Puzzle Definition and 618 Threads

A puzzle is a game, problem, or toy that tests a person's ingenuity or knowledge. In a puzzle, the solver is expected to put pieces together in a logical way, in order to arrive at the correct or fun solution of the puzzle. There are different genres of puzzles, such as crossword puzzles, word-search puzzles, number puzzles, relational puzzles, and logic puzzles.
Puzzles are often created to be a form of entertainment but they can also arise from serious mathematical or logical problems. In such cases, their solution may be a significant contribution to mathematical research.

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  1. J

    Sequence Puzzle: Can You Figure it Out?

    2,5,8,11,13,15,30,34,40,46,52,56,60,63 This was a popular one when I was younger, but I haven't heard it lately. What comes next in the sequence? This is way a trick question. Only a small percentage of people have even a chance of figuring it out.
  2. R

    How Do You Connect 9 Dots with 4 Lines?

    This is one I learned in grade school. Connect the 9 dots with only 4 straight lines and without lifting your pencil / mouse. http://img12.echo.cx/my.php?image=9dots4bl.png
  3. B

    Master the Math Puzzle: Solving Pyramids with Numbers

    I have to do this puzzle for h/w, and for some reason i just can't do it :mad: 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Using the above numbers and patterns. Form the shape below by moving only 3 numbers. * * * * * * * * * * ANy Ideas. *they're pyramids by the way
  4. chronon

    Try to Arrange Squares 1-24 into 70 Side Square Pyramid Puzzle

    Following a post in the Number theory forum, I got to thinking: is it possible to arrange the squares with sides 1 to 24 into one big square of side 70. I think its probably impossible, but I've written an applet at http://www.chronon.org/applets/pyramid.html for people to try it out.
  5. A

    What Are the Numbers in the First Column of This Sudoku-Like Puzzle?

    Open attached file and Fill in numbers 1 to 9 such that no number repeats in any column or row. What are the numbers in the first column - in sequence top down? here is also a link numblock1.gif
  6. B

    Unraveling the Modular Arithmetic Puzzle

    This is another puzzle that has to do with modular arithmetic (the other one that did was Picture Puzzle). 1 1 2 1 3 2 4 1 4 5 2 3 6 1 6 4 3 9 2 8 7 5 10 What's the next row?
  7. A

    The Famous Runner and the Tortoise Puzzle

    i forget the name of the puzzle but it is somewhere in the brain teaser. there is a famus runner in a race with a tortoise. and to win he had to go after the tortoise but before that he must travel that half of the distance but before that he must travel that half of half of the distance...
  8. B

    Can you solve this picture puzzle and fill in the black areas?

    Fill in the black areas: http://img74.echo.cx/my.php?image=puzzle2yj.png
  9. T

    The easiest logic puzzle of all time

    this one is ridiculously obvious, and because of that, some people totally miss it. :smile: you have two coins, and the sum of the value of these two coins is $.15 (they are american coins. no japanese coins) if one of your coins is not a nickel, what are the value's of your coins...
  10. J

    A somewhat easier liar/truther puzzle

    As you travel from Rodnag to Gandor, you encounter a fork in the road. There is someone standing there who is either one who always lies or one who always tells the truth and you don't know which. You can point to any road and ask "Is this the road to Gandor?" as many times as you like, but that...
  11. Q

    Solve the Puzzle: Smart Seller's Trick to Avoid Mistakes

    Stupid Seller? Two men A and B go to the market to sell eggs. Each one has 30 eggs. A sells 2 for one unit(insert your own monetary unit) and B sells 3 for one unit. Just before they start to sell, A gets an urgent call from his home, he requests B to sell his stuff and goes home. B, the wise...
  12. B

    Why Does 3762 + 8271 Equal What It Does?

