Brain Teasers
Inspector Beethoven III
Handel has been killed and Beethoven is on the case. He has interviewed the four suspects and their statements are shown below. Each suspect has said two sentences. One sentence of each suspect is a lie and one sentence is the truth. Help Beethoven figure out who the killer is.
Joplin: I did not kill Handel. Either Grieg is the killer or none of us is.
Grieg: I did not kill Handel. Gershwin is the killer.
Strauss: I did not kill Handel. Grieg is lying when he says Gershwin is the killer.
Gershwin: I did not kill Handel. If Joplin did not kill him, then Grieg did.
Joplin: I did not kill Handel. Either Grieg is the killer or none of us is.
Grieg: I did not kill Handel. Gershwin is the killer.
Strauss: I did not kill Handel. Grieg is lying when he says Gershwin is the killer.
Gershwin: I did not kill Handel. If Joplin did not kill him, then Grieg did.
Answer
Strauss is the one who killed Handel.You need to take turns assuming someone is the killer; that means everyone's second sentence is a lie. If Joplin was the killer, Grieg's lie mixed with Strauss' counteracts the other. If Grieg was the killer, Gershwin would need to be a killer too. If Gershwin was the killer, Grieg and Strauss counter each other again, but with Strauss, everything would fit.
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Comments
Not too hard, but I love it!
I give a BIG THANKS to TROT who helped me explain the answer to this teaser in print. Hope everyone likes it!
Good one!! I didn't get it, although it did become crystal clear after I read the answer!!! Nice job!!
Jan 16, 2006
Awesome.
enjoyed it very much
It was a lot of fun.
Made perfect sense to me... after I saw the answer.
Keep them coming.
Made perfect sense to me... after I saw the answer.
Keep them coming.
That was great!!!
I got it, though my strategy was slightly different. loved it
I got it, though my strategy was slightly different. loved it
i got it
cute!!!
Good one Swig!
This is a fun one
I figured this one out
Keep up the good work.
Oh man, I was never any good at these, no matter how late in the morning or how many cups of coffee!! I only barely tried to get it, but I just knew I wouldn't, always out there in left field with these types. Sure was a good one to make me think though!
This seemed to be merely the reworking of other teasers. The names were changed to protect the 'innocent', as they say.
My head is spinning.
cute...clever
Not bad. Wish I'd taken more time to try and figure it out (busy Saturday morning) because I think I would have gotten it eventually.
Everybody seemed to think it was easy . I guess I'am just too slow when it comes to these teasers . I didn't get it.
Have you ever noticed that most of the people that comment have never had a teaser printed? STRANGE
Wow that was hard... I gussed that it was george, But that one was the ovius one
i didn't get it i thought it was grieg o well great teaser
I got it!! I kind of guessed though. But at least I got it!! Yay!! I loved it!
i didn't get the answer right, but it was a good riddle, nonethess
I got it right. I am good at these kind of teasers. They are very fun.
kind of easy but that's ok, it was still well done and fun anyway-- actually got the wheels turning.
This is the kind of logic test that requires you just work it out one step at a time. After a coupla minutes you can easily determine which can be the only one lying about his guilt.
Thanks, Highlama. I've never been a Logic-Puzzle-Lover, but I will try your advice!
I thought it was fun but first i didnt get it
I liked it. I am not good at these, so my logic was that since no one blamed Strauss, he was the killer. It's always the last guy you'd expect...
i didn't get it ithought greig was the killer it was ok though
i didn't get it ithought greig was the killer it was ok though
Clever. I liked it. Keep 'em comin'
Again, right over my ol' head. Guess I just don't think logically. Yes, I can put one foot in front of the other and chew gum at the same time, but . . . this one left me clear out in left field. As a brain teaser tho it had to be a really good one, I think. Let's see, logically it must have been good because I couldn't solve it.
great one if you have the time to sit and figure it out for a few minutes, which unfortunately I did not today.
I didn't get it right, but it was very clever!
