, and the 'leap second' that just took palce, and figure out what was going on.
Thanks, e, for saving me all that work.
Same here, I was all ready to figure out when he would have to leave on friday and how many timezones he would have to pass.
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You'll have to wait a little for it though.
You weren't kidding.
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This isn't that "How do you keep an idiot in suspense?" riddle, is it?
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oh, uh.
yeah, I keep forgetting to write down the phraseology.
I could pitch a slow ball instead if you like.
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Here goes:
24 H in a D --> 24 Hours in a Day
26 L of the A
7 D of the W
7 W of the W
12 S of the Z
66 B of the B
52 C in a P (W J)
13 S in the U S F
18 H on a G C
39 B of the O T
5 T on a F
90 D in a R A
3 B M (S H T R)
32 is the T in D F at which W F
15 P in a R T
3 W on a T
100 C in a D
11 P in a F (S) T
12 M in a Y
13 is U F S
8 T on an O
29 D in F in a L Y
27 B in the N T
365 D in a Y
13 L in a B D
52 W in a Y
9 L of a C
60 M in an H
23 P of C in the H B
64 S on a C B
9 P in S A
6 B to an O in C
1000 Y in a M
15 M on a D M C
(I'll keep score for who gets the most)
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26 Letters of the Alphabet
7 Days of the Week
7 Wonders of the World
12 Signs of the Zodiac
52 Cards in a Pack (With Joker)
13 Stars in the United States Flag
18 Holes on a Golf Course
39 Books of the Old Testament
32 is the Temperature in Degrees Farenheit at which Water Freezes
3 Wheels on a Tricycle
12 Months in a Year
13 is Unlucky For Some
29 Days in February in a Leap Year
27 Books in the New Testament
365 Days in a Year
13 Loaves in a Baker's Dozen
52 Weeks in a Year
9 Lives of a Cat
60 Minutes in an Hour
1000 Years in a Millennium
Update at 2:15pm:
66 Books of the Bible
100 Cents in a Dollar
Update at 2:20pm:
5 Toes on a Foot
11 Players in a Football (Soccer) Team
15 Players in a Rugby Team
Update at 2:26pm:
3 Blind Mice (See How They Run)
90 Degrees in a Right Angle
15 Men on a Dead Man's Chest
Update at 2:38pm
8 Tentacles on an Octopus
64 Squares on a Chess Board
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26 letters of the alphabet
7 days of the week
7 wonders of the world
12 signs of the zodiac
66 books of the bible
52 cards in a pack with jokers
13 stars in the united states flag
18 holes on a golf course
39 books of the old testament
5 toes on a foot
90 degrees in a right angle
3 blind mice (see how they run)
32 is the temperature in degrees fahrenheit at which water freezes
15 players in a rugby team
3 wheels on a tricycle
100 cents in a dollar
11 players in a football (soccer) team
12 months in a year
13 is unlucky for some
8 tentacles on a octopus
29 days in February in a Leap Year
27 books in the new testament
365 days in a year
13 loaves in a bakers dozen
52 weeks in a year
9 lives of a cat
60 minutes in an hour
23 pairs of chromosomes in the human body
64 squares on a chess board
9 provinces in South Africa
6 balls to an over in cricket
1000 years in a millenium
15 men on a dead man's chest
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I just saw this on digg last night. I was up to 22 before I accidently hit an advertisement, and then couldn't 'go back' to what I had built...
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52 cards in a pack WITHOUT jokers.
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Good catch, Harbinger.
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These are from a 365 Brain Puzzlers daily calendar that is "Sanctioned by MENSA"
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January 1
Fill in the blanks to complete the word below.
_ _ C _ N_ I _ E _ _ T _ _ Y
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January 2
Supply the missing number.
(http://chuckgaydos.homestead.com/files/january2.gif)
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January 3
What one four-letter word can be place in the blanks below to make three different words?
_ _ _ _ B E A R
_ _ _ _ N S I C
_ _ _ _ C L O S E
(http://chuckgaydos.homestead.com/files/divider.gif)
January 4
Jim is four times as old as Jerry. In four years, Jerry will be half as old as Jim is now. Two years ago, Jim was seven times as old as Jerry.
