A farmer has a pear tree that has six large branches. On each large branch are six smaller branches. On each smaller branch are six twigs. On each twig is a pear. Now if a nearby farmer's market wants all of the fruits that are on that farmer's tree, how many plums will they get?
Some people may say 216, but that is wrong. How will a pear tree produce plums?
I find that most riddles work on diversion. IQ test questions ("The Moron Test" for iPhone, iPod, and iPad) work on the same principle. For example:
Mary's father has 5 daughters--Nana, Nene, Nini, and Nono. Who was the fifth daughter?
Because humans learn at an early age to look for patterns, we might think that the answer is Nunu. WRONG! It's Mary!
Mary's father has 5 daughters--Nana, Nene, Nini, and Nono. Who was the fifth daughter?
1. Mary
2. Nana
3. Nene
4. Nini
5. Nono
Another one might be,
If a person digs a 6ft by 6ft by 6ft hole, how many square feet of dirt are in it?
There is 216ft of air in it, but no dirt--it's a hole!
By deception and distraction, these IQ test questions are only hard when you don't know what to expect, and instead of paying attention to the facts, you follow the pattern or do the seemingly obvious math, instead of paying attention to the careful wording of the facts. Once you do a lot of riddles, you find that they become much easier because you are paying attention. Most of the time, we are not "dumb", we are simply careless.
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