Brain Teasers
The First Shall Be Last
Once upon a time there was a wise king. He had three daughters who were the most beautiful girls in the land. But the young men in his kingdom were becoming a nuisance to the king. They lined up for hours to ask if they could date his daughters. "I've had enough," cried the king. "From now on, once a year I will have a race: three men to a team and the winners get a date with my daughters."
The day of the race the King read out the rules and laid out the course; but just before the start he proclaimed, "The first shall be last and the last shall be first."
"What? How can we race to be in last place?" the young men complained.
"Figure it out" yelled the King, and shot the starter gun. There was mass confusion as some ran slowly and others fought for last place. Others just stood there until they realized they had only 15 minutes to finish the course. But three very wise young men managed to claim the prize.
How did they do it?
The day of the race the King read out the rules and laid out the course; but just before the start he proclaimed, "The first shall be last and the last shall be first."
"What? How can we race to be in last place?" the young men complained.
"Figure it out" yelled the King, and shot the starter gun. There was mass confusion as some ran slowly and others fought for last place. Others just stood there until they realized they had only 15 minutes to finish the course. But three very wise young men managed to claim the prize.
How did they do it?
Answer
The king said, "the first shall be last and the last shall be first". So while everyone else was confused and in a skirmish trying to come in last to be first, the three men simply did the opposite. They ran to win. Since they were first to finish, they placed last, thus making them first.Hide Answer Show Answer
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