The Coin Toss Riddle
You are in a bar having a drink with an old friend when he proposes a wager.
"Want to play a game?" he asks.
"Sure, why not?" you reply.
"Ok, here's how it works. You choose three possible outcomes of a coin toss, either HHH, TTT, HHT or whatever. I will do likewise. I will then start flipping the coin continuously until either one of our combinations comes up. The person whose combination comes up first is the winner. And to prove I'm not the cheating little weasel you're always making me out to be, I'll even let you go first so you have more combinations to choose from. So how about it? Is $10.00 a fair bet?"
You know that your friend is a skilled trickster and usually has a trick or two up his sleeve but maybe he's being honest this time. Maybe this is a fair bet. While you try and think of which combination is most likely to come up first, you suddenly hit upon a strategy which will be immensely beneficial to you. What is it?
"Want to play a game?" he asks.
"Sure, why not?" you reply.
"Ok, here's how it works. You choose three possible outcomes of a coin toss, either HHH, TTT, HHT or whatever. I will do likewise. I will then start flipping the coin continuously until either one of our combinations comes up. The person whose combination comes up first is the winner. And to prove I'm not the cheating little weasel you're always making me out to be, I'll even let you go first so you have more combinations to choose from. So how about it? Is $10.00 a fair bet?"
You know that your friend is a skilled trickster and usually has a trick or two up his sleeve but maybe he's being honest this time. Maybe this is a fair bet. While you try and think of which combination is most likely to come up first, you suddenly hit upon a strategy which will be immensely beneficial to you. What is it?
Hint: Think what would be most likely to happen if you chose HHH, would this be a good decision?
The answer is to let your friend go first. This puzzle is based on an old game/scam called Penny Ante. No matter what you picked, your friend would be able to come up with a combination which would be more likely to beat yours. For example, if you were to choose HHH, then unless HHH was the first combination to come up you would eventually lose since as soon as a Tails came up, the combination THH would inevitably come up before HHH. The basic formula you can use for working out which combination you should choose is as follows. Simply take his combination (eg. HHT) take the last term in his combination, put it at the front (in this case making THH) and your combination will be more likely to come up first. Try it on your friends! Did you answer this riddle correctly?
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Russian Roulette Riddle
You are in a game of Russian Roulette with a revolver that has 3 bullets placed in three consecutive chambers. The cylinder of the gun will be spun once at the beginning of the game. Then, the gun will be passed between two players until it fires. Would you prefer to go first or second?
Hint:
Russian Roulette
Probability puzzles require you to weigh all the possibilities and pick the most likely outcome.
Puzzle ID: #17681
Fun: *** (2.59)
Difficulty: ** (2.07)
Category: Probability
Submitted By: JMCLEOD****
Corrected By: cnmne
You are in a game of Russian Roulette with a revolver that has 3 bullets placed in three consecutive chambers. The cylinder of the gun will be spun once at the beginning of the game. Then, the gun will be passed between two players until it fires. Would you prefer to go first or second?
Answer
Label the chambers 1 through 6. Chambers 1 through 3 have bullets and chambers 4 through 6 are empty. After you spin the cylinder there are six possible outcomes:
1. Chamber 1 is fired first: Player 1 loses
2. Chamber 2 is fired first: Player 1 loses
3. Chamber 3 is fired first: Player 1 loses
4. Chamber 4 is fired first: Player 2 loses (First shot, player 1, chamber 4 empty. Second shot player 2, chamber 5, empty. Third shot player 1, chamber 6 empty. Fourth shot player 2, chamber 1 not empty.)
5. Chamber 5 is fired first: Player 1 loses (First shot, player 1, chamber 5 empty. Second shot player 2, chamber 6, empty. Third shot player 1, chamber 1 not empty.)
6. Chamber 6 is fired first: Player 2 loses (First shot, player 1, chamber 6 empty. Second shot, player 2, chamber 1, not empty)
Therefore player 2 has an 4/6 or 2/3 chance of winning. Did you answer this riddle correctly?
YES NO
Probability puzzles require you to weigh all the possibilities and pick the most likely outcome.
Puzzle ID: #17681
Fun: *** (2.59)
Difficulty: ** (2.07)
Category: Probability
Submitted By: JMCLEOD****
Corrected By: cnmne
You are in a game of Russian Roulette with a revolver that has 3 bullets placed in three consecutive chambers. The cylinder of the gun will be spun once at the beginning of the game. Then, the gun will be passed between two players until it fires. Would you prefer to go first or second?
Answer
Label the chambers 1 through 6. Chambers 1 through 3 have bullets and chambers 4 through 6 are empty. After you spin the cylinder there are six possible outcomes:
1. Chamber 1 is fired first: Player 1 loses
2. Chamber 2 is fired first: Player 1 loses
3. Chamber 3 is fired first: Player 1 loses
4. Chamber 4 is fired first: Player 2 loses (First shot, player 1, chamber 4 empty. Second shot player 2, chamber 5, empty. Third shot player 1, chamber 6 empty. Fourth shot player 2, chamber 1 not empty.)
5. Chamber 5 is fired first: Player 1 loses (First shot, player 1, chamber 5 empty. Second shot player 2, chamber 6, empty. Third shot player 1, chamber 1 not empty.)
6. Chamber 6 is fired first: Player 2 loses (First shot, player 1, chamber 6 empty. Second shot, player 2, chamber 1, not empty)
Therefore player 2 has an 4/6 or 2/3 chance of winning. Did you answer this riddle correctly?
YES NO
What Can You Hold In Your Right Hand Riddle
Hint:
7 Candles Riddle
Hint:
7, we asked 'how many candles' not 'how many lit candles' Did you answer this riddle correctly?
