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.

How can the swan successfully escape?

It is a six-letter word.
The first four letters are me.
The second and last letters are the same.
The fourth second and last letter is payment.

Who is it?

I have four wings but can't fly.
I express no emotions.
I am found on the exact spot every time you look.
I keep toiling away with a little sound.

Do you know what am I?

Find the missing number in the sequence below:

In Greek mythology, the Sphinx sat outside of Thebes and asked this riddle of all travellers who passed by. If the traveller failed to solve the riddle, then the Sphinx killed him/her. And if the traveller answered the riddle correctly, then the Sphinx would destroy herself. The riddle:

What goes on four legs in the morning, on two legs at noon, and on three legs in the evening?

Oedipus solved the riddle, and the Sphinx destroyed herself.

Can you find out which number multiplied by itself will give the output as 12345678987654321?

What does man love more than life, hate more than death or mortal strife; That which contented men desire; the poor have, the rich require; the miser spends, the spendthrift saves, and all men carry to their graves?

How can you make the following equation true by drawing only one straight line: 5+5+5=550 ?

Four people need to cross a rickety bridge at night. Unfortunately, they have only one torch and the bridge is too dangerous to cross without one. The bridge is only strong enough to support two people at a time. Not all people take the same time to cross the bridge. Times for each person: 1 min, 2 mins, 7 mins and 10 mins. What is the shortest time needed for all four of them to cross the bridge?

A guy in his thirties is found dead in a forest. The shocking thing about the body is that he is wearing his swimming trunks snorkel and a facemask.

For your information, the nearest lake is some 10 miles away and the sea is hundreds of miles away.

How did he die then?