Other Puzzles


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1. How to Update Profile?

How does one navigate to the Profile page to update his password?

Solution:

To navigate to the Profile page to update your password, first log into your account on the website or app. Then, click on the Profile link at the top of the page. Once on the Profile page, find the section for password management and follow the prompts to update your password.


2. If Mississippi Wore a New Jersey, What Would Delaware?

If Mississippi wore a New Jersey, what would Delaware?

Solution:

If Mississippi wore a New Jersey, it suggests that the states are represented by their abbreviations. Mississippi is abbreviated as MS, and New Jersey as NJ. Therefore, if Delaware, abbreviated as DE, were to wear something similar, it would wear an 'E' for Delaware, making the answer 'E'.


3. Two Condoms, Three Partners

You are about to have intercourse with three consenting adult partners, one after another. Exactly two of them are HIV-positive and one is HIV-negative, but you do not know which is which until the moment you are with that partner.

You have exactly two condoms. A condom may be reused, but any surface that has touched an HIV-positive partner (or another surface that has) will certainly transmit the virus to the next HIV-negative person it contacts. You must plan the order of use, putting on, removing, turning inside-out, etc., so that when all three acts are finished no HIV-negative person (including yourself) has been exposed to the virus.

Is it possible, and if so, how?

Hint:

Think of the two condoms as two layers you can rearrange. Try to keep one surface that never touches an infected partner until the very last moment.

Solution:

Yes, it is possible. Number the condoms C₁ (inner) and C₂ (outer):

  1. Put on C₁, then pull C₂ over it (double-layer).
  2. Have intercourse with the first partner. If this partner is HIV-positive, only the outside of C₂ is contaminated.
  3. Remove C₂ and set it aside (its outer surface may be contaminated).
  4. Keeping C₁ on, have intercourse with the second partner. If this partner is HIV-positive, only the outside of C₁ is now contaminated; its inner surface (still against your skin) is clean.
  5. Turn C₂ inside-out so that its previously clean inner surface is now on the outside, and pull it back over C₁.
  6. Have intercourse with the third partner.

Throughout the process exactly one condom surface that has never touched an HIV-positive partner (the former inside of C₂) is the only surface that contacts the HIV-negative partner. Therefore no uninfected person is exposed.


4. There is a Pattern C a R R

There is a pattern C A R R and the question is, what is the next letter in the pattern. The choices were S I X Y. He also gave numbers for the question and answers, so the numbers for C A R R are 3 1 18 18 and the answers could be 9 19 24 25, which are S I X Y.

Solution:

Y


5. Who Killed Sharky?

Sharky, the head of an underworld gang, has been murdered. Detective Sharp questions Sharky’s four henchmen—Socko, Fats, Lefty, and Muscles—and records their statements:

a) Socko: “Lefty killed Sharky.”
b) Fats: “Muscles did not kill Sharky.”
c) Lefty: “Muscles was shooting craps with me when Sharky was knocked off.”
d) Muscles: “Lefty did not kill Sharky.”

Detective Sharp establishes that exactly one of these four statements is true, while the other three are false.

Using this information, determine: Who killed Sharky?

Hint:

Assume each henchman’s statement is either completely true or completely false. Test each statement as the single true one and look for a consistent scenario.

Solution:

If Muscles’ statement (“Lefty did not kill Sharky”) is the one true statement, then Lefty is innocent. Socko’s claim that Lefty killed Sharky is therefore false, and Fats’s statement that Muscles did not kill Sharky is also false—meaning Muscles did kill Sharky. Lefty’s alibi for Muscles is likewise false, so Muscles had no alibi. All three remaining statements are false, satisfying the condition that exactly one statement is true. Any other choice for the single true statement leads to a contradiction. Hence, Muscles is the murderer.


6. An Artist Needs to Arrange Seven Paintings on the Wall

An artist needs to arrange seven paintings on the wall of a room in an art gallery. the apaintings must be placed in consecutive order, 1st through 7th. Four of the paintings--Picasso, Benton, Tamayo, RIvera--are landscapes. THe rest van Gogh, GOya, matisse--are portraits. 1. the fifth painting must be a portrait. 2. portraits cannot be next to one another. 3. THe Goya is second. 4. If benton is the first, the the Tamayo is seventh. 5.THe RIvera cannot be placed in a lower numbered position than the Van Gogh. 6. The Picasso cannot be next to the Goya.

Solution:

1st - Benton, 2nd - Goya, 3rd - Rivera, 4th - Picasso, 5th - Van Gogh, 6th - Tamayo, 7th - Matisse


7. 1 1 2 3 5 8

What is the next number in this pattern?
1 1 2 3 5 8

Solution:

The sequence is the Fibonacci sequence, where each number is the sum of the two preceding ones. The next number after 8 is 5 + 8, which equals 13.


8. John Was Watching Television. Just After the Midnight News..

John was watching television. Just after the midnight news there was a weather forecast: "It is raining now and will rain for the next two days. However, in 72 hours it will be bright and sunny.." "WRONG again, snorted John. He was correct but how did he know?