    :confused: Can anyone help me figure out this very hard math puzzle? :confused: 2 + 2 = 4 4 + 4 = 8 142 + 468 = 621 3762 + 8271 = ? PS. It is very confusing!
  13. G

    Why Is Notpron Considered the Hardest Puzzle Online?

    http://deathball.net/notpron/notpron.htm Supposedly, over 2 million people have visited the site and something like only 30 people have ever solved the puzzle entirely. The puzzle is ~80 pages in length and only a handful of people have ever even hit the last page. I played it for 5 min...
  14. N

    Solving the Pushy Astronaut Puzzle: Newton's Third Law

    Pushy Astronaut -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- a) An astronaut of mass 70 kg pushes off a satellite of mass 420 kg, exerting a force of 120 N for the 0.83 s they are in contact. What is the speed of the astronaut after they have separated...
  15. Y

    Solving Heat Transfer Puzzle: Cooling Steel from 452°C to 100°C

    Hey People...um this is a question i got for school...i know what was used to solve it but i can't understand how that method was used and why they did that... it says: A foundry operator finds that it takes 55.3MJ of heat to heat a 286 kg mass of an alloy steel from 22 degrees C to 452...
  16. B

    Pattern Brain Puzzle: Solve the 101110111110111101100011001110111 Mystery

    This one is probably very difficult: 101110111110111101100011001110111? What fills in the question marks?
  17. T

    Two Cyclists & a Fly: Solving a Distance Puzzle

    Two people live 20 km from each other. They start cycling towards each other with a speed of 10 km/h. A fly starts from one of them and flies to the other person and then back to the first person. It has an average speed of 15 km/h. It continues to do this until the two people meet. How far will...
  18. T

    Where Else Can Mr. Fubini Start His Journey to End Up at the Same Place?

    one person, let's call him Mr. Fubini, walked south one mile, west one mile, and then back north one mile. he then looked around and noticed he was back where he started. where on the Earth is this possible? (note there is a really obvious answer honestly everyone gets in like 2 minutes, and...
  19. E

    Frog Leap Puzzle - Challenge Your Logic with This Fun Game!

    http://www.ebaumsworld.com/frogleap.html Instructions: Move the green frogs from the left to the right. Move the brown frogs from the right to the left. I once made it, but I forgot how to do it now :redface:
  20. V

    Solving the Puzzle: Calculating a Car's Speed

    a car is traveling at a uniform speed. the driver sees a milestone showing a two digit number. after traveling for one hour the driver sees another milestone with the same digits reversed. after another hour he comes across yet another yet another milestone containing the same two digits...
  21. M

    Test Your Skills with This Flash Puzzle Game

    here's a rather challenging flash puzzle game if any of you are interested... i'll post hints on it if you need help... http://www.woolythinking.com/html/darkroomIE.html?o=0o best of luck to anyone who tries
  22. G

    The Solution To The Hardest Logic Puzzle Ever

    Seems like no one got it so here it is without further adieu (sp?) http://people.ucsc.edu/~jburke/three_gods.pdf
  23. M

    A group theoretic puzzle in solid geometry

    imagine a regular dodecahedron, and its group of rotations. this group is "simple" of order 60, hence isomorphic to the group A5, of even permutations of 5 elements. i.e. each face is preserved by 5 rotations, yet can be translated to 12 different faces, hence there are 60 motions in all...
  24. Orion1

    Unraveling the Mystery of Pluto: 75 Years Since Its Discovery and Counting

    Reference: http://www.harktheherald.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=47773&mode=thread&order=0&thold=0
  25. R

    Solve x^3 -x -x^3=0 Puzzle: Is x=0 the Answer?

