Brain Teasers
J.G and Benny the Brain
Trick
Trick brain teasers appear difficult at first, but they have a trick that makes them really easy.Trick
Jimmy Foster, better known as "J.G." (Jimmy the Gambler), has decided to give up gambling for good. However, Jimmy decides to make one last wager, a huge one. Jimmy wages $147,000 on a race horse named "End of the line." Unfortunately, Jimmy loses his money on "End of the line." (It really is looking like the end of the line for Jimmy).
Anyway, the person who owns the horse finds out about Jimmy's wager and his loss. He makes him an offer he can't refuse, just the same way he has done dozens of times before. He approaches Jimmy and invites him into his office. The man takes a book of matches out of the inner pocket of his suit coat, rips off 4 matchsticks, and places them on the table. He says to Jimmy: "What is your name?" Jimmy tells him his name. He continues: "Jimmy, you see these four matchsticks here? Well, if you can make me a triangle, and a square using only these four matchsticks, I'll give you double your money back that you lost this afternoon on my horse."
Jimmy responds: "You gotta be kidding me. That's easy. By the way, what is YOUR name?" The man says: "Well, my friends call me Benny. Benny the Brain, and Jimmy, it is not as easy as it sounds. Of course, there is a catch. You must make BOTH the triangle and the square, at the same time, and they have to be joined together. And the end result must have less than seven corners."
Jimmy says: "Now, you're really kidding me. Listen fella, Brainy Ben, or whatever your name is, I don't have time for you and your little matchstick trick. I'm outta here." Jimmy leaves and never looks back.
Jimmy didn't think it was possible to do what Benny the Brain was asking, but it is. Can you make the square and triangle, joined together, using only four matchsticks (of equal length), the end result having less than seven corners?
Anyway, the person who owns the horse finds out about Jimmy's wager and his loss. He makes him an offer he can't refuse, just the same way he has done dozens of times before. He approaches Jimmy and invites him into his office. The man takes a book of matches out of the inner pocket of his suit coat, rips off 4 matchsticks, and places them on the table. He says to Jimmy: "What is your name?" Jimmy tells him his name. He continues: "Jimmy, you see these four matchsticks here? Well, if you can make me a triangle, and a square using only these four matchsticks, I'll give you double your money back that you lost this afternoon on my horse."
Jimmy responds: "You gotta be kidding me. That's easy. By the way, what is YOUR name?" The man says: "Well, my friends call me Benny. Benny the Brain, and Jimmy, it is not as easy as it sounds. Of course, there is a catch. You must make BOTH the triangle and the square, at the same time, and they have to be joined together. And the end result must have less than seven corners."
Jimmy says: "Now, you're really kidding me. Listen fella, Brainy Ben, or whatever your name is, I don't have time for you and your little matchstick trick. I'm outta here." Jimmy leaves and never looks back.
Jimmy didn't think it was possible to do what Benny the Brain was asking, but it is. Can you make the square and triangle, joined together, using only four matchsticks (of equal length), the end result having less than seven corners?
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Comments
I would add "a perfect square" in the teaser to have a better indication.
Actually, that would have been a Dead Giveaway. It wasn't cheezy either because we refer to Perfect Sqaures all the time simply as "squares"
Another great one- Scramble. and Grip is in full agreement.
I was wondering why you used 4 matchsticks instead of 3, but I now realized 4 is the better fit.
I was wondering why you used 4 matchsticks instead of 3, but I now realized 4 is the better fit.
that's a really good one. I like those trick ones. It's long though and you make a story so it's easy to miss a trick or something. Nice one
nice, tricked me.
tough, but i don't get it
Jun 25, 2003
Shoo! I never would have gotten four. Good job!!
Good puzzle. I got onto the perfect square bit but I thought of 3 matches to make a triangle and that leaves 1 ( a perfect square) which can be attached to the top vertex. This has less than 7 corners.
i thought it was a trapazoid!!!!!!!!!!!!!!, u really folled me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Two words - NOT FUN
Nov 04, 2003
Good thinking with the perfect square.
i don't get it. do u mean an open or closed "4"? Like this one or like one with the top lines pointing straight up?
Thoroughly stumped. Clever.
Good puzzle! 
The solution I had was to place three of the match sticks in a simple triangle, then place the fourth match stick on top of one of the other matches, placing the striking tip ends together thus creating a square when viewed from the side. 
The solution I had was to place three of the match sticks in a simple triangle, then place the fourth match stick on top of one of the other matches, placing the striking tip ends together thus creating a square when viewed from the side.
i thought you had to break the sticks in half or something 
It got me, there! 
i thought ud have to brake them too
IVIatrixSamurai - i assume they mean a 4 as it is viewed there - the open four (which is the four i learned to write) wouldn't work
had me stumped, well done
had me stumped, well done
I thought it had something to do with perfect sq.s. Good teaser.
Good teaser.
Got Me!!! 
And I was going to break two of the matches in half to make the Square, and then place the third match from upper corner to lower, opposite corner to make a triangle inside the square.
The last match I'd get to use as a nice toothpick while he counted over my money.
The last match I'd get to use as a nice toothpick while he counted over my money.
the teaser is wrong! you can't make a right triangle using 3 sticks of the same legnth!
the teaser is wrong! you can't make a right triangle using 3 sticks of the same legnth!
the teaser is wrong! you can't make a right triangle using 3 sticks of the same legnth!
oops.
Yes you can, if the vertical line is placed half way between the two ends. Great teaser, I did not figure it out.
Great teaser (definitely tricked me). On a literary level, I'd tweak the story.
I really wanted to help Jimmy win instead of seeing him give up without trying. His character seemed to be a risk-taker, and I was so disappointed that he didn't even give it a shot (ESPECIALLY since he had nothing to lose.) Made me lose interest in the outcome of the teaser since I wasn't emotionally engaged with the character anymore.
Sorry...English minor.
Nice one, though!
I really wanted to help Jimmy win instead of seeing him give up without trying. His character seemed to be a risk-taker, and I was so disappointed that he didn't even give it a shot (ESPECIALLY since he had nothing to lose.) Made me lose interest in the outcome of the teaser since I wasn't emotionally engaged with the character anymore.
Sorry...English minor.
Nice one, though!
Nice one! 
ooh, I like it! Good one
Nice, after I figured it out
Closed 4, I think.
This is a good teaser. Another definition of "square" is "to bring to the form of a right angle". Therefore (and similar to the given solution), the answer could be simply a triangle made with 3 of the matchsticks, with the fourth matchstick joined to one of the corners of the triangle in such a way as to form a right angle (square) with one of its sides. The triangle would be an equilateral triangle if there is no overlapping or (a) portion(s) sticking out, since all of the matchsticks are of equal length. The resulting shape has fewer than seven corners.
Regarding my comment above, I should say the fourth matchstick forms "a square" corner when joined to the triangle (square = "formed by or as a right angle").
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