I am not patient enough to take the time to figure it out. Good teaser!
I am not patient enough to take the time to figure it out. Good teaser!
This was one of the best Teasers I have encountered. Simple but difficult if you don't know your classic music from jazz, and so on. I enjoy reading Teasers that do exactly what they purport, and this one did. Again, this was very good. As I always say: Keep them coming, love. Don't stop it, no. Don't stop it nooooooo.....
I GOT IT!!!!
i figured it out but i made it harder than it was
it had to be Strauss cuz hes the only 1 that didnt blame someone else
it had to be Strauss cuz hes the only 1 that didnt blame someone else
Aw, yeah! Aw, yeah! Got it right... How you like me NOW?!?!?! SUCKAS!!!
Excellent logic teaser! Enjoyed solving it, and got the correct answer too. Give us some more of these.
Very hard, but very fun. Bravo, and great setting! I like!
Got it right great i feel better now, i do like the logic puzzles, you really just have to figure til you solve it . THX
I don't really understand your explanation.
Assuming Grieg was the killer for example, all the other's hints are void, since their true sentence is the fact that they did NOT kill Handel.
So the only valdid hint is the one from the killer. And the only one who does not say who it might have been is Strauss, so that it had to be him.
Is that what you meant? (Still the puzzle is very good)
Assuming Grieg was the killer for example, all the other's hints are void, since their true sentence is the fact that they did NOT kill Handel.
So the only valdid hint is the one from the killer. And the only one who does not say who it might have been is Strauss, so that it had to be him.
Is that what you meant? (Still the puzzle is very good)
Excellent!!! I really enjoyed this teaser. It wasn't too hard yet it was not a give away. Great job!!!
XIEXIE NI! (THANK U!)
BU TAI NAN! (NOT TOO DIFFICULT!)
WISH U HADN'T LET THE CAT OUT OF THE BAG IN TELLING PEOPLE HOW TO SOLVE THIS AND ALL FUTURE SUCH TEASERS.
BU TAI NAN! (NOT TOO DIFFICULT!)
WISH U HADN'T LET THE CAT OUT OF THE BAG IN TELLING PEOPLE HOW TO SOLVE THIS AND ALL FUTURE SUCH TEASERS.
I love this teaser and I'm no sleuth But somehow I uncovered the truth
GOOD teaser!
GOOD teaser!
That was confusing to me!
wow a very nice one indeed...made me think a little harder this morning..got the answer a little diffrerent then i was supposed to .but i still got it...great teaser...
A year later I still didn't get it. Even took more time to think about it. Good job, ya got me twice.
I enjoyed trying to work this out even though I reached a wrong conclusion (Joplin). Sometimes it is the journey and not the destination....
This one was really good! I enjoyed it a lot! I did figure it out but it took me a while. I refused to look at the answer until I figured it out! The way I looked at it was - whoever the killer is can't blame someone else for the killing because then they'd be lying for both sentences. Strauss was the only one who didn't accuse someone else!
I worked it out a little differently:
Since there is one killer, one of the first statements is true and the other three false. That means that only one of the second statements can be true. Since Grieg and Strauss' second statements contradict each other, (one of their second statements has to be true) then one of them is the killer. That means that Joplin and Gershwin have false second statements and are telling the truth about not being the killers. Since Gershwin didn't do it, then Grieg's second statement is false and we are left with Strauss' second statement being true, meaning he is lying in his first statement and is the killer.
Excellent logic puzzle!
Since there is one killer, one of the first statements is true and the other three false. That means that only one of the second statements can be true. Since Grieg and Strauss' second statements contradict each other, (one of their second statements has to be true) then one of them is the killer. That means that Joplin and Gershwin have false second statements and are telling the truth about not being the killers. Since Gershwin didn't do it, then Grieg's second statement is false and we are left with Strauss' second statement being true, meaning he is lying in his first statement and is the killer.
Excellent logic puzzle!
Exactly right, starry!
Excellent!
