How quickly can you find out what is so unusual about this paragraph? It looks so ordinary that you would think that nothing was wrong with it at all and, in fact, nothing is. But it is unusual. Why? If you study it and think about it you may find out, but I am not going to assist you in any way. You must do it without coaching. No doubt, if you work at it for long, it will dawn on you, who knows? Go to work and try your skill. Par is about half an hour.

(If you REALLY are stumped, after a reasonable amount of time, you can ask me questions that I can respond with a "yes" or "no".

Have fun!

Julie

j

Something's missing, maybe...right?

Kt

In fact the original that was printed decades ago, was indeed indented.

j

Kt...I've taken a few IQ tests in my time.

If that was an attempt at an answer, you are not correct.

What is unusual about that paragraph is extremely simple.

Julie

Julie

Julie

EXACTLY!! If I added THAT sentence to THAT paragraph, then it no longer would be unusual right?

Read the sentence closely, then see if it has what the rest of the paragraph is missing.("Did you find the rEason for the paragragh bEing unusual?").

Now do you see?

If that's not correct, then I am definitely looking too deep or trying too hard again...

Kt

You are right!

Hey Bernie, do you get it now?...What's missing in the first paragraph?

Julie

There are several letters of the alphabet that are not used in sentences, and even in longer paragraphs, but the letter 'e' is generally used at least once in every sentence. It is a vowel, which makes it's tendency for usage quite common.

In IQ tests, similar questions are asked. I like numbers, so my first attempt is to look at repeating numbers, but the paragraph has no numbers but then I look for the number of letters in each word and then look for patterns.

All words starting with the same letter or the first letter of each word spelling out something is also common, etc.

Great puzzle, Jule.

Any more?

Kt

The book, Gadsby is a 50,000 word novel written without the letter 'e' in 1939 by Ernest Vincent Wright.

My Mom is the one who shared the paragraph with me, just yesterday. She thinks she clipped it from an old Readers Digest.

She likes collecting fun puzzles like that. I'll see if she has any more.

Julie

2. You take 2 apples from 3 apples, how many apples do you have?

3. How many animals of each species did Moses take with him on the ark?

4. If you had only one match and entered a very cold and very dark room, where there was an oil heater, an oil lamp, and a candle, which would you light first?

Kt

Maybe I can get one right.
Let's see...

1. 1 hour

2. I took two apples, so I HAVE two apples.

3. Seven of each clean animal, two of each unclean animal.

4. I don't know, I can't see anything in the dark. Well, hmmmm...I guess the candle, so I could see. Then I could use the candle to light the oil lamp. I don't know how to light an oil heater. Oh!!!!!!Wait!!!!!!I'd light the match:))))

Something tells me these are all trick questions.

Did I get ANY right?

Julie

That's what I get for trying to think at that late hour.

j

Bernie

Gen 6:19, 20
You are to bring into the ark two of all living creatures, male and female, to keep them alive with you. Two of every kind of bird, of every kind of animal and of every kind of creature that moves along the ground will come to you to be kept alive.

(The key words above are "kept alive".)

Gen 7:2,3
Take with you seven of every kind of clean animal, a male and its mate, and two of every kind of unclean animal, a male and its mate, and also seven of every kind of bird, male and female, to keep their various kinds alive throughout the earth.

(The extra clean animals were needed for sacrifices [burnt offerings] and for food after the flood. Two of every kind were kept alive to replenish the Earth.)

Gen. 8:20
Then Noah built an altar to the Lord and, taking some of all the clean animals and clean birds, he sacrificed burnt offerings on it.

Gen 9:3
Everything that lives and moves will be food for you. Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything.

(I didn't figure out all these things myself, Bernie.
I participated in a Bible study many, many years ago, and remembered certain things about Noah and the flood. As I get older though, I guess I can't remember NAMES!!! [Moses/Noah])

Julie

Bernie

Jule, you got 3 of 4 on the first attempt, but I feel I should give credit also for #3 from your due diligence and your strong chistian beliefs and great memory of the Bible. Even though you 'misread' the question(Moses vs Noah), you brought up something that many do not know, and for that, I commend you!!

Bernie...well, I never know if you are honest in your responses or if you are just being Bernie, but in either case...Good Job!

I feeling good tonight, so everyone gets a cookie!!

1. Divide 30 by half and add ten, what do you get?

2 A farmer had 17 sheep, all but 9 died, how many live sheep did he have left?

3. I went to bed at 8 o'clock in the evening and wound up my clock and set the alarm to sound at 9 o'clock in the morning. How many hours of sleep would I get before being awoken by the alarm?

4. Which number should come next in the series?

3, 5, 8, 13, 21...

A. 4
B. 21
C. 31
D. 34

Good Luck!

