Cut 'n' Paste
Science brain teasers require understanding of the physical or biological world and the laws that govern it.
This one is a "mental" exercise - don't use paper and scissors - just imagine in your mind:
Take a sheet of paper - any size that you happened to have (remember, just imagine this paper). Now fold this sheet of paper in half and now fold it in half again, at right angles to the first fold. Now you have four thicknesses of paper. Now imagine you use scissors and cut through all four thicknesses, right down the middle of the paper, parallel to the first fold you made. Now, imagine, how many pieces of paper do you have now? Don't get paper and scissors to solve this one - try to picture this in your mind!
Take a sheet of paper - any size that you happened to have (remember, just imagine this paper). Now fold this sheet of paper in half and now fold it in half again, at right angles to the first fold. Now you have four thicknesses of paper. Now imagine you use scissors and cut through all four thicknesses, right down the middle of the paper, parallel to the first fold you made. Now, imagine, how many pieces of paper do you have now? Don't get paper and scissors to solve this one - try to picture this in your mind!
Answer
You will have 3 pieces of paper after the cut. It won't matter which direction you make the cut with the scissors - you'll end up with 3 pieces of paper. Don't believe it? Now go get the paper and scissors and actually do this - you'll see!Hide
Comments
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Posted by airhead3 on Mar 01, 2004 An enjoyable, quick mental exercise - thanks!  |
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Posted by Bulletthrudahed on Mar 02, 2004 For some reason i ended up with 5  |
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Posted by Bulletthrudahed on Mar 02, 2004 i folded it 3 times. Duh!   |
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Posted by bbngk on Mar 03, 2004 When do we paste them?  |
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Posted by jimbo on Mar 04, 2004 How cute. I was sure there would be only 2. Aren't we predictable? |
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Posted by lucylizzy on Apr 23, 2004 Yay, I got it! (maybe I should do more of this sort...)  |
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Posted by accordionman on Jun 09, 2004 I got a paper cut in my head, and was unable to complete the exercise. |
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Posted by AXTON on Jul 05, 2004 ONE OF MY FAVOURITE TEASERS, and i got it out. THANKS!! |
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Posted by hcut3 on Jan 14, 2005 i did not get it |
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Posted by drussel3 on Jun 02, 2005 Thanks, real thought provoking. I am sitting here are my desk, folding my hands together continously simulating folding the paper. I must look pretty silly. |
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Posted by Ozymandias on Jul 22, 2005 Son of a gun! You're right! This is definitely one of my favorites! |
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Posted by bookworm91 on Nov 10, 2005 wow. i thought "2, duh."  well.... i never said i was good at visualazations. good teaser tho. |
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Posted by BrieCheese on Nov 27, 2005 i still dont get it |
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Posted by cat27514 on Feb 26, 2006 WOW!!!  That is sooo cool! |
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Posted by Holli44654 on Feb 09, 2008 good one! |
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Posted by psychoserenity on Feb 09, 2008 Wooo! I found that quite easy but still really fun. More visualisation puzzles please! |
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Posted by bradon182001 on Feb 09, 2008 I'm with bookworm and jimbo, I guessed 2. Will definitely have to try this one. Fun teaser. |
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Posted by doehead on Feb 09, 2008 Very elementary.Sorry.  |
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Posted by jabdr on Feb 09, 2008 It's about me and my imagination... We arrived at 6 And we feel pretty inept |
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Posted by smartymarty on Feb 09, 2008 I liked this one. I thought it would be two, but when I made the first fold with a real piece of paper I realized it would be three. Thanks  |
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Posted by angelawrence94 on Feb 09, 2008 O M G I LOVED THIS ONE!!!!!!!!! |
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Posted by avonma on Feb 09, 2008 I was like "drussel3" "folding" my hands and imagining cutting the paper. But, I couldn't "unfold" the paper in my mind to count the pieces... |
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Posted by preppygirl on Feb 09, 2008 grrr. i got it wrong. i was thinking 8. |
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Posted by koolstarkid101 on Feb 09, 2008 I found it quite easy though fun! I loved it! Please make more! |
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Posted by mondayschild59 on Feb 09, 2008 I'm already "mental" and you give me a mental teaser. I'm like the other person with the paper cut on the brain. I could only come up with two pieces, until I used the real paper. Monday~ |
