Brain Teasers
Larry Curly and Moh
Four men met in a bar, and they soon found that all four of them had been to the Amazon Jungle. After a few more beers, they also realized that they had all been captured at least once, by fierce natives who ruled amazing fortresses. They soon got around to talking about their experiences, and their escapes. The first man said, "Well, I was once caught by natives who ruled a diamond palace. They caught me and took me to their king. He decreed that I was to die in one month. They threw me into a cell. Thank God that they didn't take my equipment. I had stolen a quartz file from one of the natives. I filed away the bars (it had curtains so they couldn't see) and escaped mere hours before I was to die."
The second man said, "I was also captured, but they took me to a simple copper structure. I did not have any such luxury of a month to escape, instead, a single day. Luckily they did not count on my desperation, and I was able to claw my way out of there using only my fingernails and pure adrenaline."
The third man said, "I was taken to the most amazing fortress of all. It was made out of black topaz. I was also the smartest of all of you," he bragged, "for I had brought with me a steel file. I was out in a jiff, and I was able to steal some of the topaz as well," he said as he showed everyone a piece of topaz hanging from a string around his neck.
The fourth man had been looking amused at the first and second men's stories, but as the third man finished he threw up his head and laughed. The other three men were looking slightly peeved, and asked him what he found so funny. He declared that they were all liars, and he could prove it.
How could he prove it, and when did each of the three men lie?
The second man said, "I was also captured, but they took me to a simple copper structure. I did not have any such luxury of a month to escape, instead, a single day. Luckily they did not count on my desperation, and I was able to claw my way out of there using only my fingernails and pure adrenaline."
The third man said, "I was taken to the most amazing fortress of all. It was made out of black topaz. I was also the smartest of all of you," he bragged, "for I had brought with me a steel file. I was out in a jiff, and I was able to steal some of the topaz as well," he said as he showed everyone a piece of topaz hanging from a string around his neck.
The fourth man had been looking amused at the first and second men's stories, but as the third man finished he threw up his head and laughed. The other three men were looking slightly peeved, and asked him what he found so funny. He declared that they were all liars, and he could prove it.
How could he prove it, and when did each of the three men lie?
Hint
The title is a fine hint.Answer
The first man couldn't have filed away the bars, because if it actually was a diamond palace as he said, quartz wouldn't even leave a scratch.The second man was closest of all, but still lying. Fingernails are very close to, but not as hard as, copper, so he couldn't get out, no matter how desperate he was.
The third man had lied most of all. First of all there is no such thing as natural black topaz (it was probably obsidian). Also he made the same mistake as all the others, for a steel file is not as hard as topaz, and would not do anything to the topaz.
In the Mohs scale of mineral hardness:
2.5- Fingernail
3- Copper
6.5- Steel File
7- Quartz
8- Topaz
10- Diamond
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Comments
that was well thought out and creative. Great work I liked it
I'm the first comment!
I'm the first comment!
I think that you have way too much time on your hands !!
I meant to have this be the first comment. But anyway.
The teaser is dedicated to my 9th grade Earth and Space Honors teacher, Mr. D
The teaser is dedicated to my 9th grade Earth and Space Honors teacher, Mr. D
this is cool but, shouldn't this be in science?
Its fits in both. In this teaser, you need to find out why the guy laughed, based off the given clues.
We just learned that in science at the end of the year, so I got it.
Very well thought out, I liked it.
Very well thought out, I liked it.
Mr. D would be proud of you.
Yeah!
Nice! That was well thought out. I knew that there was no such thing as natural black topaz and I know that diamond is the strongest mineral but I didn't get the copper one. That was a good teaser
That was a great teaser
But I didn't get it
But I didn't get it
Nicely done! Today, I learned about Moh's
I really enjoyed this one, what is the Moh's scale of hardness for Teeth though?
The whole Moh thing threw mw off... I had the right answer (except for there not being natural black topaz) but thought that couldn't be it because I didn't see where Moh fit in...
Good teaser, I enjoyed it!!
Good teaser, I enjoyed it!!
Very easy but very fun, keep them coming!
very good teaser!!!!!!!!!!!!!
So THAT"S what you meant by "look at the title"!
I didn't get it oh well. Great teaser!
very clever. good job!
I got the first and last, but I had always heard that copper was really soft, so I didn't think that was it.
Good teaser!
Good teaser!
nice one
llllloooooooonnnnng and boring!srry
I thought that this was very interesting. Nice job!
That was great!
That was fun, especially since I got it as soon as the first guy said quartz file. XD
ahhhh....well iono that was real hard for my lil brain 2 handle lol but 4 real how did u come up wit dat pplz im beggin u GET A LIFE
I recognized that the methods of escape were phony because of the hardness factor, but I didn't know the specifics! Good job!
QTkate, your comment is pathetic. I suggest that you go back to school and learn to write a sentence before attempting a comment on a site that requires one to use his/her BRAIN.
QTkate, your comment is pathetic. I suggest that you go back to school and learn to write a sentence before attempting a comment on a site that requires one to use his/her BRAIN.
Wow that was really kool. I never would have guessed the outcome
I ACTUALLY GOT ONE YOURS ADDS 5 TO MY LIST OF RIDDLES IVE GOTTEN YAY SOOOOOOOOOOOO HAPPY
That was fun. It was hard, too (although I'm not sure whether I intend the pun or not. ^_^ ).
wow, it was clever and smart. probley one of my favorties!
Yay! I got it! And I haven't gotten that far in science yet!
yeah i got it. we r just now learning about this stuff in science class.
nice job
when i looked at the title, all i thought was that you spelled 'Mo' wrong! that was a cool and scientific teaser!
Aug 24, 2007
That was fun, but I knew they were lying from the point where I read the guy getting out of a diamond palace with quartz
Oi. It has been like 3 years since I learned that. Lol, still fun, though.
Really fun and creative! This was a great teaser...but what about the fact all four men were drunk?
haha, i suppose that that would play a major part!
I didn't even think about the hardness, I haven't taken a science class in ages. I just thought it was the "black" topaz.
This soitanlee is a fine puzzle. Nyuk Nyuk Nyuk!
$D
$D
Way cute. I didn't quite get the answer, but I was on the right track. Good job!!
Good Teaser.
I had just read about the Mohs mineral hardness scale! Great teaser! But maybe it should go in the "Science" section.
I feel like this is in the wrong section
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