Kt

I think I will answer the above questions, but will put the answers in "white", so others can't see mine unless they highlight. That way, my answers won't influence others' answers.

1. 70, because I read the question as "divide 30 by .5 and add ten.
2. 9
3. If I set MY clock for 9 A.M. it would wake me after ONE hour of sleep, because my clock is a 12 hour clock, not a 24 hour clock, I've not seen a 24-hour wind up clock. You can set a digital clock for A.M and P.M. and get 13 hours of sleep though. My final answer is ONE.
4. My head hurts after putzing with all those numbers! But I came up with: Add the first two numbers to get the third, add the 2nd & 3rd numbers to get the 4th, add the 3rd & 4th numbers to get the 5th, and finally add the 4th and 5th numbers to get the answer: 34.

You have taught me to think harder, Kt!

Julie

I am appalled at the suggestion of my honesty. The utter shock of you even suggesting it is beyond belief. Why politicians take should take lessons from me. I can't believe it......

I got to remember how to do whiteout? Hang on.....

1.
25

2.
8

3.
13

4.
34

I am still shaking from some comment posted by a person who will be named later in a slander lawsuit.

I got the whiteout the first time, amazing.

Bernie (Honest Abe)

1. 70. Dividing by half is the same as multiplying by 2, then add 10.

2. 9 live sheep. Read the question again closely.

3. 1 hour. As Jule said, it is a wind up clock and it cannont discriminate between am and pm.

4. 34.

You have taught me to think harder, Kt!

Yes, and I see that sometimes you think too hard, or try to read more into a question than is actually required...just like me.:) You win 2 cookies for a perfect score!

Sorry, Honest Abe, with only one correct answer, you can only have the left over crumbs.

Didn't you once say that, 'Honesty will get you no where...?'

Kt

I got my windup clock going right now and in 10 more minutes we'll...............

Bernie

Bernie

Bernie

Must've been made in the US of A.

I owned a few Baby Bens in my time, but their quality deteriorated (probably outsourced to the Chinese.)

Kt, thanks for the yummy cookies:)))

Julie

Sunday nights questions:

1. At the end of a banquet 10 people shake hands with each other. How many handshakes will there be in total?

A. 100
B. 20
C. 45
D. 50
E. 90

2. The day before the day before yesterday is three days after Saturday. What day is it today?

A. Monday
B. Tuesday
C. Wednesday
D. Thursday
E. Friday

3. Rearrange the following letters to make a word and choose the category in which it fits.

RAPETEKA

A. city
B. fruit
C. bird
D. vegetable

4. Which one of the sets of letters below can be arranged into a five letter English word.

A. A T R U N
B. P O D E B
C. R N A S L
D. M O H A T
E. E T L R N

Good Luck

Kt

This morning was much easier with a fresh brain.

1. If each person shakes hands with each of the other nine, then 10 people x 9 handshakes = 90.

2. Friday

3. bird (parakeet)

4. C. (snarl)

You are really trying to sharped our brains, Kt!

Julie

I got to admit I'm not that good at riddles, puzzles, etc but I try. You are really trying to sharped our brains, Kt! The only way he is going to sharpen this brain is to put it in a pencil sharpener.

1.

90

2.

Total guess Monday. I'll save you from typing WRONG.

3.

C parakeet

4.

C snarl

Bernie

Julie

1. Try again. Not 90.

2. Good job Jule! Friday it is.

3. Parakeet! Both of you are correct!

4. Snarl! Both correct again!

Jule wins, so she gets another cookie. Bern, you batted 50% so you get 1/2 of a cookie(hey, that's better than crumbs!)

Retry question #1.

A few more questions...

1. Which of the following diagrams is the odd one out?

2. Find the picture that follows logically from the diagrams to the right.

3. Please enter the missing figure: 4, 5, 8, 17, 44,

A. 80
B. 125
C. 112
D. 60
E. 84

4. Please enter the missing figure: 13, 57, 911, 1315, 1719

A. 2123
B. 1879
C. 3002
D. 5004
E. 1784

Bonus question:

5. Which of the diagrams follows?

Good Luck

Kt

Today's Q's:

1. D (circles don't fit with all the straight-line-edged shapes.)

2. C

3. I'd be foolish to try that one with my dizzy brain tonight...will try tomorrow.

4. Ditto

Bonus: A (with the back to back F's)

I am better with shapes than I am with numbers. (I think)

Will finish tomorrow.

answer

If they shook hands and gave high fives, it comes to 90

1.

B the rectangle

2.

C

3.

one of those numbers.

4.

one of those numbers again.

5 Bonus.

B

10 people, we will call A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I & J.