    This a puzzle for me. x^3 -x -x^3=0 Obviously x=0 but, divide both sides by x x^2 -1 -x^2=0 except for when x=0 'cause undefined but that means -1=0 is this apparent conflict not in fact one because you can't rule out x=0 ?
  26. S

    Trigonometry Puzzle: Solving the Challenging Image Puzzle on Etienne.nu

    http://www.etienne.nu/imagepuz/4845.htm How would I go about solving this? I know it involes trigonometry, but I donnot know how to get the proper answer.
  27. O

    Maths Puzzle 'A HAPPY XMAS' six have tried and failed

    Ok, At least six (intelligent, have degree's etc, and are old) adults have tried our 13 years old's homework... Question is: 'A' divided into 'HAPPY' = 'XMAS' or I suppose 'A' * 'XMAS' = 'HAPPY' Each letter stands for a different number. Apparently there may be more than one answer...
  28. check

    Darkroom IE Puzzle - Woolythinking

    http://www.woolythinking.com/html/darkroomIE.html?o=0o Pretty hard flash puzzle. Took me over 2 hours to beat. Not really worth it, but good if you like these sort of things.
  29. L

    Solving the Coaster Puzzle: Finding Variables and Calculations

    It's all still so confusing! Setting up the equation isn't the problem.. plugging in the numbers. I'm missing varibables and I don't know where to go to find themm i. if the spring constant is 2000 N/m how far will the spring have to compress to bring the coaster to a stop? (Asume the weight...
  30. M

    Help! Lost in Electrons & Protons: Solving My Homework Puzzle

    :blushing: I am getting confused. electrons, protons, which finger goes where in the left hand rule... agh! lol, I am muddling myself all up. i understand the rule (well i hope i do by now as that means the rest of my homework is wrong) but the last question of my h/w is almost killing me...
  31. M

    A diophantine puzzle for students

    a diophantine puzzle for abstract algebra students A Diophantine Puzzle We give an application of ring theoretic methods to study a classical problem: which primes p in Z are sums of two squares? Trial and error suggests that the answer is p = 2 = 1^2+1^2, and those p which are congruent to...
  32. G

    Solve the Infamous Puzzle: One Continuous Line Challenge | Step-by-Step Guide

    Hi everyone. I've been stumped trying to figure this one out for the past week, I think some may have seen it before. It looks like this: *EDIT* The picture I attempted to draw didn't post right, I'll have one up soon. *EDIT 2* Here we go...
  33. I

    Finding the Optimal Chess Board Puzzle Piece Arrangement

    Everyone will appreciate that a Chess board consists of 64 squares. The board is eight squares by eight squares. A puzzle may be made by cutting the board into pieces , along the boundary of the squares, and then attempting to reassemble the pieces back into the original 8 x 8 square shape...
  34. Chronos

    Can Higher Order Curvature Theories of Gravity Solve the Dark Matter Puzzle?

    Authors propose solution to dark matter and alternative to MOND. Higher Order Curvature Theories of Gravity Matched with Observations: a Bridge Between Dark Energy and Dark Matter Problems http://www.arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0411114 Higher order curvature gravity has recently received a lot...
  35. P

    S. I hope you can open the linkSolving the Pentagram Star Puzzle

    Here is a grafical problem. You have to use two straight lines to cut up the pentagram star and you have to get 10 triangles. The triangles must not be counted twice. Or to put it another way, the same area can only be used once...
  36. S

    Calculating Work to Lift Kite String from Ground: A Puzzle

    Hi - Here's the entire problem to avoid confusion >< "A kite is flying at a height of 500 ft and at a horizontal distance of 100 ft from the stringholder on the ground. The kite string weighs 1/16 oz/ft and is hanging in the shape of the parabola y=(x^2)/20 that joins the stringholder at...
  37. R

    Solving Physics Puzzle: Hockey Puck Collision

    Ok, this is probably the simplest problem I was assigned out of an intro physics course and simply cannot figure out how to go about it. Hockey Puck B at rest is struck by puck A, which was traveling at 40.0m/s in the +x direction. After they hit, A is deflected 30 degrees above the x axis...
  38. N

    Solving the Puzzle: Cow Rope Length in Round Meadow

    Hi, I have tried to solve this puzzle: If we had a round meadow and a cow tied with a rope on the edge of that meadow. Hw long should be a rope if we wanted to let the cow eat a half of that meadow? I have tried to solve this puzzle time ago and now it attracted me again. Does anyone know how...
  39. N

    Can You Solve the Box Thing Puzzle?