I got it, It was easy, though, I didn't really get to the answer the way you suggested, I got the correct answer. I liked it very much! Keep these coming!
I had a harder time getting the answer than the way yiu explained it. Very easy to do it correctly. Thanks for the tip.
I didn't do it cause I didn't get it.
Usually I will try on these, but today my head or heart just wasn'tin it. Sorry.
This is an easy one! Besides, hearing it again, just allows me to comfirm the answer! Fantastic teaser, though! Keep up the Amazing work! I enjoyed it!
My approach was a bit different than the solution, here's how I got it:
The key is in knowing that each suspects answers are mutually exclusive, meaning only one of their statements is true. With that in mind, you can get to the answer before you have even read all the suspects statements.
1 - You know right away it wasn't Joplin, because if his second statement is true, then his first statement is also true, which violates the constraints of the puzzle, therefore his first statement is the only one that can be true.
2 - Same with Griegs statement, if his second statement is true then his first statement must also be true, so that violates the constraints, therefore his first statement is the only one that can be true, so we know Grieg didn't do it.
3 - We know right away that Straus did it, merely by knowing that Grieg didn't do it. Since we already know Grieg's first statement is true, then this confirm's Strauss' statement about grieg blaming gerschwin as true, which ultimately incriminates him because by knowing his second statement is true, we know his first statement is a lie, which means he killed Handle. Don't need to go any further, but you can if you like just to confirm.
4 - Gershwin's second statement can not be true because we already know Joplin and Grieg didn't do it, therefore Gershwin's first statement is the only one that can be true.
The key is in knowing that each suspects answers are mutually exclusive, meaning only one of their statements is true. With that in mind, you can get to the answer before you have even read all the suspects statements.
1 - You know right away it wasn't Joplin, because if his second statement is true, then his first statement is also true, which violates the constraints of the puzzle, therefore his first statement is the only one that can be true.
2 - Same with Griegs statement, if his second statement is true then his first statement must also be true, so that violates the constraints, therefore his first statement is the only one that can be true, so we know Grieg didn't do it.
3 - We know right away that Straus did it, merely by knowing that Grieg didn't do it. Since we already know Grieg's first statement is true, then this confirm's Strauss' statement about grieg blaming gerschwin as true, which ultimately incriminates him because by knowing his second statement is true, we know his first statement is a lie, which means he killed Handle. Don't need to go any further, but you can if you like just to confirm.
4 - Gershwin's second statement can not be true because we already know Joplin and Grieg didn't do it, therefore Gershwin's first statement is the only one that can be true.
Not my favorite type of teaser but well done.
very fun~
not too difficult, but it made me think ~
not too difficult, but it made me think ~
Nice and simple, a lot of fun!
Not so difficult.
Nice quiz
Nice quiz
Cute! and fun. I did know the approach to solving that was given in the answer, and I agree with lmurray that it's kinda a shame you gave away the way to solve this sort! I will also say, though, that I liked how it felt a little different than the ways I've seen almost the same puzzle... never seen it with four people, and never had each of them claiming innocence in one of their sentences either. Very cool!
Love it!
I had No clue what the heck this puzzle was about or how to solve it until I read amccari's explanation. Thank you for taking the time to post your comment because without it I would have been lost forever. Am I the only one that did not enjoy this puzzle?
Nov 08, 2008
It took me 2 seconds. The answer is Strauss but the explanation is too complicated and not accurate. Simply read: Therefore the 2nd sentence is not a lie as stated by the explanation. Strauss stands out 'cuz he's the only one not accusing anybody.
Apr 28, 2009
Nice one! I'm so proud got that one
Jun 06, 2009
....................that answer isn't clear in the slightest, i don't even know how you people can figure it out so quickly, or even explain it.
This is too easy.
Assume joplin is the killer. Then either grieg is the killer or none of us is. Contradiction.
Assume grieg is the killer. Then gershwin is the killer. Contradiction
Assume strauss is the killer. Then grieg is lying when he says Gershwin is the killer. No problem
Assume gershwin is the killer. Then if joplin did not kill him, then grieg did. Contradiction.