A Shakes hands with BCDEFGHIJ = 9
B Then shakes hands with CDEFGHIJ = 8
C Then shakes hands with DEFGHIJ = 7
D Then shakes hands with EFGHIJ = 6
E Then shakes hands with FGHIJ = 5
F Then shakes hands with GHIJ = 4
G Then shakes hands with HIJ = 3
H Then shakes hands with IJ - 2
I Then shakes hands with J = 1
J Shook hands with everyone already.

9+8+7+6+5+4+3+2+1 = 45 handshakes.

Kt

My answer to this one is
3. B 125

Question 4 will be coming up after my scratch pad gets filled up with a bunch of figuring.

Bernie

Number 4: I won't even attempt.

Julie

1. D, the circles. D is the only diagram where the intersection does not form the original shape.

2. C.

3. B, 125. The difference between the numbers follows the series 1,3,9,27,81

4. A. All odd numbers beginning from one, in a series

Bonus 5. A. All the characters are letters back to back (C,D,E,F).

Jule wins again with a total of 3! Bern's first attempt = 1. Two more on his second attempt(counting looking one up). Jule gets her choice of cookins! Bern gets a cookie of my choice.

Kt

Number 4 is very simple. People try to make it harder than it is.

Kt

j

...but what's a cookin?

'Cookin' is how you spell 'cookie' when your eyesight is failing.:)

Kt

I was surprised at the reasoning for the answer in number 1.
I guessed "circles", but for an entirely different reason.

It's a good thing these puzzles aren't timed!
If there were a hundred people guessing these puzzle games, and we were given a specific time to finish, I would end up somewhere in the middle....not on the "fast end of the curve"!!!

Julie

Kt

When you come right down to it, there is no law that says you have to use big words when you write or talk.

There are lots of small words, and good ones, that can be made to say all the things you want to say, quite as well as the big ones. It may take a bit more time to find them at first. But it can be well worth it, for all of us know what they mean. Some small words, more than you might think, are rich with just the right feel, the right taste, as if made to help you say a thing the way it should be said.

Small words can be crisp, brief, terse - go to the point, like a knife. They have a charm all their own. They dance, twist, turn, sing. Like sparks in the night they light the way for the eyes of those who read. They are the grace notes of prose. You know what they say the way you know a day is bright and fair - at first sight. And you find, as you read, that you like the way they say it. Small words are nice. And they can catch large thoughts and hold them up for all to see, like rare stones in rings of gold, or joy in the eyes of a child. Some make you feel, as well as see: the cold deep dark of night, the hot salt sting of tears.

Small words move with ease where big words stand still - or, worse, bog down and get in the way of what you want to say. There is not much, in all truth, that small words will not say - and say quite well.

If I'm right, it's off to the wine bottle. I'm going to do that anyway in a couple of hours. Hockey Det at Edmonton.

Bernie

Guess again.

Are you going to drink the WHOLE bottle?

Julie

The small words are adjectives???

Are you going to drink the WHOLE bottle?
If I don't get this right I am. No just kidding. Generally just 1 glass full.

Bernie

The small words are adjectives???
Some of them are, but that's not the answer I'm looking for.

What flavor wine?

Julie

The passage is very easy to understand, or written in laymans terms, but I don't see anything unusual about it. Am I looking too hard? Shorter words are more simplistic, so they are more easily understood.

Maybe give us a hint?

Kt

Nothing special, just homemade wine from concord grapes.

I am going to work on the paragraph tomorrow. Going to get ready for the hockey game.

Bernie

Every SINGLE word has something in common.

j

It's in English.....hehehehe

Don't tell me you are one of those guys that paints himself up for the game...even if you watch it from home!?!?!?!

Jule, great clue...Every SINGLE word has something in common. Hmmm...They all have only one syllable??

Kt

I like your answer, Bernie, but there's something else that's unique about the passage.

Here's another example in my own words that has the same uniqueness:

Bern loves to drink his own made wine from his own grown grapes!

Here's another:

Tex loves to grow boos in pots!

Julie

You got it, hot-shot!

Each word has one syllable

You get a cookie:)))

Julie

I knew every word probably had something to do with the answer, but for some reason when you mention every SINGLE word, it became really obvious. Great puzzle!

Kt

Congratulations Kt.

Bern, do you like merlot? White / red? and Don't tell me you are one of those guys that paints himself up for the game...even if you watch it from home!?!?!?!

Yes, I like merlot, cabby, and most reds. I had some homemade blackberry last week. The neighbor brought it over and wanted to know what I thought of it. The flavor was excellent but it lacked the alcohol content. It probably was in the neighborhood of 2-3% alcohol compared to most wines in the 10-12% alcohol. He made some cherry wine from the juice when we made all of those pies from church. Maybe in 6-9 months I'll get a sample.

As far as watching sports on TV, I just sit there and enjoy the game. I don't get all that excited about a good play or a bad call. Just want to see a good game no matter who wins.

Bernie