Solution:

John knew that the weather forecast was incorrect because it stated that it would rain for the next two days, but then it would be bright and sunny in 72 hours, which is three days later. Therefore, it contradicts itself by suggesting it would stop raining before the end of the forecast period, and also, 72 hours from midnight would still be dark.


9. Invert the 10-Coin Triangle

Ten identical coins are arranged on the table in the shape of a triangle that points downward, as shown below:

* * * *
 * * *
  * *
   *

By moving exactly three coins to new positions, turn the triangle so that it points upward (its apex at the top and a base of four coins at the bottom).
All other coins must stay where they are, and no extra coins may be added or removed.

How can you do it?

Hint:

Focus on the three coins that are closest to the centre of the figure; they will all need to move.

Solution:

Number the starting positions from left to right, top to bottom:

1 2 3 4
 5 6 7
  8 9
   10

Move the following three coins:

  1. Coin 2 → position of 10 (the current apex).
  2. Coin 3 → position of 8 (left coin in the third row).
  3. Coin 6 → position of 9 (right coin in the third row).

The new layout is:

   *          (coin 2)
  * *         (coins 3 and 6)
 * * *        (coins 1,5,4)
* * * *       (coins 7,8,9,10)

This forms a triangle with its point at the top and a base of four coins at the bottom, satisfying the conditions with only three moves.


10. 8 Queens

Place 8 queens on a chess board so that no queen can kill another in a single move.

Solution:

One possible solution is to place the queens at the following coordinates: (1, 5), (2, 3), (3, 1), (4, 7), (5, 2), (6, 8), (7, 4), and (8, 6). This arrangement ensures that no two queens threaten each other, as they are positioned such that no two queens share the same row, column, or diagonal.

Another valid arrangement is:

B B B B B B B Q
B B B Q B B B B
Q B B B B B B B
B B Q B B B B B
B B B B B Q B B
B Q B B B B B B
B B B B B B Q B
B B B B Q B B B


11. Escape From a Stalled Elevator

You are alone in a modern electric elevator that has stopped between two floors. The ceiling escape hatch is locked from the outside, the emergency telephone is dead and you have confirmed that no one will even start looking for you for at least 48 hours. The lights are still on, so the car has power, but you must get out on your own.

You are wearing normal business clothes and have only the following items:

  • a 16 oz (0.5 L) bottle of water
  • a mobile phone (no reception)
  • a bean burrito wrapped in aluminium foil
  • a ball-point pen
  • a pencil
  • dress shoes with laces
  • wool socks
  • slacks, dress shirt, underwear, leather belt with metal buckle, wool jacket
  • a wrist-watch
  • a handful of loose papers
  • a small pocket-knife (screw-driver tip on the blade)
  • a packet of breath mints
  • a plastic comb

Using nothing but these items and the elevator itself, describe a safe method to escape from the cab.

(For the purposes of the puzzle you may assume an ordinary centre-opening passenger elevator built to current safety codes.)

Hint:

The ceiling hatch is the strongest part of the car. Instead, think about how the elevator doors know when they are lined up with a landing.

Solution:

All modern elevators use a mechanical linkage that couples the car doors to the landing (hall) doors only when the car is within a few centimetres of a floor. That linkage – the car-door clutch – sits directly above the car doors and can be reached once the interior control panel is removed. The idea is therefore to open the car doors first, then manually release the hall-door interlock.

  1. Use the pocket-knife as a screwdriver to remove the two or four small screws that hold the push-button panel in place.
  2. Pull the panel a few centimetres forward; you will now have an opening large enough to get a hand and forearm inside the door header.
  3. Feel above the centre of the doorway for a spring-loaded metal paddle – the car-door clutch. Push it toward the centre of the car to disengage it.
  4. With the paddle held disengaged, slide the two car doors apart. Jam one dress shoe in the track so they cannot close or re-latch.
  5. The landing doors are now visible but still locked. Through the same opening locate the small hook or lever on the hall-door interlock. Slip the metal tongue of your belt (or the aluminium burrito foil twisted into a cord) around the lever and pull it up to release the lock.
  6. While holding the interlock open, slide the landing doors apart with your free hand. Once they begin to move they will run easily.
  7. Step out onto the floor level that is highest (usually the upper one), remove the shoe, and allow both sets of doors to close normally behind you.

You have escaped without damaging the equipment and without putting yourself in danger of a fall down the shaft.


12. On a Certain Train...

On a certain train, the crew consists of the brakeman, the fireman, and the engineer. Their names listed alphabetically are Jones, Robinson and Smith. On the train are also three passengers with corresponding names, Mr. Jones, Mr. Robinson, and Mr. Smith. The following facts are known:
a. Mr. Robinison lives in Detroit
b. The brakeman lives exactly halfway between Detroit and Chicago
c. Mr. Jones earns exactly $20,000 a year
d. Smith oncea beat the fireman at the billiards
e. The brakeman s next door neighbor, one of the three passengers mentioned, earns exactly three times as much as the brakeman
f. The passenger living in Chicago has the same name as the brakeman.

