SUNDAY RERUN: Brain Teasers

Brain Teaser: Balancing Four Nails by MadeContact

Time for a Sunday Favorite! If you want to join the party, click on the button in my left hand sidebar--it will take you to Chari's instructions on Happy to Design.

This is an entry from my old diary, dated April 17, 2003. Hope you enjoy the Brain Teasers!

These brain teasers were sent to me a few days ago by one of my readers. I say, "Thanks, Phil!" And I'm adding one to his, an old (1933) jigsaw that gave you the brain teaser on the back, and then you could put the puzzle together to read the solution on the picture, which they didn't put on the box. 

So, written teasers first, picture teaser next, and answers after that.

Brain teasers that will make you groan ...
1. A murderer is condemned to death. He has to choose between three rooms. The first is full of raging fires, the second is full of assassins with loaded guns, and the third is full of lions that haven't eaten in 3 years. Which room is safest for him?

2. A woman shoots her husband. Then she holds him under water for over
5 minutes. Finally, she hangs him. But 5 minutes later they both go out together and enjoy a wonderful dinner together. How can this be?

3. There are two plastic jugs filled with water. How could you put all of this water into a barrel, without using the jugs or any dividers, and still tell which water came from which jug?

4. What is black when you buy it, red when you use it, and gray when you throw it away?

5. Can you name three consecutive days without using the words Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, or Sunday?

6. This is an unusual paragraph. I'm curious how quickly you can find out what is so unusual about it. It looks so plain you would think nothing was wrong with it. In fact, nothing is wrong with it! It is unusual though. Study it, and think about it, but you still may not find anything odd. But if you work at it a bit, you might find out.
 
Here is the back of the box, with the captions to pictures below:

1. Rich princess want to marry a poor peasant. Her father objects.
2. King decrees on following day he will offer poor man two slips. One reads "marriage", the other "death". Peasant must abide by his choice. 
3.  Poor peasant is secretly told the night before that both slips will read "death".  
4. Peasant goes before court, and after making his choice, marries the princess. HOW DOES HE DO IT?

Answers to the brainteasers:

1. The third. Lions that haven't eaten in three years are dead.
2. The woman was a photographer. She shot a picture of her husband, developed it, and hung it up to dry.
3. Freeze them first. Take them out of the jugs and put the ice in the barrel. You will be able to tell which water came from which jug.
4. The answer is Charcoal.
5. Sure you can: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow!
6. The letter "e", which is the most common letter in the English language, does not appear once in the long paragraph...

Answer to the Jigsaw teaser:

Peasant swallows the slip he chooses. The King said one of them would read "marriage", and the "other" death, so the peasant must have chosen "marriage", as the one in his hand is "death".

 

Hope you enjoyed the Brain Teasers! Now I'm off to see what Chari's got for us today....