A swan sits at the center of a perfectly circular lake. At an edge of the lake stands a ravenous monster waiting to devour the swan. The monster can not enter the water, but it will run around the circumference of the lake to try to catch the swan as soon as it reaches the shore. The monster moves at 4 times the speed of the swan, and it will always move in the direction along the shore that brings it closer to the swan the quickest. Both the swan and the the monster can change directions in an instant.
The swan knows that if it can reach the lake's shore without the monster right on top of it, it can instantly escape into the surrounding forest.
A man hijacks an aeroplane transporting both passengers(8 of them) and valuable cargo. After taking the cargo, the man demands nine parachutes, puts one of them on, and jumps, leaving the other eight behind. Why did he want eight?
Using the clues below, what four numbers am I thinking of?
The sum of all the numbers is 31.
One number is odd.
The highest number minus the lowest number is 7.
If you subtract the middle two numbers, it equals two.
There are no duplicate numbers.
You walk into a creepy house by yourself. There is no electricity, plumbing, or ventilation. Inside you notice 3 doors with numbers on them. Once you open the doors you will die a particular way. Door No.1 You’ll be eaten by a lion who is hungry. Door No.2 You’ll be stabbed to death. Door No.3 There is an electric chair waiting for you. Which door do you pick?
If you had an infinite supply of water and 5-quart and 3-quart pails, how would you measure exactly 4 quarts? What is the least number of steps you need?
The day before the 1996 U.S. presidential election, the NYT Crossword contained the clue “Lead story in tomorrow’s newspaper,” the puzzle was built so that both electoral outcomes were correct answers, requiring 7 other clues to have dual responses.