Brain Teasers
911 Call
Situation
Situation puzzles (sometimes called lateral thinking puzzles) are ones where you need to ask lots of yes or no questions to figure out what happened in the situation. These are good puzzles for groups where one person knows the puzzle and answers the questions.Situation
An old fellow is driving home. It's late at night. He's travelling along the highway, and he's some considerable distance from home. Suddenly, he feels himself having a heart attack. He says, "Oh my God. It's the big one." Thinking quickly, he takes the first available exit.
As luck would have it, he winds up in a residential neighborhood. It's very late at night. He pulls over to the side of the road behind some parked cars. He's fading fast, but he has the presence of mind to pull out his cell phone and call 911.
He says to the dispatcher, "I need help. I'm having a heart attack." She says, "Where are you?"
And the rest of the conversation goes something like this:
He: "I don't know where I am."
She: "What exit did you take?"
He: "I don't remember."
She: "Were you going north or south or east?"
He: "I don't remember."
She: "Can you tell me what street you're on?"
He: "I'm in the middle of the block. I'm parked behind some cars. I didn't see any street signs."
She: "Start blowing the horn. Someone will come out of the house."
No one comes out.
She then asks him to do one more thing. Minutes later, an ambulance is on its way there and saves his life.
What did she ask him to do?
As luck would have it, he winds up in a residential neighborhood. It's very late at night. He pulls over to the side of the road behind some parked cars. He's fading fast, but he has the presence of mind to pull out his cell phone and call 911.
He says to the dispatcher, "I need help. I'm having a heart attack." She says, "Where are you?"
And the rest of the conversation goes something like this:
He: "I don't know where I am."
She: "What exit did you take?"
He: "I don't remember."
She: "Were you going north or south or east?"
He: "I don't remember."
She: "Can you tell me what street you're on?"
He: "I'm in the middle of the block. I'm parked behind some cars. I didn't see any street signs."
She: "Start blowing the horn. Someone will come out of the house."
No one comes out.
She then asks him to do one more thing. Minutes later, an ambulance is on its way there and saves his life.
What did she ask him to do?
Answer
She asked the man to give her the license plate number of the vehicle in front of him, thinking that whoever owned the vehicle lived in that neighborhood. Since it was a residential neighborhood, and late at night, this is very likely.Hide Answer Show Answer
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Comments
Clever, but chancy, but under the conditions, worth the chance. Good teaser.
that's actually pretty good.
but can't cell phones be traced by satellite?
but can't cell phones be traced by satellite?
I was thinking the same thing as bluejubba, but I think it's only the really nice ones that can be traced. great job swaff! you got me!
No, any cell can be traced, anywhere. I thought she told him to ram into the cars in front... the people would have come out then, when something was happening to their stuff.
That works too though! Lol, I liked it.
That works too though! Lol, I liked it.
actually cell phones can only be traced into a general area. calls are recieved by towers and they narrow it down to a triangle that can be about 3 miles wide.
anyway. i really liked this teaser. i thought it would be something like yell "FIRE!"
anyway. i really liked this teaser. i thought it would be something like yell "FIRE!"
Oooh, clever.
Very clever all 911 dispatchers sould read this one hehe.
I had also read somewhere that yelling FIRE is supposed to get a better response than shouting for help. Maybe also crank up his stereo to the loudest if he had a good one in the car.
Tracing cell phone signals is chancy at best and far too time-consuming. The given solution is also chancy so... meh?
Tracing cell phone signals is chancy at best and far too time-consuming. The given solution is also chancy so... meh?
Cell Phones Can Be Traced
Good One!
I thought the same thing as MalcolmReynolds, but the real answer is very clever!
Good teaser, but with a surprising answer! I never knew someone suffering a heart attack would be conscious, which had me confused.
Also thought one would track the cell phone... over here in Europe, a cell phone can be localized at about 5 meters near... that would perfectly have done the job!
I didnt get this one but spent ages thinking about it, i liked it!
Good Job SWAFF! And informative too! Hope no one ever has to use it though
You had me befuddled with this one! But, a totally awesome teaser. I, like many others had always thought, cell phones can be traced. Still, a great teaser!
FIRE!!!!!
I actually thought it was gonna be "Throw a rock at the window of the house you're in front of." The alarm would alert the police where he's at
How did she know it was a residential neighborhood no where in the conversation does the question come up or the guy tells her, so........yeah, that's incorrect.
BRILLIANT
Is the guy okay???
Coulda been they traced the cell phone, or maybe he had LoJack or something in his car....There's more than one solution.
Situation puzzles don't necessarily have to have a single solution. The idea is to determine the given solution. That is why it is usually done in a group, where people can go through possible solutions until they come across the solution in question, which ideally should be to everyone's satisfaction. Very good puzzle.
agreed^^^
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