Dangling Conversations

Colour commentary on the world we live in

Puzzle 1 - From Brazil

Posted 21 Apr, 2006 at 11:11 by blue in /Games | Permanent link

I can't take credit for creating this puzzle, and can not give credit as the person who told it to me only said that it came from Brazil. None the less, it is a clever little puzzle and I think those of you who read the site will enjoy it.

If you get it, let me know in the comments. I'll post the solution there in a week or so if no one else has solved it by then.

One day walking in a street, Caesar meets his old math teacher. Happy to meet him, he says hello to the teacher but then remembers that his teacher answers everything with a puzzle:

Caesar: How are you doing, professor? It's been a long time since we've met! Are your daughters ok? How old are they now?

Dr. Bunny: Multiplying the three ages you get 36

Ceasar: But that's not enough to know the ages!

Dr. Bunny: So, add up the ages and you'll get the number of that house.

Caesar starts calculating, but still can't figure out. The professor seeing that he wouldn't be able to find the answer says:

Dr. Bunny: The oldest girl plays the piano...

That's what Caesar needed to know to figure out the problem. How old is each girl?

Comments (2 comments so far)
I'm pretty sure I know what the answer's supposed to be... but I would argue that it's still not unique. This is possibly because I can be very, very bloody-minded about details sometimes, at least when it comes to numbers.

(In fact, I'd argue that the alternative answer is more satisfying than the original... but we can debate that once the bag's been well and truly de-catted.)
Posted 2006/4/21 13:13:16 by Matt
This reminds me of another problem, though for the life of me I could never figure out how to solve that one with pencil and paper.
Posted 2006/6/21 12:37:11 by Nikita
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Blue has been known to toss a disc around a field from time to time, and thinks that you should as well. He lives either on the Internet or in Toronto, depending on your perspective. Ask him no questions and there's a good chance he'll tell you no lies. [Site]

Brent hosts the box from which we dangle our conversations, for which we are all eternally grateful. Gratitude is most easily expressed in small bills. Formerly a pawn of the Evil Empire (or maybe a Knight), he has gone over the wall and now toils at a small computer game company in Alberta that no one except for ten million gamers has ever heard of. [Site]

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