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The carnival

A boy was at a carnival and went to a booth where a man said to the boy, 'If I write your exact weight on this piece of paper then you have to give me ÂŁ10, but if I can't, I'll pay you ÂŁ10.'

The boy looked around and saw no scale so he agrees, thinking no matter what the man writes he'll just say he weighs more or less.

In the end, the boy ended up paying the man ÂŁ10. How did the man win the bet?

Asked at interview for a job with Google

At the start of the interview the interviewer ordered a cup of coffee for the candidate. The coffee duly arrived and was placed before the candidate.

The interviewer asked the candidate 'What is before you?'

The candidate instantly replied 'Tea'

The interviewer replied 'Correct!'

Why did the candidate say tea when he knew it was coffee? (Hint: if you are getting stuck, consider the alphabet)

The alphabet riddle

a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z

  1. Which letter of the alphabet is a question?

  2. Which letter is a drink?

  3. Which letter is a part of your face?

  4. Which letter is an insect?

  5. Which letter is a source of salt?

  6. Which letter is in a geometry box?

  7. What word can have 4 of its 5 letters removed and still keep its original pronunciation?

The zombie bridge (difficult!)

Telescope

You are a physics student who has landed a dream summer internship working at an observatory on top of a mountain.

In a moment of regrettable curiosity, one evening you made the mistake of pulling the lever by your desk marked 'DON'T TOUCH' and let out the hoards of undead the professor has been experimenting on in the basement. You all run for it, to find yourselves confronted with a long, rickety bridge spanning an almost bottomless chasm.

The 4 people are:

  • The old professor who needs ten minutes to cross the bridge

  • A caretaker who takes five minutes to cross

  • A laboratory assistant who takes two minutes to cross

  • You are the fastest and can cross in one minute

You must get everyone safely over the bridge and cut the ropes before the zombies get you - but there are a few catches:

  • The bridge that can hold only two people at a time.

  • By the professor's calculation, the zombies will catch you in just over 17 minutes

  • Everyone must cross the bridge in 17 minutes and only two can make the journey at once or the bridge will buckle and collapse under the weight. Everyone has to be off the bridge before the zombies reach it.

  • You grabbed a lantern on your way out of the lab, but it can only illuminate a small portion of the bridge at a time so anyone crossing the bridge either must be in front holding the lantern, or walking right behind the person who's carrying it.

  • No one can cross the bridge without the aid of the lantern.

How will you save everyone?

Thinking outside the box

Answers

The carnival

He wrote the words 'your exact weight' on the paper

The interview

T comes before U in the alphabet!

The alphabet riddle

  1. Y

  2. T

  3. I (eye)

  4. B

  5. C (sea)

  6. D (protractor)

  7. Queue

Zombie Bridge

The key is to minimise the time taken by the two slowest people: the caretaker and the Professor, by having them cross together.

You need to make several return trips to get the lantern back and forth, so you want the two fastest people (you and the Assistant) for that.

Trip One: You + Assistant = two minutes
First, you and the assistant cross. You're the fastest, but you'll have to slow down to match the Assistant's pace.

Trip Two: You = one minute
Once the Assistant on the other side, you run back across the bridge so the other members of your party have the light they need to make the crossing on their own.

Trip Three: Professor + Caretaker = ten minutes
The caretaker holds the lantern, with the Professor following behind; the caretaker has to match the Professor's pace.

Trip Four: Assistant = two minutes
The Assistant can take the lantern and run back to you.

Trip Five: You + Assistant = two minutes
Then you both cross together again.

Total: 17 minutes, giving you just enough time to cut the ropes of the bridge so the zombies can't get at you!