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Posted by sftball_rocks13 on Feb 09, 2008 Eek. I said none because I was supposed to be "imagining" the paper, so there wouldn't really be any. I just figured it was a trick teaser...woops |
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Posted by willymapo on Feb 09, 2008 Very easy, no paper was harm during the exercise Mind can play tricks on us. In this one, people will actually fold it in their minds. After the cutting part, they either remember you mention 4 and will think of automatically 8 , or they will suspect a trick and will fold the paper again. This time, guessing they are smart enough, they will say: "it is just one piece of paper, so if you cut it in the middle you will get two pieces". Logical!!! But if you think of it different, thinking on folds instead, it is easier: the paper has two folds.One fold will make 1 sheet into 2. Another fold will make 2 sheets into 4. If you cut half that, you are splitting only one fold, leaving the other. You end up with four sheets, two with one fold, another two with another fold and four with two. Unfolding releases 4 to 1, and 2 to 1. Three pieces. Humm, I guess it is easier looking at it.... |
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Posted by jec9009 on Feb 09, 2008 i only had 2 pieces..  |
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Posted by jec9009 on Feb 09, 2008 i tried it again...i got 3 this time |
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Posted by auntiesis on Feb 09, 2008 I only got 2 in my head, but 3 in the real world. Very good teaser. |
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Posted by 2ndhandrose on Feb 09, 2008 I got it and then checked with a piece of paper That single piece with two folds took some thought. I Liked This. Fun and Different & a Degree of Challenge to It. Thanks for Posting |
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Posted by 2ndhandrose on Feb 09, 2008 By the By he said 4 Thicknesses of Paper not 4 Pieces so you have to read closely & pay attention. Not misleading at All. |
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Posted by dogg6pound9 on Feb 09, 2008 fun and easy teaser... i got the answer on the first mental fold... if you fold the paper once and cut parallel to the fold you get 3, and by folding twice, you cut parallel to one of the folds regardless of which center you cut down |
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Posted by SweetPotato on Feb 09, 2008 Neat-O, thanks! I thought with one cut you couldn't end up with an odd number or more than 2 ... so I thought (confidently) the answer had to be 2 ... what's so hard about that? I was really surprised to find 3 pieces of papaer in my hand. I'm usually very good at this sort of thing. |
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Posted by conniejmt on Feb 10, 2008 Okay so I finally got it... The wording was a little confussing. The folding at the right angle thingy. I think you should of said simply fold it in half, and then fold it in half again. But still a wonderful teaser. Thanks. |
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Posted by mosca on Feb 10, 2008 A great, brain-twisting teaser! I have creases in my gray matter from this one! |
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Posted by smartymarty on Feb 10, 2008 Willymapo, what in the world are you talking about? |
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Posted by tonjawithaj on Feb 13, 2008 Actually, the answer is a little misleading...it says no matter which direction you cut the paper it will be three pieces. Only if all the cuts are parallel to the folds...if not, you can cut from one folded side to another, and end up with only two pieces of paper. |
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Posted by Mytana on Feb 09, 2011 Very cute. I think I may have done hand actions while thinking though |
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Posted by dsjt on Feb 09, 2011 I now have 503 sheets of paper. I was folding and cutting the last sheet of paper out of my printer. Before I finished my cut, my wife got home from Wal-Mart and handed me a 500 sheet pack of printer paper. |
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Posted by ka-ching on Feb 09, 2011 dsjt ^ |
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Posted by lulumon on Feb 09, 2011 boy do i feel dumb now! i thought i was good at visualization |
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Posted by Singerbear on Feb 09, 2011 I got the right answer to the original problem, but technically the added comment is wrong. it is possible to make one cut and get four pieces. The cut is not parallel to an edge, but one cut through all 4 pieces is made. To prove this, you cut from the point of pape that all of the folds meet across the paper at an angle. Just being pedantic here. |
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Posted by uetian on Mar 27, 2012 OOOHHHH...!!! I thought its answer is,"you will have no piece of paper because it's just imagination"..... |
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Posted by royale-ninja on Jul 28, 2012 i got it right |
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