Lateral Thinking Puzzles

[ChristineT]

I thought a SH forum should have some good ol' puzzles to work out. This is a bit like the

boomerang incident.

 

 

I'll start off with some easy one, then you guys can guess or post some too. If you're guessing, quote the question and put your answer underneath. Feel free to ask more questions but bear in mind they might not be answered right away.

 

1. A man lies dead in a field in the middle of nowhere; an unopened package, that was the cause of his death, lies next to him. What happened?

 

2. A man is hanging from the rafters in a barn. The ground underneath him is damp. There seems to be no way it could have been suicide due to lack of chair or other object to stand on, but it was - why?

 

3. Two men walk into a bar and each order a whisky. The bartender pours it from the same bottle into clean glasses. After they have sipped their whiskies, one man dies. His death was caused by his drink. The other man is just fine. How come?

 

Enjoy!

[chironsgirl]

1. The man was strolling thru a field. A plane flew overhead, and somehow the package fell from the plane and hit the man on the head.

2. The hanged man used a large chunk of ice to stand on. The ice melted, leaving a puddle behind.

3. The man who died had obviously unknowingly eaten a slow acting poison that reacted with alcohol.

[Undead Medic]

I thought a SH forum should have some good ol' puzzles to work out. This is a bit like the

boomerang incident.

 

 

I'll start off with some easy one, then you guys can guess or post some too. If you're guessing, quote the question and put your answer underneath. Feel free to ask more questions but bear in mind they might not be answered right away.

 

1. A man lies dead in a field in the middle of nowhere; an unopened package, that was the cause of his death, lies next to him. What happened?

 

2. A man is hanging from the rafters in a barn. The ground underneath him is damp. There seems to be no way it could have been suicide due to lack of chair or other object to stand on, but it was - why?

 

3. Two men walk into a bar and each order a whisky. The bartender pours it from the same bottle into clean glasses. After they have sipped their whiskies, one man dies. His death was caused by his drink. The other man is just fine. How come?

 

Enjoy!

 

• The man tripped over the package?
• I too subscribe to the large block of ice theory.
• The man had an allergic reaction to alcohol, or had extreme cirrhosis of the liver?

[ChristineT]

Number 2 correct but the others are not. Keep going, you're really close!

[Carol the Dabbler]

I've heard #1 and #2 before, and am therefore disqualifying myself from answering them. But if I may offer a small clue to the rest of you -- it's something specific about the package itself that's relevant in #1.

 

As for #3, the question doesn't state how much whisky each man was served. A nice tall glassful might kill just about anybody. But I suspect that's not what you had in mind, either!

[ChristineT]

Yeah they had the same quantity of whisky. There are two possible explanations, both of which I'd accept. The answer lies above...somewhere

[JessieBlackwood]

Two men walk into a bar and each order a whisky. The bartender pours it from the same bottle into clean glasses. After they have sipped their whiskies, one man dies. His death was caused by his drink. The other man is just fine. How come?

He choked on it? Either that or he was on medication that reacted badly.

 

Have heard the first two before so likewise shall not answer those.

[JessieBlackwood]

I have one for you. Christine works in a grocers. When she was born she was 6lb 2oz. She is now 19 years old, 5'7" tall, blond and a 34/28/36 figure. What does she weigh now?

 

If you can't get this then there is something wrong somewhere...

[Carol the Dabbler]

Think I've got the answer to yours, Jess:

 

 

She weighs groceries! Well, fruit, veggies, maybe meat ....

 

[ChristineT]

He choked on it? Either that or he was on medication that reacted badly.

 

 

Nope

 

I also agree with what she weighs in the spoiler.

[JessieBlackwood]

Well done Carol.

[chironsgirl]

Hmmm. #3 is tricky. OK, so he wasn't allergic or suffering from a reaction to poison he had already taken. Could it be.....the poison was in the bottle, and the OTHER man had already taken the antidote?

 

As for #1. Could the man have been carrying it thru the field, then had a sudden heart attack? Mind you, in my heart of hearts I think the package falling from the sky and landing on his head story has some giggle value.

[Carol the Dabbler]

I'm currently stumped on #3 as well. The word "sipped" kinda stands out (like "hound") -- but no idea how it might tie in.

 

On #1, chironsgirl -- go back and read it again. Any word may be important.

[Otterlysherlocked]

Ah, the first one I know as well.

 

You should consider how the package is described to be and think about why that is important to the story

 

For the third... um... Did they both drink the same way? Like, did they both simultaneously empty their glasses and did the exact same? One of them hasn't used like a straw or something? Okay, drinking whiskey from a straw would be kind of weird but hey who knows

[chironsgirl]

Right! The man had a heart problem. Feeling the onset of an attack he tries to open the box containing his medication but it is too well sealed. He dies before he can open it! That's the best I can do until I get some brekkie and coffee.

[Carol the Dabbler]

Nope -- being unable to get at his heart medication would not have caused his death, merely failed to prevent it. Sorry!

[JessieBlackwood]

Logic puzzles mean keeping it simple. There is usually no other info that you need to come up with the answer, you just need to use the clues. Best not to add anything that the puzzle doesn't refer to. You just have to come up with the best explanation for the available evidence. At least, very happy to stand corrected if anyone cna think of a better explanation but this sort of deduction is very Sherlockian.

[ChristineT]

Nobody's got the first one yet but Carol clearly knows the answer and is giving good advice.

 

For number 3, poison is right but it's not in the bottle...

[JessieBlackwood]

Think I have it.

 

 

They're drinking whisky. Poisoned ice cubes?

 

[JessieBlackwood]

A man lives on the top floor of an apartment block. Every morning he goes down in the elevator to the ground floor, gets out, goes to work. Every evening he comes home, gets back in the elevator and goes to the tenth floor, gets out and walks up the stairs the rest of the way to his apartment, unless he has someone else in the lift with him, or it has been raining. Why would this be?

[Carol the Dabbler]

A man lives on the top floor of an apartment block. Every morning he goes down in the elevator to the ground floor, gets out, goes to work. Every evening he comes home, gets back in the elevator and goes to the tenth floor, gets out and walks up the stairs the rest of the way to his apartment, unless he has someone else in the lift with him, or it has been raining. Why would this be?

For the exercise?

 

Think I've read this before somewhere, though I don't really recall how it works out. But I shall disqualify myself nonetheless.

[Otterlysherlocked]

Aaah, I know that one. It's good! (;

 

And for number 3, yeah, poison in ice cubes would have been my next guess as well..

[Otterlysherlocked]

Oh, and by the way, no, not for exercise

[Carol the Dabbler]

Ice cubes?! What kinda wimp takes ice in his whisky?

 

But Christine said there were two possible explanations -- can anybody come up with another one?

[ChristineT]

Poisoned ice cubes in one glass, and none in the other is correct.

 

There is another explanation in which both glasses have poisoned ice cubes...

 

I know the elevator one so I'll keep quiet for a bit.