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7 Ice Cubes Riddle
I have 7 ice cubes inside a cup of water how many ice cubes do I have left after putting the cup in the freezer?
Hint:
A Girl Was Crying Riddle
A girl was crying because her boyfriend left her, she broke a bottle and a chair... what broke first?
Hint:
In The Jar Riddle
A jar is put on the edge of the table in such a way that half of it is left hanging. What is in the jar?
Hint:
How Many Locks Riddle
Hint:
17 Cows Riddle
An old farmer died and left 17 cows to his three sons. In his will, the farmer stated that his oldest son should get 1/2, his middle son should get 1/3, and his youngest son should get 1/9 of all the cows. The sons, who did not want to end up with half cows, sat for days trying to figure out how many cows each of them should get.
One day, their neighbor came by to see how they were doing after their father's death. The three sons told him their problem. After thinking for a while, the neighbor said: "I'll be right back!" He went away, and when he came back, the three sons could divide the cows according to their father's will, and in such a way that each of them got a whole number of cows.
What was the neighbor's solution?
One day, their neighbor came by to see how they were doing after their father's death. The three sons told him their problem. After thinking for a while, the neighbor said: "I'll be right back!" He went away, and when he came back, the three sons could divide the cows according to their father's will, and in such a way that each of them got a whole number of cows.
What was the neighbor's solution?
Hint:
The neighbour borrowed an extra cow, to make the total number of cows 18. Then the oldest son got 1/2 of 18 is 9 cows, the middle son got 1/3 of 18 is 6 cows, and the youngest son got 1/9 of 18 is 2 cows. Since 9+6+2 = 17, the cows could be divided among the three brothers in such a way that the borrowed cow was left over, and could be returned to its owner. Did you answer this riddle correctly?
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26 Sheep In A Field In A Field Riddle
Hint:
Polar Bear Dice Riddle
Polar bears around an ice hole, like petals around a rose. The game is in the name, and the name is in the game. How many polar bears are there?" Johnny asked as he rolled the five dice. The first roll produced 4, 6, 1, 3, 2. "Six," said Billy. "No, two," Johnny replied. The next roll was 5, 1, 5, 2, 4. "Four?" said Billy. "No, eight," Johnny said. The next rolls were 3, 5, 3, 1, 2. There were 8 polar bears. The next rolls were 6, 2, 1, 2, 4. There were no polar bears. How does Johnny figure out the number of polar bears?
Hint: A rose by any other name...could be a die?
Dice all look the same. On a die, the 1, 3, and 5 all have a dot in the center. The 3 has 2 dots on either side of the center dot, and the 5 has 4 dots around the center dot. Johnny simply counted the number of dots around the outside. A "3" has 2 "petals around the rose, or polar bears around an ice hole." The "5" has 4 "petals" or "polar bears." Roll some dice and it will become clear!! Did you answer this riddle correctly?
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10 Birds In A Tree Riddle
Hint:
0. The other birds would've flown away after the gun shot. Did you answer this riddle correctly?
YES NO
YES NO
Chicken Egg Banana Riddle
Hint:
1 Chicken = 20 - So, 20 + 20 + 20 = 60
1 Egg Basket = 3 - So, 20 + 3 + 3 = 26
1 Bunch of Bananas = 6 - So, 3 + 6 + 6 = 15
Finally, Chicken = 20 ; Egg Basket = 3 ; Bananas = 6 - So, 20 + 3 x 5 = 35
The final answer is 35 Did you answer this riddle correctly?
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1 Egg Basket = 3 - So, 20 + 3 + 3 = 26
1 Bunch of Bananas = 6 - So, 3 + 6 + 6 = 15
Finally, Chicken = 20 ; Egg Basket = 3 ; Bananas = 6 - So, 20 + 3 x 5 = 35
The final answer is 35 Did you answer this riddle correctly?
YES NO
Eye Test How Many 3s Riddle
Hint:
The answers for 'eye test how many 3s' puzzle ranges from 15 to 21. At first glance, most people only notice 15 threes in the image. First, you might notice that there are two threes on the number pad, as the number eight has also been replaced by a three. Then there are eight threes in the phone number. Many also notice that the battery charge is at 33% and the time is 3:33 PM.
However, if one looks closer at the name underneath the phone number, they will find three more 3s. This gives a total of 18 3s in the image. But there is one more hidden three that even observant people fail to notice. Underneath the number four on the keypad, the letter 'I' has been replaced with three as well. So, the total number of 3s in the image is 19.
However, depending on your interpretation of the puzzle, the number of 3s can also rise to 21. At the top left of the image, the bar signal and wifi signal also have three bars. Some people also consider the two signals to be a part of the riddle and raise the number of 3s to 21. So, the correct answer can be 19 or 21, depending on your interpretation of the question. Did you answer this riddle correctly?
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However, if one looks closer at the name underneath the phone number, they will find three more 3s. This gives a total of 18 3s in the image. But there is one more hidden three that even observant people fail to notice. Underneath the number four on the keypad, the letter 'I' has been replaced with three as well. So, the total number of 3s in the image is 19.
However, depending on your interpretation of the puzzle, the number of 3s can also rise to 21. At the top left of the image, the bar signal and wifi signal also have three bars. Some people also consider the two signals to be a part of the riddle and raise the number of 3s to 21. So, the correct answer can be 19 or 21, depending on your interpretation of the question. Did you answer this riddle correctly?
YES NO
I Have 10 Eggs Riddle
Hint:
7 eggs! You ate the 3 eggs, which you fried after you broke them at first.
So, 10 - 3 = 7 eggs left.
7 eggs are left. Did you answer this riddle correctly?
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So, 10 - 3 = 7 eggs left.
7 eggs are left. Did you answer this riddle correctly?
YES NO
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