Killer is Strauss. Can do this in ~15 seconds.
Assume joplin is the killer. Then either grieg is the killer or none of us is. Contradiction.
Assume grieg is the killer. Then gershwin is the killer. Contradiction
Assume strauss is the killer. Then grieg is lying when he says Gershwin is the killer. No problem
Assume gershwin is the killer. Then if joplin did not kill him, then grieg did. Contradiction.
Killer is Strauss. Can do this in ~15 seconds.
I got the answer from first two statement.
Great puzzle though!
Great puzzle though!
Sherlock Holmes helped me figure it out. We came up with the answer.
I have never trusted that Strauss fellow.
easy, and simpler than you explanation. Strauss is the only one who's 2nd sentence does not blame someone and therefore can be true if the first sentence is a lie
I really didn't have to do much. Grieg's and Strauss' 2nd statements directly oppose one another, so one of them is guilty, and looking at Joplin's 2nd statement tells me which one.
Lol that was fun. A bit easy, but it took me a bit to organize the thoughts for some reason.
27 seconds. I love these types of teasers. Keep 'em coming!
I don't think you have to take into account the other statements when assuming that one of them is the killer. Anyone who says that someone else can't be the killer because if they were, that would be two lies. Other than that, I really like this one.
Couldn't wrap my head around this one. I'll try again later when I have more time.
I thought O J Simpson did it.
It's possible to solve without even using Joplin and Gershwin's statements. In fact, that is how I solved it. Here's how:
Take Grieg's statement first. If he was the killer, than his first statement is false, making his second statement true. However, this isn't possible, as it states that Gershwin is the killer, when we already know that Grieg is. Therefore Grieg is not the killer, making his first statement true, and his second statement false. Now look at Strauss's second statement. It says that Grieg's second statement is false, which we already know. Therefore, Strauss's second statement is true, which means his first is false. His first statement saye "I did not kill Handel," which we know is a lie. Therefore, Strauss is the killer.
Overall, nice teaser. Although I do not think it was intentional, the two ways of solving were nice, and using composers was a nice part. It very well deserved being the teaser of the day.
Take Grieg's statement first. If he was the killer, than his first statement is false, making his second statement true. However, this isn't possible, as it states that Gershwin is the killer, when we already know that Grieg is. Therefore Grieg is not the killer, making his first statement true, and his second statement false. Now look at Strauss's second statement. It says that Grieg's second statement is false, which we already know. Therefore, Strauss's second statement is true, which means his first is false. His first statement saye "I did not kill Handel," which we know is a lie. Therefore, Strauss is the killer.
Overall, nice teaser. Although I do not think it was intentional, the two ways of solving were nice, and using composers was a nice part. It very well deserved being the teaser of the day.
I just have a very hard time solving these. Guess logic is not my thing.
I like Cutebug's answer the best. I do not even try these, but love the comments
I have an alternate answer. If we assume that in one of the statements the suspect has been identified we can infer that Strauss is not the perpetrator. Thus his statement that he did not kill Handel is truthful. This automatically makes his second statement a lie. Knowing that, we need to change his second statement "Grieg is lying when he says Gershwin is the killer" to "Grieg is
not lying when he says Gershwin is the killer". We can conclude that Gershwin is the killer
not lying when he says Gershwin is the killer". We can conclude that Gershwin is the killer
A scip model (ie. a system of linear equations with integer and
binary variables) for solving this can be found at https://gist.github.com/saska-gist/
f3950732bad7fd0082d208c3db0aa780
binary variables) for solving this can be found at https://gist.github.com/saska-gist/
f3950732bad7fd0082d208c3db0aa780
Nice fun teaser thank you!
To all those who struggle with such logic puzzles, remember practice makes perfect.
To all those who struggle with such logic puzzles, remember practice makes perfect.
Fun, easy and entertaining teaser; I got this one very quickly.
I hate these. I can never do them.
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