    I don't know where I learned this originally, but I have never been able to solve it. (And I don't remeber what its called) http://n0n.madtracker.net/boxthing.GIF All you got to do is draw one continuous line threw all the box lines once, I did an example so that you get what I mean...
  40. J

    Chess/Math Puzzle: A Topological Approach

    This is a chess/math puzzle I invented: Consider a fully set up chess board (in starting position). Invent a condition (new rule) in which black wins without either side making any moves. Note: this problem has a really abstract and *topological* approach. :smile: Please email me...
  41. T

    Solving a Physics Puzzle: Average Acceleration of a Tennis Ball

    Hello, I'm starting to study physics, and I have a problem that I have puzzled me for long... here it is. any help appreciated. thanks in advanced. A tennis ball with a speed of 23.6 m/s is thrown perpendicularly at a wall. After strik- ing the wall, the ball rebounds in the opposite...
  42. D

    Five Rooms Puzzle: Is it Possible?

    Dear Everybody, Perhaps you know this puzzle, there are five rooms arranged as below: -------------- lxxxlxxxxxxlxxxl (please ignore the x's, they are 'spacers') -------------- lxxxxxxlxxxxxxxl (with no breaks, the walls are solid) -------------- The aim of the...
  43. T

    Solving the Traffic Light Overtake Puzzle

    I have been working on this problem for a while, and I still don't understand how to set it up for the first part of this problem: At the instant the traffic light turns green, an automobile starts with a constant acceleration a of 2.2 m/s squared. At the same instant a truck, traveling with...
  44. J

    Falling Objects Puzzle: Find Ratio of Heights

    two dimensions Two stones are thrown horizontally with the same velocity from the tops of two different buildings. One stone lands twice as far from the based of the building from which it was thrown as does the other stone. Find the ratiio of the height of the taller building to the height...
  45. C

    Homework puzzle from 15 years ago never solved -

    Homework puzzle from 15 years ago never solved - Please Help! :confused: I had this puzzle in one of my math classes in Jr. High - for 15 years I have been trying to solve it - no one would ever give me the answer, and I was sick on the day the teacher gave it. He has since retired, and no one...
  46. marcus

    Will Hawking declare BH info puzzle solved?

    this just appeared at SPR: John Baez: -----quote----- In a surprise move, Hawking has decided to give a lecture on the black hole information problem in Dublin this July, at a conference called "GR17" where I'll also be speaking. I've heard rumors that he believes he's "solved" this...
  47. Gokul43201

    What Color is the Bear Outside the Hunter's Cabin?

    Okay, so a hunter gets out of his cabin on morning and gets into his jet powered surface cruiser. He travels 4000 miles south; turns eastward and travels 4000 miles and finally turns north and cruises for 4000 miles, at the end of which he is back outside his cabin. Now he sees a bear standing...
  48. Antonio Lao

    Entropy and Expansion, A Puzzle?

    Entropy is increasing. I am accepting this statement as a fact which I don't know how to verify by experiment. Entropy, as I understand, is related to number of arrangement of objects found in a given system. The more objects there are, the higher is the entropy. For a universe of just one...
  49. B

    What are some challenging puzzle problems and how can I solve them?

    These we're the problems that I've tried to do. Solutions with steps would greatly be appreciated. 1. Suppose that a, b, c, are distinct non-zero digits. (A) Find a formula, depending on a,b, c, for the sum of all six digit integers whose only digits are a,b,c. (B) What is the sum of all...
  50. Q

    Puzzle: Who Pays More in the Beer Hall?

    This story surprisingly puzzles some people: Eleven friends go into a beer hall. Six of them sit at table A and five of them sit at table B. Each of the eleven orders one round for his own table. Now table A has more payers, but a person at table A ends up paying more than a person at...
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