What is the engineer s name?

Solution:

The engineer's name is Smith. Mr. Robinson lives in Detroit, and the brakeman lives halfway between Detroit and Chicago, which means the brakeman must be Jones. Since the passenger in Chicago shares the name with the brakeman, Mr. Jones must be in Chicago, leaving Mr. Smith as the engineer. Additionally, since Mr. Jones earns $20,000 a year, he cannot be the brakeman's neighbor who earns three times as much, confirming that Mr. Smith is the engineer.


13. Tiling a Framed Rectangle

You have an equal number of black and white square tiles.

You lay the black tiles in a solid rectangle. Around this rectangle you place the white tiles so that they form a border exactly one tile thick on all four sides, using every white tile and leaving no gaps or leftovers.

If every tile you own is used in this construction, what are all the possible total numbers of tiles you could have?

Hint:

Write equations for the area of the inner (black) rectangle and the surrounding (white) border, then look for integer solutions.

Solution:

Let the inner (black) rectangle have dimensions m × n (in tiles). Its area is mn tiles.
The outer rectangle, after the one-tile-thick white border is added, has dimensions (m + 2) × (n + 2). Hence the number of white tiles is

(m + 2)(n + 2) − mn = 2m + 2n + 4.

Because the numbers of black and white tiles are equal, we require

mn = 2m + 2n + 4.

Rewriting,

(m − 2)(n − 2) = 8.

The positive factor pairs of 8 give all solutions:

  • m − 2 = 1, n − 2 = 8 ⇒ (m, n) = (3, 10)
  • m − 2 = 2, n − 2 = 4 ⇒ (m, n) = (4, 6)
  • m − 2 = 4, n − 2 = 2 ⇒ (m, n) = (6, 4) (same total as previous)
  • m − 2 = 8, n − 2 = 1 ⇒ (m, n) = (10, 3) (same total as first)

The corresponding numbers of black (and hence white) tiles are:

  • 3 × 10 = 30 ⇒ total tiles = 2 × 30 = 60
  • 4 × 6 = 24 ⇒ total tiles = 2 × 24 = 48

Therefore the only possible totals are 48 or 60 tiles.


14. A Dying Father Has to Divide His Property Equally Among 4

There was a question on property, a dying father has to divide his property equally among 4 children without changing the shape of the property, the property is in 3 rectangle blocks like L shape ( eg 1 square box into 4 pieces, remove 1 piece - looks like L shape)

Solution:

The L-shaped property can be divided into four equal-area sections by making three cuts: one vertical cut through the middle of the vertical part of the L, and two horizontal cuts that split the bottom part into equal areas, ensuring each section has the same area while maintaining the L shape.


15. Fresnos Planting Puzzle

un hortelano tenia 10 fresnos que deberá sembrar de manera que cada una de las bardas de su terreno cuadrangular quedare de tres fresnos ¿como le hizo?

Solution:

El hortelano puede plantar los fresnos en las esquinas del cuadrado y en el medio de cada lado. De esta manera, cada barda tendrá tres fresnos: uno en cada esquina y uno en el medio de cada lado.


16. Weighing Without a Scale

how can we weigh the shirt, without having a weight but we have only pans?

Solution:

You can use the pans to balance the shirt against known weights or other items of known weight until equilibrium is reached.


17. Burning String Duration

How long must a string be in order for it to burn for 3 minutes and 30 seconds?

Solution:

The length of the string depends on its material and thickness. However, if we assume a specific burn rate, we can calculate the required length. For example, if a string burns at a rate of 1 meter per minute, then to burn for 3 minutes and 30 seconds (which is 3.5 minutes), the string must be 3.5 meters long.



19. Identifying a Conclusion Indicator

All nervous dogs are dogs unsuitable for a family with a new baby, and all dogs trained to fight other dogs to the death are nervous dogs. In view of the previous facts it follows that all dogs trained to fight other dogs to the death are dogs unsuitable for a family with a new baby.

Which of the sentences below is true about the phrase “In view of the previous facts it follows that”?

  1. It refers or points backwards to the first two sentences.
  2. It refers or points forward to the clause “all dogs trained to fight other dogs to the death are dogs unsuitable for a family with a new baby.”
  3. It functions as a conclusion indicator and would be classified as a conclusion indicator.
  4. All of the other answers are true.
Solution:

The correct answer is D. “In view of the previous facts it follows that” simultaneously:

  • Points backward to the two preceding premises (A).
  • Points forward to the conclusion clause (B).
  • Serves as a standard conclusion indicator linking premises to conclusion (C).

20. Logical Deduction with Variables

Given the statements: P and Q (Q or R), if P then S, not S, if R then A, not A. What can you conclude?

Solution:

From the statements, we have:

  • P and Q (Q or R)
  • If P then S
  • Not S
  • If R then A
  • Not A

Since 'if P then S' and 'not S', we conclude 'not P'.

From 'P and Q (Q or R)', if 'not P', then 'Q or R' must be true.

Since 'if R then A' and 'not A', we conclude 'not R'.

Therefore, R must be false.


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