Lateral Thinking Challenges
Published December 28, 2005
These puzzles require you to step to one side, mentally, ask questions and parse carefully to reach the answer.
The Man Who Returned Too Soon
One bright sunny morning a man left his home. After some time he decided to return home and came back straightaway. When he got home he died. If he had not gone home so quickly he would have lived. What happened?
No Flash Photographs, Please!
In Iran, a Westerner cannot take a photo of a man with a turban. Why not?
Three Notes
One morning a woman wrote the same note to three different people. The first was a bank robber, who laughed at the note and threw it away. The second was a Bolivian, who also threw the note away. The third was a priest, who was very sad to receive the note. What was happening?
The Secretary's Error
A secretary went on vacation. She inadvertently took something from the office. Her boss sent her a message asking her to return it immediately. She did return it to the office that same day. Yet when she returned from vacation, she was dismissed. Why?
And the classic:
Expense Account
An executive who was based in New York was posted to Hong Kong on assignment. When he was due to return, he faxed his manager the following request: "Is it okay for me to transport back to New York, at the company's expense, my personal items, household effects, and the junk I've bought here in Hong Kong?" He was given approval, so he did just that. But once he was back in New York, a furious argument ensued. The company refused to pay the transport bill, and the executive had to sue the company. (He won, but that is not the issue.) What was the cause of the argument?
Have fun! Use the comments to guess and debate. I'll post some hints if it seems to be taking too long...
DrPat is the blog signature used by an old coot who hoards books, dances Argentine Tango, cooks a mean venison chili, and is happy to be along for the sag while my spouse does a marathon bicycle ride. All that is in my spare time — and my work life is classified...
- Lateral Thinking Challenges
- Published: December 28, 2005
- Type: Opinion
- Section: Culture
- Writer: DrPat
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Comments on this articleComments
I'm clueless on all of these...
Hints! I need hints!
Man who returned too soon, caught his wife with her lover, who shot him
they don't wear turbans in Iran
and Expense accoutn...a "junk" is a chinese boat, kinda big..and one helluva Fed Ex bill
i'll look at the rest again tomorrow, nothing pops into my mind immediately
Excelsior!
Does it make a difference (the man who came home too soon) how he leaves his house and returns? (Maybe he has a car accident because of traffic that would not be there if he returned later.)
On the man who returned to soon:
The morning sun reached an angle where it shone through the man's backyard magnifying glass farm just so, igniting the stick of dynamite in his back pocket just as he was turning the key.
Had he been just a little slower, the angle would've been off.
?
On the secretary, did she return the item taped to a brick, by heaving it through the office window?
The Man Who Returned Too Soon: HINT - His death was accidental, and no other person was involved. PS: No dynamite!
No Flash Photographs, Please!: Aaman's right, it takes a camera.
Three Notes: HINT - The woman had never met any of the three people, and had no intention of ever meeting them, but her note was a serious communication.
The Secretary's Error: HINT - She mailed the item back.
Expense Account: Yes, Aaman's right, and so is Gonzo.
Looks like no one is able to skull-bust the tougher puzzles here...
BROAD HINTS:
Home Too Soon: It matters where his home is. When he left and when he returned, he wasn't operating any wheeled vehicle OR traveling by foot.
Three Notes: The woman's job is a factor in the men's varied reactions. The Bolivian was a tourist.
Secretary: The item was small and metallic.
C'mon, guys -- you can do this!
The man who returned too soon left his home by ascending straight up into the sky in the gondola of a hot air balloon. When he decided to return home, he impatiently leapt out of the gondola, relying on his trusty parachute to harmlessly interrupt his speedy fall just before he hit the ground. The bright morning sun had raised a dense fog from the damp ground, and he misjudged the timing of the precise moment when he needed to pull the ripcord.
Fortunately his parachute was equipped with a safety trigger linked to an altimeter, and it opened in time. After safely landing, the man then decided to retrieve his balloon (which was still attached to his home by a very long piece of extremely strong fishing line, just like the ones often employed during attempts to capture and photograph giant squid). He attempted to do this by using a remote control device designed to slowly let out the hot air. Sadly, the remote transmitter malfunctioned and let the hot air out too quickly. The balloon fell from the sky like a stone, landing on the man and killing him.
If the man had patiently remained in the balloon, he could have maintained manual control, it would have descended more slowly, and he would still be alive today.
Victor, surely that wins a prize for something. I'm not sure what, though!
The secretary took a key. Mailing it back wouldn't help, as her office-mates couldn't enter the office to retrieve the mail.
Alternatively, it was the mail key.
Phillip, you nailed the Secretary -- she inadvertently took the mailbox key, and was fired because she mailed it back. (What was she thinking?)
Victor, you're so close to solving the Home Too Quickly puzzle, it's scary -- GREAT lateral thinking there!
And no one has even tried the Three Notes, yet. HINT: The bank robber's role in the robbery is a STRONG factor in why he threw the note away laughing.
Three Notes:
"If you're reading this, I died during a bank robbery"
The bank robber laughed because he killed the woman (his accomplice) so he didn't have to split the money with her.
The Bolivian (her gardener) couldn't read English, so he just tossed the note aside.
Hre Priest was sad because she died in sin.
Er, yeah... :-/
So...are we ever going to learn the correct answers? ;-)
she had taken key
Did I mention already that there are several answers that would apply to each of these?
Also, that I would like to hire a secretary that can figure out how to mail something and have it arrive the same day!
THREE NOTES: The woman works in the bank asn she is deaf. So to each person in the cue she writes"i am deaf.How can i help you".The robber is robbing the bank and The Bolivian is a tourist who cannot read english so they both take no notice of it. The priest is very sad upon hearing her news and pities her.
The woman was passing out parking tickets. The bank robber just laughed and threw away the note. The Bolivian couldn't read it and also threw it away. The priest was the only one who could be sad about his own sin.
The man returned too soon because he lived in a houseboat. He was diving at a deep level at the time and suffered a serious attack of the bends coming up because he was too impatient.
btw, heres one.
A man died because his number was 88 too big. How come?
i think im silly
Add your comment, speak your mind
(Or ping: http://blogcritics.org/mt/tb/41556)
Alright:
No Flash: You cannot take a photo with a turban, you need a camera
Expense Account: He shipped a boat back to England from Hong Kong
Hope this becomes a feature:)