How old are they now?
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January 5
What two words, formed from different arrangements of the same five letters, can be used to complete the sentence below?
The young writer _ _ _ _ _ for years until he is recognized and his _ _ _ _ _ are published.
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January 6
A simple substitution code has been used to conceal a "quote." Work out the code to decipher the original words.
Hamlet:
QFPQMF EPO'U SFBMJAF IPX IBSE JU JT UP TQFBL JO CMBOL WFSTF
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January 7
Rearrange the words below to form four male names.
Rice
Dolly
Sinned
Anvil
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January 3
F O R E B E A R
F O R E N S I C
F O R E C L O S E
January 6
People don't realize how hard it is to speak in blank verse.
January 7
Rearrange the words below to form four male names.
Rice => Eric
Dolly => Lloyd
Sinned => Dennis
Anvil => Alvin
Update at 11:56am:
January 2
9
(A=1, B=2, C=3, D=4)
Update at 12:00pm:
January 4
Jerry is 4 and Jim is 16.
Update at 2:56pm:
January 5
The young writer mopes for years until he is recognized and his poems are published.
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All of those are correct...
Which leaves only Jan 1.
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January 1 stumped me, and I finally cheated to find the answer. It's not an obscure word, so if anyone still wants to take a stab at it, go ahead.
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Cheat away... :)
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Well, I didn't want to inconsiderately post the answer if someone was still trying to solve it.
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lol
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OK, I don't think this riddle's been posted here.
Jack lives in a U.S. state on the Atlantic coast. Jill lives in a U.S. state on the Pacific coast. One night, when they were both at home in their respective states, Jack was talking to Jill on the telephone, and he asked what time it was where she was. When she answered, he said, "That's funny. It's the same time here."
Assuming that they are both telling the truth and that their clocks are correct, how is this possible?
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"It's past my bedtime"?
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Nope.
The time on both their clocks is an actual time, like 7:32 PM (although it's not 7:32 PM; I'm just giving that as an example to show that the solution is not something like "Quitting time" or "Time to get a new clock battery.")
Both clocks are correct, and both show the same time.
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Jack lives in Guam, Jill lives in Palau (a US territory). Their time zones are 12 hours apart. And they have clocks that don't show AM or PM.
And chances are that the survey says . . . X. They're not actually states.
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Something to do with changing to daylight saving time, but are any of the west coast states in the mountain time zone?
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Jack lives in Guam, Jill lives in Palau
Nice try, but no. They are in actual, stars-on-the-flag states.
And their clocks indicate the difference between AM and PM, and they are both the same.
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Jill's in Hawaii.
It's an actual state with a really funky time zone offset. Sun rises at like 2:30 am or something like that.
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Hawaii's time is even farther offset from that of any Atlantic coast state than the states on the mainland, so it definitely won't work.
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Both clocks are set for GMT or something.
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Both clocks are correctly set for their local time zones as adjusted for Daylight Saving Time, if applicable.
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Ok I found a map of time zones. So she's in VERY eastern Oregon, and he's in VERY western florida, and it's 1:30am or whatever on the day daylight savings time changes over, so he's changed and she hasn't and it's the same time. They must also be either looking at their computer clocks or he really set his clock on time, which I never do.
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That is correct. Part of the Florida panhandle is in the Central Time Zone, and part of eastern Oregon is in the Mountain Time Zone, so they are normally only one hour apart.
However, during the fall switch from Daylight Saving Time to Standard time, at 2am local time the Central Time Zone switches back to 1am. Since the Mountain Time Zone still has not made the switch, it will also be 1am in that zone, which means the correct time will be identical in both places for one hour.
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Someone else can start the next riddle, I don't know where to find any.
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I've got more of those calendar riddles, if there is no objection.
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No objection here.
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I don't get it. Are we suppposed to guess whether there are any objectons? 'Cause normally I would answer "no," but then some joker is going to object just to prove me wrong. Wait, I can be the joker! Yes, someone will object. I object! Do I win?
Edited fur spelling
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Nope.
The time on both their clocks is an actual time, like 7:32 PM (although it's not 7:32 PM; I'm just giving that as an example to show that the solution is not something like "Quitting time" or "Time to get a new clock battery.")
Both clocks are correct, and both show the same time.
Whatever...my answer was correct (AND highly plausible to actually happen) according to the riddle you gave. If you meant all this other stuff to be included in your riddle, you should have put it in the original post.
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And I suppose you think Cliff Claven should have won on Jeopardy with the question "Who are three people who have never been in my kitchen?"
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I do --except that his question wasn't really consistent with the Jeopardy category.
I think they were details that should be included, simply because the word play trick question is very common in these games. However, further explanation of details is also a common point of them, so there's no point in getting bitter.
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I'm bitter. But I'm bitter about the IRS, Apple Computer Corp, and the whole dark matter fiasco.
Ok, puzzles to come in a moment.
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January 8
Find the number that best completes the sequence below.
2 4 3 9 4 ? 5 25 6 36
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January 9
Find the six digit number in which the first digit is one less than the second, the third digit is half the second, the fourth digit is three times the third, and the last two digits are the sum of the fourth and fifth. The sum of all digits is 24.
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January 10
First unscramble the letters in each word below, then unscramble the word order to create a Tom Swifty sentence.
DIAS MOT EW MFRAEHOUS TUSJ TPU NI URO EECTLYRICTI DOL YCUNTOR GHITYLL.
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January 11
Which is larger: the number of inches in a mile or the number of weeks in 1200 years?
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January 12
Charlie went out to buy some tools. He spent half of the original amount plus $10 for a drill, half of what was left plus $4 for a sander, then half of what was left plus $2, leaving him with $6.
How much did he start with?
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January 13
Fill in each blank below with a word that fits the definition on the left when read normally and fits the definition on the right when read backwards.
A legal term ____________ Horse's gait
A specific location ____________ Highest points
A vegetable ___________ Part of a boat
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January 14
Each of the following words can be rearranged into a different means of transportation. Can you find them all and ride off happily?
OATBRRFEY
OTOCCLEMRY
VEOOMLCOTI
XBIAACT
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January 10
"We just put electricity in our old country farmhouse," Tom said lightly.
Note: this one required checking TWG's list of censored words (http://www.timewastersguide.com/boards/yabb/Variables/censor.txt), to figure out what letters had been replaced in "YthingyOR".
Update at 11:31:
January 13
A legal term TORT Horse's gait
A specific location SPOT Highest points
A vegetable LEEK Part of a boat
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Note: this one required checking TWG's list of censored words, to figure out what letters had been replaced in "YthingyOR"
LOL
Correct on both counts.
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January 8
2 4 3 9 4 16 5 25 6 36
January 9
563910
January 14
FERRYBOAT
MOTORCYCLE
LOCOMOTIVE
TAXICAB
January 11
The number of inches in a mile is larger.
January 12
$132
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All correct, except I get a different amount for Jan. 12...
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You're right, my answer to Jan. 12 was wrong. I started again from scratch and got $100 as the beginning amount this time.
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I don't recall the Cheers episode in question, but I've watched Jeopardy lots of times, and with the way the questions are written and special instructions are given for the categories when necessary, multiple correct answers are hardly ever possible.
I do --except that his question wasn't really consistent with the Jeopardy category.
I think they were details that should be included, simply because the word play trick question is very common in these games. However, further explanation of details is also a common point of them, so there's no point in getting bitter.
Redefining the rules may be common, but it's hardly fair or unfrustrating, and it offends Occam's razor.
Now, if it's one of those "give a statement and then let the person ask questions until they figure out the whole story" kinds of things (like the lady who jumped out of the hot air balloon earlier in the the threads), that's different--but I assumed you were posing an actual riddle, not one of those things.
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I'm not terribly worried about offending an imaginary inanimate object.
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$100 is correct.